Alan Titchmarsh

Guests from Alan Titchmarsh’s Love Your Weekend discussed behind-the-scenes antics on the ITV show and shared their honest opinions on the host

Two guests from Love Your Weekend with Alan Titchmarsh have lifted the lid on what truly happens behind the scenes on the popular ITV programme. Shot in a barn nestled in the rural Hampshire countryside, the show sees the beloved gardener celebrate British country living with a roster of weekly guests, including Strictly Come Dancing star Sarah Hadland and comedian Tom Allen.

Recounting their individual experiences on the programme, both stars disclosed that they were offered generous amounts of alcohol away from the cameras.

Speaking together on Pottering with Tom Allen, Sarah said: “I quite like Alan Titchmarsh,” prompting Tom to ask whether she had appeared on his ITV show.

Confirming she had featured twice, she added: “I love it.”

“You go to this barn near Guilford and get p****d,” Tom went on to reveal. Reflecting on her own experience, Sarah recalled drinking “a lot of rum” during her appearance on the show.

“Yeah, they get you really smashed,” Tom added. Sharing her thoughts on the much-loved host, the Strictly star described Alan as “lovely [and] very personable”.

“Very personable,” Tom agreed. “And the people who own the barn [were] very nice.”

Discussing a moment that appeared to take her by surprise, Sarah recalled getting ready in the owner’s daughter’s bedroom, to which the comedian confessed he had done exactly the same.

“I think she moved out a long time ago,” he added. “I was there like, ‘Her eyeliner is magnificent’, she laughed. “The whole feel of it is very chilled.”

Alan remains a firm favourite on ITV, with his show Love Your Garden also proving a massive hit among viewers.

During a recently aired repeated episode, some viewers claimed he and his team “ruined” a garden belonging to couple Rob and Margaret Isdale.

Explaining the 2019 renovation during the episode, the gardener disclosed that he had converted their shed into a mock Tudor-inspired structure, while incorporating several crumbling brick “columns”.

Although many took to X to applaud the transformation, one viewer felt it featured too many “bricks and concrete”, while another described it as “too crowded”.

However, Rob was full of admiration for the team’s hard work, insisting they did “a brilliant job”.

He told us exclusively: “Alan Titchmarsh was great. He came and interviewed us part way through while we were out in the caravan site [as the transformation took place]. Yeah, no complaints at all.”

Rob went on to reveal that while they still cherish their garden, he has made a handful of small changes over the years.

“The shed, that’s now my art studio, I took up painting so I sit in there and do my painting,” he added. “It is the same, the only thing we took down was a tree that was in front of our kitchen window that was blocking out the view a bit and the light.”

Love Your Weekend with Alan Titchmarsh airs today at 9.30am on ITV and ITVX

The Crown star James Murray started off his acting career on ITV soap Coronation Street but the experience left him terrified

James Murray has revealed why he won’t return to Coronation Street after just three episodes.

The actor shared that he featured in three episodes of the ITV soap when speaking to Alan Titchmarsh on Love Your Weekend on Sunday (March 15).

When asked to share who he played in the long-running serial drama, James told the ITV host he was Sandy the barman many years ago.

He commented: “I was Jack and Vera’s barman for about three episodes, it was a frightening experience.

“No good at the job! Thankfully, I think I was contracted for three episodes, so I was in and out, but it was so frightening because Bill Tarmey, who played Jack, was a wonderful man.

“You know how those things are filmed, it’s very quick. It’s like a sausage factory! There’s not much time for creative input from the actors, shall we say. You just stand on your mark, say your line, and we move on.

“That was my first introduction into the world of acting, screen acting. I walked into the Rovers, and I was absolutely petrified!

“The bright lights, I overlearned my lines, and I was just a mess. I was shaking and sweating.”

James recalled how Bill was polishing some glass during their scene together and noticed how nervous he was.

The actor added: “He [Bill] went, ‘You’re shaking like a leaf, son, either stop shaking or think of doing something else’.

“After that stint on Corrie, I said I don’t want to be an actor, or I don’t want to be an actor like this, because it was so frightening to me!

“Being thrown into the lion’s den, first off. I then went and did theatre and other things, but yeah, never again. My hat goes off to the way they act in those shows because it’s so quick.”

Luckily, it wasn’t enough to turn him off of acting completely as James has gone on to star in many well known shows. Recently, he appeared as Raef Lonsdale in the 2025 BBC drama series Wild Cherry, one of the more villainous characters in the show.

While speaking to Alan Titchmarsh he joked he ‘can’t remember’ the last time he didn’t play an evil character, admitting it may have something to do with his eyebrows.

Love Your Weekend with Alan Titchmarsh is available to watch on Saturdays on ITV from 9:30am

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