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00:00Across France, thousands of magnificent chateaux, often neglected and run down,
00:08This is the bit I was worried about.
00:10are now being brought back to life by intrepid new owners.
00:15Saving the planet, one strip of insulation is the time.
00:18They're taking up the huge challenge...
00:22His arms must be killing him.
00:24...of saving these long-forgotten treasures.
00:27Oh, look at that! That's not bad!
00:30...restoring spectacular homes...
00:32You don't own a chateau without wanting to have a bit of fun with it.
00:35...creating unforgettable memories.
00:37It's something that will stay with them forever.
00:41There'll be huge highs...
00:43Wow, it looks really good!
00:46...as well as lows...
00:48Oh, it's going the wrong way!
00:51...but with monumental effort...
00:54Wow! Goodness me!
00:56...comes incredible reward.
00:58And it gives us the impetus to keep going.
01:01Oh, yeah!
01:03Oh, look at that!
01:04...as they realise their dream...
01:06Cheers!
01:07...of living like kings and queens of their very own castle.
01:16Today.
01:17Have this couple made a miscalculation...
01:20It doesn't look like it's going to fit.
01:23...with their grand kitchen plan...
01:26Ah, I'm just gonna lie here until the wood all flattens out.
01:31...will a dining room DIY trial...
01:34I think we just have to be very careful with it.
01:36...spell disaster...
01:37It's not sticking!
01:39It's not sticking!
01:42It's not sticking!
01:43And a chat line dices with danger...
01:46...on an epic stable renovation.
01:49That's not very strong...
01:51...and I'm not game to stand on it.
01:59In the picturesque Occitanie region...
02:03...in south-west France...
02:05...lies the 19th century Chateau de Piquin.
02:10Boasting six and a half acres...
02:13...31 spacious rooms...
02:17...and a private lake...
02:20...this gracious property was snapped up a year ago...
02:24...by Suffolk couple Jane...
02:27...an intellectual property manager...
02:30...and husband Rory...
02:33...a plumber and actor.
02:36The two of them wasted no time...
02:38...settling in with their furry friends.
02:41I've been so impressed by how lovely people have been...
02:44...and I think the culture, certainly here...
02:47...is terribly friendly.
02:49It's just a new experience...
02:52...there's something wonderful about it...
02:54...that if you haven't done it, you should try it.
02:58Just an hour and a half from Toulouse...
03:02...the pair snapped up the property...
03:04...for £470,000...
03:08...and have been renovating it...
03:10...with plans to open a hospitality business.
03:14Last time we saw them...
03:15...they were creating a suite...
03:17...on the upper floor of the Chateau Gitte.
03:20I think it's upside down.
03:22Cheeky.
03:23Transforming three abandoned spaces...
03:26...into a beautiful bedroom.
03:30An elegant dressing room.
03:33And a stunning bathroom.
03:36This is beautiful.
03:37That bathtub.
03:39I want to get in it now.
03:43Today, they're working on the Gitte's kitchen...
03:46...on the ground floor.
03:49The Gitte is a self-contained house.
03:51So it has to have a cooker, a washing machine...
03:54...and it has to have a fridge.
03:56It has to have some where people can prepare meals.
03:58It's absolutely essential to the Gitte.
04:00The first task is to bring the new units in...
04:04...starting with a huge kitchen island.
04:08So this is the beast.
04:10It's very tall.
04:12It's very tall. It's one meter ten tall...
04:14...which is exceptionally tall for an island.
04:17It's a magnificent thing.
04:19Handmade.
04:20Paid extra to have an oak top put on it.
04:23And that needs to be removed...
04:26...before we can attempt to get it in the back kitchen.
04:29OK, I will...
04:31...take this top off.
04:35It should come off nice and easily.
04:42OK.
04:46The main problem we've got with this unit...
04:48...is that in any given dimension...
04:50...it's way too wide to fit through this door.
04:53And so the only hope we've got is...
04:54...because it's sort of in a C shape...
04:56...that I might be able to hook one part of the C through...
