2023 finalist Dr Josh Smalley tells Dean Walker about his time on Channel 4’s hit show
It may not seem like post-doctoral chemistry research and competitive baking have a lot in common, but Dr Josh Smalley’s experience as a scientist is exactly why he thinks he was described as one of the calmest bakers ever in the Great British Bake Off tent.
The 27-year-old is in his second year of post-doctoral research at the University of Leicester and was also a finalist in the fourteenth series of The Great British Bake Off last year – which surprised no one more than Josh himself.
“It was easily the best experience of my life,” Josh said, as he reflected on his time in the tent. “I can’t believe how much more confident I am… not just in my baking, but in general too.”
The 14th season was not the first one Josh had applied to either. He had always been a fan of the show and had applied five years previously.
“My nan was always my biggest supporter,” Josh said, “she always insisted that I apply, but to be honest, five years ago I just wasn’t good enough as a baker.”
Sadly, Josh’s nan died in June 2021. “She had just got through covid but died of lung cancer not soon after. She always wanted me to be on Bake Off, so I applied for her in 2022.”
The application process was lengthy – it involved in-person interviews, recording bakes on camera and a lot of Zoom calls. “It wasn’t easy, and I didn’t believe I would be in the tent until I was actually there,” Josh said.
When asked, Josh used just one word to describe what it felt to be in the tent – “it was surreal, even by the tenth week in there – just surreal” – the show was filmed from April 2023 to June 2023, and started airing in September of the same year.
The tent itself was different to how long-time-fan Josh had expected though. “It was a lot smaller than it looks on TV, and it’s also colder than you expect,” Josh said. “You are just baking outside, which Is something that I obviously had never done.”
When starting on the show, Josh’s goal was just to survive one week. Then, after getting out of the first week, he wanted to survive to week four – he never expected to get all the way to the end.
“I just took each week as it came, and was surprised with all I succeeded with along the way,” Josh said, who listed some of his biggest personal achievements as his burger showstopper, his puff pastry showstopper and of course receiving the iconic Hollywood Handshake.
Josh amazed viewers on Bake Off with his calm demeanour throughout and for his stylish and spectacular show-stopper bakes. It may surprise viewers to know, that Josh really did feel as calm as he looked.
Josh attributed his calmness to his 10 years at Leicester University as a chemist – with two years doing post-doctoral research. “Following a recipe while baking is just the same as following a procedure for an experiment,” Josh explained. “I was just as precise in my measuring and timings while baking as I am in the lab, it all felt weirdly familiar.”
Josh got on well with both the judges – Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith, as well as the two hosts – Noel Fielding and Alison Hammond.
But there was one thing he wasn’t prepared for, and that was how much talking he had to do while baking. “When I’m practicing at home, I don’t have any distractions, but in the tent you have Paul and Prue walking up to talk to you, Alison and Noel trying to distract you, as well as camera men and other bakers buzzing about.”
There was one part of each week where Josh didn’t feel calm and collected though – the technical bake, where the bakers didn’t know what was coming and had to follow a vague recipe from one of the judges.
“When it came to the signature and show-stopper bakes I would over prepare and plan everything – I couldn’t do that for the technical” Josh said.
But what now? Josh’s time on Bake Off has ended after making it all the way to the top three, and has loved the response from fans, taking selfies with strangers in the street and posting his bakes on his Instagram.
“My main love is still chemistry – I won’t be quitting my job anytime soon,” Josh was quick to clarify. “I’m definitely going to continue baking, but I have a few ideas of how to showcase chemistry alongside baking.”
Josh isn’t planning on disappearing after amazing all in the bake off tent and is excited to see what the future holds.
