The BBC has confirmed that Nick Knowles’ DIY: SOS will be ‘rested’ for 2027 as part of the broadcaster’s ‘savings challenges’.
The home renovation TV series began in 1999, transforming the homes of families who have been dealt a rough time such as facing severe illness, disability, bereavement or building disasters.
Initially, DIY: SOS saw Knowles and his team fix small botch jobs but the show was rebranded in 2010 as DIY SOS: The Big Build in 2010 with much more ambitious projects on the table, transforming entire homes with the help of local communities.
In 2015, Knowles even worked with the Prince of Wales, the Duke of Sussex and hundreds of volunteers to transform a derelict street in Manchester into housing for veterans.
William returned to the programme in 2018 for its two-part special focused on supporting the survivors and community affected by the Grenfell Tower fire, which killed 72 people.
The annual Children In Need special which usually involves a large-scale charitable build is also being put on paused for the next year.
The latest series of DIY SOS is currently airing and will be the last for at least another year but the BBC stressed the show hasn’t been axed entirely yet and a new spin-off revisiting some of the most memorable builds and projects from the last 27 years will fill the void instead.
A BBC spokesperson said: ’In light of the BBC’s 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.
‘DIY SOS Rebuilt My Life will revisit successes from the show’s past and expand the brand on the BBC in a more cost-effective way next year.’
Knowles previously told Metro that DIY SOS is so much more than a TV show for him, he is so immersed in the importance and demands of each job he regularly bursts into tears when the cameras aren’t rolling.
He told us: ‘I admitted to the guys at work a couple of weeks ago that on the way home, I quite often pull into a service station on the motorway and go to the far side of the car park and have a little cry.
‘It helps to get it out of the system. Chris [Frediani] and Billy [Byrne] both said to me that they do the same. We’ve worked together for 26 years without mentioning this.’
The announcement comes after the BBC announced a huge round of cancellations as part of its money-saving scheme to save £500 million per the next three years.
Bradley Walsh’s Blankety Blank, Celebrity Mastermind and Live At The Apollo, have all been confirmed to be among the shows in the first round of cuts, while the LGBTQ+ community was outraged when the BBC confirmed it was dropping Drag Race UK too.
DIY SOS airs Tuesdays at 8pm on BBC One and is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.