Special Guests

Alan Titchmarsh CBE (Fri)

Festival Theatre

Alan Titchmarsh CBE grew up in Ilkley, Yorkshire. He is a gardener, writer, novelist, poet, concert presenter and broadcaster best known for programmes such as Ground Force, Gardeners’ World, Love Your Garden and The Chelsea Flower Show. He has also presented the BBC Proms and hosts the Saturday afternoon show on Classic FM. His own chat show The Alan Titchmarsh Show ran for eight years on ITV and he currently presents Love Your Weekend on Sunday mornings. Alan has written more than fifty gardening books, three volumes of autobiography, several books on royalty including The Queen’s Houses and twelve novels, ten of which have made the Sunday Times Best-seller list. His latest books: Chatsworth: The Gardens and the People Who Made Them and The Gardener’s Almanac were published last year. Alan collaborated with composer Debbie Wiseman on The Glorious Garden – a celebration in words and music - which went straight to No.1 in the classical charts. Their new album: ‘Jack Frost – a winter story’ premieres this autumn and you have the chance to hear an excerpt for the very first time this evening at the Royal Albert Hall. A firm believer in variety being the spice of life, Alan has flown a Spitfire, performed on the West End stage in The Wind in the Willows, sung at the London Palladium and ridden with The King’s Troop, Royal Horse Artillery – once. He compered the Royal Windsor Diamond Jubilee Pageant in 2012, Her Majesty The Queen’s 90th Birthday Celebration at Windsor in 2016 and the Windsor Diamond Jubilee pageant in 2022 alongside Tom Cruise and Dame Helen Mirren. He has also presented several documentaries about the royal family. He was made MBE in the Millennium New Year Honours List, is a Deputy Lieutenant of Hampshire and was Chancellor of the University of Winchester from 2016-2021. From 2008-9 he was High Sheriff of the Isle of Wight. Alan loves new gardens, old books and old cars and lives with his wife Alison in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. He has two daughters and four grandchildren. He sleeps well.

Raymond Blanc OBE (Thu)

Kitchen Garden Theatre

Raymond Blanc OBE is a culinary icon renowned for his exceptional talent, innovation, and unwavering dedication to the art of French cuisine. Born in Besançon, France, Blanc's passion for cooking was ignited at an early age through his mother's love for fresh, seasonal ingredients and traditional French recipes. Raymond Blanc enters his 41st year of retaining 2 Michelin Stars consecutively at Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons, the place where gastronomy, gardens, and hospitality comes alive in stunning surroundings. As a pioneer of seasonality, sustainability, and sourcing locally, he proudly instills the Garden to Table ethos. Raymond is a much-loved figurehead who has been recognised by nearly every award within the hospitality industry and nationwide. In 2008, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for of his contributions to the culinary world.

Adam Frost (Sat & Sun)

Festival Theatre & Kitchen Garden Theatre

Adam is an award-winning British Garden Designer and presenter on Gardeners’ World (BBC2). He regularly presents the BBC’s coverage of multiple RHS Flower Shows and has featured on The One Show and DIY SOS (BBC 1), The Alan Titchmarsh Show (ITV). In 2016 he won ‘Best New Talent’ at the RTS West Awards. Since 2007, Adam has amassed 7 gold medals at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show. He regularly lectures on a wide range of horticultural topics, both nationally and internationally and is a regular contributor to Gardeners’ World and other horticultural magazines. Adam’s first book Real Gardens was published in 2015, followed three years later by How to Create your Garden. In March 2022 he published The Creative Gardener, an incredibly personal book of garden projects created during lockdown. Autumn 2022 saw his first Gardener’s World tie in book published – How I Garden. Adam is trained in horticulture and landscape design and began his professional career in the mid-1980’s with an apprenticeship at the North Devon Parks Department. Adam later moved to Rutland where he began working with Geoff Hamilton at Barnsdale Gardens where he helped design and create many of the 38 small gardens which are still on show to the public today. In 2014 Adam set up The Homebase Garden Academy with the specific aim of helping Britain’s next generation of horticulture students kick-start their careers, by teaching them about garden design and landscaping. As well as running his own garden design and landscape business he also sits on the board for the Horticulture Trades Association, is an RHS Ambassador and until 2022 he ran The Adam Frost Garden School where he hosted masterclasses on design and other gardening courses.

