Escape to the Chateau DIY (2018–2021): Season 5, Episode 8 - Episode #5.8 - full transcript
I'm Dick Strawbridge,
and along with my wife Angel
and our two children...
Welcome aboard, mateys!
Dick, voice-over:
we're now 5 years...
Angel: Whoo!
Dick, voice-over: into restoring
this once-abandoned château.
Angel: It's beautiful.
Dick, voice-over:
It's brought its challenges
and some amazing rewards.
Angel: Thank you
for my flower garden,
Mr. Strawbridge.
[Kiss]
Dick, voice-over: And across
France, there are dozens
of other Brits who are on
their own château adventure.
Yay!
Dick, voice-over:
We'll meet some old friends...
- Smile!
- I am.
Dick, voice-over:
and new faces.
Man: These rooms
really haven't
been touched in 60 years.
Dick, voice-over:
and we'll reveal more
about our own château life.
Angel: It is so much better
in real life.
Dick, voice-over:
There'll be highs...
Woman: Yay!
Dick, voice-over: and lows...
Man: Oh, no!
Man 2: God, what a disaster!
Dick, voice-over:
as these plucky Brits...
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...
Woman: Woo-hoo!
Dick, voice-over:
and get to live the dream
as custodians of their
very own castle.
Woman: Cheers, everybody!
[Glasses clink]
Dick, voice-over: Today,
these new château owners
splash out in insulation...
Anna: It looks like
he over-ordered,
but we'll see.
Ha ha!
Dick, voice-over: just when they
need a spending freeze.
Philipp: That explains
the price. It seemed expensive.
Dick, voice-over: One couple
search for their dream château.
Iain: I'm blown away
with just how impressive it is
from the outside.
Kate: I just want to get inside.
I'm excited now.
[Giggles]
Dick, voice-over:
And in southwest France...
Ah, look at the bottom of that.
Ashley: He has already big,
huge pieces of art
to bring up here
in the next two hours.
Dick, voice-over: A gallery
opening draws high emotions.
Johnny: If she's stressed,
it means we're up
against the clock.
Ashley: I'm not stressed.
Heh! I'm annoyed. [Giggles]
Johnny: You're annoyed.
Ashley: Ah!
Dick, voice-over:
Take it from me,
it's seriously
hard work making a new
château business
a success...
[Guests cheer]
Dick, voice-over:
but whatever your idea is,
it pays to be creative,
like here, at 18th-century
Château de Lomenie.
A former winery set
in 15 acres of land,
it was bought for £412,000
in 2017
by London artist Johnny
and his partner, Ashley,
a TV producer from New York.
Ashley: The best thing about
owning a château, I think,
is just every day
waking up and just seeing
the beauty.
Johnny: It's living the dream,
the French lifestyle dream.
Dick, voice-over:
Located near Bordeaux,
so far, these two have
financed renovations
by Ashley regularly
working abroad.
Ashley: I split my time
between a hotel room
because I have to work away
all the time and Lomenie,
and the goal is to have
the château make some money
so that I don't have to
always be gone.
Dick, voice-over:
So the château can start making
that all-important income,
this summer, they've
transformed their orangery
into an antiques emporium.
Next, Johnny plans
to create a gallery
in an outbuilding where he
can sell his art,
run creative workshops,
and put on events.
The space is the reason they
fell for the château
in the first place.
Johnny: Oh, babe,
wait till you see this room.
Oh, wow.
Ashley: Oh, wow! Fabulous.
Johnny: Ha ha ha!
Whoo! This--I mean,
this is just
a dream for an artist.
Dick, voice-over:
Nearly two years on,
Johnny is finally in a position
to make that dream a reality.
Johnny: As opposed to just
4 walls to hang art piece,
you know, we want to create
these themed rooms
that people would actually
walk through.
So we're going to have
the abandoned château room,
we're going to have the
abandoned opera house,
an apothecary room.
We want clients
to walk here and go,
"Oh, my God.
I did not expect that."
Dick, voice-over: The gallery
launch is in just 6 weeks,
but with the space currently
home to nothing but decades
of cobwebs, the amount of work
ahead is daunting...
Ashley: Do you want to do the
beams and I'll do the windows?
Johnny:
Yeah, yeah, sure.
Dick, voice-over: especially for
arachnophobe Ashley.
I absolutely despise spiders,
and there are hundreds of them.
And they're prehistoric,
they're massive.
Massive, massive spiders.
Dick, voice-over: Must be all
the French flies they eat.
Mmm. Whew!
Ashley: Those cobwebs
are massive.
Oh, my God.
I love projects like this
because it's really gonna
breathe some life back
into the old girl.
At the moment, it's just got
two people and a dog.
Ashley: Oh, my God! Oh!
That was the biggest spider
I've ever seen. I'm so sorry.
Johnny: Ha ha ha ha!
Ashley: Oh, geez.
Johnny: Do you want
a ladder, Ash?
Oh, God.
Dick, voice-over:
So it's all good fun so far.
Well, for Johnny,
at least,
but there's a serious side
to this, too.
Johnny: The life of an artist is
usually a quite poor lifestyle,
you know, because
you're, um, heh!
You spend 3 months, and you
build up to your exhibition,
so you're not earning
any money.
You finally showcase
in some swanky
commercial space,
and then, what you do sell,
the gallery takes 30% to 40%.
So having this space
means that--heh heh!--
all the money that we sell,
art and antiques, goes
straight back into our pocket,
into the château.
Dick, voice-over: For Ashley
to stop working abroad,
it's crucial the gallery
is a success.
They've only just started,
but it's looking good.
I'm very happy with it.
You can already see--
I mean, granted, it's nowhere
near close to finished, but you
can already see the difference.
Dick, voice-over:
To achieve Johnny's vision,
they've got their work
cut out getting
the gallery ready for opening
in 6 weeks' time.
Ashley: Hi, baby dog.
[Birds chirp]
Dick, voice-over: Over 150,000
Brits call France home, and
every year, a lucky few start
their own château stories.
Finding the right place, though,
can be far from easy.
Meet Iain and his wife, Kate,
who, after years of running a
pharmacy business in Australia,
have decided to make
the move to France.
Iain: For me, France reminds me
very much of Scotland,
my birthplace and home, and, um,
just the better weather,
so I'm really looking
forward to that.
Kate: Ha ha!
Dick, voice-over: I know all
about the pull of this country.
I also understand
how difficult it is
to find your perfect
property here.
Kate: We've been looking for
a château for 6 years.
Iain: Yes.
Kate: Yeah, a long time.
We've probably viewed
about 25 châteaus.
I think now is the time, though.
Iain: Indeed.
Dick, voice-over: The upside
of having viewed so many is
that Iain and Kate know exactly
what they're looking for.
Kate: My must-haves
in the château are
probably grand rooms.
Character is
very important to me.
Iain: For me, I do like
a larger property.
I look at the larger property as
more opportunity for business.
I would look to utilize
events and weddings,
a gite business,
chambre d'hôtes, or that--
Kate: He's always
thinking business.
I want it to feel
like home.
Iain: And if it had a moat,
that would be great.
Kate: Ha!
Dick, voice-over:
Having already sold their house
and the stake in
their business in Australia,
they've raised
£1.3 million for the move.
Their hearts are set
on the Loire Valley,
where they've holidayed
many times over the years.
The first château they're
viewing is around 30 miles
from the town of Tours.
The beautiful 19th-century
Château de la Poterie
is set in an incredible
49 acres,
complete with its own river.
Adorned with ornate stonework,
the château boasts 9 bedrooms
across the main house,
and two large gites.
Iain: Wow.
Stop and have
a little look at that, darling.
Have you seen this, the exit
through the gates down there?
Beautiful as
an alleyway through,
with those beautiful,
immature trees as well.
Kate: Oh, yeah. See, I--
I like that as an entrance.
Iain: Yeah, coming in?
Kate: Maybe swinging round?
Iain: Yeah, yeah.
Dick, voice-over: This place
is on the market
for £1.4 million--
£100,000 over budget--
but as an up-and-running events
and holiday let business,
Kate and Iain could start making
an income straightaway.
Showing them around is
estate agent Bertrand.
Bertrand: Hi.
Hello, Kate.
Kate: Bonjour.
Bertrand: How are you?
Iain: Very well.
Kate: Thank you.
Iain: Thank you
for bringing us to such
a beautiful property.
Bertrand: It's a pleasure.
Iain: Stunning.
Bertrand: It's very classic.
Kate: I just want to get inside.
I'm excited now.
[Giggles]
Iain:
Wow. Beautiful.
Katie: Yeah.
Love the staircase.
Iain: Yeah, yeah.
I like it. It's good.
Good entrance.
Dick, voice-over:
Good first impressions.
Now on to the heart
of the home.
Bertrand: And you have
the kitchen.
Kate: Ah, OK.
Iain: Very impressive.
Katie: I love the size
of this kitchen,
but I would have to
strip it back and start
again, purely
because it's
too modern for me.
Iain: Are there any old images,
photo of the château?
Part of the challenge for me
with the château is
to appreciate
the beautiful features
from the centuries before...
Bertrand: Yeah.
Iain: and bring back
some of those.
Bertrand: Mm-hmm.
Iain: I like the old.
I am old. I like old.
Kate: Ha ha ha!
Iain: Old is good.
Kate: We definitely like old.
Iain: You can see how all
the generations
of our family could be in here.
Kate: Exactly.
Dick, voice-over: It's not
just the size of this room
that's impressed them.
Kate: The view is amazing.
It looks perfect.
Dick, voice-over: Usually,
I'd say look at the state
of the windows, not the view,
but as this château's been
extensively modernized,
I'll let you off, Kate.
Bertrand: You have a river.
Iain: Yeah.
Kate: Oh, so there's this river
that runs through the property?
There's this river? Ah!
Bertrand: Yeah, yeah.
Kate: Wow.
Bertrand: Yeah.
Iain: Fantastic.
Kate: Oh, that's great.
Dick, voice-over:
Next, on to the salon.
Iain: It's very lovely, again.
Kate: I love the trim, cornice.
Iain: Yeah.
Really nice.
Kate: It's beautiful.
I have to say that the beige
is possibly not me.
Bernard: It's only decorations.
Iain: Yes, if you look at the--
just look at the detailing
on here...
Kate: Yeah.
Iain: and, you know,
just all around,
it's been protected
and not removed, so it's
all just decoration,
which excites me. That's good.
Kate: Yeah.
