The Plastering Show
Join Chris Frediani as he takes a look at all the latest topics from the world of plastering including product launches, top tips, and special guests.Chris will also be joined by some of the biggest names from across the industry giving their view on the latest news and developments.
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Episodes
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Fuel Costs: How Are Tradespeople Keeping Them Down?
Sunday, 4 October 2026
Chris Frediani looks at how tradespeople are managing rising fuel costs, from fuel cards and changing how far they travel for work to considering electric and hybrid vehicles.Thomas Nagy shares how he manages fuel costs across his business, while sole trader Carl Ruane explains what rising prices have meant for his margins and whether he’d consider changing the way he works.Chris is also joined by Jon Jaznick of Drywall Contracts Limited to discuss the challenge of covering fuel costs across a larger workforce and multiple vehicles.
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Plastering Through Autumn: How Do You Handle the Wet Weather?
Wednesday, 30 September 2026
Chris Frediani looks at the challenges of working through autumn and winter, particularly for tradespeople carrying out exterior plastering and rendering.Chris is joined by Ashley Johnson from Acorn Plastering, Arran Holdsworth and renderer Joel Cooke to hear how their summers went, how they deal with rain and changing temperatures, when they move inside for the winter and what the final few months of 2026 look like for their businesses.From working through the summer heat to dealing with wet weather and planning around the winter months, it’s a look at how plasterers and renderers adapt as...
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Who Are the Best Trades to Work With?
Sunday, 27 September 2026
Chris Frediani looks at the trades that make construction work - and the different personalities, characters and challenges that come with working alongside them.Chris is joined by Julian Perryman and Tom Davis to discuss the trades they find most reliable, the ones that can cause the biggest headaches, the hardest trades to find, and the people who are simply great to work with.Chris also chats to plasterer Bob Hay about his experiences working with other trades, which tradespeople he trusts, who can be tricky to handle, and where plasterers fit into the wider picture
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Rogue Trades: New Government Protections
Sunday, 20 September 2026
Chris Frediani looks at new protections announced by the Government to tackle rogue traders and poor-quality work in the home repairs market.Chris is joined by carpenter and builder Simon Hodson, who discusses whether the new approved code and trusted payments system will benefit good tradespeople or create unnecessary extra work.Chris also speaks to NFB spokesperson Rico Wojtulewicz, asking him whether the new measures will actually tackle rogue traders, or simply add more work for reputable tradespeople without stopping the cowboys from exploiting the system.We also hear from plasterer an...
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Plastering at Height: Stilts, Hop Ups & Reaching High Ceilings
Sunday, 6 September 2026
hris Frediani looks at one of the challenges that comes with working on bigger jobs — reaching high ceilings and the top of walls while still achieving a great finish.Chris is joined by Dee Prosser and The Tape Slayer, Leigh Griffiths, to discuss their experiences using stilts and hop ups, how they approach working at height, the different equipment they've tried, and some of the slips and close calls they've encountered along the way.Chris also shares his own experiences of working from height, including tackling particularly high walls and ceilings and what he looks for when choosing the ...
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When Do You Retire From The Trade? What Comes Next?
Sunday, 30 August 2026
Chris Frediani speaks to two familiar faces who have both recently experienced major changes in their careers.Plasterer, John Maison talks about being forced to hang up the trowel following shoulder surgery, how he’s adapted to life away from the tools, and whether retirement really means stepping away from the trade altogether.Chris is also joined by long-time guest Gary Blackburn, who has recently retired from his role with British Gypsum.Gary reflects on his career, why he moved off the tools, what he’ll miss, what he won’t, and what the future looks like now.They also discuss the option...
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Material Costs Are Rising...
Sunday, 23 August 2026
Material prices continue to put pressure on plasterers, builders and tradespeople across the construction industry.In this episode, Chris Frediani speaks to plasterer Steph Leese, better known as The Pink Plasterer, and builder Ben Raynor about what’s costing them more, how their buying habits are changing and the impact rising costs are having on profit margins.They discuss everything from changing merchants and material prices to finding ways to protect profits when the cost of doing business keeps going up.
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Longest Hours Worked By Spreads
Sunday, 9 August 2026
Chris Frediani chats to fellow Plasterers, Carl Ruane & Barry Warman about their longest hours worked in the trade and the times where you really need to put a shift in to get the work done. Chris also asks about how to approach asking others to put a shift in and more.
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Is The Repairs Market Failing The Industry?
Sunday, 2 August 2026
Chris Frediani looks into why Citizens Advice have called for stronger protections as 4.8 million homeowners hit by repair problems.Distrust in the market was changing consumer behaviour and taking business away from reliable tradespeople.Around 28% of people who arranged home repairs in the past 18 months carried out work themselves because they did not think they could find a trustworthy trader, while 26% delayed or avoided repairs altogether for the same reason. Guests: Brian Berry, CEO of the Federation of Master Builders, James Naughton & Simon Hodson.
