Escape to the Chateau DIY (2018–2021): Season 3, Episode 1 - Episode #3.1 - full transcript
Tim and Rebecca & their 2 children bought their chateau de la Ruche for £380,000 in the Pays de la Loire. They have not had paying guests for 3 months and are financially challenged. But now as Christmas approaches they are expecting guests. 300 miles away in SW France is a 20 room chateau on 30 acres, 1 and a half hours from Lyon. Britain Amy and French husband Marc operate a B & B and Yoga Retreat here. They need to replace an old septic system. In NW France in Chateau de le Grand Madison near the Loire Valley, musicians Ben and Billy need to renovate the last room. It is the old library which has been used for storage. After clearing the room out they need to replace a large skylight. Ben gets help from friends to lift the 100 kg glass pane. When finished they hope to hold book club meetings there.
I'm Dick Strawbridge,
and along with my wife Angel
and our two children...
Angel: I got him!
Dick, voice-over: we're nearly
5 years into restoring
this once-abandoned chateau.
Angel: There's something quite
sort of majestic about it.
Feel like you're in the clouds.
Dick, voice-over:
It's been demanding,
yet truly fulfilling...
Angel: It's making me feel a bit
mushy and like a bit emotional.
Dick: And with thousands
of chateaus in France,
we're not the only Brits buying
into the French fairytale.
Man: Oh, my goodness.
This is amazing.
Dick: So Angel and I are once
again helping
our fellow expats...
This is a big, old build.
Dick, voice-over: As they embark
on a brand-new set
of chateau adventures.
Oh, oh!
Dick: It'll be
a rollercoaster ride...
Whoa!
Ohh! No. No.
Dick: but no matter what...
Just going to try
not to cry.
Dick: these plucky Brits...
Stephanie: Are we doing this
with all the technological
accomplishment
of the ancient Egyptians?
Dick: are determined to
transform once-unloved buildings
into the most
spectacular homes...
That is amazing.
Dick: and live the dream
as custodians
of their very own castles.
Today, we revisit some
familiar faces...
Tim: We need to get
these big branches out.
This is the biggest bit
of branch,
and then we've got an awful lot
of logging to do
on the other side.
Dick: who have plenty to do
to impress
their first winter guests.
Rebecca:
It's absolutely freezing today,
and there's snow
possible tomorrow,
so I'm feeling a bit anxious
just and a tiny bit stressed
that we're not
going to get done in time.
Dick: One couple are looking
to reach new heights...
Billie: We've got to do some
proper construction
today, haven't we?
Dick: as they start renovating
the last room in their chateau.
Ben: We definitely don't want to
get a heavy object
jammed above our heads.
Dick: And new chateau owners
get a dose of reality...
Woman: Oh, my--oh.
Man: Here we go.
Woman: That is really full.
Dick: as they start work
on a massive project.
I don't really know yet what I'm
supposed to be jackhammering.
Maybe I should find that out.
I'm Dick Strawbridge,
and along with my wife Angel...
Angel: Oh, the sewage pipe!
Dick, voice-over:
we're busy all year round
running our chateau
as a home and business.
- Aah!
- Ha ha ha!
Dick, voice-over:
Autumn and winter are tough.
We have to do all the jobs
we can't do
when we're hosting guests
in the summer...
Yeah, it's exciting.
This is--this is a big moment.
Dick, voice-over:
and there's always unexpected
challenges to overcome.
Angel: I need things to happen
in a timely manner.
Otherwise, I'm gonna have
a heart attack.
I just really, really,
really hope it grows.
Dick, voice-over: Across France,
there are lots of Brits
in the same boat.
For new chateau owners,
they also have to cope
with building up their business.
Like Lincolnshire couple
Tim and Rebecca
and their two children,
who we first met a year ago
after they spent £380,000
on the once-dilapidated
Chateau de la Ruche.
Rebecca: I think we've found
lots of moments
where we thought,
"What have we done?" Definitely.
Not in a kind of "I don't
want to do this" sense
but in a kind of "Crikey,
have we taken on a bit more
than we could chew?"
kind of sense.
Dick: Located just 50 miles
from us
in the Pays
de la Loire region...
Tim: This is going to be
a bathroom, right?
Dick, voice-over:
last summer, they began
renovating 2 out
of the 5 guest rooms
to start running the place
as a B&B.
There's an ever
so slight gradient up.
Ever so slight?
Dick, voice-over: It proved
trickier than they thought.
Rebecca: Hang on. There's quite
a lot of water leaking
out of this tap, Tim, right now.
Dick: However, all their hard
work eventually paid off
as they transformed
4 derelict rooms
into 2 beautiful
high-end suites
and welcomed their first guests.
Rebecca: You're welcome to use
this room anytime.
- Wow, it's beautiful.
- Absolutely gorgeous.
It's amazing.
Dick: Now winter's here,
bookings have slowed down.
They haven't had any guests
for over 3 months
and are financially struggling.
Tim: We're into loans from both
sets of our parents currently
and the credit card.
It's kind of survival mode
where we're kind of
eking things out to get us
through to next spring.
However, with Christmas
fast approaching,
Tim and Rebecca
have some good news.
Rebecca: We've got some guests
coming this weekend,
so our first winter guests.
Bless them.
These guys are coming over
from the UK for 3 nights.
Tim: It's a really important
step for us.
Dick: For any business,
it's all about reputation.
Tim and Rebecca need
the chateau to look its best,
but as their guests
arrive tomorrow,
they need to get
their skates on.
Rebecca: I can't feel
my hands already.
I think this is a good thing.
Dick: First task is
to clear the grounds
of recent storm damage.
Rebecca: All right.
Who's driving?
Dick: So they've drafted
live-in mate and helper Dale.
Rebecca: Come on, Monty.
Dick: The worst-hit area is
the entrance to the driveway,
which is nearly 3/4
of a mile away.
Rebecca:
OK. Now you can get out.
We had a freak storm.
Basically ripped a tree out
almost out of the ground,
and it crashed through,
of all the places,
through my gate, which I
wasn't very happy about.
Tim: Today, we've got to clear
away the branches that are
in the ditch and on the drive
and get it kind of back
into the woods.
So let's start at the bottom.
Oh, this is a good workout.
Knackered already.
Dick: And it's a case of all
hands and paws to the pump.
Rebecca: Go on.
Take it away.
I don't need it left here.
Tim: Being outside is nice,
so we've been doing a lot
of inside work,
so getting outdoors
for a bit is good fun.
Dale: Can you get this bit off?
Dick: Tim seems to be enjoying
the challenge, as does Dale.
Tim: Ride it. Ride it. Yes.
Dick: But there's a lot more
clearing up to do
if they want the place ready
for their winter guests.
Tim: We need to get these
big branches out.
This is the biggest bit
of branch,
and then we've got an awful lot
of logging to do
on the other side.
Dick: 300 miles away
in southeast France lies
the stunning 13th century
Chateau les Rosières.
It has 20 rooms and is set in
an incredible 130 acres of land.
The lucky new owners are Brit
Amy and French husband Marc,
who moved in last year.
Amy: It was so clear to us
when we came to visit here
that this was the right place.
Marc: We were looking
for history
with the land and the potential
to do something.
If I could just translate that,
we had no idea
what we were looking for.
We just wanted somewhere
that spoke to us
and was magical basically.
So history
and gardens and stuff.
Yeah. Yeah, that's what I said.
Located an hour and a half's
drive from Lyon,
it's a dream come true
for writer Amy
and French farmer Marc,
who met by chance 7 years ago.
Amy, voice-over: I went on
holiday with my mum,
and I happened to bump
into Marc there,
who was running a hydroponic
lettuce farm, as you do.
He just kept suggesting
activities
for us to do together,
and so my mum kept coming along
on all of them,
and we actually nearly
drowned her on one of them.
- Yeah, I didn't manage.
- No.
Amy: We got married
about a year later.
Dick: They now want to start
a new life in France running
a B&B and hosting yoga retreats.
Before they can start work
inside the chateau,
they need to replace
the old defunct sewage system.
Amy: Oh, my--oh.
Marc: Here we go.
Amy: That is really full.
Dick: Their plan is to put
a brand-new one in themselves
with the help
of their own excavator...
but until they replace
a damaged caterpillar track,
they can't start digging.
Amy: Apparently,
I have to clean this.
Not totally sure why,
but I suppose it makes
the caterpillar track
come off more easily.
Marc tends to get
the technical jobs,
and I get the brute force jobs
because I'm the muscle.
