The Final The Great British Bake Off

In the beginning...

Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous.

Oh!

..there were 12.

I can't believe that's just happened to me.

They're not going to allow me into Yorkshire ever again.

Now...there are three.

BEEPING

Right, calm down now.

(Good luck, guys.)

Good luck, guys.

'Winning Star Baker in the first week...'

No!

'..Jane got off to a flying start.'

Absolutely beautiful, yes.

Thank you.

'Her home-style baking impressed Mary and Paul.'

That is first-rate.

This is a complete mess.

'Although timing often wasn't on her side.'

Things didn't go to plan.

No, they didn't.

'The garden designer dug deep to make it to the final.'

That fleur-de-lis is outstanding.

Thank you.

To be at the final is just amazing.

It feels really unreal, actually.

People say to you, "Oh, how've you been?

"What's happened this week?"

You go, "You know, nothing, really, same old,"

and you want to go, "I'm in the final

"of The Great British Bake Off!"

And you can't.

Candice has won Star Baker three times.

Well done.

Her elaborate creations...

Wow, exceptional.

..went the extra mile...

It's like you, isn't it? You like to do things over the top.

..and both impressed and frustrated the judges.

Rein it in a little bit. Get your baking absolutely spot-on.

But with bakes inspired by her family...

-The overall effect is beautiful.

-Yes!

..she's made it to the final.

There's been a lot of practice this week.

The other day, I did baking for 12 hours, and I hurt a lot.

I'd really like to think I'd, like, got really fit and toned

and everything from baking.

Definitely haven't.

Definitely struggling to fit in clothes currently.

'Aerospace engineer Andrew...

Where are your schematics for this?

'..has been Mr Precision.'

The overall effect is absolutely brilliant.

'Despite his meticulous methods...'

Guided rolling pin - gives me uniform thickness of dough.

'..when it came to Star Baker...'

Well done, Tom.

'..for weeks, he was the bridesmaid...'

Benjamina.

'..never the bride.

'But dessert week onwards...'

They look gorgeous.

'..was a turning point.'

I've never seen a mechanised pie.

'At last he won Star Baker...'

The presentation is stunning.

'..and won it again in the semifinal.'

Coming in, I really wanted to make the final.

That was my number one objective, and then if I can win it...

That seemed like a silly dream at the time,

but now that we're here,

I've got to darn well try.

Bakers, finalists!

Welcome to the tent. And the final this year is being given...

RP ACCENT: ..the royal treatment.

NORMAL TONE: Between the four of us,

we already have a sponge sceptre and several jellied orbs,

but Mary and Paul would like to complete the set

by giving you the challenge of making a filled meringue crown.

We're not talking some little nimby-pimby tiny crown.

No, bakers, we want a family-sized crown

big enough for the whole royal family.

It must have three layers of meringue, at least...

..and it must be dazzlingly decorated.

You've got three hours on this challenge.

-On your marks...

-Get set...

-Bake!

-CANDICE:

-Good luck.

Good luck, guys.

BOWL CLATTERS

The nerves are a bit jangly. I've dropped a bowl already.

It is the final.

We've been waiting for this,

and I think it's quite right we go royal.

After all, it is the Queen's 90th birthday year.

This is the last signature chance,

so we've chosen meringue.

Now, they've struggled with meringue in the past,

so I thought it was a good idea to go back to the meringue again.

We've asked for a crown.

How they achieve that is up to them,

but what I am looking for -

it's got to taste good, look good and be spectacular.

Three tiers of meringue can be quite sweet and overwhelming,

so they've got to add a little bit of tartness to it.

That can come from the fruit - whether it's a curd, a compote,

that will balance out the sweetness of the meringue.

I haven't any idea who's going to win.

It's an open field.

I'm looking forward to it.

Good morning, Jane.

-Good morning.

-Right, tell us all about your meringue crown.

My meringue crown is a red, white and blue meringue crown

with strawberry and raspberry compote,

and then the next layer is a blueberry compote,

and then the top is white flesh nectarines with other fruits.

Jane's red, white and blue pavlova

is her husband Ray's favourite dessert.

She's hoping that sticking with her tried and tested family favourite

will be a hit with Paul and Mary.

Now, you've kept it fairly simple for the final.

I have kept it simple, but I want it to be a good pavlova at the end.

Guys, simple is good, surely?

Well, it comes down to perfection.

When you go simple, we are looking for the best flavours,

the best look with no failure.

No pressure, then!

All three bakers have opted for a pavlova-style meringue.

-ANDREW:

-I'm using muscovado sugar as well as caster.

It gives it a more caramelly flavour, which I quite like,

but can lead to easier-collapsing meringues.

Can tend to crack slightly, but flavour wins, right?

-JANE:

-This is just caster sugar.

I want a nice, as white as possible, meringue.

True to form for this regal signature...

It needs to be just right. Just like Goldilocks.

..Candice is going a little further.

I am doing two different meringues.

One of them I'm adding white caster sugar,

and the other one will have golden caster sugar.

Her two different meringues will make three tiers of pavlova,

filled with Prosecco-soaked strawberries,

mango curd, gold-dusted Physalis

and glittered pistachios.

Then there's a fourth tier,

inspired by the tiny crown of Queen Victoria.

