Original subtitles

MATT: Wow, Noel, your make-up is amazing.

You look just like that guy from Extra Slice.

You mean the handsome Tom Allen? I don't know his name.

I never watch it.

# Dashing through the snow

# Though there wasn't any snow

# So we've added lots of snow

# To make it look like snow

# Some bakers from the past

# Will compete in this event

# We're going to have a blast

# In the famous pointy tent

ALL: Welcome to the Great Christmas Bake Off.

For somebody who can't sing, I thought I did very well, actually.

I thought I did very well.

TOM: What better way to celebrate Christmas

than with three wise men - sorry - four bakers

journeying to the tent?

Back we are.

Getting their festive bake on are Rosie...

Merry Christmas.

"Jamie...

It feels pretty surreal being back in the tent, if I'm honest.

"James...

...and Ruby. I love Christmas.

In season nine...

I had so many highs and lows.

...she not only managed back-to-back Star Baker wins...

NOEL:

...but an infamous structural disaster.

I don't think you can get much lower than your cake falling on TV.

Oh, BLEEP. It's going to fall. Oh, BLEEP.

Oh, BLEEP.

I still get sent that GIF on social media, so I cannot get away from it.

Her flair and flavours got her all the way to the final.

I love you all.

MATT: Also returning is uni student Jamie, from season ten.

Oh, my goodness. I forgot to add the eggs.

Despite the odd mishap...

This is another, not to mince words, failure.

...he charmed the judges.

It was pretty awful. Thank you.

Although his bakes were less of a hit...

I wish I could say that it looks dreadful and tastes fantastic.

But... Looks great as well.

...and he went home in week two.

I did leave kind of early so to be coming back, you know,

I'm really grateful for that.

TOM: He'll be joined by Rosie.

Thinking back on my Bake Off experience,

I can't forget throwing my tart on the floor.

But the vet got over her custard pie catastrophe

and proved a whizz at creating edible animals...

The whole composition is a triumph.

...and went as far as the semifinal.

You're a very, very clever vet.

MATT: The last returning baker is James.

Back in the tent for the first time in three years,

I got my PTSD back again.

He got halfway through series eight...

I'm a little more confident than I'm letting on.

...but got his fingers burnt in Pudding Week.

It's absolutely raw. Look.

A bit of a failure.

I went week five and I still had more to give.

So, which baker will land the ultimate festive accolade...

I have so much alcohol in my bakes, and so does everybody,

so as long as you go last, they'll be in a really good mood.

...and walk away with the coveted Star Baker crown?

Do I want to win Star Baker?

I'm going to say no.

RUBY: I don't know if anyone's really competitive,

or maybe they're luring me into a false sense of security.

Have I been played?

Merry Christmas, all you Ghosts of Bakers Past.

Welcome back to the tent.

Now, as you know, Christmas is all about a child being born,

and Noel has just become a father again, so I am here in his place.

So, for your Signature Challenge,

Paul and Prue would like you to

make 12 festive-themed miniature panettones.

Your panettones must be made from an enriched yeasted dough...

Mm, that sounds delicious.

...and must have a highly decorative finish.

You have three hours.

On your marks... Get set... Bake.

HE LAUGHS

I'm back. Feels like I never left.

It is so bizarre being back here at Christmas.

Merry Christmas.

I've never made any panettone,

I've never actually eaten a panettone.

I have no point of reference.

But sometimes that's good, because then you're not stressing

about actually making it right.

If they put too much fruit into their panettone, it won't rise

quickly enough and they'll end up with sort of little rock buns.

That's always a danger. It does slow down the rising.

The other danger is that Christmas makes us think of really good booze.

But alcohol slows the rise as well,

so I think they should avoid alcohol.

And I'm hoping they'll be fantastic because I love panettone.

TOM: A panettone dough traditionally takes a long, slow prove

that can take days.

ROSIE: Trying to make something with an enriched dough so quickly,

I'm trying every little thing I can

just do to try and help a little bit.

It's tough making panettone this quick, but we'll see how it goes.

Right, let's get this baby mixing.

Hello, Ruby.

I'm actually OK.

I thought I was going to be petrified, but the more that

you look at me like that,

it's kind of bringing back a bit of bad memories.

I'm starting sweat a little bit more now!

No pressure, eh?

MATT: Ruby's hoping to secure a win

with chai, cherry and chocolate panettones,

packed with amaretto-soaked fruit and spices,

topped with chocolate ganache

and a yet-to-be-determined

set of decorations.

I have practised bits of it.

I've practised the bread. I have done the bread.

The decoration not so much. Don't want to tell you,

cos it's a secret what I'm decorating it with on top.

Also cos I just don't know what it is yet.

THEY LAUGH

Thank you.

Bye-bye, Ruby. Thank you.

Dough's looking nice and well-developed,

so I can get it out and start proving.

Just popping that one in for its first prove now.

The dough needs to rise in a perfectly warm, draft-free spot.

Too high a temperature may kill the yeast.

