Escape to the Chateau DIY (2018–2021): Season 4, Episode 6 - Episode #4.6 - full transcript
I'm Dick Strawbridge,
and along with my wife Angel
and our two children...
Arthur: Welcome aboard, mateys!
Dick, voice-over:
we're now 5 years
Angel: Whoo!
Dick, voice-over: into restoring
this once-abandoned chateau.
Angel: It's beautiful.
Dick, voice-over: It's brought
its challenges...
Angel: Aah!
Dick, voice-over: and some
amazing rewards.
Angel: Thank you for my
flower garden, Mr. Strawbridge.
Dick, voice-over: And across
France, there are dozens
of other Brits who are on
their own chateau adventure.
Yay!
Dick, voice-over: We'll meet
some old friends...
- Smile.
- I am.
Dick, voice-over: and new faces.
These rooms really haven't
been touched in 60 years.
Dick, voice-over:
And we'll reveal more
about our own chateau life.
Angel: It is so much better
in real life.
Dick, voice-over:
There will be highs...
Yay!
Dick, voice-over: and lows.
- Oh, no!
- Oh, God!
What a disaster!
Dick, voice-over: as these
plucky Brits...
Fiona: Time is money.
Dick, voice-over: transform
these once unloved buildings
into incredible homes...
Woman: I just cannot believe
how much work
you put in for us.
Dick, voice-over: as well
as businesses,
and get to live the dream
as custodians
of their very own castle.
Stephanie: Cheers, everybody!
Dick: Today...
Woman: Right. We're here.
Dick: New chateau owners
turn the key on a new life.
Man: Look at this. Wow.
Woman: Oh, my God!
I'd forgotten how fantastic
this place is.
Man: Isn't it?
Dick: Another comes face to face
with the past...
Stephanie: I can't describe
the smell.
It's the must
of a thousand years.
Dick: as she restores
an original chateau relic.
Stephanie: I don't know
what to do with this.
Dick: And one couple have
wedding jitters.
Man: We're just quickly doing
a very quick tidy up
because
the wedding planner's coming.
Angel: Hello.
Woman: Hello, Angel.
Dick: So Angel shares
the secrets to wedding success.
Angel: This is the sort
of wedding most people
want nowadays.
They want it to be
a bit fairytale and whimsical.
Dick: Chateau owners
all over France
are now busy preparing
for the new wedding
and events season.
Take the spectacular
16th century
Chateau de Lalande.
Sitting in 60 acres,
it has 18 bedrooms
and even its own chapel.
It's home to familiar face
Stephanie,
who moved in here 13 years ago.
After much renovation,
she now runs it
as a B&B and events business.
Stephanie: I still have to
pinch myself every day,
every time I open
my bedroom window.
I can't believe I live here.
Dick: Located in
Centre-Val de Loire,
winter has been busy.
Stephanie: It's been
a really good year so far.
We've got a lot done.
Got the greenhouse renovated.
Isabelle: Oh, my goodness!
It's wonderful!
Stephanie: And we finally got
the last B&B room finished.
Dick: And she launched
her first artists' weekend
in the newly renovated
art studio.
Man: If you use your charcoal
to follow the curves
of the leg like a tube,
then you tend to get a sense
of it feeling quite solid.
Dick: Now Stephanie's turning
her attention
to the biggest and most
important event
she's ever put on,
Her mother Isabelle's wedding
to fiancé Percy
in just two months' time.
Stephanie: I'm quite nervous
about hosting
my mother's wedding.
First off, I've never
hosted a wedding here before,
and to start
with my own mother's,
that's amazing.
I'm excited.
Right.
Ooh. There she is.
Dick: Stephanie's putting
her heart and soul
into making sure
the bride's journey
to the chapel is anything
but bog-standard.
She's doing up an old carriage.
Stephanie: Gosh.
I hope it stops.
Stephanie, voice-over: As soon
as I realized
I was going to be hosting
my mother's wedding,
I knew the carriage
had to be part of it.
Immediately. This is it.
This was the opportunity
to get the carriage working.
Dick: Having not been used
for almost 100 years,
Stephanie and close family
friend Gerry
are keen to see
what they need to do
to make it wedding ready.
Stephanie: I've got a lot
of work to do on the upholstery.
I think that the mice have been
living in there for some time.
Gerry: Probably, probably.
Probably still are.
Stephanie: That's really bad.
Look at this.
The whole seat moves.
That's working well.
That's easy to do.
Incredible!
Gerry: So you put
the horse on here,
and that would be
on your back like that.
Stephanie: Faster.
Gerry: Faster.
Stephanie:
Mummy's getting bored.
She's getting bored!
Gerry: He's getting out!
Hurry up, hurry up, Gerry!
Dick: There's no time
for horsing around
with only two months
until the wedding.
The carriage needs cleaning,
painting,
and reupholstering
before the bride
can journey to the chapel in it.
37 miles south is
the 19th century
Chateau Gioux,
set in 5 acres
of stunning countryside
on the edge of Millevaches Park.
It's the new home
to Yorkshire couple
Debbie and Nigel,
who bought it for £280,000.
It was love at first sight.
Nigel: Just blew you away
when you saw it.
Debbie: Yeah. I just loved it,
but I never dreamed
in a million years
that we'd be able to...
Nigel: I didn't think
we'd have a chance.
Debbie: to afford this,
and it's very, very special.
Dick: Located 30 miles east
of Limoges,
we saw it nearly become home
to bikers Martin and Kim
a year ago.
Kim: My stars.
Man: You like it?
Martin: Yeah, very nice.
Kim: Yeah.
Ooh! Look at this! Wow!
Dick: Whilst Kim fell
head over heels...
Kim: I want this one.
Dick: Martin
on the other hand...
Kim: Hello. Speak.
Martin: I am listening,
but we got to work it out, babe.
Kim: OK.
Martin: We got to work it out.
Kim: All right.
Dick: While it didn't
work for them,
it did for Debbie and Nigel,
who snapped it up
when the price fell
by over £100,000.
Nigel: We are just
ordinary people
who've taken the decision
to move to France.
We haven't got millions
of pounds in the bank.
Debbie: We've remortgaged,
we've cashed pensions in. Ha!
So we've really, yeah,
pushed the boat out
to get to this point.
Dick: Because they've
stretched themselves,
Debbie and Nigel need
to generate income
by opening as a B&B
as soon as possible.
They both have experience
working with the public.
Nigel ran bars in Benidorm
and Debbie a farm shop
back home.
Debbie: Even though we've
both been in the past
involved in
the hospitality industry,
I think the first guests
arriving
will be quite
a nerve-racking experience.
Dick: They met only 5 years ago.
This will be a totally
new venture for them,
and today, they're moving in.
Debbie: Right. We're here.
Come on.
Bailey.
Amazing. It looks really good.
Bit of work to do,
isn't there, but...
Nigel: Soon deal with that.
Debbie: We'll get there.
It's gonna look absolutely
beautiful when it's finished.
Nigel: Look at this.
Debbie: We're here.
Nigel: Wow!
Debbie: Oh, my God!
Absolutely incredible.
I'd forgotten
how fantastic this place is.
Nigel: Isn't it?
Dick: There's no getting
away from the amount
of work that needs to be done
throughout the chateau,
and neither of them have done
anything on this scale before.
Nigel: This is by far
the biggest thing we've done
as a partnership.
Exciting times.
Debbie: * There may be trouble *
Nigel: Oh, don't sing, Deb.
Don't sing.
Dick: I've every faith in you.
The good news is that
through word of mouth
their first paying guests
are due to arrive
in only 6 weeks' time.
That means they urgently need
to get 3 bedrooms ready.
Nigel: This is where we're
gonna knock through, Deb.
Debbie: Oh, yeah. That's right.
Nigel: Got the bathroom,
and what we'll do is
we'll have a secret wardrobe
where there's a doorway
into the next room.
Debbie: Well, how exciting
that will be to come
through the wardrobe
into the bathroom.
Nigel: Won't it?
Dick: The magical tales
of Narnia
in "The Lion, the Witch,
and the Wardrobe"
seem to be their inspiration.
Nigel: Ooh.
We found a wardrobe downstairs,
and it would be quite nice
opening the wardrobe,
walking through the wardrobe
into Narnia,
which is a lovely
master bathroom.
Debbie: So you go
into a cupboard
and come out
of a cupboard basically.
And once this is stripped down,
it'll be good.
Debbie: Looks slightly rickety.
Dick: First task, getting
the wardrobe out
of the cellar.
Debbie: Hang on.
Nigel: It won't go, Deb.
It won't go now.
Debbie: OK.
Nigel: So we'll have to tip it.
Debbie: OK.
Nigel: Is it tipping or not?
Debbie: No.
Nigel: Won't go.
Debbie: Hang on.
That's it.
Dick: Then it's two flights
of stairs to navigate
to get it to the bedroom
still on one piece.
Debbie: Ohh.
Nigel: Does yours fit?
Debbie: Just about.
Nigel: Perfect. Look at that.
Debbie: Brilliant.
That looks really good.
Nigel: Right. I think I'm
going to now go
and get the doorframe
and mark it,
and then we can start
cutting through.
Debbie: Right.
Dick: Nigel's renovation
experience is limited,
and even knocking
through a stud wall
to create a doorway is not
for the faint-hearted.
He's using a doorframe salvaged
from the cellar
as a template to mark
the hole he wants to make.
Nigel: All right. Put that down.
You hold up there.
If you'll go backwards now...
Debbie: Yeah.
Nigel: No. That's not backwards.
Debbie: Well, I...
[Crash]
Ha ha ha!
Dick: Oops!
Nigel: That's why I said
go backwards.
Debbie: Sorry. I--
[Clatter]
The chandelier's fine.
It's just one thing
dropped off it,
but it's not broken,
so I'll pop that back on.
The next bit is starting
to break through.
Once Nigel's finished
drawing the frame,
then we'll start
to tap through and see.
Then we see what happens.
Nigel: I've not done anything
like this before,
so, uh, we haven't got
the money to be able
to get people in to do it,
so we've got to do it ourselves,
or it won't get done.
Dick: A man
after my own heart, Nigel.
