Always room for improvement
As its return to our screens is confirmed, we remember makeover show Changing Rooms
HANDY Andy Kane was always ready with his toolbox and some practical words of advice as professional designers offered their tips on home makeovers in Changing Rooms. The affable Cockney builder even brought out his own cover version of the song If I Had A Hammer, but his real talent lay in making the dreams of the designers a reality.
In 1996 the BBC’s home improvement show completely changed the game as a team of top designers helped neighbouring couples or friends decorate a room in each other’s homes.
Hosted by Carol Smillie, the DIY show pulled in a whopping 10 million viewers at its peak, and interior designers such as the fabulouslydressed Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen and Linda Barker became household names.
Not all home owners were happy with the makeovers though. Laurence was known for his wacky designs and one couple were left visibly seething when he decorated their room entirely in animal print after the idea was suggested as a joke by their neighbours.
Other designers included Anna Ryder Richardson and Oliver Heath and each transformation was completed in two days with a £500 budget expected to cover everything from knocking out fireplaces to startling colour changes.
The home improvement show remained a TV favourite until it finally came to an end in 2004. It is now about to get a Channel 4 reboot with former Big Brother presenter Davina McCall joining the show’s original interior designer Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen.
It is promised the new show will retain much of the old format. Says Laurence: “It’s taken quite a lot of coaxing to get me under the Changing Rooms banner once more, but nothing like as much coaxing as it’s going to take for me to squeeze those leather trousers back on.”
Davina adds: “It’s the perfect time to bring it back, everyone is going DIY and decor mad. I can’t wait to see all the amazing transformations.”