Bake Off star unveils special cake for ship anniversary - BBC

Cake replica of SS Great Britain with smoking funnel

By Christopher Mace

BBC News

A Great British Bake Off winner has celebrated the 180th anniversary of a historic British ship by unveiling a replica made of cake.

Giuseppe Dell'Anno, who won the show in 2021, revealed the showstopper to a small audience at the SS Great Britain in Bristol.

Mr Dell'Anno, an engineer, then cut the cake in front of young engineers and their families.

He said: "Engineering and baking are more similar than you think."

"They are both about accuracy, precision, and they are both about creativity and being able to think outside the box - like with this magnificent cake," he added.

During the unveiling, Mr Dell'Anno poured dry ice in the funnel, to create artificial smoke.

The cake was made by Occasion Cakes in Bedminster and was carved out of a block made from several sheets of sponge.

It was then filled with buttercream and jam, and layers of icing were added.

Giuseppe Dell'Anno in front of the SS Great Britain cake replica

Isambard Kingdom Brunel's SS Great Britain was the first in the world to be made of iron and have a propeller.

It was launched by Prince Albert on 19 July 1843 in Bristol Harbour.

Accounts vary of the day, but one story is that the prince threw a bottle of champagne at the ship from a table to launch the ship, showering the crowd below in broken glass.

It would be a further two years before the ship made its maiden voyage to New York in 1845.

Iona Keen facing the camera, with the SS Great Britain behind her.

Head of Interpretation at the SS Great Britain, Iona Keen, said it is vital the ship is celebrated 180 years on.

"To have a ship of that age still with us is in itself a fantastic feat of engineering," she said.

"When she was born, she was the biggest ship of her kind, and is really the blueprint for modern ships and a key part of national and international history."

As well as the cake unveiling, the SS Great Britain team is celebrating the anniversary by making entry for up to two children free with an adult ticket through the summer.

A trail designed for children, called 'Birthday Banquet Blunder' where families follow clues to find food items hidden around the ship, is also running.

The idea of this is to show what food would have been like aboard the ship when it travelled back and forth between Britain and New York in the 19th century.