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00:01From the glistening waters of the Med to the mountainous Alps,
00:05all across Europe, brave Brits are chasing new beginnings.
00:09Let's get this show on the road, huh?
00:11I mean, just look at this backdrop here.
00:13Essex was nothing like this.
00:15The stakes are high.
00:17This is definitely a gamble. I put everything in. All my life savings.
00:21We've got a lot riding on this.
00:22Our futures, our children's futures.
00:24We need to make some money.
00:25As they launch B&Bs...
00:27Service.
00:28..and pubs in France...
00:30We're very new at this.
00:31Wow.
00:32Good job the wines, Chi.
00:34..to wellness retreats and holiday parks in Bulgaria.
00:38It's not big enough.
00:39We measured it. I don't understand.
00:41It's a journey into the unknown.
00:44Whoa.
00:45That's cool.
00:46Boo!
00:47But we're joining them for the ride.
00:50As they tee off...
00:52Oh!
00:53..their new lives in the sun.
00:55I just walk around with a smile on my face all the time.
00:58Best life ever!
01:01Today...
01:02Can I give it a whirl?
01:03Go!
01:05..a family from Hertfordshire are hoping their glamping and events business
01:09will take flight.
01:10Never did this in London.
01:13..but with a new build and a new business,
01:15have they bidden off more than they can chew?
01:18Trying to keep everything going is really hard.
01:20It's good, but there's a lot.
01:21We meet a family from Nottingham banking on a fresh start in France.
01:26We will be the first people in here for 300 years,
01:29and now we get to make bedrooms in there.
01:32So that's pretty cool.
01:33With an ancient farmhouse and sheets to renovate,
01:36can the old properties sustain their new life?
01:39Every single penny we have is in this project.
01:44It's in France.
01:44So it has to work!
01:46And the perfect location is the answer to an antique enthusiast's dreams.
01:51Everybody comes to wear me to enjoy themselves,
01:54and I can't really see me going anywhere else.
01:56But will his shop and B&B be warmly welcomed?
02:01Well, I was going to introduce myself to the neighbours,
02:03but I don't think I have to now.
02:13Unlike its more famous neighbours, Tuscany and Lazio,
02:17Umbria, known as the Green Heart of Italy,
02:20is unspoilt, authentic and deeply rooted in tradition.
02:25It's a place where community still matters
02:28and life is lived slowly.
02:31This is what it's about.
02:32The fact that we can go out for lunch on a weekday
02:36is really, really nice.
02:38Really, really, really cool. I love it.
02:41And it's where the Harrison family from Hertfordshire
02:44have put down roots,
02:45after Rob and Fran, weary of their London commutes,
02:49decided it was time for a change of pace.
02:51Looks amazing, doesn't it?
02:53The Italian food is extremely fresh.
02:56It's all, yeah, locally sourced and very delicious.
03:00Not a bad local gaff, is it?
03:02This is our favourite restaurant, really, isn't it?
03:04My favourite restaurant, I don't know.
03:08At first, it's really quite weird to go somewhere
03:12and you're not being hustled.
03:14We just couldn't get it in our heads.
03:16Still can't get it. Wow.
03:17You're going to stop for lunch?
03:19What, two hours?
03:21Three hours?
03:22However, it slows you right down.
03:24Yeah, but also, you know, we do have respect for, like,
03:27they go home, they spend time with their family,
03:29they eat lunch together.
03:30There's a lot more emphasis on family.
03:32Yeah.
03:34Freeing themselves from the rat race,
03:37former photo agent Fran and plumber Rob
03:39are now striving for a simpler and more connected lifestyle
03:43with their two children, Mabel and Alfred.
03:47We had a wonderful life, we were having a very beautiful existence.
03:52Yeah.
03:52But we weren't seeing our children enough
03:54and that was the main driver.
03:56After an extensive house hunt around the medieval town of Montone,
04:01they eventually realised that the perfect place to launch their new lives
04:04was right under their nose.
04:06We were renting down there and we were looking out there for, like, a year,
04:10just going further and further and further from Montone.
04:13And it was literally behind us, up the hill.
04:19For 390,000 euros, the pair are now the owners of a 22-hectare farm.
04:27Throwing themselves in at the deep end,
04:29they're not only learning about agriculture...
04:32Never did this in London.
04:34Come and go. Go.
