As the drama surrounding The Great British Baking Show’s switch from the BBC to Channel 4 still leaves a li’l soggy-bottom taste in viewers’ mouths — especially since the change caused three of the show’s original four personalities to quit — creator Richard McKerrow wants to finally set the meringue straight about the divisive creative decision. As he told Britain’s Daily Express in a new interview, the reason didn’t boil down to money at all: Instead, it was because the bigwigs at the BBC made working on the show a living hell with his production company, Love. “We really had no choice. I think Bake Off would have died if we hadn’t moved,†he explained, claiming relations started to “deteriorate†about halfway through their time on the network. “Unfortunately, broadcasters bully independent producers and the BBC is the biggest bully of all and I don’t think that is healthy for the industry. I felt bullied. There is an arrogance that the BBC has that is not good for the industry.â€
As a result of this so-called bullying, McKerrow negotiated a deal to move The Great British Baking Show to Channel 4 when their contract ended, with Love Productions still attached to produce. At the time, the BBC released a pretty contrite statement stating it didn’t have the proper financial resources to keep the show, despite a “very strong offer†being made. We guess that’s the way the cookie had to crumble.