13 January 2024 , 11:26
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Steve Fletcher from The Repair Shop has changed the lives of many over the years after restoring personal items back to its former glory.
And while fans feel as though they know the 61 year old horologist as he's been on their TV screens since 2017, it looks as though there is far more to Steve than meets the eye. Away from the show, the clock and watch repair man manages the Clock Workshop in Witney, which has been passed down to him from his grandfather.
But after graduating from the British Horological Institute in 1973, it turns out that Steve hasn't always been repairing timepieces - as he also worked as a fireman. And Steve shared this news with his fans on social media after posting a clipping of an article from 1987. The newspaper clipping wrote about Steve working as a fireman in Witney and made a clock for a team of German firefighters in the town of Ihringshausen.
Steve Fletcher used to worked as a fireman before joining the BBC showHe captioned the picture saying: "1987! Someone added this to our local memories page on Facebook this week - great memory of my time spent with the Witney fire service and our German exchanges with our colleagues in Ihringshausen”. Steve nearly missed out on the opportunity of joining the show if it wasn't for his partner Mel, with who he shares five children with.
His son Fred has followed in his footsteps and now works as a junior clockmaker at Steve's workshop. And one of his daughters, Milly, also works for the family business as an admin assistant. He told the BBC: "In 2016 I received an email from a company that I hadn't heard of asking if I would be interested in taking part in a brand new show,” he told the BBC. "Not trusting anything that is on the internet, I nearly deleted it and would have done if my partner, Mel, hadn't stopped me saying that it all looks ok. I responded and a few moments later had a phone call from [producer] Shane who told me about the show and I agreed to appear on it," he added.
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Steve Fletcher's sister Suzie is also on the BBC show as the leather expert (Daily Mirror)But Steve isn't the only Fletcher family member to appear on the show - as his sister Suzie is the leather expert. The pair appear to be close as siblings as she has previously spoken about how he had looked after her since her husband passed away from cancer. She said: "Every time [Steve] called he looked to be having such a good time I jokingly said, 'If they need anyone to do leather I'm your gal',"
She added: "I really was joking but after several phone calls and a lot of reassurance from Steve I agreed to give it a go and joined the team. I'm so happy I did as this is one of the most enjoyable things I've ever been involved with and it's also helped me through some very dark days.”