Stefan Buczacki – What Was Pebble Mill?

The photo is from the Radio Times, July 1990, and is of me (Vanessa Jackson) in a Norfolk lavender farm, with some expert, whose name I forget! I was a researcher on Gardeners’ World at the time, and I couldn’t understand why the Radio Times wanted a photo of me, with the expert, rather than one of the presenters, especially as I was at least seven months pregnant at the time!

This was shortly before the series was handed over to Catalyst Television, and produced independently for 10 years.

Here is the Radio Times entry for the episode, courtesy of the BBC Genome project: http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/3d4dfe567db54f5d9544599bfd5a5728

“A visit to Dr Stefan Buczacki ‘s low-maintenance garden in Stratford-on-Avon; the lowdown on lavender, the sweet-smelling herb for edging and hedging; jobs for the week from Barnsdale; and a report on the mail-order bugs business – breeding predators and parasites to prey on white fly and other garden pests. With Geoff Hamilton , Nigel Colborn and Pippa Greenwood. Executive producer Stephanie Silk, Editor Dennis Adams
Plant list on Ceefax page 617. “

Photos by Gail Herbert, no reproduction without permission.

Gardening writer, presenter and plant pathologist Dr Stefan Buczacki made a number of gardening series at BBC Pebble Mill:

Stefan Buczacki’s Gardening Britain was a six part series transmitted in 1996 on BBC 2. Stefan travelled round Britain dispensing gardening advice. This series was recorded as a two camera outside broadcast. The producer was Clare Boulter and the series producer Clare Stride. (The end of run meal features in the photos).
Stefan Buczacki’s Gardening Roadshow was a similar gardening advice show produced at Pebble Mill in 1998 for UK Style. Again it was recorded as a two camera outside broadcast. The crew for the series included cameraman Nigel Davey and Noel Paley, and sparks Herbie Donnelly.
Stefan also presented several stories for Gardeners’ World in 1990-1, including a feature on the restoration of Heligan Gardens in Cornwall, shown in one of the photos (Stefan with umbrella and palm trees).
Stefan also presented a series for UK Style called Stefan’s Ultimate Gardens, where he helped garden owners create a particular style of garden. This series was recorded single camera. Series producer Vanessa Jackson, director Paul Newman, researcher Emily Rusted.

Thanks to production assistant Gail Herbert for sharing her photos.

Stefan Buczacki at Heligan Gardens

Tag: Stefan Buczacki

Gardeners’ World – Lavender July 1990

Stefan Buczacki – ‘Gardening Britain’ & ‘Gardening Roadshow’