Grand Designs Transformations: Series synopsis
In the brand-new series of Grand Designs Transformations, inspired home renovators put their skills, finances, and relationships to the test in the quest to create their perfect homes.
While building a dream house from scratch is the dream for some people, many others are transforming their existing homes – smashing down walls, ripping out kitchens and digging up gardens – as they reimagine their homes as places to live, work and thrive.
Each episode follows the journeys of two sets of homeowners, transforming two very different projects in different parts of the country.
From a Moroccan oasis in the Blue Mountains, to a pink palace on Queensland’s Gold Coast; a French-inspired convict cottage in Tasmania, to a low-cost eco retreat in the trees in Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula, the projects are as inspired as the challenges are rife!
Hosts Anthony Burke – a professor in architecture – and award-winning interior designer Yasmine Ghoniem provide insight, expert advice, and the odd shoulder to cry on!
Production credits
A Fremantle Australia production for the ABC financed with support from the ABC.
Head of Unscripted: Josie Mason Campbell
Supervising Executive Producer: Brooke Bayvel
Executive Producer: Michael Collett
Series Producer: Chris Perry
ABC Commissioning Editor: Jo Chichester
Executive Producer: Madeleine Hawcroft
Head of Factual: Susie Jones
ABC Head of Screen Content: Jennifer Collins
International Distribution: Fremantle Distribution.
See also: Grand Designs is back: But with a new name, new channel, new hosts and new format
Grand Designs Transformations: Episode Guide
Watch on ABC TV and iview
Chris and Antoinette in Grand Designs Transformations Ep 1
EPISODE 1: HENLEY BEACH, SA / GOLD COAST Thursday, 4 January, 8pm
• In Henley Beach, South Australia, newlyweds, property valuer Paul and intensive care nurse Marie, take on the industrial-sized challenge of transforming a 1940s electricity converter station for trams into a welcoming high-end entertainer’s home. But it won’t be easy, or cheap. Marie’s dad Chris calls their heritage-listed purchase “the money pit” and he worries that when the pair have children, there will be nowhere for them to sleep. And as host and Professor of Architecture, Anthony Burke points out on his first visit, while the double-height ceilings offer and abundance of volume and light, all the renovations and will need to be bespoke, oversize, and costly. Throw in Marie’s $60,000 order of Cote d’Azure marble for her gourmet kitchen and Paul’s desire to give a nod to the building’s industrial past, with industrial sized, custom-made steel arbour and steel-spined staircase and it’s not long before Marie’s dad’s fears start to turn into reality.
• In Queensland, passionate ballroom dancers, electrician Chris and make-up artist Antoinette push their finances to the limit to buy a rundown, three-storey house on the Gold Coast. To realise their dream of transforming it into an Amalfi-themed, family friendly pink paradise, they need to live on the site with three small children and do most of the work themselves, while holding down their day jobs. And as for working with the colour pink, host and interior designer Yasmine Ghoniem, fears Antoinette is not bold enough with her scale and choices, and that even with ballroom dancing competition to help take their minds off the 24/7 workload, the stress may all prove to be just too much.
Mike, Annie and Mark with host Anthony in Ep 2
EPISODE 2: AVALON, NSW / BALWYN, MELB Thursday, 11 January, 8pm
• On Sydney’s northern beaches, Nina and husband Trent plan on turning their recently purchased pavilion home into a luxe, show-stopping, glamorous family hideaway for them and their three-year-old son, Harley. Interior designer, Nina, plans on a radical white-on- white interior refit of the highest spec—including tonnes of imported ultra-heavy marble furniture she’s designed herself. Then there’s the exterior transformation of an existing pool area into a luxurious resort—complete with outdoor bar, bespoke joinery, mirrored walls, bathtub, and spa bathroom. It all sounds super glamorous and could cost a king’s ransom, but can a high-end stylish pad in beachside Avalon double as a comfortable and indestructible family home suitable for them and their energetic toddler?
• In Balwyn, Melbourne, Mike, Mark and Anni have happily shared their suburban home for 20 years. Anni is Mike’s ex-wife, Mark is his soon-to-be new husband. And with the wedding just months away they’ve all decided the old family bathroom that Mike and Anni renovated eight years ago on a shoestring needs a whole new makeover—not just for the happy occasion but as a luxe bathroom for Mike and Mark to enjoy. Trouble is, the room is tiny and Mark, with his design flare has plans for décor with pizazz, including geometric bronze-and-green vinyl wallpaper, natural stone, reflective bronze dado wall panels, slumped green Spanish tiles juxtaposed with Japanese black-and-green finger tiles, and two super-heavy cast bronze basins. Question is, will it be on-trend tasteful, or over-the- top in the tiny space?
Homeowner Yvonne with Yasmine Ghoniem in Episode 5
EPISODE 3: EXLEY, SYDNEY / MORNINGTON, VIC Thursday, 18 January, 8pm
• Melbourne newsreader Yvonne plans on escaping high-pressure inner-city life by transforming a sloping bush block into an eco-retreat, where she can embrace nature, fresh air and seclusion for herself and her family. But creating the high-performance all- electric home she dreams of comes with challenges she doesn’t bargain for. Diabolical weather and unanticipated cost blow outs almost derail the project. Yvonne faces a host of interior design complexities that come with creating a sustainable eco-home based on passive house principles. Host and interior designer Yasmine Ghoniem follows Yvonne’s progress and offers the expert advice that helps keep Yvonne on course as she perseveres with a project that tests the limits of her endurance.
