All language subtitles for Escape to the Chateau S04E18.540p.HDTV.x264-GTi.English

I'm Dick Strawbridge and, along with
my wife Angel and our two
children...

Yay. Oh, well done.

..we've lived in this magnificent
chateau for the past five years.

Look, look, look, look, look, look.

Oh, my God.

That is so beautiful.

It's not just our home...

And we're up.

..but our business.

You may kiss your bride.

And all over France, there are other
Brits doing exactly the same.

Oh, my God.

We'll follow a new
wave of intrepid chateau owners...

If I open some windows,
it might help get rid of some dust.

..and some familiar faces,

as they take on these
majestic buildings.

And we'll reveal
more about our own chateau life.

Is everyone ready?

Yeah! Yeah!

There'll be triumphs...

This looks incredible.

Do you like it, Laura?

I love it.

..and setbacks...

Oh.

..as they battle to
renovate their homes...

..and earn their keep.

OK, I'm ready.

But no matter how hard
the going gets...

This is probably,
yeah, my worst nightmare.

..they get to live the dream as
custodians of their very own castle.

Today... At one chateau,

they reach new heights getting
ready for a VIP visit.

Mum has not let me
on the big ladder.

Look at the ladder I've
been given today.

So this is it?

These chateau owners hope to
impress their own important guest...

There'll be a lot less pigeon poo
here when you're practising yoga.

..to kick-start their fledgling
business.

Is this the first handstand in this
room in 600 years?

I reckon so.

Lee? Huh? Ah.

And one couple's long-awaited
delivery...

Oh, no.

..threatens to put
a spanner in the works.

This is not good.

This is a very, very bad sign.

Making the move from the UK to
France can mean a property

supersize for many Brits.

Angel and I swapped our three-bed
Essex

flat for our dreamy 45-room chateau

and there are plenty more like us.

The 19th-century Chateau du Dohem
is set in just over

an acre of land, with 15 rooms
and its own swimming pool.

Bought eight years ago for £600,000
by former company director Wendy...

Bonne journee.

..it's now run as a holiday let

and hen party business with
builder husband Marcus.

I just love the gorgeousness
of the whole place.

Everything's very relaxed over here,
it's lovely.

It's like a step back in time,
really

and it just feels like a really,
really special place to be.

Located 26 miles from Calais,

it's an easy hop across the Channel
for Wendy and Marcus.

They maintain a base in the UK

while they're
working on the chateau.

Come on, put your back into it.

Their latest project has seen them

working hard to turn
the barn into a wedding venue.

They hope this will
generate enough money

so they can move
permanently to France.

ALL: Yay!

Love it!

Really nice.

18 months later, and having spent
nearly £30,000,

the barn is almost finished.

And now Wendy wants to give it the
wow factor.

My vision for the barn is, it's
going to be decorated with foliage

and neutral flowers, light colours,
fairy lights round all the beams.

And behind the couple will be
a whole wall of flowers

to make a lovely backdrop for all
their wedding photographs.

That's quite a vision.

It's great that Marcus is impressed

but it's not only him
Wendy needs to win over.

This week we have a very important
visitor coming to the chateau,

Patricia, who is the Maire de
Dohem, the mayor.

If we have the mayor's
seal of approval,

then she will help to promote
the chateau

to the local area for potential
weddings for French couples.

We still have quite a lot to do
and we have today

and tomorrow to actually finish.

You all right with that? Yep.

To hit their deadline, Wendy's
roped in daughter Leah

to help style the barn, starting
with the piece de resistance...

Right. Just plonk them in there.

..a wall of silk flowers.

The plan is to cable-tie
these up to this pole.

Yep.

I think it will make a really classy
and simple backdrop.

There's a couple of thousand pounds'
worth of flowers in here,

so that is a bonus for any couple
who are getting married.

That's a lot of flowers.

But before the flower wall,

it's the oak beams
that are getting spruced up.

It's never ending. I know.

These, we have woven with fairy
lights.

They should hang down just
a little way,

so it feels like you're walking
under arches of flowers.

OK. Let's get down and have a look.

Look at it.

Ooh, lovely.

Coming on nicely...

but the clock's ticking.
The flower wall still needs to go up

and there are box loads of blooms
left to unpack.

The rendezvous with the mayor is
happening at 6:15 tomorrow evening

and it has to be finished by then.

