Despite the best efforts of north Londoner Tom Arden and his fellow competitor Aaron Mountford-Myles, the crown of star baker went to Edinburgh medical student Jasmine Mitchell.
Tom told Jasmine: “Oh my God, It was always you!” as he hugged her when her name was called out as winner.
The 23-year-old’s first response was: “Oh my goodness I am just so overjoyed.”
After winning an unprecedented five star baker awards during the series she was favourite to win the Channel 4 baking contest although on the final day Tom came out top in two of the three challenges.
The final signature bake to make 12 filled and iced finger buns proved difficult for Tom who had a mix up with ingredients and Aaron whose dough was declared tough by judge Paul Hollywood.
They all struggled with the technical challenge to make a tower of decorated white chocolate and lemon madeleines but Tom came out on top.
Then came the all-important Showstopper with the finalists tasked with creating a 1.2-metre-long “elegant and exquisite” table cake, with flavour and decoration with Jasmine and Tom both lavished with praised for their efforts by judges Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith.
It led some fans to criticise the outcome with one posting on X “Jasmine had a great competition, but if we’re judging it on the final itself – Tom was totally robbed.”
Another wrote: “Based on the final Tom should have won, 2 out of 3 challenges he was first. In the rounds that’s how it would have been.”
But Judge Prue Leigh said: “The thing about Jasmine is that she has been steady all the way through, almost unheard of to be so consistent and so good.”
Tom, who grew up in north London learning to bake scones and flapjacks with his mum and Danish granny, had stepped back from the advertising agency he founded to pursue his love of food.
Posting last week on Instagram after learning he was through to the final he wrote: “No caption is going to do this experience justice and show just how special these three people are.”
He was spotted having a friends and family watching party at his local pub The Grafton in Kentish Town during the early weeks of the baking contest.
