Cherish Finden and Benoit Blin are back searching for Britain's best patisserie team as Bake Off: The Professionals returns to screens for another season.

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As ever, 12 teams will be welcomed to the glorious Firle Place as they compete for the title of the very best. In tonight's episode (Monday 10th June), the teams will be tasked with a secret challenge in which the chefs must rely on their knowledge and teamwork to create 36 individual tarte aux fraise and one chocolate amenity in just three and a half hours!

As the series kicks off with its seventh season, here's everything you need to know about the cast of Bake Off: The Professionals.

Bake Off: The Professionals 2024 cast

The teams taking part in the new series of Bake Off: The Professionals are as follows:

  • Adi and Flo
  • Ajay and Petra
  • Ashley and Kian
  • Ben and Jason
  • Bharat and John
  • Carlos and Fausto
  • Emese and Abi
  • Gerol and Michael
  • Kate and Hayley
  • Nathan and Andrew
  • Neil and Nicole
  • Tanuj and Narayan

You can read more about them below.

Adi and Flo

After meeting at a PR event over two years ago, Adi and Flo have decided to join forces for this year's competition.

Team captain Adi studied film before realising it wasn't for her and decided to dabble in patisserie and gained experience in Michelin starred restaurants and catering for high profile brands like Chanel and Vivienne Westwood.

Since becoming a pastry chef, Flo has gone on to work at some of the hottest spots across London including Bodega Ritas and Happy Endings.

Ajay and Petra from Adam's

Birmingham-based Michelin starred restaurant Adam's is being represented by Ajay and Petra at this year's Bake Off: The Professionals.

Ajay spent most of his childhood helping his mum bake cakes and make the family meals. After enrolling into culinary college and joining Purnells, Ajay joined Adam's in 2021 and has worked his way up to Senior Pastry Chef.

As the youngest of seven children, Petra has a competitive spirit which will be needed for this competition.

Ashley and Kian from Pudding Lab

Co-owners Ashley and Kian believe in putting a modern twist on classic patisserie and bringing a touch of theatre to their creations.

Team captain Ashley spent six years working on super yachts as a private chef including the likes of Seal and Heidi Klum before settling back in Yorkshire.

Kian has a passion for cooking, which stems from his grandmother and father's heritage.

Ben and Jason

This isn't the first time team captain Ben has taken part in Bake Off: The Professionals, having made it to the final six in season 7. Since then, Ben has worked for the likes of Cédric Grolet, L'oscar London and Arôme Bakery.

Jason comes from a family of chefs, with both his parents and twin brother all having skills in the kitchen.

Bharat and John from Soko Patisserie

Having met over five years ago, Bharat mentored John to the final of the UK and Ireland Chocolate Masters and they now work alongside one another.

Carlos and Fausto from Real Pâtisserie

Team captain Carlos has been the Executive Pastry chef at Real Pâtisserie for the past year and a half, with teammate Fausto joining the team a year ago. Carlos trained at Le Cordon Bleu before moving to the UK in 2013 and then to Brighton.

For Fausto, he began his career in hospitality at 17 years old and has worked in patisseries and restaurants in Italy, Belgium and the UK.

Emese and Abi from The Pig at Combe

The Pig at Combe is one in a series of upmarket hotels across the UK, which first opened in 2011 and has a focus on good and using local produce.

Team captain Emese is the head pastry chef and is joined by her friend and colleague Abi.

Gerol and Michael from The Royal Air Force Club

The Royal Air Force Club is a private members club for current and former RAF officers.

In her 30s, Gerol switched from marketing to baking and landed a position at The Wolseley before joining the Royal Air Force Club.

Michael has over 28 years of experience and in 2009 he received the award of Master of Culinary Arts, which is regarded as the ultimate accolade for chefs and pastry chefs.

Kate and Hayley from Cake Ninja

Set up by Kate, Cake Ninja is named after her love of martial arts. She and Hayley are both self-trained pastry chefs and are full of personality, never without a smile on their faces.

Hayley had plans to train to be a midwife before she became a pastry chef.

Nathan and Andrew from Crossbasket Castle

Crossbasket Castle is a 17th century castle hotel which has since been transformed into a five-star exclusive Scottish retreat.

Helming the team is Nathan, alongside his friend and colleague Andrew.

After taking part in cooking competitions, Nathan went on to work at various five star establishments across South Africa, the USA and UK before making a permanent move in 2022.

Andrew also spent most of his childhood around food, often helping his mother's wedding cake business. He has worked at some of Scotland's finest establishments, including Gleneagles Hotel and Cromlix.

Neil and Nicole from Balbirnie House

Balbirnie House is a luxury country house hotel located in Fife, Scotland.

Representing Balbirnie House is team captain Neil, who has over 20 years worth of experience, who is joined by Nicole who made a career change in her 30s to pursue her love for baking.

Tanuj and Narayan from InterContinental London – The O2

Team captain Tanuj moved to the UK when he was just 10 years old and spent his whole childhood surrounded by food. After college, Tanuj spent time at The Savoy before joining the InterContinental team.

Tanuj is joined by Narayan who had a successful career in the Middle East working at five star establishments in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha before making the move to the UK.

Bake Off: The Professionals begins on Monday 10th June at 8pm on Channel 4.

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Authors

Katelyn MensahEntertainment and Factual Writer

Katelyn Mensah is the Entertainment and Factual Writer for Radio Times, covering all major entertainment programmes, reality TV shows and the latest hard-hitting documentaries. She previously worked at The Tab, with a focus on reality TV and showbiz news and has obtained a BA (Hons) in Journalism.

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