The compulsion to fetishise anything perceived as uniquely “Irish” – leaving the immersion on, the death notices, Matt LeBlanc folding his arms – reaches its apotheosis in the cult around Dermot Bannon. And he pushes the boundaries of property-porn TV in agreeable fashion in his new two-part series, Dermot Bannon’s Super Small Spaces (RTÉ One, 9.30pm), which adds a human-interest component to the expanded Bannonverse. “It’s bringing you all together.”The thesis of Super Small Spaces is that lockdown and a reorientation of work away from the office have made us reassess our attitude towards our homes. With Super Small Spaces there are reasons to believe he is morphing into the Louis Theroux of attic conversions. For Bannon, Super Small Spaces perhaps closes the door slightly on Room to Improve and suggests that, along with installing windows, windows everywhere, he may have a future tugging viewers’ heartstrings.

Source: The Irish Times June 06, 2021 21:30 UTC