- 2 weeks ago
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00:00Over for me is a mini version of Mull, which we're already in love with.
00:12It's beautiful, the landscape is stunning, the produce is amazing, the people are incredible.
00:22Not often in life do you get a chance to make a home somewhere really special.
00:30Oh my gosh, what are you doing?
00:39Red stag, young animal, second year and we'll now take all the organs out and you know dress it for the larder.
00:47Well good shot, you got it. We now take the knife and go up, that's the esophagus,
00:53that's the food pipe, split the food pipe and pleat it off and that keeps the contents of the stomach.
01:00In the stomach, so it doesn't contaminate the meat. So you just tie that off like that and you take the bowel out.
01:06Nice liver, there's a nice healthy kidney, that's the bowel out. Start the gut coming out,
01:14go back in with the knife and go round the diaphragm.
01:16When you live on the mainland or you live in a city, you're completely disconnected from your supply chain.
01:24You know, this is land management, pest management,
01:30and also food, you know, like it's a resource.
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 of questionable practicality,
02:02but undeniable charm. In that time, Ulva House has acquired a tempting whiskey library,
02:08an inviting hotel lobby smelling faintly of fresh paint, and 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. Come on, bubba.
02:24But they're never to be eaten.
02:26No, gosh, no.
02:27I need to handle.
02:28Oh, this is the best day of my life.
02:33Pigs running around everywhere, pooping everywhere.
02:38Yeah, I think we could have timed that a bit better.
02:41But taking on a building of this size and age has led to inevitable lengthy building struggles,
02:47such as restoring antiquated water pipes, rewiring the entire property, and dealing with a leaky roof.
02:54So, the flat roofs have collapsed because of an ingress of water.
03:03In this country, this volume of water, it won't flow off quick enough.
03:07And so it's ingressed into the house and probably been out of sight, probably for quite a while,
03:12and then the ceilings have collapsed and then it's exposed it as an issue.
03:16And that's what worries me about this house, is what's going on behind the ceilings and walls.
03:20Today, an off-site trades team have arrived to entirely dismantle those roof sections.
03:27We're literally about to start the biggest piece of construction on the entire project,
03:32and that's doing the roof, and 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.
03:40I know. It is wild.
03:41If the weather turns, or if we just miss that window to get the roof on, we're cooked.
03:48Yeah, I know. It's Scottish weather. That's what I'm worried about.
03:50It can change like that.
03:52I know.
03:52It'll be fine. It'll be fine.
03:55But with the continual building endeavours around the house devouring their meagre budget,
04:00the hotel opening date seems a distant promise.
04:03Banjo and Ro must look to generate income from elsewhere.
04:10Occupying a position of quiet authority at the island's edge, directly beside the ferry slipway,
04:16the boathouse represents a time when Ulva's livelihood came not from menus,
04:22but from nets, kelp, and the sturdy rhythm of oars.
04:26When Banjo and Ro took on the big house, they 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, people saying to me,
04:40you have to go to the boathouse on Ulva.
04:42And that was 10 odd years ago.
04:44If we can make that a destination, we 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 and 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.
05:07We've got fresh island meats, that's beef and lamb.
05:10The seafood, you know, we've got fresh langoustines, fresh crab, fresh lobster.
05:15We need this to work to make the big house work.
05:18If I can take a wage from here and 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 island living, isn't it?
05:29Also running this operation as joint restaurant manager with them is an old friend from Mull.
05:35Before I came here, I was milking cows, rearing pigs, shearing sheep.
05:44I was a farmhand at the cheese farm in Tobermory.
05:47What's that?
05:49What?
05:49Fresh mushroom.
05:50You beauty.
05:51And I always wanted to run my own restaurant with a farm kitchen.
05:55And Ro said, oh, we'll go in with a business with you if we 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 and what space we do have is not very usable.
06:10When the sun isn't shining and people want to go upstairs, you're met with this weird empty space.
06:14Yeah, that would be a nice thing to change.
06:17There was once upon a time a sign there.
