ERIC Robson has become the longest-standing chairman of one the longest-running programmes in the world.
But after 25 years of fronting BBC Radio 4's Gardeners' Question Time he has decided to hand over the reigns.
Eric, who lives in Cumbria's Wasdale Valley, will chair his final instalments in Manchester next month, which is where he recorded his first episode back in 1994.
Throughout his long-standing service the 72-year-old says he’s enjoyed watching how the pastime has changed.
"Shortly after I took over, one of the old worthies said to me, 'you do realise Eric that there will be many places you go to where you and the panel are the only people in the room with your own teeth and hair'.
"There was definitely an older demographic. Quite a lot of the flat cap and muscle image, of allotmenteering particularly, was very much the case in some places.
"But that's dramatically changed.
"The marvellous thing is our audience has stayed constant and gone up a bit.
"We are constantly being told younger audiences aren’t attracted to the wireless but they are. We are getting a younger audience."
The show, which attracts about two million listeners, broadcasts from a new location every week, with members of a studio audience putting their horticultural questions to a panel of experts.
It's this format that Eric believes is key to the show's success.
“I constantly thank the man who invented it, Bob Stead. He broke the mould when so much wireless was scripted,” he said. “He let ordinary people loose with a microphone. It started off and it never went away."
Eric said he had always admired the panel who are “enormously skilled people”, rarely stumped when giving their impromptu answers.
With a new places to visit on a weekly basis, where often two episodes would be recorded, the sheer amount of travelling involved was one of the things that led to his decision to stand down.
Nevertheless, Eric is only retiring from one job and will continue broadcasting and writing as well as full-filling his roles as chairman of Cumbria Tourism and chairman of the Wainwright Society, a position he has held since its inception.
“I have got lots of other things I want to do,” he said. “I’m 72 and have been doing this job for 25 years which is a fair shift. It just seemed the right time to do it.
“It has been an immense privilege to do the job. I’m the longest serving chairmen of one of the longest running programmes in the world and it couldn't get better than that."
Radio 4 newsreader Kathy Clugston, who will become the show's first female host, said she was "honoured and excited" to be stepping into the shoes of "the great Eric Robson."
Eric said: "I'm delighted that Kathy has agreed to take over. There was a touch of nervousness but I'm trying to be as helpful as I can. She is a very talented lady with a tremendous sense of humour. I think she will fit in extremely well."
Share