Levens Hall and Gardens to be Showcased by Robson and Helen

Cumbria’s Small Visitor Attraction of the Year, Levens Hall and Gardens, is hitting the TV spotlight again on Monday, February 24.  The historic Elizabethan mansion and gardens will be featured in the Robson Green’s Weekend Escapes programme, in an episode in which presenters Robson Green and Helen Skelton drop in to explore.

Whilst at Levens Hall and Gardens, the duo explored the glorious gardens offering, including the world’s oldest topiary garden, founded in 1694.

They also found time to take in other delights of the extensive gardens, beyond the topiary garden.  At one point they relax on a bench in the Fountain Garden, created to celebrate the 300th birthday of the Levens Hall gardens, back in 1994.

The programme should help highlight how the topiary garden might be the main initial draw to the South Lakes-based visitor attraction but how there is so much more to see.

In terms of the gardens, this also includes the earliest example of a ha-ha in England.  This was a feature, which became popular at the start of the 18th century, which enabled an uninterrupted view of the landscape, by removing physical barriers between farm animals and gardens and replacing them with a sunken ditch.

The gardens are also home to a vibrant orchard, nuttery, herb garden, glorious herbaceous borders that come into their own in summer, a children’s playground and the Beech Circle.  The latter is bordered by the gigantic, 300-year-old Beech Hedge, which creates a touch of the Harry Potter when standing in the circle that it forms. 

Levens Hall and Gardens has only recently featured on the TV programme, ‘Monty Don’s British Gardens’, and is enjoying a wave of TV exposure.  In late September and early October 2024, it even featured on ITN evening news and 10 regional TV stations, as its annual trimming of the topiary became a major news item.

It is rapidly becoming an ideal place for fashion shoots too, with both Barbour and Malina having staged photography shoots in the gardens in 2024.

Owner Richard Bagot says, “Having exposure in so many places is wonderful for Levens Hall and Gardens but also great news for the South Lakes economy and for Cumbria’s tourism sector in general.  Visitors do not just react and visit us, but spend money with other local businesses, whether they are accommodation providers, food suppliers or other retailers.  We have put enormous effort behind our marketing and it is all paying off fantastically, generating benefits for the local economy in both the South Lakes and northern Lancashire.”

For more information about Levens Hall and Gardens, which reopens for the season on March 28, head to www.levenshall.co.uk

Robson Green’s Weekend Escapes, featuring Levens Hall and Gardens, will air on Monday February 24, at 6.30pm on BBC2.

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Editors notes

Levens Hall & Gardens is a historic house in the South Lakes, Cumbria, close to Kendal and home to the world's oldest topiary gardens, dating from 1694, created by French garden designer, Guillaume Beaumont. The Hall is a stunning Elizabethan house built around a 13th century pele tower and has close links to the Duke of Wellington, as well as various items which once belonged to him and Napoleon Bonaparte. Levens Park is home to the rare Bagot goats gifted to the Bagot family and a place in which to stroll and enjoy nature. Levens Kitchen is the contemporary new cafe, full of delights for cake lovers and foodies alike.