£2m BUNFIGHT FOR BAKE OFF STARS
JUDGES IN DEMAND AS TUG OF WAR HOTS UP Rivals fight it out for Paul and Mary
The 44-yearold gets a salary of £525,000 a year for hosting Strictly Come Dancing with Tess Daly Ex-footballer rakes in a staggering £1.8million a year for hosting Match of the Day and other sports shows His chat show, Radio 2 work and role as Eurovision host earn him a combined total of £1.3million per year
Simon Boyle Bake Off bosses are to offer Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood £1million each to move to Channel 4.
The judges will be wooed with a guaranteed three- year deal that would earn them between £ 300,000 to £ 350,000 per series.
An insider said the offer amounted to a massive pay rise.
Bosses are desperate to keep Paul and Mary after presenters Sue Perkins and Mel Giedroyc quit over the shock decision to take the show away from the BBC.
But the Beeb are said to be ready to offer the judges a rare “golden handcuffs” deal to stop them leaving.
It would match the cash on offer at Channel 4 and ban Paul and Mary from working for other channels, crippling the new Bake Off.
The BBC would come up with new shows for the duo.
Bosses at makers Love Productions, who sold Bake Off to Channel 4 for £ 75million, cal led the BBC move “a dirty trick”.
A source said: “It’s turning into a turf war but at this rate it’s the viewers who will miss out.
“Fans want the show to stay the same but some at the BBC seem to want to sabotage that.”
Furious BBC bosses have ordered an inquiry into how they managed to lose Bake Off.
A source said the Corporation’s factual department failed to ask the entertainment department for the extra £10million a year they needed to meet Love Productions’ £25million-a-series asking price.
The insider said: “Bosses are furious there was no joined-up thinking. Losing a show like Bake Off is the sort of thing that makes people question the licence fee.”