37 Facts About Alan Titchmarsh

Alan Fred Titchmarsh was born on 2 May 1949 and is an English gardener, author and broadcaster.

Alan Fred Titchmarsh was born on 2 May 1949 in Ilkley, West Riding of Yorkshire, England.

Alan Titchmarsh is the son of Bessie, a textile mill worker, and Alan Titchmarsh senior, a plumber.

In 1964, after leaving school at 15, with one O-level in Art, Titchmarsh went to work as an apprentice gardener with Ilkley Council attending day release classes at Shipley Art and Technology Institute in Shipley in the West Riding of Yorkshire studying for a City and Guilds qualification in horticulture.

In 1968, Alan Titchmarsh went 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 in 1969 to study for a Diploma in Horticulture.

Alan Titchmarsh left to pursue a career in gardening journalism in 1974.

Alan Titchmarsh then started to write his own gardening books, with the first, Starting With Houseplants being published in 1976.

In 1977 Alan Titchmarsh began his career in broadcasting as a gardening expert on BBC Radio 4 You and Yours and The Today Programme.

In 1986 Alan Titchmarsh hosted Open Air and from 1987 the BBC television talk shows Daytime Live and Pebble Mill, which he did until 1996.

In 1996 Alan Titchmarsh took over as host of Gardeners' World, the show being filmed in his own garden.

Away from gardening, Alan Titchmarsh had spells presenting Songs of Praise as well as two BBC nature documentary series, British Isles - A Natural History, and The Nature of Britain.

Alan Titchmarsh voiced the title character in Gordon the Garden Gnome, a cartoon series for the CBeebies channel.

Alan Titchmarsh hosted the 20th Century Roadshow, a 2005 spin off series from the Antiques Roadshow; performed in the 2006 Children's Party at the Palace for the Queen's 80th birthday; and guest hosted an episode of The Paul O'Grady Show.

Alan Titchmarsh presented the afternoon ITV chat show The Alan Titchmarsh Show and in 2006 was given a permanent slot on BBC Radio 2 on Sunday evenings with the show Melodies for you.

In 2010 Alan Titchmarsh presented the first series of Popstar to Operastar with Myleene Klass.

In 2013 Alan Titchmarsh was a reporter on the BBC Two programme The Great British Winterand in 2014 he presented The Queen's Garden, a two-part series for ITV, that was filmed over one year.

In March 2024, it was widely reported in the UK press that Alan Titchmarsh's trousers were censored on Korean Central Television.

Alan Titchmarsh has written for newspapers and magazines for more than 50 years and has written over 70 books, including books on the countryside and the Royal Family.

Alan Titchmarsh has published a series of gardening guides, the How to Garden series.

Alan Titchmarsh married Alison in 1975 and they have two children.

Alan Titchmarsh has a coastal home, near Cowes on the Isle of Wight, where he spends about a third of the year.

Alan Titchmarsh returned to the Marylebone and Fitzrovia area to plant a project's 1000th new tree in 2022.

In 2014 Alan Titchmarsh was one of 200 public figures who were signatories to a letter to The Guardian expressing their hope that Scotland would vote to remain part of the United Kingdom in September's referendum on that issue.

Since the 1980s Alan Titchmarsh has been involved in the performing arts.

Alan Titchmarsh presented the Royal Windsor Horse Show Pageants in front of Queen Elizabeth II as well as many concerts at the Royal Albert Hall and Royal Festival Hall for a number of national orchestras.

Alan Titchmarsh played the part of Kenneth Grahame for the Royal Ballet production of 'The Wind in the Willows' at the Vaudeville Theatre in 2014, written by Andrew Motion and choreographed by Will Tuckett.

Alan Titchmarsh presented the BBC Proms for three years in the early 2000s, which included presentation of The Last Night of the Proms on BBC1.

Alan Titchmarsh is a passionate advocate of responsible and sustainable stewardship of the landscape and the wider countryside.

Alan Titchmarsh is a staunch supporter of sustainable and organic farming and the purchasing of local produce.

Alan Titchmarsh has been a vocal opponent of the trend for turning over land which is valuable in terms of agriculture and horticulture to solar panels, believing that while energy saving is vital it should not automatically take precedence over food production.

The charity eventually became part of the RHS Campaign for School Gardening of which Alan Titchmarsh is an active supporter.

Alan Titchmarsh is a contributor to the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Community Foundation.

Alan Titchmarsh is a Patron or president of more than 40 charities including The Royal Horticultural Society, Treloar Trust, The London Children's Flower Society, Horticap, The Castle of Mey, Plant Heritage, The Garden Museum and The King's Foundation.

Alan Titchmarsh was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire in the 2000 New Year Honours for services to horticulture and broadcasting and was promoted to Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 2025 New Year Honours for services to horticulture and to charity He was made a Deputy Lieutenant of the County of Hampshire in 2001.

In 2008, Alan Titchmarsh served as High Sheriff of the Isle of Wight.

Alan Titchmarsh was made Patron of Writtle College, a university college in Essex, in 2001 and had a building named after him at the college in 2011.

Alan Titchmarsh was honoured by the City of Westminster at a tree planting and plaque ceremony in 2011 and 2022.