Thanks to a collaboration between The Crichton Foundation and The Crichton Trust, The Crichton has now been confirmed as the host site for the end of July production of the Beechgrove Garden Roadshow.
While half of the programme will focus on a Q&A session with the Beechgrove Garden panel members; Jim McColl, George Anderson and Chris Beardshaw, the rest of the show will celebrate local horticulture which will include a visit to the rock and rose gardens at The Crichton. Over 250 members of the public from across Dumfries and Galloway have successfully secured tickets to participate in the Beechgrove Garden Question Time session at Easterbrook Hall which will take place on the evening of the 26th July.
The Beechgrove Garden is a BBC Scotland TV gardening programme which aims to celebrate Scottish horticulture. Following a competitive selection process, The Crichton in Dumfries was selected as the host site for July.
The Crichton is an 85-acre parkland estate on the outskirts of Dumfries with beautiful rock and rose gardens. The site is open to the public all year round offering free access and parking to explore the historic grounds and gardens. It is also home to Easterbrook Hall, The Crichton Memorial Church, Neuro’s Bar, Restaurant and Spa, The Holiday Inn, over 70 businesses, a college and university campus and a nearby golf course.
Since tickets were released in June, The Crichton Foundation has been inundated with requests from all over Dumfries and Galloway. Andrew Walls, Convenor of The Crichton Foundation said: “We knew this would be of interest to local residents, but we didn’t expect to be sold out within 24hours of the news being released on social media so it has certainly proved to be very popular. We look forward to welcoming the Beechgrove Garden panel and guests to The Crichton.”
Gwilym Gibbons, Chief Executive of The Crichton Trust is also delighted with the interest. He said: “The Crichton gardens attract many visitors to the site but the demand for tickets for the Beechgrove Garden Roadshow has been amazing and 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 – I’m sure they will be very proud to show the Beechgrove panel around and to see their work publicised in this way.”
For those fortunate enough to have secured a ticket, Easterbrook Hall will open at 5pm and will serve refreshments until 6pm. Neuro’s Bar, Restaurant and Spa (adjacent to Easterbrook Hall), is also accepting bookings for lunch and afternoon teas before the event starts and for post-event dinners and refreshments at 8pm.
Guests are reminded that they can submit a question to the panel and are invited to write a question on their ticket or to bring along a plant which may form part of the discussion on the night. Guests must be seated by 6.15pm.
The event is free but a raffle in aid of The Crichton Foundation will take place on the night.
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.
