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Transcripción
00:01Owning a property abroad is the ultimate goal for most Brits.
00:05It's like a dream come true. It's just so magical.
00:09But for some, a conventional home just won't do.
00:13A lot of it was ruins, but we fell in love with it.
00:18They're setting aside their fears.
00:21The key is to never look down.
00:23To do something remarkable.
00:25It's a mammoth task, really.
00:27Resurrecting Europe's lost villages.
00:30I think any sort of rational person would probably not try and do that.
00:35In this series, we meet the brand new pioneers.
00:39I think I'm a bit all over the place. It's like it's a big day.
00:42Delving into their village's past.
00:45I think that's powder flask.
00:47And we revisit those who already made the bold leap.
00:54And are still battling to keep their dreams alive.
00:58One year. One year without some disaster.
01:01But can they win the race against time?
01:03At the moment, it just feels like everything's falling down and nothing's going up.
01:07To turn crumbling buildings into family homes and successful businesses.
01:12It's a really big moment.
01:14Oh, bless you!
01:15Or will it all fall down around their ears?
01:20Oh!
01:21Come out! Come out! Come out! Come out! Come out!
01:24Oh, dear.
01:26As they try to restore the past to build their future.
01:30Because there's a whole village to be built, yeah.
01:36Today...
01:37Brace yourself.
01:39Oh, bloody hell, you're not kidding.
01:40Our heroic saviors in Normandy risk life and limb.
01:44Hang on, whoa, whoa, whoa.
01:45It seems to be loose.
01:48As their village threatens to fall apart at the seams.
01:51You can see, it's just literally mud.
01:55It's just holding everything together, it's mad.
01:58Guests at a ghost village in Italy are overwhelmed by their room without a roof.
02:04Oh, my gosh.
02:06Oh.
02:09This is...
02:11Oh, my gosh.
02:13It is so rare that I don't find any words, but this is now happening.
02:20And at a hamlet in Western France...
02:22It takes some heavy lifting
02:27and plenty of help from the neighbours...
02:29I'm going to drag it inside.
02:31OK.
02:32That's OK.
02:33Nicely done.
02:34...to get a fire going for the first time in years.
02:39We have flame.
02:41When you're trying to restore an entire ghost village,
03:01it's vital to be able to turn your hand to a wide range of jobs.
03:04And south-west of Rouen, in the old farming community of La Boulière,
03:09Kent couple Paul and Yip have found that multitasking is now just second nature.
03:16We are workmen, project manager...
03:19Yeah.
03:20Finance person...
03:22Advances.
03:22...person...
03:23Bank.
03:24Architect.
03:25You know, we're all of those things,
03:27because we can afford none of those things.
03:29Yeah.
03:30Since 2021, these landscape gardeners have been the custodians of five cottages,
03:40two barns, a hayloft, a bakery, and two acres of land.
03:45But they've also just taken on a sixth cottage,
03:49after it unexpectedly came up for sale.
03:51We've recently acquired this with the same thinking that we've had all along, really,
03:57is wanting to piece La Boulière back together.
04:00Yeah.
04:00Feels more secure to know that we now own this.
04:04Yeah.
04:04And it's the oldest property in La Boulière.
04:07Yeah.
04:07250 years old.
04:09It's exciting.
04:11Although other priorities mean it hasn't yet risen to the top of Paul and Yip's to-do list,
04:15they can't wait to get inside and start transforming it into another potential revenue stream.
04:22This is not going to steal our attention away from everything else,
04:28but it is going to be running alongside all the other works we've got going on here.
04:35We've just added another two plates to the poles, haven't we?
04:38It's June, and Paul and Yip have had to refocus their attention away from the village
04:49because Paul's mum is ill, and they're spending much more time in the UK.
04:55The couple did have a plan to move out of the house they live in
04:58and into the derelict cottage next door, but that project is now on pause.
05:03Some jobs are too urgent to delay, though,
05:07and there's a building in the village that's crying out for Paul and Yip's help.
05:12It is a nightmare.
05:14It's quite a challenge, yes, I must admit.
05:17I'm not looking forward to it.
05:19The middle cottage in their row is increasingly unsafe,
05:22so Paul and Yip need to do some emergency work on the front wall.
05:26The wall is split, and it's starting to separate inside and outside.
05:34You can see daylight through the wall. It's not good, is it?
05:37So we need to bring it down probably halfway past that window
05:40until I know where it's all good stonework.
05:44We've been dreading it a bit, haven't we?
05:45We have. It's quite a risky thing because we kind of don't really know what's going to happen.
05:50But we go into most jobs like that.
