Where to Stream: The Great British Baking Show

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There are many challenges facing any baker competing on The Great British Baking Show. There’s the stress of competition, the cruel gaze of Paul Hollywood, the catty critiques of Prue Leith, the limited time allotted for complicated bakes, the hot temperature inside the tent, and the camera crew capturing every tiny moment on screen. However, it’s starting to look like the bakers’ biggest challenge in the tent is none other than hilarious host Noel Fielding. While it’s true that Noel — and his quirky fashion choices — add a much-needed dose of daffiness to The Great British Baking Show, he’s also fond of straight up getting in the bakers’ way. Noel is more than comic relief; he’s getting to be a downright distraction for the bakers.

Comedy has been an important part of The Great British Baking Show from the very beginning. The show didn’t just feature two professional judges, but two comedians as hosts. For the show’s first seven seasons, these were long-time friends and British quiz show mainstays Sue Perkins and Mel Giedroyc. When The Great British Baking Show famously migrated from BBC to Channel 4 and Netflix, Perkins and Giedroyc declined to move with it. So they were replaced by The Mighty Boosh star Noel Fielding and current Q.I. host Sandi Toksvig.

Noel and Sandi have incredibly different chemistry as co-hosts than Sue and Mel did. Part of it has to do with the fact that Sue Perkins and Mel Giedroyc have been besties for years. They didn’t compete for attention, and they treated all the bakers the way they treated each other: as loving friends. Noel and Sandi were probably not strangers when they joined The Great British Baking Show, but they were never a comedy duo. So they’ve leaned on their odd couple vibe: she’s a genius with a knack for deadpan and he’s a class clown who can’t ever be serious. It works, except this season Noel’s interview segments at the bakers’ benches seem to be less about moving the show along and more about stealing the spotlight.

Noel’s giddy interruptions might actually be unfair to the bakers themselves. Think of what we saw during the Signature Challenge in this most recent episode, “Festival Week,” alone. The bakers had just three hours to make 24 yeasted festival buns. While the bakers were measuring, kneading, proving, and working on their decorations, they also had to contend with Noel’s visits where he would ask inane questions such as: “Do you like festivals?”, “Wow, what are you doing?”, “You’re a vet. Have you ever worked on a peacock?” and “What are you doing? Rubbing your buns on the…?” These questions lead to little bits that are cute, funny, and reveal the bakers’ personalities, but they also swallow up valuable time the bakers might need to, uh, you know, bake.

At one point, Noel hid behind Rosie’s bench, waiting to strike. After an earlier conversation about the fun they would have if they had peacocks as pets, Noel returned wearing a crown with peacock feathers in it. He hugs her and stops her in the middle of what she’s doing to promise to wear them during judging just for her. (He does not do this.) Noel also literally got in Alice’s way, blocking her way to the oven, leaving the frazzled schoolteacher to politely ask him to move.

If this sounds like a lot, keep in mind Fielding did all this just during the first challenge of the episode. He kept it up during the Technical Challenge and all-important Showstopper Challenge. During that final round, he balanced a ceramic bowl on his head, and when it fell, Alice gasped that it could have crashed on her eggs. In contrast this week, Sandi Toksvig actually lent Henry an extra hand with his pasta machine and briefly tasted Steph’s cake batter, commenting that it was delicious. The gulf between Noel’s showboating moments and Sandi’s actually helpful ones is staggering.

Perhaps the biggest sign that Noel is honestly bothering the bakers comes from his limited interactions with three-time star baker Steph. While Noel tries to engage with her, she doesn’t even make eye contact. She merely says she’s stressed and bounces around him, keeping her workflow going. Now Steph is a basket of nerves in the tent, but she’s managed the best consistency of any of the bakers. Noel Fielding cannot distract her because Steph isn’t about to mug for the cameras. Steph is here to bake, and Steph is here to bake seriously. Noel Fielding, be damned!

Nevertheless, it’s not like Noel’s playful attitude is all that awful. These segments are legitimately charming. It’s just you have to worry that the bakers he visits might feel like they’ve got to juggle him along with their work. Fielding seems to be aware that he’s dangerously close to being way too much for the bakers. After his bit with the bowl on his head, he sarcastically asks Alice, “On a scale of one to ten, how much do you enjoy our chats?”

Alice smiles as she stirs batter. “Eleven.”

“Yes!” Noel says, visibly exuberant. He gives her a loving kiss on the cheek and finally goes away, leaving Alice to actually do work.

Fielding might be grating on the bakers, but they — and we — still can’t help but to love him.

Watch The Great British Baking Show on Netflix