04:36..but also the challenges of designing and constructing
04:39the new family home they've sunk their savings into.
04:45The family currently live in a rental nearby
04:48and to ensure they can afford to complete their ambitious house build,
04:52they need to get the other arm of their new business open
04:56and turning a profit.
04:58We're basically trying to create somewhere that we want to be.
05:01a mini glamping site, a clubhouse,
05:04and what will be a yoga sort of event space.
05:08But at the moment, it's not a business.
05:11At the moment, it's spending a lot of money to create a place
05:16like the Field of Dreams,
05:17where just build it and they will come, we hope.
05:22It's now January.
05:25After a winter break, work is soon to resume on Fran and Rob's new hilltop home
05:30that'll eventually have three bedrooms,
05:33large open-plan living spaces and an infinity pool,
05:37which all comes at a cost.
05:41Keeping on budget is really hard,
05:43because anything that you want to do
05:45does invariably cost double what you think.
05:50With big bills to pay, the pressure is now on to hit their deadline
05:54to open their glamping business to paying guests
05:57for the first time in April.
06:00But the site continues to be some way off completion.
06:05Two-man sauna, bathroom.
06:07It doesn't look great.
06:08It looks a bit of a mess.
06:10We've got a lot to do before people arrive in a couple of months.
06:14With guest bookings taken and facilities promised,
06:17but not yet in place, there's plenty to do behind the scenes.
06:21So this is sort of the little mini amphitheatre, auditorium thingamajig.
06:25Stone going round in a sort of crescent moon shape.
06:29And then there's this inflatable screen that'll be in front of there.
06:33Plug her in, blows up and then projector.
06:36And obviously all we can play here is gladiator over and over on repeat.
06:42And on the other side of their camping ground,
06:45while they've got the child-friendly zip line up...
06:47Can I give it a whirl? Goal!
06:53LAUGHTER
06:55Imagination still needed for their more daring descent.
06:59The adult one, we've not quite built it yet,
07:02but I've got it now attached to the tractor and the digger.
07:05So before guests can use it,
07:08I've got to do a little bit of work to get the tension right,
07:11the angle right,
07:12because below that the land drops away, so it's really far down.
07:18Scary, but it'll be fun.
07:19It'll be ready for the summer.
07:28In the heart of the countryside in mid-west France,
07:32nestled between vine-clad valleys and sunflower fields,
07:36lies Savigny, a hidden gem where sleepy villages rub shoulders with verdant pastures.
07:43It was this peaceful idyll that appealed to Rachel and Jay from Nottingham.
07:48The way of life is so much more laid back than the UK.
07:53Yeah, slower-paced.
07:54Slower-paced.
07:55And also the climate as well.
07:57More months of summer, don't you?
07:59Yeah.
07:59And milder winters.
08:00Yeah.
08:02Having made the decision to sell up in the UK and make a new life in France
08:07with twin daughters Georgia and Harriet,
08:09in 2024 the couple bought a three-acre plot
08:13with a house, old barn and a vineyard for just €95,000.
08:19And they have big plans to sustain their life here.
08:26So our dream is to create, what would you call it,
08:32a holiday experience in rural France.
08:35So the end dream is three or four geats and a glamp site,
08:40a lovely swimming pool, a beautiful little place that you can come to
08:44that just caters for your every whim when you're on holiday.
08:49Back in the UK, Rachel had worked as a counsellor in schools
08:54and Jay a painter and decorator.
08:56And this is the first time they'll be pooling their skills
08:59to create a business together.
09:01But they're quietly confident they'll make a dream team.
09:05I wanted us to do something where we're working together
09:08because we work really well together.
09:10We quite like the idea of just spending every day together, don't we?
09:13We do.
09:17I'd like a day off.
09:20With both a tight budget and deadline,
09:23there might not be time for many of those.
09:25And with the house and barn in need of complete renovation,
09:29the clock is ticking.
09:31Six months' time up and running, definitely,
09:34with our house and the first yeats.
09:36The first yeats.
09:37And then a year after that, another couple of yeats and the glamp site.
09:42Yeah.
09:43Yeah.
09:44That's the grand plan.
09:45Yeah.
09:47It's July, and while the twins cool off in the temporary swimming pool,
09:52Rachel and Jay have a massive task ahead of them,
09:55both to get their yeats open
09:57but also make their living quarters habitable.
