S11.E01: Cake Week

[theatremouse]

To me it seemed like he was saying it to be overly literal, and in a bit of an "of course you already know this, I'm not pointing out anything new" kind of way. It was so overly formal in the wording it was obviously a joke. I laughed. It's only funny because of how it was phrased. If he were saying it as a real conversation (such as if she'd said something to indicate she thought otherwise and he were genuinely correcting) he would've said something like "you know I'm gay, right?" 

[Bad Example]

49 minutes ago, Yakima said:

I'm not familiar with him and don't care for Matt Lucas at all - didn't find him a bit funny.  Found it odd that he would make a point of introducing himself to a contestant as a homosexual.  Wow, really, and your point is?

To me it just seemed like conversation, they got on the topic of the noodles.  It felt to me like "Confirmed Bachelor Noodles" is his own personal joke and like he makes it often, and it just came up naturally because they were talking noodles.  Didn't seem pointed or deliberate at all.  

[springbarb]

2 hours ago, dgpolo said:

I wondered about that! I was so sure Laura? was going home and there was no discussion of who did what wrong or right. Maybe if I watch again it will appear like the cold open?

Laura had a very strong showstopper; their only criticism of the decoration was that there was no mouth, and they really enjoyed the flavors--and it was a good bake. As soon as they finished their critique, it was clear to me that she saved herself with that showstopper.

17 hours ago, SuprSuprElevated said:

Which begs the question - why did they decide to do this in a tent, as opposed to a building that could be fitted with the necessary equipment?

This year, in particular, they even had the sides of the tent open, presumably for covid reasons.

[Irlandesa]

On 9/26/2020 at 8:38 AM, Clanstarling said:

It was, but it seemed to me that my reaction was very different than when watching Nailed It. Not sure how to explain it - although we laughed, we also commiserated and felt for the bakers. (being a baker/decorator of Nailed It quality, I do identify)

It made me sympathize a bit more with the Nailed It! contestants a bit more seeing some of the results in this episode by more experienced bakers. 

That said, even though the actual faces were a bit of a mess, many did lovely things with clothing.

On 9/26/2020 at 10:02 AM, Michichick said:

Lottie’s voice really reminded me of someone. Her voice makes me think of Ruby from 2018 (the Rahul/Briony/Kim Joy season) for some reason.

 

On 9/26/2020 at 10:23 AM, AZChristian said:

I think what you're referring to is "vocal fry."  Lots of young women have developed it as a way of copying people like the Kardashians.  

Vocal fry and uptalk predates the Kardashians.  (Potentially as far back as the 60s in Britain).  It's done by both men and women of all ages. 

It just gets noticed in women more because it gets critiqued in women more.  

On 9/26/2020 at 2:12 PM, Bad Example said:

I disagree with the judges.  I like a little darker caramelization! 

I do too.  I also like burnt sugar cookies.  But I gather they have to try to judge past their preferences.

1 hour ago, Bad Example said:

To me it just seemed like conversation, they got on the topic of the noodles.  It felt to me like "Confirmed Bachelor Noodles" is his own personal joke and like he makes it often, and it just came up naturally because they were talking noodles.  Didn't seem pointed or deliberate at all.  

I agree.  The only point was the joke.  Announcing he was gay was only a side effect of the joke and not the reason the joke was made.

I've never really loved things Matt Lucas has done with professional effort (Like Little Britain) but I've usually been fine with him as "himself" in interviews and such.  So when he was walking around and talking to the contestants, I liked him.  The planned "Bake" jokes were tiring. 

Edited September 27, 2020 by Irlandesa

[Quilt Fairy]

To the poster who asked about the tent: 

The tent is a holdover from the first season (which had fewer contestants and fewer episodes) where every episode was in a different town and they literally packed up the tent at the end of an episode and set it up in a new town the next week.   And it was in the middle of the town, not the open field they use now.   You could see shoppers passing by on the street and looking in. 

