Escape to the Chateau DIY (2018–2021): Season 1, Episode 10 - The McDougals 2 - full transcript
Dick, voice-over:
I'm Dick Strawbridge,
and along with my wife Angel
and our two children,
we left the UK
for as whole new life in France
and bought this
magnificent chateau.
Dick: We haven't ever regretted
what we've done.
It is so worth it.
Dick, voice-over:
We've gradually been making it
in to our home as well as
running it as a business...
Dick: That's a long way up.
Dick, voice-over: but it
turns out, we're not alone,
as dozens of Brits are doing
exactly the same thing.
Child: Ha ha ha!
Man: Sometimes you have to pinch
yourself to think, "I own that."
Dick, voice-over:
In this series, Angel and I
will reveal more about
our journey as chateau owners...
Dick: Finding a scrap here,
it's worth money.
Might be able to pay this man.
Dick, voice-over: and guide
these daring Brits
where we can...
Dick: It's a solid,
old bridge, matey.
Dick, voice-over:
as they renovate...
Man: This is looking good.
I'm quite happy with this.
Dick, voice-over: repair...
Man: I've never
done this before,
so it should be all right.
Dick, voice-over: and struggle
to transform these buildings
into their homes
and businesses...
Man: Go, go, go, go,
go, go, go, go.
Absolutely magnificent.
Different man: This is
the glamorous chateau life
that everyone think for me,
just trying to avoid
getting my face nearer
the toilet seat.
Different man: This is not
the way to make money.
Dick, voice-over: but however
hard the going gets,
these plucky Brits
can always say
they're kings and queens
of their very own castles.
Woman: Cheers. Cin cin.
Dick, voice-over: Today
I continue my search
for a sunken hoard of armor
in one chateau's lake...
[Beeping]
Donna: Oh, my God.
Oh, my God! Ha ha ha!
Dick: I can hear it.
I can hear it
through your earphones.
Dick, voice-over: then battle
to get access to the lakeside...
but when we start digging,
there's plenty
that gets us excited.
Dick: What is that?
What is that?
Dick, voice-over:
When one chateau couple rushed
to get their whole attic
renovated
for the holiday season,
they need furniture...
Tim: Would you let me have
a rug, as well,
and round it to 200?
I've only got 200 with me.
That's why I ask.
Dick, voice-over:
and they need help...
Man: Hopefully, Ben's
gonna fly back here
and give us a hand a couple
of days before we open.
Ben: I've never agreed to that.
I've never agreed to come back
and doing more work.
Dick, voice-over: and my
mother-in-law and I
get our hands full
making salamis.
Dick: The sausage
always make me laugh.
There's not a thing
about making sausages
that I don't find humorous.
Man: Walk up. I bet
the chickens will roost on it.
Dick, voice-over:
I'm Dick Strawbridge,
engineer and former lieutenant
colonel in the British Army,
and with my wife Angela, we've
been renovating our chateau
into a home and business.
Angel: This is
my calling in life.
Dick, voice-over:
It's not been easy...
Dick: Think I'm a bit
too old for this.
Dick, voice-over: so my heart
goes out to anyone else
insane enough to take on
a chateau renovation.
Take Chateau Monteil,
for example.
It's owned by couple
Tim and Krys,
who live there with
their newborn son Owen.
Tim: The day that you
went into labor was--
might be because you were up
a ladder painting windows.
Krys: Yeah.
Dick, voice-over:
Located in the Dordogne,
they bought this place
back in 2013
for just £380,000
after falling in love with it.
Tim: It was kind of like
Sleeping Beauty's castle,
the fairy-tale castle
that was covered in ivy
and rambling thorns.
Dick, voice-over: After two
solid years of renovations,
they opened as a boutique B&B
in August 2015
with two double rooms
and two suites,
but they've barely broken even,
and with the arrival
of Baby Owen, they need
to make more money...
Krys: We want to be able
to earn enough income,
hopefully, just to get by.
Dick, voice-over: so they're
opening some new accommodation.
Tim: Our main tasks
at the moment
are completely renovating
the attic space
to create a new family suite.
Dick, voice-over:
It needs to be ready
for its first booking
in 4 weeks' time,
so the pressure is on
to get it finished...
Tim: We really have got
to get the attic finished.
It's our main priority,
loads to do, loads to do.
Dick, voice-over: so they called
in the cavalry from England--
Tim's little brother Ben.
Ben: Hello.
Dick, voice-over: He spent
a whole day helping Tim
lay down the new patio,
but he didn't
just come here to work...
Ben: I was planning
on going canoeing
and seeing my nephew
whilst I was here.
Dick, voice-over: so after
helping lay the patio,
Tim's decided
to give him a day off...
- Bye, Ben.
- See you.
Dick, voice-over: so while
they wait for him to return
and help fix up the attic,
Tim and Krys can catch up
on some of the other
important chores.
One thing they need to do
is check up on their garden.
To help save the pennies,
they grow their own produce,
but there's been a bit
of a disaster
with the vegetables
they planted 4 weeks ago.
Tim: We got the whole veggie
plot pretty much planted up,
but last week, we had two nights
of really, really heavy frost,
didn't we,
just totally random...
Krys: Yeah.
It was unexpected.
Tim: just bizarre,
just totally bizarre,
and most things have died.
These are the tomatoes
that we put in last month,
and, amazingly, they're the only
things still standing, really.
Touch wood, we should still
have tomatoes at least.
The guests'll have to have
shop-brought veggies
instead of wonderful,
home-grown vegetables...
Dick, voice-over: It may
have been better to start
these crops off
in the greenhouse
and then move them outside
after the last frost.
Tim: but nature does
what it wants.
That's the whole point
behind doing this,
is so that we can offer
evening meals
and turn some sort
of a profit on it
because there's not much room
for making a profit
if you buy it all
from the markets.
Dick, voice-over: Every penny
counts for Tim and Krys,
so after removing the dead
plants, he's starting again.
Tim: I water them
and give them a week
and see if anything grows back.
Dick, voice-over: Yep.
For those looking to live
the chateau dream,
be warned.
The weather here can be just
as unpredictable as back home...
and it's quickly turned again,
but that gives Tim and Krys
the perfect excuse to do
some furniture shopping
for the attic suite.
Tim: It's a miserable day
outside, so we're popping off
to see if we can get some nice,
secondhand, antique furniture.
Krys: Yeah. We're gonna
go shopping. Ha ha ha!
Tim: We're hoping we might
find a few gems.
Sometimes we go,
and we come home
with way more
than we ever expected to get.
Sometimes we don't
find anything.
All right.
Let's take you for a drive.
Owen: [Crying]
Dick, voice-over: Tim and Krys
are always on the lookout
for a bargain, and they've heard
a fellow ex-pat chateau owner
is selling off some
traditional, French furniture
that might suit the new
family suite when it's finished.
Woman: So there's the room
with the rugs.
Tim: How much do you want
for the rugs?
- Um, 30.
- OK.
Woman: I've got a few
more things in here.
Tim: Pictures.
Woman: Pictures,
I wanted 20 for these two...
- OK.
- the pair.
- OK.
- They're quite nicely--
Tim: I think, like,
in the dining room
or somewhere, babe, we could
use those, couldn't we?
I mean, they're that kind
of nice, French--
Woman: Yes.
Tim: What about your corner?
Woman: The corner unit...
- It's quite nice and old.
- that one's quite old.
- How much do you want?
- About 40 euros for that.
Tim: OK.
I quite like the table.
Woman: OK.
- I like the dresser.
- Uh-huh.
- I like that.
- OK.
Tim: I think we like
the pictures.
Woman: And you wanted
that light fitting?
5 apiece
and 10 for that one.
Tim: Yeah.
I think we'd have them.
That'd be perfect for us.
Dick, voice-over: Money's tight,
so Tim has developed
his own special technique
when it comes to bartering.
Tim: Would you let me
have a rug, as well,
and round it to 200?
Woman: Uh--
Tim: I've only got 200 with me.
That's why.
Dick, voice-over:
Clever.
- Ha ha!
- 210?
Tim: 200...3.
I can do you 203. Ha ha!
That's where I'm at. Ha ha!
Woman: Fine. Have it.
Tim: Bag it up.
I'll take it. Ha ha ha!
Woman: I will do.
Tim: That's great. Thank you.
Oh.
Perfect, made to measure.
I think that's most
of the furniture
for the attic suite sorted now.
Well, thank you for your time...
Woman: You're welcome.
Tim: and look us up online
and see your furniture
in its new home
and if you're ever passing,
pop in for a cup of tea.
- Yes. We will. That'd be great.
- Sounds good.
Tim: You've got our address.
Door's always open.
- Thank you.
- Thanks very much.
Tim: All right. Thank you
very much. See you soon.
- Bye-bye.
- Bye-bye.
Tim: We've got what we came for.
We've got as few of the nice
little bits and bobs.
It'll just sort of
fill the rooms
and give everyone
a bit more furniture,
and it's always great
to pop out,
and you meet nice people
and you see a bit more
of the country
that you haven't seen before.
It's always well worth doing.
Owen: [Crying]
Tim: It's all right, mate.
We're off home.
Krys: We're going now.
Dick, voice-over: But before
they can fill the suite
with the new purchases,
Tim needs to finish it,
and with his brother Ben
in to help,
things aren't going
quite to plan.
Tim: We're about 30 centimeters
short of pipes.
Ben: Why haven't you got
enough pipe?
Tim: Because you've cut
far too much off. Ha ha!
Dick, voice-over: Tucked away
in the lush, rolling hills
of Central Normandy
is the ancient Vieux Chateau.
The oldest part dates back
more than a thousand years,
and it's this wing that's being
run as a bed and breakfast
by retired vet Donna McDougall.
Donna: I'm constantly
on the move here--
changing beds,
cooking, cleaning--
but it's good because
it means that I can eat
a little more cheese
because I burn off energy.
You do not need to go to the gym
when you live in a chateau
that's based on 5 floors.
Dick, voice-over: As a British
owner of this magnificent place,
she's in esteemed company.
Donna: There've only been
two English owners
of this chateau in its entire
1,100-year history,
one being Henry I of England,
who sacked it
in the 12th century, and me.
Dick, voice-over:
It's located in the heart
of historic Normandy,
a region known
not only for its rich,
medieval history,
but for its role
in the Second World War,
and Donna's chateau bears
physical reminders
of when the Germans occupied
this part of France.
