I loved Prue, but Nigella joining Bake Off sounds like the good news I needed | Rebecca Shaw

toLast week, a friend sent me an interesting news story. This was a surprise for two reasons: I’m chronically online so I usually see everything first, and also there’s no more good news in this life. But it was real, and for many people, myself included, this good news was worth three or four good news.

He’s the king of good news, a lump of good news clogging my pipe. It has been announced*The trumpets herald * *Release the pigeon* The famous Nigella Lawson is joining The Great British Bake Off!!!!!! (I don’t know how many exclamation marks are allowed in the Guardian style guide, maybe I will.)

My reaction may seem exaggerated, but I’m not going to let you tell Debbie Downer this news that has turned my frown upside down. One of my favorite people on the planet to watch on TV is joining a TV show I love and watch every season. As a TV lover, nothing could be better. Bake Off is a wonderful, comforting, sweet, fun and delicious show. Unlike other reality competition shows (which I also love), the contestants on the show We are There to make friends. I’ve enjoyed Prue Leith’s leadership on the show, she’s an experienced and gracious woman, but I’m thrilled about what the new season will look like with the addition of Nigella to her name.

Changes in the judging lineup are inevitable on long-running reality shows, and the shift in dynamic can sometimes cause problems, but in this case I’m as cold as a puff pastry between the plates. The show has actually gone through several host and judge shakeups over the past few years, and the previous one was one of the best, as Matt Lucas (I used to squint and try to pretend he wasn’t there) was replaced by the delightful Allison Hammond. Alison has a fun presence and also says “bake” like “BIYKE”, forcing you to repeat it in your home every time. I respect Prue, but I can’t wait to see how Alison and Nigella feel. I think, like Alison, Nigella will have a very warm presence, which will work well with Paul Hollywood’s husky-eyed demeanor and almost sinister demeanor. I suspect we may see an uptick in double entendres, but if anyone disrespects Nigella sativa, they will face the wrath of the global public. Just because we love watching sweet baking shows doesn’t mean we can’t get revenge.

I was curious to see if Nigella would bring the warm, intimate atmosphere she’s known for, or if she’d change it up for the show and become a tough judge. Then I read this interview:

“I’m not someone who looks for mistakes, I look for fun,” she said, placing herself as a counterweight to the famous Hollywood technical lens. “I’m all about eating,“ She added.

Thank God. In fact, this is the only area where I see Nigella sativa causing a problem. The tent in which they bake is not temperature controlled, which can cause major problems with baking and also with English people, who cannot adapt to a temperature higher than 25 degrees Celsius. Everyone is already sweaty and nervous, and then Nigella Lawson shows up? To judge you? I would be afraid of being helpless. I know there are already a lot of shows out there to watch Nigella do her thing, but I’m most looking forward to watching her interact with the contestants.

Bake Off is often a really diverse programme, especially compared to scripted TV. It’s hard to predict who will be most obsessed with her – gay women? Gay men? Unappreciated mothers? Straight boys with hearts of gold? Upright parents with a heart of gold? Nigella is funny, charming, warm, smart and beautiful. She’s comfortable with all types of people, seems down to earth, and her dynamic with each of the unique individuals on the show will be a really fun part of the viewing experience.

The decision to hire her made perfect sense. She has the skills, the temperament, and the fans. In my opinion, she should really spend her life having random people prepare delicious things for her to eat. If big, strong men carried her around the tent on a stretcher and fed her peeled grapes as a palate cleanser between each tasting, that would also be perfectly fine with me. It has all the ingredients needed for a perfectly baked presentation.

It may not seem like much, but we should celebrate more and more the small victories, the beautiful things, and the things we can look forward to. In these bleak and bleak times, I can imagine the future of Nigella eating things with a tiny fork in the Bake Off tent, and that’s enough to keep me going.