Great British Bake Off: Our two Lancashire contestants, Sumayah and Gill, tell us all about themselves

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Great British Bake Off is finally back on our screens and this series sees two women from Lancashire battling it out amongst the rest of them to be named Best Amateur Baker.

19-year-old Denistry Student Sumayah and 53-year-old Senior Category Manager Gill from Lancashire are two of the contestants on Channel 4’s GBBO this year.

Want to find out more about them? Take a look at Channel 4’s descriptions below:

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Currently on her gap year, Sumayah is indulging her sweet tooth before going onto study Dentistry. She lives in Lancashire with her parents and siblings and not only aced her sciences, but is incredibly creative, too – she is a keen sewer, making her own clothes, and has recently taken up photography. An entirely self-taught baker, Sumayah meticulously researches her creations, combining myriad techniques and recipes to create an eclectic and imaginative fusion of cultures and flavours. The project that confirmed her love for baking was a macaron tower she made for her aunt’s mehndi wedding celebration – the result stood 1 metre tall, included 240 macarons in four different flavours, and a cascade of flowers.

Gill is convinced that her love of precision data and her inherent creativity are the perfect match for successful baking. She can’t remember a time when she didn’t bake – growing up, baking was very much a family activity. Since her father passed away in 2015, Gill has used baking as a source of comfort and has put her skills to good use, raising money for Alzheimer’s charities in his memory. Pies, cakes and pastry, including her dad’s signature lemon meringue pie, were staples of her childhood, so her baking is very much traditional in style with a modern twist. Her sticky toffee Christmas pudding has been a hit at family celebrations for the past five years! Gill’s claim to fame? In 1993 she was the UK’s youngest ever driving instructor, aged 21.

But want to hear from the ladies themselves? Take a look at chats with our two Lancashire hopefuls

Great British Bake Off series 15 contestants Sumayah (left) and Gill (right). Credit: Channel 4Great British Bake Off series 15 contestants Sumayah (left) and Gill (right). Credit: Channel 4
Great British Bake Off series 15 contestants Sumayah (left) and Gill (right). Credit: Channel 4 | Channel 4

Did you ever dream that you would actually get into the Bake Off tent, and what was your reaction when you got the call?

Sumayah: “Before applying, people would tell me that I should go on Bake Off, but I never actually imagine myself doing it as I don’t consider myself an outlandish person. Despite my disastrous audition, I had this inexplicable feeling that I would get into the tent, not because I was confident in myself but more a sense of impending fear. I still can’t believe I actually got in, it’s unbelievable!

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“I missed the phone call 5 times so I was the last baker they notified. I remember hearing the news and I felt so numb, I didn’t know whether to be excited or terrified. I still don’t know how to feel about it.

Gill: “I never thought I would be here, many people over many years told me to apply but my sister finally bullied me into it!

“Sadly I had just attended a funeral when the call came in, I heard my phone vibrating in my bag. I couldn’t call back straight away but I ended up pulling over to the side of the road on my drive home as I couldn’t wait any longer. I really thought they were ringing to commiserate and tell me I wasn’t chosen so it was a huge surprise when I got in.”

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Are there any special moments that you will remember from the first episode?

Sumayah: “I remember looking up after completing the first showstopper and just being amazed at everyone’s bakes. There was such a good sense of accomplishment and the sun was shining for the first time! It felt like a weight had been lifted off, we really completed an episode of Bake Off!”

Gill: “I was most worried about walking down the steps to the tent as I am not the most graceful and then I ending up walking at the front with Mike. He was lovely and kept hold of me as we tackled the stairs!”

If you had to make a cake of yourself in your most zen moment in life – what would it be?

Sumayah: “A cake of me when I was 4 years old before I was aware of my own existence.”

Gill: “I use baking as my Zen so it would be a cake of me making a cake, making a cake, making a cake ad infinitum like one of those 80s pop video effects!”

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As a baker what would you say are your strengths and weaknesses?

Sumayah: “My strength lies in decoration and detail, my weak spot is just bread baking in general. Although I do love bread making, I feel like I don’t understand it enough yet to truly push myself.”

Gill: “Attention to detail- both my blessing and my curse!”

In a Bake Off time travelling capsule you are allowed to take one past baker and one utensil – which baker and utensil would you take and what time period would you travel to?

Sumayah: “Saku and a whisk. No this is not a threat. I think I would like to go the late 90s when the internet was a means of exploration and freedom rather than control. or to Babylon to see if the Hanging Gardens actually existed.”

Gill: “I would definitely take Brendan - I loved his precision and baking aesthetic Utensil – I would take my Mum’s old turntable which she has now passed to me. I would love to travel back to my childhood to see all the friends and family that are no longer with us.”

Previous Bake Off contestants Saku (left) and Brendan (right). Credit: Channel 4Previous Bake Off contestants Saku (left) and Brendan (right). Credit: Channel 4
Previous Bake Off contestants Saku (left) and Brendan (right). Credit: Channel 4 | Channel 4

If you had plenty of time at home, what’s the craziest kind of Showstopper you can think of to make?

Sumayah: “I have been really fascinated by paper dioramas lately, I would make an edible one with layers of hand painted biscuits to create a 3D fairytale scene complete with edible sequins and hanging isomalt birds. I think my ideas are beyond my skill level though!”

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Gill: “I made my wedding cake back in the day which was 7 cakes with sugar flowers – it even had a light! The longest I have spent on a cake more recently is about 30 hours to make a golf bag cake complete with clubs. So I would say something that included lots of different baking with some element of structure required with intricate decoration.”

When watching TV, is there a snack you can’t stand and what is your favourite to have?

Sumayah: “I can’t stand crisps while watching TV, which I know is an unpopular opinion, but the crunch is too loud and distracting. I do love eating dry cereal though.”

Gill: “There are not a lot of snacks which I don’t like – but Crème eggs would be the top of the list Favourite – I like to combine sweet and salty – salty popcorn mixed with peanut M&Ms has to be up there.”

What was it like meeting Alison and Noel for the first time, any funny moments?

Sumayah: “Alison and Noel were lovely.”

Gill: “Always been a big fan of Noel – seen him live a couple of times so it was great to meet him in person and have random conversations! Alison was lovely – a huge support to everyone.”

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Noel Fielding (left) and Alison Hammond (right) co-host Great British Bake Off. Credit: GettyNoel Fielding (left) and Alison Hammond (right) co-host Great British Bake Off. Credit: Getty
Noel Fielding (left) and Alison Hammond (right) co-host Great British Bake Off. Credit: Getty | Getty

Can you describe seeing the big white tent for the first time and walking in towards your workstation?

Sumayah: “We were on the mini bus and in the distance, we could barely make out the peaks of the tent and all of us were just in shock. I was a bit nervous about baking in an unfamiliar environment, but the workstation is so well organized that everything falls into place.”

Gill: “I had been calm and fine until we got to visit our benches for the first time, I was at the back with Mike and we just had this moment where we looked at each other in disbelief and just started laughing – we were hugging and laughing with tears running down our faces for quite a while!”

Give us one fact about being in the tent that you didn’t realise after having watched the series previously?

Sumayah: “Judging takes forever. Hours sometimes. I wish I could have glued a pole to my back to keep me upright on the chairs.”

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Gill: “The number of people in the tent when filming and how no-one gets caught on camera.”

Facing so many cameras for the first time did you find it daunting or did you get used to it ?

Sumayah: “Being miked up and in front of cameras was nerve wracking, I initially found it so difficult to talk about myself but the team are so lovely and really made me comfortable.”

Gill: “I just treated them like they were my husband and pretended they weren’t there!”

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