Nothing beats the satisfaction
of giving it a go yourself.
Nigel: Here we go.
Dick: And I reckon you'll save
yourself hundreds of pounds.
Nigel: I'm going to cut
through the other side
so it's all loose,
and then I can just
knock through.
Seems to be working.
- Deb.
- Yoo-hoo.
Debbie: Well done, dear.
Nigel: We're getting there.
We're getting there.
- You pleased?
- I'm really pleased.
I think it's gonna
look fantastic.
Dick: There may be less
than 6 weeks to go
before your guests arrive,
but you've made
a cracking start!
In Southwest France is
the stately Chateau de Brieves.
It sits in 30 acres,
has 25 rooms,
and 5 outbuildings.
Antique dealers
Sarah and George bought it
for £415,000 9 years ago
when they decided
they wanted a new challenge.
George: The chateau
is the best antique
that I've ever bought.
Sarah: Well, I remember seeing
it from the road actually,
and we just both looked
at each other and thought,
"Wow! This is so amazing."
Dick: It's located 58 miles
from Bordeaux
As it hadn't been lived in
for 20 years, it was a wreck,
so they've done major
renovations
both inside and out to turn it
into a family home
for themselves and children
Tatiana and Alexi.
Sarah: This house means
everything to us, all of us,
the children, too.
We're all very, very
passionate about it.
I'd say Tati especially.
I think Alexi would be happy
anywhere as long
as he's got Wi-Fi, but...
George: Well, it's just lovely.
It's a lovely family home...
Sarah: Yeah.
George: That happens to be
200 years old
and a rather grand chateau.
Dick: Although they still
deal in antiques,
they need the chateau
to start paying for itself.
George: It's very vital
that we have
a second source of income,
and there is an enormous
amount of pressure
in owning a chateau.
Sarah: We're hoping weddings
will be the answer.
Friends in the area
were doing similar things
and other chateau owners,
so we thought,
"We've got it all here.
Let's make a go of it."
Dick: As they're starting
a new business venture
from scratch and will be
investing both time
and money into it,
they've found an expert
in bespoke events to advise
on where to start.
George: Well, we're just
quickly doing
a very quick tidy up because
the wedding planner's coming,
and I want it to look
the best it can for her.
Some anxiety
with the wedding planner coming,
but as we have
no experience whatsoever,
we have to have
a wedding planner.
I'll put that away.
Sarah: Putting everything
in the cupboards.
Yeah. OK. Ooh. Big moment.
Ha ha ha!
Dick: Time's up.
Wedding planner
Samantha's arrived.
The stakes are high.
They'll soon find out
if their home of 9 years
is right for a wedding venue.
George: Hi.
Samantha: Hi. Hi.
How lovely to see you.
George: Hi, Samantha. George...
Samantha: Hi, hi.
George: and my wife Sarah.
Sarah: Hi, Samantha.
- Thank you for coming.
- Really lovely to meet you.
What an incredible
place you've got.
- Thank you.
- Yeah.
It's really, really beautiful.
Just fabulous proportions,
really, really good.
George: Come on in the house.
Samantha: OK. Thank you.
Wow. What an incredible place.
Dick: Samantha knows what makes
a perfect wedding venue.
If all goes well, she could
help drum up business
for Sarah and George.
Sarah: So this is
our main salon.
Samantha: OK.
George: In here, what we're
hoping to do very soon
is to completely redecorate,
fill in all the cracks,
et cetera.
Samantha: So it would really
just generally have
a good freshen up...
George: Yes.
Samantha: before obviously
it was let out as a venue.
OK. That sounds--
really sensible idea.
OK. I think my first instincts
is it looks great,
but it does look like
a family house at the moment,
so I think maybe you might
need to lose a few
of the personal photos
and what have you.
We're selling it as a venue,
so it would probably be
a good idea just to tuck
those away.
George: No. Of course.
Sarah: OK.
Dick: So after years of turning
their chateau
into a family home,
they now need to
depersonalize it.
Not easy when your stock
in trade is antiques
and you've filled your house
with them.
The plan would be to let
out 5 bedrooms
and some communal areas.
Sarah: So into the dining room.
Samantha: OK. Looking overall,
it's a great space,
but obviously, you've got
a lot of stuff.
I know it's your business,
but I'm slightly concerned
about people knocking things,
so I think along
with the redecoration
of the main salon,
I think decluttering would be--
yeah--would be quite
a good idea..
George: More upmarket.
Samantha: I think less is more.
George: Yeah. OK.
Samantha: I think. Yeah.
Sarah: So, Samantha, I'll
take you upstairs.
Samantha: Perfect.
Sarah: And you can see
the bedrooms
that we're offering.
Tell me what you
think about them.
So this was the room
I thought would be nice
for the bride to have
as her dressing room.
Samantha: OK. Again,
beautiful room,
but try to make it a little bit
more commercial.
George: Yeah, yeah.
Sarah: Yeah.
Dick: It's starting to dawn
on Sarah and George
just what needs to be done
to change
their cozy private home
into a chateau suitable
for clients.
Another selling point
as a wedding venue
is that the local church borders
their grounds.
George: So these are the gates
that we're gonna reinstate.
Samantha: Mm-hmm.
George: So tomorrow,
I'm gonna dig out here,
try and get them open,
sand down all the metalwork,
and then repaint them.
Hopefully, they'll be
good as new.
Here's the church.
Samantha: Oh, this is
gorgeous, isn't it?
Really nice.
George: Directly in front
of the house.
Samantha: Yeah.
George: so here we go.
Samantha: Oh, OK.
This is amazing, isn't it?
It's really pretty.
George: I think it seats
100, 150 people quite happily.
Samantha: Again, that's great.
No. This is an absolute
treasure, I think.
George: Oh, good.
Dick: This chateau
and its perfect location
should make it
a superb wedding venue,
but Samantha needs to be
confident they can do
the work needed to make their
home suitable for weddings.
Samantha: I think it's
really good actually.
The house itself
and the accommodation
and the church are gorgeous.
I'd say they just need to
obviously turn it
into a little bit more
of a venue than a family home.
For somebody who's never
been involved
in anything like this--
and obviously
they're opening their doors
to share their property--
it's a lot to take on,
but, yes, I look forward
to working with them.
Sarah: You're not worried
about how many things
we've got to do in the time or--
George: No. I think the things
that--I think the main thing
is the decorating in here.
One of the bedrooms she thought
needed a bit of upgrading.
Obviously the gate,
getting that working,
so, yeah, I think we have
a nice, long list,
but we can get through.
Sarah: Yeah. Yeah.
Dick: And with the wedding
season fast approaching,
there's only one way to get
the job done,
and that's to get started.
115 miles away
at Chateau Gioux,
new owners Debbie
and Nigel are creating
a magical entrance
to the en suite
for their first guests
in 3 weeks' time.
Nigel's finished knocking
through the wall
and has put in his doorframe.
Nigel: When it's completed,
I think it's
going to look very special.
Dick: And Debbie's got
her own project, too.
She's found some old shutters
in an outhouse
and wants to transform them
into a screen
for one of the bedrooms.
Debbie: We're going to put
new hinges on them,
obviously sand them down,
and repaint them,
make them look a little bit old,
a little bit chippy,
and use them as a screen
in the bedrooms.
I think my major concern
would be Nigel saying
it's not good enough basically.
I'll be fine with it. Ha ha!
But Nigel's a big more
of a perfectionist
about paint work than I am.
I quite like
the old, shabby look.
Nigel: Oh, you've done
a good job there.
That's come out nicely.
Debbie: He daren't say
anything else.
Nigel: That's good,
and then you're want me
to take these hinges off?
Debbie: Those could do
to come off,
and then I can get on
with painting.
It'll take some shifting,
I'm afraid.
Yeah. That one snapped off.
Debbie: Have you damaged my--
Nigel: Yeah. Look.
The screw has broken.
I'm too strong.
Debbie: What can we do?
Nigel: Use a big hammer.
Stand back, stand back.
Debbie: How far do you
want me to stand back?
Nigel: That'll do.
Debbie: All right.
Not the solution, Nige.
Nigel: I'm gonna have to
try and drill it out.
[Debbie sighs]
What about the rest of them?
Nigel: They'll all need
drilling out.
Debbie: They all
need drilling out.
Dick: Though for Nigel,
there's no such thing
as a straightforward
drilling out.
Nigel: I've got a big hammer,
I've got a drill,
and if that doesn't work,
I've got the angle grinder.
Debbie: You pulled this apart
by banging this out...
Nigel: I'll mend it.
Debbie: No.
I tapped it back in gently,
but you pulled all these out.
- Look.
- Well...
Debbie: You pulled
all these out.
Nigel: That's part
of the hazard of having--
Debbie: No, it isn't.
Nigel: Right. I'm gonna try
and drill it first.
Debbie: OK.
- Hey!
- There we go.
Debbie: Well done.
Can you cut those off or--
Nigel: Yes. Close your eyes.
Debbie: All right.
I'll move away.
Nigel: There. How is that?
Debbie: Good job.
Nigel: yeah.
Dick: All ready
for a lick of paint.
37 miles north
at Chateau de Lalande,
Stephanie and close family
friend Gerry
are restoring the carriage
for Stephanie's mother's wedding
in 5 weeks' time.
Stephanie: Who wouldn't want
to sit on that
on their wedding day?
Gerry: Ha ha ha!
Stephanie: I think I'll have
to use them
because they've got
cutouts and everything.
I'll steam clean them to
within an inch of their lives.
Gerry: Could you not put
the fabric over the top
and then use your magic machine?
Stephanie: You want me to
staple gun everything?
Gerry: Staple it.
Staple it!
Dick: The carriage is over
100 years old.
Left by the previous owners,
it's been gathering dust
for decades,
so Stephanie's first job
is to give it a good cleaning.
Gerry: It's coming all
off on me.
Stephanie: Hold it!
Gerry: It's all hot.
Stephanie: Yeah, but you'll see.
It's amazing how it's
cleaning it.
You can see the difference
between the clean part,
where the light's
coming through,
and the dirty part.
Dick: Carriage and Gerry
thoroughly jet-washed,
they turn their attention
to the paintwork.
