The Semi Final was an ode to pâtisserie, but sadly 28-year-old veterinary surgeon Rosie was pipped at the finish line. Here’s what she had to say about her time in the tent:
‘Well, I never ever imagined I would get this far. I was so amazed to get to the Semi Final. Of course everyone wants to get to the Final, but I was so happy to get to where I did. I have to say I found it slightly crazy that I got here and overall I have absolutely loved every minute of it.
‘In 1920s Week, I dropped the Custard Tarts – it was awful at the time in the tent but when it was shown on television it did become a very funny talking point, and social media went a bit crazy about it. I can be clumsy but not that bad, I think it was being in the tent… I knew that I wasn’t allowed to swear and there was absolutely no way that I could fix it, it was beyond repair, so I just kept calm and carried on. Henry came and picked it up for me and Sandi cleaned the carpet. How lovely is that?
‘I had some chats with Noel about various veterinary practices – I didn’t think they were funny at the time, it’s what I do for a living. They did seem to cover every animal and practice. When I said one of my bakes was eggy rubber, he said that would be a great name for a band. I always thought I would get on well with Sandi, but I thought that I wouldn’t have anything in common with Noel, but we really hit it off, and I think he enjoyed our bizarre conversations. One of the funnier moments was Noel’s reaction to some of my answers because at the time I was busy concentrating on my baking and didn’t see his face, so that made me laugh when I watched it during transmission as I had missed a lot in the tent as I was focussed on what I was doing!
‘The judges were great, I got on so well with both Prue and Paul, and I really absorbed all of Prue’s comments and they helped me a lot. I am still baking of course – it is my go to thing to relax of an evening. And all my friends and family get excited, especially now, if I make them a cake.
‘I love spending time with my husband and family, but I hardly saw him during Bake Off unless he was cleaning up the kitchen. He has been an incredible support – he would go to a 24 hour supermarket shop at 2am to get eggs that I had run out of. I had to practice at night because I was working all day. My practice staff have been great and they have all enjoyed the show and encouraged me each week. All the clients of course know that I am on the show so each appointment has to include a catch up about Bake Off!
‘I have a nut allergy so I was so amazed that the production team took that on board, had me in the tent and had to adapt certain practices for filming, everyone worked around it so well, the back room production team were incredible and flexible.
‘I have no idea what will happen for me next, in the meantime I am a full-time vet and I love my job, caring for animals, which is very rewarding. And I will continue baking and hopefully make more time for it in the future, who knows what will happen?’
Rosie will join Jo Brand on The Great British Bake Off: An Extra Slice on Friday 25th October at 8pm on Channel 4.