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Celebrity Escape to the Country Season 3 Episode 3 br Janet StreetPorter
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00:00and bodged yeah an arbiter of style and taste what is it feng shui yeah i don't believe in
00:08any of that but can we make a believer out of her it looks like a spaceship has landed
00:15and find a property out of this world oh wow i could see myself in this house by myself perfectly
00:30estate agents of the nation brace yourselves and gird your loins because a broadcasting icon
00:49fearless journalists and one of the nation's noisiest national treasures is escaping to the
00:55country so please welcome a lady who really requires no introduction other than these
01:02three little awe-inspiring words janet street porter
01:13well i'm a complete londoner i was born in uh fulham my dad was an electrician
01:21and my mom was a school dinner lady we didn't have a bathroom we had an outside toilet and we were
01:29allowed to use the inside bathroom on sunday afternoons between two and five now people might
01:37wonder why i turned out the way i did from humble beginnings janet street porter has spent over five
01:45decades shaping british media after cutting her teeth on fleet street she revolutionized youth
01:52television as a producer and broadcaster now holding court on loose women and in print she's still as
01:59opinionated sharp and unmistakably janet as ever including when it comes to her home
02:06when i'm in my house i don't want to be overlooked i don't want to hear neighbors i don't hear screaming
02:17kids i don't want to see a trampoline if i could ban one thing if i'm running britain trampolines gonna be
02:24banned thankfully she's as sure about the things she loves as she is about the things she doesn't
02:32i've lived by water since 1973 the repetitiveness of waves is very calming and i'm a very uh busy person
02:47i've got loads on my mind all the time i just find water it's just does it for me since studying
02:55architecture as a teen and designing her own home in the 1980s curating her environment has always
03:01been important to janet and with an apartment in central london she's now looking for a coastal
03:07hideaway in east anglia for her and husband peter keeping her in check is designer and art director
03:15christopher a suffolk resident and janet's longtime friend she's got an extraordinary knack and ability for
03:24the creating spaces and they have a very strong point of view i mean unsurprisingly with janet but
03:30she's got a very sure hand with her spaces she's not remotely interested in
03:35an idea of good taste it's it's very much her it's a unique vision very clearly articulated
03:42i think you've got a real challenge finding me something i think i've set you the impossible
03:49dream janet wants somewhere where i can be private i can be silent i won't get annoyed by neighbors
04:01go walking um just be myself without people coming up to me every bloody five minutes and saying are you
04:10janet street porter so if you see janet in the supermarket you have been warned
04:17when it comes to janet's wants and needs for her escape into anonymity there are just three
04:28things she insists on absolute peace sweet isolation and an uninterrupted view of the sea
04:36she's got up to one million pounds to spend and roughly zero tolerance for compromise
04:41the uk has thousands and thousands of miles of spectacular coastline for janet to escape to but
04:51she wants to focus our search here in gorgeous suffolk but i'm going to let you into a little secret
04:59just because the search starts here doesn't mean that it's going to finish here so watch this space
05:04set on england's east coast suffolk is close enough for the convenience of the capital
05:12yet far enough away to enjoy fresh sea air and the solitude janet craves
05:19a detached home here averages around 439 000 pounds just a touch above the national figure of 438 000.
05:29so you get all that charm without the london price tag
05:34from the gentle beauty of constable country in the dedham vale to the medieval streets of its famous
05:42wool towns much of suffolk's quiet landscape has remained unchanged for centuries but along its 50
05:51miles of coastline the traces of modern life are harder to miss in southwold's lively amusements and
05:58in oldborough's bustle of galleries and cafes and it's here that i'm meeting janet and christopher
06:04jenet thanks so much for doing this it's a pleasure i'm so excited to meet you too as well
06:11christopher thank you for keeping us company see i have nice friends nice friends with good taste i
06:16hope yeah i'm your emotional support animal i think yeah i give him a good kick in every now and then
06:23because many people i guess will know you from tv but they might not know that you started in
06:27architecture yeah i studied architecture when i left grammar school i got into the architectural
06:33association in london very prestigious college i did two years at the aaa and then i got job on a
06:40magazine and i was i immediately whisked up into journalism and within a year i was offered a job as a
06:49fashion editor and columnist so fashion took you away from architecture yeah but not really because i've
06:56always felt that architecture is one of the major loves of my life well your hat you had a beautiful
07:02house built which has been listed so you must have excellent taste what are you that's not what they
07:08thought at the time when i built my house when i built my house we had to go through every single
07:16protest group that could possibly have come up with some pitiful reason why my house couldn't be built
07:24in the city of you know in central london and then what happens 20 years down the line it gets
07:31listed you're a prophet christopher i'm gonna you're you're not so very far away here no yeah it's quite busy
