Royal revelation as gardener traces his roots

Monty Don got more than he bargained for when he agreed to feature on Who Do You Think You Are? – the TV gardener discovered that he is directly related to his wife's first husband as well as a royal link.

By The Newsroom

Published 4th Aug 2010, 11:08 BST

Updated 4th Aug 2010, 11:09 BST

The former Gardeners' World presenter met his future wife Sarah at Cambridge University in 1979. They eloped to North Yorkshire while she was married to another man, who rowed in the same boat as Don.

The discovery that Don, 55, is related to Sarah's former husband is one of two revelations that are not actually shown in next Monday's programme.

The other finding is a royal connection – that Sir Alexander Erskine of Gogar, the guardian of James I, who had been King of Scotland for 36 years when he became King of England, was one of Don's ancestors.

He said: "Another really interesting thing that doesn't get shown is that I'm directly related to my wife's first husband.

"I didn't discover that until I made the programme. That's quite extraordinary."

He has been married to Sarah for 27 years their three children are now grown up.