The Great British Bake Off series 16: who are the judges and hosts - is Prue Leith back?
The Great British Bake Off will welcome back a favourite judge for series 16 🍰
- The Great British Bake Off is back for series 16.
- Channel 4 has confirmed the hosts and judges.
- But who will be casting an eye over the bakers this year?
A brand new season of The Great British Bake Off is just a few hours away. Channel 4 will be welcoming viewers back into the famous tent for another year.
The exact time the first episode will start has been confirmed. The broadcaster will once again be airing the latest series on Tuesday nights from today (September 2).
Channel 4 has revealed the full cast of bakers who will be competing in this year’s edition of the long-running cooking show. One of the contestants is hoping to secure a “show first” and make series history.
But who will be casting an eye over the latest batch of amateurs? Here’s all you need to know:
Who are the GBBO hosts for series 16?
Over the years, the Bake Off has seen plenty of different presenters come and go. The original duo of Mel and Sue departed when the show made the jump over to Channel 4 with series 8.
Noel Fielding has been a constant on the show since series eight, but he has had a number of different partners over the past eight years. Originally, he was paired up with Sandi Toksvig, and then it was Matt Lucas.
The current duo is Noel Fielding and Alison Hammond, who have hosted series 14, 15, and 16 together. It has been rumoured earlier in the year that Noel would be leaving, however, those rumours were quickly quashed.
Is Prue Leith back as a judge?
During the Celebrity version of the Great British Bake Off earlier in the year, Prue Leith stepped away and Caroline Waldegrave OBE joined Paul Hollywood for the episodes. Caroline is the former co-owner and managing director of Leiths School of Food & Wine.
Fortunately, Prue Leith is back for the regular season of The Great British Bake Off. She will be on judging duty with Paul Hollywood throughout series 16.
Speaking about the new season, Paul said: “I think this is an exceptional year. I think the standard of the baking has been phenomenal. I was really shocked – it was unbelievable. Proper borderline-professional from the off.
“And the bakers all bonded really quickly as well. Straight out of the traps, there were a number of bakers that made me think “Wow, we’re in for a good year.” And it is a really good year.”
Prue added: “My favourite week is always bread week, and the reason is, it’s not as sweet. I’m a cook at heart, not a baker, so I like that. My least favourite is probably chocolate week.
“I’m not mad about chocolate. I like a good chocolate cake, but I don’t know that I’d ever think of making one. If I was making a cake at home, I’d never make a chocolate cake. I would make a lemon polenta cake or a lemon drizzle cake or even a Victoria Sandwich, but not a chocolate cake.
“The only kind of chocolate cake I like is a very rich chocolate torte that’s practically solid chocolate. Chocolate cake that’s made with just cocoa powder just isn’t worth it.”
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