07:38now suffolk it's quite trendy lots of people live on the coast do you think there's still pockets
07:42there's still pockets of kind of complete solitude it is quite isolated it's not really on the way anywhere
07:49is suffolk the only candidate i'm going to be honest with you every week i scale the property
07:55pages in the newspapers i do look online uh i look at scotland a lot i go to scotland on holiday every
08:03year i like fishing and walking so that's something i would consider well shall we shall we crack on and
08:09see the first house yeah yeah come on then follow me our search begins a few miles inland surrounded
08:18by the rolling countryside outside the village of levington it's just a four minute trot to the
08:26nearest pub and only a 10 minute drive to dip your toes in the sea at felixstone coastal views might be
08:35a little out of reach but the property does overlook the nearby orwell estuary
08:42in the surrounding open fields wild deer are said to wonder and there's a calm over this peaceful
08:48landscape which is more that can be said for me right now
08:56obviously it's a bit nerve-wracking showing you property because you're such a property mogul
09:01but i'm not a mogul well it's there i know what i like and don't like so what do you think about
09:07this house here we are i don't like seeing the neighbors yeah we thought that might be a bone of
09:12contention i'm kind of interested because bungalows have always been something i'd love to get my hands
09:19on and remodel but this bungalow has been turned into a multi-story dwelling so we'd have to go inside and
09:27see how the spaces all flow together shall we do that yeah come on in this detached home was
09:36originally single story and has since been extended to offer just under 2 000 square feet of accommodation
09:44we're heading into the newest part of the property which is sleek bright and unapologetically modern
09:50so a big open plan space kitchen acres of glass looking out i like open plan i like an island because
10:01you can put a lot of uh storage in it it's a social hub but at the same time i've never wanted to eat
10:09on a stool under a counter ever i just want the kitchen table you want a big kitchen table yeah i don't and
10:16also what when i'm doing a house i like to have old furniture and new furniture side by side i don't
10:23like everything being of the same age so let's let's just assume that whatever i'm going to show
10:29you you're going to completely gut and start again but you have to see the actual space that the shape
10:35the rectangular shape of the room and then you've got this coming off it it all flows through in one kind of
10:43rather bland seamless big room i think we all expected janet to have strong opinions but personally
10:52i think most people would love a layout like this but as we know janet isn't most people i wouldn't
10:58have a tv room per se you know never had a television in a bedroom i've never had the television in the
11:05living room i would put the television in a cozy room because you go to watch telly and you might watch
11:11it by yourself or you might watch it with your partner and the dog and have a bit of a row about
11:15why we're watching this and why you're watching reruns of bottom yet again and where everything's
11:21been erased off the planner so this is the opposite so if you did have a space like this that is the
11:27living room how would you arrange what is this big sofas i would make a grouping to enjoy the view
11:35look out of the garden if the fireplace works i'd create a focal point around the fire
11:42um definitely i don't think it should be both tv and fire i think it needs to be one or the other
11:47yeah i agree okay we've done two rooms how will the rest of downstairs fare
11:55oh my god we've got the spooky glass wall that disconcerts me enormously against my better judgment
12:02i'm leaving janet and christopher to explore the remaining ground floor accommodation where
12:07there's three bedrooms you have to put the bed like that and then you look out at the back you're
12:14at the back of your outdoor kitchen a bit your tiki bar area yeah i mean i quite like these janet wasn't
12:22a fan but i think it's quite nice little stool by the breakfast bar i've never had a house tour like
12:28this it's amazing it's a the house is really a backdrop to a lot of janet's wonderful opinions
12:33about houses in general but i think it's interesting what the house that janet's looking for is about
12:41what's the story because it's clearly not about big family spaces and modern open plan it's something
12:49cozy and probably a bit more remote than this
12:52so look here's another bed in the corner oh oh they've got two beds obviously you'd have one
13:03i always put the bed facing the door if possible i think i know there's all those kind of rules about
13:10what is it feng shui yeah i don't believe in any of that one thing you can say about this house it's
13:17got all the modern touches oh god what's this which might be exactly the problem what's that do
13:30before janet presses the button which seals all the doors and turns out the lights
13:34i'm steering her and christopher towards the principal ensuite bedroom and it has views
13:40oh yeah it does have great views oh this is great and a balcony what do you think
13:50i like the mixture of um of industrial and countryside yeah you've got the felixstowe container port over
13:57there i can't tell whether you're struck down yeah i'm just thinking it's um it's a view but it's a
14:05good view but it's not a fabulous view i'm quite clear in my head that when i see the right place
14:12i'll go wow it'll be like reading a book or or seeing a painting for the first time you'll see it
14:19and you'll go that that's me it may not have janet's name on it but there's a lot that sells this exquisite
