Paul Hollywood leaves Great British Bake Off tent over 'embarrassing' Prue Leith

Paul Hollywood has shared how his Great British Bake-Off co-star Prue Leith's somewhat risqué sense of humour often leaves him so "embarrassed" that he needs to step out of the show's iconic tent to regain his composure.

"The problem is, it's quite a tactile thing, bread-making or whatever, so certain shapes can look a bit rude on camera," he confessed to Netflix.

Combine this with Prue's playful wit and you have a recipe for chaos. He remembered one instance where Prue's double entendre about a beaver-shaped cake "left everyone in stitches".

"She's embarrassing, that's what she is," Paul declared. "I mean, Prue will say it, and I'm sure she's saying it deliberately. We were doing sausage rolls, and she said to a guy, 'I don't think your sausage is big enough,' and I just stopped and I said, 'I'm sorry, I've got to leave for 10 minutes,' so I walked out the tent."

Paul also noted that due to the show's long-standing success, contestants have become familiar with his and Prue's tastes and have started tailoring their bakes accordingly.

"They know I like key lime pie, they know I like donuts, they know I like crème [pâtissière], they know I like toffee and caramels and all this stuff, so they'll play on that and go for the flavours that I like, or Prue likes ... So that's bakers doing their homework, which is what I would do if I was in this," he said.

He expressed that if he were a contestant, his aim would be to secure a "Hollywood Handshake" every week. Alternatively, the even more elusive "Paul Pat," which was given out for the first time during Bread Week this year when Carmarthenshire's Georgie impressed with her Chelsea buns.

He clarified that the "Paul Pat" is essentially a runner-up accolade for those who fall just short of the handshake standard. He elaborated: "When I saw Dylan's, then that was the benchmark that I was looking for. She was close. I knew, I glanced across, and I did see Dylan's coming, and I was like, 'Oh God, no, this is close but no biscuit'."