Great British Bake Off finalist Luis Troyano dies of cancer at 48

Former Great British Bake Off finalist Luis Troyano has died, aged 48, of oesophageal cancer.

Luis' agent, Anne Kibel announced the tragic news on Twitter, saying: "Sadly, my lovely client lost his brave fight against oesophageal cancer last week.

"A fantastic man with a love of baking that saw him get to the finals of GBBO, write a wonderful book, Bake It Great, and do so much more."

The Great British Bake Off Twitter account also shared their condolences, writing: "We are deeply saddened to hear that Luis Troyano has passed away.

"It was a huge honour and pleasure to have him in the Bake Off Tent for Series Five. Our condolences and thoughts go out to his friends and family.

After he appeared on Bake Off as a contestant, Luis made appearances on BBC Good Food and released a book called Bake it Great in 2015. He said the show had "totally changed my life".

Speaking to Food and Drinks Guide, he said: "As well as being given the opportunity to write a book, I now also bake for a living, which is simply amazing. As far as baking goes, I can certainly bake a lot faster now than before the GBBO."

Luis' wife, Louise, has created a Just Giving page to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support, following her husband's death.

She wrote: "Your life was a blessing, your memory a treasure, you are loved beyond words and missed beyond measure.

"This page has been set up for Macmillan Cancer Support but in truth, Luis gave a big thank you to everyone involved in his care."

She then posted Luis' own words, in which he thanked Macmillan, the NHS and East Cheshire Hospice "for trying to save my life and their tireless work to try and eliminate cancer."

In the heartbreaking statement, he wrote: "But more importantly a massive thank you to all the amazing professionals who really did try their absolute best for me, showed me absolute compassion and gave me more time than what was seemingly possible. I thank you sincerely."