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[theme music playing]
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[Sibella] Historic houses
across Australia
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are at risk
of being lost forever.
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They're links to our past
and should be saved.
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In this series,
you'll meet families
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facing the challenge
of a lifetime.
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[man grunts]
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Here we are,
dumb and dumber!
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[laughs]
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Half a million dollars on this?
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Are we mad?
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[Sibella]
They'll quickly realize
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the sheer scale
of the projects...
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[man]
Not quite what I meant.
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...as they restore these ruins
to family homes.
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I'm Sibella Court.
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I'm a designer, author,
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lover of old houses
and restoration.
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I'm passionate
about old buildings
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and the need
to save our history.
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To succeed, our families
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must learn
dying heritage skills
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and stick to budget.
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He just likes
to spend the money.
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Bastards, bastards,
bastards.
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Oh, Jo! No, don't!
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It's a slow train wreck.
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Can they rescue
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their slice
of Australia's history
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before it's too late?
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This is Restoration Australia.
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[Sibella] I'm in southern
Gippsland, Victoria.
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It's a quiet, windswept farming area now
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but in the 1850s,
it was bustling with activity,
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boasting one of the busiest ports
in the new colony,
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which rivaled Melbourne for size.
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The dreams of those early settlers
amounted to little
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and almost all traces
of that glorious past have crumbled,
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but I've heard of a sole survivor.
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A rundown gentleman's house
built by a butler.
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It's ripe with ghost stories
and a bloody past.
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From the road, this just looks like
an average, rambling wooden cottage
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but as you turn this corner
onto the veranda
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and see the repeat French doors
and this beautiful tin work,
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you know you're in for something
really special.
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-Hi.
-Hi. How you going?
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-Hi, Jo.
-I'm Jo.
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-And I'm Marcus.
-Hi, Marcus.
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-Well, welcome to Woodcot Park.
-Thank you.
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[Sibella] At first glance,
this place looks in reasonable shape,
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but when Marcus and Jo bought
Woodcot Park a year ago,
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it was about to collapse.
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[Marcus] When we found the house,
there was cows living in it
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and so the place was, you know,
fairly full of cow shit.
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and they'd been kicking the doors.
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[Jo] There was a massive beehive.
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[Marcus] Birds everywhere.
[Jo] Birds everywhere.
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The wall on this side of the house
had actually slipped off the foundations.
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We went to a few clearing sales
and bought a heap of old jacks
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and then, while we had the wall
all jacked up in the air,
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had to re-brick
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all the foundations around
the bottom of t he house there,
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which was a pretty massive task.
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And then we could lower the house
back onto the top of the foundations.
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[Sibella] Inside,
it's still in a dire state.
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[Jo] So, about four weeks ago,
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um, the ceiling caved in.
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The previous tenant had actually
ripped all the laths off
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-[Jo] in this room as well.
-[Marcus] Yeah.
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[Jo] So, I mean, this room we'll
probably just plaster with gyprock.
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Yeah, and then trowel over the top of it
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-to give an early look.
-Yeah.
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[Sibella] To restore
this house professionally
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could cost as much as $400,000
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but these guys love restoring
and want to do it all themselves.
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They plan to use traditional
and slower techniques
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to faithfully recreate an 1850s interior
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and they don't want to spend
more than $100,000.
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While authenticity is admirable,
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Marcus and Jo are taking on a huge job
and a huge amount of pressure.
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[Marcus] As soon as I saw the front of it,
I just said to Jo, I said,
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"I reckon I could spend
a bit of time out that veranda,
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having a couple of quiet ones."
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[Jo] A nd it was cheap.
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[Marcus laughing]
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No one else wanted it, though.
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There was no-one else stupid enough
to take it on but here we are,
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dumb and dumber.
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[laughs]
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Twelve months in but we're...
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[laughing] Who's dumb and who's dumber?
Hang on a minute!
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[Sibella] Marcus and Jo
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want this 165-year-old house
to be their new family home
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and kids, Byron and Emerald,
are really excited about it.
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-[Emerald] Mom?
-[Jo] Yeah.
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Watch out for your head, bub.
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[Jo] Watch it, bubby.
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[Sibella] They want to move in
one year from now.
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That's ambitious but this family
is seriously motivated.
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What exactly does this project
mean to you and your family?
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Basically, we're moving on
from the Black Saturday bushfires
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because we were in Kinglake.
We live in Kinglake.
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We were there and we defended.
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We saved our house
but we lost everything else.
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[Marcus] I lost about 25 people I knew
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through growing up in the area,
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so it's a lot to lose in one day and try
a nd keep your sanity
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and keep your kids
and, you know, your family safe.
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[Jo] We did go through a very rough time.
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[Marcus] So we just thought, you know,
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let's make a bit of a fresh start.
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[Jo] Best medicine.
You don't need a psychologist.
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We're saving the house
but,in a way, the house is saving us.
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[Sibella] Marcus and Jo
aren't the first to come here
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in search of a fresh start and a new life.
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One-hundred-and-sixty-five years ago,
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a young man named James Nielson
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made the long journey from Scotland.
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[Jo] He'd come to the colony
with a Scottish Highland chief
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who literally packed up his entire clan
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to come out here and start
a new dairying business.
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James came as his butler
and they arrived in about 1840.
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[Sibella] The Highland chief
returned home after a year
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but James stayed, sensing a chance
to reinvent himself in the new colony.
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And he became a publican in Tarraville
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and he eventually built this house
in the early 1850s.
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[Sibella] And what a house it was,
a bold statement
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and a reflection of his new status.
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no longer a butler but a gentleman
with a bright future in a new world.
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I love this place.
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The proportions, the Georgian details.
They all sing to me.
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And this is spectacular.
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The entrance room of grand proportions,
15 foot-high ceilings
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and then this incredible symmetry
behind us, with the three arches.
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I just love it.
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And even look at the size
of these baseboards in red cedar.
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The old Georgian architecture
is just spectacular.
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Marcus and Jo want
to faithfully restore Woodcot Park
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and that demands great attention
to detail.
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We have, um, had to re-build one window.
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-Oh, the whole panel?
- [Marcus] The whole lot, yeah.
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[Jo] The whole panel--
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Gosh. I wouldn't be able to pick it!
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It's a beautiful job.
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[Marcus] There's a lot
of man-hours out in the shed.
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[Jo] So we want it very authentic
to the way it was,
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um, and so, when you walk in here,
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you really get an idea
of what it was like.
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We wanna keep all the old patinas
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and the old surfaces
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and make it look like
an old house that's loved.
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Oh, that makes my heart sing, Jo.
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[Sibella] What Marcus and Jo
have achieved already is incredible.
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Marcus jacked up the whole house
himself to redo the foundations.
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They've put in new bay windows
with incredible craftsmanship,
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rebuilt the cellar,
amongst so many other things,
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but this is no easy restoration job.
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They've got a long way to go.
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And they're about to make it
even harder for themselves.
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Marcus and Jo want to use
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the old-fashioned lath-and-plaster
technique to line the walls.
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The trouble is,
they've never done it before.
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It's just as well
they're only doing two rooms.
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So these would've been the two, sort of
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-entertaining rooms?
-Entertaining rooms.
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Yeah, absolutely.
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[Marcus] This room here is pretty much
just down to bare state, really.
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[Sibella] It looks like a skeleton room.
[Jo] Yeah.
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Yeah, it does. Yeah.
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And it was basically like this,
um, when we purchased the property.
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[Marcus] The previous owner
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took the original horse-hair plaster
off the top of the laths.
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We think it was probably just
to get good, clean, dry kindling
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so he didn't have to go out
in the rain to keep the fire going.
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[Sibella] So how big a job is it?
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[Jo] This is just like a monumental job.
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We're just still
trying to find a plasterer.
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-Um, otherwise, if we don't...
-Right.
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-'Cause it's an old technique, yes?
-It is, yeah.
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[Marcus] Not many people around
can actually do it
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and it's a fairly forgotten art, really.
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[Jo] We're hoping we can
get someone down here,
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at least to show us
how to go about doing it.
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And Marcus might be able to...
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-[Marcus] Yeah, have a go at it.
-[Jo] Have a go at it.
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[Marcus] Be nice to get someone to do it.
[Jo] But if we can't...
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There's no-one as crazy as us
to have a shot at it.
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Yeah, so we'll have a crack at it .
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I reckon that there'll be
probably four to six weeks here.
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[Jo] Oh, you-- I think
a bit longer than that.
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Four to six weeks?
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Yeah, yeah,
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four to six weeks, I reckon.
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Can't be too hard.
They were doing it 150 years ago.
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[Sibella] The original builders
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were an ingenious lot.
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They built Woodcot Park using
whatever was at hand, and a rich
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resource on this treacherous
coast was shipwrecks.
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[Jo] This front door here,
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we've been told that it come out of,
um, an old sailing vessel.
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[Marcus] Yeah, 'cause
there was a lot of sailing ships
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that had been wrecked
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on the coast, coming through to the port.
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[Jo] And so the flooring
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-is the same.
-Yeah, they believe that
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the flooring's come off
the deck of a sailing ship as well.
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It's an unusual species for the area.
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-[Jo] Pitch pine. Yep.
-[Marcus] It's pitch pine.
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[Jo] The house, or the bricks,
sit on ballast, ship's ballast,
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so big stone foundations.
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Yeah, they would've come out
in the base of a sailing ship
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so that in the strong winds
they wouldn't tip over
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when they didn't have
much cargo in the hold.
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[Sibella] Along with
these fascinating fixtures,
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Marcus and Jo have found
other traces of the past.
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Clues, perhaps, that something tragic
happened here a long time ago.
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[Jo] My sister-in-law took a photo,
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-when we first bought the house.
-[Sibella] Yeah.
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And in the window, there's an image of a--
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[Sibella] Like a ghost baby?
[Marcus] Yeah.
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[Jo] That sent shivers up my spine.
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Yeah, and this is
the George Dunderdale room,
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as you can see by his initials
in the wind ow here.
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[Sibella] Oh, yes.
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[Marcus] It's got "GD"
written up in ther e.
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And we believe this is where he used
to do a lot of his writing from.
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[Sibella] George Dunderdale
was an author, a judge
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and the second owner of this house.
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When he bought it, in 1873,
it was already rumored to be haunted.
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[Marcus] He bought the house
because it apparently had a ghost.
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[George Dunderdale] I bought the estate
on very reasonable terms
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with no extra charge
being made for the gh ost.
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If it was good enough for the ghost,
it was good enough for him.
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[Sibella] 75 years ago, a local named
Syd Lang was riding past Woodcot Park
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when, he claims,
a ghost rose from the mist.
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Although the locals laughed,
237
00:11:47,000 --> 00:11:50,120
Syd swore it was true,
even on his deathbed.
238
00:11:51,200 --> 00:11:54,840
I, well and truly, believe
that there is a presence here.
239
00:11:57,320 --> 00:12:00,240
[Sibella] The stories
they've uncovered here are so intriguing.
240
00:12:00,320 --> 00:12:03,080
These kind of layers make
a house really magic,
241
00:12:03,160 --> 00:12:05,400
so much more than bricks and mortar.
242
00:12:05,480 --> 00:12:08,280
It'll be fascinating to see
what other stories are revealed
243
00:12:08,360 --> 00:12:10,600
as the house is restored.
