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00:00.
00:05Ulver, for me, is a mini version of Mull,
00:08which we're already in love with.
00:12It's beautiful.
00:14The landscape is stunning.
00:16The produce is amazing.
00:18The people are incredible.
00:22Not often in life do you get a chance
00:24to make a home somewhere really special.
00:36Oh, my gosh.
00:38What are you doing?
00:39Red stag, a young animal, second year,
00:42and we'll now take all the organs out
00:44and, you know, dress it for the larder.
00:47Well, good shot. You got it.
00:49We now take the knife and go up.
00:52That's the oesophagus, that's the food pipe.
00:54Split the food pipe and pleat it off,
00:56and that keeps the contents of the stomach.
00:59Mm-hm.
01:00In the stomach, so it doesn't contaminate the meat.
01:02So you just tie that off like that,
01:04and you take the bowel out.
01:06Nice liver.
01:08There's a nice, healthy kidney.
01:11That's the bowel out.
01:12Start the gut coming out.
01:14Go back in with the knife and go round the diaphragm.
01:18When you live on the mainland or you live in a city,
01:20you're completely disconnected from your supply chain.
01:23You know, this is land management,
01:29pest management,
01:31also food.
01:32You know, like, it's a resource.
01:34Yeah.
01:45Our newcomers to the island aren't exactly newcomers anymore.
01:49It's been approximately two months since Banjo and Ro took on Ulva House,
01:55seeking to transform this magnificent building into a boutique hotel
01:59of questionable practicality but undeniable charm.
02:03In that time,
02:05Ulva House has acquired a tempting whiskey library,
02:08an inviting hotel lobby,
02:10smelling faintly of fresh paint,
02:12and most recently,
02:14two very small guests who arrived without luggage.
02:17Banjo has gone out and got a couple of pigs.
02:21My babies.
02:23Come on, bubba.
02:24But they're never to be eaten.
02:26No, gosh, no.
02:27Are you, darling?
02:29Oh, this is the best day of my life.
02:33Pigs running around everywhere,
02:35pooping everywhere.
02:38Yeah, I think we could have timed that a bit better.
02:41But taking on a building of this size and age
02:44has led to inevitable lengthy building struggles,
02:47such as restoring antiquated water pipes,
02:50rewiring the entire property,
02:51and dealing with a leaky roof.
02:59So, the flat roofs have collapsed
03:01because of an ingress of water.
03:02In this country, this volume of water,
03:04it won't flow off quick enough.
03:07And so it's ingressed into the house
03:09and probably been out of sight probably for quite a while,
03:12and then the ceilings have collapsed
03:13and then it's exposed it as an issue.
03:16And that's what worries me about this house,
03:17is what's going on behind the ceilings and walls.
03:21Today, an off-site trades team have arrived
03:24to entirely dismantle those roof sections.
03:27We're literally about to start the biggest piece of construction
03:30on the entire project, and that's doing the roof,
03:34and the builders are coming in.
03:35They're going to rip that off.
03:37Right off.
03:38Yeah.
03:38We're not going to have a roof.
03:39I know, it is wild.
03:41If the weather turns,
03:42or if we dismiss that window to get the roof on,
03:46we're cooked.
03:47Yeah, I know.
03:48It's Scottish weather.
03:49That's what I'm worried about.
03:50It can change like that.
03:52I know.
03:52It'll be fine.
03:53It'll be fine.
03:54But with the continual building endeavours around the house
03:57devouring their meagre budget,
03:59the hotel opening date seems a distant promise.
04:03Banjo and Roe must look to generate income from elsewhere.
04:10Occupying a position of quiet authority at the island's edge,
04:14directly beside the ferry slipway,
04:16the boathouse represents a time when Ulva's livelihood
04:20came not from menus, but from nets, kelp,
04:23and the sturdy rhythm of oars.
04:25When Banjo and Roe took on the big house,
04:28they also took over the lease and management of this business.
04:32Now this cafe offers a potential solution to their financial woes.
04:37I remember when we first arrived on Mull,
04:39people saying to me,
04:40you have to go to the boathouse on Ulva.
04:42Like, and that was 10 odd years ago.
04:44If we can make that a destination,
04:46we can make this more of a destination,
04:48and we can make Ulva more of a destination.
04:51But most importantly, we need money to do the house.
04:55This house is taking over our lives
04:57and cleaning out our bank accounts.
04:59So the boathouse for us has to work.
05:04We've got all this beautiful fresh produce all around us.
