22 April 2024 , 06:44
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The mental scars left behind after a terrifying heart scare have been just as difficult to cope with as the physical recovery, Martin Roberts reveals. But the Homes Under the Hammer presenter says the shock two years ago has left him wanting to grab life and all it has to offer as he has “no time to die” just yet.
He is channelling his energies into changing youngsters’ lives and giving them a purpose as they help him with a bold new renovation project. Some of the teens have had a difficult time, be it through falling in with the wrong crowd, experimenting with drugs or just struggling socially. In an emotional interview, he said: “The thought it could end so quickly made me desperate to do all I can because I don’t know how much longer I’ve got left. None of us do. I’ve been given this opportunity to change kids’ lives and I feel so privileged.”
Martin, 60, bought a rundown pub and hotel nestled in the former coal mining village of Blaencwm in the Rhondda Valley, a one-hour drive from Cardiff. Renovations on Hendrewen Hotel began last January and he is hoping to have the work finished by the end of summer. Martin, who is also in talks with TV bosses about the project, says it has helped “massively” with his mental health but he is still struggling after his life-changing scare.
Martin at a check up in 2022 (Channel 5)The TV star needed life- saving emergency surgery in April 2022 when he was taken to hospital with chest pains. He was suffering from pericardial effusion, a build-up of fluid around the heart, causing organ failure. Two years on, he still has to go for check-ups, and speaking about his experience remains painful.
Visibly upset, he says: “I can’t understate the mental after-effects of what happened to me. The physical stuff you get over, but it’s the overriding thought it could have all ended. Everything you tried to do, and your family, you realise it could all be gone. I was told I needed to slow down and I’ve gone the other way. Hopefully I’ve got many years but you never know. That whole thing that happened to me makes you realise how thin a thread we dangle from. But you can’t go through life living in that fear.”
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Martin fell in love with Wales after filming there (Rowan Griffiths / Daily Mirror)He fell in love with Wales after filming there and is on a mission to help put the area on the map as a tourist destination and help transform it into a community hub. “This is an ambitious project, the building was closed at the start of lockdown and the village lost its heart.” he says. “I thought, ‘This needs me.’ It’s turned into a major community project.”
Martin says there are four local schools involved and they each send eight kids a week to help out. Now each week these groups of teenagers, aged 15 to 17 years old, work alongside a training company. Martin’s describes how the experience has transformed lives, including participants landing apprenticeships. Some were just keen to help with the project because of their fascination with doing something practical, others had trouble fitting in and needed to feel part of a group.
Renovations on Hendrewen Hotel began last JanuaryOne has even stopped experimenting with drugs, according to Martin. He says: “We’ve got kids who are not really getting on at school, a bit disengaged, in some cases being told they won’t amount to much. We’re giving them a chance to get construction industry qualifications. These kids come in and you can see their shoulders are down, their heads are bowed and they have no real self esteem. “Within weeks we’re hearing from families about how these kids have been transformed. They’re talking at the dinner table, they’re motivated, they’re arriving to work early.”
The lads have lunch in BlaencwmMartin’s voice cracks as he adds: “Parents have rung up and asked, ‘What on earth have you done to our children?’ Another mum phoned up in tears saying her son hadn’t left the house in three years as he had no motivation and he’d just cycled to his grandad’s grave, to tell him what he’s been doing at the pub.”
“He used to do stuff with his grandad, DIY. Every time I tell that story I feel so privileged.” Martin adds his wife Kirsty and their two teenage children, Megan and Scott, are completely onboard with his passion project, given the work and travel involved, as his home in Bath is a two-hour drive away.
Sometimes the renovation can be exasperatingHe says: “My wife runs the fort at home, which enables me to get on with the job. They understand how important it is for me.” Martin is also using his platform and his latest project to highlight the importance of getting annual gas safety checks. He has teamed up with Gas Safe Register, the UK’s official registration body for gas engineers and gas businesses, to stress the financial and safety risks of not getting boilers regularly checked, especially during the spring months after a cold winter.
He says: “I see dodgy boilers all the time and I always say to people when you take on a house you have to get the boiler checked out. Most of the time it will get thrown out and replaced. The problem is when the boiler sits in a cupboard and is forgotten about until it goes wrong.”
- To find a Gas Safe registered engineer in your area and for gas safety tips, visit www.GasSafeRegister.co.uk or call 0800 408 5500.