- 2 hours ago
Chateau DIY - Season 11 Episode 19
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00:00Across France are thousands of breathtaking chateaux.
00:06Many now being brought back to life.
00:09Oh, it's coming off. Quick, quick.
00:11This was a bad idea.
00:13By intrepid owners.
00:15It's digger time.
00:17I have to be careful and just make sure I don't hit any power lines.
00:20They're taking on the challenge.
00:22How hard can it be?
00:23To renovate these forgotten buildings.
00:26I never dreamt that we'd still be shoveling food.
00:31Into stunning homes.
00:33That is incredible.
00:35It looks like you worked a decade on this room.
00:38And businesses.
00:40You may kiss your bride.
00:42There'll be triumph.
00:44It's fantastic.
00:48And tribulation.
00:50Look what he's done.
00:51You moan about my drive and you went into it twice.
00:54Please.
00:54But with great challenge.
00:57What can possibly go wrong?
00:59Comes huge reward.
01:02It just looked beautiful.
01:04I don't.
01:05As they get to live the dream.
01:07Cheers.
01:08Cheers darling.
01:09As custodians of their very own castle.
01:16Today.
01:17Can I tell you I hate rambles?
01:19You have mentioned it once or twice.
01:20One couple take on an epic new garden project.
01:25Oh dear.
01:26I'm really stuck.
01:28Might have to dig the wellies out.
01:29Two DIY novices tackle a dicey renovation job.
01:34I'm just pulling the wire now.
01:35As long as the layer is stable I'm okay.
01:38And tensions rise between the Chatelain.
01:41No.
01:42No you're not on the inside here.
01:43No.
01:44It's got to be on the outside Louise.
01:45Oh I thought you said on the inside.
01:46No.
01:47The bit on the wall goes on the inside.
01:49What are you sorry.
01:55In the beautiful Rowe Verde.
01:58In central France stand the charming 19th century Chateau La Grande Maison.
02:06Set in three acres of park land alongside the picturesque River Dive.
02:13this stunning property boasts 45 lavish rooms including a grand ballroom since 2011 it's been
02:26home to musicians ben and billy who have been renovating it ever since the chateau basically
02:33has like every space that you could have a fantasy about you know if you ever dreamt of having a
02:39wine cellar tick the river it's a little bit of a foresty wood area who knew that we'd ever own
02:45a
02:45ballroom with a balcony coming off it i mean who has that but you know huge building and big land
02:51it means a lot of jobs that always need doing but we get a lot back located near the small
03:01town of
03:02saumur ben and billy run the chateau as a chic b&b and events venue ready yeah one two three
03:11and when
03:13we last saw them they spared no effort as they transformed a two-bedroom apartment into an
03:22opulent space for guests today they're turning their attention to the chateau's grounds as they
03:40have big plans to convert the overgrown riverbank into a tranquil waterside retreat i'm hoping to
03:48make this lovely park feel of like grass and trees leading down to the river to make a really nice
03:54place just to relax there are certain guests that come that really love wild swimming but the brambles
03:59have taken over so the pits we've got a battle on our hands to get rid of those right then
04:07with just
04:09two of them to do the work it could be a long job did i tell you i hate brambles
04:17you have mentioned
04:18it once or twice i don't mind them when they've got blackberries on but every other time i hate them
04:24at least this time of year it's easy to pull the roots up well yeah the ground's very wet down
04:28here
04:29isn't it if you don't get the roots up they're all going to come back aren't they
04:34good i like to make brambles spaghetti i get the fork look you twist it that's a good idea
04:41and then well if it pulls away you're lucky oh this is from that one bit oh it's done it's
04:48buried
04:48over there too of course it is which direction are the thorns going yeah that way if we walk the
04:55opposite way let's go it will hopefully come out that way that way yay take that big bramble
05:13wow look at that all right now that is progress they've at least made a start let's get the big
05:24one out oh dear i'm really stuck i have to dig the wellies out this is actually bad digging out
05:39my
05:39own feet here well done my mouse i didn't know gardening could be so treacherous it's really treacherous
05:51there's just so much of this so much of it you know all of this all down there yeah
05:59it's gonna be fab when it's done though looking much much better yeah that is much better can see
06:04the tree now yeah good start yeah now the jobs that you want to do and the jobs you have
06:09to do
06:10for today though yeah it's been and billy one it's brambles nil yes true it's proving to be a tough
