Do Prue Leith’s “Nasty” Critiques Go Too Far for ‘The Great British Baking Show’?

“Nasty” is a word used to describe obscene behavior, swampy sludge, and the grotesque. Just the sound of it, the nasally vowel noise smacking into wet consonants, can feel rude. So it’s not necessarily a word you would expect to hear from one of the prim and proper judges in The Great British Baking Show, but alas, it happened this week. As judges Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith sampled the baker’s Signature meringue cakes today, Prue took once look at Priya’s work and voiced her disgust.

“I really think the color of the blueberry cream is horrible,” Leith said to the nervously nodding Priya O’Shea. “I know it’s partly because we don’t eat a lot of mauve food, but it is such a particularly nasty version of mauve.”

Paul said it looked “unappetizing,” which is the kind of polite dig you expect to hear on The Great British Baking Show, but Prue let the word “nasty” rip. But Prue’s especially harsh critique is not an aberration. At least, not this season. She’s made a habit of voicing her disgust rather loudly, mocking the bakers, and saving the her harshest commentary for the final act. In fact, if she goes out of her way to tease a contestant, there’s a good chance that’s the person going home (whether they deserved it or not). Prue’s commentary isn’t necessarily any meaner than Paul’s, but together, they drag the commentary on The Great British Baking Show down into the mud.

Prue Leith joined The Great British Baking Show at a precarious time for the international hit. For seven seasons, the show called the BBC home. There, it became a global sensation thanks to its quaint style and intoxicating kindness. Love Productions, the company behind The Great British Baking Show, decided to leave the BBC once its contract with the channel expired. The show migrated to Channel 4 (and Netflix), however three of the show’s core cast declined to follow it. Co-hosts (and long-time besties) Sue Perkins and Mel Giedroyc were replaced by comedians Noel Fielding and Sandi Toksvig, and show’s beloved judge Mary Berry was replaced with her real-life friend Prue Leith.

Even though she might not be a household name in America, Prue Leith is an internationally respected chef, restauranteur, journalist, food columnist, author, entrepreneur, and television host. For eleven years, she was a judge on a British cooking reality hit called Great British Menu. If American Mary Berry fans were skeptical of Leith’s credentials, she immediately proved herself to be the culinary equal of Berry.

However, Leith doesn’t have the same chemistry with co-judge Paul Hollywood that Mary Berry did. Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood had a good cop/bad cop partnership where they would occasionally tease each other, but Mary would make sure the bakers felt respected. In contrast, Prue and Paul can come across like sniggering best friends when they dig into a baker’s faulty efforts.

The Great British Baking Show is inherently a baking competition, and not all the bakers are always up to snuff. Of course, the bakers should be criticized when they’ve made a technical mistake. Naturally, not everything produced will be to Paul and Prue’s taste. However, there is an undercurrent of bitterness running through this season of The Great British Baking Show. It shows its face when Prue tears into a flailing bake with giddy relish. She seems especially fond of the backhanded compliment, telling doomed bakers Helena that “if you shut your eyes, it’s a nice sponge cake” and Phil that the rest of the bakers “are all so classy they couldn’t do” a garden-themed mishti like him.

By themselves, Prue’s comments aren’t atrociously mean, but they pack a harder punch than Paul Hollywood’s snarls. Sophie Faldo, who won The Great British Baking Show‘s eighth season, has even proffered a theory about why Prue’s comments can strike harder. For RadioTimes, she wrote this week, “Prue can get the claws out when she wants to! I think because you expect her to be lovely, when she’s not it hits a lot harder than when Paul is. It always seems to come from a harder and slightly darker place.”

What’s also troubling about Prue’s attitude is that “harder and slightly darker place” only seems to egg Paul Hollywood, Sandi Toksvig, and Noel Fielding on. Because she’s dragging the bakers, the rest of them can, too. I’m thinking specifically of a moment between the hosts and judges in this week’s episode, “Dessert Week.” Everyone who has been watching the show knows that Priya has been struggling, but Prue critiques her in a catty way:

“Come on Priya, stop talking, ‘cause you’re always late,” she says.

Noel Fielding then tries to get in on the ribbing. He starts: “Her baking career…”

“It’s going to get worse,” Prue says sharply, causing all four to snicker.

Fielding finally finishes his joke:” …is like my school report. Turns up late and never stops talking.” They cackle at this.

It’s the kind of commentary that you would never hear Mary Berry encouraging. There would be maybe a critique about “time management,” but nothing that would encourage heckling laughter from the people determining a baker’s future on The Great British Baking Show.

Prue Leith is not a horrible person. She can exalt over a decadent dessert and heap praise upon a baker. That’s what makes her turns towards meanness so sharp. When Prue unloads on the bakers with a particularly scathing burn, she’s not just voicing her opinion. She’s telling the rest of the tent, and the audience at home, that it’s okay to mock the bakers. After all, they’re just amateurs, and she’s the world-famous judge.

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