05:01...and then slide it through...
05:02...and then spin it this way...
05:04...to get the other part through.
05:06So we're going to have to take the door off...
05:08...just so we've got the manoeuvrability...
05:10...to get it where we want it.
05:20So if you go right over that way...
05:22...you need to get through this angle...
05:26...and through there.
05:29So twist.
05:30Twist.
05:32It's going through!
05:33Well, the last bit is the hardest bit.
05:36OK.
05:41This is the bit I was worried about.
05:45OK.
05:47The skirting board that has been put around this unit...
05:50...is pretty much, I think, all that is stopping us.
05:56It was...
05:57It was...
05:58They'd put pins in.
06:00Pins. OK.
06:01Yeah.
06:03Right.
06:05This time it's going to work.
06:07This time?
06:08It has to work.
06:10I was going to work.
06:11It's going to work.
06:14Well, we're closer.
06:21But we're still not there.
06:24Drastic measures are called for.
06:26The chateau's suffered a lot of water damage.
06:29Anything that's metal in the wall has started to rust away.
06:32I'm going to be cutting it out anyway,
06:34so I might as well give myself a little bit more room
06:37by getting rid of it, some of it now.
06:42And giving us the space to get this unit through.
06:47OK.
06:49Let's hope this last-ditch attempt does the trick.
06:58We are in. We're in.
07:01They said it couldn't be done.
07:03They said it couldn't be done. That's brilliant.
07:06Woo-hoo! We're in.
07:09Fabulous. Absolutely brilliant.
07:11So now we can get all the others in, I can spray-paint them...
07:15Yes. ..and we can make it look like a kitchen.
07:17With the Central Island in,
07:20Jane and Rory need the rest of the kitchen
07:23to come together without boiling over.
07:31Four hours north, in the Fertile Charente Maritime département,
07:38sits the stately 19th century
07:41La Grande Maison Lapinelle,
07:44comprising a neglected 22-room manor house,
07:50a courtyard surrounded with outbuildings,
07:53and a modern five-bedroom home.
07:59Since 2023, it's been owned by cabin manager Sarah
08:04and former military dog handler Bart,
08:07who bought it for just £335,000.
08:13We have enjoyed pretty much every minute of living here so far.
08:17We never envisioned that we would have this much space.
08:21You can't imagine that you've got all of this
08:23and it actually is yours.
08:24Because I could never imagine doing this in England.
08:27No. Couldn't afford to.
08:29No. Absolutely not.
08:35Located near the town of Cognac,
08:38this summer, Sarah and Bart plan to host their very first wedding
08:42for their best friends.
08:46OK!
08:49With nine rooms to get guests ready,
08:52they've already begun removal of the old bathroom suite
08:55in the modern house.
08:57That's it. Well done, my lovely.
09:01And cleared a stable that they plan to transform
09:04into a two-bedroom apartment.
09:07But with less than five months until the wedding,
09:10they've barely scratched the surface.
09:14It's still quite scary to think that we've got to try
09:16and get all of this done for an up-and-coming wedding.
09:19Small steps.
09:20Yes.
09:23Today, Bart has a major job to tackle
09:26in the modern house.
09:29My beloved lady would like an en-suite
09:32in the next room,
09:34but we've got to use the waste pipes
09:37and the plumbing from this room
09:41to sort it out.
09:43So the plan is cut this.
09:46That way we can run the metal into plastic
09:49and run two pipes through there.
09:53It's not a difficult job for someone
09:55who knows what they're doing.
09:56For me, it's a bit of a mind-bender.
10:00While Bart puts his plan into action...
10:09How are we getting on?
10:11Well, we're getting there.
10:13Outside, Sarah and the soon-to-be-wedded couple,
10:16Matt and Lynne,
10:18are busy preparing the courtyard for the big day.
10:21This area in my head
10:23is going to look absolutely breathtaking.
10:27It's going to be completely tiled in and around the pool.
10:31We're going to have a flower bed,
10:33a flower bed, flower bed.
10:36This is going to look immaculate.