06:17task and with the riverside trees to also cut back ben and billy's workload is only going to grow bigger
06:32in the stunning region of bordeaux in southwest france is the impressive 19th century chateau
06:41neum this charming winemaking estate sits in 100 acres of vineyards
06:51while the castle itself comprises 20 elegant rooms
06:57the lucky owners are mark a retired corporate executive and his canadian wife sandra
07:05we still get those moments when we're like wow this place is amazing you learn something new
07:10every day either about making wine other about the land other about renovation it's incredibly
07:15rewarding and then at the end of the evening to sit down and share a nice glass of wine with
07:19friends
07:20and family and actually go oh yeah well that wine came from these these vineyards is really nice
07:28located close to the town of marazin mark and sandra bought the chateau in 2019 for 670 000 pounds
07:40and this year they want to expand their thriving wine business by turning one of their farmhouses
07:46into a four bedroom jeet i am actually reasonably pleased when we last saw them they laid bespoke
07:57travertine floor tiles in the kitchen yeah it looks good in here did a good job and despite a few
08:04close
08:05the house calls second attempt you don't really have much room with the fridge doors then okay
08:10my hand is on the stone managed to move in all the appliances good job sandra and then you put
08:17some
08:17things in it starts to look like a kitchen
08:22with friends arriving to stay in two weeks the pressure is starting to build
08:29so today they're eager to spruce up the salon by accentuating the old limestone walls
08:37it originally had a low ceiling and we decided to take it out when it made a big nice big
08:43beautiful
08:43space and then i realized we were left with a small edge around it so we're going to put in
08:48a simple led
08:49track lighting to amplify and show the wall as a feature this is going to have to be teamwork at
08:54its
08:55finest precision work precision teamwork we're going to put a led light strip feed it through the hole
09:01there where they're going to then lay it down all the way around so it'll be one one continuous light
09:08yes yep got it as both are diy novices it could be a case of trial and error i'll be
09:18on the other side
09:19okay first they need to connect it up to the mains next door
09:27i'm just pulling the wire now okay
09:32okay that's one as long as the ladder is stable i'm okay
09:38that's two voila done okay they just have to hope it's wired up correctly
09:47hey success so it's plugged in we know it works up to win yeah the trickier job is to ensure
09:54the
09:55lighting strip seamlessly fits along the wall's edge so i'm just going to unroll it i'm going to lay the
10:03the first strip so here we go it's not sticking oh it's double-sided oh wow do you need this
10:15piece
10:15for just no no it's okay got it right we're back on track despite some initial teething problems
10:24they soon get into the groove i'm almost at the end okay when you get there just leave it there
10:31um that's tacked on there okay come down
10:38this seems easy enough that we can do it they're making light work of it and in less than an
10:47hour
10:47it's almost mission complete right and now i can lay the last bit down and we can
10:56finish the light setup do you want to switch it on yeah
11:04um okay yeah
11:09whoa yes it's a small victory but for me it's a big one
11:15okay good that works look at you look how far you came from model making and flat pack furniture
11:21my hero we can tick it off the list it's another small step in the right direction
11:28but with most of the jeet in need of dressing up and their friends arriving in a fortnight
11:34mark and sandra's diy challenges are only just beginning
11:44coming up ben struggles to see the wood for the trees we're trying to bake lovely views into the pond
11:51but everything's just spread out and this chateau couple take on an extravagant new challenge hoping it
11:58will work i'm hoping it will look good i'm hoping it will be usable
12:10in the beautiful occetanie region of southern france
12:15stands the impressive 13th century chateau de montespieux
12:20the historic castle with its fairy tale towers comprises 66 rooms
12:30a splendid central courtyard and comes with 37 acres
12:37it's been empty for decades until leicestershire couple louisa and roger bought it in 2023 for 840
12:49000 pounds we couldn't believe that a building like this was within our budget
12:54we always thought this was going to be a project do it up as much as we can and then
12:59move on but as
