Great British Bake Off: Meet the 12 new contestants, including a stunt woman and the oldest amateur yet

It's a true test for The Great British Bake Off as it debuts its first series for Channel 4 after the controversial move from the BBC, with a brand new panel – aside from the show's veteran Paul Hollywood – taking charge of matters.

The 51-year-old celebrity chef – who previously co-hosted the baking series with the legendary Mary Berry – will be joined by Prue Leith, Sandi Toksvig and Noel Fielding in the revamped offering.

And there are 12 new hopefuls ready to get the oven gloves on, including the oldest amateur baker yet and a cancer survivor. Meet the new faces below!

The Girls

Flo, 71, from Merseyside

Raised in Huyton, Liverpool, Flo was one of 11 children, Now retired, she is the oldest contestant to appear on Bake Off to date. She met her late husband Richard when she was 21 years old and working at a sausage factory. She has been baking since her husband's death two years ago after her son Stephen encouraged her to take up the hobby. She creates treats for his restaurant when she's not baking for the family.

Kate, 29, from Merseyside

She's a health and safety inspector who dabbles in blacksmithing, furniture restoration and yoga, and is a big fan of the outdoors. Kate taught herself to bake when she began to grow her own veg two years ago and is fond of "old-fashioned" baking techniques.

Julia, 32, from West Sussex

Originally from Kemerovo, Siberia, Julia has spent three years honing her baking prowess to enter Bake Off... so expect big things. She met her husband while holidaying in Turkey as a 17-year-old.

Yan, 46, from north London

Hong Kong-born Yan moved to the UK when she was two and started to bake seriously a decade ago when she found herself in between 24 hour shifts. She currently works as a laboratory research scientist and lives in north London with her wife, Marian, and cat Kacey.

Sophie, 33, from Surrey

Sophie did not discover her talent for baking until she volunteered to make a friend's birthday cake. She's a former Officer in the Royal Artillery and lives in Surrey with her boyfriend and a cat named Loki, and has a passion for patisserie. She also enjoys track cycling, rowing, teaching military boot camps and is also training to be a stunt woman – is there anything she can't she do?!

Stacey, 42, from Hertfordshire

Former school teacher Stacey remembers helping her grandmother bake bread and butter pudding when she was a child and really started to bake seriously while studying in university. She likes to incorporate her Jewish heritage into her baking with a homemade Challah every Friday night with dinner.

The Boys

Peter, 52, from Essex

IT programme manager Peter was born in Brixton and has had a well-travelled upbringing, living in Nigeria from the age of seven and moving back to the UK when he was 24. He discovered a passion for baking after making his own bread and counts one of his specialities as a melt-in-your-mouth Macaron.

Chris, 50, from Bristol

Chris is a software developer who loves the science behind baking and developing quirky flavour combinations. He is also a cancer survivor and passionate about helping other people whose lives have been affected by the disease. He's married and loves sailing, visiting bakeries and writing.

Steve, 34, from Hertfordshire

Steven's heart lies in the kitchen despite having a background in marketing, and his mother Judi has been his cooking mentor. He loves putting a twist on recipes from his mum's old cookbooks.

James, 46, from Essex

He describes himself as a bald, baking banker, but James' pals say he looks more like a bank robber than baker. Funny man James was taught to bake by his father more than 40 years ago and grows his own vegetables to incorporate into his recipes. He lives with his wife and sons and their three chickens in Essex.

Tom, 29, from Edinburgh

Tom lives with his partner David and loves making fresh shortbread for his family and friends. Baking has always been a huge part of his family life and he and his siblings were taught by their mother.

Liam, 19, from North London

Hackney-born Liam is the baby of the group and has been baking for four years and his university pals call him the 'Cake Boy'. He believes that baking is a universal language that can bring people together from all walks of life and wants to make it more acceptable amongst the younger generation.

The Great British Bake off airs on Tuesday 29 August at 8pm on Channel 4.