Dick, voice-over: Well,
the ground floor seems to be
on the right track, but after
6 years of searching,
will the rest of the château
be able to deliver?
In northern France is
the stately Château Gonneville.
Boasting 16 rooms
and set in 15 acres
of parkland,
its brand-new owners are Anna,
a former fashion designer,
her Italian husband Philipp,
a filmmaker, and their two
young daughters,
Lily and Ella.
Anna: It is quite crazy,
but it's also really exciting
'cause it's gonna be
an amazing opportunity to
change our lives, and it is
a dream to do this.
Philipp: Sometimes I think that
that whole château project
is a huge excuse for all
the things I love to do.
I love tools.
I love renovating.
It's a huge place to have
a lot of boy toys.
Anna: Ha!
Dick, voice-over:
Close to the Normandy coast,
the couple have sunk
their life savings
and taken out a huge loan
to afford the £900,000 château,
with the aim of opening
as a B&B in the spring.
But a recent inspection
revealed costly work they
hadn't bargained for.
Philipp, voice-over: I am not
as much intimidated
by the amount of work
than by the fact
that we don't have enough money
to do that renovation.
We have to run the business
to have some money coming in,
otherwise the whole project
doesn't work, and we
have to sell.
Dick, voice-over: Before Philipp
makes a start on the B&B rooms,
he wants to create an apartment
for the family in the attic.
They're currently bunking
in rooms that have
yet to be done
on the first floor.
Today he's tackling the floor
in what would be one of their
daughters' bedrooms.
Philipp: Many places of
the château, we have this type
of tiles--they're terra cotta
tiles--that unfortunately,
many of them are really
in bad condition.
The château was occupied
during second World War
by German soldiers.
That resulted in most
of these tiles being broken.
Now I'm going to try to rescue
as many tiles as possible
because I want to use them
in another room, maybe, later.
Dick, voice-over: There are 80
square meters of tiles up here,
and prising them up one by one
is a time-consuming job.
Philipp's leaving the ones
he can re-use immediately
in the attic and storing
the rest in their stables...
which means a lot of stairs
to negotiate.
Philipp: I've done about
15 trips down to the stables,
and now it's the mortar
underneath.
That's going to be another...
I guess, 20 to 30 trips
to the garden this time.
Dick, voice-over:
It's a huge job for one person,
but weeks later, all the tiles
are up and the attic cleared.
Anna: Philipp's doing an amazing
job, so I'm really happy.
Dick, voice-over:
They are making progress,
but Anna's worried all the work
might be taking its toll.
Anna: I think, like, last week,
he seemed really tired,
and he wouldn't admit it, but I
could see he was exhausted
and it's really physical,
so he just needs to take
maybe one day off a week
and have a bit of a rest
'cause it's a marathon,
it's not a sprint.
Dick, voice-over: Even so,
Philipp's efforts are
medal-worthy.
Philipp: Yeah, here are--
all these tiles,
they are the healthy ones.
Anna: OK.
Philipp: These ones here,
they're all in good condition.
Oh, and I absolutely want to use
that one with the dog lines.
Anna: Oh, wow! [Gasps]
Philipp: You see, in this one.
Anna: Oh, yeah.
That's crazy!
Philipp: Probably one of
the builders' dogs who left--
Anna: I love it.
Philipp: Ha ha!
Left these marks.
Anna: That's great.
I love that.
Yeah, we definitely,
definitely have to use that.
Philipp: Yeah.
Anna: So I think keep
the tiles where we can,
so, for example,
in the bathroom or maybe
in the entrance hallway
and in the bedrooms, we'll just
put nice wooden floor to keep
some of the characteristic
of the house, you know,
to keep some of the details.
Dick, voice-over:
That's one more job chalked off,
but if Anna and Philipp are
to have any chance
of hitting their target
of opening in the spring,
they have to keep
plugging away.
[Birds chirping]
Over 300 miles south,
at Château de Lomenie,
it's just 4 weeks
until the launch
of Johnny and Ashley's
art gallery.
Johnny: Before I paint it,
I just need to put up, um,
a little bit of, like,
wallpaper here and there.
Dick, voice-over: He's been
working on dividing
the gallery space
into what will eventually be
his individually themed areas.
Johnny: I've gone ahead
and put up stud walls
to create a pocket here,
a room,
which is gonna run all
the way along here,
so this is gonna be
the abandoned château room,
but I must say, doing it
on your own is pretty tricky.
Dick, voice-over:
Johnny's currently flying solo,
as Ashley, whose work trips
abroad fund the renovations,
is away in the Arctic.
When Ashley's here,
she's really good.
She, like, pushes me,
and that's why I need...
um...the tricky thing with this
is that, you know, the invites
have been sent out, the chef,
the catering has been booked,
the wine has been booked.
Dick, voice-over: So it's
too late to cancel anything now.
It's all on Johnny
to transform this space
into something that meets
his artistic vision.
So, before I actually put
the basecoat on,
what I've done previously
with art is I've used
just wallpaper randomly,
just pockets here,
torn and tatted, um,
laminate it here,
but leave, um, a little flap,
and it gives the impression
of, um, generations
of wallpaper over years.
Dick, voice-over: I must say,
this is the first time I've
heard of a château
getting a makeunder.
Johnny: I've never, ever
wanted, um, just,
you know, white-walled
gallery space.
It's boring, and, um,
you know, we view
this gallery space
as a living, breathing
piece of art.
Dick, voice-over:
Paper glued, Johnny can start
staking it
to the stud wall.
Johnny: Already, I can see it
with paint on it
and with, um...
a nice, distressed look.
It's gonna look great.
Dick, voice-over:
While the paper dries,
he's moving next door.
Johnny: This space here is
gonna be the apothecary shop,
so I've spent the last
couple of days
making and cutting
this paneling.
It's had two coats
of black, so today,
I'm going to be, um, just
using some gold paint
to bring some accents
into it.
I do have an affinity
with gold.
Just a few finishing touches.
We want it to be like people
stepping back in time,
and I must say, I really, really
love this. I really do.
Dick, voice-over: It's been
a productive morning.
Time to give the boss
a progress report.
Johnny: Hey, babe.
[Echoes]
Ashley: Hi.
Johnny: You got time?
[Echoes]
Ashley: Yeah, I do.
Johnny: Yeah, OK.
Do you want to see
the apothecary shop?
Ashley: Oh, wow.
It looks amazing.
Dick, voice-over:
Ashley's impressed, but as she's
not due back until 4 days
before the gallery launch,
Johnny has a mountain
to climb on his own
to get this space ready.
All right, sweet.
I'll speak to you soon.
Ashley: Bye!
Johnny: Bye, babe.
[Birds chirping]
Dick, voice-over: Back in
the Loire Valley, Iain and Kate
are viewing the gorgeous
19th-century
Château de la Poterie.
They've been impressed with what
they've seen so far.
As they want to offer
guest accommodation, they're
checking out the bedrooms,
starting on the first floor.
Kate: Oh, this is a good-size
room. It's got original floors.
Iain: Yeah.
Kate: I think the guests can
stay here, they've got
their own en suite.
Iain: Definitely.
Bertrand: You can rent
all the château, with
the different gite around...
Kate: Yeah, that's--
I didn't realize that.
Bertrand:
with the outbuildings.
Kate: And they have
good occupancy?
They have a lot
of people come here?
Bertrand: Yeah, yeah.
Kate: You know,
the rental, yeah?
And they get good money for it?
Bertrand: Yeah.
We are in the heart of
the Loire Valley
and the...rush, too,
so we've got a lot of tourists.
Kate: That's what we want.
Iain: It's a tremendous asset,
that sort of [indistinct], yeah.
Bertrand: Yeah, so you can
live in the outbuildings
and rent the château,
or live in the château and--
Kate: I want to live
in the château. Ha ha ha!
I'd like to say
the outbuildings, but no.
Dick, voice-over:
I'm with you, Kate.
It seems like the business
stacks up here,
but what about their
possible accommodation?
Bertrand:
The master bedroom.
Iain: Fantastic.
This would work very well as
a main bedroom, it really would.
Kate: Yeah, I love it
'cause I love the view.
Iain: Yeah.
The whole property has got
a good feel about it.
Iain: Yeah.
Kate: I like it.
Dick, voice-over: While Iain
and Kate are making all
the right noises
about this place,
after 6 years of searching,
could it be the one?
Iain: Thank you very much,
Bertrand. That was lovely.
Bertrand: Thank you very much.
Iain: Nice to meet you.
Thanks again.
Have a lovely evening.
Bertrand:
Thank you. Bye-bye.
Kate: I absolutely loved it.
Iain: I agree.
It's exactly the style
that we've been looking for
for so long, and it's
very romantic,
it's got a river
running through it.
Iain: The château was at
the higher end of our budget,
however, it really requires
a minimal investment to
actually get to a stage we could
actually treat it as a business.
Kate: Yeah, I've just got
a really good feel about it.
I could see myself
living there,
you know, for years
to come, and I can see
my grandchildren running around.
Iain: Absolutely.
Kate: I love it.
Quite emotional.
Iain: Yes.
This has set the bench
pretty high.
Dick, voice-over:
In Normandy,
it's a big day
for Anna and Philipp.
The insulation for the apartment
is being delivered,
and with autumn
temperatures dropping
and the schedule slipping,
it's not before time.
Anna: It looks like he
over-ordered,
but we'll see.
Ha ha!
Philipp: That explains the price
we paid for that product.
It seemed expensive, though.
Dick, voice-over: You can never
have too much insulation.
With money tight, Philipp
and Anna have employed
two workaway volunteers
to help.
Giving free board
in return for labor,
it means their entire budget
goes on renovations.
Anna: We're in a bit of a rush
because we don't want it
to get wet, and it's raining,
and then Philipp's going
to start putting
the insulation up.
Until this came, we couldn't
finish up the apartment,
so we're a bit delayed.
Dick, voice-over:
With the insulation unloaded,
Philipp's keen to get it
installed ASAP,
but he's learning as he goes.
Philipp: So we are all doing
this for the first time,
so it's a bit
of a trial and error.
Took me really 2
or 3 months to figure out
what the best way
of insulating would be.
I am looking forward to do that
now and to see how it works out
and to see if it's
a straightforward process
or if it needs to be--needs
an expert to be called in.
I hope not; I hope I will be
able to do it myself.
Dick, voice-over: He's already
fired up his laser level
and fixed galvanized-steel
railings to the wall
in preparation.
