Ready, Merry, Bake!

Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith on seasonal baking, snow and rocking out with Status Quo…

- Hannah Davies

Dust off your festive aprons as we return to the white tent for a generous double helping of C4’s The Great British Bake Off, packed with mayhem, music and mince pies.

Judges Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood, along with presenters Noel Fielding and Sandi Toksvig, are pulling their Christmas knitwear on as past contestants return to their mixing bowls in the festive episode, while the cast of C4 comedy Derry Girls takes part in the New Year’s Day edition. Oh, and did we mention that there’s also the chance to see Paul dressed up as a nun?!

Here Paul, 53, and Prue, 79, tell TV Times what’s on the menu…

In episode one, The Great Christmas Bake Off, previous bakers Tom Hetherington, Yan Tsou, Briony Williams, and Terry Hartill are back in the tent. How keen are they to become Christmas Star Baker?

Paul: They know they’re going to be under more scrutiny and they aren’t comfortable about being judged again. But actually the standard is exceptionally high. I may or may not give a ‘Hollywood handshake’… You’ll have to wait and see!