Tag: Geoff Hamilton

Geoff Hamilton’s funeral service sheet

Thanks to Gail Herbert for making Geoff Hamilton’s funeral service sheet available.

Gardening presenter and journalist,Geoff Hamilton was born in 1936 in East London.  He was a twin.  His love of gardening developed early, and he worked on practical gardening magazines as a journalist before beginning his television career.  After working for Anglia Television, he joined the ‘Gardeners’ World’ team in 1979.  The series was based at his home, Barnsdale, in Rutland, from 1985.  His five acre garden was divided into a number of small plots, mimicking suburban gardens.

Geoff presented a number of gardening series, besides ‘Gardeners’ World’, including: The Cottage Garden, The Paradise Garden, The Ornamental Kitchen Garden, The Elizabethan Kitchen Garden, and Old Garden, New Gardener.

He died of a heart attack on 4 August 1996, whilst taking part in a charity bike race.

I worked as a researcher on ‘Gardeners’ World’ in 1990/1, and remember filming at Barnsdale.  Geoff had two cats, named after directors on ‘Gardeners’ World’, one was named ‘Denis’, after Denis Gartside, but I can’t remember the name of the second one.  Geoff’s downstairs loo was also a fascinating place to visit – the walls were covered with press cuttings about ‘Gardeners’ World’, and you could spend quite a while reading the walls happily!

Gardeners’ World – photos by Gail Herbert


Photos by Gail Herbert, no reproduction without permission.

The photos are of ‘Gardeners’ World’ shoots from around 1989.  This was just after the programme moved to single camera production, instead of a two camera outside broadcast.

The first includes (left to right) presenter Nigel Colborn, director Annette Martin, PA Gail Herbert, sound Paul Taylor.

The second photo is taken at Barnsdale, presenter Geoff Hamilton’s garden, and main location of the popular series in the 1980s.  It shows Geoff recording a piece to camera in the snow.

Chelsea Flower Show 1990 – photos by Gail Herbert


Photos by Gail Herbert, no reproduction without permission.

In 1990 BBC Pebble Mill produced a Chelsea Special programme which went out on BBC 2 on the Wednesday night of Chelsea week, as well as a ‘Gardeners’ World’ from Chelsea on the Friday, presented by Geoff Hamilton.

The first photo shows presenter Anne Swithinbank, with cameraman Mike Shelton and director Nick Bamford; the second, director Annette Martin, with researcher Helen Faulkner, and presenter Geoff Hamilton; the third photo is of P.A. Jacqui Pratt, camerman Keith Froggatt and sound Alex Christison; the fourth photo is of presenter and garden designer David Stevens; photo five is of David Stevens with Mike Shelton and director Nick Patten; photo six is of researcher Helen Faulkner and Mike Shelton; photo seven is of David Stevens with Nick Patten.

Nick Patten was also shooting a gardening series called ‘Gardens by Design’ in 1990, presented by garden designer, David Stevens, and recorded some of the show at the Chelsea Flower Show.  These photos are a combination of the Chelsea coverage, and ‘Gardens by Design’.