Hannah Hendy

With first-hand experience of life in a busy commercial kitchen, Hannah Hendy hit on the idea for her Dinner Lady Detectives during a conversation with a friend and has since published seven books in the popular cosy crime series. ...

Raised in Chepstow, Hendy moved across the Severn in her twenties to gain her cooking qualification and find work in Bristol and Bath. The pressure of long days in a hotel kitchen brought her a wealth of skills but ultimately became overwhelming, prompting a change of job that developed unexpectedly into a new career. On taking up a role in a canteen, Hendy was struck by the difference in pace and, newly single, found herself in the unfamiliar position of having free time. After penning diary entries and short stories, her writing evolved into 2021’s The Dinner Lady Detectives, the tale of how school canteen workers Margery and Clementine Butcher-Baker turn to sleuthing after their manager is found dead in the walk-in freezer. The cosy mystery with its gentle humour, engaging characters and evocation of small-town life proved popular and Hendy has published six further novels following the amateur detectives since her debut.