Carole Baxter

Carole Baxter is a gardener who was born in 1958 and grew up near Maidstone in Kent.

As a child she would help her Father to look after their acre of land and she would earn her pocket money, stone picking in the garden.

Carole attended Sussex university where she obtained a Honours Degree in Geography.

On leaving and after a stint doing shop work she became an under Gardener at Kildrummy Castle in Aberdeenshire.

Her next gardening role was at the Headquarters of the University Air Squadron.

Carole went on day release to Elmwood College Fife to study Amenity Horticulture.

From little acorns

Carole Baxter started at Beechgrove Gardens behind the camera as an assistant Gardener.

When the Head Gardener retired in 1984 Carole got the job.

Two years later in 1986 Carole Baxter was to be the first woman to co-presenter of a gardening programme in the UK.

This at the time made headline news!

The other Presenter of Beechgrove Garden was Jim McColl.

Carole has been on the popular Scottish gardening programme ever since.

It was renamed from The Beechgrove Gardens to Beechgrove Garden,when it moved to its present site in 1995/1996.

After the retirement of Jim McColl in 2020 it became Beechgrove.

The programme gained viewers from all over the UK in 2013 when it was given a regular Sunday morning BBC2 slot.

Alongside Carole Baxter the current presenters on Beechgrove in 2020 are George Anderson, Chris Beardshaw, Brian Cunningham, Kirsty Wilson and Sophie McKilligan.

For the new season of Beechgrove 2021 there are 2 new Presenters Mairi Rattray and Calum Clunie.

Carole Baxter is married to Mike Baxter, who she met at university.