Original subtitles

Here in the UK, we do love a period property...

I never dreamt I would own a castle.

For me it looks like a typical doll's house.

..from countryside houses...

It was everything you could dream of,

it was a palace.

..to timeless terraces.

I turned up and I thought, "Whoa, this is pretty cute."

But beneath the grand facades...

Hopefully, the house won't fall down.

We'll see, won't we?

..these historical homes are falling to bits.

Everyone told us to tear this building down.

All over the country,

an army of renovators are snapping them up at knock-down prices...

I think we should leave it like this,

it looks "old timely".

..then facing challenges of epic proportions.

I said all along to get a new build.

This series, we meet the brave, new renovators...

We were looking for a bungalow with a shed.

..and return to our familiar band of determined dreamers...

Who else has got a chapel in their house?

..all risking everything...

I thought I had a good idea what was needed...

..I was quite wrong.

People think renovation is lovely, don't they?

HE LAUGHS

Oh, God, I'm trembling.

..to create the forever home of their dreams...

Oh, my God! It's so nice.

..brick by brick...

Wow! This is amazing.

..room by room.

I'm still having my "pinch me" moment.

We're nowhere near finished,

but it feels like a house now.

We are a Renovation Nation.

Today, in North Lincolnshire, Lucy and Seb step up...

When we first viewed the house,

this staircase was, like, that wow factor,

that centre point of the house.

..to tackle their crumbling Victorian staircase.

There's nothing holding that up, really, is there?

Well, it's dry rot, isn't it, there? You can see.

Alan and Catherine cook up an al-fresco living space...

We're adding our mark to it, really,

and making it ours.

..for their enormous terrace in Shropshire.

The whole space and the pathway down to the drive

is about 600 square metres, so it's huge.

And trouble in paradise for Anouska and Greig...

I just don't understand why you would not do that when

the whole room is going to be matching.

..with some off-plan panelling in their Cornish dream home.

Tell him to take all this out and start again.

In the North Lincolnshire village of Barrow-upon-Humber,

renovation duo Lucy and Seb are recreating the interior

of a Grade II listed Georgian farmhouse

that was left in ruins.

As you can see, I'm very excited. SHE LAUGHS

Earlier this week,

Lucy and Seb began plastering the upstairs walls

using traditional techniques...

..and found the toilet humour

in restoring salvaged fixtures in the en suite.

I guess I didn't just buy a porcey one.

Course he didn't.

Today, Seb and Lucy will be re-joined by carpenter Steve,

to see if the Victorian-era staircase can be saved.

When we first viewed the house,

this staircase was, like, that wow factor.

I was like, "Oh, my gosh, this staircase is amazing."

The sweepingness of it, like, the arched window.

It's beautiful. Like, the curved wall going around.

Like, it is that centre point of the house.

Saving the staircase is not only important to the couple

but to the people that are familiar to

the house from its past,

including the previous owners, who lived here until 2001.

They all say the same thing, like,

"Oh, my gosh, those stairs are amazing.

"I remember those stairs, they were so beautiful."

And now they're really pleased

that we're going to do as much as we can

to make it look how it looked before.

Whilst the house was abandoned for 20 years,

with a severely leaking roof,

the staircase suffered extensive water damage.

We are obviously just crossing our fingers

that when Steve takes a look at it, that it's not like,

"No, it's a write-off.

"We've got to completely rebuild it from scratch,"

because that would be really sad.

Often seen as a reflection of a carpenter's skills,

a curved staircase, with no supports,

just like this one,

is widely considered the most difficult

and expensive type of staircase to construct.

There's nothing holding that up, really, is there?

Well, it's dry rot, isn't it, there? You can see. Yeah.

It's just been left to disintegrate, basically.

Steve is there to assess whether any of the rotten treads

can be saved and repaired,

or if he'll need to craft an entirely new staircase.

That's what's happened. Oh, that's gone.

That's another joist.

A new staircase would cost a small fortune.

That's what we need to get back... In. ..together...

..and then maybe put a new piece inside,

to bond it together better.

We like to give you a challenge, Steve. I'm sure I can sort it out.

Time for Steve's verdict.

We can do it there. Yes!

It's a huge relief for Lucy and Seb

that the staircase can be restored,

but it's a steep challenge for Steve.

Just another day on site. SHE CHUCKLES

With the treads assessed,

Lucy brings out some surviving pieces

of the original oak banister.

I'm trying to work out which bits go where.

It's like a puzzle.