Philipp: This is a system that
allows you to--you clip it into
the wall, and then you press
the insulation on top of it.
Dick, voice-over: But what
Philipp doesn't know is
how far apart
the plastic pegs need to be.
Philipp: The minimum distance
in between these
is written in the instructions,
but I am too lazy
to look into the instructions.
I don't have them.
I would need to Google for them,
so I'm just improvising. Heh!
Dick, voice-over: Guessing
probably isn't the best option.
To be effective, the insulation
has to fit perfectly,
and you really need
a dust mask for this.
Philipp: We calculated, if we
heat the whole château,
will be about £1,000 a month.
With the insulation,
it could come down
at least to half of it.
Anna: How's it going?
Philipp: Uh, all right. It's not
as fast as I hoped, but--
Anna: You're covered
in, um, insulation.
Wow!
It looks good.
Philipp: Yeah.
Anna: It's gonna be lovely and
warm up here, so that's nice.
Philipp: I am really excited
to just, you know, to get to
a livable space again where we
have a proper shower,
a proper bath, so I can't wait
to finish this space.
Dick, voice-over:
Let's hope you can get
the family in before winter.
[Birds chirping]
Dick, voice-over:
Back in southwest France,
Château de Lomenie is
a hive of activity.
[Saw whirs]
It's the day before
Johnny's grand gallery opening,
and not only is Ashley back
from her work trip,
but the cavalry have also
arrived, in the shape
of Johnny's sister Emma
and her husband Ryan.
[Emma chuckles]
It was meant to be
a holiday. Ha ha!
Johnny: But you like
helping your big brother,
don't you, sis?
Emma: I do, Johnny.
I love it.
Dick, voice-over:
The man himself, though,
is feeling the strain.
Johnny: Do you need staples
for that, darling?
The lead-up to this point
has been stressful
'cause, um, you know, there's
still a long ways to go,
but I must say, it's nice
to have my brother-in-law
and my sister here.
Dick, voice-over:
While Johnny has made progress
with the gallery's themed areas,
Ashley's wondering
if he's bitten off more
than he can chew.
Ashley: It definitely is
gonna be down to the wire.
We have people coming,
obviously, tomorrow at 5:00,
and as you could see--ha ha!--
we're nowhere near ready.
The apothecary shop needs
to be finished,
which means plasterboard
all on the inside.
The whole thing has to be
painted, the windows
have to be put in,
it has to be dressed.
The abandoned château room
needs to be dressed.
The stage, we're still working
on curtains and drapes.
What else? What--
everything. Ha ha!
Everything still needs
to happen.
So Johnny is really,
really stressed right now
because this is his baby,
he wants everything
to be perfect,
perfect, perfect.
Johnny: Screw up to here.
Ryan: Here?
It's probably a week's
worth of work that we need
to get done in 15 hours.
It's a little scary.
Dick, voice-over: With so much
to do and so little time,
the only chance they have is
to divide and conquer.
Johnny:
Smoother'n a baby's bottom.
Ryan: Aye.
Dick, voice-over:
As Ryan sets to work
finishing off
the apothecary walls,
and Emma paints its windows,
Ashley is making
her stage debut.
So this is supposed to be
an abandoned French opera house,
so I want to have these
beautiful silk red drapes,
uh, starting at the very top
and kind of billowing down.
Heh heh!
[Sighs]
The beam is in the way.
Ugh.
Dick, voice-over: Luckily,
Johnny is on hand to help.
Johnny: See this one, sweet?
Are you gonna pin it to that?
'Cause when you pinched it,
I could see through it.
Give me that gun.
[Gun clatters]
If you can, can you
pinch it again,
as if you're closing
that gap so that you'll be--
That looks good, darling.
Ashley: Yeah? OK.
Johnny: Tell her it looks
lovely, Ryan.
Ryan: Looks lovely, Ash.
Ashley: Thank you, Ryan.
Johnny: Ha ha ha!
Ashley never stops
astounding me.
It took her 3 days to get home,
3 days and 6 flights.
I picked her up from the airport
and we went antiques shopping
to dress this, and that's what I
love about her, you know?
You know, she hits the floor
running, smile, big eyes.
Straightaway,
energy level straight back up.
I'm plugged in. I'm recharged.
Dick, voice-over: Well,
you need to be, because in
the apothecary, there's
a problem with the windows.
Ryan: Johnny,
we didn't trim these.
Johnny: They're out.
You sure they're not for that?
- No, I'm positive.
- You sure?
Ryan: A bigger gap.
Johnny: Uh, sorry, sis.
Who measured that?
Ryan: The stud's slightly out.
Johnny: Yeah, OK.
Ryan: So easily I could trim
a little bit off of this bit.
Johnny: All right.
Tell you all,
I'm getting nervous now.
Dick, voice-over:
With the day getting on,
every little delay is ramping up
the pressure on Johnny.
Johnny: It's scary thinking
about the volume of work.
I've not reached that stage
where I look at the work that's
been done and feel, like,
confident gonna be ready
for tomorrow,
in all honesty, yeah.
I'm really worried and still so
much to do, isn't there, Ryan?
Ryan: Yeah.
Johnny: Yeah.
[Birds chirping]
Dick, voice-over:
Nearly 300 miles north,
Iain and Kate have come to
the east end of the Loire Valley
to view their next château.
Kate: Oh, wow.
Iain: Stunning.
Kate: How nice is this?
I love a courtyard. [Gasps]
Dick, voice-over: Today, they're
visiting the beautiful
Château de Lamothe,
a 30-minute drive
from Orleans.
This time, they've brought
along daughter Jade,
husband Ryan,
and their children,
as well as Ryan's parents, Roy
and Linda, for a second opinion.
Man: Hi.
Iain: Bonjour, Freddie.
Dick, voice-over: Meeting them
all is estate agent Frederic.
Kate: This is all of
our family.
Frederic: Yes.
Jade: Bonjour.
Kate: Our daughter.
Frederic: Yeah. Bonjour.
Hi. Bonjour.
Ryan: Bonjour. Ryan.
Dick, voice-over:
I reckon this place
might just have the mix
of homeliness and business
potential these two are
looking for,
with 19 rooms,
several outbuildings
ripe for conversion,
and even a moat for Iain,
all set
in a whopping 37 acres
of parkland.
It's on the market
for £1.2 million,
£100,000 under
their budget.
Kate: Wow, this is beautiful.
Iain: Beautiful.
Frederic: The period,
the construction.
Iain: Yeah.
Frederic: And that is
[speaks French].
Iain: Yes.
Very excited to see it loose.
Very well-kept, but needs
a little bit of work,
which we're very keen to be
involved to do, yeah.
We're not scared for
the renovation.
We can stay and have
a little look?
Frederic: Yes, yes.
Dick, voice-over:
First impressions are good.
Now to see the inside.
Iain: My word.
Kate: Oh, wow.
Oh, this is the floor I love.
Iain: It's a beautiful floor.
Jade: Wow.
Kate: And the fireplace.
Iain: Yeah.
Jade: How pretty.
Iain: This is a lovely room.
Frederic: Yes.
Kate: Ah, beautiful.
Frederic:
Typical 17th century.
Iain: Yes, and just
the authentic parquet.
Frederic: Yes.
Iain: It's--everything's
as it should be,
just needs to be refreshed.
Kate: Fantastic.
I--the paneling.
This is exactly what
we're looking for...
Iain: Yeah.
Katie: that I can
decorate the way I like.
Iain: Decoration, yeah.
[Child coughing]
Kate: The character is
still here, got the--
Jade: It's, like,
a good size, too.
I don't think--it's grand,
but it's not over the top.
Iain: Yes.
Kate: Exactly.
Dick, voice-over: It seems
the whole family is impressed,
and the good news
continues next door.
Iain: Ah, another
beautiful room.
Frederic: Yeah,
the dining room.
Iain: Yes.
I'm really keen to bring back
the integrity of how it was
because it is such
a classic,
you know, and you want
to respect that.
Kate: Yeah, you don't
want to ruin it.
Iain: We're very much about
the soul of the property,
the spirit of the--
Kate: And as much as we want
to have a business, we still
want it to be for family, also.
Frederic: There is
a lot of place
to make chambres d'hôte.
Iain: That's exciting.
Frederic: Yes.
Kate: Perfect.
Dick, voice-over:
Iain and Kate are impressed
with the original features,
so what do they think
of the modern kitchen?
Kate: Oh, dear.
The floor.
[Chuckles]
That's OK.
It's some people's taste.
Not mine.
Dick, voice-over: Ah, well.
That's an easy fix.
Kate: I've always wanted to have
a really big kitchen, though...
Ryan: Yeah.
Kate: with a nice, big, sort of
farmhouse table in the middle,
which we've already got at home.
And I love these.
These just look--
Ian: Yeah, this is...
Jade: So authentic.
Iain: It's level.
Kate: Yeah. You--
and you can get under it?
Iain: Yeah, yeah,
absolutely.
I'm OK as long
as my hair's flat.
Kate: Ha ha ha! Well, you're not
wearing your high heels.
Iain: I'm not wearing
my heels, no.
Kate: Ha ha ha ha!
Iain: That's on the weekends.
Dick, voice-over: With the
downstairs winning them over,
it's time for a look
at the bedrooms.
Kate: OK, yeah.
Original floors.
Iain: It's just all original.
Kate: Fireplaces.
Jade: Good size, too.
Iain: It is, it is.
Jade: And there's an en suite
as well, which is good.
Kate: Yeah, no,
that's great.
And good-sized rooms,
so if we want to do
chambre d'hôte...
Iain: Yeah.
Kate: it'd be perfect.
Dick, voice-over: Crucially,
it seems Iain and Kate
can see potential, both
as a home and a business,
so now to do some digging.
Kate: How long has the château
been on the market?
Frederic: Since, uh...
2 months, 3 months, yes.
Kate: 3 months, OK.
Frederic: Now we begin to have
some proposition.
Iain: Some propositions.
Frederic: Yes, yeah.
Kate: And so probably have
to act fairly fast...
Frederic: Yeah.
Kate: I would imagine...
when it's so beautiful.
Frederic: Yeah.
Kate: Thank you.
Frederic: Thank you, thank you.
Iain: Thank you very much.
Frederic: Fun visit.
I'll arrange it. Thank you.
[Speaks French]
Kate: Au revoir.
Iain: À bientôt.
Iain: We're really impressed
with the château,
and the gardens probably
exceeded my expectations.
Kate: Definitely exceeded
my expectations.
It's very nice.