14:29house including the slick outside kitchen with built-in barbecue the extra large terrace which
14:35extends onto the low maintenance garden and those good although i personally think great views
14:45i don't need to be a property sherlock to know that maybe this one is not for you
14:49but for the record how much do you think it's on the market for
14:52eight four nine i think it might be a bit more no eight seventy so this is on the market for hold
15:00your horses nine hundred and sixty thousand pounds
15:06for the right family it's the right house but maybe not for janet i don't want to come across as
15:11a curmudgeon or a nitpicker but can i remind you of what i asked for view of the sea peace and quiet yes
15:20but something that i would find uh you know invigorating and would resonate with me give me
15:27something that i can remodel that i can make mine because this house i couldn't turn it into janet's
15:34house it's just not possible well we could give you a bit more sea how about that yeah you're being
15:41very cautious of course i'm cautious you're sensing a knockback already that's that's not good enough
15:48alistair you've got to be a bit more competent with me okay right we're going to the sea and you're
15:53going to love it great
15:58janet's very honest feedback has taught me that no amount of countryside views will make up for the
16:04inability to remodel the house to her own taste modern and ready to move into not on janet's watch
16:12consider me firmly corrected
16:23i guess people do think of you as very outspoken people think i think the main thing is that if you're
16:29on television quite a lot of people feel related to you and then they see you in the street and
16:34they honestly think quite often you're a relative and quite often people come up to me you know hello
16:40how are you yeah and i think but you don't know me yeah so your home has to be a real sanctuary from
16:45all of that where you can completely relax slouch around oh wear horrible clothes i mean the thing is
16:52is now i've got like you know the tracking covid turned us into such slops and it's quite hard to
17:00come back out of it and wear non-elasticated waist trousers so that's you know that's what happened
17:09you don't wear a corset at home
17:14our next destination is in the historic coastal village of thorpe ness
17:18dreamt up by the ogilvy family in the early 20th century thorpe ness was designed as a seaside
17:27escape for the fortunate few today all are welcome with many stopping by for cozy cream teas
17:34rounds of golf and relaxing on the boating lake
17:40from the wild and windy shingle beach it's only a 35 minute stroll to oldborough's cafes and boutiques
17:47the property we're visiting sits on a private road raised up just enough to make the most of its good
17:54looks
17:57welcome into our second offering it's very imposing it's a nice solid looking house as well now you
18:04wanted the sea yes you couldn't get any close to the sea unless you were in the sea yeah i like the
18:09sound of the sea so i'm being drawn towards the building by the sound of the sea then let's skirt
18:16round the building go straight to the sea let's do that this detached black and white beach house
18:23has been watching the waves since the 1920s but will the view be up to janet's exacting standards
18:32wow great view thank goodness unimpeded horizon
18:38really like it it would keep me happy oh yes i can see another very ugly house over there this house
18:47is a bit set back so that's uh fine this is your path down to the beach there's some sleeper steps that
18:55take you to the beach okay and we're facing east the sun will rise over here because i've got a compass
19:01right okay so nelly eats sour watermelon so that's south yeah yeah so yes you're right it'll set on that
19:07side of the house what was that nelly thing nelly nelly eats sour watermelon that's how you remember
19:14the points of the compass my first janet street porter eye roll it's like getting a handshake from paul hollywood
19:20well is that a jacuzzi hello what's under that rug would a jacuzzi be a good thing or a bad thing
19:30no it'd be a symbol of everything i hate let's get inside before she vetoes anything else
19:40so here we have the living space how have they done on the focal point front i think it works
19:45uh really well because if you own this house you'd spend a lot of time in this room it's the room with
19:52the view and because of the big expanse of glass that is going to be as good as having the television
19:57on easily yeah and it's nice that they've got they've kind of retained some of the the original
20:02features i mean this fireplace is a nice original fireplace i like the fact there's no curtains
20:07yeah i could work on this room i mean i could do something what would you do i'd probably lighten up the
20:14floor a bit to bring more light to the back of the room should we continue the tour so there's
20:18another dining room it's uh it's all facing the the sea beautiful big dining space yeah um do you
20:26really need a separate dining room i'd be probably using it as an office oh even better i'll be sitting
20:31on my computer staring out at the sea dare i say it it's going quite well next door to the dining
20:39room is the kitchen which much like the other rooms downstairs overlooks the sea and there's no
20:45breakfast bar in sight so here's the kitchen you've got a utility room yeah and uh stove yeah and at the
20:55end of the kitchen you've got this i think quite unique feature where you can open up all the windows
21:00so it's become sort of outside inside what do you think of the kitchen yeah no it's good good wow
21:06but i'm starting to realize with janet there's always a but you have the hot boiling hot pan
21:14you've lift you've you've got a pan on here you've lifted it off that lid's down where'd you go so i
