Who is Manon Lagreve? Meet the Great British Bake Off 2018 contestant
The 26-year-old French baker loves to post updates on her creations to Instagram
Manon Lagreve is one of the 12 contestants taking part in The Great British Bake Off 2018.
The 26-year-old, who lives in London but is originally from France, said that when she came to England, "Bake Off was one of the first shows we watched together on TV."
And now, she's on the show!
- A banker, a blood courier and a DJ: meet The Great British Bake Off cast of 2018
- Bake Off hosts Noel Fielding and Sandi Toksvig go Back to the Future as Doc Brown and Marty McFly
Join us every Wednesday at 11am on the Radio Times YouTube Channel for a LIVE Bake Off recap and chat
The Software Project Manager learned how to bake from her mother and grandmother in France, although says that she discovered her passion for it when she came to London as an au pair.
If she were to invent a crisp flavour on GBBO, she says it would be "goat cheese, honey and rosemary", and when it comes to baking an illusion cake, she would make "a very colourful Poke – it's a Hawaiian raw fish dish. So it would be avocado, salmon, wasabi mayonnaise, edamame beans. All made from sponge and fondant." Sounds incredible!
Manon also posts amazing pictures of her bakes on Instagram, like this pistachio and raspberry cake:
Bake Off won't be the first time Manon has cooked on TV. Back in 2015, she appeared on BBC1 series The Box. Hosted by James Martin, home cooks were tasked with making delicious meals from the ingredients given to them in a box.
Manon's Bake Off journey
Manon got off to a flyer in Biscuit Week, the opening episode of the show, earning Star Baker from Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith for her precise and pretty bakes. Paul called her style "very classically French in many ways" after her matcha and white chocolate selfie showstopper secured her top spot in week one.
But in Cake Week, Manon wasn't so cool in the kitchen - letting slip the F-word (no, not frosting) in the Bake Off tent and leading viewers to exclaim: “Excuse your French!”
The Bake Off tent waved au revoir to Manon in Dessert Week, after her smørrebrød (open sandwich) and kagekone (a cake made from decorated Danish pastries) both proved to be more of a celebration of France than of Denmark.
Manon Lagreve: Key facts
Age: 26
From: London (originally from France)
Job: Software Project Manager
Instagram: @manonlagreve
The Great British Bake Off airs Tuesdays on Channel 4 at 8pm