09:59So, this leads into our sort of lounge and kitchen dining area
10:05and with patio doors onto the vineyard.
10:08From the bathroom for the jeats and down this corridor,
10:11this will be the jeats bedroom.
10:14So, pretty much as it's laid out now,
10:16so it's basically a family room.
10:19To keep costs down,
10:21the couple intend to do the majority of the work themselves
10:24and they'll need all of Jay's expertise to make it happen.
10:29We'll have a bedroom upstairs as well,
10:31so that needs boarding out and painting.
10:35Just said that as if it was a two-minute job.
10:38Well, it is.
10:40For their own living quarters,
10:43Rachel and Jay have gone where no man has ever gone before,
10:47upstairs in their 18th-century barn.
10:50So, this will be...
10:52We will be the first people in here for what?
10:55Ever.
10:57300 years? Ever.
10:59And now we get to make bedrooms in there and a bathroom.
11:03So, that's pretty cool.
11:06It's not just the interiors that require attention,
11:09they'll need green fingers to tend to their very own vines.
11:14So, the vineyard is a hobby vineyard because of the size.
11:17It's white grapes that make a Pinot wine.
11:22So, yeah, we need to name it, register it, bottle it and sell it.
11:26Novice winemakers and new to the hospitality industry,
11:30Rachel and Jay are fully committed to the task ahead.
11:34We sold everything, every single penny we have.
11:39It's in France.
11:40It's in France.
11:41So, it has to work.
11:42It has to.
11:52Over 200 kilometres away further south, not far from Bergerac,
11:57is the picturesque Bastide town of Aimee.
12:01It's thriving main square surrounded by shops, houses and restaurants,
12:06along with friendly locals, make the town a hotspot for British expats,
12:11including Ian from Shropshire.
12:13I see why we always come back and now I'm actually living here now.
12:19Ian moved to France in the mid-noughties and settled in the Dordogne,
12:23making a living renovating other people's properties.
12:26But having visited Aimee, he'd always longed to make it his home.
12:30The Aimee has this vibe that everybody comes to Aimee to enjoy themselves.
12:35I can't really see me going anywhere else.
12:38I feel I could come home, really.
12:42After a decade living in a one-bedroom flat on the south bank of the Dordogne River,
12:48Ian has sold up and used the cash from the sale to buy this three-bedroom former brasserie.
12:54He plans to turn it into a home for himself, a B&B for paying guests,
12:59and to finally follow his dream of opening his own antique shop.
13:03And he's certain he's found the perfect spot.
13:06Every last Sunday of the month in Aimee, they hold a brachant
13:11and the brachant handily stretches up past my shop.
13:15So all I have to do on the brachant Sunday is put the coffee machine on,
13:20open the front door, put a couple of things on the pavement.
13:24But Ian can't just rely on his collectibles to fund his new life in Aimee,
13:29so he intends to turn the back of the property into a chambre d'hote,
13:34or bed and breakfast.
13:35I'm under pressure to get the gite chambre d'hote up and running.
13:40If I don't get the property ready for June, July, August,
13:43I will miss the summer season.
13:46I'm beginning to run out of my own private funds to keep me going.
13:52It's January, and although he's not long moved in,
13:56Ian's vision for the antique shop is already starting to take shape.
14:00Everything's been thrown into this room,
14:02but I think it probably doesn't look too bad.
14:04It looks like I've been here for years.
14:06But in fact, I am going to put more lighting up.
14:09I'm going to be bringing in more items of furniture for displays.
14:12As well as the antiques, Ian has great plans for his guest room.
14:17All of this is going to come out.
14:19If we go to the other side of here, all of this is going to come out as well.
14:23And then this room and the room above will be a luxury gite for two adults.
14:29But the vintage enthusiast intends to leave the rooms intact.
14:32All of this art has been cut from early 20th century magazines, French magazines.
14:38So I'd like to keep this.
14:40So this will become part of the Chambodote.
14:42And I'll probably put a fridge freezer and a sink in here.
14:45So it's like a little utility room.
14:49Ian intends to make the rooms at the front of the property into his own living quarters.
14:54So this is the first landing.
14:56And this will be a shower room.
14:58So I'm going to split the shower room down to this size to make it much easier to heat.
