Cake king Coinneach Star would be welcome

island, as a place. Sometimes you look at someone’s life and think ‘I’d like to live that life.’ Your life looks amazing, Coinneach. I’m booking my ticket. I’m on my way. I’m just going to go and live there.”

Coinneach, who will take part in this year’s New York Tartan Week, has built up a worldwide army of fans af ter appearing on TV shows ranging from the BBC

Travel Show to Martin Compston’s Scottish

Fling.

He is currently in the middle of a book tour that has seen him travel as far as South Africa and America after rising to fame posting videos of his baking during lockdown,

He said: “It doesn’t matter where I am in the world, I’m always meeting islanders.

“I was doing an event in a book shop in New Jersey and this lady came in and starting chatting away to me in Gaelic as if I’d known her forever – which is the island way.

“She was talking about people in my village, and then she said ‘ I’m worried you don’t recognise me’. I had to say to her that I was sorry, but I didn’t. She said, ‘ To be fair, I haven’t seen you in 45 years.’

“It turned out she was my mother’s cousin who had emigrated to America 45 years ago. I’m only 48, so I was three when she left.

“She told me she had been walking past the bookshop, and had been shocked to see a photo of her sister in the window. The shop was using a photo from a book event I’d done in Stornoway – and it was of me and her sister.

“I ’ m const a nt ly meeting folk all over the world with some sort of island l ink, which always makes me feel at home.”

Coinneach said: “There isn’t a better feeling than walking into a shop and seeing your own book.

“I never get tired of the tingle I feel when I see my books up there alongside the likes of Mary Berry, Paul Hollywood and Jamie Oliver.

“I still have to pinch myself and ask, ‘ What am I doing up there?’”

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