[SuprSuprElevated]

32 minutes ago, Quilt Fairy said:

To the poster who asked about the tent: 

The tent is a holdover from the first season (which had fewer contestants and fewer episodes) where every episode was in a different town and they literally packed up the tent at the end of an episode and set it up in a new town the next week.   And it was in the middle of the town, not the open field they use now.   You could see shoppers passing by on the street and looking in. 

Ah, thanks.

[Quilt Fairy]

No problem.  I remember watching the first American version (the one with Jeff Foxworthy), and the posters on TWoP were all "What the heck are they doing in a tent? In Georgia? In the summer?"

Edited September 28, 2020 by Quilt Fairy

[ElectricBoogaloo]

In the Australian version, it's referred to as "the shed" rather than "the tent."

[Brookside]

 

23 hours ago, Yakima said:

I'm not familiar with him and don't care for Matt Lucas at all - didn't find him a bit funny.  Found it odd that he would make a point of introducing himself to a contestant as a homosexual.  Wow, really, and your point is?

 

23 hours ago, dleighg said:

Agree-- and the use of a word I haven't heard in years, as well, rather than simply "gay."

As Shaw is incorrectly quoted as saying, "Two nations separated by a common language," or in this case a common sense of humour.  It took me probably a decade of living in the USA before I found Seinfeld remotely funny.

Edited September 28, 2020 by Brookside
Too many commas.

[AZChristian]

6 hours ago, Brookside said:

It took me probably a decade of living in the USA before I found Seinfeld remotely funny.

I've lived here 73 years and still don't.

[chaifan]

6 hours ago, Brookside said:

As Shaw is incorrectly quoted as saying,, "Two nations separated by a common language," or in this case a common sense of humour.  It took me probably a decade of living in the USA before I found Seinfeld remotely funny.

I was in the UK years ago, as a student, and was asked to explain The Far Side humor to Brits.  They really didn't get that strip, especially the cows. 

I thought the whole "bachelor noodles" conversation was funny.  I also liked Matt doing the "you were so distracted by my beauty" to help Sura.  Something about his delivery - tone of voice, expression, hand gestures - was very Rebel Wilson in that moment. 

[Adiba]

19 minutes ago, chaifan said:

I was in the UK years ago, as a student, and was asked to explain The Far Side humor to Brits.  They really didn't get that strip, especially the cows. 

I thought the whole "bachelor noodles" conversation was funny.  I also liked Matt doing the "you were so distracted by my beauty" to help Sura.  Something about his delivery - tone of voice, expression, hand gestures - was very Rebel Wilson in that moment. 

I have to be in the right mood to appreciate The Far Side, but it can be very funny (same with Seinfeld--if I'm in a grumpy/serious mood, not so much--but in the right mood--hilarious).

Wasn't sure if I'd like Matt, but he seems OK--humorous and gently funny with the bakers.

I really don't like carved cakes (such a waste of cake!) in general and would never order one, especially with a face that was supposed to be recognizable--so I wasn't a fan of the showstopper. I suppose they have to come up with different challenges as the series continues.

[laurakaye]

Regarding the falling cupcakes, I'm surprised that hasn't happened more often.  Whenever a baker asks for help carrying a large bake over to the judging table, I nearly have to close my eyes because I'm afraid someone's going to stumble.  Is there an official rule for what happens if a bake is dropped and destroyed?  Glad David had at least one good cake to show and he didn't come in last place for not having the appropriate number of cakes.

I was skeptical of Noel at first but now I just adore him.  I only know Matt from "Bridesmaids" but I think he and Noel will play well off each other, although I loved Noel with Sandy.  I found it funny how Matt was standing right there at each judging, noshing on everyone's cakes like it was no big deal.  I often wondered how the hosts resisted tasting the bakes alongside Prue and Paul.  If that's me?  I want to try EVERYTHING.

I was honestly going to wait another three weeks or so because I wanted to binge this but I'm weak when it comes to this show.  I was in the process of re-re-watching the series and caved when I saw the beautiful words: "New Episodes." 😍

[springbarb]

1 hour ago, chaifan said:

I thought the whole "bachelor noodles" conversation was funny.  I also liked Matt doing the "you were so distracted by my beauty" to help Sura.  Something about his delivery - tone of voice, expression, hand gestures - was very Rebel Wilson in that moment. 

