Rugby legend Gareth Thomas breaks down HIV stigma at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2025
Rugby legend Gareth Thomas breaks down HIV stigma at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2025
Thomas leads the Tackle HIV campaign and revealed his pride in the Tackle HIV Challenging Stigma Garden's beauty and theme after first coming to the flower show two years ago and feeling uncomfortable in the environment due to his HIV status.
Tackle HIV ambassador Gareth Thomas (second from left) at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show
(Image: imagecomms )
Rugby legend Gareth Thomas is stepping out of his comfort zone to break down the stigma surrounding HIV at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2025.
Created by award-winning designer Manoj Malde, the Tackle HIV Challenging Stigma Garden will be on show at the prestigious event from 20 to 24 May in a bid to challenge harmful stereotypes and showcase the narratives of those living with HIV.
Thomas, who leads the Tackle HIV campaign, revealed his pride in the project's beauty and theme after first coming to the flower show two years ago and feeling uncomfortable in the environment due to his HIV status.
The Wales rugby icon now hopes that by bringing his and other's stories to life through the garden, he can help educate new audiences on the stigmas surrounding the virus.
Tackle HIV ambassador Gareth Thomas has 100 caps for Wales
(Image: imagecomms )
"When I came before, I felt like I was amongst a demographic who potentially didn't have the understanding around HIV, or the only education on it they had had was delivered to them about 40 years ago," he said.
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"But I felt as a campaigner, going to places and doing things that make you feel uncomfortable are actually the places where you need to be, because that's where you change minds. This garden is all about celebrating science and medicine, which allows people like me to be able to live normal, happy, healthy lives, not restricted by the virus.
"People can come and see that narrative, have that understanding, and that helps break down the stigma engrained in society around HIV."
The Tackle HIV Challenging Stigma Garden reflects the significant advancements made in HIV treatment, prevention, and care over the last 40 years.
From the hexagonal paving that reflects a key chemical structure found within many HIV medications to the words "Undetectable = Untransmittable" etched onto a bench, conveying a crucial educational message about the empowerment provided by effective HIV treatment, each part of the garden tells a crucial part of the story.
"We have been in the HIV response for the last 40 years, bringing the first medication to market, and transforming the treatment landscape," said Audrey Abernathy, Vice President and Head of External Affairs and Communications at ViiV Healthcare.
Tackle HIV ambassador Gareth Thomas (right), with Amanda Holden (left) at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show
(Image: imagecomms )
"But the story that this garden tells is one that hopes to really tackle stigma, because without focusing on tackling stigma as well as medicinal and biopharmaceutical interventions, we're never going to end the epidemic. Bringing this understanding to new audiences and more unexpected audiences was really important for us to do."
In order to bring his vision to life, designer Malde contracted JJH Landscapes to build The Tackle HIV Challenging Stigma Garden. It was an emotional and rewarding project that Justin Himpson was thrilled for his team to be a part of over the past year.
"Building a garden at Chelsea is the pinnacle of landscaping and horticulture," he said. "But what this garden is about and being able to get that across through landscaping and art, has been really inspirational. It has also been a very emotional build throughout and I think we've delivered something spectacular."
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The Tackle HIV Challenging Stigma Garden will feature at the Chelsea Flower Show 2025, designed by Manoj Malde and built by JJH Landscapes and Tisserand English Gardens. Tackle HIV is a campaign led by Gareth Thomas in partnership with ViiV Healthcare, with Terrence Higgins Trust as the charity partner, which aims to tackle the stigma and misunderstanding around HIV. For more information visit tacklehiv.org/chelsea and follow @tacklehiv.
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