'The Great British Bake Off' judge, Prue Leith, announced she is no longer going to be part of the show. Let's know more about her and her first marriage, which was no less than a juicy affair.
Prue Leith is known as the judge of the famous show, The Great British Bake Off. After being part of the show for nine seasons and judging more than 400 challenges, she revealed that she had decided to step down from her position. For the unversed, Prue Leith replaced Mary Berry on the baking show in 2017. Before diving deep into her statement, let's know more about her and her personal life.
Prue Leith, whose full name is Dame Prudence Margaret Leith, is a South African and British restaurateur. She is also famously known as a broadcaster, cookery writer, novelist and former university administrator. She was born on February 18, 1940, and as of 2026, she is 84 years old.
Prue Leith has been a famous judge and known to be part of BBC Two's Great British Menu for eleven years from 2005 to 2016. She left the show to be part of another reality show, The Great British Bake Off, in March 2017. She replaced Mary Berry when the show shifted to Channel 4. She was also the chancellor of Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh.
Prue Leith has a rollercoaster of a love story. She was in a secret affair with mother's friend's husband for 13 years. During an appearance on Dinner's On Me With Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Prue Leith revealed that her first husband, Rayne Kruger, was married to a South African actress, Nan Munro. She was her mother's best friend. Hence, she had known Rayne Kruger since she was three years old.
Leith revealed that she was living in South Africa while Kruger and his first wife were in England. So, when Leith moved to England to be part of the Cordon Bleu Cookery School, she stayed with Rayne Kruger and his wife, Nan Munro, who was her mother's best friend. Prue revealed that Rayne Kruger was twenty years older than her, and he was twenty years younger than his first wife, Nan Munro. Prue further added that Nan Munro was lovely and acted like a mother to her, and was extremely welcoming. However, she fell in love with her husband, and so did he. And for years, they kept it secret. Prue was quoted as saying:
"I adored her and she was wonderful to me and she was like a mother to me and she couldn't have been more welcoming. But I fell in love with her husband and he with me. And so for years we kept it absolutely secret. We had a 13-year secret affair."
Prue Leith revealed that she never asked Rayne Kruger to marry her or leave his first wife, as she loved her. But she had lied to her for 13 years, and she knew that it would be a heartbreaking reality for her if Kruger divorced her. Prue revealed that at that time, she was the happiest as she had started her restaurant, and Kruger was the chairman of her company, as he helped her. She said:
"I never asked him to marry me, I never asked him to leave Nan. I loved Nan. We all loved the whole family. But of course, it was living a lie for 13 years. But I knew it would be heartbreaking for her if he left and I was quite content because I was — I'd just started my restaurant and he was the chairman of my company. He'd helped me all along."
Prue Leith revealed that she and Kruger kept their relationship hidden and avoided public outings. However, she cannot justify it as it was wrong, and still it would be taken as adultery, which was bad, but she wouldn't undo it, as he was the most important man in her life. For the unversed, Prue Leith and Rayne Kruger's love story found its happily ever after in 1974. They were together till Kruger's death in 2002.
However, she was left heartbroken by her husband's death. Prue Leith revealed that whenever they were at home, at seven in the evening, they would meet for a drink on the terrace in the summer, and in winter they would sit in the sitting room. They would have half-an-hour togetherness before they would make dinner. She shared that after he passed away, 7 o'clock was the toughest time for her as she had spent that hour with him for 25 years. She said:
“At 7 in the evening, if we were at home, we'd meet for a drink in the summer on the terrace in the winter in the sitting room. We would have half an hour together before I made supper or whatever. And so when he died, that 7 o’clock was the most terrible time because it was sort of so built into me after 25 years of ‘It’s 7 o’clock, I must ring Rayne.' Because wherever I was, I'd ring him if we were not together."
For the unversed, in 2016, Prue Leith got married again to her current husband, John Playfair. Prue often joked that he is her toyboy.
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