244
00:12:18,240 --> 00:12:20,760
Seven months later
and I'm back in Gippsland
245
00:12:20,840 --> 00:12:24,400
to meet a man who could make all
the difference to this restoration.
246
00:12:26,400 --> 00:12:28,680
-Hey, Marcus.
-Hey. How's it going, Sibella?
247
00:12:28,760 --> 00:12:30,760
-Hi. How are you?
-Yeah, good, thanks.
248
00:12:30,840 --> 00:12:32,760
-Nice to see you.
-Yeah. Likewise.
249
00:12:32,840 --> 00:12:34,480
-It's been a few months.
-Yeah. Yep, yep.
250
00:12:34,560 --> 00:12:35,680
So, yeah, we've been busy.
251
00:12:35,920 --> 00:12:38,640
So it looks like you've put
a lot of effort into the prep work.
252
00:12:38,720 --> 00:12:40,840
Yeah, there's been quite a few days in it,
253
00:12:40,920 --> 00:12:43,520
um, with screwing all the mesh
onto the walls.
254
00:12:43,760 --> 00:12:46,120
I don't remember
you telling me about any mesh.
255
00:12:46,200 --> 00:12:48,760
Apparently, you can't actually
put the lime mortar
256
00:12:48,840 --> 00:12:50,840
straight over the original laths
because they're just
257
00:12:50,920 --> 00:12:53,640
too dry to actually hold the material.
258
00:12:54,440 --> 00:12:55,920
[Sibella] Over the last few weeks,
259
00:12:56,000 --> 00:12:58,800
plasterer Michael has been
on the phone to Marcus,
260
00:12:58,880 --> 00:13:02,320
schooling him up on the forgotten art
of lath-and-plastering.
261
00:13:05,920 --> 00:13:08,800
The mortar for the walls
must be made at least a week in advance
262
00:13:09,320 --> 00:13:12,200
so Michael sent down a mixer
and the traditional recipe.
263
00:13:13,320 --> 00:13:14,920
It's three parts fine river sand
264
00:13:15,320 --> 00:13:17,200
to one part lime putty.
265
00:13:17,360 --> 00:13:20,520
It's not a complicated process
but it's hard work
266
00:13:20,600 --> 00:13:22,560
and time-consuming.
267
00:13:23,400 --> 00:13:25,960
So are you still on the four
to six weeks for the plastering?
268
00:13:26,040 --> 00:13:28,520
-I don't know. We'll see how we go.
-[Sibella laughs]
269
00:13:28,920 --> 00:13:31,200
Hello? Anybody home?
270
00:13:31,560 --> 00:13:33,000
-[Marcus] Oh, hey. Michael.
-You must be Marcus.
271
00:13:33,080 --> 00:13:33,920
Yeah, how you going, mate?
272
00:13:34,000 --> 00:13:35,680
-Not too bad. How are you?
-That's the shot. Yeah, good.
273
00:13:35,760 --> 00:13:36,600
Hi, Sibella.
274
00:13:36,680 --> 00:13:38,320
-Sibella, nice to meet you. I'm Michael.
-Nice to meet you.
275
00:13:38,760 --> 00:13:40,320
This hallway looks absolutely amazing.
276
00:13:41,200 --> 00:13:42,960
-[Sibella] It's grand, isn't it?
-[Michael] It is, yeah.
277
00:13:43,080 --> 00:13:44,080
-Grand's the word!
-[Sibella] Yeah!
278
00:13:44,160 --> 00:13:45,000
[Marcus laughs]
279
00:13:45,080 --> 00:13:46,440
I suppose we'd better
have a look at these walls.
280
00:13:46,520 --> 00:13:47,840
Yeah, see what you reckon.
281
00:13:48,920 --> 00:13:50,160
[Michael] I'm about the walls
and the ceil ing,
282
00:13:50,240 --> 00:13:53,520
you know, if there's a lot of stuff
that can be saved.
283
00:13:53,880 --> 00:13:55,320
Sounds a bit like medicine
and saving lives
284
00:13:55,400 --> 00:13:57,960
but, yeah, that's where
I'm coming from, you know?
285
00:13:58,040 --> 00:14:01,000
Wanna save as much as we can,
as well as renewal.
286
00:14:01,400 --> 00:14:04,840
The first thing that I can see
is someone's put cement into it.
287
00:14:05,280 --> 00:14:07,280
Cement was never meant to be here
288
00:14:07,360 --> 00:14:09,000
and cement and lime don't go together.
289
00:14:09,080 --> 00:14:10,000
[Sibella] They're not friends?
290
00:14:10,120 --> 00:14:11,480
Not friends at all, no.
291
00:14:11,560 --> 00:14:13,240
Bitter enemies, actually. You're right.
292
00:14:13,600 --> 00:14:15,280
[Marcus] What we figured,
at the start, we figured,
293
00:14:15,360 --> 00:14:16,960
well, it's been done before.
294
00:14:17,040 --> 00:14:18,920
[Michael] Yep.
[Marcus] It can be done again.
295
00:14:19,000 --> 00:14:20,760
[Marcus] We didn't really know,
296
00:14:20,840 --> 00:14:21,920
like, where to head.
297
00:14:22,000 --> 00:14:25,760
Then we sort of come across you
on the Internet
298
00:14:25,840 --> 00:14:28,240
and I thought, "This could be our savior."
299
00:14:28,320 --> 00:14:29,760
[both laughing]
300
00:14:29,840 --> 00:14:32,160
[Sibella] So, Michael, have you
done a job this big before?
301
00:14:32,240 --> 00:14:33,400
-No.
-[both laughing]
302
00:14:34,200 --> 00:14:36,600
-Definitely not. No.
-[Sibella] How exciting.
303
00:14:36,680 --> 00:14:38,480
Yeah, it is. It is really exciting, yeah.
304
00:14:38,680 --> 00:14:40,720
It'd be lovely to know
how many plasterers actually...
305
00:14:40,800 --> 00:14:44,080
Actually worked here on it originally.
306
00:14:44,160 --> 00:14:46,880
Um, at the moment,
we've got one and a half.
307
00:14:46,960 --> 00:14:48,160
[all laughing]
308
00:14:48,600 --> 00:14:50,280
Hoping... Hoping to make it two!
309
00:14:50,360 --> 00:14:51,640
-Yeah
-[all laughing]
310
00:14:51,720 --> 00:14:54,240
-But, uh, yeah, look, it's a big job.
-Yeah.
311
00:14:56,880 --> 00:14:59,200
This side's one that we call
the "Weetie b ox"
312
00:14:59,280 --> 00:15:01,520
because it's so sort of small and pokey.
313
00:15:01,600 --> 00:15:03,240
Okay. Right.
314
00:15:03,320 --> 00:15:04,600
[Sibella] This room is an unusual size
315
00:15:05,360 --> 00:15:08,720
and, with two doors on one side,
it's a bit of a mystery.
316
00:15:08,800 --> 00:15:11,680
They're not sure how it would've
been used back in the 1850s.
317
00:15:12,080 --> 00:15:14,920
Now, I'll take you through
into the main front room here,
318
00:15:15,000 --> 00:15:17,880
where I've been doing some preparation.
319
00:15:19,320 --> 00:15:21,240
[Michael] I don't see this every day.
320
00:15:22,200 --> 00:15:25,280
Usually, I might get called
in to do a ro om or maybe
321
00:15:25,520 --> 00:15:26,960
one or two walls.
322
00:15:27,040 --> 00:15:29,760
[chuckles] But...
But never anything thi s big.
323
00:15:30,200 --> 00:15:32,680
Let's get stuck into it
and get some on the wall.
324
00:15:32,760 --> 00:15:33,640
[all laughing]
325
00:15:33,720 --> 00:15:35,520
-What do you reckon?
-Yep. Let's do it.
326
00:15:36,880 --> 00:15:39,880
[Sibella] Marcus has done a great job
with the plaster mix
327
00:15:40,000 --> 00:15:43,080
but before it goes on the walls,
there's one final ingredient to add.
328
00:15:44,120 --> 00:15:46,440
-So this is obviously man-made.
-That's right.
329
00:15:46,960 --> 00:15:49,120
[Michael] It was bullock hair they used.
330
00:15:49,200 --> 00:15:51,360
[Sibella] And this does
the same kind of job?
331
00:15:51,440 --> 00:15:52,280
[Michael] That's right.
332
00:15:52,360 --> 00:15:53,680
It's a reinforcing, yeah.
333
00:15:56,080 --> 00:15:58,640
[Sibella] This is the moment that
Marcus and Jo have dreamed of.
334
00:15:59,240 --> 00:16:00,800
After years of neglect and abuse,
335
00:16:01,200 --> 00:16:04,240
these walls are finally getting some love.
336
00:16:04,440 --> 00:16:08,360
So it's a pretty big moment
in the history of Woodcot Park.
337
00:16:08,440 --> 00:16:11,360
[Marcus] Yeah, you're not wrong there.
It's, um, been a long time coming.
338
00:16:12,000 --> 00:16:14,200
[Sibella] Excited?
[Marcus] Oh, yeah. Yeah, it's great.
339
00:16:14,280 --> 00:16:15,720
Just changes the look of it all again.
340
00:16:15,800 --> 00:16:17,080
[Sibella] Oh, completely.
341
00:16:17,160 --> 00:16:19,280
You're heading in
the right direction again, so...
342
00:16:19,360 --> 00:16:20,440
-Things on the walls.
-Yeah.
343
00:16:21,080 --> 00:16:24,480
[Michael] This is exactly how they
would'v e done it in the... Originally.
344
00:16:24,560 --> 00:16:25,400
[Sibella] Right.
345
00:16:25,760 --> 00:16:27,960
You must be looking forward
to putting your hand to it.
346
00:16:28,040 --> 00:16:28,880
[Marcus laughs]
347
00:16:28,960 --> 00:16:30,240
I'll wait and see.
348
00:16:30,320 --> 00:16:31,360
[both laughing]
349
00:16:32,600 --> 00:16:34,760
[Michael] Okay, Marcus,
just about a scoop of mud.
350
00:16:34,920 --> 00:16:37,040
If you can take half of that off,
351
00:16:38,120 --> 00:16:39,480
just like that.
352
00:16:41,640 --> 00:16:43,360
-And just go up about that far.
-Right.
353
00:16:44,160 --> 00:16:48,800
And then just maybe put a third
of your trowel onto that again.
354
00:16:48,880 --> 00:16:51,480
Yep, and overlap it by one third.
355
00:16:51,560 --> 00:16:52,560
-Yeah.
-Yep.
356
00:16:52,640 --> 00:16:54,640
So that's basically it. Be my guest.
357
00:16:58,520 --> 00:16:59,880
[all laughing]
358
00:17:06,800 --> 00:17:08,120
-Right.
-Okay.
359
00:17:08,800 --> 00:17:09,960
It's gonna be tougher than I thought.
360
00:17:10,040 --> 00:17:11,920
[laughs] Yeah! It's gonna need more angle.
361
00:17:12,000 --> 00:17:12,840
The biggest problem is
362
00:17:13,000 --> 00:17:14,160
getting it off the hawk.
363
00:17:14,240 --> 00:17:15,960
[Michael] You've gotta be able to do that.
364
00:17:16,040 --> 00:17:16,880
[Marcus] Yep. Right.
