Food Network Will Deliver More Than 50 Hours of Holiday Programming This Year Including New Seasonal Spin-off Tournament of Champions: All-Star Christmas, and Sweet Empire - A[...]

Food Network will deliver a joyful slate of fresh holiday programming launching in November with the debut of a new holiday themed spin-off of the network's top-rated competition series- Tournament of Champions: All-Star Christmas and daring new dessert showdown with a twist, Sweet Empire. The sparkling lineup also includes a new season of the wildly successful series, Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking and returning fan-favorites Beat Bobby Flay: Holiday Throwdown and Holiday Baking Championship. The holiday cheer continues with Gingerbread Land: The Biggest Little Holiday Competition, special World's Sweetest Candy Shops, and seasonal episodes of The Kitchen. Last year, Food Network programming had more than 60M total cross-platform viewers during the holiday period.

"This year we have upped the ante on Food Network's must-see, seasonal family-friendly programming with new series, new twists and new takes on this fan-favorite lineup," said Betsy Ayala, Head of Content, Food, Warner Bros. Discovery. "Along with returning favorites, fans will be dazzled by the holiday spin on Tournament of Champions: All-Star Christmas and the unique take on the dessert competition format with Sweet Empire. With more than 50 hours of holiday programming Food Network is truly the ultimate destination this holiday season."

The holidays begin with the return of Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking on Sunday, November 2^nd at 8 p.m. ET/PT, featuring even more spellbinding creations, enchanted elements and baking wizardry as a new field of competitors embark on the experience of a lifetime. Hosts James and Oliver Phelps (Fred and George Weasley) bring their charm, humor and behind-the-scenes anecdotes, and are joined by esteemed culinary judges Carla Hall and Jozef Youssef, who bring their discerning palates and high expectations to the table. Special guests Warwick Davis (Professor Flitwick), Afshan Azad (Padma Patil) and Devon Murray (Seamus Finnigan) help evaluate the competitors' showpieces as they share their own stories from the films.Fans can follow #WizardsOfBaking on social to watch behind the scenes videos, tour the new sets, check out fun games with the hosts and judges, and hear from the Phelps and special guests as they return to Hogwarts once again. On FoodNetwork.com, fans can find out more about the competitors and magical recipes inspired by Harry Potter.

Then, on Sunday, November 2^nd at 10 p.m. ET/PT, the special World's Sweetest Candy Shops will give viewers a look behind the scenes at three of the world's biggest, sweet stores as they prepare for their busiest time of the year. The It'Sugar flagship store in New Jersey's American Dream mall will battle their rival store in Times Square, to see who will make the most sales during the holiday rush. Across the pond, Cadbury World in the United Kingdom will unveil an elaborate chocolate sculpture to celebrate their grand reopening following a massive renovation. In Sweden, Gottebiten, the world's largest candy store by floor area, will struggle to keep up with demand for its 700 varieties of pick 'n' mix sweets in a nation of candy-loving Swedes.

Next,Holiday Baking Championship will returnon Monday, November 3^rd at 8 p.m. ET/PT, and for the first time ever, will split the 12 competing bakers into two teams of Naughty vs. Nice as host Jesse Palmer welcomes them to an adorable, immersive holiday village with a working coffee shop, general store, and town hall. In this joyful world, the teams will take on tasks like "Snow Day Desserts," "Chrismukkah Platters," and of course, "Naughty Elf Desserts" - complete with advantages that lean either mischievous or merry. Judges Duff Goldman, Nancy Fuller, and Kardea Brown will bring tough love as they determine which amazing baker will earn the title of Holiday Baking Champion and receive a feature in Food Network magazine and the grand prize of $25,000. Fans can follow #HolidayBakingChampionship across Food Network social platforms for exclusive content shot on set including holiday hot takes with the judges, holiday "Two Truths and a Lie," fun taste tests, and more.