Frances Tophill (Sat & Sun)

Festival Theatre & Kitchen Garden Theatre

Gardener, conservationist, broadcaster and author. Known for appearing on BBC gardeners world and ITV’s love your garden, Frances Tophill is a gardener and passionate advocate for wildlife and nature.

Marcus Bean (Fri, Sat & Sun)

Kitchen Garden Theatre

Self-taught chef, Marcus Bean, whose passion for cooking drove him to win Iron chef UK in 2010 on Channel 4. Marcus & his wife Jenny have owned and run an award winning Pub in Shropshire & the successful Brompton cookery school teaching over 25,000 people to cook over the last 11 years. Marcus is a regular chef on ITV’s This Morning, a regular Host & demonstrator at Good food shows & gardening shows across the country. Alongside this Marcus works as a private chef and teaches clients to cook in the comfort of their own homes.

Mark Diacono (Host Thu - Sun)

Kitchen Garden Theatre

Mark is an award winning food and gardening writer, lucky enough to spend most of his time growing, eating, writing and talking about food. He has written and photographed 14 books, winning Food Book of the Year twice, and writes columns for the Sunday Times Magazine, Delicious magazine and Country Life.

Nicki Chapman (Host Thu - Sun)

Festival Theatre

Nicki Chapman is an accomplished TV presenter and broadcaster, known to the nation as one of the faces on BBC One’s Escape to the Country and the RHS Chelsea Flower Show. In January 2025, Nicki joined the Magic Radio family as the new host of the iconic evening show Mellow Magic from Mondays - Thursdays. For many years prior, she regularly sat in at BBC Radio 2 for Zoe Ball‘s Breakfast Show, Michael Ball’s Sunday Love Songs and Romesh Ranganathan’s Saturday Show. Nicki first came to the public’s attention when she was a judge on the hugely popular Popstars and then Pop Idol alongside Ant and Dec In the summer of 2024, Nicki released her Amazon Number 1 Bestselling memoir, So Tell Me What You Want, praised for lifting the lid on her fascinating career in the 90’s and 00’s music scene as one of the most influential music publicists overseeing the careers of music giants The Spice Girls, Prince, Take That, Amy Winehouse and David Bowie to name a few.

Rachel de Thame (Thu & Fri)

Festival Theatre & Kitchen Garden Theatre

Rachel is a broadcaster, writer and gardener. A regular presenter on BBC Gardeners’ World and the Royal Horticultural Society Flower Show coverage, she is also the author of gardening books and a magazine columnist. Design projects include Chelsea Flower Show and the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant Royal Barge. Rachel curated the RHS London Rose Show and speaks at The Ashmolean Museum, The Garden Museum, Highgrove, Oxford Botanic Garden and The Royal Geographical Society. Rachel is Vice President of Plantlife, a National Garden Scheme Ambassador, and Patron of the British Iris Society and most recently has been appointed an Ambassador for the Hardy Plant Society. Gardening for wellness and wildlife is her particular passion.

Martin & Jill Fish (Hosts Thu - Sun)

Potting Shed Theatre

Martin has worked in horticulture for over 45 years and specialises in hands-on practical gardening. He writes for several gardening publications, broadcasts on BBC radio and presents his own YouTube channel and weekly Podcasts Martin is also an RHS judge and Chair the RHS Tender Expert Plant Group. Jill loves cooking with fresh ingredients from the garden and enjoys nothing more than creating new recipes using produce grown in their Lincolnshire garden. She writes cookery features for magazines and co-presents a weekly gardening podcast. When not in the kitchen, Jill can often be found working in the garden!

Adam Alexander (AKA The Seed Detective) (Fri)

NEW Give It A Grow Theatre

Adam Alexander is a consummate storyteller thanks to forty years as a successful and award-winning film and television producer. He lectures widely on his work discovering, conserving and sharing rare, endangered garden crops. He grows seed of heritage Syrian and Ukrainian vegetables for displaced people in the UK and beyond and maintains a library of some 500 vegetables that he has collected over 35 years, growing out more then 40 varieties every year to refresh his collection and share with fellow gardeners. He is a seed guardian for the Heritage Seed Library and director of Our food 1200, an organisation supporting agro-ecological horticulture in Wales. His latest book The Accidental Seed Heroes was published in March 2023.

