Aberaeron Georgian Houses The Great Interior Design Challenge

Here in the UK, we're blessed with an enormous variety of types

and styles of buildings that we call home -

from thatched cottages to 1930s Art Deco apartments,

Regency terraces to contemporary townhouses.

But sometimes, while the exterior creates a wow factor,

the interior can be distinctly lacking.

So we've gathered some of the UK's most talented amateur

interior designers to show us what they're made of.

Let's get started, guys.

Time is ticking.

We're in the quarterfinals, and the pressure is mounting.

That's it now - I'm really happy.

I may die of exhaustion.

I really don't need this.

Pressure's on.

Putting them through their paces and scrutinising

their every move are judges Daniel Hopwood,

designer and a director of the British Institute

of Interior Design...

This year, we've got new challenges for the designers that are really

going to push them to the limit.

..and internationally-renowned interior designer Kelly Hoppen.

As a judge in this competition, I want to see perfection.

I think I will be quite a hard judge.

But it's going to take a lot of creativity and hard work

to be crowned winner of the Great Interior Design Challenge.

This time, we're in the pretty coastal town of Aberaeron

in West Wales.

Two designers from the first round

will be competing for a place in the semifinals,

only, this time, they haven't just got one room

to do each, they've got two in neighbouring houses.

It's the quarterfinals, and the designers will have just

48 hours over three days,

£2,000...

..and, this time, their teams have doubled -

there'll be two builders and two decorators to manage.

-Yeah, that one needs to come up a bit.

-Come up a bit, yeah?

And, in their toughest challenge yet,

their first room must be finished and judged on day two.

I'm going to cry. I'm going to cry.

They'll need to work hard to impress...

He's, kind of, almost frozen.

He looks so nervous.

..because it'll be goodbye for one of them at the end of this round.

I want to prove that my designs are special enough to win this heat.

I'm going to say that I'm confident, even though I'm possibly not.

Throughout the 1700s, Aberaeron was a bustling fishing port,

but it had a bigger future ahead of it

thanks to local landowner Rev. Alban Thomas Jones Gwynne.

He blew a huge inheritance from his wife's cousin on a single dream -

to create a successful port on Wales' West Coast to take advantage

of Cardigan Bay's thriving herring industry.

The vision was for warehouses, shops,

and elegant houses to line broad streets laid out in a grid pattern.

Merchants started to develop their trade, exporting coal, slate,

and limestone from Britain,

and importing coffee and sugar from South America,

and timber from Canada.

Aberaeron began to boom.

And today, in this picturesque seaside town,

with two rooms to transform,

things have also stepped up a notch for our budding designers.

In a pair of sunshine yellow Georgian-style houses,

they'll each be handed a study...

..and a bedroom.

The first designer returning is 63-year-old actor, director

and writer Nicholas.

My style is a mixture of modern Baroque,

Monet's house in Giverny,

and the influence of Oriental

and textiles.

His love of opulence is reflected in his own South London home.

The fact that I have lived through

quite a few decades of design,

I think I can pull on all those different influences,

and create something that fits,

and deal with people and understand what people want.

Last time, he wowed the judges

with a tranquil Japanese-themed room in Saltaire.

And his flamboyance won him a place in the quarterfinals.

What did Nicholas do last time that impressed you so much?

He researches the period, the style,

everything that he wants to do to such a T,

and it was really sensational.

But I was very concerned, as I think we both were,

that, because of his theatrical background,

it was going to be too over-staged, too much going on.

So the danger zone for Nicholas is not to over-egg the pudding,

not to make it too themey and stagy. That's the worry?

Yeah, exactly.

Nicholas has been given the task of treading the boards

in the vibrant house homeowner Diana shares with her son and daughter.

First up, it's the study.

My children, Tom and Emma, who are 17 and 22,

want somewhere where they can hang out with their mates.

So I want it to be modern, colourful, but not babyish.

The designers have had their briefs for just over a week,

but today is the first time they're seeing their houses in person.

It's a nice-size room.

Very good blank canvas for what I want.

The second room Nicholas is taking on his upstairs.

Ah-ha.

The bedroom.

My bedroom is lacking in a bit of character.

I'd like it to be bright and elegant.

A lot of wood in here. A lot of wood.

I don't want all the walls the same colour -

I would like one accent wall.

Working to Diana's brief, Nicholas has created a mood board

of his ideas which he'll present to her.

On hand to assess his performance are industry experts

Kelly Hoppen and Daniel Hopwood.

They'll be looking out for strong presentation skills and an ability

to adapt to his client's wishes.

To make Diana feel at ease, he's kicking things off

in her native tongue...

-Bore da, Diana.

-Oh, bore da.

..and begins with his ideas for the study.

Two of the elements that were mentioned

-were beanbags and the hanging pod seat...

-Oh, yeah. Yeah.

..and I immediately thought '60s, '70s.

So...white neutral on the walls,

so that the accent is with the accessories

-around the room and the bits and pieces.

-OK.

You wouldn't like to do one orange wall, would you?

I could do one orange wall.

-I'd like an accent wall.

-Absolutely, if you'd...

-If you'd like.

-I'd like that.

-Yes.

On the long wall, I've designed

some shelves in real wood,

which is a triangular structure.

Oh, light fitting - they're going to be made from dustbin lids...

SHE LAUGHS

..with enormous bulbs inside.

OK, I like it. I like it.

-OK, let's move on.

-Yeah, let's move on.

In complete contrast to your very classical

and elegant bedroom...

