Beechgrove (TV series)

Last updated

Beechgrove
Beechgrove 2021 EP25.jpg
Beechgrove presenters Brian Cunningham, Mairi Rattray, Carole Baxter, George Anderson, Kirsty Wilson and Calum Clunie
Also known asThe Beechgrove Gardens, The Beechgrove Garden
Created byBBC Scotland
Country of originScotland
Original languageEnglish
Production
ProducerTern Television
Running time28 minutes
Original release
Network BBC Scotland
BBC Two Scotland
BBC One Scotland
Release14 April 1978 (1978-04-14) 
present

Beechgrove (formerly known as The Beechgrove Garden) is a television gardening programme broadcast since 1978 on BBC Scotland. Over the years it has been broadcast on BBC Scotland, BBC One Scotland, BBC Two Scotland and Britbox.

Contents

History

Beechgrove is a gardening programme, which started on 14 April 1978. It was inspired by the garden behind the home of WGBH in Boston, Massachusetts, named the Victory Garden. [1] The original plot of land used was the small area of garden attached to the BBC studios in Beechgrove Terrace, Aberdeen. Due to its small size, the programme's popularity and the fact the garden had been transformed several times over, a new area of ground to the west of Aberdeen was acquired for the programme by Tern Television who have produced the series since 1992. The new site covers 2.5 acres and is located at the former Grampian Regional Council Brotherfield Nursery, [2] [3] in Westhill, Aberdeenshire. [4] Episodes were broadcast from the site in 1996. [3] In June 1983, the 100th show was broadcast. [2]

Since the 1980s, The Beechgrove Garden has been shown intermittently on the BBC across the UK usually in a non-prime time slot; however, since 2021 it has been shown on BBC 2 in a prime Friday night slot. [5] [ citation needed ] Since 2013 The Beechgrove Garden has been broadcast in the rest of the UK, [6] usually early on a Sunday morning slot. [7]

In 1990, the garden was redeveloped, which meant uprooting everything and starting again. It caused an outcry from the press and public, but it went ahead and led to a public auction for keepsake plants from The Beechgrove. [1] Six years later, when the garden moved from its original home to an exposed, rural hillside on the outskirts of Aberdeen. [1]

The 1,000th episode was filmed in May 2016. [8] During the 2020 pandemic and the subsequent lockdown, the presenters filmed episodes from their own gardens. George Anderson was filming in his home in Joppa, Edinburgh. Kirsty Wilson was presenting from her flat in Edinburgh, Brian Cunningham was in his garden in Scone and Carole Baxter will film from her garden in Aberdeenshire. [9] 2022 was the 30th year of production company, 'Tern' producing Beechgrove for BBC Scotland. [7]

Theme

The theme tune for the show is the jig "Miss Tara MacAdam", written by Phil Cunningham. [10] This replaced the show's original theme tune, "Sponge". [1]

Presenters

The current presenters are:

Beechgrove presenter and team working on the Vale View Garden project in Barrmill, North Ayrshire. Vale View, Beechgrove day 3.JPG
Beechgrove presenter and team working on the Vale View Garden project in Barrmill, North Ayrshire.

Previous presenters on the programme included:

Programme side-shoots

Hit Squad

In 1992, The Hit Squad with Jim McKirdy and Walter Gilmour was launched. [2]

Beechgrove Repotted

Beechgrove Repotted is one of Beechgrove's side-shoots. [27] Repotted is a 2019 series of reversions that have been moulded to form a series of programmes which all explore a specific gardening theme. Themes include:

The Beechgrove Potting Shed

A sister programme, The Beechgrove Potting Shed, was broadcast weekly on BBC Radio Scotland between 1978 and 2012. Presented in its latter years by Theresa Talbot, it was axed as part of a cost-cutting measure by the station. [28]

Related Research Articles

<i>Blue Peter</i> British childrens TV series (since 1958)

Blue Peter is a British children's television entertainment programme created by John Hunter Blair. It is the longest-running children's TV show in the world, having been broadcast since October 1958. It was broadcast primarily from BBC Television Centre in London until September 2011, when the programme moved to dock10 studios at MediaCityUK in Salford, Greater Manchester. It is currently shown live on the CBBC television channel on Fridays at 5 p.m. The show is also repeated on Saturdays at 11:30 a.m., Sundays at 9:00 a.m. and a BSL version is shown on Tuesdays at 2:00 p.m.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kirsty Wark</span> Scottish journalist and television presenter (born 1955)

Kirsteen Anne "Kirsty" Wark FRSE is a Scottish television presenter and journalist with a long career at the BBC.

Kirsty Jackson Young is a Scottish television and radio presenter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Westhill, Aberdeenshire</span> Town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland

Westhill is a suburban town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, located 7 miles (11 km) west of the city of Aberdeen.

<i>Gardeners Question Time</i> BBC radio programme

Gardeners' Question Time is a long running BBC Radio 4 programme in which amateur gardeners can put questions to a panel of experts.

BBC Radio Scotland is a Scottish national radio network owned and operated by BBC Scotland, a division of the BBC. It broadcasts a wide variety of programmes. It replaced the Scottish BBC Radio 4 opt-out service of the same name from 23 November 1978.

<i>Gardeners World</i> British TV gardening programme (since 1968)

Gardeners' World is a long-running British gardening programme, first broadcast on 5 January 1968. The 2024 series is the 55th. Its first series was presented by Ken Burras and came from Oxford Botanical Gardens. Up until 2020 most of its episodes have been 30 minutes in duration; however, this changed in spring 2020 when the format was extended to an hour. All episodes in the 2021 series onwards follow this 60-minute format. Gardeners' World currently airs between mid-March and late October on BBC Two every Friday. The programme usually takes a four-month winter break from November to February.

