The Great British Bake Off has become a stalwart of BBC1 these days but this seventh series seems to be as much the same as it ever was. It remains every inch the easy watching as past series but it seems more polished every year, which for me takes something away from it. It sometimes has the feel of the Olympics, desperately clinging to amateur status but clearly backed by more money and infrastructure. Over the years the show has given inspiration to the masses to get their cake making bits out of the cupboard, dust off the cutting rings and silver sugar balls last used 11 months ago and turn the oven to 180. The major difference is that, in my house at least, the kids are not going to rate my cake beyond how large it is and what % is chocolate. For me the pressure of cameras, strange kitchen, strange oven and minor celebs trying to shoe-horn humour and innuendo into every sentence is a non-issue.
However………………………… Baking is a skill, some say an art, which culminates in something (usually) sweet and tasty. What more can you ask for.
So what else is new so far in this 2016 version……? “What we wanted to do was take it back to basics a little bit,” said Paul Hollywood. “But that doesn’t mean the judging’s going to get easier. In fact, it’s going to get harder.” This could just be TV speak for saying. “Actually, we decided not to change anything.” Like anything repetitive there has to be a careful approach of ‘zesting it up’ (see what I did there) for freshness without taking away from a format that seems to be, “If it ain’t broke, why fix it!”
So…. enjoy the cakes on TV.
Did you know that the Causeway School Eastbourne has its own training kitchens which Schools Plus are happy to offer most evenings and weekends. Why not create your own little “Bake Off” group with friends and family and use the school for some baking fun and a bit of healthy competition. I expect you an even find some willing judges out there!
