Monty Don 4127424 225101041 2008-07-11T21:50:17Z Belovedfreak 2684294 cleaned up citations, added dates to book list {{Infobox Celebrity | name = Monty Don | image = Monty Don facing right.jpg | image_size = 200px | caption = Monty Don in 2007 | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1955|7|8|df=yes}} | birth_place = [[Germany]] | death_date = | death_place = | occupation = [[Television presenter]], [[gardener]] and [[writer]] | salary = | spouse = Sarah Don | children = | website = | footnotes = }} '''Montagu 'Monty' Denis Wyatt Don''' (born [[8 July]] [[1955]]) is a [[Germany|German]]-born<ref>{{cite web | title = Meet Monty Don | publisher = [[UKTV Gardens]] | date = | url = http://uktv.co.uk/gardens/item/aid/503558 | accessdate =2008-05-22 }}</ref> [[United Kingdom|British]] [[BBC]] [[television]] presenter, writer and speaker on [[horticulture]]. He currently lives at [[Ivington]] in [[Herefordshire]], [[England]], [[United Kingdom|UK]]. ==Gardening== Don received no formal training as a gardener. In his own words "I was – am – an amateur gardener and a professional writer. My only authority came from a lifetime of gardening and a passion amounting to an obsession for my own garden."<ref>{{cite web | last = Don | first = Monty | title = Through the garden gate | work = [[The Observer]] | date = 2006-05-28 | url = http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/experts/montydon/0,,,00.html | accessdate =2008-07-11 }}</ref> He is a keen proponent of [[organic gardening]] and the practice of organic techniques, to some extent, features in all of his published work. The organic approach is most prominent in his 2003 book ''The Complete Gardener''. ==Career== Don and his wife Sarah's previous career in the 1980s involved making and selling [[costume jewellery]] under the company name Monty Don Jewellery. The collapse of the company in the early 1990s prompted him to embark on a career in writing and broadcasting. He has written about the rise and collapse of their business in ''The Jewel Garden'', an autobiographical book written with his wife. Don has also written of his being a sufferer of depression<ref>{{cite web | last = Don | first = Monty | title = Now we are 10 | work = [[The Observer]] | date = 2004-02-22 | url = http://shopping.guardian.co.uk/household/story/0,,1153206,00.html | accessdate =2008-07-11 }}</ref> and [[Seasonal Affective Disorder]]. He has had [[Cognitive Behavioural Therapy]] and formerly took [[Prozac]] before favouring a [[lightbox]], now a recognised aid for SAD sufferers. Recently he suffered a minor stroke and has temporarily given up his presenting duties.<ref name="BBC">{{cite web | title = TV gardener Monty Don has stroke | publisher = [[BBC]] | date = 2008-05-22 | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7415469.stm | accessdate =2008-07-11 }}</ref> ==TV work== His first TV work came as the presenter of the gardening slot on [[This Morning (TV series)|''This Morning'']]. He went on to present several [[Channel 4]] series: ''Don Roaming'', ''Fork to Fork'', ''Real Gardens''' and ''Lost Gardens''. As well as ''Gardeners' World'' he has also featured as a guest presenter for the BBC's ''Holiday'' programme. Don was the main presenter on [[BBC Two]]'s ''[[Gardeners' World]]'' from 2003–2008, when he stepped down after suffering a minor stroke.<ref name="BBC" /> A recent project was showcased in a BBC programme, ''Growing out of Trouble'' and accompanying book in which several [[heroin]] addicts manage a six acre Herefordshire [[smallholding]] in an attempt to kick their habit. His latest work ''[[Around the World in 80 Gardens]]'' was shown on BBC 2 from [[27 January]] to [[30 March]] [[2008]]. ==Bibliography== *1990: ''The Prickotty Bush'' *1995: ''The Weekend Gardener'' *1997: ''The Sensuous Garden'' *1998: ''Gardening Mad'' *2003: ''The Complete Gardener'' *2003: ''From the Garden to the Table: Growing, Cooking, and Eating Your Own Food'' *2004: ''Jewel Garden'' *2005: ''Gardening From Berryfields'' *2006: ''Fork to Fork'' *2006: ''Growing out of Trouble'' *2006: ''My Roots: A Decade in the Garden'' *2008: ''Around the World in 80 Gardens'' He also wrote the regular weekly gardening column for ''[[The Observer]]'' newspaper between February 1994 and May 2006. == References == {{reflist}} ==External links== *[http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/tv_and_radio/gardeners_world/index.shtml BBC pages] *{{imdb name|id=1472548}} *[http://www.themontyproject.com/ The Monty Project] *[http://socialenterpriseambassadors.org/ Social Enterprise Ambassadors] *[http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/experts/montydon/story/0,,1784596,00.html Monty Don's Final Observer Column] *[http://www.dorlingkindersley-uk.co.uk/static/cs/uk/11/features/montydon/video.html Video Interview with Monty Don] *[http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/tv_and_radio/aroundtheworld_index1.shtml Around the World in 80 Gardens.] *[http://property.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/property/gardens/chelsea_flower_show/article1789875.ece Times Interview with Monty Don] {{DEFAULTSORT:Don, Monty}} [[Category:British garden writers]] [[Category:British television presenters]] [[Category:British gardeners]] [[Category:People from Herefordshire]] [[Category:1955 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[gd:Monty Don]]