GBBO Data 2017: The Social Media Reaction, Episode by Episode

Mel, Sue and Mary may not be on the show anymore, but the GBBO data is still sweet.

Throughout this new season of GBBO, we’ll be tracking social media reactions to each episode, contestant and judge.

Will Channel 4’s new iteration of the Bake Off be better than last years? Only time (and data) will tell.

Without further ado, let’s get to that spoiler-heavy cakey analysis:

Skip to an episode

Episode 1 (Cake week)

Episode 2 (Biscuit week)

Episode 3 (Bread week)

Episode One: Cake Week

The first episode of GBBO on Channel 4 sparked 89,000 mentions of GBBO (and related words/hashtags) across Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Many of those mentions occurred towards the start (yay, new Bake Off!) and trailed off towards the end. Someone did go home, but the reaction wasn’t huge – perhaps people aren’t attached to the contestants yet.

Key moments included an outpouring of love for Noel Fielding at the beginning, an outpouring of hatred for the adverts (the whole 16 minutes and 42 seconds of them) and surprise at Paul Hollywood’s liberal use of the famous Hollywood Handshake.

Next up on our data menu, contestants:

Overall Flo was the top-mentioned baker (Flo made the incredible watermelon cake) – could she be the new Val?

Steven, this week’s Star Baker, came in second.

Steven’s amazing bread and sandwich cake was widely shared on Twitter.

Believe it or not, this is a chocolate cake. ??? #GBBO pic.twitter.com/GnSKXipsr7

— British Bake Off (@BritishBakeOff) August 29, 2017

And finally, lets take a look at how the judges and presenters went down.

First off, it’s clear that Noel Fielding made quite the splash. He and Sandi Toksvig had the highest % of positive mentions between them and the judges Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood.

#GBBO thought it wouldn't be the same without Mary, Mel & Sue. How wrong was I? Loved it. Warmed to Sandi and Noel immediately. #greatstart

— Gina (@mabbuscattus) August 29, 2017

Paul got a fair amount of hate.

"for my illusion cake I'm actually going to make Paul Hollywood" #GBBO pic.twitter.com/SKfDAnSzxl

— ｉｔ＇ｓ　ｊｏｓｈ (@JAL_txt) August 29, 2017

I honestly hope Mary, Sue and Mel are sitting in a group chat right now ripping Paul Hollywood to shreds #GBBO #GBBO2017

— annoymous user (@danceamy5am) August 29, 2017

Prue got a lot of Mary-related mentions:

Mary Berry bursts in shitfaced wielding an empty bottle of gin. "I MADE THIS TENT" She screams as she attacks Prue. #GBBO

— TechnicallyRon (@TechnicallyRon) August 29, 2017

But generally all the judges and presenters had more positive-categorized mentions than negative.

Episode Two: Biscuit Week

The second episode of this season of Bake Off didn’t quite get the same reception as the first. This week saw 29,000 tweets during air time on Channel 4, while last weeks saw some 60,000 more.

We can probably put this down to intrigue in the new season (we’d imagine viewer numbers dipped this week) and probably a lack of standout moments – no excess Hollywood Handshakes, no disasters, no watermelon cake. Lets face it, biscuits are a bit more bland than cakes.

In fact, the only standout moment in the mentions was when Youtube personality @AmazingPhil tweeted about the show.

Torturing myself by watching bake off without any snacks in the house ?

— Phil Lester (@AmazingPhil) September 5, 2017

Lets talk about contestants.

To start with, Flo was once again the top-mentioned baker. She was neither the star baker or the baker sent home – she’s just a popular lady who likes cocktails and chilling out in the tent with a cup of tea while everyone else panics.

Steven came in second and it’s no wonder: He was named star baker for the second time in a row – so has been star baker for 100% of the episodes so far. He’s definitely a favorite to win at the moment.

Moving on to judges, Noel Fielding again took the largest chunk of the mentions but didn’t dominate as much as last week. Paul Hollywood took 35% of the judge/presenter mentions (up from 18% last week).

Apart from naming himself a “powerful piper” Noel’s jumper was a key topic of conversation this week.

I am in love with Noel's jumper and I must have it immediately #GBBO pic.twitter.com/tcQVaajBqb

— Amy Van Gar (@amyvangar) September 5, 2017

Meanwhile, Prue’s glasses were another fashionable item on social.

Prue's glasses are giving Noel's jumper a run for its money #gbbo

— Helen vs ?? (@helen_f_b) September 5, 2017

What’s the key takeaway for this episode?

Ginspirational. #GBBO pic.twitter.com/Ql1hYmt8lQ

— British Bake Off (@BritishBakeOff) September 5, 2017

Episode Three: Bread Week

Tea cakes, cottage loaves and show-stopping squid ink bread were all part of Channel 4’s third installment of this season of Bake Off that saw a brand new Star Baker and a shock exit.

Episode three saw 21,210 mentions across social media – a drop from last week’s 29,000 and the first week’s 89,000.

There was only one real standout moment in the episode.

Flo was undoubtedly social media’s favorite baker – she got more mentions than any of the others in previous episodes. Flo fans were shocked at the judges’ decision to send her home.

Julia was this week’s Star Baker, though her social thunder was stolen by Steven who had won the title in the two previous episodes.

Looking at judges and presenters, there was a change in share of voice this week. Noel Fielding has previously been the top mentioned of the four, but this week it was Paul Hollywood.

The fact that scandalous photographs of him were splashed across the press this week did contribute to an increase in attention in the judge this week. That said, his top moments on social during this episode were nothing to do with events outside the tent.

His apparent love for Steven, demonstrated when he sat down in Steven’s chair to praise his show-stopper, as well as his reaction to a dodgy looking snail made of bread, were big moments for him.

bake off: the show where paul hollywood, a 51 year old man, nearly cries because a bread snail he's eating resembles an dick #GBBO

— olivia (@sivansmiless) September 12, 2017

Paul is so in love with Stephen. He's not even hiding it anymore. #GBBO

— sorry who? (@ursulanegus) September 12, 2017

Special mention this week must go to this excellent pun from Sandi Toksvig:

Prue Paul's Drag Race. Our job here is done. #BreadWeek #GBBO pic.twitter.com/PL84jOmIrq

— British Bake Off (@BritishBakeOff) September 12, 2017

Check back for updates on episode 4 next week!

Are you a journalist looking to cover our data? Email us at [email protected] for more information. And don’t forget to follow us @BW_React for our latest research!