05:55The wall is so bowed that it could collapse at any minute,
05:59so the couple need to be careful how they tackle it.
06:03Right, mind, no cats about, hopefully.
06:06Paul starts by removing any loose stones at the roofline.
06:10It's great for rebuilding.
06:12All these stones that I'm chucking down, they've slid from this gable end.
06:20They've all slid down and pushed this out.
06:23So I've got to just get all the loose ones off,
06:26and then I can start taking all this down to where it starts to come out,
06:30which is about down there.
06:31There is a lot of work here.
06:32And we've got just us two.
06:35No loader.
06:36Next, they need to start dismantling the wall by hand, one stone at a time.
06:46Well done.
06:48Paul and Yip have put together a rudimentary pulley system
06:51so they can lower multiple stones to the ground at once.
06:54The bucket and rope may be mass-produced from modern materials.
06:58I'm going to lower this down now.
07:01But their methods are following in the footsteps of the original craftsman.
07:06The builders who went before them could have used ox or horsepower,
07:11but Paul and Yip are having to rely on their own muscle.
07:20Well done.
07:22My dear, I'm nowhere near as strong as I used to be.
07:24I know, none of us are, Poppet.
07:28Welcome to your late 40s.
07:3150s?
07:31Not for me yet.
07:33They're making progress, but it isn't exactly fast.
07:37And without an extra pair of hands on the ground to empty the bucket,
07:40it could take days.
07:42Paul, Yip and LeBouillier are locked together in a fight for survival,
07:47with little more than sweat and determination on their side.
07:51And they know it's a battle they might not win.
07:55You want me to get down and empty that into the wheelbarrow?
07:58Well, don't you have to keep coming up and down.
07:59Well, it is what it is.
08:01The Italian region of Basilicata was one of the cradles of European civilisation.
08:13Home to mathematician Pythagoras, it was once an area so populated and vibrant
08:19that it sent its own delegation of athletes to the original Greek Olympics.
08:23Just above the modern town of Tursi stands Rabatana, founded in the 8th century by invading Arabs.
08:32It grew to a peak of around 2,500 people who farmed the surrounding fields and lived a traditional
08:38Mediterranean lifestyle.
08:40But emigration, demographic decline and successive earthquakes led to the complete abandonment
08:47of this town about 50 years ago.
08:51It's a trend that Martine, an ex-wine merchant from Norfolk, is desperately trying to reverse.
08:57I would imagine the last time that really this was populated was in the 50s.
09:11Most people left because there was no work.
09:13So basically, you know, the towns are abandoned.
09:16I'm fascinated by this coat of arms because it has a skull and crossbones on the bottom.
09:24And this is a beautiful palazzo which is for sale.
09:31There's something like 10 people living in the whole of Rabatana now, where once it would
09:36have been thriving with schools and shops.
09:39So, yes, it was very sad that the whole thing was just abandoned.
09:45A joke, there are more cats than people, but there probably is.
09:49Martine has been living amongst the ruins of Rabatana for the last 16 years.
09:54After buying and renovating various derelict properties, she now runs what is known as
09:59a defused hotel, with four elegant apartments she saved from collapse.
10:05The more that I was here, the more I realised that there were so many possibilities, that,
10:10you know, there's all this fantastic landscape, this history, this culture.
10:15So, yeah, that kind of, it grew on me.
10:22It's August, and Martine is hard at work on her next renovation project.
10:28We found Veronica's secret place.
10:31What are you doing in here, Veronica, eh?
10:33It's a cellar underneath the rooms she calls the Mandarin Suite, and thought to be at least
10:39400 years old.
10:41This will probably be made into, like, two bedrooms with an en-suite bathroom.
10:46If we're going to put an en-suite down here, put a bath in front of here so you can lay
10:50in the bath and look at the convent.
10:52I mean, it would just be incredible, with these beams exposed and all of this lovely stone.
10:57Martine has already spent a day chipping away at the old plaster, and she's hoping to make
11:02more progress today.
11:08Look, you see, it's just, it comes off so easily.
11:15I think that it's just been damp coming in here for a long time.
11:21Wow.
11:22Could look pretty fantastic, couldn't it?
11:24Can you imagine finding some buried treasure?
11:27Something from the Knights Templars, because apparently they came through here, with everybody
11:31else.
11:32After the best part of an hour, it's not buried treasure Martine has found, but some mysterious
11:38stones.
11:41And there are quite a lot of black stones, like this one.
11:44In that wall as well, there's a lot.
11:46I wonder if they maybe even have been rescued from another house that burnt down, because
11:50there's obviously no sign of the chimney or anything here.
11:52It's likely these blackened stones were once part of an old fireplace, and they were taken
11:59from other houses in Rabatana when they were dismantled.
