TV review: A middle-of-the-road travel show wrapped in property porn — and it works

Kevin McGahern is a telly natural, proper funny, but he’s wasted here with the geography teacher chores.

Michelle and Wayne in Cheap European Homes: This is Ireland’s answer to A Place in the Sun

There are two good shows hidden in Cheap European Homes (RTÉ Player). It can feel like they are getting in each other’s way. It’s been out for a while, on its second season. This is Ireland’s answer to A Place in the Sun, where British people visit a remote Spanish village on holidays and decide to go and live there.

It works because at some point in our lives, we’ve all decided happiness is a seaside village that’s stone dead for nine months of the year. It’s a middle-of-the-road travel show wrapped in property porn, and it works.

Maybe it’s an RTÉ thing, but the producers have decided to add in a comedian as a co-presenter. So Maggie Molloy — who presented Cheap Irish Homes — is joined by Kevin McGahern as a cultural ambassador, which means he goes out and does the dull travel show bits. 

While a Cork father and daughter look at places on the Algarve, Kevin is out sampling Portuguese ‘fado’ folk music and learning how to cook a local seafood speciality. The idea is he’s checking out everyday life in Portugal, but if someone moves to Ireland they’re not going to spend their time watching Riverdance and preparing coddle. And if they are, I feel sorry for them.

Stephen and Cassie: I loved Stephen in episode four,

Kevin is a telly natural, proper funny, but he’s wasted here with the geography teacher chores. He’s at his best when he meets up with Irish ex-pats living in the target areas. There’s John, an affable tour guide in episode one, talking about a village he moved to 15 years ago. Back on the Algarve in episode four, Kevin brings Stephen from Cork to play football with a gang of Irish ex-pats, and a beer afterwards. There is a great show here, where Kevin goes out across Europe to catch up with middle-Ireland ex-pats.

They should split it off and leave Maggie Molloy to deal with the property hunters. Retired prison officer Michelle was great in episode one, a sassy warm woman who wanted to open a caravan park on the Costa del Sol with her partner.

I also loved Stephen in episode four, the chief financial officer in search of value on the Algarve. He was very ‘come off it boy’ when they told him that a ‘cheap European home’ in the area would cost him €350,000.

I didn’t like Cheap European Homes at first. The voiceovers are over-loaded with estate agent fluff and I couldn’t figure out why Kevin McGahern was learning how to dance flamenco.

But it grew on me and now I’m a fan. Give it a watch.