Interview with Ovie Soko

10 March 2020

Can you bake? Rate yourself out of 10

Baking stuff like chicken, or doing a pasta bake, I’d rate myself an eight. But when it comes to this sort of baking, doing bread or sweet stuff, that type of thing, I don’t think I’m great, to be honest. I’d rate myself, like, a three.

Who taught you?

I was taught to cook by a mixture of my mum, my dad and my grandma. I’ve taken different things from all of them and adjusted it to what I like to eat.

Do you have a signature dish you’ll always fall back on?

I love to bake a chicken parmesan, I really do like that.

Are you a Bake Off fan?

Yeah! I remember watching Bake Off such a long time ago, and it’s still the same. It’s so crazy now, to see that. There are certain shows that I feel are staples of British television. Even if TV is totally different for the younger generation, there’s certain programmes that carry on across all the generations, and I think that’s really cool.

Were you nervous about coming on the show?

I was nervous. It’s pretty surreal, coming on to such an iconic show. It’s wild. Once you walk into the tent, you have no idea what it’s going to be like. Just being here is amazing. So there were definitely some nerves in there, but more than that, there was a lot of excitement.

Who do you want to impress the most? Paul or Prue?

I’d say Prue. I think it would say a lot about my baking, at its amateur level, if I was able to impress Prue. We’ll see. I’d like to impress them both, that’s important to me.

Who do you see as your biggest competition in the group?

I wouldn’t say any of them, in the sense that I’m not a great baker myself. I reckon I’m probably fourth best. I’m not necessarily here to compete, it’s more to enjoy the experience, enjoy being round everyone, and obviously it’s for a great cause.

Have you had any baking disasters?

The last time I remember baking, I was in the 13/14 ballpark. Mum wasn’t back from work yet, and she came back to a lot of her baking equipment burnt. It was cupcakes, which sounds like it should have been easy, but I definitely burnt those. She wasn’t very happy with me, and the kitchen was an absolute mess. I stayed away from baking since then.

What do you think your strength in your baking might be?

I diunno! I’m more of a main course guy, so the sweet stuff isn’t a strong suit of mine. Even though if I was going to pick a dessert, I’d choose baked stuff. It’s weird, I don’t know how to make them, but I’d always choose cakes or cookies, things like that.

Why are you supporting Stand Up to Cancer?

It affects all of us. Even if it hasn’t affected you directly in your immediate family, everyone’s got friends and extended family that might have been affected. One of my best friends, who I played basketball with, he lost his mum at an early age, to breast cancer, and I saw how that affected him first-hand. We lived together for years, so I know how it can affect people. I think we all have a role to play when there’s something hits the world as hard as cancer does.

Did you get any advice when you were preparing for this show?

To enjoy it. I have a competitive nature in me, just from being an athlete. But experiences like this – it’s such a privileged position to be in, so I just want to make the most of it and enjoy the actual moment. Enjoy meeting all the great people. It’s cool.

Would it mean a lot to you to be named star baker? Or are you not too fussed?

When there’s something that’s bigger than ourselves, it’s bigger than being star baker, you know? That’s not really the primary focus here, so that’s not really my main concern.

How do you feel about the technical challenge?

I feel like the playing fields are level and everyone has just as good a chance as everyone else. I feel pretty good about the technical. If there’s any of the challenges that I feel I could steal, this would probably be it.

What would be the worst thing you could be asked to make in it?

Funnily enough, I think bread. Bread sounds like it would be simple to make. But getting it right is a totally different story. I feel like we probably underestimate the complexity of bread when we come across it in the supermarket.

If you were a baked good, what would you be?

I’d be a cookie!

Over the years, being a professional athlete, have you had to watch what you eat?

Yeah. I’ve gradually become a healthier eater over time. I still like my sweets and baked stuff, it’s just about moderation. Healthy eating isn’t about depriving myself of everything. You can still have tasty treats, but you space them out and you’re smart about it, that’s all.