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Escape To The Country - Season 26 - Episode 27: West Yorkshire
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00:01on escape to the country we like to present our house hunters with show-stopping features
00:07this is where the theater the magic happens here look at it oh and we always aim to reach new
00:15heights wow oh my goodness okay yeah oh that's beautiful sometimes we can forget who's meant to
00:24be buying the house i was gonna say you like it don't you do do you like it but their
00:29happiness
00:30is always the priority now he smiled
00:58when the sun shines on west yorkshire its luscious countryside draws sightseers out to immerse
01:05themselves in its beauty but it can also feel rugged and untamed which perhaps draws its communities
01:11together if you've been here then you will know and if you haven't let me tell you yorkshire is a
01:17very friendly place even on a map it's as if north yorkshire is wrapping its arms around west yorkshire
01:24it's westy besty west yorkshire is situated in the north of england and has always been well connected
01:32not just due to its location but also because it's often been at the forefront of transport innovations
01:42in 1774 a rising flight of locks was opened in bingley joining leeds and liverpool by water
01:48it was such an impressive feat that around 30 000 people turned up to celebrate the opening
01:56today the county has some of the most rapid electric vehicle charging points outside of london
02:02and perhaps it's this long connection with speed that's inspired the county's olympic
02:07and paralympic champions there is access to a wide variety of sporting events for every ability
02:14or disability of things like football rugby athletics wheelchair sports there's all sorts
02:20there's lots of things to do like after school clubs and things like that i really enjoy living in
02:28west yorkshire apart from the weather it is still amazing place it's absolutely amazing you're not
02:35going to be seeing reason in other parts of the country so yes come along enjoy yourself relax have
02:40a good time i probably shouldn't say this too loudly but i was born and raised just over the border
02:46in
02:46lancashire and despite the rivalry between my home county and yorkshire i've always enjoyed coming here
02:53taking in the scenery and having a chat with the friendly locals talking about locals it's time to
02:59meet today's couple who want to return to their yorkshire roots
03:07theatre general manager rich and costumier janey met working on the western show saturday night fever
03:14having moved from yorkshire to london for work we have loved it but we don't need that anymore we
03:20don't need to be near london and it was always the plan to get back up north and get to
03:24yorkshire
03:25they're surrounded by some of the country's busiest roads so getting about can be frustrating
03:31it's the main route from london's bright so it's quite popular one way to beat the traffic
03:39is running film yourself running it'll be fun they said their steep garden is also physically
03:51challenging and has janey's workshop near the top it's organized chaos i'd like to say it's not
03:57really organized it's just chaos but this is where it happens i've got various seating options after
04:03i've climbed the mountain to get up here but it's just a bit of a trek rich also often works
04:09from home
04:10i could be doing it anywhere so get me back up north they're moving with their son rupert who wants
04:17to settle in a new school before starting gcses and he's looking forward to new opportunities
04:23a motocross motocross is that the dirt bike thing yep you've not mentioned that you're not yeah i'm not
04:31sure i'm not sure about that don't you have to be a bit older rich and janey want an unlisted
04:37detached quirky house they're after four bedrooms and hope to rent out a room as digs to theatre
04:43productions janey needs a workroom rich would like a workshop and they'd all like a flatter garden
04:50for a maximum budget of six hundred thousand pounds
05:04driving along roads like this with views like these i can completely understand why people would
05:11want to come back to yorkshire and i do get the pull of your roots i mean i've lived away
05:17from the
05:17north of england for a long long time but every time i come back it still feels like home you
05:23know
05:23i do think the landscape the moors and the valleys of this part of the world are absolutely stunning and
05:29they often get overlooked for other parts of the county but trust me west yorkshire is well worth a visit
05:39one hidden gem is the village of oak and shore near the center of the county which is the location
05:45of our first house but before we go there i'm meeting rich and janey in a nearby country park
05:53well hello hello oh it's so nice to be back up north with these familiar landscapes it's beautiful
05:59isn't it i'm sure over the course of the next few days my local accent will come out my langashire