Stephanie: Thought it was black,
but in fact, first
originally it was blue.
Gerry: Yeah. You can see that.
I've got two different colors,
which hopefully will match.
Come on. I'll show you.
Stephanie: We don't have paint
quite that color, I don't think.
That's actually not far off
as it is.
This is the something blue
for Mummy.
I think it's good.
Dick: Like a true chateau owner,
Stephanie wants to restore
the carriage
as faithfully as possible.
Stephanie: This is very tricky
because, look,
there's this incredibly
delicate red line
that I want to try and keep,
two lines.
Dick: Retaining such fine
detail will demand
a skilled and steady hand.
Gerry: Why don't we just
paint over it.
Stephanie: Oh, Gerald!
Gerry: It's gonna be
such a minute job.
Stephanie: I know.
I'm going to do it.
Gerry: Stephanie wants
to paint in between
the red line the blue paint.
It's gonna take her 3 days
to do one wheel,
and I think it should just
be painted blue.
See, where you're doing that,
see, we're off already
the red line.
Stephanie: Yeah.
Gerry: Why don't I paint it blue
and see what you think?
Stephanie: Uh, OK.
Stop, stop, stop.
Gerry: Stephanie, that
looks lovely.
Stephanie: This has got
a little red line
in it, though?
Gerry: Yeah, but, no,
Stephanie, that looks
as if it's done by somebody
at preschool.
- Stand here.
- Yeah.
Gerry: This is as close
as people are gonna get.
You can't see the red.
Stephanie: I can see the red.
Gerry: That's because you're
looking for it.
You don't say, "That's a lovely,
big blue.
Oh, and look!
They've got two red stripes!"
Stephanie: I'm just gonna get
on with the wheel, Gerald.
Is that...
Dick: With Isabelle's wedding
just over a month away,
Stephanie and Gerald have
their work cut out
as restoring the carriage
is just the start.
Becoming a wedding venue
is no easy job,
as Angel and I know
only too well.
Angel: That is not
very impressive at all.
Dick, voice-over: We've hosted
over 40 weddings...
Bravo!
Dick, voice-over:
including our own.
Dick: We're married!
Dick: So we've got some knowhow
about nuptials.
Dick: You may kiss your bride.
[Cheering and applause]
Dick, voice-over: That's why
today chateau owner
and antique dealer Sarah
has made the long journey
over to our place.
Sarah: Oh, goodness.
That's amazing.
How beautiful.
Dick: She and husband George
want to host weddings
at their chateau,
and I can't think
of anybody better suited
to give her business advice
than my Angel.
Angel: Hello.
Sarah: Hello, Angel.
- How gorgeous.
- Welcome.
Angel: And you drove this down.
Sarah: I know.
Angel: Oh, what a woman.
Sarah: Just stopping in
in my great big purple van.
Angel: No. I tell you what.
That's amazing.
Have you got goodies
in the back?
- Yes, I have.
- Your goodies.
Sarah: Loads. Yes, I have.
Lots and lots of things.
- Have a look.
- Let's have a little look.
Dick: Angel's asked Sarah
to bring over
some of her antiques
so that she can show her
how to make the most
of what she's got
to dress a wedding table.
Sarah: Linens
and crockery and...
Angel: Perfect.
Bring it in. Fab.
Sarah: Yeah. OK. Thank you.
Angel: That is quite heavy.
Sarah: Yeah.
Dick: Inside, it's straight
down to business.
Angel: I'd love to have
a brainstorm with you.
Sarah: Perfect.
Angel: Tell me where you're at
with your business.
How many weddings
do you want to do a year?
Sarah: I think
around the 5 number.
- OK.
- Yeah.
- 5 weddings.
- Yeah.
Have you got anyone
helping you on this?
Sarah: Yes. We do have
a wedding planner on board.
Angel: Do you not want to be
the wedding planner,
5 weddings a year?
Sarah: I don't, to be honest,
because I've
already got my antique job,
and I don't think
I can split myself that much.
Angel: What bits do you
want to do?
I'd love to understand
what bits you expect
your wedding planner to do.
- That's wedding planner...
- Yes.
Angel: And this is Sarah.
Sarah: Well, we're responsible
for the venue, the chateau.
We do have the church.
Angel: Who would do
the catering on the main day?
You gonna get another company?
Yes. Through
the wedding planner.
She would have those contacts.
Right. OK.
That's the wedding planner.
Marquee, tables, chairs,
is that all--
Sarah: Wedding planner.
Angel: Can I ask
how does it work
with financing?
Does your wedding planner--
do they take a percentage
of everything,
or they take a fee?
Sarah: She has told us
that we're allowed--
we can charge 4,000 per wedding,
and then she's paid
her fee per hour.
Angel: And what do you
have to provided
for that 4,000 Euros?
Sarah: That is use
of the chateau for 3 days
and nights,
the B&B for 6-8 guests,
obviously the wedding itself.
Angel: Yeah. So you will earn
with your 5 weddings...
Sarah: Yes.
Angel: 20 grand.
Sarah: Yeah.
Angel: That's not
the right figure.
Sarah: Really?
Was it too much?
Angel: No. It's not enough.
Sarah: Oh.
Angel: But everything
you can do yourself
makes this go up.
Sarah: Will make
a difference. Yeah.
Angel: Oh, I need to take you
over to my orangery, yeah.
Sarah: Yeah.
Dick: The orangery is where we
host the wedding breakfast
and party afterwards.
[Cheering]
Angel has another way
of generating income
given most planners need to
hire in extras.
Angel: These are the chairs
and tables that we use, right?
Sarah: For loans?
Angel: Now to hire a chair
in France,
you're probably looking
at, like, 5 Euros.
Sarah: Really?
Angel: So we went
to our local charity shop,
and you've probably seen
millions of this type of chair,
and it does not take a lot
to use this chair
but reupholster it
with a nice fabric.
Sarah: So you've done
all those yourselves?
Angel: Yeah.
Sarah: Yeah. Gosh.
Angel: But it's supereasy.
I think buy a staple gun,
look in the Internet
about just upholstering chairs
because this is
the simplest upholstery
you can do honestly.
You know, you're taking it
from wedding planner hiring
them in for loads of money
and getting a very good value
or hiring it from you.
Dick: She's got a point, Sarah.
The more you do yourselves,
the more money you earn.
Simple really.
Back at their own chateau
to save money,
George is tackling
the restoration
of the chateau gates
and has roped in
17-year-old daughter Tatiana
to help.
It will mean wedding parties
have easy access to the church.
Tatiana: How do you want
me to help?
George: What we've got to do
is try and get
the gates open...
Tatiana: Mm-hmm.
George: so we must dig out this.
Tatiana: OK.
George: Dig it out,
try and get them open,
then wipe all them down,
get the all the rust off,
and start painting them...
- Sounds good.
- So it looks lovely
from the church.
So let's get to it.
Dick: Getting these gates
working again
would be a unique asset.
The bridal party could have
a nice, quick walk
straight from the church
to their reception
at the chateau.
George: They probably haven't
been opened in,
could be, 30 years.
Oh, but it is coming up
quite easily so far.
We've got stone here.
That must be the original level
we have to get to.
Tatiana: It's amazing
how deep it is.
George: Well, that's about
the same level now. Look.
Should work now.
That's it.
Yeah. That's one.
Tatiana: Good.
George: There we go.
So that's the first time
they've been open
for a long, long time,
and now the next job
is to sand them down
and give them a touch of paint.
Tatiana: Hmm.
George: Brilliant.
Dick: Good stuff.
Now there's nothing
like a bit of elbow grease
to get a project moving.
There's a lot of work to be done
before these gates
would pass muster
with a bridal party.
115 miles away,
Debbie and Nigel are busy
trying to finish their magical,
Narnia-influenced doorway,
ready for the first guests
to enter their en suite
in 3 weeks' time.
Nigel: That must go back
in there.
Dick: He's now got to fit
the wardrobe
to the bedroom side,
but Nigel's relatively new
at chateau-scale DIY,
and there's a problem.
Nigel: It doesn't quite fit
against the wall at the top.
I altered it yesterday
to make it tidy,
but it's pulled it in too far,
so there's too big a gap
on the left-hand side,
so I need to now undo
what I did yesterday
to make it fit.
Debbie: Could you just not
have a gap?
Nigel: No.
Debbie: Does it have to--no.
Nigel: No, because that has
to be solid against the wall.
Debbie: Right. OK.
Nigel: If there's any gap,
there's' a chance of movement.
Debbie: So how are we gonna
make it up?
Nigel: So I need to now
move this across.
Debbie: What, this whole panel?
Nigel: Yeah.
Which is how it was before.
Dick: Unfortunately,
it's back to square one.
Nigel: She needs to be
about there.
Right.
Debbie: That wasn't as difficult
as I thought then.
Nigel: Well.
Debbie: Well, hang on.
Nigel: Haven't seen it up yet.
Debbie: No. That doesn't look
right, does it?
You're gonna have to move
that back bit, as well, Nige.
It looks really odd jutting
out like that.
Nigel: Well, that's how
it was yesterday,
so it just needs to be moved
back a little bit.
Debbie: But it looks
a lot worse today.
Nigel: You're not supposed
to say it looks worse.
Dick: Don't worry, Nigel.
You'll find a solution.
Nigel: Just another look.
Debbie: Yeah.
Nigel: Right. Let's try that.
If that's any better.
There.
Dick: Doors on,
and they can finally see
if it works.
Nigel: That good? Yeah.
Debbie: Yeah.
Nigel: All right. Here we go.
Debbie: Moment of truth.
Nigel: Hold your breath.
- Oh, wow. How does that look?
- Brilliant.
- That's gonna look good.
- Let's have a look.
Yeah. Happy with that.
Debbie: I think it will be
a little bit of intrigue
when people walk in, won't it?
Nigel: Yeah, and say,
"Where's the bathroom?
I thought this was en suite."
Debbie: Yeah, exactly.
Nigel: We can open the door
and go, "Ta-da!"
Dick: Like magic.
Now over to Debbie
for some creative touches.