05:08We've got fresh island meats, that's beef and lamb.
05:10The seafood, you know, we've got fresh langoustines,
05:13fresh crab, fresh lobster.
05:15We need this to work to make the big house work.
05:18If I can take a wage from here
05:20and then reinvest that money back into the big house.
05:23You've got to kind of make your own luck here, don't you?
05:27Well, it's all a living, isn't it?
05:29Also running this operation as joint restaurant manager with them
05:33is an old friend from Mull.
05:39Before I came here, I was milking cows,
05:42rearing pigs, shearing sheep.
05:44I was a farmhand at the cheese farm in Tobermory.
05:48What's that?
05:49What?
05:49Fresh mushroom.
05:50You beauty.
05:52And I always wanted to run my own restaurant with a farm kitchen
05:55and Ro said,
05:56oh, we'll go in with a business with you if you want to do it.
05:59So it was kind of their little nudge that made me do it.
06:04The boathouse is a pretty chaotic place.
06:06We don't really have much space
06:08and what space we do have is not very usable.
06:10When the sun isn't shining and people want to go upstairs,
06:12you're met with this weird empty space,
06:15yeah, that would be a nice thing to change.
06:17There was, once upon a time, a sign there.
06:19Yeah, there was.
06:20I remember there used to be a different sign.
06:22It's kind of iconic.
06:23It's a shame that that's not there.
06:24It would be good to bring that back.
06:26Oh, yeah.
06:26That's what we want.
06:27You want boats sailing past to really see that.
06:30Yeah.
06:30Okay.
06:31Paint the sign back on.
06:35Okay.
06:36So this space,
06:37you want it to feel like a general store for the island
06:40because it kind of is.
06:41So all the produce that we make on the island,
06:44like have it so people are walking into our larder.
06:47Yeah.
06:47Yeah, definitely.
06:48It's our pantries.
06:49The whole community's pantries.
06:50I love that.
06:50Yeah.
06:51Yeah.
06:51Well, let's see upstairs then.
06:54Okay.
06:55It doesn't feel nice.
06:56Outside feels nice.
06:57The most amazing scenery.
06:59And you come up the stairs.
07:00Mm.
07:01So this room has to work even harder.
07:04Yeah, it's a head-scratcher.
07:05Even for a design visionary like me.
07:11The boathouse is a tough little space.
07:13It's a shop.
07:14It's a restaurant.
07:15It needs to work really hard.
07:17They're already coming to enjoy the scenery.
07:20I want them to come to the restaurant.
07:22I want that to be the destination.
07:24But for me, inspiration's everywhere.
07:27I'm not short of it here.
07:28I think I can just look out the door and I've got a million and one ideas.
07:39This is what I'm thinking for the boathouse.
07:41This kind of patina.
07:43This is gorgeous.
07:45It's weathered, windswept.
07:48It's rotten and falling apart.
07:50Perfect.
07:51What we get is some gorgeous kind of scaffold boards on the wall.
07:56Scrape back the ceiling.
07:57You want it to feel like it's been there forever.
08:00You know what I mean?
08:01Yeah.
08:03Out, out, out, out, out.
08:05Get out of the boat.
08:05What's my plan B?
08:07Honestly, we've got not much money and we've got some timber to scrape.
08:10Work with me.
08:13Well...
08:15Banjo's big idea for the boathouse is all about creating a space
08:19which reflects the breathtaking beauty of the island.
08:22Upstairs, he is drawing inspiration from an abandoned boat,
08:26cladding the walls with up-cycled scaffold boards
08:29to bring that worn, weathered look and building new furniture
08:33from treasures found at the water's edge.
08:35Downstairs, he will restructure to create a more usable space,
08:39refresh the menu to showcase produce from the land around them
08:43and outside reproduce the original much-loved sign.
08:47All right.
08:47We've got to get scaffold boards, any old bit of timber lying around.
08:51If it's free and it's not nailed down, we're taking it.
08:56To manage both projects simultaneously, Banjo and Roe have acquired the use of a vehicle.
09:02It's a 20-minute walk from the house to the boathouse.
09:06That's fine, but that's like multiple times a day
09:10and these legs are not made for walking.
09:12But for an island with no roads, this requires permission from the Trust.
09:21The biggest hurdle for anybody who's going to do any major work on Ulva is logistics.
09:29So it's getting materials over to Ulva.
09:32So that's going to be the biggest problem.
09:36It's smaller than a car.
09:39It's smaller than a tank.
09:42You didn't read the email from the Trust.
