The Great Celebrity Bake Off 2019 episode 1: meet the bakers
Russell Brand, John Lithgow, Jon Richardson and Hannah Cockroft all star in the first episode of Celebrity Bake Off 2019
The Great British Bake Off has gathered together another host of celebrity stars to take part in its Stand Up to Cancer specials.
The Crown's John Lithgow and comedian Russell Brand are among the celebrity bakers taking part in the first episode of The Great Celebrity Bake Off 2019.
- When is The Great Celebrity Bake Off for Stand Up To Cancer on TV?
- When does The Great British Bake Off 2019 start?
- Stay up to date with the RadioTimes.com newsletter
The two will be joined by comedian Jon Richardson and British Paralympian Hannah Cockroft, while Channel 4's Bake Off stalwarts Noel Fielding, Sandi Toksvig, Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood will be there to oversee things as per usual.
Find out everything you need to know about The Great Celebrity Bake Off episode 1 contestants below.
John Lithgow
Age: 73
Twitter: @JohnLithgow
Bio: The six-time Emmy Award winning actor is best known for his roles in US sitcom 3rd Rock From the Sun and the first series of Netflix's The Crown, in which he played former British prime minister Winston Churchill.
He started his career on Broadway in 1973, before moving into film – and later TV – with a role in Brian de Palma's Obsession. Throughout the years, he has appeared in major films such as Twilight Zone: The Movie, Christopher Nolan's Interstellar, All That Jazz, Dreamgirls and Rise of the Planet of the Apes. He was nominated for an Oscar for his role as Sam Burns in Terms of Endearment.
You may also recognise him from TV series Dexter and How I Met Your Mother, in which he made several appearances.
Russell Brand
Age: 43
Twitter: @RustyRockets
Instagram: trewrussellbrand
Bio: The comedian kicked off his career as a TV presenter on MTV in the early 2000s. He was sacked from the station after he arrived to work dressed as Osama Bin Laden on 12th September 2001.
In 2004, he developed a following as host of Big Brother's EForum (later renamed Big Brother's Big Mouth) and later One Leicester Square back on MTV.
His big break in Hollywood came with 2009's Forgetting Sarah Marshall, in which he starred alongside Kristen Bell and Jason Segal. He went on to star in several more big American comedies, including Get Him to the Greek, Bedtime Stories and Despicable Me.
The stand-up currently runs his own YouTube political talk show, and stars in HBO's Ballers alongside Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.
Jon Richardson
Age: 36
Twitter: @RonJichardson
Bio: The Lancaster-born comedian and frequent guest panellist on 8 Out of 10 Cats got his start in comedy after winning his heat of the BBC's New Comedy Talent Search in 2003. From there he went on to appear at The Comedy Zone at the Edinburgh Festival in 2006, and later embarked on a 60-date tour in support of Alan Carr.
TV appearances on Never Mind the Buzzcocks and Have I Got News For You in the late 2000s boosted his profile, and he took over for Jason Manford as team captain on 8 Out of 10 Cats in 2011.
He currently presents his own comedy show Jon Richardson: Ultimate Worrier on Dave.
Hannah Cockroft
Age: 26
Twitter: @HCDream2012
Instagram: hlcmbe
Bio: The Yorkshire-born Paralympic athlete began her career in wheelchair racing at the age of 16, winning the London Mini Marathon in 2009.
She became the first athlete to break a world record at the London Olympic stadium in an event leading up to London 2012. She went on to win two gold medals at the 2012 Paralympics, and went one better with three gold medals at Rio 2016.
The Great Stand Up to Cancer Bake Off will air from Tuesday 5th March at 8pm on Channel 4
Authors