Too low and the prove will go slow,

eating into the bakers' precious time.

JAMES: They'll go in for about 20 minutes to start with.

Hello, James. Hello, Paul.

Hi. Welcome back to the tent. Thank you.

It's a joy to be back. Bread to start with. You staring at me.

THEY LAUGH

No pressure. Tell us about your panettones.

S0 I'm going for a pina colada panettone.

James's cocktail-inspired panettone

will have lime and coconut flavouring,

pineapple chunks soaked in lashings of rum,

and come adorned with pineapple compote

and dried pineapple Christmas trees.

Some of the proving, but also, as you bite in, you'll get lumps

of pineapple in there and bits of coconut,

so they'll also just add to it.

Thank you. Fingers crossed...

Sounds lovely! ..they're edible at the end.

Cheers. Thank you.

Now just got to live up to what I promised.

And I've also built myself a little plan.

I'm a project manager by trade, so the plan's going to work.

If not, I had no plan, so if you could edit that bit out,

that'd be great.

TOM: As the panettones prove,

attention turns to festive decorations.

I might as well get the decoration on the go

because I don't know what I'm doing for it.

Just like Christmas, it's going to be a surprise...for everyone,

me included. Pineapple time.

I'm going to make some little pineapple Christmas trees.

Welcome to Large Bald Gentlemen Wear Christmas Shirts.

This week, James is wearing a reindeer with a Christmas hat.

How about that?

I'm going to decorate my panettone with little gingerbread houses.

A village for the elves.

TOM: And Rosie's not be only one crafting gingerbread adornments.

Jamie's mixed spice and ginger panettone

will be flavoured with ginger and dried fruit.

It will be decorated with American football helmet biscuits

and served on a gingerbread pitch.

How have you got on with practising with this?

Because it's quite tricky, panettone.

Have you been baking since you've been at university?

Have you?

THEY LAUGH

Looking forward to this.

Welcome back to the tent. Good luck.

HE LAUGHS

These will take about an hour and a half to cook,

so I kind of have to get them in.

The gingerbread gets about 15 to 20 minutes.

As biscuits go in, panettone comes out,

as the first prove is up.

So I'm now going to start mixing in my ingredients

and then get it in for a second prove,

cos I think the second prove's the important one -

that's where you really want it to rise.

I'm going to go in with my cherries.

But the more festive ingredients the bakers pack in,

the greater the risk of hindering the yeast

and jeopardising the all-important rise.

Plenty of rum and pineapple, so can't wrong with that combination,

I think. I've got a couple of other rurns to cram in there as well.

I'm getting everyone drunk

and no-one'll know what they taste like.

RUBY: I'm adding my chocolate. Why not chocolate?

Chocolate is Christmas, isn't it?

ROSIE: These are my dates that I'm putting in.

At Christmas, there's always box of dates around,

and they're completely ignored

while there's sort of better stuff.

And then New Year comes around, and you eat them

and you sort of remember, "Oh, yeah, they are quite nice, actually."

Rosie's date-laden dough's got a lot to do,

as her mace-flavoured panettones

will also be packed with cider brandy-soaked cranberries

and mixed peel.

They'll be topped with cider brandy snow icing

and a host of miniature gingerbread houses.

The worst disasters were when I didn't give long enough

on the second prove and

I made rock cakes that you could kill someone with.

Oh, thank you.

Thank you. Good luck.

Pauljust said I'm a decent baker.

I just hope they work. That's the aim now. We'll see.

"In schedule"?

Not "on schedule"?

And in. Around schedule.

Around schedule.

It's just a slop, isn't it? It's super sticky.

ROSIE: I'm going to prove them in their cases,

and then they've got these to help them when they rise up,

otherwise they just go, bluh, over the top,

which is, you know, a bit ugly.

About 75, 80g into each one.

Hopefully, they're not coming up really high,

they come up to about the top. Just a little dome.

The rise in the second prove is critical

if the bakers are to create the light, soft crumb that

panettone is famous for and the judges are expecting.

These are going to go in for as long as I possibly can.

HE LAUGHS

So I put it in for about 45 minutes to start.

These, I would like to give them an hour.

RUBY: 40 maybe, 45 I'd like.

50, let's be honest, I'd like more time.

ROSIE: We will see. What happens happens with those now.

I'm really, really hoping today that they rise and, you know,

a recognisable panettone.

Bakers, you're halfway through. Yikes.

MATT: I think the right one's bigger than the left.

Let's do some marzipan.

What? Don't do that.

It's not going to work any more.

Oh, no.

OK, that's enough. I can't do it any more, Paul.

He must practice that in, like, the mirror or something at home.

That was ridiculous.

This is the pineapple compote.

So there'll be little diced bits of pineapple that

look like presents on top. This will be caramel.

Then I've got royal icing to pipe.

The biggest stress at the moment

is that the panettones aren't doing anything.

Is yours moving?

Gonna look in the drawer for me? That's not a euphemism, is it?

SHE LAUGHS Which one? This one here.

