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020 8914 8966
Rachel de Thame is a presenter on ITV’s Countrywise. She is also one of the Gardeners’ World team who has also filmed her own series, Small Town Gardens.
Rachel’s path to our screens has been varied and interesting. She studied ballet to a professional standard, but was forced to give up her dream of a dancing career with the Royal Ballet School because of a prolonged bout of glandular fever. Rachel went on to work for an international firm of art dealers in London, but was soon spotted by a modelling agency and moved into a long and successful career as a model. This included appearances in TV commercials and acting roles in the mini series Merlin and British film Bodywork.
A career in modelling was not Rachel de Thame’s ideal long-term choice, so she enrolled at the English Gardening School, where she earned a certificate in practical horticulture and plants and plantsmanship.
Gardener’s World:
Rachel became a presenter on BBC’s Gardeners’ World over nine years ago. She has since written some popular gardening books and often presents on Radio. She has been on the cover of the Radio Times three times now.
When asked how she manages to keep her fingernails so clean and long. Rachel replied I get a lot of flack from people who say you can’t be a real gardener and try and grow your nails. But I wear gloves when I’m doing serious gardening to protect my hands from toxoplasmosis, which is an organism born in the soil that comes primarily from cats faeces and it can be very dangerous for pregnant women. Because I wear gloves, my nails don’t get damaged.
As to her favourite plant, her biggest gardening inspiration and her favourite garden, she says “the rose is my favourite”. An obvious choice, but it has to be the rose. It’s just so beautiful, its appearance, its scent, performing on and off from summer to Christmas. I know they’re out of favour with garden designers, but I love them, the old and new varieties.
”My father is my biggest gardening inspiration. His eyes light up when looking or talking about plants. His infectious enthusiasm was conveyed to me at a young age and gardening was never boring, but full of anticipation and excitement.”
”My favourite garden has to be the Chelsea Physic Garden. It’s close to me and where I studied. An ancient garden, it was founded in 1673 and is still in the same site by the River Thames. It is a place to learn as well as sit and be. Whenever I go I find something new and get inspired.”
Rachel de Thame is married with four children and lives in London.