I already like Matt Lucas well enough from what I've seen him in (Doctor Who, Les Mis), but that interaction with Surah really won me over.

[MerBearHou]

2 hours ago, chaifan said:

I also liked Matt doing the "you were so distracted by my beauty" to help Sura.  Something about his delivery - tone of voice, expression, hand gestures - was very Rebel Wilson in that moment. 

I think the first time I saw Matt was when he played Rebel's brother in "Bridesmaids".  I think he's really funny in a unique way.

Came here to add that I said "yikes" out loud when I saw the horrific rendition in cake-form of the gorgeous Lupita Nyong'o!  

[chaifan]

1 hour ago, MerBearHou said:

I think the first time I saw Matt was when he played Rebel's brother in "Bridesmaids".  I think he's really funny in a unique way.

 

Oh, that's funny!  I never saw Bridesmaids, so I had no idea he and Rebel played siblings.  That's good casting. 

[Ilovepie]

Just came here to say that I watched this last night and I am still laughing today over poor Lupita Nyong'o and how one of the most beautiful women in the world became one of the ugliest cakes ever created. Nailed It, indeed!

[Crs97]

I have liked Matt Lucas in interviews and found myself liking him here.  He made Surah laugh and was both serious and reassuring when telling David (?) that they managed to salvage two of the mini cakes.  I wasn’t wild about how Paul described the incident.  No one “dropped” anything.  
 

I cannot stand fondant so will never understand any competition that requires or encourages its use.  Most of those busts were awful.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Recipes

Signature challenge: Battenburg cake
Dave’s Chocolate sspresso martini Battenberg
Mak’s East India Battenberg
Peter’s gluten-free chocolate orange Battenberg

Technical challenge
Paul's pineapple upside down cakes

Showstopper challenge: celebrity busts
Linda’s citrus tribute to Bob Marley
Loriea’s slice of Jamaica
Rowan’s chocolate & cherry tribute to Marie Antoinette

Loriea's exit interview

Edited September 29, 2020 by ElectricBoogaloo

[libgirl2]

10 hours ago, Crs97 said:

I have liked Matt Lucas in interviews and found myself liking him here.  He made Surah laugh and was both serious and reassuring when telling David (?) that they managed to salvage two of the mini cakes.  I wasn’t wild about how Paul described the incident.  No one “dropped” anything.  
 

I cannot stand fondant so will never understand any competition that requires or encourages its use.  Most of those busts were awful.

I hope this won't be a trend! 

[laredhead]

ElectricBoogaloo, thank you for posting the recipes for some of the cakes.  I had no idea they ever posted recipes of the bakes.  I like to cook, but baking cakes is not my strong suit, other than boxed mixes, so after looking at these recipes, I'll just continue to watch others do this.    

[sugarbaker design]

On 9/27/2020 at 4:45 PM, Irlandesa said:

Vocal fry and uptalk predates the Kardashians.  (Potentially as far back as the 60s in Britain).  It's done by both men and women of all ages. 

It just gets noticed in women more because it gets critiqued in women more.  

Thank you for pointing that out!

On 9/28/2020 at 9:12 AM, chaifan said:

I also liked Matt doing the "you were so distracted by my beauty" to help Sura.

Matt also defused a potentially awkward situation by lightening the mood.  Good job Matt!

[Omeletsmom]

On 9/26/2020 at 12:52 AM, kittykat said:

Oh man I needed that.

I watched on Netflix and it had the Boris sketch.

 

Really?  I watched it on Netflix, and it didn't!  How curious.

 

ETA Never mind.  I should have read ahead.

Edited September 29, 2020 by Omeletsmom

[Quilt Fairy]

I really love that they continue to have at least one contestant per season like Sura, who to me looks very exotic and foreign, and then when she speaks you realize that she's as British as treacle tart and mushy peas.  Neither of which, thank goodness, have made their way across the Atlantic. 