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Chris Frediani Shares Two Plastering Success Stories
Sunday, 26 July 2026
Chris Frediani talks to two new guests on the show about their experiences in the trade and success so far. Mary Havana-Little talks about getting in Fiberous Plastering and her ten years on incredible experiences as she takes on some incredible work, while building a huge social media following.Richard Wetherell joins Chris to talk about having left 35 years of experience as a Lawyer behind, to start an exciting new journey as a Lime Plasterer.
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Plasterers Talk About What's Happening With Regards To Demand In 2026
Monday, 20 July 2026
Chris Frediani catches up with business owners about what they're finding with demand at the halfway point of the year.
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Are We Heading For A Recession?
Sunday, 12 July 2026
Chris Frediani is talking to a range of different people from construction to get a sense of how good or bad demand is for many aspects of the industry and whether we could be seeing the warning signs of a potential recession. Guests: Liam McGinley (Carpenter) Gary Staines (GSQ Brickwork) & Jon Graham (Decorator)
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Catching Up With Two Excellent Heritage Plasterers
Sunday, 5 July 2026
Chris Frediani chats to Philip Gaches about his recent notable projects, How his two sons are getting on working alongside him and also bringing a student from America in on a work placement to shadow him and gain some experience working on listed buildings.Keith Langton talks about his recent projects, Teaching in a Category D Prison, Charity Work, Winning awards, judging competitions and more!
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Time Management For Spreads
Sunday, 21 June 2026
Chris Frediani talks about managing time with regards to hours worked, time spent on the road and also how you can maximise efficiency for your spreads or yourself. Guests: Stu Roberts & Gary Blackburn.
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Plasterers Share Their Best & Worst Customers
Sunday, 14 June 2026
Chris Frediani talks to Plasterers about their best and worst customers and customer experiences. Chris also shares a few of his own and asks Plasterers what the rudest or most entitled thing a customer has said to them is. Guests: Chris Powell, Barry Warman & Steph Leese.
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Keeping Morale Up on Site
Sunday, 7 June 2026
Chris Frediani looks into how to keep morale up on site - especially when things don’t go to plan, exploring how positivity, communication, and strong leadership shape workplace culture in trade and construction. He’s joined by psychotherapist and author Enda Murphy, who shares practical advice on managing behaviour and building stronger team dynamics. Chris also speaks with Thomas Nagy and Jon Jaznick, who discuss hiring, leadership, and what it really takes to keep teams motivated under pressure.
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It's Been HOT!!
Sunday, 31 May 2026
Chris Frediani talks to Alex Winters & The Tape Slayer, Leigh Griffiths about working through the hot weather this past week. Chris shares his own experiences and talks about the challenges this can create for the trade and business owners.
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How Do We Get Paid?
Sunday, 24 May 2026
In this episode, Chris Frediani talks to Simon Green, Bob Hay and Lee Fennell about one of the most important parts of the trade - getting paid. They cover deposits, staged payments, upfront money, and the shift to digital payments, plus how each business handles pricing conversations and payment terms from the start. The guests also share how they deal with chasing late payments, what happens when clients don’t pay, and the red flags they now look out for before taking on a job.
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Work-Life Balance & Hobbies
Sunday, 17 May 2026
Chris Frediani looks into the hobbies that spreads and fellow tradespeople do, finding out how they find a balance with work and their family life.Guests include Duncan Cowper, who is a specialist lime plasterer. Duncan joins Chris to talk about his motorsport journey, how he balances it with everyday life, the challenges of funding and sponsorship, and whether he hopes to turn his passion into a full-time career following being part of the TV Series: Born Mechanic.We also hear from Pointy Plumber - who discuss how he juggles his business and family life alongside social media, commentary w...
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Building In Devon
Sunday, 10 May 2026
In this episode, Chris Frediani explores the opportunities in his hometown due to tourism.Joining Chris in this episode is John Butler - a builder from Devon who works across renovations of homes in the area.We also hear from Mark Revell from Olympus Building Supplies Ltd. Chris and Mark discuss rising material and fuel costs, supply and delivery challenges in Devon, local building trends, demand from newcomers and DIY renovators, rural logistics, and upcoming concerns in the building supply trade.Finally, we’ll hear from Andy Vallance of Peninsula Custom Construction LTD - who explores the...
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Big Challenges Faced By Builders?