A very dusty puzzle.

We're talking to Steve, now, about what we can do with this

because we want to keep this.

Steve needs to see if he can restore

the banister from these broken remnants.

We're gonna try and save the full thing, hopefully.

It'll have new pieces spliced into it,

but we'll save what we can.

While the house was left empty,

the staircase was robbed of its cast-iron spindles by thieves.

The newel was still here

because they couldn't rip it out,

and then we literally have two spindles.

Luckily, we have a full, intact one here.

Lucy and Seb need to see if they can get

the spindles reproduced to support the banister.

So, trying to be as true as we can to the building.

So, it's a bit of guesswork.

And the guesswork doesn't stop there.

We don't really know how much the spindles are gonna cost,

I think there's 41 in total that we need replicating.

We know we want cast iron,

and we know that we want them to be what they were.

So, no, we don't have a budget for it,

but we have to find the budget for it.

Lucy and Seb now have some homework to do,

to see whether replica spindles are even possible,

before they know just how much more budget they'll need to find.

On the stunning north coastline of Cornwall,

above the fishing village of Boscastle,

sits Penally House.

This Georgian beauty's first owner was rumoured to be a smuggler.

Today, it's home to a more law-abiding family -

interior designer Anouska, design printer Greig

and their four teenagers.

With all the rooms in the main house finished,

phase two of Anouska and Greig's renovation

continues in the basement.

Onwards...downwards, really. Down to the basement

which is a complete other project.

Earlier this week they completed the basement cinema room...

It's worked out so much better

than I ever could have imagined it.

It's awesome.

..and a large guest bedroom

with plenty of Anouska's trademark pizazz.

It's been really fun, actually,

experimenting in this room and trying different things.

Today, Anouska and Greig are clearing more of the basement...

The things you find in your basement.

..to transform a storeroom into a second guest bedroom.

Pretty much everything from upstairs

that didn't have a home came to live down here,

so it's going to be a big job.

Ace cabinet maker John is back once again to help.

We've got these gorgeous windows

so it's quite light down here.

There was something, obviously, here.

So, what I would like to do there is make that a feature

with a headboard to go into that slot.

It's crying out for a feature. Yeah, so headboard in there.

It'd be lovely to have a freestanding bath like

the one in our master bedroom, down here.

Does that mean that it will be a single bed?

Cos you're restricted a bit on the width there.

I know. I was hoping a double.

Greig's trusty tape measure will soon find out.

That's 150.

150? Yeah. So, what's that in foot?

Already, you've got the lower ceilings,

you've got limited daylight,

you've got walls that you can't channel into.

Four foot six would be handy. Yeah, yeah. Four foot six, easy.

Two, three, four, five, six.

I think it's more challenging, the basement,

because you're up against loads of potential problems.

And one of those problems has been the realisation

they'd have to increase the capacity of the boiler,

in order to provide enough water for the basement rooms.

So, this tank is definitely not going to be big enough

to serve the house if we're going to be putting

two extra bedrooms downstairs in the basement.

This is big enough for a three-bedroom house...

..and we're six.

A bigger tank will need more room,

so the whole system will need to be moved and rerouted to a new location.

A week later, and the space for the basement guest bedroom

has been decluttered.

This feels exciting now. I was nervous about this room,

but now it's clear it feels really big.

An army of dehumidifiers are poised to work around the clock

to get the walls dry enough for wood panelling and paint.

So, we've been opening the windows, but the Cornish weather this spring

is not really helping us,

because it's just raining every day.

In one corner of the room,

the stone is wet through and the paint is flaking off.

So, this corner of the basement has been really, really wet

and I think it's been getting wet for some time.

And we think it's because the downpipe

wasn't put back after it was decorated outside,

so water's been pouring down into this corner.

And because it's been painted and it hasn't been properly treated

the paint has just become slimy and absorbed all the water.

So, the first job, before we decide what to do,

is to get all this paint off the wall,

or as much paint as we can.

Getting this basement room dry is going to be a challenge.

Today, fabric and finishing touches feel a very long way off.

It is just falling away.

I think we've got quite a job on our hands,

getting this all dried out down here.

Coming up,

Alan and Catherine bring the indoors outside at Oakhurst Hall...

Where are we going? Over here, towards me.

..as they transform their terrace into party central.

Oh. That's nice. It's not very heavy.

Oh, hang on, I'll just get a grip. Yeah, get a grip!

THEY LAUGH

And in Cornwall...

Quite a bit's gone pear-shaped in this room.

