The queen of baking really rose to the occasion when she met her fans in Carlisle.

Mary Berry, star of The Great British Bake Off, was at a special charity fundraising event at The Halston, on Warwick Road, where she signed copies of her books before answering questions about baking and her career.

The event was organised to raise money for Child Bereavement UK, which supports parents who have lost a child as well as children whose parents have died. Mrs Berry is a patron of the organisation.

She told the crowd she had visited Cumbria many times and appreciated all the county had to offer.

“I love coming up to Lakeland. When we drove up the view of the hills was amazing,” she said.

The previous night she had been at another charity event in south Cumbria.

Mrs Berry said the success of her show was that it filled a need for family entertainment.

“Today I had mince pies given to me baked from a recipe from my book by a child. Would they have been baking if it hadn’t been for the Bake Off?”

One member of the audience, 12-year-old Andrew Bell, from Stanwix, asked what she would say to encourage young bakers.

Mrs Berry replied: “Choose something that you would like to eat and your family would like to eat. The next thing is to find a recipe that is going to be a good one and read it though three times.”

She also pointed out that there would be an audience of family members who would want to see the results of the baking.

Other queries were more practical.

Maureen Armstrong, who lives in Morton, Carlisle, wanted to know how to make the perfect Swiss roll.

After giving advice on recipes Mrs Berry joked: “If all else fails go and buy one.”

She was also amused by a question from Steven Tweedie who asked if she had a recipe that combines gin and cakes.

“Couldn’t you just have a G&T while you bake?,” Mrs Berry responded.

After the event Andrew told the News & Star: “I thought it was very inspiring. Baking is a bit of a hobby and I like doing it at school but we don’t get to do many cakes there.”

As well as having her question answered, Mrs Armstong was also the first person to get a recipe book signed.

She said: “I have always been a fan of Mary. I have got all of her books and this was a surprise birthday present from my daughter-in-law.”

Shirley Potts, the north development lead for Child Bereavement UK, said: “There are about 300 people here. We are absolutely delighted.”

For more information on the charity and the services it provides, visit www.childbereavementuk.org