He is the hotly-tipped star of the new Bake Off series, wowing the judges with a perfect chessboard biscuit and sublime ‘sandwich’ cake – all the while crediting his mum with inspiring his love of baking.
Recalling a childhood defined by an oven gently cooking pies, cakes and toad in the hole, Steven Carter-Bailey has waxed lyrical about the influence Judi has had on his culinary life.
However, both he and his mother may be rather put out to discover that his father has wasted little time in denouncing his former wife’s skills.
Michael James, married to Judi for less than six years, told Mail Online today that his first wife was so hopeless in the kitchen she was unable to boil an egg.
‘The claim he’s from a long line of female bakers is a load of old tosh,’ he said.
‘Don’t forget I was married to his mother and she couldn’t boil a bloody egg. It was a job for me getting her to cook me Sunday morning breakfast.’
Favourite: Steven Carter-Bailey, the hotly tipped star of the new Bake Off series, has wowed the judges with a perfect chessboard biscuit and sublime ‘sandwich’ cake – all the while crediting his mum (above) with inspiring his love of baking
Favourite: Mr James, a 34-year-old retired builder, has few kind words to say about his son, who has been awarded Star Baker in the first two programmes on the Channel 4, adding dismissively ‘I’m not really that interested’
‘Mum Can’t cook’: But Steven’s father Michael James (bottom left), who was married to Judi for nearly six years, told Mail Online today that his first wife was so hopeless in the kitchen she ‘couldn’t boil a bloody egg’
Mr James, a retired builder, has few kind words to say about his son, who has been awarded Star Baker in the first two programmes on the Channel 4, or his ex-wife, from whom he split more than 30 years ago.
‘I’m not really that interested,’ he added, dismissively. ‘I don’t watch Bake Off. I would have been much more interested if he had joined the military or was a lorry driver.’
Mr James, 63, who lives in Buckinghamshire, married Steven’s mother Judi in 1979 and the couple had Katie, now 36, who manages a call centre for electricians, and Steven, 34, before separating when the children were little.
Since then Steven appears to have distanced himself from his father, changing his surname. Although both are friends with Katie on Facebook, they are not friends with each other.
One exchange about Steven’s sexuality highlights the tension between them.
In a post on Katie’s Facebook page, Steven wrote: ‘Or he has to have the awkward conversation in the pub with his dad just like I did when you outed me!’ ‘Serves you right!’ Katie quipped. ‘You’re a disgrace!!! X’
‘as i remember it steven you were the only one feeling awkward,’ wrote Mick, ‘all i wanted was for you to tell me in person what i had known all along.’
Close bond: Recalling a childhood defined by an oven gently cooking pies, cakes and toad in the hole, Steven Carter-Bailey has waxed lyrical about the influence Judi (above with his sister in the striped jumped and Steven asleep) has had on his culinary life
Mr James, 63, father of bake king Steven and sister Katie, told MailOnline: ‘I don’t watch Bake Off. I would have been much more interested if he had joined the military or was a lorry driver.’
Since his parents’ divorce in the mid 80s, Steven, pictured with his nephews, appears to have distanced himself from his father, changing his surname. Although both are friends with Katie on Facebook, they are not friends with each other.
Yesterday Mr James admitted: ‘I don’t see him very much at all. I see his sister more. I have four sons but she is my only daughter. Steven is 34 years old. He can do what he likes. If he wants to paint his face black and walk on his hands, he can. He would probably be very good at it.’
Steven, who is second favourite with the Bookies to win Bake Off, has stunned followers on Instagram with his culinary skills. He posted a photograph of a zombie cake he cooked for his nephew Louie.
The marketing manager, who comes from Watford, has told how he was taught to cook by his mother at the age of nine and developed a lifelong interest in baking. But it was only after he ditched the takeaways and began to cook from scratch that he lost his puppy fat. He has slimmed by five stone.
‘My mum has been such a massive influence on me, he told the Radio Times.’ My grandmother was a war time nurse and she was always on the go, so never had the time to bake.
‘When my mum had children, she wanted to provide a warm environment where the oven was always on. Toad in the hole, pies, cakes, she always had something on the go.
‘I learnt so much as I grew up watching mum bake. The first thing I ever made was a lemon drizzle cake at the age of nine and I carried on from there. I’ve now been baking for 25 years!’
Mr James said of his eldest son and Bake Off: ‘He can do what he likes. If he wants to paint his face black and walk on his hands, he can. He would probably be very good at it’
Recalling his mother’s influence, Steven said: ‘I learnt so much as I grew up watching mum bake. The first thing I ever made was a lemon drizzle cake at the age of nine and I carried on from there. I’ve now been baking for 25 years!’
Despite Mr James’s dismissive swipe at his ex-wife, Steven’s uncle Christopher insisted Judi – his wife’s sister – was an excellent cook and believes Steven has the necessary skills to win the competition. Pictured: A zombie cake Steven cooked for his nephew Louie
Despite Mr James’s dismissive swipe at his ex-wife, Steven’s uncle Christopher insisted Judi – his wife’s sister – was an excellent cook who used to work at the local pub. He believes Steven has the necessary skills to win the competition.
‘Judi has always been a very good cook,’ he said. ‘She has always had a very large family to cook for. She used to cook at the local pub. They were devastated when she left.
‘I think that’s probably where he gets it from. I think he has got a good chance of winning it. We know Judi went to the after-show party but she hasn’t said a word about who won. We will have to wait and watch it on television.’