Great British Bake Off 2023 LIVE — Alison Hammond says Prue Leith 'left her on the floor' as contestant line-up revealed | The Sun
September 26, 2023THE GREAT British Bake Off returns tonight as Alison Hammond makes her show debut alongside co-presenter Noel.
Matt Lucas, who fronted the show alongside Noel Fielding, said he could no longer host GBBO alongside his other projects – but Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith will return to judge a new batch of contestants' incredible creations.
Speaking about the new series, This Morning host Alison said her biggest laugh was brought on when Prue said: "Let me see your beaver".
She told the Mirror: 'I’ve never crumbled to the floor as quickly as when I heard Prue say that. Prue absolutely killed me. It was the delivery of the line – it was the best I’ve ever seen.'
The new series of The Great British Bake Off will start TONIGHT at 8pm on Channel 4.
Read our live blog below for the latest news and updates…
- By Louis Allwood
Nicky is a lover of pastries
Nicky describes her baking as ‘like a pair of comfy old slippers; little traditional bakes that evoke fond memories’.
For Nicky herself, those memories are of her Gran’s kitchen table where, as a little girl, she would roll out pastries and decorate cakes – which she says was as much fun then as all her baking is to her now.
Her favourite bakes are still pastries, but she also loves making breads, and fun birthday cakes for her niece and grandchildren.
When she’s not baking, Nicky volunteers for a pet-therapy charity (along with her dog, Bracken) and loves to ski, which she has been doing since she was only three years old.
- By Louis Allwood
Matty is taking on the challenge
Matty is the type of baker who swats up on online patisserie videos before bed.
No matter how good he gets, though, he strives to equal the impressiveness of the bake that first caught his imagination: a teddy-bear cake that his late nan made him for his fourth birthday.
Now the family’s designated baker, he always has a list of cake requests for upcoming celebrations.
He describes his style as rustic but neat, and his flavour preferences as quite traditional – he particularly loves chocolate, citrus and nuts. Once his days in the tent are over, his next – and even bigger – challenge will be to make his own wedding cake, a special commission from his fiancée, Lara.
- By Louis Allwood
Keith is hoping to win the show
Apple pies and fairy cakes – which he learned to bake with his mum – form the baking backdrop to Keith’s childhood, along with his mum’s love for traditional dishes from her home in Malta.
Since those formative years, Keith has never stopped baking. Recently, though, he has returned to the baking books of the early 1970s to attempt recipes that were once ‘beyond’ him.
He loves the challenge of taking on more complex bakes and has grown in confidence with bread.
His partner, Sue, has got very used to waking up to the smell of a freshly baked loaf! They live with their poodle, Maisie, just a few steps from the sea.
- By Louis Allwood
Josh is entering the Bake Off tent
Josh is a chemist by trade and brings his scientist’s precision and keenness to experiment into the kitchen, taking careful notes on each part of the baking process and perfecting all his techniques for gorgeous results.
He likes to take his inspiration from old baking books, reinventing classics to give them a modern twist, often by introducing alternative flavours and including the seasonal fruit and vegetables from his kitchen garden.
Josh has been playing rugby for his local team for more than 15 years, and once a month he bakes lots of treats to reward his teammates after a rigorous training session.
He dreams of having his own artisan bakery one day.
- By Louis Allwood
When is the final episode?
The Great British Bake Off airs on Tuesday nights on Channel 4 at 8pm.
Season 14 has ten episodes, with the final airing on November 28, 2023.
You can catch up with past episodes of the show on the Channel 4 website.
- By Louis Allwood
What else does the Bake Off winner get?
Besides the flowers and cake stand, many of the Bake Off stars go on to earn massive sums of money through appearances, cookbooks and launching cooking schools.
Nadiya Hussain is undoubtedly the Bake Off’s greatest success story, and has since written various newspaper columns, fronted TV show The Chronicles Of Nadiya, released a best-selling cookbook and has been a guest presenter on Loose Women.
She was also selected to bake the late Queen Elizabeth's birthday cake when the monarch turned 90 in April 2016.
Series 12 winner Giuseppe Dell'Anno announced the release of his first cookbook in May 2022.
Dell'Anno managed to beat the competition to take home the 2021 trophy, and the book marks one of the baker's first ventures since being crowned the champion of the Channel 4 series.
- By Louis Allwood
What is the Great British Bake Off final prize money?
With all the drama, sweat and tears that the dedicated bakers go through on The Great British Bake Off, you’d expect they would be aiming for some grand cash prize, but the answer is no.
The winning prize is just flowers and a cake stand.
Previous Bake Off contestant Martha Collison, who reached the quarter-finals in the 2014 series, told Barrelhouse: “Everyone is so surprised and thinks there must be some secret cash, but all we really get is a bunch of flowers and a cake stand.
“But then, you also kind of become a national treasure just by doing it because everyone in Britain loves the Bake Off so much.”
- By Louis Allwood
Dana is hoping to make the final
Dana’s passion for baking started at the age of 16 when she identified a gap in her family’s traditionally Indian culinary repertoire.