You've chosen to do quite a lot of different things, actually.

-Yep.

-You've got to do it all in the time.

I have got to do it all in the time,

but I think once the meringues are in,

the bits in the middle I can fill.

As long as they've got their cooking time and their cooling time,

so they're nice and crisp,

then it's just a case of building it up.

-All right, good luck.

-Thank you.

I thought I'd reined it in.

I didn't think I was going complicated at all this week.

I've got three main layers, three flavours,

one mini crown, a curd and some fruit.

Nothing.

So, I've increased the speed now that all the sugar's been added,

and then I'm looking for really solid peaks.

There's nowhere to hide if the meringue goes wrong.

There will be no time to remake.

If it isn't beaten until it's completely stiff...

Still soft.

..when piped, the meringue will lose its shape...

..and then collapse as it's baked.

Suddenly feeling really nervous.

Oh, how can meringue do this to you, eh?

-CANDICE:

-I'm just going freehand on my circle.

Whoops!

-ANDREW:

-That's going to be my meringue cross on top.

-CANDICE:

-The next meringue is going to have colour.

This is going to have pistachio on it.

So my Queen Victoria crown will go on here.

I wanted to feature that cos I loved that when I was younger.

You do need steady hands.

Just applying some gold lustre to give it a nice vibrant royal look.

Good morning, Andrew. How are you?

Good morning, I'm very well, thank you.

Tell us about this meringue.

This is just a classic meringue

and I've used a 50-50 caster sugar to muscovado composition.

-Yeah.

-I'm just going to pop them in the oven.

And you're confident about getting it all finished and looking good?

I have had a couple of slight meringue collapses,

so I'm a little nervous about the structure at the end.

But hopefully my added rings in the centre will...

-Give it support.

-Yeah.

Andrew's engineering expertise will be fully tested

in his re-creation of the Queen's Jubilee crown

in muscovado meringue.

It will contain a pecan praline centre

and layers of blackberry fool,

topped off with cassis jelly jewels.

Now, you've chosen a difficult meringue.

Muscovado sugar, being very moist,

and I notice that it is quite runny now... I hope it holds.

My engineering credentials are going to be tested.

They will be. Severely.

Right, going in. I'm leaving it in there for an hour and ten minutes.

They're going to go in the oven for about an hour and 20 minutes.

I'm baking mine for an hour on a fairly low temperature.

About 130.

Now is the bit I can enjoy a bit more.

They're in the oven. I can't worry about them, I can't change them.

It's in the hands of chemistry and the gods.

The finalists need to spend every minute

that the meringues are in the oven

perfecting their fillings and toppings.

Now I get to make the jellied jewels.

I'm adding gelatine, some creme cassis.

I just love blackberries, so I'm going for gold and purple.

It was inspired by the Queen's coronation crown.

I have got some blueberries, a bit of sugar, a bit of lemon juice,

a little bit of water.

I'm going to make a blueberry compote

and then a strawberry and raspberry compote as well.

Nothing like British fresh fruit, is there?

This is my pecan praline.

I'm hoping I've put this on the right side of the paper.

-CANDICE:

-This is mango curd.

As it's a special occasion,

this is Prosecco for my strawberries.

(Aah!)

There's two sides to the baking paper

and I've put it on the wrong one.

As you can see, it...

-HE SQUEALS

-Facepalm.

45 minutes remain in the final Signature Challenge.

The oven is turned off, so I'm just waiting for them to cool down.

They've finished baking.

Technically now it's more important to let them cool down

really, really slowly.

Sudden changes in temperature could destroy the meringue...

I'm just on crack watch.

..and will make constructing a crown impossible.

Two minutes. I'm just going to hold my nerve. Two minutes.

I'm coming out. I'm going...

If you rush it, you open the door of the oven and get them out

and you can hear them going, "Ping! Ping! Ping!"

You can actually hear them cracking.

-HE IMITATES CRACKING

-I might just put them back

in the open oven just to reduce the temperature shock a bit.

-What are you listening for?

-I don't know.

Jane just said, "Can you hear it crackling?"

So I thought I'd listen.

-HIGH-PITCHED:

-Eat me! Eat me!

This one is looking a little stronger.

Oh, gosh! My stomach just turned over.

The bottom one has cracked.

(Oh, look. They are amazing!)

You can't out-Candice Candice.

You've just got to be happy with what you do.

Perfection is all I've got to hit today.

Bakers, here's the story.

You've got 15 minutes on your crowning glory.

I'm sorry to be bore-y.

This is where you find out if the meringues have stuck,

and try and keep smiling if that's the case.

'The judges are looking for at least three tiers of crowning glory.'

Oh, hello!

Oh, don't do that.

-CANDICE:

-My cream has whipped up nice and light, actually.

It is mascarpone, double cream and vanilla.

OK.

It looks like we might have got away with it.

I just need to start constructing.

-What's going on, my love?

-So, I'm going to...

try and stick this on with a bit of caramel.

Carefully, carefully.

Blueberry compote. It is a little bit runny,

but what I'm going to do is I'm going to make a blueberry dam.

God, it's a delicate beast.

Praline to go in the middle.

These are my jewelled pistachios.

This is blackberry fool. I want this to be slightly sharp.

