These Are The 23 Worst Baking Fails From "Great British Bake Off" That Had Us All Gasping

My family from across the pond.

C'mon, Steph. Stiff upper lip.

Hassan Islam, Season 16, Episode 1 

Poor Hassan started off the season with a wet pile of mush after timing issues forced him to fill his Swiss roll with a caramel that hadn't cooled yet. Watching him attempt to lift his disintegrating roll onto the presentation tray made me nearly cry. It's a real shame, too. Hassan only lasted one episode, but he certainly made an impression.

Iain Ross, Season 16, Episode 1 

Incredibly, as if Hassan's Swiss roll disaster wasn't enough, this episode features another cake disaster from Iain in the Showstopper. He decided to make a very light stout sponge that could not support its own weight, and it turned into a massive cake avalanche. Miraculously, with some quick thinking and a trip to the freezer, he was able to salvage the cake and avoid being eliminated.

Pui Man Li, Season 16, Episode 2

I love Pui Man's energy in the tent; she seems to be having so much fun even when she struggles. She also brought some real creativity to her Showstoppers. But she could not get a handle on the Technical challenges, and the hobnobs were her worst. She made the mistake of constructing the layers in the wrong order and pouring the chocolate while the cookies were still in the mold, making them a nightmare to get out.

Andy Ryan, Season 15, Episode 5

Andy gave off such good vibes in the tent, but he met his downfall on pastry week. While attempting to construct a toffee stand for his Paris-Brest, his car mechanic's strength got the better of him, and it crumbled. This resulted in a rather ugly presentation for his Showstopper and a trip home. 

Keith Barron, Season 14, Episode 2

When everyone in the tent is using a certain technique except for one baker, that is usually a sign of trouble. For Keith, it meant he wasn't using a mold to create his marshmallow sandwich cookies, aka moon pies. The result was quite a mess. Often, when something is messy but tastes great, the judges are willing to give it a pass. However, when everyone's tastes great and looks great, a messy presentation like Keith's will likely seal their fate.

Crystelle Pereira, Season 12, Episode 10

For my money, this was the best season of all time with the strongest final five bakers ever assembled. And with Crystelle winning Star Baker in the semi-finals, it seemed like it was her season to win. But when it came to her Showstopper, she made a massive mistake with her focaccia bread, smothering it in too much olive oil so it couldn't bake properly. This costly error allowed Giuseppe to get the final glory. 

Pretty Much Everyone, Season 11, Episode 1

Compared to Season 12, I think this season was the weakest of all. A lot of that had to do with the fact that they were filming during COVID, so many of the bakers seemed off their game. But the real fault for this challenge came down to the producers, who chose an almost impossible task of creating a bust of the baker's celebrity hero. Most of them turned out to be the stuff of nightmares.

Pretty much everyone, Season 11, Episode 4

Oh, dear bakers. Perhaps it was the cabin fever of being stuck in the COVID bubble, away from family, that led to so many of the bakers failing at such a simple challenge. Even the most basic brownie is going to knock your socks off, but the bakers could not resist doing ridiculous things like giving them a cookie base or topping them with whatever the hell Lottie decided to do. This is the only time I can remember Paul commenting on how poorly everyone did in a challenge that was not a Technical.

Mark Lutton, Season 11, Episode 6

Look, I only put Mark here because he gets eliminated this episode, and the feedback on his kawaii-themed cake was pretty rough. I think, considering the challenge, the bakers all did a fine job. This is more of a disastrous failure on the part of the judges. Their culturally-themed episodes were half-baked at best, and they didn't really celebrate the traditions of their chosen countries. This Showstopper is just "make something cute?" Bad idea, in my opinion.

Pretty Much Everyone, Season 11, Episode 8

I would want to place the blame on the producers again for this one because this was just a ludicrous challenge. A whole lemon baked into a suet pastry? No one wants to eat this or has even heard of this. So obviously, the bakers struggled. This failure is in the sub-category of "turning over a bowl and hoping whatever comes out of it looks good." There are more of these to come.

Steph Blackwell, Season 10, Episode 10

Without a doubt, this was the most heartbreaking "turning over a bowl and hoping whatever comes out of it looks good" failure. Steph was the absolute queen of her season, earning Star Baker an astounding four times. But she struggled in the final, especially with the soufflé Technical, which resulted in a goopy pile of melted Stilton. The look of defeat on her face after turning this out left me misty-eyed.

