The Great British Bake Off: The Eighth Baker Leaves The Tent

The nation’s most famous tent was pitched in the grounds of Welford Park once again. Presenters Noel Fielding and Alison Hammond came to lead the latest batch of 12 bakers through thirty brand new challenges set by Judges Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith, in ten episodes.

In Tuesday’s night’s episode of The Great British Bake Off on Channel 4, Jasmine was named Star Baker and sadly Iain was the eighth baker to leave the 16th series.

It was the quarter final and Dessert Week in the tent. With the Bake Off crown within touching distance, the bakers faced three devilishly difficult dessert based challenges . To earn their place in the semi final, the bakers took a trip to Spain in the Signature as they were tasked with baking the perfect Basque style cheesecake. In the Technical, Prue set a particularly perilous pudding challenge with a gluten free sponge. Finally, for the Showstopper the bakers were faced with creating a highly elaborate free-standing trifle.

At the end of the eighth episode Alison announced that Jasmine  was Star Baker and Noel had the difficult job of telling Iain that he would be leaving the tent.

Iain said:  ‘I didn’t think I would make it this far - I never thought I would make it past the first couple of weeks.  So to make it to the quarter-finals is something that I couldn’t ever have thought of.   We have had the best group of Bakers.  We have made really really good friends, and we always have a laugh.  It’s just been fantastic.

‘I had accepted when Noel walked into the tent that it was going to be me going home, so I was just waiting for him to say it. I felt like it was my time and I was just grateful to have gotten as far as I did. 

‘The other bakers were absolute gems and we were all so close, I wasn’t even really sad when it happened so we all were able to have a laugh about me getting out of doing Patisserie week! We have a wee group chat where everyone writes lovely messages whenever someone leaves, so it was great to see everyone’s kind words!’

Iain talks about his experience after leaving the tent:

My main take away from Bake Off is that I truly love baking, I was starting to stagnate with my bakes and being on Bake Off just reignited my passion and showed me that this is what I love doing in this life.

I’ve learned so many new skills it’s hard to list them all; I’m now a chocolate tempering expert, can make a massive souffle, and above all else I’ve learned I can promote landmarks in Northern Ireland better than Tourism NI.

*Overall what was your best and worst moment in the Tent?

I think my best moment was presenting Bingate 2.0 to Paul - Bingate was my favourite Bake Off moment, and I always said that if another Iain from Belfast got on the show I’d have to pay tribute to it. I almost didn’t do it, but I’m so glad I did.

My worst moment had to be the bread week showstopper. I changed that recipe completely 6 times in the run-up to that week, and I completely psyched myself out because I put so much pressure on myself to make something weird and wacky. When I didn’t go home that week I just felt absolutely terrible for Pui Man, it wasn’t a great time.

*Favourite challenge overall and why.

I absolutely loved the decorative tart showstopper - firstly because I love tarts, but secondly because I got to be as creative as I wanted and I had loads of time to actually do it!

*Worst challenge and why?

I really didn’t like doing the Summer Fete showstopper, my mind went completely blank that week for bake ideas and it just didn’t come out anywhere close to how I wanted it. I had far too many plates spinning and all the plates just came crashing down!

*Funniest moment in the tent throughout your time there?

I vividly remember being asked what the worst thing that could happen during my cake week showstopper, and I said for the entire thing to collapse, so we’re definitely not going to let that happen. Cut to me halfway through my cake week showstopper, cradling a puddle of chocolate goop wondering where it all went wrong.

*Did you have a costume disaster any week in the tent, and did you have a lucky T shirt/Top you wore?

During my last week it was so warm that I finally decided to wear shorts - except I only wear very short shorts, about a 5 inch inseam, so when I had my apron on it just looked like I wasn’t wearing anything from the waist down. I had to keep hiking my apron up to prove that I was actually wearing shorts!

I had pizza socks which were always my lucky socks, and I wore them throughout all the auditions, for the first couple of weeks, and then for bread week showstopper. After that disaster, I never wore them again. I started wearing different socks, and each week I’d weigh up how well I did that week and which socks I was wearing, and I’d wear the best performing socks again based on the results. I’m not superstitious in the slightest but something about those socks really sucked me in.

*Would you wear any of Noel’s jumpers or shirts?

I’d wear any and all of them, that man is an absolute icon. I saw that Nadia got one of them from him after the final and I was so jealous.

*Did you do anything daft with Noel during your time in the tent, and did you get to either sing or dance with Alison?

I looked forward to Noel coming over every time I was baking in the tent - we made a little demonic child out of hot water crust pastry dough which was a real highlight.

I got to propose to Alison which was wild, I didn't think that would happen at any point in my life.

*What do you love most about all your fellow bakers

It might sound obvious but everyone is just so passionate about baking. Barely anyone in my life is as obsessed with baking as I am, so being around so many people that absolutely love baking is just incredible. 

*Did anything from the tent happen to slip into your travel bag when you were leaving (no judging)

I somehow ended up with one of Gill’s piping tips from last series. I was absolutely buzzing that I got it and then I used it on Meringue week and never got it returned to me again because it had her name on it!

*Would you encourage other home bakers to apply for the next series?

I’d absolutely suggest other home bakers apply, it’s genuinely such an incredible experience and I’ve made memories which will last a lifetime, and it’s a hell of a fun fact I can use at every single icebreaker from now until the end of time. You’ve got nothing to lose by just applying and seeing what happens!

*What’s next for you in the baking world?

I’m pretty active on my social media accounts, so I want to keep going full steam ahead with that and maybe take some of the new skills that I’ve learned to up my game! I’ve been hesitant to show too much of my personality online, but this has really made me come out of my shell a good bit on camera! Honestly I have no idea what’s next other than that, Bake Off has reaffirmed my love for baking and I just want to keep doing it as much as I can in my life!

Biography 

Iain

29

Belfast 

Software Engineer

Originally from Coleraine, Iain lives in Belfast with his girlfriend Dervla and their cat, Viktor. A former amateur powerlifter Iain now lifts dough instead of weights. The self-proclaimed "Yeastie Boy" mixes his love of live music with sourdough, immortalising album cover art on the crusts of his loaves. He blends classic flavours with a creative twist, often using fermented fruits and vegetables to enhance the depth and complexity of his flavours. If an ingredient can be pickled, aged, or cultured, he’s eager to give it a try! Iain is also on a mission to rewrite the Bake Off legacy of “Iain from Belfast” once and for all.

An Extra Slice

Iain will join Jo Brand and Tom Allen on The Great British Bake Off: An Extra Slice on 

Friday 24 October on Channel 4 at 8.00 pm.