Help! I broke my house! (DIY SOS)

Member Name: chrislynch

Product:	DIY SOS
Date:	24/04/02 (1609 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Entertaining, No challenge for the tired brain, Does some genuine good

Disadvantages: Some of these people need psychiatric help, not a builder.

"Help! I broke my house!"

I can't watch DIY SOS. Obviously I have watched it, or I wouldn't be writing this opinion, but I can't watch it any more. I don't dislike the presenters, the cheeky collection of assorted workmen and women who trade banter over saws and drills or even the work that they do in some of the houses (far better than the abominations that Changing Rooms leave behind).

In terms of light entertainment in the now very popular "home improvement" market, DIY SOS can hold it's head up with the best (or just the rest) of them. It's got a jolly ensemble cast who do manage to complete some very impressive projects. Artsy design matters are kept to a minimum and the show does deliver on the promise of a more pragmatic approach to DIY disasters. DIY SOS is not the most engaging or challenging half-hour of TV you are going to watch, but it never claims to be. It's light, fun and entertaining ? but I still can't stand to watch it anymore.

Why? I'll tell you ? what I can't stand, what I can't bring myself to watch any longer ? is the contestants.

I have every sympathy to the people who are disabled either through illness or accident who turn to DIY SOS for help in customising their homes to suit their new needs. This is a job that should be being done gratis by local councils and government anyway and whilst it is sad that we have to rely on TV shows to step in where government has failed to provide it is at least heartening to see that someone is prepared to help these people. It's about time.

The people that I don?t have any sympathy for are the people who cut holes in their own bathroom floors and then leave them open for years to follow. The people who leave exposed electrical cabling hanging from the ceilings of their kitchens. The people who have holes in walls, roofs, floors and doors that they put there themselves in misguided moments of &q
uot;doing it themselves". In short, these are people who have broken their houses.

I sympathise immensely for the families of these people (oh yes, it's not just men who are bodging the jobs at home nowadays!) who made to beg the viewing public for help. I've seen less pitiful things on charity appeal shows like Comic Relief. These poor people are the ones ducking under, climbing over, walking around and sheltering from the DIY blunders of their family members. Having watched a few episodes of this show, some of these people must be latter day saints to be putting up with this.

DIY programmes have a lot to answer for when it comes to making building, carpentry and plumbing look easy. I'm still not convinced that they are, but there are plenty of people out there who are taking hammers to their homes and then wondering why when it Charlie Dimmock did it it only took half an hour? Perhaps DIY SOS serves to balance out the harm done by other programmes. For their work in helping out people who have a genuine need I salute them ? I can only sympathise with the rest of the work that they do.

Personally, I would like to issue my own DIY SOS to some of these people. It's called the YELLOW PAGES. Get yourself a plumber, a joiner, a builder or just a demolition expert but either way ? fix your house !

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