I'm supervising my workforce.
You're very cheeky.
Dick: It's a tricky job,
so they brought in friend Manu
to help them.
Amy: The last time we
had to do this,
it took us about
two hours to get it off.
Dick: To release the track,
they have to unscrew
the retaining bolt.
[Manu speaking French]
But the bolt's not moving.
Marc: We might have a 24
of this in the house.
Dick: While Marc goes
in search of more tools...
Amy has a go.
Amy: I'm going to try anyway.
[Grunts]
Hey! Oh! It moved.
It's moving.
I'm doing it.
- Is it working?
- Yes.
- Oh, well done.
- Just a little bit.
First prize for digger
technology today is to me.
Dick: Nice one, Amy.
All that's to do now is
take the old track off.
Amy: Yeah! Oh!
Dick: And put the new one on.
- Is it--oh, yeah.
- Perfect.
- Yup.
- Bravo.
You did it.
Dick: Good teamwork...Amy.
With the excavator
up and running,
Marc can start digging trenches.
It's just the start
of a much bigger plan.
They want to create giant
eco-friendly filter beds
at the edge of the forest
to purify their waste.
Amy: We've been digging two
ponds right down
the bottom of the slope,
and the ponds will have gravel
and then reeds planted in it,
and the reeds will digest
the sewage,
and any clean overflow water
will just flow into the forest.
That's how the system works.
The more difficult bit
and the bit we're
a bit concerned about
getting right is moving
the sewage
from all the buildings.
Dick: Connecting pipes
from the chateau
100 meters down a slope
to the waste pond
is going to be an epic task.
Amy: If we don't do this task,
then we can't set up
bed and breakfast,
we can't set up
a retreat center,
we can't do anything.
Because until you've sorted
a fundamental like the sewage,
you aren't going anywhere.
Dick: In northwest France lies
the beautiful
19th century 45-room
Chateau la Grande Maison...
located a stone's throw
from the Loire Valley.
The chateau is run
as a luxury guest house
and is home
to musicians Ben and Billie.
We really do have regular
moments of going,
"Wow. this is
incredible, isn't it?"
And we do pinch ourselves,
you know.
We might take a cup of coffee
up onto a balcony
and sit in the sun and look out
at the land and the river...
Ben: That is really special.
Billie: and just say,
"This is incredible."
Dick: Last time
we followed them,
they transformed
the chateau's south wing
with a bit of help
from yours truly.
Dick: That's a talking piece.
Ben: Yeah.
Dick, voice-over: They created
an events venue
and dining area...
Billie: Thank you all
for coming.
Dick: which proved
to be a great success.
Now that it's winter
and quieter,
they want to renovate
the chateau's
final untouched room,
the old library, where they're
planning to start hosting
book club events in 3 months.
The problem is, it's been used
as a dumping ground
ever since they moved in.
Billie: Getting into that room
at the moment is
a bit like mountaineering,
I think.
If there is something you need,
you would have to climb
over a hell of a lot
of boxes and junk,
and what is all that stuff
in there?
I have no idea.
Dick:
Before they can do anything,
they need to clear the room out.
When are we going
to have a disco?
Ben: There's some quite
interesting cupboards,
which are original to the house.
Actually, I haven't
seen that before.
That's--what is that?
Is that--
is that moving, Billie?
Billie: Yeah, there's
a metal arm up there.
Ben: This is the mechanism for
opening and closing the window.
It'll be possible to maybe get
that working
and just to open
the internal window.
Dick: It's a nice find.
The skylight is two-tiered
and is the only source
of natural light, as the room
has no other windows.
Dick: Several weeks later
with the old library cleared
and walls plastered,
Ben now needs to replace
the top window with a heavy-duty
100-kilogram piece of glass
he picked up for £250.
Billie: But it weighs
an absolute ton, doesn't it?
Dick: As it's going to
sit on the roof,
the only way to get it up there
is through the skylight itself,
so they brought in
some friends to help out.
Billie: Well, we got to do
some proper construction
today, haven't we?
Ben: Well, me and Ben have been
planning this for about 3 weeks,
how we're going to do it.
We're working at serious height.
We'll be 13 meters
off the ground.
- Yeah.
- We're going to be 5 meters
from the roof to this floor.
There can be no room for error.
Dick: It's dizzying heights.
However, all of Ben's mates
are experienced tradesmen,
so he's in safe hands.
The boys are constructing
a frame to hoist up
the heavy glass using
an electric winch.
They secured
the glass with ropes.
It's crucial the weight
is evenly spread to avoid
the risk of it falling out.
All right.
[Squeaking]
OK. There. That will do.
There a couple wires there.
All right.
You guys can go.
Dick: Having got it up safely,
they now have to fit
the glass in place.
Ben: Try and keep it
around the outside.
Man: Come towards me then.
It's got to come this way a bit.
Oh!
OK. Hold it there, everyone.
OK. I'm good here.
Dick: Great job.
The whole plan
has worked seamlessly.
With only the frame
of the window to seal in,
it's mission accomplished.
Billie: Wow. The light's
literally glowing
out of the room now.
Ben: It is so much lighter
in here, isn't it?
- Oh, yes.
- Fantastic.
- Yay! Fantastic.
- That's really good.
Really happy with that.
Dick: Stage one complete.
They now need to get
the interior window working,
which could prove
a lot trickier.
Over at Chateau de la Ruche,
Tim is still tidying up
the driveway
ahead of their first
winter guests' arrival tomorrow.
Rebecca has an idea to make
the chateau look extra special.
I'm going to go foraging
for some bits and bobs
for some kind of festive floral
archway over the front door.
We have got paying
guests coming,
and I want it to look amazing
when they walk up.
I love decorating a house
for Christmas.
It's one of my favorite things,
so yeah.
I'm really looking
forward to it.
Dick: Foraging is one
of Angel's favorite pastimes.
OK. Brilliant.
Dick: Throughout the year, she
collects a host of things
from our garden to help bring
our chateau to life...
Angel: That's good.
We are getting somewhere.
Dick: and there's no time
more special than winter.
Angel: It is just such a lovely,
easy, cost-effective way
to make your house into a bit
of a winter wonderland.
Dick: Rebecca obviously
shares Angel's passion.
Rebecca: You like that tree?
Dick: And there's one festive
plant she's on the lookout for--
mistletoe.
We've got loads
of mistletoe, actually.
This is a really good tree
for it,
but there's quite
a lot everywhere.
All right.
I'm gonna see how far I get
with that lot,
and then I can always come back
and get some more.
- Hello, my love.
- Hello. Do you want a kiss?
- I can't stop.
- Ha ha ha!
- Trying to stop.
- Oh, OK.
Don't have any brakes.
Here we go.
Oh, you got a wet beard.
Don't stroke the beard.
Dick: At Chateau de la Ruche,
Rebecca can
finally get cracking.
Rebecca: I have no idea if
this is going to work.
Last year, I made
an absolutely beautiful wreath,
and it was huge,
and it was lovely,
but I'd forgotten that the door
was a double door,
so I made it all, and then said,
"Tim, can I put--
could you put this
on the front door?"
And we came out here
and then realized
that we had a double door,
So we put it on,
and basically,
the door was
completely unusable,
and the only way you could get
out of the house
was by ducking down and crawling
underneath the wreath,
which is fine if you're us.
Not so fine if you got
paying guests coming in.
Dick: Rebecca's going to make
sure there's no repeat
with her archway.
Rebecca: There's going to be
a lot of cable tie initially
to get the initial structure,
and then hopefully,
I'll be able to weave
a few sticks through.
I need it to be strong because
I need it to withstand weather.
OK.
That's a start.
Feel like it's slightly--
When the guests arrive,
I just want them to be
kind of wowed and for it
to be really festive looking
and special,
and it's kind of
their first impression
of the chateau really,
and I just want their whole
kind of weekend
to be really treatful
and beautiful,
so hopefully, this will
kind of set the tone for it.
Dick: Fingers crossed, Rebecca.
Over at Chateau les Rosières,
new owners Amy and Marc
are putting in
a new eco-friendly
sewage system.
While Marc continues
to dig trenches outside,
inside, plumbers have started
laying new waste pipes
that will connect
to a central one
in the entrance hall,
which presents
its own raft of problems.
We need to be able to get
the pipe through the house
and out of the building,
and Marc convinced me that
the only way to do this
was to rent this boring machine
to drill holes
in the bedrock of the house.
