MY LIFE IN 10 PICTURES
CHARLIE ALBONE
Life has long been coming up roses for TV’S favourite gardening guru, Charlie Albone. Now a member of the team of expert presenters on Channel Seven’s much-loved lifestyle show Better Homes and Gardens, the Hong Kong-born and London-raised star is in his element.
As Charlie, who has won awards for his work at the world’s most prestigious flower event, the Chelsea Flower Show, says of his role on BHG: “I’m sharing lots of new and interesting ideas for your garden that inspire and push boundaries, as well as advice on how to make your outdoor living the best it can be.”
And when the landscape designer isn’t hard at work on outdoor makeovers, he’s living his best life in Sydney with wife Juliet and their gorgeous sons, Leo, 7, and Hartford, 5.
The popular star shares his life in 10 pictures.
1 “My father, Michael, passed away when I was 17. I designed and built a garden at the Chelsea Flower Show dedicated to him, and I have his initials tattooed on my wrist. He was such an important part of my life and I was very close to him. We all miss him dreadfully, but one thing he taught me was that life carries on. You have to pick yourself up, keep going and enjoy life for what it is.”
2 “This photo was taken in Capri, Italy – definitely one of my favourite places in the world. We went with the kids and it’s not the most pram-friendly place to visit, shall we say, but the kids absolutely loved it there, and so did we. I love everything about it, from the climate to the gardens − and I definitely hope to be back there one day.”
3 “My mum Sue still lives in the UK and she is a really keen gardener. Here she is at the 2016 Chelsea Flower Show. At the time, we were running very far behind schedule because of the rain. I remember being up on a ladder only to look down and see my mum cutting the edges of the lawn with a pair of scissors in the pouring rain – as you can see her doing in this photo!”
4 “This was at my mum’s 70th’s birthday four years ago – she is in the centre of the picture. All of the family from around the world – my brother lives in Victoria Falls in Africa, my sister is still in Hong Kong and I’m in Australia − travelled to the UK to celebrate.”
5 “This is my old dog, Manatee Jenkins – she was a little Shar Pei and had the sweetest nature. When the boys were very little, I used to travel a lot while filming Selling Houses Australia. She used to curl up in the boys’ room and protect them – if anyone came to the house, she wouldn’t let them in. She was very sweet.”
6 “This is the garden I built and designed for the 2015 Chelsea Garden Show that I dedicated to my father. I wanted to tell him about my life at the time. The fire pit was at the centre of the design and it represented my wife. We put the fire pit in a shipping container and brought it back to Australia from the UK and use it all the time now.”
7 “This picture represents the place on the NSW Central Coast that Juliet and I bought. It’s really my happy place where I get away from it all.”
8 “My two boys when they were a bit younger. They’re so cute together. They’re still always hugging and looking after each other. They’re almost exactly two years apart and their relationship is really lovely. When we go up to the coast, they’re always straight out the door, running around together and having a great time.”
9 “Manatee Jenkins passed away about four years ago and now we have another Shar Pei, Fiona Finklebottom. She’s as mad as a hat full of monkeys, but she’s such good fun. We love her.”
10 “Here I am at the Chelsea Flower Show with Juliet. She also helped out a lot with the build and to get the garden ready that I was exhibiting. It’s our 10th wedding anniversary in October this year. Family and garden are absolutely everything to me – don’t ask me to pick which one!”