Nigella Lawson has denied rumours of a “feud” with Paul Hollywood on The Great British Bake Off, describing reports of a rift as “absolute nonsense”. The 66-year-old chef was said to have been unimpressed by her fellow judge’s habit of arriving at the Bake Off tent in his helicopter.
Rumours dismissed as nonsense
Speaking to BBC Radio 2’s Sarah Cox, Nigella said the stories were completely without foundation, adding: “I don’t know where that came from.” She explained that she had called Paul to reassure him that she had not been saying “horrible things” about him behind his back, and he immediately understood.
There is some playful teasing in their working relationship, Nigella admitted: “The thing is, I certainly tease him, but he’s so wonderful to tease. He loves it.”
Chemistry test before joining
Before Nigella was offered the Bake Off job, producers organised a “chemistry test” between the two, which fortunately went very well: “It was lucky that we did get on. Can you imagine if we didn’t? I bet Paul would have said so!”
Nigella revealed she had already made up a nickname for Paul: “One of the many lovely things about Paul is that he’s good at being teased. I called him ‘Professor Precision’, then he teased me back and suddenly it all relaxed. He’s much more playful than he looks on camera.”
Mutual praise and playful banter
She told The Times that there would probably be as many rumours of an affair between the two as a feud: “What will people say of us on the programme? I feel that half will go, ‘Oh, there’s clearly something going on with them,’ and the other half will say, ‘Oh, clearly they don’t like each other at all.’ And I feel like that’s fine.”
Speaking to The Guardian, she added: “He often acts bad cop and does that laser stare but he’s always himself, which encourages other people to be themselves, too. We complement each other.” She said that Paul will sometimes pretend to “nod off” if she talks about food too much.
Paul was complimentary about how Nigella was fitting into the show’s line-up, telling Woman magazine: “Nigella has such a wonderful way with words; she's very good at explaining to people watching it what it tastes like. She was brilliant. Nigella fitted in beautifully; it was lovely working with her.”
Dame Prue Leith, who quit the show after nine years as a judge, said Nigella had seemed a little “nervous,” but didn’t need any advice. She said: “I didn’t have to give her any tips, but I did tell her to just enjoy it because she’s so good. She was quite nervous. She’s so well qualified and knows exactly what she’s doing, and the audience love her. I saw her and Paul last week, and they’re getting on well. She’s nice, I’m glad it’s her.”