Donna: The Germans were
in the chateau during the war
for 4 years,
and while they were here,
they left some graffiti
on my fireplace,
and we think it says,
"Where strength or power
"is released or set free,
bad humans must fear
the majesty of the Fuhrer,"
and you can see the "Fuhrer"
pretty clearly--
F-U-H-R-E-R.
Dick, voice-over: Donna thinks
there's even more history
here, too.
She's been told that
during the war,
the chateau's owner stashed
a horde of medieval armor
in the lake to prevent it
being stolen
by the Nazi occupiers...
- We're moving.
- We are.
- We're at sea.
- Whoo hoo!
Dick: Treasure's here.
Dick, voice-over: so I'm
helping her look for it
with my trusty, little boat
and my metal detector.
[Beeping]
Donna: Oh, my God.
Oh, my God! Ha ha ha!
Dick: I can hear it.
I can hear it
through your earphones.
Donna: Listen.
Dick, voice-over: The metal
detector is indicating
something in the deepest part
of the lake,
so now I want to try something.
Dick: We get a really strong
signal by that stick, don't we?
I'm gonna put the magnet in,
see if we get any--yeah.
This is where
the strongest signal's been.
Hmm.
It's a bit of metal.
There's a bit of metal there
definitely.
Dick, voice-over: Bah!
It's just a rusty, old nail...
but the signal from underwater
is still strong.
Dick: I think we're gonna
have to dig, Donna.
I think this is--
We're definitely getting
strong signals here.
Donna: I need to find us
a digger.
- Yeah.
- Yeah.
Dick, voice-over:
Whatever is here is sitting
below a 4-foot layer of silt,
and the trees
make this part of the lake
tricky to access.
This is going to be challenging.
Donna: I think it's here.
I really do think it's here.
Dick: I--I think I agree
with you, actually.
- Do you?
- I really do.
- Ha ha ha!
- Oh, man...it's here.
Dick, voice-over:
That's all we can do for today.
Donna now needs to find a digger
to extract any hidden treasure,
but it'll need to be big enough
to reach into the lake.
If she can find one, I'm coming
straight back to help.
Dick: It's been a privilege
to be here, but I think
we've got a lot of work
ahead of us
because that silt is deep.
The armor has been in there 70
years if it's in there at all,
and--guess what--
I think it is.
Dick, voice-over: In the
Dordogne sits Chateau Monteil,
where new parents Tim and Krys
are struggling to build
a family suite in time
for the summer holiday season
in less than 4 weeks' time.
Krys: What's killing me
is sleepless nights.
Dick, voice-over: They're hoping
it'll bring in
much-needed extra cash,
as they're barely breaking even,
and now they have
an extra mouth to feed.
Krys: I am getting
really panicky
because I think he's got
separation anxiety.
How am I gonna function
this summer?
Because I need
to change the beds,
clean the house.
Even Hoovering
is a struggle for me
because he's just
a cranky baby right now.
Dick, voice-over: Tim has
brought his little brother Ben
in to help out,
their latest job--
trying to fit a new waste pipe
for the family suite bathroom...
Tim: Ben, can you cut me
a bit of pipe...
Ben: Uh-huh.
Tim: that is 169?
Dick, voice-over: but they've
been having difficulty
cutting it to the right length.
I hope they're checking
the measurements.
Ben: Whoops.
Dick, voice-over:
Ben's lack of precision
has been wasting a lot of pipe.
Ben: But measure twice,
cut once, as they like to say.
Dick, voice-over: At least Tim
seems to have a large supply.
Tim: All right. We're gonna get
the pipe from downstairs.
I think that's a bit too long.
I just need it, like,
a centimeter,
two centimeters shorter,
I think.
Ben: Why can't you move
the toilet two centimeters?
Tim: Because of it's
where it's got to go.
I don't want it too close
to the towel rail,
so we want the one waste pipe
for the sink
coming up about there.
Ben: Yeah.
Tim: Give me 119.
Ben: Now, you say 119
this time.
Do you want, like,
a couple of centimeters off it?
Tim: Well, I've deliberately
gone two centimeters shorter,
so it should be fine.
Ben: Yeah. Heh.
Dick, voice-over: Anyone would
think they're learning this
as they go along.
Tim: I've kind of done bit
and bobs of it before,
but, yeah,
it's the first bathroom
I've really kind of done
start to finish.
Dick, voice-over:
Ben thinks his big brother
is doing a great job.
Ben: He seems to know
what he's doing.
Like I say, it's amazing what
he's picked up off the Internet.
Dick, voice-over: Finally,
the pipe is in place,
but it's taking up
more space than expected
in the wall cavity,
and some of the supporting beams
are in the way
but ever-efficient Tim
has a novel solution
and starts to chip away
some of the beam
to squeeze it in.
You just know this will be
the bit of wood
that holds the whole house up.
Dick, voice-over: It's not
called the supporting beam
for nothing.
These old chateaus
are pretty sturdy,
but I wouldn't recommend cutting
into anything structural.
Tim: I'm only taking off
kind of sort of 5 mil
just off the surface just so
it can squeeze round it.
Ben: When's enough, you know,
enough sort of thing?
I'm just wary of how much
you are taking out there.
Dick, voice-over: Eventually,
Tim is happy and fits the pipe.
[Flush]
Dick, voice-over: Ah,
the sweet sound of success.
Tim: We got the waste in.
Brilliant.
Dick, voice-over: Tim may be
one step closer to being ready
for the first guests,
but there's still
an awful lot to do
in less than 4 weeks.
Tim: So that's a big chunk
of the bathroom done,
but we've still got the boarding
and the tiling,
and the floor's got to go in,
and the shower unit's
got to go in.
The sink's got to go in.
Ben: You got painting.
You got decorating.
The list is endless.
Dick, voice-over:
At least Ben can help.
Tim: Hopefully, Ben's gonna
fly back in and give us a hand
a couple of days
before we open.
Ben: I've never agreed to that.
I've never agreed to come back
and do more work.
Dick, voice-over: Ah, you need
to work things out
with Ben, Tim, or you're
not gonna get this place
ready in time.
Back at Le Vieux Chateau,
it's been two weeks
since I helped Donna locate
the spot in her lake
where she's hoping to find a
stash of buried medieval armor.
Today I've come back
because she's been in touch
and there's some good news.
Dick: You can tell exactly
how excited Donna was.
She's found a digger.
All right.
It's taken a couple of weeks,
but in France, that's quick.
She's had somebody in
who says
that they can actually
do the digging,
so we're back to the lake,
and we have a chance now
of scraping into the silt.
There's gonna be treasure
in there.
There's got to be armor,
weapons, all sorts of things,
and I just got my fingers
crossed for Donna today
because she really wants
to find something.
Donna: It's two weeks
since Dick was here,
and the wait
has been unbearable.
I couldn't sleep
last night at all.
It's very exciting.
I'm really
looking forward to it.
Dick, voice-over: I don't know
who's more excited
about this dig--me or Donna.
[Beep beep beep beep]
Donna: Oh, hi. Hi, Dick.
Nice to see you.
- Another day in paradise.
- Indeed. Ha ha ha!
- How lovely to see you.
- Hi, Dick. Mm. Ha ha!
Dick: It looks very tranquil.
Are you excited?
Donna: I am very excited.
It looks very tranquil today.
Dick: Did you have problems
finding a digger?
Donna: I had a bit of help
because I asked
one of my friends in the village
who's a lady farmer,
- but the arm is only 5 meters.
- 5 meters.
Dick, voice-over: I reckon
5 meters should be
just about long enough to get
under the thick layer of silt.
Donna: It's going to be amazing
if we find something.
Dick: You seem you said,
"if," there.
This is one of the first times
you said, "if," to me.
Donna: Well, now I'm worried.
I'm worried we're not
going to find it.
Dick, voice-over: I never
thought Donna would have
any last-minute doubts,
but the area of the lake
where we think the hoard
of armor may be
isn't the most easily
accessible part,
and I'm starting
to have doubts myself.
Donna: This is the end of--
end of my land here,
so the slope is not too bad
just on this side
if you see the field next door.
I think a digger
could get in here.
Dick, voice-over: There's no
gate or access point
here at all, so part of this
fence will have to be removed
to let the digger through,
and that's not the only thing
in the way.
Dick: It's gonna be interesting
because when he gets
to the trees
and close to the water,
be interested to see
what he can do.
Donna: I think he might
have to move those trees,
some of them.
Dick, voice-over:
This job is looking bigger
and more difficult.
Will the digger even be able
to reach the lake?
- Think it's Welly time.
- I think it's Welly time.
Dick, voice-over:
At Chateau Monteil,
Tim and his wife Krys
have spent the last 7 weeks
frantically trying
to convert their attic
into a family suite
for their B&B.
With the arrival of an added
family member, Baby Owen,
this renovation
is vital to increase
their capacity and income.
Tim: And we could do with
every penny we can get.
Dick, voice-over: There was
a lot to do back then,
but I must say, I'm impressed
with the work they've achieved,
but the suite's first guests
arrive today,
and the room still needs
its finishing touches.
Nothing like flying by the seat
of your pants.
Tim: We've frantically
got to get it done now,
and there's just a few bits
of really heavy furniture
that I need a hand with,
and hopefully,
we'll be all right, ready
in time for when they get here.
Dick, voice-over: Luckily,
Tim has managed to convince
younger brother Ben
to make a trip over
from England again
to help out.
- You made it.
- Yeah. Come on, then.
- Let's get straight on.
- OK.
Tim: Let's get straight on.
Dick, voice-over: Ben hasn't
seen the place
since he helped install
the plumbing for the bathroom
when it was just a shell.
Ben: Wow. All my hard work
paid off. Wow. That's amazing.
Tim: Oh, you did a very good
job, didn't you?
Ben: Yeah. I know.
God, I'm really impressed.
So none of it leaks? It's all--
Tim: None of it leaks,
touch wood.
Ben: Yeah. No.
I'm really impressed with this.
So when will you get
guests in here?
- Today.
- Today?
Tim: Yeah, anytime from 4:00,
so we need to get on.
Ben: It's, like, 1:00 now.
Tim: We need to get on,
so no cups of tea
until we're finished.
Ben: OK. Brilliant.
Well, let's go, then.
Dick, voice-over:
No cuppa, and the poor lad
hasn't even put
his bag down yet.
I hope Tim welcomes his guests
better than this.
Ben: Where does it go?
Tim: That one needs to go
in that room in there
in between the cupboard door
and the bedroom door.
Ben: All you're doing
in propping it up.
I'm having to carry
the whole thing.
