Original subtitles

GBBO S08E01

Can you see it, Noel?

I can't see it anywhere.

Big white tent, 12 new bakers.

Sorry, Sue, you did say white tent, didn't you?

Where are they, Prue?

Dunno. They're late.

Maybe we should've got a minicab? Hmm.

My daughter applied for me.

This is who I've got to thank for all this.

My mum said I'm already a winner.

That's such a mum thing to say.

When I saw the tent, my heart rate went through the roof.

It's like my wedding day, all over again, except my wife is not here.

I'm going to be baking in the tent.

It's got so much history.

Are you sure I'm not asleep? Are you sure it's happening?

Initially, I thought it was a bit of a fluke!

I'm not going to lie.

I don't think I'll believe it until I see it on telly.

I'm ready to go.

12 new bakers...

My children said, "Don't get sent home first."

If I do, I'm not allowed home.

NOEL: 30 brand-new challenges,

set by Paul Hollywood and our new judge, Prue Leith.

This year is going to be very special.

The bakers may think they know what I want, but, when it comes to Prue,

they've absolutely no idea.

Prue's got 50 years' experience in the business.

She'll know what she wants.

I'll be firm but fair,

because I want the bakers to do their very best.

Baking is such a treat,

but it has to be the very best and it has to be worth the calories.

I am always getting frustrated with myself.

I cannot tell you the amount of cakes I've thrown away,

biscuits I've thrown away.

Technical bakes may unstitch me. We'll see.

NOEL: In 2017, who will win The Great British Bake Off?

I am British, but I'm a proud Scotsman.

So, it would be good to be the first Scottish Bake Off winner.

I just want to get on with it now and, erm, burn that first cake.

NOEL: We're back at the home of the Bake Off,

Welford Park in Berkshire.

Right, so, I've got a list of what we have to do.

First, set up theme of the week.

I was thinking a semaine of genoise, creme patissiere, fraisiers gateaux.

Oh, I love it. What's it mean?

It's cake week.

I'm so excited. We're actually going to walk into the tent

for the first time. I know. I'm a little bit nervous.

I-I don't really do camping.

Yeah, I don't think we have to sleep in there.

Oh, OK.

NOEL: Over the next two days, the bakers will face three challenges,

after which, one of them will be named our first Star Baker,

and another will be asked to leave the Bake Off tent.

Hello, bakers and welcome to the fabulous Bake Off tent.

We're all newbies here, well, apart from ol' blue eyes.

So, let's get baking with your very first Signature Challenge.

The judges would love you to make a family sized fruity cake.

Now, the choice of sponge and, indeed, fruit is entirely up to you

but it must be fresh fruit.

No dried fruit allowed.

Basically, what we're saying is if it was a fruit party,

sultanas would not be on the guest list.

You have two hours to make your fruity cake.

Do you want to do it? Shall we do it together?

BOTH: On your marks. Get set. Bake!

Plain flour.

The reason why the fruity cake challenge is such a great signature

to start off the series with

is because it really tests the bakers' knowledge

of baking in its purest form.

How much moisture is that fruit going to release?

What that does is make the inside of the cake quite soggy,

so what's difficult to judge is when it's baked properly.

When you stick a skewer in to see if the cake is done,

the skewer may well come out wet

because it's hit a piece of fresh fruit,

and you will be fooled into thinking that the cake isn't done.

It's not a very easy start to Bake Off.

Morning. How are you doing? Hello, James. Good to see you all.

Tell us what you're doing. So, I'm making a rhubarb,

orange and ginger cake and it's got a crumble topping as well.

Takes me back to my childhood where we used to have rhubarb crumbles

on a Sunday lunchtime.

That looks like proper rhubarb out of a garden.

It is. Picked fresh from my allotment, yeah.

Oh, how fantastic. So, my dad is the magpie of rhubarb.

Every time I go up the allotment,

he's nicked someone else's chunk of rhubarb and he keeps growing it,

so he's... Do the rest of the allotment know that, James?

Oh, shh, don't tell anyone.

They do now!

Married dad of two, James is a finance manager

from Brentwood in Essex.

He's been baking and gardening with his dad, Brian, since he was five.

Put your back into it. Anyone would think you're getting old.

His signature fruity cake has a whopping 600g

of rhubarb in the sponge.

How are you cooking the rhubarb?

It's all going to be mixed in raw.

It'll cook for about an hour, so it should soften up nicely.

It should be a little squashy.

Yeah, it does get a little...

juicy, shall we say. Don't give too much away, James!

Oh, yeah. The judges are here.

NOEL: For the first challenge of this year's Great British Bake Off,

four of our new bakers have chosen a great British ingredient.

Apple.

My grandma, she used to make really good apple cake.

I used to call her Buzz, cos she had a hearing aid that buzzed.

And I always used to call her, every so often, Granny Smith.

I decided to name it after her.

Better than calling it buzz-cake!

NOEL: Stacey lives in Hertfordshire,

with her husband, James, and is a stay-at-home mum to her sons

Max, Zane, and Ethan.

Thank you. A pleasure. THE OTHERS LAUGH

NOEL: Her apple and walnut cake contains five large Granny Smiths.

There's an awful lot of apples in this.

Got to make sure that they're all blended in nicely.

I'm making an apple crumble cake.

It's inspired by my sister's lack of a sweet tooth.

This is for you, sister.

Liam is a student from Hackney in east London.

At 19, he's this year's youngest baker,

but he's already passing on his skills to his nephews,

Chamari and Lakwan.

Happy?

His crumble-topped apple loaf cake is lightly spiced

with nutmeg and cinnamon.

Why did you choose a loaf tin and not a shallower tin?

It makes the baking more difficult.

But I like loaves.

That's bread. You like the shape of it?

It's not... Yeah, I like the shape of loaves.

Liam, just say it's always been perfect.

Flake of almonds, icing sugar, done.

And "done" - I like that!

