PROPERTY
Homes Under the Hammer turns 20 — what next for the daytime TV phenomenon?
The hit property show trades brilliantly on the British obsession with bricks and mortar, not to mention Dion Dublin’s enthusiasm. But, as buy-to-let falls out of favour, has it had its day?
Hammer time: presenters Dion Dublin, Martel Maxwell and Martin Roberts
BBC
The Times
By mid-morning you are rallying. You surface, bleary-eyed, drag the duvet to the sofa and switch on that soothing daytime show. As any student will tell you, it’s the perfect hangover TV, and now it’s the same age as some of its most ardent fans. Homes Under the Hammer turns 20 this month.
If you are neither an undergraduate nor a work-from-homer, are not yet retired and have never found yourself at a mid-morning loose end, you may be unaware of this cultural phenomenon. How to explain the unique vibe of the property auction show? It’s The Great British Bake Off with subsidence, or Sewing Bee plus rising damp. Imagine Monopoly, but the players are vying for semi-derelict properties featuring sticky pub carpets and avocado
