Upper crust cook set to step into Mary’s choux
Foodie toff among Bake Off frontrunners
Graeme Donohoe An award-winning chef on the Isle of Skye is the hot favourite to take over from Mary Berry on Channel 4’s version of The Great British Bake Off.
Lady Clai re Macdonald launched the Michelin- starred Kinloch Lodge on the Scots isle with aristocrat husband Godfrey.
The food writer is one of three women to have emerged as contenders to replace Berry, who quit the show af ter it was controversially poached from the BBC.
Lady Macdonald, Irish TV chef Rachel Allen and Yorkshire cook Frances Atkins repor tedly attended screen tests in London earlier this week with judge Paul Hollywood.
Celebrity chef Michel Roux Jr was also spotted attending the rumoured test shoot.
Lady Macdonald, 69, and her family were remaining tight lipped when quizzed about the speculation.
Her daughter Isabella said: “We absolutely can’t talk about this but we thank you for your interest.”
Popular host Berry, 81, jumped ship along with Bake Of f hosts Mel Giedroyc and Sue Perkins after the hit show was purchased by Channel 4 in a controversial £ 25million-a-year raid.
Work has begun on the revamped show after the BBC backed down in a legal row over a hold- back clause that threatened to prevent Bake Off from airing until 2018.
The new series is expected to be broadcast this summer.
Lady Macdonald, who was born in Lancashire, is one of Scotland’s best-known cookery writers.
She was awarded a CBE in 2013 and has been married to husband Godfrey, the high chief of Clan Donald, since 1969.
The pair inherited a crumbling 45,000- acre estate on Skye following Godfrey’s father’s death but transformed Kinloch House into one of Scotland’s top venues.
It’s now run by daughter Isabella and Michelin- starred Brazilian chef Marcello Tully and was rated one of the best 25 small hotels in the world.
Lady Macdonald has helped showcase Scottish cuisine for VisitScotland tourism drives.
She onc e sa id: “I d id demonstrations for French journalists.
“Initially they just laughed. Good food from Scotland? But they came to lunch, and they stayed and they stayed.
“We do have the finest produce in the world.”