The new crop of ‘Great British Bake Off’ hopefuls includes an aerospace engineer, pastor and hairdresser.
The latest series – co-hosted by Mel Giedroyc and Sue Perkins – will begin on August 24 and the 12 amateur bakers out to impress have been confirmed, but show judge Paul Hollywood has revealed the latest contestants on the popular programme started "nervously".
He said: "Nadiya [Hussain, last year’s winner] went to a whole new level… it put pressure on them more.
"I think we felt it in the tents as well. They started quite nervously, but once they settled down they got into it."
Fellow judge Mary Berry added: "They know the standard that it is, which is now pretty high. And I think they were slower to bond this year than they were in the past."
Among this year’s contestants are aerospace engineer Andrew, 25, who designs jet engines for Rolls-Royce, and Lee, 67, who works as a pastor in Bolton, north west England.
One of the contestants, secondary school teacher Candice, 31, loves to bake in her pyjamas, while another, Tom, 26, works for The Royal Society of Arts and recently shed 4st 10lbs.
Garden designer Jane, 61, is likely to be among the early favourites as she gets up at 5am most mornings to bake bread, while teaching assistant Benjamina, 23, started baking when she was 14.
Fans of the show might be particularly interested to see what crime expert Rav cooks up as he likes to be "adventurous and experimental" in the kitchen, while hairdresser Louise, 46, also enjoys trying out different flavours when making bread.
Client service associate Selasi, 30, has impressed pals with his charity cupcakes and 20-year-old Michael – the youngest contestant this series – has been influenced in the kitchen by his family’s Cypriot roots.
Former primary school teacher Val, 66, and nurse Kate, 37, have both been baking from a young age and the former claims to be a dab hand at baking the classics with her eyes closed.
Great British Bake Off hopefuls revealed
