'Great British Bake Off' Judge Prue Leith Goes Public On Matt Lucas' Exit
Loyal viewers of the much-loved The Great British Bake Off will be missing a familiar face next season—comedian Matt Lucas. Co-host Prue Leith shared her disappointment and preferences for a successor in a recent interview with Saga Magazine.
According to Huffington Post UK, Leith said that she was “very, very sad” about the news, but ultimately understood. “Bake Off takes up four months of the year and he’s extraordinarily talented and wants to do more writing, more theatre,” she said.
Lucas took to social media in December to announce his official departure from the show. “xxx Farewell Bake Off! Lucas wrote –calling his three series as co-host alongside Noel Fielding a “delicious experience.”
In Lucas’s sign-off, he cited his many projects–including hosting the television series Fantasy Football League–as reasons for his departure.
As for who will take over his position? Well, Leith has some thoughts. According to E! Online, Leith stated that she’d like the new host to be “somebody that I’ve heard of”–unlike Fielding, with whom Leith was apparently unfamiliar before he took over in 2017. “The truth is that I've never understood Matt and Noel’s jokes anyway,” Leith quipped.
Fans also had some opinions on Lucas’s successor, as The Independent reports that many of Fielding’s followers are vying for fellow comedian Julian Barratt to take the reigns. The casting choice would mark a major reunion for fans of the hit BBC Three series The Mighty Boosh, which starred Barratt and Fielding.
Whomever Lucas will be “cheerfully passing the baguette on to,” as he wrote in his social media post, he said that he wishes them the very best.
