National treasure Alan Titchmarsh has opened up about his little-known hobby that his wife Alison disapproves of. The happy couple tied the knot in 1975 after meeting in their early twenties at an amateur dramatics group.

The TV presenter has often described his wife, who worked as a doctor until she retired, as his “best friend”. These days they split their time between their Grade-II listed Georgian farmhouse in Hampshire and their holiday home near Cowes on the Isle of Wight. The broadcaster mostly shares stunning photos of his garden at home in Hampshire online.

But one thing fans may be surprised to learn is that the horticulturist has a humble hobby that he keeps out of the public eye. During an appearance onthe BBC comedy show Would I Lie To You, the beloved gardener – who soared to stardom in the 1990s on shows like Gardeners' World and Ground Force – revealed that he is a proud owner of a dolls house.

On the show last year, the 75-year-old brought out two pieces of beautifully decorated pieces of furniture and a small white labrador. He then read out from a card: “These are three items from my dolls house.

“I have meticulously furnished it with everything I could put in my real house, if only I was allowed”. Host Rob Brydon quipped: “So, this is your wife that wears the trousers in your house?” which Alan immediately shut him down.

He replied: “No, not wearing the trousers but you have to make it fit in the house” before Rob interjected: “Making all the decisions?” He insisted: “No, not making all the decisions, no.

“We have slightly different taste in furniture and in the doll’s house I can do it totally to my own tastes”. When he was asked what his favourite room in the house was, he excitedly revealed it was the kitchen.

The gardener gushed: “It's Georgian and it’s on four floors [but my favourite room is] the kitchen because you can get very, very skilfully made minute food. I’ve got pork pies, eggs in a basket, broken eggs on the floor, it’s an incredibly intricate thing. It's an art form.

“I’ve got a trifle, there’s a lovely centrepiece on the table with a pineapple and fruit all the way around it. And wine glasses that have got red wine in, tiny little ones. It’s finished now, it’s done but my grandchildren love it, and I undo the front and lift them up and show them the rooms and they love it”.

After he was grilled on the show, the presenter revealed that it was true, and he went on to share some of his beautifully decorated rooms in the Georgian, four floor dolls house.