The Repair Shop star Steve Fletcher's home life: from surprising hobby to rarely-seen long-term partner

Steve Fletcher is a beloved member of The Repair Shop team. Week on week, the horologist works his magic on treasured items in desperate need of some TLC, impressing the show's guests and viewers with his incredible clock-repairing skills.

But what does Steve get up to when he's not busy working in the West Sussex-based barn? Here's all we know about the TV star, from his job away from the show to his family life.

Steve Fletcher's job away from The Repair Shop

When he's not transforming items on The Repair Shop, Steve can be found in Witney, Oxfordshire, where he owns a family-run clock workshop.

The business was founded in 1910 by Steve's grandfather Fred, who later handed the reins to Steve's father John. Both Fred and John have since passed away, with Steve now running the shop and continuing over 100 years of family craftsmanship.

Steve has been repairing clocks and watches for years, having gained a first-class qualification from a British Horological Institute college course back in 1973.

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The TV star has passed his love of horology down to his son Fred, who joined the workshop as an apprentice clockmaker in 2020 after attending a college for science and engineering.

Fred made his debut on The Repair Shop back in 2022, helping his dad repair the largest time-piece ever attempted on the show.

Steve's partner and family life

Steve is in a long-term relationship with a woman named Mel. The pair live together in Witney.

Steve has his partner to thank for his TV career as it was Mel who discouraged him from deleting an email sent by the show's producers back in 2016.

"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."

Steve sometimes shares glimpses of his life with Mel on his Instagram page. Back in April, the horologist revealed that the couple spent Easter weekend hiking Pen y Fan in the Brecon Beacons.

As well as Mel's partner, Steve is a doting dad to five children: a son named Fred and four daughters Amelia, Milly, Nicole and his youngest, whose name isn't publicly known.

While Fred works with Steve in his workshop, Milly also helps run the business. Meanwhile, Amelia is a social media influencer, and his youngest daughter recently graduated from Oxford Brookes University.

Steve's hobbies away from horology

It may surprise fans to learn that horology isn't Steve's only skill. The clock-maker is an impressive saxophone player and showed off his incredible talent in a video posted on social media back in April.

In the clip, which you can watch below, Steve is seen on stage at a local pub, playing to a crowd of dancing fans.

The Repair Shop series 13 continues on Wednesday 29 May at 8pm on BBC iPlayer.