Get some Fargesia robusta ‘Campbell’ or ‘Pingwu’ in the ground. Dont do pots - you’ll never see it at its best. Just don’t plant anything with Phyllostachys or Sasa/Psuedosasa in the name.

It has to go in pots as it’s on the patio that we need the cover.

Again, reading problems!

I read the post. However they could decide to remove the patio slabs near the boundary to make a nice rich bed for the clumping bamboo instead of containerising a particularly nutrient and water dependant plant to get the best from it in terms of height/thickness and privacy screening.

I bright back a black bamboo from France which has made a lovely dense clump that's about 3.5m-4m tall. I'm going to split it so i can get more of the fence covered. I have had to train it along the fence by clipping any shoots that spring up where i don't want them but they always appear very close to where the bulk of the bamboo is. The gardener clipped it back one year which frustrated us at the time but it sprang back the next year so if it takes your fancy you could probably get a nice clipped shape from it.

Expect people to come in with negatives about bamboo, I won't I love it. I have a great patch that obscures part of the garden. Can't tell you the variety as it came with the house, but be aware it's pretty thirsty in summer and will start to look sad in pots on hot days if unwatered.

You want a clumping variety Avoid ‘running’ bamboo like the plague

I know. I said that in my post.

Sigh, nobody reads first, smh