As a self-professed untidy baker, Dana would avoid stepping on her mum’s toes in the kitchen by catching the bus to her dad’s house to indulge her need to experiment with her bakes.
Now she has a kitchen of her own (and a cockapoo, Gracie, to clean up after her), Dana has become the family’s go-to celebration cake-maker. Her style is rustic and homely, but always pleasing to the eye.
She loves a semi-naked cake with neat lines, pretty piping and minimalist decoration; and although she likes to keep her flavours safe, Dana will often incorporate a twist or two, adding in familiar spices associated with her Indian heritage.
- By Louis Allwood
Dan is ready to get baking
Dan’s interest in cooking began when he went travelling in South America in 2007.
His particular loves are pies and puddings: before he and his wife bought their first home, they lived with his in-laws, during which time his mother-in-law taught him how to make perfect shortcrust pastry.
Subsequently, his passion for pies has evolved into a penchant for patisserie!
Perfectionist Dan loves a baking challenge and will often find the hardest bake in one of his many (more than 300!) cook books and start there, throwing everything he’s got at creating a masterpiece.
When he’s not baking, he loves to play football with his two young sons, work out in the gym, or forage for edible treats in the countryside around his home.
- By Louis Allwood
Cristy will be hoping she has what it takes to win
Life with four children means that, for Cristy, there always seems to be a birthday to bake for and an exciting party to plan.
She describes her baking style as enchanted and pretty – bakes that conjure up a sense of childhood.
Cakes are her speciality, and she draws flavour inspiration from her own Israeli heritage and from her husband’s Jamaican roots.
She is a dab hand with decoration and gets a thrill out of making sure the results look perfect.
- By Louis Allwood
Amos will be taking on the challenge
Film and theatre enthusiast, theme-park lover and hospitality professional, Amos grew up in Nottingham with his mum and sister, but now lives and works in North London.
As a child, Amos was always amazed by his mum’s ability to whip up delicious bakes at a moment’s notice – making her both the inspiration and the role model for his own commitment to some serious baking.
Amos describes his bakes as a labour of love – his style is colourful and chic with keen attention to detail, and he loves exploring different flavour profiles.
- By Louis Allwood
Abbi will be heading into the Bake Off tent
Yorkshire-born Abbi first learned to bake alongside her mum, honing those early skills during her teens, when she became enthralled by the Victorian era and especially the traditional bakes of the time – steamed puddings, fruit cakes and more.
A lover of the great outdoors, she forages for seasonal ingredients – the bigger and bolder, the better – and puts her homegrown veg to good use.
Abbi’s bakes aim to combine comfort and familiarity with a strong nod towards nature, and a feeling of creating something magical – bakes with a touch of fairytale!
- By Louis Allwood
What has Alison Hammond said about landing the role?
Speaking about landing the plum Bake Off job, and how different it is to hosing This Morning, she told Channel 4: “It’s like being on holiday — it’s wonderful, free, and you feel safe.
“You don’t have to think politically about anything. It’s just a happy and safe show.”
- By Louis Allwood
Who has replaced Matt Lucas on GBBO?
In December 2022, Matt Lucas shocked fans when he revealed he had quit hosting Bake Off.
The comedian – who fronted the show alongside Noel Fielding – said he could no longer host it alongside his other projects.
Speaking to fans, he said: "Farewell Bake Off! It's been a delicious experience and I can't imagine a more fun way of spending my summers.
"But it's become clear to me that I can't present both Fantasy Football League and Bake Off alongside all my other projects."
While Matt may have left, Noel continues to host the show.
He is joined by his new co-presenter Alison Hammond.
- By Louis Allwood
Who is in the cast of Great British Bake Off?
The new series of Bake Off brings with it a brand new batch of contestants – which includes the show's first ever deaf person.
The full GBBO 2023 line-up is:
- Abbi, 27, is a veg grower and delivery driver from Cumbria.
- Amos, 43, is a deli and grocery manager from North London.
- Cristy, 33, is a mum and PA from East London.
- Dan, 42, is a civil engineer from Cheshire.
- Dana, 25, is a database administrator from Essex.
- Josh, 27, is a post-doctoral research associate from Leicestershire.
- Keith, 60, is a chartered accountant from Hampshire.
- Matty, 28, is a PE and science teacher from Cambridgeshire.
- Nicky, 52, is a retired cabin crew member from the West Midlands.
- Rowan, 21, is a student from West Yorkshire.
- Saku, 50, is an intelligence analyst from Herefordshire.
- Tasha, 27, is a participation officer from Bristol.
- By Louis Allwood
GBBO returns tonight!
The new series of The Great British Bake Off will start TONIGHT at 8pm on Channel 4.
The beloved programme will then continue on Tuesday nights at the same time.
Judge Prue Leith revealed the exciting news on X (formerly Twitter).
She said: "The Bake Off team is back on Tuesday 26th September at 8pm. Join us in the tent for lots of laughter."
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