Alan Partridge takes gold at Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival
Steve Coogan says Alan's new horticultural venture gives him "something to say about gardens – not that he knows much".
If Alan Partridge were still in the presenter’s booth at North Norfolk Digital, he’d surely be reaching for his Spandau Ballet collection to punctuate this next story, because the veteran sports reporter, turned chat show host who once shot a guest, turned Audible podcaster from his Norfolk oasthouse is now... a gold medal-winning garden designer. Yes, you read that correctly.
The production company behind Partridge’s podcast teamed up with a Norfolk-based garden design company to create a “Sound Bath Garden”, which is among the exhibits at this year’s RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival. Earlier this week, it was announced that the design has won one of the Festival’s top awards.
The garden is described as: “A tribute to structure, to durability, and to personal resonance, the garden reflects Alan’s meticulous approach to design, aesthetics, and materials. Visitors are invited to experience a space that is both purposeful and forward-looking.”
Following its exhibition at Hampton Court, it will be moved to Pensthorpe Nature Reserve in Fakenham, Norfolk.
Joe Carey of Carey Garden Design Studio said: “We’re absolutely delighted to have been awarded a gold medal for the Sound Bath Garden. It’s a true testament to the garden’s horticultural excellence and its joyful celebration of the iconic personality of Alan Partridge.”
Partridge attended his own garden prior to its unveiling at Hampton Court but, true to form, didn’t seem inclined to “hang around discussing garden trouser, trowels and listeria, which is apparently a type of plant”. Instead, he said, he was off to “Halfords to look at a specific item”.
Asked what had inspired Partridge’s foray into horticulture, his alter ego Steve Coogan told Radio Times: “Audible’s marketing people.”
He added: “It’s the fourth series of the podcast, you have to give it something unusual, outside the box.
“We leant into what was initially an idea to launch it at a garden centre, but then the Hampton Court Flower Show appeared, and that’s as good as anything. And it gives Alan something to say about gardens – not that he knows much.”
Coogan, who has been channelling Partridge for 34 years since his original appearance as a sports reporter on Radio 4’s On the Hour, explained how he and his co-writers – brothers Neil and Rob Gibbons – come up with fresh antics for the indomitable Alan.
“Anything the marketing people want, we have a get-out clause in that it’s under the guise of the Alan Partridge brand," he said.
“Whenever there’s a marketing idea, our instinct is to ask, how is that relevant? Instead of bending the character, we have Alan react partly the way we’d react – reluctantly going along with it. And that’s what we’re doing here as well. All roads lead to Rome.
“Anything going on in the media prompts us to ask, what would Alan do? And it doesn’t matter if it looks a bit desperate because that’s what he’d do. So it’s a great get-out-of-jail card.”
Read more:
- Steve Coogan confirms filming has wrapped on new Alan Partridge series – tackling "serious" subject
- Rob Brydon and Steve Coogan's comedy travel series The Trip is returning
Steve Coogan is back with series 4 of From the Oasthouse: The Alan Partridge Podcast, available now, exclusively on Audible.
The RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival is on this week, until Sunday 6 July.
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