GBBO's Marie Campbell is a professionally trained baker
But the BBC defends their decision to include her
Great British Bake Off star Marie Campbell has been revealed as a professional baker who trained at an acclaimed French patisserie.
The 66-year-old impressed on the opening week with her “perfect” Madeira cake and black forest gateau and is already one of the favourites to win the BBC cooking show.
However, the Daily Mail has tried to stoke a bit of GBBO scandal by digging into Marie’s past.
The publication claims that Marie was taught briefly by distinguished chefs at the Ecole Escoffier at the Ritz in Paris. Apparently she then went on to “host classes for aspiring chefs in Glasgow before running the award-winning Duisdale House Hotel and restaurant on the Isle of Skye.”
Defending their decision to include Marie in the show, the BBC insists that she does not breach any of their rules.
“There are strict criteria to taking part in the show and Marie met that criteria. She gained a certificate for one week’s training in Paris in 1984,” a BBC spokeswoman said.
The corporation also said that as Marie’s cupcake business isn’t her main source of income then she is perfectly entitled to compete.
In fact, the BBC mad no secret of Marie’s past in the bio they wrote for her: "The turning point came in her thirties when Marie moved to Paris with her family and was inspired by all the French Patisseries. She fell in love with baking, specialising in elaborate, show-stopping decorations."
A genuine scandal or a storm in a teacup? We reckon it’s definitely the latter…