09:45It says,
09:46The board has agreed.
09:47The original proposal included a possible maximum width, length and weight limit for private vehicles.
09:55But it's clear that setting hard numbers has made vehicle shopping quite difficult.
09:59The board has agreed to take a more flexible approach
10:01and Trust residents to choose a quad ATV or UTV that's appropriate for the size and condition of the tracks.
10:10Right.
10:12Yeah, Tal.
10:14You didn't tell me it was ugly.
10:17It's perfect.
10:17It's a people mover.
10:19It's not cute.
10:20It's not here to be cute.
10:21It's here to be practical.
10:22It's here to move people and things.
10:24You're cute and practical.
10:25It can be both.
10:27That's really sweet.
10:28But that is not cute.
10:31Banjo and Roe have allotted themselves just one week to reinvent the boathouse,
10:35while the steady process of roof removal occurs back at the house.
10:40So while this is all going on in the house, I think it's a good opportunity that we go down
10:43to the boathouse.
10:44That way, this can carry on here.
10:46We can carry on down there.
10:48Finish up that.
10:49Come back here.
10:49All good to go.
10:51Yes, because the best thing to do is just run away from your problem.
10:55Yeah.
10:55A small but formidable team has been assembled to transform the restaurant,
11:00whilst also keeping it open to passing trade.
11:03When you're useless like me, it really pays to have handy friends.
11:07So I'm the captain of the ship.
11:09I've got Awin, my carpenter.
11:15How old is that sweet book?
11:1619.
11:18It's old and ugly, but it's a hell of a good book.
11:21Yeah, definitely not.
11:24He's going to knock up some walls and some shelving.
11:27Zoe, she's a decorator, she's going to splash some paint around.
11:34Howdy Zoe.
11:35Hey mate, how are you doing?
11:37Thank you for coming.
11:38Louie and Pilar.
11:42They're going to keep the ship running.
11:43They're going to knock out some food while we're still open, which is a bit scary.
11:48Then I've got the farmer and this one, and hopefully together we'll make a craft team.
11:55Menu of works today.
11:57Scraped ceilings and returns.
11:59We need to paint the black sign, paint the end walls, measure the sail curtains,
12:02paint the pine toilets and sand the church pews.
12:05That's by lunch.
12:07That's the lunch menu.
12:08You guys got to run the cafe as well.
12:11We need money.
12:11But do you know what the most important ingredient is?
12:15Love.
12:15I was going to say love.
12:17Love.
12:17We love each other and we love being here.
12:30A shipment of salvaged scaffold boards sourced from various construction sites has appeared.
12:36Ready for the next chapter of life.
12:39This is the downstairs.
12:40They want storage.
12:41They want a shop.
12:42They want their freezer.
12:43We want to get punters inside.
12:45And if it's full outside, we want them to sit inside.
12:48Design for me is like making a smoothie.
12:51It's all the different ingredients.
12:52I've got some scaffolding boards, some pottery boards, all of these raw ingredients.
12:57I'm going to chuck in the blender and then see what comes out.
13:10I've been busy in here.
13:12All right.
13:13So I'm peeling all of this back.
13:15Then I want to clad this in.
13:19Put the handrail.
13:20Yeah.
13:21All the way both sides.
13:22Yeah.
13:23Well, that whole wall from the corner downstairs.
13:25Yep.
13:26Clad all the way up.
13:28Staircase.
13:29Add a bit of architecture to it.
13:31I hope you've got enough boards.
13:3370 scaffold boards.
13:35Okay.
13:36And then what about this wall?
13:39I've got a long church pew for that wall that you might just need to connect together.
13:44Mm-hmm.
13:45Many hands may quite work.
13:55At the moment, we're just trying to get everything prepped and ready for the design.
13:58And it just feels like there's a lot of pieces to that puzzle that need to be done.
14:02Also while trying to run a cafe and lots of moving parts.
14:07I think as long as we don't fall behind, I think we're okay.
14:10It's just all hands on deck and just keep moving.
14:14Do we make it like that?
14:15So it's split the distance there and then go six mil longer?
14:32Ro, the pigs have escaped.
14:35The pigs are out.
