Genevieve Taylor teaches live-fire cooking at Bristol Fire School and cooks over coals most days of the week. She reviewed a Charlie for The Telegraph, putting it through chicken skewers, flatbreads, roast vegetables and a chocolate traybake.
Genevieve Taylor, The Telegraph, 9 July 2026. · Read the full reviewOn fuel, she wrote: “I was impressed with how little fuel it needs.”
Charlie runs on lumpwood charcoal and needs very little of it. Our own figures are 15 to 20 minutes to reach 200 to 250°C, holding temperature for four to six hours. Use lumpwood and never briquettes, because the additives in briquettes carry into the food.
The working range runs from 100°C to 400°C. Thirty minutes gets you to 375 to 400°C, which is pizza heat. Two layers of insulation, stainless steel and high-grade ceramic wool, hold the heat inside and keep the outside cool enough to stand beside.
The cooking chamber holds 137 litres across nine rack positions. Two stainless steel racks come as standard, each 39cm by 43cm. Move a tray up or down and you change how hard the heat hits it, so several dishes can run at once at different speeds.
The door is on the front and the racks slide out. Getting to the bottom shelf does not mean disturbing everything above it, and nothing has to come off a grill to reach the coals. At 185cm tall and 62cm wide, Charlie works at standing height.
“The nine rack levels make multi-temperature cooking much more efficient than on a barbecue”
“it was refreshing to be able to slide trays in and out”
It is, and the review says so plainly. Charlie sits at the top of its market. It is made in Britain, built to stay outside all year, and it carries a five year manufacturer warranty. If it only comes out twice a summer, buy something smaller.
Correct. Below the charcoal grate there is the ash tray and nothing else, so tools and trays have to live somewhere else. That is a fair criticism and it is the main reason we build island and base cabinets that sit alongside the oven.
Also correct. Charlie arrives with two cooking racks, the adjustable rack system, an ash tray and a charcoal grate. Pizza stones, planchas, roasting trays and kebab racks are sold separately and they add up. You can cook well from day one without them, but the review is right that the full set is a real extra cost.
True, and true of any well-insulated oven. Thick insulation holds heat, which is the whole point of it, and the trade-off is that bringing the temperature back down takes vent control and a little patience. Expect a couple of cooks before you know where its hot and cool spots are.
Read live from the product record, so this list cannot drift out of step with what we actually ship.
£4,958.33
Operating temperature range of 100°C to 400°C.
15-20 minutes to reach 200-250°C temperature.
30 minutes to reach 375-400°C for pizza baking.
Holds temperature for between 4 and 6 hours.
Charlie Oven (fully assembled), two heavy-duty stainless steel rod cooking racks, adjustable internal rack system, ash tray, charcoal grate.
Grill, BBQ, roast, bake, hot smoke, sear, slow-cook, and cold smoke.
Lumpwood charcoal (never use briquettes, or use wood for heat rather than just smokiness).
Nine rack levels for multi-height cooking and versatility.
Charlie Charcoal Oven, £4,958.33. Made in Britain and delivered fully assembled.
Reviewed by Genevieve Taylor for The Telegraph, published 9 July 2026. Read the full review.
The Telegraph states that its article contains affiliate links and that it earns a commission on sales made through them. Charlie Oven has no commercial arrangement with The Telegraph, and nothing on this page is an endorsement by the newspaper.