Sunday, 3 May 2026
Chris Frediani talks to builders and finds out how tough it is for them out there currently after the FMB reported big hurdles for builders around material cost increases and wage hikes. Chris talks to Ben Rayner about his experiences with this and whether demand is slowing for him too. Chris invites Simon Hodson from Worcester to join him and explain why some issues for builders need to be addressed and talks about how tax is creating more challenges than ever before. Chris also invites DIY SOS Line Producer, Ally Jenkins onto the show to talk about how this could affect their ability to g...
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Chris Frediani On Current Approach To Lime
Sunday, 26 April 2026
Tape Slayer AKA Leigh Griffiths & Ben Kerslake from Carrington Lime join Chris Frediani to talk about the current approach to lime. Chris feels like not enough younger members of the trade are learning lime skills and developing an understanding of lime and asks Leigh for his thoughts on why this might be and Ben talks about it from a training perspective.
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Tom Davis (DIY SOS Build Manager) Talks About His Experiences Running A Business
Sunday, 19 April 2026
Tom Davis joins Chris Frediani once more in a run of three shows to discuss his journey to starting up a business and then his experiences managing a business. Tom talks about all the current challenges faced due to the unpredictable nature of recent times and also shares some of what he's learnt from more than 20 years in the building trade.
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Chris Frediani, Tom Davis & Hugo Helms Debate Apprentice Conduct & Discuss Good vs. Bad Behaviour
Sunday, 12 April 2026
Chris Frediani is joined again by DIY SOS Build Manager Tom Davis so that they can sit down with Hugo Helms, a young Tradesperson who created 'Toolkit Conduct' - a guide for apprentices that can help them figure out how to behave properly on site and create a good foundation for career success. Hugo created this after he completed his Carpentry Apprenticeship and realised no one really guides young people with making that step up into the working world after school. Hugo, Tom and Chris talk about good and bad behaviour, they talk about the relationship between mentor and apprentice and shar...
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DIY SOS Build Manager Tom Davis Shares His Vision For Apprenticeship Overhaul
Sunday, 5 April 2026
Chris has invited Tom Davis, a Bricklayer and Builder who joined the industry in 2003 to join him as they both share a passion for bringing new blood into the trade but feel like the pathways have become muddled and is simply not working to the best of it's abilities. Tom shares the key changes he thinks need to be made and issues that need addressing.Skillbuild Plastering and Dry-lining Lead Judge Colin McGaughey joins the show again to talk through some of the issues with Chris and Tom, explains what he's seen in Northern Ireland and Scotland where some of Tom's ideas are actually in plac...
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Are We Heading For Disaster?
Sunday, 29 March 2026
Chris Frediani looks into what is going on with teaching the trade and delivering plastering courses to newcomers. Leslie Lewis from West London College shares his concerns with how the trade is being taught by many training providers around him and the unnoticed warning signs that we're heading down the wrong road. Colin McCaughey shares the good and bad of what he's seen in terms of skills demonstrated by learners and tutor, Steven Syers from Craven College shares his experience becoming a teacher of the trade and why you should seriously consider it.
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Best & Worst Days On The Tools
Sunday, 22 March 2026
Chris Frediani talks to a range of different trades from construction about their best and worst days and experiences on the tools. Becky Bates, a Plumbing & Gas Engineer talks about memorable working locations and the fears of flooding, Electrician Callum Biscoe explains why bad days can have serious consequences in his trade and James Reeve, an award winning Painting & Decorating business owner (Royal Spa Decoration Ltd.) talks about what can be the difference between a good day and a bad one as a business owner. Chris also asks James about his good and bad experiences following the Plast...
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Chris Frediani Finds Out How Business Has Been For Plasterers
Sunday, 15 March 2026
Chris Frediani catches up with Plasterers, Simon Green & Andy McCauley and finds out how business has been for them so far this year, after a tough 2025 and also a wild start to the year with site hold ups and bad weather.
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Chris Frediani & Nick Knowles Talk To An 89 Year Old Plasterer & John Thomson From The Fast Show About Getting Older
Sunday, 8 March 2026
Chris Frediani is joined one more time by Nick Knowles so that they can discuss getting older and the aging workforce in construction. John Thomson from The Fast Show, 24 Hour Party People & Cold Feet joins in to share what he's noticed about getting older and how to avoid becoming too much of a grumpy old man. John Bedford, an 89 year old Tradesperson who has been plastering since 1965 joins the discussion to talk about working on the tools when he could have been retired for almost two decades. Chris and Nick talk about getting older from their own perspective and whether they would ever ...
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Chris Frediani & Nick Knowles Share Unbelievable Stories
Sunday, 1 March 2026
Chris and Nick share some unbelievable stories, moments and situations from their decades together on DIY SOS. They invite Fix Radio presenters, Danny Madden, Andy Cam, Steph Leese to join them and share a few of their own stories from their experiences on the tools and DIY SOS Designer, Gordon Whistance joins to share some of his.
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