06:03accent and i can tell from your accents of course that this area this part of the world is home
06:07for
06:07you is that the big pull for this area now for west yorkshire yeah why west yorkshire in particular
06:12it's a beautiful county yorkshire partly because we wanted to make sure that we maintained links
06:18to london yeah links to cities but had access to this yeah and being their family we've got family in
06:25holland derby yeah so it's liverpool yeah and are you all on the same page you're thinking what your
06:31vision of a house is here are you two look i imagine we're going to find that out in the
06:36next
06:36day but yeah and and rupa as well i think he he's you know over the last couple of years
06:43we have been
06:44kind of looking online which is it is great and handy but you can't see the actual place you don't
06:50and
06:50that's what we were finding that's why we needed your help because we couldn't find the location well
06:55that's what we're here for should we should we crack on yes please the village of oak and shore is
07:04on the outskirts of bradford the uk's 2025 city of culture it's around five miles from the alhambra
07:11theater which attracts top touring productions and if late back from a show there's a good range of
07:17takeaways as well as other village amenities including a pharmacy just a few minutes walk from the center
07:23is the house we're here to see so i thought we'd kick off with a traditional stone barn conversion
07:32oh interesting love it it's got a feel and that's important what do you think about the style rich
07:38you i like the style yeah absolutely i love the look of that window fascinated to get in and have
07:45a
07:45nose good well there's a there's a couple of elements inside that i'm going to show you one in
07:49particular that's going to make you feel right at home let's just say it's quite theatrical oh no
07:55well should we go and check it out inside yes please yes please this bomb was built around 1750 and
08:03converted in the 1980s the single story extension we're entering through was added by the current owners
08:13so come on in oh wow so you've got a great big airy kitchen diner yeah really nice views nice
08:22island
08:22out over the valley yeah no it's got a lovely feel to it you don't feel that you're coming into
08:28a modern
08:29part of the house do you no you really don't no no floorboards are lovely yeah yeah and it's nice
08:34yeah like this obviously even with the beams and it's still got the height worried that you would
08:39also cover it in fairy lights but i'm already thinking of christmas holly along there's a deal
08:45to be done on the fairy lights i'm sure oh we have plenty and are you dining room kind of
08:50people or are
08:51you a bit more this kind of vibe of a nice diet yeah yeah kitchen diner we play board games
08:57cards
08:57everything whilst rich cooks if we had a dining room we might do lots of things in it but never
09:03dine
09:03okay okay well hold that thought because i'm going to come back to that idea okay okay i'll
09:07have a dining room for you to do some things in oh i'll show you that in a while also
09:12in the new
09:13extension there's a good-sized utility room and a double garage that could provide rich's workshop
09:19then the other end of the kitchen flows into the original bomb so here you go i think the mix
09:25is
09:25pretty seamless yeah it doesn't feel like we're suddenly in the old part of the house doesn't it
09:30no it really doesn't no it's great okay i would like it like the old coving and that beams quite
09:38yeah yeah yeah it's not too low and it's a great size space that's the thing that struck me about
09:44this room yeah you've got the nice double doors out onto the garden but it's really big yeah which
09:50is brilliant yeah main living room yeah no it's lovely there's so much in this house that i want
09:56to talk about and show you so let's move from here i mentioned theatrical and this is where
10:01the theater happens the magic happens here look at it oh wow oh goodness oh good lord
10:12think of the fairy lights we could have in here so let me just talk about the layout down here
10:16because you've got a dining room in there which i very strongly said is not a dining room that would
10:21become your work room i think okay now thinking about the digs so over in the far corner is another
10:27room there it's got a separate door off it and as you come in through the other entrance right next
10:33door to that room is a really good downstairs bathroom interesting okay yeah i can't read you rich
10:39come on oh it's hard he won't know he doesn't show he doesn't he's not going to give anything away
10:44until he's seen everything the problem is i think i've got a beaming smile it just doesn't resonate
10:51should you just say you're smiling on the inside yeah i'm smiling under the beard upstairs there are
10:56four double bedrooms two of which share the family bathroom while the third is ensuite as is the