12:02The builders of the past recognised the importance of reusing raw materials, and not just for economic
12:09reasons.
12:10Stones like these would have had to be dragged all the way up the hillside from the local
12:14riverbeds, so wasting them would have been unthinkable.
12:19Working away to peel off these layers of history is a privilege for this passionate village saviour.
12:25You know, when a project's finished, it's like finishing a good book, you're bereft, because
12:31it's gone, and all you've got is memories, really.
12:34But there's still a long way to go for Martine before her renovations here are over.
12:46Coming up...
12:48I don't think it's that bad, honestly.
12:50Yeah, look.
12:52Oh!
12:53Our village saviours are playing with fire in France.
12:57I always wanted to be a chimney sweep.
13:00And...
13:06I must be nearly through.
13:08It's the moment of truth for Paul and Yip in La Bouillière.
13:12What I don't want to do is for this lot to fall, because it's tied into this stonework.
13:16I close my eyes and ears and hope for the best.
13:30Despite the fact that the UK and France have similar-sized populations, there are over
13:36two million more homes lying empty on the other side of the Channel.
13:40Sometimes properties are abandoned in France because of the high cost of renovations or complicated
13:46inheritance laws.
13:48But in rural areas, it's often just down to the dwindling number of jobs on the land.
13:54The ghost village of Chicheville in Western France is a prime example.
14:00Oh, he's feeling a bit tired today.
14:02And it could have been lost forever if it wasn't for two British saviours.
14:10The guy that we bought it off when we signed at the Nataire on that day was 99.
14:15And he said his great-grandmother was born in the house.
14:21So that's going back a bit.
14:28Tony and Terry are antique restorers from Gloucestershire, who are now the proud custodians of three
14:33houses, half a dozen buildings and an extensive wood.
14:37They paid about £60,000 for the hamlet and intend to do most of the renovation work themselves.
14:46It's not getting handed over to anyone to sort out for us, is it?
14:50No, no.
14:51We can't afford that.
14:52Can't afford that.
14:52It's the labour.
14:54So, whereas you might do a room and it costs you €1,000, if you're paying somebody to
14:59do it, it might be €5,000, €6,000.
15:01By the time we've improved the drainage, redo the electrics, some work on the roof, we think
15:06we can bring it in maybe £90,000.
15:16It's November.
15:17So, before winter spreads its icy tentacles across the village, Tony and Terry are turning
15:23their attention to keeping warm.
15:25There's also damp in the farmhouse that needs drying out.
15:29So, the couple have a plan.
15:31So, here's our lovely wood burner.
15:35The burner is made of steel plate, so it weighs well over 100 kilos.
15:40That's 16 stone, or about the same as a well-fed Great Dane.
15:45I don't think it's that bad, honestly.
15:48Yeah, look.
15:50Oh!
15:51Their first task...
15:53OK, keep going.
15:54A little bit of right, that's it.
15:56..is getting it from the open barn to the main house.
16:00Whoa!
16:02Spot on.
16:04Nice pair of reversing that.
16:06Bang in the middle.
16:07Look at that.
16:10Tony has once again called on his good friend Peter, who's brought his son Toby for extra
16:15manpower.
16:17Try left, please.
16:19Oh, God.
16:21Cut that out.
16:22But it's a struggle, even for the three of them.
16:25I did say wear steel toe caps, didn't I?
16:28Luckily, teamwork and a bit of British grit...
16:31Yeah!
16:33...gets the job done.
16:36I don't know why you're making such a fuss.
16:39It isn't over yet, though.
16:40After a short drive to the front door...
16:44Oh, what?
16:45I got the light in.
16:48..and with more help from another neighbour, John...
16:51Let them take it.
16:53..the reclaimed wood burner finally makes it across the threshold.
16:57Where are we heading?
16:58Through here.
16:59OK.
17:01Are we lifting or sliding?
17:02No, we're lifting.
17:03We're lifting.
17:03Are we?
17:04OK.
17:05I'm going to drag it.
17:06Oh, I saw it.
17:08OK.
17:08Wow.
17:09That's OK.
17:10Nicely done.
17:11They say it takes a village to raise a child, but it can also take the neighbours to raise
17:17a village.
17:18Thank you, John.
17:19Appreciate that.
17:20Very welcome.
17:21And Tony and Terry feel blessed to be surrounded by willing friends happy to lend a hand.
17:27The bill's in the post.
17:28Their neighbours are just as delighted with what the newbies are bringing to their community.
17:34Well, the first time I saw this building, I really thought it was dangerous and it was
17:38sort of a couple of months away from collapsing.
