Life-sized William and Catherine cakes to star at show

Life-sized edible versions of the Prince and Princess of Wales and TV presenter Alison Hammond will feature among thousands of exhibits when Cake International, one of the world's biggest cake decorating and baking events, returns to Birmingham this week.

"It is an absolute joy to recreate life-size figures," says award-winning cake artist Emma Jayne, as she puts the finishing touches to an edible Prince and Princess of Wales.

Three months of work, 60kg (132lbs) of sugar paste and 20kg (44lbs) of modelling chocolate have gone into the centrepiece, to be displayed on a replica Buckingham Palace balcony when the event opens at the NEC, outside Birmingham, on Friday.

Organisers describe it as the world's biggest cake decorating and baking show. Established in 1994, it attracts cake artists, bakers and chocolatiers from around the globe and is expected to welcome about 25,000 visitors over three days.

For Jayne, from Aberdare in south Wales, the event's artist-in-residence, the final stages of the project have been a race against time.

"I should have started their heads in August, but because we had that very hot weather and I'm sculpting with modelling chocolate, it was impossible," she said.

The royal couple's bodies were carved from marshmallow and rice pops before being covered in sugar paste, with countless hours spent perfecting facial features, clothing and finishing details.

The edible display follows a series of headline-grabbing creations by the artist, including life-sized depictions of Michael Jackson, King Charles III and Queen Elizabeth I.

While she relishes the challenge of recreating some of the world's most recognisable faces, she admitted there was added pressure with this year's subjects.

"Everyone loves William and Catherine," she said. "I wanted to do justice to Kate because she's just a beautiful person inside and out."

Visitors will be able to pose for photographs on the replica royal balcony, although the centrepiece itself is not intended to be eaten.

"What these feature shows is what you can achieve with the medium of sugar and modelling chocolate," she said.

The life-sized cake of presenter Hammond will welcome visitors at the show's entrance, organisers said, adding "We are proud to bring a true Brummie icon to the show".

Elsewhere, cake artist Diya Pal has been working on a very different creation for the event.

The Solihull-based baker, known online for her hyper-realistic cakes, is creating an immersive pirate queen-themed display featuring a banquet designed to look rotten while being thoroughly inedible.

"I'm making an entire dinner table of food that looks disgusting, mouldy and rotten," she said.

"I'm just losing my head researching what food looks like when it decays, how the meat changes colour, how mould grows on bread, how to recreate that furry texture or that horrible slime you see inside a pork pie."

The event's competition is regarded as one of the most prestigious in cake decorating, attracting entrants from around the world across dozens of categories.

Pal first exhibited at the show eight years ago and won for a Diwali feast platter inspired by her Calcutta roots.

"When I got a gold at Cake International for it, I think it just gave a pride like no other," she said.

She has since worked with major brands and once found herself explaining to airport security why a set of hyper-realistic shampoo bottles in her luggage were actually made from cake.

"I just want to make more jaw-dropping cakes and keep pushing boundaries to see what edible cake art can do," she said.

From royalty recreated in sugar paste to mould-covered feasts that are almost too realistic to look at, organisers say visitors can expect everything from competition masterpieces and life-sized installations to live demonstrations and baking challenges when the doors open this week.

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