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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Kyle O'Sullivan

Gogglebox's Giles Wood 'retired at 21' and makes lots of money from second job

Gogglebox star Giles Wood is a man of mystery.

First appearing in 2015, Giles and wife Mary Killen quickly became popular for their dry humour and hilarious commentary.

The popular couple, who have been married for more than 30 years, frequently call each other the adorable nickname 'Nutty'.

Each week we get to see inside Giles and Mary's eccentric country cottage in Wiltshire but not much is known about their private lives.

Giles, who contributes to online magazine The Oldie, met Mary when he was 21 while studying at Wimbledon Art School when she was a model.

Lovely Mary is the Spectator's resident agony aunt and writes a column using her etiquette expertise - as well as being the author of many books, including 2012's How the Queen Can Make You Happy.

But Giles retired at an incredibly early age and has a rarely-mentioned second job.

Giles and Mary have been Gogglebox stars since 2015 (WireImage)
Giles and Mary look adorable in unearthed 90s throwback snap (giles__wood/Instagram)

While watching a documentary on coronavirus, Giles stated: "Just as I'm starting to enjoy my retirement."

But Mary quickly shot back: "What retirement? You haven't worked first.

"You retired at 21, so now you can start working – do it in reverse."

When he's not discussing the week's telly, Giles is working as an artist and has his own artist website, where he explains what his influences are.

He enjoys painting the clutter of peoples' lives and popular demand has recently led him away from his trademark landscapes to specialise in interiors

On the site, Giles says: "I like the contemplative aspect — sitting for several days in a room, watching the light change.

"There are as many changes as with a landscape. I always work in oils as they give more depth. The finished painting should offer an insight into the painter as well as the subject."

Giles and Mary light up our screens every week (Channel 4)

His artwork includes beautiful paintings of homes and landscapes, with some framed prints selling for up to a whopping £250.

Although Giles might have to use some of his art money to fix up their cottage, which has fallen into a state of disrepair and been dubbed 'The Grottage'.

Despite being considered one of the posher stars of the show - and are even said to be friends with Boris Johnson - last year it emerged that their home needed urgent fixing.

Speaking to The Telegraph some years ago, the couple revealed that the paint had started peeling from their ceilings and they were once forced to create makeshift double glazing with bubble wrap.

At the time, they also revealed that the property had no central heating and claimed that their kitchen was full of mould and ‘worse than Benefits Street.’

Despite their home reportedly looking slightly rough around the edges, it has remained their base for over 28 years while they work as well as record Gogglebox.

There have been a few guest appearances from their dog in their cottage, but there are some more family members who have not popped up on our screens.

The couple have two grown-up daughters who are yet to show up on camera - and of them was actually due to be partnered with Giles.

They dubbed their home the 'Grottage' (Channel 4)

However, she decided not to take part, but thankfully Giles managed to convince Mary to come onboard after a lengthy phone call with producers.

Little is known about Mary and Giles' daughters but it has been revealed that they are both grown and no longer live at home with their parents.

In the cute throwback snap posted on Instagram in May last year, the doting parents could be seen cuddling up to their two girls in an old black and white snap.

Lots of people commented on the cute photo - and many were actually swooning over a youthful-looking Giles.

Mary previously revealed that one of their daughters would occasionally "turn on" Giles for swearing.

Speaking to The Guardian about banning swearing in their house, Mary explained: "There’s so much on telly, I don’t want it in my own cottage.

"Giles swears occasionally because he’s always having minor accidents. Our children turn on him and tell him off. Poor Giles."

Giles and Mary with their daughters when they were kids (COPYRIGHT UNKNOWN)

While the couple do occasionally bicker when appearing on Gogglebox, fans love how they refer to each other as 'nutty'.

The pair have since addressed the endearing reference behind the pet name and explained that they are simply both a bit 'neurotic.

Speaking to The Daily Star, Mary said: "We call each other 'nutty' because we both consider the other to be a bit mad.

The television star added: "Certainly Giles has multiple personality disorder so he’s all sorts of people and one of them is a bit of a genius. The truth is we’re both neurotic."

They will both be back on our screens tonight when the new series of Gogglebox kicks off on Channel 4 at 9pm

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