Kensington Palace’s head gardener reveals 75% of his team has been furloughed as he shares behind-the-scenes snap of the Sunken Garden – but insists you ‘roll up your sleeves, eat chocolate and get to work’
- Kensington Palace’s head gardener has revealed his fighting spirit
- Is leading a scaled-back team to keep the Palace’s famous gardens in order
- Graham Dillamore, Gardens & Estates Operations Manager at Hampton Court and Kensington Palace, shared a behind-the-scenes picture of his team
- Admitted that despite his job being tough while 75 per cent of his team are furloughed, you ‘roll up your sleeves, eat chocolate and go to work’
Kensignton Palace’s head gardener has revealed 75 per cent of his team has been furloughed amid the coronavirus crisis.
Graham Dillamore, Gardens and Estates Operations Manager at Hampton Court Palace and Kensington Palace, shared the revelation on LinkedIn alongside a photo of him on site in the Sunken Gardens of Kensington Palace.
The Kingston-based manager shared his can-do attitude, saying he simply ‘rolls up your sleeves, eat chocolate and go to work’ despite the difficulties of working with a smaller team.
His post racked up 500 likes and comments from followers keen to get a look at the inner workings of a historic palace.
Graham Dillamore, Gardens & Estates Operations Manager at Hampton Court Palace and Kensington Palace, took to his LinkedIn account to share a behind-the-scenes picture of his team keeping the gardens at the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s London residence in order
Sharing a picture of his team of eight in Kensington Palace’s sunken gardens, Graham wrote: ‘Managing a Historic Garden with 75 per cent of your staff on furlough isn’t easy, so what do you do ?
‘You roll up your sleeves, find a pair of boots, eat chocolate and go to work. We all did it once and I,m sure we can all put in a proper shift again and lead from the very front.
‘In times of trouble gardeners need close leadership every step of the way ,not working from home or in some remote office.’
The Kingston-based manager shared his can-do attitude, admitting that despite his job being tough while 75 per cent of his team are furloughed, you ‘roll up your sleeves, eat chocolate and go to work’
He joked: ‘We’re a bit tatty around the edges and don’t look too close in the borders but this thing won’t beat us.
In 2017 Graham revealed his memories of working for Princess Diana
‘Garden as though you will live forever’. Thank you my brilliant team’.
Replying to the post, one follower wrote: ‘Looking forward seeing al the hard work, no doubt glorious as ever! With all that nice weather it will be a jungle if not kept at bay!’
Another added: ‘Good work Graham & team! I spend a lot of time in Home Park at the moment, and the gardens always look lovey’.
In 2017 Graham revealed his memories of working for Princess Diana to Hello magazine.
The gardener, who has worked for the palaces for over 35 years, recalled how he worked by the White Garden and State Apartment ground when the late Princess was alive.
Kensington Palace’s head gardener has revealed his fighting spirit, as he leads a scaled-back team to keep the Palace’s famous gardens in order amid the pandemic
He said: ‘I was lucky enough to work here at that time, and the princess would often walk past and admire the colours that were appearing in the garden.
‘She was a very friendly lady,’ he recalled. ‘I was lucky to meet her many times here in the garden, and in the other gardens connected with the palace, and she was always very complimentary of the work we did.’
‘[She] was relaxed with us and very informal. So we were very lucky. She did like a practical joke or two, and sometimes you might be on the end of those, but it was all good fun. [We] had many special moments.’
His post racked up 500 likes and comments from followers keen to get a look at the inner workings of a historic palace