Remote control Aga on sale

The long-awaited ‘remote-control’ Aga is now on the market. This means that you can leave supper in the oven and, on your way home, text your Aga to tell it to start cooking.

The Aga iTotal Control has three ovens- roasting, baking and simmering-and, if you have no mobile-phone signal, it can be contacted via the web, using a PC, laptop, iPad or tablet. Not every Aga owner is ready to trade theirs in for the new model, however. ‘My solidfuel Aga dates from 1960 and is wonderful, if temperamental,’ says COUNTRY LIFE food writer Leslie Geddes-Brown. ‘But I’m not sure I want a remote-control version-the whole point of an Aga is for it to be like a family pet.’

The Aga iTotal Control costs from £10,090 (0845 712 5207; www.agaliving.com).