Chef Raymond Blanc is leaving the comfort of the kitchen at Le Manoir and heading into the woods to cook for hundreds of hungry festival-goers. He tells Tim Hughes why

Wilderness festival has established itself as probably the hippest festival of the summer, with a rich bill of musical and artistic talent.

Yet one of the biggest names on the line-up for next month's event, comes not from the world of rock, pop, dance or theatre – but from cooking.

Headlining alongside Led Zeppelin's Robert Plant, The Flaming Lips and singer-songwriter Lianne La Havas is chef Raymond Blanc.

The television personality, whose face, gentle Gallic charm and rich accent are known to millions of viewers is leaving the kitchen heat of his Michelin-starred Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons, in Great Milton, and heading into the countryside for a long-table banquet for revellers – many in fancy dress.

It will be Raymond's second visit to Wilderness; last year's banquet was hailed as a festival highlight and saw him treated as a rock star by diners, who gave him a series of standing ovations.

So is he excited about returning to the field?

"It is an exceptionally big field, and I look very much forward to it," he smiles.

"There are some interesting festivals in big fields but the most interesting is Wilderness because it's a bit daring and fun, and I had the best experience there."

Raymond, the star of TV shows Kew on a Plate, How to Cook Well, and The Restaurant, will be joined at the festival by chefs Skye Gyngell and Virgilio Martinez, who also host long table banquets, and Christian Puglisi (Relae, Copenhagen), Tomos Parry (Kitty Fisher's), Lee Westcott (The Dining Room) and one of Raymond's proteges, Robin Gill (The Dairy), who trained at Le Manoir.

"It is wonderful to see chefs at such a big event, including Robin who is wonderfully experienced," he says. It is, he insists, a sign of our relatively new-found love of good food – something which has come a long way since he arrived in England in the 70s.

"More and more British people want better food," he says. "They want to know where it comes from – and how much horse is in their burger!

"It's a reflection of the food revolution and reflects Britishness, because food is fun.

"I like the long table. The table for me is a wonderful medium. There will be people from all backgrounds who don't know each other, but they create connections. I see it at our own music festival at Le Manoir, where strangers also sit on the same table.

"There is wine which is properly chilled, and glorious food which is properly cooked, and everyone celebrating the ambience and capturing a few days of sun – hopefully.

"It's fun!"

He is in relaxed mode, having just come from a long lunch with his friend the chef Angela Hartnett at her London restaurant Murano. Angela cooked up a storm at last year's Wilderness.

"Too much food slows you down in a remarkable way," he laughs.

He admits that cooking in a tent on the Cornbury estate is a challenge to a man more used to a state-of-the-art kitchen.

"At Le Manoir I have my own kitchen and team and my own produce from my garden, just yards away – and I can create total excellence," he says. "When I cook in a field it is more like cooking for Napoleon's soldiers. It's a field kitchen and I am cooking for an army. It is a new space with new equipment and anything can go wrong. There is no refrigeration and staff may not turn up as they have drunk too much the night before.

"But I will be bringing my generals – people I have been working with for six years – and will train my new recruits, so that we can bring, in some way, Le Manoir to the field. And it will be very, very, very good!"

Raymond acquired his obsession with food from his parents while growing up in Besancon, in eastern France. ‘Maman Blanc’ was an exceptional cook and Raymond’s father a keen gardener and forager –Raymond joining him on trips into the surrounding woods.

His first experience in the restaurant trade saw him working as a glass washer and waiter near his home town, but after a dispute with the chef when Raymond offered him advice on his cooking, he packed up his Renault 5 and crossed the Channel, arriving in Oxfordshire for his first real kitchen job – at the Rose Revived in Newbridge.

It was there he also met his first wife – the owner’s daughter Jenny. They went on to have two children, divorcing in the mid-80s. He was subsequently married to psychotherapist Kati Cottrell, again divorcing in the 90s.

From Newbridge, he came to Oxford, working at La Sorbonne in the High Street, then setting up his own Les Quat’ Saisons in Summertown, in 1977. The establishment was an instant success, being named Egon Ronay Guide Restaurant of the Year and picking up two Michelin stars.

In 1981 he opened the first of his nationwide chain of La Maison Blanc cafes and bakeries, then, two years later, made the move to Great Milton, turning an old manor house into one of the country’s finest restaurants.

In the 90s, he opened his first Le Petit Blanc bistro. Now known as Brasserie Blanc, they offer a more informal, homely experience than the gastronomic temple of Le Manoir. His home branch is in Jericho, close to his North Oxford home. He remains fiercely proud of all his restaurants.

For now though he can't wait to get back to the Cornbury Estate.

"Robert Plant is playing and he is one of my heroes," he says with childlike excitement. "Led Zeppelin are my era and I love them even more than the Rolling Stones. It's amazing psychedelic rock and I'll be going along especially just to se him."

He goes on: "Wilderness is a great summer party, and when it is warm and sunny, like last year, it's an even bigger party.

"If it rains, it will be like Glastonbury, but we will have as much fun. But of course it will be sunny – I hope!"

Wilderness Festival. Cornbury Park, August 4-7. For details and tickets go to wildernessfestival.com