Tim: Whoa, whoa, whoa,
whoa, whoa, whoa.
- Watch the top.
- Yo.
Tim: Let me get rid
of me shoes.
- That'll make it easier.
- Throw them away.
Ben: [Indistinct]
Hang on. Oh, watch it.
- Now, don't bounce--
- Oh, don't--
Tim: 7 years' bad luck
if you break that.
Ben: That was you, anyway.
Ohh, do I get
that cup of tea yet?
Dick, voice-over:
While Ben grabs
a well-deserved cup of tea,
Krys helps out.
Krys: I've got a Dutch family
arriving today.
It's 4 adults and two children.
Dick, voice-over:
You better hurry up, you two,
because it looks like
they're here.
Back at Le Vieux Chateau, the
digger Donna booked has arrived,
and the team have started
to remove the fence...
- Didn't miss it, right?
- No.
Dick, voice-over: so they can
access the lake
and start the search
for the buried armor.
Dick: They're on time,
and the first thing,
they'll get straight to work.
- Yeah.
- That's good. That's good.
Dick: You like that.
Now he's got to get
down that slope safely.
Donna: This is going
to be interesting.
Dick: Yeah, because
he's coming down here.
Donna: At an angle,
at an angle.
[Gasps]
How do they maneuver
these enormous machines?
Dick, voice-over:
Now the digger's off the truck
and in position, it's time
to clear the path to the lake.
Donna: He has done this before.
[Chainsaw revving]
Dick: He's got to go up
in the thing to do it. Yeah.
Donna: Yeah. My goodness.
Ha ha ha!
Health and Safety
French style.
Dick: This is a definite
"Don't try this at home," kids.
Dick, voice-over: Seriously,
never try this at home.
After almost two hours' work,
they clear a pathway
to the lake.
Donna: Now he wants to go
in the water.
- You happy?
- Oui. Maintenant.
Dick: Merci. Merci, monsieur.
Dick, voice-over:
I've been waiting two weeks
for this moment,
Donna longer than that.
Dick: This is the first scoop.
This is the first scoop.
Dick, voice-over: I don't think
he's gone deep enough,
but I want to run the metal
detector over it to be sure.
Dick: Just sweep.
Sweep over that lot.
- Nothing.
- Absolutely nothing.
- That's good.
- Nothing at all.
Donna: No. OK.
Down we go, deeper, I think.
Dick: OK. Brilliant.
Every time that goes in,
you get that little flutter,
don't you, in your tummy.
- Yeah. Ha ha ha!
- Ha ha ha!
Dick, voice-over:
But it doesn't look like
there's anything
in the second scoop, either.
Donna: That's just silt.
Dick: It's just silt.
Dick, voice-over: Third time
around, he's gone even deeper.
Dick: OK. Quick one.
There's nothing there?
Donna: No.
Dick: All the way around.
- No.
- OK.
Dick: We know we've
had a beep in here, OK?
Donna: There was a beep. Yeah.
Encore, s'il vous plait.
Dick: He's getting deeper.
What is very interesting,
exactly,
we have no idea
how deep this is going.
See? Look. He's going--
Donna: Oh, my goodness,
that's deep.
- Oh, he's on the bottom.
- He's on the bottom?
Donna: He's on the bottom.
Dick, voice-over:
And this time...
[Beeping]
- Here.
- Yes. I see. All right.
Donna: It's that thing.
It's that thing.
Dick: Nope. Nope. Look.
That is an old nail,
a very old nail.
Dick, voice-over: Not another
nail. It's always nails.
There's no way this gave us
all those strong beeps
we heard when we were
out on the boat.
Dick: Uh-huh. Encore.
Merci, monsieur.
Dick, voice-over:
I'm convinced there's still
something out there,
so we've got to keep digging.
Dick: What is that?
What is that?
Dick, voice-over: Could this be
the remains of the crates
the armor was placed in?
Back in the Dordogne,
with brother Ben's help,
Tim and Krys have got
their new attic suite ready
just in time for the arrival
of the first guests--
a family from Holland.
- Hi.
- Hi there. Michelle.
Adam: Hi. I'm Adam.
Nice to meet you.
Tim: Nice to meet you, too.
I'm gonna leave you
in my wife's capable hands,
and she'll take you
up to your room.
Krys: So I'm gonna take you
to the kids' bedroom.
It's over here to the left.
Boy: Oh, wow.
Krys: We've got portable air
conditioner in both bedrooms.
If it gets really hot, you know,
you can just put it on.
- You're all good?
- Yeah.
- Yeah? All right.
- Yeah.
Krys: All right, and I'll
just show Mum and Dad.
It's just right here,
and this is your bedroom.
Adam: Perfect.
What a nice room.
Krys: There you go.
Thank you very much.
- It's really nice.
- It's really nice.
- Thank you very much.
- I just have to watch my head.
Dick, voice-over:
Well, apparently, the Dutch
are the tallest people
in the world.
- Built for French people.
- Yeah.
Krys: Yes--that's true--
and for me, too.
- Yeah, and for you. Yes.
- I'm quite small. Ha ha ha!
Krys: Hey.
- How was it?
- It was nice.
- You think they liked it?
- I think they really liked it.
- Yeah?
- Yeah.
The dad said it's
what he expected it to be, so--
Tim: Cool, and they were
all right with the beams
being up in the attic?
Krys: It's OK.
He just needs to--
Tim: They're all
very tall, aren't they?
Dick, voice-over:
As the family settle in...
Girl: Yo!
Dick, voice-over: Ben is roped
into one final job.
Tim and Krys own 23 sheep.
Tim: They look more like goats,
but they are sheep.
The main problem with having
6 1/2 acres of land
and a chateau to renovate
and a newborn baby is,
you have no time to mow lawns,
so we got the sheep.
We bought 4 sheep.
Very quickly, we ended up
with a lot of sheep.
We sell on the lambs each year
to other people
that want to do the same thing.
We don't take them
to the abattoir.
Dick, voice-over: The sheep
serve another purpose, as well.
They're a great attraction
for the guests.
Tim: The kids love them,
and when the guests come
and they've all got
kids with them,
they love the sheep,
and they feed the sheep,
and we give them corn.
Krys: Yeah.
They look very exotic.
Tim: Yeah, and we've got
a couple that are
really, really friendly.
Dick, voice-over:
With the guests now here
and before they spot the sheep,
Tim will need to give them
their worm medicine,
and while he's at it,
he can tag them, too.
Ben: Are their horns sharp?
Tim: Nah, no sharper than a
knife or something, you know?
Ben: I don't feel comfortable
doing this,
but I'm willing
to give it a go, I suppose.
Tim: All right.
If you go in the pen
on the left...
Ben: Yeah?
Tim: I'll grab a sheep for you
and then throw it over to you.
I'll staple its ears
and then chuck it out.
- Go for it.
- Make is sound so easy.
Dick, voice-over: OK. Show Ben
how it's done, then, Tim.
- Oh, great.
- There you go.
Ben: Oh, I can't get it
because your arm's in the way.
Oh, got it.
You said it's not hard.
Oh! You said it's like--
You got your--
Tim: In you go there.
You're all right.
Just put your arm around him.
There you go.
Ben: Thought you said
they weren't sharp.
Tim: They're not sharp.
Ben: Tim, do you want
to do it quickly?
Tim: Yeah. Will do, and just
hold him really still
so he doesn't move.
Ben: Oh, yep.
Tim: Whatever you do,
don't drop him.
Ben: You make it sound so easy.
- Oh!
- Ha!
- Oh, for goodness sake.
- That's what I mean.
Ben: Quickly, then.
Look at him.
Tim: Come on.
Ben: I'm putting him down.
Tim: Right. Put him down.
Ben: All right, my fellow. Ooh.
Dick, voice-over: Sheep are
pretty hardy creatures.
I think it was Ben
who came off worse then.
- Next.
- Oh, Christ.
Ben: Why are you passing it
to me like a baby?
Look. It kicks, you know.
Leave it. Oh, you [beep].
Tim: Nice and calm,
nice and calm.
Ben: I am doing it calm.
Oh, you--nngh! Christ.
This one's heavier
than the last one.
You have to go a lot faster.
Tim: Let's just give him
some worming--
Ben: Yeah. Do it.
Dick, voice-over:
Hang in there, Ben.
There's only 22
more sheep to go.
Ben: I don't think
I'm cut out for the--
Tim: The good life?
Dick, voice-over: Back in
Normandy at Le Vieux Chateau,
we've been dredging the lake
for more than an hour
in search of 20 crates
of armor
supposedly buried there
during the Second World War.
We just pulled out some wood.
Sadly, it's not
the remains of a crate.
Next, we find some more metal.
Dick: What is that?
You're on again, Donna.
Donna: Yep.
[Beeping]
- What do we got there?
- A tin can. Ha ha!
Donna: Oh, I'm getting
really disappointed, Dick.
Dick, voice-over:
So no luck again,
but we're not giving up yet.
Donna wants to try digging
a little further along the bank.
- Personally...
- Yes?
Donna: this is the spot
that I probably would like,
only because we got
the readings there...
Dick: Yeah.
We got readings here.
Donna: it's deeper
than over there, and--
Dick: It's closer to where
the trees are at the edge,
- as well, which means that--
- Exactly.
Donna: The original bank
is probably closer to this bit
than two bays along.
Dick, voice-over: The only
problem with this spot is,
there are 6 large trees blocking
the digger's route to the lake,
but Donna's had an idea.
Dick, voice-over: They're going
to use the digger as a tank.
- Wow!
- Whoo!
Donna: That's one way
to get a tree down.
It's fantastic.
I've never known
land clearance done
so quickly before in my life.
It's quite amazing.
Now I'm getting excited again
about the next patch
in case we find it there.
- [Whistles]
- Ooh!
Dick: Oh, he's straight in.
Look at that.
He's not messing around.
Dick, voice-over: We've been
here for 3 hours now,
and the digger's
got to go back soon,
so we're running out of time.
Dick: It looks like
a piece of wood to me.
Donna: A piece of wood
that could be a box.
Oh, my God.
Dick, voice-over:
This looks very promising.
Dick: Get your detector.
Let's go in.
Donna: Yep.
Dick: Let's have a look.
Donna: I'll have a look
at that bit of wood.
Dick: I know. Absolutely.
Donna: Is that a bit of wood,
or is that a bit of--
[Beeping]
What is it?
It's too long for a box.
Nothing.
Dick: That is
definitely manmade,
but it's too long for a box.
