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The Irish Sun
10-08-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
Stars of iconic TV series reunite 27 years after hit show ended as rare snap delights
Fans gushed over the Instagram snap showing the BBC stars heading out to dinner off screen Stars of iconic TV series reunite 27 years after hit show ended as rare snap delights THE stars of an iconic Brit TV series have reunited almost three decades after the show wrapped. The joint snap delighted fans on Instagram who admitted the duo were "the best" and that the picture had "made my day." 6 TV fans were left delighted after a pair of BBC stars reunited Credit: 6 The actors starred in Hetty Wainthropp Investigates Credit: BBC 6 Dame Patricia Routledge played Hetty while Dom Monaghan played Geoffrey Credit: BBC The image, taken in a restaurant, saw actor Dom Monaghan posing with fellow screen icon Dame Patricia Routledge, 96. The pair starred together in BBC series Hetty Wainthropp Investigates, with Patricia playing the 60-year-old Lancashire lass solving mysteries with common sense. Dom, 48, played her assistant Geoffrey Shawcross from 1996 to 1998 and the duo clearly still have a close bond. The Lord of the Rings star posted their happy snap to his page and wrote: "25 YEARS later! "So wonderful to see Dame Patricia. "We always shared a love of acting, of actors, of the natural world and all of the curiosities of life, it was fantastic to spend a couple of hours doing the same! "She still tells fantastic stories, loves great food and wine, and as always is sharp as a tack, with fantastic skin and style. "She taught me so much, and continues to do so, aging with a class and quality I hope to emulate." He then added the caption: "hettywainthroppinvestigates forever! #becurious." The series ran spanned four series before it wrapped in 1998. Fans were left delighted by the unexpected reunion and one put: "So happy you got to meet up with her again after all these years. BBC Gardeners world fans in tears as star reveals terminal cancer diagnosis during show "Her storytelling is amazing." A second put: "The Hetty Wainthropp duo reunited!! That was such a lovely show. You both look very well!" A third gushed: "This absolutely made our day to see the two of you together again." One then confessed: "I am legit crying she's a national treasure." Another posted: "Awww this is so heartwarming ty for sharing Dom!" as one surmised: "This is the best!! "I loved you two in Hetty Wainthrop! You had such a good relationship on screen." Dame Patricia was left annoyed when the show wrapped and at the time she said: "We were betrayed by the BBC. "We finished series four of Hetty Wainthropp, we were told there was going to be series five. "But no word ever came - how rude." SCREEN QUEEN Previously, Dame Patricia stunned diners as she stepped out at a restaurant just before Christmas. She also played snobby character Hyacinth Bucket in the hit series Keeping Up Appearances, which ran from 1990 to 1995. After a glittering stage career she made her film debut in 1967's To Sir With Love as teacher Clinty Clintridge alongside singer Lulu and actor Sidney Poitier. She later scored household fame when she played Keeping Up Appearances' iconic character Hyacinth Bucket - of course pronounced Bouquet - for the show's five-year run. She also starred in Talking Heads, a series of dramatic monologues written for the BBC by acclaimed playwright Alan Bennett. He wrote three especially for her – A Lady of Letters, Miss Fozzard Finds her Feet and A Woman of No Importance. Despite her age and a career spanning more than 70 years, the star still looks incredibly youthful. In 2017, Patricia, who has never married and does not have children, was made a Dame thanks to her services to entertainment and charity. She is a patron of the Beatrix Potter Society and in 2008 received a Doctors of Letters degree from Lancaster University for her contribution to drama and theatre. 6 Dame Patricia is a legend of the small screen Credit: Times Newspapers Ltd 6 Dom also starred in Lord of the Rings
Scottish Sun
10-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
Stars of iconic TV series reunite 27 years after hit show ended as rare snap delights