• In Sydney, newly married couple Lorenz and Tiffany face challenges of a different kind. They’re thrilled to have bought a classic mid-century home designed in 1957 by eminent architect, Harry Seidler. But they need to add a modern extension for the family they’re planning to have. Trouble is, they want to honour the home’s modernist principles with their 21st century design and the 1957 house is heritage listed, which brings numerous regulation hoops to jump through. And if design considerations weren’t enough, they begin construction during Sydney’s wettest year since 1950 and struggle with delays, increasing costs and dispirited builders. Following their progress, host and Professor of Architecture, Anthony Burke offers insights that helps them realise the house they’ve been hoping for.
Homeowner Kim with host Anthony Burke in Episode 4
EPISODE 4: GLENBROOK, NSW / NORTH BALGOWLAH, SYDNEY Thursday, 25 January, 8pm
In the Blue Mountain town of Glenbrook, voice-over artist Nick and his creative producer wife Emma are on a quest to bring the magic of Morrocco to their home and create a luxe, relaxing retreat for all the family that’s perfect for work, rest and play. But their challenge is to bring their vision to life using a dilapidated 1960s duplex as their starting point. Is this an inspired makeover or simply a recipe for disaster?
If they can pull off this transformation, then it will be the ultimate family home with a North African aesthetic that’s unique to the mountains. With acres of space for both children and adults, plus a giant pool and creative annex complete with a recording studio and dance floor, Nick and Emma have thought of everything. But, have they bitten off more than they can chew as the huge scale of the project and its huge budget, start to quickly spin out of control.
In the Sydney suburb of North Balgowlah, creating space for the family is the top of Kim’s wish list as well. The legal recruitment consultant and mum of two is desperate for an area where the kids can play, and she and husband Rob can chill. But the only place to create this retreat is on top of a monstrous lump of Sydney sandstone, smack bang in the middle of the backyard.
To tame this beast requires plenty of gumption and patience as the rock fights every effort to turn it into a haven featuring pool, cabana, alfresco dining, play area and epic views across Sydney. Flooding, record-breaking rain and project management blunders are just some of Kim’s problems as she struggles to turn her backyard behemoth into a rock top, poolside paradise that she and the whole family can enjoy.
Mark and Chris with their Japanese bathhouse in Episode 5
EPISODE 5: SOUTH YARRA, MELBOURNE / FLEMINGTON, MELBOURNE Thursday, 1 February, 8pm
Stressful times mean many homeowners are seeking sanctuary in their own homes, creating spaces where they can retreat from the hustle and bustle of their busy lives. And they’re getting ambitious – looking far and wide for inspiration for their home transformations.
Professional footballer Katie and property consultant partner Olivia are going all out Palm Springs when they knock down their little South Yarra, Melbourne, worker’s cottage to build a cool, multi-storey mid-century sanctuary. Every inch of their tiny suburban block is tailored for rest and relaxation, with a tiny, Perspex-fronted pool, gymnasium in a cupboard and spa-like facilities.
With a 13-metre-long pink marble kitchen island, a sunken loungeroom and a desert-styled garden on the roof top, it’s set to be an entertainer’s paradise! But how will a hot climate house fit in a cold climate city? And will their mid-century Palm Springs masterpiece fit in with the neighbourhood?
And while it’s Palm Springs on one side of Melbourne, on the other it’s all about Japan! Mark and Chris are also looking to create a restful oasis and plan to transform their Flemington backyard shed into a Japanese bathhouse.
But the project is dogged by endless delays and unforeseen problems which could either scuttle their plans or give them the time and inspiration to create an authentic and truly magical Japanese-styled bathhouse.
Anthony Burke and Yasmine Ghoniem
Meet the hosts Andrew and Yasmine
Anthony Burke
Anthony Burke might be a Professor of Architecture at the University of Technology Sydney, but his academic background hasn’t kept him from building a reputation as a dynamic, expert presenter across a broad range of media.
He is a highly sought after presenter, local and international tour leader and global lecturer on all things architectural, publishing regularly on a range of contemporary topics with an endless fascination for the role of architecture and design in shaping our lives.
Anthony’s lecturing skills have entertained and informed audiences across the globe. After living in the US for 10 years, Anthony returned to Sydney, to lead the department of architecture at UTS from 2010-2017. As a professor, he balances educating the next generation of Australian architects at university, with presenting popular lectures to audiences at the Art Gallery of NSW, leading architecture tours, hosting industry events and writing on architecture for Australian media.
His ability to inform, entertain and inspire, about all things architecture and design, have unsurprisingly transferred into Anthony’s television career as the host and presenter of ABC TV’s Restoration Australia, Grand Designs Transformations and Grand Designs Australia.
In 2012 Anthony represented Australia as the co-creative director for the Australian Pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennale and directed the architecture symposium celebrating the 40th Anniversary of the Sydney Opera House with the Danish Cultural Ministry.
Yasmine Ghoniem
Based in Sydney, Yasmine is the founding director of YSG, a multi-disciplinary practice trailblazing architectural builds and interior design across the residential, commercial and hospitality sectors. Charging spaces with atmospheric potency, staging and storytelling narrate strong visual outcomes within all. Given the abundance of custom elements in every project, she has built indelible ties with artists and skilled artisans. This has also led to collaborations with esteemed brands to create unique furnishing ranges.
Studio roots stem back to 2013 when Yasmine co-founded Amber Road which won and/or was shortlisted for over 40 design accolades. YSG launched in 2020, enabling Yasmine to build her solo practice which now incorporates a team of over 15 staff, with projects currently in operation across Australia, the Middle East, Singapore, France and Indonesia. The provocative chords of her imagination (fuelled by spending her formative years between Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Australia) have garnered countless design accolades over twenty years’ experience. In 2021 she won Designer of the Year at the Interior Design Excellence Awards, and in 2022 was recognised in the European Architectural Digest’s AD100.