Who knew Giles from Gogglebox was an artist?

I'm devoted fan of Gogglebox and have often wondered what Giles and Mary - the middle England middle aged couple in the rural cottage in Wiltshire with the William Morris wallpaper - "did" in terms of gainful employment.

She seems to spend a lot of time on trains and he seems to spend a lot of time "doing things" outside.

It turns out - courtesy of an interview in the Guardian - Mary and Giles from Gogglebox: ‘Fame hasn't changed us. We fly under the radar' and My life as a Googlebox star - and some judicious googling of their real names - that.....

• Mary Killen has been writing The Spectator’s Dear Mary column for very many years and regular contributions in many other national publications (the Times, the Daily Telegraph, the Sunday Telegraph, Daily Express), plus monthly columns for Marie Claire magazine and Harpers & Queen) - and 
• Giles Wood also writes - occasionally - for The Oldie - and is an artist.

Yes, that's right Giles is AN ARTIST.

I never knew! Well who knew? I certainly didn't.

Turns out 

• he was taught draughtsmanship by Maggi Hambling
• he's a good oil painter
• he obviously gets quite a few commissions to sit in people's drawing rooms to paint the interiors of their rather posh homes
• or the exteriors of their rather posh homes.

What's more he produces impressive paintings of complex subjects. I think he's a man with an eye for detail and painting exactly what's there. He's certainly got a very good eye for both colour and tone. According to his wife he has turned down a number of offers to have his paintings exhibited in London - which I think is a great pity as I'd love to see one up close and personal!

Check his paintings out for yourself. (I'm itching to give him a lesson on how to photograph your oil painting before you frame it! I think I'll wrote a blog post!)

He paints rural landscapes and his website suggests at least some are painted plein air. I'm very definitely somebody who appreciates an artist who likes big vistas. That's because I'm rather partial to a BIG landscape myself.

His website has a gallery for his Landscapes

and he also paints interiors - in fact rather impressive paintings of rather impressive interiors!

Eschewing the modernist aesthetic to pare away detail to the logical conclusion of the blank canvas, Wood enjoys painting the clutter of peoples’ lives and popular demand has recently led him away from his trademark landscapes to specialise in interiors.

Paintings of Interiors by Giles Wood

If you want to commission him you have to email him via his wife Mary.

Why does that not surprise me? 😉