The new series of Great British Bake Off begins with a host of firsts - as one baker gets the first 'Hollywood handshake' in the opening recipe and a baker leaves the tent after just a day feeling unwell. The 15th series begins with a strong performance from the dozen bakers and one even earns a handshake from judge Paul Hollywood inside the opening 30 minutes of the show in the signature challenge. Hollywood even jokes he was "holding back" but in reality it is one of the earliest signs of approval for a baker the Channel 4 series has ever seen.
But things do not go smoothly for everyone and on day two of filming one baker is missing from the tent. Alison reveals to the other bakers that one contestant is feeling unwell and they are missing for the rest of the episode, meaning 11 bakers are trying to avoid being voted off. A show source says: "The baker was gutted to miss out on second day but they weren't feeling up to it and so they had to sit it out.
" The show then has another twist in store as bakers are also given cake to eat before the first ever 'taste and bake' challenge Co-host Alison Hammond says: "Each week the bakers will face a gingham-clad secret second challenge but this time there's an extra surprise awaiting them." Noel Fielding adds: "This is a taste and bake challenge. You have five minutes to inspect your cake and then you have to recreate it with no recipe.
" Bakers then get to measure and even eat the cake before trying to make their own. This challenge .