Fife allotment holder to make BBC Beechgrove debut tonight

A Leven allotment holder will make his TV debut this evening, on the BBC Scotland show, Beechgrove.
By Jamie Callaghan
Published 22nd Apr 2021, 11:47 BST
Updated 23rd Apr 2021, 12:00 BST
Calum at his Silverburn allotment.Calum at his Silverburn allotment.
Calum at his Silverburn allotment.

Calum Clunie will be making regular appearances on the show, sharing the secrets of his gardening success from his allotment at Silverburn Park.

He will be making his first appearance this evening, with the episode then available to watch on demand on iPlayer.

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Speaking to the Mail ahead of his appearance, Calum said he was “still pinching himself” at being asked to present on the show, admitting that it was a “great honour” to be taking part.

“I’m really excited and looking forward to seeing how it comes out," he said.

"My job is to take people through the gardening process. We’ll be showing everything that I grow for the show.”

Calum (22) is a School of Rugby co-ordinator who works closely with the Department of Additional Support (DAS) in the high school where he coaches.

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Gardening and growing have been passions of Calum since a young age.

He was encouraged to get involved in gardening by his family, particularly his grandparents, when he was young.

"I’d be in the garden when I was younger, then I started doing my parents’ garden,” Calum explained. “Then I plucked up the courage to ask my neighbours if I could do their garden. I did that for four years.”

He then leapt at the chance to take on an allotment at Silverburn Park when they were opened four years ago – where he now films his segments for the show.

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"I enjoy that the allotment is my space and I can go there and relax,” he said. “I can get my hands in the soil and watch things grow.”

Calum has been a fan of Beechgrove since its launch, and, when the show put out an appeal on social media last year for questions from fans, he wasted no time in submitting his own query.

The relationship grew from there, and, earlier this year, the Beechgrove team asked him to join for 2021.

Can we expect to see Calum on our screens more in the future?

"I’ll never say never, but I’m just enjoying this huge chance I’ve been given,” he said. “We’ll see what the future holds.”

Beechgrove is available to watch on BBC Scotland at 8pm.

Related topics:BBCBBC Scotland