Show stopper! BBC loses Bake Off to Channel 4
Mary and Paul whisked off to rival by ex-corporation high-flier
The BBC suffered a huge blow last night after The Great British Bake Off – the most watched show on television last year – was poached by Channel 4.
In a remarkable coup that left the Corporation stunned, Channel 4 announced it had secured the rights to the show from next year.
It came after contract talks between the BBC and Love Productions, the company which makes the programme, collapsed amid a row over money.
The Corporation reportedly refused to pay £25million a year to keep it.
It is believed Jay Hunt, who moved from the BBC and is now the chief creative officer at Channel 4, was instrumental in finalising the deal.
The Channel 4 announcement came just moments after the BBC issued a statement saying it was still fighting to keep the show, featuring Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood as judges.
The Corporation also suggested the programme would not succeed on another broadcaster, because it was ‘quintessentially BBC’.
But Love Productions announced that ‘exhaustive’ negotiations over a new contract to produce Bake Off for the BBC had broken down.
Richard McKerrow, the company’s creative director, said Channel 4 was the ‘perfect new home for Bake Off’ because it would ‘protect and nurture’ the show
‘Really sad BBC has lost the rights’
for many years. An internal email sent to Love Productions staff last night made clear the intention was always to stay at the BBC but negotiations collapsed.
It said: ‘We are really saddened by this outcome because we always wanted to stay on the BBC.
‘As recently as June we were convinced that was what would happen. This has never been about who might write the biggest cheque, but about where we can find the best home for Bake Off.
‘Unfortunately we were unable to agree either a fair valuation, nor were the BBC able to provide the necessary comfort for the future protection of such a distinctive and much-loved television series.’
Flora Shedden, 20, from Dunkeld, Perthshire, made it to the semi-final last year. Last night, she wrote on Twitter: ‘Really sad to hear that the BBC has lost rights to Bake Off. Its success is down to format and aesthetic – commercialising will ruin that.’
Just months ago Hollywood said he and his co-hosts would prefer the show to remain on the BBC.
He told Chris Evans on Top Gear: ‘I’ve said, I think the girls have said as well, we want to stay with the BBC. As far as Mary, Mel, Sue and myself, we want to stay.’
The Corporation last night confirmed that the four stars were not contracted to the BBC, but to Love Productions, so would be free to move to Channel 4.
The salaries of the BBC’s top talent are shrouded in secrecy but Hollywood laughed off reports this year that he and Miss Berry were to get £100,000 pay rises that would take their salaries to £600,000.
Commenting on a potential move by the stars, a spokesman for the broadcaster said: ‘We would be delighted if they come to Channel 4.’
However, a source there said negotiations were ongoing and that talent on the show came under a separate contract to the one announced yesterday.
The BBC declined to comment on how much Love Productions had demanded to keep the show on the Corporation, only that it was a ‘significant amount of money’.
Miss Hunt said she was ‘very proud’ Channel 4 would be the new home for the ‘much loved’ Bake Off, and she was ‘delighted’ it would remain a free-to-air show. Since it first broadcast in 2010, Bake Off has become the BBC’s biggest show, with last year’s final drawing the biggest TV audience of the year, with 15million viewers.
The launch of this year’s contest in August drew 10.34million, breaking the record for a series opener.
As the popularity of the show has risen, it has become a financial juggernaut, with a baking range at Lakeland, six books and spin-offs in 20 countries. Successful off-shoots include The Great British Sewing Bee, The Great Pottery Throwdown and The Great Sport Relief BakeOff, all made by Love Productions.
The blow to the BBC comes 18 months after Top Gear, the Corporation’s biggest-earning show, was thrown into turmoil by the sacking of presenter Jeremy Clarkson.
However, there has been speculation since the end of last year about whether the BBC was able to keep hold of the programme, given strong competition that was expected from other broadcasters.
Speaking at the Edinburgh TV Festival last month, ITV’s programming boss Kevin Lygo was asked about a potential move to the network. He said: ‘Would work wherever it was shown…Would it work on ITV? Yes.’
Love Productions already makes Benefits Street, Immigration Street and Keeping Up With The Khans, among others, for Channel 4.
The switch means Bake Off will have commercial breaks, and the broadcaster could experience a considerable boost to its advertising sales. The first Channel 4 Bake Off show will be a celebrity version, airing next year.