The banter in this sitcom about a painter and decorator and his assistant is quite true to life, finds builder Alan Rowing
I did laugh a few times while watching this sitcom, about a guy called Ollie (played by Will Mellor) who takes over his father's painting and decorating business. Like me, Ollie drives a white van, though I've had lots of different coloured vans over the 40 years I've been a builder. The dashboard of his van is covered with litter ? food cartons, bits of paper. Mine's not quite as messy as that, but it's getting there.
The banter between Ollie and his assistant, Darren, is quite true to life: we do like to have a laugh, and we've all got nicknames, though I couldn't possibly divulge what mine is. But I'm not sure I'd take that level of lip off anyone I work with. The fact that Ollie's living in his father's shadow feels quite real, though. I work with my son, and I do always check up on what he's doing.
In the second episode, a turf war develops between Ollie and some other builders. I have seen that sort of thing happen. I once worked in the north of England, doing shop-fitting, and it was pretty clear that they weren't that keen on us southerners. There's also quite a clash in London between British builders and those coming over from eastern Europe.
In one of the houses Ollie's working in, a couple starts having sex while he's there. I've had that happen a few times ? you just have to pretend you can't hear them. And I've also met quite a few old ladies just as eccentric as Irene, the woman Darren takes out from the old people's home for a ride in the van. One 80-year-old woman I worked for was a complete alcoholic, and another had Alzheimer's and would sometimes walk into the room stark naked. That wasn't at all funny, though ? just sad.
It is good to see a programme that shows a white van man as more than just someone who cuts you up on the road. I don't think of myself, or other builders, as white van men, though ? I tend to use that term for courier drivers, or people in hire cars. They're the ones you want to watch out for.
White Van Man is on BBC3 on Tuesdays at 10pm.
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2011/apr/12/alan-rowing-builder
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