There is a lot of sugar in the meringue,

so I don't want it to be too sweet.

-JANE:

-My bottom is cracking. I can see it.

I'll just about have enough cream.

Whoops!

I'm just going to shine up my Physalis.

You want to make sure you get that right.

Five minutes, bakers. Just five minutes left.

Oh, jelly. Jelly, jelly!

(He's putting it on the Queen.)

OK, bakers, that's it.

Time is up.

Coronation time, gang.

ANDREW EXHALES DEEPLY

Paul and Mary are expecting a spectacular meringue crown

with at least three tiers and full of delicious fillings.

You've chosen a meringue using muscovado sugar,

which is very difficult to get definition.

If we look at the top here,

we haven't got a clear definition of your icing pipe.

I'm going to take a slice.

You've got to keep it very much on the head.

Yes.

Tell me, what's happening in the middle?

I put the pecan praline in there.

All the flavours go well.

The praline is very, very sweet

and it's slightly overpowering everything.

Obviously meringue is sweet,

therefore, for me, the rest needs to be a little bit sharp.

The fool hasn't got much flavour to it.

I think the meringue's gorgeous. It's nice and soft inside.

You've got a nice chew.

The jelly, I like. It's got a lot of flavour in it.

It has got more of a kick, actually, than the fool has.

I don't like the praline in the middle, but I love the effect.

OK.

I think it looks great.

I love the pipework. There's a lot going on in there.

-Yeah.

-I was a bit worried about this little crown on the top,

how you were going to get it off the moulds,

but you've managed to get it off OK.

It looks impressive,

and I love the way you've got so many flavours there.

I didn't think you'd finish, but you did.

Oooft!

You can actually feel the texture of the meringues all the way down.

-Oh!

-The way it's holding is quite impressive.

It's actually staying in one piece,

and what a piece of meringue that is!

Wow!

Your curd is lovely.

The meringue, it's got a lovely softness in the middle.

There's so many textures in there, and the flavours are quite sharp.

And you've got the nuts in there as well, which adds something to it.

Yeah, I like that.

A handshake! Hollywood handshake! CANDICE SQUEALS

(Handshake!)

You've made, from appearance point of view,

a first-rate meringue.

It's held all its shape perfectly.

I can't wait to get the texture of that meringue, you know.

It does look very impressive.

-Yeah, it does.

-Oh, thank you.

Oh, the way that the knife just falls through!

Look how solid it is at the bottom there as well.

Perfect, isn't it?

The flavours go very well.

Your coulis is sharp, and do you know what is really sharp?

The peach on top,

which is just what you need with a pavlova.

Because it's so tall,

it's very difficult for it to actually hold together

when you cut it.

Your description of a sort of pavlova trifle is about right.

I sense... I knew... Oh, hello!

Oh, thank you!

Thank you.

Three layers of heaven.

-It's beautiful.

-Thank you very much indeed.

I'm absolutely delighted. I got the handshake!

When Candice got her handshake, I thought,

"I've never seen two handshakes.

"I've never seen two handshakes. Not a chance."

And I got a handshake!

He's giving out handshakes willy-nilly.

But, no, Jane's did look spectacular.

First bake of final done

and I couldn't really have got off to a better start,

which is amazing.

It was a bit of a kick in the teeth to have, like, the double handshake.

I can deal with one. Two is a bit, like...

Really, I need to come first in the Technical.

Definitely at the back of the pack at the moment.

Now, bakers, this is your last ever Technical Challenge.

Any advice, Mary?

This bake will be very familiar,

but there are one or two tricky things about it.

Wow, cryptic!

Now, off you both go to your intimacy workshop.

Catch you later.

OK. Now, Mary would love you to make a...

Victoria sandwich with jam and buttercream.

But there's a twist.

Lift that up, you'll see boxing gloves.

Put them on, then the Zorro mask, then just tease the trousers down

and you're ready to go.

You've got an hour and a half on your challenge.

-On your marks...

-Get set...

-Bake!

OK.

We have absolutely no instructions.

Are you ready for this?

"Make a Victoria sandwich using two 20cm tins

"filled with raspberry jam and buttercream."

That's it.

Right.

So, Mary, you've chosen a classic challenge for the last Technical.

Victoria sandwich.

We've given them no recipe, no method,

just two tins and the ingredients.

Now, you've judged quite a few Victoria sandwiches

-in your time, I'm sure.

-I've never counted.

I mean, I've done village shows, county shows, schools...

So I know exactly what it should be.

They can do it by the all-in-one method,

they can do it by the creaming method,

but it should look exactly like that when it's finished.

Beautifully level, a very even rise,

pale golden all the way around,

and a beautiful texture inside.

It's going to be fascinating to see how they cope with this.

I hope the bakers come up with something that's good.

I think they will.

Unsalted butter, we've got salted butter.

We've got medium eggs, we've got large eggs.

We've got... No idea what that is.

My ratios are 225g of self-raising flour,

butter, sugar, four large eggs...

I'm going to go for four large eggs.

Victoria sponge is all about having exactly the same amount

of every ingredient.

-ANDREW:

-I'm weighing the eggs because it's the final

and weighing the eggs feels like the right thing to do.

259g of everything.