365
00:17:17,640 --> 00:17:18,960
[Michael] See if you can have another go.
366
00:17:23,200 --> 00:17:26,480
Well done, well done.
That's 100% improvem ent on the first one.
367
00:17:26,640 --> 00:17:27,960
Don't worry about smoothing it.
368
00:17:28,040 --> 00:17:30,000
-Don't worry about that. Get it on.
-Get it on? Okay.
369
00:17:35,080 --> 00:17:36,600
So, Marcus, how are you feeling about it?
370
00:17:36,680 --> 00:17:37,960
[Marcus] Yeah, good.
371
00:17:38,440 --> 00:17:41,960
I reckon give us a day at this, mate,
and I'll be loving every minute of it.
372
00:17:42,040 --> 00:17:43,600
[laughing]
373
00:17:45,240 --> 00:17:46,440
It's great.
374
00:17:51,160 --> 00:17:54,000
[Sibella] Do you think you'll make
a professional of him, Michael?
375
00:17:54,080 --> 00:17:55,240
[Marcus and Michael laughing]
376
00:17:55,600 --> 00:17:56,720
[ Marcus] I don't think so!
377
00:17:56,800 --> 00:17:57,920
[all laughing]
378
00:17:58,160 --> 00:17:59,040
[Michael] Timing...
379
00:17:59,120 --> 00:18:00,280
[Sibella] He's not a natural?
380
00:18:00,800 --> 00:18:02,040
[Marcus] I don't think so, mate!
381
00:18:02,440 --> 00:18:04,000
[Sibella] You're getting quicker, Marcus.
382
00:18:04,080 --> 00:18:05,800
[Marcus] Oh, just feeling
more comfortable , I suppose.
383
00:18:05,880 --> 00:18:06,760
[Sibella] Yeah.
384
00:18:06,840 --> 00:18:09,280
[Marcus] Once you get the rhythm of it,
you're pretty right.
385
00:18:09,360 --> 00:18:12,880
[Sibella] This is a great chance for me
to have a go at such a rare trade
386
00:18:12,960 --> 00:18:15,840
but after watching Marcus,
I'm not confident.
387
00:18:15,920 --> 00:18:17,760
-How's that?
-That's good.
388
00:18:19,080 --> 00:18:19,920
[Sibella grunting]
389
00:18:20,000 --> 00:18:21,160
[Michael] Well done.
390
00:18:21,840 --> 00:18:23,280
-Hey, there's talent here!
-Got the job?
391
00:18:23,360 --> 00:18:24,600
Well done. Yes. You do.
392
00:18:25,240 --> 00:18:27,040
[Michael] I think she's done this before.
393
00:18:27,120 --> 00:18:28,640
Yeah, she's got
a really good feeling for it,
394
00:18:28,720 --> 00:18:29,800
you know, the way she's pushing it.
395
00:18:29,880 --> 00:18:31,680
[Marcus] Yep, get it up.
[Michael] Yeah.
396
00:18:32,560 --> 00:18:34,520
[Sibella] Feel like I'm re-creating
a little bit of history.
397
00:18:34,600 --> 00:18:36,040
[Michael] You are.
[Sibella chuckles]
398
00:18:41,240 --> 00:18:43,120
[Sibella] That's my patch, Marcus.
399
00:18:43,200 --> 00:18:46,480
-I'm gonna carve my initials in on it.
-You've done well. That looks good.
400
00:18:47,200 --> 00:18:49,200
[Sibella] This is a really big moment
401
00:18:49,280 --> 00:18:51,240
in Woodcot Park's history.
402
00:18:51,480 --> 00:18:55,480
Not that long ago, it was derelict,
it had slid off its foundations,
403
00:18:56,360 --> 00:18:58,600
cows and bees were living in here.
404
00:18:58,720 --> 00:19:01,600
But to see it coming to life like this
405
00:19:01,680 --> 00:19:05,840
and having the passionate people around,
you can't help but be excited about it.
406
00:19:06,080 --> 00:19:08,640
-I bet Jo would like to be here.
-Yeah. She'd be rapt.
407
00:19:09,040 --> 00:19:10,360
[crickets chirping]
408
00:19:11,240 --> 00:19:12,560
[bird cawing]
409
00:19:17,840 --> 00:19:21,160
[Sibella] It's a three-hour drive to where
Marcus and Jo live in Kinglake.
410
00:19:21,520 --> 00:19:22,480
[sheep bleating]
411
00:19:23,720 --> 00:19:27,960
When Marcus is away at Woodcot,
Jo keeps the home fires burning.
412
00:19:28,360 --> 00:19:31,440
She's also sourcing materials
for the interior.
413
00:19:32,120 --> 00:19:35,880
[Jo] Marcus isn't interested in the decor.
414
00:19:35,960 --> 00:19:40,120
But I am. And that's really exciting too,
to be able to re-create,
415
00:19:40,200 --> 00:19:43,840
um, an interior from the 1850s,
and that's my goal.
416
00:19:47,720 --> 00:19:50,840
I'm always searching the Internet
417
00:19:50,920 --> 00:19:56,720
to try and find the exact textile
that I want in a certain room.
418
00:19:56,840 --> 00:20:01,280
[Sibella] But major restorations
can come at a personal cost.
419
00:20:02,640 --> 00:20:04,600
[Jo] The hardest thing
about the whole process
420
00:20:04,680 --> 00:20:08,840
is definitely the separation from Marcus.
421
00:20:11,240 --> 00:20:15,240
In 20 years, we'd never spent
a night apar t. It's hard!
422
00:20:23,120 --> 00:20:26,120
[Marcus] And here we have
the breakfast of true champions,
423
00:20:26,200 --> 00:20:27,120
or so Michael says.
424
00:20:27,200 --> 00:20:31,520
This is what all plasterers have
before they start a big day.
425
00:20:31,760 --> 00:20:35,920
Bacon, eggs and sand.
426
00:20:36,640 --> 00:20:40,240
No, we're really drying the sand
for the next day's final coat.
427
00:20:41,240 --> 00:20:44,280
[Sibella] As the boys knuckle down
for another hard day of plastering,
428
00:20:44,360 --> 00:20:46,160
Michael's pulled up a bit tired.
429
00:20:46,840 --> 00:20:49,760
[Michael] When he was introducing me
to the sleeping arrangements,
430
00:20:49,840 --> 00:20:51,720
he mentioned about the ghosts.
431
00:20:51,800 --> 00:20:53,360
Coming from Ireland,
I was brought up on ghost stories.
432
00:20:53,760 --> 00:20:56,440
They just used to scare
the living daylights out of me
433
00:20:56,520 --> 00:20:57,400
and it still does.
434
00:20:57,480 --> 00:20:59,000
I can't watch horror movies
or anything like that.
435
00:20:59,080 --> 00:21:00,880
And he's telling me ghost stories
on the first night.
436
00:21:01,920 --> 00:21:04,600
-He snores quite a bit too.
-[Sibella laughs]
437
00:21:04,680 --> 00:21:06,280
You might have to change rooms.
438
00:21:06,840 --> 00:21:08,000
There is no other room!
439
00:21:08,080 --> 00:21:09,360
[both chuckle]
440
00:21:09,440 --> 00:21:12,000
Look, there's a couple of, um...
There's a spot down here.
441
00:21:12,080 --> 00:21:15,040
[Sibella] But it's not just the ghosts
that have got Michael worried.
442
00:21:15,520 --> 00:21:18,600
It's also yesterday's
plastering effort from Marcus.
443
00:21:19,440 --> 00:21:21,120
-[Michael] He's not here, is he?
-[Sibella laughs] No!
444
00:21:21,200 --> 00:21:23,520
I was a little bit horrified
when I saw that.
445
00:21:23,600 --> 00:21:24,560
I thought, "Oh, no."
446
00:21:25,440 --> 00:21:27,800
He was dropping a lot of mud off the hawk
447
00:21:27,880 --> 00:21:31,840
and his actions were jerky and not good.
448
00:21:32,880 --> 00:21:34,280
It's gotta be smooth.
449
00:21:34,400 --> 00:21:37,400
Almost like what you were doing
yesterday, that was pretty good.
450
00:21:38,320 --> 00:21:41,720
[Sibella] For now, Marcus
has been relegated to lath duty.
451
00:21:44,680 --> 00:21:48,080
Lime mortar doesn't stick to wood
but the arrangement of the laths
452
00:21:48,160 --> 00:21:51,920
enables the plaster to hang over
and key to the wall.
453
00:21:59,040 --> 00:22:01,600
[Marcus] There's about, um,
three kilometers of laths to go up.
454
00:22:01,680 --> 00:22:02,520
[Sibella] That's a lot of lath.
455
00:22:02,600 --> 00:22:04,720
[Marcus] Yeah.
A lot of nails, lot of laths.
456
00:22:04,800 --> 00:22:07,120
So does that mean you don't have to
put the wire up in here?
457
00:22:07,200 --> 00:22:10,680
There's no wire, this'll have
just the timber nailed to wall
458
00:22:10,760 --> 00:22:13,680
and then with the lime mortar troweled
straight over the top of 'em.
459
00:22:15,840 --> 00:22:18,360
[Sibella] Putting up new plasterboard
would be so much quicker,
460
00:22:18,440 --> 00:22:20,640
but that's not the point
of this restoration.
461
00:22:21,200 --> 00:22:23,120
For Marcus, it's all about authenticity.
462
00:22:24,880 --> 00:22:27,400
[Marcus] There's so much difference
between a flat plasterboard
463
00:22:27,480 --> 00:22:28,720
and a hand-made wall.
464
00:22:29,000 --> 00:22:30,600
You can see the trowel marks and things.
465
00:22:30,680 --> 00:22:33,200
You can see the grains of sand,
and everything.
466
00:22:34,240 --> 00:22:36,800
[Michael] The thing I really like
about it is it lets water in
467
00:22:36,880 --> 00:22:37,920
and lets it back out agai n.
468
00:22:38,000 --> 00:22:40,400
It's like, um,
it's like a wool jumper, yo u know?
469
00:22:40,480 --> 00:22:44,560
It's just so organic
and so sensible. [chuc kles]
470
00:22:46,720 --> 00:22:48,880
[Sibella] Michael and his apprentice
are powering on
471
00:22:48,960 --> 00:22:50,840
and they've almost finished one room.
472
00:22:51,440 --> 00:22:53,120
Michael planned to stay for another week
473
00:22:53,200 --> 00:22:55,040
but he's been called home early
474
00:22:55,360 --> 00:22:58,120
so it'll be up to Marcus
to finish the other room.
475
00:22:58,840 --> 00:23:00,680
Even Michael has his doubts.
476
00:23:01,280 --> 00:23:04,360
The walls seem to grow bigger
every day, he says,
477
00:23:04,440 --> 00:23:07,080
and that just shows you
how enormous this job is
478
00:23:07,160 --> 00:23:09,080
for Marcus to tackle on his own.
479
00:23:09,960 --> 00:23:13,520
[Michael] Uh, am I confident?
Um. [laughs] I'd like to be.
480
00:23:14,000 --> 00:23:15,520
But he will have to do it.
481
00:23:15,600 --> 00:23:17,160
You can't half do it.
482
00:23:17,240 --> 00:23:21,080
It will have to be 100% successful
or a complete disaster.
483
00:23:30,680 --> 00:23:33,120
[Jo] Have you got show-and-tell, Em erald?