What I want to do is keep the walls neutral tone.

I do like light grey. I think it's very classy.

You're a classy person.

-We want you to go classy.

-Oh, I don't know about that!

As a feature wall,

I wanted to use this paper, which is silk.

-Is it going to be that colour?

-It's... I was going to keep it

in tones of white.

Because I wanted one wall...colour. Teal. Blue teal.

We can...we can...we can do that.

I can do you a teal wall as well...

with it.

The light fitting, I want to use quartz crystals.

I found that every square metre of the surface of the Welsh landscape

-has some quartz present.

-Oh, really? Yeah, nice.

A new look, a new feel, a new start.

Yeah. All I need is a man now.

Do you know, no matter what Nicholas is doing,

I like the fact that he tells a really, really good story.

When he is there doing his presentation,

-he engulfs the homeowner...

-Oh, doesn't he sell it?

..into the experience, and that's his theatre background.

But my concerns are, being the theatrical person that he is,

that he loves a theme,

and he's done that in that study, going for that '60s look.

You don't have to have the whole room look retro.

Exactly, but Nicholas' scheme for the bedroom

is completely different from the study.

But I think that he's going to have a problem on his hands as to where

that feature wall is actually going to end up.

The clock has started on Nicholas' 48 hours.

The homeowner has requested that there's more of an accent wall...

which I want to put on this wall here - just a slightly,

slightly pale teal colour.

We have a monumental task ahead of us in both rooms.

So...let's get to it.

But with the study to be completed tomorrow,

it's the tangerine feature wall that's up first.

Whoa! That's bright.

That is quite some colour.

Our second designer is 31-year-old transport artist Richard.

I would say my style is... It's raw, imperfect...

It's a bit industrial...

..and eclectic. Very much eclectic, actually.

His career sketching cars has evolved into redesigning the home

he shares with his wife and baby son in West Yorkshire.

I have so many things that I'm interested in

and so many areas of design that I like

that, when they all mould together,

they don't really fit in to any sort of style other than...

-my style, I think.

-HE LAUGHS

In the first heat, Richard impressed the judges with a bedroom lavished

with hotel chic in North London.

And his unique vision won him a place in the next round.

What did Richard do the first time that so impressed you?

I think what was great about him,

cos he's an industrial designer

and he was asked to do hotel chic, and he really delivered that.

And I was seriously impressed by him.

So what are you expecting from Richard this time?

One of the things that I really want is to see his confidence come out.

Verbally, he's very timid.

My fear is that we know he's a perfectionist,

and the classic trait of a perfectionist

is actually not finishing things.

Because they're spending too much time focusing

on one thing at a time.

And he's got two rooms this time, and that might defeat him.

Richard's challenge is to take the helm

of the former sea captain's house

that homeowners Lynne and Dai have lived in for 27 years.

He's also got a study to revamp, but with a nautical theme.

Yeah, this is a nice room, this.

-I might just leave it as it is.

-HE LAUGHS

It's a room where...where I usually go and chill out.

Although it's fairly functional,

it's not a very inspiring room to sit in.

I'd like it to be sort of traditional.

I don't want anything garish.

The curtains we've got, they're sort of a light blue, creamy colour,

which I want to keep. Lynne's mother made them,

-so we can't throw those.

-HE LAUGHS

I can't upset the mother-in-law.

The office chair is an old armchair,

which we would like recovered,

but, apart from that, everything can go.

And upstairs it's the couple's bedroom

that needs a new lease of life.

It's a bit smaller than I thought, but then so is the furniture,

so that's good.

We want the bedroom to remain fairly traditional,

but we're open to a bit of quirkiness.

Yeah, fresh, more modern.

But Richard's task might not be as straightforward as it sounds.

I think our designer has got a challenge.

Our tastes are fairly traditional and it might be hard to please us.

HE LAUGHS

This is the mood board I've done for your study.

So, yeah, I tried to get the colours

from the curtains that you've got in there.

Then, you said you liked a little bit of a nautical theme.

So these shelves here, they're rope shelves.

They're kind of like that sort of idea.

With your chair, I thought that I would reupholster it

-in a kind of hessian material.

-Right, OK.

-Yeah.

And then, in that same hessian material, I want to make you

-a little window seat as well.

-Yeah, yeah, looks good.

-Yeah?

-Yeah, yeah.

-Yeah.

-Then this is the ideas I've got for the bedroom.

I suppose the biggest thing that I'm thinking about in here

-is the headboard - I've gone big.

-HE LAUGHS

-It does look big.

-So it's most of the wall.

In three sections, it'll be padded.

And then, these two bits either side of here,

I was going to do in chipboard.

Painted in white - that first of all - and then sanded back,

-so it'll be like that.

-OK.

Bit different.

-Yeah, it's a bit quirky.

-Yeah, yeah.

It's my favourite material. It's amazing stuff. I love it.

HE LAUGHS

I've got pendants dangling on fabric cord.

They'll be either side of the bed,

and they'll just hang down and sit in

these two vase lantern things.

So after the little quirks of the lantern,

I'm going to come to the more quirky

and a little bit more bold...

HE LAUGHS

..dressing table, which I was hoping to paint pink.

-OK.

-HE LAUGHS

I just think it really adds something.

Hopefully, a big wow factor when you walk in.

-Yeah, I'm impressed with that.

-Yeah?

-Yeah.

-Pleased?

-Yeah.

-Yes, yes.

-Excellent.

