Alan
Titchmarsh is one of the best known and best loved
garden presenters in the UK
Alan
Titchmarsh was born in Ilkley, West Riding of
Yorkshire, England, the son of a textile mill
worker, and Alan Titchmarsh, Sr., a plumber. After
leaving school aged 15, Titchmarsh went to work as
an apprentice gardener with Ilkley Council in 1964,
before leaving, in 1968 for Shipley Art and
Technology Institute to study for a City and Guilds
in horticulture.
Alan would go on to study at Hertfordshire College of
Agriculture and Horticulture for the National
Certificate in Horticulture, before finally moving
to the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew to study for a
Diploma in Horticulture.
Alan was the
main presenter of Gardeners' World from 1996 to 2002 which
was shot from his own garden, Barleywood, in Hampshire. He
took gardening to BBC One with the popular Ground Force.
These were followed by two series of How to be a Gardener.
Alan presented television series British Isles: A Natural
History in 2004. He has recently finished filming new
British wildlife TV series The Nature of Britain.
Alan
Titchmarsh is a Freeman of the City of London and in 1997
was named Yorkshireman of the Year. He was awarded an MBE
in the 2000 New Year's Honours List, for services to
horticulture and broadcasting, and appointed a Deputy
Lieutenant of the County of Hampshire in 2001.
Alan is the
Vice-President of Butterfly
Conservation, which works to help
butterflies, moths and their habitats. He is also a keen
supporter of The
Wildlife Trusts. Alan set up his own
charity Gardens
for Schools, which helps primary schools
fund garden and wildlife projects.
