Walls...bit of a nightmare, cheap solutions?

[PurpleSapphire]

Firstly, i'm not sure what this is called but the walls in my house aren't typical plaster. It's a house built in the 70's and the only way I can describe it is like plasterboard with a very thin coating on top. So obviously previous tenants have decorated and stripped many times over...it has the affect of layers and layers of paper that have caught each time and torn deeper..but that IS the actual wall if that makes sense. So I can fill screw holes etc but not the main wall, it's HUGE tears from top to bottom. I've gotten around this in the lounge by using lining paper but it isn't great when the daylight shines on it. The room i'm doing is a very small toilet room with lots of pipes down and across the walls. I cant afford to get it plastered, or get a tiler in and there's no way I can get around all those pipes myself. Textured paper is a no no as my cats will scratch it straight back off! I was thinking of one of those paint/filler type bases you put on with a roller for problem walls but I don't know if they're any good or which brand. Any ideas welcome.

Bump anyone?

Plasterboard is plaster sandwiched between layers of paper. It sounds like you've got plasterboard walls that have had some of the layers of paper torn off in certain sections.
Probably the best option is to try and even them out with with some kind of finishing compound (gyproc easyfill) or filler and a wide trowel or finishing knife.
Or put another layer of plasterboard over the entire wall (but then you'd have to tape and scrim this still).

Would that textured glittery paint fool the eye, especially if you put a bit of wall art up to draw the eye.

Or Dulux do a range of 'effects' paints like rust, copper. They may disguise a bad wall, rather than fix it.

How big are the pipes? You can buy trunking or pvc to box in the pipes?

Could you put up some photos? This sounds like what I have been dealing with in my house (also 1970s). I’ve been fixing with a filler and a plasterers tool kit. Building up lots of thin layers and sanding in between. It will never be perfect but I’ve got it fairly smooth (couldn’t afford to skim either).

Artex