I'm Helena Bonkarter and this is history's secret heroes.

In this series we'll hear stories of daring secret missions and rarely heard tales from World War II, like Emily, the enigmatic high-ranking

codebreaker, and Tremont, the escape artist, interned in a German camp.

Tales of danger, dynamism and downright determination.

The new series of history's secret heroes.

Listen first on BBC Sounds.

BBC Sounds.

BBC Sounds Music Radio Podcasts.

Hello and welcome to Gardner's Question Time.

We're back near the banks of the River Thames in the

borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London. It's one of the oldest parts of the capital.

There's evidence of human settlement here about 2,000 years ago. In fact, due to the historical importance of this area,

keen allotment holders aren't permitted to dig below a certain depth,

and the growing of trees is restricted but not impossible.

Just down the road from our venue today, which is the Sans End Arts and Community Center,

is Fulham Palace, which was completed in 1520.

The Palace Bishop, between 1670, which was one Henry Compton, a very keen gardener. He arranged for rare plants to be shipped.

The palace bishop, and 1713, was one Henry Compton, a very keen gardener.

He arranged for rare plants to be shipped back from North America, Africa, India and the Caribbean.

And during his time at Fulham Palace, the gardens were said to be home to about a thousand exotic plant species,

which made Fulham Palace one of the most important

botanic gardens of the time. Our own exotic plant lover Matthew Potage will be

...