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Room to Improve
GenreMakeover
Created byCOCO Television[1]
Directed byLuke McManus
StarringDermot Bannon
Country of originIreland
Original languageEnglish
No. of series15
No. of episodes90+
Production
Executive producerLinda Cullen
ProducerHilary O'Donovan
CinematographyPiaras MacCionnaith, Andrew Cummins
EditorStephen Vickers
Original release
NetworkRTÉ One
Release20 June 2007 (2007-06-20) –
present

Room to Improve is an Irish architectural renovation TV series broadcast on RTÉ One. It is also broadcast on the UK's Home channel.

Format

Presented by the architect Dermot Bannon, his aim is to improve his clients' living conditions by renovating their homes without spending excessive sums of money.[2] The budgets differ for each client, ranging from €27,000 to €250,000.

Bannon's architectural designs frequently include box-shaped extensions with large windows and interior 'courtyard' gardens. He favours open-plan interior layouts and spacious rooms and he generally seeks to maximise the penetration of natural light into the plans, but introduces several new steps into the layout. He has a keen interest in gardens and outdoor space and his designs usually provide access to these outdoor spaces and make the most of any views. He has a love of natural materials and often uses timber in kitchens. He has a dislike of fussy ornamentation and ostentatious "bling" and a strong preference for restraint and simplicity. His strong opinions on decor often brings him into conflict with his clients. Bannon is renowned for acting as house hold items such as "I'm the oven" and "I'm the toilet".

Room To Improve often features candid coverage of disagreements or problems on site and presents a "warts and all" picture of the realities of managing a building project.

Broadcasts

From 17 May 2021 Room to Improve was broadcast in a lunchtime slot during the week on the UK's Channel 5, after they had licensed series 8 to 12 from RTÉ.[3] Series 1 began transmission on the same channel commencing Thursday 8 July 2021.

Episode list

Series 1

The first series had six episodes.[4]

Date Details Location Budget Circumstances
20 June 2007 Original Archive Killiney €20,000 Complete remodelling of entire downstairs of a two-bedroomed home
27 June 2007 Original Archive Glasnevin €40,000 Entire downstairs in need of wheelchair accessibility due to client's multiple sclerosis
4 July 2007 Original Archive Castleknock €50,000 Renovation of dark, dismal, north facing, uninsulated, cold extension used as a kitchen, dining and homework area
11 July 2007 Original Archive Enniscorthy €65,000 Renovation of an old 1850s cottage in preparation for a new baby
18 July 2007 Original Archive Dalkey Renovation of a dark, cold and unviewable kitchen
25 July 2007 Original Archive Ballygarrett Creating a kitchen, dining room and spare bedroom without losing the cottage's 1930s charm

Series 2

The second series had eight episodes.[5]

Date Details Location Budget Circumstances
4 June 2008 Original Archive Donnycarney €30,000 Improving an ex-council house
11 June 2008 Original Archive Timahoe €60,000 Overcrowded house
18 June 2008 Original Archive Ennis €70,000 Family unable to eat at the same table and to watch TV comfortably together
25 June 2008 Original Archive Clontarf €80,000 More rooms required
2 July 2008 Original Archive South Circular Road €120,000 Improve a Victorian house including the demolition of three unsightly extensions
9 July 2008 Original Archive Edenderry €60,000 Improve previous disastrous planning
16 July 2008 Original Archive Rathfarnham €150,000 Client has multiple sclerosis
23 July 2008 Original Archive Ballinteer €80,000 Running out of space

Series 3

The third series had eight episodes.[6]

Date Details Location Budget Circumstances
3 June 2009 Original Archive Artane, Dublin 5 €35,000 Solving the problems remaining following an unsuccessful renovation. Creating a family kitchen/living area.
10 June 2009 Original Archive Enniskerry €90,000 Full refit of house and maximising the view of Glencree and the Sugarloaf mountain.
17 June 2009 Original Archive Killiney €70,000 Creating a "bungalow downstairs" for Tommy whose mobility has been impaired by MS.
24 June 2009 Original Archive Whitehall, Dublin 9 €90,000 Redesigning the rear of the house, which contained "the worst room I've ever seen"
1 July 2009 Original Archive Rathcoole €100,000 Create a space that is insulated from the sound of the busy M7 motorway
8 July 2009 Original Archive Knocktopher €65,000 Create a new living area beyond the kitchen.
15 July 2009 Original Archive Stoneybatter, Dublin 7 €90,000 Extending a very cramped urban cottage
22 July 2009 Original Archive Templetuohy €100,000 Improving the quality of the family living spaces
Christmas Special (2009)

A Room To Improve For Christmas[7]

Date Details Location Budget Circumstances
23 December 2009 Original Archive Ratoath €70,000 Transform a bungalow that dominated by the abandoned industrial unit to the rear into an elegant home for one that can also accommodate a whole family of visitors.