We won't get a second chance to
make a first impression.

Nearly 300 miles south is
the magical 15th-century

Chateau Mareuil.

The 17-room defensive fortress was
purchased for £378,000 four

years ago by south London couple -
retired caterer Belinda,

and lighting designer Lee, who now
run it as a B&B and events business.

Chateaux can be money pits,

and we felt that
because the size was quite bijou...

It was a manageable money pit.

It was a manageable money pit.
Oh, how wrong you can be.

Situated 40 miles from Limoges
in central France, Belinda

and Lee have spent
around £150,000 on renovations.

To make back some of the money,
they've expanded their events

portfolio and recently hosted
their first-ever fashion show.

Eat, drink, be merry and
spend loads of money. OK.

However, their venue space,
the castle keep or donjon,

almost ruined everything
with its leaky roof.

Oh, dear. Look at this. I'll go and
get a bucket.

And its uneven floor meant a wobbly
catwalk for the models.

Classic colours, aren't they?
Very, very flattering.

Before the next season kicks off,
the donjon desperately needs

an upgrade if Belinda and Lee's
business is going to thrive.

Got to put a new level
floor in so that

when we're hosting events,
tables and chairs aren't wonky.

And people don't trip over their
feet. And people don't trip over

when they're dancing. That's the
most important thing.

Most important thing, yeah.

Right, here we are, then. Right.

Here we are.

To keep the cost down,
builder friends Paul

and Danny have come
over from the UK to help.

The big problem I've got is between
here and this point here,

there's something like 150mm
difference,

so it's higher there
than it is here.

What I wanted to try and do,
we've got some spoil over the field,

bung it in here and try
and raise this level up.

Right, come on, let's crack on.

The spoil is a mixture of soil
and stone left over from when

the swimming pool was put in, so
it's down to the boys to shift it.

Never driven it with
a trailer on the back before.

Nerve-racking,
it's very nerve-racking.

Backing up in the field is
proving tricky for Lee.

Which way? That way?

Back, back, back. No, keep going
straight.

It's harder to reverse for him,

because everything has to be done
in the opposite direction.

You're going to have to straighten
up.

Hold on, hold on. That's it,
keep coming. This way?

This way, this way. That's it, turn.

Turn.

Keep going, keep going.

Yeah, that's fine, mate.

That's fine.

I was struggling with that.

I knew I was going to have
trouble with this.

While Danny and Paul transfer
the spoil into the trailer

and take it to the donjon,

Lee's ready for his next challenge,
smoothing it out with a whacker.

What this does is it vibrates.
The sheer weight of this

thing will literally compact
the Earth down

with the soils compact,
then the concrete will sit on top

of the soil and form its own layer.
A bit like a sponge cake, really.

All right, grab it there, that's it.

But not quite as tasty.

It's got my foot. Ow!

Best to have your steel toe-capped
boots for these jobs.

MACHINE STARTS UP

I'm loving this.

Seems the compactor is an easier
drive than the tractor.

With the floor well and truly
flattened, Lee wants to see

if it's now level.

Well, that has raised it.
It's great, isn't it?

That's perfect. Yeah.

Result.

Now it's just a case of calculating
how much concrete they need.

It's working out at 4.2 cubic
metres,

but that's not going to be enough.

Why is it not going to be enough,
sorry?

So we need to order a bit extra.

What's worse is not having
enough. Exactly.

Because then that's a hand-mix job
and we haven't got time to do that.

Have you measured it recently?
Are you sure of those figures?

Yeah.

Is it possible, I'm not being funny,
Lee, the chap is very helpful,

he's very knowledgeable.

Why don't you go back and talk
to him, rather than second guessing.

OK.

That sounds like a plan, then.

Yes, good idea.

It's probably better in this
situation to ask the experts.

The last thing you want is to find
out you haven't ordered

the right amount.

Coming up...

Wendy and Marcus are against the
clock getting everything

ready for the mayor's visit.

These have been absolutely
awful to fix.

Whoop.

And these chateau owners...

Hey.

..are making the most
of their resources?

It's quite satisfying.

In south-east France lies the
stunning 13th-century

Chateau de Rosieres.

With 16 bedrooms, five outbuildings,
and set in 130 acres of land,

the lucky owners are British writer
and yoga teacher Amy

and her French farmer husband, Marc.