[Grinding]
Dick: To operate the machine,
experts have been employed,
as they need to drill down
over a meter through the wall.
Amy: It's going to go just
through the corner of the floor,
and you see where he's
pointing it,
it's going through actual
bedrock rather
than the stones of the house.
Dick: It's a nice piece of kit.
It's designed to extract
a core of material
in its cylinder.
Amy: What's that made of?
Is that the actual rock?
Marc: We have a first layer
of concrete here,
which is the edge of the wall,
and here, we are
hitting the rock.
Oh!
That's going to be long,
boring job.
Oh, my God.
Dick: Boring?
Great pun, Marc...
although it's no laughing
matter,
as their experts don't appear
to realize the drill
isn't long enough to go
through the wall
and out the other side.
Marc: So far, they have managed
to drill 1 meter 20
with the bore,
but the wall is probably
about 1 meter 80 thick.
So we are going to have to
finish breaking
the wall with the jackhammer.
Dick: So now they have to try
and meet the internal hole
from the outside.
Actually, I don't really know
yet what I'm supposed
to be jackhammering.
Maybe I should find that out.
Yeah, Nick?
Oh, I actually have absolutely
no idea where anything's
coming out, so I'm just randomly
drilling holes
in the wall at the moment.
Ohh!
I'm very determined
not to be defeated by this.
Dick: It seems Amy is not
the only one who doesn't know
where the hole is.
Amy: Basically, they dug
at a much steeper angle
than I expected,
and so I think they've gone
too low under the bedrock.
I rarely understand much
of what's going on,
so...I'm just rolling with it.
Dick: Using a collection
of drills, they try to see
how much further down
the hole is.
I think I can hear the sound
of his drill bits going
through the bore hole,
so we might be--
we might be very near to
joining both holes.
Yeah, yeah.
Amy: It worked. Ho ho ho!
We found the hole.
So he felt the drill bit
on this side
from the other side,
so we've managed to connect.
What we're going to do now is
put another borer
from the other side
and do another bore hole
from the outside.
Dick: While the machine
does the rest,
Amy and Marc breathe
a huge sigh of relief.
Amy: And you can see light
through the hole.
Marc: At the end of the tunnel.
Light at the end
of the tunnel.
Ha ha ha!
Dick: At Chateau
la Grande Maison,
Ben and Billie are restoring
their old library
to host a book club events.
They've put in the first part
of their two-tiered skylight.
Now they need to get
the interior window working.
So I'm checking in to see
how they're getting on.
- Hi, Dick.
- Hey, Dick.
Dick: How you doing?
Billie: Oh, good. Thank you.
Ben: Good. Thanks. Yeah.
Billie: Nice to see you.
Progressing well.
Dick: First thing's first,
where are you?
We're in the library.
Done loads already.
We had great fun putting--
that's over 100 kilograms,
that window.
We had great fun
putting that in,
so what our plan is now
with the window is to leave
the top window fixed
and get
the inner window working.
Dick: And you're gonna to put
a mechanism in that so it opens.
There is a center--
the center window.
Oh, that's the only bit
that opens, the--
only the middle part of it?
- Yeah.
- It lifts upwards correct?
So you're looking
at the top side there.
- Yeah. We're looking the top.
- Good.
So that opens like that--
it opens like that.
Dick: Couldn't get easier
than that, could it?
Billie: And I don't know.
Are we going to--
can we get the mechanism working
that's in the cupboard?
Yeah?
Ben: Yeah. Shall I
show you this mechanism?
This is the fun bit
because it looks great.
If it worked,
that would be even better.
And, so, we showed you
earlier the bar.
So that bar moves up and down,
and it's controlled by this
mechanism in the cupboard.
Oh, you have to love it.
Ben: It's a lovely thing,
isn't it?
Dick: When you turn it,
how much does it move?
Make it go up and down.
OK. I'm just lifting up
the catch.
OK. Here we go.
Now I've hit the cupboard
with the handle,
so what do I do?
Lock that on
and then reposition that.
Ben: It's a little bit tricky
at the moment
because the cupboard is
in the way for it to--
for the handle
to go all the way around.
Billie: It's kind of...
Dick: What you have
to do there, mate,
get a ratchet one that goes
on there like...
Oh, yeah, yes,
that's a good idea.
Billie: Oh, yeah.
Dick: An old car ratchet.
You'll find one on the Internet
somewhere, yeah,
cheap as chips for that size.
By putting the ratchet
over the top that,
you'd go jjj, jjj, jjj
and gradually drops down,
which means it can be
permanently in place.
If you have something that
you have to remove,
it gets lost,
it doesn't get used.
Can you show me how much
it moves the bar?
Oh, yeah!
We got bar movement.
I'm jealous. Do you know
what's really interesting?
I've actually got a mechanism
a bit like that,
I bought at a vide-grenier.
I didn't know what it was.
So down to my workshop
at the minute,
I've got something
that looks a bit like that.
Hold. Don't go away,
don't go away.
- Hold on a second, hold on.
- Yeah. No problem.
Dick, voice-over:
I'm always buying stuff
that could come in useful
because when you own a chateau,
you just never know.
Ben: The handle idea was
really good for the mechanism.
- Yes.
- Yeah. It could be a ratchet.
Yeah.
If we can't find a ratchet,
we could always make
an extension.
Dick: Hello.
Ben: Hi.
Dick: Look what I've got!
Billie: Oh, wow.
Ben: Very similar.
- Oh, that's cool.
- Great.
I bought it for two Euros
in a vide-grenier,
and I had bought it because it
had J.M., and a mate of mine
is called Jim Milner.
Billie: That's great.
So you bought it without
knowing what it was.
You just thought, "Well,
that looks interesting."
I wasn't quite sure what it was.
I thought it was
for lifting things,
but the mechanism makes sense
now that I've seen yours.
- Yes, yeah. It's brilliant.
- That's brilliant.
So we've solved
a mystery, as well.
That was brilliant.
But be very aware about getting
rid of anything
because one day--
one day you will need it.
- Yeah.
- Mm-hmm.
Can you imagine going
and trying buying one of these?
- Yeah. Ha ha ha!
- Yeah.
They don't make them
like that anymore.
Dick: So your window now
and all of that said left,
that looks brilliant.
Ben: Thank you very much.
Hey, listen. Lovely to talk
to you, take care.
Yeah. Speak to you soon.
Be good.
- Take care. Bye.
- Cheers. Bye, Dick.
- Bye.
- Cheers.
Ben: I tell you what, it's
really nice to find someone else
excited about our mechanism.
Got someone to talk to
about my mechanism now.
Dick: I really hope they can get
it all working properly.
Over at Chateau de la Ruche,
the temperatures have plummeted,
and Tim and Rebecca's first
winter guests are due tomorrow.
Ready. Lift it. Ohh.
Dick: The old oil-fired boiler
that heats up the guest wing
hasn't been started in months,
so the rooms are freezing.
Tim: Ohh! Ha ha ha!
It's really--you forget
that the room is minus 3.
So is the radiator, isn't it?
Dick: Before they can turn
the boiler on,
Tim's brought in mate Dale to
help connect up the radiators.
Rebecca:
The heating is very important
which is why I wanted to get it
done this morning
so we've got plenty of time
to heat up
because it's
absolutely freezing today.
I'm feeling a bit anxious just--
and a tiny bit stressed
that we're not going to get
everything done in time.
Oh, my God. Ha ha ha!
Dick: The original cast iron
radiators weigh a ton,
and they need to be
plumbed in carefully.
With all the radiators in
and sealed,
it's down to the boiler room
to start pumping
water through them.
- Dale.
- Yeah.
Do you want to just run
upstairs quick
and keep an eye on those 3 rads?
Yeah.
Dick: Here's hoping
for no leaks.
So the noise has just changed,
which means--
I don't know what it means,
but when the noise changes,
it means the system
is starting to fill up.
I am just releasing the pressure
of the radiator
so all the air can get out.
I just love it. Tim.
Tim: Yeah.
Are you still getting
air out of yours?
Dick: With all the air out,
the system is now filled
with water.
Let's hope there's no puddles.
Tim: Yeah. I'm down
in the honeymoon suite.
Oh, OK.
Dick: With 3 separate floors
to negotiate,
there's lots to check.
Tim: Did you get water
out of the one
in the garden and bathroom
or not?
I forget the names.
I've only been here a year.
I am now hearing water running
into the rad.
The old switcheroo.
This room is the garden room,
so this is where
we've got guests this weekend.
So this rad really
needs to work.