..Anouska's push for perfection

drives Greig to distraction.

Do you prefer it when I'm not here, Greig? Yeah.

In Shropshire, on the English-Welsh border,

just outside Oswestry, is Oakhurst Hall,

built in 1854.

The original owners were Victorian railway industrialists,

but since then it's been a girls boarding school

and commercial offices.

For the last four years it's been owned by Alan,

an exhibition-graphics expert,

and Catherine, who runs the family property development business.

Earlier this week,

we saw them finish off their splendid sitting room,

as well as their new house in town,

which they are hoping to sell,

to help fund further renovations at the hall.

See where that yellow bag is?

We're going to line it all up along this right-hand edge. Yep.

Alan and Catherine are a busy pair,

but they're beginning to see that the end is in sight.

I think what gets us through is seeing what we've achieved

and seeing the light at the end of the tunnel

and seeing what life is going to be like.

This time next year, hopefully,

we are beginning to live a little, rather than just renovate.

Today,

they are still renovating -

specifically their outside terrace...

This looks gorgeous.

..hoping to connect the beautiful interiors of Oakhurst Hall

to the grounds.

We've got to get this terrace...nailed.

All paved, walls rendered, lights fitted,

coping stones on.

I'm really looking forward to sitting out here

in the morning and having my breakfast and a cup of tea.

While Alan and Catherine are going for a Mediterranean vibe

on the terrace, when they first bought the hall,

this area was just bare ground.

And when it was first built,

the terrace was home to a rather grand structure.

So, there used to be a glasshouse

running right the way across the back.

It wasn't here when we bought the property,

but you can see the holes in the wall that we

need to get restored next.

I think there was a small terrace,

nothing to the scale of this...

..but I think it's great,

you know, that we're adding our mark to it, really,

and making it ours.

Making that mark begins with

the laying of 60 tonnes of limestone pavers.

The team doing the work have a massive job on their hands.

The whole space and the pathway down to the drive

is about 600 square metres,

so it's huge, and the guys are cracking on.

It already feels like I am on holiday.

It's certainly barbecue weather, isn't it?

ALAN LAUGHS

A few days later, the pavers have all been laid.

The scale of the terrace is immense,

wrapping around two sides of the hall.

With the slabs down,

Alan and Catherine plan to create

distinct zones within the space.

Wondering what's in this box of goodies.

And this couple, who don't do things by halves,

have pulled out all the stops with a designer outdoor kitchen

that would make a celebrity chef salivate.

Little pizza board.

BANG!

God, you can't wait, can you? No.

Where are we going? Over here, towards me.

DOG WHINES

With a barbecue and a Japanese teppan-yaki grill,

plus sink and fridge,

the couple are excited to start entertaining.

With the outdoor kitchen set up, the following day,

Alan and Catherine take a delivery of garden furniture.

Oh.

That's nice.

It's not very heavy.

Oh, hang on, I'll just get a grip. Yeah, get a grip!

THEY LAUGH

First one in.

To ensure any future guests can enjoy the space for longer,

Alan's also invested in some smart patio heaters.

Invariably in England, when you have a party or a barbecue,

by about eight o'clock everybody's looking

for jumpers, aren't they?

Or going inside and it kind of ends it,

so we're trying to pre-empt that,

and we'll all be snuggled round these heaters.

In a matter of a few short weeks,

Alan and Catherine's former mud bath

is on its way to becoming an elegant entertaining space.

Looks good, doesn't it? Going to have some fun out here.

ALAN LAUGHS

But before any fun can begin,

there are still a number of tasks to complete.

The coping needs pointing,

the flowerpots need filling and planting,

there's still some outside lighting that needs finishing.

So, yeah, there's lots and lots of finishing off to do

before it's actually finished.

In glorious Cornwall,

at 190-year-old Penally House...

ANOUSKA: Just be careful.

..Anouska and Greig are renovating their basement,

creating the second of two new bedrooms.

Oh, my gosh! It's amazing.

The room has been emptied and measured up

for Anouska's feature bed and bathtub,

and now she's moved on to planning the colour scheme.

I'm thinking leopard print at the moment and pink, obviously.

To go with the rest of the house. Exactly.

That's gorgeous. If budget allows.

If not, leopard print headboard. OK. That's fine.

Almost creates, almost like a picture frame. Wow.

Today,

cabinet maker John is measuring up the panelling,

and for Anouska, the devil is always in the detail.

