BBC Gardeners’ World Spring Fair 2024 - Show Interviews

Meet the experts - The Caley Brothers Jodie and Lorraine of the Sussex-based Caley Brothers were raised in Surrey, with a childhood was enriched with home grown, nutritious and delicious food. From working on their folks and gramps allotments to holiday cover on a livestock farm in the New Forest that included tractor driving, sheep herding, vineyard planting, hay bailing, egg collecting and lambing to prepping geese for the festive season and so much more. It is these experiences that gave them a deep-rooted respect for good quality food, how to appreciate it, and what is just as important – how to source and support it. Within a year of growing their own mushrooms the curiosity surrounding our change in careers and the story behind why they were now ‘mushroom farmers’ had them making simple, small-scale kits for our family, our friends and friend of friends so they too could get growing their own mushrooms. Join them for an Oyster Mushroom workshop at the Autumn Fair!

Chris Bavin is so full of character he was born to be on TV. After a TV production company first stumbled across him in 2011 he has gone from strength to strength and is currently co-presenting his fourth series of BBC1’s hugely successful series Eat Well For Less? With Gregg Wallace. The show has had incredible ratings across its first three series with the next two to be aired later on this year. In addition to Eat Well for Less, Chris has presented Tomorrow’s Food with Dara O’Brian, The Truth about Meat and he is co-presenter of BBC1’s returning series Food: truth or scare with Gloria Hunniford. Chris is the co-founder of ‘The Naked Grocer’ a retail business that was twice voted as ‘National Independent Retailer of the Year’ award as well as ‘Best Contribution to the Community’ award. The Naked Grocer is now an online business supplying catering, fruit for offices as well as veg boxes for the public. www.thenakedgrocer.com SEE CHRIS ON THE LET'S GROW STAGE

Chris Collins is Head of Horticulture at Garden Organic .He’s also a gardening writer, TV broadcaster, lecturer and horticultural consultant. Chris’s books include ‘Grow Your Own For Kids’. Chris Graduated from the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, and has previously been Head Gardener Westminster Abbey. He’s done much TV work including This Morning and being a former Blue Peter gardener. Chris will be on the Let’s Grow Stage at the Fair, find out more below.

Frances is involved with the RHS campaign for school gardening and is passionate about enthusing young people to get into horticulture. She is working on a number of community gardening projects in the South West and is also helping the redevelopment of some costal gardens that were damaged by the 2014 storms. This is a particular passion of hers having grown up by the sea and was also part of her degree specialisation. Frances is a popular choice for gardening talks and has appeared at Blenheim Palace Flower Show, Hampton Court Flower Show and the Eden Project Green Fingers Festival to name a few. Hailing from Deal in Kent, Frances now lives in Exeter having completed her BSc in Horticulture with Plantmanship at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh in 2013. Frances got into gardening from an early age, helping out around the garden at home and after overly ambitiously designing a terraced landscape in a planter, given to her by her mum, age 7, she was hooked. As well as all things gardening Frances is a budding crafter and currently doing a pottery course. Frances’ first book, First Time Gardener, was published in 2015 and her 2nd book, Container Gardening will be published in April this year. She has also written a column for Coast magazine on highs and lows of coastal gardening.

Sara Ward has transformed her Victorian terraced house in London into an urban smallholding, ‘Hen Corner’, complete with chickens, honeybees, fruit trees and overflowing veg patches. Last year they harvested £3,000 worth of food from their back garden. Her recent book ‘Living the Good Life in the City’ shares some of the ways she and her family have brought city and country together, and shows that you, too, can make a difference to how you live and the food you eat.

Ade Sellars is a gardener, presenter, writer and content producer, with a passion for growing food in his kitchen garden. After working in London as a TV producer for many years, he re-trained with the Royal Horticultural Society at Capel Manor and Regent’s Park before upping sticks and moving to the heart of rural Suffolk to build the kitchen garden of his dreams and launch his gardening business. As a regular garden writer for various magazines, Ade has presented on the QVC channel, BBC Radio Suffolk and regularly deliver talks and demonstrations around the country. Along with his wife Sophie, they write their award-winning garden and food blog, Agents of Field. Catch Ade on the Let’s Grow Stage on Sunday!