I'm very excited.
Iain: Yeah.
I don't want to look too excited
because I want to be able
to negotiate, but then,
you know...
Iain: There's just such
a variety of things we could do.
Kate: I think tonight we need
to go home and have a chat
about the château definitely
because, obviously,
there's other people interested,
and I don't want to miss out.
Dick, voice-over: It's been
a promising couple of days
for Iain and Kate.
After 6 long years,
they could be on the verge
of a new life in France.
Dick, voice-over: In Normandy,
it's now one month past the date
Philipp hoped to have the family
apartment finished...
and Anna is getting
increasingly desperate.
Anna: It's getting a lot colder.
All of a sudden, autumn's come,
and the château is not being
heated right now, so it's
kind of getting more
and more urgent that we
get this finished
and that we can move
up here and be warm
because we've got two
little ones, and, you know,
at night, I'm, like, putting
them in, like, 10 layers
of clothes to keep them
warm, and socks.
And me, too. I mean,
I'm wearing socks, a jumper.
I went to bed with a jumper
on the other night 'cause
it was so cold.
Dick, voice-over:
Jumpers do tend to be
a part of château life,
but in the apartment,
it's slow going.
With the insulation now in,
Philipp's boarded out,
ready for plastering,
but he's hit a snag.
Philipp: I have to do a repair
today because, by putting on
the plasterboard, I made
a slight mistake.
The problem we have is, if I
press here and then the whole--
you can see it's wonky,
and to finish plasterboards,
you put the tape
on all the gaps,
and the tape is strong, and it
keeps the--it closes the gap,
and then you can paint over it
and plaster over it.
Dick, voice-over:
If the board moves,
the tape will crease,
cracking the plaster.
[Philipp grunts]
Philipp: So it's
a little bit annoying
to have to do it again
and to take it off
because I was very happy
once I put it on.
Dick, voice-over: When you're
doing everything yourself
and learning as you go,
little setbacks like this
build up your experience.
Philipp: Now that should
solve the problem.
As much as I would love
to say these are all
beginner's mistakes,
I think it's in my nature
to make that kind of mistakes.
I think I'm just not
really good with these things.
These plasterboards, everything
that needs precise measurement
and a lot of patience--
that's just not me.
Dick, voice-over: Well, then,
it's a good job you've got Anna
to keep you on
the straight and narrow.
Anna: Hey.
Philipp: Hey.
Anna: What are you doing?
Philipp: Oh, nothing.
Anna: What's going on?
Philipp: Ha ha ha ha!
Oh, I made a little mistake.
Anna: Oh.
Philipp: Yeah.
Anna: What did you do?
Philipp: Um, nothing--
nothing really bad.
It's just I, um--one
of the plasterboards wasn't
properly fixed here.
Anna: Yeah?
Philipp: So I had to take it off
and reinforce it.
Anna: OK.
Philipp: But it's good
that you're here...
Anna: OK.
Philipp: 'cause you can help me
putting back the plasterboard.
Dick, voice-over:
Anna the perfectionist designer
is just the steady hand
that Philipp needs.
Anna: OK.
Philipp: You really have to be--
Anna: Precise.
Philipp: Yeah.
[Drill whirs]
Good.
Anna: Ah, this is so much fun.
Philipp: It is.
[Drill whirs]
It is the fun part, though.
Anna: Yeah. You did all
the hard work--
Philipp: I did the hard work,
you did the fun screwing part.
That's not fair.
Anna: Ha ha ha!
Dick, voice-over:
Plasterboard sorted,
sharp-eyed Anna's site visit
isn't over yet.
Anna: What is this here?
Philipp: This is nothing.
Anna: Nothing?
Philipp: Mm-hmm.
[Drill whirs]
Anna: OK.
[Giggles]
Philipp: Don't laugh,
don't laugh.
Anna: No, I'm not laughing.
You've done a great job.
Philipp: I think so.
[Chuckles]
Anna: I mean,
I do feel frustrated.
Philipp: Yeah.
Anna: I'm just a bit impatient,
let's say, because I just really
want to get this finished
and be able to move up here
and have our own space,
but there's still quite a lot
to do, isn't there, in here?
So now, how many weeks,
you reckon?
Philipp: A month.
Anna: Another month, yeah.
Philipp: That's really
optimistic.
Anna: Yeah, I think that's
optimistic. I'm not sure.
Philipp: Heh heh! It's a month.
Anna: Yeah.
Dick, voice-over:
Keep smiling, you two.
You're another step closer
to having your own space,
and it really will be
worth it in the end.
At Johnny and Ashley's,
it's the day of their grand
gallery opening.
Johnny: It should be
a joyous day, right?
But still so much to do,
so it just takes the edge off
to start feeling that pinch.
Dick, voice-over: Johnny's idea
of dividing the gallery
into themed areas has proved
a massive challenge.
Ashley: So last night,
we, uh,
painted walls,
we hung chandeliers.
I think I carried,
I don't know, a hundred pieces
of plasterboard up and down
the stairs. I can barely
move right now.
Dick, voice-over: But after
working into the wee hours,
with the help of Johnny's sister
Emma and husband Ryan,
it's almost ready.
Johnny: If I think of my
deadline, I get really anxious--
heh heh!--and that's when
the panic stations set in.
Dick, voice-over:
Sound the alarm, then.
With less than two hours until
their art-loving guests arrive,
Johnny's only now turning
his attention to getting
his art work in.
Johnny: I'm taking off the art
from the château,
which we knew was
a temporary thing, to the--
you know, and it's going
into the galleries.
Ashley's not too happy.
There's a few of her favorites
getting pinched,
but it needs
to all go up,
it all needs to be
for sale, of course.
Ah, look at
the bottom of that.
[Sighs]
She won't like that
like that.
Take the little...spiders.
[Grunts]
Dick, voice-over:
But it seems this time,
spiders are the least
of Ashley's worries.
Ashley: He really has,
probably,
I don't know, 40 pieces,
big, huge pieces of art
to bring up here in
the next two hours,
and place them, and he's
doing it one at a time.
It's--it's unbelievable.
Johnny: Can we just go up
to this step next?
Ashley: So I just...I can't
watch him. It makes me crazy.
Johnny: I'll move it
this way, bruth.
[Sighs]
Now, how relevant is that?
"Time devours all things."
Tick tock, tick tock.
That's great, mate. Thank you.
Ashley: Some people like to work
right up to the wire.
That's just kind of what makes
them tick, and then some people
like to be organized and have it
done all ahead of time.
Johnny: She never gets stressed,
Ashley. She's so calm
and levelheaded,
if she's stressed, it means
we're up against the clock.
Ashley: I'm not stressed.
I'm annoyed. [Giggles]
Johnny: You're annoyed.
You still love me, though,
don't you, darling?
Ashley: Heh!
I'm wavering.
Ha ha ha!
Dick, voice-over: Come on,
you two, no time to argue.
Your guests are due
any minute.
Just one final push.
Ashley: Oh, it looks good there.
Johnny: Does it?
Ashley: Yeah.
Johnny: I'm not sure
if it's the gold.
Ashley: Yeah.
Johnny: But it needs to go up.
Ashley: But let's bring
the rest up and then you
can hang stuff, OK?
Someone has to say no.
Ashley: Oh, my goodness.
I think I'm about to just go
take a shower and get ready,
and it is what it is
at this point,
and--[sighs]--
it's too much, too much.
[Birds chirp]
Dick, voice-over: It's been
6 hard weeks of toil,
but by the skin
of their teeth, Johnny
and Ashley have just
about done it.
The rundown space they fell
in love with two years ago
has finally and gloriously
been transformed into a gallery,
complete with opera stage,
abandoned château,
and apothecary.
It's a work of art in itself.
Ashley: Yeah.
Johnny: Hey, mate, how are you?
You all right? [Kiss]
Man: Oh, nice to see you.
- Ha ha ha!
- All right, nice to meet you.
It's very romantic in here.
I love all
the natural stone
and the gold,
just really beautiful.
Dick, voice-over:
It's not just Johnny and Ashley
who can take the credit.
I'm just gonna have
a good drink.
Ha ha ha ha!
Ryan: Yeah.
Emma: And that's about it
and enjoy the evening.
Ryan: Knackered,
but a nice cold beer.
It's well-deserved.
Man: Yeah.
Dick, voice-over:
Now for the formal stuff.
Ashley: Thank you so much
for coming.
This is a big night for us.
You know, we bought this place
exactly two years ago today,
so it's our two-year
anniversary.
Basically, what made us fall
in love with this place
was this space, and this is
sort of our vision for it,
and so, you know, tonight's
the night that it's here.
Ha ha ha! Johnny would love
to say a few words,
but he has disappeared.
[Laughter]
Where is he?
Mr. Darko?
Oh! Oh!
[Guests cheering]
Ashley: Ha ha ha ha!
Dick, voice-over:
That's playing to the gallery.
[Ashley laughing]
On behalf of myself and Ashley,
we'd like to officially
welcome you
to the grand opening
of the Alchimie Art Gallery
here at Château de Lomenie.
That's when you clap.
[Guests cheer and applaud]
Vive la France.
God bless France.
[Ashley laughs]
[Applause]
Johnny: Thank you so much.
Johnny, voice-over:
It's the moment that we've
been working towards,
so that means more future events
to bring people through,
and if we can function as
an art gallery and sell art
and antiques, that's why we
bought into this lifestyle.
Ashley: You know, for
so many years, it's just been
cobwebs and silence, and so now,
all of a sudden, you know,
there's music and people and...
Johnny: Yeah.
Ashley: I love it.
Johnny: Big, big day today.
Very happy,
a celebration
on so many levels.
[Ashley giggles]
Dick, voice-over:
Excellent work, you two.
It's taken two years,
but with both your gallery
and antiques emporium
now open for business,
a bright future
for the château is
in the frame.
[Birds chirping]
Next time,
Anna and Philipp's
marathon restoration project
keeps on running.
Anna: You reckon
that's OK, Philipp?
Philipp: Yeah.
Anna: Feels like this bit
is really out.
Philipp: Yeah, it happened to me
in my early years as well.
Dick, voice-over: Iain and Kate
continue their 6-year search...
Iain: It has the look of a room,
Francois, that would have
a secret door.
Francois: We do have one.
Kate: That's awesome.
Dick, voice-over:
and 3 generations
of new château owners...
Girl: Mummy!
Woman: Bonjour.
Dick, voice-over: attempt to win
over the local community.
