Junior Bake Off is back! From thousands of applicants, sixteen talented junior bakers aged 9-12 battle it out in the iconic white tent to be crowned winner of Junior Bake Off 2024.
Harry Hill oversees proceedings with his characteristic wit and warmth, alongside seasoned judges Liam Charles and Ravneet Gill.
Heat A
Enzo, 9
Somerset
One of our youngest bakers, Enzo lives in Somerset with his mum, dad, five siblings and cat, Dotty. He loves the great outdoors and often goes paddle-boarding with his family, as well as caravanning in Cornwall.
Enzo thanks his ‘nonna’ for his love of baking who he bakes with once a week. The two of them love to whip up pizza for the family and Enzo also loves to experiment with bread and pies. Enzo has a variety of career aspirations, including chef, murder detective, scientist or NBA Basketball Player which, given his height, his family find hilarious.
Ronnie, 10
South Yorkshire
Ronnie lives in Yorkshire with his parents and older sister Chloe. A keen gardener, he loves being in nature and spends a lot of time at his allotment, where he grows a lot of the fruit and veg he uses in his bakes. He also keeps chickens and loves to go fishing with his dad and grandparents. When he’s not feeding the family with his own produce, Ronnie loves playing ping pong and competing with his under-13 roller hockey team.
Ronnie is a whizz in the kitchen and often volunteers to cook tea for the family. He started baking with his nan as a toddler and still loves cooking and baking with her, as well as picking up tricks from YouTube. He’s now a dab hand at bread and meringue.
Austin, 10
Berkshire
Austin, from Berkshire, lives with his parents and older sister Poppy-Ann. A real creative, Austin makes his own podcasts and TV shows. He loves to act, sing and dance – especially at theatre group – and he’s a huge fan of Strictly. He is fascinated with aeroplanes and hopes to become an air traffic controller, or actor, one day!
Hoping to soar above the competition, Austin first started baking at pre-school and learnt the basics from his mum and dad who both love cooking. Now he gets a lot of inspiration from cooking shows, such as The Great British Bake Off, Matilda Ramsay and the Hairy Bikers. A great planner, he likes to put his own spin on a classic and a lot of his bakes are riffs from his great Nan’s original Victoria sponge recipe.
Deji, 12
Berkshire
Originally from a small town in Nigeria, Deji moved to the UK with his family a few years ago. A former ballet dancer, Deji is a keen gymnast and loves trampolining. He also plays rugby at school.
When he’s not immersed in sporty pursuits, Deji loves to make bracelets, play piano and create his own fun and fluffy slimes.
Deji has been helping in the family kitchen from an early age. He loves science at school, as it helps him to experiment in his baking and create colourful, elaborate designs. He would love to go to cookery college one day.
Francesca, 11
Belfast
Francesca is hoping to bring ‘the luck of the Irish’ to the tent. She comes from Belfast, where she lives with her mum and dad, and two of her four older brothers. Competitive by nature, Francesca plays water polo for her local club and is also a fan of Gaelic football and running. When she is taking a break from competitive sports, Francesca likes to sing.
Francesca has been taught to cook by the strong women in her family, and in the summer holidays she enjoys visiting her granny, who she loves to bake traditional breads with. Having sporty brothers around means that Francesca’s bakes never last for long.
Farah, 11
Northamptonshire
Farah hails from Northamptonshire, where she lives with her mum, dad and her two brothers. Farah loves getting lost in the world of fantasy, whether it’s an adventure book, or in her artwork. But her biggest dream is to be a pastry chef, like her role model Rav Gill!
Farah has only been baking for three years, but already she aspires to run her own patisserie in Paris. She hopes to sell her signature matcha cookies, as well as her own twist on cinnamon buns, featuring spices that reflect her Pakistani and East African heritage.
Rose, 11
Buckinghamshire
Rose lives in Buckinghamshire with her mum, younger brother and two dogs, Ace and Tinker. Rose loves to draw, paint and listen to music in her spare time. And when she isn’t being creative, she loves to play with her neighbours and her brother on her Segway. Last year she learned to ski, and she loved it so much she’s hoping to go again soon.
From a family of keen bakers, Rose has been helping in the kitchen since she was a toddler. She loves to make meringue and is particularly proud of her lemon meringue pies. To elevate her bakes, Rose loves using bold colours, with confetti cakes and rainbow bagels being prime examples. As Rose is gluten intolerant, she loves to adapt recipes to make them gluten free, so that even more people can enjoy them.
Lola, 10
Leicestershire
Lola lives in Leicestershire with her parents and little sister Elsa. She’s currently a yellow belt in karate and would love to win Olympic gold one day. When she’s not in the dojo, Lola loves karaoke with her cousins and dancing with her dad, who is a dance teacher originally from Cuba.
