Nigella Lawson frightened by one element in Bake Off filming

Share The new Bake Off judge has admitted that she struggled with the weekly eliminations while filming the new series. Nigella Lawson has been brought in to take over from Prue Leith, who announced she would be leaving the show earlier this year, and has already opened up about how she would "agonise" over sending a baker home each week. The introduction of Nigella is not the only change to the series, as it was recently announced the spin-off show Extra Slice would be replaced by Second Helpings hosted by Judi Love and Jon Richardson. The new series of the Great British Bake Off is set to start on Tuesday, September 22. A post shared by The Great British Bake Off (@britishbakeoff) Nigella Lawson opens up about difficult eliminations Speaking at the launch of the series, Nigella said: 'I agonise quite a bit. 'I just look at the floor, I'm so frightened of making eye contact. 'You get so involved, you can't just switch it off. '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.' Nigella mentioned how she and her co-host Paul Hollywood would be discussing the cakes long after they had stopped filming. As a judge, Nigella said she wanted to be fair and always look for the positives to help the bakers improve each week. She added: '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. '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. Recommended reading Trigger Point fans all say the same thing about ITV drama as fourth episode airs Monty Don to step down from Gardeners' World after more than 20 years Bake Off 2026 sees spin-off axed with new presenters added to 'revamped' show 'And yet, it's a great phoniness detector.' Nigella spoke about how impressed she was by all of the bakers and mentioned how she was 'just amazed' by how they all took the competition 'in their stride'. Are you excited for the new series of the Great British Bake Off? Let us know in the comments.Share Get involved with the news