How Twitter has responded to the new Great British Bake Off

From the nostalgic comments to the downright hilarious...

The Great British Bake Off returned to our screens last night, with 5.8 million viewers tuning in across the UK to see this year's bakers arrive in the bunting-clad GBBO tent.

2017 has marked a change for the show, with last night's episode being the first since GBBO moved from BBC to Channel 4, seeing judge (and national treasure) Mary Berry and presenters Mel and Sue leave as a result.

The new series will keep the same format as before, replacing Mary with iconic restauranteer Prue Leith and seeing comedians Sandi Toksvig and Noel Fielding fill Mel and Sue’s beloved shoes.

Last night saw viewing figures drop by 4 million after the Channel 4 move with some people boycotting the show due to the line-up change and the introduction of advert breaks. The first show is still being dubbed a success however, with figures said to increase as viewers are being steadily won over.

'Thanks for joining us tonight. We've really been bowled over by your support' posted the show in response to the thousands of live tweets from viewers, with #GBBO trending on Twitter.

The Twitter community's response was generally positive, with a huge sense of relief that it hadn't strayed too far from the original format.

A lot of Twitter users focused on the loss of Mary, Mel and Sue, with the three women considered the backbone of the original show. 'I feel like I'm breaking some kind of law by watching this without Mel, Sue and Mary,' tweeted @kellysrambles, while a user named Hannah pointed out that the new hosts were no Mel and Sue, insisting 'The word bake just doesn't sound the same coming from them.'

'There should be a special edition of Gogglebox where Mary, Mel and Sue watch new bake off, judging everything,' tweeted @Paula_94x, while @DanielJLayton posted that it felt 'a bit like hanging out with your ex. It's fun, everything's cool. But we both know it's not the same anymore.'

The two new presenters seemed to have won viewers over by the end though with Sandi's innuendos and Noel's one-liners and jazzy shirts proving popular. 'Although Mel and Sue will always have my heart, Sandi and Noel are doing brilliantly,' tweeted 2016 GBBO contestant Rav Bansal, while @utterlyshook posted, 'Noel on #GBBO is like watching a mate who lied about everything on their CV trying to act like they know what they're doing, but I love it.'

The addition of advert breaks since the show's move to Channel 4 was also a popular talking point, with viewers posting their annoyance every time the show cut to commercials. 'I wonder how many people around the UK just shouted "ANOTHER BREAK?", tweeted @sophielflynn.

Some viewers looked on the bright side, with @lizbessant tweeting 'I was pretty sad when the #gbbo left the BBC but have to say I'm over it, don't even mind the ads - they provide tea making opportunities!'

'I don't even mind the adverts,' agreed @VickyChandler. 'It gives you a chance to debrief in between the segments.'

Winner of 2015's GBBO Nadiya Hussain tweeted that she would be tuning in, sharing her tips for skipping the ads with her followers. 'I have recorded it,' she posted. 'Will watch tonight, I can fast forward the ads. Whoop!'

All in all it looks like the public is giving the new GBBO a 'Hollywood handshake'. We'll be tuning in next Tuesday for biscuit week.