The Great British Bake Off series 2

The second series of The Great British Bake Off started 14 August 2011 with twelve amateur bakers. Unlike series one, the competition was held in a single location – the grounds of Valentines Mansion, a 17th-century mansion house in Redbridge. In addition to their on-screen presenting, Mel Giedroyc and Sue Perkins also took over the narration, which had been done by Stephen Noonan for the previous series. Series two also introduced the "star baker" award for the most impressive performer each week.
Three and a half thousand people applied for the competition, and twelve were selected. Each episode was filmed over two fourteen-hour days. The competition was won by Jo Wheatley.

Results summary

There was no Star Baker this week, as Paul and Mary felt it wouldn't be right to single out one baker when the results were incredibly close.
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Episodes

Episode 1: Cakes

For their first challenge, the bakers were asked to bake 24 cupcakes in 2 hours. They were allowed to make two different types of cupcakes. For the technical challenge, the bakers were asked to bake a Coffee and Walnut Battenburg cake using Mary Berry's recipe in 2 hours. The cake needed to have the perfect sponge which held its form, distinguish flavours, and a smooth exterior. For the showstopper, the bakers were asked to bake a chocolate tiered celebration cake with elaborate, multi-layer design in 5 hours.

Baker	Signature	Technical	Showstopper	Result
Ben	Rhubarb and Custard Cupcakes After Dinner Cupcakes	2nd	Vanilla Sponge with White Chocolate and Raspberry Buttercream
Holly	Cherry Bakewell Inspired Cupcakes Ginger Cupcakes with Fig Truffle	1st	Novelty Farm Cake
Ian	Apple and Cinnamon Cupcakes	10th	UNKNOWN
Janet	Raspberry and Cream Cupcakes	8th	Chocolate Marble Cake with Dark and White Chocolate Truffles
Jason	Lemon Meringue Cupcakes Apple and Cinnamon Cupcakes	6th	UNKNOWN
Jo	Chocolate and Orange Cupcakes Orange and Cardamom Cupcakes	11th	Chocolate and Strawberry Cake
Keith	Earl Grey Cupcakes	12th	Chocolate and Sour Cream Cake
Mary-Anne	Banoffee Cupcakes	4th	Chocolate and Raspberry Opera Cake
Robert	Blackberry and Vanilla Cupcakes with Liquorice Frosting	3rd	Genoise Layered Mousse Cake with Chocolate Ganache
Simon	Guinness and Chocolate Cupcakes	9th	Two-Tiered Chocolate Courgette Cake
Urvashi	Cherry Blossom Cupcakes Japanese Lime Cupcakes	7th	Orange Blossom Celebration Cake
Yasmin	Cardamom and Pomegranate Cupcakes Lemon Meringue Cupcakes	5th	Three Tier Passion Cake

Episode 2: Tarts

For the signature bake, the bakers were asked to bake a savoury quiche in 2 hours. For the technical challenge, the bakers were asked to bake a Tarte au Citron using Mary Berry's recipe in hours. For the showstopper, the bakers were asked to bake 24 mini sweet tartlets of two different flavour combinations.

Baker	Signature	Technical	Showstopper	Result
Ben	Chorizo, Pepper and Gruyere Quiche	1st	Lemon Meringue Tarts
Holly	Pesto Quiche	4th	Milk Chocolate and Pistachio Tarts Trifle Tarts
Ian	Stilton, Spinach and New Potato Quiche with Paprika and Walnut Pastry	2nd	UNKNOWN
Janet	Quiche Printanière	8th	Red Fruit Tarts Chocolate and Cherry Tarts
Jason	Salmon and Pak Choi Quiche	3rd	Mint Chocolate Tarts Blueberry Bakewell Tarts
Jo	Caramelised Onion, Gruyere and Thyme Quiche	10th	Raspberry and Mascarpone Tarts with Lemon and Almond Pastry Honey and Almond Tarts with Sweetcrust
Mary-Anne	Roasted Cauliflower, Cheese and Caramelised Onion Quiche	9th	Butterscotch Brulée Tarts in Pecan Pastry Apple Rose Tarts
Robert	Smoked Bacon and Kale Quiche	5th	Chocolate, Fennel and Ginger Tarts Creme Patisserie and Poached Pear Tarts in Almond Pastry
Simon	Smoked Haddock and Watercress Quiche	11th	Passion Fruit and Ricotta Tarts Salted Chocolate, Stem Ginger and Mascarpone Cream Tarts
Urvashi	Crab, Coriander and Coconut Quiche	7th	Strawberry and Basil Tarts Elderflower and Honeycomb Tarts
Yasmin	Smoked Haddock and Watercress Quiche	6th	Chocolate and Orange Tarts in Cinnamon-Orange Pastry Blueberry and Hazelnut Tarts in Hazelnut Pastry

Episode 3: Bread

For their signature bake, the bakers were asked to bake a free form flavored loaf in hours. The technical challenge gave the bakers hours to bake a Focaccia, using Paul Hollywood's recipe. The showstopper required the bakers to produce a 2 part display: a basket made of bread, then filled with 24 rolls, 12 sweet and 12 savory, in 5 hours.

