Monty Don, the beloved presenter of Gardeners’ World, has shared a deeply honest reflection about his family life, describing his approach to fatherhood as somewhat “blasé.” Known for his 23-year tenure hosting the BBC gardening show, Monty’s viewers have become familiar with his Longmeadow home and the stunning gardens he meticulously nurtured since buying the property in 1991.
Together with his wife Sarah, Monty raised their three children—Freya, Adam, and Tom—in this beautiful setting. Yet, despite the serene family life he created, Monty’s own upbringing was quite different. Born on an army base in Germany, Monty grew up with a distant and strict father, Denis, which shaped his early understanding of family dynamics.
Monty explains that while he longed for a closer, more informal relationship with his father, he struggled to establish this himself and had to learn fatherhood on the go. In a revealing interview with an AI version of Michael Parkinson, he said: “I think because my own relationship with my father was pretty distant and sort of strict, I both wanted it to be closer and more informal but wasn’t terribly good at it. I had to learn to be a father and I made mistakes, my guess is every parent makes mistakes.”
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He admitted that, unlike many today who view fatherhood as their greatest achievement, he took a more practical, work-focused approach. “I was much more work-oriented and my parents drummed it into us to work hard,” he said. “My children were just part of the household really, and I have a very good relationship with them. As adults we get on really well; we never got on badly, but I never went out of my way to be a good father. I love them, I did my best by them, and we muddled through.”
Monty’s reflections also touch upon the complexities of his childhood. His father, a former army heavyweight boxing champion and commando who battled post-war trauma, suffered from severe depressive episodes, creating a challenging family environment. Monty described his father as “a scary man” whose silence during depressive fits cast a long shadow.
Beginning his TV career in 1989 with a modest gardening segment on This Morning, Monty later became the first self-taught horticulturist to front Gardeners’ World. After a brief hiatus following a stroke, he returned to the show in 2011, this time hosting from his own garden at Longmeadow, welcoming viewers into his personal world.
Gardeners’ World continues to be a firm favourite, with Monty and fellow presenters Rachel de Thame, Adam Frost, Arit Anderson, and Ashley Edwards gearing up for the annual live event in Birmingham later this month.