The corporation cites “savings challenges” and says a cheaper spin-off will replace the show in 2027, but insiders told The Sun they believe the break will be permanent.
The BBC has decided to “rest” DIY SOS in 2027, according to a BBC spokesman quoted by The Sun, in a move that has drawn anger from people involved in the programme. The renovation show, presented by Nick Knowles, began in 1999 and rebuilds homes for families in need. The broadcaster says it has taken the decision because of “savings challenges” and will commission a cheaper spin-off instead. Staff told The Sun they believe the cancellation is permanent, and this year’s Children in Need Big Build will not go ahead.
What the BBC has said
A BBC spokesman told The Sun: “In light of savings challenges we have taken the decision to rest DIY SOS in 2027 and commission a new spin-off show instead from producers South Shore.”
The spokesman added: “DIY SOS Rebuilt My Life (working title) will revisit successes from the show’s past and expand the brand on the BBC in a more cost-effective way next year.”
The BBC has not formally cancelled the programme for good. No return for 2028 or 2029 has been confirmed, and no regular new series is announced for 2027. The BBC has given no figure for the savings, the cost of the show or the budget for the spin-off. It has not said whether the decision will lead to redundancies.
‘A disgusting outrage’
The Sun reported that Mr Knowles and the crew are “devastated”. It attributes this to unnamed sources, and Mr Knowles has not made a public statement of his own. His official website still promotes the show and its October episodes.
One source told the paper: “It’s a disgusting outrage that a BBC show, which genuinely helps some of the neediest people in our country, is being shut down because it’s basically seen as ‘too expensive’.”
The source continued: “DIY SOS is one of the few shows on television that genuinely represents working-class people. Thousands of tradesmen and women offer their time, and often the materials, for free to people in need, even when they’re struggling to make ends meet themselves. These decent people give the most they can to people who have the least and DIY SOS shines a light on them.”
On the BBC’s description of the break as a pause, another source said: “It feels like they’re too spineless to say what we all know: DIY SOS has been axed. We were told it was being paused, but when we asked whether it would come back in 2028 or 2029 they couldn’t give us an answer.”
The spin-off
South Shore Productions, the company that already makes DIY SOS, will produce the replacement, so its link with the BBC continues. Many questions remain unanswered. These include whether Mr Knowles will present it, whether the original building team will return, how many episodes there will be, and whether any new renovations will take place. A programme that revisits past projects is not the same as one that builds new homes and facilities for families.
A long-running show
DIY SOS has featured many well-known faces. Princes Harry and William appeared in a veterans special in 2015. Its Big Build episodes for BBC Children in Need are one of its best-known formats. Last year the team built a £1m children’s cancer care unit for The Joshua Tree charity in Northwich, Cheshire, in 12 days. According to reports, about 500 tradespeople and volunteers took part, creating a 375-square-metre extension. The charity said it would let it support about twice as many families affected by childhood cancer. That shows what is lost when a Big Build does not go ahead, as the buildings keep working long after filming ends.
Episodes still to come
The current series is not affected. Two episodes remain, both at 8pm on BBC One:
- Tuesday 20 October: Building a Future for Macsen, in north Wales, about a two-year-old with Kabuki syndrome whose parents, Helen and Llyr, were living in an unfinished home
- Tuesday 27 October: A Home for Nathan, in Kidderminster, about an 11-year-old who reportedly has up to 200 seizures a day and needs round-the-clock care
Earlier this month, the show also helped a deaf couple in Southampton, Ahmed and Rifat Ali, whose property was left unsafe after building work was abandoned. The family reportedly lost £72,000, and more than 150 volunteers took part. On 13 October, Mr Knowles became emotional during an episode about 16-year-old Dan, who spent three years in hospital after surgery to remove a brain tumour. That reaction happened during filming and was not a response to the BBC’s decision.