Debbie: It's a really great
feeling actually
getting started
on the proper work.
Dick: I think Nigel would
take issue with this being
the proper work, Debbie,
though to be fair
the pressure's all on you now
to make it lovely.
Nigel: Ah. That's looking nice.
Debbie: Do you like that?
Nigel: I do.
Debbie: Good?
Nigel: It makes
a real difference.
Debbie: Also, we've saved
some money
by using up old stuff.
Nigel: Short arms
and deep pockets.
Debbie: That's Yorkshire-born,
Yorkshire-bred.
Nigel: Strong in the arm and...
Debbie: Thick in the head.
Ha ha! Hmm.
The worst of the work's
over now, I think, isn't it?
Now it's just cosmetic,
tidying up, painting,
and made a really nice
room, hasn't it?
Nigel: It's gonna be
a lovely room.
Debbie: It will be
a beautiful room, yeah.
Dick: But there's no rest
for chateau owners.
Debbie and Nigel still need
to decorate the other bedrooms
before their first guests arrive
in 3 weeks' time.
37 miles north
with Stephanie's mother's
wedding looming,
she's busy renovating
the dilapidated carriage
for the bride's journey
to the chapel.
She's put the repainting on hold
in favor of upholstering
its original cushions.
Stephanie: It's just disgusting.
I can't describe the smell.
It's the must
of a thousand years.
[Groans]
And a bit of cat in there
as an undertone.
Oh!
Maggots have fallen out of it.
Dead--desiccated--
desiccated maggots.
Ha ha! It's worse
than I had feared.
I don't know want to do this.
I mean, I've had to do some
pretty gross things
in this chateau,
but I think this
might be the winner so far now.
Dick: It's just a bit of dust.
Stephanie starts by removing
the old covering.
Stephanie: Usually, I try to
leave the old fabric on
whenever I upholster so that
in the future
people will be able to see
the original fabric,
but this is just too disgusting.
As this is the very first thing
that Mummy will experience
on her wedding day,
it would be nice
if it was in full working order
and actually clean.
Otherwise, the bride would be
a little bit smelly
for the rest of the day. Ha ha!
Voila! Right,
and I'll just hoover this
round the edges
where the maggots were.
Oh, there's one.
Dick: Oh, dear. Bride Isabelle's
chosen this moment
to check on how
her daughter's doing.
Stephanie: Dead maggots
fell out of it.
Isabelle: Well, they were dead.
Why--why--
Stephanie: Ha ha ha! Well, fine.
If you're happy with that,
we'll just leave them.
I think you're making work
for yourself honestly.
Stephanie: No. I'm really happy
to hand over to you
if you think you could do
a better job.
Dick: Stephanie's reusing
the original buttons
and some silk and cotton fabric
she bought
in London 10 years ago.
Isabelle: With one thread,
not two threads.
- Stephanie.
- Yeah.
Yeah. You won't be able to--
because it's through leather.
I might actually need that
thing that Percy created for me.
Isabelle: Yes, OK.
Dick: She's working
with a handy too called an awl
to pierce the heavy material.
Having not used one before,
following the instructions
is essential.
Stephanie: Right. "Pull out
thread double the distance
of the seam you want to sew."
Dick: But it's not as
straightforward as she'd hoped.
Stephanie: I've done something
tremendously bad.
I'm going to have to
start again.
- Yes.
- We're gonna wheel in...
- I understand nothing.
- Well, sadly, I'm
in a very similar situation
right now.
The instructions are written
in as confusing a way
as humanly possible.
I have put the awl aside
due to slight problems
with my mastery of it.
Plan B is to attempt to sew it
the traditional way,
which is much harder
to push through.
Oh, well. It worked.
We'll stick with that.
Dick: Fingers crossed
Stephanie finishes that sewing
and gets the carriage painted
in time for her mother's
big day.
In Southwest France,
George and daughter Tatiana
are renovating the chateau gates
so future wedding parties
can access the church next door.
George: This afternoon, we can
do some painting on these.
Tatiana: Yeah.
That would be good.
George: That will make them
look a lot, lot better.
Tatiana: Which color
are we doing it?
George: We're gonna do it white.
Tatiana: Do you think it would
be a good idea
to get a smaller paintbrush
to really get
inside the--
George: Is that something
that you want to do?
Do you want to kind of
work behind me?
You do the curly bits,
and I'll do these uprights.
Tatiana: That sounds like
a plan, yeah.
- OK.
- That's good.
Tatiana: I think that once
everything is done
it's gonna look really good.
George: I'm happy.
Tatiana: Me, too.
George: It's really,
really good.
Looks really nice,
and it just blends in
with the house.
Tatiana: It really does.
George: Yeah.
Well done. High-five.
Dick: Good start, chaps,
but there's still
a lot more to do
before the chateau gates
are wedding-ready.
Back at our place,
Angel is showing Sarah
how she can use her own antiques
to help boost income
and create a unique
wedding venue.
Angel: These are gorgeous.
Did you get this
at your fair that you went to?
Sarah: Yes, we did, yeah.
They're Italian.
We have a bit of a fetish
about candlesticks.
Angel: I can tell.
[Both laughing]
I think you're gonna be
just astounded
how quickly you can do this.
Dick: Just some ivy
from the garden
can transform her candlesticks
and a wedding table.
Angel: If you want to start
decorating sort of
stuff like this,
there's all different ways
because you can use
wire but also
green garden Sellotape
to stick things,
and if you take sort of
little bits like this--
I just gave that sort of
essentially a crown.
This is a sort of wedding
that most people want nowadays.
They want it to be
a bit fairytale and whimsical.
Sarah: You make it look so easy.
Angel: I love the wonkiness
of everything.
All I'm doing is giving you
a bit of confidence
just to give things a go.
Sarah: Yes.
Oh, that one's better.
Ta-da!
Et voila.
Dick: As an antique dealer,
Sarah's not short
of vintage table linen,
and Angel has a trick
up her sleeve
when it comes to napkins.
Angel: Now let's say
keep it like that, OK?
Then roll from the end.
So just need to be able
to find some way to...
Sarah: Secure that.
Angel: Shove the end in.
Sarah: Oh. Gosh. Look.
Angel: Bring round
the rose petals.
Sarah: Oh, it's going to be
like a rose.
- Yeah.
- Oh, my gosh. That's amazing.
Angel: I want to do it on one
that's not so
absolutely massive.
Sarah: I think they're all
the same unfortunately.
Oh, how pretty, though.
Dick: A little more foliage
and a few finishing touches
create a stunning
wedding table setting.
Angel: Ta-da!
Sarah: I think it's
looking lovely.
I think it's
absolutely beautiful.
Really beautiful.
Angel: We've used your stuff.
- Yes.
- Yeah?
Well, you've given me
some wonderful ideas today.
Thank you so much. Thank you.
Angel: You're really,
really welcome.
Dick: Gorgeous, and doing
the same wouldn't cost
Sarah a penny,
just some creative ideas.
Sarah: Angel's an extremely
talented woman.
Absolutely adore doing
the table with her.
I think it will create
a much more individual wedding,
not the same
as everybody else's,
and she's given me just
so much insight
into what I am venturing into
and a lot of information
about the fact
that I could do
an awful lot more myself
and certainly earn some more
money out of it actually.
Angel: It's been
an absolute pleasure.
Sarah: Well, No. Thank you.
It's been fabulous.
You're a totally
magical, skilled lady.
Angel: Oh, no. Ha ha ha!
Businesslady.
- So give us a hug.
- Thank you.
- Lots of luck with everything.
- Thank you so much.
Thank you. Stay in.
It's raining.
Lovely to see you, Angel.
Angel: You, too.
Lovely to meet you.
Dick: I'm delighted to hear
it's been a useful visit.
Now to put it all into practice.
170 miles away, Stephanie's made
amazing progress
with her mother's
wedding carriage.
These are the cushions
reupholstered and ready
to go back into the carriage.
Gerry: They're quite heavy,
aren't they?
Stephanie: Yes. That one
goes on top there.
Other way around,
facing me, facing me.
Gerry: No, but Stephanie
surely--
Stephanie: Like that.
Gerry: yeah.
That's what I was going
to say. No.
Were you wearing your glasses
when you done this one?
Stephanie: I did. I forgot.
I thought that bit
wasn't going to be seen.
Gerry: No. Don't worry.
Nobody's gonna notice that.
Stephanie: Ha ha ha!
Oh, I can't believe it.
I've got to do
more upholstering.
Dick: Two months ago, this was
a neglected old carriage
that hadn't seen the light
of day for decades.
Now it's been given
a new lease of life.
It's been repainted
in the original color,
and the cushions have been
beautifully reupholstered.
It's become a charming carriage
fit for a chateau wedding.
All that's left is for the bride
to give her stamp of approval.
Isabelle: Oh!
- Do you like the color?
- I love the color.
Stephanie: Wait till you see
the cushions.
Isabelle: I love the--oh, my!
Oh, Stephanie.
Come on. You've--oh,
how did you manage that?
Gosh, you did it. Well done.
Oh!
Stephanie: Ha! Mummy
immediately seems to have
slipped into the role of queen.
I feel extremely regal.
She probably expects us
to have little flags.
Why didn't I order little flags?
Isabelle: You've done
beautifully well. Thank you.
Come here.
Mmm.
Stephanie has done
a fantastic job with it.
I'm extremely proud of her
because that means
we have restored something else
from the chateau.
I'm worried about her
because there is
still so much to be done.
Dick: Stephanie's on it.
She's done a spectacular job
with that carriage,
and I'm really looking forward
to seeing the bride
ride in it on her wedding day.
Next time...
George and Sarah search
for hidden treasure.
George: Very possibly,
there is treasure
right below my feet right now,
and we're gonna be getting
our tickets to go to Barbados.
Nigel: Lean
it against the wardrobe.
Debbie: God, it's heavy that.
Dick: Debbie and Nigel work
flat out ahead
of their B&B opening...
Debbie: I might have to have
a little lie-down in a minute.
Nigel: Shall we?
Debbie: Ha ha ha!
Not that sort of a lie-down.
Dick: and at Stephanie's,
Gerry gets carried away
decorating the wedding chapel.