[Emerald] Uh, no.
484
00:23:33,920 --> 00:23:35,080
All right. Jump in.
485
00:23:35,600 --> 00:23:37,280
-Bye, mate. See you.
-See ya.
486
00:23:38,360 --> 00:23:39,680
-I'll see you tonight.
-Yep.
487
00:23:40,200 --> 00:23:43,440
[Sibella] Marcus and Jo are doing almost
all the restoration work themselves,
488
00:23:43,520 --> 00:23:44,960
which keeps costs down,
489
00:23:45,800 --> 00:23:47,800
but they still have a family to run,
490
00:23:48,120 --> 00:23:50,360
so Marcus has to keep working his day job.
491
00:23:50,800 --> 00:23:52,120
He's a hot-rod mechanic,
492
00:23:52,200 --> 00:23:54,920
known around the country
for his attention to detail.
493
00:24:01,600 --> 00:24:03,680
Jo has a background in fine art
494
00:24:03,760 --> 00:24:07,440
and wants to pay tribute to
Woodcot Park's previous owners.
495
00:24:07,520 --> 00:24:11,280
[Jo] I've decided to do some portraits
of the people that lived at the house
496
00:24:11,360 --> 00:24:14,600
and I've started with George
because I had a clear image
497
00:24:14,680 --> 00:24:16,400
and I'm hopefully going to do more.
498
00:24:18,120 --> 00:24:20,200
For me, the history is really important
499
00:24:20,280 --> 00:24:25,040
and just learning about who lived
at the house and what happened.
500
00:24:26,120 --> 00:24:28,480
Unfortunately, there's no image of James.
501
00:24:29,840 --> 00:24:32,280
[Sibella] So what exactly did happen
to James Nielson,
502
00:24:32,720 --> 00:24:34,600
the original owner of Woodcot Park?
503
00:24:35,440 --> 00:24:37,200
Marcus and Jo are searching for clues
504
00:24:37,280 --> 00:24:40,240
in papers given to them
by descendants of James.
505
00:24:41,240 --> 00:24:43,760
Would've been a fairly wild place
at the time.
506
00:24:44,200 --> 00:24:47,880
There was no, um, church and two pubs.
507
00:24:48,200 --> 00:24:51,120
You wouldn't think that a butler
could afford to build
508
00:24:51,200 --> 00:24:52,400
this type of building.
509
00:24:53,840 --> 00:24:57,080
[Sibella] But by 1853,
James was no longer a butler.
510
00:24:58,160 --> 00:25:00,760
In the nearby town of Tarraville,
he built several houses
511
00:25:00,840 --> 00:25:02,640
and a pub, which he ran successfully.
512
00:25:04,160 --> 00:25:07,280
But tragedy struck with the death
of his beloved wife, Isabella,
513
00:25:07,360 --> 00:25:09,440
mother to his first six children.
514
00:25:10,800 --> 00:25:12,120
Although James re-married,
515
00:25:12,200 --> 00:25:15,920
his spending and his drinking
began spiraling out of control.
516
00:25:17,600 --> 00:25:20,000
[Jo] This is the mortgage
against Woodcot Park.
517
00:25:21,200 --> 00:25:24,600
He sort of looks like a man who's
getting a bit desperate at the time.
518
00:25:25,240 --> 00:25:28,000
He's trying to get rid of absolutely
every thing he's got.
519
00:25:28,960 --> 00:25:30,680
Even here it says that they're
selling off ,
520
00:25:30,760 --> 00:25:33,640
-"The superior and well-known horses..."
- Yeah.
521
00:25:33,720 --> 00:25:34,640
"Stumpy and Captain."
522
00:25:34,840 --> 00:25:35,960
[Jo] He was desperate.
523
00:25:36,440 --> 00:25:40,360
Tragically, in March of 1859,
524
00:25:40,880 --> 00:25:42,560
James died.
525
00:25:42,640 --> 00:25:45,720
[Marcus] " On the 12th instant,
at his residence, Woodcot Park,
526
00:25:45,800 --> 00:25:48,480
James Nielson, aged 49."
527
00:25:51,720 --> 00:25:52,960
[gunshot]
528
00:26:02,080 --> 00:26:04,600
[Sibella] At Woodcot Park,
Michael is long gone,
529
00:26:04,680 --> 00:26:07,040
leaving the entire plastering job
to Marcus.
530
00:26:07,760 --> 00:26:09,320
After his shaky start,
531
00:26:09,400 --> 00:26:12,080
Marcus has successfully completed
the second room.
532
00:26:12,520 --> 00:26:13,600
Flush with confidence,
533
00:26:13,680 --> 00:26:17,840
he and Jo have decided to
lath-and-plaster the whole house,
534
00:26:18,000 --> 00:26:19,760
doubling the size of the job.
535
00:26:20,840 --> 00:26:24,640
[Marcus] Probably about
60% through the plastering now,
536
00:26:24,840 --> 00:26:26,040
maybe a little bit more.
537
00:26:26,440 --> 00:26:29,000
[Sibella] Michael thought
they'd need to hire a few assistants
538
00:26:29,320 --> 00:26:31,480
but Marcus has found a cheaper way.
539
00:26:32,000 --> 00:26:34,080
[Jo] I'm not enjoying
being Marcus's assistant.
540
00:26:34,160 --> 00:26:36,520
In fact, I'm over the lath-and-plaster
541
00:26:36,600 --> 00:26:38,840
because I'm the one that's doing
all the m ixing.
542
00:26:39,760 --> 00:26:43,280
Cup weekend,
I mixed 40 buckets of lime plaster
543
00:26:44,040 --> 00:26:45,320
so, no, I'm over it
544
00:26:45,400 --> 00:26:48,120
and I've asked Marcus to get...
545
00:26:48,200 --> 00:26:52,360
To see if we could hire a laborer
and he's just not coming to the party!
546
00:26:52,440 --> 00:26:54,000
He just will not have a bar of it.
547
00:26:54,160 --> 00:26:55,240
[Marcus] Why pay for something
when you can get it for free?
548
00:26:55,320 --> 00:26:56,440
Oh, that's right,
when you can get it for free
549
00:26:56,520 --> 00:26:58,800
and have your wife working,
you know? I me an...
550
00:26:59,560 --> 00:27:02,400
-[chuckles]
-You know, it's just ridiculous.
551
00:27:03,680 --> 00:27:05,280
[Marcus] You only got
another two rooms to do.
552
00:27:05,760 --> 00:27:07,040
[Jo] Two and a half.
553
00:27:07,160 --> 00:27:08,440
[Marcus] So it's nearly done!
554
00:27:08,760 --> 00:27:10,200
[Jo] No, it's not nearly done.
555
00:27:10,280 --> 00:27:12,960
-Don't even go-- It's not.
-It's getting pretty close.
556
00:27:13,040 --> 00:27:15,040
[radio plays]
557
00:27:21,160 --> 00:27:23,640
[Jo] The lath-and-plaster is killing me.
558
00:27:24,680 --> 00:27:25,560
It's really hard.
559
00:27:25,640 --> 00:27:29,880
I mean, I can't mix another bucket
of that stuff.
560
00:27:31,880 --> 00:27:35,120
[Sibella] This restoration is physically
and emotionally draining
561
00:27:35,360 --> 00:27:39,120
but Marcus and Jo are still driven,
determined to build a new life
562
00:27:39,200 --> 00:27:42,480
and move on from
the horrors of two major bush-fires.
563
00:27:45,360 --> 00:27:50,240
The first was in 2006, when Jo was
two weeks away from giving birth.
564
00:27:50,320 --> 00:27:53,320
[Marcus] About four CFA units all came in.
565
00:27:53,680 --> 00:27:56,880
They all said, "Oh, mate,
this is too dangerous in here.
566
00:27:56,960 --> 00:27:58,120
"We're all pulling out."
567
00:27:58,440 --> 00:28:03,200
And then, one other CFA truck
come in, the Emerald CFA,
568
00:28:03,280 --> 00:28:05,040
and he goes, "Look, I'm happy
staying here with you."
569
00:28:06,600 --> 00:28:10,280
[Sibella] With the help of the Emerald CFA
and a favorable wind change,
570
00:28:10,360 --> 00:28:12,280
Marcus saved the house.
571
00:28:12,760 --> 00:28:14,680
[Marcus] After the little one was born,
572
00:28:14,760 --> 00:28:17,240
we named her Emerald,
after the Emerald CFA,
573
00:28:17,320 --> 00:28:19,720
for coming in and giving us a hand,
and th at.
574
00:28:20,680 --> 00:28:24,440
[Sibella] But it was just a taste
of what was to come two years later.
575
00:28:24,720 --> 00:28:27,360
[Marcus] That come from, like,
this direction, over here.
576
00:28:28,320 --> 00:28:30,080
-There was flames going right over.
-Yeah .
577
00:28:30,160 --> 00:28:32,720
-The flames were probably about...
-Basically right over the house.
578
00:28:32,800 --> 00:28:35,640
Eighty to a hundred feet
off the tops of t he trees,
579
00:28:35,720 --> 00:28:37,520
coming over,
straight over the top of us here.
580
00:28:40,960 --> 00:28:43,320
Everything was on fire
and the wind blowing through
581
00:28:43,400 --> 00:28:47,040
was strong enough to lift
the kids' trampoline up
582
00:28:47,120 --> 00:28:48,960
and throw it over the tops of those trees.
583
00:28:49,680 --> 00:28:52,440
Yeah, she was going, that one.
It was moving.
584
00:28:53,160 --> 00:28:55,680
[Sibella] What a classic piece
of Marcus understatement.
585
00:28:55,760 --> 00:29:00,560
"That one" was Black Saturday,
Australia's deadliest bush-fire.
586
00:29:01,920 --> 00:29:04,800
It was moving that quick
that even the birds couldn't escape.
587
00:29:04,880 --> 00:29:06,840
Actually, in here,
it was just raining bir ds.
588
00:29:08,760 --> 00:29:10,800
Because everything was on fire,
589
00:29:11,280 --> 00:29:13,360
it burnt all the oxygen
out the air in here.
590
00:29:14,360 --> 00:29:16,480
Stopped the pumps. Um, stopped me.
591
00:29:16,560 --> 00:29:18,400
I ended up unconscious on the ground,
592
00:29:18,680 --> 00:29:20,600
so just pretty much
in the garden over there.
593
00:29:21,240 --> 00:29:25,480
It was just lucky that I had the
pump hose, like, laying on me chest.
594
00:29:25,880 --> 00:29:28,120
I sort of come to
and I remember looking around
595
00:29:28,200 --> 00:29:30,440
and the pump wasn't going
but everything else was.
596
00:29:30,520 --> 00:29:33,520
Everything else was on fire
so I got up, got the pump going.
597
00:29:34,160 --> 00:29:37,520
The bloody black smoke from the
tanks just about frickin' killed me,
598
00:29:37,680 --> 00:29:40,360
you know, trying to put out all
the shit that was burning in there.
599
00:29:40,960 --> 00:29:42,480
[Sibella] With no time to escape,
600
00:29:42,560 --> 00:29:46,440
Marcus and Jo had to stay
and defend their home and their family.
601
00:29:46,840 --> 00:29:49,600
[Marcus] The kids were sitting in the bath
with a torch.
