The crushBakingCrush of the week: the Great British Bake Off’s lion loaf
‘Have you seen this lion loaf? That beast will haunt my dreams for years to come’In popular culture, there have been many important lions. Aslan, Mufasa and, if we’re being topical, Cecil. And now we can add another, a nameless lion made of bread, created by contestant Paul Jagger on this year’s Great British Bake Off. Have you seen this lion loaf? That beast will haunt my dreams for years to come.
Even taking into account my passion for baking (nothing beats my exquisite coconut cupcakes), it’s hard to explain how I came to be so enamoured of this painfully middle-class show. There is no edge to GBBO: it is Downton Abbey rendered in cake mix and gently administered to a sleepy audience. So what’s the secret recipe? It’s not just the judges, Paul Hollywood and Mary Berry, beloved of many; or presenters Mel and Sue, who I’ve loved (on and off) since the 1990s. Like any good sponge cake, the secret lies in the mix of all those ingredients, plus a sprinkle of contestants, who each year enter the white tent of judgment.
And forget The X-Factor: surely there is no greater pressure on television than that placed on Bake Off contestants. There have been tears (of joy and despair) and tantrums (who can forget 2014’s baked Alaska-gate?). But, above all, there is a sweetness to the whole endeavour: ordinary people, doing what they love and wanting to be the best. My heart soars for every star baker, and is crushed with every elimination. This year, I am smitten with Nadiya, who has the most mobile pair of eyebrows on TV since Frank Spencer.
I desperately want her to go all the way, but can she top that lion? That, now, is the real challenge.
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