Paul Hollywood says he got more press than the Yorkshire Ripper

Poor old Paul Hollywood reckons the British public have treated him like a MURDERER since deciding to ditch the BBC for Channel 4.

The 50-year-old Bake Off star admits that he expected to get a roasting for following the dough to Channel 4 earlier this year – but nothing prepared him for the abuse that was unleashed when Mary, Mel and Sue decided to stay put at the Beeb.

“I haven’t murdered anyone,” he told the Times. “But the Yorkshire Ripper got less press than I did. Mary will never be a villain. I will always be a villain.

“I was sort of expecting it but when it hit me, it was like an express train,” he continued, admitting that he “nearly spewed his cornflakes over the TV” when he saw the story running as a major news item on BBC Breakfast.

Shocking stuff. The cornflakes, that is. We’d assumed Paul feasted on freshly baked croissants every morning. Tut.

“I was really shocked,” he continued. “I was sitting there with the family. I thought, ‘What?’”

However, despite leaving the BBC, Paul admits he was “gutted” when presenters Mel and Sue decided to quit the show and stay put, comparing the decision to a tough family break up.

“It was like my parents had split up,” he said. “It broke me in half. I love my job. I was gutted. I was upset that the girls had split and weren’t going to be with us any more.”

Explaining his decision to switch to Channel 4, he cited loyalty to the show’s production company. “They made me. ‘Bake Off’ made me. Why would I turn my back on them?”

“I don’t work for the BBC. I work for a production company that works for the BBC,” Hollywood added. “Love Productions made Bake Off what it is today. They made that programme.”

Never mind, Paul. Don’t worry, we don’t think of you as a murderer.

What you did was far, far worse.