Gerry: Can I have Percy
and Isabelle?
Are you here?
and along with my wife Angel
and our two children...
Arthur: Welcome aboard, mateys!
Dick, voice-over:
we're now 5 years
Angel: Whoo!
Dick, voice-over: into restoring
this once-abandoned chateau.
Angel: It's beautiful.
Dick, voice-over: It's brought
its challenges...
Angel: Aah!
Dick, voice-over: and some
amazing rewards.
Angel: Thank you for my
flower garden, Mr. Strawbridge.
Dick, voice-over: And across
France, there are dozens
of other Brits who are on
their own chateau adventure.
Yay!
Dick, voice-over: We'll meet
some old friends...
- Smile.
- I am.
Dick, voice-over: and new faces.
These rooms really haven't
been touched in 60 years.
Dick, voice-over:
And we'll reveal more
about our own chateau life.
Angel: It is so much better
in real life.
Dick, voice-over:
There will be highs...
Yay!
Dick, voice-over: and lows.
- Oh, no!
- Oh, God!
What a disaster!
Dick, voice-over: as these
plucky Brits...
Fiona: Time is money.
Dick, voice-over: transform
these once unloved buildings
into incredible homes...
Woman: I just cannot believe
how much work
you put in for us.
Dick, voice-over: as well
as businesses,
and get to live the dream
as custodians
of their very own castle.
Stephanie: Cheers, everybody!
Dick: Today...
Woman: Right. We're here.
Dick: New chateau owners
turn the key on a new life.
Man: Look at this. Wow.
Woman: Oh, my God!
I'd forgotten how fantastic
this place is.
Man: Isn't it?
Dick: Another comes face to face
with the past...
Stephanie: I can't describe
the smell.
It's the must
of a thousand years.
Dick: as she restores
an original chateau relic.
Stephanie: I don't know
what to do with this.
Dick: And one couple have
wedding jitters.
Man: We're just quickly doing
a very quick tidy up
because
the wedding planner's coming.
Angel: Hello.
Woman: Hello, Angel.
Dick: So Angel shares
the secrets to wedding success.
Angel: This is the sort
of wedding most people
want nowadays.
They want it to be
a bit fairytale and whimsical.
Dick: Chateau owners
all over France
are now busy preparing
for the new wedding
and events season.
Take the spectacular
16th century
Chateau de Lalande.
Sitting in 60 acres,
it has 18 bedrooms
and even its own chapel.
It's home to familiar face
Stephanie,
who moved in here 13 years ago.
After much renovation,
she now runs it
as a B&B and events business.
Stephanie: I still have to
pinch myself every day,
every time I open
my bedroom window.
I can't believe I live here.
Dick: Located in
Centre-Val de Loire,
winter has been busy.
Stephanie: It's been
a really good year so far.
We've got a lot done.
Got the greenhouse renovated.
Isabelle: Oh, my goodness!
It's wonderful!
Stephanie: And we finally got
the last B&B room finished.
Dick: And she launched
her first artists' weekend
in the newly renovated
art studio.
Man: If you use your charcoal
to follow the curves
of the leg like a tube,
then you tend to get a sense
of it feeling quite solid.
Dick: Now Stephanie's turning
her attention
to the biggest and most
important event
she's ever put on,
Her mother Isabelle's wedding
to fiancé Percy
in just two months' time.
Stephanie: I'm quite nervous
about hosting
my mother's wedding.
First off, I've never
hosted a wedding here before,
and to start
with my own mother's,
that's amazing.
I'm excited.
Right.
Ooh. There she is.
Dick: Stephanie's putting
her heart and soul
into making sure
the bride's journey
to the chapel is anything
but bog-standard.
She's doing up an old carriage.
Stephanie: Gosh.
I hope it stops.
Stephanie, voice-over: As soon
as I realized
I was going to be hosting
my mother's wedding,
I knew the carriage
had to be part of it.
Immediately. This is it.
This was the opportunity
to get the carriage working.
Dick: Having not been used
for almost 100 years,
Stephanie and close family
friend Gerry
are keen to see
what they need to do
to make it wedding ready.
Stephanie: I've got a lot
of work to do on the upholstery.
I think that the mice have been
living in there for some time.
Gerry: Probably, probably.
Probably still are.
Stephanie: That's really bad.
Look at this.
The whole seat moves.
That's working well.
That's easy to do.
Incredible!
Gerry: So you put
the horse on here,
and that would be
on your back like that.
Stephanie: Faster.
Gerry: Faster.
Stephanie:
Mummy's getting bored.
She's getting bored!
Gerry: He's getting out!
Hurry up, hurry up, Gerry!
Dick: There's no time
for horsing around
with only two months
until the wedding.
The carriage needs cleaning,
painting,
and reupholstering
before the bride
can journey to the chapel in it.
37 miles south is
the 19th century
Chateau Gioux,
set in 5 acres
of stunning countryside
on the edge of Millevaches Park.
It's the new home
to Yorkshire couple
Debbie and Nigel,
who bought it for £280,000.
It was love at first sight.
Nigel: Just blew you away
when you saw it.
Debbie: Yeah. I just loved it,
but I never dreamed
in a million years
that we'd be able to...
Nigel: I didn't think
we'd have a chance.
Debbie: to afford this,
and it's very, very special.
Dick: Located 30 miles east
of Limoges,
we saw it nearly become home
to bikers Martin and Kim
a year ago.
Kim: My stars.
Man: You like it?
Martin: Yeah, very nice.
Kim: Yeah.
Ooh! Look at this! Wow!
Dick: Whilst Kim fell
head over heels...
Kim: I want this one.
Dick: Martin
on the other hand...
Kim: Hello. Speak.
Martin: I am listening,
but we got to work it out, babe.
Kim: OK.
Martin: We got to work it out.
Kim: All right.
Dick: While it didn't
work for them,
it did for Debbie and Nigel,
who snapped it up
when the price fell
by over £100,000.
Nigel: We are just
ordinary people
who've taken the decision
to move to France.
We haven't got millions
of pounds in the bank.
Debbie: We've remortgaged,
we've cashed pensions in. Ha!
So we've really, yeah,
pushed the boat out
to get to this point.
Dick: Because they've
stretched themselves,
Debbie and Nigel need
to generate income
by opening as a B&B
as soon as possible.
They both have experience
working with the public.
Nigel ran bars in Benidorm
and Debbie a farm shop
back home.
Debbie: Even though we've
both been in the past
involved in
the hospitality industry,
I think the first guests
arriving
will be quite
a nerve-racking experience.
Dick: They met only 5 years ago.
This will be a totally
new venture for them,
and today, they're moving in.
Debbie: Right. We're here.
Come on.
Bailey.
Amazing. It looks really good.
Bit of work to do,
isn't there, but...
Nigel: Soon deal with that.
Debbie: We'll get there.
It's gonna look absolutely
beautiful when it's finished.
Nigel: Look at this.
Debbie: We're here.
Nigel: Wow!
Debbie: Oh, my God!
Absolutely incredible.
I'd forgotten
how fantastic this place is.
Nigel: Isn't it?
Dick: There's no getting
away from the amount
of work that needs to be done
throughout the chateau,
and neither of them have done
anything on this scale before.
Nigel: This is by far
the biggest thing we've done
as a partnership.
Exciting times.
Debbie: * There may be trouble *
Nigel: Oh, don't sing, Deb.
Don't sing.
Dick: I've every faith in you.
The good news is that
through word of mouth
their first paying guests
are due to arrive
in only 6 weeks' time.
That means they urgently need
to get 3 bedrooms ready.
Nigel: This is where we're
gonna knock through, Deb.
Debbie: Oh, yeah. That's right.
Nigel: Got the bathroom,
and what we'll do is
we'll have a secret wardrobe
where there's a doorway
into the next room.
Debbie: Well, how exciting
that will be to come
through the wardrobe
into the bathroom.
Nigel: Won't it?
Dick: The magical tales
of Narnia
in "The Lion, the Witch,
and the Wardrobe"
seem to be their inspiration.
Nigel: Ooh.
We found a wardrobe downstairs,
and it would be quite nice
opening the wardrobe,
walking through the wardrobe
into Narnia,
which is a lovely
master bathroom.
Debbie: So you go
into a cupboard
and come out
of a cupboard basically.
And once this is stripped down,
it'll be good.
Debbie: Looks slightly rickety.
Dick: First task, getting
the wardrobe out
of the cellar.
Debbie: Hang on.
Nigel: It won't go, Deb.
It won't go now.
Debbie: OK.
Nigel: So we'll have to tip it.
Debbie: OK.
Nigel: Is it tipping or not?
Debbie: No.
Nigel: Won't go.
Debbie: Hang on.
That's it.
Dick: Then it's two flights
of stairs to navigate
to get it to the bedroom
still on one piece.
Debbie: Ohh.
Nigel: Does yours fit?
Debbie: Just about.
Nigel: Perfect. Look at that.
Debbie: Brilliant.
That looks really good.
Nigel: Right. I think I'm
going to now go
and get the doorframe
and mark it,
and then we can start
cutting through.
Debbie: Right.
Dick: Nigel's renovation
experience is limited,
and even knocking
through a stud wall
to create a doorway is not
for the faint-hearted.
He's using a doorframe salvaged
from the cellar
as a template to mark
the hole he wants to make.
Nigel: All right. Put that down.
You hold up there.
If you'll go backwards now...
Debbie: Yeah.
Nigel: No. That's not backwards.
Debbie: Well, I...
[Crash]
Ha ha ha!
Dick: Oops!
Nigel: That's why I said
go backwards.
Debbie: Sorry. I--
[Clatter]
The chandelier's fine.
It's just one thing
dropped off it,
but it's not broken,
so I'll pop that back on.
The next bit is starting
to break through.
Once Nigel's finished
drawing the frame,
then we'll start
to tap through and see.
Then we see what happens.
Nigel: I've not done anything
like this before,
so, uh, we haven't got
the money to be able
to get people in to do it,
so we've got to do it ourselves,
or it won't get done.
Dick: A man
after my own heart, Nigel.
Nothing beats the satisfaction
of giving it a go yourself.