06:19Yeah, there was. I remember there used to be a different sign.
06:22It's kind of iconic. It's a shame that that's not there. It would be good to bring that back.
06:26Oh yeah, that's what we want.
06:27You want boats sailing past to really see that.
06:30Yeah.
06:30Okay, paint the sign back on.
06:35Okay, so this space, you want it to feel like general store for the island because it kind of is.
06:41So all the produce that we make on the island, like have it so people are walking into our larder.
06:46Yeah, yeah, definitely.
06:47Look at that.
06:48It's our pantry. It's the whole community's pantry.
06:50I love that.
06:50I love that.
06:50Yeah, yeah.
06:51Well, let's see upstairs then.
06:54Okay.
06:55It doesn't feel nice. Outside feels nice.
06:57It's the most amazing scenery and you come up the stairs.
07:01So this room has to work even harder.
07:04Yeah, it's a head scratcher, even for a design visionary like me.
07:08The 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.
07:32This is what I'm thinking for the boathouse.
07:41This kind of patina.
07:43This is gorgeous.
07:45It's weathered, windswept.
07:47It's rotten and falling apart.
07:49Perfect.
07:51What we get is some gorgeous kind of scaffold boards on the wall, scrape back the ceiling.
07:58You want it to feel like it's been there forever.
08:00You know what I mean?
08:01Yeah.
08:03Out, out, out, out, out.
08:04Get out of the boat.
08:05What's my plan B?
08:06Honestly, we've got not much money and we've got some timber to scrape.
08:10Work with me.
08:14Banjo'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 upcycled scaffold boards
08:29to bring that worn, weathered look
08:31and building new furniture from treasures found at the water's edge.
08:35Downstairs, he will restructure to create a more usable space, refresh the menu to showcase produce
08:42from the land around them and outside reproduce the original much-loved sign.
08:47All right, we've got to get scaffold boards, any old bit of timber lying around.
08:52If it's free and it's not nailed down, we're taking it.
08:55To 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. That's fine, but that's like
09:09multiple times a day and these legs are not made for walking.
09:12But for an island with no roads, this requires permission from the Trust.
09:18The biggest hurdle for anybody who's going to do any major work on Ulver is logistics.
09:29So it's getting materials over to Ulver. So that's going to be the biggest problem.
09:36It's smaller than a car.
09:38It's smaller than a tank.
09:42You didn't read the email from the Trust.
09:44It says, the board has agreed the original proposal included a possible maximum width,
09:52width, 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 and trust residents to choose a quad
10:03ATV or UTV that's appropriate for the size and condition of the tracks.
10:10Right.
10:11It's perfect. It's a people mover.
10:18It's not cute.
10:20It's not here to be cute. It's here to be practical. It's here to move people and things.
10:23You're cute and practical. It can be both.
10:26That's really sweet.
10:28But that is not cute.
10:31Banjo and Roe have allotted themselves just one week to reinvent the boathouse,
10:36while the steady process of roof removal occurs back at the house.
10:39So while this is all going on in the house, I think it's a good opportunity that we go down
10:43to the boathouse. That way, this can carry on here, we can carry on down there, finish up that,
10:48come back here, all 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. I've got Awin, my carpenter.
11:15How old is that sweet boat?
11:16I think it was your 19.
11:17Oh, it's old and ugly, but it's a hell of a good boat.
11:20Yeah, I definitely know.
11:21He'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.
11:44They're going to knock out some food while we're still open, which is a bit scary.
11:48And I've got the farmer and this one, and hopefully together we'll make a craft team.
11:55Menu of works today. Scrape 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. That's the lunch menu.
12:08You guys got to run the cafe as well.
12:11We need money.
12:12But do you know what the most important ingredient is?
12:14Uh, love.
12:15I was going to say love.
12:17Love. We love each other and we love being here.
12:31A shipment of salvaged scaffold boards,
12:33sourced from various construction sites, has appeared.
12:36Ready for the next chapter of life.
12:39This is the downstairs.