Donna: Do you know what
it looks like to me?
It looks like a floorboard
or something.
- Yeah, yeah.
- Yeah.
Dick, voice-over:
It's another disappointment.
Donna: No. This is all silt.
[Beeping]
Dick: OK. Brilliant.
- Encore?
- Oui. Encore, s'il vous plait.
- C'est possible?
- D'accord.
Donna: Merci.
Dick, voice-over:
The digger has to go.
He's going in for one more dig,
so it's now or never...
Donna: Oh, come on, please.
Dick: That's quite deep.
Dick, voice-over: but it's just
another pile of silt.
Sadly, it's time
to admit defeat,
but ever the optimist,
there's no way
Donna's giving up for good.
Donna: I think what's happened
is, over time, over 77 years...
Dick: Yeah.
Donna: The water
has eroded the bank,
and so the natural bank
would have been
much further in the lake.
Dick: And then
they thrown it in.
It's outside our reach.
Donna: It's outside of the reach
of a digger like this,
so the only way to find it
would be to drain the lake.
Dick: Oh.
Donna: Ha ha!
It's quite a big job.
- It's not a small job.
- Ha ha ha!
Dick, voice-over: What's more,
if you want to drain a lake,
you need a permit,
and here in France,
that could take a year
to be approved,
maybe even longer.
Dick: Donna, I don't know
what to say. I'm gutted for you.
I'm gutted that we haven't
actually found it. Yeah.
Donna: I am, too.
I won't give up.
Dick: I know you won't.
Donna: It might take a few
years, but I'm going to find it.
Dick: Let me know and make
sure--make sure I get a call
because when it gets drained,
I want to be here.
Donna: Absolutely.
Dick: I am so sad for Donna.
She believes there is treasure
in the lake.
I believe
there's treasure in the lake.
One thing that's really
encouraging is,
she's not giving up.
There's French bureaucracy
to fight now
because she wants
to drain her lake and get in,
have a good look around.
I'm expecting a phone call
out of the blue in the future
that says, "Dick,
I've drained the lake.
Come and help me find
my treasure,"
and she will find it.
Dick, voice-over:
Good luck, Donna.
Hopefully, you'll be calling me.
I'm convinced, and I'd hate
to miss the adventure.
Owning a chateau
can be a money pit.
With all the land
that usually comes with them,
a great way to save
or earn some extra cash
is to own livestock.
Whether they're
to keep the grass cut,
entertain the guests,
or be a source of food,
they can bring financial gains
not to be laughed at.
We regularly get eggs
and meat from our chickens,
and today we've got 200 kilos
of pork from our pigs.
First, I need to preserve
the hams
with the help
of our friend Brett.
Dick: I'm gonna put it in
first like that,
10 kilos of salt.
Dick, voice-over: Packing them
in a mixture of salt, sugar,
peppercorns, and bay leaves
draws out the moisture
and gives them flavor.
Dick: Every day,
I will open these out.
I'll rub the salt
all over them, turn them over
just until we extract
all the juices.
Dick, voice-over: I'll do this
for the next two weeks.
Dick: After that, they come out,
get wrapped up in muslin,
hung up.
Then we wait.
Dick, voice-over: After this
curing, the hams should be dried
and ready to eat
in about 6 months.
With the help of
my mother-in-law Jenny,
Brett and I chop, dice,
and slice the rest of the meat.
It's always been important
for me to know
where my food comes from.
Dick: When it comes
to people eating this,
we know everything.
We know the parents
of the wieners that we got.
We know the food
we've put into them.
We know the attention
they've had.
We know how
they were dispatched.
I think too often now,
we just go and buy and trust,
and, I must admit,
I like knowing about my food,
and it's gonna taste great.
That's the other
very important thing.
Right. Let's go and get it
in the freezer. Ha ha ha!
Brett: Aye. [Indistinct]
Dick, voice-over: 350 miles
roughly south of us,
Tim and his brother Ben are
dealing with their livestock,
which they keep
not for the meat,
but to entertain the guests
and to keep the grass cut.
They've just finished
tagging them.
- OK. Christ.
- You got him?
Ben: Bye.
I'm covered in, uh--
I don't know--poo?
My t-shirt is ruined.
Tim: Yep, and your shorts
are a bit messy, anyway.
Ben: I feel like I've been
beaten up, mugged.
I'm happy to help, but I'm not
doing this one again.
I'll carry your furniture,
paint, decorate, whatever,
but this manual handling-sheep
thing, I can't do that.
Tim: You're embracing
rural life.
For your first time tagging,
that went all right...
Ben: Honest to God--
Tim: no casualties
apart from ourselves.
Let's go.
Let's go get cleaned up.
Dick, voice-over:
There is no rest for Tim.
He's got to get back
to the chateau
to prepare dinner
for the newly arrived guests...
Tim: Everyone's eating.
Krys: Yeah, 5 adult meals
and 3 adult meals
from the other bedroom.
- No kids meals.
- No, no kids meals.
Tim: Oh, all right.
Well, that's good.
Dick, voice-over: so it's down
to the veg patch and greenhouse
to grab some vegetables.
In the middle of spring
a surprise frost
killed off almost
the entire crop.
They cut out all the dead stuff,
gave it a good water,
and prayed a little,
so did it recover?
Tim: I'm relieved that we've got
stuff to give them.
I thought we'd lose everything,
to be honest.
I think we've got enough food
to put together
a decent dinner for them.
Dick, voice-over: It looks
like a great crop to me.
Tim is a chef by trade,
and so at Chateau Monteil,
it stands to reason
he's the head chef here, too.
Tim: These are the cucumbers
out the garden.
I'm just gonna soften them up
in a bit of pickle,
pickling solution,
stuff them, roll them up,
and they'll just be a garnish
for the smoked trout,
and it's just a little bit
of citrus mayonnaise
just to finish it off.
Dick, voice-over: And then it's
taken out to the table.
What did the guests think?
Krys: They said the food's
really nice.
It's done very professionally.
One of the family's
taking pictures of it,
it's so cool.
Adam: Well, the food is lovely.
It's being served very nicely,
but it was really nice
that we saw the vegetables
from the garden
being carried upstairs
to the kitchen,
and then being served
at your table is really nice.
Dick, voice-over: It's a hit.
Well done, Tim and Krys.
Tim: I think it went
brilliantly, didn't it?
I think everyone
had a great time,
et all their food, enjoyed it,
happy customers,
happy B&B owners.
Krys: All the hard work...
Tim: It's a win-win situation.
Krys: it's all worthwhile.
Tim: It's all worthwhile.
Dick, voice-over: After
a difficult start to the year
with Baby Owen's early arrival
putting them behind
in their renovations,
they've turned things around
and successfully launched
their new accommodations.
Krys: It's been
a long journey.
We've had our ups and downs,
lots and lots of downs,
but seeing what we've done,
you know, it's all worth it.
Tim: It's an amazing
roller-coaster journey
that takes a hell
of a lot out of you
but gives you so much back.
It's an absolute adventure.
Krys: We've got income from
doing the B&B in the chateau.
It's great.
It's such a good feeling.
I think the decision
to renovate a chateau,
all of that hard work,
it's totally worth it.
Tim: We're setting the kids up,
aren't we,
with an amazing future
for themselves, as well.
You know, our hard work
will benefit them
and hopefully their kids,
and it looks like
it's gonna be a great success.
Dick, voice-over:
Seems their hearts belong
to Chateau Monteil.
Here's to Tim, Krys,
and Little Owen.
Tim: It's a brilliant life.
The weather's good,
and the wine's cheap,
and the food's delicious.
Dick, voice-over: I couldn't
agree more about the food.
It's one of the best things
about France.
At our place,
of the 200 kilos of pork,
I've reserved 4 kilos
to turn into one
of my favorite foods--
salami.
We minced it up
and added some salt.
Dick: And I thought
what we'd do with this batch
just to start off with, we just
make some pepper salamis.
Dick, voice-over: Seeing
as she's working so hard,
we'll name this batch
in honor of my mother-in-law.
Dick: These are called
Jennifer's salamis, yeah?
It's a very tactile thing,
sausages.
Jenny: Ha ha ha!
Dick: Sausages
always make me laugh.
There's not a thing about making
sausages I don't find humorous.
Jenny: Ha ha! Ha ha!
Brett: OK, so now
you can put your skin on.
Dick, voice-over: With the help
of Brett's sausage maker,
we push the meat through a hole
and into the sausage skins.
Dick: Yeah.
Now, when you do salamis,
you have to determine
before we start
how long a salami you want.
- Well...
- It's a Jennifer sala--
Jenny: I'd say 10 inches.
- Yeah?
- Hee hee!
Dick: OK.
I'm not saying a single thing.
Not too slowly.
Not too slow. Not too slowly.
Jenny: Can't believe
I'm doing this. Ha ha!
Dick: You moved to the country.
It's what country girls do.
Where do you think
they get their entertainment?
Brett: Look at those.
Dick: They're nice.
They're gonna be
very, very rustic.
Jenny: Have you noticed--
have you noticed
they're getting bigger
as the night goes on?
Dick: I'm not saying anything.
Jenny: Ha ha ha!
That's the king of salamis.
Dick: It is, isn't it?
It's nice.
Dick, voice-over:
We've made 10 sausages.
We now need to dry them
for at least 4 weeks,
and then they're ready to eat.
Dick: Not bad for a first bunch,
and there's more to come.
Jenny: As your daughter
would say, voila. Ha ha ha!
- Voila.
- Voila.
Dick, voice-over: Next time,
we meet a whole new batch
of intrepid owners
dealing with their chateaus.
A trio of chateau rookies try
to fix one of the chimneys...
Man: It's not supposed to be
coming out of the sides, is it?
I wonder why it's doing that.
Dick, voice-over:
without much success.
Man: So we managed to get
through to the chimney breast,
but it's the wrong one.
Dick, voice-over: The owners
of a luxury chateau hotel
embark on a mission
to win over the locals...
Man: Lots of anti us
in the press, though.
We had protesters, all sorts.
Dick, voice-over: but
their efforts to drum up
much-needed business
don't go to plan.
Man: Only 8 people here.
There's more supplies
and more staff
than there are customers.
Dick, voice-over:
When a family deals
with its influx of flies...
Woman: So we get this treatment
done twice a year.
Dick, voice-over:
things to awry...
[Alarm bell ringing]
Dick, voice-over: and in our
fairy-tale chateau,
I get down and dirty
building an outdoor toilet.
