‘I’m not destined to be still’ — Dermot busy in lockdown
YOU might think TV architect Dermot Bannon would be spending the lockdown relaxing in his new outdoor bathtub, the one that got him into a bit of hot water with the planners. Not so.
“The bath hasn’t got water going down to it yet,” he says, laughing. “But that is the first thing that will happen when Covid-19 is done.”
Instead, life under lockdown has been busy. Different busy, he says, nice busy.
“I was supposed to be travelling, doing Incredible Homes. I got one filmed in Canada, but we have three more that are all supposed to be finished now, and they’re not.”
But he has enough to keep him occupied. He’s doing daily workouts with the trainer from his local gym via Instagram.
“They have been a life saver,” he says. “Shane has given a class every single morning. I live for it. I’m doing weights with a couple of wine bottles.”
And he has got into cooking. “I’ve never baked so much,” he says. “I’ve made pizza with the kids [he has three children with his wife, Louise]. The two lads are loving it.
“I’ve learnt patience like you’d never believe. I’ll tell you what teaches you patience — it’s a hyper-active 12-year-old with a bag of flour and a sieve.”
All this extra time and pottering around with the family is lovely, he says, “but the backdrop is people losing their lives every day and that’s something we’re very conscious of and it’s a very grounding experience”.
There is one personal lesson he’ll take. “I’ve craved stopping for so long. I’ve craved putting brakes on my life for so long now that when that happens a little bit, I’ve realised I’m not destined to be still,” he says.
“I do need to be doing something. I need to be creating something, even if it’s just ironing. Even the ironing has become pleasurable. You don’t have to be out there saving the world, you can be just looking after your family, looking after the basics and you get as much satisfaction as you do making an episode of Room to Improve.” He pauses. “Nearly.”