Paul
HunningsKnown as Paul J.M. Hunnings
Britain’s best-loved baker has been married to the same quiet man for 60 years. Paul J.M. Hunnings, husband of Dame Mary Berry, is a retired antiquarian book dealer who started out in the sherry trade and has never given an interview of his own. At 94, he is frail but still at home in Henley-on-Thames, where Mary cares for him. This biography covers his age, his work, how he won Mary over on his third proposal, their children, the loss of their son William and the Paul J.M. Hunnings net worth figure.
| Nationality | British |
|---|---|
| Occupation | Retired antiquarian book dealer, company director |
| Date of Birth | March 1932 |
| Spouse | Dame Mary Berry (married 1966) |
| Children | Thomas, William (died 1989), Annabel |
| Former employer | Harvey's of Bristol |
| Company roles | Director, Mary Berry Ltd and Mary Berry Merchandising Ltd |
| Home | Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire |
Biography
How old is Paul Hunnings?
Paul Hunnings is 94 years old. His full name is Paul John March Hunnings, and UK Companies House records give his birth date as March 1932. Mary confirmed his age herself in May 2026, when she accepted a BAFTA Fellowship: “To my husband Paul, who is now 94, he has always supported me and is watching at home.”
Very little is public about his parents, siblings or school days. He has kept no social media accounts and has never given a press interview of his own. Almost everything known about him comes from Mary, who has spoken about him in interviews for decades.
Career
Harvey’s of Bristol and rare books
Hunnings started his working life in the wine and spirits trade with Harvey’s of Bristol, the historic sherry house behind Bristol Cream. He later became an antiquarian book dealer, buying and selling rare and collectible books. Woman and Home and Mary’s Wikipedia page both describe him today as a retired antiquarian bookseller.
Mary has said the trade suited his nature. On Sue Perkins’ podcast, she described him as a man happiest with old books, the quiet opposite of her own busy, sociable life.
Director of Mary Berry Ltd
Since July 1, 2014, Hunnings has been a director of the two companies behind his wife’s work, Mary Berry Ltd and Mary Berry Merchandising Ltd, according to Companies House. Mary is the controlling owner. Companies House lists her as the person with significant control of Mary Berry Ltd, holding 75% or more of the voting rights.
In plain terms, the business is hers and he helps run it. He is not listed as a person with significant control of either company, so any shares he holds are a minority.
Marriage to Mary Berry
How Paul met Mary
They met through her brother. “Paul was a friend of my brother’s. And I met him and we sort of did things together,” Mary said on Sue Perkins’ podcast in 2019. Both were working in London, and Mary went home to Bath at weekends, where she admitted she was also seeing someone else. “You keep your options open,” she joked.
He proposed three times before she said yes. Mary has said the final proposal came when he told her: “I’m getting on in age. So either it’s yes or no.” This time, she accepted.
The 1966 wedding
The couple married in 1966 at Charlcombe Church near Bath, with around a hundred guests under a marquee for sandwiches and tea. Mary baked and iced her own wedding cake. They then left for a short, rainy honeymoon at Shipton-under-Wychwood, where Paul wanted to learn to fish.
Mary’s father gave Paul one rule when they got engaged: never let a day end on a quarrel. The couple say they have kept it. “We’ve never had a cross word. I can’t bear shouting,” Mary said on Fearne Cotton’s Happy Place podcast in June 2026.
Early married life
His gifts were not always romantic. Not long after the wedding, Paul gave her a big tub of chicken pellets, a garden fertiliser, for Christmas. “My mother saw me open it and looked at Paul as if to say how could you,” Mary told Good Housekeeping in 2023. “She thought it was dreadful, but I was thrilled.”
At home, the roles have always been clear. Mary has joked that he can barely make an omelette and that she used to leave him written meal instructions when she was away filming, though she says he is very good with a corkscrew.
Sixty years married
The couple marked 60 years of marriage in 2026. Mary said she had no big plans because her husband “isn’t into big parties”. When she accepted her BAFTA Fellowship on May 10, 2026, Paul watched from home, and she thanked him first.
Family
Children
Paul and Mary have three children. Thomas, the eldest, is a tree surgeon. Annabel, the youngest, trained as a cook and went into business with her mother under the Mary Berry and Daughter label, selling dressings and sauces. The Daily Mail gave their ages as 57 and 55 in November 2025.
The loss of William
Their middle child, William, died in a car crash in 1989 at the age of 19. Annabel was in the car with him and survived. Mary has said the family still feels lucky to have had him at all, and at the 2026 BAFTAs she ended her speech with: “William is in heaven, but I thank him.”
After William died, Mary chose to stay close to home and Paul. She stopped working in London and ran Aga cookery classes from their house for about 12 years instead.
