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Awarded to
Matthew Biggs
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Awarded to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution over a number of years to our profession. This award is in the gift of the GMG Committee.
Previous winners of the Lifetime Achievement Award are:
1993 Peter Seabrook; 1994 Fred Whitsey; 1995 Graham Stuart-Thomas; 1996 Rosemary Verey; 1997 Christopher Lloyd; 1998 Beth Chatto; 1999 Penelope Hobhouse; 2000 Geoff Amos; 2001 Jerry Harpur; 2002 Roy Lancaster; 2003 Joy Larkcom; 2004 Alan Titchmarsh; 2005 Dr David Hessayon; 2006 Geoffrey Smith; 2007 Ken Muir; 2008 Michael Warren
2009 Peter Beales; 2010 Andrew Lawson; 2011 John Brookes & Nigel Colborn; 2012 Jekka McVicar; 2013 Stefan Buczacki; 2014 Christopher Brickell; 2015 Adrian Bloom; 2016 Jim McColl; 2017 Richard Jackson; 2018 Gary Rogers; 2019 Carol Klein; 2020 Anna Pavord; 2021 Graham Rice; 2022 Michael Marriott; 2023 Barbara Segall
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Judges Comments
All five finalists were excellent examples of titles that delved deeply into a specialist subject. And the winner is a book that showed charm and beauty, whilst displaying no compromise on accuracy. The practical instructions were clear, and the supporting layout was presented in a manner that confirms the book’s contributors as masters of their subject. The tone was perfect, un-patronising, and ideally pitched to its target audience. All generations will find this an incredibly useful and inspirational title.
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Judges Comments
The winner of this category is a future classic: every page has long-distilled thoughts and wider life experiences which make you stop, think, and look outside. Some of the pages on why we garden are just magnificent. It was this mix of the practical, the philosophical and the inspirational that made this book stand out to the judges in an extremely competitive field.
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Judges Comments
All the finalists were examples of excellence, with the highest standards of format, presentation, content and a clear approach to communication with their target audience. So choosing a winner was not straightforward as they all had their outstanding qualities. However we agreed that this publication has exceptionally broad appeal , showing originality, inspiring the reader and, at the same time, giving clearly understandable, practical advice. Its ongoing success is well deserved.
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Judges Comments
It was a very close contest for first place, but this winner’s work is a great example of the very best in feature writing with layers of technical accuracy, an ease of pace and a clear passion for whatever they write. The three different types of articles submitted were
all well balanced and fully appropriate for their audience.
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Judges Comments
This was a fiercely contested category with the winner and runners up all scoring extremely close marks. The overall quality of the articles was excellent, and the subjects covered were fascinating, varied, timely and inspirational.
The winner’s writing gave readers a wealth of ideas presented in a friendly and accessible way. Each subject was presented clearly, in a well-thought order that was easy to follow and resulted in the reader feeling ‘I can do this’. The winner also promoted a sense of community enabling readers to feel they were all part of one big gardening world.
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Judges Comments
Our Garden Columnist of the Year brings the garden to life through their words. As you read their columns, you can almost feel the soil beneath your fingernails and smell the fragrant blooms. This writer's energy and enthusiasm shine through, inviting readers to join them in their horticultural adventures.
These columns are relatable, educational and entertaining. They don't just inform; they inspire, sharing both the triumphs and challenges of life in the garden.
Reading our Garden Columnist of the Year is like having a knowledgeable friend by your side, guiding you through the joys of gardening with warmth, wit and wisdom.
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Judges Comments
There was an outstandingly high standard of entries this year, with every entry offering a different and inspiring perspective to a horticultural or gardening issue related to the environment. We wish everyone could read them all, but we agreed that this year’s winner was the entry which has the potential to reach, inspire and influence a wide range of people, from teachers, parents and community workers to amateur and professional gardeners and more, across different countries and cultures. It was inspiring, inclusive and made us want to get involved.
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Judges Comments
The winner of the Gordon Rae Photographer of the Year emerged from a very strong field but thankfully the judges were able to agree on who should take the prize. The winning photographs cover a range of subjects including sumptuous garden views, intimate plant portraits and a stunning still life. Technical brilliance, beautiful light and striking composition are found throughout the images but above all, this selection displayed a wonderful emotional depth.
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Judges Comments
The judges felt the overall standard of submissions for the Features Photographer this year was very high and they found it very difficult to choose the overall winner. However this winner showed the highest level of skill as a landscape photographer. The use of light, and the skill of composition were breath taking. Both the closeup photography and the landscape images showed superb skill. The opening photo with the mist rising from the earth was pure magic.
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Judges Comments
The winner’s beautiful macro photography reveals so much detail that the viewer has to spend time admiring the intricate complexity captured in each image.
These photographs are not just botanical observations but - through the winner’s special way of capturing and editing the images – they are also art.
The more you look at the photographs, the more these magical details reveal themselves.
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Judges Comments
This is a personal, engaging and immersive programme that asks big questions about what gardens have been in the past and might be in the future. Fascinating contextual and historical detail was expertly interpreted through a wide range of diverse gardens and interviews with experts. The judges felt the programme was highly thought-provoking on the challenges a changing climate brings and putting them into context. Technically excellent, we felt it was stylistically beautiful, both in terms of pacing and framing.
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Judges Comments
The winner is an uplifting listen despite a potentially difficult subject matter. There is incisive frankness and humour, as well as the sharing of practical ideas, and advice for those who would like to help but might feel awkward. The joy and value of gardening has never been put more convincingly than this - a podcast full of optimism, candour and useful tips where the interviewer melted into the background allowing his subject to take centre stage.
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Judges Comments
The quality of all the entries was very high but after a lively discussion we found our winner. The winning entrant is a natural communicator, able to deliver a great deal of useful and interesting information with clarity and professionalism. This winner is constructive, clear, and encouraging, delivering comprehensive horticultural advice, injected with plenty of individual detail, encouraging everybody watching to try something new.
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Judges Comments
The digital gardening writer of the year category attracted a number of exceptional entries covering a wide range of topics. Choosing a winner was a difficult task.
The winner’s entry was fresh, interesting, humorous and entertaining, presenting readers with intriguing new edibles to grow and cook, along with information about lesser known parts of commonly grown plants that are good to eat. The writing is informative and lyrical in equal measure and the interactions with readers are lovely.
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Judges Comments
The winner has a natural flair and creates such fun, bright and engaging videos. The subject matter of this video could potentially have been rather dull, but the winner’s enthusiasm had us enthralled from the start and we were absolutely invested in what the ending would be. Practical, yet genuinely entertaining and something that could be scaled for any size garden space.
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Judges Comments
The shortlist of six demonstrates the incredibly high standard of entries for this category this year, but the judges particularly loved the way the winner used beautifully shot and creative video content to deliver valuable lessons and advice, often with an important educational message, in an accessible way across a number of platforms. By sharing their gardening knowledge generously (and creatively) they have, in a very short space of time, grown a thriving community full of engaged gardeners - a brilliant achievement!
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Judges Comments
We were looking for content that reflected the brand, was horticulturally accurate, informed the viewer and offered a high level of creativity and inspiration.
It was great to have entries from those at the start of their journey and witness how inventive accounts can be even on low budgets. We saw so much potential in so many.
Our winner was generous with advice and with beautifully crafted posts, reels and videos consumers are bound to make a lasting connection with the brand. The content felt like home and was trustworthy and valuable to a wide audience.
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