Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen defends strange living | UK News

Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen has hit back at critics who think about his uncommon home setup to be “strange”. The 60-year-old inside designer lives with his spouse Jackie, their grown-up daughters Hermione, 26, and Cecile, 29, plus their respective spouses Dan and Drew, and their quartet of grandchildren – Albion, 8, Demelza, 3, Romily, 1, and Eleanora, 18 months.

Laurence brought about fairly a stir when he initially disclosed the extraordinary association of the prolonged household all living together under one roof at his six-bedroom Cotswolds property. The former Changing Rooms presenter expressed delight relating to his tight-knit family and defended against critics who disapprove of what they think about an uncommon living scenario. “I still think a lot of people think it is a bit strange,” he told the Daily Mail. “But actually, it is a very kind of straightforward and instinctive way of a family being together. It’s a very, very odd idea that came out of the 20th century, this idea of children leaving the home. Actually, traditionally, you stayed if you all worked on the farm together or you worked in the shop together, so in a funny sort of way, we just kind of reviving that, but it made great sense for us.

“You know, we live in a big home. It was very a lot just me and Jackie. Why can we not then carry the kids and their kids in with us?” Reflecting on how the family navigates sharing their living space daily, Laurence remarked: “There are moments where you have received to work fairly onerous. But I believe that occurs in any household.”

Despite the mayhem of his busy family, Laurence efficiently maintains the spark with his beloved spouse Jackie. The devoted couple, who have been together for more than 4 a long time, celebrated their thirty fifth wedding ceremony anniversary this 12 months.

He revealed: “In January, we’ll mainly have been together for 41 years. So, I imply, that’s a good portion of a lifetime.

“We were very good at making a commitment, and, you know, in those 41 years, there have been moments where we’ve had to work very hard to ensure that we were still getting on, that we were still sparking off each other. And I think that’s something that some people are quite quick to give up on.”

The designer continued: “You do have to find positives. It’s not a Disney movie You do wake up in the morning and you do feel grumpy. You do have moments where, you know, things p*** you off. I’m quite a tolerant person. That’s cool. That works really well. I’m quite laid back.

“There are occasions when Jackie could be very energised, but, I imply, after 41 years together, you recognize the ins and outs. You know the warning indicators.”

Laurence is gearing up for another instalment of his property programme, House Of The Year, working alongside judges Jane Larmour, James Fairley and Patricia McGinnis. House Of The Year is making a comeback on BBC iPlayer and BBC One Northern Ireland, with the first 5 episodes prepared to stream from Monday 5 January.

Each episode will see three new properties vying for one of 5 spots in the grand closing, where they might be named House Of The Year. The grand closing is set to air on February 9.