They bought it three years ago for
£650,000.

Come on, everybody!

We could not have taken this on
unless we believed

we were going to spend the rest of
our life here.

Come on, little one.

And we knew as soon as we saw
it that we wanted to spend

the rest of our lives here, so
I think that's the plan.

I think we're getting there.

We're...

The more we live in the chateau,

the more we picture what we would
like it to be.

Located an hour and a half's drive
from Lyon,

over the past year they've begun
renovating the chateau

to turn it into a high-end B&B.

Oh!

Oh, my. Oh.

They've started to install an
eco-friendly sewage system...

Wahey.
Victory.

..completed their first guest
suite...

I just feel like sitting in here
forever and staring at it.

..and are now planning for an
important arrival.

We worked and worked and worked
through the winter

and then I fell pregnant, so that's
been completely terrifying.

We've gone from relying on each
other

to him having to do everything.

Amy's determined to push on with
her dream project

for the chateau, creating a yoga
retreat

in two of the derelict outbuildings.

We have a huge barn.

What I want to turn it into is a
beautiful airy yoga studio,

with a mezzanine level where people
can relax.

I think it's going to be a really
beautiful space.

And that's not all.

We're quite excited about the cafe.

It's the old coach house of the
chateau

and it'll be the place where people
from the retreats

can cook their food, or we can have
a chef in.

But it can also be that we open it
for people from the village

to come and have tea and cake.

I think it'll just be an incredibly
flexible space.

I do, too.

It's a massive undertaking as
they're hoping to get both buildings

finished by the end of the summer.

It will be really nice to have a
little bit of money coming in.

Yeah.

Because we are paying for this
work by putting a loan

against our business, so it's a bit
of a gamble

but we are really confident that it
will work out.

Whoop.

In a bid to keep the cost down...

This. Yep.

..Amy and Marc want to take trees
from their vast forest

of Douglas firs to use as structural
beams and flooring

for the yoga barn and cafe
renovations.

Do we need to cut this one?

I think so, yes.

They decide to mark straight,
healthy trees

for the lumber company to cut down
and to take to the nearby sawmill.

One of the things I really like
about using these guys

is that they're an ancient family
from the village.

They've been here since the 11th
century,

so I like the idea that they might
have been working this land

for about 900 years.

This one will be good as building
wood,

that's a really good timber wood.

So, will that go to make a beam,
or will it be planks?

Oh, yeah, that's way big enough for
a beam.

Overall, I think we'll be cutting
about 20 trees

or something today, and we probably
need, for us,

about five or six.

Is that all?
Yeah, I think so.

They are quite big trees.

So we might actually make
profit on this one?

Yeah, I think we will.
Woohoo.

Felling more than they need means
the excess trees

will be sold at the sawmill to cover
costs.

Each trunk can fetch up to around 75
Euros,

that's about £65.

It's important to know their size
for pricing up.

Now they're measuring the tree to
estimate the volume.

There's a math formula.

Oh, blimey, I didn't realise it
was that scientific.

Woo!

Wahey!

That's quite satisfying.

The next morning, the job continues.

And some of the trees need to be
transported to the sawmill.

That's a very satisfying truck.
I know.

The truck's arrived half full,
meaning costs are shared.

You want to drive it, don't you?
Yeah.

To load up, the truck's blocking the
road, so time is of the essence.

I'm going to go and hide behind a
tree

so I don't have to be embarrassed.

At Chateau du Dohem in northern
France,

Wendy and daughter Leah are busy
getting ready

for tomorrow's all-important visit
from the local mayor.

So you'll add a couple of hydrangea
heads

and then some ivy hanging down in
the middle

so then it bulks out that
middle bit.

It's not just the barn that's
receiving attention.

Marcus is also up against it,
putting in an arched gate

at the entrance to the pool,

with help from local handyman
Andre Luc.

Je pense le...beaucoup.

Er...

Although communication is proving
tricky.

Is there more of that?

Er...

He speaks a very little bit of
English

and I speak a very little bit of
French

so, between us, we muddle through.

Back at the chateau, Wendy has
received some news.

I have an e-mail from the assistant
of the mayor of Dohem

and she says she's very sorry,
but Madame the mayor

is now at a reunion from tomorrow
at 17.00

and it's not possible for her
to come.

How are you doing?

These have been absolutely
awful to fix.

