Mouthing Off | The Great British Bake Off is the genteel alternative to Gordon Ramsay and his cutthroat, ego-driven MasterChef
- I’m used to MasterChef US contestants plotting their opponents' demise as a permanently angry Gordon Ramsay harangues them
- So it’s a pleasant surprise to see The Great British Bake Off contestants admiring each others’ work as joking judges encourage them
I confess I’m a latecomer to The Great British Bake Off. Not being much of a baker, the show didn’t immediately appeal. But like everyone else during the pandemic, I watched more television than I care to admit. One happy result was discovering the show's genteel and wholly English entertainment.
That show is a far cry from the languid and measured Bake Off, whose participants are given reasonable time to bake, decorate, chit-chat and joke with the show’s presenters. Sometimes they can even admire their cohorts’ efforts, unlike MasterChef’s manic contestants pressure-cooking a dish in 40 minutes.
As I mentioned, I’m late to this party, jumping on the bandwagon during season 10. One of the original judges, Mary Berry is no longer on the programme. I’m sure some diehard fans will say the show is not as good as it was, or that Prue Leith can’t hold a choux to Berry, the grande dame of cake judges.
All that may be true, but I still find the show and its English temperament a refreshing change from the cutthroat North American cooking grudge matches. It’s so pleasant to enjoy keen amateur British bakers free of ruthless strategic schemes and ego-driven professional ambitions.
These folks are there because they just want to make better scones and crumpets, not find a stepping stone to launch a global patisserie brand.