21:20haven't integrated it into the kitchen this way or that way there's a gap and you've got to i think it
21:28it's difficult you can shoot you could extend the worktop yeah i did it looks so um bodged so what
21:36i'm noticing is that you are talking a lot about this house you're looking at things which wasn't
21:41the case in the first house does that mean that this kind of it's inching towards being acceptable
21:48but it still feels hemmed in at the sides because look oh yeah you have got the stockade the view is
21:56incredible and there's some really nice details as well even even the sort of cabinetry is nicely
22:01detailed and the ironwork and the pools and yeah it's done it's done uh to a high standard i'm going
22:07to let you explore upstairs and uh when you're done let me know yeah well you could check out the
22:13utility room also they're very thorough these don't feel right though these tiles feel like that
22:22they're on a hollow floor they've been placed on a wood block floor yeah on boards but nice sink
22:32four double bedrooms await janet and christopher upstairs
22:36the family bathroom is ready for a refresh whilst the principal has the benefit of its own ensuite
22:42okay well this is good you can lie in the bath and look out and see very nice i would get rid
22:52of these built-in covers all they are is boxes to put things in outside and never so they don't
22:58add any plus to the room to the character of the room would you put the fireplace back in
23:04maybe yeah and then i'd i'd stress out about how near to the end of the bed the fire was probably
23:11anyway the dog would lie in front of it and block it um it's very striking in this house there's a lot
23:19of tapping the wall looking at the floor checking the windows there's an engagement with the property
23:25that was completely absent this morning and although janet's never going to be the gushy type
23:30i do feel that there are some sterling qualities about this property that she likes
23:38another bedroom right i think there's quite an argument in this house for knocking these two
23:44rooms back into one so that you've got one really lovely big second bedroom for guests and then you've
23:53got another room that could be an office or a study or whatever yeah so i like the idea of having
24:03the balcony that's great i mean it's fantastic but if you're not through you'd have two bedrooms
24:09two bathrooms and an office yeah that's great which is what you need and then downstairs is more
24:14open plan yeah aha when they start redrawing the floor plan you know it's serious maybe janet is
24:21starting to imagine her new life here do you think it's not it's it's not secluded enough still
24:28it's definitely not secluded on its own on the end of the beach i feel that the people on either
24:33side will want me to come in for cocktails but they probably won't i can't do that
24:40okay so cocktail hours a no but how about something a little more their style
24:44a quick game perhaps so i'm going to take advantage of the fact that we've got two trendsetters in the
24:52world of property and interiors with us today and i'm going to check what is in and what is out with
24:59interior design objects from all sorts of eras um and the choice that christopher and jenet have to make
25:07is fab okay so we're going to start with a good one i think for this lacal which are horse brasses
25:19so a very traditional thing that we see often mounted on leather by fireplaces
25:25ah interesting i'm going to say fab because i'm seeing a black room with maybe 400 of them
25:32penned to the wall simply oh he's designing a chill out room in a hip pub or something yeah
25:38i'm thinking if i walked into a house now that those there i just turn around and walk out
25:45no no really don't hold back okay so this is a standard classic
25:51double double drab double drab no place no place and then they never will be what about
25:56in a bright color if it was done by a famous british artist and worth a lot of money double drab
26:06fake fruit fake flowers why would you have a fake lemon when real lemons are lovely well because they
26:13don't rot i do see it a lot why don't you go through these houses and just purge the glug jug
26:21difficult tricky oh i'm going to save both fat drab what about you janet i can't be bothered with it
26:32do you know what i mean one last go before i lose their goodwill entirely pithy wisdom painted on a
26:39sign in the kitchen it's okay if you disagree with me i can't force you to be right i don't understand
26:46basically that you're right well i know i'm right i'm taking that's a drab drab doesn't really cut
26:52it does it drab it's disgusting it's beyond drab i would never bother with a slogan in my house
26:58because anyone who comes around knows it's my way or the wrong way
27:08turning our attention back to the house there's plenty that's fab about its setting
27:14the lawned front garden is neatly manicured whilst out the back the extensive timber deck
27:20is good for big get-togethers or solitary moments of reflection
27:29so we see inside the house what do you think the price tag on this one is
27:34hard to tell but i'd guess 890 000 they'd be asking 890 000 i'm gonna say 1.1 1.1
27:43million yeah well i think that's hopelessly optimistic because in the financial climate
27:50we're in i find that hard to believe that they'll be able to shift this house to that moment it's
27:55on at 895 000 pounds well i was going to say at night 895. every room frames a view of the sea in
28:04this four bedroom detached beach house giving it instant appeal and at 895 000 there's scope for janet to
28:12make it her own the question is can she live with company this close by
28:22with our property tours wrapped for the day it's only right we head to the beach
28:27for a quick debrief before the sun goes down well janet how do you think we've done today
28:33well um i think you've done pretty well i'd say b minus you know b but the bottom line is neither