My thought, John,

was that we're going to have the bath in the centre here... Yeah.

..with one panel behind it... OK.

..but I think we were going to do one above and one below,

weren't we? Right.

And, then, have two smaller panels

which will contain the wall lights... OK. ..either side.

Four weeks later,

thanks to some serious hard graft...

..Penally's seventh bedroom is starting to come together.

I can't believe how much bigger this room feels. Yeah.

And next door,

if guests prefer a shower to a bath,

relocating the new, upgraded heating system

has created space for an en suite.

So, now we've actually got a proper guest bathroom

to facilitate these two bedrooms is amazing.

Some compensation for the budget-busting plumbing bill.

And, new boiler, darling, it's super-efficient on the oil.

OK, so, long-term it's going to save us money. Yeah, massive.

But, as renovators know,

there's always something ahead waiting to trip you up.

Anouska's returned from a week away

and found changes have been made to the panelling plan.

I just don't understand why you would not do that

when the whole room is going to be matching.

The centre panel behind the bath is too wide,

which means the panels either side won't be symmetrical.

Could we use that one on the other side of the wall?

No. Why?

Don't get angry, I'm just... I'm not, darling.

And it was all going so well!

We had to adapt this panel

because he did the measurement before the plinth.

Tell him to take all this out and start again.

Don't start again! No, no, no. It's not worth the aggravation,

cos we're trying to make good with something you're not happy with.

So, just take it all out

and tell him to make the panels again.

Someone say something...

..please.

Quite a bit's gone pear-shaped in this room,

but they decided to...make good what was there

and then worry about these bits after.

But, what I've discovered today is that,

actually, if we go smaller on the edges,

we're not going to fit the wall lights in.

Greig and Omar will now try to create new side panels

and remake the large centre panel later.

That looks good.

HE SCOFFS

Could you just move out the way, so I can just see it, please.

Why didn't you take more off the top than the bottom?

Tell you what, why does it always happen on a Friday?

Would you like a beer with your sandwich?

We've had a really, really productive week, darling.

It's cos I've not been here, that's why it's been productive.

You've turned up, darling. You've turned up and you've caused chaos.

HE SIGHS

Do you prefer it when I'm not here, Grieg? Yeah.

Yeah. Annoying.

Ten steps backwards,

which is...really irritating, but there you go.

With the panelling back on track,

Penally's final bedroom is one step closer to completion.

Coming up...

..Lucy and Seb uncover the past...

Now the paint's off them, I like them even more

and I definitely think

we've gone down the right path.

..to rebuild their Victorian staircase...

You made the right choice.

LUCY LAUGHS

..Anouska and Greig add a decadent touch to their guest room...

When I said to you, "Put a bath in here,"

I thought you were just going to laugh.

..to solve a practical problem.

We've had to raise up the bath onto a plinth

just to hide all the kind of gubbins underneath.

And in Shropshire...

I think we were a bit nervous to start with, with the terrace

because we were like, "Oh, does that go with a 169-year-old hall?"

..a chance to reflect on a job well done.

I don't know how much input you have in that.

CATHERINE LAUGHS Oh, thanks for that one, Grandma.

In Barrow upon Humber,

Lucy and Seb are restoring the sweeping staircase

in their 200-year-old Georgian property.

There's nothing is holding that up really, is there?

Well, it's dry rot, isn't it, there? You can see.

41 of the original iron spindles were stolen

when Grove House was unoccupied.

I'm trying to work out which bits go where.

It's like a puzzle, a very dusty puzzle.

So, with reproducing the spindles

now at the top of their priority list,

Lucy and Seb are visiting to local metalworker John.

Hello. Hello.

So, you've brought me these two.

This looks like it's still got the original stud in.

So that's the length that was.

This appears to be damaged in some way.

It's missing a piece, isn't it?

We've got some parts missing off the top of that.

If we can lose this bit, because we don't have

a replica, unfortunately, of what was there. OK.

John will be able to use the two surviving spindles

to create a profile for the other 41,

but with so many layers of old paint,

there's no knowing what is actually underneath.

Ironwork got painted black when Prince Albert died... Oh, right.

..in the Victorian times.

There were all sorts of colours on ironwork,

there was yellows, reds, blues,

greens, but they've gone with white.

The important thing is to get that profile.

Once that profile is made, it will all look

the same when it comes out.

It will be one item when it comes out as a new casting -

there'll be no joints in it. Yes.

So, yeah, we can have a go at that now,

start cutting this end off.

Fab.

