Marc Elliott, from St Eval, made it through the first two rounds of Channel 4’s The Great British Bake Off and after a slightly rocky start in week one hopes were high as he finally got to show off one of his areas of expertise.

Bread was one of the first things Marc started baking following a motorbike accident in 2016 that saw him lose a leg.

Indeed, the episode started with him telling the camera: “Bread’s the one area I probably have more experience in. But am I more confident? I don’t know.”

This week’s signature challenge saw bakers asked to make two soda bread loaves, one sweet and one savoury, plus a homemade flavoured butter.

It proved to be a messy start for Marc – literally, as he covered himself in buttermilk, looking not a little like a seagull had used him as target practice.

It was a fitting adornment for his Cornish-themed savoury soda bread, featuring Cornish Kern cheese that he said was based on a Cornish Yarg. He went on to add Cornish kelp and sea salt.

Paul pronounced it “very rustic”, adding “I love that.”

Unfortunately, Prue described his sweet loaf, filled with cranberries and chocolate chips, as “a little doughier,” with Paul agreeing it was “a bit more cake-like” and lacking in flavour.

It was Hermine who got the coveted Hollywood Handshake, with Paul describing her loaves as “very special.”

For the technical challenge Paul set six rainbow-coloured bagels, as a nod to the NHS – and some of the efforts looked as though could have done with some resuscitation.

Fast cementing himself as the kind of double entendre, Rowan declared of his bagels: “I’m hoping they’ll puff up again and hide the wrinkly bits they’ve got.”

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