Elvis has fixed the building
Meet the singing handy man whose interest in electrics goes beyond his guitar
AS AN Elvis impersonator, the closest Martyn Dias comes to rivets, chains and metal is while donning his embellished jumpsuits. But, at home, you are more likely to find him in a hard hat and work-wear.
The 54-year-old, who performs and tours as Elvis Shmelvis, is a DIY-fanatic. Friends and family regularly applaud his handyman skills.
A World Jewish Relief poll of more than 1,000 British Jews revealed this week that we engage in practical jobs around the home far more often than imagined.
Mr Dias is one of those who could be regarded as an expert. In the past, he has installed his own kitchen and bathroom, fixed all his home electrics, and is regularly put to use around the house by his wife Sue and friends and neighbours.
He is yet to shy away from a single task.
“I just think it is common sense,” Mr Dias said. “I’ve got all the tools, so I just do it. A lot of these things are easier than you think. Something like a leaky tap is not that difficult to fix, but most people don’t even conceive of the idea of trying.
“I will always have a go. If I don’t know how, I’ll go on YouTube, find a tutorial video, and work it out for myself.
Mr Dias said the most challenging thing he had tried so far was “bending pipes. I had to go over some wooden joists and I wasn’ t sure how. But I watched some videos, and then just did it.”
He admitted: “There has been the odd disaster, like when I haven’t done the pipe up tight enough and water has exploded everywhere. But it doesn’t happen often.”
The closest he has come to injury over the years, he said, was stabbing himself with a screwdriver, adding: “The easiest thing to do is wrap something around it and carry on.”
Mr Dias, from St Albans, Hertfordshire, said he had developed his love of DIY from his father, but that the handyman gene had ended there.
Both his adult sons are “useless” when it comes to fixing things, and his accountant brother’s toolbox “has never been used. It is absolutely gleaming”.
The singer was adamant he would never turn his hobby into a career, but is happy to have saved “a fortune” over the years.
“Every time the washing machine has packed up, I’ve just taken a look, found out the problem and ordered the parts myself. That would have cost a few hundred quid every time,” Mr Dias said.
Meanwhile, his skills are just as useful on the road, where sound and lighting systems need constant tweaking and fixing.
He explained: “When I’m travelling, I have a few multi-tools. I take a few Y-cutters, screwdrivers and pliers. Inevitably something goes wrong, so I always have something to do.”
Back at home, Mr Dias loves nothing more than retreating to his garage workshop and getting stuck into a new project. I’m at my happiest when I’m left alone in there to just get on with it,” he said.
I will always have a go. If I don’t know how, I’ll go on YouTube to work it out for myself’