Matt Lucas has said "farewell" to the Great British Bake Off tent, as the comedian confirmed he was stepping down as a presenter of the show.
The 48-year-old said his three-series stint had been a "delicious experience" but the time needed to oversee bakes alongside other projects was too much.
"I am cheerfully passing the baguette on to someone else," the former Little Britain star wrote on Twitter.
Channel 4 has not announced a replacement host.
In his statement, Lucas said the decision came after trying to balance the requirements of Bake Off and other projects such as Sky Max comedy Fantasy Football League.
He said: "I would like to give my warmest thanks and gratitude to everyone at Love Productions and Channel 4 and to Noelipops [co-presenter Noel Fielding], Paul [Hollywood], Dame Prue [Leith], the crew and, of course, the wonderful bakers for welcoming me into the tent.
"I wish whoever takes over all the very best and I can't wait to tune into the next series without already knowing who won!"
Fielding, who presented alongside Lucas, said: "I will miss your big smile and your sense of fun and silliness. I will miss our writing days in that ridiculous room with the high ceilings and I will miss us giggling like naughty schoolboys when Paul says 'eggy' in his Scouse accent.
"You were so lovely to work with and so kind to the bakers. Have fun on your next adventure."
Show judge Hollywood wished Lucas luck, while fellow judge Dame Prue thanked Lucas for "bringing so much laughter and fun to the tent".
Love Productions, which makes the programme, said it was thankful to Lucas for his work on the show, including during Covid, "which required a great sacrifice and an enormous dollop of humour".
"We consider Matt to be very much part of the Bake Off family and are extremely grateful for his part, along with Noel, in looking after very many bakers," the show's producers added.
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Ian Katz, chief content officer at Channel 4, echoed that sentiment, saying Lucas "brought warmth, wit and a large helping of endearing silliness to the tent and produced some of the most memorable moments of recent series".
Bake Off first aired in 2010 and transferred from the BBC to Channel 4 in 2017. Its 13th series ended last month, and overnight figures showed its finale attracted about 5.2 million viewers.
Matt Lucas has said "farewell" to the Great British Bake Off tent, as the comedian confirmed he was stepping down as a presenter of the show. The 48-year-old said his three-series stint had been a "delicious experience" but the time needed to oversee bakes alongside other projects was too much.
She quit the show in 2019, when she was replaced by comedian Matt Lucas. At the time, Toksvig said she was leaving “to spend more time with my other work”. As my waistline will testify, Bake Off is an all-consuming show,” she said in her statement.
Channel 4 confirmed that Prue would be stepping back from Celebrity Bake Off in a statement provided to The Independent which read: “Prue will be joining Paul as usual to judge The Great British Bake Off but will be stepping back from The Great Celebrity Bake Off for Stand Up To Cancer.” Celebrity chef Nigella Lawson ...
Big Brother star and actress Alison Hammond replaces Matt Lucas as Great British Baking Show host. Lucas exited the show in December. Hammond will co-host the baking competition alongside Noel Fielding and head judges Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood.
'Power shift' The company that makes the programme, Love Productions, says it's not just about money, but money certainly played a part. The BBC's guidelines on how much of its licence fee it is willing to pay for a factual programme like the Bake Off has an upper limit of around £300,000.
In a comment made to The Independent on Thursday (14 March), Leith said: “I absolutely love working on Bake Off and am looking forward to filming the next series and meeting our new bakers, I am only stepping back from the Celebrity series, which is just a question of the filming commitment involved as we make these ...
I have snapped my Achilles tendon. Moments later, the show's medic came to Prue's aid and got “to use his ambulance, wheelchair, and considerable skills.” After doctors diagnosed Prue's injury, they gave her a boot to wear until it healed up and told her to use either a wheelchair or crutches when moving around.
However, both Thiessen and Hewitt declined the role. Producers then decided to kill off Prue and replace her with a long-lost younger half-sister named Paige Matthews (played by Rose McGowan), in favor of having "a fresh face" join the series.
Even so, Leith's career is impressive and filled with accomplishments, perhaps most notably earning a Michelin Star. Leith received her formal training from London's renowned Cordon Bleu Cookery School starting in 1960.
The Great British Bake Off co-presenter Noel Fielding has opened up about difficulties working with Matt Lucas. The now-former presenter appeared alongside Fielding on the show for three series, before stepping away after last year's version.
On 10 January 2020, Lucas himself was forced to withdraw from the show following a back injury. In March 2020, he became the new co-host of the Channel 4 and Love Productions television show The Great British Bake Off, taking over from Sandi Toksvig. He departed from the programme in December 2022.
Mary Berry, who served as a judge on The Great British Bake Off, decided not to continue with the show when it moved from the BBC to Channel Four for several reasons. One of the main reasons was her loyalty to the BBC, where she had worked for many years and felt a strong connection to.
In January 2020, she announced she was leaving the show to focus on other work commitments, and was replaced by Matt Lucas. Toksvig presented Channel 4's four-part travel series Extraordinary Escapes with Sandi Toksvig, which premiered on 10 February 2021.
Do They Stay at the House Where the Tent Is Located? No. The contestants stay at a nearby hotel during the weekends and travel to the tent via minibus during competition days before returning home during the week, Quinn told Cosmopolitan. The judges and hosts are put up in a hotel, though a different one.
Lucas said that, after a time, he felt that he wanted to focus more on Fantasy Football League, writing a book and musical, and working on a new TV series with his former Little Britain co-star David Walliams.
As of Season 14, he's been replaced by British television personality and talk show host Alison Hammond. Lucas appeared on three seasons (51 episodes' worth) before making his exit, citing an overly full plate (pun intended) that didn't leave enough time to do the show anymore.
Mary left GBBO because the U.K. series switched networks. The show, which originally aired on BBC, decided to move to Channel 4 instead of sticking with BBC. Unhappy with the decision, Mary left the cast to show her loyalty to BBC.
The 69-year-old Women's Institute member quit the show after losing her sense of smell and taste the night before episode five was filmed. The BBC said Diana's exit this was "not connected in any way" to the Baked Alaska scandal of episode four that viewers witnessed last night.
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