Fans gushed over the Instagram snap showing the BBC stars heading out to dinner off screen Stars of iconic TV series reunite 27 years after hit show ended as rare snap delights Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) THE stars of an iconic Brit TV series have reunited almost three decades after the show wrapped. The joint snap delighted fans on Instagram who admitted the duo were "the best" and that the picture had "made my day." Sign up for the Entertainment newsletter Sign up 6 TV fans were left delighted after a pair of BBC stars reunited Credit: 6 The actors starred in Hetty Wainthropp Investigates Credit: BBC 6 Dame Patricia Routledge played Hetty while Dom Monaghan played Geoffrey Credit: BBC The image, taken in a restaurant, saw actor Dom Monaghan posing with fellow screen icon Dame Patricia Routledge, 96. The pair starred together in BBC series Hetty Wainthropp Investigates, with Patricia playing the 60-year-old Lancashire lass solving mysteries with common sense. Dom, 48, played her assistant Geoffrey Shawcross from 1996 to 1998 and the duo clearly still have a close bond. The Lord of the Rings star posted their happy snap to his page and wrote: "25 YEARS later! "So wonderful to see Dame Patricia. "We always shared a love of acting, of actors, of the natural world and all of the curiosities of life, it was fantastic to spend a couple of hours doing the same! "She still tells fantastic stories, loves great food and wine, and as always is sharp as a tack, with fantastic skin and style. "She taught me so much, and continues to do so, aging with a class and quality I hope to emulate." He then added the caption: "hettywainthroppinvestigates forever! #becurious." The series ran spanned four series before it wrapped in 1998. Fans were left delighted by the unexpected reunion and one put: "So happy you got to meet up with her again after all these years. BBC Gardeners world fans in tears as star reveals terminal cancer diagnosis during show "Her storytelling is amazing." A second put: "The Hetty Wainthropp duo reunited!! That was such a lovely show. You both look very well!" A third gushed: "This absolutely made our day to see the two of you together again." One then confessed: "I am legit crying she's a national treasure." Another posted: "Awww this is so heartwarming ty for sharing Dom!" as one surmised: "This is the best!! "I loved you two in Hetty Wainthrop! You had such a good relationship on screen." Dame Patricia was left annoyed when the show wrapped and at the time she said: "We were betrayed by the BBC. "We finished series four of Hetty Wainthropp, we were told there was going to be series five. "But no word ever came - how rude." SCREEN QUEEN Previously, Dame Patricia stunned diners as she stepped out at a restaurant just before Christmas. She also played snobby character Hyacinth Bucket in the hit series Keeping Up Appearances, which ran from 1990 to 1995. After a glittering stage career she made her film debut in 1967's To Sir With Love as teacher Clinty Clintridge alongside singer Lulu and actor Sidney Poitier. She later scored household fame when she played Keeping Up Appearances' iconic character Hyacinth Bucket - of course pronounced Bouquet - for the show's five-year run. She also starred in Talking Heads, a series of dramatic monologues written for the BBC by acclaimed playwright Alan Bennett. He wrote three especially for her – A Lady of Letters, Miss Fozzard Finds her Feet and A Woman of No Importance. Despite her age and a career spanning more than 70 years, the star still looks incredibly youthful. In 2017, Patricia, who has never married and does not have children, was made a Dame thanks to her services to entertainment and charity. She is a patron of the Beatrix Potter Society and in 2008 received a Doctors of Letters degree from Lancaster University for her contribution to drama and theatre. 6 Dame Patricia is a legend of the small screen Credit: Times Newspapers Ltd 6 Dom also starred in Lord of the Rings
The Sun
12-07-2025
- General
- The Sun
BBC star's long lasting £4.99 plant from B&Q keeps your garden lush & green all summer – especially in dry shady areas
