Dame Mary Berry still smiles when she talks about her life.
Still laughs.
Still sparkles.
But behind that familiar warmth, the 90-year-old national treasure is quietly facing a reality many of her friends already know too well — watching time slowly catch up with the person she loves most.
Speaking with rare honesty at the Yeovil Literary Festival, Mary opened up about caring for her husband of nearly six decades, Paul John March Hunning, now 93 — a man she calls “lovely” even as she gently admits he is becoming “frail and forgetful.”
And while she insists she feels “very lucky,” the emotion behind her words tells a deeper story.
“Most of My Friends Have Lost Their Husbands”
For Mary, gratitude now comes with perspective.
“So many of my friends no longer have their partners,” she told the audience. “That makes you realise how fortunate you are.”
Paul is still by her side — but he needs care. Mary makes sure someone is always with him, just in case he “topples over,” as she put it with her trademark mix of candour and humour.
It’s not dramatic.
It’s not self-pitying.
It’s simply love, lived daily.
A Marriage That Has Grown Quieter — But Deeper
Married for 59 years, Mary and Paul share two children — Thomas, 57, and Annabel, 55. Paul, a retired antique bookseller, increasingly relies on support at home, and Mary now plans her life around his needs.
Work still calls — filming for the BBC, book events, appearances — but she no longer stays away unless she absolutely must.
“When I do have to stay overnight, my daughter Annabel comes and cooks his supper and keeps an eye on him,” she explained.
Home is where Mary wants to be.
“You Enjoy It — Off You Go”
Despite his fragility, Paul continues to encourage her.
“He always says, ‘You enjoy it — off you go!’” Mary said, smiling.
But she admitted she rarely takes him up on the offer anymore.
At 90, she knows exactly where she wants to be — and who she wants to be with.
The Humour That Still Holds Them Together
Even now, their relationship is threaded with gentle comedy.
Mary shared that Paul is hopeless in the kitchen — once offering her sister-in-law “red or white” because he “doesn’t do tea.”
It’s a small anecdote, but one that captures a lifetime of shared jokes, patience, and affection.
Lessons From a Mother Who Lived to 105
Mary also reflected on her late mother, who lived to 105 and famously disliked the inconvenience of losing friends.
“She used to say, ‘So inconvenient!’” Mary recalled, laughing.
Now, she understands that sentiment more than ever — not as a complaint, but as an ache for the people who remain.
Still Living — Still Laughing — Still Herself
While promoting her new book Mary At 90, the former Bake Off judge also shared her secrets to staying well.
She eats smaller portions.
Avoids second helpings.
Limits herself to one glass of wine — though she joked the glass “is getting bigger.”
Her guilty pleasure?
“Pringles,” she admitted with a grin.
She even looked back fondly on her younger years, laughing about having “several boyfriends in Bath” while keeping Paul — “the London one” — as an option.
“I kept my options open,” she teased.
A Love That Refuses to Step Aside
At 90, Dame Mary Berry is not slowing down because she has to.
She’s slowing down because she chooses to.
Choosing presence over praise.
Choosing home over headlines.
Choosing the man who has stood beside her for nearly 60 years.
She calls herself lucky.
And perhaps she is.
But what shines through most clearly is something even stronger than luck —
a quiet, steadfast love that refuses to walk away, even as time keeps moving forward.