Dick: Never mind
fancy [indistinct].
Build a compost loo.
I'm Dick Strawbridge,
and along with my wife Angel
and our two children,
we left the UK
for as whole new life in France
and bought this
magnificent chateau.
Dick: We haven't ever regretted
what we've done.
It is so worth it.
Dick, voice-over:
We've gradually been making it
in to our home as well as
running it as a business...
Dick: That's a long way up.
Dick, voice-over: but it
turns out, we're not alone,
as dozens of Brits are doing
exactly the same thing.
Child: Ha ha ha!
Man: Sometimes you have to pinch
yourself to think, "I own that."
Dick, voice-over:
In this series, Angel and I
will reveal more about
our journey as chateau owners...
Dick: Finding a scrap here,
it's worth money.
Might be able to pay this man.
Dick, voice-over: and guide
these daring Brits
where we can...
Dick: It's a solid,
old bridge, matey.
Dick, voice-over:
as they renovate...
Man: This is looking good.
I'm quite happy with this.
Dick, voice-over: repair...
Man: I've never
done this before,
so it should be all right.
Dick, voice-over: and struggle
to transform these buildings
into their homes
and businesses...
Man: Go, go, go, go,
go, go, go, go.
Absolutely magnificent.
Different man: This is
the glamorous chateau life
that everyone think for me,
just trying to avoid
getting my face nearer
the toilet seat.
Different man: This is not
the way to make money.
Dick, voice-over: but however
hard the going gets,
these plucky Brits
can always say
they're kings and queens
of their very own castles.
Woman: Cheers. Cin cin.
Dick, voice-over: Today
I continue my search
for a sunken hoard of armor
in one chateau's lake...
[Beeping]
Donna: Oh, my God.
Oh, my God! Ha ha ha!
Dick: I can hear it.
I can hear it
through your earphones.
Dick, voice-over: then battle
to get access to the lakeside...
but when we start digging,
there's plenty
that gets us excited.
Dick: What is that?
What is that?
Dick, voice-over:
When one chateau couple rushed
to get their whole attic
renovated
for the holiday season,
they need furniture...
Tim: Would you let me have
a rug, as well,
and round it to 200?
I've only got 200 with me.
That's why I ask.
Dick, voice-over:
and they need help...
Man: Hopefully, Ben's
gonna fly back here
and give us a hand a couple
of days before we open.
Ben: I've never agreed to that.
I've never agreed to come back
and doing more work.
Dick, voice-over: and my
mother-in-law and I
get our hands full
making salamis.
Dick: The sausage
always make me laugh.
There's not a thing
about making sausages
that I don't find humorous.
Man: Walk up. I bet
the chickens will roost on it.
Dick, voice-over:
I'm Dick Strawbridge,
engineer and former lieutenant
colonel in the British Army,
and with my wife Angela, we've
been renovating our chateau
into a home and business.
Angel: This is
my calling in life.
Dick, voice-over:
It's not been easy...
Dick: Think I'm a bit
too old for this.
Dick, voice-over: so my heart
goes out to anyone else
insane enough to take on
a chateau renovation.
Take Chateau Monteil,
for example.
It's owned by couple
Tim and Krys,
who live there with
their newborn son Owen.
Tim: The day that you
went into labor was--
might be because you were up
a ladder painting windows.
Krys: Yeah.
Dick, voice-over:
Located in the Dordogne,
they bought this place
back in 2013
for just £380,000
after falling in love with it.
Tim: It was kind of like
Sleeping Beauty's castle,
the fairy-tale castle
that was covered in ivy
and rambling thorns.
Dick, voice-over: After two
solid years of renovations,
they opened as a boutique B&B
in August 2015
with two double rooms
and two suites,
but they've barely broken even,
and with the arrival
of Baby Owen, they need
to make more money...
Krys: We want to be able
to earn enough income,
hopefully, just to get by.
Dick, voice-over: so they're
opening some new accommodation.
Tim: Our main tasks
at the moment
are completely renovating
the attic space
to create a new family suite.
Dick, voice-over:
It needs to be ready
for its first booking
in 4 weeks' time,
so the pressure is on
to get it finished...
Tim: We really have got
to get the attic finished.
It's our main priority,
loads to do, loads to do.
Dick, voice-over: so they called
in the cavalry from England--
Tim's little brother Ben.
Ben: Hello.
Dick, voice-over: He spent
a whole day helping Tim
lay down the new patio,
but he didn't
just come here to work...
Ben: I was planning
on going canoeing
and seeing my nephew
whilst I was here.
Dick, voice-over: so after
helping lay the patio,
Tim's decided
to give him a day off...
- Bye, Ben.
- See you.
Dick, voice-over: so while
they wait for him to return
and help fix up the attic,
Tim and Krys can catch up
on some of the other
important chores.
One thing they need to do
is check up on their garden.
To help save the pennies,
they grow their own produce,
but there's been a bit
of a disaster
with the vegetables
they planted 4 weeks ago.
Tim: We got the whole veggie
plot pretty much planted up,
but last week, we had two nights
of really, really heavy frost,
didn't we,
just totally random...
Krys: Yeah.
It was unexpected.
Tim: just bizarre,
just totally bizarre,
and most things have died.
These are the tomatoes
that we put in last month,
and, amazingly, they're the only
things still standing, really.
Touch wood, we should still
have tomatoes at least.
The guests'll have to have
shop-brought veggies
instead of wonderful,
home-grown vegetables...
Dick, voice-over: It may
have been better to start
these crops off
in the greenhouse
and then move them outside
after the last frost.
Tim: but nature does
what it wants.
That's the whole point
behind doing this,
is so that we can offer
evening meals
and turn some sort
of a profit on it
because there's not much room
for making a profit
if you buy it all
from the markets.
Dick, voice-over: Every penny
counts for Tim and Krys,
so after removing the dead
plants, he's starting again.
Tim: I water them
and give them a week
and see if anything grows back.
Dick, voice-over: Yep.
For those looking to live
the chateau dream,
be warned.
The weather here can be just
as unpredictable as back home...
and it's quickly turned again,
but that gives Tim and Krys
the perfect excuse to do
some furniture shopping
for the attic suite.
Tim: It's a miserable day
outside, so we're popping off
to see if we can get some nice,
secondhand, antique furniture.
Krys: Yeah. We're gonna
go shopping. Ha ha ha!
Tim: We're hoping we might
find a few gems.
Sometimes we go,
and we come home
with way more
than we ever expected to get.
Sometimes we don't
find anything.
All right.
Let's take you for a drive.
Owen: [Crying]
Dick, voice-over: Tim and Krys
are always on the lookout
for a bargain, and they've heard
a fellow ex-pat chateau owner
is selling off some
traditional, French furniture
that might suit the new
family suite when it's finished.
Woman: So there's the room
with the rugs.
Tim: How much do you want
for the rugs?
- Um, 30.
- OK.
Woman: I've got a few
more things in here.
Tim: Pictures.
Woman: Pictures,
I wanted 20 for these two...
- OK.
- the pair.
- OK.
- They're quite nicely--
Tim: I think, like,
in the dining room
or somewhere, babe, we could
use those, couldn't we?
I mean, they're that kind
of nice, French--
Woman: Yes.
Tim: What about your corner?
Woman: The corner unit...
- It's quite nice and old.
- that one's quite old.
- How much do you want?
- About 40 euros for that.
Tim: OK.
I quite like the table.
Woman: OK.
- I like the dresser.
- Uh-huh.
- I like that.
- OK.
Tim: I think we like
the pictures.
Woman: And you wanted
that light fitting?
5 apiece
and 10 for that one.
Tim: Yeah.
I think we'd have them.
That'd be perfect for us.
Dick, voice-over: Money's tight,
so Tim has developed
his own special technique
when it comes to bartering.
Tim: Would you let me
have a rug, as well,
and round it to 200?
Woman: Uh--
Tim: I've only got 200 with me.
That's why.
Dick, voice-over:
Clever.
- Ha ha!
- 210?
Tim: 200...3.
I can do you 203. Ha ha!
That's where I'm at. Ha ha!
Woman: Fine. Have it.
Tim: Bag it up.
I'll take it. Ha ha ha!
Woman: I will do.
Tim: That's great. Thank you.
Oh.
Perfect, made to measure.
I think that's most
of the furniture
for the attic suite sorted now.
Well, thank you for your time...
Woman: You're welcome.
Tim: and look us up online
and see your furniture
in its new home
and if you're ever passing,
pop in for a cup of tea.
- Yes. We will. That'd be great.
- Sounds good.
Tim: You've got our address.
Door's always open.
- Thank you.
- Thanks very much.
Tim: All right. Thank you
very much. See you soon.
- Bye-bye.
- Bye-bye.
Tim: We've got what we came for.
We've got as few of the nice
little bits and bobs.
It'll just sort of
fill the rooms
and give everyone
a bit more furniture,
and it's always great
to pop out,
and you meet nice people
and you see a bit more
of the country
that you haven't seen before.
It's always well worth doing.
Owen: [Crying]
Tim: It's all right, mate.
We're off home.
Krys: We're going now.
Dick, voice-over: But before
they can fill the suite
with the new purchases,
Tim needs to finish it,
and with his brother Ben
in to help,
things aren't going
quite to plan.
Tim: We're about 30 centimeters
short of pipes.
Ben: Why haven't you got
enough pipe?
Tim: Because you've cut
far too much off. Ha ha!
Dick, voice-over: Tucked away
in the lush, rolling hills
of Central Normandy
is the ancient Vieux Chateau.
The oldest part dates back
more than a thousand years,
and it's this wing that's being
run as a bed and breakfast
by retired vet Donna McDougall.
Donna: I'm constantly
on the move here--
changing beds,
cooking, cleaning--
but it's good because
it means that I can eat
a little more cheese
because I burn off energy.
You do not need to go to the gym
when you live in a chateau
that's based on 5 floors.
Dick, voice-over: As a British
owner of this magnificent place,
she's in esteemed company.
Donna: There've only been
two English owners
of this chateau in its entire
1,100-year history,
one being Henry I of England,
who sacked it
in the 12th century, and me.
Dick, voice-over:
It's located in the heart
of historic Normandy,
a region known
not only for its rich,
medieval history,
but for its role
in the Second World War,
and Donna's chateau bears
physical reminders
of when the Germans occupied
this part of France.
