Big changes are reported to be under way as filming starts of the next season of Great British Bake Off. As well as a new host, the challenges and bakes will be overhauled in a 'back to basics' revamp.
The boss of the production company that makes GBBO said the last season was 'not their strongest' and asked whether the challenges were too hard. Viewing numbers for the final dropped from 7.2million in 2021 to 5.2million last year.
Host Matt Lucas has quit and will be replaced with a new face alongside Noel Fielding. One insider told The Mirror: “There is a realisation last year’s show didn’t really work. We’re going to strip it back to basics, with a few twists.”
Richard McKerrow, the boss of the firm behind GBBO Love Productions, told The Media Podcast: “I’d be the first to hold up our hands and say I feel the last series was not our strongest. You’ve got to take a look and go, ‘Sh*t, are the challenges too complicated?’. We’re looking very, very, very hard at making sure it’s as good a series as it can be.”
The Mirror says fans complained many of the tasks were “silly”, with “ridiculous” time constraints blamed for an underwhelming final.
One viewer, who stopped watching, said: “I don’t watch Bake Off to see people stressed out and upset.”
Judges Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith are expected to return to the show when filiming starts in a couple of weeks.
