Kate Silverton on moving to the Cotswolds: ‘I didn't want to be surrounded by brick buildings anymore'

Telegraph

10-05-2025

Kate Silverton trained as a journalist and was formerly a regular newsreader and presenter for the BBC. In 2018, she took part in Strictly Come Dancing, and she and her partner Aljaž Škorjanec finished in eighth place. She left her TV career to retrain, and became a qualified child therapist in 2023. Last year, she and her family left their home in London to move to the Cotswolds.
Where do you live?
Last summer, we moved to a village in Gloucestershire, in the Cotswolds. My husband Mike and I, and our two children, Clemency, 13, and Wilbur, 10, had been living in west London for years. There's no denying it was a massive step – a little bit like turning an oil tanker around very slowly. But it was something that I'd been dreaming about for a long time, even before I decided I wanted to retrain as a child therapist.
I kept saying to Mike: 'I don't want to be surrounded by brick buildings any more.' Initially, we started looking all over the place, even abroad, but when we found this Arts and Crafts house in the Cotswolds, the garden literally had me at hello. The previous owner, a wonderful lady called Joan, was a passionate gardener, so we inherited this large south-facing garden, which has a wonderful, dreamy English cottage garden feel about it. Her pale pink roses alone were a sight to behold. The garden had everything I'd ever imagined.
How did it compare to your garden in London?
We had a tiny garden at the back of our London home, where the sun would disappear after three o'clock. If I tell you we had a hammock that stretched from one corner to the other, you get an idea of how small it was. But we did squeeze in a tiny greenhouse where I made a half-decent attempt at being green-fingered to make the front look nice. But I confess, we did have fake grass, which was awful. Now, just walking across our new lawn of real grass is one of my greatest pleasures. One thing we never had room for in London was a proper outdoor table and chairs, so I was beside myself with excitement when we finally got them. Even in February, Mike and I were sitting outside drinking coffee in our poncho blankets.
How are you finding life in the Cotswolds?
When we came here, it was with the intention of immersing ourselves in every part of the garden and embracing the local community. We've already got to know lots of people, many of whom are happy to share their knowledge of the landscape. We have a small woodland area, and I've just got off the phone to a lady who's going to teach me how to coppice. She's also going to show the children how to whittle spoons. We really want the kids to have that climbing-trees-and-muddy-knees experience, but I also appreciate little things, like walking barefoot across the Village Common with Clemency when I've picked her up from school. One thing we always did with the kids when we were in London was to go camping, and one of the first things we did when we arrived here was put up our bell tent on the lawn. It was magical.
On a deeper level, why do you think being outside is so important?
In today's world, it's so easy to get overstimulated by technology and disconnected from the natural world. People often say they get a sense of well-being by spending time in the garden, that they find it deeply regulating in some way. And there's a scientific reason for that. From a neuroscience perspective, I now understand that anything with a repetitive or rhythmic pattern is very soothing for the brainstem, which connects the brain with the spinal cord and is an essential part of the nervous system. So, I truly think that a garden is your nervous system's best friend.
What have you been enjoying in the garden this year?
In January, we had the end of the hellebores and the start of the snowdrops, then rows of daffodils, followed by blossom that filled our small apple orchard where the hammock hangs. Now I look around and see bluebells, irises, forget-me-nots and tulips, while the scent of the white wisteria climbing the house hangs in the air… something I've always wanted. Every day, I see something new, and a week doesn't go by without me hugging a tree. I've also been planting things with the children; we sowed lots of sunflower seeds and have one pumpkin on the way, which is terribly exciting. Only this morning, I was looking at the runner beans and picked our first spring onions. We've also started using wool pellets as a natural slug deterrent, and they seem to be working.
Where did you first get your love of the outdoors?
Growing up in Essex, we had a very small garden, and the only connection I had with it was through my pet tortoise, Rupert. As a little girl, I was a voracious reader, and one of my main introductions to nature was through children's adventure books by authors such as Enid Blyton. Joining the Girl Guides and doing their outside activities was also a huge influence on me – I was even given the Queen's Guide Award. As I got a bit older, I loved authors like Wilbur Smith, whose descriptions of the African landscape left a great impression on me. In my late teens, I went off travelling to Africa, where some of my fondest memories are of sleeping under the stars.
How did you get involved with the Chelsea Flower Show?
I started going to the show a few years ago and, through the RHS, got involved in Project Giving Back, which was set up by two private philanthropists to support a range of good causes. Not only have they funded gardens at Chelsea since 2022, but they have ensured that every single garden has had a permanent home afterwards. This year, I'm specifically supporting three of the causes they are funding: The Glasshouse Garden, which works with female prisoners through a programme of horticultural training and employment; the Down's Syndrome Scotland Garden, which involved young people at every stage of its making; and the King's Trust Garden, which creates wonderful parallels between the potential every young person has in life and the way seeds, even those growing in a tough environment, do succeed.
How do you feel now about your new life in the Cotswolds?
A year on, I'm just as excited as ever. Of course, we've also got a growing shopping list of things we want to get. Only last week, I turned to Mike and said, 'When are we getting the chickens?' He's coming with me to Chelsea, and once we've seen all the gardens, we'll be looking into everything from mowers and pruning ladders to hot composting and fruit cages for our strawberries and raspberries. One thing I'd really love to have is a garden office, whether it's in a shepherd's hut or a cabin. If we could get it installed by the time I sit down to write my next book, I'd be thrilled.
How would you sum up your feelings about the garden now?
For us, moving here was the right decision. Sometimes it takes a lot of work to follow your dream, but you can do it, if you really want to. There are so many wonderful sayings you come across about gardening. From a therapist's perspective, I find certain ones particularly poignant, such as: 'Plants forgive neglect – with time and care they come back. And so do we.' Another one, which Audrey Hepburn once said, and which sums up the hope any gardener must feel, is: 'To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.' Isn't that just wonderful?
Project Giving Back is supporting ten gardens for good causes at this year's Chelsea Flower Show, May 20–24. For more information, visit givingback.org.uk.