All language subtitles for Escape to the Chateau DIY S03E03.540p.HDTV.x264-GTi.English

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

Don't crash!

..we're nearly five
years into our French adventure,

restoring this once-abandoned
chateau.

That one! Ha! Ha!

It's been a lot of hard work...

Oh! That's heavy!

..but a lot of fun, too...

Families.

ALL: Families, families!

..and all over France,

there are other intrepid British
families doing exactly the same.

I'm just randomly drilling
holes in the wall at the moment.

Now, Angel and I are once again
lending a hand

to other expat chateau owners.

That's working for me.
I love it!

We'll meet some new faces...

Dee-dee!

Oh!

..and some old friends...

Oh!

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

Go, Monsieur Dick!

There'll be plenty of highs...

Yay!

..and lows.

Oh! No. No.

..but, however hard it gets...

Whoa.

..they're all battling to transform
these abandoned buildings...

It's not the size of the wine
press that matters,
it's what you do with it! Yeah.

..into extraordinary homes
and businesses...

Oh, this is wonderful!

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

Today...

..it's an uphill battle for two
chateau owners.

I think we are 10, 15% in...

which doesn't feel very good.

..as they prepare to host some
special guests.

It's just having a chateau,
it's just how it is.

I check in on one family...

This is a big old build, this is not
a trivial sort of amount of work.

..as their skills are tested to the
limit on their latest project.

I think it's working out,
I've actually really,

really enjoyed doing this.

And two new owners
have their work cut out...

Oh!

..as they go in search of some
chateau relics.

He won't be able to leave this now.

Every time he has five
minutes to spare,

he'll be in here with
the jack hammer.

Trying to get any chateau up
and running takes time and money,

especially when your home is
also your business.

Lincolnshire couple Tim and Rebecca
and their two children have

now been at Chateau de la
Ruche for almost two years

and have been transforming
it into a B&B.

I think one of my favourite things
is guests when they arrive,

them taking it all in and seeing
everything

and being so kind of
wowed by it.

Located 50 miles from us,
in the Pays de la Loire region,

they've been struggling financially,

but, as summer approaches, they
have now finished renovating their

third guest suite, which should
bring in more income

and keep alive
their hopes of staying in France.

The dream feels much better now than
it did in the winter,

when we didn't have any money

and we didn't have a business that
was working.

We did have one day where we
kind of looked at each other

and thought, "You know what?
This might actually work!"

This kind of crazy idea might
actually work

and we might be able to survive.

Today, they're
preparing for their next guests.

They need to repair their driveway,

as the guests are arriving in
high-end sports cars in two weeks.

So, this is all our gravel, look.

So Tim and live-in mate Dale
are at neighbour Alain's farm to

collect 30 tonnes of gravel.

It's got mud, it's got sand,
it's got big gravel,

it's got little gravel

and it's really good, because you
can compact it down in the driveway

and make it nice and solid.

It's going to be big job.

Tim and Rebecca's driveway is
nearly three quarters of a mile long

and wraps around the edge
of their grounds.

It's got lots of big holes in it
and it's steadily got

worse, to the point where it is
a bit of a disaster.

Their chateau is just a stone's
throw away from the Le Mans

racetrack, which hosts
the famous 24-hour car race.

It could be a big money earner,

if they can start attracting
car-loving guests,

so it's crucial
they get the driveway right.

We've never done a driveway before.

We've never really done anything
like it before, to be honest.

So we are going to make it
up as we go along.

Thankfully, neighbour Alain has
agreed to let Tim

and Dale use his tractor
and trailer.

Alain?

Though it's not started well.

One of the trailer's tyres is flat.

Oh!

Oui.

This is what
we call getting "La Ruched".

Whenever you think a job's going to
take a certain amount of time,

you can add on at least another 50%
of what you think it's going to
take.

That's chateau life for you!

It's filling up quick.

Luckily, it appears to be
an intermittent issue.

The valve's leaking - if you move
the valve, a little bit leaks.

Oui.

It only leaks if you manipulate
the valve, so as long as it doesn't

move too much when the wheel's going
round, we should be all right.

With the problem solved for now,
Tim and Dale head back

to the chateau to start laying
the gravel on the driveway...

..with help from Rebecca's parents,
who are over from the UK.

They've all been given strict
instructions on how

it should be laid.

The drive was
the one of the first reasons

I fell in love with this house.