Woman: It seems to be
going all right.
Get them all a little bit tipsy.
It's nice.
and along with my wife Angel
and our two children...
Welcome aboard, mateys!
Dick, voice-over:
we're now 5 years...
Angel: Whoo!
Dick, voice-over: into restoring
this once-abandoned château.
Angel: It's beautiful.
Dick, voice-over:
It's brought its challenges
and some amazing rewards.
Angel: Thank you
for my flower garden,
Mr. Strawbridge.
[Kiss]
Dick, voice-over: And across
France, there are dozens
of other Brits who are on
their own château adventure.
Yay!
Dick, voice-over:
We'll meet some old friends...
- Smile!
- I am.
Dick, voice-over:
and new faces.
Man: These rooms
really haven't
been touched in 60 years.
Dick, voice-over:
and we'll reveal more
about our own château life.
Angel: It is so much better
in real life.
Dick, voice-over:
There'll be highs...
Woman: Yay!
Dick, voice-over: and lows...
Man: Oh, no!
Man 2: God, what a disaster!
Dick, voice-over:
as these plucky Brits...
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...
Woman: Woo-hoo!
Dick, voice-over:
and get to live the dream
as custodians of their
very own castle.
Woman: Cheers, everybody!
[Glasses clink]
Dick, voice-over: Today,
these new château owners
splash out in insulation...
Anna: It looks like
he over-ordered,
but we'll see.
Ha ha!
Dick, voice-over: just when they
need a spending freeze.
Philipp: That explains
the price. It seemed expensive.
Dick, voice-over: One couple
search for their dream château.
Iain: I'm blown away
with just how impressive it is
from the outside.
Kate: I just want to get inside.
I'm excited now.
[Giggles]
Dick, voice-over:
And in southwest France...
Ah, look at the bottom of that.
Ashley: He has already big,
huge pieces of art
to bring up here
in the next two hours.
Dick, voice-over: A gallery
opening draws high emotions.
Johnny: If she's stressed,
it means we're up
against the clock.
Ashley: I'm not stressed.
Heh! I'm annoyed. [Giggles]
Johnny: You're annoyed.
Ashley: Ah!
Dick, voice-over:
Take it from me,
it's seriously
hard work making a new
château business
a success...
[Guests cheer]
Dick, voice-over:
but whatever your idea is,
it pays to be creative,
like here, at 18th-century
Château de Lomenie.
A former winery set
in 15 acres of land,
it was bought for £412,000
in 2017
by London artist Johnny
and his partner, Ashley,
a TV producer from New York.
Ashley: The best thing about
owning a château, I think,
is just every day
waking up and just seeing
the beauty.
Johnny: It's living the dream,
the French lifestyle dream.
Dick, voice-over:
Located near Bordeaux,
so far, these two have
financed renovations
by Ashley regularly
working abroad.
Ashley: I split my time
between a hotel room
because I have to work away
all the time and Lomenie,
and the goal is to have
the château make some money
so that I don't have to
always be gone.
Dick, voice-over:
So the château can start making
that all-important income,
this summer, they've
transformed their orangery
into an antiques emporium.
Next, Johnny plans
to create a gallery
in an outbuilding where he
can sell his art,
run creative workshops,
and put on events.
The space is the reason they
fell for the château
in the first place.
Johnny: Oh, babe,
wait till you see this room.
Oh, wow.
Ashley: Oh, wow! Fabulous.
Johnny: Ha ha ha!
Whoo! This--I mean,
this is just
a dream for an artist.
Dick, voice-over:
Nearly two years on,
Johnny is finally in a position
to make that dream a reality.
Johnny: As opposed to just
4 walls to hang art piece,
you know, we want to create
these themed rooms
that people would actually
walk through.
So we're going to have
the abandoned château room,
we're going to have the
abandoned opera house,
an apothecary room.
We want clients
to walk here and go,
"Oh, my God.
I did not expect that."
Dick, voice-over: The gallery
launch is in just 6 weeks,
but with the space currently
home to nothing but decades
of cobwebs, the amount of work
ahead is daunting...
Ashley: Do you want to do the
beams and I'll do the windows?
Johnny:
Yeah, yeah, sure.
Dick, voice-over: especially for
arachnophobe Ashley.
I absolutely despise spiders,
and there are hundreds of them.
And they're prehistoric,
they're massive.
Massive, massive spiders.
Dick, voice-over: Must be all
the French flies they eat.
Mmm. Whew!
Ashley: Those cobwebs
are massive.
Oh, my God.
I love projects like this
because it's really gonna
breathe some life back
into the old girl.
At the moment, it's just got
two people and a dog.
Ashley: Oh, my God! Oh!
That was the biggest spider
I've ever seen. I'm so sorry.
Johnny: Ha ha ha ha!
Ashley: Oh, geez.
Johnny: Do you want
a ladder, Ash?
Oh, God.
Dick, voice-over:
So it's all good fun so far.
Well, for Johnny,
at least,
but there's a serious side
to this, too.
Johnny: The life of an artist is
usually a quite poor lifestyle,
you know, because
you're, um, heh!
You spend 3 months, and you
build up to your exhibition,
so you're not earning
any money.
You finally showcase
in some swanky
commercial space,
and then, what you do sell,
the gallery takes 30% to 40%.
So having this space
means that--heh heh!--
all the money that we sell,
art and antiques, goes
straight back into our pocket,
into the château.
Dick, voice-over: For Ashley
to stop working abroad,
it's crucial the gallery
is a success.
They've only just started,
but it's looking good.
I'm very happy with it.
You can already see--
I mean, granted, it's nowhere
near close to finished, but you
can already see the difference.
Dick, voice-over:
To achieve Johnny's vision,
they've got their work
cut out getting
the gallery ready for opening
in 6 weeks' time.
Ashley: Hi, baby dog.
[Birds chirp]
Dick, voice-over: Over 150,000
Brits call France home, and
every year, a lucky few start
their own château stories.
Finding the right place, though,
can be far from easy.
Meet Iain and his wife, Kate,
who, after years of running a
pharmacy business in Australia,
have decided to make
the move to France.
Iain: For me, France reminds me
very much of Scotland,
my birthplace and home, and, um,
just the better weather,
so I'm really looking
forward to that.
Kate: Ha ha!
Dick, voice-over: I know all
about the pull of this country.
I also understand
how difficult it is
to find your perfect
property here.
Kate: We've been looking for
a château for 6 years.
Iain: Yes.
Kate: Yeah, a long time.
We've probably viewed
about 25 châteaus.
I think now is the time, though.
Iain: Indeed.
Dick, voice-over: The upside
of having viewed so many is
that Iain and Kate know exactly
what they're looking for.
Kate: My must-haves
in the château are
probably grand rooms.
Character is
very important to me.
Iain: For me, I do like
a larger property.
I look at the larger property as
more opportunity for business.
I would look to utilize
events and weddings,
a gite business,
chambre d'hôtes, or that--
Kate: He's always
thinking business.
I want it to feel
like home.
Iain: And if it had a moat,
that would be great.
Kate: Ha!
Dick, voice-over:
Having already sold their house
and the stake in
their business in Australia,
they've raised
£1.3 million for the move.
Their hearts are set
on the Loire Valley,
where they've holidayed
many times over the years.
The first château they're
viewing is around 30 miles
from the town of Tours.
The beautiful 19th-century
Château de la Poterie
is set in an incredible
49 acres,
complete with its own river.
Adorned with ornate stonework,
the château boasts 9 bedrooms
across the main house,
and two large gites.
Iain: Wow.
Stop and have
a little look at that, darling.
Have you seen this, the exit
through the gates down there?
Beautiful as
an alleyway through,
with those beautiful,
immature trees as well.
Kate: Oh, yeah. See, I--
I like that as an entrance.
Iain: Yeah, coming in?
Kate: Maybe swinging round?
Iain: Yeah, yeah.
Dick, voice-over: This place
is on the market
for £1.4 million--
£100,000 over budget--
but as an up-and-running events
and holiday let business,
Kate and Iain could start making
an income straightaway.
Showing them around is
estate agent Bertrand.
Bertrand: Hi.
Hello, Kate.
Kate: Bonjour.
Bertrand: How are you?
Iain: Very well.
Kate: Thank you.
Iain: Thank you
for bringing us to such
a beautiful property.
Bertrand: It's a pleasure.
Iain: Stunning.
Bertrand: It's very classic.
Kate: I just want to get inside.
I'm excited now.
[Giggles]
Iain:
Wow. Beautiful.
Katie: Yeah.
Love the staircase.
Iain: Yeah, yeah.
I like it. It's good.
Good entrance.
Dick, voice-over:
Good first impressions.
Now on to the heart
of the home.
Bertrand: And you have
the kitchen.
Kate: Ah, OK.
Iain: Very impressive.
Katie: I love the size
of this kitchen,
but I would have to
strip it back and start
again, purely
because it's
too modern for me.
Iain: Are there any old images,
photo of the château?
Part of the challenge for me
with the château is
to appreciate
the beautiful features
from the centuries before...
Bertrand: Yeah.
Iain: and bring back
some of those.
Bertrand: Mm-hmm.
Iain: I like the old.
I am old. I like old.
Kate: Ha ha ha!
Iain: Old is good.
Kate: We definitely like old.
Iain: You can see how all
the generations
of our family could be in here.
Kate: Exactly.
Dick, voice-over: It's not
just the size of this room
that's impressed them.
Kate: The view is amazing.
It looks perfect.
Dick, voice-over: Usually,
I'd say look at the state
of the windows, not the view,
but as this château's been
extensively modernized,
I'll let you off, Kate.
Bertrand: You have a river.
Iain: Yeah.
Kate: Oh, so there's this river
that runs through the property?
There's this river? Ah!
Bertrand: Yeah, yeah.
Kate: Wow.
Bertrand: Yeah.
Iain: Fantastic.
Kate: Oh, that's great.
Dick, voice-over:
Next, on to the salon.
Iain: It's very lovely, again.
Kate: I love the trim, cornice.
Iain: Yeah.
Really nice.
Kate: It's beautiful.
I have to say that the beige
is possibly not me.
Bernard: It's only decorations.
Iain: Yes, if you look at the--
just look at the detailing
on here...
Kate: Yeah.
Iain: and, you know,
just all around,
it's been protected
and not removed, so it's
all just decoration,
which excites me. That's good.
Kate: Yeah.
Dick, voice-over: Well,
the ground floor seems to be
on the right track, but after
6 years of searching,
will the rest of the château
be able to deliver?
