Mary Berry has traded her kitchen apron for a tailored three-piece tweed suit in a campaign for Holland Cooper’s Icon Series, a collection that spotlights women who lead, empower and redefine what it means to be iconic. In the campaign shoot, the 90-year-old baker and television personality is joined by broadcaster Clare Balding, model Jodie Kidd and Irish actress Lisa Dwan. Holland Cooper says the Icon Series brings together women from the worlds of food, broadcasting, the arts, fashion and entrepreneurship to celebrate contemporary icons. The company also notes a philanthropic angle, with 10% of sales from its Belgravia Blazer in Westminster Tweed earmarked for The King’s Trust to support programs that help young women across the UK.
In the campaign images, Berry stands out in a stylish, high-craft tweed ensemble described by the brand as a three-piece suit with gold buttons. The look is paired with a brown trilby hat and a cream neckerchief, projecting a confident, modern professional aesthetic rather than her well-known kitchen persona. Jodie Kidd is photographed in a grey tweed jacket and matching trousers, finished with a white shirt and a brown tie. Clare Balding appears in a brown suit and a matching long coat, complemented by a pair of black glasses as she walks a quartet of dogs in the shot. Lisa Dwan opts for a khaki green suit matched to an open-necked blue-and-white striped shirt.
The campaign is framed by Holland Cooper as a celebration of modern-day icons who inspire confidence, presence and empowerment. Jade Holland Cooper, the brand’s designer, described the lineup as a tribute to extraordinary women who exemplify leadership and influence, while also supporting a charitable mission that helps fund opportunities for young women through The King’s Trust. The partnership reflects the company’s belief that tailoring is about more than clothing—it is a statement of capability and charisma that can reach across industries and generations.
Beyond the aesthetics, the collaboration aligns with a broader narrative about women who redefine public life in fields traditionally dominated by men, as well as in the arts, media and entrepreneurship. The campaign materials emphasize that the selected women—Berry, Balding, Kidd and Dwan—represent a spectrum of public life in which style intersects with impact. The inclusion of Balding and Kidd, who balance high-profile media roles with business and charitable work, underscores Holland Cooper’s aim to present clothing as a conduit for leadership and philanthropic action.
Berry’s public profile extends well beyond fashion campaigns. She celebrated her 90th birthday this spring, revealing in interviews that she planned a year of celebratory gatherings with family and friends. In conversations with British Vogue, she spoke of cake and champagne as part of her milestone year, and she noted a preference for walking and tennis over gym workouts, a habit she shares with her late mother, Margaret. The baker-turned-media figure has long discussed how family and resilience shaped her career, aspects that resonate with the Icon Series’ emphasis on character as much as context.
In her early years, Berry and her husband Paul Hunnings raised three children—Thomas, William and Annabel. The family endured the loss of William in 1989, when he was 19, in a car accident in which Annabel was injured but survived. Berry has remarked that the memory of William remains a living part of the family narrative, and she has spoken openly about the tragedy as part of her long arc in public life. These personal chapters are folded into the wider cultural narrative the campaign seeks to highlight: accomplished women balancing professional demands with personal history, and using their visibility to support charitable causes.
The Holland Cooper Icon Series campaign thereby functions on multiple levels. It spotlights fashion and styling as a form of expression for women who have built prestige across different sectors, while also translating influence into tangible support for young women through The King’s Trust. The brand’s philanthropic commitment is to donate a portion of sales from a signature item—Belgravia Blazer in Westminster Tweed—directly to the charity, underscoring a model in which fashion and responsibility intersect.
For Berry, the collaboration marks another chapter in a career that, while rooted in baking and television, has often touched on the broader theme of empowerment. The partnership with Holland Cooper positions her alongside other leading figures who have defined contemporary culture—figures who, in Berry’s terms, also carry with them the complex, enduring stories of families, milestones and personal loss. The result is a portrait not only of style but of resilience and leadership that aligns with the public’s evolving view of what it means to be an icon in today’s world.
As the campaign unfolds, observers will be watching how fashion can serve as a platform for social impact, particularly in highlighting education, mentorship and opportunity for girls and young women. The combination of high-level tailoring, star power from a diverse group of women, and a charitable mission signals a trend in which luxury brands are increasingly foregrounding female leadership and social responsibility in their marketing narratives. For fans of Berry and the other personalities involved, the campaign offers a refreshed image of cultural influence—one that merges elegance with a clear sense of purpose and public service.