This biography explores the life and legacy of Penelope Hobhouse, widely recognised as the ‘Grande Dame’ of English garden design. From the late 1970s to the late 2000s, owning a ‘Penelope Hobhouse’ garden was the ultimate aspiration for many of the world’s wealthy. But Hobhouse’s influence goes beyond her status as a designer for the elite: her books on plant and garden history are standard works for gardeners worldwide, celebrated for their historical scholarship. She designed gardens all over the world, including several in the US, such as the one for Steve Jobs in California. Her profile soared in the 1990s through a collaboration with film star Audrey Hepburn on the television series ‘Gardens of the World’. Her family garden at Hadspen in Somerset is now part of The Newt.