13:01it continues um i think what i think we're both starting to feel like really nice if we could stay
13:06longer than five years you really take to it i think everyone should have a chateau it's really great
13:18located an hour's drive from the city of toulouse louisa and roger plan to turn the chateau
13:24into a luxury event venue and when we last saw them started to create a his and hers two-bedroom
13:34guest
13:34suite on the first floor see where the pattern is yeah that's it there so far they've wallpapered the
13:43his room there you go what do you think that no what do you think oh i love it i
13:51like it and begun
13:52building an adjoining bathroom that's great nice big shower nice big shower perfect it's going to be
14:00spacious well done no that's okay with a wedding booked in for next month they're under pressure
14:08to finish the job the her bedroom has since been decorated and today roger's eager to get the
14:18bathroom up to scratch i need to put a wall up for the shower and the false walls that are
14:25created
14:25upstairs and then i can get on to the tiling of it later on we're trying to have a modern
14:30usable
14:31bathroom so we need a modern usable wall to put it behind
14:41good louisa meanwhile is on a crafty mission of her own
14:47i'm going to be making some lampshades for the his suite i bought some frames um uh 50 centimeter
14:55diameter ones and then i tried um i tried to measure the circumference of it and it was too short
15:03so i
15:04used pie you're very welcome every single maths teacher out there yes your students one day will
15:10use i um for some diy um and with that i now know that i need three widths of the
15:19wallpaper to cover a
15:21lampshade louise is using the leftover wallpaper and needs to make them chateau sized as they're for
15:30the ceiling lights i'm hoping it will work i'm hoping it will look good i'm hoping it will be usable
15:37but in the worst case scenario i've lost a little bit of time um and i will have at
15:43least tried it there's no harm in giving it a go with the pattern matched up the paper needs cutting
15:50to
15:50size but the trickier challenge is attaching it to the frame i think this is going to be fiddly um
16:00somehow without tearing the paper i've got to get it to um fit on i'm just going to wing it
16:08i just don't know how fragile wallpaper is it's probably not very fragile
16:15i have a system it's going to work just keep putting the pegs on
16:21yes this is working i'm happy with the way it's um fitting on the frame there um time to glue
16:27with the shade in shape it's proved to be relatively straightforward oh i'm really pleased
16:34i mean i'm practically professional at this i've made one lampshade and i can feel the business is
16:41growing i'm just going to let it dry now don't touch it any further and one more to do and
16:47then
16:47i'll be able to hang them tomorrow fantastic louisa's master plan is beginning to come together
16:55but with the bathroom still little more than a shell roger needs to get his skates on
17:12in southwest france at chateau mayaume work in mark and sandra's new gite has ground to a halt
17:22as today they're heading to a local brocante in the hope of finding some antique treasures to help furnish it
17:32we love coming here because well first of all it's eclectically fantastic and secondly there's
17:38so many great things that we've been able to source for the chateau and of course look it's a lot
17:42of fun
17:44with their friends arriving in a couple of days if we find a second one that looks like this because
17:51that's quite cool they don't have much time to make it shine this is a very old model casserole dish
17:58and this is a cast iron i believe if you try and buy them new they're ridiculously expensive because
18:04they're outside there they should be very very inexpensive and if someone breaks them we're not
18:11bothered because we didn't spend a lot of money for it yeah exactly that's a good point with a first
18:16find in the bag sandra's on a roll this might be a winner i want a pot to put orchids
18:25in in the entrance
18:26of the chateau do you think it's too heavy for the table or no i don't think so we need
18:31to clean it
18:31up a bit give it give it some felt pads on the bottom so it doesn't scratch the table okay
18:37that's
18:37the winner all right let's look at the demi jolt we're looking for two to turn into bedside lamps
18:49is that the same size same weight because they're all hand blown so they're all slightly different
18:56is that this one's small yeah that's a bit smaller this one's heavier
19:01that looks like it can match this one careful yeah you break it you buy it yeah yeah these seem
19:09similar right go with that yeah we have a pair of lampshades that should go nicely with this