-HE LAUGHS

Excellent.

I love Richard's schemes because you can recognise

-that they're his style.

-He's done something very modern

by painting the walls in two colours. And then, the bedroom -

I love the headboard, that it's high.

He's made that very grand.

The only thing that really concerns me is this kind of coral pink.

But we asked him to start looking at layering a scheme,

adding texture and colour.

I mean, he has. He's becoming much more playful.

First thing I need from you is...

-the headboard.

-OK, yeah.

At the start of his 48 hours, Richard's got big plans for

the bedroom...

It's going to be three different panels.

-Oh, OK.

-And in terms of painting...

erm, it's all going to be one colour.

..but his team needs to know what to do first.

-I don't know - paint the walls...

-Paint the ceiling?

-..paint the ceilings.

-HE LAUGHS

Is that hessian or something?

And he's struggling to provide answers in the study too.

Is there a timetable to get this done by?

Yeah, this one needs to be done by tomorrow.

Tomorrow when, roughly?

-That's a good question I don't know the answer to.

-OK, we don't know.

None the wiser, the team get to work.

And, for Richard, his biggest job is reupholstering the study chair.

The chair used to belong to the homeowner's grandfather,

so I guess it's quite old. It's also a bit of added pressure

as well, with it being a family heirloom.

I've not upholstered anything before.

I've watched a few videos on the internet before coming down here,

just to see what the...

-what deal is, so...

-HE LAUGHS

With both designers off the starting blocks,

tomorrow's deadline to have their studies finished

is inching ever nearer in this charming Welsh town.

Known as the jewel of Cardigan Bay,

Aberaeron is a rare example of 19th century urban planning.

The town was mostly built in the Victorian era,

but it looks even older.

The houses were designed in a Georgian style with sash windows,

decorative lintels, and harmonious neoclassical proportions.

Houses were built two rooms wide and only one room deep,

a twist on the usual two-up, two-down model.

This gave the illusion of width and grandeur,

a modest nod to the Georgian country villa -

something that would have appealed to the middle-class aspirational

merchants that lived inside.

Some people think that the bright colours of the houses were so that

the fishermen could identify their homes when they were out at sea.

The rather less romantic truth is that the colour wash protected the

houses from the salty air and hid the cheap stone underneath.

In any case, these kinds of bright colours didn't turn up

until the mid-20th century.

And behind this colourful facade

Nicholas is working on his trash can light fittings,

which will illuminate his '60s study.

They are going to hang from the ceiling

with enormous bulbs in them.

He's drilling a hole where the light cord will thread through.

You don't have to buy the whole dustbin. You can just buy the lids.

If we can thread those through each one,

we just need to get them up and running, yeah?

While the electricians are left to bring Nicholas's creation to life...

It's very slightly bigger than eight foot.

..the design of his intricate shelving unit needs some explaining.

I think if we start at the bottom and get this height in this shelf,

so it's a good worktop height,

and you could actually sit on a high stool at a computer.

Looking at the designs, it looks huge,

and I'm just wondering how it's going to fit into such a small room.

This looks really good,

and the shelving is coming on quite brilliantly.

Nearby, in Richard's nautical-themed study,

as the paint goes on the walls, he's all at sea.

I need to get my chair finished, as well as...

What else do I need to do? Erm...

What else do I need to do?

And while Richard's pondering...

at least his second room upstairs hasn't been totally forgotten.

The bedroom's been painted,

and, outside, the feature headboard's being cut.

But he's got to get back to work on the family chair.

I expected the upholstering of the chair to be quite a challenge

and it hasn't disappointed.

But it's going all right.

It's just taking a bit more time than I was expecting.

Richard is spending so much time reupholstering the chair.

Fantastic to do that, but he is running out of time.

The end of the first day is in sight,

and a retro desk Nicholas has chosen for the study

is getting a face-lift.

I have to start wallpapering the fronts of the drawers

using quite a retro wallpaper.

I think the only technique you need is a steady hand,

and getting the pattern right,

because the pattern has got to be centred.

Otherwise, it could look a bit of a pig's bottom.

In Richard's house, his final task of the day

is to paint the arms of the study chair,

but he's taking a gamble and making chalk paint for the first time.

The recipe I got off the internet said a tablespoon of warm water

to a tablespoon of chalk powder

for a cup of paint.

Chalk paint is supposed to be handy

for painting on to furniture and things.

You don't have to sand it or do too much prepping of the woodwork

before you put it on.

It's going to make it a bit more contemporary

than if I just left the arms wooden. A bit more unique.

Yeah, it's going on all right.

The paint may be going on,

but the upholstery will have to wait until tomorrow.

Right, so we're all done for today.

I think we are so...

I'm not going to say ahead of time.

I think we are well on schedule.

Hello, you all right?

Yeah, I'm good.

-HE PANTS

-How's it going?

-All right. All right.

-All right?

I think it was a...a productive day.

We got a fair bit done, which I was pleased about.

Have you progressed to where you want to?

Mostly, yeah.

-Yeah.

-Yeah?

-I'm upholstering a chair, which I've never done before,

-so that's taken a long time.

-Ooh, that's...

HE LAUGHS

'There is a lot to do tomorrow.'

I think I'm going to have to really keep an eye on the time.

I don't want to leave the competition

because I just couldn't keep control of how much stuff I had to do.

-Good morning.

-Morning.

-How are you?

How are we doing with the shelves?

Yeah, fine.

It's the start of day two, and, by the end of today,

Nicholas and Richard need to have finished a room each.

