Celebrity Bake Off confirms GMB and Loose Women stars in line-up as Prue Leith leaves
Channel 4 has unveiled the full cast for this year's celebrity version of The Great British Bake Off, set to grace our screens in Spring, with an official release date yet to be confirmed. The Great Celebrity Bake Off for Stand Up To Cancer will feature a host of stars vying for the coveted Star Baker title, with each episode seeing four celebrities put their baking prowess to the test in the Signature, Technical and Showstopper rounds.
While Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood usually judge the contestants' bakes, Prue will be absent from this year's special. Caroline Waldegrave OBE, a close friend of Prue and former co-owner and managing director of Leiths School of Food and Wine, will fill her shoes.
She'll join Paul in critiquing the celebs' creations in the tent, while hosts Alison Hammond and Noel Fielding return to helm the star-studded spin-off. This year's celebrity bakers include podcaster Sarah Beeny, comedian Adam Buxton, Good Morning Britain's Kate Garraway, Chicken Shop Date host and journalist Amelia Dimoldenberg, TV presenter siblings and property experts Scarlette and Stuart Douglas, model and author Ellie Goldstein, Loose Women's Gloria Hunniford OBE, and actor Jim Howick, according to Wales Online.
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This year's Great British Bake Off promises to be a star-studded affair as actor and director Gbemisola Ikumelo, TV host Roman Kemp, funnyman Jamali Maddix, celebrated actress Maxine Peake, and hilariously witty Tommy Tiernan show off their baking skills. They'll be joined by podcast duo Chris and Rosie Ramsey, songbird Self Esteem alias Rebecca Lucy Taylor, talented Meera Syal, comedian Phil Wang, and acclaimed Sophie Willan in the kitchen.
Prue Leith spilled the beans last year about scaling back her role in the beloved Channel 4 show, admitting: "I absolutely love working on Bake Off and am looking forward to filming the next series and meeting our new bakers," reports the Mirror.
The cherished judge clarified that her step back was limited only to the Celebrity series due to the intense shooting schedule, confirming: "I am only stepping back from the Celebrity series, which is just a question of the filming commitment involved as we make these shows back to back."
During a candid appearance on Loose Women earlier in the week, the nonagenarian Prue didn’t mince words about ageing, declaring "old age stinks". She opened up about the challenges she faces daily, saying: "It takes me 10 minutes to get myself out of bed in the morning. If I don't do the exercises I can't move. There's all sorts of things that are wrong with old age."
Undeterred by the twilight years, she confessed: "You know, you are very conscious that this is nearly the end, though I agree that you then decide that you're going to make the most of it and have fun. I think what we're all saying is that we don't care what people think as much as we did and to be honest I don't even really care if I'm cancelled.
