Gay baker David Atherton wins Great British Bake Off: ‘It’s the best feeling in the world’
Great British Bake Off winner David Atherton. (Channel 4)
Gay baker David Atherton has been crowned the winner of the Great British Bake Off 2019, and he said it was the “best feeling in the world”.
The self-described “underdog” managed to out-bake Alice Fevronia and Steph Blackwell in the final on Tuesday (October 29) on Channel 4.
He had a rocky start during the chocolate cake signature, when he put in a little too much armagnac, but managed to pull things together by the time it came to the technical.
Tasked with making “proud, tall” stilton soufflés with lavosh crackers, fellow finalist Steph had an uncharacteristic disaster.
When her soufflés turned out more like soup, she burst into tears, and Paul Hollywood commented that she had “beaten the whole thing to death”.
Life. #GBBOFinal pic.twitter.com/KVw0hUtaXx
— British Bake Off (@BritishBakeOff) October 29, 2019
David on the other hand, having never won a technical challenge before now, beat the others and was told by the notoriously harsh Paul that his soufflés were “well-baked”.
Yaaaaas David! Doing it for the gays #GBBOFinal— Ashley young (@ACYS91) October 29, 2019
After taking 8 weeks to pop his technical cherry, David’s only gone and done it again in the final!!#GBBO #GBBOFinal pic.twitter.com/ymZnUi2Tii— Channel 4 (@Channel4) October 29, 2019
The real success for David came in the showstopper round, when the bakers were required to make an “illusion picnic basket” made with cake, enriched bread and biscuits.
David’s stunning creation was filled with peaches made of bread, cheese made of cake and fig rolls disguised as sausage rolls.
As he crafted the handle of his nougatine basket, it prompted Steph to look over and say: “He’s insane, isn’t he?”
Presenting their showstoppers, Alice’s critique featured the damning words “pretty good effort”, while David’s basket was praised as “stunning” and “exceptional”.
https://twitter.com/uisgebeatha/status/1189285682398797825?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1189285682398797825&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pinknews.co.uk%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost.php%3Fpost%3D459885%26action%3Dedit
The finalists then joined their friends and family in the Great British Bake Off fairground, and awaited the announcement of the 2019 winner.
David said: “I will be happy no matter what, I’d just like to be ecstatic.”
And he was. Looking teary and hugging his boyfriend Nik, he said: “It wasn’t even in my mind that I could win this… I was always the underdog.”
Can we all just appreciate how adorable @nomadbakerdavid and his partner are together?! #GBBO— Rachel (@RachelLaura96) October 29, 2019
Paul said: “He’s come from nothing and then won the whole thing. It’s priceless, absolutely priceless.”
Prue added: “It was really just a question of the tortoise catching the hare.”
David added: “It feels so good. It’s been weeks and weeks of intensity and fatigue, and to finish it with this is the best feeling in the world.”
https://twitter.com/ashjayysb/status/1189290641496391683
At the end of the final, viewers were updated that since filming, David has moved in with his boyfriend Nik.
Earlier this month, the first ever winner of the Great British Bake Off, who was also gay, revealed the homophobic abuse he received from the public while on the show.