It's going to take some precision craftsmanship

to rediscover the hidden beauty of the original design,

and it starts with using an open flame to remove

the old paintwork.

So, that went well.

I think it would be a mistake now to go down a different path.

We've always said we're going to be true to,

you know, the house and what was there.

So, even though it's expensive, it's the right choice, I think.

A week later,

having removed several layers of old paint,

John now has a better idea of the original design.

We've done some filling on that,

which is all... We've just done that down with the grinder

to make sure there's no undercuts on that one.

I've put some filler in here, to get rid of this screw hole

which needs to be blanked off.

We've made an extension piece,

we're going to finish drilling and tapping this,

weld that on and then put some more filler round these

so it becomes that profile

and then we can trim the end to length.

Returning the spindle to its original shape

means it can be used as a template to make the others.

And today,

Lucy and Seb are dropping in to check on progress.

Hello. Hello. Now, then... How's it going?

We're getting there, slowly.

I've got two spindles for you to look at.

Amazing.

That's the one with the clover-leaf end.

Oh, my gosh. Up to 950.

I've straightened all that out that was a bit of a funny shape.

And they're keen to see what John's uncovered.

It looks so different without paint on. Yeah.

Yeah, the detail's come out, hasn't it? Oh, yes.

I didn't really realise that that was so square.

No. When it was painted it just looked like...

A lump. Yeah.

It's quite amazing, really, how much detail comes out

once you get the paint off.

Even, like, the finer detail on these bits. Yeah.

Like, the little kind of petals.

Wooden spindles would have been just a mistake.

I'm really, really pleased

and surprised, actually, at what they look like.

Now the paint is off them, I like them even more

and I definitely think we've gone down the right path.

It's just beautiful, seeing it in this state now.

Yeah, you made the right choice.

LUCY LAUGHS

All that's left now is for John to get

the 41 spindles made at a foundry

and the stair rebuild can move on up.

I'm pretty sure you can slide down the banister, right?

LUCY LAUGHS

Couldn't have done that with wooden ones, could we?

It's been six weeks since we last made

a visit to Cornwall,

where the basement at Penally House is almost complete.

Do you want to pull it all the way in and then pull it back

because the fabric will be...

Well, that's it. That's where the fabric's gonna be.

With the panelling now all fitted

to Anouska's exacting standards, it's been painted,

and embellished with leopard-print inserts.

And the damp walls have dried out and been painted.

So today, it's time to get down to the finer details...

Yeah, it's just that little bit there, isn't it,

where we've got to paint? Yeah.

..which includes fitting an alcove canopy for the bed

and a half-tester headboard, making smart use of limited space.

Awesome.

And laying new flooring on the raised platform for

the freestanding bath.

How do you know the angle for herringbone?

Is it a set...? Well, we are just going to go with 45.

So, if I draw a pencil mark a minute... Yeah.

It may be typically theatrical,

in keeping with Anouska's style,

but the elevated bath is also solving some practical problems.

So, under this plinth is all the plumbing for the bath,

so we've had to raise up the bath on to a plinth just

to hide all the kind of gubbins underneath.

Anouska is using leftover lengths of

the waterproof vinyl flooring she used in the main house,

to cover the platform.

We are going to use this,

so that if anyone splashes in the bath,

it's not going to soak through, really.

So, today we are just working out how it's going to look,

where the finish is going to be and the pattern,

but I think that looks really good.

I'm really happy with that.

Three weeks later,

and Anouska and Greig have been putting the finishing touches

to the basement renovation.

It's so nice that we get to enjoy all of these rooms now.

Yeah. See all of our hard work paid off.

When they bought Penally House,

this room was a damp and dingy storage space.

It's now completely unrecognisable.

My gosh, the transformation is ridiculous in this room, isn't it?

When you think how wet and... Damp.

I think we even had mould growing, didn't we,

in some of the corners of this room.

Now the corners are filled with luxurious notes of gold,

velvet and faux fur,

with Anouska making great use of her vintage fair

and auction finds.

I really wanted this to have a bit of a boudoir,

sexy feel about it and this has just been genius,

I mean, finding a bed to fit inside that little alcove.

Yep, recycled bed - keeping the whole old-meets-new again,

which is awesome.

Never knowingly understated,

Anouska has given this room a little extra in

the shape of a freestanding bath on its own plinth.

It's almost decadent.

When I said to you,

"Put a bath in here," I thought you were just going to laugh,

and, actually, once again, you were, like,

"Yeah, let's do it." All these crazy ideas.