11:03largest i like it's a great size yeah lots of storage loads of more jobs big thick walls i love
11:11the beam there's also an attic room which could work as a recreation space for rupert outside is vast
11:18with a gated driveway around 50 meters of flat south-facing garden offering elevated rural views
11:25and a multi-purpose stable block i mean it could be another little workshop there's you know we could turn
11:32there's a lot of scope to do things with that i could have a potting shed for one one of
11:36them can
11:37i make a suggestion yeah i think one of them which would make an amazing log store yeah there we
11:43smiled yes absolutely yeah it would yeah ready-made log store yeah yeah yeah the only compromise for
11:50me is the the noise because you can't hear the traffic inside it's staggering yeah it's really really
11:56lovely it's got everything we need and the flexibility for us to use it in different ways right well we
12:02have one question left to answer it is what is this property on the market for really well connected
12:09on the doorstep for leeds and bradford i'm going to say 580 580 000 pounds i was going to go
12:17570
12:21okay you've actually both a little bit off the mark okay it's actually in the market for just over
12:27budget 610 000 pounds because it is such a great property in such a great location yeah 610 000 pounds
12:38for this extended barn conversion offering a large kitchen diner and four double bedrooms for the
12:44family from an income perspective there's opportunity to rent out digs as well as a workroom and workshop
12:51options not to mention the large outdoor areas and the views it's very different to anything i thought
12:59i was looking for but the space is so dramatic and exciting the light that comes in through this amazing
13:07window and the outside i reckon i could fit a lot of plants in there is a bit of a
13:14compromise in terms of
13:15the outside and the traffic noise but i think we just need to weigh up how much of a problem
13:21that is
13:32we might not have the best weather this week but it won't water down the beauty of the moors
13:38so we've arranged for local tour guide johnny briggs to show rich and janey the sights welcome to bronte
13:45country thank you very much what do you think of this extraordinary landscape oh it's breathtaking it is
13:50beautiful so in terms of where we are we have howarth the top of howarth is just there on the
13:57brow of
13:57that hill that's the heart of the bronte story but if we go that way a little bit you see
14:04those beautiful
14:04moors yeah that's where emily is going to cite wuthering heights right on that horizon there's nothing
14:10else beyond it apart from the blanket bog so kathy and heathcliff can just be alone brilliant i'm a keen
14:18runner it looks like it might be quite challenging around here this is the best fell running running
14:23across the moors will only give you strength and stamina yeah you'll be raised in amongst your local
14:29people as a legend for doing but maybe it's time we go and explore howarth lovely lovely sounds good
14:40howarth is most famously associated with the bronte sisters the home where they spent the majority of
14:47their lives now has is a museum dedicated to them and the village's association with writers looks set to
14:54continue we've got a little bar up here called writer's block we encourage local poets to come along and
15:00talk about their works present their new works and foundations it's full of independent businesses
15:06many of them lining the historic cobbled streets it's got a real chocolate box kind of look to the
15:12village and a really great atmosphere there's always so much going on in terms of events and things to do
15:18so in july there's an arts festival and a comedy festival which is is great and brings people into the
15:23village and at christmas it is beautiful all the christmas trees out and they are everywhere but
15:30also there's a real welcoming of christmas on the church steps and it really really does bring christmas
15:35to life everyone knows everybody else you go hi steve hi dave you know what a lovely dog oh isn't
15:42it
15:42great weather we always talk about the weather but the community spirit is fantastic which is why we're
15:47having how is first pride this year there's a great choice of enticing restaurants and cafes for
15:54when it's time to sit back and take it all in we love the look of how it looks very
15:59very quaint and
15:59lovely i love the history but where how would we go about meeting people if we were new and didn't
16:04know
16:05anyone in the area i think meeting people in howard is probably much easier to imagine partly because it's
16:10a tourist town as well as a town where people live and there are lots of things that go on
16:15part of what drew us to the area is trying to find that balance between the rural countryside living
16:22but the accessibility of the the cities i mean is that realistic here oh it's brilliant here you've