28:44house offer me solitude they offer me the sound of the sea and seagulls seagulls yeah but i think
28:52you've failed what we're struggling with is there's not enough isolation there certainly isn't i think
28:58we're going to have to go further afield you mentioned scotland yeah how do you feel about
29:02scotland thrilled come up with somewhere there's your challenge okay you gave me a challenge i'm going to
29:08rise to it bring it on scotland here we come with a name like alistair appleton i'm always aiming for
29:16straight a's so next stop scotland
29:19we're taking a 500 mile leap of faith to the hebridean island scattered off scotland's west coast
29:41a diverse chain of interconnected isles the hebrides are divided into two distinct groups
29:47defined by how far they lie from the mainland furthest out to sea are the outer hebrides a wilder
29:57more remote stretch running for over 130 miles and home to lewis and harris
30:07closer in lie the inner hebrides a little bit more connected yet every bit as captivating
30:13made up of 35 inhabited isles sky is the largest and best known
30:22together they form one of scotland's most distinctive regions breathtakingly beautiful and
30:28wonderfully remote so which hebridean gem are we heading for
30:33welcome to isla isn't it beautiful and only 3 000 people are lucky enough to call this island home
30:43which equates to five people per square kilometer compared to 200 people per square
30:49kilometer in suffolk and as for coastline well isla has 130 miles of the salty stuff
30:56lying at the southern tip of the inner hebrides isla is celebrated for its rugged beaches abundant
31:06wildlife and world famous whiskies it forms part of the unitary council area of argyle and bute
31:14where buyers can expect to pay around 315 000 pounds for a detached home 28 lower than an equivalent
31:22property in suffolk nine distilleries craft isla's signature peaty single malts many named after the
31:31island's landmarks from bermor the capital to macha bay a sweeping beach on the west coast
31:39the village of portner haven doesn't have a whiskey named after it but we got some really nice shots of
31:45seals here so thought it was worth a mention we've arrived in the harbor town of port ellen which thanks
31:52to the ferry terminal is the first glimpse many visitors have of life here i promised you scotland
31:59here it is yeah in all its wondrously windswept glory yeah it's just the kind of weather i like is it
32:06yeah loads of cloud we'll probably get five different weathers today and that'll be fine it's good and we
32:12can have a bit of isolation here yeah once we get out of this town yes i mean there are not many towns
32:18to be fair we had to start somewhere christopher are you a fan of scotland i love it i like this
32:23weather i think it's they call it drink weather yeah i think this is actually officially balmy
32:28yeah drink is when it starts raining oh right yeah that could happen in the next 10 minutes
32:33have you been to isla before no i haven't been to isla i've filmed on some of the scottish islands
32:39before i went storn away a couple of years ago i rented a house on ali and shona um so this is exciting
32:48for me very exciting do you know christopher have you been to isla not to isla i've been to tyree
32:53which i'm hoping this is similarly beautiful it looks like it is i've never been escape has never
32:58been so this is a first for all of us yes and we've got uh houses yep plural houses plural
33:06it's exciting oh it is exciting shall we go and see all one of them yep
33:14our first stop on isla is seven miles south of port ellen on the windswept cliffs of the o peninsula
33:23protected within an rspb nature reserve this distinctive corner of the island climbs to over
33:30200 meters above sea level at its highest point
33:32the property we're here to see is over a kilometer from its nearest neighbor and is the
33:40most southerly inhabited house in the whole of the western isles jenna you wanted remote
33:47is this remote enough it's got everything that i like about the approach to a house
33:53you drive through absolutely arid nothing happening countryside with fabulous views you pass that and
34:01you end up here amazing right it's perfect it's so beautiful and of course you've got the lovely cows
34:09i love a highland cow if i was to live here the cows wouldn't be an issue and they've got big horns
34:14these ones nothing to me christopher what do you think of the location it's spectacularly beautiful
34:20i love the remoteness and i like the and looks then seems quite flat and then suddenly at this end it
34:25gets also crinkly it's beautiful really beautiful i mean the thing about these houses in such exposed
34:32places is they generally are pebble dashed which is a bit of a you know you've got to get past that
34:38because i don't particularly like pebble dash but it's okay it looks like it's reasonably well maintained
34:44i like the fact the windows are all painted dark it looks like it's been built for weather yeah yeah
34:50yeah it looks solid let's go develop should we have a look yeah come come
34:57thought to have been built in the late victorian era this detached farmhouse is typical of many on isla
35:05inside the porch makes for a handy keeper of wellies and waterproofs
35:09and leads into the welcoming hall lovely stone floors and very spacious feel to it
35:18this is the main sitting space very nice high ceiling yeah gorgeous and the and the view's just
35:25there isn't it it's fantastic what are your thoughts janet well it it's a lovely proportioned room
35:32it's clearly been looked after by someone who's got good taste so it's a very pleasing
35:38room to be in just the way that it is you've got a view from every window yeah it's an impressive
35:47room and what's also nice is often in victorian houses the kitchens were stuck at the back where
