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WOOD, SWEAT AND TEARS!
THAT’S WHAT’S IN STORE ON CARPENTRY CHALLENGE SHOW THE CHOP, AND HOST LEE MACK SAYS HE’S GOT THE BUG...
We’ve had baking, sewing, painting and interior design; now the search is on for Britain’s top woodworker in new challenge show The Chop. Hosted by comedian Lee Mack, the nine-week series will see an initial field of ten contestants – all with a good level of competence in carpentry – whittled down through a series of woodworking tasks. The person who chisels their way to success will be given the chance to exhibit their work at the William Morris Gallery in London, while the contestant whose efforts are deemed least impressive each week will be given the chop.
It sounds like a winning formula along the lines of Bake Off and The Great British Sewing Bee, but to begin with Lee wasn’t so sure. ‘I did start off not massively caring who won, and even wondering why they’d chosen me to present the programme, bearing in mind that you have to be good on TV or good at woodwork, and I’m neither,’ says Lee, creator and star of BBC1 sitcom Not Going Out. ‘But then I found myself being dragged into the world of woodworking. I saw the effort and the passion of those taking part – the way they were living and breathing the show – and I became engrossed by it.’
Lee is joined by Rick Edwards, host of BBC1 quiz show Impossible, who slips into the role performed by Noel Fielding and Matt Lucas on Bake Off – talking to and encouraging the contestants as they go about their challenges. Master carpenter William Hardie adds gravitas to proceedings, providing a professional view on the work of those taking part, and explaining where they’re going wrong.
The Chop was filmed pre-lockdown in Epping Forest, Essex, where a cabin was built amid the trees, and each week the contestants must furnish one of its rooms. In the first episode, for example, the room has a Wild West frontier theme, while later in the series the contestants must tailor their designs to a snug in a Victorian pub, Nelson’s cabin on HMS Victory, a Gothic bedroom, a
Georgian hunting lodge and a 1960s lounge inspired by the American TV series Mad Men. By the end of the opening programme the frontier room has been furnished with a beautifully crafted boot rack, a bench, a bedstead and a saddle rack. Neither Lee nor Rick lend a hand during this wave of creativity, unsurprising given their levels of competence. ‘I used a lathe to half-finish a skittle pin during filming, and Will Hardie showed me how to carve a pig, which I did very badly,’ admits Rick. ‘At no point did anyone say, “You know, you might be quite good at this.” I don’t have the patience or skill to make anything out of wood, so I have enormous admiration for people who can turn bits of tree into something amazing, which happens a lot on The Chop.’
Lee appears to be a little more competent. ‘When I was at school I loved woodwork, mainly because there was never any homework. Being surrounded by the amazing carpenters in this competition has reinvigorated that passion and inspired me to invest in my first shingle froe [a device for splitting wood] and have a go at a bit of woodworking. I’ve already renovated the children’s tree house, and during filming I made as alad bowl out of an oak branch. i spent the whole series chiselling it out… well, I spent 20 minutes doing it and then asked other people to do it for me!’
It remains to be seen which of the contestants, seven men and three women, will become the viewers’ favourite, although Darren, a furniture maker from Bristol, is an early frontrunner. Nicknamed ‘The Woodman’, his entire face is covered in tattoos and he’s not averse to making controversial statements. ‘He’s quite a character,’ says Lee. ‘We met him again at a photo shoot recently and he’d had more tattoos etched on top of his other tattoos, which I thought showed an incredible level of commitment to the cause.’
Lee, Rick and William are staying tightlipped about how the contestants fare, though. ‘All I will say is that the competition became intense at times, there was blood, sweat and tears but also camaraderie and support for one another,’ says William. ‘If somebody finished early, they’d go and give someone else a hand. People wanted to win but they didn’t want the others to fail.’ Lee adds, ‘And there were clearly no hard feelings when it came to deciding who’d been declared Britain’s Top Woodworker. One of the contestants who didn’t win has agreed to help set up the winner’s exhibition at the William Morris Gallery.’
Lee believes the public’s passion for shows that put us back in touch with good old-fashioned creativity could turn The Chop into a major hit. ‘We’re living in a digital age where nothing is real any more,’ he says. ‘Everything is online – even romance and friendship. So a show where people are actually making things with their hands is going to appeal to viewers. It’s a comforting reminder of how things used to be.’