19:15it's proving to be a successful trip this is where to find antique door handles i'll take those as a
19:24potential good add it to the power with the shopping done sandra hopes she can get them for a bargain
19:33price so kelly la mayor mayor free
19:51after managing to get the casserole dishes for free it's certainly been a worthwhile visit
19:57i think uh sandra was her usual charming self he knows that whatever he says is gonna she's gonna
20:04push a bit so i think she he cleverly came up with the price that we were looking for
20:08and then we were happy so anyway done business easy
20:13having sealed the deal mark and sandra have got off to a good start
20:19but with their friends due in a couple of days
20:22it's back to the chateau to put their design plan into action
20:35in the loire valley at chateau la grande maison
20:40it's a hive of activity by the river as ben and billy have brought in friends andy and natalie
20:47to help clear the space for their new waterside retreat
20:53we need to get rid of tree stumps we need to get rid of brambles we're going to tidy everything
20:58up
20:58from the boat shed all the way down to the river we want to have it clear enough to put
21:03tables and chairs
21:04down and we want to be able to mark the depths in the river so that we can have some
21:08wild swimming
21:09so it's obvious where you can swim it's a big day ahead especially as the trees by the water's edge
21:17haven't been touched in years what we're trying to do is create lovely views into the pond
21:24but everything's just spread out and there's not a single nice vista that's pretty hard there
21:33billy's job meanwhile is to clear the overgrown boat shed i've got to actually weed the entire
21:40thing we've got our beautiful cordial lines which grow like crazy our boat that we need to get in the
21:45river to measure the depths is here can't even get to that at the moment so this is my little
21:49island
21:49of work and hopefully paradise when it's finished there's no other way to do this and to just get to
22:00the roots of everything so that the stones are going to be clear ben at least is making some progress
22:09with the tree stumps 10 years ago on this spot was a huge poplar tree and as it fell over
22:16that way
22:18it lifted up the roots and created this big mound but it's left these big solid bits of tree trunk
22:24left
22:29so it's all these bits we want to get rid of so when the mower goes over it we're not
22:33trying to
22:34chop a big lump of wood i'm going to put this on the border of our land
22:38so it can rot away for little bugs like a bug hotel
22:47ben and i both love the water i when we met i lived by the sea he lived on the
22:53canal and had a
22:54boat and uh we we decided that anywhere we lived we have to have water the river was actually like
23:01really high on our list of dream things that we wanted when we were looking for places here
23:08it's so peaceful
23:13this is going really really well and he's cracked onto this you know so fast it's looking amazing
23:18still a few scraggly bits to get out of the way but uh it's gonna look lovely and hopefully um
23:23the irises are going to really grow in this area as well because this has been starved of light for
23:27a long
23:28long time ben's starting to see the fruits of their labor and with the boathouse cleared
23:36do you mind helping me move the boat for a minute billy's eager to get onto the water
23:42we need to tip it upside down and let it dry out yeah and then eventually once it's dry enough
23:48let's see if we can blow it back up again i can blow it back up i hope we can
23:51all right then why it's
23:52quite heavy i can't wait to use this again yo heave ho and a bottle of rum
24:02ben and billy's plan is gathering pace but with lots more clearing to do it's going to be a good
24:10while yet before their guests can take the plunge
24:21still to come it's a race against time for mark and sandra be nice to see what they think of
24:27it
24:28it's finally coming together and ben gets thrown in at the deep end you can see it's the water's
24:34running faster wow we've got enough rope
24:45in southern france at chateau de montespierre louisa and roger are progressing with their his and hers
24:54guest suite as the new shower wall is almost in place i've put my pipes through lined them up and
25:02you see the shape of it now anyway yeah definitely have you picked the tiles yet
25:10the shower might be coming together but they still need to plasterboard the rest of the bathroom walls
25:21while roger continues on with the work
25:27louisa is eager to check on her wallpaper lampshades for the his room moment of truth i hope the pegs