Lola has been baking since she was five. Starting out using basic supermarket kits, she’s honed her skills with help from her mum and by watching cookery programmes. Now she loves to experiment with different flavours, such as coconut, lemon and various spices. She is particularly proud of her signature pinata cake. One day, Lola would love to be a pastry chef or run her own café.
Heat B
Ben, 9
London
One of our younger bakers, Ben lives in London, with his Mum, Dad and older brother Sebastian. Ben is football mad – he practices every day and plays matches at the weekends. His teammates love it when he brings bakes for them to try. Sporty through and through, he also loves cricket, athletics and tennis. When he’s not running on the pitch, Ben loves to rock out to AC/DC, Metallica and other classic rock bands.
Ben has been baking for as long as he could hold a wooden spoon and he loves to be inspired by an occasion, such as Halloween. Ben is the winner of a baking competition for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Street Party, winning £5 for his original design.
Kingston, 11
Cambridgeshire
Kingston splits his time between his parents’ homes in Cambridgeshire and London. He has an older brother Marley and a chihuahua called Tinkerbell.
Kingston is football obsessed and hedges his bets by supporting two teams. He’s loyal to local team Cambridge United, but also follows Tottenham.
Kingston started baking his nana’s delicious recipes at an early age. He now gets brownie points sending his mum into work with a box full of sweet treats for her and her colleagues.
Jay, 12
Worcestershire
Jay lives in Worcestershire with his mum, dad and dog, Buddy. Jay is big into sports and enjoys playing both rugby and cricket. He plays competitively for local teams and is a huge Leicester Tigers fan. He likes to unleash his creative side by building Lego and cooking and creating culinary masterpieces.
A big believer in cooking from scratch, Jay’s mum has always tried to incorporate their diverse heritage into family cooking, which Jay has been helping with since the age of four. He would one day love to run his own coffee and cake shop.
Joey, 10
Norfolk
Joey and his little sister, Eva, are home schooled by their parents in Norfolk. Joey is aiming for a future career as a private chef and, in his spare time, enjoys performing magic and playing piano. He’s also a black belt in Kung Fu and Captain of his local cricket team.
Joey has handy forest skills and loves foraging for ingredients to add to his bakes. Joey’s passion for baking started during lockdown when he got into doing ‘cook-alongs’ for his friends and he puts his baking skills to good use by raising money for charity through bake sales.
Lana, 10
Tyne and Wear
Hailing from Tyne and Wear, Lana lives with her mum, stepdad, older brother Louie, baby sister Isla, and dogs Neo and Diesel. A lifelong fan of Sunderland AFC, Lana loves to be pitchside. She also loves quad biking and has a keen interest in science and robotics.
Lana has come to baking relatively recently, having started attending a weekly baking club. Known for her creativity in the kitchen, Lana tries her bakes out on her mum and nan. Her most successful experiment to date has been her cinnamon rolls with edible glitter.
Aasiyah, 11
London
Aasiyah lives in London with her mum, dad and three siblings. Her two passions are ballet and baking, and she would love to open a ballet themed café when she is older. She loves to bake for her siblings, especially her younger brother Eesaa and her baking confidence has come from helping her mum set up and run baking classes for the local community centre. She loves to help the younger children with their bakes and has even created her own Bake Off style competition.
Aside from ballet and baking, Aasiyah likes to upcycle fashion and household items, and as a keen member of her local Scouts unit she loves outdoor pursuits.
Jessie, 12
London
London girl Jessie lives with her parents and older siblings, Isla and Finlay. Jessie has been riding since she was two and a half and prefers Shetland ponies, which suit her perfectly, as she was born with a growth condition called SEDc. Away from the stables, Jessie takes to the stage at weekly performing arts classes. It is her dream to one day become a professional actress and perform on the West End stage.
In her baking, Jessie draws inspiration from her Scottish heritage, whipping up delicious shortbread, cranachan and tablet. She loves nothing more than a traditional Ceilidh with her family and has been known to help prepare the Burns Night feast of haggis, neaps and tatties.
Bela, 11
Cheshire
Bela lives in Cheshire. She is a huge rugby fan and the only girl on an all-boys rugby team. When she’s not tackling the boys as prop in the scrum, Bela loves performing arts, especially musical theatre.
She is known at school for her decorated cakes, which are often requested at birthday parties and other celebrations. Having learned from her mum and uncle, Bela loves to put her baking skills to good use, holding bake sales to raise money for charity.
Junior Bake Off starts Monday 6th January 2025 at 5pm on Channel 4.