Better get a move on.

I'm sort of ready for today.

I've not slept very well thinking about getting the room finished.

And talking to Nicholas yesterday...

I think he's certainly more confident than I am!

Probably the extra push I need, maybe.

OK, so...

Nicholas is busy directing his builder

in his soon-to-be retro study.

If I had a sort of old record player arm,

I could hang it from the ceiling.

No, too fussy.

He's using old records to dress the window.

And then the tiebacks have a real jukebox one with no centre.

That goes on there, like that,

-and then that goes there.

-Mm-hm.

Yeah? And then that line drops

-with that bar a moment.

-OK.

-Shall I just put these on the window?

-Yeah.

I'm just about to put the records on to the curtain tiebacks,

and for this I'm going to use a glue gun.

63-year-old Nicholas isn't fazed

designing for the youth of today.

I couldn't tell you what music they now listen to,

but I could actually find things

that the younger generation are going to think are cool.

And, of course, who could beat the '60s?

There has never been a decade like it.

I don't know what we did before glue guns.

Done.

So what do you think about the height of these and the sort of

spacing between the shelves?

In Richard's nautical-themed study, there's still a lot to do.

His builder's working on the shelves

he's designed using his trademark OSB -

a type of chipboard.

Thank you very much.

But with the all-consuming study chair to finish,

he's leaving his builder to it.

The idea was to sow the hessian to this padding panel

that's behind here.

I might give up on this idea very quickly and try something else.

-In fact, I'm going to do that.

-HE LAUGHS

I'm going to give up on this idea and try something else.

Popping by to keep an eye on proceedings are the judges.

Hi, Richard.

-How's it going?

-I've got a lot to do.

-Are you a bit behind?

-Yeah, a little bit.

Why do you think you're a bit behind?

This chair that I'm upholstering has taken

a lot longer than I thought it was going to take.

Have you upholstered chair before?

-No.

-OK.

Breathe.

If there is a person that can give you Zen peace, it's Kelly, so there you go.

No, but I think when you're in a state like this,

if you get too worked up, it just creates more anxiety.

You're better off just, like, sitting down and just

taking a deep breath.

Cos you know what time you've got,

you've just got to allocate and delegate.

Yeah. Yeah, I'm calm.

SHE LAUGHS

Every minute counts...

-Thank you.

-..and good luck with it.

-Thanks.

Kelly, I'm really concerned with Richard - he looks so nervous.

We've seen this before with perfectionists.

When they're under stress, they freeze up

rather than actually start going for it and just speeding up.

And I'm praying that he's going to pull it off.

The sea has played a major role in shaping Aberaeron.

In its infancy, the town's residents included merchants,

shipbuilders and captains.

Ships were believed to be saved from the perils of the sea by the power

of prayer, so worship played a vital role in the life of the town.

So much so that Colonel Gwyn set aside land

for two Methodist chapels here.

This one, their Tabernacle,

is built in the same austere, neoclassical style

as the rest of the town.

One of the elders of this chapel was also a master of one of the ships.

He was said to enforce a strict moral code on board.

There was no sailing on a Sunday, swearing was strictly prohibited,

and he even forced members of the crew to learn passages

from the Bible by heart. They were even tested on it.

For Nicholas, his first test will come later on today

when his retro study must be complete.

This man is a genius.

I come up with an impossible dream,

and he makes it come true.

Wow, wow, wow.

-Hi, there.

-Hello!

-Hello, Nicholas.

-Hello again.

Wow, speedy. It's coming together really quickly.

I'm very, very pleased.

It's actually...

It's gone according to plan.

Any lessons learnt from last time?

Uh, yes, and I took on board

not to be too thematic with my design.

-So you've got two rooms this time?

-Yes.

-All on plan?

-Absolutely.

-He's so calm. It's all under control, he's happy with it.

-Wait till we walk out the door...

-I've tried to dig, dig, dig.

-..he'll be going, "Ahhh!"

-Like a swan - underneath...

-Yeah.

Do you know what? Looking at this room,

I would say you're under control.

While Nicholas has been drawing inspiration

from the '60s downstairs,

upstairs, in the bedroom,

the classical elegance he wants to create is beginning to emerge.

Oh, wow.

What a difference.

I love this blue. That is fabulous.

The feature wall requested by the homeowner has turned teal...

It's working.

..and Nicholas's pure silk feature wall is up.

To come in and see a room that...

..I have...

..designed come, sort of, to life,

yeah...

I'm emotional.

With time running out,

for Richard, the bedroom's the last thing on his mind.

STAPLER CLICKS

At the minute, the bedroom's very much on the back burner.

Everybody is in the study,

desperately trying to get things finished in time.

Meanwhile, I'm fiddling about with the chair,

-which doesn't make me very happy.

-HE LAUGHS

But finally, with little more than an hour to go until time is up

on the study, the chair is done...

Right.

..and Richard can turn his attention to his team.

Are you happy with the spacing just as they are now?

Yeah, that one needs to come up a bit.

Come up a bit, yeah? Obviously, I'll put this just bang in the middle.

Just in the middle, yeah.

So these shelves have been made using

some thick rope and some OSB,

and then they've been secured by cable ties underneath,

just to stop the shelves falling down.

Behind schedule in his first room,

Richard's about to be thrown a curveball.

LAUGHTER

Keen to get the designers thinking on their feet,

the judges are on their way to give them an item

that's rather at home in their seaside location.

Their task is to imaginatively work it into one of their room designs.