On Wednesday, November 5^th at 8 p.m. ET/PT Guy Fieri will make the most wonderful time of the year even more wonderful, with a high-stakes holiday incarnation of the ultimate sudden-death culinary showdown, Tournament of Champions: All-Star Christmas. And because the holidays are a time for cooking with the ones you love, chefs will be invited to pair up in teams of two to compete for glory and goodwill. In every battle, teams will serve up a savory and a sweet dish based on the spin of the Randomizer. The chef teams will need to be in sync and on their game to earn the title, the belt, a $100,000 cash prize furnished by Carnival Cruise Lines and their split of an additional $50,000 prize to give to a cause close to their hearts. Competing teams include Antonia Lofaso and Alex Guarnaschelli; Maneet Chauhan and Stephanie Izard; Mei Lin and Nini Nguyen; Jet Tila and Ashley Holt; Lee Anne Wong and Zac Young; Sara Bradley and Damaris Phillips; Britt Rescigno and Jonathon Sawyer; Michael Voltaggio and Bryan Voltaggio; Marcus Samuelsson and Rachel Sherriffe; Shirley Chung and Sherry Yard; Kevin Lee and Dale Talde; Aarón Sánchez and Amanda Freitag; Tobias Dorzon and Marcel Vigneron; Adam Sobel and Christian Petroni; Aarti Sequeira and Crista Luedtke; Graham Elliot and Giuseppe Tentori. Judges across the season are Michelle Bernstein, Scott Conant, Cat Cora, Susan Feniger, Gale Gand, Lorena Garcia, Judy Joo, Nancy Silverton, Curtis Stone, Jacques Torres, Christina Tosi, Ming Tsai, and Geoffrey Zakarian. Floor reporters Tiffani Faison and Justin Warner will be joined by Hunter Fieri to provide insight into each team's strategy. Follow #TournamentofChampions and #AllStarChristmas across Food Network social platforms to watch behind the scenes videos including a tour of the set hosted by Guy and check out a holiday Q&A with the all-star duos competing.

Making its wintry debut on Sunday, November 9^th at 9 p.m. ET/PT is a new competition series, Sweet Empire where fourteen of the most competitive and talented sweets makers are invited to the Yuletide Lodge for a competition unlike any other. While the competitors enter as individuals, their goal will be to get on-- and stay on-- the strongest team by any means necessary, because in this game the bakers must create incredible edible works of art to grow their teams and avoid elimination. In the end, teams will crumble until only the strongest will be left standing to become the Sweet Empire. Wells Adams will host with Jacques Torres and Yolanda Gampp serving as judges in this holiday baking competition with an edge. Fans can follow #SweetEmpire across Food Network social platforms for exclusive content shot on set with host Wells Adams, plus culinary demos from Yolanda Gampp and Jacques Torres.

'Tis the season for revenge when Beat Bobby Flay: Holiday Throwdown premieres on Tuesday, November 11^th at 8 p.m. ET/PT. Last holiday season, Bobby Flay didn't play nice and ended up with a clean sweep. This year, all his old friends and Food Network's favorite chefs will return to serve a helping of "Revengesgiving" with a heaping side of "holi-payback." The stakes will be higher than ever, as everyone is out to ruin Bobby's holiday season. Beat Bobby Flay: Holiday Throwdown competitors and guest hosts include Sunny Anderson, Gabe Bertaccini, Maneet Chauhan, Esther Choi, Kelsey Barnard Clark, Tiffani Faison, Sophie Flay, Amanda Freitag, Carla Hall, Eddie Jackson, Michael Jenkins, Carson Kressley, Mei Lin, Antonia Lofaso, Jeff Mauro, Ayesha Nurdjaja, Damaris Phillips, Aarti Sequeira, Jet Tila, Michael Voltaggio, Brooke Williamson, Geoffrey Zakarian, Claudette Zepeda, and Andrew Zimmern. Follow #BeatBobbyFlay across Food Network social platforms for more on this star-studded holiday throwdown.

On Monday, November 17^th at 9 pm ET/PT, Gingerbread Land: The Biggest Little Holiday Competition will premiere on Food Network and Magnolia Network. Hosted by Oliver Hudson and executive produced by Chip and Joanna Gaines, top bakers will face off in the biggest little gingerbread competition ever imagined. Over a series of four challenges, teams will build incredible, edible worlds from scratch with lights, motion, and storybook-level detail in every miniature. Each week, Oliver Hudson guides the fun with warmth and humor, inviting viewers into a magical holiday world, where imagination has no limits. Judges for the series include acclaimed pastry chef Gale Gand and professor and architect Michael Ford along with episodic guests, celebrity stylist Brad Goreski, chef Christina Tosi, actress D'arcy Carden and for the finale, Joanna Gaines. Fans can follow #GingerbreadLand across social platforms for more on this all-new holiday competition.

