Jay Blades is a national treasure thanks to his work on The Repair Shop.
The show, which brings in millions of viewers, has been on TV since 2017 and sees Jay and his team restore heirlooms and treasured family pieces back to life.
But Jay has his own personal restoration story - one he is sharing with the BBC.
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Jay left school with no qualifications and has the reading age of an 11-year-old.
In a film for the BBC, Jay Blades: Learning to Read at 51, viewers will follow Jay over six months of learning
According to MyLondon, when Jay left school, he initially worked as a labourer and in factories before studying Criminology at Buckinghamshire New University.
He met his now ex-wife Jade at university and they set up a charity to train disadvantaged young people in furniture restoration.
During that time, Jay briefly mentored Little Mix star Leigh-Anne Pinnock, who was then aged just 14.
Appearing on Lorraine, he said: "Leigh-Anne from Little Mix is one of the young people I've mentored along the way and I'm still in contact with her every day.
"For me, it's all about giving back because of the experience that I've had, rather than walking around with a chip on my shoulder and feeling bitter about life, I think I have to show young people that if I can get through things then you can overcome things as well."
Sadly, Jay's charity lost funding and soon after his marriage broke down.
The presenter has spoken candidly of how the marriage ended.
He told the Daily Star: "I was homeless. You heard me right – yes, homeless.
"Everything fell down for me. My marriage broke up, my business broke up.
"I left my ex-wife the house and everything like that."
He told The Guardian: "I didn’t even know if I would see tomorrow.
“It was a really, really dark time.”
Jay has since found love with his current partner, Christine Goodman.
The couple has been together for four years, but Jay has made an effort to keep their relationship out of the limelight.
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