-Hello, Richard.

-Hello.

You know at some stage you're going to get a creative challenge?

-Yes.

-Well, I've got it. Are you ready for this?

-Hello, Kelly.

-HE LAUGHS

The creative challenge moment.

-And here it is.

-Yeah.

You're going to be slightly annoyed.

OK.

-So it just needs to feature in one of your two rooms.

-Yes.

There's no time limit.

-Come up with something really interesting...

-All right.

..like making shelves out of rope. Sorry. Good luck.

-THEY LAUGH

-Cheers.

HE SIGHS

With a lot on his mind already,

Richard has decided to put his rope aside for the bedroom.

But Nicholas has had no trouble deciding where his will go.

What I want to do is fix it there,

and I think we can pin it,

as in very fine panel pins, through,

which won't...

But we're going to have to do it every three inches,

that sort of... So that it doesn't roll about.

For Nicholas, time is almost up on the study.

After a lot of hard graft bringing his design to life,

he has just a few last details to accentuate his retro room.

You see, you do that, and you give it a shape.

Now, look, could an old person get out of a seat like that?

My work here is done.

I'm hoping that when the judges see the room...

anything that they might have had

doubts about...

will evaporate.

Nicholas was given the task of creating a funky chill-out den

for the homeowner's children.

Yesterday, it was a drab and overcrowded study

with no clear direction.

Now, it's got a strong and bold identity.

Nicholas chose a retro theme,

reflected in his original-but-updated desk,

sunburst rug

and hanging pod chair.

His ingenious shelving unit created storage and work space

with a clever use of the rope from his creative challenge.

And he used bursts of tangerine to tie his scheme together,

right down to the centres of his jukebox records.

-Blimey.

-Wow.

This is not what I expected.

-It's better.

-It's much better.

It pulls together beautifully well.

His styling is exemplary,

and I think that that unit,

that could have been very imposing in the room, actually is genius.

And, look - the creative challenge. Very clever.

-Where is it? Where is it?

-There, look.

-I can't see it.

-There.

How clever. So the rope is used to finish the edging on it.

And you could work at it - you could stand here with a laptop,

-or with a stool.

-You could have stools here.

-Yeah.

It's not invasive because it goes backwards, above and below.

There's only one thing that I don't like,

and that is the use of these records everywhere.

I think it's a bit themey for me.

-Can I add one to that one?

-Yeah.

I'm not in love with these.

They're a nice idea, but they're just

a little bit too urban for a seaside town.

Nicholas has been working to the homeowner's brief.

And Diana and her children Tom and Emma's reactions to his room design

will be taken into consideration in the judges' final decision.

-Oh!

-Oh, my.

Wow.

-It's sick.

-Oh, my God, it's not our room any more.

These are fantastic.

-These look amazing.

-And the rope's like, kind of beachy.

And the orange wall, just one orange wall.

-Yeah.

-That's nice.

Like, these are just so cool.

What do you make of those? They're very unusual.

-I actually love it. This is so cool.

-SHE LAUGHS

It's got a kind of '60s retro kind of feel.

Yep, my era.

But it wasn't in the brief, and here it is.

-No...

-But it works, it does work.

The clock's about to stop for Richard,

but his study is far from finished.

It looks a bit of a state at the minute,

but I think it should be able to come together.

Just a unit to put together,

which looks horrendously complicated.

-It's going to be tight.

-HE LAUGHS

-How do we fix these on?

-Right, well, on this.

The last-minute flatpack cabinet is foxing everyone...

..and Richard is concentrating on finishing

his hessian-covered window seat.

And with seconds to go...

..the family chair proudly takes its place.

So time's up, and there's still quite a bit to do, so...

..I failed.

There's still the display cabinet to put together,

and the rug to put down, and then another chair to be brought in.

I think it's just poor time management,

to be honest, on my part, I think.

This is what I said I didn't want to happen, so, yeah...

..bit annoyed about it, to be honest.

HE SIGHS

Richard's brief was to design a dual-purpose study

for both working and relaxing,

with a nod to the seaside location.

Yesterday, it was dreary

and overshadowed by a super-size work station.

Now, it has a subtle nautical theme...

..with two-tone blue walls...

..and hanging rope shelves.

A bespoke fold-down desk is unobtrusive,

and the hessian covering the newly-upholstered family chair

is mirrored in both the window seat and the radiator cover,

giving the room a contemporary edge.

SHE GASPS

Whoa.

Hang on a minute, there's half a flatpack down here.

OK, let's be positive - let's look at all the good things.

-I love the chair.

-Chair's gorgeous.

The curtains were existing. I love the window seat.

-And I love the way he's got the colour, you know, divided it...

-Mm.

-..I think it's great.

-OK, is it a scheme that works?

Does it look right?

-Facing this way, I'm happy.

-Yeah.

Turning this way,

for me, it's a little bit childish for a grown man's study

to have hanging shelves with...

-With ropes on it.

-..with ropes on it.

I just don't think he has thought about the person

who's going to live in this space.

He's got a flatpack sort of desk sitting in the corner.

What I'm so disappointed

is that he hasn't finished it.

Because he's good, Richard, you know?

He's shown us that he's good, and he's got integrity,

he's authentic in what he does.

But it's... I'm really surprised.

Richard's incomplete nautical study

has yet to be seen by the homeowners.

-Wow, this is...

-What a difference.

-SHE LAUGHS

Yeah, this is really, really nice.