Donna: The Germans were
in the chateau during the war
for 4 years,
and while they were here,
they left some graffiti
on my fireplace,
and we think it says,
"Where strength or power
"is released or set free,
bad humans must fear
the majesty of the Fuhrer,"
and you can see the "Fuhrer"
pretty clearly--
F-U-H-R-E-R.
Dick, voice-over: Donna thinks
there's even more history
here, too.
She's been told that
during the war,
the chateau's owner stashed
a horde of medieval armor
in the lake to prevent it
being stolen
by the Nazi occupiers...
- We're moving.
- We are.
- We're at sea.
- Whoo hoo!
Dick: Treasure's here.
Dick, voice-over: so I'm
helping her look for it
with my trusty, little boat
and my metal detector.
[Beeping]
Donna: Oh, my God.
Oh, my God! Ha ha ha!
Dick: I can hear it.
I can hear it
through your earphones.
Donna: Listen.
Dick, voice-over: The metal
detector is indicating
something in the deepest part
of the lake,
so now I want to try something.
Dick: We get a really strong
signal by that stick, don't we?
I'm gonna put the magnet in,
see if we get any--yeah.
This is where
the strongest signal's been.
Hmm.
It's a bit of metal.
There's a bit of metal there
definitely.
Dick, voice-over: Bah!
It's just a rusty, old nail...
but the signal from underwater
is still strong.
Dick: I think we're gonna
have to dig, Donna.
I think this is--
We're definitely getting
strong signals here.
Donna: I need to find us
a digger.
- Yeah.
- Yeah.
Dick, voice-over:
Whatever is here is sitting
below a 4-foot layer of silt,
and the trees
make this part of the lake
tricky to access.
This is going to be challenging.
Donna: I think it's here.
I really do think it's here.
Dick: I--I think I agree
with you, actually.
- Do you?
- I really do.
- Ha ha ha!
- Oh, man...it's here.
Dick, voice-over:
That's all we can do for today.
Donna now needs to find a digger
to extract any hidden treasure,
but it'll need to be big enough
to reach into the lake.
If she can find one, I'm coming
straight back to help.
Dick: It's been a privilege
to be here, but I think
we've got a lot of work
ahead of us
because that silt is deep.
The armor has been in there 70
years if it's in there at all,
and--guess what--
I think it is.
Dick, voice-over: In the
Dordogne sits Chateau Monteil,
where new parents Tim and Krys
are struggling to build
a family suite in time
for the summer holiday season
in less than 4 weeks' time.
Krys: What's killing me
is sleepless nights.
Dick, voice-over: They're hoping
it'll bring in
much-needed extra cash,
as they're barely breaking even,
and now they have
an extra mouth to feed.
Krys: I am getting
really panicky
because I think he's got
separation anxiety.
How am I gonna function
this summer?
Because I need
to change the beds,
clean the house.
Even Hoovering
is a struggle for me
because he's just
a cranky baby right now.
Dick, voice-over: Tim has
brought his little brother Ben
in to help out,
their latest job--
trying to fit a new waste pipe
for the family suite bathroom...
Tim: Ben, can you cut me
a bit of pipe...
Ben: Uh-huh.
Tim: that is 169?
Dick, voice-over: but they've
been having difficulty
cutting it to the right length.
I hope they're checking
the measurements.
Ben: Whoops.
Dick, voice-over:
Ben's lack of precision
has been wasting a lot of pipe.
Ben: But measure twice,
cut once, as they like to say.
Dick, voice-over: At least Tim
seems to have a large supply.
Tim: All right. We're gonna get
the pipe from downstairs.
I think that's a bit too long.
I just need it, like,
a centimeter,
two centimeters shorter,
I think.
Ben: Why can't you move
the toilet two centimeters?
Tim: Because of it's
where it's got to go.
I don't want it too close
to the towel rail,
so we want the one waste pipe
for the sink
coming up about there.
Ben: Yeah.
Tim: Give me 119.
Ben: Now, you say 119
this time.
Do you want, like,
a couple of centimeters off it?
Tim: Well, I've deliberately
gone two centimeters shorter,
so it should be fine.
Ben: Yeah. Heh.
Dick, voice-over: Anyone would
think they're learning this
as they go along.
Tim: I've kind of done bit
and bobs of it before,
but, yeah,
it's the first bathroom
I've really kind of done
start to finish.
Dick, voice-over:
Ben thinks his big brother
is doing a great job.
Ben: He seems to know
what he's doing.
Like I say, it's amazing what
he's picked up off the Internet.
Dick, voice-over: Finally,
the pipe is in place,
but it's taking up
more space than expected
in the wall cavity,
and some of the supporting beams
are in the way
but ever-efficient Tim
has a novel solution
and starts to chip away
some of the beam
to squeeze it in.
You just know this will be
the bit of wood
that holds the whole house up.
Dick, voice-over: It's not
called the supporting beam
for nothing.
These old chateaus
are pretty sturdy,
but I wouldn't recommend cutting
into anything structural.
Tim: I'm only taking off
kind of sort of 5 mil
just off the surface just so
it can squeeze round it.
Ben: When's enough, you know,
enough sort of thing?
I'm just wary of how much
you are taking out there.
Dick, voice-over: Eventually,
Tim is happy and fits the pipe.
[Flush]
Dick, voice-over: Ah,
the sweet sound of success.
Tim: We got the waste in.
Brilliant.
Dick, voice-over: Tim may be
one step closer to being ready
for the first guests,
but there's still
an awful lot to do
in less than 4 weeks.
Tim: So that's a big chunk
of the bathroom done,
but we've still got the boarding
and the tiling,
and the floor's got to go in,
and the shower unit's
got to go in.
The sink's got to go in.
Ben: You got painting.
You got decorating.
The list is endless.
Dick, voice-over:
At least Ben can help.
Tim: Hopefully, Ben's gonna
fly back in and give us a hand
a couple of days
before we open.
Ben: I've never agreed to that.
I've never agreed to come back
and do more work.
Dick, voice-over: Ah, you need
to work things out
with Ben, Tim, or you're
not gonna get this place
ready in time.
Back at Le Vieux Chateau,
it's been two weeks
since I helped Donna locate
the spot in her lake
where she's hoping to find a
stash of buried medieval armor.
Today I've come back
because she's been in touch
and there's some good news.
Dick: You can tell exactly
how excited Donna was.
She's found a digger.
All right.
It's taken a couple of weeks,
but in France, that's quick.
She's had somebody in
who says
that they can actually
do the digging,
so we're back to the lake,
and we have a chance now
of scraping into the silt.
There's gonna be treasure
in there.
There's got to be armor,
weapons, all sorts of things,
and I just got my fingers
crossed for Donna today
because she really wants
to find something.
Donna: It's two weeks
since Dick was here,
and the wait
has been unbearable.
I couldn't sleep
last night at all.
It's very exciting.
I'm really
looking forward to it.
Dick, voice-over: I don't know
who's more excited
about this dig--me or Donna.
[Beep beep beep beep]
Donna: Oh, hi. Hi, Dick.
Nice to see you.
- Another day in paradise.
- Indeed. Ha ha ha!
- How lovely to see you.
- Hi, Dick. Mm. Ha ha!
Dick: It looks very tranquil.
Are you excited?
Donna: I am very excited.
It looks very tranquil today.
Dick: Did you have problems
finding a digger?
Donna: I had a bit of help
because I asked
one of my friends in the village
who's a lady farmer,
- but the arm is only 5 meters.
- 5 meters.
Dick, voice-over: I reckon
5 meters should be
just about long enough to get
under the thick layer of silt.
Donna: It's going to be amazing
if we find something.
Dick: You seem you said,
"if," there.
This is one of the first times
you said, "if," to me.
Donna: Well, now I'm worried.
I'm worried we're not
going to find it.
Dick, voice-over: I never
thought Donna would have
any last-minute doubts,
but the area of the lake
where we think the hoard
of armor may be
isn't the most easily
accessible part,
and I'm starting
to have doubts myself.
Donna: This is the end of--
end of my land here,
so the slope is not too bad
just on this side
if you see the field next door.
I think a digger
could get in here.
Dick, voice-over: There's no
gate or access point
here at all, so part of this
fence will have to be removed
to let the digger through,
and that's not the only thing
in the way.
Dick: It's gonna be interesting
because when he gets
to the trees
and close to the water,
be interested to see
what he can do.
Donna: I think he might
have to move those trees,
some of them.
Dick, voice-over:
This job is looking bigger
and more difficult.
Will the digger even be able
to reach the lake?
- Think it's Welly time.
- I think it's Welly time.
Dick, voice-over:
At Chateau Monteil,
Tim and his wife Krys
have spent the last 7 weeks
frantically trying
to convert their attic
into a family suite
for their B&B.
With the arrival of an added
family member, Baby Owen,
this renovation
is vital to increase
their capacity and income.
Tim: And we could do with
every penny we can get.
Dick, voice-over: There was
a lot to do back then,
but I must say, I'm impressed
with the work they've achieved,
but the suite's first guests
arrive today,
and the room still needs
its finishing touches.
Nothing like flying by the seat
of your pants.
Tim: We've frantically
got to get it done now,
and there's just a few bits
of really heavy furniture
that I need a hand with,
and hopefully,
we'll be all right, ready
in time for when they get here.
Dick, voice-over: Luckily,
Tim has managed to convince
younger brother Ben
to make a trip over
from England again
to help out.
- You made it.
- Yeah. Come on, then.
- Let's get straight on.
- OK.
Tim: Let's get straight on.
Dick, voice-over: Ben hasn't
seen the place
since he helped install
the plumbing for the bathroom
when it was just a shell.
Ben: Wow. All my hard work
paid off. Wow. That's amazing.
Tim: Oh, you did a very good
job, didn't you?
Ben: Yeah. I know.
God, I'm really impressed.
So none of it leaks? It's all--
Tim: None of it leaks,
touch wood.
Ben: Yeah. No.
I'm really impressed with this.
So when will you get
guests in here?
- Today.
- Today?
Tim: Yeah, anytime from 4:00,
so we need to get on.
Ben: It's, like, 1:00 now.
Tim: We need to get on,
so no cups of tea
until we're finished.
Ben: OK. Brilliant.
Well, let's go, then.
Dick, voice-over:
No cuppa, and the poor lad
hasn't even put
his bag down yet.
I hope Tim welcomes his guests
better than this.
Ben: Where does it go?
Tim: That one needs to go
in that room in there
in between the cupboard door
and the bedroom door.
Ben: All you're doing
in propping it up.
I'm having to carry
the whole thing.
Tim: Whoa, whoa, whoa,
whoa, whoa, whoa.