It's tree-lined, it's beautiful.
It looks like a country lane

and, if I had my way,
I'd probably leave it all bumpy,

so I want the grass to
stay in the middle.

Just one problem with that, it
makes the job trickier.

Not only do they need to make
the drive level,

they also need to avoid
covering the grass.

This isn't tiring at all.

And, with only rakes to do it with,
it's going to be a long

and laborious task.

I think we are...

I dunno, 10, 15% in,

which doesn't feel very good,

but I'm going to have to get on.

300 miles away in south-east France
is the impressive medieval

Chateau les Rosieres,

set in 130 acres of land.

It's the new home of Brit Amy
and French husband Marc,

who moved in last year.

When we first came here, I felt
an overwhelming sense of peace

and I immediately felt like I'd
come home.

It was that sense of your whole body

and mind relaxing, as you
come into an area that normally only

happens when you go back to the
place you were born.

Our chateau is a place where we can
happily spend a week

without feeling the need to go
outside.

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

their long-term plan is to open it
up as a high-end B&B

and host yoga retreats.

They've been working
on their eco-friendly sewage

system for their en-suite bathrooms.

Now, Amy and Marc are focusing on
the inside...

Right.

..and today they're removing the
modern fireplace in the dining room.

Yep. That's it.

This room's one of the main
rooms where we will receive guests

who are coming,
so when we do posh B&B,

in the room just above this one,
we can't exactly just shove them

in the bedroom, they've actually got
to have somewhere else to go,

and so the idea is to have
this as the dining room,

as somewhere that we can bring them
for nice dinners

and to sit and to really kind of get
the feeling of being

in a chateau, because this is one
of the grandest rooms in the house.

And it's just incredibly incongruous
to have a completely modern

false wall made of plasterboard
and we'd really like to take that

out and see what's behind it
and, hopefully,

there'll be a nicer fireplace behind
it and, hopefully,

we'll find some
nice old stones.

Your turn.

To take a closer look,
there's only one thing for it...

..a pry bar!

What? Sorry!

Don't kill me, please. OK!

I know, I know what I'm going to do.

I can see the back wall of the
fireplace,

which actually looks erm...

..quite ugly. OK.

It's not what they
were hoping for...

OK, so...
Well, let's carry on.

..but who knows what else might be
lurking in there?

You never know what you might
find in a chateau,

especially one that's 800 years old.

Eurgh!

Oh!

So what we've found is,

we've gone back about 50cm,

and we've found the same fake

granite-painted wall behind
as is on top,

which is a little
disappointing.

I think I'd hoped we might find real
stone.

But there is a possibility
that there'd be an older

fireplace
even further behind.

To find out...

..Marc sets to work
with his big drill!

And I've hit the stone behind it.

It's looking promising...

I'm going to try
and make a slightly wider hole.

..let's just hope it's not
another false dawn.

So we can see that this was the

original layer of stone,

cos it's covered in soot.

Oh, so it's the old fireplace?
So this was the original fireplace.

It's a great find,
but there's lots of work to do to

if they're going to expose
the medieval fireplace...

..not that Marc seems to mind.

He won't be able to leave this, now.

Every time he has five
minutes to spare,

he'll be in here with
the jackhammer.

It's like picking a scab or
something,

he just can't leave it once
he's started.

Coming up...

I don't know what we're doing now

and I couldn't quite work out what
we've done wrong.

..Tim and Rebecca get some
unexpected help...

He just said to me he had to come
round, because it was a catastrophe.

..I catch up with two chateau
owners,

who reveal their unusual
renovation plans...

Next time I come to see you,
I'm going

to go and do some
Riverdance on your gantry.

..and things start to get
messy for Amy and Marc.

All the dust is coming
through this door.

That'll be absolutely
horrendous to get out.

In north-western France, lies
the beautiful 19th century

Chateau la Grande Maison.

Musicians Ben and Billie have been
renovating it into a luxury

guesthouse and events venue.

It really was love at first sight.
Aw!

It was.

I came through the gatehouse and
seeing the house and like,

"Oh, my gosh!"

It was one of those moments where
everything stands still, wasn't it?

Yeah. I remember thinking,
"Life is going to change."

Situated near the Loire Valley,

they have one room left to
refurbish - the old library,

where they want to start hosting
book club events in six weeks.

So far, they've managed to
restore the old skylight...

..and, with help from Angel...

Lovely.

..created a wonderful display
table.

That's working for me.