Baker	Signature	Technical	Showstopper	Result
Ben	Walnut, Raisin and Rosemary Loaf	3rd	UNKNOWN
Holly	Picnic Loaf	6th	Stilton and Walnut Rolls
Ian	Courgette, Caerphilly Cheese and Thyme Loaf	10th	Walnut and Raisin Rolls Cracked Wheat Logs
Janet	Zupfe Loaf with Gruyère Cheese	8th	Apple and Walnut Granary Rolls Red Onion Cottage Rolls
Jason	Cheese and Onion Tear and Share Loaf	7th	UNKNOWN
Jo	Stromboli Flavoured with Mozarella, Ham, and Picante Pepper	1st	Spiced Orange Rolls Pumpkin Seed Rolls
Mary-Anne	Ploughman's Loaf	5th	Herb and Walnut Breads Chocolate and Chilli Buns
Robert	Rye and Coriander Seed Loaf	4th	Blueberry Brioche Rolls Lemon and Poppy Seed Rolls
Urvashi	Salt and Peppercorn Loaf	9th	Chilli and Halloumi Rolls Lemon and Coriander Mini Loaves
Yasmin	Egyptian Dukkah Loaf with Mixed Spices	2nd	Pesto Bread Sweet Coconut Rolls

In this episode, two bakers were eliminated rather than one baker.

Episode 4: Biscuits

For the signature bake, the bakers were give hours to make 12 biscuits of their choice; the biscuits should not be too soft, too hard or too crumbly. The technical challenge gave the bakers hours to bake 24 brandy snaps. For the showstopper, the bakers were asked to produce a macaron display, consisting of 120 macarons in 3 different flavors; they had 5 hours to complete it.

Baker	Signature	Technical	Showstopper	Result
Ben	Stem Ginger Nuts	5th	Chocolate and Almond Macarons Pine Nut Macarons Pistachio Macarons
Holly	Strawberry and Custard Melts	3rd	'Chocolate bars of my youth'
Janet	Christmas Marzipan Biscuits	4th	Raspberry Macarons Blackcurrant Macarons Almond Macarons
Jason	Lebkuchen	1st	Mocktail Macarons
Jo	Lavender Biscuits	8th	Blueberry Macarons Coconut Macarons Strawberry Macarons
Mary-Anne	Melting Moments	2nd	Blackcurrant and Mint Macarons Gooseberry and Elderflower Macarons Hazelnut Macarons
Robert	Chocolate and Ginger Oat Biscuits	7th	Strawberry and Lime Macarons Lemon Macarons Chocolate and Cardamom Macarons
Yasmin	Chocolate Chip and Pistachio Biscotti	6th	Chocolate and Lime Macarons Coffee and Walnut Macarons Pineapple and Coconut Macarons

Episode 5: Pies

The signature challenge asked the bakers to produce a hearty family pie using either a rough puff or flaky pastry, in hours. For the technical challenge, the bakers were asked to bake a batch of 6 miniature pork pies in hours, using Paul Hollywood's recipe. It was a 2-day bake challenge — to give the filling time to set overnight the pies were judged the next day. For the showstopper, the bakers were asked to bake a meringue pie — a fruit and/or custard pie topped with meringue — in hours.

Baker	Signature	Technical	Showstopper	Result
Holly	Stilton, Potato and Caramelised Onion Pie	4th	Lime Meringue Pie
Janet	Chicken and Chestnut Pie	1st	Rhubarb Meringue Pie
Jason	Brown Down Chicken Pie	7th	Plum Meringue Pie
Jo	Salmon and Asparagus Pie	6th	Apple and Raspberry Meringue Pie
Mary-Anne	Chicken and Bacon Pie	2nd	Midnight Meringue Pie
Robert	Chicken and Mushroom Pie	3rd	Rhubarb & Custard Meringue Pie
Yasmin	Family Fish Pie	5th	Peach and Raspberry Meringue Pie

Once again, in this episode, two bakers were eliminated instead of one baker.

Episode 6: Desserts (Quarterfinals)

For their signature bake, the quarterfinalists were tasked to produce a cheesecake in 2¹⁄₂ hours. For the technical challenge, the bakers were asked to bake a chocolate roulade in hours using Mary Berry's recipe. For the showstopper, the bakers were asked to create a Croquembouche-inspired bake in 5 hours.

