Nigella Lawson to replace Prue Leith on ‘The Great British Bake Off’
English cook and food writer, Nigella Lawson, attends a book signing and lunch at the Melbourne restaurant, Taxi Kitchen, during her tour of Australia, Jan. 24, 2018. (Scott McNaughton/The Age via Getty Images)
We now know who will take over Prue Leith‘s spot as the new judge on The Great British Bake Off.
The popular baking competition show has announced that Nigella Lawson will be the new judge on the program.
“We’re delighted to announce that Nigella Lawson is joining The Great British Bake Off as our new judge!” the show’s official account wrote in its Instagram announcement.
Along with a photo of Lawson, the account shared a statement from the food writer and TV chef about how she feels to be joining the show.
“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,” Lawson said.
She called Bake Off “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!” Lawson continued.
The Great British Bake Off, which goes by the name The Great British Baking Show on Netflix, is also judged by Paul Hollywood. The program is hosted by Alison Hammond and Noel Fielding. Leith joined the show in 2017, replacing the original judge, Berry.
Leith shared her excitement for Lawson in the post’s comment section.
“I was so hoping it would be Nigella! Brilliant choice,” Leith wrote.
Many Bake Off winners and British stars sent well wishes Lawson’s way in the comments — including Paddington Bear’s official Instagram account.
“Dear Nigella. First of all, congratulations. Second of all, please can we make a formal request for a marmalade week?” the famous British bear wrote.
Blake Lively in New York City, April 29, 2025, and Justin Baldoni in New York City, Aug. 8, 2024. (Getty Images)
A federal judge in New York has formally ended Justin Baldoni‘s $400 million counterclaim against his It Ends With Us co-star Blake Lively.
Judge Lewis Liman entered a final judgment on Oct. 31, after dismissing the suit in June.
Baldoni is able to appeal the judge’s ruling.
Baldoni and Lively have been locked in a bitter legal dispute since December 2024, when Lively filed a complaint against Baldoni with the California Civil Rights Department, accusing him of sexual harassment on the set of the film, which he also directed.
Lively filed a lawsuit against Baldoni on Dec. 31, 2024, reiterating the claims made in her earlier complaint and alleging Baldoni and his production company Wayfarer Studios had waged a retaliatory smear campaign against her. That same day, Baldoni filed a lawsuit against The New York Times, which had published a report outlining the claims detailed in Lively’s earlier complaint, alleging libel and false light invasion of privacy.
Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios filed a countersuit against Lively, her husband, Ryan Reynolds, and their publicist, Leslie Sloane, weeks later, alleging civil extortion, defamation and invasion of privacy.
In June of this year, Liman granted Lively’s motion to dismiss Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios’ countersuit against her. The judge also dismissed Baldoni’s defamation suit against the Times.
At the time, Liman wrote in his opinion that Baldoni’s lawsuit hinged on claims that Lively “stole the film from Baldoni and Wayfarer, threatening to refuse to promote the film and attack Baldoni and Wayfarer in the press if the Wayfarer Parties did not agree to grant her, rather than Wayfarer, control over and credit for the film” and that “Lively, Sloane, Reynolds, and the Times spread a false narrative that Baldoni committed sexual misconduct towards Lively and the Wayfarer Parties then engaged in a smear campaign to ruin her reputation.”
“Regardless of the propriety of these actions, they do not constitute civil extortion under California law,” Liman wrote, adding that “the Wayfarer Parties have not adequately alleged that Lively’s threats were wrongful extortion rather than legally permissible hard bargaining or renegotiation of working conditions” and had “not shown that some of Lively’s allegedly extortionate acts damaged them.”
Two weeks later, on June 24, Baldoni decided not to amend his claims against Lively, Reynolds, Sloane and the Times.
In a statement at the time, Baldoni’s lawyer, Bryan Freedman, said, “Instead of revising the existing claims, our clients will be pursuing additional legal options that are available to us.”
“The Court’s decision on the motion to dismiss has no effect whatsoever on the truth that there was no harassment nor any smear campaign, and it does not in any way affect our vigorous defense against Ms. Lively’s claims,” Freedman continued, calling Lively’s allegations “baseless.”
Lively’s spokesperson responded to Baldoni’s decision at the time, saying in a statement, “The Court dismissed the frivolous $400 million Baldoni-Wayfarer lawsuit in its entirety.”
They added, “In the days that followed, Baldoni’s lawyer said the judge’s decision to dismiss their case was not a big deal as they promised to amend and refile it. As per usual, that was not true. The Court’s dismissal of Baldoni’s sham lawsuit was a total victory after all.”
Reached for comment on Monday, a Times spokesperson directed ABC News to its earlier statement in June, following Liman’s dismissal of Baldoni’s defamation case against the outlet. “We are grateful to the court for seeing the lawsuit for what it was: a meritless attempt to stifle honest reporting,” the spokesperson said.
“Our journalists went out and covered carefully and fairly a story of public importance, and the court recognized that the law is designed to protect just that sort of journalism,” they continued. “We will continue to stand up in court for our journalism and for our journalists when their work comes under attack.”
Lively’s case against Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios is still expected to go to trial in March next year.
ABC News reached out to Baldoni’s team, who did not issue any further comment.
ABC News has also reached out to Lively’s team for comment.
Sabrina Carpenter performs during her Short n’ Sweet tour at Madison Square Garden on October 26, 2025 in New York, New York. (Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for AEG)
Sabrina Carpenter is about to get even more Short n’ Sweet — on the big screen.
Deadline reports that Sabrina will star in and produce a musical inspired by Lewis Carroll‘s iconic book Alice in Wonderland for Universal Pictures, the studio that brought you Wicked. This would be Sabrina’s first major starring role in a studio film. Lorene Scafaria, who directed Jennifer Lopez in Hustlers, is set to pen the script and direct.
ABC Audio has reached out to Universal Pictures for confirmation.
In Alice in Wonderland, Alice encounters a bottle with a label reading “Drink Me,” and when she does, she becomes tiny. When she eats a cake labeled “Eat Me,” she becomes huge.
The most recent films based on Carroll’s book include Tim Burton‘s 2010 movie Alice in Wonderland, starring Mia Wasikowska, and its sequel, 2016’s Alice Through the Looking Glass, directed by James Bobin.
Sabrina’s filmography includes The Short History of the Long Road, Tall Girl, Clouds and The Hate U Give. She’s also committed to guest-starring in a Muppets special on Disney+. She recently received six Grammy nominations for her album Man’s Best Friend.
Warner Bros. has shared a first look at its upcoming Supergirl film. The teaser, which debuted on Wednesday, announces that a longer trailer will release on Thursday. Milly Alcock stars as the titular cape-wearing superhero in the new movie, which is directed by Craig Gillespie. The upcoming movie flies into theaters on June 26, 2026 …
We now know when The Lincoln Lawyer season 4 will debut on Netflix. The hit drama series returns with 10 new episodes on Feb. 5, 2026. It will bring Mickey his most challenging case yet — his own …
Jeff Garcia, known for providing the voice of Sheen Estevez in the Nickelodeon series Jimmy Neutron, died at age 50 on Wednesday. His son Joseph Garcia confirmed the news to Instagram. “With a very heavy heart, I would like to inform everybody that my father, Jeff Garcia, has passed away. My father was a unique soul. He was unapologetically himself and I will always admire the love, compassion, and drive that he had,” the tribute reads …