So, 227 self-raising, butter and caster.

-CANDICE:

-I always use golden caster sugar at home,

so I'm going to use golden caster sugar here.

I'm going to go caster. I don't want it to be too dark.

I'm going to do it exactly how I do it at home, all in one.

I'm going to do an all-in-one method,

which is a Mary favourite, I think.

-ANDREW:

-I'm going to cream the butter and sugar first.

I'm going to go for the creamy method.

I don't actually make a lot of Victoria sponges.

I'm relying on memory.

We should know how to do it, but if it goes wrong,

we're going to use look pretty daft.

Have I put everything in that I should have done?

Eggs might help.

-MEL:

-How are you, love? How's the final going?

I could use with this one being a good one, to be honest.

To be out of the handshake club was a little demoralising.

-Matey!

-I know, the double handshake.

But the handshake doesn't mean everything.

You have come back from things before, Andrew, haven't you?

I have, but this isn't about coming back,

this is about ending up on top, isn't it?

(Oh, Andrew, that's fighting talk!)

I mean, you've got to be open at this stage, haven't you?

-Everyone wants to win.

-Everyone.

-Everyone in this tent.

Or die trying!

Just to be extra anorak-like,

I'm going to make sure I weigh how much batter goes into each.

Slightly larger tins than I use at home, but that's fine.

Just whack in some more mix.

It is important that it is level.

If it doesn't go right, then I'm in big trouble.

I'm going in!

I should have 456 in each if I've done that correctly,

which I hope I have.

There we go. 180 for 15 minutes,

but I think it will be more like 20, 25.

I've put it on 180 for 20 minutes to start off with.

I just really want to get it in the oven now

cos I'm very behind the other two.

I'm going to go in with that.

Mid-shelf.

Start with 20, and then I'll keep an eye on them.

I'm nervous about this,

because a tiny imperfection in a cake

could mean last in the Technical.

It's got to be right. Got to be right.

I am just going to get my jam on.

I'm going for half the quantity of sugar to raspberries.

-Is it?

-I'm using 50-50.

Just the way I make it at home.

I've gone for 350g of raspberries and 150g of sugar.

I never use buttercream at home.

A drop more milk in there.

You don't want it to be too thick.

In my experience, adding it a spoonful at a time

gives a smoother buttercream.

I've tried it all-in-one before, but it tends to go a bit grainy.

CANDICE COUGHS

It could be the smallest thing today that clinches it.

I need this.

I really need this.

Bakers, just half an hour till I have your cake and eat it.

Mary is going to be looking for a nice golden colour.

Maybe a little rise, but more or less flat.

A bit dark on top.

(Mine are flatter than Candice's, though.)

JANE CHUCKLES

Relatively happy. They're the right colour, so...

Candice's look good and Andrew's look really nice over there as well.

(Oh, it's tense, this, isn't it?)

-ANDREW:

-My jam is not as firm as I'd like it to be.

Another 15 minutes in the fridge will probably help.

All going for seedless over there.

This is my interpretation.

It's either going to work, or it's not.

You have five minutes left on your last-ever Technical Challenge.

-JANE:

-It is the final, so I'm going to pipe the buttercream in.

We're going to end up doing the very same look.

It means there'll be more direct comparisons.

If I'm honest, being directly compared to Jane

is quite intimidating.

I think that looks yummy.

Right, you magnificent spongers, time is up.

Could you bring them up to the gingham table, please?

Mary and Paul are looking for a perfect Victoria sandwich

with a light sponge filled with raspberry jam and buttercream icing.

OK, shall we start with this one, Mary?

This one looks quite dark, actually.

It looks a bit too dark, and this jam doesn't look as though it's set.

You can see it dripping down the side there.

It's really a jelly rather than a jam,

because the pips have been taken out.

The actual sandwich - the structure looks good.

It's a good, even texture throughout.

I think the Victoria sandwich tastes good,

but that buttercream is quite grainy.

Right, moving on. This has a nice texture on this one.

It's quite even. I like the colour on this as well.

I like the buttercream in there.

-It's quite neat.

-Looks a very good jam there.

It's a good thing I like a Victoria sandwich.

You notice what a big piece I'm taking of each one!

It's buttery, it's got good flavour.

-That's a good Victoria sandwich, that, it tastes good.

-Mmm.

Moving on to the last one, Mary.

It's a little bit on the dark side

and it has a very large rise to it.

I think it's got a lot of mixture in there.

-A lot of mixture.

-It's considerably bigger.

The buttercream is a bit on the soft side.

The jam is quite thick, actually.

They have cooked it through, and it is a good flavour.

OK. This is going to be tricky.

But which finalist has baked

a technically perfect Victoria sandwich?

This has been a very difficult task for us.

We've been backwards and forwards.

It was very close between two and three, I'll tell you that much.

In third place is this one.

There was more mixture in there than I would have expected,

and the jam itself was a little bit gluey.

And the buttercream was very soft.

In second place is this one.

The flavour of your jam was better, marginally, than Jane's.

The buttercream, however, was a little bit grainy.

But the overall flavour of the sponge was just a little bit better.

Thank you.

And in first place is this one.

-MEL:

-Well done, Andrew.

-MARY:

-We have an even bake, a nice pale, golden colour.