Oh, no, really?

Absolutely horrendous.

Now, the reason I came down to talk
to you...

You're not leaning on that, are you?

No, didn't think so.
Not leaning on that at all.

..is because I've had a message
from the assistant to the mayor.

Yeah?

And she can't make the meeting down
here for six-ish.

Right, OK.

I feel a bit disappointed that she's
broken the arrangement

because we've gone to a lot of
trouble to get everything ready

for her visit.

Wendy feels getting the mayor on
side could be helpful

to the business by spreading
the word locally.

It's also down to the mayor to
approve future building works,

so Wendy's not giving up yet.

I'm waiting for the mayor's
PA to come back to me

and see if it's possible for her to
actually come earlier in the day.

Carrying on in the hope the visit
will still go ahead tomorrow...

Do you think it needs a hydrangea at
the other side?

..it looks like Wendy and Marcus
could be in for a very long night.

Nearly 300 miles south, at Chateau
Mareuil,

Belinda and Lee's donjon floor is
now level

and prepared to their satisfaction,

ready for the concrete delivery
today.

It's five cubic metres.

It's already about...
It's 650 Euros, virtually.

Yeah.

So it's eye-wateringly expensive.
So it's nearly £600.

Yeah.

And there's an added pressure

as builders Paul and Danny do have
to go home one day.

The worst thing that could happen
today is that the concrete

doesn't turn up.

That is a realistic possibility,

because although we've ordered it
and specifically said today,

we did the same thing when we were
having the pool put in

and they turned up a day and a half
late.

Two days' time, these guys are gone.

They've only come over to help us
do this,

so that would be a real problem
for us.

This waiting is...

HE SIGHS

It's making me a bit nervous.

Ah!

Oh, no, it's wind in the trees.

I thought I could hear a lorry
coming.

Yeah, this is it. That's great!

Here it is.

Here it comes.

Once turned around, it's a tight
squeeze through the gateposts.

This makes me feel really nervous
because I'm just concerned

he's going to take out my ancient
stones and slabs.

And Belinda's concerns don't stop
there.

I'm really worried about him hitting
these ancient doors,

because they are...

How old are these doors?
500 years old?

Yeah, and they're huge.

They're irreplaceable.

Whilst the lorry's hydraulically
powered arm

has successfully manoeuvred its way
in,

Belinda's spotted something leaking
out of it.

Lee?

Huh? Ah!

Oh, no!

The hydraulic pipe's burst.

Without the hydraulic fluid, the
conveyor belt on the arm won't work.

This is not good.

This is a very, very bad sign.

Not quite sure what's going to
happen next.

We've got five cubic metres of
concrete

sitting in the back of that lorry
that he may not be able

to pump out in there.

Unable to use the conveyor belt,

Danny's suggested they wheelbarrow
the concrete instead.

What, from here?
Yeah.

Barrow it from here?
In here.

No, it's...

Well, what else can you do?
You've got these guys here.

What are you going to do?
Not do it today?

It's going to take all day.
Yeah, but there's no alternative.

Desperate to get the job done today,
Lee's come up with another idea.

This guy's phoning the depot to see
if they can send another

lorry out with another five cubic
metres with one of these that works.

But, if not...?
If not, we'll have to barrow it in.

You're going to have to.
We've got no choice.

It's too early for a gin and tonic,
isn't it?

I'm not so sure.

Somewhere in the world, it's
past one o'clock.

Get that crate of beer going.

Word comes back that the lorry
driver has to return to base,

so it's down to Belinda and Lee to
see if they can get

another delivery this afternoon.

I'd better telephone now.
Yeah.

Straight away.
Yeah, let's do it now.

Ce n'est pas possible?

SHE GASPS
OK. Au revoir.

So, nothing today.

The very earliest is going to be
tomorrow afternoon.

Um...

I've told him Friday is the absolute
last day,

and he knows that,

but he has absolutely nothing today
at all.

So that's it, it's finished for
today.

On Saturday, Paul and Danny will be
gone,

so Belinda and Lee have to hope they
can get

that concrete lorry back tomorrow.

Coming up...

Amy and Marc go to great pains to
work well as a team.

I thought you meant the frame
inside.

I meant the frame.

You weren't very clear.

Yeah, yeah.

Little dance of joy.

And it's time to celebrate at Wendy
and Marcus'.

