RTÉ's Home of the Year to return to our screens this week with a surprise in store

The hugely popular RTÉ show Home of the Year returns to our screens on Tuesday night for a brand series.

Now in its 11th series, the hit show will feature 21 exceptional homes in the counties of Carlow, Cork, Derry, Donegal, Dublin, Galway, Kildare, Limerick, Tipperary, Waterford, and Wicklow.

This new series promises to showcase a wide variety of truly unique homes with a diverse range of styles. From reimagined semi-detached houses to architectural marvels and restored period homes, there's something to suit everyone's tastes.

To change things up this time around, a new judge has been added to the panel. Joining old favourites Hugh Wallace and Amanda Bone, interior consultant Siobhan Lam will add a fresh new voice to the judging panel. 

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Each week, the three judges will visit three stunning homes and score them out of 10 based on individuality, functionality, and clever design. The home with the highest combined score in each episode will advance to the grand final in April, where one lucky homeowner will be crowned the winner.

Episode 1 opens the series with three vastly different styles of home. In this episode, Claire and Seán Fox from Tipperary will be showcasing their home which used to be a shop! The property was built in the 1860s and was purchased by the Tipperary couple in 2020 when they began their major renovations. 

The pair were eager to respect the historical home through keeping as much from the old building as possible by repurposing dressers, wardrobes and the original spindles from the shop. Claire also worked with her dad, a retired engineer, to adapt a lot of the furniture, including making a backsplash from the copper water cylinder and turning a bunkbed into kitchen cabinets.

Then, the judges will move up to Dublin to take a look at a single storey Victorian Terrace home owned by Aidan O'Donovan and Barry O'Brien. The couple purchased the property in 2023 and describe their interior design as "restrained maximalist" and see it as a curation of their life and travels, creating a warm, welcoming and colourful home. 

The classical Dublin home combines a "sympathetic restoration" with some modern touches which the homeowners feels best reflects their personalities. 

Then to conclude the strong opening episode, Ross and Susan O’Donovan from Cork will be opening up their 180-year-old manor house to the judges. Ross inherited the manor house and farm from is grandfather which has been in their family for over half a century. With such family history and connections, the couple were committed to restoring the home to its former glory. 

Attention to detail is key with this property as the family took their time to restore as many original elements as possible such as the sash windows and shutters, the original ceiling cornices and ceiling roses, and the original architraves, doors and rim locks. 

The show kicks off on Tuesday night at 8.30pm on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player. You never know, you might even get some inspiration!