GBBO 4th thread - Will it be Ruby Tuesday in Final Week?..

[Myimaginarycathasfleas]

...or will Kim Joy claim the title? Will Rahul nail it with a bake they DO have in India?

It’s anyone’s to lose.

I cannot warm to Prue Me neither. In fact I think she's quite a nasty piece of work given her romantic history. Of course that's nothing to do with GBBO

derxa Romantic history? I know nothing of this. Would I be shocked, nay horrified??

I think the winner will be chosen because of their physical appeal and the ability to sell cookbooks over the next 24 months.

Well, that prediction didn't go well.

Not horrified Fuzzy It's just a bit icky.
www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/columnists/allison-pearson/9149629/Prue-Leith-His-wife-didnt-think-I-would-fall-in-love-with-him-it-was-practically-incest.html

I can’t believe she’s 78!!!!!!!

I actually prefer the new lot

But I much prefer it when they get to create nicer stuff than the green blue landscapes

And they need to be fair

It's certainly a bit strange derxa. Father figure?

It's certainly a bit strange derxa. Father figure? Probably. Who am I to judge.

I wonder whether any baker in the entire history of baking has ever chosen to make pitta bread on an open fire when the alternative of an ordinary cooker is available.

I would have loved it if all three had simply refused to do anything so bloody stupid and told the judges they were going to get pitta cooked inside the tent and would have to put up with it.

I wonder if they did the pitta technical outside as it was roasting in the tent? Assume it was filmed during the heatwave.

Unlikely, given that cooking in blazing sunshine would be much hotter. Didn't Ruby say something to the effect that, after that, she'd never complain about the heat in the tent again?

Here's a bit of useless knowledge for you all. With the exception of series 2 and 8, every other year whoever has been star baker in bread week has gone on to the final.

I read an article in Take a Break once and the smell of bread turned the husband on. The wife would put bread rolls all over the bed and they would 'romp'

Maybe the same happens with Paul, and the best bread baker gives him the throb.

You know what? Thinking about it I think like big brother the problem goes further back than who ended up in the final to who was selected to enter the tent in the first place. I think the production team (WRONGLY) chose not the best bakers from applicants but those they THOUGHT would make the best telly.

A mistake they should have learned from big brother DOESN'T WORK it works far better with this kind of thing if the people an audience takes to happens more organically.

They need to focus on choosing GOOD BAKERS first and foremost and then they're actually more likely to find a nadiya or a Liam or even a Candice.

TRYING to predict a future reality tv "star" NEVER works.

"The show has lost its integrity" perfectly put!

Iirc Paul did say re manon's French v Danish bakes that it was the proportion of ingredients (less butter to flour) and length of bake (baking all the butter dry) that was the difference, also the bread iirc had very little rye flour and the texture as a result was all wrong.

Completely ignoring the key elements of the brief is NOT the same as adding a twist in flavouring.

Another that can't warm to Prue, also agree she's a cook not a baker. Whatever else we say of Paul he is a baker. The romantic gossip is quite distasteful but I'm more concerned at her attitudes to business and women in business.

If they really can't get Mary back I say again I think Jane Asher would be a better judge than Prue. Can anyone make other suggestions? I'm not particularly au fait with who's a well known British BAKER rather than cook. But Jane has a lot of experience in the area AND in television so could cope with the presenting side too.

Maybe the same happens with Paul, and the best bread baker gives him the throb.

A friend of mine told me that she accompanied another friend along to a Paul Hollywood love speaker event in a theatre somewhere. He did a baking demo and at the end he threw the bread rolls into the crowd, where numerous women literally fought over them. She said it was like Tom Jones knicker-throwing in reverse.

Oh god no not Jane Asher I can’t bide her. Also no Nigella!

The article is eye raising

also the bread iirc had very little rye flour and the texture as a result was all wrong.

There is no way the texture of that bread would have been fine with more rye and the time they had, as evidenced by Rahul's doorstop.

Also, how do you bake the butter dry in a French way? Nonsense. The butter will leak if the dough is warm when it goes into the oven, it's a basic mistake, nothing with it being a French versus a Danish technique.

Completely agree with Graphista.

Lovely though Terry was, he had limited baking experience but a personal history that made good television.

I preferred the WI stalwarts.

Werewolf, blimey can you imagine the vain smugfest if it was Nigella & Paul?!

The pita bread challenge was absolutely ridiculous and not necessary. I couldn't help but think how incredibly stupid it was. Just why?

I thought all 3 show stoppers were not great tbh. Rahul grated on my nerves. All the face posturing when they were tasting his bakes pissed me off.

Seconded Werewolf.

No Jane, no Nigella - but Paul is an increasingly unpleasant arse.

I liked Prue at first, but now don't - the True Prue is Now Coming Thrue () and she's unkind.

I do prefer Sandi and Noel (esp Noel) to Mel and Sue, but I think some foulmouthed rants near any contestant who is in tears or similar, (as Mel and Sue apparently used to do to stop the footage being used) would be a good thing. It's bad enough being reduced to tears without your red-eyed, weeping face being broadcast to the millions (especially if you are a snotty crier, like me).

There are millions of recipes they could choose for the challenges without all of this twatty crap they are coming up with, and they should allow time for them to be done properly. And there is nothing wrong with repeating challenges from previous series, either.

Good, simple recipes, well-cooked, well-presented, and inspiring to us all. That's what's needed.

Noooo, leave Prue alone! I think she’s funny and dry, and kind to the bakers. She doesn’t gush but she’s generous with her appreciation when they’ve done a good job. You really feel she enjoys their food.

I have a lot of time for Mary but I got a bit fed up with the glamorous granny with a twinkle and a penchant for the sauce persona, when we all know she’s a formidable business woman with a backbone of steel.

Line up aside, I was hopeful after the first C4 series that they had the wisdom not to tinker too much with a winning formula. However they’ve well and truly bolloxed it up this year.

As always Schaden I agree with your observations.
except for Seann on Strictly

...and Paul is a complete arse.