Gardener’s World star Frances Tophill has become a firm favorite presenter since joining the BBC show in 2016. She started her television career while in college, even though she had no television experience.
She was chosen to star alongside Alan Titchmarsh on the ITV show Love Your Garden after responding to an email seeking interested gardeners.
Viewers may also know her from her work Grow Your Own At Home With Alan Titchmarsh and Eat, Grow, Love.
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She has also written five books on gardening. But what else do we know about the host outside of her on-screen life?
Below, we take a look at her 9-5 job, her first home, and her connections with two former Gogglebox stars.
Frances Tophill’s 9 to 5 job
When he’s not filming for television, Frances works a full-time 9-to-5 job. She works as head gardener at Her Gardens Trust, Sharpham in Devon.
In 2023, she never had a day off, working there five days a week and filming Gardener’s World on weekends and other “holidays.” But Frances enjoys keeping busy.
“I’ve always had a hard time just being a TV presenter,” she explained. “It doesn’t feel real, and without a camera in my face, I can’t do what I love, which is work outside and spend time with people on my own terms.
“I’m always keen to make sure I’m actually doing the work. When I want to travel for a shoot, I have to book a holiday. But Gardeners World They were very kind.”
Francis Tophill’s link with Gogglebox star
Frances got her first gardening job working with former Gogglebox stars Steph and Dom Parker. She was an apprentice gardener at a Grade I listed St Edwin Lutyens designed manor house called Salutation in Kent. It had an award-winning garden.
Francis explained: “I left school not knowing what to do and got a job at Marks & Spencer. But then I got a gardening job close to home at Salutation Gardens. I just wandered over and that was it.” I asked him about it.
“Before they appeared on Gogglebox, it was Dom and Steph’s garden. They lived in the house and we gardeners kept to ourselves. The apprenticeship was my job. , I was cleaning the drains, turning over the compost, and making the morning tea,” to the head gardener.
“This was a classic education in Victorian gardening and a good foundation for everything that came after. Since moving to Edinburgh and seeing community gardens where everyone works together, I now know that That was a real eye-opener.”
Frances Tophill’s struggle with health
The presenter has dyslexia, a common learning disability that primarily causes problems with reading, writing and spelling, according to the NHS. But she didn’t let that hinder her career, and she has written five of her books, including The Modern Gardener and The Container Gardener, and in 2013 she won the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh. I earned a bachelor’s degree in horticulture, studying tree planting.
“The degree program encouraged me to work in television, but they never imagined I would get a job in television, and it never occurred to me.” Francis revealed. When I was a teenager, I was in a band with my sisters, but I had to quit because it made me so nervous. If you had told me then that I would become a TV presenter, I would have said, “No, no, no!”
“It was scary the first time I did it. I’m still very shy. You have to channel something to do it. You have to find something inside that says that’s not the real me. I never imagined my life to be the way it is now. It’s strange and strange and unexpected, but that’s a good thing.”
Francis Tophill’s “very small” first house
Until recently, Frances was living between a friend’s spare bedroom and the trusty van she drives on missions with her beloved rescue dog, Lua.
She said: “I became a TV presenter at the age of 23 while studying for a degree in Botany in Edinburgh. I had no idea what I was doing or where I was living. I moved back to Deal’s house in Kent for a bit, then moved to Bristol and then back home again.
“I have my own place in Devon now. It’s my first house. It’s very small, but I love it. All the books and piano haven’t arrived yet. I’m still preparing to move in.”
Francis also revealed how Alan Titchmarsh was concerned about his plans to buy the house. She revealed: “I called him the other day to tell him about the new house because he was so worried about me. I’ve been trying to buy a house for years, but the pandemic… emerged and became very competitive.
“If he didn’t agree, I said he could just buy his own little farm and live in a van.” He said, “You can’t do that!” So I called him and told him he had received the key. But leave the van alone. I need a house on wheels.
“Having a space that feels like home is really important to me when I’m filming and I’m far away from my actual home. Love Your Garden co-presenter Katie Rushworth often tells me He sits in the van with me. And then there’s Lua, who comes to work with me. He’s a great gardener’s dog.”
Gardener’s World airs Fridays at 8pm on BBC Two.