Liam, I love the confidence.

Thank you. It's terrific.

NOEL: One Signature Bake is the product of a weekend in Amsterdam,

resulting in an unusual choice of fruit.

As I do, I go around all the bakeries possible,

and there was some lemon and courgette

and I fell in love with it.

And, technically, everything that's got seeds in, is a fruit.

NOEL: Russian-born Julia lives in West Sussex

and bakes while Skyping her nan

back in her hometown of Kemerovo, Siberia.

Her cake will also be filled with blueberries and lemon curd

but there's already a problem with her courgettes.

I meant to squeeze my courgettes before I put them in.

I would keep that quiet. Yeah.

How do you squeeze the moisture out of a courgette?

Basically, you just put it in... Do you just wring it?

Basically, you have to grate it first, and put it in a tea towel,

and squeeze it. OK. But...

So, you do know how to do it, you just forgot? I do know.

Just deny it. If they say, "Have you not squeezed the moisture out of

"this courgette?" Yeah, I have. Say, "Of course I have."

I'm just not strong enough.

Elsewhere in the tent, there has been squeezing.

I'm not doing too crazy. I don't want to squash it.

Sophie is a former Army officer

from West Molesey in Surrey.

She'll sandwich her squeezed pineapple and coconut sponges

with coconut Italian meringue buttercream.

I just want to avoid too much leakage into the batter.

Done it without before, it was fine.

It's just a precaution, really.

NOEL: She's not the only baker that's headed for the tropics.

I'm making a coconut cake.

My wife and my daughter love it,

but my son doesn't like anything with bits inside it.

NOEL: Peter is an IT manager and bakes every Sunday

for his local church in Southend-on-Sea.

That looks awesome.

NOEL: As well as fresh coconut, he's using coconut flour,

coconut milk, and coconut sugar.

I don't think you can ever get enough coconut,

unless the cake screams, "Oh, leave me.

"I've had enough coconut. I'm tired!"

HE LAUGHS

NOEL: And we have a third fruity cake castaway.

I'm making a mango and pineapple sponge.

Good for us, really, isn't it, all this fruit?

NOEL: Chris is a software engineer from Somerset.

He's used a spreadsheet to calculate the perfect balance

of mango and pineapple in his unique sponge.

There's no butter in it and there's... No butter?

No butter at all. No oil, no marg, no butter?

Correct. Nothing at all.

How many eggs? Just two.

Two? Mm. Cook for 33 minutes.

You must have a tremendous amount of fruit in there, then.

Yes, because the whole point is that we can taste it.

Yeah, solid.

Going to put it in the oven.

I wonder if there's a countdown clock anywhere.

I'm not sure how quickly it's going to bake.

I'm just making sure I've got an even amount in both tins.

You've got to be precise on the Bake Off.

Mwah. It's going in at 160, for 45 minutes.

TIMERS BEEP

Calm.

Cross my fingers.

And start.

We'll see how it goes.

Bakers, you've got one hour left on your fruity cakes.

How long is your cake going to be in the oven for?

It could to be up to 75 minutes.

I'm hoping an hour. Yeah, that's the same with me.

NOEL: The baking time for a fruity cake can be a complete mystery.

The longer you look at it, the more it cooks.

NOEL: As the temperature in the sponge rises,

it's hard to tell how much moisture the fruit will release...

..and how long the wetter batter will take to bake.

SHE HUMS

Oh, God. It isn't baking the way I feel it should be.

Wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute.

No, your... Your red light's got to be on.

Oh, for crying out loud!

Because if the light's not on, the oven's not on. OK.

Thank you, Stacey!

I had it written on my hand.

"Make sure the oven's on."

Yan is a biomedical scientist for the NHS

and spends her weekends playing football

in her hometown of Enfield in north London.

Yes!

Her team-mates' favourite apple and cinnamon cake has a crumble

topping drizzled in caramel.

It was sitting in residual heat, so, the crumble's gone all soft.

It's just a puddle of fat.

Let's make this again.

Luckily, I've got apples and crumble...

..as a contingency.

NOEL: While Yan has to start all over again...

Oh!

..Flo has moved on to her fillings and decorations.

It's, erm, a citrus cake and I'm doing a lemon curd filling.

Is that a "lemon caird" filling? Lemon... Lemon curd!

ALL LAUGH

Stop it! I'll be a translator.

It's good you've got a friend now. Stop it!

NOEL: Grandmother Flo, from Liverpool,

sometimes helps out at her son's restaurant,

but gets most enjoyment baking for her family.

Why don't I get invited to your houses for a meal?

I ain't got one. Cos you're the best at it.

NOEL: Her children had to help her type up her recipe

for a triple-layered citrus cake,

filled with fresh oranges and lemons.

Me daughter put little messages on the bottom of it.

"Well done, Mum!" Aw!

"We love you!"

I'm nervous as anything. Are you? Oh, don't be nervous.

Nothing to worry about it. I can always ask you to help me,

can't I? Yeah.

I'll say no! I know! But you could always ask. I know.

While making a second sponge has cost Yan valuable time...

..Tom is spending precious minutes giving his fruity cake

an expensive makeover.

I wouldn't want to just put a pear on the top of a cake.

Tom is an architect and sports fanatic from Edinburgh.

Yes!

His golden pear will top a triple tiered pear and blackberry cake.

It's just going to be mottled, rustic effect.

It's not the sort of thing I do very often.

Tom's gilded pear will have some stiff competition.

I've got me little cut-out pattern, erm, so, I'm going to put it

over the top of the cake, and then I'm going to use

freeze dried strawberries, and then do, like,

a fresh fruit garnish round it.

So, you made that yourself? It took ages.

NOEL: Kate is a health and safety inspector

and a keen amateur blacksmith from Knowsley, Merseyside.

Her intricate, stencilled finish will top

three layers of strawberry and rose sponge.

I love the combination of rose and strawberry.