15:03But it's not just stud walls which could get temperatures rising.
15:07I'm actually going to put a new floor over that
15:11because it might attract the wrong kind of clients.
15:13But basically I want to put...
15:15I don't want people looking up from the shop area into the shower room.
15:20With dwindling funds and no budget for builders,
15:23Ian's having to take matters into his own hands to renovate his living space.
15:30And today he's making a start on the first floor.
15:34What I'm intending to do is take this wall out
15:37and then this bedroom will be a completely open room.
15:42As Ian wants to open in time for the busy summer season...
15:46The joys of renovation.
15:48He needs to get cracking to be ready.
15:51Well, I was going to introduce myself to the neighbours,
15:54but I don't think I have to now.
16:03Coming up...
16:04It's a big one.
16:06Rob and Fran's Roman Amphitheatre is already bringing the drama.
16:10So this is about, I don't know, 900 kilos.
16:14As soon as the weight goes towards one side...
16:19That's the fear.
16:21And in France...
16:23It's really hard work getting all this rust off.
16:25Is it?
16:26Do I have to get all of it off?
16:27No.
16:27The pain that we've got is direct to rust.
16:29Frost wires lead to double the work for Rachel.
16:32You need to run.
16:35You need to run.
17:02Quality job.
17:04This morning, with help from the local carpenter,
17:07they hope to complete more of their clubhouse,
17:10which will be a communal kitchen for campers.
17:14So hopefully today we get these doors fitted on,
17:18finish off some stuff in that cupboard.
17:22While out the front,
17:24they're also beginning to lay the foundations for a new herb garden.
17:28We're going to be planting an aromatics bed here
17:32and plants for people to cook with and eat.
17:37With lots to juggle,
17:39what takes priority can change day to day.
17:42And the following week,
17:44having taken delivery of the stones for the amphitheatre
17:47that Rob's long dreamt of,
17:49as most of them weigh between 500 kilos and a tonne...
18:00OK.
18:01..all available manpower...
18:04Ready?
18:06..and machinery have been assigned to the task.
18:17The following morning, Fran is catching up with the landscapers.
18:22How are you?
18:24Fine.
18:25..who are working on the planting surrounding the site's bio lake,
18:29which will be a natural swimming pool for guests.
18:33I left it free here so that we can actually plant the serpillus.
18:37OK.
18:37It has really shallow roots.
18:39So we're just probably going to need one little more shrub there
18:43and one more there.
18:44Not much.
18:45Yeah.
18:46Rob, meanwhile, is back in the driving seat.
18:52Working on the next stage of the amphitheatre's construction.
18:57It's 170.
18:59550.
19:01It's a big one.
19:03Big one going in.
19:07So this is about...
19:13750, 800, I don't know, 900 kilos.
19:17So the worry is when we go to lift this block,
19:21you can see the digger isn't exactly flat.
19:25So as we go to lift that,
19:27as soon as the weight goes towards one side,
19:33that's the fear,
19:35to try and make it fit
19:37and not fall over in the digger.
19:46Taking a cautious approach...
19:52OK.
19:54Spostani, can you move the blocks?
19:56OK.
19:56Let's go.
19:58He manages not only to stay upright
20:02but also finally get the largest stone in the circle so far
20:06into position.
20:08Look at that!
20:09It's massive.
20:11But it's in.
20:15While progress is steady,
20:19the amphitheatre is just one of Rob and Fran's big projects
20:23competing for their time and energy.
20:26Trying to keep everything going is really hard.
20:29Yeah.
20:30Keeping the build going,
20:31keeping the business,
20:32starting the business,
20:33keeping the building on the business side going.
20:35Do you go up to the drive here?
20:36I've not even seen the house.
20:38It's good, but there's a lot.
20:40Exciting and wrecking.
20:41Yeah.
20:46Back in France, it's August
20:48and for Rachel and Jay,
20:50renovating their farmhouse is a family affair.
20:55Nice work.
20:57Yay!
20:58With the twins, Georgia and Harriet mucking in,
21:02even the trickiest tasks feel like child's play.
21:05Two dollars.
21:06The twins might be confident,
21:08but professional tradesman Jay is doubting himself
21:11as the tiles Rachel has chosen for the sheets
21:14aren't making life easy for him.