17:40It's been amazing what they've actually done in the relatively short time that they've been
17:44here in this, I don't know, 200-year-old house that didn't have much done to me in
17:49that first 200 years, to be honest.
17:50Before they can get the home fires burning, the chimney is in need of a flue.
17:54And since Tony doesn't have a good head for heights, he's happy to let Peter take the
17:59lead.
18:01Hey there, Tony.
18:02Are you there, Peter?
18:04I'm here.
18:05OK.
18:05When do you want to start?
18:06We'll have you ready.
18:08Let's go.
18:10Yeah, go on, you push and I'll pull.
18:12This is where Gladden didn't paint the wood burner.
18:17Nice and steady because it keeps getting caught.
18:19Yeah.
18:21Right there.
18:21Take a bit of tension off.
18:25I always wanted to be a chimney sweep.
18:27Job's a good one.
18:29Well, we've just got to light the fire now, see if it works.
18:37We have flame.
18:39The wood burner can now start drying out the damp, ready for lime plastering.
18:43And when it's time to do that, Terry and Tony are determined to stay true to the techniques
18:48of the past.
18:49But for now, like generations of farming families in Sheesville before them, they can cuddle
18:55up in front of a warm fire and rest their aching bones.
19:01Here's to a good day's work, I'd say.
19:03Yeah.
19:03Yeah.
19:04Cheers.
19:05Well done.
19:05In the lost village of La Boulire, Paul and Yip have discovered exactly what's at the
19:19root of their crumbling wall.
19:21You can see it's just literally mud.
19:25It's just holding everything together.
19:27It's mad.
19:28Back in the 18th century, when the village was built, the stonemasons used to pack the
19:34gap between the inner and outer granite walls with mud, because it was a good insulator
19:38and it was easier to get hold of.
19:41Most importantly, of course, it was also free.
19:45But as La Boulire was abandoned for over 25 years before Paul and Yip moved in, rainwater
19:50has seeped into the stonework and washed away the mud, making the wall unstable.
19:55But that's the trouble, you know, it only starts with a slit tile.
20:01Yeah, 25 years of rain through that one hole was a big deal.
20:04And we're just trying to pick up the pieces, really, literally, and hope they somehow go
20:11back together.
20:12With a large section of stones removed, the couple now need to free up the thick timber
20:17beam at the top of the wall to reach the stones below.
20:20They can't use a chainsaw because anything too vigorous could cause a collapse.
20:30I'm already creating quite a lot of movement here.
20:33Yeah.
20:38I feel like a spoon would be quicker.
20:41What are you getting there, Paul?
20:41It's oak, isn't it?
20:42As the beam is tied into the stonework at multiple points along the wall, it's backbreaking
20:48work.
20:51Oh.
21:02Come on.
21:04Come on.
21:05It's great, that is, Poppet.
21:14It doesn't feel great at the minute.
21:17It's at the end of the timber.
21:19There's one more, Poppet.
21:23Phew.
21:25At 30 feet up, this isn't a job for the faint-hearted, especially as there's no way of knowing if the
21:31beam will fall as soon as it's released.
21:33Brace yourself.
21:35Oh, bloody hell, you're not kidding.
21:37I must be nearly through.
21:40Oh.
21:40There you go.
21:41Right, I felt that relaxed then.
21:43Right, hang on.
21:44So we've spent quite a bit of time releasing this beam.
21:49What I don't want to do is for this lot to fall because it's tied into this stonework.
21:53So I need to lift this and throw it and just get it off and out of the way.
21:59So we need to just move this scaffold tower back so that I can just lean over and there's
22:04no danger of this hitting the tower with me on it.
22:07Paul and Yip reposition the tower.
22:11Lovely.
22:14Right, are you ready for this?
22:15Because I'm just going to do this.
22:16Oh, God.
22:18Close my eyes and ears and hope for the best.
22:21I'll spend the life insurance money well.
22:24Don't worry.
22:27Hang on.
22:27Whoa, whoa, whoa.
22:28It seems to be loose.
22:30Okay, right.
22:31Okay.
22:37Oh, that was close.
22:39Oh.
22:41Well done.
22:43I need a cup of tea.
22:45Strangely emotional, isn't it?
22:46Yeah.
22:48I'm just pleased to have you still alive.
22:50No.
22:51Today, Paul Yip and La Bouillère have proved they all have the determination to slow down
22:57the march of time.
22:58Even if they can't stop it altogether.
23:01There's still more to do on the wall, but at least it's still standing.
23:06And so are our village saviours.
23:08We have to take risks on this project, otherwise nothing will get done.
23:13Because there's a whole village to be built yet.