Huw Richards (Sat)

NEW Give It A Grow Theatre

Huw Richards is a permaculturalist, digital creator, and co-director for Regenerative Media based in mid-west Wales. His YouTube channel has over 800,000 subscribers and his videos have collectively been viewed over 100M times. Huw has written four books with DK: Veg in One Bed (2019), Grow Food For Free (2020), The Vegetable Grower's Handbook (2022), and Sunday Times bestseller The Self-Sufficiency Garden (2024).

Anya Lutenbach (Fri)

NEW Give It A Grow Theatre

Anya Lautenbach is a bestselling author, a digital creator and passionate gardener, who wants more people to give gardening a go no matter their background, budget or garden size. Born in Poland, she now lives with her husband and two younger sons in Marlow, Buckinghamshire, and was recently diagnosed with ADHD - her self-described "superpower". A lifelong gardener, she has propagated thousands of plants, and has shared her budget gardening journey via her Instagram @anya_thegarden_fairy.

Leigh Johnstone (AKA The Beardy Gardener) (Host Thu - Sun)

NEW Give It A Grow Theatre

Leigh Johnstone aka ‘The Beardy Gardener’ is an award-winning garden designer, mental health campaigner, writer and broadcaster. He designed his first show garden in 2024, winning Gold for his design based on the New Forest and how our national parks can play an important role in improving the mental health of the nation. Leigh has appeared on BBC Gardeners’ World, BBC News, Radio 5 Live and LBC. He has featured in The New York Times, The Mirror, The Sun and writes for various newspapers and magazines. He is also a contributor to several horticultural and wellbeing podcasts.

Chris Collins (Thu)

Potting Shed Theatre, NEW Give It A Grow Theatre & Festival Theatre

Graduate Edinburgh Botanic Gardens Limbe Botanic Garden Cameroon Gardening Consultant - Mitsukoshi Japan Kew Botanic gardens Head Gardener - Westminster Abbey Blue Peter Gardener Head of Horticulture - Garden Organic Director - CM Collins Horticulture Ltd

Jonathan Moseley (Thu - Sun)

Potting Shed Theatre, NEW Give It A Grow Theatre & Festival Theatre

Celebrated floral designer, horticulturalist writer and broadcaster. Jonathan is a passionate advocate for seasonal British flowers and loves to inspire audiences to get creative by sharing his top tips and inspirational ideas in a fun friendly and entertaining way that inspires everyone to grow, cut and arrange. With over thirty five years experience of growing and arranging flowers Jonathan appears regularly on ITV's Love Your Weekend and was the floral judge on BBC's Big Allotment Challenge.

Jon Wheatley (Thu - Sun)

Potting Shed Theatre, Festival Theatre, New Give It A Grow Theatre & Kitchen Garden Theatre

Garden designer and grower Jon has won numerous RHS Gold medals and is an RHS judge. Jon is managing director of Stonebarn Landscapes based near Bristol.

Helen Cross (Sat)

NEW Give It A Grow Theatre and Kitchen Garden Theatre

Scottish author, broadcaster and horticultural educator, Helen Cross, grew up on a farm on the south west coast of Scotland and has a passion for encouraging everyone whether they are 5 or 85 to grow their own and cook seasonally to help the health of the planet as well as their own mental and physical wellbeing. Her first book, Grow Cook, Inspire was published in 2023.

Sarah Gerrard-Jones (AKA The Plant Rescuer) (Thu - Sun)

NEW Give It A Grow Theatre, Festival Theatre & Festival of Houseplants Theatre

Sarah Gerrard-Jones, known to her half a million social media followers as The Plant Rescuer, is the author of three acclaimed books and a prominent voice in the world of houseplants, she is a presenter on ITV’s Alan Titchmarsh’s Gardening Club and has been featured on BBC Gardeners’ World. Sarah regularly writes about houseplants for BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine, The Sunday Times and Gardens Illustrated.