The Great British Bake Off returns to Channel 4 this evening with Matt Lucas alongside Noel Fielding, along with judges Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith.
Hollywood was the only star to make the move with Bake Off from the BBC as fellow judge Mary Berry and presenters Mel Giedroyc and Sue Perkins all quit.
Celebrity chef Leith replaced Berry, while Fielding and Sandi Toksvig took the places of Giedroyc and Perkins.
But while Fielding has stayed on, Toksvig left the Bake Off tent after three years, a decision which stunned fans.
Toksvig’s departure was announced on January 16 2020, saying she wanted to work on other projects.
In a statement she said: "When stepping down from a job it is quite common for people to say they are doing so in order to spend more time with their family.
“Unusually I am departing from the Great British Bake Off so I can spend more time with my other work. As my waistline will testify, Bake Off is an all-consuming show."
Show bosses also released a statement suggesting she had other work lined up for Channel 4.
"We will miss her warmth and wit, not to mention her endless willingness to be the butt of jokes about being the least tall person in the Bake Off tent,” said Ian Katz, Director of Programmes at Channel 4.
"Fortunately, her unique voice will continue to have an important presence on the Channel with new shows in development - none of which involve cake.”
But it was later suggested that the 62-year-old had been “desperate” to leave Bake Off and had been hiding in her dressing room when she wasn’t filming, something that apparently caused tension on set.
The Sun reported that “as time went on Sandi seemed to be enjoying it less and less and just didn't want to get involved”.
A source told the paper: "She spent most of her time hiding out in what looked like a bijou shepherd's hut she'd had set up, knitting on her own — and quite often grumbling about it all."
While Bake Off fans were bitterly disappointed by the news, it reportedly didn’t surprise those close to Toksvig.
She "wanted out as soon as possible", it's claimed. The source added: "The only surprise is that she didn't walk sooner."