Terry Hartill, Season 9, Episode 2

Terry fulfilled the role of "sweet old man" in his season, and he was one of the best. While he was extremely creative with his ideas, he often ran up against an issue of time. His ambitious Eiffel Tower cake was set to be a triumph until it all came crumbling down. The cake was still good enough to keep him from being eliminated; that wouldn't happen until episode 5, and another of his failures: the 12 Days of Christmas cookie chandelier.

Dan Beasley-Harling, Season 9, Episode 6

Dan was a favorite of the judges in the first two weeks, but he couldn't get it together in pastry week, ending with a Showstopper that wasn't tasty and was kind of hard to look at. Prue even went so far as to say that she did not want to try it because of how unappetizing it looked. Whenever they make these elaborate meat-filled pies, I am often flummoxed because I have never experienced one here in the United States. I guess I'll have to go to the UK to try one; just not one that looks like this.

Ruby Bhogal, Season 9, Episode 7

In what was perhaps the most dramatic failure in the entire history of the show, Ruby's teetering Vegan Week cake was filmed the moment it fell off its stand as her fellow contestants watched in the background. Forced to present it in two separate pieces, she managed to just squeak by into the next episode and, ultimately, made it to the finals. 

Chris Geiger, Season 8, Episode 2

Several of the bakers struggled with this Technical, whether it was with the shape or the actual bake. Chris got neither right, which prompted both Paul and Prue to spit out their bites, a first for Bake Off.

Pretty much everyone, Season 8, Episode 4

Ah, caramel week. Perhaps the most difficult theme week that the bakers could be given. It's extremely difficult to make your own caramel as it involves constant stirring and reaching the precise temperature. None of the bakers were able to get it right for this Technical, where they had to make stroopwafels, a Dutch treat filled with a thin layer of caramel. Sometimes, these things happen.

Steven Carter-Bailey, Season 8, Episode 9

Steven was a consistently strong baker throughout his season, creating great-tasting bakes with creativity and precision. But he nearly ousted himself from the semifinals with his meringue centerpiece that was supposed to be a rainbow-colored hot air balloon. The chocolate basket melted, and the layers of meringue could not support their own weight, creating massive cracks that made it look like a hot air balloon that had been shot with a harpoon.

Dorret Conway, Season 6, Episode 1

Whenever something has to set in one of these challenges, it's always a crapshoot. That is especially true when you can't see the part of the cake that is setting. Dorret, unfortunately, ran into this issue when attempting to make her Black Forest gateau cake. Thankfully, the error wasn't bad enough to send her home.

Pretty much everyone, Season 6, Episode 7

Sometimes, the judges will pull out Technical challenges that really make you wonder if they hate the bakers. Mary Berry's tennis cake was one such challenge: a fruit cake with a fondant icing top, decorated to look like a tennis court. The delicate icing used to make the net and rackets did not hold up well, looking more like the tennis court in a post-apocalyptic wasteland.

Paul Jagger, Season 6, Episode 8

When you get down to the quarterfinals, it starts to really sting when you get eliminated. I imagine it was especially hard for Paul to go out on this religieuse disaster. While attempting to make this tower of éclairs stick together, the extra icing compromised the structural integrity, causing all of the éclairs to sag and fall. I'd still eat it, though.

Iain Watters, Season 5, Episode 4

Bingate. Perhaps the single biggest controversy in the entire history of Bake Off. When Diana accidentally took Iain's ice cream out of the freezer, it was just enough time for it to melt and become unusable. However, the real disaster is that instead of cracking on with his bake, Iain threw all of his ice cream into the trash and presented the judges with nothing. It is the only time in the history of the show where a baker lost their cool. However, in terms of controversies, it's about as tame as The Velveteen Rabbit.

Jon Whaite, Season 3, Episode 1

Even though he went on to win his season, Jon made a real rookie mistake in the first episode after he mistook salt for sugar. He went ahead and served them anyway and, somehow, did not come in dead last place. I guess it's the mark of a true champion who can get away with something like that.

James Morton, Season 3, Episode 8

Here's a case where a little ingenuity can turn a mistake into a Star Baker win. James' plan for a very elaborate gingerbread barn quickly went to pot as he ran out of time. So, he pivoted and turned it into a spooky, run-down barn, complete with caramel spider webs. Paul and Mary appreciated the resourcefulness and, because it tasted so good and his other bakes were excellent, James wound up with Star Baker after a near-disaster.