602
00:29:49,840 --> 00:29:51,200
Got 'em to keep shining it.
603
00:29:51,840 --> 00:29:55,360
[Jo] Byron was six and Emerald wa s three.
[Marcus] Six. Three, or something. Yeah.
604
00:29:55,440 --> 00:29:58,000
Six and three. But they helped.
605
00:29:58,520 --> 00:30:01,960
[Jo] At the end, I just thought,
"Oh, my God. We've made it...
606
00:30:02,160 --> 00:30:03,680
We're alive," you know?
607
00:30:03,800 --> 00:30:05,360
And then Emerald CFA turned up.
608
00:30:05,840 --> 00:30:06,960
-Yeah.
-That week.
609
00:30:07,480 --> 00:30:09,320
Came to see if the house
was still standing.
610
00:30:09,400 --> 00:30:10,520
They come to see if we were all right.
611
00:30:11,920 --> 00:30:13,560
-Bloody hell. They were in tears.
-[Jo] The house was standing.
612
00:30:13,640 --> 00:30:15,320
[Marcus] They couldn't believe it. Yeah.
613
00:30:15,400 --> 00:30:16,240
[Jo] Yeah.
614
00:30:16,920 --> 00:30:19,960
[Sibella] Marcus lost 25 people he knew
that day.
615
00:30:20,720 --> 00:30:22,400
[Marcus] The following six months
were pretty hard.
616
00:30:23,200 --> 00:30:24,760
There was a bit of a struggle
in that.
617
00:30:26,120 --> 00:30:28,960
[Jo] I mean, it's devastating,
when you lose a community,
618
00:30:29,040 --> 00:30:30,280
you know, your friends.
619
00:30:31,800 --> 00:30:34,680
Life, as it was,
was all of a sudden gone, and...
620
00:30:34,760 --> 00:30:36,480
[Marcus] Yeah, it's just been
turned on its head.
621
00:30:41,320 --> 00:30:42,560
Hi. Got you a coffee.
622
00:30:44,120 --> 00:30:45,640
Ah, bewdy. Thanks for that.
623
00:30:46,360 --> 00:30:47,920
Thanks, mate. Ta.
624
00:30:48,160 --> 00:30:50,360
-How's it going?
-Yeah, good. Getting there.
625
00:30:52,040 --> 00:30:54,720
[Jo] In terms of Marcus, um, I mean,
626
00:30:54,800 --> 00:30:57,400
Woodcot Park has been
the best thing that we could've done
627
00:30:57,480 --> 00:31:01,280
because, I mean, after the fire,
he, um, he really struggled.
628
00:31:02,400 --> 00:31:06,240
It's been two years and I think
I can see a massive difference
629
00:31:06,320 --> 00:31:07,880
and I can see him healing.
630
00:31:09,160 --> 00:31:10,600
For me, it's the same, really.
631
00:31:10,680 --> 00:31:12,680
I mean, I'm really
looking forward to the future
632
00:31:12,760 --> 00:31:16,600
and, you know, I've got a focus
and I'm really excited.
633
00:31:29,360 --> 00:31:32,280
[Sibella] It's been a year and a half
since I first met Marcus and Jo.
634
00:31:32,360 --> 00:31:35,360
They've been hard at work
and made real progress,
635
00:31:35,440 --> 00:31:38,280
though the extra plastering
has slowed them down.
636
00:31:40,200 --> 00:31:42,720
-Hello.
-Hello! It's good to see you.
637
00:31:42,800 --> 00:31:45,600
-You, too. Hey, Jo. Hi, Marcus.
-How you doing?
638
00:31:45,840 --> 00:31:47,720
Looks a bit different
the last time you were here.
639
00:31:47,800 --> 00:31:51,880
Oh, my goodness. Well, last time,
it was like inside of a whale.
640
00:31:51,960 --> 00:31:54,160
Yeah, it was just all sticks
and bits and pieces.
641
00:31:54,240 --> 00:31:56,960
And I think this is my part of the wall.
642
00:31:57,040 --> 00:31:58,320
Yeah! [chuckles] That's the bit!
643
00:31:58,400 --> 00:32:00,320
Think you did a better job than Marcus!
644
00:32:00,400 --> 00:32:01,280
-[Marcus] Yeah. Yeah.
- [all laugh]
645
00:32:01,360 --> 00:32:03,920
[Marcus] So this has got
the smooth coat on it now.
646
00:32:04,080 --> 00:32:05,880
[Sibella] It looks amazing. Are you happy?
647
00:32:05,960 --> 00:32:07,560
-[Marcus] Yeah, it's good. Yep.
-[Jo] Yeah.
648
00:32:07,760 --> 00:32:10,000
Definitely worth it.
It's been a lot of work but...
649
00:32:10,080 --> 00:32:12,160
[Marcus] It's about eight times more work
than the... [chuckles]
650
00:32:12,240 --> 00:32:15,120
-Did you give him a hand, Byron?
-Yeah.
651
00:32:15,200 --> 00:32:16,200
Yeah, Byron's...
652
00:32:16,280 --> 00:32:19,480
At the moment, Byron's learning
how to use the hawk and trowel.
653
00:32:19,560 --> 00:32:22,200
-[Sibella] Nice. How you going with it?
-Yeah, all right.
654
00:32:22,360 --> 00:32:25,320
-Yeah, a flick of the wrist?
-Yep. Bit sketchy but...
655
00:32:25,400 --> 00:32:26,240
-Yeah?
-[all laugh]
656
00:32:26,320 --> 00:32:28,160
I've been mixing plaster.
657
00:32:28,240 --> 00:32:29,800
-[Marcus] Yeah, Jo's been the mixer.
-That's my job.
658
00:32:29,880 --> 00:32:32,200
-With the little bits of hair.
-[Jo] Yeah, hair.
659
00:32:32,320 --> 00:32:33,640
And, in the hall,
660
00:32:33,720 --> 00:32:35,760
there was a lot of lath-and-plaster
that was falling off.
661
00:32:36,040 --> 00:32:36,880
I remember.
662
00:32:37,080 --> 00:32:39,880
And as we've taken the plaster off,
we've sieved through it,
663
00:32:40,040 --> 00:32:42,200
and taken original hair out of the plaster
664
00:32:42,280 --> 00:32:45,200
and then put it back into the new plaster.
665
00:32:45,280 --> 00:32:49,280
[Marcus] The plaster hangs better
so you get away with more.
666
00:32:49,480 --> 00:32:50,920
[Sibella] I know, from the beginning,
667
00:32:51,000 --> 00:32:54,360
you were pretty strict about
using the traditional trades
668
00:32:54,440 --> 00:32:58,680
but it seems like you've taken
it to a whole other level.
669
00:33:00,040 --> 00:33:01,600
When I first met these guys,
670
00:33:01,680 --> 00:33:04,280
the plan was to hand-plaster
just two rooms.
671
00:33:04,600 --> 00:33:07,440
Now they've nearly completed
the entire house.
672
00:33:07,840 --> 00:33:10,400
That decision has cost them
many extra months
673
00:33:10,600 --> 00:33:12,800
and a lot more manual labor.
674
00:33:13,680 --> 00:33:15,400
[Marcus] I think we worked out about 16
675
00:33:15,480 --> 00:33:19,880
-or 18 tonne by hand.
- [Sibella] My God.
676
00:33:19,960 --> 00:33:23,240
-So you've been busy?
-Yeah, been no down time.
677
00:33:23,680 --> 00:33:24,600
We made a...
678
00:33:24,680 --> 00:33:26,760
[Sibella] As if the lath-and-plaster
wasn't enough,
679
00:33:27,080 --> 00:33:31,040
Marcus has spent hours crafting
historically accurate profiles
680
00:33:31,120 --> 00:33:32,960
on architraves and skirting boards
681
00:33:33,840 --> 00:33:35,720
[Marcus] It'd be much easier
to go down the hardware store
682
00:33:35,800 --> 00:33:37,840
and buy a profile and put it up,
683
00:33:37,920 --> 00:33:41,000
but we wanted to make it
so it was very traditional
684
00:33:41,080 --> 00:33:44,360
and a match to everything that was
here so we just made everything.
685
00:33:44,440 --> 00:33:47,280
I think you have to tell everyone
that walks into this house,
686
00:33:47,360 --> 00:33:49,680
when you've finished it,
that this is all hand-tooled...
687
00:33:50,080 --> 00:33:51,840
-[all laugh]
-Hand-made, done with love.
688
00:33:56,080 --> 00:33:58,520
Marcus is so humble
and downplays everything
689
00:33:58,600 --> 00:34:02,640
but when you start to get into
what he has done in this place,
690
00:34:02,720 --> 00:34:04,280
it's absolutely amazing.
691
00:34:08,280 --> 00:34:14,080
The detail in the profiles is just
so finicky and labor-intensive
692
00:34:14,159 --> 00:34:16,319
and he's an absolute perfectionist.
693
00:34:16,920 --> 00:34:18,280
[Marcus] Jo lets me know
if it's not r ight.
694
00:34:18,360 --> 00:34:19,480
[Jo] I'll let him know.
695
00:34:19,560 --> 00:34:20,760
[Sibella] Oh, it goes
into the reject pile?
696
00:34:20,840 --> 00:34:22,040
[Jo] Oh, it does, yeah.
697
00:34:22,159 --> 00:34:24,519
-He's gotta redo it.
-Quality control, like...
698
00:34:24,600 --> 00:34:25,440
[all laugh]
699
00:34:28,800 --> 00:34:30,280
This is looking a bit different.
700
00:34:31,080 --> 00:34:34,480
[Marcus] Yeah, we've been doing a little
b it of, um, deconstruction out here.
701
00:34:35,080 --> 00:34:36,360
[Jo] I love the ceiling.
702
00:34:36,520 --> 00:34:41,800
It's like it was in the 1870s,
1880s, when it was built.
703
00:34:42,440 --> 00:34:44,920
We assumed that it was 1950s
704
00:34:45,520 --> 00:34:49,320
because you walk in
and that's what it appears to be.
705
00:34:49,440 --> 00:34:53,480
-When was the add-on put on?
-Well, George built the add-on.
706
00:34:53,840 --> 00:34:56,680
As we go, we can sort of date the periods
707
00:34:56,760 --> 00:34:58,800
by the nails and things that are used
708
00:34:58,880 --> 00:35:00,120
so you can sort of see here,
709
00:35:00,200 --> 00:35:02,840
the original one was a square,
hand-made n ail.
710
00:35:02,920 --> 00:35:03,760
[Sibella] Yup.
711
00:35:03,840 --> 00:35:05,720
And then, when the extension's gone on,
712
00:35:05,800 --> 00:35:10,560
they've gone to wire nails, like,
which is sort of around the 1870s.
713
00:35:11,760 --> 00:35:13,160
We found this little bit of timber
714
00:35:13,240 --> 00:35:16,160
just sort of pushed into the side in there
715
00:35:16,240 --> 00:35:18,440
and, when we took it out,
we discovered that
716
00:35:18,520 --> 00:35:21,640
this is the original door jamb.
717
00:35:22,320 --> 00:35:26,880
-But it has George's kids' names--
-Their heights on it.
718
00:35:26,960 --> 00:35:29,400
[Sibella] Oh, their heights.
That's fantastic.
719
00:35:29,480 --> 00:35:32,360
[Jo] Isn't it amazing, to discover that?