16:29got the best of both worlds you've got the landscape and the moors but you've also really close to leeds
16:36bradford manchester we have brilliant rail networks so from keithley in 25 minutes you can be in the
16:43center of leeds on the train that's brilliant you've been so helpful thank you it's great to hear all
16:47of that and looking forward to seeing more of it yeah and great to know we can still have the
16:52links
16:52that we need into the cities such a pleasure to have met you and i'm sure wherever you go you're
16:58to find you're going to bring so much energy to where you end up living thank you
17:08our next property is in the village of allerton the location is just two miles from the pretty
17:13historic village of thornton it's packed with culture and is celebrated as the birthplace of the brontes
17:20there's also a library gallery and an antique store as well as more day-to-day businesses
17:28the most striking landmark is its victorian viaduct and incredibly the house we've come to see is
17:34centuries older so welcome to one of the oldest if not the oldest houses in this area okay wow
17:45dates back to 1605 so it's got some stories to tell this one absolutely oh okay
17:52got his poker face back on his face is back on you say it's one of the oldest buildings in
17:59the area is
17:59it is it listed it is it's got a grade two star listing okay you are not going to have
18:06to worry about
18:06that though because somebody else is worried about that and the whole thing has been beautifully renovated
18:11okay so there is nothing left to do inside that would cause you issues okay that sounds positive
18:17it reminds me so much of what i love about this area it reminds me of the brontes yeah and
18:24it reminds
18:24me of you know all the brilliant books that i grew up reading that were all set around here and
18:29this is
18:29the kind of house that would be in one of those books yeah it seems to have the right sort
18:34of character
18:35and we always said feeling is you know quite important yeah i love the i love the garden i love
18:40the views you know and the dry stone wall it's gorgeous gorgeous i think you're going to be
18:45charmed by this because i know i was i was going to say you like it don't you do you
18:49like it honestly
18:50i do i found myself going oh my kitchen table would fit in there which is not what i'm supposed
18:54to be
18:55doing well should we go and see if it is for you yes come on this incredible property is semi
19:02-detached
19:03and full of period details immediately evident in the living room nice nice oh yeah no i could cope
19:12with this i know yeah they're so deep aren't they yeah and again you've got all that the history that
19:19you you want left in it you've got the beams you've got the beautiful exposed stone yeah but it's not
19:25got the low ceilings which again is something that you're worried about it's actually remarkably
19:28light look at those windows yeah they're just i know beautiful yeah okay a little bit gobsmacked
19:39you're smiling on the outside rich
19:46but what does it feel like because something's making you smile on the outside
19:50it's lovely homely it feels like a it feels like a good place to be it's got a good vibe
19:57i can't explain it but i came in and i just got the vibe and it just felt nice just
20:02seeing the
20:02beam across the doorway that's totally awesome you've not seen anything yet off the entrance hall is a
20:08double suite which includes a shower and could provide the rental digs there's also a large utility room
20:15but the room i really want to show them is under that beamed archway i mean there's not just one
20:21beam there there's a whole series of them oh yeah wow and here's some more
20:30nice i can imagine stumbling up those steps
20:35very well done this is lovely it's nice isn't it oh no lovely space and have you noticed actually how
20:41quiet it is in here yeah again it's just the thickness of the walls isn't it nothing nothing
20:47is going to get through that it's gorgeous isn't it yeah interesting that they've got the telly in
20:51here this room is obviously where they where they spend their time yeah you know and that's what you
20:57said to me earlier yeah no absolutely beyond the kitchen is a second living room that's even larger
21:03and could be transformed into janie's work room this is lovely nice yeah yeah no it's lovely
21:14i'm already worried about when she asks what it costs i just don't know well you're going to have to
21:22worry a little longer rich as you haven't even seen the upstairs yet the exposed stonework continues
21:28throughout the house and in addition to the downstairs bedroom there are another four doubles
21:36oh wow amazing you know a hotel room that's got all the quirky features amazing beans yeah i think
21:46that might be a walk-in wardrobe uh yeah oh yeah plenty of space for my things anyway oh i
21:57like it
21:59the largest of the bedrooms has an ensuite moving outside there's an outbuilding that could be a