I mean, obviously, it's not finished,

which must be disappointing.

It is a little bit, yeah, yeah.

I know there's not masses to do, erm, but, yeah,

he's done quite a lot in the time given.

I'm very pleased to see that chair done.

It's been needing done for the last donkey's years.

And what we've seen, it looks really nice.

Yeah, very pleased. Very pleased.

With one room behind them,

the designers can now give their full attention to their bedrooms,

which will be revealed and judged tomorrow.

Now the study is finished/unfinished,

I need to get on with the bedroom.

Both the decorators are working on sanding down the furniture,

so that's ready to be painted.

I think tomorrow I've only got three hours left,

so I'm going to start work on painting the headboard.

-Richard, how's it going?

-Hello.

Are you feeling the pressure a bit now, then,

-to get this next one done?

-Yeah, yeah.

What is it? Is it the getting two rooms done?

Yeah, I think trying to get the first one done meant

I was putting a lot of effort into that one,

which meant that this next one's been neglected, so...

Oh, God.

So, going forward, what are you going to do?

-What's your plan of action?

-Delegation is something

I'm really not very good at, cos I want to do everything myself.

So, yeah, delegate - I've just got to do that better.

-Well, good luck, good luck.

-Thank you.

I wish I could do something to help.

There's a paintbrush there if you...

You don't want to see me with a paintbrush - I'm no good.

I like watching people paint, but I'm no good at it myself.

It's the end of the day, and Nicholas is on a high.

I just want to say thank you.

We've had such a great day.

I'm going to cry. I'm going to cry.

-Don't cry!

-Tomorrow, the bad news is

we've got to finish the other one.

But for Richard, he's having difficulty putting the events

of today behind him.

I really am beating myself up about the study

not being finished in time.

I think tomorrow is a new day.

Once I've had a chance to sit down,

work out exactly what needs to be done tomorrow...

Yeah. At the minute, I'm fairly...

confident that it'll get done.

HE HUMS A TUNE

Morning!

Now, Richard may not have finished his first room,

but don't let that fool you into thinking that Nicholas is ahead.

There's still another day to go, a room to complete,

and everything to play for.

I think it is my last chance today, so I've got to get it right,

I've got to get it done on time, and I'm very keen to get on.

HE LAUGHS

Last day.

Time is ticking, and I'm very confident it's going

to look beautiful. It's already looking fine.

It's just the putting the furniture, putting the bed back together,

and all the rest of the things.

-Thank you so much.

-See you later.

-See you.

-See you in a minute.

PURRING

After his morning's been mapped out,

the first job of the day for Nicholas

is to create an original artwork,

adding a personal touch to his classical and elegant bedroom.

HE LAUGHS

You're walking on me paint.

It's wet paint.

He's painting a canvas which he'll cover in a seascape

of hand-decorated fabric.

So I'm just going to start dipping.

Either end of a piece of white silk

is submerged into a mixture of blue and green cold-water dyes.

I like the tone of it.

I do actually want it to be a darker shade.

And then I'm going to leave this

soaking in here.

And then, we hang it out to dry, squirt it,

and the water will slowly bring some

of the colour out of it

whilst it is still wet.

And we frame it.

Picasso should have known this trick.

Now, Nicholas's room - whew, that's quite some transformation.

My concern, there's this rather fancy, rococo wallpaper

that looks like it's in a rather awful

bed and breakfast in a seaside town.

Yeah, but not only that,

every single wall in that bedroom

is a different colour, or a different texture.

I mean, that, for me, is a complete no-no.

-How's it going?

-Not bad, not bad. Getting there.

-Just getting some paint on these wardrobes...

-Yeah.

-..as requested.

Not wanting to repeat the let down of yesterday,

the entire team's at work in the traditional-but-quirky bedroom

that Richard's dreamt up for his homeowners.

Dickie, when you've got a moment,

could you build up those chest things there -

little wicker basket things?

Just whenever you've got a moment.

This time, he's taking control to ensure his room is finished.

In the kitchen, it's back to the bed's feature headboard,

which will be created from five panels of his beloved OSB.

Having cut fabric to size, it's wrapped around padding...

..and stapled to create the three central panels.

The outer two panels have been painted white

and sanded to reveal the texture in the wood.

But with time running out

the room is nowhere near completion

and Richard's only just begun to tackle his creative challenge.

I'm going to try and make it into a rug.

Erm...I'm not entirely sure how yet, but...

The length of boating rope is secured with cable ties.

I'm very much making this up as I go along

-cos I know I'm short on time.

-HE LAUGHS

But with yesterday's room unfinished, the judges are concerned

he's behind again, and have come to give him the final push he needs.

-Hi, Richard.

-Hiya, you all right?

-I'm all right. How are you?

-You're looking flustered.

-I am.

-LAUGHTER

-Are you telling people what to do?

Are you delegating down to everybody?

-Yeah, I think so.

-We want you to succeed.

You know, you're in this competition,

you're here for a reason,

you've got the potential here,

you are good at what you do.

And we want to see that design talent that we know you have.

Don't let it go. Think of it as a bit like being a conductor.

He's all your orchestra there,

but you've got to point that baton to get them running.

And just keep pointing at it, you know?

-HE IMITATES WHIP CRACKING

-Like that.

-I hear you paid a little visit to Richard?

-We had to.

Because what happens when he panics, he goes very, very quiet.

He's like a rabbit in the headlights -

he doesn't know where he's going from left to right.