- Watch the top.
- Yo.
Tim: Let me get rid
of me shoes.
- That'll make it easier.
- Throw them away.
Ben: [Indistinct]
Hang on. Oh, watch it.
- Now, don't bounce--
- Oh, don't--
Tim: 7 years' bad luck
if you break that.
Ben: That was you, anyway.
Ohh, do I get
that cup of tea yet?
Dick, voice-over:
While Ben grabs
a well-deserved cup of tea,
Krys helps out.
Krys: I've got a Dutch family
arriving today.
It's 4 adults and two children.
Dick, voice-over:
You better hurry up, you two,
because it looks like
they're here.
Back at Le Vieux Chateau, the
digger Donna booked has arrived,
and the team have started
to remove the fence...
- Didn't miss it, right?
- No.
Dick, voice-over: so they can
access the lake
and start the search
for the buried armor.
Dick: They're on time,
and the first thing,
they'll get straight to work.
- Yeah.
- That's good. That's good.
Dick: You like that.
Now he's got to get
down that slope safely.
Donna: This is going
to be interesting.
Dick: Yeah, because
he's coming down here.
Donna: At an angle,
at an angle.
[Gasps]
How do they maneuver
these enormous machines?
Dick, voice-over:
Now the digger's off the truck
and in position, it's time
to clear the path to the lake.
Donna: He has done this before.
[Chainsaw revving]
Dick: He's got to go up
in the thing to do it. Yeah.
Donna: Yeah. My goodness.
Ha ha ha!
Health and Safety
French style.
Dick: This is a definite
"Don't try this at home," kids.
Dick, voice-over: Seriously,
never try this at home.
After almost two hours' work,
they clear a pathway
to the lake.
Donna: Now he wants to go
in the water.
- You happy?
- Oui. Maintenant.
Dick: Merci. Merci, monsieur.
Dick, voice-over:
I've been waiting two weeks
for this moment,
Donna longer than that.
Dick: This is the first scoop.
This is the first scoop.
Dick, voice-over: I don't think
he's gone deep enough,
but I want to run the metal
detector over it to be sure.
Dick: Just sweep.
Sweep over that lot.
- Nothing.
- Absolutely nothing.
- That's good.
- Nothing at all.
Donna: No. OK.
Down we go, deeper, I think.
Dick: OK. Brilliant.
Every time that goes in,
you get that little flutter,
don't you, in your tummy.
- Yeah. Ha ha ha!
- Ha ha ha!
Dick, voice-over:
But it doesn't look like
there's anything
in the second scoop, either.
Donna: That's just silt.
Dick: It's just silt.
Dick, voice-over: Third time
around, he's gone even deeper.
Dick: OK. Quick one.
There's nothing there?
Donna: No.
Dick: All the way around.
- No.
- OK.
Dick: We know we've
had a beep in here, OK?
Donna: There was a beep. Yeah.
Encore, s'il vous plait.
Dick: He's getting deeper.
What is very interesting,
exactly,
we have no idea
how deep this is going.
See? Look. He's going--
Donna: Oh, my goodness,
that's deep.
- Oh, he's on the bottom.
- He's on the bottom?
Donna: He's on the bottom.
Dick, voice-over:
And this time...
[Beeping]
- Here.
- Yes. I see. All right.
Donna: It's that thing.
It's that thing.
Dick: Nope. Nope. Look.
That is an old nail,
a very old nail.
Dick, voice-over: Not another
nail. It's always nails.
There's no way this gave us
all those strong beeps
we heard when we were
out on the boat.
Dick: Uh-huh. Encore.
Merci, monsieur.
Dick, voice-over:
I'm convinced there's still
something out there,
so we've got to keep digging.
Dick: What is that?
What is that?
Dick, voice-over: Could this be
the remains of the crates
the armor was placed in?
Back in the Dordogne,
with brother Ben's help,
Tim and Krys have got
their new attic suite ready
just in time for the arrival
of the first guests--
a family from Holland.
- Hi.
- Hi there. Michelle.
Adam: Hi. I'm Adam.
Nice to meet you.
Tim: Nice to meet you, too.
I'm gonna leave you
in my wife's capable hands,
and she'll take you
up to your room.
Krys: So I'm gonna take you
to the kids' bedroom.
It's over here to the left.
Boy: Oh, wow.
Krys: We've got portable air
conditioner in both bedrooms.
If it gets really hot, you know,
you can just put it on.
- You're all good?
- Yeah.
- Yeah? All right.
- Yeah.
Krys: All right, and I'll
just show Mum and Dad.
It's just right here,
and this is your bedroom.
Adam: Perfect.
What a nice room.
Krys: There you go.
Thank you very much.
- It's really nice.
- It's really nice.
- Thank you very much.
- I just have to watch my head.
Dick, voice-over:
Well, apparently, the Dutch
are the tallest people
in the world.
- Built for French people.
- Yeah.
Krys: Yes--that's true--
and for me, too.
- Yeah, and for you. Yes.
- I'm quite small. Ha ha ha!
Krys: Hey.
- How was it?
- It was nice.
- You think they liked it?
- I think they really liked it.
- Yeah?
- Yeah.
The dad said it's
what he expected it to be, so--
Tim: Cool, and they were
all right with the beams
being up in the attic?
Krys: It's OK.
He just needs to--
Tim: They're all
very tall, aren't they?
Dick, voice-over:
As the family settle in...
Girl: Yo!
Dick, voice-over: Ben is roped
into one final job.
Tim and Krys own 23 sheep.
Tim: They look more like goats,
but they are sheep.
The main problem with having
6 1/2 acres of land
and a chateau to renovate
and a newborn baby is,
you have no time to mow lawns,
so we got the sheep.
We bought 4 sheep.
Very quickly, we ended up
with a lot of sheep.
We sell on the lambs each year
to other people
that want to do the same thing.
We don't take them
to the abattoir.
Dick, voice-over: The sheep
serve another purpose, as well.
They're a great attraction
for the guests.
Tim: The kids love them,
and when the guests come
and they've all got
kids with them,
they love the sheep,
and they feed the sheep,
and we give them corn.
Krys: Yeah.
They look very exotic.
Tim: Yeah, and we've got
a couple that are
really, really friendly.
Dick, voice-over:
With the guests now here
and before they spot the sheep,
Tim will need to give them
their worm medicine,
and while he's at it,
he can tag them, too.
Ben: Are their horns sharp?
Tim: Nah, no sharper than a
knife or something, you know?
Ben: I don't feel comfortable
doing this,
but I'm willing
to give it a go, I suppose.
Tim: All right.
If you go in the pen
on the left...
Ben: Yeah?
Tim: I'll grab a sheep for you
and then throw it over to you.
I'll staple its ears
and then chuck it out.
- Go for it.
- Make is sound so easy.
Dick, voice-over: OK. Show Ben
how it's done, then, Tim.
- Oh, great.
- There you go.
Ben: Oh, I can't get it
because your arm's in the way.
Oh, got it.
You said it's not hard.
Oh! You said it's like--
You got your--
Tim: In you go there.
You're all right.
Just put your arm around him.
There you go.
Ben: Thought you said
they weren't sharp.
Tim: They're not sharp.
Ben: Tim, do you want
to do it quickly?
Tim: Yeah. Will do, and just
hold him really still
so he doesn't move.
Ben: Oh, yep.
Tim: Whatever you do,
don't drop him.
Ben: You make it sound so easy.
- Oh!
- Ha!
- Oh, for goodness sake.
- That's what I mean.
Ben: Quickly, then.
Look at him.
Tim: Come on.
Ben: I'm putting him down.
Tim: Right. Put him down.
Ben: All right, my fellow. Ooh.
Dick, voice-over: Sheep are
pretty hardy creatures.
I think it was Ben
who came off worse then.
- Next.
- Oh, Christ.
Ben: Why are you passing it
to me like a baby?
Look. It kicks, you know.
Leave it. Oh, you [beep].
Tim: Nice and calm,
nice and calm.
Ben: I am doing it calm.
Oh, you--nngh! Christ.
This one's heavier
than the last one.
You have to go a lot faster.
Tim: Let's just give him
some worming--
Ben: Yeah. Do it.
Dick, voice-over:
Hang in there, Ben.
There's only 22
more sheep to go.
Ben: I don't think
I'm cut out for the--
Tim: The good life?
Dick, voice-over: Back in
Normandy at Le Vieux Chateau,
we've been dredging the lake
for more than an hour
in search of 20 crates
of armor
supposedly buried there
during the Second World War.
We just pulled out some wood.
Sadly, it's not
the remains of a crate.
Next, we find some more metal.
Dick: What is that?
You're on again, Donna.
Donna: Yep.
[Beeping]
- What do we got there?
- A tin can. Ha ha!
Donna: Oh, I'm getting
really disappointed, Dick.
Dick, voice-over:
So no luck again,
but we're not giving up yet.
Donna wants to try digging
a little further along the bank.
- Personally...
- Yes?
Donna: this is the spot
that I probably would like,
only because we got
the readings there...
Dick: Yeah.
We got readings here.
Donna: it's deeper
than over there, and--
Dick: It's closer to where
the trees are at the edge,
- as well, which means that--
- Exactly.
Donna: The original bank
is probably closer to this bit
than two bays along.
Dick, voice-over: The only
problem with this spot is,
there are 6 large trees blocking
the digger's route to the lake,
but Donna's had an idea.
Dick, voice-over: They're going
to use the digger as a tank.
- Wow!
- Whoo!
Donna: That's one way
to get a tree down.
It's fantastic.
I've never known
land clearance done
so quickly before in my life.
It's quite amazing.
Now I'm getting excited again
about the next patch
in case we find it there.
- [Whistles]
- Ooh!
Dick: Oh, he's straight in.
Look at that.
He's not messing around.
Dick, voice-over: We've been
here for 3 hours now,
and the digger's
got to go back soon,
so we're running out of time.
Dick: It looks like
a piece of wood to me.
Donna: A piece of wood
that could be a box.
Oh, my God.
Dick, voice-over:
This looks very promising.
Dick: Get your detector.
Let's go in.
Donna: Yep.
Dick: Let's have a look.
Donna: I'll have a look
at that bit of wood.
Dick: I know. Absolutely.
Donna: Is that a bit of wood,
or is that a bit of--
[Beeping]
What is it?
It's too long for a box.
Nothing.
Dick: That is
definitely manmade,
but it's too long for a box.
Donna: Do you know what
it looks like to me?
