The Great British Bake Off descended into unexpected chaos as host Alison Hammond revealed behind-the-scenes tensions among the contestants.

The family special featured Scarlette Douglas and her brother Stuart, along with couple Rosie and Chris Ramsey . However, their competitive nature took everyone by surprise. Alison described the atmosphere, saying: “It wasn’t necessarily nice banter. It was arguments. I’ve never seen that before. There was a lot of bickering, a lot of shouting across the benches, a lot of sabotage.”

Judge Paul Hollywood also commented on the unexpected intensity, adding to The Daily Star : “They were arguing with each other because they wanted to win. I was like, ‘Here we go. We’re reffing this, not judging it!’” During filming, comedian Chris made it clear that the competition was serious. He said: “We are all baking head-to-head. No helping out. No mercy! If one of us wins, we will mention it daily to the other for possibly a decade or two.”

The Great British Bake Off took an unexpected turn as celebrity contestants became fiercely competitive, leading to tensions in the tent ( 
Image:
Channel 4 / Mark Bourdillon / Love Productions)
Property expert Scarlette also shared her determination, stating: “We’re very competitive and I really want to win more than anything. If I win this, it’ll be going on for a very long time. If he (Stuart) wins it, it’ll probably be going on forever.” Her brother Stuart echoed the sentiment, adding: “Put it this way… there are four of us in this tent. If I come third, and my sister comes fourth, for me that’s a win.”

The celebrity Bake Off episode saw an unusually cutthroat approach, with contestants doing whatever they could to get ahead. The competitive spirit may have caused friction, but it made for a dramatic and entertaining edition of the show. Celebrity couple Chris and Rosie Ramsey will go head-to-head in The Great Celebrity Bake Off for Stand Up To Cancer, airing on March 16th, alongside sibling duo Scarlette and Stuart Douglas.

Earlier this month, Bake Off judge, Prue Leith has revealed she has started to wear hearing aids – something her mother also had to do in her final years. The TV chef made the admission at the Cambridge Union. Speaking to students in a Q&A the Channel 4 star interrupted the conversation to say: “Sorry, I am a bit deaf so I am struggling to hear a bit.

Alison described the atmosphere, saying, ‘It wasn’t necessarily nice banter. It was arguments. I’ve never seen that before’ ( 
Image:
Channel 4)
“This is so embarrassing because I really can’t hear at all. My husband is so cross with me as I have just been given some hearing aids and I never remember to put them in. I am so sorry.” In 2021, Prue wrote about hearing aids in her agony aunt column in The Telegraph when a reader wrote to her saying her father was struggling to wear them. At the time Prue wrote: “This is a really common problem. When my mother was in her 80s, she was beginning to go deaf and senile at the same time.

“She was convinced we all mumbled, and actors didn’t speak clearly anymore. The problem was that we’d left it too late. By the time we’d persuaded her to wear hearing aids, she’d forget what they were, fish one out shouting, ‘What’s this thing doing in my ear?’ and hurl all two grand’s worth across the room.

“The trick is generally to start getting used to hearing aids long before the hearing is really bad. Modern aids are enormously versatile, and very comfortable once the patient is used to them; but many people take a good few visits before they start feeling really happy with them. I think the usual advice is only to wear them for a few hours, up to five, at first, then gradually increase the length of time in the ear.”