Nigella Lawson reveals what she 'agonised' over after joining Bake Off

Nigella Lawson has revealed what she 'agonised' over after joining the UK TV sensation The Great British Bake Off. The TV cook is no stranger to the small screen, with her own shows such as Channel 4's Nigella Bites, her self-titled ITV talk show and her BBC series Nigella's Christmas Kitchen airing over the years. The 66-year-old is one of the UK's most popular TV chefs, rising to fame through her cooking books, including her debut book How to Eat and her 2000 bestseller How to Be a Domestic Goddess, which have sold over eight million books worldwide to date. Bake Off fans were left stunned earlier in the year when it was confirmed that Dame Prue Leith was leaving the series after nearly a decade. It was soon announced that Nigella was replacing her on judging duties. Prue replaced Mary Berry on the series back in 2017 following the show's move from the BBC to Channel 4. Questions were raised about Prue's future last year when she was missing from last year's Stand Up to Cancer special, where her friend Caroline Waldegrave filled in. Nigella said in a statement at the time: "I'm uncharacteristically rather lost for words right now! Of course it's daunting to be following in the footsteps of Prue Leith and Mary Berry before her, great dames both, but I'm also bubbling with excitement. 'The Great British Bake Off is more than a television programme, it's a National Treasure – and it's a huge honour to be entrusted with it. I'm just thrilled to be joining the team and all the new bakers to come. I wish the marvellous Prue all the best, and am giddily grateful for the opportunity!' On Tuesday (September 8), Nigella joined her fellow judge Paul Hollywood at the launch of the programme's new series. It was here, where Nigella admitted that having to send someone home every week was hard for her. 'I agonise quite a bit. I just look at the floor, I'm so frightened of making eye contact,' she said. Providing an insight into how she fared during filming, Nigella was happy to report that she and Paul carried on talking about the cakes long after the cameras stopped rolling. She noted that 'you get so involved, you can't just switch it off'. Elaborating on sending contestants home, Nigella added: 'This person's done well on this front but maybe fallen down a bit here - and these things are crucial. It's just cake - but it matters. So you really have to be sure you've looked at everything and really thought about it. You don't want to make any mistakes.' She continued: 'I always try and look for the positive as well, because you don't ever want criticism to be something that makes people feel inadequate. I think it's very important to let someone know what they're doing well and what needs to be a bit better.' Thankfully, Nigella quickly found that the best thing to do on Bake Off is to tell the truth and be herself. 'Ultimately, you can't do anything except be honest, because all you have to go on is your honest reactions. Does it help someone to say something worked if it didn't? No. Because they're there to get better. 'You can only ever be the person you are. Television is very interesting in that way - in one sense it's an artificial medium because you're made to look nicer and all that sort of thing. And yet, it's a great phoniness detector,' she said. Giving his verdict on his new co-star, Paul stated: 'I was curious to see the reaction the first time Nigella gave judgment on a cake. For me, I found that the most magical time. Obviously, I did it with Mary for seven years, 10 years with Prue. So it was fascinating - it was fantastic.'