It may not seem like there is anything positive about The Great British Bake Off’s upcoming move to Channel 4, but we’ve managed to find one (admittedly small) thing.
By swooping in and stealing the show from the BBC, Channel 4 bosses look to have saved it from going to subscription service Netflix, which meant viewers would have had to pay to watch it.
One of the streaming service’s senior bosses has admitted they would have considered snapping up ‘Bake Off’, but were “too slow off the mark”.
Netflix’s chief content officer Ted Sarandos told Radio Times: “We knew it was brewing, but I didn’t actually think it would happen.”
Asked if Netflix wasn’t quick enough off the starting blocks to bid for the show, Ted replied: “Yes, yes!”
Channel 4 secured the rights to air the next three series of ‘Bake Off’ in a £75m deal last month.
In a statement issued shortly after the news broke, Channel 4 boss Jay Hunt said she was “delighted” to keep the show on free-to-air television”.
Similarly, the BBC voiced their disappointment at the fact ‘Bake Off’ would not remain ad free on Channel 4, although it has since been rumoured the broadcaster could air the show without adverts if they were to land a lucrative sponsorship deal.
Hosts Mel and Sue and judge Mary Berry have confirmed they will remain with the BBC, with reports suggesting they could appear on a new ‘Bake Off’ rival for the corporation.
Mary’s fellow judge Paul Hollywood will make the move to Channel 4, when it airs a celebrity series in 2017 in aid of Stand Up To Cancer.
The final episode of the current series - and the last to screen on BBC One - airs tomorrow (26 October) at 8pm, where either Candice Brown, Andrew Smyth and Jane Beedle will be crowned winner.
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