Homes Under The Hammer star 'failed on every level' with £500k pub rennovation
Homes Under The Hammer star Martin Roberts admits he has "failed on every level", after he underestimated how challenging it would be to renovate a derelict South Wales pub. The former I'm A Celebrity contestant, 61, bought the Hendrewen Hotel in Rhondda in 2023, and invested half a million to revamp the rundown boozer.
Not far from his own farmhouse, renovation guru Martin wanted to help the local community, which he said had "lost their heart". But he has now admitted he had completely misjudged how much time and money it would take.
Having originally estimated it could be done in two years at the cost of £500,000, Martin has already gone over his deadline and the makeover is nowhere near finished. He admits it has been 'challenging', and has only been motivated to get through thanks to his team of 15-17 year olds, who have been working with his tradesmen.
Martin hoped it would give them practical skills to use when they leave education, having chosen a pub in one of the most deprived areas in the country. The reality TV star wanted to give the kids a "step up the ladder" to help them get jobs when they finish, as well as planning to employ 30 locals when his project is finally complete.
Speaking to the Sun, Martin explained how he felt like he'd failed. He told the paper: "For a man who spends all his time telling people to make sure they stick to their budgets and timescales, I have failed on every single level.
"I'm still smiling but, oh my word, what a challenge it's been, I'll be honest, it's the first commercial property I've ever done. There have been lots of residential houses and flats, but commercial properties have a lot more complications, I'd say we are 60 per cent there."
Martin's vision for his hotel includes an eight-bedroom establishment, with each of the rooms having a television theme. He plans to have Fawlty Towers, A Question of Sport and Homes Under The Hammer themed accommodations, paying homage to the show he's presented for more than 20 years.
The TV star previously told WalesOnline: "I often act a bit on gut instinct, and possibly don't always tell my wife because sometimes I think there's a danger I will be talked out of things because they appear daft on the surface, I only sort of mention it when it's too late!'
He added: 'I've never run a pub, I've never run a restaurant, and I've never run a hotel. So, hey, what could possibly go wrong?!"
Martin's idea for his new venture came after he had emergency surgery and suffered a terrifying health scare after he suffered chest pains. He thought he had COVID, but when he was hospitalised, medics told him he had pericardial effusion - a build up of fluid around his heart.
Doctors warned him that he could only have hours to live if he didn't go in for the op. He told Metro: "It was a bit of an eye-opener to be honest, being three hours from death, that's always going to ruin your day.
"I was told to slow down and really take things easy… so I bought a pub which needed complete renovating and which I've got try and run, having no experience of running a pub, restaurant or a hotel. It suddenly makes you realise how fragile we all are in lots of ways."
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Wales Online
3 hours ago
- Wales Online
23 things to do this summer holidays in and around Cardiff if you are on a budget
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It is £2.80 per person and under threes, go free. 21. Visit the family fun park in Cardiff Bay Entry is free to the fair in Cardiff Bay - though it's advisable to discuss spending limits beforehand - and it's a summer activity that appeals to children of all ages. There are plenty of rides suitable for school-aged children. 22. Catch some Pokemon at PokeCon On Monday, 25 August, between 11am and 5pm, the Red Dragon Centre will host a Pokemon pop-up brimming with merchandise, trading cards, and collectibles. It's an ideal event for fans, collectors, and trainers of all ages. 23. Watch a film at Cineworld and Vue The 10am weekend and school holiday Movies for Juniors showings are £3.99 per person at Cineworld. Article continues below The 10am weekend and school holiday Mighty Mornings showings are just £2.49 per person when booked online or £3.49 on the door, at Vue.
