Parenting Hell with Rob Beckett and Josh Widdicombe S12 EP31: Briony May Williams
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Apr 21, 2026 Briony May Williams, baker and TV presenter best known from Bake Off and Escape to the Country, chats about teaching, becoming a stay-at-home mum and how baking shaped her life. She recalls auditioning for Bake Off, navigating TV with a visible disability, co-hosting a candid podcast with friends, and juggling parenting, phones for tweens, and family life.
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From Teacher To Semi Finalist On Bake Off
- Briony left teaching after her daughter Nora was born to be a stay-at-home mum and applied to The Great British Bake Off when Nora was just over one.
- She lied on her Bake Off application about daily bread baking, learned techniques on YouTube, and lasted to the semi-finals despite mistakes like raw pastry and salt-for-sugar errors.
Teacher Confessions And Why She Left The Classroom
- Briony taught French and Spanish for seven years, handled difficult lower-set classes at a private school, and once left a bag of exam papers in a pub after getting drunk.
- She later became sober and returned to teaching talk events, but left the classroom when Nora was small.
Growing Up With One Thumb And A Sense Of Humour
- Briony explains she was born with only one thumb on her left hand due to symbrachydactyly and initially just called it her 'little hand'.
- She kept a sense of humour growing up, and Bake Off largely didn't highlight it, which surprised some viewers.