When it was confirmed that The Great British Baking Show would be getting a U.S. spin-off — with its own hosts, but carrying over beloved judges Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith — it was a testament to the success of the internationally popular, cosy reality series that seemed to resonate so deeply with audiences.
It also came with some rather intriguing questions. Would the series retain its quintessential British-ness? Would they be able to find hosts as charming and cheeky as the ones BBC Two (and then Channel 4) had appointed? And most importantly, would Americans be as talented in the tent as the Brits?
On that final question, Hollywood has an idea. “[Americans] are not better, they’re different,” he tells The Hollywood Reporter. In celebration of season four of The Great American Baking Show — now streaming on The Roku Channel (aff) — we made a trip to the tent ourselves. At the U.K.’s Pinewood Studios, perched just outside of London, THR caught up with Hollywood and Leith during the shoot in the summer of 2025.
“They use a lot of whisked sponge, they use a lot of banana, they use a lot of pecans,” he continues. “They use things that we use in the U.K., but not to the extremity as the Americans do. That’s the big difference. Their taste palette is a bit different to us.”
Leith, who recently announced she’d be stepping down from hosting duties on the hit series, concurs. “I think that Americans, by and large, like things to be sweeter than the Brits, and bigger. Big and sweet. It’s been interesting today because we asked them to do a cake, which could have been a little cake, and they ordered enormous cakes — you know, four-tier jobs.” And it’s not just differences in their culinary skillset. Leith has also noticed that the Americans bring a bit more energy to the tent. “They do a lot more clapping than the British,” she tells THR, “the Americans tend to be a bit more American [and]…