Jeremy Clarkson has put forward his top replacement for Gardeners’ World following Monty Don’s exit.
The beloved presenter, 71, announced last week that he is stepping down as head gardener after 23 years, saying it was the “right time for a change”.
Several contenders have since been tipped to take up the horticultural mantle, including his BBC colleagues Adam Frost and Frances Tophill.
Top Gear star Clarkson, 66, has now shared his fears that Don will be replaced by a young and “zany” person “living in an east London flat” in a bid to attract a younger audience.
“I was sad this week to hear that after 23 years, Monty is leaving the show,” the Clarkson’s Farm presenter wrote in his The Sunday Times column.
“And I’m even sadder now because I’ve realised he will have to be replaced, and I have the most horrible feeling that whoever gets the gig will not be the sort of person who wears corduroy. The material of choice for anyone with a safe, gentle pair of hands.”
He shared his trepidation that BBC producers will think “a young person, especially a zany one with a Liverpool accent and snazzy knitwear, will attract a younger audience”.
“There will also be a temptation to make the show more ‘inclusive’. To move it from its traditional base in an English country garden to a window box in a flat in east London where some hippies grow seeds for Palestine,” he penned.
The broadcaster insisted bosses need to “remember that Gardeners’ World is a show about gardening, for sure, but it’s also a state of mind” and urged them to consider a replacement who doesn’t pay heed to politics.
Clarkson then put forward Irish influencer Chloe Winter, 27, who posts gardening videos about growing flowers and fruit and vegetables at her Galway plot under the name Blooms and Green.
“She’s like Monty Don, if he was 50 years younger, and Irish, and a girl,” he said. “I could watch her for hours. She makes me feel as safe as the cheese counter in a Waitrose, and that’s the main reason for making a show about gardening.”
Winter reacted to Clarkson’s praise, writing on social media: “I didn’t know you were a fan [cry-laughing emoji].”
Don announced his departure last week, saying: "I have decided that the current series of Gardeners’ World is to be my last. I began hosting the programme 23 years ago, first at Berryfields and for the past 16 years here in my own garden, Longmeadow.
"Throughout that time - and around seven hundred programmes - I have had the privilege of sharing my own abiding passion for gardens and gardening with an equally passionate, and often equally knowledgeable audience.
“But now is the right time for a change. I look forward to continuing to work with and for the BBC on other projects, as well as following new avenues. There are more books to write, more programmes to make. And of course, I will still be gardening, dog by side, here at Longmeadow."
He has been recovering after having a “horribly painful” knee replacement last November and previously said he will likely have another operation in late 2027. Don also recently shared his heartbreak over the death of his beloved terrier, Patti.
Seven-time Chelsea Garden Show gold medallist Frost, who joined the show in 2016 and often fills in for Don, has been given a 2/1 chance of becoming the new head gardener.
Designer Tophill is also being tipped as a contender at 13/8, while contributor Arit Anderson is placed at 9/1, Joe Swift at 12/1, with Rachel de Thame coming in at 14/1.
Last year, Frost revealed his “gut feeling” is that there will be multiple presenters when Don retires.
“I'm comfortable being the supply teacher. Besides, my gut says that when his lordship hangs up his trowel, it won't be any one person. There will be a small group of co-presenters,” he said.