18 months' worth of hard work,
finished.

And looking lovely.

In south-east France, trees
from Amy and Marc's forest,

for use in their
chateau building works,

have arrived at the sawmill.

Bonjour, Amy. Bonjour.

Around a third will be
turned into planks and beams

and the rest sold, covering
transportation and sawing costs.

The measurements mean manager Luc
can choose the right size trees

for Amy and Marc's
made-to-measure beams.

I can see the pink
marks on our ones.

I think we should get one of those.

A band saw removes the bark
and cuts the trunks

into perfect planks and beams.

These will be used for the yoga
barn's new mezzanine level.

Is that our beam? Yeah.

It looks like they've
managed to make three.

That's really good.

It's amazing that we'll have
been able to cut the trees,

then have them cut to size
and then take them home,

all within just a few
miles of our house. Mm.

Good job done.
Well done.

As well as utilising
their Douglas firs,

Amy and Marc have also
created window frames

from their home-grown sweet chestnut
trees for the coach house cafe.

We've just had a delivery of
some beautifully handmade

windows for the building and we
got a quote from the window makers

that they would charge us
3,000 euros to oil the windows.

And we thought, "That might be
something we can manage ourselves."

By not having to pay for your wood,

and by preserving the
windows yourselves,

you've saved a huge amount.

Just what you need when you've
got a hefty loan to pay off.

This room is going to be stunning,
I'm so excited about it.

It's gonna have a home cinema
system, a roaring log fire...

Coffee machine.

SHE LAUGHS
That's what he's excited about.

That's the most important.

This is the first of the
11 windows they've had made,

all of which need oiling.

But before that...

You can do the frame,
I'll do the window itself. OK.

They're using a tannin blocker to
stop sap seeping to the surface,

causing stains.

You do the frame, I said.

I know, but you were doing
the outside whilst I...

And you said the frame, so I thought
you meant the frame inside.

I meant the frame. You call
the frame. You weren't very clear.

I just thought it was
your mauvais anglais.

Amy's technique is
very interesting.

We just need to work on the
coordination between Amy and I,

cos we tend to go over
and over the same places.

Maybe we should be keeping
track of what we've done

and what we haven't done?

What's really satisfying, when
you're doing this, is thinking

how many euros per minute we're
saving than if they'd done it.

Yeah. It's not even a
horrible task, is it?

No, it is quite enjoyable.

Bon, I think we're done.

We've just applied the first coat.

After that, we'll put
the finishing oil

that will help the wood
keep its colour.

You did an amazing job.

No, I didn't, it was awful.

Oh, maybe for the window.

No time to stop.

Oh, and the peacock is joining us.

Amy's friend Brent, who runs
high-end yoga retreats

around the world, has arrived to
give their yoga barn the once over.

If he likes what he sees,

his classes could help get Amy and
Marc's yoga retreat up and running.

So, this, is it.

It's a little bit dirtier
than it should be.

Obviously there will be a
lot less pigeon poo here

when you're practising yoga.

So, in there, is going
to be the big yoga studio,

and then in here is going to
be a kind of welcome area.

I don't know if it would be
possible, but this area has such

amazing scenery, if there's any way
to get just a little bit of a view?

From the view, we're planning
to have some output door yoga

platforms spread around
the land to choose,

so we have other locations.
It's amazing.

It's incredible.

I mean, where else are you going
to be able to practise yoga

in a place like this? It's perfect.

It looks like you could
be getting a thumbs-up

from your friendly yoga guru.

When are we talking about being
able to bring a group here?

OK, I think a small group next year.

Well, book us. Plan...
Let's pencil it in.

Good. I want to save our spot.

And with their first
booking on the cards,

Amy's got an idea.

I'd like to see you doing
a handstand in it now,

so that I can take a picture of you
now and then,

when you come back when it's done,
I take the same picture.

HE BLOWS AWAY DUST

Ah, beautiful. All right...

..up we go.

Is this the first handstand
in this room? Oh, yeah.

Ever, in 600 years?

Uh, I reckon so.

Probably. I did one the other day.
Did you, really?

HE LAUGHS

Now there's just the small task of
getting the derelict yoga barn

finished in time to
welcome retreat guests.

I'm so pleased after Brent's visit.

If he thinks this is
good enough, then

I think we've got the start
of a really good business.

