{"id":81072,"date":"2025-06-16T10:40:06","date_gmt":"2025-06-16T17:40:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/?p=81072"},"modified":"2025-06-16T10:42:15","modified_gmt":"2025-06-16T17:42:15","slug":"janusz-domagala","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/en\/internet-culture\/interviews\/janusz-domagala\/","title":{"rendered":"The Great British Bake Off\u2019s Janusz on CakeTok and queer joy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"A<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Here at Mozilla, we are the first to admit the internet isn\u2019t perfect, but we know the internet is pretty darn magical. The internet opens up doors and opportunities, allows for human connection, and lets everyone find where they belong \u2014 their corners of the internet. We all have an internet story worth sharing. In <\/em>My Corner Of The Internet<\/em><\/a>, we talk with people about the online spaces they can\u2019t get enough of, the sites and forums that shaped them, and how they would design their own corner of the web.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We caught up with Janusz Domagala, the joyful breakout star of 2022\u2019s “The Great British Bake Off” and author of <\/em>Baking With Pride<\/em><\/a>. He talks about CakeTok, his secret ingredient hot honey, how digital friendships shaped his life, and why history tastes better when baked.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is your favorite corner of the internet?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I have to say my favourite corner of the internet is American CakeTok. I love the online baking community generally, it\u2019s so welcoming, supportive and encouraging. But I do have to admit that American baking really aligns with my personal approach to baking- colourful, bold and daring flavours and visually dramatic. I think food should be an experience for all the senses and it\u2019s typically American baking videos on social media that gets my senses tingling\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"A
From Baking With Pride by Janusz Domagala: a lavender sponge cake dressed in buttercream blooms, with a wink to queer-coded history. Credit: The Quarto Group<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

What is an internet deep dive that you can’t wait to jump back into?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As well as baking, I\u2019m a big fan of history. Living in the UK I love diving into its rich history online- researching the fashion, culture and popular bakes of certain periods of time. I love recreating historical bakes I discover as not only do I get to imagine what life was like during chapters of time, I get to taste what it was like too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is the one tab you always regret closing?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I would be lost and create some very \u2026 interesting\u2026 bakes if it wasn\u2019t for my tab that has an international unit conversion! I love using recipes from around the world but because I\u2019m a speedy baker (thanks to competitive baking, I guess) I don\u2019t have time to whip out my calculator mid whisk!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What can you not stop talking about on the internet right now?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Hot honey! As a creative and a genuine foodie, I love seeing the trends that come out in the food world and take over in the internet. Recently we\u2019ve had caramelised biscuit, pistachio and now hot honey which combines two of my two favourite flavour profiles and is already getting me thinking about my next bake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

\u201cUntil [joining a local baking group online] my only chance to talk about baking was with my mother who taught me to bake, so to finally get the chance to talk to people my own age about one of my biggest passions was a big moment for me.\u201d<\/strong><\/em><\/h4>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

What was the first online community you engaged with?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Like a true millennial the first online community I engaged with was on MySpace, joining a local baking group. Until then my only chance to talk about baking was with my mother who taught me to bake, so to finally get the chance to talk to people my own age about one of my biggest passions was a big moment for me. Within the group, we actually started arranging monthly meet ups at a local park where we would get together in person, taking things we\u2019d baked along, and chat all things baking. I\u2019m still friends with some of the people from that group and that for me is one of the most powerful things about the internet- meeting people you never would normally have met in life and turning them into real life friendships.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you could create your own corner of the internet, what would it look like?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

My corner of the internet would probably look a lot like my wardrobe; bold, colourful and fun! Full of feelgood items and also have different options for different moods, have comfy options when we need that little extra warmness on the days we need but most importantly- get people talking and inspired.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What articles and\/or videos are you waiting to read\/watch right now?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s currently Pride Month and each year I get so excited about the digital content that\u2019s released, full of stories from the LGBTQ+ community. I\u2019m currently waiting for the OUT100 list to be released which highlights 100 influential people who are currently working towards change and fighting for our rights. It\u2019s a great read and a great chance to highlight the work of people that might not always have the spotlight shone on them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the internet were a giant Showstopper Challenge and you got to design it for the future, what ingredients would you throw in to make it more delicious for creative people like you \u2014 and what baking disaster would you absolutely leave out?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This is a great question\u2026 I would start with multiple layers of art flavoured with fashion, food, body positivity and queer joy. I would layer in some curiosity to help people be brave enough to try new things and top with some creativity, kindness and acceptance\u2026 and sprinkles! Always sprinkles. A baking disaster I would ban from my internet Showstopper would be fear- wonderful things can happen when we act without fear and if something doesn\u2019t go to plan it\u2019s not the end of the world. As I say, a bad batch of bread can make excellent breadcrumbs!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Janusz Domagala, or simply Janusz as he\u2019s most commonly known, became the instant standout star on 2022\u2019s \u201cThe Great British Bake Off\u201d when he rightfully declared himself the “Star Caker.” Since appearing on the show, Janusz has built a successful social  media following, has been featured in multiple print and digital media outlets and was a contestant on the third season of the show \u201cCrime Scene Kitchen.\u201d A keen LGBT+ activist, his debut recipe book, \u201cBaking With Pride,\u201d was released in May 2024.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Here at Mozilla, we are the first to admit the internet isn\u2019t perfect, but we know the internet is pretty darn magical. The internet opens up doors and opportunities, allows for human connection, and lets everyone find where they belong \u2014 their corners of the internet. We all have an internet story worth sharing. In […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1861,"featured_media":81073,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[461998,464320],"tags":[4708,464099],"coauthors":[464060],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe Great British Bake Off\u2019s Janusz on CakeTok and queer joy<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The joyful breakout star of "The Great British Bake Off" talks about how digital friendships shaped his life and why history tastes better when baked.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/en\/internet-culture\/interviews\/janusz-domagala\/\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/en\/internet-culture\/interviews\/janusz-domagala\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/en\/internet-culture\/interviews\/janusz-domagala\/\",\"name\":\"The Great British Bake Off\u2019s Janusz on CakeTok and queer joy\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/en\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/en\/internet-culture\/interviews\/janusz-domagala\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/en\/internet-culture\/interviews\/janusz-domagala\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/278\/files\/2025\/06\/fx_distilled_Janusz_Domagala_Header_1920x1080_V1.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-06-16T17:40:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-06-16T17:42:15+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/c3faed232f5f77657a0767a5ed7f0d7a\"},\"description\":\"The joyful breakout star of \\\"The Great British Bake Off\\\" talks about how digital friendships shaped his life and why history tastes better when baked.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/en\/internet-culture\/interviews\/janusz-domagala\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/en\/internet-culture\/interviews\/janusz-domagala\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/en\/internet-culture\/interviews\/janusz-domagala\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/278\/files\/2025\/06\/fx_distilled_Janusz_Domagala_Header_1920x1080_V1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/278\/files\/2025\/06\/fx_distilled_Janusz_Domagala_Header_1920x1080_V1.jpg\",\"width\":1920,\"height\":1080,\"caption\":\"A smiling man in a light blue shirt stands in front of a bright pink background, surrounded by colorful confetti. 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