[dgpolo]

9 minutes ago, Quilt Fairy said:

she's as British as treacle tart and mushy peas.  Neither of which, thank goodness, have made their way across the Atlantic. 

I ordered mushy peas at a local restaurant (Irish food) specially to taste them. And from descriptions treacle tarts they make me think of Pecan Pies (which I don't like because they are too sweet) maybe someone that knows both can tell me if they are close?

[ElectricBoogaloo]

7 hours ago, laredhead said:

ElectricBoogaloo, thank you for posting the recipes for some of the cakes.  I had no idea they ever posted recipes of the bakes.  I like to cook, but baking cakes is not my strong suit, other than boxed mixes, so after looking at these recipes, I'll just continue to watch others do this.    

You're welcome! I post whichever recipes the show decides to share so if you go back into the old episode threads for previous seasons, the recipes should be there too. For some reason GBBO only posts a few recipes per episode. There are other versions of the show that post ALL the recipes from every episode, which I love. Even if I'm not going to bake each recipe (as some people do!), I appreciate that they post them. It seems silly not to since they have to ask the bakers for their recipes ahead of time in order to provide all the ingredients they need for the signature and showstopper challenges.

[iMonrey]

Quote

Wasn't sure if I'd like Matt, but he seems OK--humorous and gently funny with the bakers.

I'd be interested to know why he replaced Sandi (does anyone know?), but I'm mostly neutral because I never really warmed up to Sandi. Matt and Noel have the potential to be funnier together than Noel and Sandi, I think.

[akr]

14 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

I'd be interested to know why he replaced Sandi (does anyone know?),

She wanted to pursue other projects & Bajke Off was too time-consuming to allow for that.  

"When stepping down from a job it is quite common for people to say they are doing so in order to spend more time with their family.  Unusually, I am departing from 'The Great British Bake Off' so I can spend more time with my other work.  As my waistline will testify, 'Bake Off' is an all-consuming show."  (and then she said some very complimentary things about everyone else involved.) 

https://www.heart.co.uk/showbiz/tv-movies/great-british-bake-off/why-sandi-toksvig-quit-replacement/

Edited September 29, 2020 by akr
close parentheses

[dleighg]

25 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

Matt and Noel have the potential to be funnier together than Noel and Sandi, I think.

I agree. Sandi was sort of "missing." Jokes about being short got old very fast. I really do love Noel.

[Athena]

2 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

For some reason GBBO only posts a few recipes per episode.

Love Productions has a series of cookbooks from the show. There have been one after every series. A lot of the recipes will go into these books.

[AZChristian]

8 minutes ago, Athena said:

Love Productions has a series of cookbooks from the show. There have been one after every series. A lot of the recipes will go into these books.

They'd make more money if they'd have people BAKE what's in the recipes and ship them out.  LOL.

[Kromm]

On 9/28/2020 at 12:51 AM, ElectricBoogaloo said:

In the Australian version, it's referred to as "the shed" rather than "the tent."

Well... that's Australia for ya! 

3 hours ago, iMonrey said:

I'd be interested to know why he replaced Sandi (does anyone know?), but I'm mostly neutral because I never really warmed up to Sandi. Matt and Noel have the potential to be funnier together than Noel and Sandi, I think.

To me, if he'd have agreed to it, the best pairing with Noel would have been Richard Ayoade.  Go search the Internet for a show called The Big Fat Quiz of the Year.   Noel and Richard were often partnered on it as contestants, and their interactions were pure solid gold.

[Brookside]

On 9/26/2020 at 4:45 PM, TVbitch said:

Yay, it's back! Did Sandi get fired or just replaced for this season because of the covid situation? 

She made the choice to leave, since she didn't want to become another Susan Lucci and be stuck in one role for the rest of her career.

Edited September 30, 2020 by Brookside

[Brookside]

If, as rumoured, Jo Brand replaces Sandi Toksvig, I will not be watching.  I find her utterly unbearable and not in the least bit funny.