I tell you what, that really is!
I love it!

Now they're ready to tackle
the biggest part of this task.

We're hoping to create an entire
wall, which has a mezzanine

floor to it, with steps leading up
to it, to get to the actual books.

It's quite ambitious.

Never done it before,
but got to learn somewhere.

It sounds like an exciting challenge
and, as an engineer,

it's right up my street.

So, I'm checking in on them to see
if I can be of any help.

Ah, there you are.
Hello, how are you two?

Good to see you again.
How are we doing?

Yeah, all good.

This is a big old build, this is not
a trivial sort of amount of work.

Yes, I think they used to call them
galleries, it's a gallery, which is

a raised walkway and then
underneath that will be cupboards.

Can I just say, the raised walkway,
do you see yourself then

going up and having somewhere to
walk left and right past the books?

Yes.

I found, on the internet, some
old railings,

so we're going to cut those to size
and these book shelves are exactly

the same size as each cupboard,
so one will be above the other.

OK. I'm looking at it and there's
a couple of little points

coming to me straight away.

How are you going to actually
support the weight

and how many people are allowed
on there at any given time?

The weight is all going to come
through these posts that

come down, six along the front
and six along the back.

They're going to go
directly onto joists.

OK, so it's basically the verticals
that are taking the weight.

At the back of your gantry, that
wall behind you is nice and solid?

Unfortunately not.

It's one of those, I don't know if
you've got them at your place,

but it's an internal wall and
they're made of quite thin brick,

it's almost like a modern brick
on its side, that kind of size.

I think the technical term is,
"It's made of cheese!" Right?

I wouldn't trust that at all, do not
use that for anything structural.

I'd be very aware of putting
anything on it, because it'll
wobble. Yes.

I bet if you go over there and push,
you can make it wobble. Yeah.

Now, if it is like that, what I've
done to increase the actual

strength of it in the past has
actually to board it.

For example, in our downstairs loo,
we've actually boarded both sides,

which doesn't sound like a lot,

but by boarding both
sides of the wall, it just gave us

much more structure and integrity to
put things through to hold it.

That was just because I didn't
like it being able to move.

No, good idea.

OK, but your advantage is all
the weight is acting down.

Your test needs to be next time
I come to see you, I'm going

to go and do some
Riverdance on your gantry.

Look forward to it! Love it!
That's it, Riverdance.

And when I do
Riverdance on your gantry,

if I see you go slightly pale,
you know it's not strong enough.

Please don't wear a kilt.

Who'd wear a kilt
up in the air on a gantry?

That would be wrong at every level.

It's a lovely, lovely idea. I love
the drawing, I love the concept,

I can't wait to see what you're
doing with the place

and just think how strong
it has to be.

OK. Fantastic. Great advice, Dick.
Thanks so much for your help again.

Thanks. Bye, take care, Dick.

Go on, get on with it! Bye!

I love the sound of this project

and Ben isn't hanging around.

He's already cutting out bits of old
garden railing for the balcony.

I'm a massive fan of upcycling.

Not only does it save on waste,
but it also saves you a quid or two.

It looks much prettier, now.

It's all the small bits.

Got rid of the big,
clunky bit up here,

the big, fat post bit on the side.

It's starting to look a bit more
"indoors-y" than "outdoors-y",

which is what we're going for.

It looks great.

Let's hope the rest of the project
goes as smoothly.

Over at Chateau de la Ruche,

Tim, mate Dale and Tim's in-laws
are still resurfacing

the three quarters of a mile of
driveway with 30 tonnes of gravel.

I'm knackered already and we've only
done one trailer full.

I couldn't even tell you how many
more there are to do.

Maybe another five loads?
Four or five loads.

I don't think it's going to be
enough to cover the drive.

They have guests arriving in
top-class sports cars in two weeks

and the resurfacing job is being
made all the more difficult,

as Rebecca wants to keep the grass
in the middle of the drive.

Doing a perfectly mediocre
job of filling in the potholes!

But I think it looks
rubbish at the moment.

Cue French neighbour Alain...

..who has come over with his tractor

and is already re-arranging
the gravel.

So I don't know what we're
doing now

and I couldn't quite work out what
we've done wrong,

but Alain seems to have come to try
and fix it.

So, we're now getting a very French
repair of the drive -

which might not be very pretty!

He just said to me
he had to come round,

because it was a catastrophe
and it shouldn't be going down

so thick and it was still very bumpy
and he wasn't having it.