You want to just...? Down here? Is anything happening?

How do you know when something has been proved?

You've just got to hope and wish.

ROSIE: Absolutely nothing has happened. At all.

SLIDE WHISTLE BLOWS

Bakers, you have one hour left.

SLIDE WHISTLE BLOWS

These are my little gingerbread houses.

Cutting them out while it's hot. It's where the elves live.

Prue actually said that I look a bit like an elf

because I have very sticky-outy ears. That's a bit mean, isn't it?

I wouldn't mind being an elf,

and then I could live in the panettone world of Rosie's elves.

They have risen a bit, not as much as I would have liked.

Well, they're warm. Need a tiny bit.

My panettones haven't risen at all.

They've had an hour and they've done absolutely nothing.

Literally nothing.

We're going in.

Good luck. Don't fail me.

SHE SHUDDERS

They've got to go in now or they're not going to be baked,

but they are going to be rock-solid.

They've done absolutely nothing.

Right, time for a cup of tea.

What's all the panic about?

Bakers, you have half an hour left.

Yikes. TIMER BEEPS

Everything is getting slightly more chaotic.

They're a bit messy with the caramel but, to be honest,

with flat panettones, slightly messy caramel on my houses

is literally the least of my worries right now.

I cut them a bit too fine, so they've dried out super quickly.

Christmas tree forests are all different sizes, aren't they?

The plan for the decoration is to wing it.

I'm trying to make a holly leaf

and it's proving to be the most difficult thing!

These holly leaves are going to be the death of me.

What sort things do normally decorate your panettones with?

If that's not a personal question.

No-one decorates their panettone.

No-one even makes it. You just buy it.

It takes so long to make it.

And let's be honest, Ruby, it's just a dried up bit of old fruit.

SHE LAUGHS

It's like a Yorkshire pudding that's been in the fridge for too long.

MATT: Bakers, you have ten minutes left.

They should be cooked.

Oh, dear Lord. I don't know what has happened,

but they are certainly not panettones.

RUBY: They didn't rise as much as I would have wanted.

Time to drench in booze.

This is pineapple rum and a little bit of black pepper.

What even is that? They've got, like, craters in them.

RUBY: Bit of freestyle.

Going to go for some snow now.

This is just to add a little bit of crunch, the nib sugar.

Well, if anything else,

I've got three balls to go on top of my panettone.

And I'll say they're baubles.

Bakers, you have one minute left.

Ooh!

Panic time.

The saddest elf village.

Bakers, your time is up.

Please step away from your bakes.

I'm hitting the rum in a minute. HE CHUCKLES

HE LAUGHS

Oh, they look so cute!

The festive bakers now face the judgment of Paul and Prue.

Hello, Ruby.

They do look lovely. Very pretty.

They're pretty heavy.

They're very stodgy, but I love the flavour.

Too much?

There's too much fruit in there.

Um, it is more pudding-like than panettone-like.

However, it is delicious.

And it is a well-baked panettone, plum pudding, Christmas pudding.

A sort of malt loaf, really.

I mean, your decoration is lovely, the marzipan is excellent.

Yeah, I think you've done a decent job with that.

It's just the volume of fruit.

Nice panettone.

I must say, it looks wonderful.

The trees are a little bit...

They are different.

Yeah.

Trees never look the same.

They do taste very coconuty and very pineappley.

They're too dense and too stodgy.

You get a lot of alcohol and a lot of things going on in there,

and I think that's probably retarded the yeast a little bit

and stopped that from growing as fast as it probably could.

It's more cake-like than it is panettone-like.

What?

Do you want me to say something about it? Yeah.

Do you like it? I think it's really nice.

I don't think it was dense. It's a panettone,

which is never very nice, is it? Don't know why you set it, really.

THEY LAUGH

No, James, it's not your finest hour, is it?

Well, they tasted OK. Thank you.

I mean, it's a terrible cake, but I liked it.

The panettone's down at the bottom

there, isn't it?

It's quite small, cos it sort of sits inside.

Underproving is one.

THEY LAUGH

Oh, Jamie, Jamie! Oh, Jamie! Oh, Jamie...

They're raw, mate. Have they actually been in the oven?

It just doesn't have enough liquid in it.

And that's why it didn't move.

The flavour, actually, is nice.

I think the flavour's OK. Thank you, Jamie.

Thank you, Jamie.

I think they look amazing, like an Alpine ski resort.

It's a whole village, and it's absolutely beautiful.

The decoration is so exact.

If they taste half as good as they look, I'll be delighted.

The sort of structure and texture you've got is nearly there.

Your dough needed to be wetter.

And a softer dough would have given you what you needed,

because you have a very, very intense flavour,

and sometimes that fights against the yeast.

But the overall flavour is indeed pungent,

and it's powerful and I do like it.

The look is perfection. I really think it's beautiful.

To achieve that in the time is great. It looks amazing.

No, I can't really complain, they loved the flavours,

even if it was more of a pudding side than a bread.

