If the previous two series of Interior Design Masters have passed you by, now is the perfect time to jump on board.
The makeover competition series, which sees a cast of amateur designers taking on a series of challenges in the hope of winning a commercial contract, has just made the leap from BBC Two to BBC One - and there’s good reason for that...
Alan Carr
We’re BIG fans of Alan Carr. Whatever show he appears on – whether it be his own chat show, RuPaul’s Drag Race UK or even singing on An Audience With Adele – you are always guaranteed some laughs, and his role on Interior Design Masters is no different.
Alan took over as host from Fearne Cotton in the second series and has injected his own charm and trademark humour into proceedings.
Much like Mel and Sue on The Great British Bake Off or Joe Lycett on The Great British Sewing Bee, Alan perfectly straddles the line of presenter and a shoulder for the contestants to cry on. And he is never afraid to say – or at least allude to – what he really thinks about some of their designs in typically shady fashion (“Is this bits of hair you found down your plughole?”; “It’s like nailing a blancmange to a wall.”)
He and head judge Michelle Ogundehin have also developed a warm on-screen camaraderie, with Alan’s jokey style and Michelle’s more reserved approach coming together like a gorgeously mixed paint.
It isn’t Changing Rooms
While the budgets on Interior Design Masters are still pretty modest, the contestants are working to a strict brief each week, meaning that there’s less shock value to their makeovers than other home renovation shows like Changing Rooms – which if you’ve ever seen some of the disasters on that show, you’ll know is no bad thing.
After all, no-one wants a giant picture of Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen adorning their front rooms, do they?
They create spaces you might actually like to spend time in
We’re not going to claim all the rooms the designers take on are always on point, but on the whole the contestants really do put a lot of thought and effort into the look and function of their rooms, and there’s been some proper ‘wow’ moments over the last two series.
They don’t just do rooms in houses
There’s a real range of spaces the wannabe designers take on in the challenges – they can be anything from show homes, to offices, or hotel rooms or restaurants or even retail units, meaning they all get show off different concepts and strings to their bow, as well as making it more than just a home makeover show.
It’s filled with colourful characters
As you’d expect with a show about interior design, many of the contestants are as colourful as the rooms they transform.
Last year, we loved Siobhan and Paul’s camp, banter-filled relationship (not to mention Siobhan’s incredible collection of wigs), which has continued long-after the cameras stopped rolling (yes, we still follow their antics on Instagram).
This time around, we’ve already taken an early shine to Banjo, Rochelle and Peter.
But while most of the contestants have big personalities, this doesn’t come at the expense of actual talent, compared to shows like The Apprentice, which has produced farcical moments like this.
And there’s some top design talent casting their expert eye
As well as the show’s head judge Michelle, who is a former editor-in-chief of Elle Design magazine, each week sees the contestants’ work scrutinised by another top designer or expert.
Having the likes of Matthew Williamson, Jade Jagger and Sophie Robinson involved lends some gravitas to the competition, while we always love a cameo appearance from the ever-ridiculous Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen too.
Now, where did we put that paint roller?
Interior Design Masters airs Wednesdays at 9pm on BBC One, with the previous two series available to stream on BBC iPlayer.