From Penn to Henley-on-Thames
For about three decades, the family lived at Watercroft in Penn, Buckinghamshire, a house that also appeared in several of Mary’s TV series. They moved to Henley-on-Thames in Oxfordshire around 2018 to be nearer Thomas and Annabel. Mary said on Happy Place that the move was Paul’s idea, after he asked whether she would want to stay in Penn alone if he died first.
Their Henley home is a Grade II listed four-bedroom house, reportedly worth about £2.6 million. “We didn’t want to move too far from our friends, and Henley is only a 35 minute drive,” Mary said in August 2026. When they planted yew trees there, she wanted big ones: “Well I’ll be in heaven then so we had to buy them fairly big.”
Health
What happened to Mary Berry’s husband?
Nothing sudden has happened. The worry readers search for comes from his age. In October 2025, Mary told Saga magazine: “He’s just had a tumble with broken ribs.” A month later, she told Yours Magazine he was “terribly frail, but very cherished and well looked after”.
She has said he is more forgetful now, and that caring for him has become part of daily life. In November 2025, she told the Daily Mail she feels “very lucky” that he is still with her. He did not travel to the BAFTA ceremony in May 2026, but he remains at home in Henley with his family close by.
Croquet and old injuries
Croquet is the sport the couple share. In a 2022 Daily Mail piece, Mary went as far as saying that playing croquet saved her life. In 2021, Mary broke her hip in a fall while picking sweet peas in the garden and waited hours for help. Paul was inside watching cricket and didn’t hear her calls.
Timeline
March 1932: Paul John March Hunnings is born in the United Kingdom.
March 24, 1935: Mary Berry is born in Bath.
1950s to 1960s: He works in the wine trade with Harvey’s of Bristol.
Early 1960s: He meets Mary through her brother.
1966: After three proposals, he marries Mary at Charlcombe Church near Bath.
Late 1960s: Their sons Thomas and William are born.
Early 1970s: Their daughter, Annabel, is born.
1970: Mary publishes her first cookbook.
1989: William dies in a car crash at 19.
1990s: Mary runs Aga cookery classes from their home in Penn.
2010: Mary becomes a judge on The Great British Bake Off.
July 1, 2014: He becomes a director of Mary Berry Ltd and Mary Berry Merchandising Ltd.
2016: Mary leaves The Great British Bake Off.
Around 2018: The couple move from Penn to Henley-on-Thames, at Paul’s suggestion.
2019: Mary tells Sue Perkins how they met and about his three proposals.
2020: Mary is made a Dame.
2021: Mary breaks her hip in their garden while Paul watches cricket indoors.
March 24, 2025: Mary turns 90.
October 2025: Mary tells Saga he has broken ribs after a fall.
November 2025: Mary tells Yours Magazine he is “terribly frail, but very cherished”.
March 2026: He turns 94.
May 10, 2026: Mary thanks him in her BAFTA Fellowship speech.
June 2026: Mary talks about their 60-year marriage on Fearne Cotton’s Happy Place.
2026: The couple mark their 60th wedding anniversary.
Net Worth
Paul J.M. Hunnings’ net worth is estimated at $1.5–2 million. The biggest single part of it is his share of the family home in Henley-on-Thames, which is reportedly worth about £2.6 million. His working income came from the sherry trade and then decades of dealing in rare books, a modest but steady living.
The much larger fortune in the family belongs to Mary. She has published more than 75 cookbooks, judged seven series of Bake Off and still fronts BBC shows, and that income flows through Mary Berry Ltd, the company Companies House shows she controls with 75% or more of the voting rights. Hunnings is a director there, not a major owner, so her company wealth is not counted in his figure.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Paul J.M. Hunnings’ net worth?
Paul J.M. Hunnings’ net worth is estimated at $1.5–2 million, mostly from his share of the couple’s Henley-on-Thames home and his career as a rare book dealer.
What did Mary Berry’s husband do for a living?
Paul Hunnings worked in the wine trade for Harvey’s of Bristol, the sherry house, and then became an antiquarian book dealer. He is retired, but he is still a director of Mary Berry Ltd.
How old is Paul Hunnings?
He is 94. He was born in March 1932, and Mary confirmed his age in her BAFTA Fellowship speech in May 2026.
Is Paul J.M. Hunnings still alive?
Yes. Paul Hunnings is alive and lives with Mary in Henley-on-Thames. He is frail after a fall in 2025, and Mary cares for him at home.
How old is Mary Berry?
Mary Berry is 91. She was born on March 24, 1935, in Bath, three years after her husband.
What happened to Mary Berry’s left hand?
Mary caught polio at 13 and spent three months in an isolation hospital. It left her with a weaker left hand, a thinner left arm and a twisted spine.
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