Baker	Signature	Technical	Showstopper	Result
Holly	Father Christmas' Baked Cheesecake	3rd	Hansel and Gretel's Croquembouche
Janet	Rhubarb and Ginger Baked Cheesecake	5th	Orange and Nougatine Croquembouche
Jo	Rum and Raisin Baked Cheesecake	1st	Limoncello and White Chocolate Croquembouche
Mary-Anne	Tutti Frutti Curd Baked Cheesecake	4th	Orange and Praline Croquembouche with Cardamom Caramel
Yasmin	Baked Amaretto Cheesecake	2nd	Rose Croquembouche

Episode 7: Pâtisserie (Semi-final)

For the signature bake, the semi-finalists were given 2 hours to bake a layered mousse cake, with the judges seeking a light sponge and a rich mousse. In the technical challenge, the bakers were asked to bake 12 identical Iced Fingers to be filled with cream and jam, using Paul Hollywood's recipe. For the showstopper, the bakers were asked to produce a selection of three different pastries using the same laminated pastry dough — which must be crisp on the outside and soft on the inside — for all three.

Baker	Signature	Technical	Showstopper	Result
Holly	White Chocolate, Hazelnut and Raspberry Génoise Mousse Cake	1st	Apricot, Macadamia and White Chocolate Pinwheels Almond Croissants Apple, Raisin and Cinnamon Plaits
Janet	Chocolate Amaretto Mousse Cake	4th	Pain Aux Raisin Plain Croissant Pain Au Chocolat
Jo	Raspberry & Strawberry Mousse Cake	3rd	Pain Aux Raisin Chocolate Twists Banana and Raisin Pastries
Mary-Anne	Chocolate and Orange Mousse Cake	2nd	Raspberry Rose Danishes Praline Spirals Alsatian Plaited Danishes

Episode 8: Final

For their final signature bake, the finalists were asked to bake 12 mille-feuille in hours. For the technical challenge, the bakers were asked to bake a sachertorte in 2 hours and 40 minutes. For their final showstopper, the bakers were asked to bake 3 different types of petits fours: meringue, sweet pastry, and sponge-based, on the theme of British Summertime, within 4 hours.

Baker	Signature	Technical	Showstopper	Result
Holly	Banoffee Inspired Mille Feuille	2nd	Strawberry and Cream Meringue Nest Gooseberry and Elderflower 'Bakewell' Tarts Neapolitan Ice-Cream Sandwich
Jo	Raspberry and Blueberry Mille Feuille	1st	Mini Victoria Sandwiches Raspberry, White Chocolate and Pistachio Mini Meringues Mini Banoffee Pie with Banana Mousse
Mary-Anne	Lemon and Ginger Mille Feuille	3rd	Fruit Tarts with Elderflower Custard Strawberry and Rhubarb Cheesecakes Black Fruit Meringue with Everlasting Syllabub

Extras and special episodes

Both episodes nine and ten were masterclasses by Paul and Mary, where they demonstrated how to make the Technical Challenges that they had set throughout the series. Episode nine showed the first four of the series; Coffee and walnut Battenberg, Tarte au Citron, Focaccia and Brandy Snaps. Episode ten showed the last four of the series; Pork pies, Chocolate roulade, Iced fingers and Sachertorte.
Episode eleven went back and revisited the bakers from series one to catch up with the contestants.

Post-show career

Some of the contestants went on to a career in baking or had a change of career after appearing on the show.
Joanne Wheatley has written two bestselling books on baking, A Passion for Baking published on 16 May 2013, and Home Baking initially as a Sainsbury's exclusive. She writes a monthly column for Sainsbury's magazine and is a regular guest columnist for The Sun newspaper. She runs cookery courses from her home in Essex, and has appeared in various television programmes such as The Alan Titchmarsh Show and What's Cooking.
Holly Bell teaches baking classes and for a time worked as an occasional radio presenter on BBC Radio Leicester. She also appeared as a guest presenter on QVC shopping channel. She wrote an eBook called Ready, Steady, Bake! which was published on 5 July 2012, and published a book Recipes from a Normal Mum on 17 July 2014.
Mary-Anne Boermans wrote a book on baking, Great British Bakes: Forgotten Treasures for Modern Bakers, which was published on 7 November 2013. She later participated in the 2016 rendition of The Great Christmas Bake Off where she was declared the special's Star Baker.
Janet Basu participated in the 2016 rendition of The Great New Year's Bake Off.
Robert Billington participated in the 2017 rendition of The Great New Year's Bake Off.

Ratings

Official episode viewing figures are from BARB.

Episode no.	Airdate	Viewers	BBC Two weekly ranking	Nightly ranking
1		3.10	2	8
2		3.53	2	8
3		3.82	1	8
4		3.60	1	7
5		3.83	1	8
6		4.25	1	6
7		4.42	1	5
8		5.06	1	5

Specials

Episode no.	Airdate	Viewers	BBC Two weekly ranking