Anita Singh - The Story of the Great British Bake Off

THE STORY OF THE GREAT BRITISH BAKE OFF

Anita Singh

www.readanima.com

A Recipe for the Nations Most Popular Cookery Show

INGREDIENTS

1 tent 12 amateur bakers

1 venerable cookery writer 1 blue-eyed bread maker

2 comedy queens with a love of innuendo

When The Great British Bake Off made its debut in August 2010, it had the makings of a modest hit. But nobody not the programme-makers and certainly not those first contestants could have predicted what was to come. Here was a show in which the biggest weekly drama was whether or not a sponge cake would sink in the middle. And oh, how we loved it.

Here is the ultimate Bake Off fan book: from Bread Lions to Bavarian Clock Towers; from heart-throbs to heroes; from soggy-bottoms to sticky buns. This is the celebration of Britains most popular cookery contest.

This book has been produced independently by Head of Zeus. The content may contain information that does not represent official statements or views of Love Productions, the BBC, Channel 4 or (unless specifically stated) any individual involved in the production of The Great British Bake Off . While every effort has been made by Head of Zeus to ensure the information presented is as fair and accurate as possible, it makes no claims to be an official publication.

Take one tent. Fill with twelve amateur bakers. Garnish with one venerable cookery writer, one blue-eyed bread-maker, and two mischievous presenters. Mix in some triumphs, disasters and soggy bottoms. Finally, sprinkle with a little television magic. And there you have the recipe for the most popular show of modern times.

When The Great British Bake Off made its debut one Tuesday night in August 2010 it had all the makings of a modest hit. But nobody not the programme-makers, not the executives who commissioned it, and certainly not those first contestants could have predicted what was to come.

Here was a show in which the biggest weekly drama was whether or not a sponge cake would sink in the middle. An elimination contest in which the contestants didnt want their rivals to be eliminated, and the grand prize was a cake stand. A display of showstoppers by some of the least showy people ever to appear on the telly. An hour of watching strangers kneeling on the floor and peering anxiously into ovens. And oh, how we loved it.

As the hit show settles into its new home on Channel 4, with a fresh line-up of presenters Paul Hollywood remaining at the helm, aided by the magisterial Prue Leith and the quirky double act of Sandi Toksvig and Noel Fielding that very first series seems a long time ago. Weve had our fair share of drama. When it was announced that The Great British Bake Off was upping sticks, breaking up the on-screen team viewers knew and had come to love, the news knocked David Camerons resignation off the front pages and prompted a period of national mourning. A few weeks later, the grand final of the very last BBC series became the most-watched programme on British television since the closing ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics.

How had a gentle baking show become a global phenomenon?

When Bake Off came along, it was a programme like no other. The boardroom backstabbing of The Apprentice , ritual humiliations of The X Factor and petty conflicts of Big Brother were entirely absent, as were the fame-hungry wannabes who populated them. Nobody punches the air when they win a challenge instead, in that terribly British way, theyre faintly embarrassed to be singled out for praise. Nobody is giving it 110 per cent (bakers are good at maths). Nobody has wanted this my whole life despite only being twenty-three. Nobody has been on an amazing journey (well, Nadiya Hussain might have said that, but well let her off because in her case its true). They are just a bunch of ordinary people who really love to bake.

Their crises are small catastrophe in a cupcake is how the programme-makers describe it but that reflects the everyday lives of the audience more closely than any soap opera. What really sets the show apart, though, is its kindness. The bakers help and support one another; the tears when a contestant leaves each week are genuine. They are amateurs, doing their very best, and we are there to will them on.

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Britain was a funny old place in the summer of 2010. The old certainties had gone. Austerity was kicking in. The country had a coalition government, ensuring that, whatever your political persuasion, you probably felt short-changed. The Labour Party had gone all Cain and Abel with the Miliband brothers. A volcanic ash cloud had ruined peoples holidays. The nation appeared to be in the grip of a sense of humour failure. There was only one constant in an ever-changing world: England had been knocked out of the World Cup. The time was right for a show in which the words Great and Britain could be uttered without a vague sense of awkwardness. Something feel good. The television equivalent of a cup of tea and a lovely slice of cake.