On Thursday 26th July the Crichton Foundation were delighted to welcome Jim McCall, George Anderson and Chris Beardshaw from the the Beechgrove Garden to the Crichton. The Roadshow, which includes a gardener’s question time, was filmed in the 85-acre parkland estate and in Easterbrook Hall thanks to a collaboration between the Foundation and the Crichton Trust.
We completed a competitive selection process following which the Crichton in Dumfries was selected as the host site for July with filming taking place in the beautiful rock and rose gardens along with other locations in Dumfries.
The Beechgrove panel members enjoyed a tour of the Crichton gardens where they met with the Crichton gardeners and Andrew Walls, Foundation Convenor. Andrew shared his knowledge of the Crichton during an interview with Jim McColl.
Demand for tickets to the gardener’s question time session at Easterbrook Hall was exceptionally high, with over 250 people from across Dumfries and Galloway successfully securing tickets to attend. During the event, members of the audience were invited to ask for expert advice from Jim, George and Chris.
Gwilym Gibbons, Chief Executive of The Crichton Trust said: “The Crichton gardens attract many visitors to the site but I’m sure we will start to see many more visitors to The Crichton and other local gardens after the programme has been broadcast. I must pay tribute to The Crichton Trust gardeners who work throughout the year to maintain the grounds and gardens, to Dumfries and Galloway Council for their floral displays on the stage of Easterbrook Hall and to The Crichton Foundation for their support and dedication to this initiative.”
The Crichton estate is open to the public all year round offering free access and parking to explore the historic grounds and gardens.
The programme will be shown on BBC Scotland on Thursday 23rd August at 7pm and repeated on the evening of Saturday 25th August. The rest of the UK will be able to view the show when it is shown on BBC 2 Network on Sunday 26th August.
