Coronation flowers: Shane Connolly's floral arrangement fit for a king - BBC

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By David Maxwell

Presenter, Gardeners’ Corner

Saturday 6 May was always going to be a big day for Shane Connolly.

He was planning to mark a significant birthday but the go-to royal florist gladly put his party plans on hold when he was invited to play an important role in a national celebration.

He has masterminded the floral backdrop for images that will go down in history.

Born and brought up in west Belfast, this floral designer is no stranger to royal events and national celebrations.

He arranged the flowers for the wedding of King Charles III and Camilla, the Queen Consort in St George's Chapel, Windsor, in 2005.

In 2011 his services were called upon again for the wedding of the Prince of Wales and Catherine, Princess of Wales at Westminster Abbey.

Homegrown products

His cut-flower philosophy chimes perfectly with the long-established eco credentials of the King.

Mr Connolly will only use flowers and foliage that are seasonal and local and for the Coronation; this material will be sourced from every part of the UK.

Shane Connolly arranging purple flowers for the Coronation

For the Royal Warrant holder, the event is an opportunity to showcase the beauty of what can be grown in these islands.

"A big event like a wedding or a coronation can get across to people that you don't have to be too clever," he told BBC's Gardeners' Corner programme.

"You can be simple and not afraid of seasonal, local things.

"There's so many times when flowers are the show-off bit and I absolutely abhor that - I hate it. It makes my toes curl."

Thousands of daffodils are arranged on the Grand Staircase in Windsor Castle

Trees have played a vital role in both of Mr Connolly's royal wedding arrangements.

Planting them out after the event is a way to make sure one element of the day lives on.

The Field Maples lining Westminster Abbey for Prince William and Catherine's wedding became famous but Mr Connolly admitted they were not his original intention.

"There was an idea that we'd have an aisle of blossom trees and I don't know who thought of that - probably me," he said.

"By about 20 April there was no blossom left in the land - even in Scotland, the blossom had blossomed.

"So we changed to green trees which, of course, became more iconic, more beautiful."

Workers put up an English Maple tree inside Westminster Abbey

Mr Connolly's interest in flowers and love of gardening was inherited from his late mum, Peggy.

Growing up just off the Glen Road in west Belfast, he said it was always the norm to have flowers in the house.

"My parents had a very modest house and a very modest garden but mum would always cut something in the garden and bring it in," he said.

"If people were coming she would buy a bunch of daffodils - to me, that was what happened."

If he wanted to be in the good books, he said, "a bunch of flowers was the way to do it" and freesias were the ones he would most often buy from his florist's.

"I used to watch the florists in Leckey and Golden and think: 'What skill!'"

It was a skill that he too would develop in London after concluding that psychology was not for him.

A friend of a friend introduced him to a floral designer and, by 1989, he had his own studio.

'You are dealing with a family'

His naturalistic and sustainable floral designs brought him to the attention of the royal family.

Mr Connolly has held Royal Warrants for the late Queen Elizabeth II and the former Prince of Wales.

When it comes to big state occasions, he tries not to dwell on the media attention and instead focuses on the wishes of his royal clients.

"I think about the people rather than the spectators. If I thought about the spectators I wouldn't be able to do it," he explained.

"At the time you are dealing with humans and a family - who are just nice and kind and polite and thankful - and you don't think of the rest."

A full interview with Florist Shane Connolly and a Londonderry man who is the King's Head of Gardens at his Highgrove Estate can be heard in The King's Garden: A Gardeners' Corner Special on BBC Sounds.