Great British Bake Off 2014 Contestants: Will 17-Year-Old Martha Be The Youngest Ever Winner?

The fifth series of The Great British Bake Off is now just days away and the BBC have whet our appetite with a first look at this years fresh batch of hopefuls.

Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood will be welcoming 12 bakers into their travelling Bake Off tent, among them the youngest and oldest contestants to date.

At just 17, AS-level student Martha will be representing the youth of today, hoping to prove that not all teenagers are adverse to a good sponge.  

"I may be in school but my head is always in the kitchen," Martha reassures us. The teachers will no doubt be thrilled to learn this, but perhaps a tower of those profiteroles that our young baker enjoys rustling up will keep them quiet.

From the youngest to the oldest now, as Martha will be joined by 69-year-old traditional baker Diana. The daughter of a dairy farmer, our new adoptive Grandmother-in-waiting met her husband Malcolm at a Young Farmers social event when she was just 16.

All together now, 'Awwww!'

Joining Diana are fellow 60-something's Norman and Nancy. The son of a baker, Scottish Norman has promised to bring some traditional recipes to the tent, while retired GP practice manager Nancy's bio highlights that she "grows her own turkeys for Christmas". Let's hope they're not tuned in on Wednesday night.

"Inventive baker" Luis from Cheshire and self-confessed "nerdy baker" Jordan from Birmingham sound like they will be shaking things up. Jordan's very own Frankenstein creation, the "pretzel-croissant" could cause poor Mary some sleepless nights.

Former wannabe actress turned businesswoman Kate rarely weighs ingredients or follows recipes, while Belfast-born Iain's passion for travel inspires the flavours of the cakes he enjoys making for his colleagues.

They face competition from fashion designer Chetna, who enjoys combining her Mother's traditional Indian recipes and flavours with her British bakes.

North-London born Enwezor and language therapist Claire round off the group, while final special mention goes to family man Richard who made a Star Wars' Millennium Falcon cake for his own wedding.

There we have it, the class of 2014. Who will crumble and who will rise to the top of the class? Join me over on Twitter each Wednesday at 8pm and back here for our recap off all the action on Thursday morning.