GBBO Needs a Refresh

When we are feeling low, we reach for cake. When we are at a loss for what to do we reach for the sweet treat and when Autumn arrives we look forward to The Great British Bake Off. 

As British as Apple Pie, the Bake Off reminds us of simpler times. Moments in our life in which we were entertained by wind up toys, when £5 would buy a month of joy. The Bake Off or GBBO arrives each year to stick smiles on our faces in order to maintain that stiff upper lip during the colder months.

Bake Off is an institution. It is a key date in the television diary and one in which I used to look forward to.

The Mary Berry Factor

The show originated on the BBC. This is not to say that they conceptualised it as that would be a lie. A television company pitched the idea and the BBC signed on the dotted line. It is to say that it was originally broadcast on the BBC.

Paul Hollywood, alongside Mel and Sue were joined by Mary Berry. A woman who personifies what it is to be British. A Grandmother through and through, a woman for whom you could imagine heading round to for Sunday roast.

Polite to the point in which you wanted to pick her up and place her in your pocket, Berry is British through and through. One of a kind, the cherry on the original Bake Off cake.

Aligning Berry with Mel and Sue produced something magical. A mixture of experience and youth, offset by Paul Hollywood's playboy persona, it created an institution. A reason to turn the television on, getting people back into the art of baking. 

Five magical years passed until channel 4 arrived to break the spell. Many were okay with the news until we discovered that Paul Hollywood would be the sole presenter that was transitioning over. 

The internet was devastated and promised to boycott Bake Off.

The Outrage

The outrage was everywhere and as you would expect, Bake Off soon became a trending concern until it returned to our screens. The, much like every outrage, it was soon forgotten about and people gave it a go.

Most weren't completely happy but an enraging topic is only engaging for a limited time and we all moved quickly on to our next task. This being to ridicule the new show and compare it to the past.

Rather than turn off and no longer watch the show, many did as the internet dictates and shared memes, called the presenters names and genuinely made the world a little worst off.

If we are all that outraged then surely clicking the off button and moving away from the situation would solve the hurt? But no. That is not how the world operates. The world operates in a space of judgement. We need to judge and be heard to judge and therefore, this was the wall that awaited the first season of GBBO on Channel 4.

The Channel 4 Factor

I was not a part of the Mass. I did not take to Twitter to voice my opinion and become part of the faceless crowd. 

I did however, judge. I watched the show and found an opinion...that being indifference. The show was alright. Nothing special, nothing awful. The presenters felt as though they were trying too hard but that was to be expected. The expectation was astronomical and something was needed to fill the void left by Mary Berry.

Channel 4 offered us Noel Fielding and Sandy Toksvig. A pairing that doesn't initially jump out to you as being award winning but if we discount the first year, then we had something. A routine. A comic duo that provided some of the charm left behind by Mel and Sue. 

As much as you always remember your first love, there is a spot for your second. Even though it's not the same, there's something there that you need. The rebound watch. The comfort in knowing that there is life outside Mary Berry.

Hello Matt Lucas

Sandi lasted three seasons (I believe) and then we were provided with Matt Lucas. The man with a head more rounded and shiny than the average sun, with an impression of Boris Johnson to fall out of bed for. A man who has been part of a small Britain and the Doctor's assistant. A man with more talent than we credit him with but Bake Off seems a leap too far.

The latest season of GBBO has provided us with a set of androgynous characters that would not feel out of place in the game, Guess Who. They are boring and Matt is unable to do much more than sing to them.

He was not enough to break the mould last year and this year is no different. Other than the musical number that opened the season, I have been thoroughly unimpressed. Resorting to scrolling through my phone after less than half an hour. 

The Latest Season

This season is the limit for me. The charm of the first season has slowly drained to the point today where I count the minutes that have passed since the show started. I wait for the credits in order be free of the burden that is Bake Off.

The characters seem to be cheaper facsimiles of previous seasons and I would happily pay Channel 4 some money to spice it up. I am desperate for someone interesting to slap me around the face. It has become so formulaic that it is like watching paint dry. At least paint has a selection of colours to choose from.

Bake Off has little rise and is currently left with a soggy bottom. 

Rather than look to apply for the show, I feel compelled to boycott it and scroll through my phone. Even scrolling through Facebook has more change within its narrow confines.

A Final Thought

Week two offered us a little more insight into the characters, and altered my opinion by .5%. An improvement but not enough of a change to move me into jumping down from my high horse. The show is past its prime and needs a change. It is a British institution and writing these words today is tough.

I want to love Bake Off as I once did, counting down the days until I could see where the next firm rise would come from. Pausing for a moment to collect my ingredients and come up with a new tasty treat for my wife and I. The Bake Off was an event in the calendar and one in which I miss.

Watching the characters through the lens of the big screen it feels time to break up. To go our separate ways and bake without the constraints of a popular television show. It is time that I push on from the confines of my sofa, say no to the temptation that is the past, accepting that everything has its time.