Channel 4 gives major update on Great British Bake Off future

The broadcaster has moved to calm speculation that the hit baking show could jump channels again following a huge new deal involving its producer, Love Productions.

The company behind Bake Off is currently owned by Sky, but is set to become part of ITV as a result of a £1.6bn agreement between the two media giants.

That shift sparked suggestions Bake Off might eventually follow Love Productions to ITV – repeating the show’s earlier move from the BBC to Channel 4.

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A source quoted by The Sun claimed: “The whole industry is talking about Bake Off moving yet again, which would be a tremendous coup for ITV but bad news for C4 as it is their most-watched show.”

Channel 4 and Love Productions have now jointly responded, stressing that the programme’s current arrangements are not affected by the Sky–ITV shake-up.

In a statement issued to The Independent, a spokesperson said: “Channel 4’s GBBO deal is with Love and as such is unaffected by the Sky ITV deal.”

The statement added: “The show’s existing multi-year agreement with Love remains in place, meaning Bake Off fans will be able to continue to enjoy the show on Channel 4 as usual.”

The exact expiry date of that multi-year contract has not been made public, leaving questions over where the show could sit in the longer term.

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Bake Off first launched on the BBC in 2010, becoming one of its biggest family entertainment hits, before its controversial switch to Channel 4 in 2017.

A new series with Oxford University graduate Nigella Lawson joining Paul Hollywood on the judging panel and Noel Fielding and Alison Hammond returning as hosts is due to air later this year.

The wider Sky–ITV deal will see ITV’s broadcast channels and streaming platform ITVX brought together with Sky under a new umbrella operation designed to compete more aggressively with global streaming players.

ITV Studios, the production arm behind I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! and Mr Bates Vs The Post Office is not part of the merger and will operate as a “pure-play global content business”, supplying shows to the combined Sky–ITV venture under a long-term agreement.

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Sky has pledged to invest at least £2.1bn in the partnership between 2028 and 2032, alongside paying £1.2bn for ITV’s broadcasting business and selling Love Productions to ITV for £200m.

Looking beyond that initial period, Sky chief executive Dana Strong said: “As long as consumers love Coronation Street, we will absolutely be delivering Coronation Street.

“So we’ve got all of the shows that consumers love in a five-year contract. That’s a pretty long contract, as you know, in our industry.

“So I have no concerns about what happens after that. You just start negotiations for continuation.”