The Great British Baking Show: Holidays Season 5 dropped right around Thanksgiving time in the States and, despite its early release date, this two-episode special is perfect holiday fare.
The Holiday Seasons, much like the regular series (and the celebrity episodes you can find now on The Roku Channel) is fairly formulaic — amateur bakers come to the famed tent to create epicurean delights for Christmas and New Year’s. They are judged in three different challenges by the eternally silver Paul Hollywood (and a co-judge — Mary Berry or Prue Leith) while two comedian hosts pepper the show with wry British humor.
The wheel is never reinvented on the series, nor does it need to be. That’s because The Great British Baking Show Holidays is like a classic Christmas cookie your parent/partner/friend makes every single year. Sure, it tastes exactly the same, but it’s a wonderful thing you love to revisit. (Much like this paragraph which appeared in my review of Season 4 — yes, one can be a fan of their own work).
Yet, The Great British Baking Show Holidays Season 5 feels a bit different this year. This season feels more joyous, more merry … more fun. The main reason is the specter of the pandemic has been lifted. Last season, the absence of Noel Fielding definitely made things feel more serious than usual — especially since we in the States were going through a massive surge of positive COVID cases. This time around in the tent things feel merry and bright, and the escapist vibe this show embodies feel more palpable than ever.
Contestant selections also changed the nature of the season. The Christmas episode featured the cast of It’s a Sin. The series, produced by current Doctor Who impresario Russel T. Davis, airs on Channel 4 in the UK. The series revolves around the lives of a group of gay men and their friends and family during the AIDS crisis in the United Kingdom from 1981 to 1991. While the subject matter of the series is wildly important and serious, the cast brought a heaping helping of fun, frivolity and friendliness to the tent — not unlike what the cast of Derry Girls did back on the 2020 New Year’s episode. This episode is an absolute laugh riot and an instant Baking Show classic.
The New Year’s Special episode was bolstered by the quality of contestants returning. Hermine, Kim-Joy, Rowan, and Jon were all top-notch contestants in their respective seasons. Well, let’s walk that back for a second – Rowan definitely struggled during his season. Yet, in this special, he showed out and it’s always a joy to watch someone who had a hard time in their season come back and redeem themselves. The quality of these contestants made for one terrific contest as every challenge was tightly contested and the end products they created were a thing of beauty.
If there is one sour note to this special, it’s that this is likely the last hurrah for Matt Lucas as a presenter. The Doctor Who and Little Britain alum recently announced his departure from the show. While his presenting role was highly divisive, he and Noel did have very nice chemistry. It’ll be intriguing to see who they bring in to replace him. The wrestling fan in me is all for the WWE’s Sami Zayn to take over his role, but I’m sure there’s a plethora of wonderful British comedians who can slot right in for Lucas.
The Great British Baking Show: Holidays Season 5 is the perfect piece of pop culture to curl up on the couch to watch after a long work day or after decorating the house, the perfect show to use as a bit of holiday inspiration or to have in the background during a get together. It’s a wonderful present for us every year.
