Answering the phone on Friday evening, I sighed thinking ‘oh please, not another sales call’. Wrong : the caller was a researcher letting us know the garden will be on Gardener’s World on Friday 19th August, BBC2 at 8.30pm.
Filmed in late October 2015, the footage was to be shown this autumn. Hearing that it had been brought forward was a nice surprise.
Who knows, given that the garden is open until the end of September we may even enjoy a few more NGS visitors?

Image © Abigail Rex, September 2015
As confusing as it may seem to viewers, we’re described as a Gloucestershire couple living in a Welsh postcode whose grassy garden was “inspired by living in the Far East”. Given the blurb, I’m hoping for some esoteric ‘dingly-dangly’ music to complete the Bermuda Triangle effect.
UPDATE :
The footage of Barn House Garden is 15 mins into the YouTube video.
If you’d like to see what the garden looked like last October please press play.
Excellent! Can’t wait to see it.
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We’re over the moon. If it wasn’t such a busy week, I’d be in danger of wishing the days away.
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Ooh, how fab. Look forward to seeing it.
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How nice to know you’ll be watching, Sam. We’re a bit nervous, wondering how the autumn garden looked that day on camera.
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The garden looked amazing and you both came across brilliantly. Shame it wasn’t a longer piece! Very well done indeed.
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Thanks, Sam. How kind of you to say so ! Nice surprise to see Mia the cat strolled through too – unlike us, in just one take!
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Wonderful, we will be watching too, your garden will look amazing, I’m sure!
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Thank you Pauline, how very kind you are to say so.
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Fantastic news Kate. I knew they had been but thought I’d missed the show. Looking forward to seeing your lovely garden on the box. Keep calm … it will be amazing!
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Good advice, Gillian, thank you.
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Brilliant I look forward to seeing you.
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Please forgive my ignorance, do you get BBC programmes in Italy?
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Wowsers
I will be watching. Now hoping for dingly dangly music to play
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Nice to know you’ll be watching and listening too.
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Oh great, I am in the UK next week so I will ask my Dad to record this and watch it while there! How exciting for you! I shall pay special attention to the background music of course! ;-)
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That’s lucky, I hope you have a good visit.
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Oh how exciting Kate. We don’ t have a tevision, but I shall invite myself round to watch it with a gardening friend, I wouldn’ t miss it for anything. One day, I hope to see your amazing garden for myself.
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You’re always very welcome to visit, Liz. It would be lovely to meet you 🙂.
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Excellent news. I’ll be watching out for it with considerable interest. :)
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Thanks, Alison. Nice to know there will be some interest in an autumnal grassy garden while the sun beats down in August. Still no rain here, what’s going on?
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Oh you must be SO excited!! After all, I am excited and it’s not MY garden! Just think of all your blogging friends sitting watching… not to mentions all those hundreds of thousand of other GW viewers ;) Excited AND nervous…
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We are on tenterhooks to see what the garden looked like, it was a cold, gray day in late October – mainly I wished I’d worn my neoprene lined wellies!
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And I am sure it will feel quite surreal, seeing it on the televison screen
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It was bizarre …. Dogs very confused as to how we could be on the sofa and tv at one and the same time. Bless them.
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I look forward to seeing your garden. I WILL have to come and see it for real, you are not that far away.
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Visitors are always welcome, especially garden blogging friends.
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Look forward to Friday.
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Thanks, Steve.
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Just seen the show. very nice and I loved the garden.
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Thanks, Steve, how nice to know you watched it. The BBC really did a fantastic job.
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Gosh I shall certainly watch and I shall remind various friends too.
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That’s so kind of you! Thank you.
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Fantastic! And, in a minor key, your are here too – http://thinkingardens.co.uk/articles/gardeners-designers-or-garden-makers-by-anne-wareham/
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Anne thank you for so generously including us, the mention is a major honour.
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Yay! I caught up with your post just in time. I shall be watching avidly tonight!
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Thanks, Jessica. That’s so nice to know – hope the Autumn garden looks not too bad.
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It looked absolutely brilliant. And you two were so relaxed! I don’t think I could have done that. Well done and what an experience.
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Thanks, Jessica. It was an amazing day ….
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Wow! After the windy day we experienced on our visit in July it was lovely to view your garden at it’s very best! The only flower missing from my point of view were those lovely golden ‘monbretia’ (?). A beautiful sight in the summer.
So pleased I remembered to record GW as the diving is on!! Sue.
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Thank you, Sue. I remember your visit, seeing grasses dance on our windy slope always makes me smile ….
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I’ve just watched Gardener’s World on I Player and your garden is stunning and so inspiring. I loved the reminder that you propagated lots of plants from parent plants to make those huge dramatic swathes. Awesome in every way.
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What a lovely comment, thank you Sue. The BBC did a brilliant job for the garden.
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So glad you added the link and I didn’t have to wait till my UK visit next week! Such a fabulous garden Kate! I adore grasses and your garden is an inspiration! One day when I am in the country for a bit longer I will definitely have to see it for myself. :)
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Great to know link works! A friend suggested doing it. Would be a pleasure to show you the garden one day.
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Hi Kate
Catching up with you via Dan The Frustrated Gardener. Just found your garden on GW E 21 (youtube). Unfortunately, being in Australia, we are blocked watching anything on British TV. Just thought I would let you know so your fans around the world will be able to catch up.
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Thanks, so kind of you to let me know. Friends/family/”fans” (ha, ha!), abroad may be pleased to know too.
