Bake Off bosses ban senior contestants from this year’s series amid coronavirus fears

PENSIONERS are banned from The Great British Bake Off due to the coronavirus crisis.

The hit Channel 4 show had always welcomed wrinklies in their late sixties and seventies.

But younger, less-vulnerable contestants are now lined-up for the new series.

TV insiders say execs are terrified of the possibility that a contestant may fall ill during filming.

That would force production to shut down and potentially could cost producers millions of pounds.

A source said: “There’s a real sense of urgency to get the next series of Bake Off in the can, considering it’s one of Channel 4’s biggest draws.

“That means the nation’s baking grans and grandads have been deemed too high risk. Bake Off’s wizened contestants are often the heart of the show.

“Val, who would ‘listen’ to cakes to work out if they were done, and rapping septuagenarian Flo became favourites.

“WI member Diane Beard was responsible for the show’s most iconic moment: Baked Alaska-gate. It’s a shame characters are rejected on account of age.”

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