‘We’ve got to be cool around the celebs'
Closer catches up with Bake Off judges Paul and Prue as a new line-up of celebrities attempt to win Star Baker in this year’s charity special…
IT TURNS OUT DAVID SCHWIMMER IS GREAT AT BAKING! PAUL HOLLYWOOD, 57: Yeah, for sure! He is talented. And he took it quite seriously, you know, he was quite intense...
PRUE LEITH, 83: You really felt that you couldn’t go and interrupt him because he was busy baking. But he loosened up and, as you say, he was rather good.
WERE YOU JUST A LITTLE STARSTRUCK AROUND HIM?
PAUL: We’ve got to be cool. But I was in my trailer when I saw him coming in with his bags and I was like, “It’s David Schwimmer, he’s here, he’s here!” I wandered up, pretending I wasn’t that bothered, but I had to let it out. I couldn’t believe it was him and I was like, “Wow!” He just said, “Oh hiya guys, how are you doing?”
WHO WAS THE MOST COMPETITIVE?
PAUL: I think David Schwimmer was definitely one of them, and Jessica Hynes. Coleen Nolan as well. You can see it on their faces, they all want to get past the Signature, and you don’t want to deflate them going into the Technical…
WHAT ARE YOU DOING WHILE THE BAKING HAPPENS?
PRUE: I do a lot of sleeping. Paul does a lot of sunbathing, which shows…
PAUL: I do not! I’m normally sitting in my trailer doing [online game] Wordle.
THE SPECIAL EPISODES RAISE FUNDS FOR STAND UP TO CANCER.
PAUL: There’s quite a lot of people in the tent this year who have been affected by cancer. They really want to be part of something to try to raise some money. I knew what Adele Roberts had been through and I’ve got a lot of time for her; I think she’s an amazing person.
PRUE: There’s almost nobody that’s not affected by it in some way. And I like these celebrity shows because they’re not as serious as the main Bake Off. You’re allowed to help the bakers a bit and there is a lot more laughing.
DO YOU BOND?
PAUL: Definitely. We’ll often sit down with the celebrity bakers and have a cup of tea with them. They’re all nervous at first and you can hear them saying, “I can’t believe I’m here!”
AND SAMPLING OF THE GOODS?
PRUE: I’m so greedy, especially when I’m hungry. Though I’ve long since worked out that if you stick to just one teaspoon you only end up eating 1,400 calories, which means I can have a couple of glasses of wine for supper. So, I eat cake all day – followed by wine.
PAUL: It’s difficult. Sometimes, we’ve got 12 bakers – and 36 teaspoons of something equates to something quite large. And then I’ll go away and have dinner, thinking, “What am I doing?”
WHAT WOULD IT TAKE FOR YOU TO DO CELEBRITY BAKE OFF?
PAUL: £15.8 million.
PRUE: I know that I wouldn’t win if
I’m up against Paul. I might take him on if it was a cooking competition…
By Hannah Wright