10:38It's going to be wedding-ready.
10:41Let's hope so.
10:44Leaving Matt to sort the festoon lights...
10:47Let's do this.
10:50Sarah and Lynne prepared to upcycle
10:52a disused sideboard into a wedding bar.
10:56We picked up this little number
10:59at an online purchase,
11:01and it was an absolute song.
11:04It looks a very nasty green colour at the moment,
11:07and it's really very unattractive.
11:09But once we've worked our wonders and charms on it,
11:12I think it's actually going to look quite lovely.
11:16We've got quite a lot of those lovely,
11:18three big ice buckets for displays of wine,
11:22which will just look really lovely on the top.
11:25It's going to be a very busy little bar, would you say?
11:28Especially with some bar guests.
11:31Yes, well, I speak for myself as well.
11:34With help at hand,
11:36let's hope Sarah and Bart
11:37can crack on and get everything finished
11:41before Lynne and Matt say I do.
11:49Coming up...
11:50OK, I'll give it a go.
11:52..are these newbies...
11:54Mm-hm.
11:54..interesting.
11:55..set for a DIY disaster.
11:57It's got to not look like some amateurs did it,
12:00which is us.
12:02And Jane and Rory may have missed the mark.
12:06Oh, it's pretty close.
12:07Well, it fits in some place,
12:09but it doesn't fit in others.
12:16In the Pays-de-la-Loire region of Western France
12:20stands the fairy tale Château de la Verne.
12:26This impressive 19th-century castle
12:29boasts 14 sizeable rooms,
12:34two acres of parkland
12:38and a private chapel.
12:44It was love at first sight
12:46for London couple Lionel and Claire,
12:49both ex-photographers
12:51who bought it in 2022
12:53for £810,000.
12:57It really was a sort of, like, wow moment.
13:00Oh, it was absolutely a wow moment.
13:03I think I have a lot of the big ideas
13:05for this place.
13:06You're much more hands-on
13:07when it comes to DIY.
13:09Maybe I'm more of the doer,
13:11the getting stuff done.
13:12What do you think?
13:13Oh, I don't know.
13:14I don't know if I agree with you.
13:20Located an hour from La Rochelle,
13:23DIY novices Lionel and Claire
13:25want to turn the Château
13:27into a palatial family home.
13:31So far, they've completed the salon
13:34and when we last saw them,
13:36the couple had decided to get stuck in
13:39with redecorating the dining room.
13:42Goodness knows what's behind there.
13:46Oh, you see, it's not going in.
13:47Bravely replastering the walls
13:50to give them a new lease of life.
13:53I think you did a better job than me.
13:56I think you did a better job than me.
13:57No, I think you did.
13:59I'm trying to get it so you do the rest of it
14:01and I don't have to.
14:02I see.
14:05Planning a get-together with friends
14:07in a month's time,
14:08Claire and Lionel need to crack on
14:11with the now fully plastered dining room.
14:14And today, there's one particular eyesore to tackle.
14:19The fireplace is a bit of a disaster.
14:21I did try to strip all the paint off it
14:23and when I stripped it off,
14:24the stone is all chipped and it's awful.
14:27We're going to lather micro-cement all over it.
14:32And it's got to not look like some amateurs did it,
14:36which is us.
14:42Let's just do it.
14:43Let's go for gold, darling.
14:47Mmm, interesting.
14:49Easy peasy.
14:50It's just like icing and cake.
14:52We can micro-cement everything.
14:55I've seen people do, like, whole kitchens
14:57and whole bathrooms.
14:58Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
14:59And they look amazing.
15:00Yeah.
15:03People use this stuff.
15:04They actually cover tiled areas completely.
15:08There's a great French phrase,
15:10which is cache tout,
15:11which is hide everything.
15:13So, in essence, that's, you know,
15:15that's what it's doing.
15:18Look, it's fantastic.
15:19Look at that.
15:20Look.
15:21First time ever.
15:23On to a winner with the fireplace.
15:26Which way are you going?