I don't care. They still liked it.

A bit deflated, I was hoping that they would come out better.

Another four hours, I would've been perfect!

They said that there wasn't enough liquid in the mix.

If I ever make panettones again, which I won't,

I'll know for next time!

MATT: The bakers now have another chance to demonstrate

their festive baking skills.

Well, bakers, it's time for your Christmas technical,

which today has been set by Prue.

Believe it or not, this works.

Merry Christmas.

THEY LAUGH

Well, thank you very much, Prue.

As ever, this challenge is judged blind,

so we shall ask the judges to leave the tent.

Where do you think they're going?

Oh! No. Fair enough.

Oh, it's delicious. Yeah, scratch is very moreish.

Also, you should serve, with your Christmas pudding,

an orange-liqueur creme anglaise.

On your marks. Bake!

Crikey.

A Christmas pudding in an hour is crazy.

It's a great challenge, though.

I've never made Christmas pudding before.

HE LAUGHS

Has Prue actually lost it this time?

An hour and 15 to make your Christmas pudding?

But, hey, Prue did say it works.

So, Prue, you've chosen a Christmas pudding,

which I thought takes hours and hours,

as the Technical Challenge.

It doesn't take hours and hours. It's cooked in a microwave.

It's exactly the same ingredients that you'd normally have,

but everything is speeded up.

So how long is it for the cooking time of this, then?

35 minutes altogether, half of it on low,

half of it on medium - about.

That looks soft enough, doesn't it?

It does, doesn't it? It smells very festive.

You know, we always say that a perfect creme anglaise

should just coat the back of the spoon.

Mm! The citrus, the fruit.

There's such a Christmassy flavour to it.

The thing is, it is quite filling, Christmas pudding,

so we've got to go back in and have four of these.

That's fine.

I think Prue's on the naughty list for this one.

She's been a bit naughty, cos she hasn't put timings on it.

What a stitch-up, guys. What a stitch-up!

There's no timings for any of it, like none.

70g of molasses. It definitely smells like Christmas.

It smells lovely.

Lovely.

Oh, no, I've seen worse shows than that.

Not on this channel, of course.

I think they are saying to microwave just because

it will help the fruit soak all the booze.

It's just a quicker way.

Two minutes, sweet.

Go... Go.

I'm just adding a teaspoon of cinnamon.

They've actually told us the amounts of spice to put in.

Very, very unlike them.

I'm making breadcrumb.

I've only just noticed this loaf of bread on my surface.

I was like, "Breadcrumbs, right, which pot are they in?"

MATT: Your lnstagram blew up after you were on this show.

Everybody's talking about Jamie.

At university, did everyone freak out when they seen you?

Nothing crazy, Winchester's a small place.

Are you the most famous person in Winchester? No, no! Who is?

A guy from Made In Chelsea walks around Winchester.

So you're the second most famous person in Winchester.

I don't... I don't know, you can say that if you want. I will.

I'm not going to say that.

You're the second most famous person in Winchester.

It's quite hot now.

The fruit has kind of... I think it's done it's fruity thing.

So I just put the bicarbonate of soda in. Oh, my goodness me.

HE LAUGHS

Ooh! Does fizz a bit, doesn't it?

So I'm now mixing all the butter, breadcrumbs, a couple of eggs,

flour, the cinnamon, mixed spice and then warm fruit.

It smells lovely.

Pretty wet. Just need to mix it in properly.

Fill half the pudding bowl with the mixture,

then sit the candied clementine in the centre.

Sounds like Heston Blumenthal, doesn't it,?

"Cover the remaining mixture,

"cut a disc of greaseproof paper to fit the top of the base and cover."

It's got to the bit where you cook it, and it just says,

"cook it on low for...and then cook it on medium for..."

I've shoved it in for ten minutes, and then I'm going to poke it,

and then I'm going to shove it in for a bit longer

on a bit higher, and then poke it again.

And then still have no idea.

I put it on for five minutes on low,

and I want to put it on five minutes on medium.

Bakers, you have... How long?

Uh, 30 minutes-ish.

30 minutes-ish left!

It's like a custardy sort of thing.

Right, um...

I'm going to heat the cream and the milk in a pan.

We're left to thicken this just with egg yolks.

So it's going to take quite a while to thicken, I think.

So beat up the eggs until they are kind of quite pale.

It certainly warms you up on Christmas Day.

I've got wrist strain from doing that.

HE LAUGHS I'll have to go and see the medic!

Ruby, how does it feel to be back doing a Technical Challenge?

Why?!

You're always saying you're stressed. You never seem stressed.

It all seems perfectly under control to me. What's worrying you?

Look, it's just a bit of bread and a few currants,

ding it in the microwave...

That's why I'm not a judge.

It's looking wet.

I'm going to put it on for another ten minutes on medium.

It's still really wet, so I'm going to crank it up.

Up to medium.

It's just starting to bubble.

Oh, we're starting to thicken.

I prefer a runny custard than a thick custard.

