The Victorian Kitchen Garden
Encyclopedia
The Victorian Kitchen Garden was a 13-part television series produced in 1987 by Jennifer Davies for BBC2. It recreated a kitchen garden of the Victorian era
at Chilton Foliat
in Wiltshire
, although at the time the series was made Chilton Foliat was in the county of Berkshire
. The presenter was the horticultural lecturer, Peter Thoday, the master gardener was Harry Dodson
and the director was Keith Sheather.
The theme music was composed by Paul Reade
and played by Emma Johnson. It won the 1991 Ivor Novello award for best TV theme music.
The series began in the largely derelict walled garden at Chilton on a freezing January morning and followed Harry and his assistant Alison as they recreated the working kitchen garden.
The work involved many repairs from replanting the Box (Buxus) edging and replacing the gravel walks to reglazing the cold frame
s and repairing the magnificent Victorian wood-framed, brick-based glass-houses
. The team were determined to use plants that the Victorian head gardener would have had available, so there were many hours of scouring old and modern catalogues and many disappointments. However, the required plants were found eventually. The programme displayed the various tools and techniques of Victorian gardening, and this was where Harry came into his own. He had used many of both and therefore could produce many of the tools from various cobwebbed corners of the service buildings and demonstrate how they were used.
The series was successful and spawned three sequels:
Each of the series (except for The Wartime Kitchen and Garden) are commercially available on DVD, distributed by Acorn Media UK
.
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
at Chilton Foliat
Chilton Foliat
Chilton Foliat is a village and civil parish on the River Kennet in Wiltshire. The parish is in the North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It is on the county boundary with West Berkshire and is about northwest of the Berkshire market town of Hungerford.-Parish church:The Church of...
in Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
, although at the time the series was made Chilton Foliat was in the county of Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
. The presenter was the horticultural lecturer, Peter Thoday, the master gardener was Harry Dodson
Harry Dodson
Harry James Dodson was an English gardener who became a celebrity as a result of the BBC television documentary series The Victorian Kitchen Garden, which featured his professional expertise and his reminiscences....
and the director was Keith Sheather.
The theme music was composed by Paul Reade
Paul Reade
Paul Reade was an English composer. Born in Lancashire, he studied at the Royal Academy of Music and worked at English National Opera as a repetiteur....
and played by Emma Johnson. It won the 1991 Ivor Novello award for best TV theme music.
The series began in the largely derelict walled garden at Chilton on a freezing January morning and followed Harry and his assistant Alison as they recreated the working kitchen garden.
The work involved many repairs from replanting the Box (Buxus) edging and replacing the gravel walks to reglazing the cold frame
Cold frame
In agriculture and gardening, a cold frame is a transparent-roofed enclosure, built low to the ground, used to protect plants from cold weather. The transparent top admits sunlight and prevents heat escape via convection that would otherwise occur, particularly at night...
s and repairing the magnificent Victorian wood-framed, brick-based glass-houses
Greenhouse
A greenhouse is a building in which plants are grown. These structures range in size from small sheds to very large buildings...
. The team were determined to use plants that the Victorian head gardener would have had available, so there were many hours of scouring old and modern catalogues and many disappointments. However, the required plants were found eventually. The programme displayed the various tools and techniques of Victorian gardening, and this was where Harry came into his own. He had used many of both and therefore could produce many of the tools from various cobwebbed corners of the service buildings and demonstrate how they were used.
The series was successful and spawned three sequels:
- The Victorian Kitchen
- The Victorian Flower Garden
- The Wartime Kitchen and Garden
Each of the series (except for The Wartime Kitchen and Garden) are commercially available on DVD, distributed by Acorn Media UK
Acorn Media UK
Acorn Media UK is a DVD publisher which distributes and sells home video products with a particular focus on British television.- Company history :The company was founded in 1997 when Lesley Fromant set up a branch of parent company Acorn Media in the UK....
.