We've got a good jam and a lovely, smooth buttercream.

Thank you.

Well done, well done.

To stand a chance at all, I needed to come first.

And, yeah, really pleasantly surprised.

Two is all right. I thought I was going to be third.

I do think, genuinely, we are all going into it fairly even,

and that's quite nice.

I think the trophy is still very much up for grabs.

BLEATING

BUZZING

There's just one challenge remaining in the 2016 Great British Bake Off.

In just a few hours, at a very special picnic,

either Candice, Jane or Andrew will be crowned this year's winner.

They're making an awful lot of stuff in their Showstopper, Mary.

An unbelievable amount.

I mean, it's one of the most exciting Showstoppers

we've ever had.

-MEL:

-I know it's very difficult judge between just three of them

being so close. Let's cut to the chase.

Candice and Jane are very, very close in the Signature.

Candice went really overboard with the meringue.

I think it worked, as well.

Likewise, Jane did the perfect pavlova.

And then it all changed again.

Andrew didn't have such a good Signature,

but he came top in Technical.

It was a very good Victoria sandwich.

Paul gave the double Hollywood handshake

to the ladies in the tent.

He gave a single handshake.

There was a single handshake to Candice.

And there was a full double for Jane.

-The Roman clasp?

-I've never...

We've never seen the Roman clasp before, I don't think, from Paul.

Is this telling us something about where they're standing

in the pecking order?

-No.

-Right. I'm glad we started with that, then!

-Just checking!

Bakers, welcome to your final Showstopper Challenge.

Paul and Mary would very much like you

to make a picnic fit for Her Majesty.

What we would like you to make is one chocolate celebration cake,

which Her Majesty apparently loves.

12 puff-pastry sausage rolls,

12 mini quiches,

12 savoury scones,

and 12 fruit and custard tarts.

That's 49 things altogether each.

You've got 20 minutes. On your marks...

LAUGHTER You've got five hours.

-On your marks...

-Get set...

-Good luck, and bake.

-Bake!

Creating a whole range of bakes for a picnic fit for the Queen...

TIMER BEEPS

..is the biggest-ever final challenge in Bake Off history.

49 little things, all in five hours.

Easy peasy(!)

Keep it together, Andrew...

Five hours seems an awful lot,

but if they don't get their planning right,

they won't finish on time.

This is batch baking and then some.

All the elements of a picnic that you can think of.

Every one of those bakes should be good enough

to put in front of the Queen.

Each item's got to be consistent.

We want a good finish as well as good flavours.

I'm expecting perfection.

Pastry...

I'm doing my pastries first so I can get them chilling.

I've got my spreadsheet, which...

I've got every five minutes planned so I know exactly where I am.

I haven't worked out timings properly on this,

but I think it should be... I think it should be...

I think it should be fine.

I know the order, I know I can get it done.

Going to do it.

-Hello, Candice.

-Good morning.

Right. What's going in your hamper, then?

I am doing a chocolate orange and orange cardamom cake,

then I am doing sausage rolls -

bacon, mushroom, black pudding. Little piggies,

so it'll have a little nose, peppercorn eyes,

with crackling curly tails.

To complete her picnic,

Candice is also making Manchego and olive scones,

salmon and asparagus quiches

and rhubarb and custard tarts,

all fit for not just a queen, but pearly kings and queens.

What makes it special for pearly kings and queens?

It's just a nod to where me and my dad are from, really.

-Ah, right.

-Cockney, Mary, Cockney.

-Cockney.

Candice's journey to the Bake Off began when she was four,

when her nan, Margaret, started teaching her to bake.

You always used to like to wear Nan's glasses.

-Come to that, you used to put Nan's shoes on as well.

-Yep.

My mum was always baking, so Candice wanted to be in on the action.

I'm so pleased Candice has achieved this for herself.

I don't think there's any words

that can express how proud we are

as a family.

Candice will go hell for leather to get whatever she wants.

I'm extremely proud of Candice.

Regardless if she wins

or whether she loses,

she'll always be a winner in my eyes and she's my daughter.

This is my puff pastry for my sausage rolls.

I'm going to do my first turn.

I used to hate making puff, but I do quite enjoy it now.

It's important to keep it cold

just cos you don't want the butter to melt.

If it softens up, it means you won't get those nice, puffy layers.

The sooner the bakers can prepare the pastry

for their sausage rolls and quiches...

(Right, next - next, next, next...)

Get that in the fridge.

Half an hour gone already.

What am I doing now? I don't know.

..the sooner they can begin their show-stopping chocolate cake.

I'm just liquefying my coconut oil.

So rather than using butter, I'm using oil.

It just makes it nice and moist.

I like adding ground almonds. I like what it does to the texture

and it just keeps it a little bit more moist.

My chocolate cake is my gran's chocolate cake.

It's kind of our definitive family recipe.

There is a lot riding on this cake, so...hopefully, I'll do it justice.

Andrew's picnic of family favourites

will also include smoked Cheddar and paprika scones,

sausage and chorizo jam rolls,

sweet potato, goat's cheese and caramelised onion quiches

and strawberry and pistachio tarts.

-I call you "the precision baker".

-Right, OK.

It's all about timing. You've...