I don't know how thick they want their creme anglaise.

It's personal preference, innit?

What you've got here is looking a bit like...

...it's going to end up looking like cheese on toast.

Oh, I haven't stirred it.

Do you know if this is heatproof?

If I'm honest with you, and I hate to be,

I think that's the last of your worries.

This looks like a student flat right now.

Bakers, you have ten minutes left!

Ooh, hoo!

I don't know that it's ready.

It actually looks cooked. It's a miracle.

Right, what have we got here?

Looks all right. It's a little spongy.

It's risen up a little bit.

I don't know of any test

for a microwave Christmas pudding being done.

I reckon that'll be good enough.

Just pass it through a sieve, get any lumps out.

It's not really lumpy, but it's not perfect.

It looks like it's split, and I don't know how to recover that.

I'm such a numpty.

Going to turn it. Ooh!

Ah...

I don't know if I'm happy with it. I'm happy it came out of the bowl.

Oh, you beauty!

It looks like a Christmas pudding.

Now I'm going to spend six minutes arranging my holly.

Bakers, you have one minute.

Right.

Looks good.

Bakers, your time is up!

HE EXHALES SHARPLY

Please bring your Christmas puddings awkwardly to the gingham altar

and place them behind your beautiful photographs.

The judges are expecting perfectly baked Christmas puddings

full of flavour with an orange creme anglaise.

OK.

Let's have a look at this one.

It's nice and sharp, the line down the bottom is nice and sharp.

It feels OK.

Well, there's the clementine there.

Actually, it's rather good.

There's nice balance, isn't there?

And the creme anglaise...

OK, moving on to number two.

This looks a little bit lighter, doesn't it?

Yeah, it's not mixed well enough. See these bits here?

Let's have a look inside.

This feels a bit more firm.

It's a little bit more rubbery.

Too long in the microwave, yeah.

And we have scrambled egg as well for creme anglaise.

It's split.

Yeah, it's split quite badly.

That's a shame.

OK, let's move on to number three.

This is quite smooth, colour's a little bit darker.

This feels a bit rubbery too.

It's breaking apart very easily.

That's a little bit overcooked for me.

It's just slightly overcooked.

Flavour's fine.

The creme anglaise is nice, though.

OK, last and hopefully not least...

It has, and there's a bit of a soggy bit there in the middle as well.

Let's have a look inside here.

Now, that holds together...

...not bad.

That one's not bad, that.

Not quite as cooked as the other two, so it's got more to it.

It holds together better, doesn't it? More pudding-like.

OK, this is interesting.

It is going to be difficult.

Paul and Prue will now rank the Christmas puds from worst to best.

In the fourth spot, we have this one.

Jamie, overcooked, and your creme anglaise is split.

In second spot, we have this one.

It's actually pretty good, it's been cooked well.

It's probably needed a couple of minutes with the top bit.

It's just a little bit raw at the top, but otherwise pretty good.

Thank you.

Really, really, really happy with that,

especially winning one where everybody's done well.

Cooking everything in a microwave, an odd Bake Off challenge,

the microwave challenge.

Third sounds great to me, so I'm going to say, "l was third."

If anyone asks how many people were there,

I'm just going to say, "l was third."

Day two of the baking festivities,

and it's the final challenge before Prue and Paul

decide who will be crowned winner of the Great Christmas Bake Off.

I think after these first two challenges,

you can see some of them have just become a little bit more polished.

Some of the bakers haven't, um...

Are there any that have got worse?

I wouldn't say worse. OK, just checking.

I would say "not better".

Who is surprising you the most?

Rosie is doing very well. I think she did well in the signature.

She won the technical.

Ruby's signature was very, very good as well.

It did slip a bit - third place in technical.

But, on the other hand, James has lifted himself up.

Does Jamie have no chance?

Aw.

Well, Merry Christmas to us all. What a year it's been.

It's nice to be back in the tent, our safe place.

And, Prue, may I say how wonderful it is

that you finally stopped dyeing your hair

and you're letting the natural blue come through.

Good morning, bakers.

Welcome back to the tent for your showstopper challenge.

Prue and Paul would like you to make a spectacular illusion cake,

representing your ultimate Christmas Day feast.

The judges are looking for a deliciously deceptive display,

which includes one large centrepiece cake.

And an array of realistic-looking edible delights.

Oh, I love realistic-looking food,

like when a apple looks like a apple.

Oh, yes, it's so clever.

And a sharon fruit looks just like my mum's friend Sharon. Oh.

You have four hours.

On your marks. Get set. Bake!

I have got a lot to do,

but this is the last showstopper I'm ever going to do,

so, you know, you've got to go for it.

I have practised elements of this, I might just do it.

Might. It'll be a Christmas miracle if I do.

The showstopper challenge we set the bakers

is they've got to make a festive feast illusion cake.

You've got to dedicate a lot of time to the decoration.

So the idea is, get your sponge done,

get it cooled, and then spend three hours possibly

decorating this to make it look amazing.

It's a tricky challenge.

