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Britain should Be self-sufficient

Alan Titchmarsh gets to the root of our vegetable crisis as he launches his new cost-of-living gardening show

It’s very nice that some people think you might once have been fanciable, but you can’t take it seriously

still don’t like doing it because it sounds as though I’m latching on to his coat tails, but he is a friend. And he’s been very kind to us as a couple.’ How so? ‘Thoughtful, considerate. My wife’s not been well – she’s fine now – and flowers came with a letter, handwritten. Wonderful.’

So what are the chances of an invitation to the coronation? ‘No, that’s a state thing and there are only 2,000 seats, so I’m quite sure we won’t be at the coronation.’ He does, however, stake a special claim to fame when it comes to the King. ‘I was the last member of the general public to shake his hand as Prince of Wales.’

Alan spent the evening before the Queen passed away among guests at Dumfries House in Ayrshire, part of The Prince’s Foundation. ‘He was on good form,’ Alan recalls. ‘I happened to be standing by the door, so I was the last person he said goodnight to as he went. It was a powerful moment. He went to bed as Prince of Wales and the following day he became King.’

Alan says his friend was ready for the throne. ‘He had been for a while, but it’s an awkward position for any child, knowing you will only come to the job for which you were born when your parent is no longer with us. In spite of the differences in temperament between mother and son, there was an enormous amount of respect there,’ says Alan. ‘He’s been learning from his mother for 50 years. He’s bright. And I think now is his chance to do what he can.’

Alan is still a good-looking man at the age of 73, dapper in a Crombie coat with swept-back silver hair, and I wonder how he coped with being seen as hunky Alan the hot gardener back in the day? ‘Every man likes to think he’s fanciable, but I’m a realist. I’m not cool. It’s very nice some people think you might once have been, but you can’t take it seriously. Therein danger lies. You get too full of yourself and start saying, “You do realise I’m actually a heartthrob.” Give over. I can’t be doing with it. Alison raises an eyebrow at all that sort of talk.’

She keeps his feet on the ground, as do his daughters. ‘I use them as sounding boards. If I’m not sure about an offer, I run it past the girls. And they often say, “Oh Dad, no!”’

Would that include reality shows like I’m A Celebrity…? ‘I don’t have to go to them for that, because I won’t do it,’ he says quickly. ‘I was offered that this year. Maybe I’m frightened I’d be voted off too soon. I like being on the box interviewing people or showing them something I love, rather than just talking about myself. The fluff in my navel is no more interesting or fluffy than anybody else’s.’

How about Strictly? ‘I’ve been asked about six times,’ says Alan. ‘I married a choreographer who also taught dance and she says my knees won’t take the lifts, so that’s one reason not to. Dancing is fun but I don’t need to do it in front of millions of people.’

The attention would be too much. ‘I have a private life, which is very important to me. I don’t just exist on TV or when someone asks for a selfie, which they did as I walked here.’ We are in a hotel near the Classic FM studio in London’s Leicester Square. ‘The problem with selfies is they slow you down if you’re in a hurry, but I don’t mind. We always say, “They bought our house.”’

He has talked recently about a really painful experience with gallstones, which were removed. So how is his health? ‘I’m fine. For someone of 73, going on 74, I’m incredibly fit. I don’t jog because I’ve had both my knees operated on, but I can get up quite quickly.’ Alan leaps to his feet and begins to do squat jumps to demonstrate, turning heads. ‘I’m fit and well.’

As he sits down, only slightly breathless, I ask what it’s like being a grandfather. ‘Oh, it’s lovely. One of my daughters has two boys, the other has two girls. They are now 11, nine, nine and seven. It’s just the most glorious time. They are a delight.’

They are slowly realising his fame, just as their mothers did at the same age. ‘About a year ago the eldest came up and said, “Grandpa, you’re Alan Titchmarsh aren’t you?”’ He was talking about the public figure, the one on telly and in magazines. I said, “Yeah.” What do you say? It did make me laugh. Clearly his classmates had said something.’ And how did his grandson react to this revelation? ‘It was no great shakes to him, he turned around and went away.’ Love Your Garden For Less will air later this month on ITV1 and ITVX.

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2023-03-18T07:00:00.0000000Z

2023-03-18T07:00:00.0000000Z

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