GBBO, Series 5: Week 1 - 4.

Series 5 is well underway. We have reached week 4, and our initial 12 bakers have been wittled down to 7. This year's Bake Off has not been short of stress or drama. Mel and Sue have been serving up some cracking puns. The judges have been tougher than ever. The weather's been quite up and down. And the show's new star is Lamby, the black Bake Off lamb. He should be considered to be the bakers' lucky charm.

"Baa! Bake Off's back! Baa!"

In episode 1 there were tears, tension and tiered minature cakes. As Paul and Mary walked around the tent and talked to each baker, you could already sense whose bakes they liked the sound of, and whose techniques would not bode well. For instance, when Iain began to score his swiss roll, Mary's face started to screw up and you knew at that point that Iain's wouldn't roll very well. However, when Martha rolled hers up, there were no cracks. It was a cracking first round, in more ways than one. Every baker should take note: Mary's eyes say more than you'll ever know.

The technical challenge was called a 'Classic Cherry Cake', but because of its appearance and a merge of two words, I call it the 'cronut'. Simply because it looked like a very large doughnut, which would feed at least 6 people. Some people's icing turned out to be quite runny and almost became colourless, whilst others were thick and opaque. I remember Claire saying she was thinking of a spider's web when she was decorating hers.

The final bake was the 36 perfect minature cakes. It was enough to make you pull your hair out or give you the shakes. Some came up with beautiful tiered designs, while others kept theirs more simple, but still looked pretty. For instance, my favourite design of the episode, which was Claire's Minature Chocolate and Cherry Cakes. Unfortunately, her cakes did not go to plan, and the end result was not shown as they are in the Big Book of Baking. I loved Claire and it's a shame she had to leave.

In episode 2 the bakers faced biscuits. There were savoury biscuits firstly. Secondly, the bakers made Mary's Florentines which are covered in tempered chocolate on the base of each one. Some bakers were unaware of this, as Mary's recipe was rather sparce. They chose instead to drizzle the chocolate on the top of each biscuit. Thirdly, the bakers did 3-D showstoppers, made-up into any scene they could think of, as long as they were entirely made of biscuits, and they needed to stay upright.

I remember that Kate created a Tea Party scene with characters that were already sitting up, as she'd cleverly bent the legs so they'd sit up. And Iain's was a Wild West scene, like it was straight out of a movie set. Also, Luis did a George vs. The Dragon scene. His was most spectacular and colourful and beautifully executed. No-one's biscuit scene could quite compare to that. Except maybe Jordan's Monster scene, which looked terrific, even if Paul didn't think so. It was also like a film set, and the monster being the film's star!

Luis' design for his showstopper.

Enwezor's spaceship. He promises to take Sue places. Lol!

Kate's pretty Tea Time design. Although I like to think of it as a party.

Jordan's Monster Attack!!! What a fun looking design!

Episode 3 was Bread week. For me, it could not compare to biscuit week. The bakers had to work pretty hard to deliver the standard that Paul was looking for. The 12 rye bread rolls was the first task. The technical was the Italian Ciabatta loaves. The best thing overall that week was this task and Mel's excellent knowledge of what Ciabatta meant in Italian (slipper) and how she could speak Italian. Some Ciabatta's were the wrong shape and didn't rise enough. But others were perfect. I remember that Kate did very well, if my memory serves me well enough. The last challenge was the filled centrepiece loaf. I remember Paul being very impressed with Luis' one, with the olives on it adorned with gold-something. I really find this episode particularly hard to remember. Also, Jordan did a sweet bake for his showstopper, but it was soggy and Paul criticised it, in some way.

Jordan had to leave at the end of Bread week. I hated seeing him go. He was a fun contestant and came up with some great things! His Swiss Roll in Week 1 was a really beautiful design. Kawai...

Episode 4 was all about Desserts! There were saucy puds, tiramisu, and Baked Alaskas that pushed the bakers to the brink of a meltdown. One baker became so hot and bothered that they threw in the towel, so to speak. Poor Iain. I do feel for the guy. He was so very talented, and his Bake Off hopes slid and fell like his ice-cream. Was anyone really to blame for the #bincident? Wasn't the heat that weekend just a little too much for the bakers to handle? Anyway, despite the drama and anger and spillages, the week's bakes were mostly of a high standard and it was enjoyable to watch (although I saw it a day late, on iPlayer). And Diana is sadly no longer in the series due to ill health.