Louise is Head Gardener at Audley End House and Gardens in Essex. Following a career change from social care in her mid 30’s, Louise studied horticulture at Brooksby Melton College in Leicestershire and gain practical paid experience at the same time by working for a local garden centre, a specialist plant nursery and a large scale bedding grower. Having successfully gained a place as a Historic and Botanic Garden Training Programme Trainee (HBGTP) at Audley End in 2007, Louise spent 12 months working for the 2 Head Gardeners who managed the gardens at that time. Once the traineeship was complete, Louise was kept on as a Gardener in the ornamental gardens, promoted to Senior Gardener several years later, and then became Head Gardener 4 years ago. Louise is responsible for managing the 100 acres of gardens and grounds and works alongside a team of 11 staff and 60 volunteers.

Emma Crawforth is the Horticultural Editor of BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine and responsible for shaping gardening content that’s horticulturally correct. Kew trained, she’s worked for the brand for over 10 years creating inspirational, problem-solving and thought-provoking features. At home she grows fruit, veg and flowers while tending her ornamental and productive gardens. Her book, Things to do with Plants, was published this year with the aim of helping us all connect more with the botanical world.

Arit Anderson is a garden designer, writer and presenter on BBC Two’s Gardeners’ World. She spent 25 years working in the dynamic industries of retail fashion and creative events. She managed teams that delivered collections and events across the globe. She balanced this fast-paced career with interests in well-being, working as a therapist and teaching holistic therapies, which led her to travel extensively to the USA. It was the joy of having her own garden that enabled Arit to diversify her creative experiences. She found that the visual nature of fashion and the healing properties of her therapies could beautifully meld in the garden. Playing with a new palette of colour and materials in her garden, drove her to explore the unique relationships between her love of plants, people and place. After just one season, Arit knew she wanted horticulture to become her work as well as her pleasure. She studied gardening at Capel Manor College and whilst there had success at RHS Chelsea 2013 winning the Fresh Talent category for a student design collaboration with two other students. After attaining a diploma in garden design, she won a Gold Medal for her own design at RHS Hampton Court in 2016 in the conceptual category. In her designs for both private and commercial clients her ethos includes simplicity and environmental sensitivity – affecting her choice of products and plants at source, with regard to their future setting. Working as presenter for Gardeners World, and writing for national publications has enabled Arit to publicise issues about the future of gardening in an ever-changing climate, and promote solutions to the wider public.

Kevin Smith is the Editor of BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine and Head of Content for the GW brand. He’s worked for GW for the past 18 years and is responsible for leading the magazine’s content in print and on GardenersWorld.com, the GW podcast, social media and our live events. Kevin’s a passionate gardener with a suburban plot in Essex that he shares with his wife and daughter – he’s trying to adapt the way he gardens to be more sustainable and better suit our changing climate. Kevin’s a regular radio contributor and has been a host of BBC Gardeners’ World Live theatres for several years.

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David Hurrion has spent more than 20 years writing for and editing the nation’s crop of garden magazines, and is now Associate Editor for BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine. David has also appeared both as a regular contributor and an horticultural commentator on a wide range of national and local radio programmes, as well as on television. David’s knowledge is based on more than 40 years of growing plants, working in gardens and nurseries, and gardening his own plots in many different parts of the UK. He studied horticulture at Writtle College in Essex and went on to gain his certificate in education which took him to teach at some of the country’s foremost horticultural colleges. He has also travelled to every continent with the exception of antarctica to discover plants and gardens, both independently and, on more than 40 trips accompanying groups of gardeners.

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Kevin Smith - Editor, Gardeners World Magazine - 16 June 2023