Bake Off The Professionals 2021 - who else is watching and what do you think?

[Laiste]

thegreatbritishbakeoff.co.uk/meet-the-pastry-chefs-2021/

I want to like it. I love GBBO, i love master chef. I quite liked the jewellery thing and i've enjoyed following glow up. But this ... it's not quite right is it? Why though? It's it's 4th year. What is it they're still getting wrong?

(apart from the fact that I find Liam Charles and Tom Allen about as funny as a wet fish round the face)

Is it just me?

I really like it - more than GBBO in some ways because the creations are so much more impressive. But I agree with you it could be better.

Agree entirely re Liam and Tom. Liam is totally pointless and just here for a GBBO link. Tom is occasionally funny but not right for this programme.

Benoit Blin is hilarious (to me anyway) and more should be made of him by the editors. Cherish too, possibly.

They need more challenges. 3 like in GBBO rather than 2.

Also the contestants are in pairs and described by their employer name rather than their actual names and I think this means we empathise and engage less with them. Ultimately though the contestants are being chosen on skill rather than personality/sob story and perhaps that means it will always be less engaging?

I feel the same as you OP. I love this sort of stuff but just finding it a bit… meh. I’m loving the GB sewing bee though!

I think it's an acquired taste, not keen when I first watched it but it's growing on me.

minipie good point about the contestants. Yes i feel no particular warmth towards anyone in particular, and part of the fun (for me) in these things is picking your favourites.

I love Cherish and Benoit :)

I think Cherish in particular is really getting into her character this year.

I like Tom Allen and Benoit.
I hate the programme because I do not have a sweet tooth and sometimes feel quite sick looking at the stuff being made.
I admire the efforts and can understand the difficulties.
Most of all I love the classical music background because classical music seems to have been sidelined for xxx (insert music style of choice) these days.

I agree Victoria that the stuff they make often isn’t my style. Would prefer to see more patisserie and less of these glazed individual desserts

This is one of my very favourite programs, so thanks for the heads up about the new series I love that it's all about skill, not about ridiculous tasks with unrealistic time constraints, where the contestants are set up to fail. I also love Benoît and Cherish!!

I'm just sick of yuzo in everything. I'm sure it used to have a lot more variety when it was creme de la creme

I remember that Benoît said something v similar about yuzo in the last series!

Totally agree about yuzu. I do like it, but bought some a couple of years ago and it made me sick. I am NEVER sick.
However, the craftsmanship and ingenuity is interesting, although as a guest in one of the more up-market places, it would be totally wasted on me.

@PineappleTart

I'm just sick of yuzo in everything. I'm sure it used to have a lot more variety when it was creme de la creme

Yes! That's what it used to be called! I'd forgotten.

I'd like to see more pastry making. I think i'd like it to nudge towards being much more like GBBO but without such a strict time scale.

It would be nice to see a competition with enough time given to actually complete what the contestants what to do.

I'd like to see it presented by someone with knowledge of what's going on so that they can talk you through what the judges has asked for. A la masterchef. The jokey stuff is zzzzzzzzz.

The chocolate and pink grapefruit tart/torte/cake things in the last episode made me want cake so badly

Completely agree with the OP. I hate this programme and yet every year I really try to like it. I’m exactly their target audience - love food shows, love cake, love baking and making desserts, know quite a lot about patisserie.

And yet I find it the opposite of nice relaxing telly. I don’t like any of the judges, the contestants’ personalities don’t shine through at all, I don’t care who wins and who goes home. In fact, I can’t remember who is who. I don’t even want to eat anything they make.

There doesn’t seem to be any joy in the programme and I think that’s the problem.

I don’t care who wins and who goes home. In fact, I can’t remember who is who.

Yep. The colour coding helps a bit. DD and i were rooting for 'The Pinks or the Oranges' today

It needs a trusted anchor personality to pull it together IMO. Michel Roux jr or Angela Hartnett or similar.