Are they all done
up here now, Dale?
Dale: Ooh! It's got water.
Oh, nice.
Dick: It's looking good.
Water's being pumped
into the radiators.
The challenge now is getting
the boiler working
to heat them up.
The boiler's old,
they're very simple,
and all it does is blast diesel
into it and set it on fire.
As long as the old--
the old beast fires up.
Dick: After sitting idle
for almost a year,
it's crunch time.
If it doesn't work,
they may end up losing
their imminent booking.
Hey.
Has two noises again.
I don't know what they mean.
One noise it starts,
and the next noise
is the proper growling,
and you can hear that now,
and it's so good that
you can actually see
the flames of the boiler.
Yeah. You can see that
that's burning away.
- Is there heat?
- Well, feel the pipe.
It's not cold.
- Lukewarm.
- All right.
Come in here, come
and get a hold of this pipe.
That pipe is just slightly
more than lukewarm.
Yes, that's definitely better.
OK. Good.
Dick: Good work, Tim.
It's a big relief all round
and one less thing
to worry about
before their guests arrive.
Over at Chateau de Rosières,
Amy and Marc
have finally managed to put
a sewage pipe
through the outside wall.
Now they have to finish
laying them inside.
This is my--this is
what's left of my office.
Dick: It's a very messy job,
as the pipes are being fitted
inside the entrance hall
and underneath floorboards
on the first floor.
Thankfully they have Stephan
the plumber to do most
of the hard graft.
Amy: This is the junction.
This room is eventually
going to be another bathroom,
and so it's Stephan's idea
that we put the junctions in
now, even though it's
going to be maybe another year
until we actually
do the renovations here,
to save us having
to rip out the floor again.
Stephan's our best friend.
Dick: It's a smart move,
but now Amy and Marc
need to get involved to help
connect the pipes
between floors.
Marc: We might need you to
lift it when we fit it in.
Amy: Yeah.
And then we'll tell you to push.
- OK.
- OK. Thank you.
Amy: Because it's going
between the two floors,
it needs 3 of us to push
the pipe together to glue it,
and it's really important
that we glue it well,
or we get leaks.
Um, We don't really want sewage
leaks in the walls of the house.
Marc and Stephan line up
the pipes from below,
while Amy prepares to push
from the first floor.
Amy: Ooh-hoo!
Dick: To make these joints work,
Stephan is not being shy
with the glue.
Marc: There's no way back now.
Amy: Now?
Now?
I'm leaving.
OK. It's all good.
- Sorry?
- All good.
OK.
Dick: Well, it all seems
to fit together.
Now we need to wait for it to
dry completely during the night,
and hopefully we'll see if
it's completely watertight.
Amy: It's quite a work
of art, that.
- Non, non
- Oui. Ha ha ha!
Dick: After leaving
the glue overnight,
it's the moment of truth.
Amy and Marc gather outside...
while Stephan pours water
through the pipes.
Amy: Ah. Ha ha ha! Hey!
Oh. My God,
That's such a relief.
Just think of all the poo
that's going to come
running down there.
We are one step closer
to being eco-friendly.
Dick: It's a great start,
but with more trenches to dig,
pipes to lay,
and sewage ponds to build,
this huge project has
only just got going.
At Chateau la Grande Maison...
- How are you getting on?
- Looking good.
Ben and Billie are preparing
to put the internal part
of the skylight back up
in the library.
Ben: I'm resting them on here,
lift up,
and then just lift
into the slot on the way up.
Dick: The 19th century frame
needs new glass panels,
but first,
Ben has to get it in place.
Ben: I'm really very worried
about getting it stuck
on the way up because
when we got it down,
it was incredibly tight.
I measured it earlier today,
and there's literally
one millimeter,
two millimeters of clearance.
We definitely don't want to get
a heavy object jammed
above our heads 3 1/2 meters
off the ground.
Dick: To help get
the frame up there,
he's brought in his mate,
also called Ben...
Ben: OK. It's definitely
the right way round.
Dick: and built a scaffold to
ensure it's easier
to lift into place.
Ben: Wear it like
a pair of trousers.
Dick: Logic has it that
if it came out...
Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.
That's a very good start.
Dick: It has to be able
to fit back in.
Fantastic.
I got--I got it. Oh.
- It's gone in?
- Yeah.
- OK.
- Yeah.
Dick: It's looking promising,
although having screwed in one
part of the frame,
they now realize it's not level.
Ben: Maybe we do need a mallet.
Dick: If in doubt,
bring out a hammer.
Ben: OK. Brilliant, Ben,
brilliant.
That's superb.
There's been so much work
in this area of the room,
it's been incredible.
Straight.
He's not quite finished yet
as he needs to add
a ventilation system
as the glass
on the roof is fixed.
All right.
That will fit perfectly now.
I may need to fit the hose
from the other side,
but that's going to be great.
Dick: But it will all be for
nothing if once
all the glass is in he can't get
the mechanism working.
Get the chains back up.
I'm ready to test it out.
Dick: After working tirelessly
to transform
their old, crumbling skylight,
it's the moment of truth
for Ben and Billie.
Oh. Oh, gosh.
It's really nice, isn't it?
Lovely.
Ben: I love it, I love it.
Billie: Does it open?
- Does it work?
- Haven't tried it yet.
Shall we try it?
OK. Going to lift it?
Aw. Up she goes.
That's about--I think that's
about the highest I think.
Billie: It's so much lighter
than it used to be.
it's really good,
really, really good.
I love it.
So much work in that little
square meter, half square.
Dick: It's a positive start,
but there's a lot of hard work
ahead before this room is ready
to host a book club.
At Chateau de la Ruche,
Tim and Rebecca's
first paying winter guests
are due in a couple of hours.
Rebecca: I want to lay up
the table for dinner
so that's all done
before they arrive.
OK.
Dick: With word of mouth
so vital
to any new chateau business,
every detail of their
guests' stay has to be perfect.
Sorry for walking
on your stairs.
Dick: Now it's a race
against time to
get the guest wing
spick and span.
Just looking and thinking
what do I need to do?
Slightly stressed.
It just feels like
there's quite
a lot to do right now.
Tim: Getting the sweat on.
Rebecca: The heating is on,
and the house is actually warm.
This is how real people live.
Real people
with heating and money.
Is there time
for a mistletoe kiss?
At least your beard's
not sweaty today.
I do the making pretty.
Tim doesn't do making pretty.
He doesn't get it.
He can clean
while I make pretty.
Dick: He may not do pretty,
but at least he does hoovering.
Right.
Dick: Job done.
Just as well as here
are the guests.
Rebecca:
We could do with music in here.
Tim: Yeah.
[Knock on door]
Man: Hiya. How are you doing?
Rebecca: You can chill now.
Man: Yeah.
Woman: That's amazing.
Rebecca: Come on up.
So this is your bedroom.
- Oh, my gosh. Thank you.
- Oh, wow.
Rebecca:
You're very welcome.
Man: Oh my God. It's beautiful.
Rebecca: Thank you.
Woman: We're not leaving.
Man: It's kind of up
your street, isn't it?
Yeah, literally.
- Oh, oh my gosh. The taps.
- Oh my God.
I never thought I'd love taps.
Rebecca: Oh, good.
So if you want to just get
settled in and then pop
downstairs to the salon,
you can have a drink and get
something to eat and chill.
- OK. Thank you.
- Thank you.
Man: After the travel
that we've had...
- To get here.
- sitting here
in front of the fire.
- It has all been worth it.
- Yeah. 100% worth it.
It's stunning, everything
is immaculate.
Everything has been
so thought out.
Man: Yeah. It's gonna be
an amazing 3 days.
We're going to be coming back.
Man: Definitely.
Definitely going to come back.
Dick: I don't think you can get
any more complimentary
than that.
Rebecca's extra special touches,
both inside and out,
have proved to be a big hit.
Rebecca: I was really pleased
with their reaction
when they arrived.
That's the thing I love most,
just seeing people's faces
when they arrive
and them kind of getting it.
It's another step
towards where we need to be.
It feels like everything--
all the hard work
we've done is worthwhile.
It's just amazing,
really amazing.
- Good job.
- Oh, yeah, good job.
- Good job, well done.
- Well done.
Dick: Hear, hear.
Fingers crossed,
more winter guests
start coming soon.
Next time....
Billie?
Dick: Ben and Billie make
an amazing discovery...
- Almost perfect.
- Oh my gosh.
No, that's perfect.
Dick: and call on Angela
to lend a hand.
