Mortified Mary Berry 'nearly poisons' viewers with recipe as colleague intervenes
It seems even the legendary former Great British Bake Off star isn't immune to the odd blunder, as Mary's near-disastrous "miniature" recipe almost had "poisonous" consequences
Dame Mary Berry has detailed how she was once stopped in her "tracks" after nearly including a "poisonous" item in one of her recipes. Mary, who celebrated her 91st birthday last month, has been a fixture on our screens since the 1970s, first appearing with Judith Chalmers on Afternoon Plus before going on to film BBC series at her Buckinghamshire home.
Modern audiences likely know her best from her former role as judge on The Great British Bake Off, but she's also presented the RHS Chelsea Flower Show and penned more than 80 cookery books. It seems even legendary chefs aren’t immune to the occasional blunder, though, as Mary’s near-disastrous "miniature" recipe almost had "poisonous" consequences for her TV audience. She told The Mail's Richard Eden: "I was doing a television programme and I thought, 'I know, I'll put miniature daffodils on this'."
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She continued: "But someone on set looked it up and stopped me in my tracks - they're poisonous. So check they're not going to kill everybody."
Daffodils are toxic to humans, dogs and cats, and if ingested can cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea and abdominal pain. Poison Control states that the bulb can also irritate the mouth and trigger an upset stomach.
It follows remarks from one of Mary’s neighbours, who offered a glimpse of what she's really like and branded her an "icon". Last month, as Mary prepared to celebrate her birthday, Vernon Kay said he occasionally sees her "in the village".
The BBC Radio 2 host and Do You Know Your Place? presenter, who resides in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, with his wife Tess Daly, made the comment during an episode of his radio show.
In the segment, Vernon played a BBC archive clip from her 90s series Mary Berry at Home, where the cooking star demonstrates how to prepare a Canterbury tart.
Vernon said afterwards: "I see her every now and again in the village, Mary Berry. She's local to us, or we're local to her. Very, very sweet lady. Always good fun and an icon."
In other news, Mary expressed earlier this year that she was "absolutely delighted" that Nigella Lawson had joined The Great British Bake Off, replacing former judge Dame Prue Leith.
Speaking at the Radio Times Covers Party 2026, she said: "I’ve also recently heard Nigella Lawson is the new Bake Off judge, and I’m absolutely delighted. It will give Bake Off a wonderful new flavour, and Paul and her will get on like a house on fire."
She also had some words of advice for Nigella, saying: "The skill to be the judge and to be fair, be kind and encourage everyone to enjoy baking."
