Sudbury woman and Cancer Research UK volunteer Eileen Baldwin who featured on ITV’s Love Your Garden says being on show was ‘an honour and a privilege’

A Sudbury woman whose jokes about wanting Alan Titchmarsh to renovate the garden at her new home actually became a reality when she featured in a hit TV show has spoken of the experience.

Eileen Baldwin, 83, works at the Cancer Reasearch UK shop in the town, and joked with a fellow volunteer that a visit from the famous gardener would be the ‘icing on the cake’ after moving into a new bungalow.

It came as a great surprise when, upon being told to make her way downstairs during another shift at the Market Hill shop last year, Eileen was greeted by the TV presenter himself.

“I said ‘Oh my goodness, my favourite gardener!’,” Eileen recalled, laughing.

“My favourite charity shop worker!” replied Alan, who had arrived with cameras from the ITV show Love Your Garden in tow.

The episode shows Eileen, who is affectionately known in the shop as the ‘Queen of Steam’, teaching Alan a new skill by showing him how to steam donated clothes before they head back to her home where she lives with her husband of 63 years, Roy, who has Parkinson’s disease.

Eileen said: “I love gardening and had about a quarter of an acre in our last home, but I’ll be 84 in May, so I wanted a smaller garden I could keep under control.

“It was just basic at that time. We hadn’t done anything to it apart from lay the patio.”

Eileen and Roy went to stay in Yorkshire in April 2022 while the Love Your Garden team got to work, with the help of the couple’s children and nieces.

Upon returning three days later, Eileen said: “It’s lovely. I’ve got some cypress trees, silver birch trees, little holly trees, loads of lavender, loads of catmint, tulips, all sorts of different plants, loads of them.

“We’ve got a very nice area to sit under, with a table and two chairs, so it’s perfect for me and Roy. We sit in the garden most days.”

Since the episode aired, Eileen has received cards from well-wishers and even been recognised as far as 20 miles from home, with one passer-by commenting how they loved the garden.

Eileen continued: “I love Alan. He came over just like he is on the telly, very natural and easy to talk to.

“I love the show, too. I don’t miss any episodes, so it was an honour and privilege to be selected.”

Being selected was in part thanks to Eileen’s stalwart service at the Cancer Research UK shop.

She has just received an Honorary Fellowship at the charity’s annual Flame of Hope Awards which acknowledged her remarkable efforts in volunteering, and recently celebrated 25 years of supporting the Sudbury shop.

Find out more about opportunities to volunteer for Cancer Research UK at cruk.org.uk/volunteering.

Eileen said: “When I first started, I think I was 58, I’d just retired and I thought I couldn’t sit around doing nothing.

“I cashed up and all sorts of things, but I mostly do steaming over three hours on Wednesday and Thursday mornings now. I used to go much longer!

“I enjoy it, even after all this time. It’s a wonderful way to get you out meeting people and feeling like you’re doing a bit of good. I think everybody should be volunteering if they can. It’s a fine way to pay back society.”