Australia has moved on from being a “beer nation” to becoming a “cocktail nation” when it comes to confidence in design, according to House Rules judge Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen.
The British designer and TV personality first appeared on the Seven show in 2017. He is known for his flamboyant taste and “brutally honest” attitude.
“If you are not careful, television can become a cliché in its own right – orange people being very nice to each other with big smiley faces. I have never fitted that mould,” he told Mediaweek. “I feel passionately about being engaged with my subject. When I go into a room that someone has done that I don’t approve of, I will say what I think. But I put the other side across as well.”
Although he never thought he would have a career in television, Llewelyn-Bowen has been working in the industry for over a decade. He is a well-known face to lifestyle television viewers in England. One of his earlier TV shows called Changing Rooms was a success in the European country. It was aired on subscription TV in Australia. This is a part of the reason Llewelyn-Bowen agreed to travel across the globe from UK to Australia to be a part of Seven’s House Rules.
House Rules’s Drew Heath, laurence Llewelyn-Bowen, Johanna Griggs, Wendy Moore
“I know that Australia has enjoyed the shows that I have done for a long time,” he said. “I love the idea of a program like House Rules where we are building something that feels more like a legacy and less like a temporary trend obsession, which is something that happens on other shows.”
Llewelyn-Bowen is also a judge on Asia’s longest-running reality competition show called The Apartment. Australian landscaper and TV presenter Jamie Durie is host of the program. Llewelyn-Bowen described this as a show that is “very fashion orientated – it tends to be superficial”. He immediately followed this up by saying, “Now I am in terrible trouble with my other shows. They are going to be really cross with me.” [Laughs]
Llewelyn-Bowen is currently in Australia filming for the current season of House Rules. “I’ve recently worked out that so far this year I’ve spent three weeks at home. So I’ve been spending a long time here.
“Being a Brit, for me the weather in Melbourne is like high summer. I am based in Sydney though. I see everyone wearing thick coats and scarves right now. I feel like saying, ‘Man up!’”
Having spent so much time in Australia in the last year and a half, Llewelyn-Bowen has travelled through many regional and metro areas. He is convinced that he has gotten to know the country and its décor tastes very well.
“Australians have become more confident with their designs in the last year or so. I can’t hold myself entirely responsible for it – actually, yes I can.
“Last year, people were very high street in the way they did things. Everything was midcentury modern and the colours were very neutral. There were real delusions of ‘blandeur’ rather than grandeur.
“There is absolutely no doubt that in this season everyone has ding-ding, come out fighting.”
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