Birthdays, christenings, weddings…they just wouldn’t be the same without a piece of cake.

How did Mrs Beeton, McDougall’s and Tate & Lyle combine forces to popularise cake making in Victorian Britain? Who was Ken Wood and how did his invention change the face of home baking? And how do you get all the ingredients for a Christmas cake into a one-step packet mix?

In the kitchen, Alan Coxon bakes a Victoria Sponge by hand and with a mixer, and Kathy Sykes reveals how to prevent your cake from sinking in the middle and why only a pre-heated oven will do to cook the perfect sponge.