GBBO 2016 Post mortem

[fourquenelles]

Here we are to rant and rave

Tamale. So dreamy.

It was much more low key this year, I wonder if that's why the BBC let it go? Maybe they thought it was running out of puff (pastry) anyway?

Glad that the shitty comments about Candice have gone. It's a baking competition FFS.

Am watching the programme just now - agree that the standard was higher last year but as before, I think this year's lot were just as good but they came under more time pressure because the producers trimmed the allowances back for the 'drama'.

Love Tamal! Think he's appearing in his doctor guise on some programme at the moment.

And HOW much better does Nadiya look in the bright headscarves than the black? 100 times more flattering.

Tonight's programme about 2015 show very good. Nice to see them all again. Fab four at the end!

This was the first year when I felt I could have had a reasonable stab at everything. I''m a competent baker, but usually I am awestruck by some of the things people make. Not this year......

You might be right Helen, I think the BBC have had it in its prime.

I loved Tamal... he made me laugh!

Nadiya does look amazing, but it is also makeup, more colourful clothes, and probably confidence and self belief. I love her quite a lot. And Tamal, and Ian actually.

And even 'I'm just going to whip up a few macarons ' Flora.

Oh, and new brow shape.

Ooh, that Northern one that did the wobble -she was very very lovely.

I had a tear in my eye watching Mary berry with a tear in her eye.

They were a good group last year fo sho.

Yes, to me, it was a much more tear jerking emotional series... for me anyway

I welled up too. I had no idea Nadia couldn't go on PT ,poor thing!

She's so skinny now, clearly not eating her lovely cakes

I've recorded tonight's episode to watch tomorrow. What's the PT that Nadyia couldn't go on?

Public transport

Public transport - she didn't feel confident going on it without her children, until she had to regularly use it to get to bake off

I'd forgotten some of the previous contestants - there really were a lot of personalities there, and some really good baking

I'm not sure whether Nadiya has lost weight, it's just that she's obviously been sent to a stylist and now wears make up and less baggy clothing. I also wonder whether she was advised to ditch the hijab in favour of a hair wrap? It just seems to me like someone told her that she'd be more marketable/media friendly if she presented herself as less stereotypically Muslim? Happy to be proved wrong, but that's how it looks to me.

Not judging Nadiya at all btw, I think she's lovely and loved rewatching her speech when she won.

She lost loads of weight, 2.5 stone since last year I think she said in an interview. She always looked amazing, stunning woman. I think she said she'd lost 4 or 5 since before the bake off too. Amazing!

I use James Morton's books regularly- they are brilliant.

Not sure what Nadiya's weight loss has to do with anything.......

It doesn't, except it's normal to comment when someone looks so different. She talks about it herself.

I keep meaning to try and do the marsh mallow icing she does, must have a go.

I want to go to a Selasi party!

Candice was the obvious winner - you can't have soggy bottoms on your sausage rolls and still win GBBO! (Though the choice of theme was odd, given that they knew it was going to air at the end of Oct, when the birthday celebrations were a bit of a distant memory)

Totally agree! The queens birthday and picnic suggestion seemed a little odd.

Weird that again in the final the show stopppers were the first round bakes.

Ian came over so much better on the catch up program, they rarely let his personality show last year.