35:51the servants were but here they put it at the front so it's also got lots of light
35:56here's the kitchen which is oh i love it it's a real
36:01old country kitchen this is great again it's good to have such a light kitchen
36:09was my main beef about kitchens is a lack of light that's fabulous down the back you've got a kind of
36:16walk-in pantry but you've also got this gigantic utility room at the back of the house which is
36:22really lovely so this is more of like a social kitchen this is actually where you would eat
36:26this is good yeah it's a good sized kitchen to eat in it's interesting uh janet when you i think
36:32you quite like this you're much more subdued than when you don't like something where there's a little
36:36more animation well because it happens to kind of resonate with me it's got character and it's
36:42decorated in a characterful way so that's good that i'm fine with that janet is clearly seeing the
36:50potential of this property and i'm delighted downstairs there's a small study however i'm
36:56imagining janet would prefer to write in a room with a view like the conservatory perhaps which
37:02they're checking out by themselves i mean the position of this is fantastic i'd take this off
37:09and start again you think it's too hideous it just feels a little bit like i know you've been a bit of a
37:13snort about the the fattest plastic window there's a bit like those places with those those places
37:18where people were kind of wheeled out to take the sunshine yeah it's an old place and old people's
37:22sun lounge yeah i'm an old person now although i'm finding the plus side maybe this is ideal for you
37:30upstairs there are four double bedrooms for her principal janet can choose between the largest room
37:37or a slightly smaller one that comes with a non-sweet shower so let's go in this bedroom
37:44oh is this the master do you think i don't know it smells damp i think this feels really nice yeah
37:50really nice you're just drawn to the view i do like these deep window returns so it feels like
37:55you're sort of yeah protected a bit from the wind it feels so cozy yeah
38:01a family bathroom more than does the job but it could be a great little project
38:08unless of course she's eyeing up a bigger challenge in the remaining two bedrooms
38:14it's a single bed i quite like this i would sleep here a little monastic cell i hate single beds
38:21a decent sized room but they've obviously cut it into it to make a bathroom or another room
38:27but maybe you could use maybe there's a way of changing that okay let's have a look at the other
38:32room all right immediately you take that wall out just no question you want a bedroom with front and
38:41back aspects so that's it full stop it's such a contrast to the houses in suffolk where there's a
38:47lot of commentary but not much engagement here i can hear christopher and janet really kind of
38:52thinking about what they would do what they would get rid of what they would change
38:56that's good engagement oh yeah share them all right it's a bit like a tardis well that's perfectly okay
39:04and i wonder where that is is that the house which i think is just tremendous is it the location
39:10is it the combination of both it is hard to imagine a better setting but beyond the views there's also
39:17opportunity three substantial barns lie in the grounds two of which are empty one is used for storage
39:25but there's tons of this though plenty of scope for um okay oh i love the corrugated roof
39:35oh my god oh how fabulous look at this this is amazing treasure trove this is fantastic
39:43and it goes around in sort of quadrangle so you right so you've got a full set of outbuildings
39:48you could put leaky roofs all of your guests in these then you could have the top the top floor
39:53of the thing well it's made me think no i would not make this a space into anything more than a
40:01fabulous space perhaps to work in but this is a big costly project yeah i don't know what you do with
40:08this it's a bit of a folly let's be honest it's a good fully though it's a nice funny
40:12on a plot of just under an acre the farmhouse enjoys a southeast facing garden overlooking
40:20the surrounding rspb nature reserve and the cliffs beyond it's a view that stops you in your tracks but
40:28has the house had the same effect on janet and christopher
40:34you were away for ages that's a good sign yeah how did you find the outbuildings they were quite
40:39exciting yeah we're just indulging our fantasies really is it a money pit you know but it doesn't
40:46have to be done at once i mean it's a it's a project that there's a loss of outbuilding yeah but at my
40:51age i don't let it i wouldn't be hanging about i'll be doing it straight off so i guess you need to know
40:57how much it costs yeah what do you think the price is of this one low 300 330 330 330 000 340
41:07what do you think christopher i will say 320 000. oh even lower okay so this you may be surprised to
41:16know is on the market for offers over 550 000. your market research has failed you totally
41:29having been personally awarded a b-minus for my efforts in suffolk i feel we're heading closer to
41:34top marks with this detached farmhouse it more than lives up to janet's hopes for sea views and solitude
41:41and at offers over 550 000 pounds it sits well within her million pound budget
41:48we do have another house up our sleeve thank goodness because i've come a long way i just don't
41:55want a choice of one shall we go yeah whether property shopping in scotland or england the good
42:12news is you don't need a million pound budget to bag a property with a sea view
42:17take this detached home in the popular coastal town of southwold in suffolk where our search began
42:26with two bedrooms and a veranda that leads straight onto the dunes it's available for 500 000 pounds
