In his own words, he’s a “fat, northern bloke to likes to bake a bit”.
Quite the understatement, and I’m sure millions of fans of the Great British Bake Off (GBBO) have their own ways of describing Paul Hollywood, the judge of the hit cooking contest, Aston Martin enthusiast and lifelong baker. Like: Sex symbol — something the Liverpool-born Hollywood has said embarrasses him — so no surprise when we asked him to describe himself in a sentence, that’s what we got.
Hollywood will be in Dubai at the BBC Good Food Show at Dubai World Trade Centre from December 17-19 — the first time the food festival has taken place outside the UK.
“I’ll be cooking my Chocolate and Cherry Roulade and Fougasse live on the Supertheatre,” said Hollywood via email while attending another Good Food Show, in Scotland. Lucky fans will also get to meet him at the book signing stand and on the interview stage.
Hollywood first came to the public’s attention as a co-judge on BBC baking contest GBBO, which began in 2010 and is inexplicably not broadcast in the UAE. Nearly 15 million people in the UK tuned in to see Nadiya Hussain win the sixth season in October with a lemon drizzle wedding cake. Contestants on the show must complete weekly baking challenged that are then judged by Hollywood and 80-year-old TV cook Mary Berry.
This season’s challenges were more difficult — think baklava with homemade pastry, a German schichttorte (a cake cooked in stages under the grill to create 20 layers of different-coloured sponge, ciabatta bread and baked Alaskas made up of cake, meringue and ice cream — all baked in a (well-appointed) tent in a very British park. Hollywood agrees that GBBO has brought on a higher level of baker.
“I would like to see more Scousers [people from Liverpool] applying,” says Hollywood of what he’d like to see in the next round of contestants; applications for the seventh season are now open. “Also I want people to be more creative with their entries. Having been on screens for the last few years, people should know the flavours that Mary and I like, such as lime, passion fruit and mango.”
In November, Hollywood announced a new show on Food Network, City Bakes, which will take him around the world exploring traditional baking techniques from Madrid, Miami, Munich, Warsaw, London, Naples, New York, St Petersburg and Copenhagen. The British press reported it as him “ditching” Berry for a new show, although he is emphatic about remaining with the show that brought him fame and fortune.
Can you see yourself ever NOT doing GBBO, I ask him. “No!” comes the reply and the confirmation that he does see Berry outside of the show.
“We have a great relationship and I regularly pop round to see her at home,” he says.
However, that’s not the worst that the UK press has ever reported about Hollywood. His sex symbol status was left in no doubt after he admitted to an affair with the co-host of the US version of GBBO, Marcela Valladolid, in the summer of 2013. He has since reconciled with his wife, Alexandra. The public has forgiven him, it appears: He is as popular as ever, and when tabloid! announced he is coming to the UAE, our Twitter page went a bit mad. That’s not out of the ordinary for Hollywood.
“Once I turned up at a girl’s grammar school to do an appearance, and there were 900 [fans] waiting at the gates, screaming. I expected to turn around and see One Direction standing behind me — my son was very embarrassed!”
Hollywood is always baking — and eating — it appears. I asked what was the last thing he personally baked, and what was the last bake that he ate made by someone else.
“Well, about five minutes ago, I was tucking into some of Mary’s delicious orange and cranberry Christmas Pavlova. The last thing I baked was sfogliatelle [an Italian flaky pastry from Naples, filled with citrus-flavoured ricotta].
Baking is very trend-driven — people are fascinated by cupcakes, then macaroons, then donuts — so I ask, what’s next? “We set the trends and we haven’t actually decided yet,” he says.
* Paul Hollywood will be at the BBC Good Food Show’s Supertheatre on December 18 at 1.45pm and 5.30pm, and on December 19 at 1.45pm and 6.45pm. He’ll be on the Interview Stage on December 18 at 7pm and at 4.30pm on December 19. The Super Tickets for the event include entry and a guaranteed seat for a chef in the Supertheatre as well as entry to the Dubai Winter Fest, Dh125-150. Standard tickets, giving entry only to the event, not including seats in the Supertheatre are Dh75 (Dh35 for children over 3).
Did you know?
Gregg’s is one of the most famous bakeries on the UK high street, a favourite for its sausage rolls and Cornish pasties — although not so much for its quality. So I had to know whether exacting Great British Bake Off judge Paul Hollywood ever eats there. He was categorical. “No!”