MATT: The bakers are creating multiple elements.

Smells nice.

With time against them,

they must get the masses of tasty cake mixture they will need...

The coffee just brings the chocolate flavour out.

It's not actually a coffee cake.

...mixed up and in the oven pronto.

My illusion cake today is going to be a baked cola ham,

which is a chocolate cola flavoured cake.

I'm going to have marzipan carrots, amaretti cookie potatoes,

truffle Brussels sprouts, Yorkshire puddings that are sweet and spicy.

So it will be a full-on Christmas feast.

James really has got his work cut out.

His illusion ham centrepiece will come with all the trimmings,

including white chocolate ganache peas,

cranberry and port compote in an isomalt dish

and rosemary caramel gravy.

Uh, yes, it is.

It's going to be really tight.

When I did this in practice, I had a minute to spare.

Good luck. Thanks very much, guys. Cheers.

All right, these go in the oven.

All right, in we go.

I just popped it in for 25 minutes. I'll check it then.

Now it's roast potato time, cos they're amaretti,

they'll crack a bit on the top, a bit like a proper roast potato.

So I'm making shortbread,

which is going to make my sandwiched biscuit tarts.

A new Rubes invention!

This is the mixture for my cheesecakes.

So it sort of looks a little bit like a Yorkshire pudding.

Jamie!

Right, tell us all about your illusion cake.

A fried turkey bucket?

You know, a fried turkey bucket.

You know, Prue, you go for a fried turkey bucket sometimes.

Is this your Christmas festive meal?

But it's what you'd like it to be.

Right. So how is it going to look, than?

AS Opposed to?

Built of chocolate sponge and brandy buttercream,

Jamie's illusion takeaway turkey bucket

will also have the judges gorging on chocolate mousse milkshakes

and churro chips.

It sounds really delicious, but I don't like the theme at all.

You may not know this,

but in japan, a lot of Japanese go to a very famous takeaway

for buckets of chicken Christmas Day.

Are you basing it on that, Jamie?

Good luck, then, Jamie. Thank you.

There is one baker who's chosen to present their fake turkey cake

in a classic style.

Pulling out all the stops, Rosie's turkey centrepiece

will come with burnt Basque cheesecake Yorkshire puds,

two types of veg and double spuds,

with caramelised sponge roast potatoes

and champagne and white cacao mousse mash.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, you have mashed potato and roast potato?

Double carb? Ditto!

Really? You'll have mash and roast potatoes?

Is there anything that's not beige on your plate?

Excuse me, this is about Rosie's illusion piece.

Sorry, I was distracted by so many carbohydrates.

I started putting on weight just at the mention of so many of them.

Right, good luck, then, Rosie. Look forward to it.

Ooh, cake timer.

Right. Going to come out with the cake.

Yep, they're nice, they're just dry enough on the top.

Just let them cool a bit, then I'll tip them out.

They are looking OK.

Oh, yeah.

MATT: The sponges may be done,

but in this most complex of challenges,

the bakers have multiple illusion elements to create.

Are my spuds done?

I'm going to fry these churros.

Smells like fish and chips, doesn't it?

HE CHUCKLES

Hi, Ruby.

MATT: Made of cardamom sponge and Swiss meringue buttercream,

Ruby's cereal bowl will be topped with white chocolate spaghetti

and dark chocolate truffle meatballs.

It'll come with chocolate ganache, shortbread slop tarts

and a rice puff elf hat for good measure.

OK, thank you very much, Ruby.

I'm making two different batches

of salted brandy truffles at the moment.

The dark chocolate will be the sprouts.

I do like sprouts. I actually do.

I've got white chocolate ganache with peppermint in.

Get it cooled, and then melon-ball it

into little Brussel sprouts shapes.

This is for the sweetcorn.

What do you think Prue Leith has for Christmas dinner?

I reckon there's ham, turkey and beef.

Ham, turkey AND beef?

When you say beef, do you just mean an argument?

I don't know, Prue's pretty tame.

If she had beef with you, Jamie, you'd know about it.

She's got Paul on her side - he's got very stocky legs.

He walks like he's just got off a horse. No comment.

Bakers... You... ..are...

...half... ..way... ..through!

It is like Christmas Day. You've got just as much to do.

Time to ice this bad boy. HE CHUCKLES

This festive feast illusion cake, I think they have to be

very, very, very creative and artistic to get it right.

You need quite a firm sponge to carve. There is a lot of turkey.

They've all chosen a variety of different things,

from spaghetti, meatballs, we've actually got a full roast.

We've got a bucket of fried turkey.

I'm going to put a fondant over it.

This is raw turkey skin.

Good, I'm quite pleased with it.

It's not going to win any competitions in a beauty contest.

It just needs a bit of make-up on it.

How good are they going to look, this is the thing.

You know, the illusion has got to look like

what they're setting out to do.

Nice spuds.

Later, I'll give them a little brush with butter,

make them a little bit darker.

They look pretty good, don't they? Chips.