23:19Coming up.
23:21In Rabatana, Martine is behind schedule and racing to get her remarkable room ready.
23:27As the days kind of disappeared, you think you've got loads of time in the morning,
23:31and then all of a sudden the guests are arriving in ten minutes.
23:33And one forgotten corner of Seasville reaches the end of the road.
23:38Probably dating back 100, 150 years.
23:41Lovely building.
23:43And we're going to have to knock half of it down.
23:44Back in the abandoned town of Rabatana, the tourist season is in full swing,
24:01and village saviour Martine has had to take some time off renovating her old cantina
24:07to concentrate on running her diffused hotel.
24:10Two guests are on their way to stay in the Mandarin suite,
24:14and Martine can't wait to share with them the room she is most proud of.
24:19For me, this is my most special room.
24:21It's just magical, sleeping out here with the stars
24:24and with the twinkly lights and the candles and everything else.
24:27It really is beautiful.
24:29Up until the 1950s, this room could have housed a whole family and possibly their animals too.
24:35The roof space above would have doubled up as a larder
24:39where hams and sausages would have hung alongside drying peppers.
24:43But with the roof gone,
24:45Martine has taken the opportunity to conjure up the spirit of the Moors
24:49who first settled in Rabatana over a thousand years ago.
24:53It reminds me of a Riyadh, maybe, in Morocco.
24:57So, you know, without Arabic roots here,
25:02it's kind of where you would sleep and you'd be completely hidden from everybody,
25:06but you can look at the stars.
25:09A Riyadh is a house centred around an inner courtyard,
25:13usually with gardens and fountains.
25:15Riyadhs are more often associated with rooftop terraces than roofless bedrooms,
25:20but both designs give visitors the chance to relax and gaze at the heavens.
25:25Martine can't do any cloud spotting now, though.
25:29She has guests from Switzerland due any minute.
25:33As the day's kind of disappeared,
25:34you think you've got loads of time in the morning
25:36and then all of a sudden the guests are arriving in ten minutes.
25:38I'm going to start making the bed up now.
25:43It doesn't take too long to finish the final touches
25:46and Martine can now head off to greet her guests.
25:51This is the mandarin.
25:53Lovely, lovely.
25:55I think it's my favourite, really, with these arches.
25:58And, yeah, so the Larabatane is an Arabic village,
26:04so these houses, nobody knows how old they are.
26:07You don't find any words.
26:09When I first saw it, I just couldn't believe that a place like this existed,
26:14and then when I managed to buy it, it was just incredible.
26:17Oh, my God.
26:26Oh, my God.
26:28Oh!
26:31This is...
26:32Oh, my God.
26:34Gary and Birgit have travelled nearly 1,000 miles to be in Rabatane,
26:38but it's clear they already feel the destination is worth the journey.
26:43Super romantic.
26:47Romantic.
26:47Super romantic.
26:48Super romantic.
26:49Our second honeymoon is ready to start now.
26:53Like Martine, Gary and Birgit have completely fallen in love with the idea of sleeping under the stars
27:02in the middle of this stunning ghost village.
27:05It is so rare that I don't find any words, but this is now happening.
27:12The main house is in here.
27:13You don't have to sleep outside if you don't want to.
27:15Can we meet here?
27:16Yes, yes, certainly.
27:17Everything is fine.
27:18Prego.
27:20So, this is where you'll be staying.
27:25After settling in and getting ready for bed,
27:27the couple prepare to step back into history.
27:32Beautiful.
27:33Look at that.
27:36Isn't it beautiful?
27:37We have here the open sky.
27:39Just like the first visitors to Rabatane over 10 centuries ago,
27:44they can snuggle down and marvel at the night sky.
27:48Have you seen any view like that?
27:50I did it when I was a child, last time.
27:53Yeah.
27:54For Martine, sharing the splendors of this once-abandoned village
27:58is a source of never-ending satisfaction.
28:00But she knows that goodwill alone
28:03is no guarantee of its future survival.
28:06The revenues her guests bring are vital
28:09if Martine's mission to save the rest of Rabatane
28:11is ever going to succeed.
28:15Golden dream.
28:17Sleep well, my darling.
28:18Back in Sheeshville, Tony and Terry have a job in front of them
28:32that they haven't been looking forward to.
28:34I'll come with you and grab some more.
28:39All our saviours are passionate about preserving the history
28:43that lies under every stone and behind every door.
28:46But sometimes things are beyond redemption.
28:50Today is the outbuilding day.
28:51Yes.
28:52We've got to do it, but it's a bit sad.
28:54I know.
28:54It's an old building, probably dating back 100, 150 years.
