Gareth Southgate wants to star in 'Great British Bake Off'.

Gareth Southgate

Gareth Southgate

The 47-year-old England football manager is a huge fan of the Channel 4 baking show, and tries never to miss an episode and is hoping that show bosses will consider him for a celebrity version of the reality TV programme, which features Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood as judges.

A source told the Daily Star newspaper: "Gareth is obsessed with 'Bake Off'. It would be a dream come true to get the chance to appear on the show - although he'd probably go to pieces meeting Prue and Paul!"

Meanwhile, Paul recently insisted that the show is going "back to basics" to make it easier for viewers to join in.

He admitted some of the challenges in recent series have been too "complicated" for people watching at home, and insisted 'GBBO' wants to "encourage" people to bake.

He said: "This year we have gone back to basics on a couple of challenges because we were getting a bit over-complicated.

"Sometimes it's not just about the bakers in the tent, it's about the people in the UK who watch the programme. We want to encourage the viewers to bake."

The idea of 'Bake Off' keeping things simpler comes after reports claiming Channel 4 are in "secret talks" to renew the show - despite being just one year into a three year deal.

A source told The Sun newspaper's Bizarre column: "The ink on Channel 4's 'Bake Off' deal has barely dried, but they're not taking any chances of losing it like the BBC did. After airing just one of the three series agreed in 2016 -- which gave them some of their best ratings ever -- securing its future has been a top priority

"By comparison, the BBC were still negotiating with Love while the third and final series of their last 'Bake Off' deal was on TV.

"Channel 4 had to fight off ITV and Netflix to land the show. They would be salivating at the thought of 'Bake Off' being back up for grabs. Channel 4's commitment has impressed Love, whose uninflated price tag will help get the deal done quicker."

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