Oh, right, you've got an Excel spreadsheet

-to tell you exactly what's going on.

-Yes, I do.

Minute by minute. We're wasting time right now.

I'm five minutes behind.

That's every five minutes is planned so I'm just dashing to the...

Yeah, it says here, actually, that...

Yeah, 9.05, "dash to fridge". He's on time.

Always a high-flier,

Andrew first discovered his love of engineering

through his love of cake.

Andrew's always rather liked chocolate cake

and things and he wanted to be able to make them.

Andrew has always been very passionate

about anything he's tackled

and Bake Off is no different.

He's been working full-time

and practising to one o'clock in the morning.

He didn't actually go to his own graduation.

We went and saw all his friends graduate.

He was baking.

If Andrew takes on any challenge, he's always put 100% into it.

He's an achiever,

and the success he's had so far has blown us away.

I absolutely think Andrew deserves to win.

He's put so much hard work into it

and I hope he does cos I love him to bits.

He'll hate me saying that!

SHE LAUGHS

I'm happy with the consistency of the cakes.

They've gone in for 15 minutes at 180.

Just making my orange sponge.

This is cardamom and orange

and then I will cover it in an orange cardamom syrup as well.

Chocolate cake's in the oven.

I've got my puff pastry in the fridge.

I'm just doing sweet pastry for my fruit tarts.

I mean for this sweet pastry to be nice and thin,

so about two millimetres.

I want it to be really crisp. I want Paul to love it.

I don't want to see a soggy bottom in sight.

I have no idea whether I'm on schedule or not.

I just have great belief that if I just keep going today,

if I keep going, it'll all be fine.

Jane's sweetcrust pastry tarts

will be filled with red fruits and elderflower creme patissiere.

Her picnic will also feature more of her family's favourites -

butternut squash and Parmesan scones,

apple and thyme sausage rolls,

salmon and dill quiches

and, for her four-tiered chocolate cake,

she's determined to succeed

with a decorative touch

that let her down during botanical week.

It's going to have a white-chocolate lacy wrap and...

-A collar? You're putting a collar round it?

-Yeah.

-Another collar?

-I know, but it's going to be good this time.

-Victorian lacy collar.

-It's going to be good this time!

Jane has always worked hard to create great bakes

for her family and friends.

But since the competition, she's gone to new extremes.

Mum hasn't slept much

for the last 12 weeks.

I'll come down in the morning, she's there, furiously baking,

has been awake since five o'clock in the morning,

there's flour everywhere.

Already, she's made three different sets of Danish pastries,

a wedding cake, a loaf of bread...

Yeah, she's been a bit obsessed.

Can you believe you're in the final?

I don't actually believe I'm in that tent.

Mum's amazing at juggling everything.

She's managed to do everything for Bake Off,

she's running her own business.

I don't know how she's done it all.

She's always put other people first

and this is the first thing she's done purely for herself.

I really am very proud of you.

I know everybody thinks it, but I think I've got the best mum.

Right, the moment of truth. How's this pastry?

These are my sweet ones.

The pastry has caught on the edges.

"12.02, Sue comes in and asks inane questions

"about what are you doing" - what are you doing, Andrew?

I can always trust you to be on schedule, Sue.

It's lovely.

Everything is important in the Showstopper.

Absolutely everything.

Right, here we go.

Scones, actually.

Have I put everything in? Squash, salt and pepper.

Pepper? No, no pepper.

This is my mum and gran's scone recipe,

quite traditional Irish thing, kind of a soda bread method.

So I'm mixing my flour, bicarb, some paprika,

buttermilk and some smoked Cheddar.

Handling it as little as possible is the secret to good scones.

The temptation is to roll it out too far.

Quite a wet dough, so it's sticking a bit.

Two-and-a-half hours remaining.

This is my creme patissiere,

which is going to go in my fruit and custard tarts.

Not sure what the other bakers are doing.

I think they're making their sausage rolls,

which is what I SHOULD be doing.

With 49 bakes to complete and only one oven...

I'm going to assemble my whole sausage roll in one.

Then I can get exactly the same size piggies.

..time management has never been harder or more important.

Puff's looking all right.

Yeah, puff's looking... Puff's looking OK.

The amount of multitasking required here is mind-blowing.

If I didn't have a plan right now, I'd be flapping.

-TIMER BEEPS

-Ah!

I am going faster and faster.

I've got so many timers,

I'm not sure what the timers are for, now.

We are steaming through.

Some of these poor piggies might be a little cross-eyed.

Give them another...minute or two.

They really haven't risen at all.

They really haven't risen at all.

TIMER BEEPS

Outside the tent, the contestants' friends and family have arrived,

along with a few familiar faces.

I was quite anxious coming here.

Gingerbread falling down, that was my last experience.

But no, it's really nice,

it's lovely seeing all the bakers again.

It's been really special.

It's really funny being back.

Of course I'd love to be in the tent right now.

Great to be here, would LOVE to be in there.

SHE LAUGHS

Oh, my gosh, who's going to win it? Who's going to win it?

Don't ask me that question.

Candice.

She plans well, she's impeccable, and she is so focused.

I've been backing Jane since week one.

I want Andrew to win...

..but it'll be a tough call,

cos the girls have been very, very strong.

