Percy Thrower

A bust of Percy Thrower in the Dingle gardens of The Quarry, Shrewsbury, Shropshire. Percy John Thrower (30 January 1913 – 18 March 1988) was a British gardener, horticulturist, broadcaster and writer born at Horwood House in the village of Little Horwood, Buckinghamshire.

Thrower became nationally known through presenting gardening programmes, starting in 1956 with the BBC's Gardening Club, then the BBC's Gardeners' World from 1969 until 1976.

Career as gardener The surname Thrower is peculiar to East Anglia, where Percy's father worked as a gardener at Bawdsey Manor, Suffolk, before moving to Horwood House near Bletchley, Buckinghamshire, as head gardener. Percy Thrower was determined from an early age to be a head gardener like his father, and worked under him at Horwood House for four years after leaving school. He then became a journeyman gardener in 1931, at the age of 18, at the Royal Gardens at Windsor Castle, on £1 a week. He lived in the bothy at Windsor, along with twenty other improver gardeners and disabled ex-servicemen who were employed on full wages. He spent five years there under the supervision of the head gardener, Charles Cook, who was subsequently to become his father-in-law.

Thrower left Windsor on 1 August 1935 for the City of Leeds Parks Department as a journeyman. There he passed the Royal Horticultural Society's General Exam. In 1937, he moved to Derby Parks Department, initially as a journeyman, but was promoted to be a foreman, General Foreman and finally the Assistant Parks Superintendent. At Derby, he met John Maxfield, whom he considered to be the best gardener he ever worked with. Percy studied and passed the National Diploma in Horticulture (N.D.H.) at the second attempt. He also became a lecturer at Derby Technical College. Percy became a Special Constable on fire-watching duties after twice being turned down for active service after volunteering. A football pools win of £52 enabled him to buy his first car, a Morris Eight.

Thrower's final career move was to Shrewsbury where on 1 January 1946, he was appointed Parks Superintendent, becoming the youngest parks superintendent. He had a staff of about 35. He had reached the top of his profession at just 32 years of age and it was his sole ambition in life. He remained in post until 1974

Thrower's work for the BBC was not restricted to gardening. In the 1960s, Thrower, a habitual pipe smoker, was asked by the radio producer Tony Shryane to provide sound effects for The Archers. He gave up smoking after a heart attack in 1985.

In 1967, Thrower became involved with the development of what was one of the first garden centres, Syon Park, near Brentford, Middlesex, owned by the Duke of Northumberland and backed by Plant Protection, a division of ICI, who had leased from the Duke. The centre was a success at first, but then sales tailed off and Thrower left the project. In 1970, in partnership with Duncan Murphy, he bought the firm of Murrell's of Shrewsbury and turned it into the Percy Thrower Garden Centre.

Thrower retired in 1974 from the post of Superintendent of Parks at Shrewsbury and started a weekly column for the Daily Mail in 1975. He also wrote for several other papers, notably the Daily Express and the Sunday Express. He wrote for the magazine Amateur Gardening and also wrote many books, which were published by Collingbridge and later Hamlyn.

The BBC dropped Thrower in 1975 when he agreed a contract with Plant Protection, for a series of commercials on independent television.