Britain’s best-loved baker has added another ribbon-cutting to a remarkable career. Dame Mary Berry, now 91, marked the official opening of Audley Shiplake Meadows, a luxury retirement village near Henley in Oxfordshire.

The former Great British Bake Off judge joined new residents, prospective buyers and project partners at the ceremony. She described taking part as “such a joy.”

Table of Contents

A neighbour’s endorsement

Mary has a personal stake in the area. She has lived in Henley with her husband, Paul Hunnings, since 2019. After seven years in the local community, she told guests that new homeowners would be very happy there. In her view, the village offers walks in the surrounding countryside, allotments to tend and easy days out in Henley itself.

What the developers said

A representative for the project said hosting the opening with Dame Mary and the new property owners was a real pleasure. He said the team wants to widen the options in the retirement market, with homes and facilities that help people live long, independent and healthy lives. Joint venture partners O’Shea and Galliard also attended.

From Bath to the Thames Valley

Mary’s journey to Henley began a long way from Oxfordshire. She was born in Bath, Somerset, on 24 March 1935. She has spoken of a happy childhood there, with goats for milk and hens in the garden. At 13 she caught polio and spent several weeks in hospital in the city, an experience she has said shaped her determination.

Her first job was demonstrating electric ovens to new customers on home visits. She later trained in Paris and built a career in food writing and magazine work, including a spell at Ideal Home magazine in the early 1970s. Through the 1970s she was also a fixture of BBC daytime television.

The Bake Off years and beyond

Her fame reached a new scale when she joined The Great British Bake Off. She judged the show on the BBC from 2010 until 2016, before it moved to Channel 4. She then kept busy with a run of BBC series, from Mary Berry Everyday to Britain’s Best Home Cook, and festive specials such as Mary Makes Christmas in 2024.

Her 90th birthday brought another milestone. The BBC Two series Mary at 90: A Lifetime of Cooking saw her joined by famous friends to share memories and recipes. The accompanying cookbook, Mary at 90, followed. She has published more than 70 books over the years.

She has also kept her ties to home. At a recent event at St Stephen’s Church in Bath, she took part in a Q&A about her latest book and signed copies, in support of fundraising for repairs to the building. She said the visit felt like coming home.

Why her words carry weight

For many viewers, Mary is a familiar face from kitchens across the country, known for warmth, calm authority and recipes that work. When she speaks about a place she has lived in for years, it carries the weight of a local resident as well as a household name. Retirement living is a topic many families are weighing, and an endorsement from someone who calls the area home is likely to catch attention.

Still going strong

At 91, Mary shows no sign of slowing down. For the generation she taught to avoid a soggy bottom, it is a happy reminder that she is still busy in her adopted corner of the Thames Valley.