Johannesburg - If the walls inside your home could talk, what would they say? Luckily for you, and especially luckily for those of you whose walls wouldn’t have pleasant things to say, you don’t have to find out just yet. Instead, you can live vicariously through other people with the help of a new TV show, If Walls Could Talk, which premieres on April 15 on Top TV’s Fine Living Channel.
This programme takes a look at walls and interesting pieces of furniture or other fixtures in a person’s house and traces their quirks. Sometimes, it’s as simple as visiting a home that was once owned by someone famous, or even a home that is owned by a regular Joe, but is extraordinary in certain aspects. Other times, the show delves deeply into homes that were built on ground that is important to a community because of its historical significance.
Expect to check out the story behind the story, too, as those who renovate their houses discover things they were not expecting to find. Like the woman who decided that her home, a Queen Anne-style house with gingerbread trim, was due for renovation, and during this process began to discover old bottles of various alcoholic beverages buried around the house. These bottles helped to trace the habits of the previous owner who lived in a different century and, seemingly, led a more intoxicating life than the person who was only just discovering the telling bottles.
There is also a couple intrigued by a house and inspired to buy it because it was once owned by a man who made a mark in their community. It belonged to Lyman Blaire, who made a name for himself in the early 1900s and became a local hero.
If Walls Could Talk is hosted by Mike Siegel, who is easy on the eye but seems to find it hard to refrain from throwing in his two cents. Maybe if his walls could talk they would tell him to shut up.
All jokes aside, if you’re interested in the history of certain elements of people’s homes, this is the show for you.
• If Walls Could Talk is on Fine Living (Top TV Channel 451) on April 15 at 2.35pm and 6.25pm