Like an old friend coming back
for tea with a trailer.
Mind the chandeliers.
Dick: Tim and Rebecca start
their next renovation...
There's definitely worse jobs.
Dick: but don't always see
eye to eye.
Rebecca: Do you not like it?
Tim: No?
- What don't you like about it?
- Everything.
Dick: And Amy and Marc continue
work on their monster project.
Amy: We have a digger.
How hard can it be?
and along with my wife Angel
and our two children...
Angel: I got him!
Dick, voice-over: we're nearly
5 years into restoring
this once-abandoned chateau.
Angel: There's something quite
sort of majestic about it.
Feel like you're in the clouds.
Dick, voice-over:
It's been demanding,
yet truly fulfilling...
Angel: It's making me feel a bit
mushy and like a bit emotional.
Dick: And with thousands
of chateaus in France,
we're not the only Brits buying
into the French fairytale.
Man: Oh, my goodness.
This is amazing.
Dick: So Angel and I are once
again helping
our fellow expats...
This is a big, old build.
Dick, voice-over: As they embark
on a brand-new set
of chateau adventures.
Oh, oh!
Dick: It'll be
a rollercoaster ride...
Whoa!
Ohh! No. No.
Dick: but no matter what...
Just going to try
not to cry.
Dick: these plucky Brits...
Stephanie: Are we doing this
with all the technological
accomplishment
of the ancient Egyptians?
Dick: are determined to
transform once-unloved buildings
into the most
spectacular homes...
That is amazing.
Dick: and live the dream
as custodians
of their very own castles.
Today, we revisit some
familiar faces...
Tim: We need to get
these big branches out.
This is the biggest bit
of branch,
and then we've got an awful lot
of logging to do
on the other side.
Dick: who have plenty to do
to impress
their first winter guests.
Rebecca:
It's absolutely freezing today,
and there's snow
possible tomorrow,
so I'm feeling a bit anxious
just and a tiny bit stressed
that we're not
going to get done in time.
Dick: One couple are looking
to reach new heights...
Billie: We've got to do some
proper construction
today, haven't we?
Dick: as they start renovating
the last room in their chateau.
Ben: We definitely don't want to
get a heavy object
jammed above our heads.
Dick: And new chateau owners
get a dose of reality...
Woman: Oh, my--oh.
Man: Here we go.
Woman: That is really full.
Dick: as they start work
on a massive project.
I don't really know yet what I'm
supposed to be jackhammering.
Maybe I should find that out.
I'm Dick Strawbridge,
and along with my wife Angel...
Angel: Oh, the sewage pipe!
Dick, voice-over:
we're busy all year round
running our chateau
as a home and business.
- Aah!
- Ha ha ha!
Dick, voice-over:
Autumn and winter are tough.
We have to do all the jobs
we can't do
when we're hosting guests
in the summer...
Yeah, it's exciting.
This is--this is a big moment.
Dick, voice-over:
and there's always unexpected
challenges to overcome.
Angel: I need things to happen
in a timely manner.
Otherwise, I'm gonna have
a heart attack.
I just really, really,
really hope it grows.
Dick, voice-over: Across France,
there are lots of Brits
in the same boat.
For new chateau owners,
they also have to cope
with building up their business.
Like Lincolnshire couple
Tim and Rebecca
and their two children,
who we first met a year ago
after they spent £380,000
on the once-dilapidated
Chateau de la Ruche.
Rebecca: I think we've found
lots of moments
where we thought,
"What have we done?" Definitely.
Not in a kind of "I don't
want to do this" sense
but in a kind of "Crikey,
have we taken on a bit more
than we could chew?"
kind of sense.
Dick: Located just 50 miles
from us
in the Pays
de la Loire region...
Tim: This is going to be
a bathroom, right?
Dick, voice-over:
last summer, they began
renovating 2 out
of the 5 guest rooms
to start running the place
as a B&B.
There's an ever
so slight gradient up.
Ever so slight?
Dick, voice-over: It proved
trickier than they thought.
Rebecca: Hang on. There's quite
a lot of water leaking
out of this tap, Tim, right now.
Dick: However, all their hard
work eventually paid off
as they transformed
4 derelict rooms
into 2 beautiful
high-end suites
and welcomed their first guests.
Rebecca: You're welcome to use
this room anytime.
- Wow, it's beautiful.
- Absolutely gorgeous.
It's amazing.
Dick: Now winter's here,
bookings have slowed down.
They haven't had any guests
for over 3 months
and are financially struggling.
Tim: We're into loans from both
sets of our parents currently
and the credit card.
It's kind of survival mode
where we're kind of
eking things out to get us
through to next spring.
However, with Christmas
fast approaching,
Tim and Rebecca
have some good news.
Rebecca: We've got some guests
coming this weekend,
so our first winter guests.
Bless them.
These guys are coming over
from the UK for 3 nights.
Tim: It's a really important
step for us.
Dick: For any business,
it's all about reputation.
Tim and Rebecca need
the chateau to look its best,
but as their guests
arrive tomorrow,
they need to get
their skates on.
Rebecca: I can't feel
my hands already.
I think this is a good thing.
Dick: First task is
to clear the grounds
of recent storm damage.
Rebecca: All right.
Who's driving?
Dick: So they've drafted
live-in mate and helper Dale.
Rebecca: Come on, Monty.
Dick: The worst-hit area is
the entrance to the driveway,
which is nearly 3/4
of a mile away.
Rebecca:
OK. Now you can get out.
We had a freak storm.
Basically ripped a tree out
almost out of the ground,
and it crashed through,
of all the places,
through my gate, which I
wasn't very happy about.
Tim: Today, we've got to clear
away the branches that are
in the ditch and on the drive
and get it kind of back
into the woods.
So let's start at the bottom.
Oh, this is a good workout.
Knackered already.
Dick: And it's a case of all
hands and paws to the pump.
Rebecca: Go on.
Take it away.
I don't need it left here.
Tim: Being outside is nice,
so we've been doing a lot
of inside work,
so getting outdoors
for a bit is good fun.
Dale: Can you get this bit off?
Dick: Tim seems to be enjoying
the challenge, as does Dale.
Tim: Ride it. Ride it. Yes.
Dick: But there's a lot more
clearing up to do
if they want the place ready
for their winter guests.
Tim: We need to get these
big branches out.
This is the biggest bit
of branch,
and then we've got an awful lot
of logging to do
on the other side.
Dick: 300 miles away
in southeast France lies
the stunning 13th century
Chateau les Rosières.
It has 20 rooms and is set in
an incredible 130 acres of land.
The lucky new owners are Brit
Amy and French husband Marc,
who moved in last year.
Amy: It was so clear to us
when we came to visit here
that this was the right place.
Marc: We were looking
for history
with the land and the potential
to do something.
If I could just translate that,
we had no idea
what we were looking for.
We just wanted somewhere
that spoke to us
and was magical basically.
So history
and gardens and stuff.
Yeah. Yeah, that's what I said.
Located an hour and a half's
drive from Lyon,
it's a dream come true
for writer Amy
and French farmer Marc,
who met by chance 7 years ago.
Amy, voice-over: I went on
holiday with my mum,
and I happened to bump
into Marc there,
who was running a hydroponic
lettuce farm, as you do.
He just kept suggesting
activities
for us to do together,
and so my mum kept coming along
on all of them,
and we actually nearly
drowned her on one of them.
- Yeah, I didn't manage.
- No.
Amy: We got married
about a year later.
Dick: They now want to start
a new life in France running
a B&B and hosting yoga retreats.
Before they can start work
inside the chateau,
they need to replace
the old defunct sewage system.
Amy: Oh, my--oh.
Marc: Here we go.
Amy: That is really full.
Dick: Their plan is to put
a brand-new one in themselves
with the help
of their own excavator...
but until they replace
a damaged caterpillar track,
they can't start digging.
Amy: Apparently,
I have to clean this.
Not totally sure why,
but I suppose it makes
the caterpillar track
come off more easily.
Marc tends to get
the technical jobs,
and I get the brute force jobs
because I'm the muscle.
I'm supervising my workforce.
You're very cheeky.
Dick: It's a tricky job,
so they brought in friend Manu
to help them.
Amy: The last time we
had to do this,
it took us about
two hours to get it off.
Dick: To release the track,
they have to unscrew
the retaining bolt.
[Manu speaking French]
But the bolt's not moving.
Marc: We might have a 24
of this in the house.
Dick: While Marc goes
in search of more tools...
