Why Great British Bake Off Star Giuseppe Kept His Show Application A Secret

Giuseppe Dell'Anno, the most recent winner of "The Great British Bake Off," impressed scores of viewers with his raw talent as he baked delectable treats for the show's judges inspired by his Italian heritage. According to Vulture, the baker decided to divide his time between Italy and the U.K. after his GBBO win last year. "I had applied for this new [engineering] job in Milan at the same time as I was applying to 'Bake Off,' convinced that I wouldn't get either of those," he explained. "But then you've got to be careful what you wish for, as I ended up with a yes from both sides."

It was a huge deal to be a part of the show and to know that his skills were impressive enough for the competition: the baker admitted that it was "a big validation exercise" to join the team and bake in front of highly experienced bakers like Paul Hollywood. However, before Giuseppe became popular among GBBO fans, he had to stay mum about his win on the show for months — even his loved ones didn't know about the results (via Wales Online).

According to Giuseppe Dell'Anno, by the time he had won the top prize on "The Great British Bake Off," the season had not yet aired on TV. So, he didn't tell his family about the milestone for four months. He told Wales Online that he didn't spill the beans especially in front of his children because "the whole village would have known in half an hour!" 

In fact, at first, he even hesitated to talk about applying to the show because he wasn't sure how it would turn out and was a little embarrassed about his decision to apply. He said, "Only when I got the first call back from the production I said 'well I can't keep it a secret any longer can I?'" 

Everything said and done, Dell'Anno admits that he has benefitted greatly from his time on the show and learned that it's OK to be himself. "When you realize that you've put yourself almost naked in front of the cameras and have the audience accept you for what you are, it's validating," he told Vulture. "It's a way of saying it's okay to look like that and be you."