The Great British Bake Off (series 1) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids The Great British Bake Off
Photo of the main cast and contestants of the first series
Starring	Mel Giedroyc Sue Perkins Mary Berry Paul Hollywood
Country of origin	United Kingdom
No. of episodes	6
Release
Original network	BBC Two
Original release	17 August (2010-08-17) – 21 September 2010 (2010-09-21)

The first season of The Great British Bake Off started on BBC Two in the UK on August 17, 2010. Ten talented home bakers joined a fun competition to show off their baking skills. They all wanted to be named the best amateur baker!

Each week, the bakers faced three exciting challenges. These challenges tested their skills in different types of baking. At the end of each episode, one baker had to leave the competition. The show traveled to different places across the UK, with each place matching the baking theme. For example, the pudding episode was in Bakewell, and the bread episode was near Sandwich. Stephen Noonan was the voice-over for this first season. Later seasons had the presenters, Mel Giedroyc and Sue Perkins, do the voice-over. The amazing baker who won this first season was Edd Kimber.

Meet the Bakers

Here are the brave bakers who took part in the first season:

How the Bakers Did

This chart shows how each baker performed each week:

What the colors mean:      This baker moved on to the next round.      This baker was eliminated (sent home).      This baker was not a favorite that week, but stayed in the competition.      This baker was one of the judges' favorites that week.      This baker came in second place (runner-up).      This baker won the whole competition!

Episodes and Challenges

Episode 1: Cakes

The first challenge was to bake any cake they wanted in three hours. It needed to be baked perfectly and be moist. For the technical challenge, they made a Victoria Sandwich cake using Mary Berry's recipe. The final challenge, called the showstopper, was to create a amazing Chocolate Celebration Cake.

Episode 2: Biscuits

For the signature bake, bakers made their own special "Personality Biscuits." The technical challenge was to bake scones using Paul Hollywood's recipe. For the showstopper, they had to make three different types of small, fancy pastries called Petit Fours: Meringues, Choux Pastry, and Macarons.

Episode 3: Bread

Bakers had 3 and a half hours to make their special signature bread loaf. The technical challenge was to bake a traditional round cob loaf using Paul's recipe. For the showstopper, they had to bake 12 sweet rolls and 12 savory rolls, with three different flavors for each type.

Episode 4: Puddings

For the first challenge, bakers made their own classic pudding, either steamed or baked. In the technical challenge, they had to make four small lemon souffles using Mary's recipe. The showstopper challenge was to create three different puddings: a crumble, a bread pudding, and a suet pudding.

Episode 5: Pastry

For the signature challenge, the bakers made a savory pie. The technical challenge was to bake 4 Cornish pasties. For the showstopper, they had to create two platters of pastries: one with savory canapés (small appetizers) and one with sweet tartlets.

Episode 6: Tea Party (Final)

In the grand finale, one of the three finalists was eliminated after the first challenge. Only two bakers then competed on the final day. For the first challenge, they had to bake 24 perfect tea cakes. For the very last challenge, the two finalists had five hours to bake a huge afternoon tea party spread for 40 guests! This included 24 miniature tarts, 24 scones, 24 choux buns, and 24 brown and white bread finger sandwiches.

The judges took a long time to decide who to eliminate in the final. They even looked back at how the bakers did in all the previous episodes. Because this was so hard, the idea of eliminating someone in the final was changed for future seasons.

What Happened After the Show

After winning, Edd Kimber became a full-time baker! He worked in a fancy restaurant kitchen and has written three baking books: The Boy Who Bakes, Say It With Cake, and Patisserie Made Simple. He has also taught classes and appeared on a TV show.

Ruth Clemens has also written several books about making cakes and baking, like Busy Girls Guide to Cake Decorating and The Pink Whisk Guide to Baking.

Miranda Gore Browne wrote a book called Biscuit and another one called Bake Me a Cake as Fast as You Can.

Jonathan Shepherd left his old job and started a new business called The Pudding Stop in St Albans. It began as a food truck and supplied puddings to restaurants. Now, he even has his own shop!

Sadly, Mark Whithers, who was eliminated in Episode 1, passed away on May 11, 2013, after being sick with cancer.

The Great British Wedding Cake Special

In a special one-off episode, the three finalists from season one (Edd, Ruth, and Miranda) came back! Paul Hollywood and Mary Berry challenged them to bake two amazing Wedding Cakes each in just sixteen hours. One cake had to be traditional, and the other contemporary (modern).

Paul and Mary also explored the interesting history of British wedding cakes. They looked at how cakes changed a lot through different times, from the Tudors to Victorian times, during wartime, and up to today. Even though Paul and Mary judged the cakes, no single winner was announced for this special episode.

See also

In Spanish: Anexo:Primera temporada de The Great British Bake Off para niños