The Great British Bake Off 2022 week 8: what is Pastry Week? Signature, technical, and showstopper explained

Five bakers remain on The Great British Bake Off, and the herd will be thinned down further this week as they take on three new pastry challenges. The bakers are fighting for a spot in the semi-final as they get ever closer to winning the coveted cake stand - and a bunch of flowers.

Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith will once again be on hand to offer support - and criticism - as the bakers are put through their paces, and hosts Matt Lucas and Noel Fielding will provide the friendly banter.

What happened last week?

Week eight was Custard Week, a reprisal of a theme last featured in 2013. The bakers had to make eight identical floating meringue islands, then they were tasked with whipping up six pistachio ice cream waffle cones. Finally, the showstopper saw the bakers create a set custard gateau.

Kevin became the latest baker to leave the competition after he messed up his meringues and served up a collapsed showstopper. Syabira was crowned star baker for the second week in a row, and she’ll be hoping to make it a hat-trick in Pastry Week.

Who is left on The Great British Bake Off?

Bake Off is down to the final five, they are:

• Syabira
• Abdul
• Maxy
• Janusz
• Sandro

Four will go through to next week’s semi-final - tonight one baker will be eliminated and another will be crowned the Pastry Week star baker.

What are the week 8 challenges?

Pastry Week is a longstanding feature of Bake Off, it was last seen in the previous season and the bakers tackled choux pastry doughnuts, a Turkish technical, and a savoury pastry pie.

The Signature

This week’s signature challenge will see the bakers making a dozen sweet vol-au-vents. These are hollow rings of puff pastry that can be topped with a variety of sweet or savoury fillings. Prue and Paul will be inspecting the batches to make sure that they look identical, and that each baker has made an even 12.

The Technical

For the technical, the bakers will have to make a ‘delicious savoury snack’, but we won’t have any more information on what the snack is until the episode airs. For the technical, bakers are expected to work from a very basic recipe, using their skills to produce a delicious, and perfectly cooked dish.

The Showstopper

As always, the showstopper challenge leaves plenty of room for creativity and chaos - the bakers will be challenged to make a 3D pie scene that is inspired by their favourite childhood story or nursery rhyme.

When is The Great British Bake Off on TV?

The next episode of The Great British Bake Off will air on Channel 4 at 8pm on Tuesday 1 November. Episodes are released at the same time weekly and will be available to watch on All 4 shortly after they are first broadcast.

An Extra Slice will air at 8pm on Friday 4 November, and Jo Brand will be joined by Joe Wilkinson, Judi Love, and Maisie Adam as they get stuck into Pastry Week.