The Alnwick Garden in Northumberland, now one of the UK's most successful tourist attractions, was nearly flattened to make way for a car park before it was built 25 years ago. Jane Percy, the Duchess of Northumberland, doggedly pursued her plan to create a "life-enhancing" attraction instead.
As she marked the garden's 25th anniversary today, she recounted facing fierce opposition to her plans. The land used to develop the garden - which now employs around 200 people - was earmarked for a car park when the family first moved back to the castle, the ancestral home of the Percy family. Before it became a tourist attraction, the site was a formal garden designed by Capability Brown in the 18th century.
From car park plan to flagship attraction
The 42-acre site features 4,000 different plant varieties and has brought £400 million to the UK economy. It is hosting a party today for tourist chiefs, former staff and members of the original team that built the garden 25 years ago.
The garden featured in a TV show with Charlie Dimmock, where the Duchess told of her difficulties convincing heritage chiefs to give her the go-ahead. When she requested permission to film meetings about the project, she was granted permission to build the garden. It has attracted more than nine million visitors - many from abroad - and is now viewed as a flagship for UK tourism.
Overcoming criticism and doubt
The latest attraction, Lilidorei - the world's biggest play structure, which opened in 2023 - has doubled the charity's turnover to £9.6 million. The Duchess told the Mirror: "We faced so much criticism when we started. People asked why a garden was going to be so expensive. One of the facts of life is that most people want to see you fail."
"It seems to be part of human nature if you dare to raise your head above the parapet. It took 10 years for people to understand that this was a charity. When my husband's brother died and we first came here, this land was being discussed as a huge car park for Alnwick."
The garden employs 200 people, with all profits ploughed back into the business. The Duchess, 68, said that initially people found it difficult to "separate" the Garden from the castle, owned by her husband Ralph Percy, one of the richest people in the UK with a fortune of around £544 million.
A lasting legacy
She added: "I am married to him, which is great, but the castle has nothing to do with the Alnwick Garden. People could not see beyond that. We have had a lot of knocks along the way." The garden originally cost around £42 million. The Duke donated the land and £9 million towards redevelopment. The Garden is owned by the charitable trust until 2047, when the trustees will decide its future.
"When I am long gone, maybe my son or grandchildren will find that people don't want to come to gardens any more and do something with AI instead," added Jane. "I don't believe in legacies, I will leave it to the trustees to decide." However, the Duchess may remain forever more if she has her ashes scattered in the Poison Garden. "Then I can come back and haunt the place," she said with a smile.
Jane has met King Charles several times, and he stayed at Alnwick Castle during one visit in July 2012. The C4 series 'The Duchess and her Magic Kingdom' celebrated her eccentricity and has been sold to countries around the world. She has also written a series of children's books. The series showed Jane's collection of stuffed animals, including dogs and rats, dotted around her various homes (she carries a stuffed beagle with her on the train to London). The TV series also featured naturists arriving to try naked pottering about Alnwick Garden, which also hosted Mr Gay UK. The Garden is close to Alnwick Castle, the ancestral home of the Percy clan, which was seen in the Harry Potter movies.
