Dame Mary Berry has spoken emotionally about the loss of her son William, who died in a car accident in 1989 at the age of 19. The 91-year-old former Great British Bake Off judge said that keeping busy helped her through the grief and that William remains a cherished part of the family.
In a podcast interview with Fearne Cotton on Happy Place, Dame Mary revealed that after William's death, she initially did not want to return to work in London. Instead, she began teaching cooking classes at home using her Aga cooker. 'It kept me busy, and I had my husband and other children about me,' she said.
The TV cook, who received the Bafta Fellowship last month, emphasised the importance of time and gratitude. 'I think the one thing we all told ourselves was how lucky we were to have had William, and what a wonderful life he’d given us,' she said. She noted that the family still raises a toast to William every Christmas and that her grandchildren, who never met him, know all about him through stories and photographs.
Dame Mary also spoke about how others responded to her grief, saying she appreciated when people shared fond memories of William. 'I loved it if people came up to me and said, “Oh, Will was such a smashing chap, wasn’t he a good tennis player” or whatever, and I’m proud,' she said. She added that finding something nice to say about a lost loved one can help others cope with sadness.
