a psychologist who has taught psychology in two Ontario universities. Greg House is a general contractor with international experience, having managed both residential and commercial projects over a 40-year-plus career. Robin Lockhart is an interior designer specializing in high-end residential and commercial design and a graduate of the International Academy of Design and Technology. Contestants The five contestants for the first season are as follows: Darryl Andrews, 35, from Warkworth, Ontario (now living in Vancouver and working as a freelance entertainment photographer), is a professional bodyguard shown to be suffering from a confidence problem after being told by relatives that he was not handy. He is nominated by his wife, Sara Graziano. A recurring theme in the series is the apparent marriage breakdown that ensues whenever Darryl is working, with Sara being incredibly vocal and abrasive, although this has been shown to be only slightly exaggerated by the fact that Darryl and Sara are obviously celebrity wannabes. Merle Auger, 34, from Sucker Creek, Alberta, is a truck driver who believes that duct tape is the answer to all renovation problems. He also rarely measures or uses a level and leaves much work around the house unfinished for years, having very little motivation to complete them. He is nominated by his longtime common-law partner, Shelly Willier, who is frustrated by Merle's lack of owning a measuring tape. Keith Cole, 40, from Toronto, Ontario, is a performance artist who lacks the motivation to do renovation work and is afraid of power tools. He has a tendency to delegate work to others while doing as little work as he can. He is nominated by his friend, Now Magazine photographer David Hawe. Barry Davis, 59, from Quadra Island, British Columbia, is a substitute teacher who performs work without regards to safety, including having used a chainsaw indoors and having electrocuted himself while trying to fix a clothes dryer while standing in a puddle of water. He is nominated by his worried neighbor, Scot Hutton, who considers Barry (the oldest male nominee and second-oldest overall) a danger to himself and others when renovating. Jeannie MacCulloch, 61, from Victoria, British Columbia, is a retired retailer who purchased a house with the aim at restoring it, but as her longtime friend and nominator, Laurence Headley, notes, Jeannie (the only female nominee and the oldest overall) is unable to read and understand instructions. Synopsis CWH – The contestant