There were tense scenes as The Great
British Bake Off returned to screens on Tuesday night, as the tent witnessed one of its worst disasters ever.
Viewers of the hit Channel 4 show had their hearts in their mouths, following an incident involving contestants Sura and Dave and a tray of pineapple upside-down cakes.
In scenes that were not too dissimilar to the drama of the show’s infamous #BinGate, Sura accidentally destroyed the majority of Dave’s efforts as they prepared to present their bakes in the technical challenge. Accidents happen - poor Dave and poor Sura. And spare a thought for the tent carpet too! #GBBOpic.twitter.com/S4s4oqCyMt— British Bake Off (@BritishBakeOff) September 22, 2020As they delivered their half dozen pineapple upside-down cakes to the gingham alter, Sura swung her arm to hit a fly and but knocked Dave and his tray, causing four of his six cakes to fly across the room.
Dave was then seen walking away in frustration as the cakes lay smashed on the floor, while a devastated Sura tried to apologise.
“It happens, accidents happen,” Dave told a tearful Sura.New host Matt Lucas later quipped: “It’s my fault because I was looking at you when it happened. And you were probably hypnotised by my beauty.”
Sura began attempting to rescue them from the floor, but when it came to judging, Paul
Hollywood and Prue Leith said they would judge from the two untouched cakes.
However, they didn’t impress Paul and Prue much, with David placing ninth out of 12 in the challenge.
And to rub salt (or should that be sugar?) into his wounds, Sura emerged as the winner of the round. While the show’s return had been like a welcome hug after the latest developments in the news, these scenes were too much for some to take...Poor Dave. My heart leaped out of my chest!— 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭 (@waywardredangel) September 22, 2020Feel for both of them. One of those horribly awkward moments all round. Hopefully judges will take it into account 🙈🙈— Rachel (@OpenMindMH) September 22, 2020Britain held their breath.— Chris D (@cdowers) September 22, 2020Yeah, everyone on the sofa just now gave up breathing— Rebecca - 𝑮𝒍𝒖𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒎𝒂 🌻 (@Glutarama) September 22, 2020So much drama for the first episode!!— Emma Beeney (@_EmmaJane90) September 22, 2020I gasped when it happened 😱— Tracey (@justtraceyxx) September 22, 2020pic.twitter.com/zoA66wtK3N— Phil Greaves Photos. 📷 (@PhilipGreaves3) September 22, 2020I can’t deal with the stress 😱— ZM (@zoe_mcphail) September 22, 2020🤯 as if 2020 isn't bad enough and we have stress on Bake Off already.— Rosieposy (@RosieRosieposy) September 22, 2020Elsewhere on the show, Matt’s debut as co-host alongside Noel Fielding proved to be deliciously silly, as he brought his trademark japes to the famous tent.
He also had viewers howling as he parodied prime minister Boris Johnson’s
Coronavirus briefings in a pre-titles skit.
This year’s series opener notched up Bake Off’s biggest overnight launch audience since its move to Channel 4, the broadcaster said, averaging 6.9 million viewers and peaking at 7.9 million.
The Great British Bake Off continues on Tuesday at 8pm on Channel 4. MORE BAKE OFF: Toppling Tiers And Custard Crimes: Great British Bake Off’s Biggest Disasters Ever Matt Lucas Hilariously Mocks
Boris Johnson In Great British Bake Off Debut Matt Lucas' Bake Off Debut Was Deliciously Silly