'Great British Bake Off' favourite Marie Campbell has come under fire for having professional training.
Paul Hollywood and Mary Berry
Marie, 66, who was crowned star baker in the opening episode of the new series last week, has reportedly trained at Ecole Escoffier at the Ritz in Paris before signing up to take part in the BBC show, according to the Mail On Sunday.
The programme's rules state that contestants on the show - which stars Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood - 'cannot have ever worked full-time as a baker, cook or chef'.
But the paper claims that Marie also ran her own bakery, Mrs Campbell's Cupcakes, from her home in Perthshire, and sold her creations online.
A show spokesperson said: "There are strict criteria to taking part in the show and Marie met that criteria. She gained a certificate for one week's training in Paris in 1984."
The spokesperson added that the bakery was not Marie's main source of income.
Marie told the paper: "Love Productions [the producers of the programme] knew about my patisserie training, which was only for a week and was a long time ago."
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