Nick Knowles breaks down in tears on DIY SOS tonight and tells himself “pull yourself together” after becoming overwhelmed with what has been achieved. The 64-year-old has presented the series for more than two decades and rarely shows emotion on screen but wipes tears from his eyes during the latest challenge. In his own words he says “I am a total mess”.
Family reunited after ambitious build
The team are in Preston where Nick and the DIY SOS builders are helping 16-year-old Dan, who has spent the last three years in hospital after life-saving surgery to remove a brain tumour left him with complex disabilities. Although he's been ready to leave for 18 months, the family home can't meet his needs which has left him stuck on a ward.
With mum Julie by Dan's side in hospital and dad Nigel at home looking after their daughters, Charlotte and Emily, the family has been living apart for years. In order to change things DIY SOS took on one of their most ambitious builds in 27 years to transform their house, to bring the family back together and so Dan can finally come home.
Nick's emotional moment
It all becomes too much for Nick at the end of the build. As the project nears the end, Nick speaks to the cameras and says: “We still have hours of hard graft ahead of us, but against all the odds, the end is in sight.
“I genuinely don't know how to put into words how tough this has been, how amazing everyone has been, how much doubt I had along the way, how much guilt I felt, and how amazing it is that these amazing people have called it of physically and emotionally draining.”
But he is then moved to tears and holds his hands up unable to carry on speaking, instead walking away from the cameras and saying: “Pull yourself together.”
Nick's past comments on crying
Speaking in the past, Nick has insisted he shouldn’t be seen on camera crying too much or during the ‘reveal’ moments, insisting that should be all about the families involved. Speaking on Lorraine in 2021, he said: “I have been in this game long enough to know in that moment I get off screen. The end of the show and those moments are not about me, they are about the 300 people volunteering and the companies who give materials.
“When it gets emotional I tend to get out the way so we see the people’s lives who are being changed and the volunteers. A lot of presenters would sort of horn in on it but I tend to get out the way.
“We finish the programme and get like 50 miles down the motorway and turn into a service station and have a cry, because they are emotional programmes.”
DIY SOS is on BBC1 and BBC iPlayer tonight at 8pm.
