Legend in the Baking Ambassadors

Lauren Ward. Queen of the PCR office bakes.

Name: Lauren Ward
Age: 26

Location: Melbourne, Australia!

Relationship with PCR: I worked for PCR as the Events and Fundraising Executive for three years, where I was lucky enough to see the organisation grow in size and impact. I worked closely with PCR’s community and challenge event fundraisers to ensure they had everything they needed to raise funds for PCR and our scientists’ research.

Who would you dedicate your bake to and why? I would like to dedicate my bake to all the staff and scientists at PCR who always work so hard and are an inspiration to me even from the other side of the world.

Your most innovative cake: I would say that my most innovative cake was when I worked together with my colleague Hannah to create a baby-shower cake for Rachel! Hannah is an incredible baker and is especially good at decorating, so I baked the three tiered, multi-coloured cake whilst she made multicoloured macarons, and we iced it together. I think the effect was a bit psychedelic and definitely something different.

Your biggest cake fail: I made a chocolate birthday cake to bring in to PCR once in the middle of June. It was so warm that it half melted before I even reached the office. I refuse to make chocolate cakes in the summer now unless I like someone very much. I’m also really struggling with sour dough bread at the moment!

What you love about baking: I love baking because it is time for me to focus on creating something. I use it as a way to relax, and also to learn new skills. To me, baking is a science, and I like the precision you need in order to make sure a bake rises, tastes good and looks good. I also love how it is guaranteed to make others happy – who doesn’t love cake?!

Favourite baking pun? All you knead is love.

Anything else to add: I’m really happy to be a baking ambassador for PCR and to work with everyone once again. Making things for each other and working together with new and innovative ideas are some of the key parts of the culture at PCR and I’m glad to see this togetherness is continuing still even during this difficult time.

Martyn Jordan. Best at the bake sale.

My name is Martyn Jordan aged 71. I have always been a fit active person, fond of the outdoors, climbing, hiking and camping.

My main occupation was Fire Fighter which I did for 30 years, then Ambulance driver and currently non-uniformed member of Norfolk Constabulary where I have been for the last 12 years.

My interest for baking started with baking and trimming our wedding cake when I remarried about 20 years ago. Then my daughter asked if I would make her wedding cake (many sleepless nights and daily interest from our postman Steve later) it was finished, with me now proficient in sugarcraft flowers.

A few years later I began having problems with my waterworks, and as always the first thought was prostate cancer. Fortunately for me it turned out to be BPH (getting older in simple terms) for which I had a HOLEP operation, and touch wood, the PSA is still under control.

While going on holiday in 2009, I was reading a Trail magazine and saw an advert for the Snowdon 500, which was a charity event organised by a guy called Matt Rannamets for the Prostate Cancer Research Centre. I liked the sound of it and signed up for that years event.

The event went well and I continued to take part each year, opting for the Snowdon 3 Peaks since its inception.

Each year I found it harder and harder to extract money out of the group of people I knew, and I actually started to feel guilty about chasing them every year, so decided to think outside the box a bit.

I realised that where I worked, so did a large number of other people, most of who I never met in my normal day. But if I could entice them in, I may be able to get a contribution from them.

From my days making wedding and birthday cakes for friends, I have always had a liking for cooking and baking, so thought what about a cake sale. After a bit of thought, I realised that if I was going to lay on a good spread, I would not have time to do any baking myself. The cakes need to be as fresh as possible for maximum effect ,”its all in the smell”.

Word soon got around that there was going to be a large cake table to raise funds for Prostate Cancer Research and offers of cake, scones, brownies, rocky roads, flapjacks, sausage rolls, quiche, pizzas, biscuits, etc. came rolling in. The one table had to be increased to four with some double stacking. I politely requested no thawed out produce, all needed to be night before or that morning (bit cheeky I know but it worked)

It was so successful at fundraising that I have held the event for the last 4 years. Nothing was sold just donations gratefully received with £735 raised in the best year.

Unfortunately due to Covid 19 there is no Snowdon event and no Bake Tables this year, but I have developed a keen eye for a good, and a not so good, bake.

I am honoured to have been invited to be a Baking Ambassador and eagerly look forward to seeing the bakes.