Stacey Dooley: ‘I’m the only person in the UK who hasn’t been baking!’
Stacey Dooley certainly isn’t match-ready for her stint on Celebrity Bake Off
A sThe Great Celebrity Bake Off For Stand Up To Cancer returns, 20 famous faces from the worlds of entertainment, film, sport and music are set to roll up their sleeves and switch on their mixers to do their bit in the fight against cancer. The stars ready with their spatulas in the Bake Off tent include James Mcavoy, Dame Kelly Holmes, John Bishop, Stacey Dooley, David Baddiel, Jade Thirlwall, Nick Grimshaw, Alexandra Burke, Anneka Rice, Dizzee Rascal, Nadine Coyle and Katherine Ryan.
Each episode sees four celebrities battle it out over three challenges – the Signature, the Technical and the Showstopper – showing off their baking prowess in a bid to be awarded the coveted Star Baker apron as decided by judges Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood.
Stacey Dooley, 33, who also presents DNA Family Secrets this week (Wednesday 3 March, BBC2) may have won Strictly Come Dancing in 2018, but she doesn’t think that she’s likely to be going home with the prize this time...
Stacey, can you bake?
No, I’m particularly bad. I definitely think that I’ll be the weakest on the show. I don’t know if I actually have any strengths when it comes to baking. My weakness is that I’m massively inexperienced. I don’t bake at all. The last time I thought about baking was probably at school. But you know what? We’re here to raise money, so we just need to make as much money as possible and raise awareness. It’s all for charity, so you sort of don’t mind making an arse of yourself because it’s for a good cause.
So, you weren’t one of these people buying up all the flour during the first lockdown?
No, and that’s the ridiculous thing – the whole country has been baking. That’s all we’ve been doing, and I’m the only person in the UK who hasn’t been baking religiously since last March.
Everyone does the odd banana bread, surely?
Apparently so! I think people reckon I’m exaggerating. I honestly have never baked as an adult. I can cook – I can make a roast dinner, and I like a bit of pasta, just the basics. But
it’s funny because I know lots of people find baking really cathartic and take a lot from it. I’m definitely not one of those people. I cook because I have to. I don’t enjoy it or find it pleasurable.
Have you ever had any culinary disasters in the kitchen?
I’m not in there enough, so not really. I’ve burned stuff, of course, but I’ve never set the kitchen on fire or anything ridiculous like that.
Have you done any preparation for the competition?
No, which was very foolish, as I’m getting the impression that the people I’ll be in the tent with may have been practising – certainly a couple of them. It’s not the first time they’ve baked, but for me, I’m coming at it totally fresh. Although, I wonder if that will make me better. It’s all about precision, isn’t it? So, maybe it’ll help that I’ll stick so firmly to the recipe. And I won’t be complacent as I know I’ll have to pull it out of the bag.
How badly do you want to win?
I’m not bothered. Not for something like this because we’re all here for charity. If I enjoyed baking and I wanted to pursue it, then
I’d definitely give it everything, but I don’t reckon that’s going to happen. I don’t think my future lies in a bakery. I’d get sacked quite quickly.
Why is the SU2C charity so important to you?
We’ve all lost people to cancer, haven’t we? It’s just always so heartbreaking, and everyone’s got their stories. So, it feels like an obvious cause to get behind. And it’s a great show as well, it’s feelgood and a lovely atmosphere. I feel really lucky to be part of it.
Baking must be much less exhausting than doing Strictly?
It feels like a bit of a treat. Strictly involves slogging your guts out for months. You suddenly find you’ve fallen for ballroom dancing, which you never thought would be a thing in your life. It’s quite different in that sense.
Do you still dance?
I love dancing, I love it so, so much, and it brings me so much joy. I dance around the house. But it’s so time consuming. Unless you do it for a living, you can’t give it as much as you’d like to.
You’ve travelled to intimidating places and met some unsavoury characters in your career. How does it compare to being judged by Paul Hollywood?
I don’t know, maybe I’ve got him on a good day, but he’s been really pleasant so far. He doesn’t give a huge amount away, though. He sort of leaves you guessing.
Although nothing is quite as unnerving as going on Celebrity Mastermind!
Oh my God, yeah. I did that when I was young. It was a while ago. John Humphrys is a good deal more serious than any of the other judges I’ve encountered, so that definitely felt a bit more intimidating.
You’re a presenter on make-up show Glow Up – is it a similar feel to Bake Off?
It’s funny watching Matt Lucas do his thing as the presenter because I’m Matt on Glow Up. He’s a real sweetheart, I have to say – really, really lovely. He comes over and you have a bit of a chitchat, but you’re thinking, “Oh, God, I just need to bake!” It’s funny because that must be how the make-up artists feel when I come over to ask them about their art on the show!
lThe Great Celebrity Bake Off For Stand Up To Cancer, Tuesday 9 March, Channel 4