In the wake of the BBC losing its hit show The Great British Bake Off (aka The Great British Baking Show in the U.S.) to Channel 4 in the U.K., two of its top stars have announced that they are leaving. Hosts Sue Perkins and Mel Giedroyc have announced that they will not return to the show for its next season.
The Great British Bake Off, which appears on PBS and can be streamed on Netflix in the United States, was a top draw for BBC, bringing in millions of viewers for its baking competition. In fact, last year's finale was watched by more than 13 million people in the U.K.
Many people believe that the show’s move to Channel 4 will be the beginning of the end. They sense that Channel 4 will be unable to, as NPR suggests, “grow the show in line with public sensibilities as the BBC has: keeping the innuendos punny, the contestants reflective of the U.K.'s diversity, the attitudes positive, and the asides educational.”
Edd Kimber, who won the first season of The Great British Bake Off, is one of the many who believe that the latest news will be terrible for the future of the show. “They are such an irreplaceable part of the show that it will definitely change the dynamic, and I think if you look at all different countries in the world that have made the show, I don't think anyone's quite captured Sue and Mel. So I do worry for their - for the future of it.”
Fortunately for American viewers, PBS says it still has two more seasons of the show that will air, which were already broadcasted in the U.K.