The hunky CBeebies gardener. . . and some VERY earthy suggestions from his army of yummy mummy admirers
IN A knitted tank top, wellies and trilby, the presenter of a gardening show for toddlers might at first glance seem more weed than sex symbol.
But Ben Faulks, who appears in a shed full of talking vegetables on the CBeebies channel, has gained an army of admirers among the mothers of his young fans.
And when they got a chance to learn more about the actor and his show Mr Bloom’s Nursery, their questions soon became unsuitable for children.
As the green-fingered chat started to turn the air blue, with several women using gardening terminology to make lewd suggestions, the BBC had to step in and clean up the online interview. One mum begged Mr Bloom to ‘feel my melons’ to ‘see if they’re firm’.
In total, staff had to delete about 20 of the rudest comments from the CBeebies Facebook page in case they were seen by young viewers.
A spokesman for CBeebies – the BBC’s channel for under- sixes – told The Mail on Sunday: ‘A small number of personal or inappropriate comments about one of our CBeebies presenters were removed by moderators.’
But some comments remain, including requests for Mr Bloom to ‘come round and do my garden’.
The adult nature of the questions was remarked upon by other users, including a father who wrote: ‘I’m awfully glad my kids aren’t old enough to read these posts!’
In each episode Mr Bloom meets a group of youngsters and teaches them about planting seeds, making compost and trying new foods.
CBeebies started the chat on Wednesday, posting: ‘What would you most like to ask Ben about life as CBeebies’ best-known gardener?’ Louise Robson wrote: ‘Can’t say anything that I would like to on a children’s site haha xx lush!’, while Kate Ellerby said: ‘I don’t think my questions would be allowed.’
The 35-year-old actor, who is married with three children, also received marriage proposals. Only a few of the 200-plus posts were serious queries about the show.
Last night Mr Faulks said he hadn’t seen the lewd remarks and remains bemused by his status as the ‘sex god of CBeebies’, which sees him receiving Valentine cards and knitted vegetables from adoring mums.
‘It’s just really nice that the show is popular,’ he said.