DIY SOS makeover expert Nick Knowles throws his weight behind Shrewsbury cafe

The DIY SOS frontman has invested in O'Joy, in Shrewsbury's Wyle Cop, after hearing about the cafe while attending a hot yoga class at My Soul Space, another business in the county town.

The builder and rugby player said the vegan cafe, which was known as Optimum Joy before a recent refurbishment which is seeing it open as a bistro at night and launch a takeaway menu, chimed with his own eating habits.

The cafe was originally opened by Becky Porter in 2013, because she said eating healthily and trying alternative therapies – which are also offered at the town centre eatery – had helped her battle with depression.

Now Mr Knowles has leant his backing to the venture, and will be present for an official opening ceremony next Monday.

"At a retreat in Thailand I discovered the health benefits of a predominantly veggie diet but I wasn't so sure about the radical, cult-like attitude that went with it," said Mr Knowles, who heard about the cafe while filming in Ludlow last month.

"It should not be an exclusive club – the health benefits should be for everyone. Vegan and vegetarian diet is the way forward – very few dispute the health benefits, but does eating healthy mean eating dull and just how difficult is it to give it a try?

"Optimum Joy is not here to bully you into being healthy, we're here to help. Let's face it, if a 16-stone, six-foot two-inch rugby playing builder like me can get healthy and enjoy the food then who can't?"

Ms Porter said she was excited that the high-profile television personality was joining her in the business.

"It's amazingly exciting," she added. "We feel very lucky, and Nick is such a nice bloke, so we are all really looking forward to working with him.

"Nick had been filming DIY SOS in Ludlow, and because he had been a retreat in Thailand where he developed his passion for healthy food, My Soul Space recommended he come and eat with us.

"We got chatting and discovered our shared passion, and we thought it would be a fantastic opportunity for the business if Nick got involved.

"He is going to be in and out of the bistro all the time, and is going to be helping us to raise out profile, possibly attending the Shrewsbury Food Festival."

The bistro has reopened following the refurbishment, and is now open on a Friday and Saturday night.