Willow and Hearth

Ryan Ferrie and Brett Gladden knew their London fixer upper would need work when they bought it in May 2025. What they did not know was that one of its best original features had been hidden behind a kitchen wall. Their TikTok account, @twogays.onereno, captured the moment the plaster came down and a Victorian fireplace appeared.

The Surprise Behind the Plaster

The clip moves fast. Within seconds, the couple is tearing into the kitchen wall, with foam and bricks scattered across the room. Then the shape of a fireplace starts to show through.

“It came as a complete surprise,” Ryan said. “We bought the property knowing it was livable but we wanted to give it a full renovation to reach its potential.” He added that “we had no idea there was an original Victorian fireplace hidden behind the kitchen wall,” until the plaster started coming off and they saw the brickwork underneath.

The fireplace has since been restored. “It’s now been restored and has become the heart of our kitchen,” Ryan said.

@twogays.onereno

The House Kept Giving Up Its Secrets

The kitchen fireplace was only the beginning. The couple went on to uncover two more fireplaces in the front rooms, several chimneys, original brickwork and layers of 1970s wallpaper. They found red stove tiles, which they reused in the garden, and Guinness cans left behind by builders roughly 50 years earlier. A decaying fireplace sat at the center of the house.

The most surprising find was underground. “It was initially quite intimidating, with the original coal chute still open to the street,” Ryan said of the cellar. “With proper ventilation, we’ve now transformed it into our bathroom.”

Harder Than They Imagined

The couple is honest that the project has been a grind. “The project was far more work than we imagined and tested us in all sorts of ways,” Ryan said. “We were regularly finishing 12-hour days covered in dust and dirt.” Money was a constant pressure too. He called it nerve wracking, “as we had to constantly buy materials and bring in contractors where needed,” and said the house delivered “some incredible surprises, some costly, and others exciting.”

How to Tell If Your House Is Hiding a Fireplace

Many older homes had fireplaces in nearly every main room, and later owners often boarded or plastered over them when central heating arrived. There are a few signs worth checking before you start knocking down walls.

• Look for a chimney breast. A section of wall that sticks out into the room, often with alcoves on each side, usually means a flue runs behind it.
• Count the chimney pots. More pots on the roof than working fireplaces inside can point to hidden openings.
• Tap the wall. A hollow sound or a patch that feels different from the surrounding plaster can mark a boarded opening.
• Check for an air vent. A small grille low on a chimney breast is often added when a fireplace is sealed.
• Look at old floor plans or neighbors’ houses. Terraced homes on the same street often share the same original layout.

Before You Light It

• Have the chimney inspected and swept. Old flues can be blocked, cracked or full of debris.
• Check structural safety first. Opening up a chimney breast can affect support, so get professional advice before removing masonry.
• Know local rules. Many cities, including London, have smoke control rules about what can be burned and which appliances are allowed.
• Decorative is an option. Many restored fireplaces are kept purely as a feature, which avoids the cost of making them usable.

Ryan and Brett’s kitchen wall is a reminder that the best feature of an old house is sometimes the one a previous owner tried to hide.

Credit for the original video goes to @twogays.onereno on TikTok.