Nigel: Here we go.
Dick: And I reckon you'll save
yourself hundreds of pounds.
Nigel: I'm going to cut
through the other side
so it's all loose,
and then I can just
knock through.
Seems to be working.
- Deb.
- Yoo-hoo.
Debbie: Well done, dear.
Nigel: We're getting there.
We're getting there.
- You pleased?
- I'm really pleased.
I think it's gonna
look fantastic.
Dick: There may be less
than 6 weeks to go
before your guests arrive,
but you've made
a cracking start!
In Southwest France is
the stately Chateau de Brieves.
It sits in 30 acres,
has 25 rooms,
and 5 outbuildings.
Antique dealers
Sarah and George bought it
for £415,000 9 years ago
when they decided
they wanted a new challenge.
George: The chateau
is the best antique
that I've ever bought.
Sarah: Well, I remember seeing
it from the road actually,
and we just both looked
at each other and thought,
"Wow! This is so amazing."
Dick: It's located 58 miles
from Bordeaux
As it hadn't been lived in
for 20 years, it was a wreck,
so they've done major
renovations
both inside and out to turn it
into a family home
for themselves and children
Tatiana and Alexi.
Sarah: This house means
everything to us, all of us,
the children, too.
We're all very, very
passionate about it.
I'd say Tati especially.
I think Alexi would be happy
anywhere as long
as he's got Wi-Fi, but...
George: Well, it's just lovely.
It's a lovely family home...
Sarah: Yeah.
George: That happens to be
200 years old
and a rather grand chateau.
Dick: Although they still
deal in antiques,
they need the chateau
to start paying for itself.
George: It's very vital
that we have
a second source of income,
and there is an enormous
amount of pressure
in owning a chateau.
Sarah: We're hoping weddings
will be the answer.
Friends in the area
were doing similar things
and other chateau owners,
so we thought,
"We've got it all here.
Let's make a go of it."
Dick: As they're starting
a new business venture
from scratch and will be
investing both time
and money into it,
they've found an expert
in bespoke events to advise
on where to start.
George: Well, we're just
quickly doing
a very quick tidy up because
the wedding planner's coming,
and I want it to look
the best it can for her.
Some anxiety
with the wedding planner coming,
but as we have
no experience whatsoever,
we have to have
a wedding planner.
I'll put that away.
Sarah: Putting everything
in the cupboards.
Yeah. OK. Ooh. Big moment.
Ha ha ha!
Dick: Time's up.
Wedding planner
Samantha's arrived.
The stakes are high.
They'll soon find out
if their home of 9 years
is right for a wedding venue.
George: Hi.
Samantha: Hi. Hi.
How lovely to see you.
George: Hi, Samantha. George...
Samantha: Hi, hi.
George: and my wife Sarah.
Sarah: Hi, Samantha.
- Thank you for coming.
- Really lovely to meet you.
What an incredible
place you've got.
- Thank you.
- Yeah.
It's really, really beautiful.
Just fabulous proportions,
really, really good.
George: Come on in the house.
Samantha: OK. Thank you.
Wow. What an incredible place.
Dick: Samantha knows what makes
a perfect wedding venue.
If all goes well, she could
help drum up business
for Sarah and George.
Sarah: So this is
our main salon.
Samantha: OK.
George: In here, what we're
hoping to do very soon
is to completely redecorate,
fill in all the cracks,
et cetera.
Samantha: So it would really
just generally have
a good freshen up...
George: Yes.
Samantha: before obviously
it was let out as a venue.
OK. That sounds--
really sensible idea.
OK. I think my first instincts
is it looks great,
but it does look like
a family house at the moment,
so I think maybe you might
need to lose a few
of the personal photos
and what have you.
We're selling it as a venue,
so it would probably be
a good idea just to tuck
those away.
George: No. Of course.
Sarah: OK.
Dick: So after years of turning
their chateau
into a family home,
they now need to
depersonalize it.
Not easy when your stock
in trade is antiques
and you've filled your house
with them.
The plan would be to let
out 5 bedrooms
and some communal areas.
Sarah: So into the dining room.
Samantha: OK. Looking overall,
it's a great space,
but obviously, you've got
a lot of stuff.
I know it's your business,
but I'm slightly concerned
about people knocking things,
so I think along
with the redecoration
of the main salon,
I think decluttering would be--
yeah--would be quite
a good idea..
George: More upmarket.
Samantha: I think less is more.
George: Yeah. OK.
Samantha: I think. Yeah.
Sarah: So, Samantha, I'll
take you upstairs.
Samantha: Perfect.
Sarah: And you can see
the bedrooms
that we're offering.
Tell me what you
think about them.
So this was the room
I thought would be nice
for the bride to have
as her dressing room.
Samantha: OK. Again,
beautiful room,
but try to make it a little bit
more commercial.
George: Yeah, yeah.
Sarah: Yeah.
Dick: It's starting to dawn
on Sarah and George
just what needs to be done
to change
their cozy private home
into a chateau suitable
for clients.
Another selling point
as a wedding venue
is that the local church borders
their grounds.
George: So these are the gates
that we're gonna reinstate.
Samantha: Mm-hmm.
George: So tomorrow,
I'm gonna dig out here,
try and get them open,
sand down all the metalwork,
and then repaint them.
Hopefully, they'll be
good as new.
Here's the church.
Samantha: Oh, this is
gorgeous, isn't it?
Really nice.
George: Directly in front
of the house.
Samantha: Yeah.
George: so here we go.
Samantha: Oh, OK.
This is amazing, isn't it?
It's really pretty.
George: I think it seats
100, 150 people quite happily.
Samantha: Again, that's great.
No. This is an absolute
treasure, I think.
George: Oh, good.
Dick: This chateau
and its perfect location
should make it
a superb wedding venue,
but Samantha needs to be
confident they can do
the work needed to make their
home suitable for weddings.
Samantha: I think it's
really good actually.
The house itself
and the accommodation
and the church are gorgeous.
I'd say they just need to
obviously turn it
into a little bit more
of a venue than a family home.
For somebody who's never
been involved
in anything like this--
and obviously
they're opening their doors
to share their property--
it's a lot to take on,
but, yes, I look forward
to working with them.
Sarah: You're not worried
about how many things
we've got to do in the time or--
George: No. I think the things
that--I think the main thing
is the decorating in here.
One of the bedrooms she thought
needed a bit of upgrading.
Obviously the gate,
getting that working,
so, yeah, I think we have
a nice, long list,
but we can get through.
Sarah: Yeah. Yeah.
Dick: And with the wedding
season fast approaching,
there's only one way to get
the job done,
and that's to get started.
115 miles away
at Chateau Gioux,
new owners Debbie
and Nigel are creating
a magical entrance
to the en suite
for their first guests
in 3 weeks' time.
Nigel's finished knocking
through the wall
and has put in his doorframe.
Nigel: When it's completed,
I think it's
going to look very special.
Dick: And Debbie's got
her own project, too.
She's found some old shutters
in an outhouse
and wants to transform them
into a screen
for one of the bedrooms.
Debbie: We're going to put
new hinges on them,
obviously sand them down,
and repaint them,
make them look a little bit old,
a little bit chippy,
and use them as a screen
in the bedrooms.
I think my major concern
would be Nigel saying
it's not good enough basically.
I'll be fine with it. Ha ha!
But Nigel's a big more
of a perfectionist
about paint work than I am.
I quite like
the old, shabby look.
Nigel: Oh, you've done
a good job there.
That's come out nicely.
Debbie: He daren't say
anything else.
Nigel: That's good,
and then you're want me
to take these hinges off?
Debbie: Those could do
to come off,
and then I can get on
with painting.
It'll take some shifting,
I'm afraid.
Yeah. That one snapped off.
Debbie: Have you damaged my--
Nigel: Yeah. Look.
The screw has broken.
I'm too strong.
Debbie: What can we do?
Nigel: Use a big hammer.
Stand back, stand back.
Debbie: How far do you
want me to stand back?
Nigel: That'll do.
Debbie: All right.
Not the solution, Nige.
Nigel: I'm gonna have to
try and drill it out.
[Debbie sighs]
What about the rest of them?
Nigel: They'll all need
drilling out.
Debbie: They all
need drilling out.
Dick: Though for Nigel,
there's no such thing
as a straightforward
drilling out.
Nigel: I've got a big hammer,
I've got a drill,
and if that doesn't work,
I've got the angle grinder.
Debbie: You pulled this apart
by banging this out...
Nigel: I'll mend it.
Debbie: No.
I tapped it back in gently,
but you pulled all these out.
- Look.
- Well...
Debbie: You pulled
all these out.
Nigel: That's part
of the hazard of having--
Debbie: No, it isn't.
Nigel: Right. I'm gonna try
and drill it first.
Debbie: OK.
- Hey!
- There we go.
Debbie: Well done.
Can you cut those off or--
Nigel: Yes. Close your eyes.
Debbie: All right.
I'll move away.
Nigel: There. How is that?
Debbie: Good job.
Nigel: yeah.
Dick: All ready
for a lick of paint.
37 miles north
at Chateau de Lalande,
Stephanie and close family
friend Gerry
are restoring the carriage
for Stephanie's mother's wedding
in 5 weeks' time.
Stephanie: Who wouldn't want
to sit on that
on their wedding day?
Gerry: Ha ha ha!
Stephanie: I think I'll have
to use them
because they've got
cutouts and everything.
I'll steam clean them to
within an inch of their lives.
Gerry: Could you not put
the fabric over the top
and then use your magic machine?
Stephanie: You want me to
staple gun everything?
Gerry: Staple it.
Staple it!
Dick: The carriage is over
100 years old.
Left by the previous owners,
it's been gathering dust
for decades,
so Stephanie's first job
is to give it a good cleaning.
Gerry: It's coming all
off on me.
Stephanie: Hold it!
Gerry: It's all hot.
Stephanie: Yeah, but you'll see.
It's amazing how it's
cleaning it.
You can see the difference
between the clean part,
where the light's
coming through,
and the dirty part.
Dick: Carriage and Gerry
thoroughly jet-washed,
they turn their attention
to the paintwork.
