Jay Blades’ The Repair Shop ‘replacement’ revealed after presenter charged with coercive behaviour
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‘The One Show’ and ‘Finish Line’ presenter will take over hosting duties for festive special. Roman Kemp has temporarily replaced Jay Blades as the host of The Repair Shop’s annual Christmas special. Blades, 54, was axed from the BBC series after he was charged in September with controlling and coercive behaviour towards his estranged wife Lisa Zbozen. Blades has denied the allegations.
![[Roman Kemp will be replacing Jay Blades for The Repair Shop’s festive special]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2024/05/14/11/newFile-3.jpg)
The presenter worked on the series since its launch in 2017, in which he welcomes people who bring in their heirlooms to be restored by craftspeople situated at the repair workshop located in West Sussex. Kemp, the son of the Spandau Ballet bass player Martin and Pepsi And Shirlie singer Shirlie Holliman, has stepped in for the festive special as part of the collaboration between The Repair Shop and The One Show. Kemp joined the latter as a co-presenter in 2023.
![[Roman Kemp on ‘The Repair Shop’]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2024/12/23/09/Screenshot-2024-12-23-at-09.53.49.jpg)
In the first images released showing Kemp in the workshop at the Weald & Downland Living Museum in Singleton, the presenter beams at the camera while wearing a festive red scarf standing in front of the show’s logo. While the BBC has not announced an official long-term replacement for Blades, Kemp is understood to be fronting the show for its annual festive tear-jerking episode airing on Christmas Eve.
![[Blades pictured arriving at Worcester Crown Court, where he was charged with one count of engaging in controlling or coercive behaviour]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2024/10/11/14/01J9XTR18D0FAB79MBT5VTC67Y.jpg)
Kemp said: “It’s really special – it’s like going inside one of your favourite TV shows so it’s always a very cool moment.”. In the episode, the team will repair the teddy bear belonging to a One Show viewer named Kat, two puffin sculptures from a bookshop with a moving story, and a 100-year-old projector that’s special to one family’s Christmas Eve tradition.
![[TV presenter Jay Blades stepped down from various roles after the allegations came to light]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2024/09/17/10/49816840236b1d60f8635cc54f4b9093Y29udGVudHNlYXJjaGFwaSwxNzI2NjUxNDky-2.77487777.jpg)