How are you going to make sure that one doesn't dominate the other?

Hopefully, I'm going to layer it with some

strawberries going through. Well, good luck.

Thank you. Thank you.

When it comes to fillings and decorations...

Mm. I don't know what he's doing, but I want to dip my finger in it.

..Stephen is going further than anyone else.

Toffee sauce. Then, after that, we're going to

crystallise the citrus rind.

I'm going to mix up the mascarpone, cinnamon, and icing sugar,

and then, erm...

I probably should read my instructions really, shouldn't I?

Stephen is a marketing executive from Watford.

His mum, Judy, began teaching him to bake when he was three.

Are you in ounces?

Yes! What year is this?

For his Bonfire Night apple cake,

he's planning a spectacular final flourish,

straight from his mum's recipe book.

What's happening here? So, it's... It's like some

bizarre game of chess.

I love it. Every Bonfire Night, Mum would make us toffee apples.

So, these are done by taking a melon baller, small piece of apple,

dip the toffee, hang them upside down. They'll leave a trail of

toffee, which, when turned the right way up, will look like

the flames of a fire. Oh, wow. Yeah, I know. Amazing.

I think I'm in love with you. Of course, if it doesn't work...

Already?

Bong!

Bakers, you have 30 minutes left to make your fruity cakes.

Does the pan not make a noise? Is it...

DULL BONG Oh, yes, you are better.

It's always a tricky one, whether to open it or not.

Let's do it. Let's be brave.

Testing the bake on a fruity cake...

It's all very serious and quiet in here, now.

..can be a total lottery.

Kind of Russian roulette of rhubarb.

You don't want to mistake, like, the juice from the apple

for underbaked sponge.

Just one sec, sorry. I think that's apple on the skewer.

Okey dokey.

NOEL: Whilst those making sandwich cakes with separate sponges...

We're all good. ..should need less baking time...

Oh, look at them babies.

..for those baking one large cake...

Absolutely nowhere near ready.

..this first Signature Challenge...

Cheers! ..is about to get even harder.

You've got no cake, there, have you?

Hm? You've got no cake, there? Yeah, I don't, it's just apple, isn't it?

It's supposed to be out in four minutes. Not a chance in hell.

I shouldn't have gone for a loaf!

There's nothing I can do now.

Should've just went for a sandwich.

Pants.

TIMER BEEPS

OK, there's the magic bleep.

It's just a sponge.

No-one's going to die.

Oh! Unless the bakers have left enough remaining time

for their cakes to cool...

I'm not panicking. It's all good.

..they won't be able to fill or decorate them in time for judging.

Nearly done, that.

What's your problem, that you need these to cool down? Yeah.

You never know, I might go on the first one. No.

Think you're going to be all right? Deep breaths. So, what do you think

about your new job? HE LAUGHS

I don't think I'm going to be all right.

I think you're going to be fine.

I think we should swap. No, no. I think you'll be around.

15 minutes to go.

I'm going to turn the oven up.

Come on.

Oh, nice.

SHE SIGHS

Not too shabby.

Crystallised oranges to go on top of the cake.

Just grind up the freeze-dried strawberry pieces into

a really fine powder.

Oh!

HE SIGHS

My heart's going now.

They're nice and crispy.

They'll have to go on.

All's I've got to do is decorate the top, and then I'll be fine.

Has anyone got a small sieve I could borrow?

My God. Thank you very much.

Fingers crossed this works.

Right, that'll do.

That's as good as it'll get.

Are you finished? Yeah.

You? Ah.

Right, bakers, you have two minutes

to bring this to a fruity conclusion,

and, you know, who doesn't want that?

I don't think I'm going to get my apples done in time.

SHE SIGHS

Fingers crossed.

I just pray that it's baked.

Oh. I haven't got time to muck about.

Come on.

Shizzle is nizzling.

Oh, no!

I've lost some bottom.

What do you need, mate? Do you need icing sugar?

That's it.

Yeah. Let's wipe down. OK. All right. Whisk, whisk, whisk.

If I tuck it under, don't tell anyone.

Bakers, you've got one minute.

There there's just so much moisture out of the rhubarb.

You're good? Yeah, solid.

Dripping all over the place.

Bakers, your time's up.

Looks gorgeous.

Your first challenge is over.

Well done. HE LAUGHS

Can I just, like... No, it's fine. Don't touch it.

Like, the middle, though... Don't touch it! Don't touch it! Liam!

I've made such a mess. I'm so sorry. Oh, my God!

Look at the state of this place!

The bakers will now face the judgment of Prue and Paul

for the very first time.

Hello. Hiya.

I think you've lost a little bit of the stencil.

I always have a slight problem with things you're not going to eat.

Nobody's going to eat a marigold.

My favourite bit. Oh, God!

Or perhaps it's not! Is that all right?

It tasted like a clown's nose.

The cake is all rose water.

It's not what we wanted in a FRUITY cake.

It's a rose cake. Style above substance.

How much baking powder did you put in there?

Five teaspoons.

Yeah, it's burning my tongue.

Before the baking powder hits you, you get a really nice, yes,

coconut flavour.

If somebody said to me

you're going to put a whole pear on top of the cake,

I would have said, "No, that's silly" -

but it actually looks very striking.

I think you have overbaked the cakes, for sure.

It's a little bit heavy. I meant to squeeze a bit of juice out of it,

and then I forgot. You forgot.

Well, you're a nice, honest girl.

I told you not to tell them!

I couldn't lie!

I think it looks great. It looks well-baked.

I love the candied fruit on top of that.

You finished quite early, didn't you?

I did, yeah. You were sitting there. I kicked myself. Why?

I left the lemon curd in the fridge.

Lemon curd in the fridge? Yeah.

OK. Let's have a look. Here we go. Oh, dear!

Mm! That is good sponge.

Loads of orange flavour coming through. Oh, good.

Do you know? I think there's enough citrus in there.

