The Jubilee Pudding: when is competition hosted by Mary Berry on TV - and who are contestants and judges?

A search to find a brand new history-making pudding in honour of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee is the subject of a new BBC programme.

The Jubilee Pudding: 70 Years in the Baking follows five exceptional home bakers, who had been chosen from over 5,000 applicants, as they take part in a Fortnum & Mason competition to make an original dessert fit for Her Majesty.

The hour-long programme shows the bakers as they make their creations, which are then judged by Mary Berry and her friends.

The winner will then be announced by Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall.

So, what can viewers expect from the show, who are the contestants and the judges, and when is the show on TV?

What is The Jubilee Pudding: 70 Years in the Baking about?

The Jubilee Pudding: 70 Years in the Baking follows bakers as they take part in a national competition held by luxury London department store Fortum & Mason to mark the Queen’s historic platinum jubilee.

The contest was created to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s 70 years on the throne and aimed to find a baker to make an original and celebratory cake, tart or pudding fit for the monarch.

BBC One cameras followed the five bakers, Kathryn, Jemma, Sam, Shabnam and Susan,  on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity as they battled it out in the kitchens of the iconic London store to impress the judges .

The winning recipe will go down in history and become part of the British food story, following in the footsteps of favourites such as coronation chicken and the victoria sponge cake.

Who are the contestants?

There are five bakers who have each come up with a historic bake of their own.

They are:

Susan

Susan is a retired sales manager from Scotland and created a Four Nations Pudding.

She said: “I wanted to make something that would represent the UK coming together.

“It’s a light, summery pudding using ingredients from each country; Scottish berries, Yorkshire rhubarb, Welsh Cakes and Irish butter and cream.”

Jemma

Jemma is a copywriter from Southport who was inspired by the Queen’s wedding menu.

She said: “When I discovered the Queen had lemon posset at her wedding I decided the recipe had to be based around lemon flavour.

“I came up with my Lemon Swiss Roll and Amaretti Trifle pudding. I made several versions before adding amaretti and mandarins to make it more special.”

Shabnam

Shabnam is from London and has used her knowledge of an Indian recipe to create her pudding.

She said: “I decided on The Falooda which is a very elegant but simple-to-make pudding that originates from Mumbai.

“It has saffron sponges, and is topped with rose petal jelly and chopped nuts.

“The Queen has embraced a multiracial, multicultural society and I wanted my cake to reflect that as well as the Commonwealth.”

Sam 

Sam is a lawyer from Warwickshire who is making a Jubilee Bundt Cake.

“It’s a take on the classic British Victoria sponge shaped like a crown to reflect the celebrations.”

“Apparently the Queen’s favourite tipple is Dubonnet so I incorporated that into my jam so that it would have a bit of a kick.”

Kathryn 

Kathryn, a composer from Oxfordshire, made a Passion Fruit Layered Tart which contains creamy cheesecake, frangipane and buttery shortcrust pastry.

She said: “My pudding is inspired by my grandma who was a nurse for the NHS. It’s a take on a layer cake that she loved.

“My recipe marks 70 years of the Queen’s reign but is also in honour of my grandma’s many years of dedicated service.”

Who are the judges?

The judging panel which will decide which of the bakers’ creations will go down in history is chaired by Mary Berry.

Mary Berry is often referred to as the Queen of cakes, and has published more than 75 cookery books and has hosted several television series.

One of her most famous roles was as a judge on BBC One show The Great British Bake Off from its launch in 2010 until 2016, when it relocated to Channel 4.

Mary said: ““It’s a wonderful thought that perhaps this Jubilee pudding will be made for everyone celebrating whether at street parties, for family occasions, or even made for just two people. The Jubilee weekend will feel as though the country is united.”

The other judges are Monica Galetti, Rahul Mandal, Regula Ysewijn, Matt Adlard, Jane Dunn and Roger Pizey.

Chef Monica Galetti is a former judge on the BBC competitive cooking programme MasterChef: The Professionals.

Monica said: “I loved the sound of the competition, but then as soon as they said that Mary Berry was going to be Head judge I said, ‘of course.’ I just love her.”

Viewers will recognise Rahul Mandal as the winner of the 2018 series of The Great British Bake-Off.

Rahul said: “Even though I did grow up in India, the Royal Family is such a big thing there as well. So, it’s a bit like a dream and being a part of the Platinum Jubilee competition, it’s just an amazing opportunity.”

Regula Ysewijn is a culinary author and historian.

Regula said: “I’ve previously written a book about the history of British puddings, so it felt fitting to be involved and to become part of that history really.”

Matt Adlard is a self-taught pastry chef who runs an online baking school called Bake It Better, teaching others how to bake.

Matt said: “It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity, it’s not often that a Jubilee rolls around – and certainly not a Platinum one. To be one of just a handful of judges to be able to judge a pudding to celebrate The Queen is a unique, career-defining opportunity.”

Jane Dunn is a food writer, photographer and blogger who runs a blog called Jane’s Patisserie.

Jane said: “I just thought it was a once in a lifetime thing for everyone who was entering the competition and the judges. It was just such an amazing experience.”

Roger Pizey is an executive pastry chef for Fortnum & Mason.

Roger said: “I jumped at the chance to be involved, and I just think it’s been a huge sense of pride for us all at Fortnum & Mason.”

When is The Jubilee Pudding: 70 Years in the Baking on TV?

Jubilee Pudding: 70 Years in the Baking will be on BBC One on Thursday 12 May at 8pm.

It will be available to watch on BBC iPlayer shortly after broadcast.

It will also be repeated on BBC Two on Monday 23 May at 2am.

Is there a trailer for The Jubilee Pudding: 70 Years in the Baking?

Yes, there is a trailer for the programme.

You can watch it below.

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