Carpenter Alex Burman from Bridgend, known to his nearly 50,000 Instagram followers as The Valley Viking, has swapped his tools for a bucket and spade to appear on BBC's new competition series, Race Against the Tide. The six-part sand sculpting contest, presented by Scottish comedian Iain Stirling, sees seven teams racing to create sculptures before the tide comes in.
A carpenter's edge in sand sculpting
Alex, teamed with professional Rémy Hoggard, said he wanted to showcase both his personality and his skills. "I wanted to be on a show where it can showcase my personality, but also my skills as well. Like implementing my everyday job, and using my hand skills and creating the beautiful pieces of art."
Originally from Rhondda Cynon Taf, Alex started using social media six years ago to promote his business. People often compared him to a viking because of his long blonde hair, inspiring his persona. His growing following on Instagram and TikTok caught the attention of the casting team.
When he received an email last year about a sand sculpting competition, he thought it was spam but decided to express interest. After several auditions, he made the cut as one of the final seven contestants.
Filming in St Andrews' record heat
The series was filmed at West Sands Beach in St Andrews in May 2025, during unprecedented hot weather. Alex found the physical demands familiar: "I've been brought up with the endurance side of it, working in the heat, working outside, I'm no stranger to that."
Growing up in Wales, Alex was used to beaches and coastlines. "I never knew that sand sculpting was actually a thing until the show, so when we actually got onto the show, and I saw it was literally just sand and water, and how to form the sand to sculpt, it was quite mind-blowing."
Flying the flag for Wales
As the only Welshman on the show, Alex took inspiration from Wales for his sculptures. "Because I was the only person from Wales on the show, it felt like an opportunity to kind of fly the flag for our country. Everyone calls me the Valley Viking as well, so I wanted to kind of implement a bit of my characteristics in with, like, Welsh heritage, Viking heritage."
He enjoyed filming in Scotland, saying it felt like home. "It was my first time in Scotland, and I loved the backdrop of St. Andrews. On our day off, we spent time going around and actually seeing St. Andrews, it was class."
Alex described presenter Iain Stirling as down to earth, often testing comedy material on contestants. "There was a lot of time between shoots as well, where we were waiting around, and he'd use it as a bit of an opportunity to get some of his jokes in."
Hardest thing he's ever done
Alex called the competition one of the hardest things he has ever done. "It was the hottest it's ever been in 100 years in St. Andrews. Imagine you're shovelling five to seven tons of sand a day in that heat against the clock, it is demanding."
He admitted to losing his temper in one episode: "I do throw my toys out the pram on one of the episodes. I try to put a lot of passion into this one piece, and it doesn't go to plan."
He hopes to use his new skills at the beach and inspire others. "It's a family show, it's something that families can do for free. If you live close to the beach, and you've already got the opportunity to have sand in front of you, you can do it."
Race Against the Tide airs on BBC iPlayer from Monday, August 17, and on BBC Two from Tuesday, August 18.