Lemon curd is lovely, but unless you are very restrained about it,

and only put the thinnest layer, it would have been overpowering.

It's nice, that, Flo. I'm awful pleased.

It's a shame about the lemon curd.

I have never heard of a sponge cake

with no fat in it, with only two eggs.

I think your sponge is baked to perfection.

Well, I tell you what.

It's got flavour. Texture, not right in the middle,

because it all got squashed. OK.

It is a bit stodgy.

It's a bit boring. Oh, God.

I'm not getting a huge amount of flavour through.

I'm getting the sponge and I'm getting an apple.

Not light as air, but it is a good sponge.

I think you got away with it,

considering that was your second one, as well.

I'll take that as a win. THEY LAUGH

Maybe a draw. Yeah.

It looks absolutely delicious.

Thank you. I love the sunflower flames,

and the shine of the toffee is perfect.

Beautifully baked. Thank you.

To get that texture of apple, which is just slightly soft,

and you have those gorgeous warming spices coming through.

The combination of flavours is perfect.

I mean, it's just like a little sum-up of autumn.

Thank you. Very well thought through.

Well done. Well done.

Very good. Oh, wow. Thank you. WHISPERS: Nailed it!

Well done. Thank you.

It looks as if the apple has sunk a little.

The bake's OK, but I get a hint of cinnamon.

I'm not convinced that the whole thing together works.

I think it does look a little bit rustic.

It's just mud. Wet in the middle.

It's been flooded with water all the time. Yeah.

..while it's in the oven.

Nothing that a lot of custard wouldn't help.

It's very neat. The piping's good.

Oh, look at that sponge.

I think that texture's lovely.

Pineapple flavour comes walloping through.

You must have dried the pineapple a bit, did you? Yes. Yeah, yeah.

That's delicious. I mean, it really is.

Oh, my gosh, wow. The pineapple that comes through there is delicious,

and that silkiness that comes from the Italian meringue,

it just works so well with that. Wow. Thank you so much.

I'll have another piece of that. No, you can't. Well done. Thank you.

Gosh!

When he sort of...

I was like, "No! It can't be!"

I am worried I might have peaked a bit too soon.

When he put his hand out, I thought he was going to hit me.

I know it's not pretty, but I was hoping that it would hit the spot.

It's the Peter Beardsley of cakes.

Oh, my... Agh!

The Bakers were able to practise for the first challenge.

Every week, their second will be a gingham-clad mystery.

Bakers! Now it's time for your first Technical Challenge.

Today, set for you by the lovely Prue.

Prue, any advice to the Bakers?

Well, all I can say is it's a bit fiddly.

Right. As this challenge is judged blind,

I'm going to have to ask these guys to go.

No, not you. What? I just wanted to see where they go.

No, we've got work to do. OK.

We have to set the very first Technical Challenge,

which today involves Prue wanting you to make 12 chocolate mini rolls.

That's 144 of these childhood favourites,

each one of which needs to have a delicate chocolate sponge,

a swirl of peppermint buttercream, and covered in chocolate -

but, cheekily, do not worry about leaving a bare bottom.

You have two hours.

On your marks. Get set.

Bake!

Oh, my God!

To make the chocolate mini rolls,

the bakers have all been given the same ingredients,

from Prue's pared down recipe.

The instructions are vague, a bit like me.

I've made a Swiss roll a couple of weeks ago, so to me,

it's just lots of little Swiss rolls.

I've never made a mini roll ever in my life, why would you?

Prue, why have you chosen chocolate mini rolls?

They are very familiar to everybody, so they seem like an easy cake.

In fact, they are very difficult to do.

They must look identical and neat.

Inside, soft chocolate sponge -

because there's no flour in it, there is no baking powder.

You are relying entirely on the egg whites to rise the sponge -

and there is peppermint buttercream,

which if you put too much essence in, it tastes like toothpaste -

and it must make a perfect swirl.

Altogether, not an easy task.

That's delicious to eat - very chocolaty sponge,

with that flavour of peppermint, but not too much.

Let's see what they're made of -

and all I can say is I have more difficult challenges to come.

Charming.

The recipe is telling me that I have to... Make a paste with cocoa,

butter... One teaspoonful of vanilla extract.

Four tablespoons of water.

It's looking like it should be the right consistency.

My first bake wasn't brilliant,

so I need to pull it back a bit with this one.

And then the next instruction,

whisk the egg yolks with two thirds of the sugar.

SHE WARBLES HER TONGUE

And then mix egg yolks with the paste.

Lovely jubbly. Whisk the egg whites with the remaining sugar.

This is getting enough air into the egg whites

to give it a really nice, light texture.

That'll do.

Gently folding in.

Nice and smooth, but still plenty of body.

Cos the egg is the only raising agent in this.

If you miss that step out, then I think you could be in trouble.

Whisk in the egg whites to the remaining sugar.

How are you feeling after the first one?

Nah. So if I come in table for this, it should be all right.

Going in. Go.

Big breath. Big breath.

Here goes.

It says 12-20, but that's pretty vague.

I don't know, I don't know.

I'm going to do 12 minutes,

cos as soon as they lose that moisture,

they'll just crack as they roll.

See you in 12.

This isn't right.

You see, this isn't right...

and I can't work out what I'm not doing right, actually.

Maybe it's supposed to be like that.

What's next? Got to make the buttercream.

Is that something you've done before? I'm joking!

You're still joking, that's good!

Yeah, but joking can only get you so far.

Thanks a lot!

It doesn't say how much peppermint essence to put in.

Start off by doing a quarter of a teaspoon.

I just put in a... and then I'll see.

The flavour is not too overpowering.

It needs a bit more.

It doesn't taste like toothpaste.

Bakers, you are halfway through the making of your mini marvels.

I just want to get to the point where they are quite flexible.

They don't look done at all.

Any time soon. Slightly sinking in one bit.

Let's be done, guys.