Now 4 weeks are down, and many more weeks are yet to be enjoyed. There have been highs and lows, and whilst Sue Perkins and Mel Giedroyc have made us laugh, some contestants felt teary and one famously cried over cake. My very best Sue moment so far was not a humorous one, but a heart-warming one, when Martha had the shakes and Sue tried to calm her down.

When Mel and Sue were lying on the grass outside it made me laugh. It's a new presenting style, and one that more shows should adopt.

My favourite comment of the series so far: "Oh no, it's alright. Mine looks like King Luis'."

Claire Goodwin (Series 5, ep. 1.)

 Thank you for reading this blog post. It took me a long time and a lot of thought and patience. I am not really a patient person. But for the greatest show on the tele box right now, it was worth all that time and effort. I hope you will comment below or tweet me @Supersizer1.

Until the next blog or tweet, goodbye! xxx

Baftas, TV, Mel and Sue and more...

Hello! Long time, no blog. My total lack of blogging is not good, I am sorry for that. Some bad news about a family member of mine hasn't really helped the situation. Also, I've been feeling unwell, down, unmotivated. Not the right kind of mood one should blog in. So, luckily, I've perked up lately and been feeling more myself. Hurray! Therefore, I am back to the blogging and back to writing about those I love!

Not a surprise, I'm sure you'll agree, that I'm going to put my focus this evening on the two women whom I admire and look up to on TV, and everywhere else.

Yes, it is Mel and Sue, and recent events to do with them. Firstly, the Bafta TV awards show. It happened last weekend, I was unaware of this until the very last minute. I'm not really into all the awards shows. I cannot keep up. Yep, the National Television Awards/NTAs, I do like them. Yes, I will watch the awards show, if I know it's on. But I don't follow every single awards show that's out there.

Anyway, when I realised that Mel and Sue were written about in a national newspaper, and they were totally put-down, critcised, and told they were the 'worst dressed' or one of those who wore bad outfits, I was not happy and chose to look this up myself. I saw their outfits in a pic on this newspaper's site, and I could not see the supposed fashion faux pas. I liked their outfits. They looked beautiful and classy and smart. Their matching colours and suits (which weren't identical or anything) were better than what some others had chosen to wear. I know clashing colours are meant to be on-trend, but black and white clothes are surely the one colour choice where you can't go wrong, right?

So, that's my opinion, anyway. The two papers who didn't agree with me: The Daily Mail and the Metro, well, they obvs. didn't get Mel and Sue's choice of outfits, but never mind. It's not going to change what I think. Or what others think, like my TBF @perkins_love, who also thought the same as me, that they (or Sue, because my friend loves Sue and is a fan of her) looked absolutely beautiful!



Mel and Sue - doing their own, stylish thing. Looking classy and beautiful!

Next up, is my brief opinion on the TV shows I have been watching lately.

 

I have obviously been loving the interactive game show 'Draw It!'. The host Mel Giedroyc has been a joy to watch and lit up my TV screen with her good humour and bright clothes - the yellow jacket, pink jacket, bright tops, and also her wonderful hair styles. The bun on Wednesday's show this week was my most recent fave. (Check @MelGthecat's Twitter page, for that and more pics of her.)

 

Go and check out @drawit for all the latest updates on the show and give them a follow, they are fun and do nice tweets and post cool pics!

 

Also, I have been tuning into BBC Three every week on a Wednesday night/early Thursday morning for Ophan Black - a sci-fi drama about an orphan who's called Sarah, who has her life change massively when she sees a young woman kill herself. It's not easy viewing if you're not into violence or scary stuff. But, beyond that it is also funny and has lighter, more family-friendly moments in it. Sarah has a daughter - Kira. She's not that old, and is a cute but also smart little girl. She is aware of what Sarah is going through, but also is vunerable and needs protecting. Sarah came back for Kira and took her off her foster mum's hands (Mrs S.). The slightly mysterious Mrs S. seems nice, but has things to hide and Sarah needs answers. Felix is Sarah's foster brother, and is there for her more than anyone in the whole show! He's a comical character and says funny things. He's a bit loose with men, but has a good heart and cares about Sarah and Kira.