With Alain now pulling the strings,
he's come up with a simple solution.

The new technique is we're just
going to drop it straight out

the back of the trailer and Alain's
going to push it into the driveway.

Going to be a lot faster,
we didn't think this was possible,

but then we didn't have my wife
earlier on and she wanted the bits

of grass down the middle of the
driveway to stay,

but she's come round to them not
being there, so that's fine.

They'll grow back.

With Alain helping out,
everything's moved up a gear.

Alain is like my French dad,
basically,

and he looks after us, so I'm very
happy that we're in capable hands

with Alain and I'm sure the grass
in the middle will grow back and

he has promised me that the grass
in the middle will grow back, so.

I think he likes to watch the silly
English people that bought

the chateau have a go and then
he comes round and rescues us

in the end -
that's generally what happens.

Having a handy neighbour is
certainly a big plus

for Tim and Rebecca.

However, despite laying 30 tonnes of
gravel,

there's only enough to cover
half of the driveway.

So definitely more gravel needed
and more of Alain's time.

It's not ideal.

It's just having a chateau,
it's just how it is.

Until they get more gravel, they're
going to have to keep Alain sweet.

British beer?

Ah, OK.

We've had a really good day,
I think in the end,
it's turned out pretty well.

We've got a lot of gravel down
and it looks pretty good.

Definitely, you can
tell the difference.

But we've still got quite
a lot of drive to finish.

With Alain, I will speak to him
very, very nicely and ply him

with beer and, hopefully, he'll come
back and help us another day,

and then we can get it finished
before our guests come in their nice
cars. I'm sure we can.

Fingers crossed their masterplan
pays off.

In south-east France,
at Chateau les Rosieres,

Marc has been
busy in the dining room

and has uncovered an ancient
fireplace.

We just got a bit carried away
and ended up

taking down the entire 1970s wall
and revealing the original medieval

fireplace, probably, that used to
be at the heart of the house.

That was actually really exciting,
cos we found massive stones -

big, granite stones -

I reckon they would weigh about half
a tonne each.

Yeah. Which is quite impressive,

given the lifting devices
they had at the time.

Now they just need to
clean off centuries

of soot from the stonework.

So, Marc's borrowed
a professional sandblaster

and it's going to be a messy job.

The main problem you have
when you sandblasted the dust,

that means that you can't see
anything

and also you can't breathe, so you
need to wear special equipment.

So this is a ventilated mask,

that's linked to the air compressor.

Sand blasting is basically a jet
of sand driven by compressed air.

It shoots out so fast,
it scours everything in its path.

It's a simple but time-consuming
job and right up Marc's street.

So all Amy can do now is take a back
seat.

The one thing about Marc,
he rarely gives up,

so it might take him till midnight,
but he's going to keep going.

It's a bit frustrating not
being able to help.

I just have to stand and watch.

Or have a cup of tea -
that's another option.

Sounds like a plan to me.

Although, before Amy has time to
put the kettle on...

Dust is coming through the house.

..she's spotted a problem.

All the dust is coming
through this door.

This whole room is now full of dust
and it's going through the other.

It's really fine dust,
so it comes through any crack

and it's just working its way
through the house

and that will be absolutely
horrendous to get out.

When you're dealing with this much
dust, it's always best to

tape up the doors beforehand.

But, better late than never!

It's a bit like bolting
the stable door...

..after the horse has run away.

Never mind,
Amy, I'm sure it'll be worth it

when the fireplace gets finished.

Coming up...

..Ben and Billie's project
moves closer to reality,

as they put
their creative hats on...

You start getting a feeling that
something heavy could be

sitting on that.

..Tim and Rebecca need to pull out
all the stops,

before their guests arrive...

You can clean toilets
and I'll make beds.

..and Amy and Marc discover more
historic

features for their medieval
fireplace.

Ooh! Look at that!

In north-western France,
at Chateau la Grande Maison,

it's now two weeks until Ben
and Billie's book club event

and the mezzanine floor
in the library is taking shape.

The book shelf is going really
well.

We've got both bits of the railings
in, which is fantastic.

I'm pleased to see they've
reinforced the wall,

but there's still a lot to do,

especially to the original
fireplace.

When they first cleared the room,

they found a section of the marble
surround was missing...

I think that was there.
So we're missing that?

So that..
That may have shattered.

..so Billie has come up with
a very clever idea.