Amy has a go.
Amy: I'm going to try anyway.
[Grunts]
Hey! Oh! It moved.
It's moving.
I'm doing it.
- Is it working?
- Yes.
- Oh, well done.
- Just a little bit.
First prize for digger
technology today is to me.
Dick: Nice one, Amy.
All that's to do now is
take the old track off.
Amy: Yeah! Oh!
Dick: And put the new one on.
- Is it--oh, yeah.
- Perfect.
- Yup.
- Bravo.
You did it.
Dick: Good teamwork...Amy.
With the excavator
up and running,
Marc can start digging trenches.
It's just the start
of a much bigger plan.
They want to create giant
eco-friendly filter beds
at the edge of the forest
to purify their waste.
Amy: We've been digging two
ponds right down
the bottom of the slope,
and the ponds will have gravel
and then reeds planted in it,
and the reeds will digest
the sewage,
and any clean overflow water
will just flow into the forest.
That's how the system works.
The more difficult bit
and the bit we're
a bit concerned about
getting right is moving
the sewage
from all the buildings.
Dick: Connecting pipes
from the chateau
100 meters down a slope
to the waste pond
is going to be an epic task.
Amy: If we don't do this task,
then we can't set up
bed and breakfast,
we can't set up
a retreat center,
we can't do anything.
Because until you've sorted
a fundamental like the sewage,
you aren't going anywhere.
Dick: In northwest France lies
the beautiful
19th century 45-room
Chateau la Grande Maison...
located a stone's throw
from the Loire Valley.
The chateau is run
as a luxury guest house
and is home
to musicians Ben and Billie.
We really do have regular
moments of going,
"Wow. this is
incredible, isn't it?"
And we do pinch ourselves,
you know.
We might take a cup of coffee
up onto a balcony
and sit in the sun and look out
at the land and the river...
Ben: That is really special.
Billie: and just say,
"This is incredible."
Dick: Last time
we followed them,
they transformed
the chateau's south wing
with a bit of help
from yours truly.
Dick: That's a talking piece.
Ben: Yeah.
Dick, voice-over: They created
an events venue
and dining area...
Billie: Thank you all
for coming.
Dick: which proved
to be a great success.
Now that it's winter
and quieter,
they want to renovate
the chateau's
final untouched room,
the old library, where they're
planning to start hosting
book club events in 3 months.
The problem is, it's been used
as a dumping ground
ever since they moved in.
Billie: Getting into that room
at the moment is
a bit like mountaineering,
I think.
If there is something you need,
you would have to climb
over a hell of a lot
of boxes and junk,
and what is all that stuff
in there?
I have no idea.
Dick:
Before they can do anything,
they need to clear the room out.
When are we going
to have a disco?
Ben: There's some quite
interesting cupboards,
which are original to the house.
Actually, I haven't
seen that before.
That's--what is that?
Is that--
is that moving, Billie?
Billie: Yeah, there's
a metal arm up there.
Ben: This is the mechanism for
opening and closing the window.
It'll be possible to maybe get
that working
and just to open
the internal window.
Dick: It's a nice find.
The skylight is two-tiered
and is the only source
of natural light, as the room
has no other windows.
Dick: Several weeks later
with the old library cleared
and walls plastered,
Ben now needs to replace
the top window with a heavy-duty
100-kilogram piece of glass
he picked up for £250.
Billie: But it weighs
an absolute ton, doesn't it?
Dick: As it's going to
sit on the roof,
the only way to get it up there
is through the skylight itself,
so they brought in
some friends to help out.
Billie: Well, we got to do
some proper construction
today, haven't we?
Ben: Well, me and Ben have been
planning this for about 3 weeks,
how we're going to do it.
We're working at serious height.
We'll be 13 meters
off the ground.
- Yeah.
- We're going to be 5 meters
from the roof to this floor.
There can be no room for error.
Dick: It's dizzying heights.
However, all of Ben's mates
are experienced tradesmen,
so he's in safe hands.
The boys are constructing
a frame to hoist up
the heavy glass using
an electric winch.
They secured
the glass with ropes.
It's crucial the weight
is evenly spread to avoid
the risk of it falling out.
All right.
[Squeaking]
OK. There. That will do.
There a couple wires there.
All right.
You guys can go.
Dick: Having got it up safely,
they now have to fit
the glass in place.
Ben: Try and keep it
around the outside.
Man: Come towards me then.
It's got to come this way a bit.
Oh!
OK. Hold it there, everyone.
OK. I'm good here.
Dick: Great job.
The whole plan
has worked seamlessly.
With only the frame
of the window to seal in,
it's mission accomplished.
Billie: Wow. The light's
literally glowing
out of the room now.
Ben: It is so much lighter
in here, isn't it?
- Oh, yes.
- Fantastic.
- Yay! Fantastic.
- That's really good.
Really happy with that.
Dick: Stage one complete.
They now need to get
the interior window working,
which could prove
a lot trickier.
Over at Chateau de la Ruche,
Tim is still tidying up
the driveway
ahead of their first
winter guests' arrival tomorrow.
Rebecca has an idea to make
the chateau look extra special.
I'm going to go foraging
for some bits and bobs
for some kind of festive floral
archway over the front door.
We have got paying
guests coming,
and I want it to look amazing
when they walk up.
I love decorating a house
for Christmas.
It's one of my favorite things,
so yeah.
I'm really looking
forward to it.
Dick: Foraging is one
of Angel's favorite pastimes.
OK. Brilliant.
Dick: Throughout the year, she
collects a host of things
from our garden to help bring
our chateau to life...
Angel: That's good.
We are getting somewhere.
Dick: and there's no time
more special than winter.
Angel: It is just such a lovely,
easy, cost-effective way
to make your house into a bit
of a winter wonderland.
Dick: Rebecca obviously
shares Angel's passion.
Rebecca: You like that tree?
Dick: And there's one festive
plant she's on the lookout for--
mistletoe.
We've got loads
of mistletoe, actually.
This is a really good tree
for it,
but there's quite
a lot everywhere.
All right.
I'm gonna see how far I get
with that lot,
and then I can always come back
and get some more.
- Hello, my love.
- Hello. Do you want a kiss?
- I can't stop.
- Ha ha ha!
- Trying to stop.
- Oh, OK.
Don't have any brakes.
Here we go.
Oh, you got a wet beard.
Don't stroke the beard.
Dick: At Chateau de la Ruche,
Rebecca can
finally get cracking.
Rebecca: I have no idea if
this is going to work.
Last year, I made
an absolutely beautiful wreath,
and it was huge,
and it was lovely,
but I'd forgotten that the door
was a double door,
so I made it all, and then said,
"Tim, can I put--
could you put this
on the front door?"
And we came out here
and then realized
that we had a double door,
So we put it on,
and basically,
the door was
completely unusable,
and the only way you could get
out of the house
was by ducking down and crawling
underneath the wreath,
which is fine if you're us.
Not so fine if you got
paying guests coming in.
Dick: Rebecca's going to make
sure there's no repeat
with her archway.
Rebecca: There's going to be
a lot of cable tie initially
to get the initial structure,
and then hopefully,
I'll be able to weave
a few sticks through.
I need it to be strong because
I need it to withstand weather.
OK.
That's a start.
Feel like it's slightly--
When the guests arrive,
I just want them to be
kind of wowed and for it
to be really festive looking
and special,
and it's kind of
their first impression
of the chateau really,
and I just want their whole
kind of weekend
to be really treatful
and beautiful,
so hopefully, this will
kind of set the tone for it.
Dick: Fingers crossed, Rebecca.
Over at Chateau les Rosières,
new owners Amy and Marc
are putting in
a new eco-friendly
sewage system.
While Marc continues
to dig trenches outside,
inside, plumbers have started
laying new waste pipes
that will connect
to a central one
in the entrance hall,
which presents
its own raft of problems.
We need to be able to get
the pipe through the house
and out of the building,
and Marc convinced me that
the only way to do this
was to rent this boring machine
to drill holes
in the bedrock of the house.
[Grinding]
Dick: To operate the machine,
experts have been employed,
as they need to drill down
over a meter through the wall.
Amy: It's going to go just
through the corner of the floor,
and you see where he's
pointing it,
it's going through actual
bedrock rather
than the stones of the house.
Dick: It's a nice piece of kit.
It's designed to extract
a core of material
in its cylinder.
Amy: What's that made of?
Is that the actual rock?
Marc: We have a first layer
of concrete here,
which is the edge of the wall,
and here, we are
hitting the rock.