You know, Candice has been Star Baker so many times

and Andrew and Jane have both been so consistent - oh...!

I think I'm going to have to say Jane.

OK, finalists, you've got an hour left of your Showstoppers.

One hour left.

Right, calm down, now.

I have got my collar and the decoration to do on this.

I've got assembly of the fruit tarts to do.

I've still got to bake my quiches.

So, um...quite a lot to get done, really.

I'm just melting my chocolate for my chocolate icing

and just waiting for my sausage rolls to cook.

I'm ashamed of myself for not measuring out the pastry.

But got to get these sausage rolls finished,

so...screw the measurements.

Is that pastry too thick?

I don't know.

Asparagus going into the coffin there, lovely.

Just left it a little bit too long in the oven.

I'm going to put some foil over the top.

Should hopefully stop them browning too much.

OK, picnickers, you don't want to keep a good wasp waiting.

You've got half an hour to finish, half an hour.

I'm going to have to do the chocolate collar now.

It's a very simple and easy chocolate collar this time.

Got to try and chill that somehow.

Are you all right, Jane?

I'm fine. Yeah, yeah, yeah, fine.

OK. I've caught the edges of these.

So this is my sugar glaze.

It just makes it look shiny and nice, really.

Right. One, two, three...

You can't leave it in there very long,

otherwise it won't be flexible at all.

One, two, three, four...

Those need at least an extra five.

TIMER BEEPS

Those are going to come out very hot.

Oh, stick, damn you, stick!

-(That's good.)

-Ooh, look at the rise on those!

OK, ladies and gent, I have no wish to HAMPER you,

but you have five minutes left on your final Showstoppers.

Ah...!

It's not doing it! It's not coming off!

I have a minor disaster here.

My chocolate collar,

I over...over-chilled it.

And it doesn't want to come off.

I don't quite know what I'm going to do about that.

OK, little piggies need to put things in the hamper,

little piggies need to stop in two minutes.

These are the sausage rules.

My collar is not to be. What a pity.

Oh, if in doubt, throw some glitter at it, I always say.

SHE SIGHS

OK, bakers, five hours is up.

You can do no more.

-You've finished!

-Wahey, well done!

APPLAUSE

Oh, well done, guys, well done!

My God.

That was mad.

I honestly don't know if I've done enough to win.

It'll all come down to the quality of the pastry and flavours

and you can't tell that from looking at them.

I will always see the negatives, always see the bits I don't like,

always think everybody else's is better, but...

...I have just...I have given it...

I've given everything.

I think I could cry.

I think it's just the emotion of finishing

and not doing it again.

I think that's really sad.

I'll really miss it. I've loved every minute.

I'm going to just wipe my eyes now.

Cos I'm not going to cry.

But it's been great.

Jane, do you want a hand with your hamper goods?

SHE SIGHS

I'm sure the Queen would love this colourful selection,

and it does look right royal and regal.

Thank you. Thank you very much.

So let's start with the sausage roll.

You've got some issues with raw pastry inside here.

Oh, is it?

-You see the layers?

-Oh, yes.

It hasn't baked all the way through.

-But the flavour... Tastes delicious.

-Thank you.

This is the tart.

Pale, but baked.

Nice and crispy.

It looks absolutely cram-jam full of salmon and prawn.

Mmm. It's very, very good.

Right - scone.

To me, with my eyes shut,

it tastes like a rather good cheese scone.

I don't actually taste the butternut squash.

Which is a shame. It would've been nice to get

something with a little bit more kick in it.

These tarts - the decoration on the top is so pretty,

you couldn't resist picking those up.

You've managed to keep that pastry beautifully crisp.

The creme pat has held and none of it is dripping down the side.

The flavour's good.

Right. We'll move on to your cake.

It isn't what you planned, your band, but you didn't panic.

You've done it.

Now, that's a lovely surprise in the middle, there.

-Great chocolate cake.

-Thank you.

-Tastes beautiful. It's light...

-Thank you.

-Soft...

And then with that cream in the middle,

with the kick from the cherries...

That's beautiful. It's a shame about the collar.

Andrew.

It is beautifully displayed.

Very meticulous, just like you.

Everything we've seen has been very calculated

and beautifully presented.

Right, we'll start with the sausage roll.

Let's have a quick cut.

It's not done here.

Yeah.

The taste of that sausage is fantastic.

Beautiful sausages,

but it's such a thick layer of undercooked pastry.

I think I'd be leaving that.

Scone.

I think the colour and the look of them is most exciting,

but the flavour just isn't there.

I'm trying to find the cheese. I've got the paprika.

I'm not getting it at all.

Let's try the quiche.

Nice colour. It's nice and neat all the way round, as well.

Looks like it's been professionally blocked.

-Crispy.

-That's the right thickness of pastry.

The flavour of that is delicious.

OK.

However, you probably worked that pastry a little bit too much.

That should just fall apart.

Let's try the strawberry tart.

Now, obviously, straightaway, there is an issue with this.

-Yeah.

-I daren't even lift it.

I know it's going to be soggy underneath.

Well, it's basically raw underneath

because everything's soaked in to that blind-baked pastry.

Actually, it tastes good.

I think the problem is, when you put the sugar syrup on it,

it's soaked into the side of the pastry

and so the whole thing just collapsed.

