Alan Titchmarsh, the beloved gardening presenter, has opened up about the emotional decision to sell his Grade II listed farmhouse in Hampshire, where he had lived for 22 years, and move to a bungalow in Surrey. The 77-year-old former Gardeners' World host and his wife Alison, married for 51 years, completed the sale earlier this month.
Leaving a beloved garden
Titchmarsh admitted that departing the property meant giving up the garden he had lovingly tended for nearly a quarter of a century. He told The Times: "I love that garden more than I've loved anything I've ever made. I've given it a quarter of a century of love and care. But when we hand over the key and close the gate, I'm not looking back. I can't."
He described leaving Hampshire as "an enormous wrench," adding: "It's a pretty big number and in another 10 years' time I probably would have found where we were too much for one man. Four and a half acres of busy garden - and yes, I had help but help costs money."
Financial details of the move
Alan and Alison initially listed the Hampshire property for £3.95 million before reducing the price to £3.5 million. Their new single-storey home in Surrey cost them £2.6 million. The couple's adult daughters, Polly and Camilla, have both left home, prompting the downsizing decision.
Unlike his previous garden, which was frequently featured on television, Titchmarsh's new outdoor space is firmly closed to TV crews.
Life after the move
Despite pledging to adopt a gentler pace of life, Titchmarsh admitted that taking Mondays and Fridays off "is not really working." He has no intention of retiring, explaining that he pursues a profession that others retire to enjoy. He continues to host Love Your Weekend with Alan Titchmarsh on ITV, broadcasts on Classic FM on Saturday afternoons, writes murder mystery novels, and runs a successful YouTube channel, Gardening with Alan Titchmarsh, which has 167,000 subscribers.
Titchmarsh returns with Love Your Weekend with Alan Titchmarsh from 9.30am to 11.30am on ITV this Sunday, June 22, joined by comedian Omid Djalili and political commentator Robert Peston.