I don't know if I should do it again or not.

Flat as a pancake.

So, I've started again.

I'm starting again as well. Nothing like a bit of stress.

OK...

It's a little bit rubbery.

I want to redo my sponges.

I think I didn't fold it in very well, maybe.

That looks disgusting, doesn't it?

Do think I need to mix it for a bit longer?

Try not to lose the air.

Yep. Quite happy with those.

Second time lucky.

Melt the plain and milk chocolate together.

Got dark and milk chocolate in here. It'll be nice.

It's a chocolate feast!

That is pure...

Wow. I can actually feel my hips widening as we do it.

Is that good? Well, it's a thing.

OK. And the white chocolate is presumably drizzled over?

I made a mistake.

I've put white chocolates in the milk chocolate.

See if I can do something with it.

See you again in 12 minutes.

You've got half an hour left on your mini rolls.

Here.

He's bowled over.

Spread the filling over the cool sponges.

I've got to make sure there's even spreading of the buttercream.

Make sure I get right to the edges, I want the nice tight curl.

OK, so... Roll from each short so that it meets in the middle.

Roll it like that. Roll it the other way.

And then cut that in half,

and then do the same thing with the other one.

I've just scored it a little bit to try and get it nice and tight.

Using the piece of paper to help me.

Just making sure that the roll is tight.

It is fiddly.

It's all sticking.

I didn't realise that it would be this much pressure.

Relief!

Happier with the rise on these.

They are looking absolutely awful.

Cut into 12 mini rolls.

The length is 20cm.

That doesn't divide. But the edges are not neat,

so take a centimetre off each side, and it works out, 6cm each.

Hopefully, you'll have a perfect little spiral

and it'll be nice and tight. HE LAUGHS

Oh, well. Put those ones to the bottom.

They've got a nice whirl inside, so at least that's something.

Ooh, didn't cut it even.

Right. Here we go.

It just says, "Cover the rolls, leaving the bases uncovered."

How are you going to pour your chocolate?

Are you going to pour it on, or are you going to dip it?

Because we are allowed an exposed bottom, I will just pour it all on.

If there's an opportunity to keep the bottom exposed,

we should all embrace that.

I'm planning on taking my trousers off,

and Paul and Prue do the judging.

Just trying to ladle it over.

How long have you got left? You tell them five minutes,

cos I don't want to make them stressed, but you can.

OK, bakers, you've got five minutes left.

What he said.

Use the white chocolate to decorate it

in some unspecified way.

I'm thinking quite simple, just some sort of lines.

Oh, shaky hands!

I don't have any time.

WHISPERS: This is dangerous.

Looks are deceiving, aren't they?

My hands are shaking so much. Oh, God.

Such a mess.

OK, bakers, your time is up.

Please bring your mini chocolate rolls up

and put them behind your photo.

Paul and Prue are expecting 12 identical mini rolls

filled with a perfect swirl

of delicately flavoured peppermint buttercream -

and they'll have no idea whose is whose.

THUNDER RUMBLES

Oh, my God, I'm all shaky.

Hm. Should we start from this side?

It's not perfect. There is white chocolate on the top,

and they're all fairly even in size. Yes.

Let's have a look. It's got a proper swirl.

The sponge is good. The peppermint is a little bit strong. Mm.

This is certainly rougher.

They haven't been cut properly.

Very nice swirl.

That sponge looks good.

Good. The peppermint is good in that one.

It's a shame they look the way they do.

I know, because it's really good inside.

They're quite small, so there should be a good swirl.

Look at that. Interesting.

The sponge is actually not very spongy.

It's just more like a ganache than a sponge. Yeah.

These look a little bit messy. But I quite like the feathering.

Needed a bit longer in the oven, that one, I think.

This one's decided to use a different colour of chocolate.

We did ask for white chocolate.

Not getting the peppermint in that one. No.

Very neat, and the chocolate is very good.

Nice swirl. Got a bit of a hit of peppermint.

The sponge is nice, as well. I think this is a very good one.

Right, moving on to this.

This is art. This is definitely art.

I rather like it.

Not much of a swirl, this is a sort of C.

Too much mint. Now these are actually quite neat.

I like the white chocolate on the top.

Nicely coated, as well.

All the same size. Let's have a look and see what it is like inside.

Oh, dear. Solid bit of cream, no swirl.

That is a shame. This is not a pretty sight.

The ends haven't been covered,

the white chocolate has been blobbed on the top from about ten foot,

I reckon. Interesting swirl.

The sponge has not been cooked enough,

so it's very squashed and thin.

These look neater. Equal in size.

There is a little bit of a swirl in there.

The sponge is very good.

This looks quite neat, as well.

Mostly the same size.

Not too much of a swirl.

For me, there's a little bit too much mint.

Sort of feathered. Chunky monkeys, aren't they?

We're looking for more of a swirl in the peppermint.

The sponge isn't too bad at all. No.

It looks a little denser than it is.

THUNDER RUMBLES

Prue and Paul have made their decision.

In 12th place is...this one.

Whose is this? They might be mine.

Right. They were still raw.

This one is number 11.

Stacey. Your sponge mixture wasn't cooked properly.

In tenth place is this one.

Why have we got a milk chocolate on the top, not white?

It was just a mistake.

Flo is ninth. Liam, eighth.

Tom, seventh. Stephen, sixth.

Sophie, fifth. And Yan is forth.

And third place we have this one.

Very well done, Julia. Lovely swirl. Excellent.

And in second place...is this one.

Whose is this? Well done.

Thank you. Very neat, love the white lines on the top.

Thank you. So, in the first place,

it has to be Kate.

They're all the same size, swirl is there,

the peppermint flavour is finely balanced, well done.

Thank you.

Well done!

Happier than this morning. Do you know what?

I don't mind mini rolls,

but I don't think I'll ever make a rose cake ever again!

I don't think anyone has any idea

quite what the tent does to you in there.

