• Analysis
Tommy Walsh dies: Ground Force presenter and DIY expert was 69
Tommy Walsh, the builder and presenter who co-hosted the BBC garden makeover show Ground Force with Alan Titchmarsh and Charlie Dimmock, has died aged 69 after a long illness.
A decade on Ground Force
Walsh rose to fame on BBC Ground Force, the garden makeover show he co-presented from 1997 to 2005 with Alan Titchmarsh and Charlie Dimmock. His big break came after he restored the house of a BBC producer who was working on ideas for what would become the programme.
- •At its peak, Ground Force attracted 12 million viewers.
- •In one episode, the team flew to South Africa to work in secret on Nelson Mandela's garden, building a pergola and a water feature.
- •He turned the show down three times before agreeing, when his eight-year-old daughter said she had made a £10 school bet that her dad would be on TV.
Speaking to the BBC in 2004, Walsh recalled being asked to look at a couple of pilots, one of them Over the Garden Wall, which he described as a precursor to Ground Force.
It was like watching paint dry. It was terrible.
Television career beyond the garden
He went on to front programmes including Clean It, Fix It and Cowboys and Angels. In 2021 he joined the BBC show Homes Under the Hammer, following renovation projects and attending property auctions.
Family and agent's statement
His agent, Debbie Schiesser, told the Press Association that Walsh was surrounded by his family at the end.
Tommy died peacefully after a long illness surrounded by his family.
As this has only just happened, we would ask everyone to please respect the family's privacy.
Schiesser asked everyone to respect the family's privacy, saying the death had only just happened. Walsh was married to Marie Walsh and was father to three children: Charlotte, Natalie and Jonjo.
From Hackney to the screen
Walsh was from Hackney in east London and ran his own property business before his television career. He attended Parmiter's grammar school in Bethnal Green and played football for the Old Parmiterians, who announced his passing on X, saying he played in goal for the club for many years and will be sorely missed.
