37% Of People Think This Great British Bake Off Theme Is The Most Intense- Mashed Survey

Channel 4's "The Great British Bake Off," or "The Great British Baking Show" as it's officially known in the U.S., has become an unlikely hit on both sides of the pond. On the show, which recently rounded out its thirteenth season, 12 amateur bakers from across the United Kingdom compete in weekly challenges that measure their creativity and mastery of the craft, as well as their ingenuity, speed, and ability to think on their feet.

According to The Spectator, GBBO became one of America's most streamed programs in 2020. The publication points to a number of factors behind its American success, primarily the show's differences from American reality shows. The show's signature wholesome, help a neighbor in need attitude is certainly a big factor. Its calming lack of the super high-stress environment that comes along with shows where there's a big heap of prize money on the line also appeals to American audiences, and audiences worldwide love watching the weekly challenges and the showstopping bakes our bakers turn out. But which theme did fans think was the most intense? We took a survey to find out.

That doesn't mean U.S. viewers don't like it when things get intense under the tent, but we appreciate that the worst that happens when someone screws up is that they feel "gutted" (per The New York Times). In fact, viewers love to watch those hairpin moments when tension builds under the tents, and yes, contestants might just have to help one another to be able to finish in time (another viewer favorite). We asked 582 fans of "The Great British Baking Show" which week they felt was the most intense and here's what they said.

Apparently, the least stressful week of Bake Off is biscuit week, with only 9% of the vote, followed by the relatively tame chocolate week with 10.65% of the vote. This was neck in neck with bread week, whose plaited rolls only seemed intense to 11% of viewers we spoke asked. Cake week, the traditional opener for the show per Krish the Baker, surprisingly did not come in as the most intense week under the tent. It landed second with a little more than 31% of the vote. Coming in the lead with nearly 38% of the vote is pastry week, which comes towards the end of the competition. Past pastry week technical challenges have included Bakewell tarts, Fraisier cakes, and Cornish pasties. Participants were not asked where they ranked theme weeks on the scale.