The Great British Bake Off judge Prue Leith has revealed why she believes host Matt Lucas quit the popular baking series.
Speaking on tonight's episode of The One Show (December 14), the judge was asked about Lucas' departure, revealing that she was saddened by the news but understood that he wanted to focus on other projects.
"I'm really sad because I love the guy. He's such fun and he got on so well with Noel [Fielding]," she said.
"They were just brilliant. But I do understand why. If [you're] close to Matt, you do know that he never stops working and he has so many projects and people keep asking him to do things and he loves theatre... he absolutely loves that kind of show."
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She added: "And you can't commit to it if you're on Bake Off, because we film that all summer. So I think he thought three years is enough. But I think he loved it and we're really sorry."
Lucas announced earlier this month that he would be leaving the series after three years hosting alongside Noel Fielding, stating that he didn't feel like he could present Bake Off and Fantasy Football League while working on other projects.
Reacting to the news, Fielding said that he will miss Lucas' kindness and silliness in the tent.
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Posting a farewell message on his Instagram account, Fielding said: "Farewell buddy thank you for 3 amazing years. I will really miss your spark and huge smile in the tent and I will miss your kindness as a person and to all the bakers.
"I will miss your sense of the absurd and your silliness. I will miss all the times the four of us giggled together."
The One Show airs on BBC One. The Great British Bake Off airs on Channel 4 in the UK. In the US, it's known as The Great British Baking Show, and streams on Netflix.