720
00:35:32,880 --> 00:35:35,760
[Sibella] You guys are discovering
lots of things about this house,
721
00:35:35,840 --> 00:35:36,720
with a keen eye.
722
00:35:37,160 --> 00:35:38,160
-Yeah, yeah.
-Yeah.
723
00:35:38,240 --> 00:35:39,960
Did you ever think that you'd find
724
00:35:40,160 --> 00:35:42,720
all this, sort of,
treasure trove of history?
725
00:35:42,800 --> 00:35:45,760
-No. It keeps us motivated.
-When you saw cows grazing in it?
726
00:35:47,040 --> 00:35:48,200
[Sibella] There's a real sensitivity
727
00:35:48,280 --> 00:35:51,240
to how Jo and Marcus approached
the restoration of this house.
728
00:35:52,040 --> 00:35:55,240
Anything that I touch in there
or any question I have,
729
00:35:55,320 --> 00:35:58,000
they seem to have
the historical answer for it.
730
00:35:58,520 --> 00:36:02,640
They want to really respect
the house and listen to the house
731
00:36:02,960 --> 00:36:05,880
and, in doing that,
the house has really revealed
732
00:36:05,960 --> 00:36:10,280
all these hidden secrets and histories
that they're enjoying so much.
733
00:36:10,360 --> 00:36:12,480
This is quite the history journey,
isn't it?
734
00:36:12,560 --> 00:36:15,760
It is, yeah, just being a bit of
a detective as you go along, so...
735
00:36:16,600 --> 00:36:17,840
[Sibella] This careful approach
736
00:36:17,920 --> 00:36:21,160
has helped to solve the mystery
of the "Weetie box"room.
737
00:36:21,440 --> 00:36:25,840
This is a wall that we actually put
back in that was here originally.
738
00:36:25,920 --> 00:36:27,560
We found some of the studs up in the roof.
739
00:36:27,640 --> 00:36:29,200
-Which was really exciting.
-Yeah.
740
00:36:29,560 --> 00:36:32,480
[Jo] When we found the timber
in the roof cavity,
741
00:36:32,560 --> 00:36:36,120
we realized there was a small,
like, butler's pantry or something.
742
00:36:36,680 --> 00:36:40,240
[Sibella] This discovery is significant,
as it helps them to piece together
743
00:36:40,320 --> 00:36:43,480
James Nielson's final minutes
in Woodcot Park.
744
00:36:46,280 --> 00:36:51,240
So what we think happened
was that, um, Jessie, his wife,
745
00:36:51,360 --> 00:36:54,360
was in here with the nursery maid,
Mary-Ellen Williams.
746
00:36:55,280 --> 00:36:56,480
They'd just had a baby.
747
00:36:56,640 --> 00:36:57,640
And James came in
748
00:36:57,720 --> 00:37:00,960
and he asked if his little dog
had been thrown in the river.
749
00:37:01,800 --> 00:37:03,560
And Jessie basically says to him,
750
00:37:04,000 --> 00:37:06,480
"You're acting under delirium tremens.
751
00:37:06,920 --> 00:37:08,800
"I'll get your tea for you."
752
00:37:08,880 --> 00:37:10,520
And James says, "No, no. I'll get it."
753
00:37:11,240 --> 00:37:14,800
He grabs the keys,
he comes across here, he goes in,
754
00:37:14,880 --> 00:37:17,760
he locks the door and they've heard
that he's locked the door
755
00:37:17,840 --> 00:37:20,040
and they've thought,
"Why is he locking the door?"
756
00:37:21,920 --> 00:37:23,240
And he had his gun.
757
00:37:24,400 --> 00:37:26,480
Basically, what happened is, um,
758
00:37:26,880 --> 00:37:29,680
within three minutes, he'd killed himself.
759
00:37:29,760 --> 00:37:30,680
[gunshot]
760
00:37:32,200 --> 00:37:33,240
[Jo] They were too late.
761
00:37:34,640 --> 00:37:36,520
-[Sibella] And is that all in this?
-It's all in this.
762
00:37:36,760 --> 00:37:37,800
Where did you find this?
763
00:37:37,880 --> 00:37:42,240
Brian had it, who is an ancestor of James.
764
00:37:42,680 --> 00:37:45,640
-Wow. What a thing to find.
-Yeah, I know. It's amazing. I know.
765
00:37:45,840 --> 00:37:49,760
"A transcription of the inquest
into the death of James Nielson."
766
00:37:50,720 --> 00:37:54,960
What date have we got here?
"13th of March, 1859."
767
00:37:55,360 --> 00:37:57,960
"When I heard the report,
Mrs. Nielson screamed
768
00:37:58,040 --> 00:37:59,560
"and I ran towards the road for help.
769
00:37:59,960 --> 00:38:04,280
"The report of the gun took place
about half past eight last evening."
770
00:38:04,360 --> 00:38:06,240
-Oh, it sends shivers up my spine.
-Doesn't it?
771
00:38:06,720 --> 00:38:09,840
"I believe he'd been drinking
two days before his death
772
00:38:09,920 --> 00:38:12,200
"and had not touched any spirits since."
773
00:38:14,000 --> 00:38:17,560
Heavy drinkers who stop suddenly
can experience hallucinations
774
00:38:17,640 --> 00:38:21,000
associated with delirium tremens, the DTs.
775
00:38:21,400 --> 00:38:24,560
Maybe that's what led James
to make his fatal decision.
776
00:38:25,000 --> 00:38:27,520
Tragically, the baby
they were tending that day,
777
00:38:27,600 --> 00:38:30,800
James' 10th child, died six months later.
778
00:38:30,880 --> 00:38:32,320
Do you think the house is haunted?
779
00:38:32,640 --> 00:38:35,120
[Marcus] The presence you feel
is not angry, or anything.
780
00:38:35,600 --> 00:38:37,880
Sometimes some unusual things happen.
781
00:38:38,560 --> 00:38:40,640
We were in the cellar one time
782
00:38:41,080 --> 00:38:44,000
and we'd found half a brick
with some writing on it
783
00:38:44,280 --> 00:38:45,960
and then, a few days later,
784
00:38:46,560 --> 00:38:48,760
we had a massive big pile of broken bricks
785
00:38:49,080 --> 00:38:51,720
and we said, "Wouldn't it be great
to be able to find the other half?"
786
00:38:51,800 --> 00:38:54,840
And the first brick
that Jo picked up out of the pile
787
00:38:55,080 --> 00:38:56,320
was the other half.
788
00:38:56,400 --> 00:38:57,240
[Sibella] It matched it?
789
00:38:57,360 --> 00:39:01,560
[Marcus] Written on the brick, it says
"first brick" and it's got the date.
790
00:39:01,800 --> 00:39:04,360
-[Sibella] Oh, that's fantastic.
-[Marcus] From when the bricks were made.
791
00:39:04,480 --> 00:39:07,200
-[Sibella] It seems uncanny, doesn't it?
-It is very uncanny.
792
00:39:08,600 --> 00:39:09,880
Look at the watch.
793
00:39:10,480 --> 00:39:12,160
[Sibella] Whose headstone is this? James'?
794
00:39:12,240 --> 00:39:14,200
That's James' wife, first wife.
795
00:39:15,480 --> 00:39:19,160
[Sibella] Jo feels a real connection with
the first lady of the house, Isabella.
796
00:39:19,680 --> 00:39:21,400
She's buried at the local cemetery
797
00:39:21,560 --> 00:39:25,120
but last time Jo checked,
there was no trace of a headstone.
798
00:39:25,280 --> 00:39:28,160
[Jo] We know it's facing the river.
We might be able to find where it was.
799
00:39:28,360 --> 00:39:31,560
Yeah, I did a painting
and it's just my interpretation
800
00:39:31,640 --> 00:39:33,840
of what it would've been like when
801
00:39:34,800 --> 00:39:36,240
-James lived here.
-[Sibella] It's beautiful.
802
00:39:37,080 --> 00:39:38,640
[Sibella] It looks old, Jo.
803
00:39:38,720 --> 00:39:41,600
[Jo] Yeah, I was trying to make
it look ol d.
804
00:39:41,680 --> 00:39:42,560
[Sibella] You did a great job.
805
00:39:42,880 --> 00:39:46,120
Just trying to, you know,
imagine what it would've been like
806
00:39:46,200 --> 00:39:48,720
when, um, James was living in the house.
807
00:39:49,080 --> 00:39:50,720
[Sibella] The sky was like that today.
808
00:39:50,800 --> 00:39:53,400
-[Jo] Was it?
-Yeah. Gorgeous.
809
00:39:56,320 --> 00:40:00,640
[Sibella] How much longer do you think
the project has taken
810
00:40:00,720 --> 00:40:04,320
because you decided to
lath-and-plaster and repair it?
811
00:40:04,400 --> 00:40:05,600
[Marcus] Oh, that probably added a year.
812
00:40:05,680 --> 00:40:06,880
[Jo] What do you do, though?
813
00:40:06,960 --> 00:40:09,800
[Sibella] There's such a softness
to the finish of the plaster
814
00:40:09,880 --> 00:40:11,560
'cause there's real movement in it.
815
00:40:12,000 --> 00:40:14,320
[Marcus] That's got a part of you in it.
That's the thing.
816
00:40:14,400 --> 00:40:18,160
Whereas a flat bit of plasterboard
gives you nothing. It's just flat.
817
00:40:18,720 --> 00:40:21,440
[Sibella] With the amount of effort
that's gone into these walls,
818
00:40:21,520 --> 00:40:23,480
you'd think they'd want to
show off the finish
819
00:40:23,920 --> 00:40:26,800
but that's not what they did
back in the 1850s.
820
00:40:27,360 --> 00:40:29,480
[Marcus] Nearly ready to get covered up
with wallpaper now.
821
00:40:29,560 --> 00:40:31,080
-Do you wanna see some?
-Yeah, I do.
822
00:40:33,440 --> 00:40:35,080
[Sibella] Did you have it hand-printed?
823
00:40:35,280 --> 00:40:37,640
[Jo] Yeah, there's a lady in Melbourne
824
00:40:37,720 --> 00:40:41,120
that hand-blocks them
from original Victorian designs.
825
00:40:41,200 --> 00:40:42,200
-Oh, that's lovely.
-Yeah.
826
00:40:42,320 --> 00:40:44,640
-It's absolutely beautiful.
-It is beautiful, isn't it?
827
00:40:44,720 --> 00:40:47,680
-The colors are gorgeous.
-And they always had wallpaper.
828
00:40:47,920 --> 00:40:50,280
[Sibella] They did,
paper upon paper upon paper.
829
00:40:50,360 --> 00:40:52,240
I think they call it a paper sandwich.
830
00:40:52,440 --> 00:40:54,600
-Do they? Oh, how interesting.
-Mmm.
831
00:40:55,040 --> 00:40:57,000
So how are you gonna
attach this to the wall?
832
00:40:57,320 --> 00:41:00,280
-Well, that's Marcus's job.
-All the good ones are.
833
00:41:00,840 --> 00:41:06,920
So we're just working out how much
lining paper and what glues,
834
00:41:07,000 --> 00:41:10,880
actually what size to use
to adhere it to the lime mortar.
835
00:41:11,760 --> 00:41:14,880
[Sibella] A local wall-paperer
was reluctant to tackle this job
836
00:41:14,960 --> 00:41:17,360
because he thought
the walls were too rough.
