Inside Salvage Hunters star Drew Pritchard's gorgeous scavenger home

When Drew Pritchard left school at 16, he didn’t have a single qualification to his name.

His grandmother called him a ‘shitehawk’ — a scavenger bird — because his bedroom was rammed with fossils, badges and old car parts he’d found on the streets.

Never did he imagine that his childhood passion for finding ‘stuff’ would make him a household name, but after 11 years on the box — series 16 kicked off on Quest last week — his TV show Salvage Hunters has gained cult status.

‘It goes out in 60 countries and we have 22 million viewers worldwide tuning in every day,’ says the flat cap-wearing antique dealer. ‘Not bad for two fat lads in a van.’

Drew didn’t engage in lessons at his bog-standard comp in north Wales, where he grew up in the 1980s.

‘There were 50-odd kids in my form so I’d skive at the back and be a pain in the a***,’ he says. ‘I wasn’t interested in learning about oxbow lakes and amoebas.’

All of this makes it even more remarkable that he’s now become an unlikely poster boy for the green revolution — and at the forefront of the war on waste to help curb climate change. ‘COP26 and politicians won’t do anything, they never will.

The change must come from us,’ he says. ‘And that starts at home.’ Thanks to shows such as Salvage Hunters, antiques — once the pastime of the moneyed middle-classes — now appeal to a savvy younger generation of interior lovers who are keen to help the planet and, as the recession bites, need to save money.

‘Reclamation and salvage is the ultimate green thing to do to reduce landfill,’ says Drew.

‘When renovating your home or building an extension, do you need to fill six skips? There really is nothing that can’t be reused or recycled by a good reclamation yard; bricks, tiled floors, cladding, doors, floorboards, slates, stone lintels, hinges. I never throw anything away that’s reusable. And before we buy anything new, we should ask ourselves, do we really need it?

‘There’s no point in recycling all your bottle caps then going out and spending £60,000 on a new car.’

When you see his own home — a beautiful 1820s regency cottage in the shadow of Conwy Castle — it’s clear Drew practices what he preaches.

When he bought it seven years ago, it was in a bit of a state. ‘It’s the oldest house outside the walls of the castle but it had been refurbed in the 1980s with cheap, nasty plastic replacement windows, the chimneys had collapsed and the extension had fallen down because it had no footings. No one would touch it.

‘It needed a lot of work so I took my own advice and refurbished the entire place with reclaimed materials — timber flooring, doors, skirting boards, architraving, radiators with the original paint, panelling, handles, lights — even the garden gates.

‘I didn’t buy anything new — apart from the shower,’ says Drew. The refurb took seven months. Then came the fun bit — finding the furnishings.

‘Everything has a story — it’s a huge assemblage of pieces that I have found and love.’

The wooden sign declaring ‘the wages of sin is death’ hangs over the desk in his office. ‘I picked it up in a chapel in Yorkshire — it’s so miserable I had to keep it,’ he laughs.

On the wall in the lounge hangs an antique drawing of a tapestry. ‘It has two holes in the top and a rip at the bottom and I love it all the more.’

Drew likes a home that instantly puts people at ease. ‘I hate sterile, boring environments where people can’t relax. In my dining room is a mid-19th century Irish mahogany table that I bought cheap. One end is faded from the sun, which adds to its charm — no one has to worry about spilling anything on it or putting down a hot cup.’

The dining chairs are a selection of copies and original Chippendales that cost between £10 and £60 each.

‘Anything can make for great decoration- old books, an antique map or photograph, a mirror with good patina. I have a collection of architectural plaster fragments, which look great on shelves or hung on the walls.’

And Drew absolutely loves his lighting. ‘Good lighting will sort out any room,’ he continues. ‘The fibreglass coat of arms above the fireplace was made for the Queen’s coronation in 1953. ’The four artworks either side are the hand-painted doors from an 18th century Chinese cupboard that had disintegrated with rot.’

He bought the 1970s vintage mirror-top coffee table to sell — but ended up keeping it after realising it had a chip when he got it home.

But his favourite find is the plaster frieze that’s hanging on the wall in the lounge.

‘It’s an original copy of a section of the Elgin Marbles commissioned by Lord Elgin in 1802. It’s my most prized possession but I’d never sell it — well, unless I was offered a shed-load of money,’ he laughs.

Drew’s top tips for salvage hunting

So how easy is it to furnish your home with other people’s dusty cast-offs? ‘Look around your home as it will tell you exactly what it needs,’ says Drew.

‘The key to buying the right pieces is to look for things you absolutely love — trust your instinct.

‘Most people will blow £200 on a pair of trainers but are reluctant to spend £50 on an amazing mirror or a great door handle. Buy what you like. It will retain its value, unlike a brand new piece of c**p.’

A good starting point is to look for a good rug or a piece for over the chimney. ‘The two things every room needs — the room will evolve from there. Buy the best you can afford — that way you buy well, you buy once! And take a tape measure as a piece will only look good if it is the right size for the room.’

Here is Drew’s guide to starting off on your treasure hunt.

Charity shops One of the rarest things I own is a Henry Moore maquette (a scale model or unfinished sculpture). I picked it up in a charity shop for £80. You could buy a nice car for what it’s worth now — though I would never let that go.

Car boot sales and antique fairs are brilliant, but get there early! Set your alarm for 5am and be there as the sellers are setting up. Turn up late in your silly wellies and the antique trade will have been and gone with all the best stuff. Be decisive, don’t mess about — find what you love, pay the man and leave.

Salvage and reclamation yards are great for architectural antiques if you are looking for specific items for a refurbishment, like doors and architraving. I got the floorboards for my house from a reclamation yard and they are beautiful.

You can also get some serious bargains at auctions. If you have a local auction house, pop in and get to know the place to see what is going under the hammer.

Online platforms like Ebay and Instagram are brilliant if you are looking for something specific. I got all my reclaimed curtains online for a couple of hundred quid — they are all hand-made and would have cost thousands when they were new.’

Salvage Hunters continues tomorrow on Quest at 8pm. See more of Drew on his website.

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