Ruby Tandoh

Ruby Alice Tandoh (born 4 July 1992) is a British baker, columnist, author and former model. She rose to fame after becoming a runner-up on series four of BBC's The Great British Bake Off in 2013.

Early life

Tandoh's grandfather is from Ghana. She grew up in Southend-on-Sea.

Tandoh studied philosophy and history of art at University College London.

Television career

The Great British Bake Off

Writing career

She has written three books: Crumb: The Baking Book (2014), Flavour: Eat What You Love (2016) and Eat Up: Food, Appetite and Eating What You Want (2018). She was a writer for The Guardian, but announced in June 2018 that she would stop, citing the "elitist" nature of the industry. By March the following year she was again writing occasional articles for the paper.

Along with her wife, Leah Pritchard, Tandoh co-founded Do What You Want, a zine about mental health. All profits from the zine go to charities and non-profits.

Personal life

Tandoh lives with her wife, Leah Pritchard, in Sheffield, where they married in a low-key ceremony on 31 August 2018.

Tandoh has spoken out about her struggles with eating disorders, criticising the bodyshaming common in "wellness" culture and advocating a healthier, more positive approach to food writing. She was voted the Great British Bake Off's favourite past contestant by the Radio Times audience in 2016.

In 2020, Tandoh identified herself as bisexual in a tweet.