All things crust come to an end.
Actor and comedian Matt Lucas is leaving as co-host of “The Great British Bake Off” after three seasons on the show, citing scheduling conflicts with his new series “Fantasy Football League” for Sky.
“It’s become clear to me that I can’t present both ‘Fantasy Football League’ and ‘Bake Off’ alongside all my other projects,” Lucas said in a statement posted to Twitter. “So, after three series and 51 episodes, I am cheerfully passing the baguette on to someone else.”
Lucas began co-hosting “Bake Off” (which airs on Netflix as “The Great British Baking Show” in the U.S.) for the 11th season, replacing co-host Sandi Toksvig. He worked alongside co-host Noel Fielding and judges Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith, and in the first two of those seasons, it was under severe COVID restrictions that required the production to remain sequestered together in a COVID bubble.
“I would like to give my warmest thanks and gratitude to everyone at Love Productions and Channel 4 and to Noelipops, Paül, Dame Prue, the crew and, of course, the wonderful bakers for welcoming me into the tent,” Lucas wrote. “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!”
“We’d like to say a massive thank you to ML for his magnificent contribution to GBBO over the past three years,” senior executive producers Kieran Smith, Letty Kavanagh and Richard McKerrow said in a joint statement. “We consider M 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.”
Added Channel 4 chief content officer Ian Katz: “Over the past three years Matt has played a huge role in the success of Bake Off. He brought warmth, wit and a large helping of endearing silliness to the tent and produced some of the most memorable moments of recent series. He also played a key part in keeping the show on air through the pandemic. We are incredibly grateful for his contribution and commitment to the show.”
Lucas was a controversial presence on the show for some fans, including for racist jokes during cultural theme weeks; in Season 11’s “Japanese Week” episode, he referred to katsu curry as “cat poo curry.” (Lucas has apologized for using blackface, brownface and yellowface on his sketch comedy series “Little Britain” and “Come Fly With Me,” and Netflix and the BBC have dropped both shows from their services.)