837
00:41:17,440 --> 00:41:18,760
When we did our test,
838
00:41:18,840 --> 00:41:22,200
we were sort of having a look
at what the surface would be like
839
00:41:23,160 --> 00:41:24,760
and, I mean, we're pretty happy with that.
840
00:41:24,840 --> 00:41:26,120
I mean, you have a look.
What do you think?
841
00:41:26,200 --> 00:41:29,600
-I like it. I like it not smooth.
-I like it. I know. Same.
842
00:41:29,680 --> 00:41:32,280
Otherwise, you should've
just plaster-boarded the room.
843
00:41:32,360 --> 00:41:33,200
That's right.
844
00:41:43,200 --> 00:41:45,840
[Sibella] One year after they originally
planned to move in,
845
00:41:45,920 --> 00:41:48,120
Marcus and Jo have finished the plastering
846
00:41:48,200 --> 00:41:49,360
and they're onto the next job,
847
00:41:50,280 --> 00:41:54,080
lining the walls with newspaper
in preparation for the wallpaper.
848
00:41:54,160 --> 00:41:57,560
[Marcus] We opted for the newspaper 'cause
that's what they used to do back then.
849
00:41:58,280 --> 00:42:00,280
I think, when we pulled
some of the old paper off here,
850
00:42:00,360 --> 00:42:03,640
there was newspaper from 1932 and '34.
851
00:42:03,960 --> 00:42:05,960
[Sibella] And although
Marcus won't admit it,
852
00:42:06,040 --> 00:42:08,080
there is, of course, one other reason.
853
00:42:08,200 --> 00:42:12,240
[Jo] It was cost and availability.
It's just there.
854
00:42:12,320 --> 00:42:16,080
And, Marcus,
he's a bit of a tight arse so, yeah.
855
00:42:16,520 --> 00:42:19,320
[Sibella] The decision to
lath-and-plaster the whole house
856
00:42:19,400 --> 00:42:21,120
added a year to this project.
857
00:42:21,960 --> 00:42:24,520
The extra time apart has taken a toll.
858
00:42:25,160 --> 00:42:27,120
It dragged on and on
859
00:42:27,200 --> 00:42:28,760
and when he was down here over winter
860
00:42:28,840 --> 00:42:31,840
and I'm at home, it was...
Yeah, it was hard,
861
00:42:32,000 --> 00:42:34,360
him being away from the family.
862
00:42:35,120 --> 00:42:36,480
I mean, it's a sacrifice.
863
00:42:37,560 --> 00:42:40,720
It's a sacrifice
like you wouldn't believe.
864
00:42:40,800 --> 00:42:45,200
But, I mean, if you have a passion
for old houses, you just do it.
865
00:42:45,480 --> 00:42:49,320
Yeah, she was a big job but
it was worth the result in the end.
866
00:42:50,080 --> 00:42:53,240
[Sibella] They have some hand-printed
paper left from another restoration
867
00:42:53,320 --> 00:42:54,720
but it's not enough.
868
00:42:54,920 --> 00:42:58,320
-Hi! We're here!
-Hi, Barbara! How are you?
869
00:42:58,400 --> 00:43:00,360
-Good to see you again.
-Great to see you.
870
00:43:00,600 --> 00:43:02,320
Can't believe it! After all this time!
871
00:43:02,400 --> 00:43:04,720
[Sibella] Barbara is
a heritage wallpaper expert.
872
00:43:05,200 --> 00:43:08,280
She has some special paper
she's been saving for years.
873
00:43:08,600 --> 00:43:10,880
She hopes it will suit Woodcot Park.
874
00:43:11,040 --> 00:43:13,840
[gasps] You've got
the original ceiling rose.
875
00:43:13,920 --> 00:43:16,680
[Marcus] Yeah. It's actually papie r mache.
876
00:43:16,760 --> 00:43:18,880
[Sibella] Looks like an acanthus leaf.
[Marcus] Yeah.
877
00:43:18,960 --> 00:43:21,520
A wonderful surprise,
to find something like this.
878
00:43:21,600 --> 00:43:24,120
Part of our ancient history, really.
879
00:43:24,200 --> 00:43:26,120
-There's not much of it left.
-[Marcus] No. No.
880
00:43:26,200 --> 00:43:29,440
And to find two people
who are prepared to do it...
881
00:43:29,520 --> 00:43:32,200
-You're a rare pair these days.
-Oh, thank you.
882
00:43:32,280 --> 00:43:36,080
Yeah, it's so hard to find people
who've got that in their heart
883
00:43:36,160 --> 00:43:38,280
and they can put it back into our history.
884
00:43:38,360 --> 00:43:41,280
[Sibella] One of the most impressive
features of Woodcot Park
885
00:43:41,360 --> 00:43:43,080
is its grand entrance hall.
886
00:43:43,480 --> 00:43:46,200
Hopefully, Barbara can find
a paper to match.
887
00:43:46,280 --> 00:43:48,720
Ta-da! [laughs]
888
00:43:48,800 --> 00:43:51,520
We'll take this small one
so it's easy to handle.
889
00:43:51,800 --> 00:43:53,720
-Who wants to pull it out?
-Marcus can.
890
00:43:53,800 --> 00:43:56,560
Okay. Okay. [chuckles]
891
00:43:56,640 --> 00:43:59,920
[gasps] Oh, my God. I can see it! Oh!
892
00:44:00,000 --> 00:44:03,480
It's beautiful! Oh, isn't that gorgeous?
893
00:44:03,560 --> 00:44:04,840
-Oh, yeah. That's amazing.
-Oh!
894
00:44:04,920 --> 00:44:07,120
[Barbara] Now, this is what they call
a mock marble,
895
00:44:07,200 --> 00:44:08,920
which is what would've been
in a house like this.
896
00:44:09,720 --> 00:44:12,880
I've had it sitting
underneath the benches for years,
897
00:44:13,200 --> 00:44:15,200
waiting for the right people
to come along.
898
00:44:15,400 --> 00:44:16,360
No, you've done well.
899
00:44:16,440 --> 00:44:20,080
I've seen so many people
who've undertaken things like this
900
00:44:20,160 --> 00:44:23,160
and they can't go the distance
and it either makes or breaks a marriage
901
00:44:23,480 --> 00:44:25,560
and, for you two, it's come closer.
902
00:44:25,840 --> 00:44:30,680
I'm so pleased. I'm so pleased
that it's gone to you at this house.
903
00:44:30,760 --> 00:44:31,680
-Yeah.
-Yeah.
904
00:44:31,760 --> 00:44:35,720
Oh, Jo! No, don't! [laughs]
905
00:44:36,920 --> 00:44:39,880
-Don't! Oh!
-You all right?
906
00:44:40,080 --> 00:44:43,760
You all right? Oh, I shouldn't have--
I didn't mean to upset you.
907
00:44:43,840 --> 00:44:46,520
-No, you haven't upset me!
-[laughs]
908
00:44:46,600 --> 00:44:48,640
-Here, I've got some tissue here.
-Sorry!
909
00:44:50,280 --> 00:44:54,600
Oh! You'll have to cuddle
her properly tonight, Marcus.
910
00:44:56,680 --> 00:44:58,200
Let's put it...
911
00:44:58,320 --> 00:45:01,640
[Jo] If you don't have the passion,
you don't survive
912
00:45:02,080 --> 00:45:07,200
because it's not an easy thing
and not everybody wants it.
913
00:45:07,280 --> 00:45:09,280
Wow. Yeah, that's great, isn't it?
914
00:45:09,360 --> 00:45:11,600
-Is it what you thought it would be?
-Yeah.
915
00:45:11,680 --> 00:45:12,680
Oh, it's better.
916
00:45:12,760 --> 00:45:15,040
[Barbara] Jo and Marcus
are the right owners.
917
00:45:15,120 --> 00:45:16,280
No, it's good, isn't it?
918
00:45:20,360 --> 00:45:22,840
[Sibella] Jo's really nervous
about the wallpapering.
919
00:45:22,920 --> 00:45:25,840
You explaining it to me
really sort of isn't enough.
920
00:45:25,920 --> 00:45:29,400
I think, until I do it, then I might
feel more comfortable with it.
921
00:45:29,480 --> 00:45:30,840
It'll turn out all right.
922
00:45:30,920 --> 00:45:32,520
It's a matter of setting
the first one str aight
923
00:45:32,600 --> 00:45:34,120
and working your way around.
924
00:45:34,680 --> 00:45:38,480
[Sibella] With Barbara's help, these guys
are reviving another fading craft.
925
00:45:39,120 --> 00:45:42,840
A lot of people think of wallpaper
as something that was big in the '70s
926
00:45:42,920 --> 00:45:46,320
but it actually has a much longer,
richer history.
927
00:45:46,400 --> 00:45:49,360
[Barbara] During the gold rush,
particularly in Victoria,
928
00:45:49,440 --> 00:45:52,760
anybody who struck gold, you know,
that was the first thing they did.
929
00:45:52,840 --> 00:45:54,080
They'd wallpaper their tents.
930
00:45:55,280 --> 00:45:57,960
Most of the houses
that were built in the early days
931
00:45:58,040 --> 00:45:59,960
were wallpapered from top to toe.
932
00:46:00,600 --> 00:46:03,440
It was used as a building material.
933
00:46:03,800 --> 00:46:06,000
The internal walls
used to let in the elements,
934
00:46:06,360 --> 00:46:08,240
they'd let in the insects
935
00:46:08,320 --> 00:46:10,960
and the dust and the flies
and all that sort of thing.
936
00:46:11,040 --> 00:46:12,720
Wallpaper kept it all out.
937
00:46:13,240 --> 00:46:15,680
[Marcus] Now that it's all sealed up
and there's no birds flying through
938
00:46:15,800 --> 00:46:17,160
and cows wandering through
the middle of it,
939
00:46:17,240 --> 00:46:19,280
it's turned back into a family home
940
00:46:19,680 --> 00:46:22,120
and, you know,
it's full of laughter and fun again.
941
00:46:24,040 --> 00:46:25,120
The previous residents, no doubt,
942
00:46:25,200 --> 00:46:27,920
would be happy to see it all
back up and running again
943
00:46:28,000 --> 00:46:31,040
and, um, yeah, just see it turned
back into a family home again,
944
00:46:31,120 --> 00:46:33,760
like what they had it, over the years.
945
00:46:37,760 --> 00:46:40,320
[Sibella] The first people
to call Woodcot Park home
946
00:46:40,520 --> 00:46:42,440
were James and Isabella Nielson.
947
00:46:43,640 --> 00:46:47,520
Today, Marcus and Jo want to honor
their memory at the local cemetery.
948
00:46:49,120 --> 00:46:53,000
Last time Jo was here, she couldn't
find Isabella's headstone.
949
00:46:53,080 --> 00:46:54,520
[Jo] Oh, wow. Look at this.
950
00:46:54,840 --> 00:46:57,080
[Sibella] But she's unearthed
another photo of the headstone
951
00:46:57,160 --> 00:46:58,640
and this time she's hopeful.
952
00:46:58,960 --> 00:47:00,840
[Marcus] Yeah, I reckon that's it.
[Jo] Yeah, I do too.
953
00:47:01,000 --> 00:47:03,000
We'll shoot down the back,
see if we can find it.