I don't want to be out week one. That would be absolutely gutting.

Definitely not.

Stern talking to myself tonight. Serious talks.

One challenge remaining before someone is crowned

this year's first Star Baker

and another is the first to leave the Bake Off tent.

Bakers, welcome back to your first Showstopper Challenge.

Today, Prue and Paul would love you to make an illusion cake,

a cake designed to trick the eye

into thinking it's anything but a cake.

It has to have the same flavour of sponge throughout,

and the size and shape must be to scale.

So maybe don't make a woolly mammoth.

Yes, pace yourselves, maybe not week one.

All the decoration needs to be edible,

and you've got four hours to create

your spectacular show-stopping illusions.

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

Making a cake that doesn't look like a cake is the most complex

Showstopper Challenge ever set

in the first week of The Great British Bake Off.

I would remind the bakers

that what we don't want is style over substance.

Of course we want it to look like what it's not,

it's an illusion cake.

But it's also got to taste fantastic.

These guys have got to be not just bakers but true artists,

and probably a little bit of engineering as well,

and I imagine they've had a few sleepless nights over this one.

Nerves don't exist today, so I've got to smash it,

irrelevant of how I feel.

I want it to be airy, I really don't want negative feedback today.

I don't want you filming it, it's split!

It changes the rise.

Actually, the denser the mixture for this, the better,

because I need a lot of structural integrity.

Sophie's dense sponge will be flavoured with chocolate

and carved into the shape of a champagne bucket,

complete with sugar work ice cubes and a chocolate champagne bottle.

It's actually a cake I did for my housemate, for her birthday.

When I took it to the bar, the bouncer went,

"You can't take in your own alcohol."

And I was like, "It must look good, then, if I can trick the bouncer!"

And Sophie isn't the only one heading for a posh night out.

I like going out in the evening and getting dressed up sometimes.

Rarely, but when I do, I quite like a nice bag.

Stacey's making red velvet chocolate sponge,

which she'll decorate to look like a designer clutch handbag.

It's quite a wet mix, isn't it?

Yes. It's going to be quite moist.

It's got buttermilk, a little red wine vinegar, oil.

When you add the moisture to a sponge,

it becomes quite airy and can collapse very, very easily.

I've done it quite a few times, and I'm hoping that it won't collapse.

Thank you. Good luck.

Looking forward to the moist clutch.

OK!

As Stacey and Sophie head out...

..Tom is looking forward to a quiet night in.

I am baking a stack of books,

the idea being a relaxing evening by the fire.

The sponge inside Tom's books will be flavoured

with two of the classics.

My flavours are lemon and poppy seed.

I think it can pack quite a punch.

Whether you've had a quiet night in or a big night out...

..the flavours in James' sponge should get you up in the morning.

Got espresso coffee in it.

I start off most mornings in the office

with a cup of coffee and a croissant.

James will carve his espresso coffee cake

into the shape of his favourite breakfast.

It is kind of my day-to-day life and then my baking life,

which is totally separate, so this kind of joins the two.

So, I'm making the banana sponge now.

Liam's flavoured sponge will also be transformed into breakfast.

Every Sunday, I try to have pancakes.

Me and my mum prefer the thick American style.

His banana sponge with blueberry compote

will be disguised as a stack of pancakes,

complete with his mum's favourite trimmings.

What's this for, then? The granola?

Because I always have granola with my pancakes.

I just think the flavour's better.

Like you guys said, I have to work on my flavours.

How are you making the pancakes?

So I'm making a marshmallow fondant

and then I'm going to roll it into, like, a sausage shape,

and then cut out, like, thin strips and then wrap it round.

Why would you roll it round the cake?

That's how it will look like pancakes.

Trust me, Paul.

PRUE LAUGHS

For Chris and Flo's sponges...

That's not red enough.

..colour is crucial to pulling off their illusions.

What did you base the recipe on?

Paul's pork and egg pie recipe.

Oh, it's his own sort of savoury recipe?

Yeah, so I'm making a yellow sponge to represent the yolk,

I've got some white sponge to create the egg,

then I'm going to make the pork.

Chris will have to cut and place his almond-flavoured coloured sponges

so that when it's sliced, his cake will look like Paul's favourite pie.

I know you're an analytical kind of guy.

How precise has this all to be measured?

Down to the millimetre.

Do you feel you need this one

to get yourself a bit higher up the rankings?

I think we do, yes.

We? It's a "we" now, is it?! It is. I like that.

I thought this was a team! You'd told me,

you told me you're getting them drunk for me.

Did you give them that money I gave you?

Flo's coloured sponge should create an illusion

that's a little less savoury.

My husband loved melon.

We went abroad one time and the barman made us

a watermelon cocktail, called One In A Melon,

so it just brings happy memories.

I don't like melon myself.

Flo's red sponge will be soaked in melon syrup,

studded with chocolate chips and covered in green fondant.

I'm going in.

I'm going to have to do them on two shelves today,

and I normally like to keep them all on the same shelf.

With the multiple sponges required to build the illusions...

Beautiful!

..come multiple baking times.

Start at 20.

And whilst keeping track of that...

That'll be in for about 13 to 15 minutes.

..they also need to find time to make multiple decorative elements

to deceive the eye.

Here we've got the ice malts.

It's basically a type of sugar.

It melts down to be totally clear,

and that's going to go into my ice cube trays.

It mimics the look of the ice cube.

For her sugar-based deception,

Kate is also working with unconventional materials.

This looks surprisingly like Glacier Mints.

Yeah, I'm making a terrarium cake.

A terrarium is a small glass container that you put plants in.

Mini greenhouse. I used to collect cactuses when I was a kid.

Kate's panes of Glacier Mint glass

will enclose buttercream house plants

on a chocolate and star anise sponge.

It's about engineering,

cos you've got to make sure all those pieces fit together.

I've designed the moulds with a bit of a lip on them,

so structurally they've got some support.