 

There is more I could say, but that would totally spoil it for you all. I'm not really into spoiling things for people. Sometimes on Twitter or other sites, it is a bit unavoidable. But it is really your own choice whether to read these things before seeing the programme that is being written about.

 

Something else I want to mention is what's going on with me and things I'm aiming to do and also things I want to buy. I want to go out and visit some interesting places soon. I want to see if I can get a job in something like a magazine or a radio station. Just for experience, perhaps to get something permanent, but not entirely sure yet. Just want to get my confidence up a bit. Have felt it decrease a fair bit in the last two or three years. Since 2012, I guess.

 

I am also hoping to get a few new clothes for summer, like sandels and a new jacket, dress and perhaps some sunglasses and a skirt or scarf. Maybe some trainers: the flatform ones, which are raised off the ground and look modern and on-trend.

 

This blog post has been quite long, but I'm pleased I've done it now. There is more to come. I am going to try to do it a bit more. It's been an aim of mine for a while, to start doing this more regularly. Thank you for reading. Please comment below. Or alternatively send me a quick tweet: @Supersizer1.

 

Bye for now. xxx

La Sophia and the GBBO peeps!

On Saturday 22nd of Feb, I went travelling via a train and on foot, plus I got a bus at some point, to arrive at La Sophia, a little restaurant, down a road you would otherwise miss, if you didn't know which way you were going. I know that me (and my companion) did get a little bit lost at one point. It was fairly irritating for me, but also I did manage to keep my calm, as I knew we'd make it there eventually. My companion did not share my calmness. I just said to keep calm, really. It would have done us no good to panic and then we'd get even more lost!

We entered a supermarket, in which we asked a security guard if he knew the way to La Sophia. He did not. That was a shame and a let down. But... that was not all. We were then put in the capable hands of two women, who were in the cue to be served, and they directed us to where the road was where La Sophia is. Bingo! We'd got what we needed! We were pleased, quite obviously. And then departed out of the store (I also thanked one of the ladies). We headed down the right path and soon came to our destination. (Although it seemed to take an awfully long time to get there!)

Once we'd arrived I entered the restaurant, and so did my companion. We were only there about half a minute before we were seen to... I mean, you know, spoken to, by a waitor. He asked us what our 'name' was, and I shyly said "Supersizer1.", which I then was asked to repeat. Which I didn't really mind.

We were directed to a table, by a wall, which I was quite happy with. And we sat down. I felt quite calm, but also a little tired (from the long journey, etc.) and also a bit awkward, because... it's an unfamiliar place, so I was trying to know how to react to it. But I soon lost that slightly awkward feeling and became quite tranquil and was fine.

The menus were brought out to us. They were white, with black text on them. I looked down it and saw Ali's name (from GBBO) and read what his desserts were, which excited me a fair bit. I couldn't wait to try them!

We were asked what we'd like to drink. I said a cappucino, my companion wanted a black coffee. Fair enough. They were brought to us, also with some drinking water (which we also said we wanted). It had a slice of lime in it! Ooo... made it very tasty!

We also ordered our starter, mains, and desserts. We ordered both desserts, as I wanted to try both of them. The starter came and we got stuck in!

The starter went down a treat! It was a little peppery though. But I only found that to be right at the end, once I had finished the food. But it was well prepared and tasted gorgeous! Yum! :)

Now, it was time to tweet! Yes, you heard me. I tweeted Ali and La Sophia and then, after Ali had read my tweet, he came and walked over to us! I felt happy, but yet a little bit nervous. He said "Hello." we said "Hi!", he asked how our meals were, we said "Really good!" or something similar, and then he mentioned about the other Bake Off peeps, who were downstairs and leaving soon, to which I think I said "Oh.". He then asked if we'd like to meet them, and obviously I said "Yes!". I mean, it was my golden opportunity! I felt rather excited, but also quite calm. I followed Ali downstairs and then felt my heart pounding in my chest! I felt anxious, yet excited, and braced myself for what was ahead of me.