15:27Are you going that way or I'll go that way?
15:29They've got an outlandish idea for the ceiling.
15:36So, we've borrowed this fantastic scaffolding
15:39so that we can get up there
15:40and start copper-leafing the entire ceiling.
15:43This was Lionel's idea to do the entire ceiling.
15:48Which, yeah, it's sort of, it's madness.
15:54I think we just have to be very careful with it.
15:57This is my idea.
15:59I'm incredibly confident.
16:07It's not sticking.
16:13It's not sticking.
16:16I think it just, yeah,
16:18it needs a bit of practice, doesn't it?
16:26With the entire ceiling to complete,
16:29the pair will need to stick around
16:31for the long haul.
16:41Meanwhile, two hours away near Cognac...
16:44I won't be beaten.
16:47..Bart has had little luck with the plumbing
16:49for the wedding guest bathroom.
16:52Turns out that it's not right.
16:56I'm a muppet.
16:57I bought 50ml joints,
17:00which is why they're not fitting.
17:03But not to worry.
17:04I'm sure I'll use them somewhere else.
17:05I'll just need to go and buy some 40ml.
17:09Doing better outside...
17:12..I'm going to crack on with my lights.
17:15..is groom and best friend Matt,
17:18who is making strides with the festoon lighting.
17:22Yeah, it's just a little bit time-consuming.
17:24But I'm happy at the moment.
17:27With the wedding taking place this summer
17:30and nine rooms to renovate,
17:33Sarah wants to ensure Bride Lynn
17:35is happy with every last detail.
17:38I don't like a bodge job.
17:40I'm not a perfectionist, don't get me wrong,
17:42but I don't want it to look naff either.
17:44Today, they've moved on from the bar
17:47to upcycle some antique mirrors for the bathroom.
17:51I know a lot of people have a natural ability
17:53to freehand and paint without putting tape up.
17:56I don't have that ability.
17:58So I do spend a lot of time prepping.
18:01Boom! I think that's a good start.
18:03I can start painting this bit now.
18:09Going on OK?
18:10Yeah.
18:12Going to make it look a lot lighter, brighter, modern.
18:15What did Bart call it? Shabby chic.
18:19I'm chic, she's shabby.
18:28I've got less than five months till the wedding.
18:30Oh, just thinking about how it's all going to look,
18:33what else do we need to buy?
18:36So much to do.
18:37Is that right?
18:38There's tons to do, but you know what?
18:41We'll get done what we can get done.
18:42Yeah.
18:45That's it.
18:46I think we're done.
18:47Coat one.
18:47Yeah.
18:48Tick.
18:48Yes.
18:49Happy.
18:50Ah, as can be.
18:57Oh, I see.
19:01Wow, I'm really, really, really thrilled with that.
19:05How soon can you get the toilet in then?
19:08Tomorrow?
19:09No.
19:10No.
19:11But it won't be long now.
19:16Stepping away from the bigger picture,
19:18I've now made inroads into that bathroom,
19:20and I now understand what I need to do.
19:23Which is great,
19:23because we've got about another four or five bathrooms to go.
19:26Yay.
19:27And with a stable to renovate into an apartment, too,
19:31they'll need to gallop through the rest of their DIY tick list
19:35to meet the wedding deadline.
19:42Over 200 miles south,
19:45Jane and Rory's kitchen units have been painted and put in place.
19:51And with the worktop added...
19:54I think that's it.
19:55..the next big challenge is to carve out a hole to fit the sink.
19:59We'll get a lovely chopping board out of this if I do it right.
20:03Oh, yes.
20:04Leaving him to it,
20:06Jane makes a start on the pantry doors.
20:09I'm just going to rough up the surface ready for the undercoat.
20:15If you just put paint onto this sort of surface,
20:20it won't bind terribly well,
20:22and it might just chip off quite easily.
20:32This is going to be an absolute nightmare.
20:36Normally, you'd cut it so you've got this overhang,
20:39so that the two join together like that and go round.
20:41I don't have that.
20:43That wants to go like that.
