The Great British Bake Off winner Joanne Wheatley’s moment of glory had to play second fiddle to a male squirrel.

The male squirrel, loitering in the grounds of the mansion where the BBC2 show, Great British Bake Off was filmed, was the subject of a lingering camera shot.

Viewers could not help noticing squirrel’s unmistakably masculine appearance.

Video clips were posted on YouTube, while hundreds took to social networks and TV forums to discuss it.

One joked: “This evening’s Great British Bake Off contains full-frontal squirrel nudity which some viewers may find startling.”

Another said: “A squirrel is flashing everyone on the Great British Bake Off.”

Others were more disturbed by the image, complaining it was an unnecessary and unwelcome distraction on a show about baking. Since Great British Bake Off show was recorded some time ago, it could easily have been edited out.

One viewer commented: “Why did the cameraman focus on the squirrel at all? I just didn’t need to see that.”

A record five million viewers saw grandmother Joanne Wheatley crowned Queen of the Bake Off on Tuesday night

Joanne Wheatley beat thousands of other amateur bakers, including favourite Holly Bell, to win after wowing judges Mary Berry and John Hollywood with her “pretty” and “girly” array of cakes and pastries.

Joanne Wheatley is now tipped to be a star in her own right and is expected to be offered a cookery book deal.

Joanne Wheatley, 41, mother of three sons, who was married at 17, honed her culinary skills making cakes for her boys, who regularly scored her out of ten for her efforts.

Joanne Wheatley taught herself to cook with a combination of recipe books and experimentation, as well as “tough feedback” from her children.

The housewife from Essex battled crippling nerves throughout the eight-week competition but impressed judges with her creativity and skill.

The second series of Great British Bake Off, presented by Sue Perkins and Melanie Giedroyc, has been the surprise television hit of the year and superseded Masterchef as the must-watch show for cookery fans

Filming took place at Valentines Mansion and Gardens in Essex, where all the contestants had a baking station and presented their efforts in the lush gardens surrounded by bunting.

Great British Bake Off has sent demand for baking products soaring.

Marks & Spencer reports sales increases of up to 20% in ingredients, while John Lewis has seen a 46% rise in sales of three-tier cake stands and cake tins and muffin trays.