Hardy fuchsia?

I have a bit of a dead zone in front of the house - it is set to paving slabs, very small area, although I have lain membrane on top of the slabs and put slate chips down as the slabs were minging... anyway, I digress..

Until last year, I had a hydrangea in a fairly large pot which was OK, but the early heat and prolonged dry spell last year did for it - no matter how much I watered, I simply wasn't keeping up and it died, so now I only have the pot...

Now, I am wanting 'something' there, but at the same time I am thinking I'd like to get a bit of height involved too, because it sits behind a wall and the ground level is a good 6 to 8 inches lower than the surrounding ground. So, I am contemplating building a planter from wood that is larger and higher than the pot - but what to put in it?? Having lost a few hydrangeas over the years, I am reluctant, but was wondering about a hardy fuchsia?

The area gets full sun first thing in the morning and then is in shade from late morning onwards.

Any suggestions as to variety (want something vigorous, but preferably not a cape fuchsia) - or even suggestions for alternatives?

 

Aye, that is indeed a fair point - although, currently it is an empty pot with hydrangea sticks, so... I could make a larger planter and have more than one thing I suppose, just not sure what.

 

The dead zone in question, with the dead hydrangea hiding behind the wall. Pay no attention to the hazel in the corner, that shouldn't be there and gets hacked every year - - been trying to kill it for years. The shrub/hedging on the side is camelia - it doesn't stick out that far in reality, that is purely a legacy of the angle this image was taken from.

 

Thanks for the suggestions

In the vertical direction, it can have as much as it likes really - not a busting lot of light comes in that window anyways, so as long as it isn't a hedge, it should be good. I did ponder on a standard but then thought it might look sparse/odd