Comedian and restaurateur Adam Hills is bringing humour and Australian flair to the Bake Off tent for a cause very close to his heart
The Great Celebrity Bake Off for Stand Up to Cancer Sunday 7.40pm C4
Adam Hills has never shirked a challenge. The comedian has played for his home country of Australia at the inaugural Physical Disability Rugby League World Cup, transformed perceptions of disability and reinvigorated topical satire alongside Alex Brooker and Josh Widdicombe on Channel 4’s The Last Leg, and joined his co-stars to set a world record for putting on five jumpers. But now comes the fiercest test of all: impressing Paul Hollywood in The Great Celebrity Bake Off for Stand Up to Cancer.
Does good food beat good comedy?
It’s funny you say that. Since becoming a restaurateur [Hills co-owns Freak Scene, a pan-Asian restaurant in London], I’ve found an extra level of satisfaction in people having not just a laugh, but an excellent meal. I can’t really explain it. I’m relatively quiet in public, almost introverted, whereas on stage a certain character comes out. In the restaurant, it’s a different part of me, more like Rocky Balboa in his later years when he owns a restaurant, chatting to people and topping up drinks. In ten years, I’m worried it’ll be me hanging around the restaurant, telling stories about The Last Leg.
Did being a restaurateur give you an unfair advantage in the Bake Off tent?
You know, at no point did it occur to me to get some tips from Scott [Hallsworth], the chef at Freak Scene. Partly because, I mean, it was more about baking and Freak Scene is more about Asian punk, bao buns and sashimi pizzas. But in retrospect I really should have got some tips from him.
Do you bake at home?
Our eldest daughter [with his wife, soprano Ali McGregor] is 13 and can whip up an amazing lemon drizzle. The younger one is ten and needs a bit of help, so we started baking together. One day she wanted to make pizza dumplings because she liked the idea of them. They were pretty good! I got a bit cocky after that.
Were you satisfied with your performance on Bake Off?
I think I gave good comedy… Paul Hollywood came over and said, “I haven’t seen you since you hosted Fifteen to One – I was the first celebrity knocked out because I got the hardest questions.” I said, “Are you carrying a grudge?” He just smiled, winked and walked off. He totally got in my head, but I was desperate to impress “Dad” with my Australian flavours. I didn’t even want Hollywood handshakes, all I wanted was for him to take a bite of something I’d cooked and say, “Yeah, that’s not too bad.”
So your expectations were sensibly low?
Oh, absolutely. What I tried to do was bring a bit of Australian flavour to the tent, partly because I just thought it would be a novelty, partly because it’d be in my comfo
