It was a visit worthy of a Paul Hollywood handshake.
Earlier this year, Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds sent Great British Bake Off fans into a frenzy after they shared snaps with judges Prue Leith and Paul from the set of the beloved competition series back in June. Now, Prue is giving insight into the Gossip Girl alum and Deadpool actor's visit to the famed white tent. As it turns out, it was the luck of filming at nearby locations that brought them together.
"Blake is absolutely nuts about—well they both are, they're both very keen on Bake Off," the restauranteur told E! News' Francesca Amiker. "They heard we were filming in the same studio lot as Ryan was, he was making Deadpool, and so they both just turned up."
But as it turns out, Ryan and Blake were the exception to a rule—usually not just anyone can waltz their way onto the set.
"Everybody keeps everybody out of the tent, you know," Prue explained. "No strangers are allowed in the tent, absolutely, rule number one. I mean if my husband walked in without having cleared it all first he'd be just shown the door. But I'll tell you what, when those two walked in, every cameraman, everybody, just stood there. And of course we were absolutely thrilled to see them. All filming stopped while we all chatted to them."
And per the 83-year-old, it would seem that the perfect recipe for striking up a friendship with the stars requires only one ingredient—time.
She continued, "Because we were there at the same time as they were, you know weeks on end, we got really friendly. So they came in a lot."
So friendly in fact, that Prue's counterpart was even asked to be in a commercial for Blake's new liquor line, Betty Booze, alongside the A Simple Favor actress—much to Prue's chagrin.
"I was rather disappointed because I thought, you know, I'd do anything to do a commercial with Ryan," she quipped. "And [Paul] managed to do a commercial with Blake."
For now, Prue will have to find comfort in her on-set memories with the Free Guy actor—memories Paul was sure to immortalize on social media at the time, while simultaneously poking fun at his co-judge.
"Sorry Prue, Blake has taken your seat…" the celebrity chef captioned a photo with the Age of Adaline actress at the judging table in June. "Welcome to cake corner Blake."
For his part, Ryan also shared an image alongside the judging duo, captioning his photo, "A full and unconditional hug of pure serotonin."
And to see where some of your favorite Bake Off winners are these days, keep reading.