Viewers of the Great British Bake Off know that a Paul Hollywood handshake is the ultimate sign of respect for a bake well done, so fans of the show were quick to react during Tuesday night's episode when the judge offered three handshakes during the first challenge, which saw the bakers tasked with making steamed puddings.
One fan tweeted: "Paul Hollywood is handing out his handshakes this season so willy nilly it makes me SICK," while another joked: "The Hollywood handshake is losing value faster than the British pound. #GBBO." A third person added: "Paul Hollywood giving out handshakes like an over-eager salesman," along with a gif of Barack Obama, Justin Trudeau and French president Emmanuel Macron confusedly shaking hands with one another.
Paul rarely gives out handshakes
Paul shook hands with Yan, Steven and Stacey after praising them on their creative bakes. Stacey was quick to gush to the camera about the special moment. She said: "I'm really happy and I got a handshake! He didn't want to give me one because he'd already given out two, do you know what I mean? Which makes it even more brilliant. I'm really chuffed!"
MORE: Ten things you need to know about the new Bake Off series
Meanwhile, Sandi Toksvig recently caused a stir after revealing that the countdown clock isn't as strict as the show's editing suggests. Chatting to the Mirror, she said: "There have been odd times where we have slowed down the final 10-second countdown as we can see they've got one quick thing left to do." Addressing Sandi's comments, a spokesperson for Channel 4 said: "Any slowing of the countdown is a matter of mere seconds and gives all the bakers the same amount of time."