21:16I've got one pattern title,
21:17it's pretty simple,
21:18because you can just,
21:19you know, put them on,
21:20but because there's so many different,
21:22it's also making it to Rachel's satisfaction as well.
21:25She's obviously got a particular idea
21:27of where she wants him.
21:28If it's wrong, it's my fault.
21:33Renovations with a young family in tow
21:34bring extra challenges.
21:36Who else wants to drill a hole?
21:38Me!
21:38Wow!
21:48And Jay needs reassurance about the mismatched tiles.
21:53Hello?
21:54He's hoping it's not going to mean more work.
21:57This tile, we're running diagonally there, look.
22:00But if I turned it, so that bottom piece is on there,
22:04it'll run square that way.
22:07What do you want to do?
22:07Do you want to turn it?
22:08Oh, my God.
22:09I don't want to turn it.
22:10That's fine, then.
22:11I don't want to turn it.
22:12Oh, well, there you go.
22:15But while Jay is making great progress
22:17with the mosaic jigsaw,
22:19Rachel can't resist a little more creative input.
22:23Do you think we should have a half a one at the top?
22:26No.
22:27Because I don't want to cut.
22:29But it looks really good with half a one.
22:31Let me hold it up so you can see.
22:33Stand back.
22:35Look.
22:37Minnie Mouse's ears.
22:41Or with half a one.
22:46This is where we have a little moment,
22:48just while Jay accepts that he's just got to agree.
22:52Come on.
22:55Oh, it's late.
23:01It's the next day,
23:03and while Jay is busy inside the house,
23:05Rachel and the girls are going to take care
23:07of some much-needed curb appeal.
23:10Jobless today is the gates.
23:14So, me and the twins are going to refurbish, or attempt to refurbish, the front gates to the house.
23:21I've never done anything to metalwork gates before, so this could be interesting.
23:26Why am I doing the gates?
23:28Because you wanted to.
23:29Did I?
23:29Yeah.
23:30Right.
23:31Yeah.
23:33While it might be new territory for Rachel, twins Georgia and Harriet seem to know exactly what's required.
23:41Okay.
23:41We're going to rust that off.
23:43We're going to rust that off.
23:45We need gloves first, don't we?
23:47Maybe.
23:47That's that one.
23:48That's that one.
23:49Well.
23:50You press the button.
23:52There you go.
23:53You see it coming off?
23:57Up to this end.
23:59This could be a very long day.
24:02Ready?
24:02Go.
24:07Back inside, Jay's prepping walls for the next stage of decoration.
24:14Just making sure all these electrical chasers are nice and flat.
24:18Ready for my lining paper to go on.
24:20It's extremely boring, but without it, you've got to make a nice, you know, a nice finish.
24:26Jay's finding today's to-do list less than thrilling,
24:30and the twins have also lost interest and left mum to it.
24:36It's really hard work getting all this rust off.
24:38Is it?
24:39Do I have to get all of it off?
24:40No.
24:41The paint that we've got is direct to rust.
24:43What?
24:44It's direct to rust.
24:45So you can paint over the rust?
24:47Yes.
24:47For goodness sakes.
24:48You could have told me that first.
24:52You need to run fast in the opposite direction.
25:01No!
25:03With so much to do before they can open next season,
25:07can Rachel and Jay pull together to move forward?
25:14Coming up...
25:16That's a pity.
25:18Ian's cracking on with his renovation.
25:21I thought we were going to be doing some test holes today.
25:24I never anticipated us taking down the entire wall.
25:27In need of paying guests, he's an unstoppable force.
25:31Hey!
25:32And in Italy...
25:34They've not been put on.
25:35What a joke.
25:37Oh, dear, dear, dear, dear, dear, dear.
25:39It's touch and go for Rob and Fran's tents.
25:45No-one's going to enter.
25:56In south-west France, Ian's taken down an internal wall in his future B&B
26:02at the rear of his three-bedroom property.
26:05He'd been hoping to avoid any damage to the original wooden floors,
26:10but his vigorous approach lends itself more to peril than preservation.
26:17That's a pity.
26:20By opening up the first floor, he'll create a larger and lighter master bedroom,
26:25which he hopes will appeal to paying guests.
26:29Well, I must admit, I thought we were going to be doing some test holes today.
26:33I never anticipated us taking down the entire wall.
26:36I could do this for a living.
26:38Oh, hang on, I do.