29:00Lovely building, and we're going to have to knock half of it down.
29:04In its heyday, this building was probably a stable for horses.
29:08But while its custodians have been away in the UK,
29:11it's slowly been surrendering to the elements.
29:13Unfortunately, last winter, we had a lot of rain, quite a bit of wind.
29:19It's brought down some of the wall nearest the road,
29:23and on the other side, quite a lot came down.
29:26Now what we're left with is just one high wall about that deep
29:31with a massive crack down it, and it's starting to lean.
29:35So now's the time to take it down.
29:38If you park under it or even stand under it too long,
29:41it might come down on you.
29:43Just like the cottages in La Boulière that Paul and Yip are wrestling with,
29:48this crumbling ruin has been built from stone and mud.
29:51It makes demolition unpredictable.
29:54It will.
29:57Tony's good friend Peter, who's more comfortable working at heights,
30:01is taking the lead again.
30:03Have I got to stand on that?
30:05All the way up there?
30:06All the way up, yeah.
30:08On your teppy toes.
30:09But Tony's doing his best to conquer his fears
30:12and is climbing the scaffold too.
30:15Would you hold your hand?
30:16Yeah.
30:18All the time I'm up here, I think.
30:21There's a massive bloody gap there.
30:24I can't do this.
30:26Awful.
30:28Tony slowly finds his feet,
30:30but getting used to the height is only half the challenge.
30:34So attached, isn't it?
30:36All the way growing in.
30:38Freeing the wall from the stranglehold of rampant ivy
30:41is going to be a battle too.
30:45This has been a right pain, to be honest.
30:47The ivy has managed to find its way
30:50under all the roof tiles and the roof stones.
30:53But when you've got a wall like this that's made of mud,
30:56if there's no render on it,
30:57it starts to get its roots into the mud.
31:00And then you've got problems.
31:02It's just sticking everything together.
31:05You know, I begin to think there's so much ivy in it,
31:07we might as well have left it,
31:08because it'd never fall down.
31:09As the foliage is stripped back,
31:13more of the original building is revealed,
31:15but it's a bittersweet moment for Terry.
31:19So sad to think that it's actually going to be coming down.
31:23Now, you get to actually see it
31:25without the massive clumps of ivy that were on it
31:28and really had hidden everything about it.
31:31Hid the fact that there was a window there,
31:33and it's going to be quite a lot lower than it is now.
31:37We've really got to do it,
31:39but it is a shame because it's looking so beautiful.
31:44Despite her attachment to the old building,
31:47Terry isn't about to shirk her responsibilities.
31:50OK, I'm coming up, Pete.
31:53So while Tony takes a tea break on terra firma...
31:56Go for another one. Mind your head, sir.
31:58Terry climbs the scaffold.
32:01I'm more stressed than I was going up there myself.
32:05I'm well impressed.
32:06It's nice to get hands-on with taking some of it down.
32:13It is quite a lot more tricky than you imagine.
32:19After a big group effort...
32:22What do you get past the roots? It's easy.
32:24There's finally some progress.
32:28That's a big piece of one of the cornerstones!
32:30It's starting to get a bit more satisfying now.
32:36But the nights are drawing in,
32:38and the change of season is working against them.
32:42Is it me or is it going a bit dark?
32:44It's going down, isn't it?
32:46Especially under the trees there.
32:47I might just do a couple of minutes and call it a day, I think.
32:51Because I don't want to climb down the scaffolding in the dark.
32:54I don't want to climb down it in the daylight,
32:56but the dark is definite.
32:57No, no.
32:59They'll need to do a bit more tomorrow morning,
33:01but most of the job is now done,
33:03and the old building is at a much safer height.
33:06Visa restrictions,
33:08and the need to push through their UK house sale,
33:11mean Tony and Terry will soon be heading back to Gloucestershire.
33:14But it feels like their village is slowly rising from its slumber.
33:19We've got two weeks left now before we go back to the UK.
33:22Yeah.
33:22So definitely got to get more of this building down.
33:25Once we've got that down to a safe level,
33:27which maybe another metre or so will do,
33:30then we can get cracking on in the house.
33:32Yeah.
33:32We've got to make some progress.
33:33Got to make some progress.
33:34Yeah.
33:39Coming up...
33:40I'm so excited, I can't believe it.
33:42Has Martine found another property to rescue in Rabatana?
33:47Oh, my goodness.
33:49No, I don't think so.
33:52And will La Bolière be ready for its first guests of the season?
33:57Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh.
33:58This isn't good, this isn't...
34:00I don't want that collapsing like that.
34:02We're just trying to stop an avalanche.
