“Reveal your cracks.” “I want to romp in your forest” – the Great British Bake Off is back: so ready, set… BAKE!

Wednesday saw a brand new set of amateur bakers take up their positions at their ovens with the launch of the sixth series of The Great British Bake Off. The Bake Off Tent has already been surrounded by gossip – one of the contestants was allegedly trained in Paris, and the winner has been leaked to the media. But other than that, not much has changed: Mel and Sue are as full of innuendo as ever, and Mary and Paul are, well, as Mary and Paul as ever.

The series kicks off with Cake Week: the signature challenge involves a Madeira cake, the technical challenge is a walnut cake, and the showstopper the 70s classic Black Forest Gâteau. This oeuvre is a bit disappointing in its simplicity; the basic Madeira with its defining crack on the top lends itself to some innuendo but not much else (the most creative attempt at the classic is deemed not a Madeira cake at all), while the only technical challenge in producing a walnut cake seems to be chopping the walnuts into small enough chunks. The Black Forest Gâteau fares better: the contestants manage to create some exciting forests (one of which Mel can’t wait to romp in), and there is even one near-catastrophe that the more Schadenfreude-inclined viewer will take delight in.

Judging by the first episode, the new batch of bakers are much like the first round of challenges: conventional, homely, and overall not that intriguing. No one leaves much of an imprint on the viewer: no one matches Ruby from series four in being as annoying, no one is quite as charming as Norman from the following series, and the youngest contestant has already been dubbed 'the new Martha’.  

Despite the lack of stand-out characters, the bakers do have their moments: rather harrowingly, Tamal the trainee anesthetist uses a syringe to inject his Madeira cake with rosewater, and Paul the contestant bears a disturbing resemblance to Paul the professional baker. But the most fun is to be had from hat-clad-hipster Stu’s consistently failing innovations. What on earth is going on with that beetroot in his Black Forest Gâteau?

It may not have been the most thrilling opening episode of all time, but thrill is not what you want from the Bake Off. It delivers exactly what you expect, even if not at its very best this time round: a cosy evening cuddled up under blankets with hot chocolate and apple crumble. Admit it – that’s why we love it.