Profile

James Alexander-Sinclair is a garden designer, journalist and broadcaster known for his wit, energy and flair.  He mostly specialises in designing large country gardens which he then brings to life on the page with his irreverent and entertaining style in a number of newspapers and journals. He is currently contributing a garden design series to Country Living magazine.

He was one of the lead presenters on the innovative C4 daily gardening programme Great Garden Challenge (March to June 2005) and other TV appearances include Small Town Gardens both as guest designer and subsequently as main presenter. James was shortlisted for Best New Talent by the Royal Television Society Midlands Award of 2004.

He is a popular gardening celebrity giving talks and seminars at regional and national garden shows including the BBC Gardeners’ World Live Show and the Malvern Spring Show.

James is currently touring the country in a nationwide tour alsongside Nigel Colborn called Green With Envy in which they answer questions on gardening in a witty and entertaining show.

In 2008 James covered the Malvern Spring Show and the Chelsea Flower Show for BBC's Gardeners' World and his own garden is due to appear on Gardeners' World in a feature called Celebrity Gardens.

Biography

James Alexander-Sinclair - rather like a careless tightrope walker - stumbled into gardening from cocktail shaking, being Father Christmas and the more scurrilous end of journalism by accident nearly twenty years ago.

Beginning in London he set up Terra Firma Landscapes which, after six years of laying lawns, building walls and moving barrow loads of earth around, he sold in order to move his family to Northamptonshire. At the same time he progressed to the less muddy end of gardening by developing the design side of the business.

Since then he has made many truly delicious gardens throughout Britain ranging from small patches in cities to rolling acres in the countryside. Along the way he designed the medal-winning "Horticouture" garden at the 1999 Chelsea Flower Show for Express Newspapers.

Recently he has returned to journalism. His easy, slightly irreverent style makes him an excellent communicator and he has the ability to bring the garden to life on the page. He has written for the Daily Express and Sunday Express, for Homes & Gardens, Period Living, BBC Homes & Antiques, House & Garden, Country Living Magazine and his own house and garden were recently featured in Grand Designs magazine.

In 1999 he made his first television appearance on Collectors Lot - Gertrude Jekyll for Channel 4 and since then he has appeared in The Curious Gardeners - Mount Stuart, Isle of Bute for BBC2 and appeared as a guest on Small Town Gardens also for BBC 2. In Autumn 2003 James returned to Small Town Gardens as main presenter and the series went out in the Friday night prime time gardening slot on BBC 2 and was a judge for the BBC Gardener of the Year 2003, also on BBC2.

James gives talks to local garden clubs and appeared at the BBC Gardeners' World Live Show at the NEC in 2004. He is a regular guest speaker at the Malvern Spring and Autumn Shows and other events.

Last year James was one of the 12 successful designers selected from an entry of 200 to design a garden for the annual Westonbirt Festival of the Garden at the Arboretum. The Festival ran from June to September, allowing the planting to develop and the garden change and mature.

James was shortlisted for Best New Talent for the Royal Television Society Midlands Award of 2004.

He was one of the lead expert presenters on the C4 daily gardening programme Great Garden Challenge (Spring/Summer 2005).

James is currently touring the country in a nationwide tour alongside Nigel Colborn called Green With Envy in which they answer questions on gardening in a witty and entertaining show.

In 2008, James covered the Malvern Spring Show and the Chelsea Flower Show for BBC Gardeners' World and his own garden is due to appear on Gardeners' World in a feature called celebrity gardens.

Updated 28/02/2009