[Aulty]

25 minutes ago, Brookside said:

If, as rumoured, Jo Brand replaces Sandi Toksvig, I will not be watching.  I find her utterly unbearable and not in the least bit funny.

What rumor is that? Sandi has already been replaced by Matt Lucas?

[Clanstarling]

10 hours ago, Kromm said:

Well... that's Australia for ya! 

To me, if he'd have agreed to it, the best pairing with Noel would have been Richard Ayoade.  Go search the Internet for a show called The Big Fat Quiz of the Year.   Noel and Richard were often partnered on it as contestants, and their interactions were pure solid gold.

We've been watching the BFQuiz on YouTube for the last few weeks. It is hilarious, and Noel and Richard Ayoade are indeed solid gold. Though, Ayoade is great with everyone he's partnered with. I love the show.

[jpgr]

On 9/26/2020 at 6:13 PM, ElectricBoogaloo said:

I wouldn't be surprised if they added the whipped cream requirement specifically to add another challenge. As we saw, several of the bakers had their whipped cream sliding off because their cakes were still warm when they added the whipped cream.

And I've noticed that with technical challenges, the judges often ask for some extra element that needs to be made separately so that the bakers have something else to do. If not for that, this challenge would have been make the batter, put the cakes in the oven, and unmold them.

I heard or read somewhere (interview or podcast with a former baker) that the producers realized there was a lot of sitting around time while things were in the oven. There is only so much footage anyone wants to watch of the bakers on their knees looking in the oven or sitting on a stool with a cuppa, so they added elements that kept the bakers busier and provided more action for viewers.

[Eliza422]

14 hours ago, Kromm said:

Well... that's Australia for ya! 

To me, if he'd have agreed to it, the best pairing with Noel would have been Richard Ayoade.  Go search the Internet for a show called The Big Fat Quiz of the Year.   Noel and Richard were often partnered on it as contestants, and their interactions were pure solid gold.

Oh man, I love Richard Ayoade! I'll have to look up that show.

[jmcd44]

On 9/25/2020 at 2:48 PM, sharifa70 said:

Matt Lucas and “Confirmed Bachelor Super Noodles” made me snort-laugh. I also loved his attempts to console Sura after the cake-dropping accident. I adore him. 

His delivery of that had me laughing for a full minute. As did when they said "Bakers, you have 30 minutes." "To bake, not to live." "One of you has 30 minutes to live."

I have never watched this show, but a podcast I listen to (Watch What Crappens) is recapping it, so I gave it a go. I'm in the US so instead of watching the debate when I got home from a stressful day of work, I turned this on and it was the most soothing hour of tv I remember watching in a long time. The dry senses of humor, the snarky yet polite hosts, and my new attraction to Paul Hollywood have gotten me hooked. I forced myself to not go start older seasons last night so I didn't stay up all night.

On topic-I want pineapple upside down cake.

[buttersister]

This made wonderful counter-programming to the debate. Want to congratulate Paul on his new stylist and welcome Matt, who I also knew from Dr. Who and Les Mis, and who proved very adept at baker conversation and interaction (and tasting). Since Noel no longer creeps me out, they should be a good pair. Not Sue and Mel, but fine. 

So poor Dave, hard to tell how off his game the spill took him, but we'll know soon enough. In the meantime, in the tent as well as in the kitchen, "behind" goes a long way in helping the spacial-awareness-challenged.

[Quilt Fairy]

2 hours ago, jmcd44 said:

but a podcast I listen to (Watch What Crappens) is recapping it,

There is a fantastic podcast called The Bake Down where previous contestants Howard and Jane recap and review each show.  I highly recommend it. 

[janie jones]

On 9/26/2020 at 9:42 AM, AZChristian said:

I think he was initially angry, and that was a perfectly understandable feeling.  But when they told him that he would only be judged on the taste and look of the one that hadn't fallen - and that there was to be no penalty to him for the ones that hit the floor - he calmed down and was able to speak objectively about "accidents will happen."  The fact that he scored close to the bottom had nothing to do with the cakes on the floor.  It was because the one that they tasted (which would have been just like all the others he made) just wasn't very good.

