The Great British garden is one of the many iconic features of our country. Ever since the 1930’s the back garden has been a mainstay of pride and achievement for the humble homeowner. We have all strived to create a little piece of heaven “out the back” so we can rest and relax. The garden has also played a vital role in wartime as it was used to feed us and add to the rations we were giving. The country heeded the call of Dig for Victory! This pride carried on through the decades, and it’s seen the introduction of a group of Television personalities that have helped our input and understanding of our gardens. They are essential as are the Mountfield Parts from www.diyspareparts.com/parts/mountfield/ that you can get to keep your equipment in working order. Here are a few that have shaped the local garden landscape.
- Percy Thrower. Began his career in 1956 with the BBC programme Gardening Club which became the seminal Gardeners World in 1969 (which it remains to this day). Percy laid down the rules for the TV gardener. He was bright, engaging, effervescent and above all, knowledgeable about British plants and soil. He “retired” from Gardeners World to run the Blue Peter garden until 1987, inspiring a generation of youngsters in the process.
- Alan Titchmarsh. At first, a young horticultural expert on the topical affairs early evening show Nationwide, he then made numerous appearances on Midland television, becoming a presenter on the weekly lunchtime show Pebble Mill. However, when this was dropped, he returned as the fresh-faced presenter of Gardeners World, using his own garden for filming. However, the introduction of the Ground Force brought British gardening back into focus in the late 1990s. With garden expert Charlie Dimmock and builder and landscaper Tommy Walsh, they paved trails in TV history. Secretly renovating peoples terrible gardens into Edens whilst they were away, all this was done to a tight time scale!
- Charlie Dimmock. As part of the Ground Force team garden expert, Charlie was a force to be reckoned with and soon became a pin-up for the industry. Her knowledge was insurmountable, with the two co-presenters having to defer to her calls many times. She was a great role model for female garden designers and landscapers looking to break into what was a pretty male-dominated world.
- Monty Don. When the Ground Force and Gardeners World jobs became too much for Alan, it was Monty Don’s turn, and his more cultured tones, to take over the reins. He’d previously been a popular addition to the This Morning team where he had built a garden, only for it to be destroyed live on air for changes to the Liverpool Docks studios. He is the one who as really helped put Gardens on the map. Several books and TV series have seen Monty help out small to medium-sized Garden owners make the most of the space and what they can achieve to make a little piece of heaven.