22:05workshop and the garden shares the views into the distance with the attached cottage i'm scared of
22:11you asking us how much is no i love it i love the character i love the feel of it
22:17so shall we ask the
22:18question that you don't want me to ask but i do have to ask what do you think it's on
22:23the market for
22:23and you see it's the whole grade two star listed thing that's throwing me a bit because i don't
22:28know whether that makes things more expensive or less expensive but i'm thinking five nine five
22:33okay so right almost at the top of the budget six hundred thousand pounds
22:41i'm gonna say 580 again i said it last time i was wrong last time i'm prepared to be wrong
22:45this
22:46is this your theme you're just going to say that okay okay you like it don't you i do i
22:55think that
22:55annex is is beautiful and then so maybe we've gone too low i don't know okay you haven't gone too
23:00low
23:01actually it's on the market for 550 000 pounds so it's 50 000 pounds under your budget okay oh okay
23:09there was definitely a smile there as well absolutely so a semi-detached cottage with a grade
23:16two star listing which they originally said would be a complete no but there are exceptions to rules
23:22and this house is exceptional it has two living rooms a large kitchen diner a total of five bedrooms
23:30one of which could suit as a rental plus space for a workroom and a workshop available to buy for
23:36five hundred and fifty thousand pounds this house is not short on character it's beautiful it's a very
23:44very warm feeling home it feels like a home it's not a house it's it's lovely it's so spacious the
23:53views
23:53are stunning there are a few compromises and a few questions we've got that we need to look at
23:58um i think we'll have another look around if that's all right
24:07in the north of the county close to the market town of shipley is the village of salt air financed
24:14and built by philanthropists at titus salt so that workers at his textile mill could live in better
24:20conditions today the village is a unesco world heritage site and the mill which closed in 1986
24:28incorporates shops a restaurant and an art gallery that includes one of the largest collections of
24:34works by david hockney so i thought we'd end the day in one of my favorite places in west yorkshire
24:40somewhere i've spent loads of time over the years it's salts mill in the village of salt
24:44i don't know if you've heard of it i i don't yeah i've been here before it's fascinating history and
24:49this is only 10 minutes away from the house that we've just been looking at with its cafe and
24:53restaurant absolutely so yeah on your doorstep to come and explore yeah definitely is it starting
24:59to feel real now we're here how's it felt today it is today's been really interesting and it's been
25:04eye-opening i think for us it's changed from the conceptual shall we move back to yorkshire to
25:09oh what would we put in that room yeah yeah so you can have lots to talk about with rupert
25:15when
25:15you call him we are i've had to turn my phone off because he keeps texting constantly wanting to know
25:20what we're seeing what's happening what's going on so yeah we'll have a very interesting conversation
25:25with him later on and with each other does yes it's been a great day but it's asked as many
25:31questions
25:31as it's answered yeah i think we've we've pushed you in a few different ways there yeah today but
25:38hopefully shown you what's possible as well no yeah really made us think yeah well you've got
25:42you've got tonight to have a think about some of the answers and then we get to do it all
25:46over again
25:46tomorrow yay excellent
26:03west yorkshire is beautiful and the house prices here are pretty attractive too
26:08as the average cost of a detached property is just under 359 000 pounds around 25 percent lower than
26:16the 471 000 pound average across england as a whole but if you're in the market for a terraced home
26:24how about this canal side cottage priced at 240 000 pounds it's packed with period features including
26:32flagstone floors but it's the ceilings that really catch the eye with incredible stone archways in the
26:39kitchen and these feature beams in the two bedrooms
26:45just over the border in north yorkshire this barn conversion in an elevated position has a pristine garden
26:52and views to the horizon inside is spacious and light thanks to the enormous windows and stunning
26:59gallery landing there are five bedrooms and an abundance of original features all for 795 000 pounds
27:11back in west yorkshire on the rental market is a charming cottage off a cobbled courtyard in a gated
27:19development it blends a period feel with modern decor and has a large garden lined with mature trees
27:28it's available for 630 pounds a month
27:35a blustery west yorkshire awaits for the second day of our house hunt and of course today brings the
27:40mystery house so it's time to see if it can become the start of the show and earn itself a