I would hope that this is what happened. If he remained actively mad after it was made clear he wouldn't be penalized, then he'd just be being petulant, as frustrating as it would be to have your hard work thrown on the floor. When he was telling the others that accidents happen, he looked upset, but sometimes you "decide" you're not mad sooner than your heart rate goes back to normal.

On 9/26/2020 at 10:26 AM, chaifan said:

Matt did tell Dave they would tell Paul what happened,

That irritated me. Mainly because Paul isn't the only judge here, and anyway, is it the judges who decide what happens in situations like this, or the producers?

On 9/26/2020 at 6:57 PM, SuprSuprElevated said:

Which begs the question - why did they decide to do this in a tent, as opposed to a building that could be fitted with the necessary equipment?

I've always wondered.

As someone who bakes without air conditioning regularly and who had to freeze my husband's birthday cake this summer so that the filling would sit still long enough for me to frost it, it doesn't bother me that the contestants don't have air conditioning (easy for me to say because I'm not being timed). But watching my top layer slip slide all over the place and then me deciding to freeze it would probably make for more dynamic television than me just frosting a cold cake. Secondly, I just googled it, and as of 2008, only 0.5% of UK homes had air conditioning. So as uncomfortable as the heat is, maybe (in addition to the original reason for the tent stated above) the producers don't see air conditioning as that important, since the bakers probably have experience baking in the heat anyway.

[Quilt Fairy]

You also can't equate "tent" with "hot weather".  Britain isn't as hot as most of the US - at least it wasn't pre-climate change.  We've seen all kinds of weather conditions outside the tent. 

 

[Pepper Mostly]

On 9/26/2020 at 10:48 PM, AZChristian said:

He played Thenardier in Les Mis in London.  Yeah . . . he can sing.

If you have't already, google "Alfie Boe and Matt Lucas youtube", you'll find some great clips! Here's my favorite, they're hanging out doing karaoke at Matt's place: 

 

[AZChristian]

I WANNA HANG OUT WITH THEM!!!!!

Thanks for the link, @Pepper Mostly.  Great way to start the day.

[Pepper Mostly]

@AZChristian, right? They look like such fun. You are welcome! I love that clip. For Matt to hold his own with the amazing Alfie Boe--well, you know he can sing! 

[Clanstarling]

14 hours ago, janie jones said:

 When he was telling the others that accidents happen, he looked upset, but sometimes you "decide" you're not mad sooner than your heart rate goes back to normal.

I agree. I think he handled it quite well, actually. He went off to cool down with his initial anger (justified, even if it was an accident). And said the mature words, despite not being quite over it. 

[meep.meep]

On 9/25/2020 at 8:19 PM, Michichick said:

I actually teared up a bit at the beginning because I’m so happy this show is back. Wish the Netflix version had the Boris Johnson cold open.

It did last night.

[SuprSuprElevated]

9 hours ago, Pepper Mostly said:

If you have't already, google "Alfie Boe and Matt Lucas youtube", you'll find some great clips! Here's my favorite, they're hanging out doing karaoke at Matt's place: 

 

Not familiar with Alfie Boe, but one knows instantly that he's a stage performer.  That booming voice would almost be too much anywhere else, like here maybe.  Poor Matt, while certainly musically worthy, is no match for the sheer volume.

[Pepper Mostly]

Alfie Boe is an opera singer. He was basically discovered at a young age when he was working as a mechanic. From Wikipedia:

"At the age of 17, Boe became an apprentice mechanic at the TVR factory in Bispham, Blackpool.[8] He enjoyed entertaining his colleagues by singing opera arias while he polished the cars, and one day was overheard by a client with connections in the music industry who was so impressed that he suggested Boe should go to London and audition for the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company. His audition was a success and he gave up polishing cars to embark on a singing career.[8]"

He's famous for playing Jean Valjean in Les Mis.