Have you done this whole thing before?

Not all together, no. I've done it in different elements.

I think we ought to let you get on with it. It's terrifying!

Peter is also venturing into the intimidating world of molten sugar.

I made the knife mould myself,

so the ultimate goal is to have

a knife that is cutting through the bread.

Peter's knife will cut a lemon Madeira cake loaf

sat on a Genoese sponge chopping board.

It just represents my foray into baking,

cos I started baking bread before anything else.

Stephen's also attempting to make bread in cake week.

Being one of 12 bakers, I thought,

why not make a lunch for us out of cake?

He is preparing 2kg of fondant for his bakers' lunch...

to cover a loaf of chocolate and hazelnut sponge

that will be sliced for

an accompanying fondant-filled sandwich.

Which is a bacon, lettuce and tomato.

BLT? BLT. How are you going to make that?

I will use this bad boy.

This is a spray gun for edible colour.

For bits of lettuce, tomato, bacon.

Perfect. Nice idea.

I think that's very interesting.

Good luck. Thank you.

When it comes to fondant food, Yan's lunch is a little more adventurous.

It's a pasta machine.

My mum's been trying to get rid of it to me,

cos her house is massive and mine is tiny, so why wouldn't she?

She'll attempt to make fondant noodles

to top a banana cake

transformed into a bowl of Japanese ramen,

complete with fondant Pak Choi and chicken katsu fillet.

I like noodles, so banana ramen just rolls off the tongue.

Yes, beauty.

Bakers, unfortunately, time is not an illusion. OK.

You are halfway through your Showstopper Challenge.

Very happy with those.

We can work with that.

Bingo.

While some are happy with the sponges

they'll have to build with...

Zen.

..for Stacey...

there seems to be a pattern emerging.

Usually, they're much higher, and I wanted a light sponge,

and that is not a light sponge.

Am I going to put it in the bin? Yeah.

I want to redo my sponge.

Not what I wanted today, so...

For the rest of the bakers...

..it's the point of no return.

The sheer complexity of this year's first show-stopping designs...

Cutting a cake when it's warm, sometimes it springs back on you.

..means precision in every cut, in every cake, is crucial.

This is going to be the core of the cup.

I'm now making the inside, so this is going to be my egg,

I'm going to cover it up, job done. And breathe.

Julia has also planned an illusion on the inside of her Showstopper.

I'm making a Russian doll.

I think it's quite self-explanatory.

Hidden at the heart of Julia's Showstopper

will be a fondant and sponge doll,

surrounded by a larger doll

made with five layers of classic Victorian sponge.

The outside looks Russian, like me, and the inside is English,

which is also me now.

How long have we got? About an hour.

An hour?

Doable.

Very happy I re-did it.

Getting somewhere now. Carving it round, like a melon.

I'm making the doll for the inside.

Now I'm doing three things at the same time - sugar, fondant, cake.

Four things - icing. The whole thing.

The clock seems to get faster.

Just about to do serious cuttage.

Shall we do it together? It's like a wedding.

Feels lovely, darling.

Ooh. Ooh?

Don't worry. Is it OK?

It's technically your fault, but... Yeah.

I want to try and get it all neatly covered in one go,

and then I can trim it back after.

I'm just piping the succulents on,

although I think the buttercream might be a little bit too hard.

My hand is so shaky!

I'm just trying to do a crumb coating.

That's the diameter of the cake, or circumference, I don't know.

I can't remember the last time I did maths.

This doesn't look anything like I want it to.

It's a katsu chicken fillet.

It's made out of Rice Krispies and marshmallows.

I'm just dropping it in.

It's like, you know when pancakes have those air bubbles,

so like just over there.

Bakers, you have half an hour

to bedeck your breathtaking bakes of beauty.

Still redeemable. Everything's redeemable.

Everything's redeemable. Yes. You can do this.

This is modelling chocolate.

Wow, what's happening now?

You should have seen it before I started sculpting!

So this is the top of my champagne bottle.

Oh, yeah! OK, well, good luck with that, yeah. Thanks very much.

I'm glad I saw that.

Using my science background to create the salmon roe.

So I've liquefied some agar in some mango juice and then obviously you

want the spherical balls, and how do you create that?

So I've cooled down some oil in the fridge, and as I pipe in the liquid,

it cools down and creates the outer wall.

Juice balls.

Science!

Does it look like a watermelon?

How long have we got? How long?

Five minutes until we see what your cakes are made of.

Or what they're not made of.

I haven't really got time.

Try to not get in a state.

Do you put bacon on first or lettuce?

We'll put lettuce on first. Let's not be monsters about this.

Ten... Carrot.

Nine. Eight.

Seven. Six.

Five. Four.

Three. There we go.

Two.

One. Bakers, your time is up.

Put down your illusions.

What a disaster. No more touching your illusions.

No.

Well done.

It's judgment time for the show-stopping illusion cakes.

Yan, please bring up your illusion cake.

I think what you've produced there

is a work of art.

I love the way you've used the Rice Krispies

and then the eggs look incredible.

PRUE: The little salmon roe, it'll taste like mango,

and your brain is telling you one thing

and your taste buds are telling you another.

We should be eating it with chopsticks! I know.

Look at that. Isn't that beautiful?

I think it's got a good banana flavour.

The case is slightly too dry.

It's unfortunate, but that design is incredible.

I think you could have done more with it.

It's not detailed enough.

Yeah.

I love the flavour. I think it's a little dry.

It so nearly worked, didn't it?

That glass looks great. It's such a shame you lost it at the top.

Yeah.

Texture's nice. Very moist.

Nice flavour. I like it.

It's collapsed a bit there, hasn't it?

It did. It needed more time before I iced it.

Mm. Very nice flavour.

It's a bit dry, but the chocolate, the coffee, is delicious.

It's a little bit basic on the outside. Sure.

This is so exciting!

Oh, that's disappointing.

