“Iain is also on a mission to rewrite the Bake Off legacy of ‘Iain from Belfast’ once and for all”
Iain from Coleraine is hoping his sourdough skills will be enough to crown him this year’s Great British Bake Off.
The popular Channel 4 show is the ultimate baking battle where passionate amateur baking fans compete to be crowned the UK’s Best Amateur Baker.
On Tuesday, Co Derry Software Engineer Iain was announced as a contestant on the 2025 series where he hopes to “rewrite the legacy” of a former NI participant.
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A description of the 29-year-old hopeful said: “Iain lives in Belfast with his girlfriend Dervla and their cat, Viktor. A former amateur powerlifter Iain now lifts dough instead of weights.
“The self-proclaimed ‘Yeastie Boy’ mixes his love of live music with sourdough, immortalising album cover art on the crusts of his loaves. He blends classic flavours with a creative twist, often using fermented fruits and vegetables to enhance the depth and complexity of his flavours.
“If an ingredient can be pickled, aged, or cultured, he’s eager to give it a try! Iain is also on a mission to rewrite the Bake Off legacy of ‘Iain from Belfast’ once and for all.”
Speaking to Channel 4 ahead of the series, Iain said he had no idea he would make as far as the Bake Off tent when he was finally convinced to apply.
He said: “When me and my girlfriend Dervla watch every year, she says at the end of every episode that I need to apply. This past year she wouldn’t take no for an answer, so I finally caved and applied.
“Every step of the way I kept it a secret from everyone apart from Dervla, I didn’t think I’d make it to the following stage and I didn’t want to let anyone down.
“Then when I got the call to confirm my place I was in sheer disbelief, I had no idea it would actually happen. I thought it was a prank at first.”
On entering the tent for the very first time, he added: ” I genuinely felt like I was watching it on TV whenever I was walking into the tent.
“I also did that thing where you think about how you’re walking and then you forget how to walk, so I was mainly focusing on not tripping during my first 10 seconds in the tent to really appreciate how wild it actually was.”
The Great British Bake Off Series 16 starts September 2. Stream or watch from 8pm on Channel 4
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