Prue Leith is leaving GBBO :( - who should take her place?

[Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cm2j80g4vy3o

She's 86, so I suppose she's allowed to take it a bit easier. Harrumph. She's been great. Her replacement has to be able to hold her own against Paul Hollywood. Any ideas?

Anyone who hasn't, including those disillusioned with Bake Off, should try Junior Bake Off. It is so good and much more how bake off used to be. The children are really nice, but it's still about baking rather than just artistic ability. Rav and Liam are brilliant judges and, judging children, they try and say something positive about the bake as well as criticism. And Harry Hill tells such Dad jokes he's so funny, as are the children reacting to him.

I would have loved Delia! Wish she was still on tv, her recipes work.
Lorraine would have been great too, love following her on Instagram, she looks amazing and actually answers in comments!
But I would have loved an unknown like the lady from Taming Twins on Instagram.
But I will watch Nigella.

I much prefer junior bake-off. Although I do find Rav annoying!

Noel is so lovely and kind to the bakers. When he was first announced I was a bit unsure about how it would work. I’m a huge Mighty Boosh fan and have always loved Noel, but thought he might be a bit leftfield and surreal for GBBO. He’s priced me completely wrong and I think he’s perfect. He doesn’t need to be a baker, he needs to support the bakers with humour and kindness when they are stressed. And he does that brilliantly.
I also agree that he and Alison are a fab pair. She’s also great, warm funny and relatable.

Delia Smith!

I think Briony May Williams would be a good fit. Shes a former contestant, has done other TV, so is confident in from of the camera and won’t be cowed by PH.

Nigella has just been announced as replacement.

Think my enjoyment of Bake off is going to be finished 😔

See, I like NL, as she always strikes me as clever, and enjoying her own 'plumpcious beauties' TV persona, plus she's really had some rocky times with John Diamond's death when they had two young children, and then an abusive marriage to Charles Saatchi etc.

However, assuming Paul Hollywood remains as the other judge, it's going to be a completely different dynamic to PH with either Prue Leith or Mary Berry.

Hopefully she can pop Paul Hollywood's massive overinflated ego.

I am happy to be proved wrong ! 😁😁.

I presume PH had a bit of a say in the decision.

I'd love to see Nigella puncture some of PH's 'alpha male' dominant type behaviour. She's witty, clever and knowledgeable and I think a much bigger 'name' than he is.
I always thought Prue (and Mary before her) were far too happy to play second fiddle to Paul. Fingers crossed Nigella will shake that dynamic up a bit.
The format is very tired, I like Alison but Noel is phoning it in at this stage. I'll be hoping Nigella brings something to it to give it a new zing

I hope so too. Both Prue Leith and Mary Berry were far more accomplished and had more wide ranging experience than Paul 'Chilli and Chocolate? I've never tasted that combination before' Hollywood. That Hollywood handshake is just so tedious. Although I do blame the overblowing of that on Extra Slice (another accomplished woman blowing smoke up Hollywoods arse)

I hope so, and I certainly can't imagine her playing sidekick to PH, but on the other hand, this is GBBO, so she's not going to be scornfully saying 'Oh, shut up, you gorilla' every time he opens his mouth either (amusing though that would be). They'll presumably have to discuss what the judge vibe between them is going to be.

Oh god I hate that they all seem to make out that PH is some sort of god like figure, dishing out his handshakes like some kind of Roman emperor inferring favour. It's bloody cringe. I so much prefer the junior bake off series because there's none of this frankly embarrassing deference to PH...
I do like Alison Hammond and she takes the piss out of PH a lot. I think she and Nigella could have great chemistry....

TBF to Paul, he is the more knowledgeable baker and I'm happy for people to defer to him on that.
I think he's been much more relaxed and likeable for the past few seasons. I was really not a fan in the earlier days, but I quite like him now.
Nigella will run rings around him in terms of humour, and praising design and flavour etc.
I don't agree Noel is phoning it in. I think bringing Alison in gave him a new lease on his Bake Off life and he's really enjoying it. He can be a bit silly, but he's very kind and funny to the bakers.

Is he really the more knowledgeable baker? I can remember when bake off started I knew Mary Berry and my DM had a number of her books. She had decades of writing and presenting and especially on cakes and baking and was a bigger name than PH. I had to check out Paul Hollywood as I only knew him as a celeb type name. Prue Leith similarly has decades of writing, restaurant running and cookery schools behind her. I’d be surprised if either of them were lacking in knowledge compared to PH, especially with increasing numbers of challenges bearing less resemblance to classic baking.

I think the dynamic with NL could be quite interesting - she is another woman who could probably run rings around him being used as second chair.

Paul was a professional baker before he started TV work, as in worked his way up from his father's bakery store and then head baker at a number of top hotels. So he's easily as knowledgeable and experienced as Mary and Prue who are all rounders rather than specialist bakers. As is Nigella. I find the handshake annoying but no doubt he's got the technical background for the job.

I'm not talking about how many years of experience, or general cooking/food knowledge. I meant Paul is specifically a baker. He's worked as head baker at some heavyweight restaurants and hotels.
MB studied at Cordon Bleu but isn't a specialised baker. Prue, as you say, comes from a background of running restaurants and cookery schools, and doing (very high-end) catering.
I meant I'm happy for others to defer to PH specifically on baking matters, particularly bread, which is his speciality.
As I said, Nigella will run rings around him with her humour, and articulacy, and praise about the other areas of the bakers' work.

x-post with Enchanted!

Nigella is just so cloying and fake.
Won't be watching.. end of Bake Off for me...

She'll be a big boost for the show - especially its global audience. I only watch it if it's the least worst thing on TV because disliked Prue Leith. Doubt she'll do many series though.

I just don’t think I can cope with Nigella and Paul fluttering their eyelashes at each other. And Noel and Alison are there to do the innuendos.

And yes, Paul is the more knowledgeable baker. I’ve learned loads from him.

It's her TV persona, just as Jamie Oliver's is being a cheeky chappy, Nigel Slater's is being a reclusive culinary gnome, and Fanny Cradock's was being a lipsticked loon in a ballgown.

Or Paul Hollywood's is being a self-professed silverback who might, if a baker is on the form of their life, deign to give a handshake.

Jamie and Nigel I can live with (?).. but Nigella is at another level of irritation.. and I don't watch Bake Off to be irritiated!
As for all the hair tossing....😡