42:36a similar budget on isla would get you this large detached home with three reception rooms and five
42:43bedrooms its elevated gardens offer views to lock gorm and the paps of dura and is priced at offers over
42:52495 000 pounds
42:57for our finale we're not straying far remaining on the o peninsula but traveling slightly inland
43:17we're now within four miles of the town of port ellen though you'd never guess it out here
43:22the property we're visiting is one of two nearby holiday lets currently on the market yet their
43:31turfed roofs blend so seamlessly into the landscape that each feels entirely secluded
43:39as you may have gathered janet is a hard audience to please and for a mystery house well what do you
43:46show someone who is really a striking sharp-edged feature of the national landscape well you show her
43:55something like this with its sense of splendid isolation sweeping sea views and impeccable design
44:04i'm hoping this is the one that finally wins over janet and christopher
44:16the mystery house wow wow it looks like a spaceship has landed it does like an
44:24alien eyebrow right it's a bit hobbity as well it's sort of nestled in its nature it's got a nod to the
44:30hobbits yes no i love it it sits very well in the landscape yeah i'm not too happy with seeing the roof
44:36of that house there but now i'm being really picky um and i don't like the fence except there are cows
44:44there are cows yeah christopher any thoughts from from the i really like the way it's so satin to
44:50the hillside it i mean i mean it really is really successfully done it's lovely the color scheme of
44:57the materials just blends right in and it looks solid it looks like it's not going to be at the
45:02mercy of the elements it's a robust structure should we go inside yeah this stone-clad lodge has a living
45:11roof and a ground source heat pump to make it super eco-friendly built 13 years ago its centerpiece
45:19is the open plan living space oh wow what a big room this is great you can't tell it's going to be this
45:29big from outside and it's got 180 degrees of view you've got underfloor heating under this native
45:37um it's cozy yeah and you've got a nice big kitchen here with a stove i know you're a great chef well
45:43i'm not a chef i'm a decent cook yeah it's a it's a good sized kitchen ate the worktop obviously
45:53nothing's perfect but nothing is perfect love the space i just think the space suits one person as much
46:01as it suits for so it's really good and i could see myself in this house by myself perfectly happy
46:10you are tucked away here you haven't got anyone overlooking you at all is this rented out these are
46:17holiday lets i believe at the moment well it's it's decorated to a very good standard for a holiday
46:22there yeah it really is if i rented this for holiday i'll be absolutely pleased it's very cozy there's an
46:29outdoor bath because there's a sauna oh how lovely yeah do you like a sauna i love a sauna me too and
46:38then a plunge pool the ice cold water do you do that not so much this would be a great house for me
46:43to write in yes really really great house to work in it's really good i'm a keen writer myself and i
46:51can't think of a better view to stir the imagination and when you're done writing page turners there's
46:58only one place to head to decompress oh my goodness the sauna it's actually quite spacious it is spacious
47:06yeah i'm not feeling it you're not feeling it well we haven't got to switch the sauna on how many
47:20people could you get in here because i would never share the sauna with more than one i don't know about
47:25you get out i wouldn't be i wouldn't be sharing with anybody when it comes to bedrooms there are two
47:32to choose from both ensuite all right it's big roll spacious i love the ceiling yeah it's great isn't
47:41oh look at the view from the bed it's a pretty good view i mean you would lie in bed and watch it
47:47all happening i mean you wouldn't need to have a garden you know i don't want a garden let the scrub
47:52grow up the edge it's lovely yeah and i mean i could imagine putting artwork in here yeah having
47:58lovely rugs it'd be a great place to sit and read yeah when janet's liked a property in the past she
48:05and christopher have enjoyed talking in detail about how she could make it her own in this property with
48:12almost nothing to change janet's free to picture how life might actually feel here second room's also
48:19really good size and you wouldn't really squabble over who got what bedroom no i think this is great
48:25too and the bathroom's nice though this is great i mean there's a pressure this is like a bathroom i
48:33would design for me you walk in you can put your arms out and it's two meters across garden wise there's
48:42roughly half an acre of grassed grounds that come with the property though when the weather turns i'd be
48:48inclined to enjoy it from the comfort of the sofa oh it's bracing out here yeah it certainly is good
48:55for the soul actually this is a nice aspect of the house what do you think of the house now from having
48:59seen inside i really really like the house it's got a lovely lovely sense of space inside it so you know
49:07you gave us those cards the other day i kept two i nicked them oh when we played fab or drab how are we
49:16doing with this one yay okay what does it what does a fab property in this location cost though i've got an
49:26idea in my head do you want to go first this time christopher um i'm going to say 460 000
49:34pounds no i think 375 well jenna you were wildly out on the last one but you are spot on for this one
49:41that's amazing well offers over 375 000 so it's way out i think it's worth 375 000. easily within
49:54budget this private lodge promises peace sea views and just the right amount of luxury leaving janet beaming
