Gardeners’ World presenter Monty Don reflected on an awkward exchange with a colleague after announcing his exit from the BBC show
Monty Don told his colleague to ‘leave’ after the incident (Image: Dave Benett, Dave Benett/Getty Images for Killik & Co)
Monty Don has revealed he once told a Gardeners’ World colleague to “leave” following an incident involving a precious antique pot. In the latest episode of the show’s magazine podcast, the gardener explained how he saved a valuable Biot pot after it smashed into pieces during a storm.
The 71-year-old said he and his wife brought the item to Longmeadow, where it unfortunately got smashed again, this time by one of his cats.
The gardener recalled how the local potter initially couldn’t repair it, as it was then “thinner than an egg shell”.
“And he did more research and he came back to us and said that pot was 500 years old. It was made in Italy, in the Renaissance and he said the people who could make it, those skills died out in 1650, so there has been no one been left alive since 1650 who’s able to make pots like that,” he explained.
Monty’s luck wasn’t completely out, however, as the potter told him he could “make a copy” of the “valuable antique” based on the pieces, in what the BBC star described as “the tribute band of that pot”.
“He handed us back all the pieces of the pot and some of them were quite big,” he shared.
Over four years later, while filming Gardeners’ World, Monty said he heard “a smashing sound”, only to discover that a colleague was smashing it up with a sledgehammer.
“He said, ‘I found all these old bits. We can use them as crocks, we’re running out of crocks’. And I was just speechless with not so much rage as sorrow,” Monty recalled.
Recalling what he said to his colleague, he added: “I said, ‘Please leave, come back tomorrow morning and we will never speak about this. But I cannot bear the sight of you for the rest of today’ and that’s what happened.”
Monty’s admission comes after he announced he will be stepping away from the show after 23 years.
In an emotional statement shared on Instagram, he told fans “now is the right time for a change” as he discussed his upcoming career plans.
Monty went on to say he will continue to work with the BBC on other projects “as well as following new avenues,” he concluded. “And of course, I will still be gardening, dog by side, here at Longmeadow.”
The BBC’s chief content officer Kate Phillips described the gardener as “unique”, adding he was “a wonderfully engaging broadcaster with a soothing, calm presence who has inspired so many”.
“Monty’s decision to leave Gardeners’ World is one I respect, but I’m still very sad he’s leaving,” she added.
“We are a nation full of budding gardeners, and his tips and advice have been invaluable to viewers for more than 20 years and have certainly helped me increase my knowledge as well as my plant survival rate!
“I would like to thank Monty personally for his honesty and kindness which has seen him open up about his own personal struggles and the power of the natural world to improve mental health. We will miss him on the show hugely,” he added.
