A lucky break put TOMMY WALSH on the television but since his first appearance on BBC's Ground Force he has gone from strength to strength. As he EXCLUSIVELY reveals, he is not prepared to compromise his integrity for fame.

It's one of those days in East London, the sun has disappeared behind the angry knitted brow of black clouds moving over Tommy Walsh's home. Inside, work continues on a project that goes back years but is now, despite appearances, weeks away from completion. It's all too much for Tommy's dog, who in his excitement charges across the kitchen floor catching a hind leg in the kettle lead and fusing the house. There goes that cuppa!

The working man
These are busy times for the man who did the grunt and shove work on the BBC's highly successful Ground Force programme. He's started his own TV production company, has book projects in the pipeline, makes personal appearances up and down the country and has his private building dream to reach.

I did a show called Tommy Walsh's Ultimate Workshop and it was fantastic to be in control. I could decide how we spent the money and it meant I could really concentrate on the production values,' says Tommy.

The show was a bit of an eye opener for Tommy. Did you know that you can build a structure 4m high and 30m square without planning permission and without building regulations?' he asks.

The only constraints are that you can't do it in a conservation area. As a consequence I used my architect's home for the project.

It was great fun and what I really enjoy is problem solving. That's the challenge that gets me going. On this project I wanted more space and a mezzanine floor but there wasn't enough height. Eventually, it came to me. The answer was to put the floor on hydraulics.

We ended up with a 42in plasma TV on the wall, a fridge full of beer and the speaker system hooked up to face the house. We got a sound effects disc of saws, drill and hammers bashing away and put it on so the lady of the house thought we were hard at work when in fact we were sitting there, feet up, drinking beer and watching the footie!'

Future projects
Tommy's ambitions are becoming bolder, next up is Tommy Walsh's Ultimate Budget House. It is an idea that is already causing ripples.

I was invited along to speak to the Deputy Prime Minister's Office, John Prescott, about the project. The idea is that, the land apart, you build a home for £60,000. Now that's a challenge, not because it can't be done but because of what you would like to do, you have to consider the environmentally friendly aspects of the project and the economics of low cost energy conservation.

If it's going to happen, we need to start by June 2006 and aim to have it screened in the spring of 2007. It's ironic because I was also asked to do another series, a 15-part show on apprentices but there just isn't enough time to do both.'

And there is other work on the back boiler for the in-demand DIY guru. I was meant to start work on a book about My London but that won't happen until I get the study finished in this new house,' he explains.

I tend to write long hand and then with the help of my wife, we edit the material back so it is quite a long process, I like to have the time to immerse myself in it. I'm an entertaining writer, I like a light comedic touch to my style.'

Given that his new house is state of the art, from CCTV and high security aspects through to his sound and hovering system, a hose can be plugged into the wall in all rooms and the dirt and dust is sucked into a giant bag in the basement, which only needs emptying once a year, it's surprising that his writing hasn't joined the hi-tech age! Well I do have a voice-activated word processor on my laptop and it sort of works. It took a while for it to be refined to hear me but the problem is that the phone goes or someone pops in for a chat, the microphone picks it up and scrambles everything!'

TV guru
Television is the future for Tommy whose family history is steeped in the building trade. The problem with the building trade is budgets and costs,' he says. People always want expensive jobs done cheaply. Cuts can be made on the materials but in the end, the whole job becomes very pressurised. It's not the same job as it started out as. You simply can't have it both ways, a hot shot job at a knock down price, and I've become quite tired of this attitude in the market place.'

What does he think of the lucky break that saw him become a major figure on TV? I'd like to think it was my wit and good looks that clinched the deal, but the truth is that I was working at the house of a TV producer and she asked me to look at the pilot for a show called Over The Garden Wall. I was asked for my opinion and I said the programme was like watching paint dry. I came up with some suggestions as to how it could be improved.

The next thing I know I'm doing a screen test and I'd never seen a TV camera in my life before that. I just concentrated on not looking at it, acting natural. I must have done something right because I was signed up for a show called Ground Force.

I met Charlie Dimmock and Alan Titchmarsh for the first time when we filmed the first programme. And that was it. We were off and running and I was working my socks off.'

Since then a whole new world has opened up for Tommy. He can still hardly believe that he's worked on Nelson Mandela's garden in Qunu, South Africa. For him it was the ultimate job. He's a wonderful guy,' he fondly recalls.

In many ways, Ground Force was the hardest work of my life. What people don't realise is that it wasn't cleverly edited and there weren't lots of people waiting to come in and do the job for you when the cameras were switched off.

What we did took just over a day of labour and there was no time for slacking, it was genuinely hard going. You did learn to pace yourself but it was really a case of two speeds, fast and faster.'

Maintaining integrity
He is lucky to have those gears because the work hasn't stopped coming in. On the day we meet he's putting in some hard labour in his own home but still had two appearances to make that evening!

I've reached a stage where I won't compromise my values,' he explains. My integrity is everything and I don't like the idea that the sole measure of my success is in the amount of money I earn.

I was offered the chance to endorse my own range of tools for a well-known manufacturer but they were being made in China and I wasn't happy with the quality. It was my name going on them so in spite of the wads of money being offered I declined to get involved.

There is so much talk in the TV business, so many projects going around but little comes to fruition. I'm lucky that most of the offers, which come my way are weeded out. But having said that if a project appeals and I think it has got legs, then I'll go for it.'

Tommy on film
That might explain why he has also made his film debut in a first time thriller by a director called Rob Brown. The movie is called One and in it Tommy plays a hit-man called Vincent.

I said ’úyes’ù to the role and then immediately forgot about it,' he says. Then I got a call to say that the finance was in place and the movie was being shot. By that stage I had heaps of other work on and it was a real squeeze. I didn't want to do any violent scenes so I play a hit-man who gets by on menace alone. It's not bad and it was a lot of fun.'

So far so good and there are plenty of other projects bubbling along. The experiences I've had and the places I've visited have been amazing,' he enthuses. I've met some incredible people and I've been very lucky with my career to date.'

There's more to come but for the meantime Tommy and his family are preparing to enjoy their new home. It has been a labour of love but the finished article is going to be worth the four year wait, he'll be able to settle down and watch himself in his first movie role. Yet for Tommy Walsh, life has been better than fiction.