In 1967, the BBC took the decision to launch a brand new programme, a half hour each week on BBC 2 dedicated purely to gardening. Broadcast from a real allotment in Birmingham, the show featured tips and advice from expert gardeners and inspired the public with full colour footage of new plants and flowers. It was an instant success, Gardeners’ World was born.
50 years on, Gardeners’ World is now Britain’s longest running gardening show. This exhibition marks the 50th anniversary of the programme, celebrating five decades of broadcasting and heralding many more to come as gardening continues to hold its place as one of our most beloved national pastimes. The exhibition, at the RHS Lindley Library in London and RHS Garden sites around the country, will explore changes in gardening trends over the lifetime of the show from the 1960s to the present day. It will bring together material from the BBC archives and the RHS Library collections to look at the events and innovations that have transformed the way we garden and how we feel about the role of our gardens as part of our everyday lives.
The display will open across RHS sites from:
30 May - 18 Aug – RHS Lindley Library, London
1 Jun - 31 Dec – RHS Garden Harlow Carr
1 Jun - 31 Aug – RHS Garden Hyde Hall
1-30 Jun – RHS Garden Wisley
1-30 Jun – RHS Garden Rosemoor
Image: Geoff Hamilton, presenter 1979-1996. Image courtesy and copyright Steve Hamilton
Find out more about
Lindley Library exhibitions and events
