The Great British Bake Off: 2014 runner-up Richard Burr’s top tips for

Alcoholic Madeira and Mary Berry’s “very British” walnut cake were all part of the recipe for the first episode of this year’s The Great British Bake Off – and a unusual Black Forest beetroot dessert left a bad taste in the audience’s mouths, as well as the judges’.

Baking for charity is most popular among 25 to 34 year olds with 13% of them having baked for a good cause in the past 12 months. Dorret and her husband regularly visit Michelin-starred restaurants for inspiration and ideas for their next culinary experiment, and often host dinner parties to impress their friends with their skills.

Tamal is a trainee anaesthetist working at a hospital in Manchester.

GBBO would not be the same without Berry’s gentle criticism and her sidekick Hollywood’s not-so-subtle innuendos. He now regularly whips up cakes for family and friends, and includes an impressive five-tier creation among his works. Before the competition he had been baking for about seven years and is entirely self taught.

Gabriella took to Twitter to say: “Anyone else as excited as I am about Great British Bake Off starting again tonight!” After moving to Paris in her thirties, Marie was inspired by classic French Patisseries – could her knowledge of worldwide techniques see her overtake Nadiya? She now wants to “have her own adventure” and make her family proud with her baking. He’s now mastered not only simple cakes and biscuits but bread, pastries and pies. Mat lives with his wife in London.

But at just 19, Flora Shedden is already an accomplished baker and with her appearance on the new series of the nation’s favourite baking show, she could be well on her way to becoming the most successful contestant ever. In her job, she helps young people with emotional issues and after work Sandy also volunteers at the school, running a cookery club where she teaches children from deprived backgrounds to bake on a budget. She thinks her style and description of herself are unanimous, saying “it might not be glamorous but it’s tasty”.