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Hi Kate, So pleased you included the youtube clip as I missed GW on Friday. You were both fantastic and the garden looked stunning. You must be really pleased with the feature. So pleased to see your garden is getting the attention it deserves. xx
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Louise, just lovely to hear from you – it’s getting on for 2 years since you and Ian visited the garden, then helped us with the website … you set this snowball in motion. Love and thanks to you both. xx
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Brilliant Kate, your garden was even more beautiful than I imaged it would be. Great feature, the YouTube link worked for me here too – the wonders of modern technology. It was also lovely to see and hear you speak, it will make you posts even better for me.
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I’m glad you got to watch it and approved! We were thrilled by the grand job the BBC did on us, not just the garden, brilliant crew on the day and great post-editing too.
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Thanks to Cathy, I have been able to watch your beautiful garden, Kate. It’s absolutely gorgeos, congratulation on your BBC presentation. How exciting! :-)
Warm greeting from North Norfolk,
Dina
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How nice to ‘meet you’, Dina, and thank you for such kind words. Guessing you know all about Pensthorpe MG and Bressingham Gardens etc.? I’m still an Essex girl at heart – one day I’ll get back to East Anglia to catch up on these fab gardens and grassy nurseries.
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Congrats! I hope you were happy with the finished product. This is bound to be good promotion for your lovely garden, Kate.
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Yes, we’re thrilled and it will be good publicity for the garden. Unfortunately, end of last week, one of dear dogs was rushed into emergency surgery which has put a dampener on things.
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I’m so sorry to hear that Kate. How is your pet doing now?
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She’s doing so well, thanks, Cynthia, animals are so brave. Better than us, racked waiting on histology.
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I hear you.
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I saw Gardeners World on Friday and loved seeing you and your husband in your garden Kate. Very well done to both of you for creating such a gorgeous garden and coming across so well on the telly. X
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Thank you, Gillian. At the time we hoped the garden would speak for itself but, for ourselves, we felt so gauche!
However, the crew were so skilled and friendly, they soon set us at our ease.
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Wow, Kate, I’m impressed, congrats! I’ve been browsing your blog this past while and love your plantings. I can’t wait to see the garden, it’s on my bucket list! I wonder whether you’d mind to give me some advice…I’m thinking of planting Sesleria autumnalis in the sunken garden as the Nasella is struggling with the winter wet. Would you think it’s a good choice for year round interest and also able to cope with summer drought/heat and winter wet? Pity, I couldn’t see Gardener’s World…or is it available on internet? Best wishes and enjoy your beautiful creation x
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Thanks Annette, firstly GW E21 is on Youtube – link on this post works at least in Germany, Italy, France ….
Secondly, I’ve been very impressed with how Sesleria is doing well here, it should as it’s a European native. All I’ve seen and read indicates that as an evergreen its tolerant of a wide range of soils and conditions, likely to slow down a bit in heat/low humidity but shouldn’t brown out like alternatives ie deschampsia. Timely question, I hope to write up on it soon! Good low maintenance landscape plant : can strim it down late winter too😉
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thanks, Kate, I shall give it a try this evening, same for Sesleria. Sadly Calamagrostis doesn’t do well at all here and keeps getting rust.
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hope it works, I’d love to know what you think!
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It didn’t work at first but then, yes! Your place looks just amazing, I’m so impressed, and it’s lovely to see you, sort of feels more personal now. What an achievement to make this garden and to be featured on GW – you must be singing and dancing too :)
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Yes, a great achievement for the garden. So proud of these amazing plants – not just the grasses.
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I’ve just caught up with this episode Kate and your garden looked spectacular. It was truly wonderful to see it moving on screen and I especially loved the way you talked about it – you looked so natural (and of course so at home) in the garden you’ve created.
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What a thoughtful comment, thank you. I was amazed to see what a good job the cameraman had done given that it was such an overcast day. Soundman was fab,not so easy to catch the background rustling noise grasses make.
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You all looked fantastic, both of you, the garden and the cat xx
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I thought you’d like Mia’s walk through … Sweet of you to pop in. Kate xx
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Well I have finally found time to watch GW on I player. Fabulous you came across so well and relaxed and a natural in front of the screen.
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And the garden looked fabulous too
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Such encouraging comments, thanks for finding the time to watch. Shame the BBC didn’t say the garden was open for NGS as we’d requested/hoped they would.
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That is disappointing. An oversight no doubt
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Yes, disappointing, I was on the phone to a researcher to dot the ‘i’s and cross the ‘t’s the Tuedsay before it went out ….on the grapevine I hear our county organiser is a bit miffed too.
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A real shame Kate as it is a missed opportunity for the opening and potential revenue for NGS. I suppose the program folk have a different focus and priority. Never mind it is a fabulous achievement.
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Thoughtful words, I do appreciate them. Luckily, the Internet has bridged the oversight, if you see what I mean.
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The sounds of the garden, as you say, …and where your sense of hearing immediately takes you…plants and gardens…well done!
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Thank you, as a lover of landscapes yourself, I think you may know which page I’m on … gardens can echo landscapes in more ways than one.
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…would it be a stretch to say gardens echo landscapes in as many ways as one can imagine, can experience…infinite in fact?
Why else would one return, every day for a life time, to a garden? The unlimited breadth of discovery. It’s there isn’t it?
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Exactly so …. The best ‘gardens’ I know and love do just this throughout the seasons,whatever the weather. Some touch our souls ….
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