Why ‘The Great British Baking Show’ Might Be Dead Forever — Along With The BBC

Last fall, America fell in love with The Great British Baking Show. The series is a juggernaut in the UK — it’s literally bigger than the Olympics — but it only really caught on stateside when Netflix dropped a season onto their streaming service. Now as Americans are feverishly waiting for a new season to finally make its way across the pond, the series seems to be falling apart. The show is more popular than ever, but the BBC lost the rights and now The Great British Baking Show‘s stars are jumping ship.

Here’s a rundown on what’s going on, what this all means, and why you should care even if you’re not a fan of Mary Berry and her pastry challenges.

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Wait. So what’s going on?

For seven years, the BBC has been the broadcast home of The Great British Baking Show (or The Great British Bake Off as its known to Brits). In that time, the show has only gotten more popular. The first season averaged 2.77 million UK viewers and the current season is netting more than 13 million per week. It’s huge.

However, those ratings are also a sign that the BBC stuck with a quirky show and let it grow into a hit over time. Other networks might have canceled the show after one season. The BBC invested time and money into and made it into the international sensation it is today.

So what’s the problem?

The Great British Baking Show is produced by a company called Love Productions. When it came time to renegotiate their contract with the BBC, they decided to shaft the network. They decided to go with a private network called Channel 4.

Why did they make the change?

Simply put: money. Channel 4 has paid a reported 75 million pounds for the rights to air three seasons of the show.

Okay. So, the show will be the same, but it will just air on another network. What’s the big deal?

*laughs maniacally*

What?

After Love Productions made the deal with Channel 4, three out of the show’s four stars quit. Hosts Sue Perkins and Mel Giedroyc and judge Mary Berry all decided to stay with the BBC. Only Paul Hollywood chose to follow the show to Channel 4.

Ew! Paul Hollywood! He’s my least favorite person on that show!

You are not alone in this opinion.

So Channel 4 just made a huge mistake?

Yup.

Wait a minute. You said that Mary, Sue, and Mel chose to stay with the BBC. Why?

Two reasons. One: the BBC is launching a rival baking competition show and rumor has it that the ladies will star in that series.

Man, this is getting ugly.

It’s worse than Iain’s Baked Alaska.

What’s the other reason why Mary, Sue, and Mel might stay with the BBC?

Loyalty. The BBC means a lot to the Brits. It’s a government-funded network that is able to nurture creative talent and give Brits access to high quality entertainment. Of course, people are already saying that this whole fiasco is a sign that the BBC might be on the verge of collapse.

It’s just one show, though.

Yeah, but it shows how difficult it is for the BBC to stay competitive when the government is choking its funding. The Conservative Party in the UK has wanted to cut off funding to the BBC for a while. Sometimes Conservative Party members cry foul when they see the BBC running particularly racy content — like the Canal Plus show Versailles — but really it comes down to money. They would rather government funds be spend elsewhere.

So the BBC would die?

The idea is that the BBC should privatize and become a pay-for-view service much like HBO. In fact, many argue that this makes more sense because it would allow the BBC to morph into a massive global brand.

What’s so wrong about that?

I’ll let Doctor Who and Queer as Folk creator Russell T. Davies explain.

So the fear is that if the BBC goes private, to stay competitive, the quality of the news, drama, and comedy coming out of the BBC and Great Britain will suffer?

Yeah.

So what does this have to do with Paul Hollywood and pastries?

A lot of Brits are seeing the Channel 4 deal as proof that the BBC as we know it is dying. It can’t drum up the funds to stay competitive against private networks which means that in order to thrive it might have to cease to be the publicly funded playground that it is today.

And why should I care? I’m an American!

Because the BBC is where many of the actors, writers, and directors you love got their start. If the BBC morphs into something new, something slicker, something more commercialized, it will probably cease to be a training ground for the next generation of great British artists. Those people bring their talent to the US and inspire our writers, directors, and actors. Their voices help enrich our culture. Their voices could be silenced.

Whoa. That’s really bleak.

I know. It’s the worst case scenario.

What can I do?

Nothing, really. Just watch The Great British Baking Show?

[Where to Stream The Great British Baking Show]