Meet the two talented Irish contestants competing in the BBC’s Interior Design Masters with Alan Carr

As the design show’s fourth season kicks off, we talk to the two Irish contestants that will compete under the watchful eye of Michelle Ogundehin and a range of guest judges

Tom Power and Peter Irvine are set to compete on the fourth series of Interior Design Master with Alan Carr

The BBC One show is presented by Alan Carr. Photo: Karwai Tang/Getty

Tom Power and Peter Irvine are set to compete on the fourth series of Interior Design Master with Alan Carr

The BBC One show is presented by Alan Carr. Photo: Karwai Tang/Getty

Tom Power. Photo: BBC

Peter Irvine. Photo: BBC

Tom Power and Peter Irvine are set to compete on the fourth series of Interior Design Master with Alan Carr

Arlene Harris

March 07 2023 11:43 AM

Fans of interior design will already have booked their slot on the sofa for the first episode of the fourth season of Interior Design Masters with Alan Carr which returns to our screens on March 7.

As in previous years, the new batch of would-be designers will need to prove their skills to head judge, Michelle Ogundehin along with a host of other guest judges.

Each week, Ogundehin, interiors guru and former editor of Elle Decoration, will set a new design challenge for the team in a variety of locations including shops, bars, show homes, luxury villas and beach huts. In record time, they will need to transform each space to dazzle the judges with their style ideas and hopefully remain in the competition for another week.

The BBC One show is presented by Alan Carr. Photo: Karwai Tang/Getty

Winning the Interior Design Masters crown is the ultimate goal for the aspiring designers — but being considered good enough to participate on the show is an achievement in itself.

Among those taking part are two Irish contestants — Tom Power and Peter Irvine.

The former refers to himself as an ‘avid viewer of interior makeover shows’ and not only does he watch all the design programmes going, but also records them so he can rewatch over and over. Over the past few decades, the former theatre actor, who now works as an upholsterer, was so enamoured by the world of interior design that he decided to apply to the hit show.

“While working, for two decades, in the theatre, design was always a big aspect and I regularly got involved in costume and theatre design,” he says. “I also loved home renovating and giving advice to friends on changes they could make. My mother was a seamstress, so I always knew how to sew and had a sewing machine, but a few years ago, I decided to take things a bit further and taught myself to be an upholsterer and have been working at that on a freelance basis ever since.

Tom Power. Photo: BBC

“I applied to Interior Design Masters and other similar shows numerous times, but had never been selected. Then after applying last year (by filling out the necessary forms and sending through a selection of designs) but not getting through, I was contacted this year with regard to taking part in season 4. It all happened quickly after that — one minute it was ‘we’ll let you know’ and the next I was told I had been cast and would start in a couple of weeks. So after what, in my case, was a very slow build I was suddenly hitting the ground running.”

The Waterford man who moved to London in 2001, says that although his experience as an actor should have prepared him for being on a reality TV, it is a very different format which took some getting used to.

“A lot of actors would agree with me when I say that being yourself in front of an audience is very different to acting,” he says. “I am not someone for chasing the limelight and am quite a reserved and shy person — so putting myself out there to be judged for being myself is a very different scenario from what I was used to. But I wanted to learn how to have more faith in myself and to undertake this challenge and invest the time and energy into developing myself and my creativity.

“And I really enjoyed the show — every week is like a marathon trying to get everything finished on time, but the camaraderie is fantastic and we all help each other along. I think our cohort is a really talented group and this was very exciting as when you see how well others are doing, it really helps to motivate you to do well yourself.”

Peter Irvine from Belfast, also feels that his participation in the show has been motivating as although the visual stylist for M&S had confidence in his own abilities, before taking part in Interior Design Masters, he was unsure of how his contemporaries rated his design skills.

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“I had applied for season 3 of the show and although I was so close, I didn’t get it and was quite heartbroken at the time,” he says. “I am such a fan of the show, so when I heard that I had been successful for this season, I don’t think it hit me at the beginning. I am a humble person and even though I believe in my own talents, it took me a while to accept that people, who weren’t my loved ones, could be complimentary about my work.

Peter Irvine. Photo: BBC

“I decided from day one that my favourite word for the duration was going to be grateful — as I had so much gratitude for everything that I experienced, from the free lunch on the first day to the travel expenses and the opportunities to make new friends, I embraced the whole thing and this radiated back to me. Of course it was hard going, I was worked to the bone and exhausted, but I thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of it — it was such an amazing opportunity and I’m so grateful to have been part of it and that I just made myself go for it.”

Fellow contestant, 47-year-old Tom Power, agrees and says while one of the hardest aspects of the application process was trying to narrow down what his style was, he soon discovered this and a lot more besides.

“The words I used (with regard to style) at the beginning of the process, were different to the end of the process as I learned what I could bring to the table,” he says. “I also found out a lot about myself, my talents, strengths, weaknesses, resolve and commitment.

“Having been an actor, I was very lucky to have the background of knowing that the show has to happen and the project has to get finished — it doesn’t matter what your emotional state is, you just have to get the show off the ground.”

We will have to wait until the end of the series to find out how the contestants got on, but Peter says that his involvement in the show has changed how he views the future and he is now ‘thinking about the bigger picture’ and would encourage others who have the knack to ‘just go for it’.

“I would love to do more TV work in the future as now I’ve had a taste for it, I’d be happy to do more,” he says. “I would also like to go into residential styling but rather than transforming grand colosseums, I prefer working with more humble homes as my style is a mix of modern and traditional and is both natural and elegant.

“I would advise anyone else who has thoughts of doing something like this would be to stop worrying about what you believe other people are thinking. None of us know how other people view things. I was guilty of putting my thoughts into other people’s heads, but thankfully I decided to apply to the show with (examples of) a few windows I had designed, some Halloween costumes and my own house — and this got me onto the show. So I would say to others to stop being their own worst enemy and throw caution to the wind as you never know where it will take you.”

Interior Design Masters with Alan Carr returns for a fourth series at 8pm on March 7 on BBC One