26:42Ian has years of experience renovating other people's houses.
26:48Hey!
26:49So he's confident he knows what he's doing.
26:54That's a nice bit to do.
26:55While there's a lot to do, Ian's experience means
26:59he soon has the first stage of his grand vision carved out.
27:05The bed is going to be here,
27:07and then this will become one huge bedroom
27:10with the east-facing window and the sun coming in in the morning,
27:14but also now we can see the beautiful old banister.
27:18Ian intends to use the income from the guest house and antique shop
27:23on the ground floor to fund an upgrade to his own living quarters,
27:27which will be at the front of the property, extending into the rafters.
27:31The roof area is going to become a roof terrace and a living area.
27:39He plans to utilise every space and harness the abundant sunshine this corner of southwest France has to offer.
27:48And this spans the entire surface area of the front part of the building.
27:53I'm intending to renovate this area into a sitting room with a south-facing roof terrace.
28:01So where I put some batons on the floor, this will become the roof terrace here.
28:08We're glazing and this will be a sitting room with a kitchen running along there and a pellet burrow in
28:16the corner.
28:18It may be some time before Ian can make his loft habitable,
28:22but he's already started cosying up the master bedroom downstairs.
28:26This room is actually the identical size of the shop below.
28:30And I've just recently bought a turn-of-the-century wood burner,
28:34which I'm going to install into this original grey marble fireplace.
28:39And this is going to be really handy at warming this front bedroom.
28:43With a long-held passion for old treasures, he's already uncovered clues as to the history of the building,
28:50when it formed part of a French café.
28:54We've got a door that used to connect to the brasserie next door.
29:01And we've got some really fabulous grey-green,
29:04and I think I'll use that as the inspiration for the colour of this room.
29:08Painting not only the walls, but the ceiling as well.
29:11And the doors.
29:13Currently lodging with friends while he completes the demolition work,
29:17Ian's focused on keeping the schedule moving forward swiftly.
29:22But despite his solo efforts, he's making good progress.
29:29Well, I'm particularly pleased because I've only actually owned the property for two weeks,
29:33and I've actually managed to take this wall out in one day.
29:37But if his B&B is going to be ready in time to bring in an income by the summer,
29:42Ian's still got a lot of work to do.
29:51While Ian might have a way to go, across in Umbria, Rob and Fran have hit a major milestone on
29:57their new house build.
29:59We can go upstairs, which is pretty cool.
30:02We have stairs, which is even cooler.
30:04Having fitted a series of joists over the past week,
30:08for the first time, the first floor is accessible.
30:12This is it. This is it. This is upstairs.
30:16We've got three bedrooms going in, three bathrooms,
30:19and we're just starting to fill out the windows, ready for those.
30:23Again, still loads of imagination to think about what it's going to be like,
30:27but we've got a little balcony here, so a cup of tea in the morning will be lovely.
30:32So this is our bedroom window.
30:35Check out the view.
30:39It's mind-blowing.
30:42Still have to, like, pinch myself to...
30:45It's real.
30:47While this is a huge step forward for the family, it's also been an expensive one.
30:52So getting their glamping site open next month has never been more important.
30:58And while they're making steady progress, from here Rob can see everything that still needs to be done.
31:05What are we doing today?
31:07We've got a lot to do today, partly because we've had a lot of rain.
31:10So the land is really wet, so we've not been doing as much as we had hoped.
31:16So today, which is the third day of sunshine, we're hoping to clean the tents, take off the winter cover,
31:25change the canvas, clean the canvas, put a new canvas on, because this one tall.
31:31So it looks all shiny and new when people arrive and doesn't look gross and grim.
31:38Having hosted a handful of trial campers last summer to test out their tents, they'd hoped their new equipment would
31:45be quick to set up this year.
31:49But being new to working with canvas, it's been a steep learning curve with the maintenance it requires.
31:56Actually, from there on in, if you could undo them, as you're doing, but then leave them in the loops,
32:08then we know that they're long enough.
32:11The delicate material hasn't been as hardy as they'd hoped.
32:15Annoying, because this is a job that we shouldn't have to do.
32:19Because this is ripped, we've got to do this.
32:22It's a job that we definitely don't really have time for.
32:26The following day, as they come to put the new canvas on, with help from local tradesman Nori...
