Dame Prue Leith has made a candid admission on her views of growing older in an episode of Loose Women. The Great British Bake Off star, 84, confessed to ITV presenters that she is 'conscious it's nearly the end'.
"Well, I think old age stinks," she said in a conversation about the highs and lows of ageing, according to the Mirror. Her forthright comment elicited gasps from viewers and the panel, leading her to explain: "It takes me 10 minutes to get myself out of bed in the morning. If I don't do the exercises, I can't move. There's all sorts of things that are wrong with old age.
"You know, you are very conscious that this is nearly the end, though I agree that you then decide that you're going to make the most of it and have fun. I think what we're all saying is that we don't care what people think as much as we did and, to be honest, I don't even really care if I'm cancelled."
Dismissing any worries, she laughed while adding: "So what?", a sentiment Janet Street Porter agreed with. Prue's recent thoughts follow her previous comments at London Fashion Week in November last year where she acknowledged being 'so near the end'.
At the time, she said: "Because I'm so near the end, I'm a bit more reckless. Now, what's the worst thing that can happen? If I was about to try and get a job on Bake Off, I probably wouldn't walk down a catwalk in latex with goth makeup on, but now it's too late.
"If I want to do it, and it sounds like good fun. I just think, why not?"
Discussing her vivid wardrobe choices on Channel 4, she also added: "I don't ever wear anything I don't want to. My husband is a retired fashion designer, and he's very keen on colour, so I listen to him a bit."
In 2024, Prue also said her 'main concern' about old age is 'not having enough life left to live', as she still has many goals to achieve. Within her memoir 'I'll Try Anything Once', she shared her aspirations to turn her trilogy of novels into a TV series and write a baking book inspired by her time on the Channel 4 show.
However, just this morning, Prue Leith stepped down from the latest series of Celebrity Bake Off, following concerns around its demanding filming schedule. The iconic judge Paul Hollywood will continue to feature on the special edition show.
Have you got a story to share? Get in touch, at lauren.haughey@reachplc.com
English (US) ·