I tried a search for the recipe using 'England, chicken bread', and came up with a couple of things that might be helpful for you.

The first is a sight that has some English recipes on it. None that look like what you had, but there was an email of someone that you could probably describe the dish to that might be able to help. The email is mailto:josephine@shopenglandonline.com, the site address is: www.shopenglandonline.com/engli....html.

The one recipe that I could find that may or may not be something like what you had is here:
SPOON BREAD CHICKEN PIE
www.cooks.com/rec/doc/0,1...6197,00.html

I'm not sure if either of these help, but I thought I'd try.

Could have been a bread loaf baked in a ball on an open pan to firm the crust all around with the top cut offf and the innards hollowed out to make room for some cream of something soup.

It's a common way to serve soup when you want to impress people with a unique looking dish.
I find it a tad unpredictable as the crust can give way and let the soup spill out.

But if you are hell bent on doing it, put a big cast iron pan (biggest you got - or a few bricks or large river rocks) in the oven bottom, on that put another pan filled with water - then pre heat the oven to 500 Deg F. Yah the humidity will lower the temperature so you need to compensate.

Then brush your bowl size round loaves with water or egg-&-water wash and bake them till the crust is a golden to dark gold brown

The steam and water will form a thicker crust. It's great and crunchy when fresh out of the oven for a day, and after a few days becomes tough and chewy.

Sounds kinda like a cornish pasty...