Series 4

The fourth series had eight episodes.[6]

Date Details Location Budget Circumstances
5 May 2010 Original Archive Foxrock €200,000 Sisters Margaret and Jodie Burke want to renovate the home in Foxrock that they grew up in.
12 May 2010 Original Archive Clonakilty €100,000 A couple living in a cramped remote hilltop cottage in West Cork need a bigger living space.
19 May 2010 Original Archive Laytown €60,000 A family of five live in a cottage they have now outgrown and need to extend, but the problem is that the property is built on at least four levels with some shoddy workmanship during ad hoc extensions. Dermot's job is to level the whole house.
26 May 2010 Original Archive Dalkey €180,000 A three-bedroom home is cramped, dark has very little privacy on the estate the house is located on. Dermot's task is to extend the house and rearrange the layout to make the house bright and spacious.
2 June 2010 Original Archive Clontarf €95,000
9 June 2010 Original Archive Tullow €150,000
16 June 2010 Original Archive Dundalk [clarification needed]
7 July 2010 Original Archive Sutton €170,000

Series 5

The fifth series had six episodes.[6]

Date Details Location Budget Circumstances
Wednesday 14 September 2011 Original Archive Cork (city) €140,000 Restoration and extension of derelict 1930s dormer bungalow
Wednesday 21 September 2011 Original Archive Legan €80,000 Dermot renovates housing accommodation attached to a local pub in Legan.
Wednesday 28 September 2011 Original Archive Wicklow €120,000, then €150,000 A remote tiny 100-year-old ex-council cottage in the Wicklow Gap is damp and mouldy and is no longer suitable for a family of five and modern day life.
Wednesday 5 October 2011 Original Archive Dundrum €190,000 A family rebuild and extend their cottage built in 1914 by their great grandparents.
Wednesday 12 October 2011 Original Archive Dalkey €250,000
Wednesday 19 October 2011 Original Archive Blackrock €160,000

Series 6

The sixth series had four episodes.[6]

Date Details Location Budget Circumstances
Sunday 14 October 2012 Original Archive Tipperary €180,000
2012 Original Archive Bishopstown [clarification needed]
2012 Original Archive Finglas [clarification needed]
2012 Original Archive Donnybrook [clarification needed]
Christmas special (2012)

Tallaght's National Children's Hospital commissions Bannon to create a playground and garden.[8]

Series 7

The seventh series had six episodes.[6]

Date Details Location Budget Circumstances
Sunday 17 November 2013 Original Archive Mullingar €250,000 A widow and her daughter want to move out of their huge 13 bedroom former B&B and move into another house they own, a 3-bedroom bungalow that hasn't been occupied since her husband died.
Sunday 24 November 2013 Original Archive Clane Final budget €185,000 With the pressure of a tiny budget of €150,000, a totally unrealistic schedule and two headstrong clients in Eilín and David who want to manage the entire project themselves while holding down full-time jobs, this is Dermot's most challenging and frustrating build to date.
Sunday 1 December 2013 Original Archive Brittas €160,000 Dermot is in Brittas with Irish politician Senator Katherine Zappone and her partner of 30 years Ann Louise Gilligan. The couple live in a now dilapidated 100-year-old hunting lodge which is in desperate need of renovation
Sunday 8 December 2013 Original Archive Killawalla €150,000 A family of four have outgrown their tiny cottage and need a remodel and an extension.
Sunday 15 December 2013 Original Archive Firhouse €150,000 A family of six live in a large 15-room two-storey property with a warren of disconnected rooms, half of which are never used. They need help turn their huge house into one big spacious fully functional dream home.
Sunday 22 December 2013 Original Archive Stillorgan Final budget €120,000 A couple live in a compact 1950's bungalow. The house has to be completely redesigned and Dermot has just €90,000 to complete their wish list

Series 8

There were eight episodes in series 8.

