We chat to designer, writer and television presenter Kevin McCloud ahead of Grand Designs Live opening in London tomorow.

What are you most looking forward to about this year’s show?

Every year I look forward to the fact it is a different show with different features and exhibitors. I like wandering around after hours and it’s always interesting to see what might be new in the market. It’s a fun exhibition and the atmosphere is quite British, a bit like a big village fête – we get 100,000 people over the course of the week.

Is the trend for reclaiming and recycling materials growing?

There is always a huge way to go but there are companies out there that have great CSR (corporate social responsibility) records and are approaching developing sustainable. M&S and the Kingfisher Group, who own B&Q, both do and they are both supporters of the World Wildlife Fund campaign One Planet Living. But Britain is still Europe’s largest importer of illegal timber. You can find out your food miles and films saying no animals were harmed in the making, but when it comes to buying a sofa it’s really hard.

Is that why you have your Green Heroes at the show?

It’s there because these are companies that have great stuff and they have to fight the big brands.

You’ve urged people to rent rather than buy – why?

What I said was I think we should be more open to the idea of renting. We are a society obsessed with buying a house but we have got to realise when we do that we don’t own the house, the mortgage company does. So the idea of ownership is false anyway. I would like to see a whole different range of options for people from private rental to shared ownerships. I know young people living in London and working with the local authority to build a housing scheme themselves.

Which is the most important room in the home?

It’s the one where you can get some privacy. We have this trend for open-plan living and as flats and apartments get smaller that becomes the norm. But I think it is important to have somewhere, it could be a little snug room, so that you can have some space to yourself if you need it.

What are the worst projects you’ve seen on Grand Designs?

The nightmare stuff is the silly stuff. People who think they need more space, the greedy ones. I do say ‘let’s not film that one’. But we do put one big project in each of the series.

I hear you’re filming a new show for Channel 4. Tell me about that.

It’s called Escape to the Wild. It’s about the way some people live very low impact lives in other parts of the world. We travelled all over to places like the Arctic Circle over four months visiting them. It was hard work.

You’ve said you don’t like the limelight yourself so have you ever thought about packing in Grand Designs and living quietly?

Living quietly yes, but not in the way they do. A remote island is not for me. I like French wine and the British countryside.

Grand Designs Live, London ExCeL, Royal Victoria Dock, 1 Western Gateway, London E16 1XL, May 2 to 10. Details: granddesignslive.com