I think they're going to feel the pressure.

Certainly, it's going to matter for at least three of the bakers

today to see who's going to win.

Kind of want it a bit marbled, a bit like ham is.

Jamie, do you want a top-up on your tan while I've got the brown out?

HE LAUGHS

Jealousy's ugly, Jame;

It's Christmas. We'll leave them alone now

and see what they can come up with.

This is for my elf hat.

It's become like a melty mess.

This is Swiss meringue.

This will make my champagne and white chocolate mousse,

which is mashed potato.

I'm confusing myself so much at the moment.

This is my chocolate mousse milkshake.

Not on my rec... Oh, it is on my recipe.

That's a nightmare, that is.

Bakers, you have one hour left. One hour!

It's getting serious now.

JAMES: It's going to be tight.

Now, that's a proper Yorkshire pudding.

I think I'm happy with these cheesecakes. Yeah, they'll do.

Um, uh...somewhere to put them.

Pink ketchup. I think Prue will prefer it that colour,

it'll look less fake.

You are the only person in here who's been a star baker,

and the only person here who's made it to the final.

WHISPERS:

So you've got to be the favourite today.

You can't be flapping.

All right, the carrots are done.

Now on to making my peas.

I'm making potatoes.

It's nice when you finish the little elements.

They're really little tiny things, but then they're done.

Now I'm going to carve a drumstick shape.

Noticing that about you - obsessed with fried poultry.

That looks really good,

and I know the Colonel would be delighted with that.

If only he'd share with his recipe with you, but he will not.

It's a secret recipe. It's a secret recipe.

But it is...finger-licking good. Mm.

Bakers, you have 30 minutes left.

Imagine having only half an hour.

Panic time.

What would Christmas Day be without a surprise?

And James has one for the judges.

So I've also hid a real sprout,

and I've just dipped it in the chocolate as well,

so hopefully I'll be able to sneak it in and they won't spot it.

This is for the sweetcorn. I'm going to give it some grooves.

Rosie, for a vegetarian, you've done pretty well at making a meat feast.

Then it just suggests to me

that maybe you've been lying about being a vegetarian.

Everyone likes a turkey-flavoured cake.

Don't leave us alone. Don't leave us alone with it, Rosie, we'll eat it.

It's now the bakers must complete their magic act...

...pulling off an illusion that tricks the judges

into thinking their Christmas feasts are anything but cake.

Lots of focus now.

It smells delicious.

JAMIE: Yeah, they look all right. Yeah, I'm happy with that.

ROSIE: Have I got everything? This is my massive paranoia.

I literally can't remember which one's the real Brussel.

I reckon it's that one.

Little sticker to put on the side, Bake Off Bucket and Fried Turkey.

ROSIE: I need to season, season things, and gravy.

Sprouts, Brussels, carrots, peas, Yorkie puds, gravy.

You can't skimp for a Christmas dinner.

I don't have fried chicken on Christmas Day. That would be stupid.

I've just got to pour my gravy. I think that's it.

Bakers, your time is up.

Please step away from your showstoppers.

A little bit messy, but I'm pretty happy.

HE CHUCKLES

It's judgment time for the bakers' festive illusion cakes.

James...

Would you like to bring up your Showstopper, please?

PAUL: It's very elegant, actually. It's very clever.

It's remarkable to make my brain think that that is cake.

The Yorkshires are very authentic. Yeah, they're very clever.

I think you've done a really good job with it. It has that wow factor.

Let's have a slice of ham, please.

So, it's basically chocolate and cola?

I think that's very good, James.

It's probably got a bit too much buttercream. It's very rich.

It's quite dense, the cake, but it's very clever. It ticks all the boxes.

The Yorkshires are just like Yorkshire pudding.

And it is a batter, isn't it?

Spices.

Yeah, it works. What are these again? Mm.

They're almost like marzipan. They're so rich.

I love that flavour. Mm, I do.

What's the sprouts made of?

I have.

THEY LAUGH

It was Russian roulette Brussels!

I mean, that is so clever.

THEY LAUGH

I think that's revenge for last time.

I think you've done a good job there.

Really good job. Well done, James.

Merry Christmas to you.

Nice one, James.

It does look amazing.

It's clever, it's clever.

It's very clever and it's very witty and it's unusual.

It just has to taste good now.

What sponge did you use for this?

That sponge is lovely. The sponge is delicious.

Perfect. It's a nice cake, actually, blended together.

These biscuits look good.

Breaking very easily.

They're really nice. The chocolate's just soft enough.

Biscuits are beautiful. It's very delicate and melts in the mouth.

Clever. What's the spaghetti like?

It's strange, cos it's quite rubbery, isn't it?

Actually, the spaghetti melts in your mouth. It's fine.

Do you know, Ruby, I think you've done a fantastic job.

Your baking is terrific.

Overall, you've come up with some really neat ideas.

Very good. Thank you. Thanks Well done.

It does look like fried turkey. Big lumps of turkey.

Big lumps of it, yeah. Slabs.