In northern France is
the stately Château Gonneville.
Boasting 16 rooms
and set in 15 acres
of parkland,
its brand-new owners are Anna,
a former fashion designer,
her Italian husband Philipp,
a filmmaker, and their two
young daughters,
Lily and Ella.
Anna: It is quite crazy,
but it's also really exciting
'cause it's gonna be
an amazing opportunity to
change our lives, and it is
a dream to do this.
Philipp: Sometimes I think that
that whole château project
is a huge excuse for all
the things I love to do.
I love tools.
I love renovating.
It's a huge place to have
a lot of boy toys.
Anna: Ha!
Dick, voice-over:
Close to the Normandy coast,
the couple have sunk
their life savings
and taken out a huge loan
to afford the £900,000 château,
with the aim of opening
as a B&B in the spring.
But a recent inspection
revealed costly work they
hadn't bargained for.
Philipp, voice-over: I am not
as much intimidated
by the amount of work
than by the fact
that we don't have enough money
to do that renovation.
We have to run the business
to have some money coming in,
otherwise the whole project
doesn't work, and we
have to sell.
Dick, voice-over: Before Philipp
makes a start on the B&B rooms,
he wants to create an apartment
for the family in the attic.
They're currently bunking
in rooms that have
yet to be done
on the first floor.
Today he's tackling the floor
in what would be one of their
daughters' bedrooms.
Philipp: Many places of
the château, we have this type
of tiles--they're terra cotta
tiles--that unfortunately,
many of them are really
in bad condition.
The château was occupied
during second World War
by German soldiers.
That resulted in most
of these tiles being broken.
Now I'm going to try to rescue
as many tiles as possible
because I want to use them
in another room, maybe, later.
Dick, voice-over: There are 80
square meters of tiles up here,
and prising them up one by one
is a time-consuming job.
Philipp's leaving the ones
he can re-use immediately
in the attic and storing
the rest in their stables...
which means a lot of stairs
to negotiate.
Philipp: I've done about
15 trips down to the stables,
and now it's the mortar
underneath.
That's going to be another...
I guess, 20 to 30 trips
to the garden this time.
Dick, voice-over:
It's a huge job for one person,
but weeks later, all the tiles
are up and the attic cleared.
Anna: Philipp's doing an amazing
job, so I'm really happy.
Dick, voice-over:
They are making progress,
but Anna's worried all the work
might be taking its toll.
Anna: I think, like, last week,
he seemed really tired,
and he wouldn't admit it, but I
could see he was exhausted
and it's really physical,
so he just needs to take
maybe one day off a week
and have a bit of a rest
'cause it's a marathon,
it's not a sprint.
Dick, voice-over: Even so,
Philipp's efforts are
medal-worthy.
Philipp: Yeah, here are--
all these tiles,
they are the healthy ones.
Anna: OK.
Philipp: These ones here,
they're all in good condition.
Oh, and I absolutely want to use
that one with the dog lines.
Anna: Oh, wow! [Gasps]
Philipp: You see, in this one.
Anna: Oh, yeah.
That's crazy!
Philipp: Probably one of
the builders' dogs who left--
Anna: I love it.
Philipp: Ha ha!
Left these marks.
Anna: That's great.
I love that.
Yeah, we definitely,
definitely have to use that.
Philipp: Yeah.
Anna: So I think keep
the tiles where we can,
so, for example,
in the bathroom or maybe
in the entrance hallway
and in the bedrooms, we'll just
put nice wooden floor to keep
some of the characteristic
of the house, you know,
to keep some of the details.
Dick, voice-over:
That's one more job chalked off,
but if Anna and Philipp are
to have any chance
of hitting their target
of opening in the spring,
they have to keep
plugging away.
[Birds chirping]
Over 300 miles south,
at Château de Lomenie,
it's just 4 weeks
until the launch
of Johnny and Ashley's
art gallery.
Johnny: Before I paint it,
I just need to put up, um,
a little bit of, like,
wallpaper here and there.
Dick, voice-over: He's been
working on dividing
the gallery space
into what will eventually be
his individually themed areas.
Johnny: I've gone ahead
and put up stud walls
to create a pocket here,
a room,
which is gonna run all
the way along here,
so this is gonna be
the abandoned château room,
but I must say, doing it
on your own is pretty tricky.
Dick, voice-over:
Johnny's currently flying solo,
as Ashley, whose work trips
abroad fund the renovations,
is away in the Arctic.
When Ashley's here,
she's really good.
She, like, pushes me,
and that's why I need...
um...the tricky thing with this
is that, you know, the invites
have been sent out, the chef,
the catering has been booked,
the wine has been booked.
Dick, voice-over: So it's
too late to cancel anything now.
It's all on Johnny
to transform this space
into something that meets
his artistic vision.
So, before I actually put
the basecoat on,
what I've done previously
with art is I've used
just wallpaper randomly,
just pockets here,
torn and tatted, um,
laminate it here,
but leave, um, a little flap,
and it gives the impression
of, um, generations
of wallpaper over years.
Dick, voice-over: I must say,
this is the first time I've
heard of a château
getting a makeunder.
Johnny: I've never, ever
wanted, um, just,
you know, white-walled
gallery space.
It's boring, and, um,
you know, we view
this gallery space
as a living, breathing
piece of art.
Dick, voice-over:
Paper glued, Johnny can start
staking it
to the stud wall.
Johnny: Already, I can see it
with paint on it
and with, um...
a nice, distressed look.
It's gonna look great.
Dick, voice-over:
While the paper dries,
he's moving next door.
Johnny: This space here is
gonna be the apothecary shop,
so I've spent the last
couple of days
making and cutting
this paneling.
It's had two coats
of black, so today,
I'm going to be, um, just
using some gold paint
to bring some accents
into it.
I do have an affinity
with gold.
Just a few finishing touches.
We want it to be like people
stepping back in time,
and I must say, I really, really
love this. I really do.
Dick, voice-over: It's been
a productive morning.
Time to give the boss
a progress report.
Johnny: Hey, babe.
[Echoes]
Ashley: Hi.
Johnny: You got time?
[Echoes]
Ashley: Yeah, I do.
Johnny: Yeah, OK.
Do you want to see
the apothecary shop?
Ashley: Oh, wow.
It looks amazing.
Dick, voice-over:
Ashley's impressed, but as she's
not due back until 4 days
before the gallery launch,
Johnny has a mountain
to climb on his own
to get this space ready.
All right, sweet.
I'll speak to you soon.
Ashley: Bye!
Johnny: Bye, babe.
[Birds chirping]
Dick, voice-over: Back in
the Loire Valley, Iain and Kate
are viewing the gorgeous
19th-century
Château de la Poterie.
They've been impressed with what
they've seen so far.
As they want to offer
guest accommodation, they're
checking out the bedrooms,
starting on the first floor.
Kate: Oh, this is a good-size
room. It's got original floors.
Iain: Yeah.
Kate: I think the guests can
stay here, they've got
their own en suite.
Iain: Definitely.
Bertrand: You can rent
all the château, with
the different gite around...
Kate: Yeah, that's--
I didn't realize that.
Bertrand:
with the outbuildings.
Kate: And they have
good occupancy?
They have a lot
of people come here?
Bertrand: Yeah, yeah.
Kate: You know,
the rental, yeah?
And they get good money for it?
Bertrand: Yeah.
We are in the heart of
the Loire Valley
and the...rush, too,
so we've got a lot of tourists.
Kate: That's what we want.
Iain: It's a tremendous asset,
that sort of [indistinct], yeah.
Bertrand: Yeah, so you can
live in the outbuildings
and rent the château,
or live in the château and--
Kate: I want to live
in the château. Ha ha ha!
I'd like to say
the outbuildings, but no.
Dick, voice-over:
I'm with you, Kate.
It seems like the business
stacks up here,
but what about their
possible accommodation?
Bertrand:
The master bedroom.
Iain: Fantastic.
This would work very well as
a main bedroom, it really would.
Kate: Yeah, I love it
'cause I love the view.
Iain: Yeah.
The whole property has got
a good feel about it.
Iain: Yeah.
Kate: I like it.
Dick, voice-over: While Iain
and Kate are making all
the right noises
about this place,
after 6 years of searching,
could it be the one?
Iain: Thank you very much,
Bertrand. That was lovely.
Bertrand: Thank you very much.
Iain: Nice to meet you.
Thanks again.
Have a lovely evening.
Bertrand:
Thank you. Bye-bye.
Kate: I absolutely loved it.
Iain: I agree.
It's exactly the style
that we've been looking for
for so long, and it's
very romantic,
it's got a river
running through it.
Iain: The château was at
the higher end of our budget,
however, it really requires
a minimal investment to
actually get to a stage we could
actually treat it as a business.
Kate: Yeah, I've just got
a really good feel about it.
I could see myself
living there,
you know, for years
to come, and I can see
my grandchildren running around.
Iain: Absolutely.
Kate: I love it.
Quite emotional.
Iain: Yes.
This has set the bench
pretty high.
Dick, voice-over:
In Normandy,
it's a big day
for Anna and Philipp.
The insulation for the apartment
is being delivered,
and with autumn
temperatures dropping
and the schedule slipping,
it's not before time.
Anna: It looks like he
over-ordered,
but we'll see.
Ha ha!
Philipp: That explains the price
we paid for that product.
It seemed expensive, though.
Dick, voice-over: You can never
have too much insulation.
With money tight, Philipp
and Anna have employed
two workaway volunteers
to help.
Giving free board
in return for labor,
it means their entire budget
goes on renovations.
Anna: We're in a bit of a rush
because we don't want it
to get wet, and it's raining,
and then Philipp's going
to start putting
the insulation up.
Until this came, we couldn't
finish up the apartment,
so we're a bit delayed.
Dick, voice-over:
With the insulation unloaded,
Philipp's keen to get it
installed ASAP,
but he's learning as he goes.
Philipp: So we are all doing
this for the first time,
so it's a bit
of a trial and error.
Took me really 2
or 3 months to figure out
what the best way
of insulating would be.
I am looking forward to do that
now and to see how it works out
and to see if it's
a straightforward process
or if it needs to be--needs
an expert to be called in.
I hope not; I hope I will be
able to do it myself.
Dick, voice-over: He's already
fired up his laser level
and fixed galvanized-steel
railings to the wall
in preparation.
Philipp: This is a system that
allows you to--you clip it into
the wall, and then you press
the insulation on top of it.