She's created a plaster of Paris
mould to fit the missing bit

and is painting it to match
the rest of the marble.

The piece that was missing, I found
that there's the start of a

pattern and I had to carry that
pattern on onto the moulded bit.

Also, it was great,
when I realised this was a mirror

image of the other strip, to
go on the front of the fireplace,

cos that meant, as long as I
followed the patterns up,

I could match whatever was going on
in the marble on the other side.

I think the patterns are really
crucial to helping deceive the eye.

It certainly looks impressive,
as I can't tell the difference.

You have to be really patient.

Look in the background
for the colours

and whatever colour is furthest
away from your eye,

you've got to put that on first
and be really, really patient,

before you get to any of the little
finishing colours.

So, like, around the white areas,

there's a little black edge,

but you put it on and then you sort
of have to make it disappear again.

I'm just using water to
sort of blur it out.

I think it's working out,
I'm really pleased with it.

I've actually really,
really enjoyed doing this.

Outside, Ben's making mouldings
for the front of the book shelves,

to give them a 19th century feel.

In the 1850s, they used Greek
and Roman architecture

as an influence for book shelves
and I've done a bit of research

and found some of these sort
of mouldings on some photographs.

In a bid to replicate the style,

he's had to do some creative
shopping.

I found this fantastic place

that bought up all these antique
picture frames.

I got these really, really cheaply.

But I've bought everything they've
got, so we can't buy any more stock,

so whatever we've got, we're going
to use to its best effect.

It's a brilliant idea

and a cost-effective way of giving
a chateau added character.

I'm going to build it all on a bit
of timber, to hold it all together,

and then the actual column itself
is going to be made up

of three different mouldings -

two matching and then a smaller
moulding in the middle.

I'm going to build the bottom
piece of timber up,

so it kind of steps down.

You start getting the feeling that
something

heavy could be sitting on that.

The whole thing needs carefully
glueing together

and is already starting to
look the part.

That's going to be great.

I can't wait to see it finished.

It's another baby step forward

and I'm looking forward to
seeing it, too.

90 miles north,

it's now the day when Tim
and Rebecca welcome their guests

in their high-end sports cars.

You could start running the hoover
round the meadow as well.

Yeah, I will, yeah, I'm just going
to get the towels in the wash.

With the weather getting warmer,
bookings have taken off,

so work to re-surface
the drive has been slow-going.

The drive is definitely a lot
smoother.

I wouldn't say I'm exactly pleased
with it, because erm...

..it's not finished.

Kind of ran out of time,
cos it took us

a bit longer to do the first half
than we expected it to

and then we're relying on our lovely
neighbour Alain to come

and help us out and he's been a bit
busy, recently.

So, we've got it half done
and then the rest of it

we have filled in all the potholes
and it's all looking pretty smooth

and it's a million times better
than it was beforehand.

They're not only under pressure to
ensure the drive doesn't

cause damage to the cars,

but they also have to get
the rooms ready,

as their previous guests
have only just left.

So we had a full house last night -
three families, six kids,

six adults - so it was the first
time we've had all the rooms

booked out
since we opened the suite,

so, yeah, it's been a bit mad.

With time in short supply,

Rebecca tackles the bedrooms,

while Tim is on bathroom duty.

I know how to make the beds,
I just think you do a better job.

Do you? So there we go -
our skills are perfectly matched.

You can clean toilets
and I'll make beds.

Evenish? Yes.

Presentation is key,

especially when trying to build up
a new B&B business.

We've got quite a few back-to-back
bookings over the summer,

actually, so we're going to have
to get good at this.

Twisting and turning rooms over.

I think we both share quite high
standards in terms of what

we would expect from somewhere,
so we're quite

particular about making sure that
that's what we give to people.

There's no time to do any more,

s their guests are here.

Hello!

So, this is the Meadow Suite.

This has a little second bedroom,
in case you have children with you.

Oh, wow, look at the windows!
Beautiful!

At night, do you have the windows
open? Yeah.

This is the main bedrooms.

Oh, gosh!

Wow!

There's entrances to the
bathroom both sides, so...

So this is the Honey Suite.

You've got a little dressing
room in this one

and then the main bedroom's here.

No-one's slumming it, I don't think.
No, I don't think so.

No, it's beautiful. It is.

And then the bathroom's just through
there. Love the bedroom.

