“I think of William every day”: TV icon Dame Mary Berry opens up about son’s death
After turning 90 earlier this year, Dame Mary Berry has opened up about her son’s tragic death.
With that mischievous twinkle in her eye, it’s easy to assume the cookery legend Dame Mary Berry has had very little to worry about over the years, but behind the smile, every day her thoughts turn to the son she lost. Tragedy struck her family when her middle child, William, died in a tragic accident.
Speaking to the Radio Times, the 90-year-old is still able to keep a positive attitude, despite her great loss. She said: “I think of William every day. Of course I do. And if he were to walk through that door over there, I would say, ‘Where the hell have you been?’
“I’m still very proud of him. I think of the joy he gave us. He was a lovely child, but you have to step back and think – I had wonderful parents, I’ve got two more children, Annabel and Tom, and my grandchildren. I mean, it would be devastating if you only had one child. I am very fortunate. And I have a husband who is 93.”
The former host of hit BBC show, Great British Bake Off, married husband Paul Hunnings in 1966. They went on to have three children together, Thomas born in 1968, William in 1969 and Annabel in 1972.
How did Mary Berry’s son die?
William was just 19 years old when he tragically died in a car accident in 1989. Having returned from university to visit his family, he asked to borrow the car to collect the weekend papers, taking his younger sister along with him.
After a couple of hours had passed and they hadn’t returned, a police officer came to the door and Mary knew something was wrong.
During the BBC documentary about her life, The Mary Berry Story, Mary recalled the weekend she lost her son. She said: “It was a glorious January day and it was sort of 1 o’clock and he wasn’t home. The doorbell rang and there was a policeman there, and immediately then I knew why. And he said, ‘There’s been an accident and I’m sorry to say your son is dead”.
Mary and Paul went straight to the hospital to say “farewell”. She said: “He just looked so beautiful and so lovely, his little cold face and it was nice to say farewell.”
His sister, Annabel, survived the crash. Speaking to British Vogue earlier this year, Mary said: “You know, we were so lucky to have him. He brought us such joy. I feel for people who have lost their child in a skiing accident or when they don’t know where they died. We got to be a family unit [right up until] those few hours before he died.”
She added: “It was a huge tragedy, but we did have two more children, you know. We always think we were fortunate to have had him for 19 years. We still talk about him.”