34:04Back in southern Italy, Martine is up early picking apricots from a nearby organic farm.
34:22These are a special variety called rubis, and they're biological, so they're organic, and they are absolutely exquisite.
34:31For her, saving Rabatana isn't just about breathing new life into the empty buildings.
34:36She's also keen to preserve the traditional culture,
34:39and takes every chance to support local artisans and farmers like Marinella, who share her passion.
34:46I said, I'm doing one, and you're picking, like, three.
34:48She said, it's my job.
34:49Martine plans to use the apricots in jam that she will provide the guests in her diffused hotel.
34:58This is the best.
35:00You know, you can't get better than this.
35:01It's absolutely delicious, isn't it?
35:03Mmm.
35:07Delicioso.
35:08Two days later, she's busy simmering the fruit with sugar to create a delicious breakfast treat.
35:15Basically, the recipe is a kilo of sugar to a kilo of apricots.
35:19Juice of one lemon to each kilo.
35:21So, there's three kilos of fruit here.
35:24The history of jam making goes back at least to Roman times,
35:27when fruit was preserved in honey to last over the winter.
35:30But it was after the Crusades, when sugar was brought back to medieval Europe,
35:35that jam really took off.
35:37Martine may be using a gas hob instead of an open hearth,
35:41but the recipe and the principles haven't changed in centuries.
35:45But what I really like about it is there's still pieces of fruit that are whole in the jam.
35:50You put it on bread.
35:51It's just lovely.
35:54While the mixture is still bubbling, Martine transfers it to the jars.
35:59Next, the jars are turned upside down to create a vacuum
36:04that starves any unwanted microorganisms of oxygen.
36:09And once it's cooled, it'll be ready for her guests.
36:14As fast as I can make it, it gets eaten, which is great.
36:17Martine's had a busy and successful summer season,
36:24and there could be another exciting opportunity right on her doorstep.
36:29Just below the staircase leading to Martine's Mandarin apartment,
36:33there's a little two-room abandoned home,
36:36which could be about to go on the market.
36:38They called me two days ago to say they wanted to sell the little house here.
36:43And it's so exciting because it's just perfect.
36:46It's in my courtyard, and it's small.
36:48It's really sweet.
36:49I'm so excited.
36:50I can't believe it.
36:54Oh, my goodness.
37:01Considering the house hasn't been lived in for more than 50 years,
37:04it's still in good condition, and Martine's mind is racing.
37:09I reckon you could take these floors out
37:11and open it all up to give a feeling of a lot more space.
37:16But if we got rid of all this, it'd just be lovely.
37:19I'd love to get up there.
37:20No, I don't think so.
37:28No.
37:32It's got a little fireplace.
37:34How sweet is that?
37:36I think the fireplace says a lot about how they lived here.
37:40They would cook dried beans in the piñata
37:43or they would cook things on the brachi, on the cinders.
37:49And, you know, you've got all of the equipment here
37:50for the different size pots and pans and things
37:53that they would have actually cooked on the fire.
37:56Just before leaving,
37:57Martine notices an add-on bathroom
37:59right at the back of the property.
38:02A lot of these bathrooms would have been added on in the 50s
38:04when water first came into the houses,
38:07and two of the houses I've bought didn't even have water connected.
38:10Curious to see how this extra room was created,
38:13Martine takes a walk outside.
38:15You see these all over the place,
38:17these toilets attached,
38:19and basically that's all they are
38:20because they don't have a shower or anything in there,
38:21just a hand basin.
38:22And, yes, I mean, you're sitting suspended
38:25over basically a couple of bits of metal stuck into that wall.
38:29Nobody's actually gone thoughtfully into it
38:31and decided how to build that.
38:33But I suppose back then in the 50s, it was great.
38:36What a luxury to have a toilet in your house.
38:39The wheels of a state agency can run slowly in Italy, though,
38:42so it could be a while before Martine finds out
38:45if she can save another little piece of the village.
38:48For her, resurrecting Rabatana
38:51is no longer just a labour of love.
38:53It's also now her life's work.
38:56I'm really, really, really interested.
38:58And, yes, I'm very...
38:59I would be absolutely distraught if I couldn't get it.
39:06In Normandy, Paul and Yip's glamping horse box is prepped
39:14and ready to welcome two returning guests.
39:17But as the front wall of the middle cottage is still precarious,
39:21Paul and Yip need to make it safe before their guests check in.
39:25We're on the stage three of this, aren't we?
39:29Yeah.
39:29Today we're going to finish taking these stones down.
39:32So where are we going? About halfway down the window?
39:35Yeah, about halfway down.
39:37Lovely.
