Changing Rooms

A fascinating example of a show that was a massive hit for the BBC, that they used in the schedules to defeat all opposition, before bleeding the format dry and then axing it when people got sick to death of it.

I absolutely love Changing Rooms on the BBC America. Hilarious, fast paced, yet you learn something. Much better than the American knock off version, Trading Spaces, which is twice as long (1 hour) and slowly paced. Plus I'd rather watch Handy Andy Kane over Ty Pennington anytime! Andy can build me furniture!

I watch a lot of Trading Spaces on TLC (one of the shows that is based on BBC's Changing Rooms). Since I don't get BBC America, I wasn't able to see Changing Rooms until TLC ran a marathon over Thanksgiving. I was very disappointed. I felt that Changing Rooms pales in comparison to Trading Spaces.

The bottom line is that Changing Rooms just doesn't spend enough time on the rooms that are being designed. One of the joys of Trading Spaces is that you get to see the rooms being crafted, and some of the details that go into each room. There just isn't enough time for the same coverage in Changing Rooms. They cover twice as many rooms (4 rooms in an hour) as Trading Spaces does (2 rooms in an hour,) but it's the old quantity vs. quality issue. I found myself burnt out with the frenetic pace of Changing Rooms and ultimately disappointed.

This is one of the first shows that I had the pleasure of watching on the BBCAmerica channel. I love this show and although the designers don't always have an eye for taste--it does show what we can do in a pinch. Sometimes, the designers forget that people have to live in these rooms that they decorate and come up with some of the wildest rooms ever designed, but they do come out with more better ideas than bad ones. And sometimes, the hostess comes off sounding as if she is a tad better than the people whose rooms they are decorating--but just sometimes!!

I use to watch each & every show that aired of Changing Rooms. They were great!!! You could watch them take nothing & turn it into something. When I watched the American version, I was disappointed because all they did was go to the store & buy things to decorate a room. Changing Rooms showed how to actually create a new room on a limited budget using what was there & sometimes found items they picked up for free! It was fun, informative & got your mind working. You didn't think "hey, let's go to the store & buy everything we need for a make over" - you thought "hey, I can go to the store, buy a few materials & really make this room look better than what it does now" - Generally, when they wanted pillows, curtains or even a new look for the couch, they purchased material & made their own. I haven't seen it in years, but look forward to picking up the DVD & enjoying it all over again.