THE name's wrong for a start. Faggots... Not appealing.

I was surprised to find recently, during one of those lulls in the office routine when strange subjects get mentioned, that lots of my colleagues had never tasted faggots. So as it's National Faggot Week next week (imagine!), it seemed high time to educate them.

In came a dish of Mr Brain's faggots. And up turned some noses. Just the word 'faggot' was enough for them to decide they didn't like them. And I'm not sure that Mr Brain helped either.

But they're an adventurous lot, and most had a try.

I've never known such a wide variety of responses to a dish of food. Some hated the smooth texture, while for others that was the prime attraction. Some loved the gravy, another said it wasn't like Bisto. Some thought their faggot was good and flavoursome, others found it bland (what on earth do they eat at home?).

And one polished off the dish with huge relish. "Wonderful," she cried, "it takes me right back to my childhood."

So do faggots deserve a place in today's British cuisine? They certainly have a long pedigree, going back to the Middle Ages when they were often called savoury ducks. The faggot from the Latin word for bundle was made from pig's liver and offal, minced with fat and onions and then mixed with breadcrumbs soaked in milk, herbs and seasoning.

Characteristically each faggot was wrapped in its own little jacket made from caul fat (from the pig's innards don't ask).

This is how my mother-in-law used to make them, with the caul supplied by the butcher. Her family reminisce about them still.

Today Mr Brain's frozen packs of faggots have discarded the offal and the lining, and are made from pork liver and pork, with breadcrumbs and seasonings. They certainly make a cheap meal for those who enjoy them: Iceland currently has them on offer at two packs for £2 (eight faggots in all). Heat in the oven, or microwave for 10 minutes.

But they are obviously one of those tastes you either love or not.

Delia Smith has an updated recipe for faggots in her Complete Cookery Course.

She casseroles bacon, pig's liver and belly pork with onions, minces it, then adds breadcrumbs, herbs and spice, forms it into balls, and bakes them in stock.

She serves them with mushy peas.