Fede and Dennis bought Fede’s parents’ house five years ago. A special home for her, because she was born and raised here. But it also creates tensions. Tensions that run so high that the couple and their two children have been in ruins for years. The children’s rooms are not ready yet, so the kids sleep in mom’s bed, while dad spends the nights in the guest room. In addition, things don’t really get along between Dennis and his mother-in-law. Is that just as bad, if your parents-in-law live literally around the corner.
John quickly puts his finger on the sore spot. “I don’t think many people say: ‘Oh nice man, nice to live next to my parents-in-law, wonderful’,” he says in conversation with the Fede asking for help. She cautiously agrees, after which mother Marlies is called in. She points out that she is afraid of Dennis. “He can come across as very rude. I think I am the cause of the necessary tension. (…) We are emotional people. Dennis has nothing to do with that.”
Fede is clearly embarrassed by her mother’s harsh words about her partner. “Mom…” she says. But ‘mom’ continues: “I think if you ask Dennis honestly: what do you find most difficult? Then that’s my person. That’s where the tension really lies. You want to say no, but I really think so.”
Moments later, Dennis enters the room. “My dear mother-in-law,” he says, after which the awkward laughter of Fede and Marlies shows that these are not often heard words from his mouth. “Oh, that doesn’t happen often?” asks John. “Sometimes yes,” says Marlies. “Sometimes not”, adds Dennis. “Mostly depends on me.” Marlies agrees with her son-in-law: “I just said: it’s also my fault. I have that hypersensitivity and you can do ‘bam’ like that. Then I’m scared to death. You know that. Then I’m scared.”
“No dude”, Dennis trivializes. “Yes, now you are very sweet…”, Marlies says carefully. “I’m sweet and nice,” Dennis concludes. “It always goes well, right, even if we sometimes have something?” A little later, Fede’s sister also underlines Dennis’ character. “He’s just a blunt jerk,” she says. “I do know that he needs a kick in the butt now and then.”
A week follows in which that ‘blunt’ character of Dennis, who turns out to be handy in construction, clearly comes to the fore. Things don’t exactly go smoothly between him and John’s handyman team. Something with convectors and a continuous ceiling… Dennis also comes out of the corner with John at a certain point. When the presenter wants to point out the missing intimacy between the couple, Dennis bites off. “You’ve said it to me three times now and I know it now. Now it’s done.”
John is of course used to that from the proud amateur handymen and sees no harm in Dennis. But, he remarks to Fede, “You dance around him like he’s some boogeyman.” She should also be clear on her stripes, Dennis thinks. “You really have to set those, dear, those limits. You just have to tell me.”
As almost always, all’s well that ends well at the end of the episode of Help my husband is a handyman!. Fede is pleasantly surprised with the result. The couple proudly shows the room for their 1.5-year-old son. “Well done, you two together”, John compliments the couple. Finally, the presenter concludes: “The spark is on. There is still some tension in the air…”
Help my husband is a handyman! can be seen every Monday at 8.30 pm on RTL 4 and you can look back here or look ahead at Videoland.
RTL Boulevard spoke to John Williams about the HMMIKcandidates and their ruins, about whom the presenter continues to be amazed:
