Monty Don looking at the camera
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Monty Don fans rally round as he shares heartbreaking picture from Nigel’s grave

Someone hand us the tissues please…

Monty Don fans have rallied in support of the Gardeners’ World favourite as he shared a heartbreaking snap from the grave of his beloved dog Nigel.

The 67-year-old, who first shot to fame back in 2000s, left fans “welling up” after he posted a picture of Nigel’s final resting place.

Monty Don and Nigel on Gardeners' World
Monty Don took to his Instagram to share a heartbreaking snap  (Credit: BBC)

What happened to Monty Don’s dog Nigel?

Sadly Monty’s beloved Golden Retriever Nigel passed away in May 2020.

The sweet dog was a regular feature on Gardeners’ World, and an absolute favourite with viewers.

Monty is an avid dog lover, and still has several other dogs, including a Yorkshire Terrier.

monty don
The TV star lost his beloved pooch Nigel in 2020 (Credit: SplashNews.com)

Monty Don shares sweet post from the grave

On Tuesday (January 10) the TV star took to his Instagram to share an emotional picture of Nigel’s resting place.

He simply captioned the snap: “Nigel’s Grave.”

Plenty of Monty’s loyal legion of fans took to the comments to send their support to their favourite TV gardener.

“A mossy stone and cyclamens, what a lovely resting place for such a gentle soul!” one user proclaimed.

A second added: “I think of Nigel often. He loved being on TV.”

“Oh my this made well up” said another emotional fan.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Monty Don (@themontydon)

Fans send their support to Monty Don

“They may be physically gone but they stay in our hearts forever,” someone else commented.

A fifth fan gushed: “This is beautiful and honest setting for a noble soul.”

Echoing their throughs, a sixth person penned: “Never forget dear Nigel and his beloved tennis ball.”

“Beautiful Nigel. What a fitting, serene resting place,” somebody else wrote.

A seventh agreed: “How beautiful to have him still with you, in your garden – his garden. And what a lovely headstone, with the moss and the sweet flowers!”

monty don nigel
Monty with the late Nigel (Credit: BBC)

Pets offer ‘powerful medicine’

Monty has previously spoken about how his pets have helped him through terrible bouts of depression.

During an interview on Radio 4, he said his mental health has benefited from having pets.

Monty explained: “I think that if you suffer from any kind of mental illness, whether it be depression or anxiety or whatever, having someone to look after who returns that attention with completely unqualified love, is very powerful. It’s powerful medicine.

“If you have a dog you have to take it for a walk, which means you have to go outside, put your boots on and put a coat on. As anybody who is listening knows that when you are depressed you don’t do any of that.

“You don’t get out of bed, you eat badly, you don’t do what you’re supposed to do, you don’t do what you want to do because you don’t want to do anything.

“And so on and so forth. So having a dog you have to give food and water and walk and attention, and who just loves you, is extraordinary,” he concluded.

Read more: Monty Don issues apology – and explanation – to ‘disappointed’ fans on social media

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Joey Crutchley
Freelance Writer

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