Carol Smillie Now: Humanist Celebrant, Funerals & Latest News

Few 1990s presenters still spark the curiosity that Carol Smillie does — the Changing Rooms face who swapped home makeovers for weddings and funerals after qualifying as a humanist celebrant in 2018, a move the BBC covered that July, and who resurfaced in a CPR advert set to The Proclaimers’ “500 Miles” in May 2025. Here’s where she is now, what the celebrant role involves, and the funeral-etiquette questions those searches tend to raise.

Known for: Changing Rooms · Current role: Humanist celebrant · 2025 update: CPR advert set to The Proclaimers’ “500 Miles” · Ceremony work: Weddings and funerals · Source date: 12 May 2025 (Daily Record)

Six facts, one pattern: a 1990s TV career that has given way to a working life devoted to other people’s biggest days.

What has happened to Carol Smillie?

The short version: Smillie stepped away from regular TV presenting, trained for a different role, and now works at weddings and funerals. Her own website describes her as a fully qualified humanist celebrant conducting legal, non-religious ceremonies (Carol Smillie’s official website). A 2023 Daily Mirror report said she sold her business in 2018 and then moved into humanist celebrancy.

• 2021 — The Changing Rooms reboot went ahead without her; the Birmingham Mail reported she had revealed a new career move.
• May 2025 — She appeared in a CPR advert set to The Proclaimers’ “500 Miles”, per the Daily Record.
• 2025 — The Daily Record also reported her daughter hoped to impress The Voice judges.

Where does Carol Smillie live now?

• A 2024 Metro profile says she is a humanist celebrant “based in the Glasgow area”.
• Her accreditation is with Humanist Society Scotland, a Scottish body, which fits a Scotland base.
• No reliable public source lists a precise home address; the record points to the Glasgow area, not a specific town or street.

The honest answer: she lives in Scotland, likely in or near Glasgow, and the exact address is not part of the public record. That looks like a deliberate boundary between her public work and private life, and the reporting to date has respected it.

The pattern: the public record knows where she works, not where she sleeps, and that distance from the old TV glare looks intentional.

What does Carol Smillie do now?

Her working life splits into two clear tracks: ceremonies and occasional media work. A 2025 HELLO! profile described her as conducting non-religious funerals, naming ceremonies, and legal wedding ceremonies with Humanist Society Scotland. A 2024 Ayrshire Magazine interview put the wedding volume at between 50 and 60 ceremonies a year.

• Weddings and namings — JLA, the speaker bureau that represents her, lists non-religious weddings, funerals, and baby namings with Humanist Society Scotland.
• Funerals — She has written publicly about conducting funerals, including a blog post on Life Death Whatever about what she learned after becoming a celebrant.
• Lockdown weddings — Glasgow Times reported in October 2020 that she married a couple at their venue’s first lockdown nuptials.
• Media — In July 2022 she appeared on the Hear She Is podcast to discuss Changing Rooms (Acast).

How much does a humanist celebrant earn?

• There is no single published salary for UK humanist celebrants; earnings vary by location, ceremony type, and how many ceremonies a celebrant takes on.
• Celebrants typically set their own per-ceremony fees after qualifying; Humanist Society Scotland does not publish a mandatory rate card.
• Smillie’s personal income is not public, so any specific figure would be speculation.

The honest answer: there is no “one salary” for this work. A celebrant who runs 50-plus weddings a year is running a serious business; someone doing a handful of ceremonies a year is not.

The trade-off: a weekly rhythm of ceremonies means unpredictable hours and emotional intensity — but it also explains why the Changing Rooms reboot didn’t need her back.

Is Carol Smillie a humanist?

• Yes — she is an accredited celebrant with Humanist Society Scotland, the body that trains and supports people who conduct non-religious ceremonies.
• Humanists UK, the charity for non-religious people, described her in 2021 as a “presenter-turned-humanist celebrant”.
• BBC News reported her move in July 2018, confirming she had become a celebrant earlier that year.

A humanist celebrant does the ceremonies a priest or registrar might otherwise do, but without religious content. In Scotland, humanist weddings have been legally recognised since 2005, according to The Sun Ireland. Her training began with Humanist Society Scotland in 2018, and a Golden Charter report from the same year said she started officiating humanist funerals under her married name, Carol Knight.

Why this matters: the “humanist” title is not decorative. It is an accredited role with a governing body, which is why weddings she conducts can carry legal weight in Scotland.

What would you not have at a humanist funeral?

Humanist funerals strip out religious structure and put the person back in the middle. There are typically no religious readings, hymns, prayers, or clergy — Humanists UK describes the ceremonies it supports as non-religious. Instead, the ceremony is built around the person who died: tributes from family and friends, music that meant something to them, and readings that fit their life.

• No set religious script — the family and the celebrant build the order of service together.
• No belief test — the ceremony is about the person who died, not a membership card.
• The venue’s rules still apply; the celebrant coordinates with the crematorium or cemetery.

What 3 colors not to wear to a funeral?

• There is no universal list of three forbidden colours; the idea of a fixed “banned colours” rule is folk guidance, not a formal code.
• What matters is the family’s dress code: if relatives ask for black, wear black; if they ask for bright colours, wear bright colours.
• In the UK, black remains the default choice, but humanist families often choose colours the person loved.

Why shouldn’t you go home after a funeral?

