The Great British Bake Off: The eighth baker leaves the tent

Category: News Release

In Tuesday night’s episode of The Great British Bake Off on Channel 4, Stacey was named Star Baker for the first time, and Liam, 20 was the eighth baker to leave the tent. Liam won’t forget his week on Forgotten Bakes. He didn’t drop his Bedfordshire Clanger, but struggled with his Cumberland Rum Nicky and his Showstopper Savoy Cake.

 

‘On my Rum Nicky, I just couldn’t get the lattice pastry topping to work. Everything prior to that was going well – it’s a pattern that you have to get right and I was really struggling - I kept redoing it and it ate into my time, and of course I put it into the oven late, so it didn’t have enough time to cook.

 

‘I look back now at when I first walked into the tent and remember the other bakers were all very excited and talkative, but it took me a good 10 minutes to get my head round it, synch it and realise actually where I was. When I got to Week 4 or 5, I was getting used to it, but it was still a bit dream like. In fact the whole experience even up to now, seems a bit unreal.

 

‘Being the youngest baker in the tent had a massive part to play. It meant I got lots of mothering and fathering from the bakers, with some really good advice on baking and how to cope in the tent.   Even though it’s a mixed age range, as bakers we all bonded together really well and still socialise. We are now planning a night out at Nandos, as some of the Bakers have never been. I am going to take them and tell them what to order - I know the menu inside out!

 

‘At college, the discussions for third year students are all about what you are going to do after uni, it’s a big topic of conversation, and of course at the time I couldn’t say anything. My main aim in life at the moment is to do the hard graft and work young, I am not a nerdy revisionist but at the same time I am not a slacker. You just have to get on and do what you have to do.

 

‘I have enjoyed uni so much, it was a huge jump for me after school. I was being sociable and having fun in the first year, and then the second year was crazy. There was so much work doing exams and also to be in the Bake Off in the same year was totally unbelievable.   At the time I thought why I am doing this to myself, but as it is with human nature, once it’s gone you really miss it. The experience was mad stressful at some points but looking back I would definitely do it all again.

 

‘Now, I am called Cake Boy more at uni and on social media it’s nuts.   They have all been so supportive, particularly when I was doing badly in Week 3, and Twitter and Instagram followers pick up on the facial expressions I make when the other bakers are getting judged. I do try and hide my expressions but it’s how I am, and people my age particularly pick up on it.

 

‘I never imagined I would ever get to the quarter finals – how mad is that? My target was to get past Bread Week and I thought with the maximum of my ability I perhaps could get to Week 6, and then when I got Star Baker in that week, I just didn’t know what the hell was going on! I didn’t want to follow the curse of Star Baker and get knocked out the next week, so I was crazy happy that I got through.

 

‘I have had such great support from my friends and family – my mum and my nan have both cried tears of joy. I said to my mum I go through the exact emotions watching it that I went through in the tent as it was happening, it’s weird to relive it, you try not to but you can’t help it. When I got the Hollywood Handshake it was like virtual reality when I saw it on screen, I felt the same elation that I felt in the tent. My dad, Uncle Robert [who is a great mentor for me in life], my cousins and nephews have been watching it and loving it. They enjoy the whole programme, not just watching me.

 

‘In Italian week, I had never made a pizza in my life so I couldn’t believe that I came second. And the judges were shocked when I had dips with my pizza, but people my age ALWAYS get dips with their pizza. Prue always said I was good with my flavours, and my food philosophy is if it looks great but doesn’t taste good then it’s no good. I spent a lot of time working out what flavours complimented each other.

 

‘I felt with Noel that we had gone to the same uni, it was that kind of instant friendship where you just click, and Sandi was the mother of all mothers and gave me great advice throughout the whole process.

 

‘In Week 7 I said to Paul I supported Man Utd, and that was funny as he said it was shame I had to go. Paul was great, I thought when I first met him I would be in total awe, but he is a cool guy who is really nice to talk to.   Not a lot of people know how to wind me up, but he sure knew how to wind me up, off camera as well as on!   Prue was really wicked, just so clever with her comments. I felt she had so much faith in me to do well in the show, particularly in the early weeks.   Every week I had to try and smash it as I wanted to prove to Prue and Paul that I could do well.

 

‘My best moment probably has to be in the first week because obviously my first two challenges were very mediocre. And then to go from mediocre to my Showstopper where Paul and Prue really praised it, I suddenly thought then that I am here for a reason. I started to feel a bit more confident and not so in awe of the other bakers.

 

‘Bad moments include my Rum Nicky of course, and also when my jelly didn’t set in the Trifle Terrine, that has never happened to me before so I wasn’t sure why it didn’t set, I still don’t know!

 

‘I am not sure yet what the future holds, but in an ideal world I would love to combine drama and baking together, and over the next year I want to decide what I want to do. Well I have to in June because that’s when I leave uni.

 

Paul said: ‘Don’t stop baking… So sorry to lose Liam, he’s learned a lot from beginning to now and he is now a totally different baker. He’s done really well to get to the quarter final, he should feel very proud of himself. But he had a bad Showstopper, and that’s what it came down to.’

 

Liam said: ‘In all fairness, I can look back – probably tomorrow morning I think - and say I smashed it. Onwards and upwards now, it’s not the end of me, it’s just the beginning. I am coming back for Paul Hollywood’s job in a couple of years time ha ha!’

 

Biography

Liam (Aged 20) – North London

Student Liam was born in Hackney, North London, and is fondly known as the ‘Cake Boy’ amongst his university friends. Having only baked for 4 years, Liam already has a vast baking repertoire under his belt. Liam strongly believes that baking is a universal language that can bring people together from all walks of life. One of Liam’s main ambitions is to make baking acceptable amongst his peers and the younger generation. This ambition begins at home where Liam regularly bakes with his young nephews to install that positive attitude in them.

 

Liam will join Jo Brand on The Great British Bake Off: An Extra Slice on Thursday 19 October, Channel 4 at 10.00 pm