We can see it. Oh, that's brilliant, that bit.

LAUGHTER

Very almondy flavour.

But it comes down to the texture.

It's a little bit too dense for me.

Flo, please bring up your illusion cake.

PRUE: If you saw that in the greengrocer's shop,

you would think it was a watermelon.

I'm dying to see what it looks like inside.

Oh, there you go!

Look at that.

NOEL: Wowsers. That's excellent, there.

Now, this has got watermelon syrup in here as well, hasn't it? Yeah.

I want some with the chocolate in.

I can't really get the watermelon,

but then my mouth is full of chocolate.

What's the matter with that? I think it's wonderful.

Your sponge is spot-on. I love the colour you got inside

and the chocolate just highlights it and lifts it up.

I love you, Flo. I love you too now!

SHE LAUGHS

It's the fattest Russian doll I've ever seen.

Proper Siberian!

Is that right? OK!

LAUGHTER

Oh, look at that!

NOEL APPLAUDS

Right, let's see if we can cut into her.

I find the cake a little bit plain and a little bit dry.

It's a little bit simplistic.

I think it's a pity about the knife.

A bit dry. The flavour in there is beautiful.

I just think you've left it in there a little bit too long.

I'm not certain that I would know it was a handbag.

It looks like a decorated cake rather than a handbag.

But what's more important is, is it a great cake?

I think it's delicious. Thank you.

Certainly a bit sticky in your mouth.

You wouldn't want to eat a lot of it because it's so rich.

The sponge is delicious. What throws you is the colour.

Overall, not really overwhelmed by the design.

I have to say, the champagne bottle looks amazing.

It's really beautifully done.

Oh!

I'll just get that before it melts!

Surprisingly dry.

OK. The ganache is making it even drier,

but the flavour of the chocolate's nice.

Steven, please bring up your illusion cake.

Wow.

That is stunning.

Without a shadow of a doubt, you know exactly what that is.

Absolutely astonishing.

You wouldn't think that wasn't bread, would you?

It is a chocolate hazelnut sponge with a peanut butter frosting.

It's perfect.

The hazelnut, the peanut, the frosting,

the layers are equal, the outside,

the colour, the texture, it's all there.

And it's not too sweet.

I think it's lovely. Well done.

Well done. Thank you.

Well done.

Liam, please bring up your illusion cake.

Well, I have to say, I think it looks delicious.

It makes my mouth water.

I want to come to yours for breakfast.

Any time. It just...

It's so lovely! LAUGHTER

I mean, it really is very difficult to believe

that that's not pancakes.

Yeah, I think it's ingenious, but...

it's got to taste good as well.

There's a lot going on in here as well, isn't there? Yeah.

I was expecting more banana flavour.

I think that's because the blueberries overpower it.

Yeah. But it's delicious. A mouthful is lovely. OK.

I think your banana cake is beautiful.

Well done, mate. Thank you.

Oh, good.

HE EXHALES

NOEL: Paul and Prue must now decide who'll be our first Star Baker

and who'll be the first to leave the Bake Off tent.

The standard has been ridiculously high, hasn't it?

I think this is one of the strongest challenges I've seen

for the first programme. So, who has stood out?

Well, I think Flo came straight back with a cracking good watermelon.

Sophie has been very constant.

Steven didn't fail us on the Showstopper.

Nobody wants to be the first person to leave, but who is in some danger?

Liam saved himself with that Showstopper. It was stunning.

Stacey, I think, is in trouble.

This didn't look like a handbag.

Peter hasn't done well.

Chris is full of good ideas.

His flavours are spectacular,

but his baking falls short.

Well, I have to say, none of it sounds straightforward.

We have to send somebody away, don't we?

You could send Noel. I'll go.

I'll go now, actually. I'll take a hit for the team!

THEY LAUGH

It's been great. I've loved working with you guys!

Nice to meet you.

Sandi will be fine.

Bye. Bye, darling. See you later, kids.

Bakers, it is my tremendous privilege to announce

the very first Star Baker.

The Star Baker is the person

whose Showstopper was honestly the best thing since sliced bread.

LAUGHTER

The Star Baker is Steven.

APPLAUSE

Oh, bakers, sadly I have to deliver the bad news.

Horrible job. The person that we have to say goodbye to is...

..Peter.

I'm sorry, mate. Give us a hug, come on.

Well done.

Peter, you were great, I hope you've enjoyed it. Yes.

It's been a wonderful experience.

Maybe I could have done things differently,

but it's been just a pleasure meeting everyone.

PRUE: I'm really sorry to say goodbye to Peter.

He was up against real competition.

Sorry, buddy.

The standard this year is so high, and unfortunately,

it was Peter's turn.

I don't know what to say, mate. It's all right.

I understand it was the flavours that put me a whisker above Peter.

Give us a bit of love, then.

Hugely stressful and fun, and I've made some great friends.

Thank you so much.

And I'm so pleased they gave me the opportunity to hopefully improve.

When I seen that bread, I went...

When I got that feedback today, I was ecstatic.

The kids will be absolutely thrilled to bits.

I won't be telling them anything that they don't know.

It's me that doubts myself.

PHONE RINGS

Hello, darling. Hello, Ma, are you all right?

I made Star Baker.

GASPS No!

And, Paul shook my hand.

Oh, darling, I'm so proud of you!

I just want to feel like this all the time.

Not crying, obviously.

That's quite awkward, on the tube.

Next time...

it's biscuits.

That's it.

GRUNTING

With an emotional signature challenge.

Am I going to be crying when I eat your biscuits? I hope not.

An oriental technical...

You've got to be really...

..that may predict the Bakers' futures.

So frustrating!

And, a Bake Off first. This is insane.

Spectacular show-stopping biscuits.

This is probably the hardest thing I've ever done in my life.

That are good enough to eat.

It's a little masterpiece.

And to play.

Ah...

SHE EXHALES

Subtitles by Ericsson