A BARTON woman is hoping to rise to the challenge as she competes in the new series of Great British Bake Off – saying it is the "best thing" she has ever done.
Nancy Birtwhistle, 60, is one of 12 amateur bakers looking to impress judges Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood in the popular BBC1 show.
And she is not the first yellowbelly to set foot in the Bake Off tent, following in the footsteps of Scartho gardener Lucy Bellamy, who made it to the second week of last year's show.
Lucy, 39, of Pinfold Lane, had some comforting words for Nancy about the competition.
"The world goes mad for a while and loads of really interesting things happen. You just have to enjoy it and I hope Nancy is really able to relish that time."
Lucy who now writes gardening pieces for The Guardian and Grow Your Own Magazine, still enjoys baking and recently became part of the Free Cakes For Kids charity, which provides cakes for underprivileged children on their birthdays.
"I will definitely be watching. I'm excited to see what they make this year and who we can welcome to the Bake Off family."
A former practice manager at Central Surgery in Barton, Nancy discovered a passion for baking when she retired seven years ago.
And after a failed application to the show in 2013, this year she has been selected as one of the lucky few to grace the Bake Off tent.
She said: "You'd think I was jumping for joy and excited by the news, but I wasn't.
"The reality of it kicked in and I began wondering if I could really do it.
"It is one thing baking in the kitchen at home but another thing to do it in front of cameras.
"It is the best thing I've ever done in my life though. It was refreshing being amongst lots of young people, and there was a lot of laughter.
"It is so tense and difficult, but great fun. Everyone involved is brilliant."
In the first episode of the new series Nancy and her fellow contestants will have to make a Swiss roll and take on the show stopper challenge, which involves making 36 miniature cakes.
Entering the Bake Off tent for the first time was a nerve-racking experience, though. Nancy said: "I started in the Bake Off tent at the end of April, and it was freezing cold. I felt incredibly nervous.
"I saw the tent and just thought 'what am I doing here?'
"Meeting Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood was daunting at first. They walked into the tent after we had started baking and came round, chatting to us about the bakes.
"When they came to me I was so nervy. The nerves seemed to get everybody though.
"Mary was lovely and is just what you see on the TV. She was so helpful, but so was Paul. There is this tough persona he has on camera, but he was really nice.
"What surprised me about the Bake Off tent was the number of people in it.
"You don't see it on the TV, but there are about 40 people in there at once. There are so many camera crews and a lot going on behind the scenes."
Nancy will be looking to impress judges Mary and Paul when the series returns to BBC1, at 8pm on Wednesday, August 6.
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