A TV, telly, television; whatever you call it, it’s a sticking point in interior decorating and an irksome thing to design around. Much like a chip butty with loads of salt and vinegar, a big 43-inch QLED beast opposite the sofa is a pleasure that most people love but few want to shout about. When the elephant in the room is reflective, black and rectangular, it does, unfortunately, tend to draw attention to itself. We all have them, but strength in numbers doesn’t make them any better looking, so how do you solve a problem like a telly?
When a living room is photographed for a book or publication such as House & Garden, it’s rare to spot a TV in the published photos and those empty sideboards opposite sofas with a large piece of art propped on them are fooling no one. But this article isn’t about smoke-and-mirrors styling for the camera. When a room design needs to incorporate a TV, there are some clever ways to make it look not completely terrible.
Before delving into the topic any further, we should take a moment to respect those well-rounded people who would rather read a book, create something, or have a conversation than watch Succession or Gogglebox. Though, if you don’t own a TV, you’re likely not reading this anyway.
Hide it in a cupboard or cabinet
If you want to banish the TV from sight entirely, you could hide it in a cupboard or cabinet and more furniture brands are designing furniture especially for this purpose. See Neptune, Julian Chichester, and OKA for starters, or you could go down a custom-made route like designer Beata Heuman, who has used clever cabinetry to hide a TV on more than one occasion.
Alternatively, you could buy a housekeeper’s cupboard or linen press in a style that you like (and a size that works for both your home and the TV in question) and adjust the shelves to accommodate a secret squirrel of a TV inside. Assuming it’s against a wall, remove a generous section of the back panel to allow for cables and prevent overheating.
Invest in a particularly handsome TV
A TV is what it is, so there’s no shame in buying the nicest version possible and popping it in the corner or on a wall, ready for a Netflix all-nighter. There are a couple of key points to making this look smart, however. For discretion, you could try a wall-mounted Samsung Frame TV set to art mode (see Lishan Tham's deeply stylish sitting room above); just don’t hang it too high or you’ll get a crick in your neck (you should ideally be viewing at eye level from seated). Otherwise, the brilliant Samsung Serif TV designed by the Bouroullec brothers was created with the sole purpose of looking good on display. The telly for people who hate tellies, it comes in a choice of colours including white or pale blue and it also includes tripod legs, so you can stand it in a corner and it looks visually light with no stand underneath.
If the Serif isn’t the one for you, there are other contemporary tripod stands that you can buy to achieve a similar look. We’ve also seen people use a traditional wooden easel on a sturdy frame to hold smaller, lighter TVs (attempt at your own risk). If money isn’t an object, Bang & Olufsen have some seriously sleek options.
Other smart options include TVs which are designed to look like mirrors, such as the one in Daisy Sims-Hilditch's London flat. Designed by her father John for Neptune, it perfect for spaces where a big black device is not a desirable addition.
Surround it with bookshelves
If you have a fireplace with alcoves on either side, this is the easiest way to distract from a TV. It will very obviously still be there but you’re giving your eye lots of other things to enjoy besides reruns of The Sopranos. The trick is to fill the gap on at least one side of the fireplace with shelves – leaving a gap large enough for a TV – and style the shelves above and below it with lots of books and beautiful decorative things. Hang a striking piece of art or a mirror above the fire and you’ll barely notice the TV is there.
If you don’t have a fireplace, you can recreate a similar set-up with either a custom-designed bookcase or joinery along one wall, or by adding slim wall-hung shelving such as Vitsoe, String, or the Royal System. It allows you to position things at various heights around the TV and just as you’d use a busy pattern on a rug to hide stains, having so many other pleasing details to take in makes the TV less of a sore thumb.
Hide it behind statement artwork
Do as designer Sophie Ashby did in her old Television Centre apartment in White City and hide a TV behind a large piece of art. Sophie cleverly hung a large framed photograph on a rail, allowing it to slide to the side to uncover the TV, or hide it entirely when it wasn’t in use. This is a really effective idea to try if you have the space and budget to go down the custom route. With existing built-in bookshelves that already house a TV, it’s much easier: you’ll only need to install the rail and find the large-scale art. If this isn’t an option, how about a wall hanging or textile that could be easily rolled up or pulled to the side on neat curtain rings and a slim pole, much like you would use a curtain to cover and uncover a window?
Embrace it but go dark and low
If joinery isn’t an option, you have no alcove shelving and your TV isn’t compatible with a barely-there tripod or easel, you might be feeling in the danger zone of all your furniture pointing at the TV with no other points of interest. Or perhaps you have a Sky box, a PlayStation, a soundbar and the kitchen sink to contend with? All is not lost. If you rent your home and can’t commandeer the services of an interior designer or attach anything to the walls, just go low. A TV at a low level with art arranged in non-symmetrical groups on the wall above (Command Strips can help you here) is a heck of a lot less noticeable than a TV placed above a fireplace or atop a bulky brute of a sideboard.
If there’s no wall space for a sizeable and useful piece of furniture, use a low stool or lovely vintage side table and pop it in a corner or recess, but if you’ve got a couple of metres of empty wall space to play with, you could also try a slim, low-level cabinet or shelves with concealed storage underneath for a clean look and to hide a spaghetti junction of cables. For a cabinet with doors or drawers, try SCP, Soho Home, Tylko, USM Modular Furniture, La Redoute, IKEA (with Superfront doors and legs) or Galvin Brothers. You could also commission a unique TV bench from an independent furniture maker, or buy a long vintage bench and pop your TV on top. By going long, you get to utilise the leftover surface space on top for a lamp, vases, frames and general objets d’art – all things that will take the spotlight off your TV.
Finally, if it’s a look you already like and it works in the room, go dark on the walls. In the same way that a red spot will appear more noticeable on pale skin, a black TV screen will look especially stark against light-coloured walls. A deeper, richer tone on the walls will help a TV to blend into the background.