400 miles north, Wendy, her daughter
Leah, and Marcus are working towards

finishing their wedding barn before
guests arrive in two days' time.

Leah and I were in the
wedding barn until about ten

and we did finish dressing
all of the oak beams and

we also managed to get half
of the flower wall up,

which we're continuing with today.

They were hoping the local mayor
would visit this evening

to give her seal of approval.

But having cancelled
her appointment,

Wendy's been trying hard to
see if there's another time.

I heard from the mayor's PA today
and unfortunately,

for Madame Mayor, it's definitely
out of the question for her

to arrive today now.

But we're just going to
carry on anyway as normal

and proceed with the work.

Absolutely.

Both the barn and landscaping
need to be finished

before the chateau guests arrive.

This is just a finishing
touch to the patio area.

It's time for the last
details in the barn, too.

Mum has not let me
on the big ladder.

Look at the ladder I've
been given today.

You're supposed to give me
the best tools in life

and you're giving me
the tiniest ladders.

I gave you the best tip in life.

Yes, you did.

You said, "Always wear great shoes,

because when you dance on the table,
it's the first thing people see..

THEY LAUGH

Outside, it might not be a table,

but Marcus's paving sure looks
smooth enough for bridal shoes.

There we go. That's it done.

Not sorry to see that finished,
that's for sure.

Let's try my gates,
make sure they shut.

Oh, look at that.

A little bit more. Finit.
That's it, done.

OK? I'm so happy. Good.

Yeah, yeah, little dance of joy.

THEY LAUGH

You have done a peach of a job. Ah.

I'm glad that you like it.
I might cry.

Oh. No, it's lovely.

You may not have the mayor
on hand to impress,

but you've done a bloomin'
marvellous job with the decorating.

Time for Wendy to show Marcus the
wedding barn in all its glory.

Stunning.

18 months' worth of hard work,
finished and looking lovely.

What began as an empty shell now
boasts a beautiful oak floor,

exposed beams and
bespoke light fittings.

And its signature floral display
creates the setting to say, "I do."

Now we've got this space,
we've got something we can

really go out and promote.

Happy? Yeah.

I'm happy.

Looking at what you've seen
for so long in your head

and wanted to make a reality,
to achieve that reality...

I tell you what, it's emotional.

Let's hope bookings
start rolling in,

bringing you one step closer to
living your chateau dream full time.

In central France
at Chateau Mareuil,

Belinda and Lee are two days into
waiting for their concrete delivery.

This is the last day we've got
people here to help us.

Um, and so it's absolutely critical

that the cement turns up today on
time and it actually all works.

You know I don't normally swear?

Might all change today. Yeah.

And we wouldn't want that, Belinda.

With builder mates Danny and Paul
returning to the UK tomorrow,

my fingers are crossed for
your concrete arrival today.

So, I don't want the cables
dangling in the cement.

I hate to correct you when you're
under such stress, Lee,

but it's concrete you're
waiting on, not cement.

It's all about the angle
of the dangle, you know.

Concrete's here! Concrete's here!

TRUCK BEEPS

Well, that's a welcome sight.

God, he's got like, an inch.

Not the gates.

TRUCK CONTINUES BEEPING

Here's hoping the conveyor belt on
the arm works without a hitch.

SHE NERVOULSY LAUGHS
I can't watch it.

No.

This was the exact moment the
hydraulic disaster struck last time.

Lee, there's a drip happening,
look, but is it water? Where?

Oh, don't say that.
I just saw one drip.

It's right over the point
where the last one broke.

It's dripping, look. Where?

But I think it's water.

I hope so for your sake, Belinda.

Conveyor belt in position,

the driver wants to know how thick
they want the concrete.

Do you want it quite liquid? No?
How do you want this?

I think there's a choice. How do you
want...? Like, medium. Medium.

Classique? Oui, classique.

This consistency is going to take
a lot of effort to spread it

quickly and evenly across the
floor before it starts to dry.

It looks a bit like
cake mix, doesn't it?

Lee's beginning to wonder whether
he's ordered enough concrete.

I'm slightly nervous, right,
because the guy that's used to

delivering all this muck,
I've just said to him,

"We've got five cubic metres, do you
think it's going to be enough?"

And he said, "How big, is it?"
And I told him and he said,

"How deep are you doing on it?"
And he went, "Mm."