I arrived downstairs and saw them all lined up, waiting for me and my companion. They looked happy to see us and greeted us like I've never been greeted before! I felt pretty special. I found it hard to know what to say, however, but I still talked a bit, said what my real name was/is. And even got to shake Glenn's hand! Um... yeah. That was pretty cool! I then got asked by Glenn whether I wanted a picture, to which I replied "Yeah!". My companion tried to take it, but failed. So, Christine's husband took it instead. We had two pics taken in the end. Both came out quite nicely (well, I thought so). Unfortunately, because I'm not exactly willing to show myself, you will only see a cropped version of the pic.

Ok, so it's less cropped and more blocked out. You can just see my hands and my ASOS bag. Ha ha! :)

 It was an amazing experience! And I loved it! Totally worth all the travelling and tiredness! The mains/main course was delicious and beautiful, and filled me up SO much! The dessert, was just as it was described "The best bit!". So more-ish and sweet and tasty. And just LOVELY! Xxx

My main course! Beef wellington. With parsnips and mash, with a side of gravy (sort of). The gravy in its own pot/jug thing was so cool and kept the whole meal feeling rather... um, upmarket and classy.

My fave bit. So... good! Raspberries were nice and sharp and stained my nails - ha ha! Pink is trendy.

Where we went. Had to get a pic of the road's sign. May seem weird, may not. Just thought it was important to show it.

Fantastic evening, ok journey, brilliant company, and overwhelmingly awesome food! Overall: 9/10.

Feel like I'm some sort of restaurant critic. Not a bad feeling at all!

Please comment below, if you'd like to. About the restaurant or about The Great British Bake Off. Whatever you like! See you all very soon (I really, really hope)! Bye for now.

Love Ss1. xxx

New ASOS stuff!

My new ASOS goodies came yesterday! I was very happy, despite being put in a bad mood by someone in my house. I answered the door, took the package in and then calmed down a little, by being alone in a quiet room for a bit, then took my box of goodies upstairs. I began to open the goodies, one by one. First, the few rings I'd bought/got. Next, the belt I'd got. Then, my bag/satchel, in a lovely minty green/blue colour.

My bag was the one thing I was most looking forward to, and the one thing I was most pleased about when I'd got it in my house and tried it on! It fits really well and is a great colour - not too bold and not too big, just right!

Here's my new leaf ring in rose gold, my new belt in a mint colour, and finally, most importantly, my new bag which is mint coloured and in a satchel-style. (Below.)

I hope you like the pics. There were more items that I bought. But, me being me, I am not one to show much of what I have got or much of me, really. So, this is beyond any boundary I've crossed, so far.

Thank you for reading. There aren't many of you, but thank you to those of you who have stopped by my blog over the few years I've had it. It is muchly appreciated!

Bye for now! xxx

Love, Ss1. <3

My latest news and a BIG thing that is happening!

This week is a big week for me! I have a very special event I am attending, on Saturday. (The location of which is ultra-top secret, of course.) I will be meeting some rather familiar faces and eating some new and exciting food (well, it's new and exciting to me, anyway). I have waited and waited for an event like this one to occur for so long, it just seems like I was meant to go to this one. Not just because I know I'll enjoy the company of who's going to be there, but also because I know I can make it to this place, without worrying too much about travelling to the place it's being held.

If there's one thing that really makes me nervous and anxious and on-edge, it's travelling. Especially if it's to somewhere a) I've never been before, and b) somewhere far away and the travelling time will be a long time. I am also, as you may have heard from people that know me (or you probably haven't) I am not the best person to rely on to be on-time for things. Ok, yes, for my exams at high school I could definitely make it there on time, but not for most things. I think the whole being anxious thing really is mostly to blame for this though. If I feel calm I think I'm more likely to be alright about doing things and can take my time, but not be too long about it. But when I'm anxious I worry about things that could go wrong.

Onto my next bit of news... I am wearing a glittery red nail polish and a purple one, which is also glittery. Both are by Rimmel London, and I really love their colour and the way they go on so easily onto the nails. I feel that these two nail polishes work really well together and I am so happy that I tried combining the two together the other day.

Here is a recent pic of my nails. And it was taken in the daytime, which is why you can see a shadow being cast over the wallpaper here, in my house.

