HE spent a decade getting stuck in fights on TV Burp, but Harry Hill was more stressed by his new job fronting Junior Bake Off.
The funnyman is hosting Channel 4’s Bake Off spin-off alongside judge Prue Leith and former contestant Liam Charles.
Following the adult show’s final on Tuesday night, fans can tune in next Monday at 5pm to see Harry dealing with a tent-full of nine-to-15-year-olds working in an area he has zero experience in.
Harry said: “I was very nervous. It’s ten kids and you have to talk to them and ask them about stuff that I don’t know anything about. I was more nervous than my other TV shows as I work with a script normally.
“But I got a lot out of it as well. And I started to relax when I watched it back.
“It dawned on me how to play it. Plus, there were a couple of children who really made me laugh.”
One of the hardest bits of his new job is having to send losing contestants home at the end of each show.
Harry added: “That was the part I didn’t like and why I don’t do these sort of shows.
“That sort of thing of having to say. ‘You are going home’.
“I didn’t have any choice on who was. The difficulty is in the way you do it as there are so many clichés and I was trying to avoid that.
“The tears from a child aren’t the same as an adult, so they could be crying one minute and laughing and skipping the next.”
So Harry says he resorted to what he does best — playing the idiot. And the father of three also had the support of his own children, who insisted he presented the programme.
He said: “The kids told me to do it. They are big fans of the main one and these days I always run things past the kids.
“I did the Celebrity Bake Off because they were such fans.
“I did that and it was a lot of fun. Everyone was so friendly.
“But if you watch it, it is a little bit intimidating going into the tent.”
I hope he’s used to it by now.
TONIGHT nervous viewers will be glued to their screens to see who of the three Great British Bake Off finalists will win.
But though the Channel 4 show has bagged good viewing figures, fans think this year’s contestants were generally bad.
Blunders included Henry Bird’s royal icing house breaking and Jamie Finn forgetting to add eggs in his showstopper.
Dairy Week was one of the worst examples, with judge Paul Hollywood bluntly telling bakers their cheesy efforts were “all really bad”.
And fans took to Twitter in agreement, with one saying: “One of the technically worst groups of bakers ever”. Another added: “Worst year of Bake Off ever – not impressed.”
I still think the finalists deserve their spot. Here we look at their key moments in the tent, before the final, on Tuesday night at 8pm.
SURPRISINGLY for a teacher, Alice’s most memorable creation was a Pina Colada cake with a caramelised rum pineapple filling.
But being on GBBO has made her famous at her school – and not just for her boozy bake.
Alice, 28, from Essex, said: “I do get asked if I won about 20 times a day by students.
“One of them wanted to sell their homework diary which I’d signed, on eBay, to raise money for charity.”
INTERNATIONAL health advisor, David, 36, has never actually been star baker and lost a £10 bet with ex-contestant Helena Garcia that he would leave in week three. Instead, he excelled with a Cinnamon Swirl.
David, from Whitby, said: “I didn’t practice the signature and showstopper as much as the other bakers, so I felt the technical put us all on a level playing field.
“In general, I was the most chilled in the tent.”
THE 28-year-old shop assistant, from Chester, has been crowned star baker four times – the most of any finalists.
She will be best remembered for her Ginger The Cat cake. But it’s been a contest of ups and downs for her.
Steph said: “My lowest moment was when Michael (Chakraverty) left, he became my sidekick and I struggled without him.
“Generally losing someone each week was really tough.”
BROOKE Vincent, alias Sophie in Coronation Street, has given birth to her first child with her partner, Sheffield United’s Kean Bryan. The soap star announced the news on Instagram with a picture of their new son, Mexx.
JAMES McAvoy may be a bona fide movie star thanks to the X-Men films, but he wasn’t the first choice to play Lord Asriel in upcoming BBC drama His Dark Materials.
Speaking to the Radio Times, the actor wouldn’t reveal who got offered the role before him. But he was happy to eventually get the call because he’s such a huge fan of the Philip Pullman books that inspired the series, which starts on Sunday.
He said: “I happened to be chatting to the casting director, who’s a friend of mine, waxing lyrical about how much I love the books, and then they got let down.
“So she called me up and said, ‘Do you think you can start on Monday?’. That was on the Friday.”
He added: “I would hate to watch this and go, ‘Oh, that’s not the Lord Asriel I’ve always wanted to see’.”
Here’s hoping that doesn’t happen then, James.
FORMER Strictly Come Dancing contestant Dr Ranj Singh has a medical series in the pipeline. Dr Ranj, who also appears on This Morning, said: “It is a dream come true. It will be on ITV in the evening in the New Year.”
WHAT? The Great British Bake Off, C4, 8pm
WHY? Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith will finally crown this year’s winner of the series from one of the last three bakers who are tasked with making a chocolate cake as their signature bake.
RUSSELL Tovey has confirmed he won’t be making an appearance in the Gavin & Stacey comeback.
The actor, whose career has rocketed since he played Budgie in the sitcom, revealed on ITV’s Lorraine that his character doesn’t feature in the new Christmas special.
Years And Years star Russell said: “He just wasn’t written back. They didn’t bring any of the boys back.”
Sheridan Smith, who’s also gone on to bigger things, hasn’t been brought back either. At least Russell’s in prestigious company.
