Secret Dorset: How a potting shed became a broadcasting icon
There was a time when Jack Hargreaves' rustic potting shed was famous.
TL;DR
- Jack Hargreaves was a TV presenter famous for the show 'Out of Town', which focused on traditional country life.
- The show's iconic set was initially a mock-up shed in a studio, later moving to Hargreaves' actual potting shed in Belchalwell, Dorset.
- Hargreaves also produced public information broadcasts during WWII and created the children's TV program 'How'.
- After Southern TV was taken over, Hargreaves moved his show to Channel Four as 'Old Country', still using a shed as his studio.
- A replica of his set was famously used in the BBC comedy series 'The Fast Show'.
- Hargreaves later produced a home video series using his actual shed in Dorset.
- He was awarded an OBE in 1972 for his work on the Nugent Report.
- The original potting shed still exists and remains untouched.
- Hargreaves died in 1994, with his ashes reportedly scattered on Bulbarrow hill.