EXCLUSIVE: Alison Hammond tells us her perfect recipe for romance as she also teased what is coming up on The Great British Bake Off
Now home from hospital after a panic attack forced her to leave This Morning live on air, Alison Hammond will be getting care and attention from her loved ones. And Alison believes fate has brought her together with her boyfriend and it was “meant to be”.
The Great British Bake Off co-host seems to have all the ingredients for a lasting long term relationship. She met massage therapist and model David Putman, 29, just over three years ago when he came to give her a massage.
Looking back Alison, 51, says: “It was so random how we met – but it was meant to be! I absolutely adore him, he is lovely. We are obsessed with each other. He loves me. If you met him, he has such a calming nature which is what I need. He is not like me in any way. It’s grounding.”
TV host Alison, who has 21-year-old son Aidan from a previous relationship, spoke to the Mirror about the new series of Bake Off before she was forced off the This Morning set on Friday clutching her chest. Thankfully she told fans at the weekend it was nothing serious and tests had proved it was a panic attack and she is “all clear”.
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Resting up now, she will be back on our screens on on Bake Off tomorrow night as it is pre-recorded, and the launch episode of series 17 delivered an audience of 6.1m over seven days. The Channel 4 series so far, featuring new judge Nigella Lawson, is the strongest launch share since Series back in 2020.
And the good news is the action on screen is set to get even hotter as Nigella and fellow judge Paul Hollywood clash in the coming weeks. Teeing things up, Alison says: “It’s very different. They don’t always necessarily agree. “It’s so exciting watching. I was like ‘ooh what is he going to do, what is she going to say?!’
“She likes things less sweet, she likes the spice just right. Paul likes the sweet. He is more a sweet person, less salty so you can see there is a clash there. Sometimes one will be saying one thing, and the other will be saying the other, so it’s really interesting. It’s nice for the bakers. They can take whichever side they want to take.
“You are going to get fireworks, laughs, everything Bake Off is but tenfold! It’s brilliant.
“Prue and Paul always agreed, so it’s completely different, which I am kinda glad about. You don’t want the same do you? It feels like a new tent.”
And with the contestants ageing from 21 to 67 there is plenty of variety in the styles and the personalities in the tent too.
Alison explains: “I love the bakers. They are so interesting, there are a lot of young bakers this year and they are on another level. I don’t know if it is Instagram and social media but the way they have got great experience, well where have they ot that experience from? They are only 20,21. How are they that good? So, it’s really interesting watching the bakers, watching them learn and bond, which is lovely.
“So Gen Z can not only bake but they are like professionals, honestly. They are unbelievable. They are pumping out Instagram worthy bakes – but do they taste good? You will have to wait and see.”
Looking ahead, Alison also gave fans a tease of the Bake Off final, and said things did not go completely to plan. She says: “We’ve got disasters and you don’t want disasters in the final. But there are some! OMG it’s going to be so good.
“Put it this way, one person stands out but will they get to the end?”
She was also full of praise for new judge Nigella, with the pair bonding at a hotel meeting before filming even began. Alison says: I don’t think I would have ever had contact with Nigella Lawson. When would I? But I realised I absolutely love this person; she is so the person I should be hanging out with. We get on really well. She is very caring, which is lovely.
“There is so much more to Nigella. I thought she would play up more to that sexy feel but she doesn’t even know she has got it! She is just sexy – and she doesn’t know she is doing it! She is beautiful, wholesome, lovely, kind and generous woman. I just thought OMG she is my type of woman straight away. She told me about her kids, her background and I did the same. She is just a lovely mum, which is lovely.”
Asked for her highlight of the series, Alison adds: “I made a bread-and-butter pudding at the back of the tent. Nigella absolutely loved it. She said: ‘you are such a good baker’. I was like wow. Paul tasted my bread-and butter pudding and gave me a shake. I said ‘are you joking?’ and he said no! It’s my first (handshake). My baking skills have got so much better, a million per cent.”
* The Great British Bake Off continues on Channel 4 on Tuesday night at 8pm.
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