Catriona Shearer is a Scottish broadcast journalist and producer, who was a presenter on BBC Scotland's national news programme Reporting Scotland.

Laura Miller is a Scottish broadcast journalist and television presenter, who has presented the Monday to Wednesday night edition of BBC Scotland's Reporting Scotland since 2019. Miller previously worked for STV News, presenting the East Central Scotland edition of STV News at Six.

Christopher Paul Beardshaw is a British garden designer, plantsman, author, speaker, and broadcaster.

James or JimmyJim McColl or MacColl may refer to:

This is a list of events in British radio during 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kirsty MacColl</span> British singer and songwriter (1959–2000)

Kirsty Anna MacColl was a British singer-songwriter, daughter of folk singer Ewan MacColl. She recorded several pop hits in the 1980s and 1990s, including "There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He's Elvis" and cover versions of Billy Bragg's "A New England" and the Kinks' "Days". Her first single, "They Don't Know", had chart success a few years later when covered by Tracey Ullman. MacColl also sang on a number of recordings produced by her husband Steve Lillywhite, most notably "Fairytale of New York" by the Pogues. Her death in 2000 led to the "Justice for Kirsty" campaign.

This is a list of events in Scottish television from 1978.

This is a list of events in Scottish television from 1992.

This is a list of events in Scottish television from 1999.

This is a list of events in Scottish television from 2005.

Anne McAlpine is a Scottish journalist, newsreader and weather presenter working for BBC Alba and BBC Scotland. She is best known for presenting Reporting Scotland and Landward, and narrating Scotland's Home of the Year.

This is a list of events in Scottish television from 2016.

James Hamilton McColl, MBE was a Scottish horticulturalist, writer and garden presenter. He was one of the original presenters of BBC Scotland's flagship gardening programme Beechgrove. McColl co-presented the programme for 41 years, becoming the BBC's longest serving garden presenter.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Scougall, Murray (12 August 2018). "Garden parties as Beechgrove hits 40: Birthday bash for a show that's still bursting with life". The Sunday Post. Retrieved 30 September 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 English, Paul (2 April 2008). "GROWING PAINS; TV legend Jim McColl takes a swipe at new-fangled shows as Beechgrove Garden celebrates 30 years". The Daily Record. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  3. 1 2 "Beechgrove Garden digs in to its new plot". The Herald. 12 March 1996. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  4. "Down to earth evergreens". The Scotsman. 22 March 2003. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  5. "BBC Scotland - Beechgrove Garden, 2023, Episode 24".
  6. "Beechgrove and Beardshaw - a winning combination for gardening TV?". The Guardian. 7 February 2013. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  7. 1 2 3 Porter, David (23 March 2022). "Beechgrove returns to bloom even bigger in 2022". Grampian Online. Retrieved 30 September 2022.
  8. "Blooming Beechgrove". 3 May 2016. trendmagazine.co.uk. 3 May 2016. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  9. Scougall, Murray (13 April 2020). "With the famous Beechgrove Garden in lockdown, presenters are preparing to broadcast from their homes". The Sunday Post. Retrieved 30 September 2022.
  10. Docherty, Gavin (6 February 2013). "Beechgrove Garden's Jim is a TV perennial". Daily Express. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  11. Stewart, Helen (22 June 2008). "The two of us: Jim McColl and Carole Baxter". The Sunday Times . Archived from the original on 26 April 2009. Retrieved 5 May 2010.
  12. "The Beechgrove Garden: Carole Baxter". Beechgrove.co.uk. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  13. "The Beechgrove Garden: George Anderson". Beechgrove.co.uk. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  14. "Media Release: Scone Palace's head gardener showcases The Douglas Trail on Beechgrove Garden - allmediascotland…media jobs, media release service and media resources for all". www.allmediascotland.com. Retrieved 30 September 2022.
  15. "The Beechgrove Garden: Brian Cunningham".
  16. "The Beechgrove Garden: Kirsty Wilson".
  17. Alex, Michael; er (24 April 2021). "New BBC Beechgrove star Calum Clunie from Fife thanks his grandparents for his gardening bug roots". The Courier. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
  18. "Fife allotment holder to be regular on BBC Scotland's Beechgrove". www.fifetoday.co.uk. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
  19. "The Beechgrove Garden: Calum Clunie". www.beechgrove.co.uk. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
  20. Smith, Scott (23 May 2023). "Press and Journal: Gardening with Scott Smith". www.pressandjournal.co.uk. Archived from the original on 24 May 2023. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  21. "First episode of The Beechgrove Garden - Sunday Post 100". Sunday Post 100 - Scotland's Iconic Moments. 1 October 2015. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  22. "The Beechgrove Garden: Jim McColl". Beechgrove.co.uk. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  23. "Beechgrove Garden presenter Jim McColl retires after 40 years". BBC News. 18 April 2019. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
  24. 1 2 Swarbrick, Susan (30 March 2011). "After 33 years the Beechcroft Garden's success still bloom". The Herald. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  25. Walls, Sandra (5 June 2008). "Former Beechgrove man Walter opens new walled garden in Strathaven". The Daily Record. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  26. Appleby, Matthew (4 February 2013). "Chris Beardshaw joins BBC Beechgrove Garden". hortweek.com. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  27. "BBC Scotland - Beechgrove, Beechgrove Repotted". BBC. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
  28. "Beechgrove's McColl angry as radio show axed", The Herald, 4 October 2012