Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
That’s your Lottie as Bake Off fave goes.. into panto drama
BAKE Off favourite Lottie Bedlow says she was “gutted” to be evicted from the tent in last night’s show and revealed lockdown has left her unemployed to boot.
The 31-year-old said: “I am not sure what is going to happen to pantos this year. I am unemployed at the moment as a producer but my colleague and I are now thinking of something innovative to put on this Christmas, possibly streaming something.
We are trying to adapt to the new climate, as the theatre industry is struggling.”
Lottie was grateful for encouragement from judge Prue Leith, adding: “Baking for Prue was a dream come true, the fact that she tasted my food and liked it, and was really supportive... was lovely.
“She is like the perfect headmistress and I just wanted to do her proud.”
Despite being many people’s favourite to win, Lottie admitted she was surprised to have made it as far into the competition as she did. She said: “I had absolutely no idea that I would get that far – I had packed for three episodes, so after week three all my clothes were borrowed. To get to episode seven was beyond my wildest dreams.”
The episode that turned out to be Lottie’s undoing was Eighties week.
First the bakers had to put their twist on the classic quiche for the signature challenge. The technical round was custard doughnuts and finally the showstopper, which caused problems for all the contestants, was ice cream cakes.
Lottie said of making doughnuts: “Deep frying... when it was 40 degrees in the tent was so stressful, and we had frozen tea towels to put around our neck.
“I was really chuffed that I had made a doughnut, as I hadn’t made one before. The judges said they were overcooked.”
★★★★★
Puzzling news in Channel 4’s Bake Off tent last night as Paul Hollywood claimed it was so hot he had to peel his jeans off at the end of the day.
Eh? Given sir’s clear preference for the snugger fit, surely that has to be done at the end of every day, heatwave or not?
It was roasting though. So, naturally, the producers decided it was the perfect time to get out the deep fat fryers AND have an ice-cream cake showstopper.
It was all in celebration of Paul’s favourite decade. “I’m still an 80s boy at heart,” Paul surprisingly revealed. (Yeah, I know. If only he’d given us a few more visual clues.)
Anyway, the melting ice-cream proved an unexpected leveller and it gave us an unexpected eviction.
Panto producer Lottie’s Bake Off career is now behind her. (Oh yes it is).
It also led to the best accidental 80s reference of the night as a desperate Laura implored hers to “Come on, ice-cream!”
Altogether now: “Come on, ice-cream, ta-loo-rye-ay.”
If that Dexys reference passed you by, just imagine how 20-year-old Peter felt as Noel Fielding and Matt Lucas riffed on Rod Hull’s Pink Windmill and sang some Spandau Ballet and George Michael classics. Luckily Peter knows his way around a cake recipe.
His unseasonal ice-cream Christmas cake was a big hit with Prue Leith.
“I mean, why can’t we have Christmas in the middle of summer?” she argued.
Quite right, Prue. And the way your mate Boris Johnson is going we might well end up doing just that.