If there’s one thing we hate as a nation, it’s watching other people spend money like it’s going out of fashion.
Schadenfreude – taking joy in the suffering of others – may be a German term but it’s arguably a lot more fitting in this part of the world.
As Irish people, we love to see each other fall flat on our faces lest we get ideas above our station Lord bless us and save us, and by the same token we hate nothing more than to see successful people spend their money without a care in the world.
Take Sunday night’s Room To Improve, which has quickly replaced The Late Late Show, Derry Girls and the Angelus as THE television event of the week.
We had Cork couple Dave and Susie, who enlisted the help of Dermot Bannon to turn their Fermoy abode into something the late Hugh Hefner may have deemed ‘a bit much’.
They wanted a spa, a sauna, a gym, a separate entrance for the dog, a team of oompa loompas to help out around the place and countless other bells, whistles and windows that cost more than your average townhouse in Bray.
Twitter showed the darker side of the Irish psyche, although plenty of people were quick to add that Dave and Susie had earned their money and could do as they wished with it.
https://twitter.com/emmajhade/status/967877215391232001
https://twitter.com/emmajhade/status/967896496254406656
https://twitter.com/rihoward/status/967878110430494720
I’m not surprised at the snide comments on the #RoomToImprove hashtag but they made their money and they can spend it as they please. If I had the cash, I’d do it myself.
— Philip Nolan (@philipnolan1) February 25, 2018
We had the obligatory Simpsons reference…
Dave and Susie's house once the children of Fermoy see this #RoomToImprove pic.twitter.com/xbr4fsu4Z1
— Emer Harrington (@emer_harrington) February 25, 2018
And a bit of Daniel…
That face you make when the budget goes up to €650k #roomtoimprove pic.twitter.com/Vb1AQZ6a1k
— Pat Magee ☘️ (@pdiddler4) February 25, 2018
While you couldn’t swing a cat for references to Dublin’s rental crisis…
This couple are clearly insane. For the same money they could’ve rented a bedsit in Rathmines for three whole years #roomtoimprove
— Terry Fahy (@terrafahy) February 25, 2018
Aaaaand… back to those notions…
This Cork couple are petrified of their house overheating from direct sunlight.
Honestly.
I love Cork people.
They're walking triumphs of optimism over bitter and consistent experience.#roomtoimprove
— Karl Brophy (@KarlBrophy) February 25, 2018
That dog door on #RoomToImprove is fierce handy. Gem can make a swift exit on naked Tuesdays.
— Mark Keane (@conicalmark) February 25, 2018
Just wondering when #roomtoimprove became grand designs…..
— Angela O’Toole 🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦 (@awisegal1) February 25, 2018
https://twitter.com/BerODonovan1/status/967894404072656896
Here’s an idea – get a couple with a tight budget and change their homes and lives, rather than a pair who can just magic up €200k extra when they don’t like what they’re getting. €650k budget? Come on. Get behind me Celtic Tiger #RoomToImprove
— Garreth Murphy (@Garrethmurphy) February 25, 2018
LISTEN: You Must Be Jokin’ with Aideen McQueen – Faith healers, Coolock craic and Gigging as Gaeilge
