Room to Improve

In the second episode of Room To Improve, Dermot Bannon heads to Borrisoleigh, Co. Tipperary, to meet Joe Kenny and his bride to be Mary Hayes. Joe’s house is a 3 bedroom, 2 storey house on a half acre site about half a mile from Borrisoleigh, with beautiful views of green fields. Mary and Joe are creating their dream home, to move into just after their wedding. Joe has lived the bachelor life up until now and his house reflects this. Dermot can see exactly why Mary is insisting on a redesign.

In the third episode of Room To Improve, Dermot Bannon heads to Rathfarnham, where Yvonne and Adrian Saunders live with their daughter Lauren. Yvonne and Adrian’s house is a detached 1950s two-bedroom property, in need of massive transformation. Dermot likens it to a ‘Hansel and Gretel’ house.

In Ashford Co. Wicklow stands the house of Nigel and Frances Coffey. Frances’s parents live next door. Several years ago her father built a private road and gave seven plots of land to his seven children.

Claudia and Tom bought this 1920s bungalow with panoramic views of Tramore Bay in 2012 for €305K. Just back from living abroad (Spain, Dubai and Germany) they have been living in the house for the past year.

Glenn Keating and Gustav van der Westhuizen live in Grace Park, Drumcondra, with their 5-year-old son Noah and two pet Weimaraner dogs. They live in an Edwardian terraced three story house. The terrace was originally built for officers of the British Army, between 1897 and 1902. Glenn is a youth worker for LGBTI+ young people in the city centre and Gustav is a banker. They have rented and lived all over from South Africa (where Gustav is originally from) to Kilkenny but finally found their dream house in May 2017.