I think the fact they are glittery and reflect the light so well, means that they are polishes that can be worn day or night, pretty much anywhere (except school - no-one wants you to get into trouble with your teachers). I would have hoped that these beautiful nail polishes would have lasted a bit longer than they have, well, at least the red one. It is unfortunately not the most durable or long-wearing polish. I think it was 3 days ago since I painted my nails, and the red one is starting to chip quite badly already. One nail already has about 99% of the polish totally gone! It's a bit disastrous, as I am now going to need to paint the nails all over again (except maybe the purple ones).

To end my blog post, which has been, for the most part, quite easy to write, I will leave you with this pic by my #TBF and awesome 'Perkster' (fan of Sue Perkins) @perkins_love:

Hope you had a good Valentines Day everyone! <3

 

 

I wish you all a good week, and I hope you enjoyed reading this blog post. I am going to do another one in a few days time, perhaps before Saturday, but most likely it'll be after the BIG EVENT. I will see you all then (after the event). For now though, goodbye! xxx

 

Love Ss1. 

The Tudors, Katherine Howard, an obsession!

I have gained an obsessive interest in Tudor history in recent times. So much so, I have set up a special Twitter account just so I can pretend to be a Tudor lady. Not just any Tudor lady (oh, no...) but one of the most important and memorable of the Tudor ladies (no, not Anne Boleyn, although you're very close) it is... the one, the only... Katherine Howard! (Which would have been easy to guess for some of you, especially if you already know of this other Twitter account.)

My Katherine Howard account is part factual and historically accurate, and partly fictional and totally made up. The factual part is that she is a lady-in-waiting to Queen Anne of Cleves (the fourth wife of Henry VIII) and also that she likes fine clothes and wishes to find a man. I mean if she did not wish to find one, how come she got close with King Henry, and then had some sort of affair with Thomas Culpepper? The fictional part is that I make my character, Katherine, say pretty much whatever I like her to say - within reason. I have a friend (who Katherine did not truly have, I don't think) and that is William FitzYork. He is the unknown son of Edward IV, and does jousting and is respectful to the ladies. Especially to my character, as they are very good friends.

I enjoy role-playing my character very much. It is a joy and a pleasure to pretend to be such a fun and lively lady. In a way, she is kind of like me: she likes music, dancing and having fun, and also being happy. All of which I thoroughly enjoy! I also like the way people spoke back in Tudor times. My lady, my lord, your majesty, etc. All so polite, most of it. Everything in 'Tudor world' feels calm-ish, more civilised, more friendly, just better in so many ways that I cannot even think of. I like how people respond to my character and it is great fun!

Onto my main point of writing this blog post. I wanted to share a poem I wrote the other day. It is about Katherine Howard, as that is the lady I'm playing at the moment, and I wished to express my thoughts about her, whilst at the same time, to tell a bit about her life: some good, some bad.

The poem is as follows:

    Katherine lay awake in her bed,
    Thoughts of Francis danced through her head,
    Like sparrows they hung,
    Like a bird she sung,

    The man she knew was different,
    Changed somehow,
    Many hours together they spent,
    No longer in front of her did he bow.

    Another day,
    More words they didn't say,
    Losing faith and hope,
    With lost words it's though they choked.

    Alive and well,
    Then rung the wedding bells,
    King Henry did love her much,
    The sweet Katherine did have a gentle touch.

    The world was alive,
    Poor Katherine didn't survive,
    Her head chopped off,
    King Henry suffered a great loss.


I hope you liked my poem. It was written fairly quickly. But with quite a bit of thought put into it. I tried to make it chronological.

Here's a nice pic to end on...

Credit for this marvellous edit goes to my TBF and ultimate Sue fan (apart from me, ha ha! We are both superfans) @perkins_love!

 

For more Tudor loveliness and role-playing please go to my Twitter account page @LadyKatHoward!

 

For my normal page and to comment on this blog post please go to @Supersizer1!

 

You can also comment below if you so wish. I don't mind. But please, let me know what you thought of it and also my 'Katherine Howard poem', which I heartily dedicate to Katherine Howard (former Queen of England) and to Tamzin Merchant, who played Katherine so brilliantly in The Tudors!

 

Thank you for reading. Bye for now!

 

Lots of Tudor love, Ss1! xxx