Prue Leith shares major fears over retirement and admits 'I want to get out' before being forced
WATCH HERE: Alison Hammonds fall off the Bake Off bench
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Great British Bake Off judge Prue Leith has revealed she is contemplating retirement from the hit baking show, expressing her desire to leave on her own terms before being asked to step down.
The 84-year-old, who has been a judge on the Channel 4 programme since 2017, told US Weekly she recognises she will need to retire "sometime soon" as she wouldn't be able to continue forever.
Speaking to Us Weekly, Leith revealed she has asked her husband and adviser John Playfair to tell her when it's time to step away from the show.
"I want to get out before I'm pushed. I don't want to get to the stage that [producers] suddenly, politely, say 'Prue, it's been 10 years now, I really think perhaps we should think about a change'."
The veteran judge emphasised she wants to avoid having that difficult conversation with producers.
Despite her retirement concerns, Leith maintains she has no immediate plans to leave the show. "I'm not, I love doing it," she told Us Weekly.
The show recently aired it's Christmas special
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As she approaches her 85th birthday, the veteran judge has expressed worries about having enough time left to achieve all her goals.
"My main concern is not having enough life left to live," she wrote in her 2022 memoir, I'll Try Anything Once.
"I feel as energetic and enthusiastic, or almost, as I ever did, but of course, it can't last."
Among her remaining ambitions, Dame Prue revealed in her memoir that she hopes to adapt her trilogy of books into a TV series.
Prue Leith opened up about her fears of retiring and being forced to do things
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The Bake Off judge acknowledged she needs to "get a move on" to achieve this goal.
Viewers saw Leith back on their screens last night for the Great Christmas Bake Off, where she was joined by Paul Hollywood, Noel Fielding and Alison Hammond.
Taking part in the episode were soap stars including EastEnders' Natalie Cassidy and Dean Gaffney, Coronation Street's Shobna Gulati, and Emmerdale's Chris Bisson and Sheree Murphy.
Emmerdale’s Bisson won The Great Christmas Bake Off and impressed particularly with his Showstopper when the competitors had to make a biscuit scene depicting their favourite dramatic soap scene.
Bisson made an incredible replica of the village's iconic Woolpack pub which earned him a Paul Hollywood handshake.
For the Signature Challenge, they had to make a yule log, with Murphy getting a Hollywood handshake too for her tiramisu-themed roll, which left her delighted.
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The star first appeared on the show back in 2017
CHANNEL 4
She joked that she would not wash her hand after the honour.
For the Technical Challenge they had to make four Christmas tree meringues which proved difficult as they weren't told how long to bake them for.
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