Hi Chris,
I help run cooking classes here in Brisbane Australia with an Indian Restaurant Chef.
In regards to the Aussie market compared to the UK market with respect to curry, we are minuscule. That being the case though, we take on average 60-80 per week through cooking classes.
Given the love of curry in the UK I can only see that it would be a huge success there.
We teach introductory classes which cover the following:
One main non-veg dish: Butter Chicken / Chicken Tikka Masala / Murg Madras / Chicken Korma
One main veg dish: Bombay Aloo / Dal Tadka / Spinach Dal / Vegetable Dal
Raita
Naan Bread
Saffron Rice
We then run a Master Class series which builds on the skills learnt in the intro class, and includes dishes such as Vindaloo / Rogan Josh and other items.
He teaches the exact same recipe that is used in the restaurant albeit on a small scale for home use. And that is the important part, that what people taste at the end of the class is as good if not better then what they are used to from a restaurant. They also know that because they have cooked it in the class they can do it at home. We work in groups of four with each group having their own cooking station. Chef JJ cooks the dish in front of them so they can see exactly how it is done, then they cook the dish themselves knowing what to look for, when things get added etc.
We do marketing through our website and also through promotional voucher companies who reach thousands of people and take a commission from the class price.
We have been booked solid from late April through to September and are just about to do another promotional campaign.
Our website is
http://indiancookingwithjj.weebly.com if you'd like to have an idea of how/what we do here.
Cheers,
Mark