It looks like a floorboard
or something.
- Yeah, yeah.
- Yeah.
Dick, voice-over:
It's another disappointment.
Donna: No. This is all silt.
[Beeping]
Dick: OK. Brilliant.
- Encore?
- Oui. Encore, s'il vous plait.
- C'est possible?
- D'accord.
Donna: Merci.
Dick, voice-over:
The digger has to go.
He's going in for one more dig,
so it's now or never...
Donna: Oh, come on, please.
Dick: That's quite deep.
Dick, voice-over: but it's just
another pile of silt.
Sadly, it's time
to admit defeat,
but ever the optimist,
there's no way
Donna's giving up for good.
Donna: I think what's happened
is, over time, over 77 years...
Dick: Yeah.
Donna: The water
has eroded the bank,
and so the natural bank
would have been
much further in the lake.
Dick: And then
they thrown it in.
It's outside our reach.
Donna: It's outside of the reach
of a digger like this,
so the only way to find it
would be to drain the lake.
Dick: Oh.
Donna: Ha ha!
It's quite a big job.
- It's not a small job.
- Ha ha ha!
Dick, voice-over: What's more,
if you want to drain a lake,
you need a permit,
and here in France,
that could take a year
to be approved,
maybe even longer.
Dick: Donna, I don't know
what to say. I'm gutted for you.
I'm gutted that we haven't
actually found it. Yeah.
Donna: I am, too.
I won't give up.
Dick: I know you won't.
Donna: It might take a few
years, but I'm going to find it.
Dick: Let me know and make
sure--make sure I get a call
because when it gets drained,
I want to be here.
Donna: Absolutely.
Dick: I am so sad for Donna.
She believes there is treasure
in the lake.
I believe
there's treasure in the lake.
One thing that's really
encouraging is,
she's not giving up.
There's French bureaucracy
to fight now
because she wants
to drain her lake and get in,
have a good look around.
I'm expecting a phone call
out of the blue in the future
that says, "Dick,
I've drained the lake.
Come and help me find
my treasure,"
and she will find it.
Dick, voice-over:
Good luck, Donna.
Hopefully, you'll be calling me.
I'm convinced, and I'd hate
to miss the adventure.
Owning a chateau
can be a money pit.
With all the land
that usually comes with them,
a great way to save
or earn some extra cash
is to own livestock.
Whether they're
to keep the grass cut,
entertain the guests,
or be a source of food,
they can bring financial gains
not to be laughed at.
We regularly get eggs
and meat from our chickens,
and today we've got 200 kilos
of pork from our pigs.
First, I need to preserve
the hams
with the help
of our friend Brett.
Dick: I'm gonna put it in
first like that,
10 kilos of salt.
Dick, voice-over: Packing them
in a mixture of salt, sugar,
peppercorns, and bay leaves
draws out the moisture
and gives them flavor.
Dick: Every day,
I will open these out.
I'll rub the salt
all over them, turn them over
just until we extract
all the juices.
Dick, voice-over: I'll do this
for the next two weeks.
Dick: After that, they come out,
get wrapped up in muslin,
hung up.
Then we wait.
Dick, voice-over: After this
curing, the hams should be dried
and ready to eat
in about 6 months.
With the help of
my mother-in-law Jenny,
Brett and I chop, dice,
and slice the rest of the meat.
It's always been important
for me to know
where my food comes from.
Dick: When it comes
to people eating this,
we know everything.
We know the parents
of the wieners that we got.
We know the food
we've put into them.
We know the attention
they've had.
We know how
they were dispatched.
I think too often now,
we just go and buy and trust,
and, I must admit,
I like knowing about my food,
and it's gonna taste great.
That's the other
very important thing.
Right. Let's go and get it
in the freezer. Ha ha ha!
Brett: Aye. [Indistinct]
Dick, voice-over: 350 miles
roughly south of us,
Tim and his brother Ben are
dealing with their livestock,
which they keep
not for the meat,
but to entertain the guests
and to keep the grass cut.
They've just finished
tagging them.
- OK. Christ.
- You got him?
Ben: Bye.
I'm covered in, uh--
I don't know--poo?
My t-shirt is ruined.
Tim: Yep, and your shorts
are a bit messy, anyway.
Ben: I feel like I've been
beaten up, mugged.
I'm happy to help, but I'm not
doing this one again.
I'll carry your furniture,
paint, decorate, whatever,
but this manual handling-sheep
thing, I can't do that.
Tim: You're embracing
rural life.
For your first time tagging,
that went all right...
Ben: Honest to God--
Tim: no casualties
apart from ourselves.
Let's go.
Let's go get cleaned up.
Dick, voice-over:
There is no rest for Tim.
He's got to get back
to the chateau
to prepare dinner
for the newly arrived guests...
Tim: Everyone's eating.
Krys: Yeah, 5 adult meals
and 3 adult meals
from the other bedroom.
- No kids meals.
- No, no kids meals.
Tim: Oh, all right.
Well, that's good.
Dick, voice-over: so it's down
to the veg patch and greenhouse
to grab some vegetables.
In the middle of spring
a surprise frost
killed off almost
the entire crop.
They cut out all the dead stuff,
gave it a good water,
and prayed a little,
so did it recover?
Tim: I'm relieved that we've got
stuff to give them.
I thought we'd lose everything,
to be honest.
I think we've got enough food
to put together
a decent dinner for them.
Dick, voice-over: It looks
like a great crop to me.
Tim is a chef by trade,
and so at Chateau Monteil,
it stands to reason
he's the head chef here, too.
Tim: These are the cucumbers
out the garden.
I'm just gonna soften them up
in a bit of pickle,
pickling solution,
stuff them, roll them up,
and they'll just be a garnish
for the smoked trout,
and it's just a little bit
of citrus mayonnaise
just to finish it off.
Dick, voice-over: And then it's
taken out to the table.
What did the guests think?
Krys: They said the food's
really nice.
It's done very professionally.
One of the family's
taking pictures of it,
it's so cool.
Adam: Well, the food is lovely.
It's being served very nicely,
but it was really nice
that we saw the vegetables
from the garden
being carried upstairs
to the kitchen,
and then being served
at your table is really nice.
Dick, voice-over: It's a hit.
Well done, Tim and Krys.
Tim: I think it went
brilliantly, didn't it?
I think everyone
had a great time,
et all their food, enjoyed it,
happy customers,
happy B&B owners.
Krys: All the hard work...
Tim: It's a win-win situation.
Krys: it's all worthwhile.
Tim: It's all worthwhile.
Dick, voice-over: After
a difficult start to the year
with Baby Owen's early arrival
putting them behind
in their renovations,
they've turned things around
and successfully launched
their new accommodations.
Krys: It's been
a long journey.
We've had our ups and downs,
lots and lots of downs,
but seeing what we've done,
you know, it's all worth it.
Tim: It's an amazing
roller-coaster journey
that takes a hell
of a lot out of you
but gives you so much back.
It's an absolute adventure.
Krys: We've got income from
doing the B&B in the chateau.
It's great.
It's such a good feeling.
I think the decision
to renovate a chateau,
all of that hard work,
it's totally worth it.
Tim: We're setting the kids up,
aren't we,
with an amazing future
for themselves, as well.
You know, our hard work
will benefit them
and hopefully their kids,
and it looks like
it's gonna be a great success.
Dick, voice-over:
Seems their hearts belong
to Chateau Monteil.
Here's to Tim, Krys,
and Little Owen.
Tim: It's a brilliant life.
The weather's good,
and the wine's cheap,
and the food's delicious.
Dick, voice-over: I couldn't
agree more about the food.
It's one of the best things
about France.
At our place,
of the 200 kilos of pork,
I've reserved 4 kilos
to turn into one
of my favorite foods--
salami.
We minced it up
and added some salt.
Dick: And I thought
what we'd do with this batch
just to start off with, we just
make some pepper salamis.
Dick, voice-over: Seeing
as she's working so hard,
we'll name this batch
in honor of my mother-in-law.
Dick: These are called
Jennifer's salamis, yeah?
It's a very tactile thing,
sausages.
Jenny: Ha ha ha!
Dick: Sausages
always make me laugh.
There's not a thing about making
sausages I don't find humorous.
Jenny: Ha ha! Ha ha!
Brett: OK, so now
you can put your skin on.
Dick, voice-over: With the help
of Brett's sausage maker,
we push the meat through a hole
and into the sausage skins.
Dick: Yeah.
Now, when you do salamis,
you have to determine
before we start
how long a salami you want.
- Well...
- It's a Jennifer sala--
Jenny: I'd say 10 inches.
- Yeah?
- Hee hee!
Dick: OK.
I'm not saying a single thing.
Not too slowly.
Not too slow. Not too slowly.
Jenny: Can't believe
I'm doing this. Ha ha!
Dick: You moved to the country.
It's what country girls do.
Where do you think
they get their entertainment?
Brett: Look at those.
Dick: They're nice.
They're gonna be
very, very rustic.
Jenny: Have you noticed--
have you noticed
they're getting bigger
as the night goes on?
Dick: I'm not saying anything.
Jenny: Ha ha ha!
That's the king of salamis.
Dick: It is, isn't it?
It's nice.
Dick, voice-over:
We've made 10 sausages.
We now need to dry them
for at least 4 weeks,
and then they're ready to eat.
Dick: Not bad for a first bunch,
and there's more to come.
Jenny: As your daughter
would say, voila. Ha ha ha!
- Voila.
- Voila.
Dick, voice-over: Next time,
we meet a whole new batch
of intrepid owners
dealing with their chateaus.
A trio of chateau rookies try
to fix one of the chimneys...
Man: It's not supposed to be
coming out of the sides, is it?
I wonder why it's doing that.
Dick, voice-over:
without much success.
Man: So we managed to get
through to the chimney breast,
but it's the wrong one.
Dick, voice-over: The owners
of a luxury chateau hotel
embark on a mission
to win over the locals...
Man: Lots of anti us
in the press, though.
We had protesters, all sorts.
Dick, voice-over: but
their efforts to drum up
much-needed business
don't go to plan.
Man: Only 8 people here.
There's more supplies
and more staff
than there are customers.
Dick, voice-over:
When a family deals
with its influx of flies...
Woman: So we get this treatment
done twice a year.
Dick, voice-over:
things to awry...
[Alarm bell ringing]
Dick, voice-over: and in our
fairy-tale chateau,
I get down and dirty
building an outdoor toilet.
Dick: Never mind
fancy [indistinct].
Build a compost loo.