To help with the job, the lorry
driver has given Danny and Paul

his tamper to help spread
the mixture evenly.

HE SPEAKS FRENCH

A little bit nearer and then
tamp it down with that.

After 50 minutes of hard graft,
dragging and spreading,

an even level may be the
least of their worries.

It's finished? Fin?

There's not enough.

There's no more, so we
need to drag it back.

Paul and Danny are sweating
a little bit, because now,

the whole lorry has been emptied
into the donjon,

they're working against time,
because the more they do on it,

the drier the mix gets.

You're always nervous and anxious.

Look at me, I'm 30 years
old on my next birthday.

This is what it does to you.
SHE LAUGHS

Never. You don't look
a day over 28, Lee.

Now you're pulling it back,
I can see we have got enough.

What a relief.
SHE LAUGHS

Au revoir, monsieur, merci.
Au revoir, monsieur.

Au revoir, madame.

Who'd have thought it? They're done.

Oh, the light switch is over there,
I can't turn the lights off.

HE CHUCKLES

I think the concrete floor laying
has been really successful,

don't you? It's looking
reasonably flat in there.

Reasonably flat. Reasonably flat?
Well, I, you know...

If that were me and
I were icing a cake,

I think I might've gone over
it again with a spatula.

There are no second chances
with concrete, Belinda,

and when it's dry, it's going
to look pretty much the same.

Coming up...

Renovations could take a
turn for the worse

in Amy and Marc's yoga barn...

Pretty much hoping that the
whole roof doesn't fall in.

..and Lee has a big
surprise for Belinda.

Wow.
SHE LAUGHS

In the Ardeche region of south-east
France,

Amy and Marc's coach house cafe
is coming along

with the help of a team
of local builders.

The new windows are going in

and the stone walls have been
traditionally repointed.

They used lime and really nice sand
and it comes up really beautifully.

It just brightens it up.

I'm extremely happy with how the
coach house is coming along.

It's just come alive,
it's so bright and beautiful.

On the other side of the main
chateau building,

their yoga barn is ready for a
seven-metre-long,

one-and-a-half-tonne beam,

which will form the structural
support for a new mezzanine level.

We saw that there were some
existing holes in the walls

and thought we might be able to use
that by putting one of our

big tree trunks that was cut
into it and making a mezzanine.

That was really your idea, wasn't
it, the mezzanine? Yep. It was!

The first job is to get
the massive log off the lorry,

get it in there, see if it fits...

..and then decide what to do next.

Amy and Marc's carpenters
are lifting the beam off the lorry

with a chain winch.

They're hanging this gigantic
one-and-a-half-tonne

beam off a rather small-looking one.

Pretty much hoping that the whole
roof doesn't fall in.

Once it's off the lorry,
with the roof still intact,

the beam is rolled into position

using a tried and tested
ancient technique.

If it's good enough
for the Egyptians!

The massive beam has to be
lifted into place one end at a time,

once again using the chain winch.

This is an old building

and we're just hoping it's
fit into these nice existing holes.

I know, cos I measured.
But still, it could crumble.

Have faith, Amy, those medieval
walls are surely thick enough

to support the beam's weight.

Though with the first end in situ,
Amy's got another concern.

The beam's a bit mangled
on this side.

Can it not go the other way up?

It's just that that's the worst bit
and that's the nice bit

and that's going to be
facing this way. Yeah, I know. Yeah.

I think they hate me
a little bit right now.

Look at them, they're lifting it!

Whoops!

Hey! Merci beaucoup!

Just right, Amy.

That is much better.

I mean, that is
actually nice to look at now.

Non? Don't you agree with me? That
was easy! But you agree with me.

I do agree. I thought I was being a
pain in the backside for asking them

to turn it, but they're now all
saying to me,

"It's very good you saw that,
because, yes,

"it's much nicer on this side."

Now it's crunch time as
the second end

of the beam is lifted into place.

And it's in.

It fits!

And you can start to see what it's
going to look like,

which I'm really pleased about.

No!

Oh, he's going to sit on it, look.

He's testing out. Marc!
Oh, my God...

Oh, my God!

Yep, that's a very good mezzanine.

I'm really pleased with the result.

Yeah. The next step is to now
build around it.

These guys... I think they're going
to do some of the major structural

work and then we're going to fill
in the rest, aren't we? Yep.

