'Great British Menu' Judge Andi Oliver Praises Her BBC Bosses For Increasing Diversity On Cookery Show | HuffPost

'I’m passionate about my subject, so I don’t think it is tokenism.'

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Entertainment Editor, HuffPost UK

New ‘Great British Menu’ judge Andi Oliver has praised her BBC bosses for increasing diversity on the cookery series.

The Radio 4 ‘Kitchen Cabinet’ favourite is stepping in to replace Prue Leith, who has left to join Channel 4’s revamped ‘The Great British Bake Off’, in place of Mary Berry.

Andi Oliver is joining 'The Great British Menu'

BBC

Andi has since spoken out to insist her hiring was not an exercise in ‘tokenism’, even though she claims her race, age and gender played a part in her landing the role.

Speaking to Radio Times, she said: “Well, one of the reasons (I was hired) is because I’m a black woman, and not only that, I’m a middle-aged black woman.

“So hooray for being a middle-aged woman on TV, for a start. But a middle-aged black woman on TV, double hooray!”

Andi is judging alongside Matthew Fort and Oliver Peyton

BBC

She continued: “I know what I’m talking about, I’m passionate about my subject, so I don’t think it is tokenism. I’m there for a real reason and there for the whole picture. And I’m really happy about that.”

Andi will be joining fellow judges Matthew Fort and Oliver Peyton on the 12th series of ‘The Great British Menu’, which will air on BBC Two later this summer.

Prue had been with the series since it started in 2006, and her exit was confirmed earlier this month.

Prue Leith has joined 'The Great British Bake Off'

BBC

She recently began work on the new series of ‘Bake Off’, alongside long-standing judge Paul Hollywood and new presenters Sandi Toksvig and Noel Fielding.

Last week, it was confirmed BBC Two spin-off show ‘Bake Off: An Extra Slice’ will be making the move to Channel 4, along with presenter Jo Brand.

Most Controversial Great British Bake Off Moments

#BinGate(01 of18)

The moment none of us could have anticipated would be one of the top entertainment stories of 2014, Iain Watters made headlines when his ruined Baked Alaska wound up in the bin, which he then frustratedly presented to the judges as his finished product. (credit:BBC)

Diana gets bombarded with hate(02 of18)

The ramifications of #BinGate were, as previously mentioned, unprecentedly massive. Mainly for Iain's fellow contestant, Diana Beard, who found herself on the receiving end of a torrent of abuse, when she was accused of sabotaging Iain's Baked Alaska.

Paul Hollywood and Sue Perkins both piped up to defend Diana, while a statement from the BBC insisted: "Diana removing Iain's ice cream from the freezer for less than a minute was in no way responsible for Iain’s departure." (credit:BBC)

Paul Hollywood makes the jump to Channel 4(03 of18)

Remember when Bake Off was first announced to have made the jump to Channel 4? Does anyone feel in hindsight the ensuing manic press coverage might have been an overreaction?

Anyway, while Mary Berry decided not to jump ship, as did presenters Mel and Sue, out of "loyalty" to the BBC, Paul stuck with the show when it moved to its new home, and people were not happy, with many accusing him of "following the dough" and betraying the BBC.

Again, in hindsight... slight overreaction, no? (credit:PA Wire/PA Images)

Behind-the-scenes tension(04 of18)

Shortly after the new-look Channel 4 team was announced, the press was full of reports that they weren't getting along, particularly in comparison to their predecessors, with rumours suggesting Noel and Paul were finding it particularly difficult to locate common ground.

A Channel 4 spokesperson insisted, via a fairly clumsy pun: "[The team] get on brilliantly and together have all the ingredients for a show-stopping series." (credit:Channel 4)

Gay sex joke lands Paul and Noel in hot water(05 of18)

When Paul and Noel tried to hit back at rumours they weren't getting on themselves, they quickly landed themselves in hot water after tweeting this picture.

"This should put to rest any rumours that me and blue eyes don't get on," Noel tweeted.

This was met negatively by some fans on Twitter, who claimed the picture was offensive and demeaned gay sex for a joke. (credit:Channel 4)

Ruby gets accused of playing up to the judges(06 of18)

Ruby Tandoh found herself in the midst of some really unfair criticism back in 2013, when she was accused of crying to win the judges' sympathy, and even flirting with Paul Hollywood.

She later blasted these claims when she came out two years after, insisting that her detractors were "giant shitting misogynists", which we must admit is hard to argue with. (credit:BBC)

No but seriously, who thought this icing was a good idea?(07 of18)

Before the 2016 series had even begun, viewers took to Twitter to voice their disdain when the male and female contestants were given blue or pink icing to pose with, depending on their gender, insisting this perpetrated antiquated stereotypes and even added to larger problems of sexism. (credit:BBC/Love Productions/Mark Bourdillon)

Flora's Aga(08 of18)

Flora Shedden managed to get on the wrong side of viewers back in 2015, when she complained that the show's ovens were tricky for her to use as she had an Aga at home.

