GARDENING enthusiasts will be able to take in the delights of The Abbey House Gardens in Malmesbury from the comfort of their own homes.

The gardens, which are in the shadow of the ancient abbey, are set to feature in BBC television's Gardener's World.

Film crews have been at the gardens this week for the fifth time and are expected to be back again over the next few months.

Ian and Barbara Pollard bought the house and gardens in 1994 and since then have made a massive investment in the grounds.

"We have not only been influenced by the site's history, and particularly the fact that Benedictine monks had gardened here, but we have developed new ideas for the future," said Mrs Pollard.

"A researcher for the programme visited the gardens in the spring looking at the 2,000 roses we planted for the Millennium and, having seen what else was here, the programme makers decided to feature the whole garden and not just the roses.

"This is excellent news for us and will hopefully put the Abbey Gardens on the gardening map."

The programme is scheduled for April or May next year and will also feature a cascading waterfall now being built.

The gardens, which reflect the medieval and Tudor history of the house and its setting.

It was opened to the public in 1999 and since then visitor numbers have steadily increased.

Despite the foot and mouth crisis last year and an overall drop in the tourist industry, there was a 40 per cent increase in visitors at the Abbey Gardens and 20,343 people enjoyed the herb garden, the river setting, the roses and the archways.

The gardens have been featured on television once before when the Pollards discovered a mediaeval stone coffin when they were laying the foundations for the Millennium rose project.

The coffin became the focus of an episode in the first series of BBC's Meet the Ancestors in 1998.

The gardens, which are adjacent to the Abbey's Cloister Gardens, are open to the public from March 21 2002.