BEECHGROVE JIM DIES AT 89

Telly gardening guru shared his expertise with viewers for 41yrs

- JOHN DINGWALL

JIM McColl, who presented the BBC's Beechgrove Garden television show for more than four decades, has died aged 89.

Jim, who lived in Oldmeldrum, Aberdeenshire, passed away peacefully on Tuesday.

He first hosted BBC Scotland's gardening show when it began in 1978, retiring after 41 years in 2019.

Popular with fellow gardeners and with his catchphrase "every day is a school day", he described his calling as "part of the fabric of our lives".

Colleagues on the programme paid tribute, describing him as "a local hero first and a Scottish national treasure next".