This article first appeared in Radio Times magazine.
The King’s recent state visit to the US was a little strange for Frances Tophill. The monarch at the centre of the world’s attention is the same man she’s currently creating a garden with. “Watching it gave me a very bizarre feeling,” says the Gardeners’ World presenter, author and horticulturalist. “I live with permanent impostor syndrome, and seeing the King there reinforced my own feeling of, ‘Wait, I’m doing what?’”
Tophill is head designer of the Curious Garden. Supported by the Royal Horticultural Society and the King’s Foundation, the garden is a joint enterprise with the King, Alan Titchmarsh and Sir David Beckham and will feature at this year’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show; the ultimate accolade for any garden designer.
Tophill’s first show garden was a mix of tin shacks and native herbs that won first prize at BBC Gardeners’ World Live at Birmingham’s NEC in 2022. “In my mind it was the set for a post-apocalyptic movie,” she explains. “It was quite rough and edgy.”
Chelsea is neither rough nor edgy and, for Tophill, required a transition. “I’ve worked in community gardens all my working life, so this was a challenge for me. I rang Alan [Titchmarsh, a friend since Tophill joined ITV’s Love Your Garden in 2012] for advice. He said, ‘Just do you, but more polished.’”
At the garden’s centre is an oak-framed structure called the Museum of Curiosities. This will be filled with traditional craft objects, showing the way plants “feed into every part of human life, history, economics, trade, medicines, fabrics, fashion, food”.
The King’s own Highgrove garden is represented by a bed of delphiniums. “Our first meeting to discuss the project was at Highgrove, which was slightly intimidating,” says Tophill. “Whenever I’ve spoken to the King, I think, ‘Oh my God, this is the actual monarch I’m talking to’. I came away from that first meeting wondering, ‘Did I talk too much? Did I remember to say, ‘Your Majesty?’”
The garden also features seven raised planting beds, “because David Beckham wore a number seven shirt,” Tophill explains. “Also, David loves growing vegetables and he really wanted garlic to be in the garden. He’s very plant-focused and also loves crafts – he’s a big beekeeper and a massive fan of woven willow, so, at his request, we’ve got a beehive made from woven willow.”
The King should like it too. “He really cares about craftsmanship,” Tophill says. “He looks at the small details and has a love of creativity and art.” He also has longstanding concern about the health of the planet. “The King has a passion for the environment. He was strong on sustainability and enthusiastic about things like not using concrete – ‘We mustn’t use any!’”
Tophill, who comes from Deal in Kent, fell into horticulture as a shy 19-year-old, when she did a gardening apprenticeship at the Salutation, a luxury hotel run by Gogglebox couple Steph and Dom. Her first job was picking up dog poo in the grounds.
Despite this introduction, she came to believe strongly in the power of gardens. “For young people, or people who are struggling with their mental health, working with nature can make your problems feel a little bit less insurmountable.”
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As anyone who has watched her anchor Gardeners’ World will know, Tophill, 36, has become a very assured TV presenter. Did gardening fix her shyness? “Actually, I’m still incredibly shy,” she reveals. “Some people are extroverts, I’m not. So, I treat it as going into a role. When I meet the King, that’s playing a new role, but inside I’m still slightly terrified, panicking. Afterwards I put my big jumper and Crocs back on and go back to being that sort of awkward, shy person.”
Her perseverance has created a garden that should reflect many of the King’s concerns and, importantly, her own. “I think gardening could be the key to a lot of enrichment for communities. Gardening can bring self-esteem; it can be massively powerful for people.”
Sadly, many who would benefit most from that do not have access to a garden, but Tophill has a plan to fix that. “We could turn public parks into more highly maintained gardens where people get active, help plan them and have ownership over them.” The King has a park or two at his command, perhaps she could mention it the next time she’s at Highgrove? “I’m working up to that!”
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RHS Chelsea Flower Show airs throughout next week on BBC One, BBC Two and iPlayer.
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