Top 10 Great British Sewing Bee moments: facial hair, cake galore and a manneq-attack
Halfway through the third run of the BBC2 craft series, Simply Sewing takes a look at its best moments
The bee is back, and with just three episodes left until this year's best amateur sewer is announced, RadioTimes.com's sister magazine Simply Sewing reflects on the sewing funnies so far...
1. This year's number one moment has nothing to do with sewing and everything to do with Patrick's facial hair. Yes, we've concerned ourselves with @paddygrant's whiskers and whether the 'tache is suitable for the sewing room. Dig it or don't, looks like Patrick will be sticking with it this season.
2. Lorna's longsleeved summer dress in that gorgeous poppy print has 'make me' written all over it. We’re already on the hunt for the pattern.
3. There are moments in sewing when collapsing in a heap to the floor is sanctioned. Circumstances include: sewing yourself to your work, realising your bobbin has run out of thread and you've been sewing NOTHING, and the official GBSB ‘time's up’ cry from Claudia Winkelman.
Annie was not being overdramatic when she crumbled.
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4. Not only do sewers have to work against the clock, but spine-chilling footage reveals dressmaker's mannequins are becoming self-aware.
Neela's manneqattack has left us somewhat suspicious of dress forms.
5. It wouldn't be the Sewing Bee if there weren't cake and tea. Of course, not all stitchers are fuelled by tea and cake, some prefer coffee... but always the cake.
6. In episode one we catch sight of this year's celebrity pincushion: a sewing accessory we've set our hearts on. May we formally present piggy pincushion whose name by all accounts is hard to chant after a few bevvies.
7. Coming up trumps is Neil with his "knock out" alteration in episode two.
His pair of mini boxing gloves and shorts were described by Patrick as "the coolest thing I think I've ever seen in my whole life!"
8. Much like The Great British Bake Off, naughty innuendos dart their way through episodes of the Great British Sewing Bee. Claudia’s tongue-in-cheek presenting style give us tweetables such as ‘they want it stiff and big’ and ‘it’s my first time boning’.
9. Using a traditional sewing machine, or "a dinosaur" as Claudia eloquently put it, gets the sewers in a bit of a tizzy. Needles snap, machines choke, bobbins deplete prematurely and Neil has a moment with the balance wheel. Enough drama to escalate into prehistoric roars, we think you’ll agree.
10. In 50s week the alteration challenge sees contestants creating wearable garments from a vintage gem – we’re referring to floral curtains, naturally. Amanda’s approach is to pick up the first curtain you find instead of ‘umming and ahhing about which one to use’. However, Paul knows only razzamatazz can transform dated drapes.
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The Great British Sewing Bee is on BBC2 on Thursdays at 8pm