Richard is running rapidly out of time, but he's a great designer,

and I've got every hope that he's going to really

give us a fantastic scheme.

Things are on track for Nicholas...

-You all right?

-Yeah.

..and he's adding a final touch of elegance to his bedroom.

These are the crystals to hang

like a chandelier drop

onto the frame there.

With the chandelier adorned, the silk seascape is being mounted.

Yeah.

And with the last details in place,

his 48 hours are up, and the clock has stopped.

Well, I'm done.

I'm going to sit down and have a nice cup of tea.

I do hope they like it.

I hope that I have answered

possible doubts or dilemmas that the judges

would have that I could only do

a thematic room.

Nicholas' brief was to bring a touch of class

to the homeowner's bedroom.

48 hours ago, it was lacking character and style.

Now, it shouts opulent elegance,

with its muted colour scheme complemented by feature walls...

..and accents of teal.

Whitewashed furniture gives the illusion of more space...

..and Nicholas has added a personal touch

with his handmade crystal chandelier droplets...

..and silk artwork.

-Wow.

-What's the feeling like?

-It's airy.

-It does feel airy.

-It's calm.

-Yes.

-I was concerned about

the fact that every wall had a different texture.

I still don't like that.

I still think it's very over the top.

But the homeowner wanted some more blue on the walls.

For me, it's just too much of the blue happening over there.

You've got the cushion, you've got the lampshade,

and then you've got a piece of art

which you really don't need.

You know, there's an element of theatre,

and that, to me, is a stage set.

But I love the fact that, actually, he's had a good go at

dressing the bed. Also, other details.

I mean, what a really good way of sort of

tarting up this chandelier with the little bits of crystal.

Basically, Nicholas is good,

but the theatre overtakes sometimes,

and you could literally cut this room in two halves,

and he hasn't thought about the connection of the two.

A room has got to gel, it's got to fuse together,

it's got to be one.

It's time for the homeowner's new bedroom to be revealed to her.

(Oh, God.)

Oh, crikey.

SHE BREATHES UNEVENLY

(I can't...)

(It's lovely.)

He's done it again, hasn't he?

I just think it's fantastic.

What's making you fill up? Why are you filling up?

Because it's...

Because I've never had a bedroom like this before.

And it's just fantastic.

Are you busy right now?

-No.

-Can you come and help Alex carry a dresser?

Galvanised by his visit from the judges,

Richard's got his eye on the finish line.

-That's the other one.

-OK.

To add a quirky twist to his traditional room,

he's suspending an oversized bulb into a glass vase.

-Dressing table's going there.

-Oh, right, OK.

-That all needs to shift along a bit.

-OK, OK.

He's added a burst of colour...

And then that goes in front of these mirrors here.

..with the overhauled flamingo pink dressing table.

-Yeah?

-Yeah.

Four minutes to go, and I think we're done.

CHEERING

-You all right?

-Yeah, I'm just relieved.

-Come on.

You've done it. It looks amazing, doesn't it?

Well done.

It looks better than my drawing.

I'm really, really pleased.

Richard's homeowners gave him free rein

to create a traditional-feel bedroom with a twist.

48 hours ago, it was bland and outdated,

in the shadow of dark furniture.

Now, it's bright and calming,

showcasing a palette of neutral colours

and natural influences.

A pink dressing table and stool add a flash of colour.

A new layout creates more space...

..and the feature headboard is big and bold,

giving the room a focal point.

And suspended light fittings offer a quirky touch.

Wow.

Kelly?

-I think he's finished.

-What a relief.

I mean, the overall feeling is really lovely

and light and fresh.

It's lovely and nice pale colours.

Nothing that jumps out at you,

apart from the really bright pink in the corner.

-That is brave...

-Very, and I love the colour.

-..and I love it, and I'm not a pinky kind of person...

-No.

..but I think that's really clever.

I love the idea of going for the over-scaled headboard,

cos it gives more presence.

We haven't touched on these yet, which are absolutely stunning.

They're just genius.

I mean, he's invented this. It's so clever - what is it?

It's just a light on a wire, dropping into a vase,

but all of a sudden, it looks interior-designed.

And I've just seen where his creative challenge is.

-What is it?

-Well, it's a sort of mat.

-Oh, right!

-Which is quite clever.

He's always up for a really good idea,

I just don't think we need a mat in a room like this, do we?

I think it's quite cool.

OK. The thing that's hitting me,

although there are a few really good details in the room,

there doesn't seem to be enough styling.

Now, I know he likes a pared-down look,

but this is just too minimal for me.

But he is a modern, industrial designer...

-Yeah.

-..and I think the problem with this brief was that

he didn't quite know how to do it.

He's not good under pressure,

and he's not good when somebody asks

for something that's not in his little box.

But you've got a substantial, good design here.

It's going to be a very, very tough decision,

because I really think this guy has got something.

After the disappointment of yesterday,

today, Richard's homeowners will see a room that's reached completion.

Wow.

Wow, this is nice.

Oh, my goodness, wow, what a transformation.

-I love this.

-What do you make of the...of the pink?

It's a bold splash of colour.

It is, but it's...

it's lovely.

-Very up-to-date, really, isn't it?

-Yeah.

-Very modern, and I love it.

-Yeah.

I love the different textures on the headboard.

-But the lights...

-I love the lights.

-I love those.

So has he redeemed himself?

-Totally.

-Oh, totally, yes.

I can't believe this is my bedroom, actually.

THEY LAUGH

The designers have done all they can.

