Bonnie Wright crowned Star Baker!

Bonnie Wright (Ginny Weasley) appeared last night (January 13) on the Sport Relief Bake Off, the charity celebrity version of the hit BBC baking show, The Great British Bakeoff. This Sport Relief special is part of a wider campaign to raise money and awareness for Sport Relief.

The other celebrities competing alongside Bonnie were Michael Vaughan (former England cricket captain), Samantha Bond (actress), and Johnny Vaughan (broadcaster).

Bonnie admitted to being a keen baker, having baked as long as she has been acting. Bonnie joked with the host, Sue Perkins, that her Potter role had all been building up to this moment.

Plenty of Harry Potter jokes were made throughout the program – from one of the contestants talking about using magic to make a cake bake and from Sue, the presenter, asking Bonnie what house she would be sorted into (Sue, Gryffindor, while Mary Berry was Ravenclaw).

The first challenge was to make twelve sandwich biscuits. Bonnie chose to make cardamom shortbread with a yogurt and mango center, which were rated highly by Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood, the two judges on the show. Next was the blind challenge, where none of the contestants know what they’re going to bake and have never seen the recipe before. Both Mary and Paul praised Bonnie’s tarte tatin and said that it tasted “very good” before the two judges named Bonnie first in the technical challenge.

In the final showstopper challenge, the contestants had to create a 3D cake in the shape of a recognizable sporting landmark. Bonnie chose to make a Cowes Regatta Cake since she said that her family is very nautical. Both Paul and Mary applauded Bonnie on her final creation, admiring both the look and the taste of the cake. Paul said that it was “a good professional looking cake.”

Sue announced that Bonnie was to be crowned Star Baker by saying, “ten points to the house of Gryffindor” and giving Bonnie a special Sport Relief apron and a bouquet of flowers. Bonnie said,

I’ll wear it when I’m baking at home. I don’t want to wash off the nice messages from Paul and Mary.

Congratulations, Bonnie – a fantastic win!

For more baking trivia relating to Bonnie, visit the BBC program page. If you’re in the UK, you can catch up with the show on BBC Iplayer. For those of you, not in the UK the show is now available above, in full on YouTube!

Did you manage to see Bonnie baking? What did you think of her baking skills?