Tom Murray
·2-min read
Noel Fielding has revealed that his ex-Great British Bake Off co-host Matt Lucas once swore at him in anger while he was competing on the series’ Stand Up To Cancer celebrity special.
Lucas, 49, joined the Channel 4 competition series in 2020 and was replaced last year by This Morning fan-favourite Alison Hammond, 49.
Fielding, 50, has co-presented the series since 2017, meanwhile.
The Mighty Boosh alum spoke about the celebrity specials with comedians Ed Gamble and James Acaster, both of whom have competed on Bake Off, on the most recent episode of the pair’s Off Menu podcast.
Acaster, who had a famously disastrous appearance on the baking show in 2019 told Fielding: “You were the only person who – at least to my face – was constantly finding [my breakdown] funny.”
Gamble recalled that during his appearance on the show, Lucas had also joined the competitors because of a number of last-minute dropouts.
“Yeah, and he was having a breakdown as well,” Fielding recalled. “He told me to f*** off. Because I just came up and was laughing at him and he was like: ‘Oh, f*** off.’ And then he went, ‘Oh I’m really sorry, I’m just really stressed.’
“I was like ‘Are you joking?’ but it really got to him. I think he felt extra pressure because he was supposed to be good or something.”
Fielding also revealed in the podcast that the producers of Bake Off have repeatedly attempted to get him to compete in a celebrity special, which he’s refused to do.
“They’re always like to me: ‘You should go on it, as a joke.’ And I’m like: ‘That’s not funny. That won’t be funny.’”
Fielding has previously spoken about it being “weird” and “difficult” working with Lucas on Bake Off because the two played similar roles in their respective double-acts.
Lucas is known as part of a double act with his Little Britain co-star David Walliams, while Fielding has often partnered with Julian Barratt.
“With Matt it was a bit weird, because we’re mates and are probably the same low-status person from our respective double acts, where he has [David] Walliams and I have Julian [Barrett],” Fielding told Times Radio last year.
“It was more difficult to find how we worked together, but we managed to find a way,” he added.
Lucas stunned Bake Off fans in December 2022 when he announced that he was quitting the show, after it “became clear” that he could no longer present the show alongside his other projects.
The next series of The Great British Bake Off is likely to air in September, although an official release date has not yet been announced.