Now they must wait for the judges to decide

who has made it through to the semifinals

and who is going home.

I do really want to get through to the next round.

I don't want to go out because of that time management issue.

I don't want that to be the reason why.

I would like another chance to be able to prove myself.

I think, if I'm fortunate enough to go through to the next heat,

there is...

I think there are limitless bounds

to what my creativity could achieve.

So two very different designers this time.

Let's start with Richard.

-The study.

-Oh, the study. What a shame, not finished.

But I loved part of what he did, you know?

With the homeowners' chair, that was sublime.

I liked the way it worked with the curtains.

But the minute you turned round to the left,

it became a bit nursery-like.

-It wasn't a grown-up man's study, for some reason.

-No.

Well, the homeowners were obviously

disappointed the room wasn't finished.

And that is the biggest let down ever, frankly,

because how can you judge something which doesn't have even

the cupboard completed in the corner?

How about the bedroom? I mean, did that redeem him?

Well, it does, actually.

We both found it quite exciting.

I love that pink splash in the corner.

The textures were good.

We love what he does.

We're fascinated with his ideas.

It's very rare to see someone who can create

from his own head, rather than just copying things,

-and he has that.

-So do you want to know what the homeowners thought of

-the bedroom?

-Yeah, please do.

-They loved it. They loved it.

-Of course.

-Good.

-It's fabulous.

Again, it was something they could have never dreamt up themselves.

-He transformed that room, didn't he?

-Yeah. So how about Nicholas?

-Did he manage to rein in his theatrical impulses.

-Oh, no.

He picked up on this idea of going for a '60s look.

And the thing that really worked was that large unit

at the back of the room.

What did you make of the bright colours?

-Loved them.

-I loved it.

What was clever about that colour...

the accent colour that he used in the room was just singular.

Most people go for something that's contrasting -

two colours, maybe -

but, in a room like that, it would have just been a bit two confusing

because the space is quite small.

-The family love, love, loved it.

-Mm.

I mean, the children, I don't know what decade they were born in,

but they got the '60s references, and they loved them.

If I was them, and I'd walked into that, I would have thought,

"I'm the coolest kid on the block."

So moving upstairs to the bedroom.

I mean, a very different design.

Completely. Nicholas's homeowner

wanted blue on that wall and he conformed.

The problem is, it imbalanced his entire scheme.

I have no doubt that she probably adores it, but, for me,

as a professional, I felt that it was wrong.

However, when we turned, we saw this absolutely effortless,

elegant scheme.

As a designer, he's very capable.

He's got great ideas.

Having said that he's too theatrical, I still stand by that.

But he edited better this time

and had less objects around, and made it more sort of serene.

-So you want to know what the homeowner thought?

-Oh, I think so.

We had tears.

-HE GASPS

-Of joy, I hope?

-Tears of joy.

It was the bedroom she had always wanted and always dreamed of.

-That's so lovely. She should be pleased.

-Yeah.

So you've got a really tricky decision,

cos both designers have got their plusses and their minuses.

Yes, exactly, and we'd actually, frankly, like both of them in,

-really, wouldn't we?

-I know.

A tough challenge, this time - two rooms.

But you know the real sign of success

in interior design?

Is your homeowner happy?

Both of you two had very happy homeowners.

You should both be incredibly proud.

Richard, you let yourself down

by not finishing one of your rooms,

which really, really upset me,

because you are incredibly talented.

You've just got to believe that you can do it.

Nicholas, that study is absolutely amazing,

but I think you caved in a little bit with your client when she said

"I wanted that blue wall."

We both felt that it slightly imbalanced the room.

So the judges have made their decision.

And the designer going through

to the semifinals is...

..Nicholas.

So, sadly, it's goodbye, I'm afraid, Richard.

-THEY LAUGH

-Well done.

'But this might not be the final goodbye,

'as, in a twist, Kelly and Dan will be bringing back

'an eliminated designer as a wild card for the semifinals.'

You're very, very talented.

Very talented.

I think I knew it was coming, to be honest, from yesterday.

But I think Kelly and Dan were so positive about my design,

I can't really leave disappointed

with the things that they've said.

So, yeah, I'm really pleased.

Really pleased...

-HE LAUGHS

-..despite going out.

Commiserations.

I am so gutted that you didn't win.

-It is amazing.

-Pleased is not the word - it's stunning.

'Richard is a designer who's got lots of potential,

and someone like him should never give up,

cos he's going to be not just a good designer,

but he's going to be a world-class designer.

LAUGHTER

It's wonderful. It's so lovely.

It's so lovely. I love it so much.

Thank you.

Twice now, so...

..yeah, I've got to... I've got to sort of...

-..compute this one, I think.

-HE LAUGHS

With Nicholas, moving forward, I want to sort of

rein him in a little bit.

I think he's got an extraordinary capability

of creating the experience and the drama in a room,

but I kind of want him to stop and really understand

how he can refine that a little bit

so that it isn't always so theatrical.

I'm sure that, by the time I reach the next challenge,

I will be up against some other designers

who are going to be tough competition,

and...

the knives on the chariot will be out.

The harmonious proportions and bright colours

of Aberaeron's houses make the whole town come alive.

Now, thanks to our two talented designers,

some of the insides are as brilliant as the outsides.

Next time, a living room...

Voila.

..and a bedroom...

Big day today. Huge day.

..in Art Deco apartments.

Can we get the wardrobe up, please?

But jazzing up these joints gets them in a flap.

Do you know what? I really don't need this.