Sandi Toksvig has revealed why she walked away from the ‘biggest pay cheque of her life’ hosting The Great British Bake Off.
The TV star, 66, was a co-presenter of the show from 2017 to 2020 where she hosted alongside comedian Noel Fielding.
In 2020, she stepped down and was replaced by comedian Matt Lucas. Matt has since been replaced by This Morning’s Alison Hammond.
Now she has told how it felt like ‘the longest three years of her life’ and that her psychotherapist wife Debbie eventually convinced her to quit as she ‘wasn’t happy’.
Sandi has also let slip who she is still in contact with from the show – saying she is joined at the hip with judge Prue Leith but ‘not so much’ with Paul Hollywood as he is so busy.
Sandi Toksvig has revealed why she walked away from the ‘biggest pay cheque of her life’ hosting The Great British Bake Off
The TV star, 66, was a co-presenter of the show from 2017 to 2020 where she hosted alongside comedian Noel Fielding (seen with judges Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood)
When asked if she was still pals with her former co-host Noel she simply told The Times: ‘No’.
She told the publication of why she quit: ‘It’s not for me. I walked away from the biggest paycheque of my life, but that’s fine.
‘I’d never watched it. I still haven’t watched it. I didn’t understand it.
‘Cakes are readily available in the shops. I didn’t enjoy the process. There was this showbiz thing you’d made it with Bake Off, it was a big show, getting a lot of attention.
‘But my wife Deb said, ‘It’s not making you happy.’
The most recent series of Bake Off now hosted by Noel and Alison got underway at the end of September with a string of fresh hopefuls entering the famous tent.
Sandi is now busy with other things like focusing on her political activism after having co-founded the Women’s Equality Party in 2015.
She has also written plays, novels and books for children and has helmed BBC2’s QI since 2016.
When asked if she was still pals with her former co-host Noel she simply told The Times: ‘No’ (seen together)
Now she has told how it felt like ‘the longest three years of her life’ and that her psychotherapist wife Debbie eventually convinced her to quit as she wasn’t happy (seen with Debbie)
She told the publication of why she quit: ‘It’s not for me. I walked away from the biggest paycheque of my life, but that’s fine. I’d never watched it. I still haven’t watched it. I didn’t understand it’
Sandi was also back in the spotlight recently after officiating the wedding of her friend, ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus.
The Swedish singer, 79, married his Danish partner of two years Christina Sas, 51, in Copenhagen last month with close friends and family in attendance.
Taking to Instagram, Björn, who has been married twice before, revealed his happy news by sharing a number of photos from the ‘extra special’ day where Christina wore a stunning khaki dress.
The message on his Instagram read: ‘Today on the 21st of September 2024, Björn Ulvaeus married Christina Sas from Herning, Denmark.
‘They met in Nürnberg in 2021 in connection with the release of ABBA’s last album Voyage and started dating in the spring of 2022.
‘The wedding took place in Copenhagen in the presence of close friends and family.
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Björn Ulvaeus, 79, marries for a third time! ABBA star weds Christina Sas, 51, in 'extra special' Copenhagen ceremony with Bake Off star Sandi Toksvig officiating
‘Sandi Toksvig, Anne Linnet and Kaya Brüel generously performed and made the evening extra special.’
For the ceremony, presenter Sandi, 66, who has been friends with Björn after the pair collaborated on Mamma Mia: The Party! in 2018 together, opted for red clergy robes.
During their first public appearance together in June 2022, Björn and Christina told reporters: ‘We have dated for a while and I felt like I wanted to take her to this event. So this is the first time we go out together.’
The couple met when Christina worked for ABBA’s label Universal in Germany, which released their 2021 album Voyage.
The following year, he announced his 41 year marriage to his second wife, music journalist Lena Kallersjo, 75, was over.
In February 2022 Björn and Lena, who share two daughters Emma, 42, and Anna, 38, released a joint statement confirming their split which they agreed to jointly share their £100million assets equally.
She added: ‘I didn’t enjoy the process. There was this showbiz thing you’d made it with Bake Off, it was a big show, getting a lot of attention. But my wife Deb said, ‘It’s not making you happy’