Great British Bake Off fans were impressed by Nigella Lawson as she made her debut as a new judge on Tuesday night.
The TV chef was welcomed to the tent in an entertaining Doctor Who themed skit, which saw departing Prue Leith, 86, say her final farewell before regenerating into Nigella, 66.
In the opening segment, host Alison Hammond said: ‘It feels like the end of an era.’
A ‘proving’ box Tardis then emerged with Alison, co-host Noel Fielding and judge Paul Hollywood bidding farewell to Prue as she headed into the Tardis for the ‘regeneration’.
Nigella then appeared and fans took to X to share their excitement, with fans also praising the star for making the most of the chance to taste the bakers’ creations by helping herself to a big portion.
They wrote: ‘Yay – Nigella Lawson is back on the telly!’ and ‘Crying at Bake Off having Prue Leith ‘regenerate’ into Nigella Lawson’
Great British Bake Off fans were impressed by Nigella Lawson as she made her long-awaited debut as a new judge on Tuesday night
The TV chef was welcomed to the tent in an entertaining Doctor Who themed skit, which saw departing Prue Leith, 86, say her final farewell before regenerating into Nigella, 66
Prue announced last year that she had decided to leave The Great British Bake Off, and in January it was revealed that Nigella would be replacing her
‘Love how Nigella is inhaling these cakes – proper tasting, what a woman!’
‘Nigella bringing back the joy, wit and honesty that Mel and Sue had.’
‘Think this means Nigella Lawson is now officially the incumbent Doctor’
‘Nigella Lawson on Bake Off. My goodness. I adore that woman. Absolutely adore Nigella Lawson. I’m deeply content at the moment.’
And as the new batch of bakers kicked things off, it was far from smooth sailing as it all ends in tears for Molly – with Alison left consoling her.
In tribute to Nigella’s first show, the contestant’s first challenge was to recreate one of her most beloved recipes: an iconic stout cake.
But as Molly’s sponges emerged from the oven disaster soon struck, resulting in one of the first dramatic baking mishaps of the series as she accidentally lost grip of the cake.
The cake clattered to the floor and steam was seen rising from the freshly baked offering.
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Did Nigella Lawson win you over on her Bake Off debut, or are you already missing Prue Leith?
Fans also praised the star for making the most of the chance to taste the bakers’ creations by helping herself to a big portion
Fans took to X to praise the ‘warm and witty’ star after her hilarious debut
And as the new batch of bakers kicked things off, it was far from smooth sailing as it all ends in tears for Molly – with Alison left consoling her
As Molly’s sponges emerged from the oven, disaster soon struck, resulting in one of the first dramatic baking mishaps of the series as she accidentally lost grip of the cake
She then looked up from the broken baked good and simply said: ‘I’m going to cry,’ as the others glanced over to see what has happened.
As the tears fell, she took herself outside for some fresh air as she explained to a consoling Alison that she was ‘only using one oven glove’ and that the cake tin ‘got caught on the oven shelf’.
Despite a few hiccups, Bake Off’s opening episode saw the surprise news that no one would be leaving the tent, after Shannon was forced to withdraw from the Showstopper due to illness.
Hosts Alison Hammond and Noel Fielding then shared that due to Shannon’s exit, no one would be leaving the tent, with Mo awarded the Star Baker honour after impressing with his first week of creations.
As ever, this year’s Bake Off sees the introduction of wild and wacky themed weeks, and the 2026 competition will include ‘wearable’ bakes, a free-from week and, upon audience request, a signature challenge during which bakers must compete alongside a relative of their choice.
Ahead of her debut, Nigella said she is ‘no polished’ baker herself and is now concerned that she won’t be up to scratch.
She told the Radio Times: ‘I was a bit worried because, well, you wouldn’t mark me up for my polished finishes as a baker.
‘Generally speaking, I don’t think of myself as a judge. I came to baking later in life and because of that it’s something that intrigues and fascinates me.
‘I’ve learnt by doing and I’m a home baker, not a professional. It’s quite interesting because the contestants are home bakers, too, so I have sympathy for that.’
For more than two decades, Nigella has worn the tiara of the British food culture scene, famed for her best-selling cookery books and television shows including Simply Nigella.
Bake Off is not Nigella’s first foray into the world of televised cooking competitions but her previous judging positions centred around scrutinising professional chefs in MasterChef Australia rather than amateur bakers.
Nigella is acutely aware of the big boots she is expected to fill as she describes her new role: ‘I felt it was a huge leap, but it’s been lovely.’
Her fellow judge, Paul, who Nigella describes as the ‘backbone of Bake Off’, has previously worked alongside Dame Mary Berry and Dame Prue Leith since the show first aired 16 years ago.
Paul said: ‘The thing is Mary was different to Prue, Prue was different to Nigella and Nigella is different to Mary.
‘They each bring their own character to it, and Nigella is a very warm person, especially to the bakers. More so than Mary was and I think more akin to Prue.
‘There’s a very nurturing nature to Nigella, which was quite strong this year. Whereas me, I suppose I’m the constant. So I remain in my position of being constructively critical.’
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