In the Sourdough category I adapted my previous Ale recipe, using more beer and switching to a darker, Porter beer which I hoped would give the bread a deeper chocolatey/malty taste as well as a dark appearance to the crumb and crust.
For the other Sourdough I entered the Fruit and Cinnamon loaf I usually eat toasted for breakfast.
In the open category I made three Ciabattas using a 24 hour 'biga' preferment and chose the best looking one to submit. When we ate one of the spares and I was pleased with the texture and structure of the crumb.
For the other open entry I drew inspiration from bread I'd bought at a French market when on holiday in Normandy. I tried to replicate this loaf both in shape and (assumed) method, settling on using fermented dough as the raising agent; the overnight fermentation seemed to match the taste and structure. The French market loaves resembled Pain De Campagne style bread so I also added a small amount of rye flour to the dough and used a little to line the proofing basket too.
So on the 16th of September (the day following the big bake) my loaves were securely packaged and labelled, and I headed to London. They were to be delivered to Westminster Cathedral Hall where I was met on the doorstep and along with many others (over a thousand loaves were judged in total) we handed over the boxes containing our creations and hopes for success...then fingers crossed, our wait for news began. 
