‘Great British Bake Off’: Channel 4 Bosses ‘Offer Paul Hollywood And Mary Berry £1 Million Each’ To Stay

Channel 4 are desperate to keep Paul Hollywood and Mary Berry on ‘The Great British Bake Off’, so much so that they’ve apparently offered them a huge £1 million each.

While presenters Mel and Sue have already confirmed that they won’t be hosting the show when it makes the move to Channel 4, the judges are yet to make a statement on the matter, and are believed to be still in negotiations.

The Mirror reports that Mary and Paul have each been offered a three year deal that would see them take home between £300,000 and £350,000 per series.

A source tells the paper: “That’s hugely inflated, they were on less than half that. This would be a big pay hike.”

However, the BBC aren’t giving up the duo without a fight, and it’s been reported that they are set to make their own “golden handcuffs” deal to the pair, which would mean they can only present shows created by the Beeb.

Another insider is quoted as adding: “It’s turning into a bitter turf war between rival TV stations – but at this rate it’s the viewers who’ll miss out.

“Fans just want the series to stay the same as much as possible – that obviously means keeping Paul and Mary at the centre of it. It’s a shame some at the BBC seem to be looking for a way to sabotage that.

“Many of us feel it’s foul play and not the intended function of licence payers’ cash.”

Meanwhile, the hunt for the new Mel and Sue is underway, and a number of Channel 4 favourites are believed to be in the running.

On Saturday (17 September), it was reported that Katie Piper is on the shortlist, while Davina McCall is also thought to be a favourite of the producers.

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