Alan Titchmarsh opens up on 'heartbreaking' farewell to wife and daughters for career

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Alan Titchmarsh opens up on 'heartbreaking' farewell to wife and daughters for career
Alan Titchmarsh has worked as a presenter and host on a number of television and radio programmes over the years, and this meant he had to spend long periods of time away from his family
Alan Titchmarsh
(Image: ITV)
Alan Titchmarsh revealed the "heartbreaking" question his daughter would ask him after kissing her goodnight.
The gardening expert spoke to James O'Brien's Full Disclosure podcast in July 2023 and confessed he was compelled to spend extended periods away from home because of his career commitments.
The 75-year-old explained to O'Brien that the "most heartbreaking" aspect of leaving his family on Sunday evenings was bidding his daughters goodnight. His comments resurfaced as Jeremy Clarkson launched a tirade, as he says one of his dishes is better than restaurant food.
Alan said: "It's not something I wanted but it was at a time in my career where I knew it had to be done. The girls would be sort of 10,11 that kind of age.
"I would go away on a Sunday evening and come back later in the weekend. I do remember the heartbreaking thing of kissing one of them goodnight and them saying 'will you be here in the morning?'.
Alan Titchmarsh with his wife Alison who he married in 1975
(Image: Andrew Matthews -)
"I knew I wouldn't and that was really hard of course. I did say, I mean every weekend, it's not as if I'm in the army going away for three months or a year or whatever, so that was my excuse."
Following his departure from his Yorkshire school in 1964 with just one O level in art, aged 15, the television personality went on to front and present numerous programmes across both television and radio. He has since established himself as one of Britain's most cherished gardening presenters of all time.
Alan initially made his mark as a specialist on the BBC programme Nationwide before moving on to present the 1983 Chelsea Flower Show. Subsequently, he went on to front various programmes including Pebble Mill and Gardeners' World, whilst also becoming one of three presenters on the beloved Ground Force.
Alan revealed that his stint on Ground Force "pushed him" into the spotlight and that everything transformed by a "quantum leap". He explained: "We were getting audiences of 12 million, it was the Bake Off of its day.
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"Yes I got noticed before that but not in a kind of obtrusive sort of way. I remember they moved Ground Force from BBC Two to BBC One because too many people were watching it and that's when we were getting 12 million.
"And I was walking down the street and everybody was looking, and I thought 'ooo gosh'. I went home and I thought 'either I get used to this or I come out of it now."