12:40They want storage, they want a shop, they want their freezer.
12:43We want to get punters inside and if it's full outside, we want them to sit inside.
12:48Design for me is like making a smoothie.
12:50It'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.
13:06I've been busy in here.
13:11All right, so I'm peeling all of this back.
13:15Then I want to clad this in.
13:19What, the handrail?
13:20Yeah.
13:20All 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.
13:31Oh, you've got enough boards.
13:3370 scaffold boards.
13:35Okay.
13:36And then what about this wall and the rimmed over there?
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 play 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, sort of split the difference there and then go six mil longer?
14:21Yep.
14:32All right, the pigs have escaped.
14:35The pigs are out.
14:38We need to get up to the house.
14:40I had them locked up.
14:42The guy said it was up behind the house, but heading down towards the water.
14:46Where are all these people coming from?
14:48And you haven't noticed a piglet.
14:58Yes, it's up by the house.
15:00Okay, was there just one or was there two by the house?
15:02One.
15:03Okay.
15:07Piggy!
15:07Piggy!
15:09Piggy!
15:10Piggy!
15:11That's always the little one.
15:38Piggy!
15:39While 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,
15:57it's time for Banjo to do what he does best,
16:00transform another man's trash into boathouse treasure.
16:03Here we go.
16:04Banjo's Emporium.
16:05What is that?
16:08Vintage sale.
16:10That's good stuff.
16:11That's a French sale.
16:20Oh, my fishing line.
16:22That's a good-looking haul.
16:24So, let me drive.
16:33Not content with the vintage spores from his own supplies,
16:36Banjo and his team have also joined a local beach clean,
16:39back in Ulva, in search of flotsam and jetsam.
16:43I'm going to have to be inventive.
16:45I'm going to go hunting.
16:46I'm going to hit the beach.
16:48If it ain't tied down, I'm taking it.
16:50I'm going to hit the beach.
16:56How do you get down?
17:01So much stuff.
17:02Yeah.
17:03So much plastic, so much fishing waste.
17:06If you're not disposing of stuff carefully,
17:08you could end up on a little windswept beach in the Hebrides.
17:13Weird little man might repurpose it into something for his cafe.
17:17Old sign.
17:24That's nifty.
17:25How far are we going to walk?
17:26Okay.
17:27I'll take it.
17:29Do you think this is going to be a crucial piece of your design?
17:32You never know.
17:36All right.
17:37Here they are.
17:38Look at them.
17:39They're beautiful.
17:40I think they'll be stunning.
17:42It's real bogged.
17:43That stinks.
17:44Rotten, cementing seaweed.
17:52Bloody hell.
17:53Need a hander?
17:55Yeah.
18:01Lucky I love you.
18:02Oh, I love you too.
18:03A lot.
18:04Aw.
18:09The boathouse has been stripped back to its skeleton.
18:13But such upheaval has compelled the business to close its doors until the building has been pieced
18:19back 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.
18:28Otherwise, we're in danger because we need to be open at the end of the week.
18:31We've got enough boards to make two big tables and 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.
18:42I guarantee it.
18:43And that table is not even prepped.
18:44It's got some sort of vinyl on top.
18:47No, it's a bit of lemonade.
18:48You don't even know what's under it.
18:49We're going to go down.
18:50It's a beautiful looking table.
18:51It's free and it's available today.
18:55So we're working with what we've got.
18:57I'll sand the top.
18:58You 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.
19:13How do you get 1940s glue whatever off the table?
19:20Oh, wow.
19:23Nice table.
19:25Don't encourage him.
19:28Right.
19:28Should we try and get this out of here?
19:29Yeah.
19:40I don't think it's going to fit through the door.
19:42I can't.
19:43I just can't cope with anything right now.
19:46This is not going to work.
19:47I don't know how you're going to get it in there.
19:52We've got nowhere to have dinner tonight at home.
19:56I 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.
20:11I'll strip it back.
20:12We'll take it apart.
20:14We'll get it up and we'll be having oysters on here tonight.