39:37Let me get a sheet to collect all the rubbish
39:40that's going to fall off that wall.
39:41Yeah.
39:47Here we go.
39:48Since the couple have no professional training,
39:52a risky job like this means having complete trust in your workmate.
39:58Luckily, Paul and Yip have no qualms about that.
40:01We're making it as safe as possible
40:03just by putting these outrigger legs in place.
40:11They've been together for 20 years
40:13and their history goes back to childhood.
40:19Paul says that he was aware of me at school.
40:22I don't think he was aware of me as much as I was aware of him.
40:26You were the troublemaker in your Burgundy stay press.
40:31Yeah, I was aware of Yip and me at school,
40:34but he was in a different...
40:39Friend group.
40:40Friend group, I suppose, isn't it?
40:42And you were a bit more academic, weren't you?
40:46Yeah.
40:46I suppose in comparison to you.
40:49I'd had it by the time I'd got to Yip's school.
40:52The school I went to where Yip was was my third school.
40:55But anyway, that's another story.
40:58Oh, quite graceful do I get up there, like a swan.
41:01Shall I come up?
41:02Yeah.
41:05Having broken the back of this job a few weeks ago,
41:08finishing it today should be a breeze.
41:10We'll have this done in a jiffy, won't we?
41:13Yeah.
41:14Tea and toast on its way.
41:17But it isn't long before the stones start to give way.
41:21Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh.
41:23This isn't good, this isn't.
41:24I don't want that collapsing like that.
41:26Here, I'll take these ones off.
41:28Oh, God.
41:30Just the mud, that one.
41:32This one.
41:33We're just trying to stop an avalanche.
41:36Some stones have started to move.
41:39We're just trying to see where it should be
41:41and what's holding what.
41:43It's just very precarious at the moment.
41:45Really precarious.
41:47Oh, I see.
41:49Oh, oh, oh, oh.
41:56Crisis averted.
41:58Oh, that was...
41:59And after a few more hours of hard graft...
42:05God!
42:07..the couple are, at last, on the home stretch.
42:13Yeah, basically, we've just got some cleaning up to do.
42:16Yip's going to remove these handful of stones there.
42:19All this has got to come out.
42:21Clean all the joints out, sweep all this down,
42:24and then we're kind of almost there, aren't we?
42:30Well done.
42:32You're well done.
42:33Take this round.
42:34Paul and Yip finish up just in time
42:35to roll out the red carpet for their guests,
42:38George and Mary,
42:39who've driven all the way from Somerset.
42:42Third time returning guests.
42:46Oh, look, it's just so wonderful, isn't it?
42:52Paradise in the countryside.
42:54It's great to see you both.
42:55It's nice to be back.
42:58One dramatic change that's happened
42:59since Mary and George were last here
43:01is at the barn that overlooks the horse box.
43:04Oh, my goodness.
43:05The top section of that fell down on its own.
43:08Oh, did it?
43:08And then we dismantled the rest of it.
43:13It's a reminder of how quickly the sands of time
43:16are running out in La Boullière
43:17and how huge the challenges that Paul and Yip still face.
43:21Because the buildings are so old,
43:23you feel like just a blip
43:25in the long line of proprietors that it's had.
43:30So we want to kind of do what we can,
43:32but knowing that in terms of keeping some of it alive, at least,
43:36we're part of this place's history, aren't we?
43:38The couple are channelling their love for each other
43:43into resurrecting this ancient village
43:45and helping her come back to life.
43:47Like any relationship,
43:49it can lurch from agony to joy in a heartbeat.
43:53And there's no guarantee of a happy ending.
43:56But with three such strong entities
43:58as Paul, Yip and La Boullière,
44:00anything is possible.
44:03Most people come to France
44:06and it's a big enough project
44:07to buy a house that needs fully renovating.
44:10Yeah.
44:11But you've got blooming village.
44:13You've got the house there.
44:15I've got the old people and all that.
44:22Next time...
44:23Shall we go and have a little look?
44:24Yeah, come on.
44:26Paul and Yip rescue another house in La Boullière.
44:29Oh, wow.
44:30Construction work in Rabatana
44:31begins after years of waiting.
44:34It was an amazing surprise
44:35and I was just so happy.
44:37So happy.
44:38But it comes with a risk.
44:40If they happen to hit one of the rocks
44:42on the keystone,
44:44it could all just collapse.
44:46And in Shishville...
44:47Just imagine his mood.
44:48OK, I'll do that.
44:50Tony and Terry hit the ground running.
44:53Wow.
44:53You hit it twice as hard.
44:54Well, let's go.
44:55Come on.
45:12What's happening?
45:12Transcription by CastingWords
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