Home
This week
Past episodes
The show
The team
Smith Family appeal


Host Leah McLeod
 Leah's first job in the media was working with her mother, Rosemary. They were both reporters on the Adelaide-based magazine program Out and About on Channel Nine. Entertainment must be in the McLeod blood, as Leah's sister Sarah is lead singer of the rock band Superjesus.

In 1995 she moved to Sydney and landed a job at radio station Triple M on the midnight shift. McLeod's break into television came in 1997 after trying out at 80-odd auditions, a television executive driving home one night was listening to the radio and liked her voice. He phoned and arranged a meeting with her.

The meeting was successful and for three years Leah hosted AO, The Australian Music Show on Foxtel's Channel V. During her time at Channel V she also co-hosted The Joint with Jabba.

Another unexpected phone call on Christmas Eve 1999 changed her career direction again when she was asked to co-host The House of Hits with music legend Molly Meldrum on Channel Ten.

McLeod signed with Channel Nine in 2003 to co-host Stripsearch before also becoming host of DIY Rescue .

She lives in Sydney and is married to music executive Mark Flynn. They have a daughter, Scarlett Rose.

Interior designer Tara Dennis
Tara Dennis joined the Our House team as design and decorating presenter in 2000 after beginning her television career as one of Changing Rooms ' designers in 1998.

A passion for art and craft led Tara to study paint finishes in London where she lived between 1988 and 1993. Following her study, Tara established her own design company in 1991 in London and specialised in paint finishes and soft furnishings for homes.

In 2000, Tara was also a team member of Nine's hugely successful Renovation Rescue specials which brought together the stars of Australia's favourite lifestyle shows as they offered a helping hand to someone deserving of a good turn.

Alongside her proficiency with paint and interior design, Tara enjoys all facets of art and craft including furniture renovation, soft furnishings and styling.

In 2003, Tara will bring her decorating touch to Burke's Backyard when she joins the program as a presenter.

Tara has a daughter, 10-year-old Avalon, and enjoys hiking and mountain bike riding.
Landscape gardener Greg Norton
Greg Norton makes his television debut as the landscape designer on DIY Rescue .

Norton, 30, decided on landscaping after working in a number of different jobs, including a computer technician, a PR assistant, a builder's labourer and a petrol station attendant.

He studied landscaping and construction at Ryde TAFE for four years and went onto run a successful landscaping business called Better Garden Escapes for four years, before being approached by DIY Rescue .

His other interests include surfing, fishing and scuba diving. It was this love of the ocean and the environment that drew him towards a career outdoors.

Builder Luke van Dyck
Luke Van Dyck is DIY Rescue's resident builder. He is a third generation builder, with both his father and grandfather qualified tradesmen and was named Northern Beaches TAFE 1st year Apprentice of the Year in 1999 and is in the final stages of obtaining his Builders' Certificate.

Before joining DIY Rescue and whilst setting up a building business, he was a model, doing catwalk and catalogue work as well as appearing in commercials for Coca-Cola, Kodak, Samsung and Stimorol. He started modeling after being discovered by an agent while surfing with mates on a Sydney beach.

Van Dyck is also a keen sportsman - he once ran the 100 metres in 10.58 seconds and has represented NSW in athletics and rugby union. In his spare time he likes to surf, wakeboard and snowboard. He lives on Sydney's northern beaches.

The truck
DIY Rescue travels the country in a fully equipped mobile workshop. This modified trailer stage, featuring a drop-down side, was one of four built to host travelling road shows during the Australian Bicentenary in 1988.

Since then it has been painted pink, to take Winnie the Pooh Friendship Day shows across the country and moved to Tasmania in 2001 to start work for The Event Company (TEC) who used it for concerts, festivals and public displays.

DIY Rescue leased the trailer at the beginning of 2003, painted it black and fitted it out to become the fifth member of the DIY Rescue team.

It now features customised shelving and cabinetry to hold all the paint, power tools and equipment needed to bring Australia’s worst DIY disasters up to scratch. In addition to the main workshop, the trailer contains a private office, which is used for production work and doubles as a dressing room and makeup area.

The trailer is 2.5 metres wide closed up, 4.9 metres wide with the stage down, and 12.5 metres long. When hooked up to the prime mover, it stretches to 17.5 metres. The entire unit has a gross weight of 30 tonnes.

The prime mover is a 1998 model Mack CH powered by a V-Mack EA7 400 engine, with an 18-speed Eton gearbox. The turbo-charged, straight-six diesel engine displaces 12 litres and generates 400 horsepower. The truck has a fuel capacity of 1900 litres and with all tanks full has a range of 4000 kilometres.



DISASTER CAM

How long would you last in this house?
Dial-up | Broadband


RELATED LINKS



Other ninemsn businesses: iSelect Mathletics RateCity
© 1997-2008 ninemsn Pty Ltd - All rights reserved