GBBO’s Flora admits ‘feeling young’ as she exits semi-final

Thursday night brought a glut of viewers to BBC One, as the hugely successful sixth series of The Great British Bake Off (8pm) kicked off the beginning of the end with a deluge of tortuous chocolate-based tasks. Flora is first up and the rest of the bakers are dismissed as the poor girl is left all alone in the tent to begin this tricky challenge on her tod.

The judges aren’t too impressed with Flora’s creation and she gets a mixed reviews, not least for her unnecessary macarons and split curd.

Famed for her endlessly fascinating facial expressions as much as for her culinary masterpieces, Nadiya was brim full of emotions, experiencing chocolate hell and heaven in the course of three challenges.

But her peanut salted caramel and chocolate tart had earned her a rare handshake from Hollywood, and her showstopper was even more impressive. I’m done asking why, just done.

Chocolate week is a cracking theme to showcase baking skills and inventiveness, so on with the show…

Flora said she planned to continue baking as she’d never known life without it, coming from a long line of female bakers.

“There was always lots of sprinkles and icing sugar”.

Flora’s carousel with whiskey and white chocolate horses looks great, but the judges don’t like any of her flavours. Boo.

The teenager has now started a degree in art history at the University of St Andrews, having worked at an art gallery near her Perthshire home in Scotland during filming. From the showstopper comments, I’d have said Paul and Mary ranked them Nadiya, Ian (just), Tamal, Flora. Then when I got star baker three times, everyone thought I was super confident, but I’m not.

The medic, who is a senior house officer in intensive care at Wythenshawe Hospital in Manchester, admitted he “became quite superstitious” during filming: “Firstly, I had to have sushi on the way to each episode”.

Last night an anxious Flora, Ian, Nadiya and Tamal attempted to master a chocolate tart, a chocolate soufflé and a few chocolate centrepieces for good measure, with the genteel drama prompting 74,668 tweets during broadcast.

I know I’m starting to sound like a scratched record but yet again, Nadiya’s flavours were working for me.

Flora has made a passion fruit curd, but thinks she’s over baked it, and true to form, bungs it in the freezer.