Channel 4 has revealed the 12 amateur bakers who will compete in the 2026 series of The Great British Bake Off, including a Birmingham drag king, a self-styled “Northern Diva” hairdresser and two students.
The new contestants will enter the famous tent when the series returns on Tuesday, 22 September at 8pm, with the line-up facing the familiar Signature, Technical and Showstopper challenges.
Among this year’s hopefuls is Gabe, 32, a costume designer and theatre producer from the West Midlands who performs as the drag king Blu Romantic. Described as the “daddy of Birmingham drag”, Gabe began baking as a teenager after watching the first series of Bake Off.
Gabe will be joined by Tom, 25, a hairdresser from West Yorkshire who describes himself as a “Northern Diva”. His speciality is salted caramel brownies, while his baking style is said to combine witty designs with traditional flavours.
The youngest contestants include Mo, 21, a law student from the West Midlands, and Moyin, 22, an Essex-based political economy student who balances his studies with athletics, baking and part-time work. Moyin draws on his Nigerian heritage for inspiration, while Mo is known for giving classic British bakes an Asian twist.
The remaining contestants are Clara, 24, a marketing graduate from Hertfordshire; Connie, 63, an NHS hospital discharge lead from London; Danni, 25, an HGV service centre administrator from Dorset; Gary, 67, a retired garment technologist from Nottinghamshire; Molly, 31, an accessibility co-ordinator from London; Nikki, 50, an advertising post-producer from London; Shannon, 29, a project planner from Gloucestershire; and Yannis, 28, a paediatric doctor from London.
Several of the bakers have developed distinctive approaches to the competition. Shannon uses ingredients grown or foraged locally, Nikki pairs her baking with carefully chosen music, and Yannis takes influence from his Austrian birth and Bangladeshi upbringing.
The new series will also mark Nigella Lawson’s first appearance as a judge on the programme. She joins Paul Hollywood on the judging panel, replacing Prue Leith, while Alison Hammond and Noel Fielding return as presenters.
Channel 4 and Love Productions said filming for the series had been completed over the summer, with the new contestants taking on the challenges in the Bake Off tent.