Date Details Location Budget Circumstances
25 January 2015 Dun Laoghaire €260,000 A couple couldn't afford to buy a proper house as they were too expensive, so they went back to basics and bought a disused commercial lockup in Dun Laoghaire to turn into their first home.
1 February 2015 Kilternan €360,000 A couple have bought a 19th-century listed former Church of Ireland schoolhouse in Kilternan which they wish to turn into a dream 21st century home.
8 February 2015 Baltinglass €160,000 Recently engaged Larry McGrath and Elaine O'Neill live in bungalow on a large dairy farm in Baltinglass, Wicklow. Dermot has been called in to blend the warmth of a traditional farmhouse with the flexibility of a modern urban design.
15 February 2015 Malahide €130,000 Redesign a house for a 12-year-old child who uses a wheelchair.
22 February 2015 Mullingar €250,000 Modernise and enlarge a 1970s outdated and cold home outside Mullingar in Westmeath for a family of six.
1 March 2015 Portmarnock
8 March 2015 Nenagh
15 March 2015 Dundrum

Series 9

There were five episodes in series 9.

Date Details Location Budget Circumstances
Sunday, 7 February 2016[9] Original Puckaun, County Tipperary €200,000 Remodeling of the inside of a '60s bungalow situated in the heart of the village to include two separate living spaces for a mother and son – with his family.
14 February 2016 ` Drogheda
21 February 2016 Baldoyle
28 February 2016 Maynooth
6 March 2016 Three favourite builds

Series 10

Series 10 has six episodes.

Date Details Location Budget Circumstances
2017 Amazon Prime Season Ten Malahide €180,000 Robbie and Julie from North Darndale in Dublin saved for 20 years to buy their dream house – a 1940s cottage in the North Dublin Suburbs.
2017 Amazon Prime Schedule Rush on Irish Coast €260,000 Farmer and Boatbuilder Enda and his wife Mags retire from Brussels Sprout Farm to move home to picturesque seaside village.
2017 Moate €250,000 Irish Gaelic football star Dessie Dolan and wife Kelly, who are both teachers, turn a property on a dilapidated plot on the outskirts of the town of Moate in County Westmeath into a spectacular family home
2017 Sutton €200,000 Married couple James and Hannah modernise and extend a 1960s suburban house owned by Hannah's parents and which she inherited after their deaths
2017 Kildalkey €200,000 At Kildalkey in rural East Meath, Dermot Bannon renovates 'Cois Shruchan', a farmhouse and barn gifted to newly engaged childhood sweethearts David and Celine, a family home at one time by occupied by her Granny and Grandad.
2017 Templeogue €153,000 Newlyweds Rosie and Keith want to modernise a typical 1970s cold, dark and uninsulated suburban housing estate semi-detached property which is in need of a radical modernisation.

Series 11

There were seven episodes in series 11.

Date Details Location Budget Circumstances
Sunday, 18 February 2018 Original Kincasslagh, County Donegal €200,000 Singer Daniel O'Donnell's wife Majella upgrades and reconfigures their four-bed detached home in Kincasslagh, West Donegal.
Sunday, 25 February 2018 Original Fermoy, County Cork €650,000 Bannon has a large budget available to add a series of high end, modern extensions to a house in Fermoy, County Cork.
Sunday, 4 March 2018 Original Clontarf, Dublin Final budget €170,000 to €180,000 Bannon has only €130,000 to realise ambitious plans for a red brick terraced house in Clontarf, North Dublin.
Sunday, 11 March 2018 Original Portrane, County Dublin €250,000 An old cottage in Portrane on the north Dublin coast needs an upgrade to accommodate a three-generation family.
Sunday, 18 March 2018 Original Killester, Dublin Final budget €180,000 A couple have returned from London to Ireland after renovating a 1950s semi-detached house in Killester, North Dublin in an industrial style, with a budget of €150,000 to complete the project.
Sunday, 25 March 2018 Original Tipperary €220,000 A dairy farmer hopes to create a 'forever' home by renovating a recently inherited farmhouse on a half acre of land.
Sunday, 1 April 2018 Original Stillorgan, Dublin Final budget €300,000 Bannon has to bring 'Malibu style' living to a 1960s home in Stillorgan, Dublin, on a budget of €180,000, but rising to €290,000 due to client changes.

