''To Buy or Not to Buy'' is a British
reality television series
Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...
made between 2003 and 2010 for
BBC One
BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...
in the UK. The final series was the eleventh and contained 90 episodes, in one of two formats—either 30 or 45 minutes in length. It aired on both BBC1 and BBC2. The show also airs on Saturday mornings on
RTÉ One
RTÉ One ( ga, RTÉ a hAon) is an Irish free-to-air flagship television channel owned and operated by Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ). It is the most-popular and most-watched television channel in the country and was launched as ''Telefís ...
in Ireland.
RTE Ireland One TV listings
The Guardian
Background
The show is based on the concept of housing programmes such as ''Location, Location, Location
''Location, Location, Location'' is a British reality property programme that has aired on Channel 4 since 17 May 2000 and is presented by Kirstie Allsopp and Phil Spencer. The show follows Allsopp and Spencer as they try to find the perfect ...
''. The idea is to try to find a house for the participants and allow them to test it out before deciding if they want to put in an offer for the house.
Format
The episodes follow a set pattern. After introducing the prospective buyers and their idea of an ideal home, including location, features and price range, each of the two presenters selects a property they feel fits that ideal. A third property, the so-called 'wild card', may not fully fit this wish list, but is believed to be adequate by the presenters.
The prospective buyers are then given the opportunity to inspect each property, discussing its flaws and merits with the presenters before guessing the property's price. They are then allowed to choose one property for an in-depth 'try before you buy' segment, where they can test drive
A test drive is the driving of a motor vehicle to assess its drivability or roadworthiness, and general operating state. A person who tests vehicles for a living, either for an automobile company, automotive media for review purposes, or a moto ...
the property more leisurely. A 'mystery' surveyor often then looks at the property and finds some defects, which are then communicated by the presenters. The episode concludes with a final conversation with the prospective buyers, asking them whether they are in fact interested in purchasing the property.
Presenters
Throughout the programme, both presenters engage in mildly disparaging yet good-natured banter
Conversation is interactive communication between two or more people. The development of conversational skills and etiquette is an important part of socialization. The development of conversational skills in a new language is a frequent focu ...
, both among themselves and with the participants. The final presenters were Jenny Powell
Jenny Powell (born 8 April 1968) is an English television and radio presenter. After appearing on '' No Limits'', she went on to present series such as '' Wheel of Fortune'', '' UP2U'', ''Gimme 5'', '' Live Talk'', ''Wordplay'' and '' Daybreak' ...
, Simon O'Brien, Rani Price
Rani Price (born Rani Ratna Khanijau 29 January 1974 in Liverpool) is a British television presenter who has presented a variety of children's shows for CBBC Channel, Disney, Channel 5 and Nickelodeon.
Television career
Early Days
Born in Live ...
, Garold Howesington and Ed Hall.
The original presenter teams was Dominic Littlewood
Dominic Littlewood (born 29 March 1965), known as Dom Littlewood, is a British journalist and television presenter who specialises in consumer protection. He is best known for his roles with BBC and Channel 5, presenting programmes such as ...
with Kristian Digby, who were joined by Sarah Walker at the end of the first series, as 10 hour-long 'specials' were made, with Walker doing makeover on the contributing couples' house as they househunted with Digby and Littlewood.
For the second series, Digby and Walker paired-up, and Littlewood was joined by Melissa Porter, and then in the first half of 2005 more changes kicked in. Simon Rimmer
Simon Peter Rimmer (born 5 May 1963) is an English celebrity chef, best known for his on-screen partnership with Tim Lovejoy.
Early life
Simon Peter Rimmer was born on 5 May 1963 in Wallasey.
Career
Rimmer originally studied fashion and texti ...
and Walker made two series together and Digby presented with Simon O'Brien before moving on to his current co-star Ed Hall, until Digby's death 1 March 2010 aged 32.
Past presenters
Rani Price
Rani Price (born Rani Ratna Khanijau 29 January 1974 in Liverpool) is a British television presenter who has presented a variety of children's shows for CBBC Channel, Disney, Channel 5 and Nickelodeon.
Television career
Early Days
Born in Live ...
, Simon O'Brien, Jonnie Irwin
Jonathan James Irwin (born 18 November 1973) is an English television presenter, writer, lecturer, business and property expert.
Early life
Irwin grew up on a small farm in the village of Bitteswell, Leicestershire. Irwin was educated at Lutter ...
, Ed Hall, Jonny Benarr, Nikki Bedi, Kristian Digby, Dominic Littlewood
Dominic Littlewood (born 29 March 1965), known as Dom Littlewood, is a British journalist and television presenter who specialises in consumer protection. He is best known for his roles with BBC and Channel 5, presenting programmes such as ...
, Melissa Porter, Simon Rimmer
Simon Peter Rimmer (born 5 May 1963) is an English celebrity chef, best known for his on-screen partnership with Tim Lovejoy.
Early life
Simon Peter Rimmer was born on 5 May 1963 in Wallasey.
Career
Rimmer originally studied fashion and texti ...
, Sarah Walker, Ian Blandford, Melinda Messenger
Melinda Jane Messenger (born 23 February 1971) is an English television presenter and former glamour model and Page Three girl. She presented the magazine programme ''Live from Studio Five'' and was formerly the co-presenter of the reality show ...
(Guest presenter), Sid Owen
Sid Owen (born David Sutton; 12 January 1972) is an English actor, television presenter and former singer, who played Ricky Butcher in the BBC One soap opera ''EastEnders'' on and off since 1988. He also appeared in the tenth series of ''Stric ...
(Guest presenter)
References
External links
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*{{IMDb title, id=0382494, title=To Buy or Not to Buy
2003 British television series debuts
2010 British television series endings
BBC Television shows
BBC high definition shows
BBC Birmingham productions
British reality television series
Property buying television shows
English-language television shows
Television series by BBC Studios