Stephanie: Thought it was black,
but in fact, first
originally it was blue.
Gerry: Yeah. You can see that.
I've got two different colors,
which hopefully will match.
Come on. I'll show you.
Stephanie: We don't have paint
quite that color, I don't think.
That's actually not far off
as it is.
This is the something blue
for Mummy.
I think it's good.
Dick: Like a true chateau owner,
Stephanie wants to restore
the carriage
as faithfully as possible.
Stephanie: This is very tricky
because, look,
there's this incredibly
delicate red line
that I want to try and keep,
two lines.
Dick: Retaining such fine
detail will demand
a skilled and steady hand.
Gerry: Why don't we just
paint over it.
Stephanie: Oh, Gerald!
Gerry: It's gonna be
such a minute job.
Stephanie: I know.
I'm going to do it.
Gerry: Stephanie wants
to paint in between
the red line the blue paint.
It's gonna take her 3 days
to do one wheel,
and I think it should just
be painted blue.
See, where you're doing that,
see, we're off already
the red line.
Stephanie: Yeah.
Gerry: Why don't I paint it blue
and see what you think?
Stephanie: Uh, OK.
Stop, stop, stop.
Gerry: Stephanie, that
looks lovely.
Stephanie: This has got
a little red line
in it, though?
Gerry: Yeah, but, no,
Stephanie, that looks
as if it's done by somebody
at preschool.
- Stand here.
- Yeah.
Gerry: This is as close
as people are gonna get.
You can't see the red.
Stephanie: I can see the red.
Gerry: That's because you're
looking for it.
You don't say, "That's a lovely,
big blue.
Oh, and look!
They've got two red stripes!"
Stephanie: I'm just gonna get
on with the wheel, Gerald.
Is that...
Dick: With Isabelle's wedding
just over a month away,
Stephanie and Gerald have
their work cut out
as restoring the carriage
is just the start.
Becoming a wedding venue
is no easy job,
as Angel and I know
only too well.
Angel: That is not
very impressive at all.
Dick, voice-over: We've hosted
over 40 weddings...
Bravo!
Dick, voice-over:
including our own.
Dick: We're married!
Dick: So we've got some knowhow
about nuptials.
Dick: You may kiss your bride.
[Cheering and applause]
Dick, voice-over: That's why
today chateau owner
and antique dealer Sarah
has made the long journey
over to our place.
Sarah: Oh, goodness.
That's amazing.
How beautiful.
Dick: She and husband George
want to host weddings
at their chateau,
and I can't think
of anybody better suited
to give her business advice
than my Angel.
Angel: Hello.
Sarah: Hello, Angel.
- How gorgeous.
- Welcome.
Angel: And you drove this down.
Sarah: I know.
Angel: Oh, what a woman.
Sarah: Just stopping in
in my great big purple van.
Angel: No. I tell you what.
That's amazing.
Have you got goodies
in the back?
- Yes, I have.
- Your goodies.
Sarah: Loads. Yes, I have.
Lots and lots of things.
- Have a look.
- Let's have a little look.
Dick: Angel's asked Sarah
to bring over
some of her antiques
so that she can show her
how to make the most
of what she's got
to dress a wedding table.
Sarah: Linens
and crockery and...
Angel: Perfect.
Bring it in. Fab.
Sarah: Yeah. OK. Thank you.
Angel: That is quite heavy.
Sarah: Yeah.
Dick: Inside, it's straight
down to business.
Angel: I'd love to have
a brainstorm with you.
Sarah: Perfect.
Angel: Tell me where you're at
with your business.
How many weddings
do you want to do a year?
Sarah: I think
around the 5 number.
- OK.
- Yeah.
- 5 weddings.
- Yeah.
Have you got anyone
helping you on this?
Sarah: Yes. We do have
a wedding planner on board.
Angel: Do you not want to be
the wedding planner,
5 weddings a year?
Sarah: I don't, to be honest,
because I've
already got my antique job,
and I don't think
I can split myself that much.
Angel: What bits do you
want to do?
I'd love to understand
what bits you expect
your wedding planner to do.
- That's wedding planner...
- Yes.
Angel: And this is Sarah.
Sarah: Well, we're responsible
for the venue, the chateau.
We do have the church.
Angel: Who would do
the catering on the main day?
You gonna get another company?
Yes. Through
the wedding planner.
She would have those contacts.
Right. OK.
That's the wedding planner.
Marquee, tables, chairs,
is that all--
Sarah: Wedding planner.
Angel: Can I ask
how does it work
with financing?
Does your wedding planner--
do they take a percentage
of everything,
or they take a fee?
Sarah: She has told us
that we're allowed--
we can charge 4,000 per wedding,
and then she's paid
her fee per hour.
Angel: And what do you
have to provided
for that 4,000 Euros?
Sarah: That is use
of the chateau for 3 days
and nights,
the B&B for 6-8 guests,
obviously the wedding itself.
Angel: Yeah. So you will earn
with your 5 weddings...
Sarah: Yes.
Angel: 20 grand.
Sarah: Yeah.
Angel: That's not
the right figure.
Sarah: Really?
Was it too much?
Angel: No. It's not enough.
Sarah: Oh.
Angel: But everything
you can do yourself
makes this go up.
Sarah: Will make
a difference. Yeah.
Angel: Oh, I need to take you
over to my orangery, yeah.
Sarah: Yeah.
Dick: The orangery is where we
host the wedding breakfast
and party afterwards.
[Cheering]
Angel has another way
of generating income
given most planners need to
hire in extras.
Angel: These are the chairs
and tables that we use, right?
Sarah: For loans?
Angel: Now to hire a chair
in France,
you're probably looking
at, like, 5 Euros.
Sarah: Really?
Angel: So we went
to our local charity shop,
and you've probably seen
millions of this type of chair,
and it does not take a lot
to use this chair
but reupholster it
with a nice fabric.
Sarah: So you've done
all those yourselves?
Angel: Yeah.
Sarah: Yeah. Gosh.
Angel: But it's supereasy.
I think buy a staple gun,
look in the Internet
about just upholstering chairs
because this is
the simplest upholstery
you can do honestly.
You know, you're taking it
from wedding planner hiring
them in for loads of money
and getting a very good value
or hiring it from you.
Dick: She's got a point, Sarah.
The more you do yourselves,
the more money you earn.
Simple really.
Back at their own chateau
to save money,
George is tackling
the restoration
of the chateau gates
and has roped in
17-year-old daughter Tatiana
to help.
It will mean wedding parties
have easy access to the church.
Tatiana: How do you want
me to help?
George: What we've got to do
is try and get
the gates open...
Tatiana: Mm-hmm.
George: so we must dig out this.
Tatiana: OK.
George: Dig it out,
try and get them open,
then wipe all them down,
get the all the rust off,
and start painting them...
- Sounds good.
- So it looks lovely
from the church.
So let's get to it.
Dick: Getting these gates
working again
would be a unique asset.
The bridal party could have
a nice, quick walk
straight from the church
to their reception
at the chateau.
George: They probably haven't
been opened in,
could be, 30 years.
Oh, but it is coming up
quite easily so far.
We've got stone here.
That must be the original level
we have to get to.
Tatiana: It's amazing
how deep it is.
George: Well, that's about
the same level now. Look.
Should work now.
That's it.
Yeah. That's one.
Tatiana: Good.
George: There we go.
So that's the first time
they've been open
for a long, long time,
and now the next job
is to sand them down
and give them a touch of paint.
Tatiana: Hmm.
George: Brilliant.
Dick: Good stuff.
Now there's nothing
like a bit of elbow grease
to get a project moving.
There's a lot of work to be done
before these gates
would pass muster
with a bridal party.
115 miles away,
Debbie and Nigel are busy
trying to finish their magical,
Narnia-influenced doorway,
ready for the first guests
to enter their en suite
in 3 weeks' time.
Nigel: That must go back
in there.
Dick: He's now got to fit
the wardrobe
to the bedroom side,
but Nigel's relatively new
at chateau-scale DIY,
and there's a problem.
Nigel: It doesn't quite fit
against the wall at the top.
I altered it yesterday
to make it tidy,
but it's pulled it in too far,
so there's too big a gap
on the left-hand side,
so I need to now undo
what I did yesterday
to make it fit.
Debbie: Could you just not
have a gap?
Nigel: No.
Debbie: Does it have to--no.
Nigel: No, because that has
to be solid against the wall.
Debbie: Right. OK.
Nigel: If there's any gap,
there's' a chance of movement.
Debbie: So how are we gonna
make it up?
Nigel: So I need to now
move this across.
Debbie: What, this whole panel?
Nigel: Yeah.
Which is how it was before.
Dick: Unfortunately,
it's back to square one.
Nigel: She needs to be
about there.
Right.
Debbie: That wasn't as difficult
as I thought then.
Nigel: Well.
Debbie: Well, hang on.
Nigel: Haven't seen it up yet.
Debbie: No. That doesn't look
right, does it?
You're gonna have to move
that back bit, as well, Nige.
It looks really odd jutting
out like that.
Nigel: Well, that's how
it was yesterday,
so it just needs to be moved
back a little bit.
Debbie: But it looks
a lot worse today.
Nigel: You're not supposed
to say it looks worse.
Dick: Don't worry, Nigel.
You'll find a solution.
Nigel: Just another look.
Debbie: Yeah.
Nigel: Right. Let's try that.
If that's any better.
There.
Dick: Doors on,
and they can finally see
if it works.
Nigel: That good? Yeah.
Debbie: Yeah.
Nigel: All right. Here we go.
Debbie: Moment of truth.
Nigel: Hold your breath.
- Oh, wow. How does that look?
- Brilliant.
- That's gonna look good.
- Let's have a look.
Yeah. Happy with that.
Debbie: I think it will be
a little bit of intrigue
when people walk in, won't it?
Nigel: Yeah, and say,
"Where's the bathroom?
I thought this was en suite."
Debbie: Yeah, exactly.
Nigel: We can open the door
and go, "Ta-da!"
Dick: Like magic.
Now over to Debbie
for some creative touches.
Debbie: It's a really great
feeling actually
getting started
on the proper work.
