A woman whose teapots were destroyed on the TV show Changing Rooms says she still has not forgiven the show.
After returning to screens last year, 17 years after it was last seen, Changing Rooms is back. Much to our delight, the home makeover show starts tonight with Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen at the helm.
But there is one woman who probably won't be tuning into the second series of its reincarnation - as her time on the show left her with a bitter taste in her mouth.
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One of the biggest disasters ensued when homeowner Clodagh and daughter Julia discovered that her €7,000 teapot collection had been smashed to smithereens during the refurbishment.
The vast collection - which had been built up over her lifetime – was obliterated after the team created a free-standing shelving unit to display the teapots.
The display came crashing down when a pile of books was placed on the shelf - leaving Clodagh devastated.
It made for awkward viewing as Linda was forced to break the news.
At first, there was some confusion over exactly what had happened, as Clodagh asked: "Oh my god, you've killed my cat, haven't you?" when the designer tried to explain what had happened.
Speaking to the Guardian about how she felt about the saga in 2020, it's clear there's still bad blood.
She said: "I still don't feel very good about her," she says of Barker. On the very rare occasions, she's on television now, when I do see her, she's still very bouncy, and I just don't think she earned the bounce."
Insurers reimbursed Clodagh for the value of her collection, but she never restarted it - saying she couldn't bear for it to happen again. But she told the paper that she didn't regret appearing on the show - saying it was a good experience for her daughter.
Recounting the incident years on, Linda Barker said: "Probably the worst moment for me, well definitely the worst moment and probably for any designer on Changing Rooms has to be when I built a floating shelf.
"It was 14 floors up and in a flat in Wandsworth, and it was to house a very beautiful collection of antique teapots. The idea was that this thing was just in the middle of the room.
"I mean, it was going to be absolutely great, and it should have looked wonderful, of course. But I'm painting such a great picture because, of course, the whole thing ended in complete disaster."
Former Big Brother presenter Davina, 52, joined interior designer Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen for the first series, who starred on the home improvement show previously.
The reboot retained the same format - which saw two friends work against the clock, under the guidance of the designers, to renovate a room in each other's house.
Davina has said she is "excited" to front the "classic" home improvement show, adding: "It's the perfect time to bring it back, everyone is going DIY and decor mad. I can't wait to see all the amazing transformations - I might even get stuck in myself if I'm allowed to be let loose with a paintbrush."
Speaking ahead of the hit show's return, Jonny Rothery, commissioning editor for Channel 4, said: "With us all spending so long staring at our own four walls, there's never been a better time to see the return of the nation's favourite interiors show."
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