‘A sewing machine is a power tool, after all...’

Winner Matt Chapple tells Sally Saunders he’s proud to show off his stitching, and hopes other men give it a go

Matt Chapple is not afraid of gender stereotypes. It’s a good job, as this week he made history as the first male winner of the Great British Sewing Bee. “Some of the other dads I know have confessed that they are going to make a dress for their daughter,” he laughs. “I think we are helping to break the stereotype that sewing is not manly. I am not afraid to admit that I stitch.” It is a little bit late to start hiding your light under a bushel anyway, Matt. On Thursday more than three million people saw the father-of-two win the third series of the show, which, for the uninitiated, is a kind of Great British Bake Off with sewing machines. “I have started to get recognised in the street, which is quite odd and wonderful at the same time,” he says. “It is humbling that people take time out of their day to stop and talk to me. It’s amazing how many people watch it and want to discuss it.” They’re going to be queuing up after this victory. Matt might only have scraped into the final alongside glamorous granny Lorna, a 68-year-old former air hostess who began sewing at school to make clothes for her six-feet-tall frame, and “sewing soldier” Neil Stace, the bookie’s favourite, but he wowed them all on the day. He managed to produce a stunning creation in the final round of the competition, a dress for his wife which separated him from a very tough crowd, says judge May Martin, who teaches sewing for the Women’s Institute. “Everybody’s been saying Neil’s got it in the bag, but I’ve had to keep saying well, we’ll see,” she says. “To be honest I was sure he’d win it as well, but Matt just amazed us all. He was a grower. I’m not saying Neil wasn’t, but his skills were so high when he came in, he was very confident and consistent right from the start. “But Matt was building on his skills all the time. His garment at the end was just amazing. At the end of the day we need them to reach a crescendo, to say this is what I have learnt, this is what I am now able to do.” The comparison with Neil, a lieutenant colonel, is inevitable, with both men learning to sew in the army to be able to repair their kit. But Matt insists there was no edge between them. “Neil was a fantastic competitor, and I think my money would have been on him. It wasn’t about beating him, it was more about doing the best I could. Because we have similar backgrounds we got on incredibly well quite quickly, and I must admit we