Great British Bake Off

Sorry - you already said that Tricia

And it wasn't just the showstopper that they were judged on - she was consistently good all the way through the final.

I would have put Tamal as the winner, I thought his spider's web creation was brilliant, way above the other two

It was, but the brief was for a 'classic British cake' and actually I thought it looked a bit messy although very clever, (looked as if it would be delicious nonetheless) and his theme was a deserted Chinese village I think.

Ian's carrot cakes were typically British, I think, but Nadiya followed the brief very wittily with her 'Big Fat British Wedding Cake'!

I watched the final this afternoon - sad it's all over.
From this session I would have put Tamal as the winner, I thought his spider's web creation was brilliant, way above the other two.
But overall probably Nadiya was the more consistent.
I really enjoyed the whole series.

SuzieB that is terrible, but not atypical of the DM.

However if the DM was hoping to suggest that Tamal, and Nadiya were only included to be PC it is complete rubbish.
As the show went on everyone could see they were well ahead of the game.
I would be interested to know how they do their heats.

What has sex and religion to do with a cookery programme ?

I think it's sad that everything I've read about the final has referred to Tamal as "The Gay Anaesthetist" I can't see why people have to be labelled like this, he's just a nice young man who you'd be pleased to see when you were wheeled into the operating theatre. As his sister said, he's clever and good looking - why do we need to know more?

Far be it for me to defend the DM, but I don't see the problem with the article about the final. The Amanda Platell article earlier in the week was awful, but nothing new there.

in fact and a bit

Then again, some people may think that some left-wing publications are 'vile' and 'dangerous' because of some of the people they consort with and obtain information from (now escaped to the communist zone) and their naive editors.

The Sun and Daily Mail are vile
Can't speak for the Sun, but I thought the same as merlotgran and that the DM was singing Nadiya's praises (and I thought I posted above about that).

Without reading the publication how can anyone tell? Like commenting on tv programmes no-one has watched [hmm

Me too. Don't know what granjura's going on about.

I thought the Daily Mail was singing Nadiya's praises.

I think Sue ( and Mel) are great and would go so far as to say that without them the show would bomb as it did in America. There is no doubting the expertise of the judges but they are not scintillating presenters. Mel and Sue are empathetic and bring out the best in the contestants. As for the silly voices, they're pretty inconsequential. Get over it!

SuzieB- I so agree, she was wonderful and the best, and won. Her husband was amazing too- and the whole family perhaps made people think about assumptions too.

Indeed about the comments in the gutter press- and people still read that stuff, and join in. The Sun and Daily Mail are vile- how can anyone choose to support them is beyond me. (there I've said it).

Just loved Nadiya. There's a blog doing the rounds devoted entirely to her facial expressions. There were some horrible words about the final in the press I gather - it was too p.c. according to the Daily Mail. Ian was too 'right on', Tamal was gay and Asian, and Nadiya was a Muslim. Gawd help us!!

What a great final! Didn't she deserve the win? Started off so lacking in confidence but as weeks went on we could see her begin to blossom. She deserved the accolade - they were all so friendly and helpful to each other in this series. It was a joy to watch. Roll on GBBO 2016!

mccullough your young friend's ego is probably not large enough for the Apprentice programme! I just wonder if some of them really believe their own hype!

I so warmed to Nadiya as the series progressed, what a lovely, lovely, lady. What a handsome husband too - my FB friends noted that enmasse.

I'm not exactly a sniffy person but when Mary Berry faltered as she talked about Nadiya and how she had grown in confidence to give the astounding performances that she gave, that finished me, I had a little sniffle too.

I bet someone has an academic dissertation on the go about exactly why the series is so popular. I like it because apart from Sue's lengthy pause before announcing the winner it has none of the false tension or deliberate play on emotions that other 'talent' shows engender, we didn't meet the families properly until the very end of the show.

It's all about cakes and baking - something that many of us associate with happy memories. I was allowed to cream the sugar and butter for the fairy cakes my Mum made and had a Christmas present of a mini baking set one year. Baking fairy cakes (in the microwave for speed, in later years, Paul and Mary would not approve) was something my childminded children all loved to do.

Well, that's it for me with competitive reality shows until next August - other than Strictly, oops. Although there's not much real life in Strictly, is there?

I don't watch The Apprentice although one of my young FB friends nearly made it on there this year. He has the same disability as me, though it affects him differently, and they were looking for a contestant with a disability, apparently. Wonder if they found someone... better not watch it to find out

Glad I wasn't the only one to well up. A brilliant result, well deserved. She has grown so much in confidence during this process.

She even taught Mary Berry something new - fondant icing made with marshmallows.

Nadiya was the best in all the three challenges on the day. She just seems a lovely person not too full of herself or over confident.

On the Radio earlier they were talking about the program and how friendly it was, suggesting that was why it is so popular. It's a feel good program. It is probably because all the contestants have a common interest. There is usually a lot of cooperation little nastyness.

I just looked at the chocolate & peanut concoction recipe. A scary array of ingredients and calories.

So disappointed - last night I had to go to bed early, thinking I could see it this morning - and this morning my Iplayer wouldn't run the final, the PC kept hanging!

I wanted her to win though - great.

A good result I think, Nadjia got her baking items perfectly done, so neat and she seemed calm, even if not, while the guys got in a flap.Afterwards we made a mug of tea and wished we had cake to go with it! All those cakes were amazing, would like to have had some of the carrot cake,mmmmn.

I'm not sure if I have felt emotional at the end of the previous series (I do blub easily though) , but this year's finalists, especially the winner just touched my heart.

Just caught up with it.

What wonderful showstoppers they all were and all looked delicious too.
A very worthy winner, so pleased.

Why did I cry - it's just a baking contest!!