BBC Gardeners’ World Autumn Fair - 11-13 September 2026

Joe Bagley is the creator of ukhouseplants.com which influences and teaches people about houseplant care in a simplistic, standardised way.
From top tips, care requirements and common issues, keeping your houseplant alive is just a scroll away. 

You might have heard Joe on BBC Radio Leicester every Sunday and Tuesday where he shares ‘Joe’s Houseplant of the Week’ and discusses a whole range of easy-to-find plants and how to care for them. 

Find Joe on the House Plant Hub stage and Get Growing Stage, where he will share his expertise on houseplant care! 

Let's Talk Plants Stage - Sponsored by Hillier.

Drop into this stage for expert advice from a bumper crop of gardening experts, floral exhibitors and more, in the heart of the Floral Marquee. Plus, you’ll be able to dig into sessions hosted by stage sponsor Hillier. 

Stage hosted by gardening expert David Hurrion, and will include talks with Monty Don, Adam Frost, Sue Kent and Charles Carr from Hillier Nurseries.

Adam Frost, presenter on BBC2s Gardeners’ World, is a regular at BBC Gardeners’ World Live, sharing top tips and advice live on stage.

We’re delighted to announce that Adam Frost will be creating the headline Show Garden for BBC Gardeners’ World Live 2024! Don’t miss the chance to see Adam’s ‘The Chef’s Table’ from 13-16 June 2024. Adam will be at the Show from Thursday to Sunday.

See Frances Tophill at BBC Gardeners’ World Live on Saturday 17 and Sunday 18 June. Book seats in the BBC Gardeners’ World Live Theatre or drop into the Let’s Talk Plants Stage to see Frances on the stage.

In 2016 Frances joined BBC’s Gardeners’ World doing a few strands for the programme, one on vegetable seed trials which she worked on from her local RHS garden, RHS Rosemoor and another on gardens situated in extreme locations.

Sue Kent will be joining us for BBC Gardeners’ World Spring Fair and BBC Gardeners’ World Live in 2024.

In 2020, Sue Kent launched her gardening career by sending a viewer’s home video to BBC2 Gardeners’ World; it was such a hit that she is now a regular presenter on the show, winning a Garden Media Award for her efforts.

Born with an upper limb disability caused by the drug Thalidomide, Sue used her feet and hands to the garden. From her own life experience and her passion for gardening, Sue is keen to show how gardening can be possible with physical limitations and encourage others to have a go whatever their ability may be. Sue is now RHS ambassador for disability inclusions. In July 2022 Sue received a Silver Gilt medal and The People’s Choice award At RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival for her garden.

Saul Walker fell in love with horticulture through his Grandparents passion for visiting historic houses and gardens, and after a brief spell as an Archaeologist, he went to train and work as a Gardener for the National Trust at Antony House in Cornwall.

After many years there he was accepted to study on the prestigious 3-year Kew Diploma of Botanical Horticulture at RBG, Kew and was exposed to the fantastic plant collections in the gardens and glasshouses, as well as travelling to Australia, Southern Spain and the French Riviera to study plants in their native habitats. 

Following his time at Kew he spent a couple of years as part of the Show management teams for both the RHS Hampton Court Palace and RHS Chelsea Flower Show respectively, however he was unable to resist the call back to his native Devon, where he is now the Head Gardener of Stonelands House- a privately owned 10-acre garden. Saul’s speciality interests include Woodland Gardens, Orchids, and Exotic plants. 

A member of the RHS Tender Plant Committee and Trustee of The Hardy Plant Society and the Chartered Institute of Horticulture, he also co-hosts the Talking Heads Podcast with Lucy Chamberlain. 

Meet the experts - The Caley Brothers
Jodie and Lorraine of the Sussex-based Caley Brothers were raised in Surrey, with a childhood was enriched with home grown, nutritious and delicious food.  From working on their folks and gramps allotments to holiday cover on a livestock farm in the New Forest that included tractor driving, sheep herding, vineyard planting, hay bailing, egg collecting and lambing to prepping geese for the festive season and so much more.

It is these experiences that gave them a deep-rooted respect for good quality food, how to appreciate it, and what is just as important – how to source and support it. Within a year of growing their own mushrooms the curiosity surrounding our change in careers and the story behind why they were now ‘mushroom farmers’ had them making simple, small-scale kits for our family, our friends and friend of friends so they too could get growing their own mushrooms.

Join them for an Oyster Mushroom workshop at the Autumn Fair!

Chris Bavin is so full of character he was born to be on TV. After a TV production company first stumbled across him in 2011 he has gone from strength to strength and is currently co-presenting his fourth series of BBC1’s hugely successful series Eat Well For Less? With Gregg Wallace. The show has had incredible ratings across its first three series with the next two to be aired later on this year.

In addition to Eat Well for Less, Chris has presented Tomorrow’s Food with Dara O’Brian, The Truth about Meat and he is co-presenter of BBC1’s returning series Food: truth or scare with Gloria Hunniford.  

Chris is the co-founder of ‘The Naked Grocer’ a retail business that was twice voted as ‘National Independent Retailer of the Year’ award as well as ‘Best Contribution to the Community’ award. The Naked Grocer is now an online business supplying catering, fruit for offices as well as veg boxes for the public. www.thenakedgrocer.com

SEE CHRIS ON THE LET'S GROW STAGE

Chris Collins is Head of Horticulture at Garden Organic .He’s also a gardening writer, TV broadcaster, lecturer and horticultural consultant. Chris’s books include ‘Grow Your Own For Kids’.

Chris Graduated from the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, and has previously been Head Gardener Westminster Abbey.

He’s done much TV work including This Morning and being a former Blue Peter gardener.

Chris will be on the Let’s Grow Stage at the Fair, find out more below.

Frances is involved with the RHS campaign for school gardening and is passionate about enthusing young people to get into horticulture.  She is working on a number of community gardening projects in the South West and is also helping the redevelopment of some costal gardens that were damaged by the 2014 storms.  This is a particular passion of hers having grown up by the sea and was also part of her degree specialisation.

Frances is a popular choice for gardening talks and has appeared at Blenheim Palace Flower Show, Hampton Court Flower Show and the Eden Project Green Fingers Festival to name a few.  Hailing from Deal in Kent, Frances now lives in Exeter having completed her BSc in Horticulture with Plantmanship at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh in 2013.  Frances got into gardening from an early age, helping out around the garden at home and after overly ambitiously designing a terraced landscape in a planter, given to her by her mum, age 7, she was hooked.  As well as all things gardening Frances is a budding crafter and currently doing a pottery course.

Frances’ first book, First Time Gardener, was published in 2015 and her 2nd book, Container Gardening will be published in April this year.  She has also written a column for Coast magazine on highs and lows of coastal gardening.