But this side of the room

wasn't without its challenges.

This is the panel which all went wrong, which we had

a bit of fun and disagreement with. ANOUSKA CHUCKLES

Frustrations of trying to do things remotely.

But, do you know what? It's worked out perfectly.

When you're lying in bed, and this is your view

it's just so beautiful.

In order to create the perfect basement boudoir,

Anouska and Greig were forced to up-scale and relocate the plumbing

to the opposite end of the basement,

which presented our creative couple with the opportunity

to squeeze in a brand-new en suite.

This is like the added gift, like, the added bonus

to the basement that we never, ever expected.

Awesome.

Complete and finished. Can't believe it.

What we going to do with ourselves? ANOUSKA CHUCKLES

Careful what you wish for, Greig.

I'm sure Anouska will think of something.

Back on the English-Welsh border, at Oakhurst Hall,

Alan and Catherine's Mediterranean-themed terrace

is nearing completion.

Today, Catherine is planting a small herb garden using

a mix of vintage pots to add character to the terrace.

As Alan is the chef in the family,

he's rather keen to have a fresh supply of seasoning on hand.

Got all your herbs here, babes,

so when you ask for all your rosemary and your oregano,

bit of sage, bit of mint.

Catherine never uses herbs,

because she just sticks the fork through

the plastic bit on the microwave dinner,

so I tend to cook a bit more.

You know what, I can't do it all, can I?

So, there has to be some time that he kicks in.

I'm, again, helping to make Alan's life easier in the kitchen.

I'm going to shove a load of water on there.

And to tie in with her new rattan furniture,

Catherine's also sourced some matching planters.

I've got a little bit of sprucing up to do today.

I bought these lovely little planters...

..to go on the side table.

These are white cyclamens, one of my favourite outdoor plants.

This is what I love, I love gardening.

There we go, leave that for a bit,

see how that gets on.

Adding these final touches is

a long way from where they started.

A few months ago,

the terrace at Oakhurst Hall was just

a lumpy strip of earth, unloved and in need of some TLC.

In the past, this space had been

an elegant example of Victorian grandeur,

setting a challenge readily taken up by Catherine,

using 60 tonnes of limestone slabs,

to create a terrace befitting this magnificent hall.

And now it's all in place,

600 square metres of pristine patio,

the perfect space to entertain friends and family.

From the sleek outdoor kitchen, bursting with mod cons,

to the dining and relaxation areas,

the space flows seamlessly.

This is the terrace that 21st-century Oakhurst deserves.

With open views of the 16-acre grounds in every direction,

Catherine and Alan can finally relax

and enjoy their surroundings.

Today, Catherine's mum Valerie

has joined them to christen the terrace

and appreciate just how far they've come

with such a huge renovation project.

The terrace has turned out just perfect for us.

I think we were a bit nervous to start with, with the terrace

because it was beginning to look quite Mediterranean, wasn't it?

Yeah. And we were like,

"Ooh, does that go with a 169-year-old hall?"

But, actually, it really does work.

It's sort of brought a bit of new to the old

and it's mixed it up a little bit.

Gosh, when you think about everything

that we've really achieved this year in the hall,

it's incredible, isn't it?

It is. I'm quite amazed sometimes at...

..Catherine's ability, anyway, of putting it all together.

I don't know how much input you have in that.

Oh, thanks for that one, Grandma. THEY LAUGH

Well, I don't know. He holds the tape measure.

No. It's very impressive,

considering she did it all by herself, basically.

This is a great space out here,

so we want to have some cracking parties here.

We're nowhere near finished, but it feels like a house now.

I think when we first bought the hall we were like,

"Great! We've got a five-year plan,"

but we're now in year four

and we're nowhere near the end of it,

but...it's a long journey

and I think you need to be prepared

for that when you're renovating an old building,

but it's also an honour and a luxury as well,

to be able to bring her back to the way she was

for future generations.

Coming up...

..Lucy and Seb's staircase reno comes together...

Do you want to stick to that height, or do you want it a bit higher?

People are a bit taller nowadays, aren't they?

..as their replica spindles find a new home.

Might just have to ram those studs into the end.

And a VIP guest in Cornwall...

Lovely to meet you.

..takes Anouska and Greig...

Popcorn, Fred? Thank you.

..on a trip down memory lane.

Ah, it's made me feel quite emotional, actually.

In North Lincolnshire at Grove House,

for Lucy and Seb's reno of the staircase destroyed by thieves,

it's been one step forward...

