Entertainment

First look at Mary Berry and special guests in BBC Christmas special

Festive Feasts will air on December 20.
Festive Feasts will air on December 20. Festive Feasts will air on December 20.

Dame Mary Berry will invite three “truly hapless cooks” into her kitchen in a bid to teach them how to make a Christmas feast as part of a BBC One special.

The 86-year-old doyen of British baking will be joined by two “celebrity elves” – TV presenter Alex Jones and fashion designer Patrick Grant – as she helps the participants.

She will hear about their ambitions and the loved ones they want to spoil, before offering a fitting recipe and relevant training.

Investitures at Windsor Castle
Investitures at Windsor Castle Mary Berry was made a Dame in the 2020 Queen’s Birthday Honours (Kirsty O’Connor/PA)

Show bosses said the former Great British Bake Off judge will “demonstrate tricky techniques while giving her pupils helpful critique and pointers along the way”.

However, once the session is over, the three cooks must return home and practise in their own kitchen without Dame Mary’s guidance.

Tensions will rise in the kitchen when the novices finally prepare their dishes for friends and family.

The leading cookery writer and broadcaster has published more than 50 books during a career spanning more than five decades, and was made a Dame in the 2020 Queen’s Birthday Honours, for her services to broadcasting, the culinary arts and charity.

– Mary Berry’s Festive Feasts airs on Monday December 20 at 7.05pm on BBC One.