‘People think I have a sex chamber in my house!’
Interior designer and TV presenter Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen chats home renovations, lockdown hair and his YouTube videos
Flamboyant, fun and fashionable are just some of the words you could use to describe the nation’s favourite interior designer, Laurence LlewelynBowen.
He was propelled onto our TV screens almost 25 years ago when he joined makeover show Changing Rooms, with some of his more daring designs causing quite a stir.
These days Laurence, 55, spends a lot of time filming shows on the other side of the world, including Australian hit House Rules. And he was doing just that when lockdown was announced, nearly missing his flights home to his family.
Luckily, he made it back in time and has spent the last few months in his stunning Cotswolds Grade II-listed manor house with wife Jackie, eldest daughter Cecile, her husband Dan and their son Albie, as well as his youngest daughter Hermione and her fiancé Drew.
Long walks, nights in front of the telly and redesigning the kitchen have been just some of the things keeping him entertained, as well as filming a fresh new series, School Of Flock, for hisYouTube channel. Here, Laurence tells us all about it…
Hey Laurence! So, were you in Australia when lockdown was first announced?
Yes and at one point it looked like there were going to be no flights out of Sydney. I managed to get a flight to Qatar and then at the last minute I got back from there. I can’t tell you how relieved I was.
How was lockdown?
One of the nicest things was that I don’t think I’ve been with the family, uninterrupted, since the children were tiny. And other things, like wandering around the garden thinking, ‘Oh my God, this is beautiful!’ because half the time I don’t see it at this time of year because I’m away. So I started drawing, it’s really weird! My next design collection will be based on the plants in my garden – all very William Morris.
Were you in a routine?
Yes and we had a rigid timetable, too, like everyone spending one afternoon looking after my grandson, Albie. And then everyone had a specific day when they would cook.The weekly clap was important to us. And television. We had Sewing Bee night – I’d never watched it before and then suddenly I’m obsessed with sewing!
What else did you watch?
I got obsessed with RuPaul’s Drag Race. There are such extraordinary, nice people on it and the transformations are astonishing! I’m now harbouring hopes for RuPaul to come and stay at my Cotswolds manor house. He’d just have to watch out for the low-hanging beams!
Have you been doing work to your home, too?
Yes! My daughter, Hermione, decided we needed to decorate the kitchen and dining room. And she’s embarked on The Great Room, which is a big job. It means moving all the books. The good news is that we’ll be enjoying a very sparkly, new house!
Do you find it therapeutic?
I think it’s celebrating the house, it’s like making offerings back to it. When you decorate, it should be just for you, not because you want to sell it. It should make you feel more grounded – I felt like that the other day in the kitchen, it’s so much more us. It’s a transformation!
Do you work out?
We have a little garden pavilion with a running machine and a bike that we’ve all been using. We’ve got woodland, too, where I’ve been walking the dogs a few times a week, led by Jackie. It’s a boot camp route march! We were all looking a bit shaggy, but I did manage to keep my waistline in check.
What about your hair?!
I usually get it cut every six weeks. It grows quite quickly and I like to make sure it looks consistent so when it wasn’t near a hairdresser for a while it grew very long. I emailed asking them to make sure we were top of the list the minute they knew they were opening!
Where did you get the idea for School Of Flock?
I think one of the things I’ve discovered is that there’s so much psychology in the way we design our homes. When you think, ‘I might just paint the bedroom red,’ you’re not just painting the bedroom red.You’re creating a bridge into a fantasy that you’ve got – maybe something you’ve seen in a film or hotel. Changing Rooms started almost 25 years ago. I’ve spent that time telling people how to decorate but this is the first time I’ve looked at it as why we decorate and what it says about ourselves.
Do you think design’s changing?
We’ve been through a couple of decades of very quiet decorating in the UK. We’ve been making interiors that wouldn’t say boo to a goose. But in lockdown, I think it’s made people realise how lucky they are and that their home isn’t just for monetary value, it’s also very emotional. So I think people will now have a much stronger commitment to decorating their homes. Eccentricity is going to be coming back in the British home!
The bookcase door that you enter through for School Of Flock is incredible…
People are obsessed with it! There are all these conspiracy theories about it, that through the door is another dimension or it’s the TARDIS or some kind of sex chamber. But the reality is it’s a downstairs loo and the cupboard where I keep all the gin!