Grand Designs presenter Kevin McCloud reveals the destiny of property present’s ‘most heartbreaking home’ as he revisits two years later

The presenter of Grand Designs has revealed the show’s ‘most heartbreaking’ house has now been completed several years after building began.

In a new episode of the Channel 4 series, which airs tonight at 9pm, presenter Kevin McCloud reunited with Graeme and Melanie, who appeared in the 2023 season with the hopes of turning their garage plot in Hackney into the three-bedroom house.

Architect Graeme and graphic designer Melanie, from East London, met in tragic circumstances, having both lost their partners before finding love again together.   

The couple hoped to build a three-storey, three-bedroom home designed by Graeme which had enough space for Mel’s daughter Indie, 13, and Graeme’s daughter Isla, 15, to each have their own room – all on a budget of £450,000.

After both girls lost a parent (Isla’s mother passed away within weeks of Indie’s father’s death) Graeme stressed the need for the new family home to be a fresh start and a ‘statement’ for the family. 

The original episode ended on a cliffhanger, with the couple having run out of money and faced with the prospect of having to sell the unfinished property.

But returning for this year’s series of the architectural show, Kevin re-met with the couple who confirmed that building had finally been completed. 

Speaking in advance of the first episode premiering tonight, Kevin told OK: ‘They’ve finished it now.’  

‘It was always going to be terrifying for them but returning to see the completed building is always a wonderful bonus and a huge privilege.’

‘It’s the embodiment of a journey. There’s always a chance that they may run out of money. People are always worried about money,’ he added.

Graeme and Mel captivated viewers with their heart-wrenching back story and ambitious hopes of building their dream home for their blended families but faced financial setbacks.

On Kevin’s first visit to see Graeme and Mel in the 2023 episode, the couple shared the tragedies that the family has been through with both girls losing a parent at a young age.

Graeme told Kevin: ‘We are creating a brand-new family from two families’ after he met Mel at a wedding and spotted her on the dancefloor.

He described the house as ‘symbolic’ in giving the family a chance to create their own identity. ‘The new home is just perfect neutral ground for everyone to buy into.’

The project, which Graeme described as an ‘upside down’ home, included having three floors to make the most of their limited space on the plot.

Mel stressed that the two were doing their best to build new family traditions but also keeping the old families’ memories alive.

She added: ‘Both girls have lost a parent so we are creating a brand new family from two families. It’s an ongoing process that Graeme and I are going through – and the girls.’ 

‘We’re a modern family, if you like, and it’s a modern house, a shamelessly modern house,’ Graeme said. 

The project was off to a good start when the couple realised they had slightly more space than they had initially anticipated.

They had initially paid £35,000 for the land on another garage plot adjacent to where they hoped to build the house, which would allow them space for a garden.

But after an initial stroke of luck, the couple ran into problems with the basement, with their initial contractor having pulled out of the project – which had been agreed at a price of £150,000. 

They eventually found another contractor to dig on the site and build the basement, but it came at a cost of £20,000 more than their original budget for that part of the build.

And once the dig started, the team ran into plenty of issues, with both the supply chain and the plot of land.

The contractor said the dig into the basement was a ‘major challenge’ because there was ‘no space whatsoever’.

The basement became the couple’s biggest project, with the entire feat taking a total of six months.

But with the finish line in sight, things began to go pear shaped again, with weak concrete walls threatening to make the project significantly pricier.

‘I’m trying not to be too down about it but I’m really distraught about this,’ Graeme explained, while Mel said she was ‘hugely disappointed’ and ‘worried’ about the issue. 

Kevin’s final visit to the couple’s home in September 2023 revealed the house was built and watertight, covered in red cladding and making a statement compared to the other houses on the street.

Although the couple were overall pleased with the house, Graeme admitted the unfinished basement was the ‘void’.

Graeme revealed the total cost of the project has exceeded their initial budget of £450,000, a figure which quickly ended up becoming closer to £550,000.

Speaking ahead of the new episodes, Kevin remarked that it was ‘wonderful’ the show was still going, having launched it’s first episode 25-years ago in 1999.

‘It’s wonderful still to be making programmes about architecture. The wonder is sort of built into the series. It’s built into the experience of buildings, and it’s such a great privilege to be able to carry on telling the stories of buildings it really is,’ he said.

‘I kind of pinch myself really, because it’s been so many years, it’s nearly 28 years since we started filming. So, it’s been my life. Like it or not, and I have loved it, and I still love it.’

The latest series of Grand Designs will arrive at 10pm on Wednesday on Channel 4.