20:45Over a distance of two metres,
20:48I've got to be millimetre perfect at all times,
20:52otherwise I have a bit of an unsightly gap.
20:57There may be a solution.
20:59Jane has had a cunning plan.
21:02She said, template it in cardboard,
21:03so I'm going to draw around like this,
21:08cut this out perfectly,
21:10then I can position this on the wood,
21:13mark around it and cut it out,
21:15and that should be exactly the right size.
21:25I'm a little bit worried,
21:27but I think I've measured right.
21:33Having spent over £350 on the worktop...
21:38Well done.
21:39You ready?
21:40Yep.
21:40..there's no room for error.
21:46That's it.
21:47That's where that goes.
21:53I'm almost too scared to try.
21:59Doesn't quite fit, which is fine.
22:01Because you can reduce it.
22:02Because we can reduce it.
22:05But...
22:05Well, it's pretty close.
22:07I don't know.
22:07Well, it fits in some place,
22:09but it doesn't fit in others.
22:10MUSIC PLAYS
22:20Well, that's a very fine...
22:22Very fine.
22:27Yeah.
22:28Are we feeling lucky?
22:35It's in.
22:36It's in.
22:37It's beautifully in.
22:42Well, it's as in as it's going to be.
22:44That's great, isn't it?
22:49They've made good progress,
22:51but with the worktop to finish
22:54and the plumbing yet to do,
22:56Jane and Rory's kitchen
22:57is a long way
22:59from guest-ready.
23:05Still to come...
23:07Oh!
23:09..Lionol and Claire
23:10take another DIY gamble.
23:13What should I do?
23:13Just rip?
23:14Rip gently.
23:15Rip gently?
23:17Yeah.
23:18Right, then.
23:19And is Bart set for disaster?
23:21I am a little nervous.
23:23Gentle, gentle.
23:35In the Charente-Maritime département
23:38of Western France,
23:41Sarah and Bart
23:42want to convert their stables
23:44into a two-bedroom guest apartment
23:46as part of huge preparations
23:48for a wedding.
23:52Downstairs, they've laid a new floor
23:54and some concrete door frames
23:56have been put in.
23:57We have tied it into the old wall
24:00with some lime concrete.
24:02Hopefully, it'll all have dried beautifully.
24:05If it hasn't dried and bonded well,
24:09it could just fall apart.
24:11Hopefully not on top of me.
24:13With Sarah away visiting family,
24:17Bart is flying solo.
24:19Right, then.
24:21And first up,
24:22he wants to see
24:23how well the concrete has held.
24:25OK.
24:26Fingers crossed.
24:38That's looking good.
24:42I am a little nervous
24:44because this is the, uh...
24:47the wider side that needed repair.
24:50Gentle, gentle.
25:04That's delightful.
25:05That's gone even better than the other side.
25:08That's gone really well.
25:09Very happy.
25:10And once that's dried off properly,
25:13that will be rock solid.
25:15Going nowhere.
25:17To add more head height on the ground floor,
25:20the couple want to raise the ceiling
25:22to 2.5 metres.
25:26But first,
25:27Bart needs to lift the floorboards
25:29on the upper level.
25:31Start with the trip hazard.
25:37There we go.
25:39As soon as we've got the, uh, planks off,
25:42we can start working on the joists and the beams.
25:47Taking up floorboards
25:48so you can move on to the next job
25:50is just so rewarding.
25:54I've still no idea what I'm doing.
25:57I'm just muddling along.
26:05That was a good result.
26:20So far, so good.
26:24But dealing with old wood requires caution.
26:28I've just found a spot that is very badly rotten
26:31and worm-eaten,
26:32and I'm not game to stand on it.
26:36As you can see.
26:40That's not very strong.
26:42That, I'm going to do from below.
26:47Let's hope that completing this epic job
26:52doesn't leave Bart floored.
27:03Two hours' drive north.
27:06In their dining room at Chateau de la Verne,
27:10Lionel's copper-leaf ceiling idea
27:12has lost its sparkle.