Addressing the criticism she faced after some viewers accused her of being “too posh” for the show, she later said: 'Where I live the majority of people have Agas as a means of heating, not just cooking.“They are a very sensible option during Scottish winters. As we have no heating in the house, it’s a lifesaver.

"Ours is 50 years old and was salvaged from a house fire. I did find it baffling that it made headlines." (credit:BBC)

Noel's game of Hide & Seek attracts Ofcom complaints(09 of18)

Noel Fielding attracted over 50 Ofcom complaints in 2018, when during a skit with co-host Sandi Toksvig, he hid in a fridge.

Plenty of people voiced their disdain, suggesting Noel was setting a potentially dangerous example by encouraging young viewers to imitate him.

However, the TV watchdog later ruled the programme had not breached broadcasting guidelines, saying in a statement: “We found that the scene was very brief and occurred later in the programme, when younger children were least likely to be watching.”

Ofcom also pointed out that since the 1960s, fridges are fitted with a device meaning they can be opened from the inside, should someone climb into one as Noel did. (credit:Channel 4)

Nadiya faces the wrath of The Sun(10 of18)

Nadiya's Bake Off victory is still a guaranteed tear-jerker for many of us, but sadly not everyone was as pleased with her win.

An article published in The Sun in the aftermath described it as 'ideological warfare' intended to spark a 'multi-cultural jig of politically-correct joy' at the BBC.

Thankfully, Twitter had Nadiya's back. (credit:BBC)

Enwezor Nzegwu's shop-bought icing raises eyebrows(11 of18)

Shop-bought icing, though. What was he thinking? (credit:BBC)

Paul gets too generous with his Hollywood Handshake(12 of18)

Paul's Hollywood Handshake has been a mainstay of the series, signifying the ultimate seal of approval from the judge and therefore becoming something all the bakers seek to get.

However, during the 2018 series, Paul made headlines with the amount he was giving out, with many claiming he was playing it too fast and loose with them compared to previous years.

Paul later admitted he needed to "raise his barrier" as the standard of baking had "got better and better". (credit:Channel 4)

This squirrel(13 of18)

Bake Off is supposed to celebrate everything good about the great British summer, though we think the inclusion of this squirrel's giant testicles in the final edit was possibly 'a bit much'. (credit:BBC)

Paul apologises for Nazi picture(14 of18)

Paul had to publicly apologise in 2017 when an old picture of him dressed as a Nazi at a fancy dress party resurfaced.

After the picture was published in The Sun, he said: “I am absolutely devastated if this caused offence to anyone, the picture was taken 14 years ago en route to a Comedy TV Shows Themed New Year’s Eve Party and a group of us dressed up as characters from the classic TV show ’Allo ’Allo!

“Everyone who knows me, knows I am incredibly proud of the efforts of those, including my own grandfather, who fought against the Nazis during the war.”

His apology was not well received by all, with former contestant Ruby Tandoh tweeting: “absolutely creasin at ppl telling me “IT WAS TEN YEARS AGO” as if the nazis weren’t bad back then. guys he was still a middle aged man when he did this lol. i don’t think he’s a nazi i just think he’s absurd [sic].” (credit:Doug Peters/EMPICS Entertainment)

Errant fridges land the show in hot water(15 of18)

Back in 2012, the show was accused of product placement to the prominence of Smeg-branded fridges in the Bake Off tent.

When Bake Off guidelines were revised, Smeg were also forced to take down a notice on their website announcing their association with the show. (credit:BBC)

Innuendo(16 of18)

Yes, a few cheeky innuendos might seem like a part of Bake Off as integral as bomber jackets and self-raising flour, but viewers have argued over the years that it can often verge on indecent.

Paul Hollywood said in 2014: "Our whole culture has always been based on it. Carry On films did it for 30 years and then there were cheeky beach picture postcards." (credit:BBC)

Bake Off breaks its own rules(17 of18)

Bake Off fans are sticklers for the rules, as proved during the final technical challenge of the 2018 series.

It saw the bakers leave the familiar surroundings of the iconic tent for the first time ever, as they were tasked with making six pitta breads over an open fire, as well as three dips to go with them.

It required them to tend to the fire, which many complained meant it technically wasn't a baking challenge, and therefore went against the rules of the competition. (credit:Channel 4)

Prue accidentally reveals the winner(18 of18)

Prue was at the centre of a media storm at the end of her first series when she prematurely revealed on Twitter that Sophie had won, hours before the final was due to air on TV. She later blamed getting confused with the time difference while on holiday in Bhutan.

The gaffe has been regarded as one of the best / worst in TV history, and she has failed to live in down ever since, admitting she would be locking herself away on future finale nights. (credit:David M. Benett via Getty Images)

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