I bought BB at a garden center by accident. The bushes weren't in bloom and somehow I I got it confused with Christopher Marlow. So now I have three of them. I do like it, very healthy. Mine has never shown much of the orangey tone that the catalogue photo has. It's hard to describe the color: a warm dark pink, not quite hot pink. There's a certain iridescence.

It's not quite so tough to coordinate as you'd imagine. There's a design drawing in DAs catalogue that places it between Molineux on one side and Mayflower & Falstaff on the other. Plenty of contrast there.

In my garden, BB has Mary Magdalene & Brother Cadfael on one side, and Munstead Wood & The Alexandra Rose on the other.

You might have a look at the Austin Rose 'Christopher Marlowe'. It is gorgeous in its own right, but has a colour that would complement Benjamin Britten. It is also lower growing and spreading or arching in habit. It gets rave reviews on the comments tab at Help Me Find Roses. It struggles a bit for me in my cold climate, I grow it in a pot. But it is a rose I like very much. In a warm climate, it should be superb.

Cheers, RRL

We have 2 Benjamin Brittens in a bed with the following roses:

1. Cinco de Mayo
2. Coloriffic (2)
3. Easy Does It (3)
4. Safari (Clements) (2)

We are going to let Dolly Parton join the party soon.

Good luck in your choices,

John

We have BB with Dolly Parton, New Yorker, Brown Velvet, Black Tea, Clementina Carboneria, Graduation Day, and Gitte with dusky yellow and blue companion plants.

Thanks all. I see that BB is being used in many different scenarios so I guess I'll just do what I usually do ref garden design. Plant, watch and then regret...
Nik

" Plant, watch and then regret... " LOL. Nik, I guess I'd suggest just using cooler colors; creams, light yellows, to offset the brightness of BB. Mine clashes with an Earth Song nearby, but it goes well with Garden Party to the other side.

I think it would look nice backed with lots of feathery green foliage - like fennel. Or something soft, deep green, and herbal, like green santolina. Or Teucreum. Or even Phlomis or a yellow sage (Salvia x jamensis). And maybe some Rhodophiala bifida (a red amaryllis relative) nearby. There must be tons to choose from. Something that would set it off, rather than compete.

The Alexandra Rose might look good with BB also, there is enough of a contrast, yet its tints would harmonize.

Here is a link that might be useful: The Alexandra Rose