25:35have
25:35done the job clamping the paper down and i hope they haven't themselves stuck to the paper
25:43well that one's free that's good and everything's staying stuck down quite nicely
25:53yes it works
25:57and voila we're ready let's take it away here we go two lampshades let's do it
26:08roger i hope you're ready because i am perfect timing wow they look fantastic where'd you get that
26:17wallpaper from no they look great i think they're going to look the business i am dead excited this
26:23better look good with the ceiling four meters high it's a two ladder job perfect that's good i think
26:31this is the way we'll have to do it put the bulb in while we're there yeah good oh oh
26:38no they're not
26:38too low it's my god they're massive massive though aren't they ready reveal three two one
26:50i feel like closing the shutters to see what it looks like
27:01oh i think they're great i love the light of it look you can really see the light coming through
27:07the wallpaper it shines through the pattern of it it really brings the wallpaper in doesn't it
27:12it does it's got a cozy feel perfect they look great look well done thank you
27:20louise's vision is beginning to take shape but with the wedding only a few weeks away
27:27they might be cutting things a bit fine
27:40in the loire valley in central france ben and billy's waterside retreat is moving in the right
27:49direction as the banks of the river have finally been cleared
27:56this is all that's left from our sailing days isn't it ben and today they're eager to get into their
28:02boat to make the water safe for their wild swimming guests i think that's gonna float it'll definitely float
28:14great we've got this section that suddenly goes deep and then it shallows out again so we want to
28:19mark it out so that people know where to find it and where to avoid it if they want to
28:23one of us is
28:24going to hold the rope and and let it out slowly where we can measure the various different places
28:28and one of us is going to be in the boat doing the measuring so this is kind of like
28:32one of those
28:32marriage trust things you know when you kind of go like that and you kind of fall back into each
28:36other's arms one of those it's a bit like that because one person's holding the rope but the
28:40other person's stuck in the boat so it's all about trust this one yeah can't let that rope go no
28:45not unless i really want to
28:49oh very good very good with the rope tied and secure it's the moment of truth right hey
29:00marriage trust exercise i trust you with it i should have bought gin and tonic he's having all the fun
29:10i'll take a measurement by the swing okay to gauge the water's depth
29:17ben's fashioned a measuring stick out of bamboo okay i'll take a measurement here
29:26oh that's not even a meter yet let me get a bit more billy okay
29:35that's about a meter in line with that tree there well it's going deeper now
29:41that's a meter and a half wow i think that's the edge of where it starts getting yeah that's where
29:47you can see the water's running faster yeah that's where it gets deep ben i'll go down a
29:52bit bit more billy okay we've got enough rope yeah plenty
30:03that's three meters three meters by that tree it should start getting shallower again
30:12yeah it's getting shallower here so it's from that tree
30:16well they dance that tree wow about about 25 meters long that's swimming pool size you can bring
30:24me in now oh don't you just want to stay there a little bit longer you don't like you're having
30:30a
30:30lot of fun it's really nice you can row as well you know no it's okay with the depths of
30:38the river
30:39discovered it's been a successful mission we've got planned now we're going to make two signs with
30:46the little pointy bits at the end to point towards the deep end and point towards the shallow we love
30:59billy's waterside retreat is inching closer but with the signs still to do and the banks to make
31:09picture perfect their guests won't be splashing around just yet
31:21in bordeaux in southwest france it's all systems go in the gite
31:27i'm just trying to get the algae off the inside
31:31sandra and mark are eager to upcycle the bottles they bought at the brocante
31:37hopefully it'll work and produce a simple little uh side lamp for one of the bedrooms
31:43i think i almost got it but with their friends due imminently they don't have much time
31:50for the lamp itself i wanted the the old wiring i wanted a sort of a antique brass look it's
31:56nothing to
31:58scientific and hopefully without breaking the bottle you squeeze it in for the lampshades we
32:06chose these specifically because of the color and also because basically has a lot of the animals that
