Kevin McCloud has spent the last 25 years helping ambitious self-builders design and create the home of their dreams on Grand Designs, from a clifftop lighthouse to a metallic floating home. But despite what viewers might believe, Kevin's own home is much more low-key.
Sitting down with HELLO! ahead of Grand Designs Live, the bi-annual home improvement and renovation show taking place in London from Friday, the 65-year-old TV presenter and designer revealed why he's "just like everybody else" when it comes to his Herefordshire house – and the reason why his architect son will never appear on Grand Designs.
"I am like everybody else," explained Kevin. "My house is a confused blend of stuff I've inherited, stuff I've bought, and quite a bit of flatpack furniture. Also, beautiful things I've decided to invest in, stuff made by friends of mine who are craftspeople and quite a lot of prototypes from my own business that didn't quite work out but I ended up using. It's the usual. It's autobiographical."
When it comes to the most cherished features of his home, Kevin values the sentimental objects. "I'm a bit more of a hoarder. Some of my favourite things are my dad's engineering drawings from the 1950s, which I've had framed," he said. "Why would you get rid of stuff that means something, that triggers a memory or a good feeling? I think buildings are vessels for life."
While people with multiple homes may require an interior designer, Kevin thinks that most of us can make our homes feel "safe" and "inspiring" without professional help.
© Channel 4"Interior design is great for people who have five houses; they need an interior designer, clearly," said the TV star. "The rest of us, in trying to put our hopes together, want a place that is a sanctuary, is inspiring, feels safe, and looks beautiful and is something we're proud of.
"But in a way, just having books on shelves is something to be proud of. That's my kind of home," he added.
Passing on his love for innovation
Kevin's love for innovation runs in the family. Not only was his father an inventor and engineer, but his son, Hugo, has followed in his dad's footsteps as an architect. Although viewers shouldn't expect to see him on their TV screens anytime soon.
© Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock"It will never happen because we've had this conversation between us and in the family that our lives are our lives and you do your thing, I'll do mine," Kevin explained.
"The people I film and the architects I need are all wonderful, but they're at arm's length. I'm not commissioning something, I'm not designing something, I'm not paying for that architect, or negotiating with them. I am simply watching," said Kevin, who feels one of Grand Designs' "greatest strengths" is its "observational but celebratory style".
"I am the viewer's friend, rather than the builder's or the architect's friend. My job is to ask the questions that might be in the viewer's mind, and when I think there isn't a satisfactory explanation," he shared, adding: "I've got to remember who I'm representing here."
The secret to the success of Grand Designs
As for the enduring appeal of the show, Kevin puts it down to the wide-ranging audience.
"Grand Designs has a really broad spectrum audience that doesn't happen in television. Our programme appeals to all groups, and not just in small numbers," explained Kevin, who said one of the most rewarding things about hosting the show is inspiring youngsters to pursue careers in architecture or house development.
"One of the most gratifying things about my job is when I go to Grand Designs Live, I get 33 year olds and 38 year olds coming up to me, saying, 'I started watching when I was a kid with my parents and I'm now an architect, or a surveyor or in engineering, because you were there for me along the way'."
© Sanders/Daily Mail/Shutterstock"To me, it makes it much more powerful," he said. "You feel that we've had a tiny impact on somebody. We've awakened an enthusiasm or lit a flame, and that is so hard to do."
Inspiring a new generation
The show's popularity is further proved by the success of Grand Designs Live, which has been going for almost as long as the show, having started in 2005.
"It's the fact that you're in a room with people who all share the same nutty enthusiasm for allen keys or screwdrivers or insulation, and it's all there. Our responsible job is to make sure that our exhibitors and our event team, and all of the stuff that you can see and do and listen to, chimes with that, that it all actually provides what people are looking for without them being able to tell us exactly what it is they're looking for.
"And like the television show, we didn't set out scientifically to appeal to a bunch of people, we just did what we felt was right, and it worked out," he said, adding: "And that's why the show is still going."
Kevin McCloud was speaking ahead of Grand Designs Live at London ExCeL, the UK's premier home and design exhibition, taking place from 2-5 May.
