What The Great British Baking Show taught me about empathy

The Great British Baking Show offered a tremendous lesson in the power of empathy in the final episode.

SPOILER ALERT BELOW In the final episode of the 2019 season, one of the contestants begins the bake-off with hard news: her parents might have missed their plane from Ireland. Alice is devastated at the prospect that they won’t be there to cheer her on.

When the judges come to her table, Alice is tearful and emotional. Paul, the head judge, cracks a joke, trying to alleviate the tension.

The weak effort at ill-timed humor definitely fell flat. Ada, my twelve year old, observed, “That was so bad! Paul just made a joke about her heart breaking.”

A little later in the episode, Steph is stressed out. Her macaroons have gone poorly, a beater has sprayed cream everywhere, and she looks ready to quit. Noel (one of the hosts) comes up beside Steph, reminding her of her past successes, and giving her the gentle encouragement, “You are going to have to dig deep.”

We all watched as Steph’s spine straightened, she gathered herself with a long breath and was able to get back to baking. “Now he knows how to care for her! Paul totally missed it but Noel is great!” Ada remarked.

From TV personalities to auto technicians to everyone in between, empathy matters.