Renovation regulars ready for TV test

HANDY: Anne and Al Gourley have always renovated things, even a house on their honeymoon.

Te Puna couple Al and Anne Gourley will be the stars in New Zealand's latest reality television show.

The couple, put up to the task by their daughter Amy Kim, feature in Our First Home, which starts screening this weekend.

Mrs Gourley said it was ironic they had been one of the families chosen for the show.

"I hate to admit it but Al and I don't even have a TV."

The couple, with Amy's husband, Matt Kim, will join two other families to renovate and auction a home during the next 10 weeks.

Hospice nurse Anne Gourley said it was her daughter's idea to enter the show.

"We had been talking about their dream of buying and renovating a home together just before Amy saw the ad calling for applications...

"I remember her excited phone call, saying 'Hey, I've found the perfect project for us'."

The Gourleys were hesitant to enter the show as they had lots going on in their world, she said.

"We were gearing up for a quick build of the new Bethlehem Community Gardens, and I had just got back to work after three months off following a double mastectomy for breast cancer but Amy was so excited we let her write the application letter."

Mrs Gourley, 57, said they had always been a DIY family.

"Over our early married years we bought, renovated, built quite a few houses as we lived in them ... I learned pretty early on to insist on renovating the kitchen first so that I could at least enjoy the luxury of a nice kitchen for a few months before the house was sold.

"Once we started having a family we brought our present house with the intention of not having to keep shifting, but because Al is a builder and we both love DIY, our home continually evolves and changes."

Mrs Gourley thinks their team has what it takes to win the competition.

"Al is our obvious foreman with many, many building skills. Matt is an apprentice builder so is our muscle man. Amy is a born organiser and planner and has a great passion for interior design. I am pretty handy with a hammer and a paint brush, and I also love creating spaces that are more than just practical."

The most exciting part of the show would be learning exactly what they had got themselves into, she said.

"It's getting bigger and more exciting and daunting by the day. We are regarding this as an adventure, and a great chance to spend some precious, though very intense, time with Amy and Matt. It's very cool when your grown-up kids want to do stuff with their parents."

The team's biggest concern with the show would be the ability of the older two to keep up, she said.

"We have done major renovations before so we are very aware how much sheer hard work is involved, which I don't think either Amy or Matt fully appreciate yet."