Series 12

There were eight episodes in series 12.

Date Details Location Budget Circumstances
8 September 2019 Athgarvan, County Kildare Final budget €298,000 Nessa and David have bought a 1990s split level bungalow and have a budget of €290,000 to transform it into a modern extended dream home.
15 September 2019 Borrisoleigh, County Tipperary €215,000 Dermot heads to Borrisoleigh, County Tipperary, to meet retired bakery salesman Joe Kenny who has lived in his bachelor pad since 1980. He is about to marry his long-term girlfriend Mary Hayes, but before they marry, Mary insists that the house needs to be dragged into the 21st century.
22 September 2019 Rathfarnham, Dublin Final budget €390,000 Dermot Bannon travels to Rathfarnham to meet a couple who live with their daughter in their detached 1930s two-bedroom home, and he helps the family transform and extend it on a budget of €285,000.
29 September 2019 Ashford County Wicklow. Final budget €375,000 plus €195,000 on clients' optional extras. Nigel and Frances Coffey live in a bungalow built in 1997. It was perfect for them 20 years ago, but with 5 children ranging in ages from 9 to 26 and with girlfriends the house is just too cramped and they struggle for space. Budget is €450,000.
6 October 2019 Tramore, County Waterford €290,000 Tom and Claudia bought a 1920s bungalow near Tramore Bay 8 years ago, but the house is now too small for a family of five, the layout is dark and cramped and most of the property does not face the sea. Dermot plans to redesign the interior and add extensions with sea views.
13 October 2019 Drumcondra, Dublin Final budget €240,000 Glenn and Gustav need to redesign a house previously split into two self contained apartments. The house is so utterly disconnected and no longer works as a single residence Dermot needs to re-evaluate the layout within their budget of €155,000, but hidden structural, roof and chimney problems are putting a strain on their budget.
5 January 2020 Special: Dermot's Home – Part One N/A
12 January 2020 Special: Dermot's Home – Part Two N/A

Series 13

There were five episodes in series 13.

Date Location Budget Circumstances
20 Feb 2022 Kilmacud, County Dublin Architect Dermot Bannon returns to help people to improve their homes, beginning by giving Marc and Lisa Daly advice on their property in Kilmacud, Co Dublin.
Howth, County Dublin
Blessington, County Wicklow
Thurles, County Tipperary
Constructive Criticism N/A

Series 14

There were four episodes in series 14.

Date Location Budget Circumstances
09 Nov 2023 Tullamore, County Offaly
16 Nov 2023 Lucan, County Dublin Dermot tackles a project with an incredibly tight budget.
23 Nov 2023 Blessington, County Wicklow
30 Nov 2023 Castleknock, West Dublin Dermot helps a couple extend their 3 bedroom semi-detached home in Castleknock, West Dublin.

Series 15

Date Location Budget Circumstances
07 Jan 2024 Urlingford, County Kilkenny Dermot Bannon & Claire Irwin are in Urlingford, Kilkenny, to work on an old farmhouse.

References

  1. ^ "RTÉ Reveals Summer Schedule". Irish Film and Television Network. IFTN. 9 June 2008. Archived from the original on 1 March 2015. Retrieved 23 January 2009.
  2. ^ "Home Renovation without Money". Investopedia. 27 March 2018. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
  3. ^ "Channel 5 finds Room To Improve". RapidTV News. 14 May 2021. Retrieved 10 June 2021.
  4. ^ "Series One". Raidió Teilifís Éireann. Archived from the original on 1 March 2015. Retrieved 18 January 2009.
  5. ^ "Series 2". Raidió Teilifís Éireann. Archived from the original on 1 March 2015. Retrieved 18 January 2009.
  6. ^ a b c d e "Programmes". Raidió Teilifís Éireann. Archived from the original on 1 March 2015. Retrieved 18 January 2009.
  7. ^ "The Christmas Special". Raidió Teilifís Éireann. Archived from the original on 1 March 2015. Retrieved 18 January 2009.
  8. ^ "Room to Improve – Christmas special". Raidió Teilifís Éireann. Archived from the original on 1 March 2015.
  9. ^ Meadhbh McGrath (7 February 2016). "Dermot Bannon: 'At school, nobody ever saw me as a serious contender for a boyfriend. I wasn't popular and I was quite overweight'". Irish Independent. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
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