Well, you guys get settled in
and then come downstairs

and we'll get you a drink in the
sunshine. OK, lovely.

You must be ready for a beer.

Oh, definitely, always.

It certainly seems the chateau gets
the seal of approval.

Let's hope the new driveway has also
been kind to their cars.

We weren't really sure what
to expect,

but it was really good,
coming up the little country lane.

Typically French.

The road surface was really good.

Then you come round the corner
and you see the chateau in front

of you and you do go, "Wow!"
when you see it.

Yeah, really lovely.

When you walked in the room
and just saw what they've done,

they really have thought about
everything. Definitely. Yep.

It's a big thumbs up -
all their hard work has paid off.

They have said the driveway was
absolutely fine.

It's still rustic,
as Rebecca wanted it to be,

it was little bit dusty was
the only comment they said,

when you're following behind
somebody else. Yeah.

It's another big step towards Tim
and Rebecca

establishing
a successful B&B business.

Yeah, this definitely
the beginning of our summer, now.

The summer season is kicking off.

We've got loads of lovely bookings
coming up and we're nice

and busy, which is what we wanted,
so it's perfect.

A good start.

Sounds as if it's going to
be a busy summer.

Cheers. Happy holidays. Cheers.

In southeastern France,

Marc has finally finished cleaning
the medieval fireplace.

It's also been re-pointed and,
remarkably,

they have also found yet another
original feature.

When we uncovered the fireplace,

we realised that there were some big
holes in the wall,

where they used to hang the bracket,

which the cauldron would have been
hung over the fire.

Now, Marc had seen
a picture of the fireplace

and it had a big bracket that
hung above the fire,

and we were a bit disappointed
there was nothing left there,

but then Marc had heard
stories that it might still exist

and it was still here
when the previous owners were here.

So we spoke to them and they had
a root around and they found

it in their barn - they had decided
not to throw it away.

So, really kindly, they've offered
to just give it to us.

So Marc is going to go round and see

if we can get the arm
for the cauldron and put it back on.

What a fantastic stroke of luck.

Thankfully, Fred,
the previous owner,

lives just down the road, so Marc
doesn't have to travel too far.

He lived in the chateau with his
partner for just a couple of years.

It was Fred who
put in the modern fireplace.

He had no use for the bracket,

but hoped it might
come in handy one day.

Bravo, Fred.

It certainly looks impressive
and is in great condition.

Merci, Fred.

It just goes to show you should
never throw anything away,

it might just come in handy.

Back at the chateau,

Amy and sister-in-law Kate are
heading into an outbuilding,

hoping to find something
cauldron-like to go with the
bracket.

Right, it's in here somewhere,
Marc says.

Oh! There's a little one here.

Yeah, that looks like it.

It's an old copper pot,
but it could work rather nicely.

Brilliant.

C'est bon, c'est bon.

Now Marc is home, he's keen to see

if the bracket might fit
back in its original place...

..with help from brother Etienne.

Oops! No!

Nice work, chaps.

Ooh! Look at that! Nice.

I have ze cauldron.

It's a little bit small, but...
Enough for the soup.

But not enough for one
of my potions.

The fireplace is coming on a treat.

Now, Amy wants to get
the rest of the dining room up to

scratch, as she's invited over the
neighbours for a special preview.

We need to clear the absolute
bombsite

that is the room - full of dust
everywhere, rubble.

We've got to dust everything

and we've got to actually just
make it look nice. Yep.

Better get your skates on then, Amy,
as the clock is already ticking.

Yep.

Coming up...

Urgh! Maybe we should
put it on its end?

..Ben and Billie prepare to
host their first book club
event in their new library...

Ben, down on the left.

..and Amy and Marc go all-out to
impress their neighbours.

Ooh! It looks better than I thought.
I rather like that.

At Chateau la Grande Maison,

it's the day of Ben and Billie's
first book club event

and the library is still
not finished.

How much more are you doing?

Um, the last bit. Are you just
putting that block on the top?

Yeah. OK.

However, Billie's restoration
of the fireplace

has worked seamlessly.

It's worked out great,

just looks like it's all intact

and wasn't really smashed up.

It's an impressive job.

I really want to spend some time
over the mouldings for these,

so I'm going to do those
another day.

Well, can I just interrupt you?
Yeah.

Cos we've only got about an hour
before they're coming. Right, OK.

We better crack on with it, then.

I'm just going to start bringing
things in to dress the room,

otherwise we'll just run
out of time.

