deliciousmagazine.co.uk 17
people.
F
ewstudentslandtheir
dreamjobstraightoutof
university,butthat’sexactly
whathappenedtoLiam
Charles.The22-year-old
wasstudyingdramaatGoldsmiths,
partoftheUniversityofLondon,
whenheappearedonTheGreat
BritishBakeOffin2017.It wasn’t
longbeforehewonfansforhis
cheekyquipsandexpressiveface.
Liamwasknockedoutofthe
competitioninweekeight,buthis
lastwordstocamera– “I’mcoming
forPaulHollywood’sjob”– were
prophetic.HewasbackonTVin
2018 asa presenterforBakeOff:The
Professionalsbeforehe’dgraduated.
“It’sinsane,”hesays.“Itcantake
yearsforpeopletogettheir
opportunity,whereassuddenly
I waslearningonthejob.”
TheproBakeOffseriesbegins
itsfifthseasonthisspring.If you
haven’tseenit,it’sa high-tension,
high-stakescompetition,where
teamsofexperiencedpastrychefs
arepitchedagainsteachother
underthewatchfuleyesofjudges
BenoitBlin,pastrychefatRaymond
Blanc’sLeManoirauxQuat’Saisons,
andCherishFinden,pastryqueenat
luxuryLondonhotelTheLangham.
Arethejudgesasscaryasthey
seem?“They’renotintimidating,
it’sjustthatthecontestantsare
professionalchefssothejudges
havetobesterner,”saysLiam.
“Theycanbesofunny,butwhen
it comestojudgingit hastobe
serious.”LiamandcomedianTom
Allen,hisco-host,adda sprinkling
offun:“Eatingloadsoffoodand
saying,‘Fiveminutesleft!’is one
ofthebestjobsever,”Liamjokes.
Beinga judgeon2019’sJunior
BakeOff,alongsidePrueLeith,was
anotherpinch-memoment.“Itwas
a bitweird,”Liamlaughs.“In 2017
shewastellingmehowrubbishmy
stuffwas– sorry,givingmecritique- onBakeOff.Then,suddenly,
thereI wasnexttoher,critiquing
someoneelse’swork.I feelvery
luckyastheBakeOffteam
obviouslyhavemassivefaithinme
andI’malwaystryingtoimprove.”
Thememoryofhisfirstdayas
a contestantis vivid.“Iwasa mess!
It waswellscary.Aftertheshow,I
feltif I candothis,withthatamount
ofpressure,I candoanything.The
self-beliefwascrankedupa bit.”
Liamhasalwayslovedhisfood.
RaisedinHackney,helivescloseto
hisnan,whodidthelion’sshareof
thecooking.“FromSundayroasts
witha Caribbeantwist,tomacaroni
cheese,plantain,riceandpeas...Thentherewerethedumplings
withsaltfishandcallalooandackee- veryCaribbean.Oh,andcurried
goat.Nannevermeasuresanything,
butit comesoutwickedeverytime.”
Liam’sfirstbake,aged16,was
lemoncupcakes.“Theyhad
luminousgreenicingandred
squiggles,”herecalls.“Atthetime
I thoughttheywerethebestthing
ever,butactuallytheywereshallow
anddense.I thinkbakingthose
cupcakeswasthecatalyst,butwhat
reallymadetheloveofbakingclick
wasseeinghowpeoplemakeit into
anart.It wasn’tsomethingslapped
ona plate– it wasa spectacle.”
Liam’sbroughtthisenergytohis
owntwocookbooks.SecondHelpings,
publishedlastyear,hasinspired
recipeslikecottagecheeseburger
pie,alongsidehiscreativeformula
forrecipewriting.“TFIis how
I work:texture,flavourand
inspiration.Youdon’twanttoeat
something that’s all the same
texture because it gets boring.
Flavour is so important: it triggers
memories. You can encapsulate
a story through different
combinations. And inspiration – if
you don’t have that, there’s no point
in doing it. Give me five years and
TFI will be international!”
It was Liam’s sunny attitude that
made him a TV success, and his
sky’s-the-limit outlook must be a
blessing in these challenging times.
He’s been at home with his mum in
London, baking and working his
way through the new Disney +
streaming service. His 120,
Instagram followers have enjoyed
videos of Liam dancing in his
kitchen and hosting a quiz.
“I have a social media presence
that I need to use in the right way.
I try to spread positive energy and
good vibes,” he says. “Experiencing
the pandemic has made me realise
life’s too short to be upset or
annoyed because who knows what
might happen tomorrow. My
attitude is to take every day as it
comes. You just have to remember
what’s at the end of the struggle.
Nothing lasts forever.”
Second Helpings is published by
Hodder & Stoughton, £WHAT’S YOUR...
GO-TO SNACK Soreen
malt loaf with a bit of
cheese. That’s banging.
DESERT-ISLAND DISH
My mum’s tuna pasta
bake. It’s got carbs, it’s
got protein from the
fish and cheese and
there are veg as well.
DRINK ORDER I like
a bramble – a cocktailwith gin and blackberry
liqueur. That’s the
weekend treat.
DREAM ALTERNATIVE
CAREER An actor
in Marvel movies.
FAVOURITE CAKE To
make: my salted nutter,
with peanut butter,
caramel and chocolate.
To eat: a super good
carrot cake.PORTRAITS: HAARALA HAMILTON
“ THE BEST RECIPES
ARE ALL ABOUT TFI:
TEXTURE, FLAVOUR
AND INSPIRATION”