Dick: I think Nigel would
take issue with this being
the proper work, Debbie,
though to be fair
the pressure's all on you now
to make it lovely.
Nigel: Ah. That's looking nice.
Debbie: Do you like that?
Nigel: I do.
Debbie: Good?
Nigel: It makes
a real difference.
Debbie: Also, we've saved
some money
by using up old stuff.
Nigel: Short arms
and deep pockets.
Debbie: That's Yorkshire-born,
Yorkshire-bred.
Nigel: Strong in the arm and...
Debbie: Thick in the head.
Ha ha! Hmm.
The worst of the work's
over now, I think, isn't it?
Now it's just cosmetic,
tidying up, painting,
and made a really nice
room, hasn't it?
Nigel: It's gonna be
a lovely room.
Debbie: It will be
a beautiful room, yeah.
Dick: But there's no rest
for chateau owners.
Debbie and Nigel still need
to decorate the other bedrooms
before their first guests arrive
in 3 weeks' time.
37 miles north
with Stephanie's mother's
wedding looming,
she's busy renovating
the dilapidated carriage
for the bride's journey
to the chapel.
She's put the repainting on hold
in favor of upholstering
its original cushions.
Stephanie: It's just disgusting.
I can't describe the smell.
It's the must
of a thousand years.
[Groans]
And a bit of cat in there
as an undertone.
Oh!
Maggots have fallen out of it.
Dead--desiccated--
desiccated maggots.
Ha ha! It's worse
than I had feared.
I don't know want to do this.
I mean, I've had to do some
pretty gross things
in this chateau,
but I think this
might be the winner so far now.
Dick: It's just a bit of dust.
Stephanie starts by removing
the old covering.
Stephanie: Usually, I try to
leave the old fabric on
whenever I upholster so that
in the future
people will be able to see
the original fabric,
but this is just too disgusting.
As this is the very first thing
that Mummy will experience
on her wedding day,
it would be nice
if it was in full working order
and actually clean.
Otherwise, the bride would be
a little bit smelly
for the rest of the day. Ha ha!
Voila! Right,
and I'll just hoover this
round the edges
where the maggots were.
Oh, there's one.
Dick: Oh, dear. Bride Isabelle's
chosen this moment
to check on how
her daughter's doing.
Stephanie: Dead maggots
fell out of it.
Isabelle: Well, they were dead.
Why--why--
Stephanie: Ha ha ha! Well, fine.
If you're happy with that,
we'll just leave them.
I think you're making work
for yourself honestly.
Stephanie: No. I'm really happy
to hand over to you
if you think you could do
a better job.
Dick: Stephanie's reusing
the original buttons
and some silk and cotton fabric
she bought
in London 10 years ago.
Isabelle: With one thread,
not two threads.
- Stephanie.
- Yeah.
Yeah. You won't be able to--
because it's through leather.
I might actually need that
thing that Percy created for me.
Isabelle: Yes, OK.
Dick: She's working
with a handy too called an awl
to pierce the heavy material.
Having not used one before,
following the instructions
is essential.
Stephanie: Right. "Pull out
thread double the distance
of the seam you want to sew."
Dick: But it's not as
straightforward as she'd hoped.
Stephanie: I've done something
tremendously bad.
I'm going to have to
start again.
- Yes.
- We're gonna wheel in...
- I understand nothing.
- Well, sadly, I'm
in a very similar situation
right now.
The instructions are written
in as confusing a way
as humanly possible.
I have put the awl aside
due to slight problems
with my mastery of it.
Plan B is to attempt to sew it
the traditional way,
which is much harder
to push through.
Oh, well. It worked.
We'll stick with that.
Dick: Fingers crossed
Stephanie finishes that sewing
and gets the carriage painted
in time for her mother's
big day.
In Southwest France,
George and daughter Tatiana
are renovating the chateau gates
so future wedding parties
can access the church next door.
George: This afternoon, we can
do some painting on these.
Tatiana: Yeah.
That would be good.
George: That will make them
look a lot, lot better.
Tatiana: Which color
are we doing it?
George: We're gonna do it white.
Tatiana: Do you think it would
be a good idea
to get a smaller paintbrush
to really get
inside the--
George: Is that something
that you want to do?
Do you want to kind of
work behind me?
You do the curly bits,
and I'll do these uprights.
Tatiana: That sounds like
a plan, yeah.
- OK.
- That's good.
Tatiana: I think that once
everything is done
it's gonna look really good.
George: I'm happy.
Tatiana: Me, too.
George: It's really,
really good.
Looks really nice,
and it just blends in
with the house.
Tatiana: It really does.
George: Yeah.
Well done. High-five.
Dick: Good start, chaps,
but there's still
a lot more to do
before the chateau gates
are wedding-ready.
Back at our place,
Angel is showing Sarah
how she can use her own antiques
to help boost income
and create a unique
wedding venue.
Angel: These are gorgeous.
Did you get this
at your fair that you went to?
Sarah: Yes, we did, yeah.
They're Italian.
We have a bit of a fetish
about candlesticks.
Angel: I can tell.
[Both laughing]
I think you're gonna be
just astounded
how quickly you can do this.
Dick: Just some ivy
from the garden
can transform her candlesticks
and a wedding table.
Angel: If you want to start
decorating sort of
stuff like this,
there's all different ways
because you can use
wire but also
green garden Sellotape
to stick things,
and if you take sort of
little bits like this--
I just gave that sort of
essentially a crown.
This is a sort of wedding
that most people want nowadays.
They want it to be
a bit fairytale and whimsical.
Sarah: You make it look so easy.
Angel: I love the wonkiness
of everything.
All I'm doing is giving you
a bit of confidence
just to give things a go.
Sarah: Yes.
Oh, that one's better.
Ta-da!
Et voila.
Dick: As an antique dealer,
Sarah's not short
of vintage table linen,
and Angel has a trick
up her sleeve
when it comes to napkins.
Angel: Now let's say
keep it like that, OK?
Then roll from the end.
So just need to be able
to find some way to...
Sarah: Secure that.
Angel: Shove the end in.
Sarah: Oh. Gosh. Look.
Angel: Bring round
the rose petals.
Sarah: Oh, it's going to be
like a rose.
- Yeah.
- Oh, my gosh. That's amazing.
Angel: I want to do it on one
that's not so
absolutely massive.
Sarah: I think they're all
the same unfortunately.
Oh, how pretty, though.
Dick: A little more foliage
and a few finishing touches
create a stunning
wedding table setting.
Angel: Ta-da!
Sarah: I think it's
looking lovely.
I think it's
absolutely beautiful.
Really beautiful.
Angel: We've used your stuff.
- Yes.
- Yeah?
Well, you've given me
some wonderful ideas today.
Thank you so much. Thank you.
Angel: You're really,
really welcome.
Dick: Gorgeous, and doing
the same wouldn't cost
Sarah a penny,
just some creative ideas.
Sarah: Angel's an extremely
talented woman.
Absolutely adore doing
the table with her.
I think it will create
a much more individual wedding,
not the same
as everybody else's,
and she's given me just
so much insight
into what I am venturing into
and a lot of information
about the fact
that I could do
an awful lot more myself
and certainly earn some more
money out of it actually.
Angel: It's been
an absolute pleasure.
Sarah: Well, No. Thank you.
It's been fabulous.
You're a totally
magical, skilled lady.
Angel: Oh, no. Ha ha ha!
Businesslady.
- So give us a hug.
- Thank you.
- Lots of luck with everything.
- Thank you so much.
Thank you. Stay in.
It's raining.
Lovely to see you, Angel.
Angel: You, too.
Lovely to meet you.
Dick: I'm delighted to hear
it's been a useful visit.
Now to put it all into practice.
170 miles away, Stephanie's made
amazing progress
with her mother's
wedding carriage.
These are the cushions
reupholstered and ready
to go back into the carriage.
Gerry: They're quite heavy,
aren't they?
Stephanie: Yes. That one
goes on top there.
Other way around,
facing me, facing me.
Gerry: No, but Stephanie
surely--
Stephanie: Like that.
Gerry: yeah.
That's what I was going
to say. No.
Were you wearing your glasses
when you done this one?
Stephanie: I did. I forgot.
I thought that bit
wasn't going to be seen.
Gerry: No. Don't worry.
Nobody's gonna notice that.
Stephanie: Ha ha ha!
Oh, I can't believe it.
I've got to do
more upholstering.
Dick: Two months ago, this was
a neglected old carriage
that hadn't seen the light
of day for decades.
Now it's been given
a new lease of life.
It's been repainted
in the original color,
and the cushions have been
beautifully reupholstered.
It's become a charming carriage
fit for a chateau wedding.
All that's left is for the bride
to give her stamp of approval.
Isabelle: Oh!
- Do you like the color?
- I love the color.
Stephanie: Wait till you see
the cushions.
Isabelle: I love the--oh, my!
Oh, Stephanie.
Come on. You've--oh,
how did you manage that?
Gosh, you did it. Well done.
Oh!
Stephanie: Ha! Mummy
immediately seems to have
slipped into the role of queen.
I feel extremely regal.
She probably expects us
to have little flags.
Why didn't I order little flags?
Isabelle: You've done
beautifully well. Thank you.
Come here.
Mmm.
Stephanie has done
a fantastic job with it.
I'm extremely proud of her
because that means
we have restored something else
from the chateau.
I'm worried about her
because there is
still so much to be done.
Dick: Stephanie's on it.
She's done a spectacular job
with that carriage,
and I'm really looking forward
to seeing the bride
ride in it on her wedding day.
Next time...
George and Sarah search
for hidden treasure.
George: Very possibly,
there is treasure
right below my feet right now,
and we're gonna be getting
our tickets to go to Barbados.
Nigel: Lean
it against the wardrobe.
Debbie: God, it's heavy that.
Dick: Debbie and Nigel work
flat out ahead
of their B&B opening...
Debbie: I might have to have
a little lie-down in a minute.
Nigel: Shall we?
Debbie: Ha ha ha!
Not that sort of a lie-down.
Dick: and at Stephanie's,
Gerry gets carried away
decorating the wedding chapel.
Gerry: Can I have Percy
and Isabelle?
Are you here?