Nadiya Hussain's Most Intimidating GBBO Moment
Since winning season six of "The Great British Bake Off" in 2015, Nadiya Hussain has built an incredibly successful career around her love of baking. She has gone on to become one of Britain's favorite on-screen chefs and authors, signing contracts for bigger projects, TV series, and books after her well-deserved victory on the show (per The Guardian). Hussain reflected on her favorite moments from "GBBO," as well as the most challenging experiences she faced alongside her fellow bakers and thorough judges, during an interview with Penguin Books U.K. in 2021 (via YouTube).
The show is well-known for its stressful, fast-paced environment inside its infamous tent. Contestants must do their best to plan, measure, mix, and bake their delicious creations within a set time limit, which puts an intense pressure on them to get everything just right. Each person much account for to-do lists a mile long, potentially boiling temperatures outside, creative designs that must also taste great, and problem-solving skills for when things inevitably go wrong (per The Telegraph). It's certainly a lot to worry about to ensure you make it to the next round! As Hussain re-watched a particular episode of "GBBO" where she presented her showstopper bake to the judges, she admitted the fear she felt in that moment was still palpable several years later.
The intense stress of the 'GBBO' tent
As Nadiya Hussain explains in a Youtube video for Penguin Books U.K., the moment on "The Great British Bake Off" when she created the extraordinary soda can cheesecake showstopper was, "Probably one of my proudest moments, for sure." Her tiered bake with three different flavors of cheesecake featured a luscious stream of meringue cascading down from an impossibly suspended soda can. Hussain looked back on the intense moment when she presented it to the judges, remarking that you can "sense the fear" in her as she waits anxiously for their critique. "You do put your heart and soul into these bakes," she said of her time on the show. That's precisely the attitude that led her to win "GBBO," and to eventually pursue her dreams within the world of baking, making her the most successful winner to date.
It was quite a memorable bake for the judges, Paul Hollywood and Mary Berry, to witness as well. They proceeded to shower her in compliments while they stood in awe, admiring the hard work the Luton native had done to achieve this tremendous feat of baking. Even after being out of such a competitive setting years down the road, though, the tension of that moment still bubbled to the surface as Hussain remembered the technicality of the difficult bake and her fear of the judges' decision. In the video, she adds, "Yeah, it is still just as scary to watch it back."