27:15At this point,
27:17it's just pain now.
27:19It's just, just, I wish it was over.
27:22You know when you start something
27:23and it's just never-ending?
27:26I'm sure that was your idea
27:28and somehow I've ended up doing all this.
27:30Well, I'm just not very good at it.
27:31You haven't even tried.
27:33I have tried and it was a disaster.
27:36With the ceiling proving problematic,
27:39today they're shifting their focus to fromage,
27:44with plans to upcycle an old dining cabinet
27:46into a traditional cheese cupboard.
27:50If you're doing a dinner party,
27:51if you put the cheese in sort of like mid-afternoon,
27:55by the time you get to the evening,
27:56it is perfectly ready to eat.
27:58Because there's nothing worse than taking,
27:59than eating cheese when it's straight out of the fridge.
28:02It's horrific.
28:03I mean, it's actually close to a crime, actually.
28:08We need to empty it out first, obviously,
28:10because it's currently a candle cupboard
28:12rather than a cheese cupboard.
28:14Well, you know, they all come out, you know,
28:16at the perfect temperature.
28:20The plan for this cupboard,
28:22I was imagining having the, like,
28:25the bare stone as the back of it.
28:27And then for the bottom,
28:29ideally I'd like a piece of marble.
28:31But we don't have a piece of marble.
28:33I do have some tiles that I found in the loft.
28:37So I'm going to see if those work,
28:39because that would look quite cool.
28:40I'm not being very successful.
28:42It's extraordinary how it's jammed in, isn't it?
28:46But first, they need to remove the stubborn wooden frames,
28:51which is no mean feat.
28:56I'll tell you what, if you just do...
28:58Dunning, Dunning, stop.
28:59Do you need a little wiggling as well?
29:00Just hold that up like that, pushing up.
29:04Oh!
29:06We can fix that.
29:08It'll be fine.
29:10What should I do?
29:10Just rip?
29:12Um, rip gently.
29:15Rip gently?
29:16Yeah.
29:19Honestly, I thought this was going to be, like,
29:21a really quick, easy job.
29:22I'm sure this was your idea, wasn't it?
29:25I think it was your idea.
29:26Ooh!
29:29Shall we go and discuss that?
29:30Oh!
29:32Oh!
29:36Lovely.
29:37Brute force of ignorance.
29:40Look, we can glue that.
29:42We can stick that back.
29:43Nobody needs to know.
29:46While Lionel works on the rough cabinet walls,
29:50Claire heads upstairs to the chateau loft.
29:59So these tiles seem to be spares from the hallway downstairs.
30:04Like, this one's brand new.
30:05Never been used.
30:06Probably, like, 200 years old, but brand new.
30:09That one looks like it has been used.
30:12So I don't know where that's come from,
30:13cos we don't have any gaps, but...
30:16We shall see.
30:17See if they fit in the cheese cupboard.
30:21Go on, go.
30:27That looks amazing.
30:29That does actually look so much better.
30:31It looks good, doesn't it?
30:32It does look good.
30:34Let's see if it works.
30:42Sort of.
30:43Once it's all cleaned up a bit.
30:45I think it looks quite good.
30:47I like the concept.
30:48The concept is there.
30:50Yeah.
30:51Happy?
30:52Yeah, kind of.
30:55I'd be happy when it's got cheese in it.
30:57Oh, well, wouldn't we all?
30:58OK.
31:00The cheese cupboard is set to be a cracker.
31:05But with an unfinished ceiling
31:07and the walls to paint in time for a visit from friends,
31:11Claire and Lionel need to get a move on.
31:22300 miles south at Chateau de Piquon,
31:27Rory has finished carving out a second space in the oak worktop to fit the hob.
31:34Fabulous!
31:35Ta-da!
31:36Next, he's back in his comfort zone.
31:39So it's not often that you get the chance to install the tap before the sink.
31:46This is one of those few occasions.
31:52Back in England, I was working as a professional plumber,
31:54so I should have some idea of what I'm doing.
31:58That one will go in there, I hope.
