Oh dear I know Toby had a difficult start but I thought the last series was really good. A balance between fruit and veg, advice for beginners and the more experienced. I will be very sorry to see Toby and Alys go as I never really connected with Monty at all.
I am somewhat disturbed by the return of monty. His distain for anything other than his version of organic gardening left a sour taste in the mouth. I am glad his health has improved , I would be delighted with a more balanced view of gardening...over to you!
How great Monty is back where he belongs and am so glad his health has returned. What a pleasure Fridays will be again and so glad Carol is still about I think the BBC tried to push her out but she is also a great inspiration. Great presenters back once more at last are the bosses at the beeb seeing sense?? Mrs James
Well said HardyJ!! I am pleased to see that I am not in the only one dumbfounded by the BBC changing presenters on GW. Toby and Alys were the best part of GW's on Friday night. I have enjoyed the knowledgable and friendly presenting. It is a shame I could not say the same about Monty Don and Rachel De Thame. Another lost viewer and subscriber! BBC what are you doing? Retrograde is very rarely a positive move I can see a future of an ever ageing and ever diminishing population of GW viewrs. Why can't there be more than one gardening programmes? One for the old guard with Monty,Rachel and Carol and another for your future viewing population with the fantasdtic Toby and Alys. I don't see this as an impossibility as the are countless other programes that need to be replaced.
I am really upset that Monty is coming back. We stopped watching Gardeners World when Alan left, as we couldn't relate to Monty at all. We have only just got back to watching and enjoying it again - I really liked Toby - he was natural and not pompous like Monty. How could you do this? It is such a retrogressive step!
I'd like a more informative hour-long gardening programme, that doesn't switch topic every 30 secs and provides a more thorough approach. Also, now larger TV screens and HD are more common, you could improve the quality of the photography - make us feel it's as good as being there and we're able to see more accurate detail of plants (with subtitle labels).
On the basis of a more informative programme, my choice of presenters would be just Toby, Monty and Carol because they're so knowledgeable. Then I'd invite a different visiting presenter every week like Matthew Wilson and Bob Flowerdew. I.e. only 3 presenters plus a visitor.
Perhaps for the 2012 series you could change the format and reconsider the need for a lead presenter.
Toby, or not Toby! That is the question. Well actually, its NOT Toby. He's Kaput. Finito. Scrapheap. Comprendi. Alys N. T'Voices (or whatever her name was) has also wondered off down the garden path and been taken by off by the fairies. Its Monty and Rachel. Monty and Rachel. Hurrah!. You cant keep a good man down. Get with the program. Stop lamenting their Toby & Alys' passing. Theyre not coming back. Theyre all just celebs, them too, as thats what the daft public make em. Theyre all just so much compost. Dig em in and make a new crop.
I personally will be delighted to see Monty back on GW. I am looking forward to seeing him in his own garden. It hasn't worked for me not being in the presenter's own garden, there has been a lack of intimacy we gardeners enjoy about visiting other gardeners' gardens.
I just sat down to read my February issue of GW mag and couldn't believe my eyes. Will try and watch GW on Friday nights, always give things a chance, but am very disappointed at losing Toby and Alys. Alys own programme was also brilliant, these two need to come back in their own programme somewhere. There aren't enough gardening programmes on any way. With all shops taking the grow your own on in a big way, I've never seen so much in stores since Christmas we need more practical advice about how to use all these things available to us. One programme is never enough to satisfy everyone which is obviously why there are so many diverse comments on this blog. Just bring on more Gardening tv. GW mag is also lacking something now, I used to read Tobys page before anything else but took a while to find it this time, his friendly face was missing. Please don't lose it completely. I am a forty something gardener and have watched gardeners world since Geoff Hamilton, used to watch with my Dad. Perhaps some repeats of the old ones would also be a good idea, it seems that this would please all of the bloggers, each one has there favourite presenter.
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john potter
On the basis of a more informative programme, my choice of presenters would be just Toby, Monty and Carol because they're so knowledgeable. Then I'd invite a different visiting presenter every week like Matthew Wilson and Bob Flowerdew. I.e. only 3 presenters plus a visitor.
Perhaps for the 2012 series you could change the format and reconsider the need for a lead presenter.
GW mag is also lacking something now, I used to read Tobys page before anything else but took a while to find it this time, his friendly face was missing. Please don't lose it completely.
I am a forty something gardener and have watched gardeners world since Geoff Hamilton, used to watch with my Dad. Perhaps some repeats of the old ones would also be a good idea, it seems that this would please all of the bloggers, each one has there favourite presenter.