14:37we need to get up to the house i had them locked up the guy said it was up behind
14:43the house but
14:44heading down towards the water oh my god where are all these people coming from
14:56um you haven't noticed a piglet yes i'm not by the house okay was there just one or was
15:14that's one pig secured maybe his brother will hear him
15:37that's always the little one while both pigs are now safely in their quarters
15:42the flat roof sections of ulva house are steadily being dismantled
15:53with the trades now occupying both house and restaurant it's time for banjo to do
15:58what he does best transform another man's trash into boot house treasure here we go banjo's
16:05emporium what is that vintage sale that's good stuff that's a french sale
16:19oh my fishing line that's a good looking haul
16:32not content with the vintage spores from his own supplies banjo and his team have also joined a
16:38local beach clean back on ulva in search of flotsam and jetsam i'm gonna have to be inventive
16:45i'm gonna go hunting i'm gonna hit the beach if it ain't tied down i'm taking it
16:56how do you get down
17:01so much stuff yeah so much plastic so much fishing waste if you're not disposing of stuff carefully
17:08could end up on a little windswept beach in the hebrides weird little man
17:14might repurpose it into something for his cafe
17:22old sign
17:24that's nifty
17:25how far we gotta walk
17:26okay i'll take it
17:29do you think this is going to be a crucial piece of your design
17:32you never know
17:35all right here they are look at them they're beautiful i think they'll be stunning
17:41it's real bog that's
17:45oh god rotten cementing seaweed
17:51bloody hell
17:53made a hander
17:54yeah
18:00lucky i love you
18:02oh i love you too
18:03a lot
18:05oh
18:09the vote house has been stripped back to its skeleton
18:13but such upheaval has compelled the business to close its doors
18:17until the building has been pieced back together
18:20i don't normally have a plan but today i have a plan and i'm sticking to it
18:24we need to hit all of those targets today otherwise we're in danger because we need to be open at
18:30the end of the week
18:31we've got enough boards to make two big tables
18:35yeah
18:36and seven wee tables
18:38i think you need our dining room table from the big house
18:41we don't need the dining room table from the big house
18:42absolutely do i guarantee it
18:43that table is not even prepped it's got some sort of
18:45vinyl
18:46vinyl on top
18:47no it's a bit of lemonade
18:48you don't even know what's under it
18:49we're gonna
18:50it's a beautiful looking table
18:51it's free and it's available
18:53today
18:55so yes we're working with what we've got
18:57i'll sand the top you don't even have to look at a sander again
19:00you promise
19:00what i need is the kitchen table
19:02and if we don't need it i'll march that table right on back and eat my words off it
19:10okay let's just have a look at this table
19:12i don't know how you get
19:14it's 1940s glue whatever off the table
19:20oh wow
19:23nice team
19:25don't
19:27encourage him
19:27right
19:28should we try and get this out of here
19:30yeah
19:39i don't think it's going to fit through the door
19:42i can't i just can't cope with anything right now
19:45this is not going to work
19:52door handle
20:06i don't know how you're going to get it in there
20:08we've got nowhere to have dinner tonight at home
20:10we'll get it off
20:10i'll strip it back
20:12we'll take it apart
20:13we'll get it up
20:14and we'll be having oysters on here tonight
20:18oh it's tired
20:19i'm tired
20:22banjo and his team are on the final stretch
20:25in anticipation of a grand reopening
20:44he's bought half of them in grey
20:47and he's bought half of them in green
20:50and he wants them all green
20:51this was one of the grey chairs
20:53and i'm just trying to match it to the green
20:56but he likes this
20:59worn effect
21:03i'm stripping this because band bought a bench
21:06then he said he wanted it back to its natural pitch prime
21:09i'm just sick of stroke and pain to be honest
21:17which one is the new one
21:21this
21:21you're good
21:27this is going to be a rope chair back
21:29that's smart
21:30that looks quite
21:31that's high end actually
21:33that's gorgeous
21:35everything is feeling very natural in here
21:37but we need to do natural but a little bit elevated
21:40kind of like what we're doing on the menu
21:43elderberry is not too early for them
21:45yeah
21:45okay
21:49so have we got everything in there
21:50now we're missing the liquid
21:51you've got to leave it for 7 to 14 days
21:53ah so like a kombucha
21:55more like a wine i think
21:56okay
21:57yeah
21:59i love it
22:00i absolutely love it
22:02it's the good old days
22:03good job
22:03you're doing good
22:04well done zoe
22:05it's a good looking sign