32:34OK, basically you want to get this over, don't we?
32:39..things are still proving tricky.
32:41Ooh, a bit wobbly, a bit wobbly.
32:45The problem is the dirt, the ladder's in the way.
32:49And as the outer canvas weighs around 10 kilos, that's not helping much either.
32:56Pull down your way, please, hun.
32:58I'm doing my best, Danny.
33:00All right, all right, all right.
33:01As they finally get round to securing it down...
33:04It's a climbing knot, so you're going around...
33:07Oh, yeah.
33:08..and then back in.
33:13It's not tidy.
33:16I ain't no sailor, and I ain't no climber.
33:20It's not long before they run into another problem.
33:23The tent is lacking essential fixings.
33:26This is to pull this out inside to that position.
33:30Yes, yeah.
33:32Look under there.
33:33There isn't any.
33:35They've not been put on.
33:37On the back.
33:40What a joke.
33:43Oh, dear, dear, dear, dear, dear, dear.
33:46Fran and Rob must contact the manufacturer to find a fix.
33:54No-one's going to answer.
33:55Which is needed quickly to stay on track for their opening.
33:59I'm glad we're testing it now, not just before guests come in three weeks.
34:06But three weeks isn't very long.
34:08We've just got to wait.
34:10And hope that they react fast enough.
34:14Now, with not just their facilities half-built, but also their accommodation,
34:19will Fran and Rob ever be able to get their new business off the ground?
34:24Coffee for the nerves.
34:33Coming up...
34:34I don't think that's usable, is it?
34:36No, not really.
34:37Rachel and Jay are up against it, and it's not going to be a smooth finish.
34:42I've run out of plasterboard.
34:45Or my ceiling.
34:46One sheet! One!
34:49And plans for Ian's B&B don't measure up.
34:53The actual room is actually square, and then the gap gets bigger here.
34:58Working solo, can he get to grips with the problem?
35:01It's so heavy it cuts into your fingers and you pick it up.
35:14In France, ten weeks into renovating their family home and first holiday sheet, enthusiasm has given way to exhaustion for
35:22Rachel and Jay.
35:25i'm tired yeah must have the energy to crack on protein bars and cups of coffee today
35:31but the pair have a secret weapon on site jay's dad john an experienced decorator himself has
35:38arrived for a working holiday got off the plane about four o'clock took him out for some food
35:45and then got him straight into action yesterday yeah bless him and he's offered to stay for two
35:50weeks isn't it yeah silly man with the extra manpower you ready it's all hands on deck to push
36:00through the still sizable list of jobs i am measuring in between the beams 41 and a half
36:10to cut the pasta board because although it looks nice and straight experience tells you it's wonky
36:17as heck um and then we're going to cut the plasterboard into strips and hopefully just slot
36:23it straight in which would be amazing and then a 42. while rachel and the girls crack on with the
36:32ceiling panels jay and his dad are prepping the walls of the jeet with lining paper
36:39it's like a bloody clap i'm drunk isn't it while decorator jay might be on familiar territory rachel's
36:47learning on the job happy with that the beams of the 18th century barn are an added challenge
36:55even for a seasoned craftsman to me got it you go for it having broken through to the upper floor
37:03of the
37:03barn to create family bedrooms it's vital that their presence doesn't impact any guests staying below
37:11so it's now had insulation foam polystyrene and now we're plasterboard in it so that you can't hear
37:19people walking around upstairs hopefully anyway this is the last stage
37:28the end might be in sight but rachel has hit a snag with her ceiling panels i don't think that's
37:35usable is it her very last panel doesn't measure up and she hasn't got enough supplies to save the job
37:43i've run out of plasterboard for my ceiling so now i have to go shopping and spend more money on
37:50plasterboard to finish the scene and i don't even want to be doing one sheet one i blame you you
38:00did
38:00the maths not me i'll see you in 10 minutes while not all projects go to plan a couple of
38:09weeks later
38:09with summer drawing to a close progress has been rapid with the help of jay's dad they've painted and
38:16decorated and are down to final touches in some rooms a little bit more a little bit more that
38:24looks quite nice isn't it lovely the ground floor of their new family home now has an elegant entrance
38:31hall and what it lacks in stairs it makes up for in a refurbished chaise long and in the family
38:38room
38:39the camping kitchen equipment is no more um so that this is our little chill out space and then around
38:45the corner is the dining kitchen is finished by a couple of bits tweaky bits so fridge freezer and
38:53cooker and everything is in now next door their first holiday sheet is very near to completion
39:00with a working kitchen and upcycled furniture and their bedroom boasts a creative hanging space for