OK. Let's have a look at this cake.

-Those shards are beautiful on top.

-Cuts great.

You said this was your grandma's recipe?

Yes.

That's a great cake.

That's a really nice cake.

She'll be very pleased to hear that.

The ganache keeps it moist.

It's a very, very good chocolate cake.

I think that's the star piece in all this.

-I'd have the cake any day.

-OK.

Thank you.

It looks an exciting hamper. Lots of colour.

I love your little piggies looking at me.

I'm dying to get into them.

-That's its mouth, I take it?

-Yeah.

-Nose, eyes...

-Yeah.

-Yeah, OK.

-And its little crispy tail.

Love crackling. Right...

Mmm...

That's a good puff pastry.

Nice flaky layers.

Unusual, with the black pudding.

I think they're great. I think the flavour's fantastic.

And you've got beautiful layers.

-Thank you.

-OK. Shall we move on to the quiche?

Ooh, yeah. Crispy all the way. Sides, bottom...

It's full, that, Mary, isn't it?

What I like is it's not all sort of custardy filling.

We've got lots of salmon in here.

That's a good quiche. And it tastes good.

-Thank you.

-And the pastry's in nice layers.

It is. It's well baked.

Right, scone.

Nice colour on the top, nice size.

I can't taste the cheese.

-OK.

-Manchego's strong.

The problem is, olives are SO strong.

-I can taste the olive but I didn't get the cheese.

-OK.

Let's look at these raspberry and rhubarb tarts.

They look attractive, and nice to do it in a brioche tin,

rather than the conventional tin.

That's a good custard.

-Thank you.

-Rhubarb, you're very brave to put it in,

because there's so much moisture,

and in no way is that soaking into the pastry,

the pastry is still crisp.

-It's a little over-baked.

-Yeah.

But the whole flavour is very, very good.

Let's try the chocolate.

That's a lovely cake.

The oil works well in it,

and the flavour of the orange comes through beautifully as well.

Delicious orange.

You've got the right amount of ganache,

and I like the finish, as well.

I think that would be a great cake to take on a picnic.

-Thank you very much.

-No, thank you. Thank you very much.

It's you two.

-No, no.

-It is!

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

As Candice, Andrew and Jane join their family and friends...

LAUGHTER

..Mary and Paul have a huge decision to make.

Well, this was an absolute humdinger of a Showstopper.

The standard was exceptionally high.

Andrew's chocolate cake was out of this world.

It had a beautiful texture, flavour.

But the fruit tart - it was falling apart.

And the scones - no flavour.

Then you have Candice, who is this very creative baker.

Everything packed with flavour.

Now, when you look at the actual quiche,

she put loads and loads of salmon in there,

but it did taste extremely good.

Her sausage rolls...

I've had many sausage rolls in my time.

-I bet you have.

-And to make a little pig out of one...

They were different, and the pastry was good, too.

-It's a sensational cake, isn't it?

-That orange!

And it was so soft inside. Great cake.

I like Jane because she is a true family cook.

Her prawn quiche was absolutely delicious.

I thought the fruit tart tasted great.

The sausage roll was slightly underdone.

Paul and Mary, the big question is...who's won?

I've sort of made up my mind.

-MARY:

-I've had a thought myself,

but I want to confirm it with Paul.

That seems reasonable, bearing in mind you're the judges.

We shall leave now.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Finalists, what incredible bakers you are!

Would the three of you step up, please?

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

SUE WHOOPS

-MEL:

-Oh, Jane... Jane's gone!

Jane, Andrew, Candice,

Mary and Paul have decided, after a lot of deliberation,

that the winner of The Great British Bake Off 2016

is...

..Candice!

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

-Well done!

-Well done, Candice!

Well done!

Well done, sweetheart.

Never, ever, ever thought I'd ever even get on this,

and I'm standing here now with this, and they said my name,

and that means more to me

than I think anyone will ever, ever realise.

It really, really does.

-MARY:

-Well deserved!

Her determination and passion...

She really has excelled.

Had wonderful flavours, and everything always looked gorgeous.

Candice is very much all or nothing.

When you look back on some of her bakes,

they've been beautiful.

When she nails it, she's one of the best.

Come over!

EXCITED CHEERING AND LAUGHTER

Oh, my God!

Candice has been fantastic throughout.

'I'm chuffed to bits for her.'

You deserve it, Candice. Well, well done.

Of course I'm a little disappointed, but actually,

to be able to walk out there at the end with the hamper, see everyone...

Yeah, it's really special.

Oh, you star! Well done!

'The best baker today won. I'm really happy for her.

'Week after week, Candice has got better and better.'

I predicted it!

So my first prediction of the series has come true...

dammit!

SHE LAUGHS

Em... I saw, and I wished, and I hoped it was OK,

but you just don't know.

Jane and Andrew are so good, so good.

She's done so well. She's been an absolute star.

I did it! I'm good.

I'm good enough.

SHE LAUGHS AND CRIES

I honestly...

I don't know what to say.

Thank you. Like...

Oh, my God! What an opportunity.

Amazing! I don't know what else to say.

-She did smash it.

-She did smash it.

NO AUDIO OF CONVERSATION