27:45standing ovation
27:48for a final offering we're heading to the market town of hebden bridge situated on the confluence of the
27:53river calder and the hebden water near to where i'm meeting rich and jane so i thought we'd kick the
28:01day
28:01off in another of my favorite places in west yorkshire welcome to hebden bridge excellent do you guys know
28:07it i don't but i'm very excited i've heard about it i've been here but not for a very long
28:11time but a
28:12beautiful place and such a sort of reputation it has it's become a real kind of center and a hub
28:17for the
28:17arts for creativity it's got an amazing community spirit gets loads of people coming for days out
28:23which is where i used to come here over the years and it's just surrounded by beautiful countryside
28:29we're not going to let the non-summery weather which is off today it is part and parcel with living
28:34near the moors absolutely you're up near them and this is a common sight all year round we love a
28:39pink
28:39brolly absolutely look i'm going to go and get the mystery house ready for you both brilliant you guys
28:45just have a wander around hedden bridge i know this is your first time janey yeah so yeah take it
28:50all
28:50in thank you and i'll see you at the mystery house great thank you see you bye
28:58thanks partly to the steep hills and fast streams a number of water mills sprang up in the town
29:04it developed during the 18th and 19th centuries then in the 70s and 80s the town witnessed an influx of
29:11artists writers and musicians and has enjoyed a reputation for the arts ever since the high street
29:19and market have won multiple awards and offer a wide range of independent shops cafes and other
29:25businesses it's long been popular with house hunters and the lack of available flat land means many homes
29:33in the town have four stories or more as is the case with our final property
29:39so our mystery house is nestled in a valley five minutes away from the center of hebden bridge
29:45and it is a building with a lot of history and a lot to explore so let's take a look
29:53this characterful property was built in the mid 19th century to house the carriage the horses
29:58and the workers for the owner of the local mill and the features inside are next level
30:04it's not that unusual to discover a vaulted ceiling in the homes that we visit on escape to the country
30:10unless it's a vaulted ceiling like this and while the view above is jaw-dropping the view below is even
30:18more breathtaking when it was converted to a residential dwelling in the 1980s many of the original features
30:25were retained and have become the star attractions as rich and janey are about to find out
30:32so here we have our hebden bridge mystery house excellent yes what do you make of the location
30:39i mean it's beautiful the the the view's amazing it's dramatic it's very close to hebden bridge yeah
30:46it's yeah really interesting yes and it's got this fantastic ready-made annex absolutely yeah which has
30:51got power water everything in so there's loads of options there yeah you know now i'm loving the
30:56windows already yeah you can really see the character and the history in the house yes and
31:01the mystery is actually exploring the house itself okay intriguing should we go and take a look yes please
31:08with four floors there is a lot of property with this one and we're starting on the ground floor
31:14which is in the middle so there's a lot to explore in the mystery house um we've got the kitchen
31:19here
31:20one of five bedrooms could make a lovely study oh lovely but i suspect this is where you would spend
31:26most of your time wow oh my goodness okay yeah oh oh my goodness that's beautiful what's down there
31:37there's a brook just in the valley that runs by we're about only sort of five minutes out of
31:42hefton bridge yeah yeah you see the what i thought was a bottle was to store wine yeah wine rack
31:47which
31:48shows how my brain works yes it's a ladder yeah wow yeah you know you knew yeah i didn't i
31:54was like
31:55wine rack how do i get to the ones at the top and that would have been all the workers
31:59accommodation
32:00that have climbed up from the barn and the stables oh fascinating robert would be up that ladder
32:08better than me okay yeah it's a really interesting quirky house yeah i think we see quite a lot of
32:14vaulted ceilings we've shown you yeah and we've shown you a galleried area yeah but this sort of
32:20supersizes that a bit it does also on this floor there is a bedroom and then on the gallery landing
32:26above it's a close-up view of those beams and trusses so this is the area i thought rupert might
32:32like really lovely bedroom through there and then he's got his kind of own hangout area here oh he
32:40would love it whether he would be allowed to have it is a different thing but you could just imagine
32:45couldn't you bean bags and yeah a desk for doing his homework and he wouldn't want that okay there's