MOST horticultural enthusiasts will have heard of BBC Gardeners Question Time. A comforting weekly panel show on the radio - it's been running for 68 years - with a raft of experts answering audience questions. 2 2 Ahead of their Summer Garden party, they've shared the most popular five questions asked - so I asked Panelist and Garden Designer Matthew Wilson to give us his answers. WHAT TREE HAS BEAUTIFUL FLOWERS, EDIBLE FRUIT, SEASONAL INTEREST, AUTUMN COLOUR, FAST GROWING, ENCOURAGES WILDLIFE AND IS CLIMATE CHANGE RESILIENT? Medlar Mesphalus Germanica, is hugely overlooked. It's got fantastic bigger than average blossom, you can make Medlar jelly and it's got really great autumn colour. It's a dome shaped tree, not massively tall, fast growing and great character in the trunk Or Cydonia Chinesis - the Chinese Quince - is small but has a beautiful full blossom, yellow fruit for quince jelly, autumn colour and is good for wildlife. Both are resilient and climate change tolerant. HOW DO I STOP SLUGS AND SNAILS: Really the only guaranteed way is to use garlic barrier spray. It's not harmful to animals but repugnant to mollusks and insects. Smash garlic gloves and hot water together - or use dried garlic granules rehydrated in water. Spray at least once a month. PLANTING SUGGESTIONS FOR A DRY SHADY BORDER Modify expectations and be happy if it's green. Ferns are brilliant - like our native shield fern, Polystichum, or Dryopteris or Erythgrosora. Plant with some hybrid hellebores, bulbs, vinca and pachysandra - plant densely and it will be thick, green and lush - and really attractive. B&Q are currently selling a collection of five fern - suitable for outdoor gardens - for £24.99 - which means each fern cost just £4.99. WHY ISN'T MY PLANT FLOWERING? Ninety nine times out of a hundred - it's because it's being pruned at the wrong time. If it flowers early in the year, it's flowering on the wood that it's formed the previous year - so don't prune until after it's flowered. If it flowering late in the year - it's flowering on the current season's wood - so prune it down hard in spring. WHEN'S THE BEST TIME TO PRUNE CLEMATIS If it flowers in winter or early spring, you don't need to prune it at all. Aside from any tidying up that you might want to do. If it's early summer pruning - prune in late winter or early spring and cut back by half, and if it's late summer pruning - cut it down to the ground. BBC Radio 4's annual Gardeners' Question Time Summer Garden Party 2025 will be hosted at the iconic RHS Garden Hyde Hall in Essex on Saturday August 2, during the RHS Hyde Hall Flower Show. Two bumper episodes of Gardeners' Question Time will be recorded in front of a live audience where members of the public can join an expert panel for a host of horticultural discussions - at 12 pm and 2 pm. Both will air on BBC R4 in the following weeks. Also in Veronica's colum this week... Top tips, topiarary awards and a chance to win an outdoor seating set worth £899 HENCHMANN have revealed the winners of their 2025 Topiary Awards - with an elephant, a boot, a 36 foot-long dragon and a range of other incredible living sculptures from across the UK and Europe taking centre stage. Paul Everden, from Norfolk, won the Home Gardener Category with a topiary knot garden he has nurtured for over 35 years. Second place was Peterborough-based Angela Hawkins with her holly elephant 'Mungo' that's taken 25 years. Henchman's Choice award went to Kim Palmer from Suffolk for 'George' – her amazing 36-foot-long yew dragon. Chris Reeve, from Suffolk, won the UK Professional title with a giant work boot - and Darrell Adams, from Hampshire, was second with his restoration of a formal topiary garden François Vandaneon won the Europe, Home Gardener category - with Cédric Bronnimann, also from France - winning the professional title for Europe. WIN! One lucky reader can get their hands on a stylish British Garden Centres' Fern Living Andorra Deluxe 4 Seat Round Set - worth £ 899.99 - complete with a 2.2m parasol – perfect for family meals al fresco. To enter visit or write to Sun Fern Living Competition, PO Box 3190, Colchester, Essex, CO2 8GP. Include your name, age, email or phone. UK residents 18+ only. Entries close 11.59pm. July 26, 2025. T&Cs apply. PLANT OF THE WEEK Calla Lily 'Dubai Nights' has rich dark purple, almost black leaves with creamy white edge and glossy green leaves speckled with white. Amazing in groups in pots - tender, likes partial shade - good in borders. JOB OF THE WEEK Bindweed will be rampaging through your outside space - try to get it all out. Tie in climbers, pinch out tomatoes. For more tips and garden content, follow me @biros_and_bloom