Dick, voice-over: But what
Philipp doesn't know is
how far apart
the plastic pegs need to be.
Philipp: The minimum distance
in between these
is written in the instructions,
but I am too lazy
to look into the instructions.
I don't have them.
I would need to Google for them,
so I'm just improvising. Heh!
Dick, voice-over: Guessing
probably isn't the best option.
To be effective, the insulation
has to fit perfectly,
and you really need
a dust mask for this.
Philipp: We calculated, if we
heat the whole château,
will be about £1,000 a month.
With the insulation,
it could come down
at least to half of it.
Anna: How's it going?
Philipp: Uh, all right. It's not
as fast as I hoped, but--
Anna: You're covered
in, um, insulation.
Wow!
It looks good.
Philipp: Yeah.
Anna: It's gonna be lovely and
warm up here, so that's nice.
Philipp: I am really excited
to just, you know, to get to
a livable space again where we
have a proper shower,
a proper bath, so I can't wait
to finish this space.
Dick, voice-over:
Let's hope you can get
the family in before winter.
[Birds chirping]
Dick, voice-over:
Back in southwest France,
Château de Lomenie is
a hive of activity.
[Saw whirs]
It's the day before
Johnny's grand gallery opening,
and not only is Ashley back
from her work trip,
but the cavalry have also
arrived, in the shape
of Johnny's sister Emma
and her husband Ryan.
[Emma chuckles]
It was meant to be
a holiday. Ha ha!
Johnny: But you like
helping your big brother,
don't you, sis?
Emma: I do, Johnny.
I love it.
Dick, voice-over:
The man himself, though,
is feeling the strain.
Johnny: Do you need staples
for that, darling?
The lead-up to this point
has been stressful
'cause, um, you know, there's
still a long ways to go,
but I must say, it's nice
to have my brother-in-law
and my sister here.
Dick, voice-over:
While Johnny has made progress
with the gallery's themed areas,
Ashley's wondering
if he's bitten off more
than he can chew.
Ashley: It definitely is
gonna be down to the wire.
We have people coming,
obviously, tomorrow at 5:00,
and as you could see--ha ha!--
we're nowhere near ready.
The apothecary shop needs
to be finished,
which means plasterboard
all on the inside.
The whole thing has to be
painted, the windows
have to be put in,
it has to be dressed.
The abandoned château room
needs to be dressed.
The stage, we're still working
on curtains and drapes.
What else? What--
everything. Ha ha!
Everything still needs
to happen.
So Johnny is really,
really stressed right now
because this is his baby,
he wants everything
to be perfect,
perfect, perfect.
Johnny: Screw up to here.
Ryan: Here?
It's probably a week's
worth of work that we need
to get done in 15 hours.
It's a little scary.
Dick, voice-over: With so much
to do and so little time,
the only chance they have is
to divide and conquer.
Johnny:
Smoother'n a baby's bottom.
Ryan: Aye.
Dick, voice-over:
As Ryan sets to work
finishing off
the apothecary walls,
and Emma paints its windows,
Ashley is making
her stage debut.
So this is supposed to be
an abandoned French opera house,
so I want to have these
beautiful silk red drapes,
uh, starting at the very top
and kind of billowing down.
Heh heh!
[Sighs]
The beam is in the way.
Ugh.
Dick, voice-over: Luckily,
Johnny is on hand to help.
Johnny: See this one, sweet?
Are you gonna pin it to that?
'Cause when you pinched it,
I could see through it.
Give me that gun.
[Gun clatters]
If you can, can you
pinch it again,
as if you're closing
that gap so that you'll be--
That looks good, darling.
Ashley: Yeah? OK.
Johnny: Tell her it looks
lovely, Ryan.
Ryan: Looks lovely, Ash.
Ashley: Thank you, Ryan.
Johnny: Ha ha ha!
Ashley never stops
astounding me.
It took her 3 days to get home,
3 days and 6 flights.
I picked her up from the airport
and we went antiques shopping
to dress this, and that's what I
love about her, you know?
You know, she hits the floor
running, smile, big eyes.
Straightaway,
energy level straight back up.
I'm plugged in. I'm recharged.
Dick, voice-over: Well,
you need to be, because in
the apothecary, there's
a problem with the windows.
Ryan: Johnny,
we didn't trim these.
Johnny: They're out.
You sure they're not for that?
- No, I'm positive.
- You sure?
Ryan: A bigger gap.
Johnny: Uh, sorry, sis.
Who measured that?
Ryan: The stud's slightly out.
Johnny: Yeah, OK.
Ryan: So easily I could trim
a little bit off of this bit.
Johnny: All right.
Tell you all,
I'm getting nervous now.
Dick, voice-over:
With the day getting on,
every little delay is ramping up
the pressure on Johnny.
Johnny: It's scary thinking
about the volume of work.
I've not reached that stage
where I look at the work that's
been done and feel, like,
confident gonna be ready
for tomorrow,
in all honesty, yeah.
I'm really worried and still so
much to do, isn't there, Ryan?
Ryan: Yeah.
Johnny: Yeah.
[Birds chirping]
Dick, voice-over:
Nearly 300 miles north,
Iain and Kate have come to
the east end of the Loire Valley
to view their next château.
Kate: Oh, wow.
Iain: Stunning.
Kate: How nice is this?
I love a courtyard. [Gasps]
Dick, voice-over: Today, they're
visiting the beautiful
Château de Lamothe,
a 30-minute drive
from Orleans.
This time, they've brought
along daughter Jade,
husband Ryan,
and their children,
as well as Ryan's parents, Roy
and Linda, for a second opinion.
Man: Hi.
Iain: Bonjour, Freddie.
Dick, voice-over: Meeting them
all is estate agent Frederic.
Kate: This is all of
our family.
Frederic: Yes.
Jade: Bonjour.
Kate: Our daughter.
Frederic: Yeah. Bonjour.
Hi. Bonjour.
Ryan: Bonjour. Ryan.
Dick, voice-over:
I reckon this place
might just have the mix
of homeliness and business
potential these two are
looking for,
with 19 rooms,
several outbuildings
ripe for conversion,
and even a moat for Iain,
all set
in a whopping 37 acres
of parkland.
It's on the market
for £1.2 million,
£100,000 under
their budget.
Kate: Wow, this is beautiful.
Iain: Beautiful.
Frederic: The period,
the construction.
Iain: Yeah.
Frederic: And that is
[speaks French].
Iain: Yes.
Very excited to see it loose.
Very well-kept, but needs
a little bit of work,
which we're very keen to be
involved to do, yeah.
We're not scared for
the renovation.
We can stay and have
a little look?
Frederic: Yes, yes.
Dick, voice-over:
First impressions are good.
Now to see the inside.
Iain: My word.
Kate: Oh, wow.
Oh, this is the floor I love.
Iain: It's a beautiful floor.
Jade: Wow.
Kate: And the fireplace.
Iain: Yeah.
Jade: How pretty.
Iain: This is a lovely room.
Frederic: Yes.
Kate: Ah, beautiful.
Frederic:
Typical 17th century.
Iain: Yes, and just
the authentic parquet.
Frederic: Yes.
Iain: It's--everything's
as it should be,
just needs to be refreshed.
Kate: Fantastic.
I--the paneling.
This is exactly what
we're looking for...
Iain: Yeah.
Katie: that I can
decorate the way I like.
Iain: Decoration, yeah.
[Child coughing]
Kate: The character is
still here, got the--
Jade: It's, like,
a good size, too.
I don't think--it's grand,
but it's not over the top.
Iain: Yes.
Kate: Exactly.
Dick, voice-over: It seems
the whole family is impressed,
and the good news
continues next door.
Iain: Ah, another
beautiful room.
Frederic: Yeah,
the dining room.
Iain: Yes.
I'm really keen to bring back
the integrity of how it was
because it is such
a classic,
you know, and you want
to respect that.
Kate: Yeah, you don't
want to ruin it.
Iain: We're very much about
the soul of the property,
the spirit of the--
Kate: And as much as we want
to have a business, we still
want it to be for family, also.
Frederic: There is
a lot of place
to make chambres d'hôte.
Iain: That's exciting.
Frederic: Yes.
Kate: Perfect.
Dick, voice-over:
Iain and Kate are impressed
with the original features,
so what do they think
of the modern kitchen?
Kate: Oh, dear.
The floor.
[Chuckles]
That's OK.
It's some people's taste.
Not mine.
Dick, voice-over: Ah, well.
That's an easy fix.
Kate: I've always wanted to have
a really big kitchen, though...
Ryan: Yeah.
Kate: with a nice, big, sort of
farmhouse table in the middle,
which we've already got at home.
And I love these.
These just look--
Ian: Yeah, this is...
Jade: So authentic.
Iain: It's level.
Kate: Yeah. You--
and you can get under it?
Iain: Yeah, yeah,
absolutely.
I'm OK as long
as my hair's flat.
Kate: Ha ha ha! Well, you're not
wearing your high heels.
Iain: I'm not wearing
my heels, no.
Kate: Ha ha ha ha!
Iain: That's on the weekends.
Dick, voice-over: With the
downstairs winning them over,
it's time for a look
at the bedrooms.
Kate: OK, yeah.
Original floors.
Iain: It's just all original.
Kate: Fireplaces.
Jade: Good size, too.
Iain: It is, it is.
Jade: And there's an en suite
as well, which is good.
Kate: Yeah, no,
that's great.
And good-sized rooms,
so if we want to do
chambre d'hôte...
Iain: Yeah.
Kate: it'd be perfect.
Dick, voice-over: Crucially,
it seems Iain and Kate
can see potential, both
as a home and a business,
so now to do some digging.
Kate: How long has the château
been on the market?
Frederic: Since, uh...
2 months, 3 months, yes.
Kate: 3 months, OK.
Frederic: Now we begin to have
some proposition.
Iain: Some propositions.
Frederic: Yes, yeah.
Kate: And so probably have
to act fairly fast...
Frederic: Yeah.
Kate: I would imagine...
when it's so beautiful.
Frederic: Yeah.
Kate: Thank you.
Frederic: Thank you, thank you.
Iain: Thank you very much.
Frederic: Fun visit.
I'll arrange it. Thank you.
[Speaks French]
Kate: Au revoir.
Iain: À bientôt.
Iain: We're really impressed
with the château,
and the gardens probably
exceeded my expectations.
Kate: Definitely exceeded
my expectations.
It's very nice.
I'm very excited.
Iain: Yeah.
