Nataliia Great British Bake Off 2025: Who is the Ukrainian office assistant based in East Yorkshire competing on GBBO?
Ukrainian contestant Nataliia has lived in East Yorkshire for four years and she will be bringing traditional Ukrainian recipes to the new series of The Great British Bake Off.
The Great British Bake Off series 16 will air its first episode on September 2, 2025.
Judges Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith as well as presenters Alison Hammond and Noel Fielding will return to the Channel 4 show along with 12 contestants, with two based in Yorkshire.
Each episode will follow a group of bakers competing in a series of challenges and at the end of each episode, one contestant is eliminated, one will be the winner and a star baker is announced.
The rounds include: the signature challenge, the technical challenge, and the showstopper challenge.
Nataliia, 32, is an office assistant born in Ukraine, who moved to the UK with her husband Harry in 2021, just before the invasion broke out. Her family followed them shortly after as refugees and they all live in East Yorkshire with their three-year-old daughter, Francesca.
She is an economics graduate with a creative streak, as Nataliia loves to paint, run, and enjoy countryside walks with her Ukrainian rescue dog Aria.
Nataliia was taught how to bake by her grandmother, following traditional recipes from her heritage that have been passed down through generations.
She loves to infuse classic British bakes with flavours inspired by her roots such as honey, poppy seeds and spices like nutmeg and cinnamon.