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The Great British Bake Off: Thousands sign inevitable petition to keep show on BBC

'Bake Off is a British institution, just like the BBC,' the petition by Rebecca Moody states. 

Clarisse Loughrey
Wednesday 14 September 2016 03:11 EDT
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The Great British Bake Off with presenters Sue Perkins, Paul Hollywood, Mary Berry and Mel Giedroyc
The Great British Bake Off with presenters Sue Perkins, Paul Hollywood, Mary Berry and Mel Giedroyc (Mark Bourdillon)

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The British public has not taken well the news that The Great British Bake Off would be moving from its BBC home to Channel 4.

Amidst the chaos: rumours that the BBC fell £10 million short of what makers Love Productions demanded, the swift departure of hosts Sue Perkins and Mel Giedroyc, and panicked concern as to what would happen to the show in its cross-channel transfer.

A social media furor - with even ex-contestants speaking out over the decision - only led to its inevitable conclusion: someone attempted to stem the inevitable tide of change by setting up a petition, demanding The Great British Bake Off remains in its ancestral home (of 7 series) at the BBC.

"Bake Off is a British institution, just like the BBC," the petition by Rebecca Moody states. "It's an immersive escape from commercials and moving it to Channel 4 will lose everything that's special about it. For my generation, it's part of our lives. Bake Off allows us to recognise the wonderful diversity of the UK, and sets the tone for our country."

"Now Mel and Sue have announced that they're "not going to go with the dough" to Channel 4. They're the brilliant essence of the show! We want this programme to remain on the BBC. A full hour, not 45 mins with 15 mins of adverts! Each segment will be cut up with those 'flashback to what happened before the break" segements, instead of giving us a full hour of Bake Off.

"I'm no baker, but the show makes me feel like I could be. Let's not lose this iconic British institution to commercialism."


Inevitably, there's a sense of futility with any pushback against Love Productions' decision, as such a vitriolic reaction could surely have been anticipated by the production company; yet, with over 17,000 signatures already racked up by the petition, there's always a chance enough public outcry will sufficiently weaken confidence in the move.

Meanwhile, the current series of Bake Off will continue to air every Wednesday on BBC One.

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