Irish Baker Iain Ross - A 2025 Bake Off Contestant Is A Renowned TikTok Star

Iain Ross, a 29-year-old Irish baker, is likely recognizable to users of TikTok and Instagram, where he has garnered a substantial following under the alias Thug Loaf.

Image: Channel 4/ Love Productions

Who is Iain Ross from The Great British Bake Off?

Iain Ross is a software developer residing in Belfast with his partner, Dervla, and their cat, Viktor. He was formerly an amateur powerlifter, but currently he prioritizes baking above weightlifting, and in recent years, he has gained significant internet reputation for his music-themed confections.

Iain, known as @thug.loaf, has amassed nearly 500,000 followers on TikTok and 240,000 followers on Instagram. He utilizes these channels to disseminate videos of his pastry artistry, which include employing food coloring to replicate iconic album artwork and band logos on cakes, pies, and loaves of bread.

The video with the highest view count, nearing seven million, is Iain crafting a wrap inspired by the legendary Queen song "Bohemian Rhapsody." A black wrap is adorned with the four members of Queen and packed with items such as halloumi, lettuce, hummus, tomatoes, and onions. Iain has created paintings of covers for artists such as Taylor Swift, Paramore, and SZA.

Iain provided insight into his creative approach during a 2022 interview with Mashed. “I began sharing videos of myself baking bread on TikTok, incorporating music that was atypical for a baking account; predominantly underground music that I was passionate about at the time,” he stated. I created a stencil of one of my favorite artist's logos and applied flour over it on my dough to unveil the design. It then escalated from that point onward.

The creation of the bakes is a complex process that commences with printing an album cover on food-safe paper. “Once it has been proofed and is prepared for baking, I will place it in the freezer for a few hours to halt the proofing process and establish a firm surface on the dough for decoration,” he elucidated. When it is prepared for painting, he will outline the artwork with a stencil and edible food coloring. Typically, he employs a combination yeasted and sourdough recipe, as this is most effective for producing a smooth canvas.

In addition to musical bakes, Iain, a Bake Off contestant, also delights in experimenting with fermented fruits and vegetables, as well as infusing contemporary interpretations into traditional recipes, as reported by Channel 4.