By Rosemary Collins

Published: Monday, 23 May 2022 at 12:00 am


Actor, broadcaster and comedian Sue Perkins is best known for presenting The Great British Bake Off and Just a Minute – but what else do you know about her? As she prepares to trace her family history on Who Do You Think You Are?, here’s five things you might not know about the beloved star.

1. Heavyweight

Sue Perkins loves boxing. As shown in her episode Sue uses boxing to relax and clear her mind. In an interview with the Independent in 2021 she said “there’s a shocking amount of good in punching! I highly recommend it.”

2. Health scare

In 2015 a health check revealed that she has a non-cancerous tumour on her pituitary gland. She has since talked about how the diagnosis led to the beginning of a “very, very dark time”.

3. Famous friend

Sue went to the same school in Croydon as Good Morning Britain host Susanna Reid and even played her mother in a school production of Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible.

4. Musical maestro

An accomplished pianist as a child, in 2008 Sue won BBC2’s conducting competition Maestro, later conducting the BBC Concert Orchestra at Tim Minchin’s Comedy Prom. In 2012 she took part in a Sky Arts series called First Love where celebrities returned to musical instruments they no longer played.

5. Liar liar

In 2006 she won the ‘World’s Biggest Liar’ competition which is held annually at the Bridge Inn in Cumbria. She was the first woman ever to win the competition with a tall tale about the ozone layer and people having to go to work on camels.