Celebrities

Pure Leith leaves ‘Great British Bake Off’ after 9 years of run

Chef Prue Leith has been judge on ‘The Great British Baking Show’

Ibtisam Fatima

Published January 22, 2026, 01:19 AM

Updated 6 months ago

Pure Leith leaves ‘Great British Bake Off’ after 9 years of run

Chef Prue Leith has been judge on ‘The Great British Baking Show’

Pure Leith is stepping back from her long-celebrated role.

The restaurateur and chef, who has been a judge on The Great British Baking Show in season 8, has decided to exit the baking competition. Leith announced her decision on Wednesday, January 21, through an Instagram post.

“After nine series and judging more than 400 challenges, I have decided to step down as a judge on The Great British Bake Off,” Leith wrote in a caption. “Bake Off has been a fabulous part of my life for the last nine years, I have genuinely loved it and I’m sure I’ll miss working with my fellow judge Paul, Alison and Noel and the teams at Love Productions and Channel 4.”

The chef added that it feels like “the right time” for her to leave the show, acknowledging her health, she wrote, “I’m 86 for goodness sake!”

However, Leith doesn’t have a black future as she assured that she would like to do a lot, adding, “not least spend summers enjoying my garden.”

Leith concluded the post by expressing her gratitude to be a part of the show.

“Whoever joins the team, I’m sure they’ll love it as much as I have,” she said.