You have a mammoth task
ahead of you, guys,

but I've no doubt it won't be too
long before your yoga barn

is welcoming retreat guests
and your cafe is feeding them.

At Belinda and Lee's,
the new concrete floor is now set.

Belinda's been away and Lee's
looking forward to

showing her their re-vamped
events space.

I think Belinda's going to be well
pleased with the

finished product because she's been
on at me for almost a year to get

a level floor in there.

But first, he wants to hide
the newly set floor from her.

Right, I've got a small
problem here.

The doors won't shut and I think
the reason why they're not

shutting is because,
whilst the concrete's been curing,

they've been secured outside
and we've had some rain recently

and it could have affected
the doors,

getting really wet
and it's dropped on its hinge.

Now, because of the size
and the weight of the door,

I'm not going to try and prop the
door up, so I need another solution.

Sawing Belinda's prized doors
might not be the best idea.

Let's hope that's fixed it.

YES!

Yes! Ha-ha!

Done!

I'm well pleased with that.

Now the donjon's new floor
is successfully hidden from view,

Lee's planning a little party with
local friends to unveil it.

If we grab this one
and put it underneath these.

Helping to set up for the
celebration is neighbour Chris.

You twist it round that way, yeah.

The new level floor means no more
wobbly table legs,

so Lee can go all-out to make the
donjon look its very best.

Our neighbours will be
arriving in a minute.

With Belinda unaware in the chateau,
it's hushed voices all round.

WHISPERED: Thanks for coming. Hi.

Go in, mind you head.
Hiya, mind your head.

Right, just wait there, Belinda. OK.
All right? And I'll open...

This is all very exciting. ..the
doors. Yeah, well, you haven't...

You wait. Ooh.

Ooh... Wow!

Hi! Hello!

Oh, this is lovely!

Thank you. So, a celebratory cheers,
and thank you all for coming.

Thanks, everyone.
So, Belinda, what do you think?

Could you dance on it?
You can dance on it, try it.

Twist and shout. It's a bit...

These shoes aren't great,
but then, they're rubber...

So, could this have another
layer on it, eventually?

Because it is a bit uneven.
I knew this was going to happen!

If I'd have decorated this.
What did I say?

I knew this was going to happen.
So, seriously, is it possible?

You know, eventually have a screed
self-levelling coat

put on top of it? Ooh!

Screed. Self-levelling coat. Ooh.
Technical term.

I think we'll have to face that
another day when the money comes in.

Yeah, but, you know, it's a usable
space. It's brilliant, thank you.

Yay!

Bravo, guys.

I hope all that stress was worth it.

And once you fix your leaky roof,

you'll have an events
space for all seasons.

Yeah, at the moment, we've got
an extremely large owl door

which is about two-and-a-half metres
square. More than one owl door.

Yeah. I think six owls could
come in there.

We could have a whole squadron
of owls flying through there, yeah.

On a dry day, the donjon is a
much-improved space for your events.

I can say, hand on heart, we can
host your party, your wedding,

your event in our donjon.

While the final repairs will make it
a year-round venue,

the summer has heralded
a successful season

of new events for Belinda and Lee,

with their hugely popular
classic car rally barbecue...

Mesdames et messieurs,
s'il vous plait, mange!

..and an equally popular
fashion show.

A big thank-you to Lee and Belinda.

As the renovation fund
is in need of a top-up,

there are plans to
expand their events even further.

Fire pit, medieval banquet,
jousters, jugglers...

Jousters? That was one idea.

I'm guessing that's not
going down too well at the moment.

Jousting? No. OK, scrub that.

What about an artist day? And there
were people throwing pots,

there's a photographer's
exhibition in there.

Do you know what? If they were
throwing pots, it wouldn't matter

if some of the clay went
onto the floor.

You'd get your floating screed then,
wouldn't you? Yeah, yeah.

Wow! The creative juices are really
flowing, you two.

I can't wait to hear all
about whichever event you run next.

Next time...

Is it central? It is.

It's all change again at
Wendy and Marcus's wedding barn.

How good does that look?
It looks amazing.

I know we did it, but...

No. Why's it doing that?

Amy and Marc get in the zone
as they prepare for

their first meditation class...

It looks beautiful, mon cheri.

..and these chateau owners
dip their toes in the water

with their new business venture.

Careful.

Here it comes!

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