32:03No visible leaks.
32:06That was a good first start.
32:12And water.
32:13Yes, very good.
32:15Well done.
32:17Excellent.
32:18That's the hard plumbing done.
32:20There's just the waste pipe to go once I put the sink in to attach to there.
32:25And we're done under here.
32:28With the plumbing almost there,
32:31Jane gets to work on the kitchen island.
32:35I don't really want to spray too wildly.
32:38Can I say that?
32:39And then I get really excited and I just spray everywhere.
32:43I once went to paintball,
32:44and I was really careful for the first half an hour,
32:47and then I just went mad and used up all my pellets,
32:49so it could be like that.
32:56Yeah, please.
32:57Just a little bit...
32:59A little bit fresher, a little bit more spring-like.
33:02It's lovely.
33:03I like it.
33:03You can see this work surface is bowed.
33:07All they need now is to return the kitchen island worktop.
33:11I don't know where my fingers are going.
33:12It's all right, just try not to get your fingers trapped.
33:14But their earlier dismantling of this unit may have shifted the wood.
33:20Yeah, it's a long way out in places.
33:25It doesn't look like it's going to fit.
33:29I'm pretty sure this dowling is never going to go back in.
33:38It's not really going in.
33:46It doesn't look like it's floating in there.
33:47It's not really going to fit in there.
33:47It's sort of in there.
33:48Wow, it blows up.
33:55It's still popping out, but they're fitting in.
34:00Is it that one there, maybe?
34:02Oh yeah, this one's a bit squiffy.
34:09Ah, there we go.
34:11We're pretty much in.
34:19There we go, Jane.
34:21Perfect.
34:22It's on.
34:23I'm just going to lie here until the wood all flattened out.
34:26Flatten it out, yeah.
34:27Yeah, there is quite a curve from my perspective, but that's fine.
34:32I don't think people's bowls are going to roll off.
34:35As soon as we've sanded this down and got the varnish on,
34:38we can have breakfast here at the breakfast bar.
34:43We can.
34:44I can't wait to have this all finished and usable.
34:49But with tiling, appliances and the extraction still to install,
34:55Petit-Déjeuner will have to wait.
35:02Coming up.
35:03Up and over.
35:04An unstable start to Bart's new ceiling build.
35:10Chain's caught, I think.
35:11No, we can't get in.
35:12One, two, three.
35:14And the pressure mounts for Lionel and Claire.
35:17So put it on your knee.
35:18Oh.
35:19Oh.
35:24Good one.
35:27In the Charente-Maritime Département at La Grande Maison Lapinelle...
35:33After you!
35:35With Sarah back at home, she and Bart have less than three months
35:40before they host their first-ever wedding at the Chateau,
35:44but building guest accommodation in the stables is going at a slow trot
35:52we are way behind in our schedule because things are taking a lot longer than we expected
35:58we anticipate that we will have at least one bedroom done with an ensuite and hopefully a
36:03kitchen it's a big ask ready with four new beams to install so they can increase the ceiling height
36:13to 2.5 meters bart's roped in friend lee to lend a hand okay you drop your end a little
36:21but hoisting each 50 kilo piece up is quite a tall order
36:29we're going for plan a which is manhandling it we've got the pulley in place just in case we're
36:36not man enough it's gonna go back yeah chain's caught i think yeah it's not that but it's the
36:45cross brace that's holding just the joist in line with each other at the end here it needs to come
36:49out right let's drop it down then yep it's just this across here
37:04with the brace released let's hope they're in luck
37:09okay yep i can't reach now so that's the first one done that went in relatively easy
37:23now comes the hard part squeezing the second one in next to it
37:31meanwhile next door sarah has brought in friend alexa to help assemble some flat pack chairs for
37:38the wedding we are expecting up to 110 people coming to the wedding we have got a lot of furniture
37:47to put together to accommodate 110 people and this is the start of it oh i think it goes like
37:53this
37:54do you think and no no it's not really very clear is it well when are those instructions ever clear
38:04sarah
38:05well i'm just gonna lift it a sec yep should go through just snug as a bug that's it
38:14we're in we're in we're in
38:19yep very happy with that we're in beautiful well this is one step closer
38:25of many many steps that need to be done to get it ready for the wedding
38:30which is now less than three months away tick tick tick