All holiday series will stream next day on HBO Max and discovery+. And for more festive inspiration throughout the season, viewers can tune in to holiday themed episodes of The Kitchen during Food Network's weekend daytime lineup. Plus, fans can learn more about all of the holiday competitors, read episode recaps, discover behind-the-scenes tidbits and take a deep dive into all of Food Network's holiday offerings on FoodNetwork.com.

Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking is produced by Warner Horizon and theoldschool. World's Sweetest Candy Shops is produced by ScreenDog Productions. Holiday Baking Championship is produced by Sonic Dog. Tournament of Champions: All-Star Christmas is produced by Knuckle Sandwich and Lando Entertainment. Sweet Empire is produced by Alfred Street Studios. Beat Bobby Flay: Holiday Throwdown is produced by Rock Shrimp Productions. Gingerbread Land: The Biggest Little Holiday Competition is produced by Lando Entertainment.

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FOOD NETWORK (https://www.foodnetwork.com) is a unique lifestyle network, website and magazine that connects viewers to the power and joy of food. The network strives to be viewers' best friend in food and is committed to leading by teaching, inspiring, empowering and entertaining through its talent and expertise. Food Network is distributed to more than 74 million U.S. households and draws an average of 50 million unique web users monthly with a social footprint of 71 million, while Food Network Magazine reaches 11 million readers. Food Network is part of Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ: WBD), a leading global media and entertainment company that creates and distributes the world's most differentiated and complete portfolio of content and brands across television, film and streaming. Available in more than 220 countries and territories and 50 languages, Warner Bros. Discovery inspires, informs and entertains audiences worldwide through its iconic brands and products which also include: Discovery Channel, discovery+, CNN, DC, Eurosport, HBO, HBO Max, HGTV, OWN, Investigation Discovery, TLC, Magnolia Network, TNT, TBS, truTV, Travel Channel, MotorTrend, Animal Planet, Science Channel, Warner Bros. Film Group, Warner Bros. Television Group, Warner Bros. Games, New Line Cinema, Cartoon Network, Adult Swim, Turner Classic Movies, Discovery en Español, Hogar de HGTV and others. For more information, please visit https://www.wbd.com.

ABOUT THE HARRY POTTER FRANCHISE

From the moment eleven-year-old Harry Potter met Rubeus Hagrid, Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, his adventures have left an indelible mark on popular culture. Today, over 25 years later, the Harry Potter phenomenon thrives as one of the most successful and best-loved entertainment properties in history.

J.K. Rowling's best-selling Harry Potter novels have been brought to life in an ever-evolving, interconnected universe which is loved by millions of fans worldwide. Eight blockbuster Harry Potter films and three epic Fantastic Beasts films bring the spellbinding action to life on screen, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child mesmerises on stage, and state-of-the-art video and mobile games from Portkey Games allow players to experience the wizarding world like never before. Fans can proudly showcase their passion through innovative consumer products, and thrill at spectacular location-based experiences - including six theme park lands at Universal Studios locations around the world.

This expanding portfolio of Warner Bros. Discovery-owned Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts offerings includes ground-breaking touring experiences and events, each developed to celebrate special moments and locations that fans cherish, as well as Harry Potter Shops in King's Cross, New York, Chicago, Harajuku and Akasaka. Wizards, Witches and Muggles alike can also discover something new as they explore behind-the-scenes secrets at Warner Bros. Studio Tour London - The Making of Harry Potter and Warner Bros. Studio Tour Tokyo - The Making of Harry Potter.

With a new HBO Original TV series based on the Harry Potter books on the way, this extended world continues to provide the community with fresh and exciting ways to interact. For its global fans, and for generations to come, it invites everyone in to find the magic for themselves.

For the latest Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts news and features, visit https://www.harrypotter.com.

ABOUT MAGNOLIA NETWORK

Magnolia Network is a media joint venture between Chip and Joanna Gaines and Warner Bros. Discovery, comprising a cable network and family-friendly library of premium, award-winning unscripted original content streaming on HBO Max and discovery+. At Magnolia Network, we believe in telling life's stories authentically and empowering our viewers to move past their comfort zones and try new things. We seek to entertain through smart, layered storytelling that inspires creativity, upholds beauty and draws out curiosity. Here, we are creating a space where we hope viewers will feel their time with us is never without purpose, but rather is time well spent.