Going on a Road Trip was Paul Hollywood’s dream job

HE might be known for his bread and buns but away from the oven, Paul Hollywood’s a petrolhead and loves nothing more than racing cars.

“Baking is my career, it’s what I am,” he says.

“The whole presenter thing is an accident. I’m a baker by trade, but my hobby was always cars.

“My dad used to have several cars when I was growing up — nothing particularly special, but I just loved them.

Paul previously shared his enthusiasm for motors on BBC programmes Racing Legends and Licence To Thrill: Paul Hollywood Meets Aston Martin in 2015.

The same year, he represented the racing team Beechdean Aston Martin in the British GT Championship.

“When I was about 13, I fell in love with the TR7,” he adds.

“Don’t ask me why, I just did. It was this chocolate one with chequered seats in a garage down the road from where we grew up in the Wirral.

“I used to go and watch this car every night. I just loved it.”

No wonder he describes his latest show, Paul Hollywood’s Big Continental Road Trip, as “a dream job”.

In the three-part series, the second of which is screened this Sunday, Paul travels to Germany, France and Italy, endeavouring to understand more about each country through its love of cars.

“It didn’t feel like work,” he says.

“The travel was amazing, and we went to some beautiful places.”

One of the most-memorable experiences was driving around Italy in a Lamborghini alongside Strictly Come Dancing’s Bruno Tonioli.

“We nearly got arrested for speeding around Rome — he was petrified,” says Paul.

In Germany, he stopped off to serve up some spicy food from the back of a VW van to some nudists.

“I didn’t know where to look,” he laughs.

“Just keep your head in one place and look at them in the eye!”

Paul believes the show stands apart from others in the genre because “we’re trying to find out about the places as well as the people”.

“The cars were almost the transport to take me to the people, to learn about why Italians like supercars and hypercars,” he explains.

“The Germans — why do we think of them as quite stiff upper-lipped and all about the engineering?

“And why are the French very much socialist still?

“They’d rather have a great case of wine than a fantastic car sitting on the drive.

“You can find out a lot about the place and the people by the cars they drive — and how they drive.”

The series arrives after Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond’s The Grand Tour debut on Amazon and a second series of the revamped Top Gear.

Paul insists he’s not disappointed he wasn’t part of the new Top Gear line-up.

“This programme was already in the making so it was difficult for me to get involved anyway,” he reveals.

“I would rather do something different anyway, so I was happy carrying on with the Continental Road Trip.”

Besides, he’s keeping busy with The Great British Bake Off, having decided to move with the programme to Channel 4.

He’s earned a reputation for being tough in the Bake Off tent, but that’s something he attributes to the programme-makers.

“It’s called editing,” he laughs. “I’m very easy-going, but if something’s wrong then I have to point it out because that’s my job.

“But tough, really? I judge muffins. How is that tough?”

And in Continental Road Trip, he feels people will see more of the real Paul.

“I felt more relaxed doing it, “ he reveals.

“It was the best filming I’ve ever done. It’s such a giggle.”

Paul Hollywood’s Big Continental Road Trip, BBC2, Sunday, June 4, 9pm.