Tales from Titchmarsh

It may seem that we gardeners can't sit still for more than a minute, but it’s only because being busy is so very relaxing

- Alan

“What is it about you that most irritates your wife?” an interviewer asked me recently. Blooming cheek! But it was a question I did not have to think about for too long. What irritates my wife above all else is my inability to sit still for more than five minutes. (Or so she says. Rather an exaggeration I feel.) I am, you see, a born potterer. Let me clarify: I am not one of those folk whose nervous energy causes them to leap out of a chair at any opportunity. I can happily sit down in front of the box and watch a two-hour drama, provided it captures my imagination. But that's about the time limit for the duration of my inactivity. I can read a book during the day on holiday but during the working week I admit that such an indulgence is more difficult. Ten or fifteen minutes just before bed is my ration.