Mary pulls a face to curdle cream!
IT might be Paul Hollywood whose cutting remarks reduce Bake Off contestants to trembling wrecks – but Mary Berry’s face can paint a thousand words.
The 81-year- old baking doyenne has been spotted pulling an array of weird and wonderful expressions.
Last week’s episode of the programme, which drew a record ten million viewers, saw the long- serving judge struggle to disguise her true feelings about 23-year-old Benjamina Ebuehi’s pistachio and lemon drizzle cake.
Miss Berry became concerned that it might not be fully baked, owing to the moistness of the texture, and couldn’t resist the opportunity to tease the nervous baker, screwing up her face and saying: ‘I was just wondering!’
Her stark expressions continued last night when she bit her lip in apprehension over an unusual pairing of flavourings and welled up over a collapsed gingerbread creation.
Miss Berry’s reactions have become an integral part of the show’s success and fans’ love of her exaggerated responses has spawned a string of internet animations.
Viewers have also taken to social media in their droves to comment on the judge’s face, with Emma Beaumont tweeting: ‘ I’m already loving all of Mary Berry’s facial expressions.’ And Nic Perrott added: ‘Mary Berry REALLY needs to work on her poker face! Her expressions on #GBBO have been so funny today!’
Although her face gives away her true feelings, it is Hollywood, 50, who has faced criticism for being too blunt with his verdicts.
In last night’s episode, while Miss Berry kept schtum on nurse Kate Barmby’s lavender and bergamot biscuits, Hollywood bowled in with his judgment, telling Kate: ‘You’re using two flavours I’m not particularly fond of.’
In contrast, it was only a shot of Miss Berry nervously biting her lip that betrayed her worry about the unusual pairing of flavours.
However, when hairdresser Louise Williams had to present her gingerbread showstopper on two plates after the structure fell apart, the judge struggled to contain her emotions, blinking back sympathetic tears.
Banker Selasi Gbormittah’s Scotch Bonnet-flavoured biscuits resulted in Miss Berry’s strongest reaction. She recoiled in disgust, despite later saying she enjoyed the taste. Last week it was Michael Georgiou’s matcha tea cake that caused her biggest scowl, as she politely remarked the cake had a ‘grassy’ flavour.
Sue Perkins was absent from last night’s Bake Off due to a family bereavement at the time of filming. It is the first time she has missed an episode of the programme since it began in 2010. A spokesman for the show said: ‘Sue was not able to join the team in the tent this week, but she returns next week.’