I don't want to look too excited
because I want to be able
to negotiate, but then,
you know...
Iain: There's just such
a variety of things we could do.
Kate: I think tonight we need
to go home and have a chat
about the château definitely
because, obviously,
there's other people interested,
and I don't want to miss out.
Dick, voice-over: It's been
a promising couple of days
for Iain and Kate.
After 6 long years,
they could be on the verge
of a new life in France.
Dick, voice-over: In Normandy,
it's now one month past the date
Philipp hoped to have the family
apartment finished...
and Anna is getting
increasingly desperate.
Anna: It's getting a lot colder.
All of a sudden, autumn's come,
and the château is not being
heated right now, so it's
kind of getting more
and more urgent that we
get this finished
and that we can move
up here and be warm
because we've got two
little ones, and, you know,
at night, I'm, like, putting
them in, like, 10 layers
of clothes to keep them
warm, and socks.
And me, too. I mean,
I'm wearing socks, a jumper.
I went to bed with a jumper
on the other night 'cause
it was so cold.
Dick, voice-over:
Jumpers do tend to be
a part of château life,
but in the apartment,
it's slow going.
With the insulation now in,
Philipp's boarded out,
ready for plastering,
but he's hit a snag.
Philipp: I have to do a repair
today because, by putting on
the plasterboard, I made
a slight mistake.
The problem we have is, if I
press here and then the whole--
you can see it's wonky,
and to finish plasterboards,
you put the tape
on all the gaps,
and the tape is strong, and it
keeps the--it closes the gap,
and then you can paint over it
and plaster over it.
Dick, voice-over:
If the board moves,
the tape will crease,
cracking the plaster.
[Philipp grunts]
Philipp: So it's
a little bit annoying
to have to do it again
and to take it off
because I was very happy
once I put it on.
Dick, voice-over: When you're
doing everything yourself
and learning as you go,
little setbacks like this
build up your experience.
Philipp: Now that should
solve the problem.
As much as I would love
to say these are all
beginner's mistakes,
I think it's in my nature
to make that kind of mistakes.
I think I'm just not
really good with these things.
These plasterboards, everything
that needs precise measurement
and a lot of patience--
that's just not me.
Dick, voice-over: Well, then,
it's a good job you've got Anna
to keep you on
the straight and narrow.
Anna: Hey.
Philipp: Hey.
Anna: What are you doing?
Philipp: Oh, nothing.
Anna: What's going on?
Philipp: Ha ha ha ha!
Oh, I made a little mistake.
Anna: Oh.
Philipp: Yeah.
Anna: What did you do?
Philipp: Um, nothing--
nothing really bad.
It's just I, um--one
of the plasterboards wasn't
properly fixed here.
Anna: Yeah?
Philipp: So I had to take it off
and reinforce it.
Anna: OK.
Philipp: But it's good
that you're here...
Anna: OK.
Philipp: 'cause you can help me
putting back the plasterboard.
Dick, voice-over:
Anna the perfectionist designer
is just the steady hand
that Philipp needs.
Anna: OK.
Philipp: You really have to be--
Anna: Precise.
Philipp: Yeah.
[Drill whirs]
Good.
Anna: Ah, this is so much fun.
Philipp: It is.
[Drill whirs]
It is the fun part, though.
Anna: Yeah. You did all
the hard work--
Philipp: I did the hard work,
you did the fun screwing part.
That's not fair.
Anna: Ha ha ha!
Dick, voice-over:
Plasterboard sorted,
sharp-eyed Anna's site visit
isn't over yet.
Anna: What is this here?
Philipp: This is nothing.
Anna: Nothing?
Philipp: Mm-hmm.
[Drill whirs]
Anna: OK.
[Giggles]
Philipp: Don't laugh,
don't laugh.
Anna: No, I'm not laughing.
You've done a great job.
Philipp: I think so.
[Chuckles]
Anna: I mean,
I do feel frustrated.
Philipp: Yeah.
Anna: I'm just a bit impatient,
let's say, because I just really
want to get this finished
and be able to move up here
and have our own space,
but there's still quite a lot
to do, isn't there, in here?
So now, how many weeks,
you reckon?
Philipp: A month.
Anna: Another month, yeah.
Philipp: That's really
optimistic.
Anna: Yeah, I think that's
optimistic. I'm not sure.
Philipp: Heh heh! It's a month.
Anna: Yeah.
Dick, voice-over:
Keep smiling, you two.
You're another step closer
to having your own space,
and it really will be
worth it in the end.
At Johnny and Ashley's,
it's the day of their grand
gallery opening.
Johnny: It should be
a joyous day, right?
But still so much to do,
so it just takes the edge off
to start feeling that pinch.
Dick, voice-over: Johnny's idea
of dividing the gallery
into themed areas has proved
a massive challenge.
Ashley: So last night,
we, uh,
painted walls,
we hung chandeliers.
I think I carried,
I don't know, a hundred pieces
of plasterboard up and down
the stairs. I can barely
move right now.
Dick, voice-over: But after
working into the wee hours,
with the help of Johnny's sister
Emma and husband Ryan,
it's almost ready.
Johnny: If I think of my
deadline, I get really anxious--
heh heh!--and that's when
the panic stations set in.
Dick, voice-over:
Sound the alarm, then.
With less than two hours until
their art-loving guests arrive,
Johnny's only now turning
his attention to getting
his art work in.
Johnny: I'm taking off the art
from the château,
which we knew was
a temporary thing, to the--
you know, and it's going
into the galleries.
Ashley's not too happy.
There's a few of her favorites
getting pinched,
but it needs
to all go up,
it all needs to be
for sale, of course.
Ah, look at
the bottom of that.
[Sighs]
She won't like that
like that.
Take the little...spiders.
[Grunts]
Dick, voice-over:
But it seems this time,
spiders are the least
of Ashley's worries.
Ashley: He really has,
probably,
I don't know, 40 pieces,
big, huge pieces of art
to bring up here in
the next two hours,
and place them, and he's
doing it one at a time.
It's--it's unbelievable.
Johnny: Can we just go up
to this step next?
Ashley: So I just...I can't
watch him. It makes me crazy.
Johnny: I'll move it
this way, bruth.
[Sighs]
Now, how relevant is that?
"Time devours all things."
Tick tock, tick tock.
That's great, mate. Thank you.
Ashley: Some people like to work
right up to the wire.
That's just kind of what makes
them tick, and then some people
like to be organized and have it
done all ahead of time.
Johnny: She never gets stressed,
Ashley. She's so calm
and levelheaded,
if she's stressed, it means
we're up against the clock.
Ashley: I'm not stressed.
I'm annoyed. [Giggles]
Johnny: You're annoyed.
You still love me, though,
don't you, darling?
Ashley: Heh!
I'm wavering.
Ha ha ha!
Dick, voice-over: Come on,
you two, no time to argue.
Your guests are due
any minute.
Just one final push.
Ashley: Oh, it looks good there.
Johnny: Does it?
Ashley: Yeah.
Johnny: I'm not sure
if it's the gold.
Ashley: Yeah.
Johnny: But it needs to go up.
Ashley: But let's bring
the rest up and then you
can hang stuff, OK?
Someone has to say no.
Ashley: Oh, my goodness.
I think I'm about to just go
take a shower and get ready,
and it is what it is
at this point,
and--[sighs]--
it's too much, too much.
[Birds chirp]
Dick, voice-over: It's been
6 hard weeks of toil,
but by the skin
of their teeth, Johnny
and Ashley have just
about done it.
The rundown space they fell
in love with two years ago
has finally and gloriously
been transformed into a gallery,
complete with opera stage,
abandoned château,
and apothecary.
It's a work of art in itself.
Ashley: Yeah.
Johnny: Hey, mate, how are you?
You all right? [Kiss]
Man: Oh, nice to see you.
- Ha ha ha!
- All right, nice to meet you.
It's very romantic in here.
I love all
the natural stone
and the gold,
just really beautiful.
Dick, voice-over:
It's not just Johnny and Ashley
who can take the credit.
I'm just gonna have
a good drink.
Ha ha ha ha!
Ryan: Yeah.
Emma: And that's about it
and enjoy the evening.
Ryan: Knackered,
but a nice cold beer.
It's well-deserved.
Man: Yeah.
Dick, voice-over:
Now for the formal stuff.
Ashley: Thank you so much
for coming.
This is a big night for us.
You know, we bought this place
exactly two years ago today,
so it's our two-year
anniversary.
Basically, what made us fall
in love with this place
was this space, and this is
sort of our vision for it,
and so, you know, tonight's
the night that it's here.
Ha ha ha! Johnny would love
to say a few words,
but he has disappeared.
[Laughter]
Where is he?
Mr. Darko?
Oh! Oh!
[Guests cheering]
Ashley: Ha ha ha ha!
Dick, voice-over:
That's playing to the gallery.
[Ashley laughing]
On behalf of myself and Ashley,
we'd like to officially
welcome you
to the grand opening
of the Alchimie Art Gallery
here at Château de Lomenie.
That's when you clap.
[Guests cheer and applaud]
Vive la France.
God bless France.
[Ashley laughs]
[Applause]
Johnny: Thank you so much.
Johnny, voice-over:
It's the moment that we've
been working towards,
so that means more future events
to bring people through,
and if we can function as
an art gallery and sell art
and antiques, that's why we
bought into this lifestyle.
Ashley: You know, for
so many years, it's just been
cobwebs and silence, and so now,
all of a sudden, you know,
there's music and people and...
Johnny: Yeah.
Ashley: I love it.
Johnny: Big, big day today.
Very happy,
a celebration
on so many levels.
[Ashley giggles]
Dick, voice-over:
Excellent work, you two.
It's taken two years,
but with both your gallery
and antiques emporium
now open for business,
a bright future
for the château is
in the frame.
[Birds chirping]
Next time,
Anna and Philipp's
marathon restoration project
keeps on running.
Anna: You reckon
that's OK, Philipp?
Philipp: Yeah.
Anna: Feels like this bit
is really out.
Philipp: Yeah, it happened to me
in my early years as well.
Dick, voice-over: Iain and Kate
continue their 6-year search...
Iain: It has the look of a room,
Francois, that would have
a secret door.
Francois: We do have one.
Kate: That's awesome.
Dick, voice-over:
and 3 generations
of new château owners...
Girl: Mummy!
Woman: Bonjour.
Dick, voice-over: attempt to win
over the local community.
Woman: It seems to be
going all right.
Get them all a little bit tipsy.
It's nice.