The kindest competition show on TV
The show: The Great British Baking Show, Season 4, Episode 1 The moment: Doing their best Judge Mary Berry moves among the 12 bakers competing in a pristine white tent on a manor house lawn.
“Double drizzle, Val, always,” she advises one. She’s talking about a drizzle cake, but she makes it sound like a mantra.
“Lovely to see a smile on your face, Jane,” she tells another. “You were facing disaster the last time we saw you.” The disaster: a sponge cake that didn’t rise.
Mary’s fellow judge Paul Hollywood dunks a Jaffa cake in his tea. Mary regards him. “We don’t do that in the south, you know,” she says, imbuing each word with serene horror.
I haven’t watched this series before. Now I get what the fuss is about. Is it Friday evening? Have you had a trying week? Do you need the televisual equivalent of a nice cup of tea?
Are these the only fightin’ words you want to hear from a reality contestant? “Everyone wants to do their best and I’m going to do my best as well.” Then this is the show for you, the kindest competition show imaginable and the most British.
Just to make sure you can fully relax into it, I’m going to forewarn you of the harshest thing anyone says: “Now, come on, breathe,” host Sue Perkins admonishes a teary contestant. “Every second spent crying is a second less to show how good you are at baking.”
Plus, who knew there were 18,000 different types of sponge cake? I can feel my blood pressure lowering with each passing biscuit. The Great British Baking Show airs Fridays at 9 p.m. on PBS. Johanna Schneller is a media connoisseur who zeroes in on pop-culture moments. She usually appears Monday through Thursday.