£4m slice of the pie lost from Bake Off
SPONSORS PAY LESS
GREAT British Bake Off bosses have been left with a soggy bottom after suffering a £4million sponsorship flop.
Show chiefs had demanded at least £8m from big brands to sponsor the new series on Channel 4.
They were expecting an advertising bun fight and judges Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith were on a charm offensive to rake in the cash.
But the bid has fallen flat after they were forced to accept a £4m offer – half of what they wanted.
That’s a joint sponsorship deal with Lyle’s Golden Syrup and Dr Oetker, the German baking product maker.
It covers the series, Christmas specials and Jo Brand-fronted spin-off Bake Off: An Extra Slice.
Bosses expected to cash in after 14million viewers watched the ® BBC final last year, making it the biggest show of 2016.
They hoped to rival ITV’s The X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent, which have £10m and £6m deals.
Channel 4 needs to make at least £25m a year over its threeyear deal with Love Productions, the maker of the show, to cover its costs.
Most revenue will come from selling TV ads for as much as £200,000 for a 30-second slot.
Jonathan Lewis, of Channel 4, said: “We have already fully sold out the first show and are starting to fill up the whole series.”
Meanwhile, Noel Fielding, the new joint host with Sandi Toksvig, is making a bid for the pop charts.
The quirky comic hopes to enlist the help of music megastar Lady Gaga.