Big Brother’s Craig Phillips DIY & Property King!

Nearly 25 years since he won the first-ever ‘Big Brother’ – the show that completely changed his life – highly successful property developer and fixer-upper Craig Philips owns 13 apartments and seven houses and has built his dream family home from scratch.

Angela Sara West chats with Craig about his prosperous property journey, advice on adding value to our homes on a budget, energy efficiency, painting like a pro, plus his top DIY tips and trends. Craig Phillips discovered his love of DIY as a young teen. “The first project I undertook was at 13.” he tells me. “I built an aviary for my pet owl on top of our bathroom roof and became hooked and wanted to try my hand at everything!” He began his building business aged just 18 after completing his apprenticeship. “By 25, I was employing over 30 guys and turning over £1m.”

BB WIN & CELEB DIY APPRENTICES

How did it feel to win the first-ever ‘Big Brother’? “It was a life-changing experience and one I’ll never forget. I never thought it would lead to me having a career on TV, in the media, and now creating content online. I only went in to raise funds for my friend Joanne Harris, who has since sadly passed away, but it ended up transforming my life.”

Sought-after Craig went on to work on countless TV shows alongside his other cover star, Linda Barker. “Linda is great! Good fun and SO easy to work with.”

The BB champ’s favourite home makeover prog to work on? “My time filming for the British Forces Broadcasting Service,” he reveals. “We travelled the world and undertook so many cool makeovers, including a go-kart track which the forces used for their leisure time, a gym for the Royal Marine Commandos in Scotland, and loads of other cool projects like nurseries and decking. We travelled all over, from the Ascension Islands to the Falklands. It was a truly unique project to be involved with, and great that the squaddies, who were all fit and strong, helped us with builds!”

Having got into the Army groove, ‘Craig Phillips’ Celebrity DIY’ show, meanwhile, saw hammer time with a few famous faces: “We’d go to various celebs’ homes, including Frankie Dettori’s, Uri Gellar’s and Dane Bowers’, and teach them DIY.” 

MOUNTAINS IN MALLORCA

Craig’s current projects? “Our various brand partners include bathroom makeovers with Bathroom Mountain and a new patio project out in Mallorca using Tile Mountain’s large format tiles.”

The fab fixer also works with Trepanel, 3C Sealants, Wagner paint sprayers, SureSet and Housebuild. “They’re all such great brands to work with and allow me to be really creative with the filming projects we undertake.”

Brilliant builder Craig’s a big fan of spray painting. “It saves SO much time and money,” explains the spray-painting pro. “I just want more people to try it as they’ll never go back to a brush or roller after!”

His fave DIY skill? “I LOVE tiling! Being a bricklayer originally, it ties in nicely as you follow patterns, and when I had the building company, I found myself doing more tiling than bricklaying!” 

CHALLENGE CRAIG

Hardcore Craig’s biggest challenge? “Building our dream home was definitely my biggest project to date,” he divulges. “I oversaw the whole process; from buying the land, demolishing the existing house sat on it, doing the ground works, and then from foundations to finish. It was a challenging build due to weather conditions as we get so much rain here in Liverpool.”

And all the hard work, designing and building himself from scratch, paid off. “We are super proud of the house and how it’s turned out. We’ve brought up both our kids here, so it’s our dream build and has a very special place in our hearts.”

AN ECO HOME

The family’s amazing home comes complete with a gym and impressive upycled bar; not the only eco practice Craig has put in place to make his home as sustainable as possible.

“We’ve also made huge planters out of old pallet wood that go all around the garden and some of the low fencing in the garden is made out of pallet wood, too. We had to remove some conifers from the edge of our garden, and I’ve used the large pieces of that wood for a river table.”

THE LEADING-EDGE DIY-ER’S ECO TIPS?

• Always think twice before throwing anything away and think about how it could be used differently
• We have so much junk in our sheds, garages etc. but once you start to look through them you might find a new use for something that’s been there for years
• Check out our YouTube channel for loads of projects where we have repurposed old materials to make new structures!

CRAIG’S CHILDHOOD HOME CHANCE COME TRUE!

Constructor Craig’s property journey includes a very special purchase. “I have various other properties and had the incredible chance to buy back my childhood home in Liverpool which we sold when I was a kid, which was SO special…”

“We also did a huge renovation in Liverpool on a Grade II-listed building, turning it into flats. I lived there for a long period and still have the development now. It’s full of tenants, which makes me really proud as it’s a stunning building.”

AUTUMN EXTERIORS

The handy constructor has top tips aplenty in his toolbox for creating amazing autumn exteriors, plus easily achievable DIY patio and garden design ideas a-go-go to extend our outdoor living window.

• Build a pergola. It can be done very easily, gives shelter and looks really nice
• Once the leaves have fallen, it’s a great time of year to prune everything so it grows back healthier the next spring
• Sit around a firepit and enjoy the outdoors when the temperature falls. Roast some chestnuts or, in our case, marshmallows for the kids!

