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Ruby Tandoh rose to fame after finishing as a co-runner-up on the fourth season of The Great British Baking Show<\/em><\/a> back in 2013, and now, over a decade later, she is opening up about her time on the hit show.<\/p>\n The British baker and author recently penned an essay for The New Yorker<\/em><\/a>, discussing her experiences in the baking industry, including her time on the popular competition series, which originally aired on the BBC in the U.K. before moving to Channel 4. The series is available on Netflix in the U.S. (Season 4 is labelled as Collection 2 on the streamer).<\/p>\n Speaking about the filming process, Tandoh explained what would happen in the moments between challenges, sharing, per People<\/em><\/a>, \u201cWe\u2019d sit in a sofa-crowded snug in the east wing of the house, talking s*** and selectively sharing baking tips.\u201d<\/p>\n She also recalled how the show\u2019s former executive producer, Kieran Smith, once spoke to the contestants about why some critics find the show \u201cboring,\u201d blaming it on the camaraderie between the contestants.<\/p>\n \u201c\u2018The boring thing that everyone talks about is that [the show] is kind<\/em>,’\u201d she claimed Smith once said. \u201cWe didn\u2019t start o\ufb00 by going, \u2018We want to make a really kind, warm show.\u2019 Bakers are quite unusual television characters. It came from them.\u201d<\/p>\n Even though the show leaned into the \u201ckindness\u201d theme, Tandoh claimed that the producers would still employ the usual reality television tricks. Remembering how she and fellow contestant Glenn Cosby would sneak away for a cigarette, she said they often \u201cmoaned about the challenges and the ambushes from producers.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTheir overeager commiserations, the way they\u2019d bait you into narrating your downfall in real time,\u201d she stated. \u201cWe took slow drags, discussing the merits of poaching meringue in custard as producers scurried across the lawn with ingredients veiled under gingham.\u201d<\/p>\n Tandoh also noted she could see the \u201cedit\u201d coming together in the midst of the competition, explaining how she \u201ccould imagine how the footage would be metabolized in the edit.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere would be longer clips of the front-runners and the people at risk of going home; the rest of us would serve as the rhythm section, reading the recipes, putting things into the oven and taking them out, hitting the major beats of any particular challenge,\u201d she detailed. \u201cSomebody would be set up as a dark horse. Somebody else would be tripped up by their pride.\u201d<\/p>\n Tandoh ultimately finished as joint runner-up on Season 4, alongside Kimberley Wilson, both of whom lost out to Frances Quinn. Throughout her time on the show, Tandoh was the subject of fan debate, with some viewers accusing her of having an affair with judge Paul Hollywood<\/a> to get ahead in the competition.<\/p>\n Following the end of the season, Tandoh came out as gay and slammed those who had accused her of being attracted to Hollywood. \u201cP.S. For those who thought I fancied Paul Hollywood or that I\u2019d ever bang him to get ahead \u2013 JOKE\u2019S ON YOU, YOU MASSIVE S***TING MISOGYNISTS,\u201d she wrote on X (then Twitter).<\/p>\n Hollywood responded to the tweet, blasting the former contestant for \u201cbringing me into your announcement.\u201d<\/p>\n When the show moved networks in 2016, Tandoh slammed Hollywood as a \u201cpeacocking manchild lingering wherever the money is.\u201d<\/p>\n