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Season 17 cast of The Great British Bake Off announced – and these are the recipes from the first episode

• Lucy Roxburgh – food and drink expert

Published: September 8, 2026 at 12:40 PM

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Everything you need to know about the new series

Baking fans, rejoice: in another sure sign that the autumn cosy season is commencing, the cast and return date of season 17 of The Great British Bake Off have been announced, along with what they'll be baking in episode one.

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The home bakers that will be be lighting up our screens this autumn look like a promising bunch, and this is also the first season of Nigella Lawson joining Bake Off stalwart Paul Hollywood as judge. Alison Hammond and Noel Fielding return as the amiable hosts of our favourite comfort watch. Read on for all the details about when the series is returning, who's taking part this year and what they'll be making in episode one...

Who are the contestants in the new series of Great British Bake Off?

There are 12 contestants in the new series, ranging from 21- to 67-years-old. As always, they are a varied group, including a law student, hairdresser, drag king and paediatric doctor. The full line-up is below – see if anyone stands out to you as a future winner.

• Clara, 24, Hertfordshire, marketing graduate
• Connie, 63, London, NHS hospital discharge lead
• Danni, 25, Dorset, HGV service centre administrator
• Gabe, 32, West Midlands, artist and drag king
• Gary, 67, Nottinghamshire, retired garment technologist
• Molly, 31, London, accessibility coordinator
• Moyin, 22, Essex, political economy student
• Mo, 21, West Midlands, law student
• Nikki, 50, London, advertising post-producer
• Shannon, 29, Gloucestershire, project planner and scheduler
• Tom, 25, West Yorkshire, hairdresser
• Yannis, 28, London, paediatric doctor

When does The Great British Bake Off return?

The Great British Bake Off returns to your screens on Tuesday, 22 September at 8pm on Channel 4.

What are the challenges in the new series of Great British Bake Off?

In the sneak peeks we've seen of episode one, we've noticed that the series kicks off with Cake Week. If you want to brush up on your own skills to rival the bakers' efforts and bake along with the first episode, we've got the recipes you need.

The opening signature challenge is a stout cake. Nigella is known for her iconic Guinness cake recipe, which is a classic. A chocolate Guinness cake is traditionally a cocoa sponge topped with a cloud of rich soft cheese icing that balances the intensely chocolate cake. We've included our five-star-rated recipe below – we'll have to wait and see the twists that the bakers put on this bake for their own signatures.

The technical challenge, set by baking queen Nigella herself, is a coffee & walnut cake. With two layers of fluffy sponge sandwiched with icing, it's a teatime classic. Make our recipe below so you'll have the perfect slice to snack on during the ad breaks.

Chocolate Guinness cake

Bake this cake with Guinness to enhance the flavour of the chocolate sponge. It's made with soured cream and finished with a creamy soft cheese frosting for tang.

Ingredients

• 225g unsalted butter, cubed, plus extra for the tin
• 225ml Guinness
• 100g cocoa powder
• 375g caster sugar
• 2 eggs
• 150ml soured cream
• 2 tsp vanilla bean paste
• 275g plain flour
• 2 tsp bicarbonate of soda

For the topping

• 250g full-fat soft cheese
• 150g icing sugar
• 1 tsp cornflour
• 150ml double cream

Method

1. Heat the oven to 180/160 fan/gas 4. Butter the base of a 23cm cake loose-bottomed cake tin and line with baking parchment.
2. Pour the Guinness into a saucepan and add the butter. Bring to a simmer, then turn down the heat and stir until the butter has melted. Remove from the heat.
3. Whisk in the cocoa powder and sugar until well combined. Beat the eggs with the soured cream and vanilla bean paste in a jug, then pour this into the Guinness mixture.
4. Finally, stir in the flour and bicarb. Pour the cake mixture into the tin and bake for 50 mins-1 hr, or until skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. If it doesn't, return it to the oven and check again after 10 mins. Leave to cool in the tin.
5. Meanwhile, make the topping. Beat the soft cheese until smooth, then beat in the icing sugar, a spoonful at a time, along with the cornflour. Whip the cream in a separate bowl to soft peaks, then stir this into the soft cheese mixture, one spoonful at a time. Spread the icing all over the cake, then slice to serve. Will keep chilled for up to a week.

Coffee & walnut cake

Ingredients

• 250g softened butter, plus extra for the tins
• 100ml strong black coffee, made with 2 tbsp instant coffee granules and cooled
• 280g self-raising flour
• 250g golden caster sugar
• ½ tsp baking powder
• 4 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 85g walnuts, 2 tbsp roughly chopped, the rest finely chopped

For the filling

• 100g icing sugar, sifted, plus extra for dusting
• 150ml double cream
• 100g mascarpone, at room temperature

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1. Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Butter two 20cm springform cake tins and line with baking parchment. Set aside 2 tbsp of the coffee for the filling.
2. Beat the butter, flour, sugar, baking powder, eggs, vanilla and half the remaining coffee together in a large bowl using an electric whisk until lump-free. Fold in the finely chopped walnuts, then divide between the tins and roughly level. Scatter the roughly chopped walnuts over one of the cakes. Bake the cakes for 25-30 mins until golden and risen, and a skewer poked in comes out clean. Drizzle the remaining coffee over the plain cake. Cool the cakes completely in the tins.
3. Meanwhile, make the filling: beat the icing sugar, cream and mascarpone together, then fold in the reserved 2 tbsp coffee. Spread this over the plain cake, then sandwich with the walnut-topped cake and dust with a little icing sugar.

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