The Great British Bake Off, first-look review: another slice of TV heaven

“This is the messiest job ever,” says Prue Leith, chocolate smeared on her lips and her fingers sticking together with strawberry jam, as she delicately tries to eat a crumbling biscuit. “This is not a job!” quips Noel Fielding with a cheeky grin. Yes, folks: The Great British Bake Off is back, and with it the familiar chaos and clowning around that have become its vital ingredient since the series began eight years ago.

Following its revamp last year when it moved from the BBC to Channel 4, fans feared that the Bake Off might spoil. But an average of nine million viewers watched Channel 4’s first series, and all the industry chatter that the show wouldn’t triumph without its “talent” (Sue Perkins, Mel Giedroyc and Mary Berry all declined to move across) was put to bed, as the chemistry between the new line-up grew beautifully.

On evidence of the first episode of the new series, which starts next week, they maintain the jovial mood, and hosts Fielding (sporting a new Shakin’ Stevens-style haircut and wedge-shaped sideburns) and Sandi Toksvig remain an engagingly odd couple, with lots of sibling-style one-upmanship. They kick-off proceedings with an amusing Back to the Future skit poking fun at new judge Leith who accidentally revealed the winner of the 2017 series on Twitter prior to broadcast.

Steely-eyed GBBO veteran Paul Hollywood once again accompanies Leith on the judging panel. Leith has grown more relaxed and is much straighter with her comments this time round, and the pair have promised that this year’s contest will contain a few tweaks. There will be a Danish week, for instance, a nice nod to Toksvig’s roots, and the show will also introduce a vegan week.

Bake Off traditionally begins every series with Cake Week, but fans may be disappointed to find that there’s not a bun in sight in this first episode of this ninth series. In another departure, it’s biscuits that are the first delicacy to take their place on the gingham altar.

“I’m looking for regional perfection,” says Hollywood as they announce the first challenge: 24 uniform biscuits traditional to a town or village in Britain. With something of a Yorkshire takeover on the line-up this year, prepare for ginger nuts with some “zip” from Sheffield's Luke, a civil servant by day and techno DJ by night, while Sue Pollard/Dame Edna lookalike Karen, a supermarket sampling-assistant from Wakefield, shows everyone else up with her excellent time-management skills, leaving her to put her feet up and enjoy a pack-up (that’s a light snack to all you non-Yorkshire natives).

Indeed, the new batch of contestants are a lively bunch. There’s plenty of sartorial statements with Hawaiian shirts, headbands and handlebar moustaches and even a Bollywood dance lesson for Toksvig. However, they don’t all remain fresh-faced for long. Ever the taskmaster, Hollywood sets the contestants a tricky first technical challenge: the Wagon Wheel, or the “wheelie wagon” as French girl Manon mistakenly understands it.

Then, there’s the first showstopper challenge, perhaps the hardest the show has ever seen. After being asked to create a giant 3D biscuit selfie that will sit on an easel, the contestants begin to panic. A questionably shaped item on one baker’s attempt emits giggles in an otherwise innuendo-light episode, but the camaraderie and artistry on display confirm that Bake Off remains the very best of British TV.

The Great British Bake Off starts on Channel 4 on Tuesday 28 August at 8pm; An Extra Slice also returns on Friday August 31 at 8pm