HE’s the scourge of conmen and shady businessmen everywhere. A face instantly recognised by TV viewers for shows such as Rogue Traders, Fake Britain and Watchdog.

But it’s unlikely that even the most avid TV watchers will know that Matt Allwright has a thing for campervans.

“I admit it, I’m a campervan guy,” he laughed.

As if to prove the point, Matt’s heading to Manchester on Thursday to open the Caravan and Motorhome Show at EventCity on behalf of The Caravan Club.

“ I’m basically a bit of a punk,” said Matt, “I like the idea that you can do it yourself and you don’t need to ask anyone’s permission.

“You can get in it and go and I like that sense of freedom and self determination.

“We know what the typical view of caravanners is but I think there is a secret rebel inside the typical caravanner and camper. They have cut themselves a little bit of space to see and do what they want and I kind of like that.”

Matt’s affection for independent travel started with family holidays as a child.

“For the first few years we would go to a hotel then, and I still don’t know why, my dad decided we were going to try camping,” he said.

“Everyone remembers the summer of 76 which was glorious. We were in a hotel then, The next year we went camping in Cornwall. There were thunderstorms and we almost got washed off the campsite.

“I remember my dad sitting in the middle of this big heavy tent holding the pole to stop it being blown away.

“So that was pretty disastrous but then we went on holiday in a campervan which was fantastic. It was a VW T2 which you could get six people and that’s how I spent my summer holidays in my mid teens.”

While Matt left home for university - he has an English degree from Manchester University - his parents turned to caravanning.

“But I could never really understand caravans,” he said. “Why have all that stuff behind you when you can’t go in it when it’s moving?”

Matt and his wife Charlotte tried to recapture his teenage years when they bought their own T2 campervan.

“We got as far as Littlehampton and were exhausted,” he laughed. “We decided then that if you really do want to use it regularly you have to be a bit more modern.”

So now the Allwrights are proud owners of a VW Transporter T5.

“It’s great,” said Matt. “We have driven to Germany in a day without feeling tired. Every time you get in it is an adventure. My wife and I are of the same mindset about it. Just walking in the garage, starting it up and being in Germany by teatime - that’s just fun.”

Matt’s campervan has other practical uses.

“My son plays sport so we can go where he’s playing so I can sit outside and have a cup of tea while he’s getting changed and warming up,” said Matt.

“ British people take incredible pleasure from very simple things. We as a nation love to obsesses about the joys of a cup of tea and a biscuit.

“You’ve got this Danish phrase around now, hygge, which is all the rage but we’ve been doing it for years. There is a great joy in taking the things you do at home somewhere you wouldn’t normally do them.

“I use the campervan for work too. With the kind of programmes I make you inevitably end up on some industrial estate or an airfield in the middle of nowhere. Then people ask ‘so what are we going to do for lunch? when the nearest garage is 15 miles away.

“Having the campervan means you know no-one is going to starve and can have a cup of tea. The number of times I’ve taken it on location and people are delighted they can have a hot chocolate.”

Matt acknowledges that caravanners and motorhome drivers are an easy target for other road users.

“I do think there have been certain popular motoring shows which have fuelled the antagonism towards caravans,” he said. "But it’s like being the guy at school with Sellotape on their glasses and that guy turns into Jarvis Cocker, and who doesn’t want to be Jarvis Cocker?”

As well as opening the show, Matt will also lead a number of advice forums.

“You have got people who’ve got this outfit - I’ve learned that this is the correct terminology for the combination of what you drive and the caravan- and it’s quite a responsibility.

“Although caravanners are natural rebels they don’t want to cause a fuss. So it’s nice to be able to give them some basic bits of advice about how to stay out of trouble.”

The Caravan and Motorhome Show, EventCity, Manchester, Thursday, January 19 to Sunday, January 22.

Details from www.caravanshows.com or 0844 873 7349