32:11we have here at the chateau so we thought that was a good theme just tighten it onto the
32:16light fixture well here all right so one little check okay there we go success simple but effective
32:32it looks good it looks good it'll look good in the room with the lamp complete they're hoping they can
32:39squeeze in some finishing touches in the other rooms it'll be nice to see what they think of it
32:45it's finally coming together
32:52done okay wow that looks really good
33:03six months ago their farmhouse was unloved derelict and nothing more than an empty shell
33:12now it's been transformed into a cozy and inviting space for guests to enjoy with mark and sandra's eye for
33:23detail
33:24they've created a homely kitchen and a delightful salon which retains the charm and character of the 19th century building
33:34with the addition of elegant bedrooms and stylish bathrooms giving it that sense of opulence making it a luxurious place
33:47to stay
33:49and with their friends starting to arrive
33:55it's time to see if their hard work has paid off
33:59oh thank you oh my god it's actually unbelievable it's just changed mental recognition it's amazing
34:07we took out the ceiling so that gave us a higher ceiling and then put in the lighting and then
34:12the rest
34:13is basically mainly sandra buying things that they broke on this is the kitchen um our friends made
34:21this made it out of reclaimed wood and then the table brilliant we changed the tiles in here as well
34:27yes i think it adds you know adds to the age of the of the original building it's lovely really
34:31is lovely
34:32it's very homey and this is your room the red room wow very nice oh yes please lovely beautiful
34:43i love the lamp yeah we made those lamps you did yeah oh wow that is lovely i'm so impressed
34:50with what
34:51they've managed to achieve because i've been here before and i've seen what it was like the transformation
34:55in itself is incredible they've clearly done a bang-up job of the renovation i have nothing but respect
35:01for them doing i think it's amazing it's incredible what they've done it looks really cozy it's beautiful
35:06i'm really looking forward to staying today was a great day and it was really lovely seeing it through
35:12their eyes like they were pleasantly surprised i'm super happy i'm relieved as well in some late
35:17nights long days yeah long days i can't wait to not have anyone here and i'll just stay there have
35:22a
35:22little mini holiday it's really beautiful yeah it came out really well i might call you for food delivery
35:28mark and sandra have done a great job and with their sheet now officially open
35:39it's another business venture that is set to flourish for many years to come
35:49coming up roger gets tied up in knots instructions in italian
35:57and ben and billy's problems start to mount did i tell you i love nature you said you wanted a
36:04nice walk
36:04through the woods
36:12in the region of occitanie in southern france work in roger and louise's his and hers guest suite has
36:22taken a big step forwards as the bathroom is almost done today we're going to be hopefully
36:30finishing the ensuite bathroom we're going to put shower door on and then it's up to you after that
36:35i'll be on hand to help but actually i'm going to be oiling the bedroom floor or waxing it waxing
36:42it
36:42actually no keep the oil off keep the oil off waxing it roger hopes that installing the shower door
36:49will prove a simple job instructions in italian uh it says use instruction handbooks i you know
37:01i wouldn't want to risk without it but louise always says that i don't ever look at them which is
37:06actually true um i think it's going to be okay i just hope that the walls are straight we're going
37:13to
37:14find out in order to fit the door roger's going to have to drill into his newly laid tiles i'm
37:21putting
37:22the masking tape on in theory to prevent any cracking or chipping of the tile to be on the
37:27safe side a little bit of clear masking tape over my mark so i know where i'm going
37:38seems okay i think it's a bit cold for the actual wax okay here goes next door louisa is hoping
37:48to
37:48make the bedroom floors shine it's literally apply it wait till it dries buff it and once it's buffed
37:57if you're still not happy with the finish apply another coat having previously spent years running
38:03a boat fitting company the couple are no strangers to elbow grease we had to polish the boats big time
38:12the narrow boats oh my goodness they sort of leave the yard with a car wax finish it was very
38:19very
38:19labor-intensive it's not the favorite job but it will require all hands on deck if they're going