38:38here she is come and have a look at our hard work lads i'm liking the look of this wow
38:45don't
38:46you think it makes a massive difference i'm so glad that we decided to go with the new full height
38:52absolutely you've done a top job we've still got a little way to go yet i'm still stressing because
38:57they've got so much work to do i've just got a word the words of a song in my head
39:02don't worry be happy
39:06the karaoke will have to wait they have just months to transform these stables into guest
39:13accommodation and finish renovations in the modern house in time for the wedding
39:25back at lionel and claire's i hope the neighbors don't look too closely at this paint job they
39:32won't we're going to distract them with cheese
39:36after a monumental effort the couple are completing the painting of their dining room
39:42and have just hours before a visit from local friends we were going to about midnight last night
39:49and to be honest with you couldn't really see what we were doing the ceiling is not finished
39:54it's turned into a bit of a labor of love we will get there eventually we need to put the
39:59mirror
39:59over the fireplace we do um we need to get some cheese in the cheese cupboard extremely important
40:05extremely important and just have a really good clean and tidy up
40:12so nice to be at that point where it's looking like a room this has been a disaster area for
40:19months and months and months and months well years really so it's this is very satisfying
40:28slowly getting there
40:31one two three
40:35okay
40:41so we're going to go as low as possible in order to get enough lift to get it up there
40:46onto there okay
40:49one two three
40:52all right so i can't so put it on your knee
40:58all right yeah sure yeah okay and then one two three
41:05oh yeah that's on
41:09oh
41:09it actually fits quite well and it's really satisfying catastrophe avoided there's just minutes to add some
41:19all-important finishing touches oh i get the nice cheese knives oh yeah yeah
41:26here it is here you are covered
41:35lovely i'm going to use our nice glasses and our nice plates
41:37it looks great it looks great yeah
41:44six months ago lionel and claire's dining room was bare tired and dated
41:54now it's been transformed into a sophisticated and elegant entertaining space
42:02the walls have been re-plastered and painted a beautiful heritage green
42:08the restored fireplace and stunning antique mirror create a focal point
42:15and an old cabinet has been re-imagined as a cheese cupboard
42:21with the table all set it's time to welcome friends leticia and bruno
42:27hello hello hi hi hi hello how are you i'm good how are you doing come in come in thank
42:37you
42:38come on in have a look okay wow what's a great job did you do that by yourself yes what
42:48do you think
42:49of the color very good choice thank you i've done the fireplace as well the fire was it there before
42:55yeah wow wow that's very elegant and you still have your place they're very important the very
43:02important very important very important with cheese real cheese
43:10very good job congratulations yeah thank you very much the room they have made an amazing job
43:17and the most important thing thank you well when i first went to this place it was really really a
43:24miss i think we'll have to do an english cheese evening oh yeah that could be interesting really
43:31looks like an ace please a nice kisser please i think it went really well i'm just very very happy
43:38that they like it i feel like i can relax now so i was a little bit nervous before about
43:42whether they'd
43:43like the room or not but they do so i think we've done well and i can just enjoy it
43:48now and eat a lot of
43:49cheese cheers how many rooms still left to do about 12. okay it's been trial and error but having received
44:01the seal of approval
44:03lionel and claire can now enjoy the rest of the party season in their wonderful chateau
44:14next time if you're ready to screw it ready to screw it up jane and rory have a crisis of
44:21confidence
44:22every job you're wondering why you ever started it in the first place the sheer weight of it it's
44:27dangerous and it's very long another couple are forced to make high risk maneuvers i don't want it pushing
44:34him off the scaffold and at a third chateau soaring temperatures risk ruining a very big day we're
44:43battling with extreme heat it's 39 degrees this weekend
44:46so
44:59so
45:00so
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