Oh!
That's going to be long,
boring job.
Oh, my God.
Dick: Boring?
Great pun, Marc...
although it's no laughing
matter,
as their experts don't appear
to realize the drill
isn't long enough to go
through the wall
and out the other side.
Marc: So far, they have managed
to drill 1 meter 20
with the bore,
but the wall is probably
about 1 meter 80 thick.
So we are going to have to
finish breaking
the wall with the jackhammer.
Dick: So now they have to try
and meet the internal hole
from the outside.
Actually, I don't really know
yet what I'm supposed
to be jackhammering.
Maybe I should find that out.
Yeah, Nick?
Oh, I actually have absolutely
no idea where anything's
coming out, so I'm just randomly
drilling holes
in the wall at the moment.
Ohh!
I'm very determined
not to be defeated by this.
Dick: It seems Amy is not
the only one who doesn't know
where the hole is.
Amy: Basically, they dug
at a much steeper angle
than I expected,
and so I think they've gone
too low under the bedrock.
I rarely understand much
of what's going on,
so...I'm just rolling with it.
Dick: Using a collection
of drills, they try to see
how much further down
the hole is.
I think I can hear the sound
of his drill bits going
through the bore hole,
so we might be--
we might be very near to
joining both holes.
Yeah, yeah.
Amy: It worked. Ho ho ho!
We found the hole.
So he felt the drill bit
on this side
from the other side,
so we've managed to connect.
What we're going to do now is
put another borer
from the other side
and do another bore hole
from the outside.
Dick: While the machine
does the rest,
Amy and Marc breathe
a huge sigh of relief.
Amy: And you can see light
through the hole.
Marc: At the end of the tunnel.
Light at the end
of the tunnel.
Ha ha ha!
Dick: At Chateau
la Grande Maison,
Ben and Billie are restoring
their old library
to host a book club events.
They've put in the first part
of their two-tiered skylight.
Now they need to get
the interior window working.
So I'm checking in to see
how they're getting on.
- Hi, Dick.
- Hey, Dick.
Dick: How you doing?
Billie: Oh, good. Thank you.
Ben: Good. Thanks. Yeah.
Billie: Nice to see you.
Progressing well.
Dick: First thing's first,
where are you?
We're in the library.
Done loads already.
We had great fun putting--
that's over 100 kilograms,
that window.
We had great fun
putting that in,
so what our plan is now
with the window is to leave
the top window fixed
and get
the inner window working.
Dick: And you're gonna to put
a mechanism in that so it opens.
There is a center--
the center window.
Oh, that's the only bit
that opens, the--
only the middle part of it?
- Yeah.
- It lifts upwards correct?
So you're looking
at the top side there.
- Yeah. We're looking the top.
- Good.
So that opens like that--
it opens like that.
Dick: Couldn't get easier
than that, could it?
Billie: And I don't know.
Are we going to--
can we get the mechanism working
that's in the cupboard?
Yeah?
Ben: Yeah. Shall I
show you this mechanism?
This is the fun bit
because it looks great.
If it worked,
that would be even better.
And, so, we showed you
earlier the bar.
So that bar moves up and down,
and it's controlled by this
mechanism in the cupboard.
Oh, you have to love it.
Ben: It's a lovely thing,
isn't it?
Dick: When you turn it,
how much does it move?
Make it go up and down.
OK. I'm just lifting up
the catch.
OK. Here we go.
Now I've hit the cupboard
with the handle,
so what do I do?
Lock that on
and then reposition that.
Ben: It's a little bit tricky
at the moment
because the cupboard is
in the way for it to--
for the handle
to go all the way around.
Billie: It's kind of...
Dick: What you have
to do there, mate,
get a ratchet one that goes
on there like...
Oh, yeah, yes,
that's a good idea.
Billie: Oh, yeah.
Dick: An old car ratchet.
You'll find one on the Internet
somewhere, yeah,
cheap as chips for that size.
By putting the ratchet
over the top that,
you'd go jjj, jjj, jjj
and gradually drops down,
which means it can be
permanently in place.
If you have something that
you have to remove,
it gets lost,
it doesn't get used.
Can you show me how much
it moves the bar?
Oh, yeah!
We got bar movement.
I'm jealous. Do you know
what's really interesting?
I've actually got a mechanism
a bit like that,
I bought at a vide-grenier.
I didn't know what it was.
So down to my workshop
at the minute,
I've got something
that looks a bit like that.
Hold. Don't go away,
don't go away.
- Hold on a second, hold on.
- Yeah. No problem.
Dick, voice-over:
I'm always buying stuff
that could come in useful
because when you own a chateau,
you just never know.
Ben: The handle idea was
really good for the mechanism.
- Yes.
- Yeah. It could be a ratchet.
Yeah.
If we can't find a ratchet,
we could always make
an extension.
Dick: Hello.
Ben: Hi.
Dick: Look what I've got!
Billie: Oh, wow.
Ben: Very similar.
- Oh, that's cool.
- Great.
I bought it for two Euros
in a vide-grenier,
and I had bought it because it
had J.M., and a mate of mine
is called Jim Milner.
Billie: That's great.
So you bought it without
knowing what it was.
You just thought, "Well,
that looks interesting."
I wasn't quite sure what it was.
I thought it was
for lifting things,
but the mechanism makes sense
now that I've seen yours.
- Yes, yeah. It's brilliant.
- That's brilliant.
So we've solved
a mystery, as well.
That was brilliant.
But be very aware about getting
rid of anything
because one day--
one day you will need it.
- Yeah.
- Mm-hmm.
Can you imagine going
and trying buying one of these?
- Yeah. Ha ha ha!
- Yeah.
They don't make them
like that anymore.
Dick: So your window now
and all of that said left,
that looks brilliant.
Ben: Thank you very much.
Hey, listen. Lovely to talk
to you, take care.
Yeah. Speak to you soon.
Be good.
- Take care. Bye.
- Cheers. Bye, Dick.
- Bye.
- Cheers.
Ben: I tell you what, it's
really nice to find someone else
excited about our mechanism.
Got someone to talk to
about my mechanism now.
Dick: I really hope they can get
it all working properly.
Over at Chateau de la Ruche,
the temperatures have plummeted,
and Tim and Rebecca's first
winter guests are due tomorrow.
Ready. Lift it. Ohh.
Dick: The old oil-fired boiler
that heats up the guest wing
hasn't been started in months,
so the rooms are freezing.
Tim: Ohh! Ha ha ha!
It's really--you forget
that the room is minus 3.
So is the radiator, isn't it?
Dick: Before they can turn
the boiler on,
Tim's brought in mate Dale to
help connect up the radiators.
Rebecca:
The heating is very important
which is why I wanted to get it
done this morning
so we've got plenty of time
to heat up
because it's
absolutely freezing today.
I'm feeling a bit anxious just--
and a tiny bit stressed
that we're not going to get
everything done in time.
Oh, my God. Ha ha ha!
Dick: The original cast iron
radiators weigh a ton,
and they need to be
plumbed in carefully.
With all the radiators in
and sealed,
it's down to the boiler room
to start pumping
water through them.
- Dale.
- Yeah.
Do you want to just run
upstairs quick
and keep an eye on those 3 rads?
Yeah.
Dick: Here's hoping
for no leaks.
So the noise has just changed,
which means--
I don't know what it means,
but when the noise changes,
it means the system
is starting to fill up.
I am just releasing the pressure
of the radiator
so all the air can get out.
I just love it. Tim.
Tim: Yeah.
Are you still getting
air out of yours?
Dick: With all the air out,
the system is now filled
with water.
Let's hope there's no puddles.
Tim: Yeah. I'm down
in the honeymoon suite.
Oh, OK.
Dick: With 3 separate floors
to negotiate,
there's lots to check.
Tim: Did you get water
out of the one
in the garden and bathroom
or not?
I forget the names.
I've only been here a year.
I am now hearing water running
into the rad.
The old switcheroo.
This room is the garden room,
so this is where
we've got guests this weekend.
So this rad really
needs to work.
Are they all done
up here now, Dale?
Dale: Ooh! It's got water.
Oh, nice.
Dick: It's looking good.
Water's being pumped
into the radiators.
The challenge now is getting
the boiler working
to heat them up.
The boiler's old,
they're very simple,
and all it does is blast diesel
into it and set it on fire.
As long as the old--
the old beast fires up.
Dick: After sitting idle
for almost a year,
it's crunch time.
