From whole room renovations to outdoor construction projects, the show’s DIY-ers test their mettle for the chance to win the grand prize of €10,000. The competition is fierce, but only one can be crowned Ireland’s Best DIY-er. Providing tips and advice for the viewers (and a critical eye on the projects) are two judges, TU Dublin Lecturer in Construction, Jennifer Byrne, and representing Woodie’s DIY, power tool aficionado Michal Dachowski. These two will have the tough decision of choosing a winner and awarding the cash prize as well as additional prizes for Best Small Job, Best Inside Job, Best Outside Job, Best Upcycle, and of course, the Best DIY Fail.
Presenter PJ Gallagher said: “I can wire a plug but generally I’ve always had ornamental hands and only dream of one day making something useful… like a breadboard. I’m really looking forward to meeting my fellow DIY fans around the country and even more so I’m hoping to see some really original projects… and even some epic fails! A friend of mine is building a hen house in the shape of the GPO, I’d love to see something cool like that win.”
WEEK 2 CONTESTANTS
Patrick Joyce (40), Galway
Occupation: IT
Patrick lives in Galway with his wife Marcia who has also entered in the Big DIY Challenge. They are newly married and this is their first home that they moved into last year. They have decided to go head to head with each otheer and think a bit of healthy competition will make them more motivated. Plus they kill two birds with one stone with this competition, as it means they get both projects done in the 10 days.
Patrick plans on fitting some additional storage into a crawl space of a dormer room and creating a radiator cover that turns into a desk. He has very limited DIY skills but is willing to give it a go!
Marcia Joyce (39), Galway
Occupation: Sales Assistant
Marcia originally hails from Brazil but lives now in Galway with her new husband, Patrick, who she hopes to best in The Big DIY Challenge. Regardless of her competitive streak, she’s hoping one of them will take home the 10k. Marcia earns a living as a shop assistant and has never done a DIY project before, making this project her very first. If Patrick’s skills are negligible, she considers hers non-existent. We’re thinking that with both her and Patrick taking on projects might make double the trouble!
Marcia is refurbishing her kitchen. This will involve removing the cupboard doors, sanding them, painting them, attaching new knobs, reattaching the doors, sanding the floor tiles, and finally painting the floor tiles.
Martin O’Dwyer (63), Tipperary
Occupation: Self Employed
Martin is a super environmentally friendly man and a pillar of the local community. He lives in a lovely neighbourhood and wants to build a fence that’s made out of recycled glass, wood, bricks, etc. to replace the hedge that keeps his neighbours out. He and wife, Jeanette, want to create a garden that faces out and will welcome the community in.
To achieve this, Martin plans to plant a small garden in front of the fence. Here he will plant an apple tree so that his neighbours can walk by and grab some apples while they’re passing. He feels it’s these small little touches that add to a community.
Melissa Perry (33), Kerry
Occupation: Retail Manager
Melissa is a new mum who has decided to take on The Big DIY Challenge during her maternity leave. She admits that her husband has the muscle power, but he will be at work during the project, leaving her to balance DIY life with her four-month-old baby girl, Freya. Melissa has been a bit of a princess when it comes to DIY jobs in the past – she’s just moved into her new home and orchestrated the whole move without lifting a finger, leaving her brother and fiancé to do it all! Apart from some painting and upcycling, Melissa’s DIY skills are going to have to come from the internet and she admits that YouTube will be her right hand man.
One of the rooms in Melissa’s new home is a total mess and has become a storage place where forgotten items go to disappear, to the point that even the floor has done a disappearing act. For The Big DIY Challenge, Melissa plans to transform it into a glam guest room with a ‘feature wall’. It involves panelling and wallpapering the feature wall, laying laminate flooring, upcycling some old dressers, and painting the walls.
Joe Morgan (25), Tipperary
Occupation: Special Education Teacher
Joe is replacing a wardrobe in his brother’s house that was originally built in 1982. He says his brother’s house is a pure DIY house and they’ve taken on just about everything that a DIY-er can try in an attempt to make it home sweet home for brother, Willie, and his fiancee, Aoife. They get their inspiration from Pinterest and Joe says he has probably watched every DIY video on YouTube. He says his brother is bigger and stronger than him but isn’t as gifted when it comes to DIY. Instead, Willie’s strengths lie in the kitchen as he has promised to make pancakes for all the crew (and PJ of course) if they come down! Pancakes will be the only thing William will be making given his track record.
Joe’s project will involve designing the wardrobe and units within the wardrobe, cutting them from MDF, fitting them in as well as building drawers and putting them on sliders. We’re betting that sister-in-law-to-be, Aoife, might make some other requests along the way!
James Thompson (29), Kilkenny
Occupation: Post-Primary Teacher
James is married to wife, Sandra, who is currently expecting their first child. James is always looking for DIY projects to improve their home together and spotted an impressive pizza oven made from scratch at a friend’s house in the last few months. Now James has made it his priority to make one for his garden, right beside his new shed that he made last summer. James is a dab hand when it comes to DIY most of the time, as evidenced by last summer’s gorgeous shed project, but he’s also made a tie rack that doesn’t look the best!
James plans on building an arched dome for his pizza oven, which will require some creative ideas as to how to execute his desired vision. He will be venturing into the world of bricklaying for the first time as well, and with over three hundred bricks to cut to finish the project, there’s a chance that James’ dream of providing pizza dinners for generations to come, might not come true.
Alice Kellett (52), Laois
Occupation: Unemployed
Alice has a huge passion for second-hand furniture and giving old, used, and discarded pieces a new lease of life. She can’t go by a DIY shop without buying a brush and a bit of paint and she can’t go by a chair or press in a skip without rescuing it and bringing it home! Her home is full of pieces she has brought home from the side of the road, cleaned up, sanded down, and repainted. Her specialty is floral designs and she especially likes making use of colour. Alice would love to make furniture refurbishment her full-time occupation and admits that she spends all her money on it.
Alice’s project for The Big DIY Challenge is upcycling a chest of drawers. This will involve a new coat of paint but she plans on drawing a floral scene by hand across the whole front of the chest. She knows this will be time-consuming but wants the chest of drawers to feel as unique and wonderful as it can!
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