There's lots to bring in.
SHE GROANS

Maybe we should put it on its end

and try and slide it in?

They're dressing the room with
furniture from local charity shops,

like this three-piece suite they
picked up for just over £80.

Yay! It's in.

Oh, my goodness. Well done.

However, the centrepiece
is the display table.

It's filled with
curiosities from their own garden.

That looks amazing, Billie,
really, really incredible.

I'm really pleased with it,
it's come out great.

The room is coming together
very nicely...

Ben, down on the left.

..which is just as well,

as their guests are starting
to arrive.

It's amazing, isn't it?
It's gorgeous.

What a lovely space, well done.
Well done.

Oh, my goodness. Well done.

Five months ago,

their old library was nothing more

than a dark, dingy dumping ground.

Now, it's an elegant,
sophisticated space

that has all the charms
of centuries ago.

Ben's impressive mezzanine level

gives the library a unique feature

and provides the perfect backdrop
for book club events.

Welcome to the library.

Oh!

That's lovely!

It's very smart.

THEY EXCLAIM
Very cosy and inviting, isn't it?

First impressions seem positive.

Ben designed this idea
to have the bookcase up there, so...

There will be a matching staircase

that will take you up there.

Coming here for a book club,

coming here to relax,

a really nice idea.

Most impressed.

Who wouldn't want to sit there

and be pampered with a lovely
fire in the winter?

Gorgeous.

All of Ben and Billie's hard work
has paid off.

It's gone so well.

We just pulled it all together
at the last minute.

They reacted like it was
a special place to be. Yeah.

It felt like that. Yeah. I mean,
we've put our hearts into it...

Absolutely. ..so we feel
it's special.

THEY CHEER

It's a great asset for the business.

Cheers. Cheers, everybody.
Thank you very much.

Cheers. Well done.

Well done, both. Thank you.

Great work.

I can't wait to see what
they get up to next.

In southeastern France...

..Amy and Marc are preparing
for the arrival of their neighbours

and are raiding the kitchen
to finish the new dining room.

So, we want to move this wood
burner into the dining room.

The wood burner is our current
one in the kitchen...

..but we're just using it as a kind
of way to see what it looks like

and what one we might end up
with eventually.

Ooh, it looks better than
I thought.

I thought that was going
to look really rubbish in here,

to be honest,
but that's really cute.

I rather like that.

It's taken a lot of hard work,

but having peeled back many
layers of history,

they've revealed, and beautifully
restored,

the chateau's medieval fireplace.

Now, with the help of some
of their family,

they're racing to get the dining
room looking its best.

They want to make a good impression,

as it's the first room
they've renovated

for their high-end B&B.

There's still lots that I want to
change, but for the first time,

I'm looking at a room
that reflects us

and feels like us and our home.

With the room dressed and food
on the table,

all they need is their guests.

Bonsoir.

Right on time,

French neighbours Sonia and Didier
arrive with their two sons.

Salut.

And Amy and Marc are eager to
find out

what they think of the room.

Oh!

THEY EXCLAIM

THEY LAUGH

It's got the big thumbs-up,

so Amy and Marc can relax
and enjoy the dinner.

Everybody got some?

This is my first raclette, as well.

It was lovely to show people
the room for the first time

and be able to do a ta-dah moment

cos you get their reaction when
they see it all complete,

and that was really special.

Yeah, I really love
the feeling of the room

and finding back this
medieval atmosphere

of the fireplace.

And it's somewhere now that we'd
be proud to bring people into

and give them
a luxury experience here.

I think it feels like
the kind of room

that makes sense for that, now.

Next on the agenda

is the fact that we've finished
where we're going to welcome guests,

but now we've got to have somewhere
for them to sleep.

So, bedrooms next.

If it's anything
like the dining room,

this place is set to become
even more special.

Next time...

One day, I'll have a nice kitchen.

..Tim and Rebecca start
work on their next project...

Tim does care what the
kitchen looks like,

but not in the same way that
I care what the kitchen looks like.

..and Angel steps in to lend a hand.

How are you? I'm good. How are you?
Welcome.

Ben and Billie have it all to do...

We've got some really exciting
plans for the look of the building.

..as they prepare for their big
family wedding.

I just want it to be
as magical as possible.

And Amy and Marc
have their hands full...

Get off, you hooligan.

..as they get cracking...

CRACK, SHE LAUGHS

..on their accommodation.

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