Paul Hollywood has publicly shamed the 'disgusting behaviour' of trolls who were left outraged by this week's Great British Bake Off result.
The Bake Off semi-final saw contestants Peter, Laura, Hermine and Dave battle it out for a place in the prestigious final of the Channel 4 baking contest.
But after Hermine failed to impress judges Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith with her patisserie creations, she was sent home.
Meanwhile, Laura, Peter and Dave made it to the final which is set to air on Tuesday 24th November.
Bake Off viewers were quick to dispute the semi-final result, though. Many took to social media to slam Paul and Prue's choice to axe Hermine from the competition following her impressive two-week stint as Star Baker.
Lots of fans of the show were adamant that Laura should have been eliminated instead.
'For my Bake off fans.... can I just say that I’m in complete shock that hermine’s just been sent home ?! She’s messed up one thing and Laura’s messed up 6163 times? (No shade on Laura) but WTFFF,' one penned on Twitter.
'Hermine being sent home instead of Laura just sums up 2020,' agreed another.
'Seriously!? 5 times Laura has been in the bottom... and they send Hermine home? SERIOUSLY?! I can’t sit on the fence for this decision,' a third fumed.
Now, pro baker Paul has been forced to speak out to put a stop to the online negativity and back Laura.
Taking to Instagram today, he wrote, 'I've heard of some sad people trolling Laura, it's disgusting behaviour.
'Those of you who may not be aware how Bake Off works or new to the series may have missed what we have ALWAYS done on Bake Off judging.'
Clearing up any confusion, Paul added, 'Each week stands on its own!! It never matters what any baker has done in previous weeks. Even if you win 4/5 star bakers and then have a bad week you will be at risk of going sadly. It’s the rule that has been in place for 11 years!!
'Also I ONLY give out handshakes in signature not in Showstopper or technical, there was on exception 3 years ago… STOP trolling any of the bakers!!
'Remember Prue and I can actually smell and eat the bakes… Bring on the final.'
Responding to Paul's kind comments, Laura wrote, 'Thank you Paul that really means a lot to me.'
She was also driven to sharing a statement, urging Bake Off fans to stop blaming her for Hermine's loss.
'It's ok to be sad your favourite person didn't go through, but please remember it's not my fault. I don't make the decisions. GBBO is all about kindness and I haven't seen much of that on here.
'It's easy to sit there on your sofa and judge. But I am a real person with feelings. Please take a moment to consider your words before you judge someone you've never met and whose food you've never tasted,' she wrote.