32:51another room on this floor bedroom that's used as a study but there's also a massive bathroom so he'd have
32:55his own bathroom okay okay floor to himself so long as he cleaned it is there somewhere for us
33:01you're watching where do we go you gotta clean your own bathroom i mean to be honest we could
33:06find somewhere else for rupert and you could have this for yourself yeah yeah you could you really
33:11could like the bottles oh yeah it's a really interesting it's really yeah it's making my brain hurt is
33:22it in a good way or are you not sure i just don't understand where everything is yet okay
33:28it's really quite simple janey two floors below on the basement level could be the digs with a bedroom
33:35sitting room bathroom utility room snug and potential workshop then at the very top of the house on the
33:42second floor is a fifth bedroom and a shower with me so far good because then out in the courtyard
33:47is a
33:48studio work room oh it's a space for me yeah that's a great space what is it currently i'm not
33:56sure a
33:57creative little hubby i like it we'd have to try and stop rupert nabbing this place as well just don't
34:05tell them about it it's theirs the land here is the compromise with a gate that leads to a secluded
34:12garden with a small patch of lawn and a paved patio hello hi you didn't get lost we didn't not
34:18quite are you clearer about the layout no no sort of so final guess for you two now what do
34:29you think
34:29the mystery house is on the market for so unlike any other property you see i'm going to go a
34:35bit low
34:36and i'm going to say 530. 530 000 janey uh i'm gonna get 560. 560 000 pounds okay neither of
34:47you
34:47quite hit the mark on this on the mystery house it's just it's just under budget actually it's on
34:54at 595 000 pounds okay and i mean that's because it's a substantial property it's a mile out of hebden
35:00bridge absolutely um and you know the price reflects the area as well yeah 595 000 pounds for
35:08this four-story former carriage house it's marketed as having five bedrooms but with so many reception
35:14rooms the potential configurations are extensive there's a studio work room and a workshop all just
35:22a short walk from hebden bridge we did two full laps just to try to get a a sense of
35:32the layout of it
35:33what's where what what could be where but it's i mean it's an extraordinary house i have never seen a
35:40vaulted ceiling like this it is absolutely stunning it's it's so dramatic and yeah it's worthy of some
35:48sort of stage show it's got that sort of feel about it rich and janey's escape from london to west
36:02yorkshire is about a return to their roots and others have made the same move but in very different
36:08circumstances for some people moving from the city to the countryside involves slowing things down
36:15putting your feet up but for others like emma and gavin a rural escape means some hard graft
36:22after working for the metropolitan police for 30 years gavin emma and their son harry bought a 36
36:28acre traditional farm on the outskirts of hebden bridge we've never done this before it's a huge
36:36learning curve and we have lots of animals we have sheep goats and pigs goats are fantastic the sheep are
36:42a nightmare and pigs love a cuddle six years since making the move harry is now a member of a
36:49young
36:49farmers club and takes part in their events harry's competing today in the auctioneering so this is one
36:58of the items he's going to be auctioneering off so let's hope he gets a good price from the age
37:03of 16
37:04you can legally drive a tractor of up to 2.45 meters wide so harry can help out with many
37:11of the jobs
37:11you know usually it raining wouldn't be a problem getting the sheep wet and whatnot it'd be fine
37:15but because they're getting shorn tomorrow we don't want them to be damp so we'll bring them in tonight
37:21before it starts raining in addition to caring for all the animals the family also offers holiday
37:27accommodation for those hoping to share the idyllic scenery i could stare at that view all day but this is
37:33a
37:33farm and that means there's work to be done hey there hi hello goodness me i can see why you
37:41made
37:41an escape here that's a view it is pretty amazing isn't it are you settled in now does it feel
37:46like
37:46home it does very much so yeah it takes a bit of getting used to when you come from a
37:51city or
37:51suburban environment um but you get used to it and now when we go back into town it seems too
37:55crowded
37:55does it yeah it's just it definitely is home now it's wonderful i can see the appeal it's beautiful and
38:01you're obviously look really happy here it must be hard work as well they're running a farm that must
38:07have been a bit of a shock to the system yes yeah i mean we were we were police officers
38:12in london for
38:1230 years so i guess you've always worked hard but this is another level you've got uh it's your life