We can do it there. Yes!

..and two steps back.

There is no budget.

Like, we don't really know how much the spindles are going to cost.

I think there's 41 in total that we need replicating.

But today's a good day for Lucy and Seb,

as the original spindles have now been reproduced.

So, we finally have our cast-iron replica spindles back,

don't we, from the foundry. Yep.

The new spindles have already had a base coat of paint,

and carpenter Steve is ready

to start fixing them into place.

We are finally going to have some fitted today by Steve

and he's brought the handrail back so that's exciting, isn't it?

We'll probably do the top landing to begin with

and see how that goes.

Do you want to stick to that height or do you want it

a bit higher? Maybe a bit higher.

Cos that's really low. People are a bit taller nowadays, aren't they?

Yeah. We're a tall family, aren't we?

They were all homunculuses back then. It is quite low, isn't it?

The final cost for the spindles was certainly steep.

Yeah, about 5,000.

Yep. Yes. Yeah.

BOTH TALK AT ONCE

Seb didn't want to spend the money.

Well, you found the money to do it, didn't you? So, yeah,

I found the money to do it. I wasn't as willing to...

I just worked a few more hours.

It's putting back what was there and it's not cutting corners.

You're still struggling with the cost, aren't you?

I can see it in your eyes.

Eye-watering indeed.

With the first of the new spindles in place...

Lovely, shall we see if we can slot that on?

..Steve and Seb can fit the first part of

the original banister.

Might have to just ram them studs into the end.

Would need our stinger screw through it.

But that'll be the effect.

Yeah, I think now, even those are in,

it's quite... Yeah, it's easier to picture sort of

the rest, you know, meandering down there.

Yeah, I think it'll look really classy.

The next morning, Seb and Lucy are back...

So, this is where we're at with the stairs.

Looking good.

..after Steve's been busy repairing broken wooden stair treads.

A much better configuration, isn't it,

with the alternating spindles? Yeah.

All we've ever known of the stairs,

for the three years we've had the house, is no spindles.

There's always just been a drop or, like, holes in the stairs

and now, like,

you know, the holes are patched up

and it really does transform, kind of like, that space.

It's going to be beautiful, isn't it?

And the original handrail

is also receiving some long overdue care and attention.

The saving grace is obviously that

the original handrail was left,

albeit in sort of three pieces,

but it's nice to be able to put it back on.

It's got a few wears and tears from the years,

but I think that's part of the charm, isn't it?

It's part of the character. Yeah.

Imagine who's ran their hand down this staircase and walked down.

But getting to this stage of the stairwell renovation

has been quite the climb.

It was a really long process from, like,

finding somebody to do it in the first place

and then them all be cleaned up to be sent off to a foundry.

With several key rooms now well on their way

to being complete,

including their main bedroom and en suite,

Lucy and Seb are slowly chipping away

at this massive renovation project,

but they're justifiably proud of where they've got to.

So, the last six months

has probably progressed quite rapidly, hasn't it?

Compared to the two and half years before that,

would you say? Yes.

And though impatient, Lucy is always keen

for the next challenge...

I mean, we're still very slow.Yeah. LUCY LAUGHS

..they feel they are on the right track...

All the decisions we are making, like, we have agreed on

and we are really happy with, so far,

so I'm really proud of us. Yeah, I was going to say that, yeah.

Lucy and Seb are making Grove House their future family home,

while respecting its past.

It's an honour, would you say? Yeah. Is that the right word?

For our names to be in that list of people that have lived here

and that have built it, renovated it.

It's our time now to look after the house

and preserve the house,

or bring the house back to life in this case,

because of the...you know, the state it was in.

And I hope that in, like, 150 years

someone else can look back and be like,

"Oh, I wonder what they did to the house?"

So, maybe we should leave a little time capsule

in the attic of everything that we've done, with pictures.

That would be really good, wouldn't it?

Yeah, that's a nice idea.

In Cornwall,

it's a special day for Anouska and Greig.

Good morning! Morning, morning.

The basement reno of Penally House is now complete.

Anouska and Greig have stamped their style on

an exquisite secret cinema room...

It does feel like an underground gentlemen's club

which is the feel that we wanted to create.

..two eccentrically eclectic bedrooms...

I love this room.

It's pretty incredible.

..and a decidedly bijou bathroom.

This is like the added gift,

like the added bonus to the basement.

