Britain in Bloom, a new TV treat

IT BEGAN half a century ago as a way of prettifying the nation’s villages and towns.

Now the Britain in Bloom contest is to become a daily drama for television viewers in a new BBC Two series, with cameras following communities as they prepare for the judges’ arrival.

Chris Bavin, the former greengrocer and host of Eat Well For Less, will present the series, describing it as the “Great British competition”. Britain in Bloom began in 1964 after Roy Hay, the horticultural journalist, was struck by the floral displays he saw travelling in France.

He set up the competition with the British Tourist Authority and organisations including the National Farmers Union and the London Tourist Board. The first winner was the city of Bath.

In recent years, the focus has been on the regeneration of urban areas. Jim Buttress, the recently retired chairman of the competition, said it aimed to recognise “the little old lady in the block of flats who always puts out a box of flowers”.

The show will launch next year in a 6.30pm weekday slot as part of a new slate of BBC gardening coverage to include continuing exclusive coverage of the Chelsea Flower Show and other Royal Horticultural Society events until the end of 2021.