Bagels returned to the Great British Bake-Off on Tuesday night as contestants in the latest episode were set the challenge of making a modern variant of the roll with the hole. 

The psychedelic-looking rainbow bagel might never have been served on a shtetl table but became fashionable after being pioneered in New York a few years ago. 

Calling it “happy bread”, Bake-Off’s master baker Paul Hollywood said it symbolised the NHS. 

Competitors had to weave five strips of coloured dough into a ring before trying to get their boil and bake technique right. 

For some, it was their first shot at a bagel but they could always enjoy a sympathetic ear from Little Britain star Matt Lucas, who has joined the Channel 4 series as a presenter.