Monty Don is retiring from Gardeners’ World

midgey

They might go for Frances Tophill, younger and female….very on trend!

She would be my first choice as well.
I agree with Casdon that they might go for a mix and match approach. I can’t think of anyone other than Adam Frost and Carol Klein who have a suitable garden to be the anchor.
Carol is too old though and Adam doesn’t seem to settle in his gardens.

I'm sorry he leaving I like Monty Don Fridays won't be the same without him I love his soothing voice

I find him quite annoying so I don’t watch…. my gardening is much to ad hoc and rough round the edges but things grow without all the fancy stuff

That was a shock and seems a shame. 71 is no age for a gardener to hang up his boots. I suspect a BBC reshuffle and revamp will folllow even if it isn’t behind the whole thing in the first place.

More one-off for Monty and new faces in a new programme.

I too will miss him.

I don’t think so, I think they will have a number of different presenters, not a direct replacement for Monty. The shoes are too big.

They might go for Frances Tophill, younger and female….very on trend!

I’ll miss my Friday night date with Monty and a glass of 🍷🥲

I really can’t take to Adam Frost. I have tried but his habit of talking and laughing at the same time sounds forced and it grates.
I can’t think of anyone I would like to fill Monty’s wellies but I hope it’s not some up and coming unknown just so they can tick all the correct boxes.

I like Monty too and hope Adam Frost will be his replacement.

I’m sorry that he’s leaving, although he’s 71 and he probably thinks it’s a good time to bow out. I find his voice very relaxing and I love the calming effects of Gardeners World and Monty’s vast knowledge. Not sure about who’s to replace him, they certainly won’t have his lovely calming voice even if they have the knowledge. One or two of the guest presenters are a little too over-enthusiastic for my liking.

Shame! I like Adam. Carol is a bit long in the tooth, not mad about the other women in it ( Rachel?) , the one with the allotment is ok. Maybe they'll get someone we haven't seen yet.

I not surprised, he seems to have lost some of his Mojo recently. Not unexpected as he’s lost three of his beloved dogs in recent years and they all took part in the programme.
I suspect Adam Frost will be his successor, as he’s just moved and taken over a new garden. It seems to be smaller so might resonate with the viewers.
We have an allotment and I like seeing how his veg and fruit are doing. It’s comforting to see that he has disasters as well as us!

eddiecat78

Thank goodness! Hope they get someone more down to earth to replace him who doesn't grow veg on an industrial scale and who has flower beds, not "Jewel Gardens" etc al.

???? I find him tremendously down to earth , I enjoy his gardening style, and his skilled advice is invaluable. Plenty of people like me have an allotment where we grow large amounts of veg and fruit.

I'll really miss him on GW and hope he has a great retirement.

I like the vegetable beds.
Never been into Strictly, not fussed about Gary, but I’ll miss Monty, he has a very soothing voice, fair play though, he’s of that age.
I too hope Adam replaces him.

Dempie that is a bit harsh. You cannot maintain interest for 23 years if you just have a normal modern sized garden. Geoff Hamilton’s garden was bigger. Even Scottish TVs Beechgrove Garden moved from a fairly small location to a much much bigger site for that reason. Just because he is well spoken does not mean he is not down to earth. He and his wife were bankrupt not long before they moved to there present property which was a run down house in a field.

I have watched the programme since it began many moons ago and all the presenters have had interesting things to say but Monty is such a soothing presence to slow down after a busy week. When I hear that music my shoulders relax and often I drop off to sleep not from boredom but because I am so relaxed. None of the ither presenters have half his charm.

I'll miss Ned too!

Hmm, very odd - I wanted to quote eddiecat78 but for some reason it didn't appear...
Also fumblefingers typed Frist instead of Frost. I really must get into the habit of proof-reading my posts.

Me too

Couldn't agree more (and it wasn't even very jewelly, was it?). I hope Adam Frist is on the list of possible replacements. He has all the practicality and enthusiasm that's been missing since Geoff Hamilton died.

I like Monty Don, will miss him.

I like Monty, I’m sorry he is retiring. I’ll also miss the lovely Ned.

I’m not over Gary Lineker going either, he’s the best. I do think Strictly needed a change though.

First Tess and Claudia on Strictly.

Gary Lineker on MOTD.

Now Monty on GW.

What is happening to the BBC???

Thank goodness! Hope they get someone more down to earth to replace him who doesn't grow veg on an industrial scale and who has flower beds, not "Jewel Gardens" etc al.