954
00:47:03,080 --> 00:47:04,560
-Okay. Yep.
-Let's go.
955
00:47:06,320 --> 00:47:09,280
[Sibella] For these guys, Woodcot Park
is much more than a building.
956
00:47:09,720 --> 00:47:12,560
It's a family home with a rich history
they want to honor.
957
00:47:12,640 --> 00:47:13,680
Yeah, that is it.
958
00:47:13,800 --> 00:47:15,360
-Oh, my God. It is it.
-Yeah, that is it.
959
00:47:15,440 --> 00:47:16,320
-Yeah, that's it for sure.
-Look.
960
00:47:16,400 --> 00:47:18,880
-Yeah.
-It's the same shape. It is.
961
00:47:18,960 --> 00:47:21,600
[Marcus] That's Isabella. Yep.
[Byron] Isabella. Yeah.
962
00:47:21,680 --> 00:47:23,320
[Jo] Isabella.
[Byron] What about James?
963
00:47:23,400 --> 00:47:26,760
Well, James is in an unmarked grave
so I'm not sure where he is.
964
00:47:26,840 --> 00:47:29,360
-He could be either side.
-Could be next to her.
965
00:47:29,440 --> 00:47:30,360
Could be right here somewhere.
966
00:47:30,440 --> 00:47:33,360
[Sibella] So Isabella's headstone
is here after all
967
00:47:33,440 --> 00:47:35,680
but snapped in three
and in poor condition.
968
00:47:35,760 --> 00:47:36,720
[Marcus] Come on, guys.
969
00:47:36,800 --> 00:47:38,240
[Sibella] It looks like Marcus and Jo
970
00:47:38,320 --> 00:47:41,160
have found themselves
one more restoration job.
971
00:47:44,280 --> 00:47:46,680
Respects paid,
it's back to the wallpapering.
972
00:47:50,280 --> 00:47:51,720
This is not a simple job.
973
00:47:52,000 --> 00:47:55,000
These walls are high and this
hand-printed paper is tricky.
974
00:48:13,920 --> 00:48:16,560
[Sibella] I'm back in Gippsland,
going down to see Jo and Marcus.
975
00:48:16,800 --> 00:48:19,000
I haven't seen them for quite some time
976
00:48:19,080 --> 00:48:21,600
but they do tell me that the house
is finished.
977
00:48:22,320 --> 00:48:26,600
I know how hard they work and their
attention to detail is remarkable
978
00:48:26,680 --> 00:48:29,720
so I'm looking forward to seeing
exactly what they've done.
979
00:48:39,240 --> 00:48:41,800
[Jo] Hello.
[Sibella] Hi. How are you?
980
00:48:41,880 --> 00:48:43,480
[Marcus] Yeah, good.
981
00:48:44,200 --> 00:48:45,840
-Oh, you're both looking relaxed.
-Yeah.
982
00:48:45,920 --> 00:48:49,600
-Oh, well, we're finished. Yeah!
-You've finished? That's amazing.
983
00:48:49,680 --> 00:48:51,160
I've been looking forward to coming down.
984
00:48:51,240 --> 00:48:53,240
-Let's go and have a look.
-Come and have a look.
985
00:48:53,320 --> 00:48:54,200
Great.
986
00:48:59,320 --> 00:49:02,280
-Wow. It's like a theater set.
-[Jo] It is, isn't it?
987
00:49:02,360 --> 00:49:04,840
-[Marcus] It come up all right. It's good .
-Oh, it's amazing!
988
00:49:05,440 --> 00:49:07,920
- Yeah, yeah. Mmm!
-And what about these walls?
989
00:49:08,400 --> 00:49:09,280
Oh, my goodness.
990
00:49:09,360 --> 00:49:11,560
[Marcus] Gives you
that grand entrance feeling, so...
991
00:49:11,640 --> 00:49:13,760
[Sibella] It certainly does.
It was grand before.
992
00:49:13,840 --> 00:49:14,760
[Jo] Yeah, I know!
993
00:49:14,840 --> 00:49:17,280
This is almost like the summer room,
isn't it?
994
00:49:17,360 --> 00:49:20,360
-[Marcus] Yeah. Yeah.
-Light and bright.
995
00:49:20,440 --> 00:49:22,400
[Jo] Informal.
[Sibella] Yeah, it's gorgeous.
996
00:49:22,800 --> 00:49:25,800
[Marcus] No more bees in here now,
or birds flying around, so...
997
00:49:26,440 --> 00:49:28,400
[Sibella] The hard work and sweat
998
00:49:28,480 --> 00:49:31,160
that have gone into this restoration
are remarkable
999
00:49:31,240 --> 00:49:32,800
but I'm equally impressed
1000
00:49:32,880 --> 00:49:35,040
by the attention to detail
in the furnishings.
1001
00:49:35,640 --> 00:49:37,960
What was your approach to furniture?
1002
00:49:38,200 --> 00:49:43,680
They're all from the period,
from the 1840s, 1850s,
1003
00:49:43,760 --> 00:49:45,840
furniture that could've
been in this house.
1004
00:49:46,400 --> 00:49:49,400
Woodcot Park is no longer a building site.
1005
00:49:50,680 --> 00:49:54,600
The way that they've chosen
their papers and their colors
1006
00:49:54,680 --> 00:49:56,680
and their soft furnishings
1007
00:49:57,080 --> 00:50:01,120
make it a really comfortable,
inviting, warm home.
1008
00:50:02,440 --> 00:50:06,120
You chose to tackle a huge task,
restoring this house.
1009
00:50:06,200 --> 00:50:08,560
It's been two years. How are you feeling?
1010
00:50:09,280 --> 00:50:10,600
-Tired.
-Exhausted.
1011
00:50:12,320 --> 00:50:14,920
We never intended to do
the lath-and-plaster
1012
00:50:15,000 --> 00:50:17,840
and that was 12 months' worth
1013
00:50:17,920 --> 00:50:20,800
-of really physical, tough work.
-Yeah, hard yakka.
1014
00:50:21,280 --> 00:50:23,160
Thought it might take four to six weeks.
1015
00:50:23,240 --> 00:50:25,240
-Yep. Forget it.
- [both laugh]
1016
00:50:26,400 --> 00:50:29,080
-That's a joke.
-It is just that labor-intensive.
1017
00:50:31,760 --> 00:50:35,120
I think we put about
16 tonne of plaster on.
1018
00:50:35,400 --> 00:50:38,360
Sixteen tonne put on,
on a 12-inch-long trowel.
1019
00:50:38,480 --> 00:50:40,080
That's a few trowel strokes.
1020
00:50:41,200 --> 00:50:43,840
[Sibella] Rejecting modern building
methods has cost them time
1021
00:50:43,920 --> 00:50:46,320
but it's paid off in other ways.
1022
00:50:46,960 --> 00:50:49,480
[Marcus] To do it the traditional way
was very rewarding
1023
00:50:49,720 --> 00:50:51,880
and it just has a different feel.
1024
00:50:52,280 --> 00:50:54,280
[Sibella] But did they stick
to their budget?
1025
00:50:54,600 --> 00:50:57,920
[Marcus] We would've done the restoration
for under 100,000.
1026
00:50:58,000 --> 00:51:00,360
You don't even get an extension
put on your house for that.
1027
00:51:01,680 --> 00:51:05,200
[Sibella] Jo and Marcus really listened to
the story that this house told them.
1028
00:51:05,680 --> 00:51:07,080
It was a tragic tale
1029
00:51:07,160 --> 00:51:10,840
but they seem to have made their
peace with the ghosts of the past.
1030
00:51:10,920 --> 00:51:13,560
[Marcus] Yeah, it's just part
of its history.
1031
00:51:13,640 --> 00:51:15,920
It makes it interesting, I suppose.
1032
00:51:16,000 --> 00:51:19,760
I'm quite comfortable living here.
It doesn't worry me.
1033
00:51:19,840 --> 00:51:24,400
I mean, it is part of the house's history
and, you know, I feel good about it.
1034
00:51:24,480 --> 00:51:26,160
Ah, you've been true to it.
1035
00:51:26,240 --> 00:51:29,160
Do you think James and George
would be proud
1036
00:51:29,240 --> 00:51:30,760
and impressed by your efforts?
1037
00:51:30,840 --> 00:51:32,080
[Marcus] Yeah, they'd be rapt.
[Jo] Yeah!
1038
00:51:32,160 --> 00:51:35,240
[Marcus] The time that they've spent here
hasn't been lost.
1039
00:51:36,560 --> 00:51:41,800
[Sibella] You really have saved this house
but has it saved you as well?
1040
00:51:41,920 --> 00:51:43,040
[Jo] It's definitely helped.
1041
00:51:43,120 --> 00:51:44,360
[Marcus] Oh, yeah, it's definitely helpe d.
1042
00:51:44,440 --> 00:51:46,440
We've had this to work on together
1043
00:51:46,520 --> 00:51:49,040
and it's sort of strengthened
our relationship, and things,
1044
00:51:49,120 --> 00:51:50,480
and it's been great.
1045
00:51:50,560 --> 00:51:53,440
[Jo] You have to stay focused
when working on a project like this,
1046
00:51:53,520 --> 00:51:56,040
and you have to work together as a team.
1047
00:51:56,120 --> 00:51:58,200
[Marcus] Yeah, we're a pretty good team.
1048
00:51:58,280 --> 00:52:00,960
Yeah, doing this has certainly helped us.
1049
00:52:02,400 --> 00:52:05,880
[Sibella] It's been such a treat
to follow you over a two-year period
1050
00:52:05,960 --> 00:52:08,440
to see what's achievable
1051
00:52:08,520 --> 00:52:11,880
when two people
are as determined and precise
1052
00:52:12,560 --> 00:52:15,360
-and then get this incredible result.
-Mmm.
1053
00:52:16,000 --> 00:52:18,880
It is incredibly impressive.
1054
00:52:19,080 --> 00:52:20,160
-Congratulations.
-Thank you.
1055
00:52:20,240 --> 00:52:21,240
-Well, thanks.
-Thank you.
1056
00:52:21,760 --> 00:52:25,600
-It's incredible.
-It means a lot, coming from you.
1057
00:52:28,280 --> 00:52:31,560
[Sibella] Over the last two years,
watching these two work together,
1058
00:52:31,640 --> 00:52:35,040
even though, yes, there is bickering,
like any relationship,
1059
00:52:35,120 --> 00:52:38,040
they have stuck together
and what they've achieved
1060
00:52:38,120 --> 00:52:41,280
has given them an incredible confidence.
1061
00:52:42,520 --> 00:52:49,040
In this kind of time-frame,
to pull this off is quite magical
1062
00:52:49,120 --> 00:52:51,880
and you see a real unity
in the family now.
1063
00:52:53,480 --> 00:52:57,440
It's lovely for them.
What a way to heal and recover.
1064
00:53:04,560 --> 00:53:08,000
Jo and Marcus set out to save
this house and their family.
1065
00:53:08,480 --> 00:53:12,280
It was a totally ambitious project
that, amazingly, they pulled off.
1066
00:53:13,000 --> 00:53:15,440
It's so inspiring and just goes to show,
1067
00:53:15,520 --> 00:53:21,120
with focus and quiet determination,
remarkable things can be achieved.
1068
00:53:21,360 --> 00:53:23,360
[theme music playing]
85857
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