If it doesn't work,
they may end up losing
their imminent booking.
Hey.
Has two noises again.
I don't know what they mean.
One noise it starts,
and the next noise
is the proper growling,
and you can hear that now,
and it's so good that
you can actually see
the flames of the boiler.
Yeah. You can see that
that's burning away.
- Is there heat?
- Well, feel the pipe.
It's not cold.
- Lukewarm.
- All right.
Come in here, come
and get a hold of this pipe.
That pipe is just slightly
more than lukewarm.
Yes, that's definitely better.
OK. Good.
Dick: Good work, Tim.
It's a big relief all round
and one less thing
to worry about
before their guests arrive.
Over at Chateau de Rosières,
Amy and Marc
have finally managed to put
a sewage pipe
through the outside wall.
Now they have to finish
laying them inside.
This is my--this is
what's left of my office.
Dick: It's a very messy job,
as the pipes are being fitted
inside the entrance hall
and underneath floorboards
on the first floor.
Thankfully they have Stephan
the plumber to do most
of the hard graft.
Amy: This is the junction.
This room is eventually
going to be another bathroom,
and so it's Stephan's idea
that we put the junctions in
now, even though it's
going to be maybe another year
until we actually
do the renovations here,
to save us having
to rip out the floor again.
Stephan's our best friend.
Dick: It's a smart move,
but now Amy and Marc
need to get involved to help
connect the pipes
between floors.
Marc: We might need you to
lift it when we fit it in.
Amy: Yeah.
And then we'll tell you to push.
- OK.
- OK. Thank you.
Amy: Because it's going
between the two floors,
it needs 3 of us to push
the pipe together to glue it,
and it's really important
that we glue it well,
or we get leaks.
Um, We don't really want sewage
leaks in the walls of the house.
Marc and Stephan line up
the pipes from below,
while Amy prepares to push
from the first floor.
Amy: Ooh-hoo!
Dick: To make these joints work,
Stephan is not being shy
with the glue.
Marc: There's no way back now.
Amy: Now?
Now?
I'm leaving.
OK. It's all good.
- Sorry?
- All good.
OK.
Dick: Well, it all seems
to fit together.
Now we need to wait for it to
dry completely during the night,
and hopefully we'll see if
it's completely watertight.
Amy: It's quite a work
of art, that.
- Non, non
- Oui. Ha ha ha!
Dick: After leaving
the glue overnight,
it's the moment of truth.
Amy and Marc gather outside...
while Stephan pours water
through the pipes.
Amy: Ah. Ha ha ha! Hey!
Oh. My God,
That's such a relief.
Just think of all the poo
that's going to come
running down there.
We are one step closer
to being eco-friendly.
Dick: It's a great start,
but with more trenches to dig,
pipes to lay,
and sewage ponds to build,
this huge project has
only just got going.
At Chateau la Grande Maison...
- How are you getting on?
- Looking good.
Ben and Billie are preparing
to put the internal part
of the skylight back up
in the library.
Ben: I'm resting them on here,
lift up,
and then just lift
into the slot on the way up.
Dick: The 19th century frame
needs new glass panels,
but first,
Ben has to get it in place.
Ben: I'm really very worried
about getting it stuck
on the way up because
when we got it down,
it was incredibly tight.
I measured it earlier today,
and there's literally
one millimeter,
two millimeters of clearance.
We definitely don't want to get
a heavy object jammed
above our heads 3 1/2 meters
off the ground.
Dick: To help get
the frame up there,
he's brought in his mate,
also called Ben...
Ben: OK. It's definitely
the right way round.
Dick: and built a scaffold to
ensure it's easier
to lift into place.
Ben: Wear it like
a pair of trousers.
Dick: Logic has it that
if it came out...
Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.
That's a very good start.
Dick: It has to be able
to fit back in.
Fantastic.
I got--I got it. Oh.
- It's gone in?
- Yeah.
- OK.
- Yeah.
Dick: It's looking promising,
although having screwed in one
part of the frame,
they now realize it's not level.
Ben: Maybe we do need a mallet.
Dick: If in doubt,
bring out a hammer.
Ben: OK. Brilliant, Ben,
brilliant.
That's superb.
There's been so much work
in this area of the room,
it's been incredible.
Straight.
He's not quite finished yet
as he needs to add
a ventilation system
as the glass
on the roof is fixed.
All right.
That will fit perfectly now.
I may need to fit the hose
from the other side,
but that's going to be great.
Dick: But it will all be for
nothing if once
all the glass is in he can't get
the mechanism working.
Get the chains back up.
I'm ready to test it out.
Dick: After working tirelessly
to transform
their old, crumbling skylight,
it's the moment of truth
for Ben and Billie.
Oh. Oh, gosh.
It's really nice, isn't it?
Lovely.
Ben: I love it, I love it.
Billie: Does it open?
- Does it work?
- Haven't tried it yet.
Shall we try it?
OK. Going to lift it?
Aw. Up she goes.
That's about--I think that's
about the highest I think.
Billie: It's so much lighter
than it used to be.
it's really good,
really, really good.
I love it.
So much work in that little
square meter, half square.
Dick: It's a positive start,
but there's a lot of hard work
ahead before this room is ready
to host a book club.
At Chateau de la Ruche,
Tim and Rebecca's
first paying winter guests
are due in a couple of hours.
Rebecca: I want to lay up
the table for dinner
so that's all done
before they arrive.
OK.
Dick: With word of mouth
so vital
to any new chateau business,
every detail of their
guests' stay has to be perfect.
Sorry for walking
on your stairs.
Dick: Now it's a race
against time to
get the guest wing
spick and span.
Just looking and thinking
what do I need to do?
Slightly stressed.
It just feels like
there's quite
a lot to do right now.
Tim: Getting the sweat on.
Rebecca: The heating is on,
and the house is actually warm.
This is how real people live.
Real people
with heating and money.
Is there time
for a mistletoe kiss?
At least your beard's
not sweaty today.
I do the making pretty.
Tim doesn't do making pretty.
He doesn't get it.
He can clean
while I make pretty.
Dick: He may not do pretty,
but at least he does hoovering.
Right.
Dick: Job done.
Just as well as here
are the guests.
Rebecca:
We could do with music in here.
Tim: Yeah.
[Knock on door]
Man: Hiya. How are you doing?
Rebecca: You can chill now.
Man: Yeah.
Woman: That's amazing.
Rebecca: Come on up.
So this is your bedroom.
- Oh, my gosh. Thank you.
- Oh, wow.
Rebecca:
You're very welcome.
Man: Oh my God. It's beautiful.
Rebecca: Thank you.
Woman: We're not leaving.
Man: It's kind of up
your street, isn't it?
Yeah, literally.
- Oh, oh my gosh. The taps.
- Oh my God.
I never thought I'd love taps.
Rebecca: Oh, good.
So if you want to just get
settled in and then pop
downstairs to the salon,
you can have a drink and get
something to eat and chill.
- OK. Thank you.
- Thank you.
Man: After the travel
that we've had...
- To get here.
- sitting here
in front of the fire.
- It has all been worth it.
- Yeah. 100% worth it.
It's stunning, everything
is immaculate.
Everything has been
so thought out.
Man: Yeah. It's gonna be
an amazing 3 days.
We're going to be coming back.
Man: Definitely.
Definitely going to come back.
Dick: I don't think you can get
any more complimentary
than that.
Rebecca's extra special touches,
both inside and out,
have proved to be a big hit.
Rebecca: I was really pleased
with their reaction
when they arrived.
That's the thing I love most,
just seeing people's faces
when they arrive
and them kind of getting it.
It's another step
towards where we need to be.
It feels like everything--
all the hard work
we've done is worthwhile.
It's just amazing,
really amazing.
- Good job.
- Oh, yeah, good job.
- Good job, well done.
- Well done.
Dick: Hear, hear.
Fingers crossed,
more winter guests
start coming soon.
Next time....
Billie?
Dick: Ben and Billie make
an amazing discovery...
- Almost perfect.
- Oh my gosh.
No, that's perfect.
Dick: and call on Angela
to lend a hand.
Like an old friend coming back
for tea with a trailer.
Mind the chandeliers.
Dick: Tim and Rebecca start
their next renovation...
There's definitely worse jobs.
Dick: but don't always see
eye to eye.
Rebecca: Do you not like it?
Tim: No?
- What don't you like about it?
- Everything.
Dick: And Amy and Marc continue
work on their monster project.
Amy: We have a digger.
How hard can it be?