Rahul Mandal "didn’t always get" what Noel Fielding was "talking about" on ‘The Great British Bake Off’.
The 30-year-old research scientist triumphed on the Channel 4 baking show on Tuesday night (30.10.18), overcoming stiff competition from Kim-Joy and Ruby Bhogal, and he has thanked the show’s co-host for teaching him who ‘Star Wars’ character Luke Skywalker is and what a fist bump is.
He said: "I loved Noel’s sense of humour although I didn’t always get what he was talking about. But I now know who Luke Skywalker is and what a fist bump is.
"’Bake Off’ has given me a new family, I felt I had a mum, dad, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, as everyone in the ‘Bake Off’ tent supported me in a weird and wonderful way."
Rahul is also grateful to Noel’s fellow presenter Sandi Toksvig for calming him down in the final after his one of his glass storage containers smashed due to the heat in the tent, which left him feeling "broken".
He said: "When the glass measuring jug shattered on the worktop I got such a shock because it came out of nowhere – I was busy making caramel, toasting hazelnuts and making my chocolate cake mixture.
"It broke into a thousand pieces and went into everything, so it all had to be chucked, it almost broke me and I really thought that was it for me. Fortunately I was able to prove that I could finish it.
"Sandi kissed me on the forehead and that helped calm me down. I used to call her Aunty Sandi."
Rahul is now hoping his baking success will boost his confidence.
He added: "Winning ‘Bake Off’ is about the coolest thing that I have done in my life, and I hope it will help me gather some more confidence.
"I would like to say thank you to all of those who believed and trusted in me for all their lovely comments."
Bake Off winner Rahul Mandal left confused by Noel Fielding