Daily Record
4 hours ago
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The Herald Scotland
5 hours ago
- The Herald Scotland
Fringe urges Murrayfield rethink over impact of Oasis shows
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The number of individual performances is lagging behind 2019, with 54,474 registered to date compared to 59,600 six years ago, when there were 323 venues in the programme compared to 265 in this year's line-up. Both the Edinburgh International Festival and Edinburgh International Book Festival have reported a year-on-year rise in ticket sales. Mr Lankester told The Herald: ''Having large concerts staged at the same time of the Fringe is not something we would actively encourage. 'We don't believe it results in an optimal experience for either concertgoers or Fringegoers, putting, as it does, unnecessary pressure on an already busy city. 'One consequence is that it results in massively increased demand for travel and accommodation which drives up the prices for everyone, including the concert organisers and fans. 'However decisions around the timing of large touring concerts are largely outside of the control of the Fringe, the city and even the concert promoters. 'If concerts are planned during August in future we will do what we can to protect the Fringe experience, and find ways of working with all stakeholders, including the concert organisers, to make the experience as positive as possible.' William Burdett-Coutts, artistic director of Assembly, which he founded in 1981, said on-the-day ticket sales at his venues were down by more than 9000 on Friday, Saturday and Sunday compared to the same weekend last year, with ticket sales down 16, 15 and six per cent on each day. He told The Herald: 'I think the drop in on-the-day sales over the weekend is totally down to Oasis. 'Prior to this weekend, our advance and on-the-day sales have been up for every day of the festival so far. 'Our venues were a lo quiet than normal over the weekend. We would normally sell out every show on a Saturday night and we didn't. 'I think a lot of people who would normally go to see Fringe shows went to see Oasis. But I think a bigger number of people were deterred from coming into the city because Oasis were on. 'One element was the price of accommodation going mad. The other was transport. People were concerned that it would be much hard to get in and out of town. It like a week day at the Fringe, not a weekend, on Friday and Saturday, to be honest.' Speaking ahead of the third Oasis gig, Geoff Ellis, chief executive of promoters DF Concerts, told The Herald: 'The shows have gone incredibly well on all fronts. 'The band are sounding better than ever with the loudest, most passionate and euphoric audiences that I have ever seen. 'It is also an undeniable fact that many Oasis fans have attended multiple Fringe shows too. 'I've seen it myself walking around the city before and after the concerts. 'I have talked to people who have come to Scotland for Oasis and are also taking in the fringe and EIF too – including personal friends of mine from Manchester who have never attended the Fringe before but will be back again. 'There is a great atmosphere in the city with all the visitors mixing well and enjoying Edinburgh. 'I agree the accommodation cost is an issue. Our hotels are double what we paid last year and the prices are very high in August for all visitors coming to the city, whatever the reason. 'There probably needs to be a solution for Fringe performers to get some accommodation ringfenced at reasonable rates. 'At the end of the day, fans of culture are not all in their own silos, many are interested in - and go to - various events, not just one artform. 'It would actually be cheaper for major artists to come to Edinburgh outwith August due to the higher costs of staging concerts in the city in August. 'however Edinburgh and Scotland has to fit in with international tours. 'It's amazing that Scotland (and Edinburgh) got 3 Oasis shows, the only AC/DC show in the UK, the only headline concerts with Chappell Roan in Europe and Sam Fender into the bargain too.' The benefits of staging the Murrayfield concerts in Edinburgh have been hotly debated by tourism and festival leaders in recent days. Marc Crothall, chief executive of the Scottish Tourism Alliance, shared details on social media of research which suggested the three-night run by Oasis in the city would be worth £136m to the city. Novuna Personal Finance predicted fans would spend £32m on food and drink, £6.2m on accommodation and £27.5m on 'shopping and leisure' while they are in the city. Susan Russell, head of marketing and communications at the Fringe Society, said: 'Project economic spend doesn't take into account potential diverted spend from long-standing major events already happening in Edinburgh during this month's gigs. 'It's misleading to say that it's 'new' impact when significant economic benefit (likely higher to the city as the average length of stay for the festivals is four nights) was already here. 'Music promoters would drive much more economic benefit to the city (and Scotland) if these were scheduled outwith August.' However Jo Buckley, chief executive of the Dunard Centre, the project to create Edinburgh's first purpose-built concert hall for a century, said: 'Setting aside inflated accommodation prices, the economic impact tells a powerful story. 'But this is also 200,000 people sharing in the joy of live music over three days, something whose benefits are hard to measure but I believe are just as powerful.'