50:02from ear to ear it could be a hideaway for all seasons and to put that to the test we've got a little
50:08surprise in store now you did mention that you could imagine spending time here writing yeah i
50:16did would you like to spend this evening here because we've booked it for you too have you yeah
50:22oh how lovely can't wait can we go we can go in the sauna you can go in the sauna i can make christian
50:27have a cold bath i've checked there's actually a warm water as well so you can get it warm for you
50:31excellent but i thought it'd be nice to have a test run right yes yeah i think we're gonna have supper
50:35here then as well well save me something for breakfast that's exciting i'm really excited
50:41yeah we'll bring your we'll bring your bags and you can settle in excellent gosh oh really excited
50:48with their belongings brought in from the car janet and christopher are free to settle into the lodge
50:53for the hebridean test drive are we going to squabble over who gets what i'm not going to fight
50:59i think i don't like that fact that's two beds pushed together so i'm going to give it to you
51:05okay all right all right so this is yours yeah as long as it's long enough i'm going to hear me
51:10snoring through the partition hang on let me listen to the wall well i've got my earplugs anyway
51:17that's probably going to be mercy the weather for once is on their side so janet christopher
51:23and the stag decide to make the most of it so with boots laced and spirits high they head out on
51:32their own to explore the island could you cope with this do you think could i live here all year
51:38round no no but i'd come here all the time i'd miss it when i wasn't here and i'd think about it when i
51:48have a good time and you could write your columns here and do your make your plans for world domination
51:55from a with james bonderi after a windswept wonder along kilnorton bay it's on to port ellen's
52:04secure dinner and something suitably scottish it's really beautiful then back to the lodge to unwind
52:13while dinner cooks here i am in the sauna very relaxing
52:22dropping a bit more water on now why isn't my cameraman in the bath outside in the freezing cold wind
52:32doesn't um attract me strangely goodbye
52:40a few final touches to the table
52:44there we go and dinner is served and we're off delicious fantastic lobster dinner
52:52boiled scottish potatoes courgettes fennel and rocket salad cooking with hot courgettes cooked by me
53:00beautiful grilled lobster grilled by christopher excellent delicious well cheers
53:07okay all right let's start as night falls the lodge and its guests settle into the stillness of island life
53:22and by the morning the sky is awash with pink glowing just as brightly as i hope janet and christopher are
53:34after their overnight stay sadly by the time my alarm sounds the weather has dramatically turned this is proper
53:42the scottish weather
53:48but it's nothing some tea and pastries
53:51and pastries good morning hello hello hello we've seen an incredible range of property in two stunning locations but how are janet and christopher feeling as the search draws to a close
54:06well it feels like we've been house hunting for weeks i know it's taken its toll
54:12but how did you sleep in here really well really really well
54:17and how was your lobster
54:18the lobster was absolutely memorable
54:21i think if i lived here i'd be on a seafood diet it would just be absolutely fantastic
54:28because you fish right you fish i fish i can catch mackerel
54:32well it's a shame we're not doing a cookery show but we are actually doing a property show so what are
54:36your feelings about living here what about this property the reality is that when we sat here last
54:42night and the light was going down and the cows came right up to the fence i immediately said uh to
54:49christopher do you know i'm going to rent this for a whole week to see what it feels like when you're
54:55here day after day um and then take it from there so i don't have to read between the lines very deeply
55:03to see that this is probably your favorite of all the houses we've shown you well it's definitely my
55:08favorite i don't know about it yeah but i don't know about him because he doesn't always agree with me
55:14what do you think i love this house but i would be more excited by owning the one on the hill here
55:21just because it was more dramatic and more on its own and more thrilling it was strangely thrilling yeah
55:28and overall do you feel that uh we've shown janet a good spread of absolutely i'm very sad about
55:35suffolk because it's my county and i and i love it um but i could see it didn't offer janet the
55:43combination of elements that she required uh how has it been for you janet has it been a
55:47worthwhile experience oh i loved it i've come to scotland at the drop of a hat it's been a pleasure
55:53it's been a pleasure i've loved it it's been great fun thank you well keep us in the loop
55:57i'll keep you in the loop send us some pictures of what you do with the decor certainly not
56:02ah splendid scottish weather now i know i've looked completely cool and composed on the outside
56:16but i have on the inside been quite nervous this week because janet is famously outspoken and she's
56:22also very very knowledgeable about property but i think it all paid off the journey from suffolk to
56:28scotland was a big hit and it's very lovely to see how much she treasures the silence
56:34and stillness here in isla and she's going to book the mystery house for another week's trial run
56:40so i hope the weather brightens and i hope you join us next time for more escape to the country
56:48if you would like to escape to the country in england northern ireland scotland or wales
56:54remember you don't need to be famous so why not apply online at bbc.co.uk forward slash take part
57:13you
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