That's rather impressive, isn't it?

A bit thick, that fondant round the edge.

It's odd for me to say this,

cos there's so much buttercream and icing,

but the cake itself is not very sweet at all.

Quite bitter, isn't it? Yeah.

No. It's not bad.

It's not a bad cake. It's just... It's bitter, which I didn't expect.

The churros actually look like churros.

Rather than chips. You should have had a smooth piping nozzle.

I can't resist them. They are the most delicious things.

I liked yours. And the mousse...

This is a very strange Christmas feast.

Oh, I love that.

Yeah, it's very good.

I think it's a clever design,

and you did complete what you said you were going to do.

It's astonishing. It's incredible.

You see a lot of novelty cakes out there, and this qualifies

as some of the professional levels.

This is really, really good.

Some of the best illusion stuff we've seen in the tent.

I think it's wonderful. I love the Yorkshire cheesecakes

and, do you know what, I can't help myself,

I just want this to be mash and gravy.

THEY LAUGH

It's delicious as mousse.

It is amazing, cos you do think it's going to be mash.

Oh, it's lovely.

Oh, beautiful. Look at that.

They're beautifully neat.

You seem to have a similar consistency all the way through.

The citrus flavours that you've got in there,

that orange really lifts it. It's quite a light sponge as well,

isn't it? There's not too much of the sugar paste on the outside,

which is nice. It's neat.

I really think the texture is absolutely lovely,

and I love the buttercream.

I want to try this cheesecake.

It's lovely.

Amazing job. Really, I can't fault it.

If I'm going to be really picky, the Brussels sprouts don't really

look like Brussels sprouts. The colours are wrong.

But the overall look, and the gravy

and the mash and the turkey - superb. A big success.

Terrific success. Thanks very much, indeed. Well done.

Well done, Rosie.

Forgot this, too.

APPLAUSE

I've not done that before.

Well done, bakers.

Now, if you want to step outside, we're all going to sit down

and talk about you behind your back.

CHEERING

Here to witness the Star Baker announcement

are a limited number of friends and family for cake and bubbly

in their socially-distanced bubbles.

I'm chuffed with that.

There were some mixed comments but there was nothing horrendous.

Think Prue warmed up a bit.

She didn't say anything bad about the way it looked, really.

Fantastic judging. Lovely comments from both Paul and Prue.

I love that Prue got the real Brussels sprout.

Payback after a full season of Bake Off.

Well, well, well. 'Tis the season to be jolly, and we have been jolly.

We have. I'm now feeling slightly sick.

Well, you did eat a lot. You really gorged yourself there.

I did. I did.

So, who's in the lead here? Who's in the running?

I thought Ruby has a really good chance.

You know, even Jamie...

I know Jamie won't make Star Baker, but the truth is that

if you look at that lot, it's all worth the calories.

Well, there's only one Star Baker,

but there's also one star presenter.

And that is dear Tom Allen, who so kindly joined us. Thank you, Tom.

Oh... Well, it was my pleasure.

There was no room at the inn, so they said, "There's a tent round

"the back. Would you like to go and present there?"

I have, haven't I?

I've been like a delicious buttercream. Not as tasty as Noel.

No, I'm not as tasty as Noel. You're right.

I'm a bitter bit of cake, and I don't mind that.

CHEERING

Bakers, thanks so much for returning to the tent.

You've all been amazing but, of course,

there can only be one winner.

So it is my pleasure to announce that the winner

of The Great Christmas Bake Off is...

...Rosie!

CHEERING

I can't really believe it, to be honest. I'm so happy, so happy.

It's just the perfect end to a lovely couple of days.

PRUE:

A round of applause for all of our bakers.

# Silent Night

# Holy night

# All is calm

# And all is bright... #

# Round yon virgin... #

Paul and Prue were actually really nice to me!

Turns out there can be miracles at Christmas after all.

# Holy infant

# So tender and mild... #

A great Christmas Bake Off and, actually, the standard has been

excellent all the way through.

And even Jamie got better and better coming into the Showstopper.

# Peace... #

I'm feeling really happy and I'm really happy for Rosie.

She definitely deserved it. Definitely feel proud of myself,

cos I managed to get invited back.

Been a pleasure, been my pleasure

to be invited back in and to be part of Christmas Special.

# Said silent

# Silent night

# Holy... #

# Sleep in heavenly... #

It's lovely to get the bakers back in the tent

and I hope it'll put a smile on everybody's faces.

Merry Christmas.

# ..peace. #

CHEERING

Next time...

I woke up this morning and I just felt physically sick.

...we're celebrating the New Year...

I've come back to haunt you.

...with a festive baking frenzy...

I recommend you use something called an oven.

...taking on a fruity Signature...

I'm just having a squeeze of your plums.

...a street-food Technical...

...and a Showstopper for a big birthday.

My 21st was in 1975.

Who will be the first Star Baker of 2021?

It's harder than it looks, actually.

PFFT!

Subtitles by Red Bee Media