Cakes

The Great British Bake Off sees ten passionate home bakers take part in a bake-off to test every aspect of their baking skills as they battle to be crowned the Great British Bake Off's best amateur baker. Each week the nationwide tour sees keen bakers put through three challenges in a particular discipline.

The competition kicks off with cake in the Cotswolds, then moves to Scotland to tackle biscuit baking, then Sandwich in Kent for bread, Bakewell in Derbyshire for puddings, Mousehole in Cornwall for the pastry challenges, and London for the grand final.

Judging the baking are renowned baking writer Mary Berry and professional baker Paul Hollywood; presenting the show are Mel Giedroyc and Sue Perkins, who trace the very particular history of British baking by visiting local baking landmarks and discovering why people bake what they bake today.

This first show uncovers that Queen Victoria is responsible for Britain's wedding cake tradition, that the Puritans tried to ban cake because it was too pleasurable, and that cake baking contributed to women's liberation.

The ten bakers tackle three increasingly difficult challenges as their cake-making ability is tested. They start with their signature bake – the cake they love that says something about them. Next up is the technical challenge – a blind recipe for Victoria sandwich that delivers drastically different results. Finally they tackle the ingredient even professionals fear – chocolate. Whose chocolate celebration cake will win the day? And which two bakers will leave the show at the end?