LIGHT UP YOUR (HOME) LIFE

How can we best make the most of natural light in our homes and ‘bring the outdoors in’?

• Mirrors and lighter shades of paint work really well to ensure your house still feels light and airy, even if it’s grey outside
• If you can afford it, look at installing skylights into ceilings to bring more light in
• Avoid dark furniture. Upcycle old furniture using Frenchic’s lighter paint shades to brighten up indoor living areas

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

He also advises protecting our homes ahead of the harsh winter months and enhancing energy efficiency.

“We’ve been working with LoftZone recently, creating content to show how easy it can be to board and insulate your loft so you don’t let warm air escape the house in the colder months.”

“Bleed radiators to ensure you get the most out of them and they’re not stopping the other radiators from giving out heat. If your front door lets a lot of heat out, use draft excluders or hang a large curtain behind it to keep the heat in. It can make a huge difference.

TOP TRENDS

How can we keep our interiors tip top and on-trend all-year-round? “Simple things, like giving a room a facelift with a new paint colour, or even buying new blankets to throw over your sofas, work well.”

He also recommends easy tweaks and fixes to freshen up each season, such as bringing old furniture back to life by repainting it. “They’re all little things but can make a big difference to how you feel about your home.”

On point at the mo? “Wall panelling’s proving very popular,” Craig reveals. “We’ve done loads of videos for Trepanel. It’s a really quick, easy and affordable way to transform a room.”

In terms of upcycling, “transforming old metal furniture by giving it a fresh lick of paint’s also really popular,” he says. “We filmed some recent videos for Frenchic Paints on this and our subscribers on our YouTube channel are REALLY keen to try their hand at it.”

As an ambassador for Frenchic, what does competent painter Craig love most about the chalky brand? “Their versatility and range. The colours are a blend of striking and subtle and we’ve used so many of them across projects on both our own home and my other properties, as well as upcycling furniture and other items.”

THE WOW FACTOR

How can we turn an ordinary space into an extraordinary space?

• Low budget, go with panelling! It certainly gives you that wow factor
• Large budget, change your kitchen, your windows (and perhaps have them in a different colour to set your home out from the rest)
• Change your front door or resurface your driveway. We’ve been working with SureSet who have some great resin-based products which can totally transform it 

KERB APPEAL. KEEPING UP APPEARANCES!

Craig’s golden rules to stick to for adding value? “Keep your kitchen and bathrooms up to date. Old and tired kitchens and bathrooms can often lead to houses being valued lower.”

As for advice for maximising kerb appeal etc. “Keep on top of paintwork and ensure your garden is neat and tidy. Appearances are everything!”

PROPERTY DEVELOPERS – HOLD FIRE

If you’re currently considering going into property development, think again. “For now, keep your powder dry and wait for mortgage rates to come down,” Craig recommends. “If you have the cash to buy outright, go for it, but build slowly. I’ve seen too many people go mad and buy multiple properties at once, only to see it all fall apart as they have taken on too much too soon…”

DO RESEARCH & DON’T CUT CORNERS!

Top tips for those who just can’t get motivated to pick up their tools and finish a job? “Start small, try doing something easy and that requires very little in the way of tools and materials, like hanging a picture or painting one of the walls in a room to create a feature wall. It’s amazing how easily you can get hooked into it. It’s all about doing the research first and not cutting corners.”

CRAIG AT SCREWFIX LIVE

Up next for Craig Phillips? “We continue to build content for our Mr and Mrs DIY YouTube channel, which is a full-time job, plus we’re constantly filming new projects. So, head over and subscribe, as there are so many different videos on there for keen DIY-ers or homeowners looking for inspiration!” www.youtube.com/@MrDIYCraigPhillips/ www.youtube.com/@MrandMrsDIY

And meet Craig with the Wagner Spraytech team at Screwfix Live this September (27th-29th), showcasing their latest domestic spray-painting technology and helping the public undertake decorating tasks with ease and speed!

MR&MRSDIY

Craig recently recorded a podcast with Leigh Francis (aka Keith Lemon) and enjoys creating his Mr & Mrs DIY tutorials with his DIY-loving wife Laura.

Does he think their young kids will follow in their DIY footsteps? “I’d love them to learn the skills so they can use them in their own homes when they are older, otherwise they’ll be on the ‘phone daily asking me to go round and do it for them!” he laughs.  “Seriously though, I hope they find something they’re really passionate about and love. That’ll make me happy. I love building and that’s why I’ve never deviated away from it too much.”

Offering ‘how-to’ videos to troubleshoot or give you a helping hand, Craig films every day as a daily diary. “I give loads of DIY tips, behind-the-scenes activity on our shoots, plus anything interesting I’m doing, like going on TV or radio, or even just messing around with the dog and the kids, of course!”