For all our renovators,

the biggest treat of restoring period homes

is discovering the fascinating secrets

so many of them hold within their walls.

Today, Anouska and Greig are meeting

a very special guest from Penally House's past,

who recently got in touch.

So, lovely to meet you.

Lovely to meet you at last. Come down.

Come through and have a look.

As a child, Fred spent a memorable summer here,

when his family rented the basement.

In 1969, we had a family holiday here

and we rented the basement flat at the time,

and I believe it was from a Lady Baxter.

Lady Baxter was the owner of Penally House for 35 years,

of whom very little is known.

I think she kept herself to herself, didn't she, up here?

Yeah, I think so. Right. Yeah.

Though some details have faded over the years,

Fred's keen to revisit his time at Penally.

This is going to bring back some memories for you.

Wow!

There are few photographic records of Penally House...

This was my sister's bedroom.

Oh, you can go and look at your sister's bedroom, now.

Might look a bit different. Oh, wow.

..but one particular memory comes flooding back.

But, I know the window's different. There were wooden shutters... Yeah.

OK. ..and my sisters used to do, like,

puppet shows and things in the...

Aw! ..and use the curtains as... Oh, right.

Brings back memories.

I'm sure there was a door here.

This was our bedroom.

Oh, it's gonna look very different, this one, Fred.

I remember this as being quite dark, so I'm not...

I'm pretty sure this would have been panelled,

so I wouldn't be surprised

if the other bedroom was wood panelled.

Wow!

It would have been because that's why the stone

wasn't in a very good state of repair,

if it all had been behind panels.

It seems that this is one historical detail

that Anouska and Greig have reinstated without knowing -

the panelled walls.

So, we've put panels on the two end walls

for those reasons, but to also allow air ventilation

behind it, just to keep the circulation.

This hasn't had any habitat at all for 35 years. No.

So, the reason the basement had wood panelling over 50 years ago,

is the same reason it's been put back in today.

It feels nice now that maybe

we've brought some of the old history back.

So, yeah, the doorway's concealed.

So, you literally, Fred, just push on that panel.

For Fred, this trip down memory lane

is full of surprises.

Oh, wow. That's cool.

ANOUSKA LAUGHS

Wow! This is our secret cinema/theatre.

That's crazy. FRED LAUGHS

This would have been the sitting room

and dining area.

This wall wouldn't have been here,

so it was walking straight into the... Yeah. ...flat, if you like.

You walked through and I think there as a range along here

and there was a bread oven.

An oven in the corner.

It's still there, behind the door.

And a historical piece of the house has been kept from Fred's childhood.

There was one bit we tried to salvage, but, yeah, it's still...

There it is. When it was servants quarters,

the cooks would have cooked for upstairs...

Yeah. ..so, we were told that

that's where all the stoves would have been. Yeah.

Fred has brought a gift for Anouska and Greig,

home-cine footage of Penally House from 1969.

Most of it is holiday footage, but at the end of it we have a view of

the driveway up to Penally House.

What and we can watch that? Yeah.

It's the first piece of history

Anouska and Greig have of their home's past.

Rig it up to the telly and use the cinema seats. Yeah.

It'll be the first screening. The premiere.

THEY LAUGH

Popcorn, Fred? Thank you.

Wow.

Then, this is the bit that you'll like.

Oh, my gosh. Look! Oh, that's... Oh, God.

Was that on the same pillar?

No. It was on the other side. Left-hand pillar.

Oh, that's the wall, you see, in the front. Yeah.

Thank you so much. Yeah, it's awesome. It's so special.

And that's our only little bit of...

..history that we have, really, of the house, isn't it? Yeah.

Have your brothers and sisters watched it yet? Yeah.

Have they? Yeah, they were in tears. Aw!

It's so lovely.

Aw! That's made me feel quite emotional, actually.

That's amazing!

For Anouska and Greig, it seems that despite the top-to-toe restoration,

there are still plenty of secrets yet to be discovered at Penally House.

Next week...

It's something that we've been looking forward to for a long time.

HE HUMS A FANFARE

..more renovators raring to go...

I'm quite sure a professional would be laughing right now.

..breathe new life into precarious properties.

I'm exhausted.

In Warwickshire, a dusty old stable block is transformed.

I wanna get my camera out and start taking photographs.

In Kent...

KIDS: Wow!

..an old attic becomes a fabulous family movie room.

It's really, really cool.

And in West Yorkshire, a Victorian villa is stripped bare...

John did prep me. It was like,

"We are going to gut it and start again."

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