The Great British Sewing Bee 2024 champion has been named after a tense final.
Judges Patrick Grant and Esme Young chose Luke as their worthy winner after they proved their talent over ten weeks of tough challenges, which led to them crying happy tears.
‘I feel so proud of myself and I don’t tend to say that a lot, but yes I am proud of myself,’ an emotional Luke said.
Just missing out on the top spot were Ailsa and Pascha, who can still leave the workroom with their heads high after a triumphant effort.
The 34-year-old from Manchester was clearly overjoyed after being named top of the class having also beat off competition from Alex, Comfort, Don, Georgie, Janet, Lauren, Luke, Marcus, Neil, and Suzy throughout the tenth series, which was hosted by Kiell Smith-Bynoe.
For the gripping final the final trio made opera gloves – showing their precision as they handled delicate fabrics and showed off their skills.
In the second challenge, the finalists turned party paraphernalia into a complete party look, and Luke chose to make a pastel dress out of napkins.
In the final Made to Measure challenge, they created a full outfit by draping fabric onto their models, who this week were their friends. Luke made a dramatic black dress that featured half of a white jacket at the top. The judges praised Luke for mixing masculine and feminine styles, with Patrick calling it ‘near to perfection’.
After theincredibly close and nail-biting episode, Luke said:‘Honestly this doesn’t seem real, never did I think I would get to the final let alone winning …this is just wild!
‘All I expected was to get a hug off Patrick, but to have the campest trophy ever I am going to remember this forever.
‘It’s more than the icing on the cake, it’s the whole cake.’
‘I’m really happy that Luke won, they were so creative and imaginative and just got better and better,’ said Esme, 75.
Patrick, 52, added: ‘Fantastic, well done. Every single one of Luke’s made to measures have been full of ambition.Today we saw skill, we saw drama and an absolute flare for making clothes that really catch the eye.They are such a wonderful winner.’
Speaking about the moment their name was called out, Luke shared that they found it hard to believe.
‘When they announced that I had won I looked at Pascha and Ailsa to check that they hadn’t won it.I then looked to my family and friends and there was a huge surge of emotion all round, we all went a bit crazy,’ they recalled.
Luke continued: ‘It still feels absolutely wild to have produced all that sewing and still have so much fun with all the other Sewing Bees. That was really important to me how much we supported with each other and bonded.I didn’t know if I would make it through each week, let alone winning the series!
‘I hope I have made Manchester proud. I really wanted to make my friends and family proud, but also my community and the LGBTQIA+ community proud as that is so important to me and I wanted to show that representation.’
They expressed gratitude to their fiancé and partner of five years Jesus, who they will be marrying in Gran Canaria next year. Their next project is wedding outfits, and they’ve already begun to draft the patterns.
Also on the agenda for Luke, who won Garment of the Week in Diva Week, is exploring more costume design and pushing the limits when it comes to making drag garments. Luke’s drag persona is called Selma Skreams – they perform at club nights and private parties both in the UK and internationally.
Luke tries to break gender stereotypes with their garments and finds it uncomfortable that the majority of high street clothing is gendered and loves that sewing allows them to express their gender identity more authentically.
‘I also really want to explore ways in making sewing more inclusive and accessible,’ they stated.
Luke, who works as a Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion Director, grew up in Wilmslow, Cheshire, with their mum Janet and sister. They were taught how to sew by their grandma aged just eight, which led them down the arts and crafts path. She helped Luke when they started to perform in drag in their early 20s, often assisting with constructing their outfits.
The winner of The Great British Sewing Bee doesn’t receive a huge cash prize.
Instead, the champion is awarded a trophy and the title of Britain’s Best Amateur Sewer. They’ll also win bragging rights, of course.
Tonight’s episode marked the end of the tenth series of the show, an exciting milestone for the beloved competition which began in April 2013.
The Great British Sewing Bee is available to watch on BBCiPlayer.
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