22:07it'll make a lot of people happy to see us restoring to what it used to be
22:11barry
22:13what do you reckon
22:14good as old
22:15yeah
22:15good
22:16good
22:16good
22:17it's like the old days
22:18feels nice
22:19you'll have to come down for a coffee
22:21yeah
22:21how are you with a hammer
22:25retired
22:30the boathouse restoration is complete
22:33the flat roof back at the house has been successfully dismantled
22:37now naturally only one thing remains
22:40a celebration
22:42pulling the space together
22:43even just existing on a little island
22:46you really do rely on each other
22:48and these guys have all helped us to create this beautiful space
22:52to actually create our beautiful life that we have here
22:55so we want to thank them
22:56okay
22:58roe
22:59present
23:00present
23:00grandpa
23:02present
23:03banjo
23:04present
23:04okay
23:06boathouse party
23:07yeah
23:07okay so really important
23:09this goes off with a bang
23:11i want it to be a nice opportunity to say thank you for the different people
23:13that have helped us along the way
23:14the local suppliers currently support us
23:16and say thanks
23:17yep
23:18local food producers
23:20pals
23:21rury and rebecca
23:23what are we serving
23:25a seafood feast
23:26yeah
23:26i like that
23:27it has to be fresh
23:29yeah
23:29it has to be local
23:30yeah
23:30it has to be bountiful
23:32yeah
23:32and it has to just be visually stunning
23:35we'll get in there and cook
23:36yeah
23:37well i'm going to
23:38start cooking
23:38i've got to get the place ready
23:51it's a nice big bucket of fish
23:53they're not bad
23:55how many are there
23:5625
23:57so we've got some mackerel
23:58such a pretty fish aren't they
24:00the colour
24:01they're a decent size
24:03there's a few bigger ones in there
24:04maybe just slightly above average
24:05just tell me
24:06bang on middle
24:07you know like that height
24:11yeah
24:12oh
24:13you worked hard for this sign
24:15don't ruin it now
24:17i thought we were going to do it up
24:18but i actually like it
24:19i like it
24:20it's rusty
24:30it'sAmerica
24:30oh
24:31oh
24:31oh
24:51I think it's great, honestly.
24:53When you go upstairs and you see that space,
24:56it looks and feels beautiful.
24:58You know, we've put our stamp on it,
25:00but it's also, like, a beautiful space
25:02that people can come and visit and eat and enjoy.
25:04And it's going to help us then generate money
25:06that we can then reinvest.
25:08Yeah, no, I'm really proud of, yeah,
25:11what it looks like and how it is.
25:12Aww.
25:19It's completely transformed the place,
25:21not just in looks, but the way that we work.
25:23Banjo's great at coming up with ideas.
25:26I don't think he always knows how he's going to pull them off,
25:28but he has a vision, and by the end of the day,
25:31that vision's been met.
25:32And nobody knew how it was going to happen
25:35or if it was even possible,
25:36but by the end, something magical's happened.
25:45We're really grateful that you're all here,
25:48and we're grateful for Louie and Pila,
25:51who are our amazing chefs,
25:53and they've really brought it to life.
25:55And Sam and Ro have worked really hard to...
25:58Scrape the ceiling.
25:59Scrape the ceiling.
26:00And everyone that's, like, supported us.
26:03As I always say, shoot for the stars,
26:06and if you get halfway there, you'll still be over the moon.
26:09Isn't that beautiful?
26:10That is so beautiful.
26:12Do you like that?
26:13It's not beautiful.
26:14I thought of that.
26:15Our island dwellers and their band of merry trades
26:19have accomplished the boathouse reinvention.
26:21In just one week, they've transformed the space
26:25into a welcoming, somewhat magical headquarters
26:28for the island community and beyond.
26:31Tonight's entertainment, a travelling troupe of musicians
26:34in search of a quiet drink and perhaps a jig.
26:38One, two, three.
26:45Great job, team.
26:47Like, bloody hell, it was a ride.
26:50It was a ride.
26:51It was a ride.
26:51I think what you're trying to say is thank you.
26:54And, you know what, you're welcome.
26:56I did it.
26:58I did it.
26:59I did it.
26:59Listen to him.
27:00No, we did it.
27:01We.
27:01No, it's beautiful.
27:02That makes it worthwhile.
27:04It's nice bringing all these people together
27:05because they've been part of our lives before this.
27:07Yeah.
27:08And now we've got something to kind of,
27:10they've helped us on this journey,
27:11and then we've got a way of saying thank you.
27:13You're doing it to run a beautiful business.
27:16You're doing it for the tourists that come.
27:18But we're here, costs of the people, aren't we?
27:22The people are what make our life better.
27:24I think we've created something really special here.
27:56The people are trying to change life directly into how we have to make our life better.
28:00You
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