20:16Oh, it's tired.
20:19I'm tired.
20:23Banjo and his team are on the final stretch in anticipation of a grand reopening.
20:36He's bought half of them in grey and he's bought half of them in green and he wants them all green.
20:52This was one of the grey chairs and I'm just trying to match it to the green.
20:56But he likes this worn effect.
21:04I'm stripping this because Banjo 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?
21:20Yes.
21:22You'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.
21:46Okay.
21:46So have we got everything in there?
21:50Now we're missing the liquid.
21:51You've got to leave it for seven to 14 days.
21:53Ah, so like a kombucha.
21:55More like a wine, I think.
21:56Okay.
21:57Yeah.
21:57I 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?
22:14Yeah.
22:15Good.
22:16Good.
22:16Good?
22:17It's like the old days.
22:18Feels nice.
22:19Yeah.
22:20You'll have to come down for a coffee.
22:21Yeah.
22:22How are you with a hammer?
22:23Retired.
22:25Retired.
22:30The boathouse restoration is complete.
22:34The flat roof back at the house has been successfully dismantled.
22:38Now, naturally, only one thing remains.
22:41A celebration.
22:42Pulling the space together, even 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.
22:57Okay.
22:58Ro, present?
23:00Present.
23:00Grandpa?
23:02Present.
23:03Banjo, present.
23:04Okay.
23:05Boathouse party.
23:07Yeah.
23:08Okay, so really important.
23:09This goes off with a bang.
23:11I want it to be a nice opportunity to say thank you
23:13for the different people that have helped us along the way.
23:14The local suppliers currently support us and say thanks.
23:17Yep, local food producers, pals, Riri and Rebecca.
23:24What are we serving?
23:25A seafood feast.
23:26Yeah.
23:26I like that.
23:27Beautiful.
23:28It has to be fresh.
23:29Yeah.
23:29It has to be local.
23:30Yeah.
23:30It has to be bountiful.
23:32Yeah.
23:33And it has to just be visually stunning.
23:35We'll get in there and cook.
23:37Yeah, well, I'm going to.
23:37Start cooking.
23:38I've got to get the place ready.
23:47It's a nice big bucket of fish.
23:53They're not bad.
23:54How many are there?
23:55Ah, 25.
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, bang on, middle.
24:07You know what I mean?
24:08Like that height?
24:09Yeah.
24:11Oh, you worked hard for this sign.
24:15Don't ruin it now.
24:16I thought we were going to do it up, but I actually like it.
24:19I like it.
24:20It's rusty.
24:46I think it's great.
24:53Honestly, when you go upstairs and you see that space, it looks and feels beautiful.
24:58You know, we've put our stamp on it, but it's also like a beautiful space that people can come
25:02and visit and eat and enjoy.
25:04And it's going to help us then generate money that we can then reinvest.
25:08Yeah, no, I'm really proud of, yeah, what it looks like and how it is.
25:12Aw.
25:19It's completely transformed the place, not 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, but he has a vision.
25:29And by the end of the day, that vision's been met.
25:32And nobody knew how it was going to happen or if it was even possible.
25:36But by the end, something magical's happened.
25:38We're really grateful that you're all here.
25:48And we're grateful for Louie and Pila, who are our amazing chefs.
25:53And they've really brought it to life.
25:55And Sam and Ro have worked really hard to scrape 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.
26:16Our island dwellers and their band of merry trades have accomplished
26:20the boathouse reinvention.
26:22In just one week, they've transformed the space into a welcoming,
26:26somewhat magical headquarters for 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.
26:46Like, bloody hell.
26:47It was a ride.
26:50It was a ride.
26:51I think what you're trying to say is thank you.
26:54And you know what?
26:56You're welcome.
26:57I did it.
26:57Oh.
26:58I did it.
26:59Listen to him.
27:00No, we did it.
27:00We.
27:01No, we all.
27:01It's beautiful.
27:02I think that 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?
27:21Yeah.
27:22The people are what make our life better.
27:25I think we've created something really special here.
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