39:08guests clothes who made it who thought mommy was crazy and who now thinks it looks really good
39:22with the couple's income dependent on guests the sooner they can market the sheet the better
39:29promotion of the g is number one priority at the moment so yes and i need some videos and photos
39:34for
39:35our website so we can start selling make some money but the success of their business relies on more
39:42than just marketing the family are headed back to the uk to apply for a visa to allow them to
39:49live and
39:49work in france and rachel is feeling the pressure one of us needs a profession liberal visa so it's like
39:56um an entrepreneur type thing um so i'm going to get the visa and then these guys will be added
40:02as my family
40:03to the visa and the reason i'm going to get the visa is because the person who gets the entrepreneur
40:08visa
40:09needs to be able to speak french it would be really nice if everything just went to plan but we'll
40:14see
40:14with all the family finances fully invested in france there's a lot at stake before they can return
40:26in a may it's late january and ian is stocking up on antiques here we are another acquisition to go
40:35into the shop it's filling up slowly after years spent amassing old artifacts he's finally realizing his
40:43dream of owning his own store and here's a latest thing i bought for the shop as well which is
40:49um
40:50the very early 20s um bistro door i think this is so nice is that i'll probably build it into
40:56my own
40:57home ian's hoping his unique finds will appeal to potential customers with his b and b some way off
41:04completion he's relying on the antique shop to bring in some much needed cash so what i need to do
41:10is
41:10think about prices because i've never had a shop in my life i've always bought and sold things on the
41:15internet or at um car boot sales in england i'm gonna probably open it for the last brocante of
41:23february um in ma so it'll be the last sunday that'll be the grand spring opening
41:31before he opens his doors to customers he's keen to maximize his display areas and an old doorway reveals
41:38the perfect opportunity for staging so they put these cute shelves in because i'm gonna take this
41:44door off and and introduce the shelves into the shop it's a simple enhancement for an experienced
41:52property renovator like ian they are coming out are turning but they're not coming out but the old
42:02screws aren't budging just need a bit of uh coaxing sometimes there's only one solution
42:12although a little trickier than expected what instant shelves with his passion project taking shape
42:21ian needs to push on with his b and b which he hopes to open up to guests by the
42:26summer
42:27he's creating a new ensuite shower room on the opposite side of this first floor bedroom
42:33you're gonna blank this off put a wall across here with a basin here so you walk in here into
42:40the
42:40shower room and then there'll be a loo of course but it's the walk-in shower area which is proving
42:47tricky
42:49the actual room is out of square so this is sitting squarely here and then the gap gets bigger here
42:57fitting a weighty square tray into a wonky room isn't easy it's so heavy it cuts into your fingers
43:03when you pick it up but ian has a plan it doesn't matter if i damage the walls because this
43:08is all
43:08going to be tiled step one removing the skirting boards
43:17despite his love of original features he's not going to lose sleep over the old skirting beautiful
43:23old skirting we can take it out
43:28the wood gives up easily so what i want to do is cut that part of the wall out there
43:34and then fit that corner in there so it squares it up against this wall
43:41with so many projects on the go at his new home it's a constant juggle
43:46but with the antique shop set to open its doors in just a few weeks time
43:50there's one job he's going to save her um this is going to be the the shop sign hanging above
43:58the door
43:59but i don't want to um i don't want to put it up yet and attract thousands to the door
44:04but it's ready to go up anyway with the town already popular with antiques hunters
44:10he'll need to make his presence felt to pull in the punters
44:17don't take off guys next time there's a lot of tension involved can rob and fran secure their
44:24future in italy it's most dangerous part now isn't it yeah because this is where it can take off with
44:30a
44:30bnb to renovate ian needs sales can he do what it takes to pull in the punters i'll have to
44:37get a
44:37sandwich board made won't i i think that's the idea strip off completely you have a barrel with
44:42braces on or something and is it breaking point for rachel and jay at their holiday jeet in france
44:49stepped back and there's a big hole in the ground just here there was a snapping noise
45:08so
45:17you
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