• It is a folk tradition, not a formal rule: some customs say mourners should not go straight home so that death or grief is not carried into the house.
• Many families now follow the coffin, attend the committal, and then gather wherever the family has chosen.
• The respectful move is to follow the family’s invitation; if no gathering is planned, going home is completely normal.

The implication: at a humanist funeral, “normal” is whatever the family says it is. The person was unique, so the goodbye should be too.

The pattern: the ceremony is built around the person, not a set of rules.

What is considered disrespectful at a funeral?

• Arriving late — it disrupts the ceremony for everyone.
• Using a phone — silence it; photos and videos need the family’s permission.
• Speaking loudly — the focus is on the tribute to the person who died.
• Ignoring a stated dress code — if the family specifies black, or specifies colour, follow it.

These norms hold for religious and humanist funerals alike. At a humanist ceremony, the family’s stated wishes are the most important etiquette guide, so when in doubt, ask the celebrant or a close relative.

The pattern: disrespect at a funeral is rarely malice. It is usually inattention — and a little preparation fixes most of it.

What songs are banned at funerals?

There is no national list of banned funeral songs in the UK. Practical policy comes from two places: the venue, which can refuse songs because of explicit lyrics or licensing, and the officiant, who may advise against something likely to offend. The safe route is to clear the playlist before the order of service goes to print.

• Explicit lyrics, or songs that could cause real offence, are the most likely to be refused.
• A song’s meaning to the family usually matters more than its mood; “sad” and “happy” are both welcome if they fit the person.

What’s the saddest song to play at a funeral?

• There is no official ranking of saddest funeral songs; “Tears in Heaven” and “Hallelujah” are often cited, but they are cultural favourites, not rules.
• The saddest song for one family can feel wrong for another — the only reliable guide is what the person who died loved.

What is a good exit song for a funeral?

• An exit song usually closes the ceremony with something uplifting or defiantly joyful.
• “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life” is the most widely referenced example of a celebratory closer.
• A good exit song says something true about the person, not just what grief expects.

The takeaway: there are no banned songs, only songs that need a conversation. Ask first, and the music will do its job.

The catch: the best-laid playlist still needs a venue’s approval.

Carol Smillie timeline: from Changing Rooms to the celebrant’s chair

• 1990s — Becomes known as the presenter of Changing Rooms.
• 2018 — Begins training with Humanist Society Scotland and conducting humanist funerals (Golden Charter report).
• Oct 2020 — Glasgow Times reports she married a couple at their venue’s first lockdown nuptials as a humanist celebrant.
• Sep 2021 — Birmingham Mail confirms she is not part of the Changing Rooms reboot and had revealed a new career move.
• Jul 2022 — Appears on the Hear She Is podcast to discuss Changing Rooms (Acast).
• May 2025 — Daily Record reports her CPR advert set to The Proclaimers’ “500 Miles” and her daughter’s Voice audition hopes.

The pattern: the public milestones get sparser as the ceremonies get busier — the opposite of a normal TV career arc.

What’s confirmed about Carol Smillie — and what isn’t

The public record is clearer about her work than her private life. Here is the split.

Confirmed facts

• She presented Changing Rooms in the 1990s (HELLO! profile).
• She qualified as a humanist celebrant and works in that role (Humanists UK).
• Her ceremonies include weddings, funerals, and baby namings (HELLO!).
• She was not on the 2021 Changing Rooms reboot (Birmingham Mail, Sep 2021).

What’s unclear

• Her exact current home town is not publicly documented; a 2024 Metro profile suggests the Glasgow area.
• “Carol Smiley” in search queries appears to be a misspelling of Carol Smillie, not a separate person.
• Her professional married name is reported inconsistently — “Carol Knight” (Golden Charter) versus “Carol King” (The Sun Ireland).
• Her personal income as a celebrant is not public; no reliable salary figure exists.

The distinction matters: the facts about her work are well sourced; the facts about her private life are not — and confusing the two is how rumour starts.

Key reports on Carol Smillie

Four reports have shaped the public record since her career shift.

The Daily Record reported in May 2025 that Smillie taught Scots CPR to the beat of The Proclaimers’ “500 Miles” in a new advert — while her daughter hoped to impress The Voice judges.

Daily Record, 12 May 2025

The Glasgow Times put it plainly in October 2020: the Changing Rooms star, “now a Humanist celebrant”, married a couple at their venue’s first lockdown nuptials.

Glasgow Times, 4 October 2020

The Birmingham Mail revealed in September 2021 that Smillie was not part of the Changing Rooms reboot and had announced a new career move.

Birmingham Mail, 9 September 2021

On the Hear She Is podcast in July 2022, Smillie revisited Changing Rooms with a new audience, two decades after the show’s peak.

Acast, “Hear She Is”, 22 July 2022

The pattern: coverage of Smillie has shifted from what she wore on screen to what she does at ceremonies — a quieter, more substantive kind of fame.

The bigger picture

Carol Smillie’s public story has come full circle: the 1990s face of Saturday-night home makeovers is now a working humanist celebrant whose ceremonies mark the start and end of real lives. The curiosity about her is really curiosity about that transition — from television glare to something quieter, more useful, and far less scripted. For anyone searching “Carol Smillie now”, the answer has a concrete consequence: she is not waiting for a reboot, she is busy conducting the biggest ceremonies most people will ever plan.

Related reading

• Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen — Smillie’s Changing Rooms co-star, and what his career looks like now.
• Kirstie Allsopp — another British TV presenter whose career moved beyond the small screen.

These articles offer further context on TV personalities who have moved beyond their original shows.

Frequently asked questions