38:19it's not a job it's it's just your life and it is blooming hard um but it's amazing yeah there's
38:25no
38:25days off like saturday and sunday is a working day bank holidays are working days you work every
38:30christmas um so you've got to love it to do it and of course it wasn't just the two of
38:34you making the
38:34move you made the move with your son harry as well it's a big move isn't it coming from living
38:40in
38:40central london going to school there having loads of friends to being up here how's he settled in
38:44oh duck to water really does enjoy it he works at the local dairy farm um he's the farmer in
38:51the
38:51family we're not is he really that's so interesting and did he have an interest in this all before you
38:56moved up not at all um he was just like a normal kid growing up in a town or city
39:02but i think he
39:03loves working with the older leads on the farm especially when he was younger um and he just
39:08really enjoys the work this week harry is on half term so he's helping to look after the pigs
39:14hey harry hiya well i'm betting that um feeding the pigs as part of your daily routine wasn't
39:20something you pictured when you were nine or ten oh never not at all give me a flavor of what
39:24life
39:25is like for you now well i think nowadays it's just i'm driving heavy machinery milking cows obviously
39:31where i work at the dairy farm feeding the pigs like i've just done then so yeah it's just
39:35completely different dare i ask if you've got a favorite animal on the farm oh i think
39:39it would have to be the goats they're the easiest to care for and they're the cutest they are the
39:44cutest as well but yeah they eat anything easy to birth yeah lovely animals the goats i need to pick
39:49you up on that easy to birth have you birthed a goat several times yeah it is obviously a bit
39:54gory
39:55you get covered in all all sorts of goo coming out of the goats but it is it's lovely to
39:58see life
39:59sort of in front of you that you've managed to create and look after brilliant well i wish you
40:03all the best thank you very much and what a beautiful spot you've all got oh yeah it's lovely
40:07enjoy thank you very much there can't be many bigger shifts than swapping 30 years with the
40:14police in london for a tranquil west yorkshire farm but despite all the hard work i can definitely see
40:21why a new life here would appeal it's been lovely reconnecting with some of my favorite places in
40:29west yorkshire over the last couple of days and we're back in another one now in beautiful howarth
40:34to find out what janey and rich have made of the house hunt
40:47hi hello a cuppa that means it's time for a chance absolutely i guess doesn't it
40:53how are you both feeling shattered yes i get that but no it's it's it's been very very interesting
41:01yeah first house was lovely finished to such a high standard was fantastic inside i did like the
41:08courtyard side of it but we it was still the noise of the traffic i think that it's something we
41:12couldn't have changed if we'd moved there we couldn't do anything about that the mystery house
41:17just doesn't quite work for us the outside space didn't work for me it was too much of a compromise
41:23that's kind of it's almost my therapy he does running i do gardening and that's what settles me but it
41:28was an amazing house i think we are genuinely jealous of whoever gets that yeah definitely so
41:34that leaves us with one it does the grade two star list which we said we would never do
41:40didn't want one the listed semi-detached house oh that one the two things that we said we were
41:45unwilling to consider it's very interesting such a lovely house such a lovely house i think
41:51we probably need to do a little bit more research about the area and about schools and i guess
41:57the person who is so key in this search and joining you on it is your son repart yeah we've
42:02had
42:02constant messages from him asking for updates and photographs and this and that and from everything
42:07we've sent him he like number two the best okay well so we are all on the same path yeah
42:13brilliant okay
42:14well we look forward to seeing where that path ends up marvelous thank you thank you
42:24growing up so close to west yorkshire meant that my childhood was filled with days out here and i've
42:29got really happy memories of the area so it's been lovely exploring it once again with fellow northerners
42:35janey and rich but you know it's even nicer to be leaving knowing that our theatrical couple are one
42:42step closer to raising the curtain on their next act and taking center stage in this wonderful part of
42:49the world join me next time on escape to the country if you would like to escape to the country
42:55in
42:56england northern ireland scotland or wales and need our help then why not reply online at bbc.co.uk
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43:34we'll see you next time on escape
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