38:26to safely fit the heavy shower glass watch your toes scratch the shower tree no you're not on the
38:34inside here yeah now i am no it's got to be on the outside louisa oh i thought you said
38:38on the inside
38:39yeah the bit on the wall goes on the inside there that's right oh okay
38:48okay fingers crossed now i've got to get the other bit up high is good
38:55okay then we're going to drop it down very gently pop it in and
39:02there you go you happy good i'm so pleased that we held it in position first because
39:07i could that could have gone wrong otherwise with no harm done louisa can finish off the waxing
39:15i'm on the last stretch here and i've hardly got any stuff left which is fabulous look at that that
39:23that is a very satisfying job and this is going to help it weather the next 300 years just one
39:30little
39:31coat of wax hey is it safe yeah how are you doing yes just about there and uh looks nice
39:39doesn't it i love
39:41it i do i love it i love it feels quality doesn't it is lovely look at that well i'm
39:49finished you want to see
40:01the new bedroom guest suite is moving a step closer and they've come up with a new name they're not
40:07called
40:08his and hers anymore we're going for a toulouse-lautrec the toulouse-lautrec family at one stage were the
40:13owners of the chateau um so we thought it's quite nice to have a nod to them it's part of
40:19the history of
40:19the chateau in the rooms yeah it's a fitting tribute but with the bedrooms to dress and the hallway still
40:27to renovate louisa and roger are a long way from being wedding ready
40:42in the loire valley in central france the summer is in full bloom and ben and billy's waterside retreat
40:51is almost complete they're really smart they'll last a long time as well but they still need to
40:59hang the water depth signs for wild swimmers to clearly see right we have not been down here for
41:07a while no this really is back to nature isn't it we've got to try not to fall in the
41:11river while we're
41:12doing this no getting there i'll go and get the signs yes please
41:27is that the right way around yeah one meter that way three meters that way cool
41:32they they're very smart i have to say so i'm going to screw this in and then step back in
41:37the
41:37mind my work don't step back i reckon go here because when you're walking in the water
41:43that's going to be roughly head height which is not perfect isn't it
41:52that's lovely one job that you can manage without spirit level doesn't have to be that perfect
41:57okay should we carry on fighting our way through it might be a case of one down one to go
42:05but hanging this sign might prove more problematic i'll send out a search party if you're not back in
42:12an hour or so did i tell you i love nature you said you wanted a nice walk through the
42:21woods
42:22how's it looking nearly there billy nearly there do you know billy we haven't been to this
42:29corner of the garden in five years five years it shows it shows
42:42i think we're there billy i think we're there wow this is definitely the area because you can see
42:47that it gets shallow again there yeah you can see the bottom of the river
42:56perfect well done now swim back
43:03with the signs in place all that's left to do with help from daughter ella
43:10is make it into a space to chill and unwind
43:15i rock your sleep oh lovely ah finally i can relax
43:25three months ago their riverbank was wild overgrown and out of control
43:34now it's been transformed into a serene natural beauty spot having cleared the grounds to the water's edge
43:44it's the perfect place to be at one with nature and those brave enough to go for a dip
43:51don't have far to travel
43:55and what better way to celebrate than with a picnic cheers cheers good work
44:03with the river now looking inviting they can't resist having a splash oh this is paradise
44:14i couldn't be more delighted i love it with the land all opened up now and having the hammock and
44:20picnic i feel really reconnected to this part of the the land it's just heaven now that we've defined
44:26the space it's it's obvious and easy to know what to do relax there eat there swim there just chill
44:33out
44:35oh this is so nice
44:38now the hard work is out of the way ben and billy might be relaxing here for a good while
44:46to come
44:52next time there's a decking disaster measure twice cut one we measured three times
45:01some supersized diy the corridor is 25 meters long so that's a challenge on a scale we're not really
45:08used to and some uninvited wedding guests when we found this chateau i never dreamt that 15 years later
45:18so we'll still be shuffling through
45:21so
45:49so
45:50you
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