Original subtitles

Christmas can be a magical time of year.

What is this?

A reindeer.

A reindeer.

It's Rudolf.

But it often comes with a long list of jobs...

We don't really have a plan B, which is a bit of a problem.

..especially if you live in an enormous chateau.

It's a nightmare, these. Oh, dear.

You're looking in a bit of a Christmas tangle.

We're following intrepid owners...

Don't think this is a winter wonderland.

I'd say it's a bit of a winter nightmare right now.

..as they prepare for the festive season in France.

How are you? Merry Christmas.

It's getting a tad hectic now.

This is heavy. If anything happens, run.

We'll witness the highs...

Hello, Santa. Hello.

..the lows...

That wasn't supposed to happen, was it?

Let's put this baby in its stand.

Watch out. Stop!

..the joy...

I've fallen in love!

..and magic...

Oh, wow.

..as they transform their castles into a winter wonderland.

Merry Christmas.

Today, one family take on

an alternative Christmas challenge...

Simple solution to make a Christmas tree without having

to...having to chop one down.

..a party idea...

You've got to start with a stencil.

..could be a recipe for disaster.

I do think it's a bit ambitious,

particularly as you've never done this before.

Argh. No.

And a chateau pair's festive plans hit the skids.

This is literally chateau life.

Ten steps backwards, one step forwards.

In the stunning Vienne departement of Western France,

lies the impressive 15th century fortress Chateau Mareuil.

It comprises 17 rooms,

a swimming pool and several outbuildings.

It belongs to former catering manager Belinda

and her lighting engineer husband, Lee,

who are gearing up for the festive season in style.

Christmas at the chateau is something special.

It's a fairy tale world.

We love to get nice and warm and cosy inside.

There's a lovely smell of burnt wood

and cooking coming from the kitchen.

I'm pretty much in my element at Christmas. I do love to cook.

I certainly benefit. I'm twice the man I used to be.

Rubbish.

Located close to the city of Limoges,

Belinda and Lee bought the chateau in 2015 for £378,000

and run it as an events venue.

Merry Christmas.

And every festive season,

they host a fundraiser for a local cat sanctuary.

Our event went really well.

We made loads of money for our favourite charity.

Happy Christmas. Happy Christmas. Mmmmm.

I knew I'd smear you! Urgh!

This year, they're hoping to raise even more by hosting

a sumptuous feast for 45 people in their grand salon.

The guests have a three course meal,

with all the wine thrown in.

There will also be an auction and we're going to have a raffle.

We've set ourselves really a bit of a target of 1,500 euros.

If everyone comes with a good heart

and a kind spirit our dreams'll be not only realised but exceeded.

The event is in two days

and Belinda's eager to make

a special Christmas cake to auction off.

It's got lots of lovely fruit in it.

It should be absolutely delicious.

See, this was something my mother would have made at Christmas.

I've got dates, I've got figs,

I've got some cherries, I've got cranberries, raisins and currants.

I think that's all.

That's quite a lot.

Lee has been delegated the responsibility

for decorating it

and this is something he's never, ever done before.

What could possibly go wrong?

How's it going? Really well.

Oh. Christmas in one breath. Can I lick the bowl afterwards?

Yes.

I'm worried about this icing. OK.

I've done some researching

and you've got to start with a stencil.

I'm going to draw round a tin. I want to practise it first.

And, erm, get a quick, rough sketch of what I'm going to do.

The drawing bit is easy for me. It's the...the icing bit.

Lee's eager to pull out all the stops by creating

an icing version of their chateau.

This'll all be grey.

So, I'm going to do that in grey icing.

Now you've got that in the oven, come over and have a look at this.

This is the first draught

of what I think might be quite good.

Do I need to put Chateau Mareuil on here?

Yeah, of course you do. Absolutely.

OK, I can do that then.

Erm, and I've drawn the little cat in the window. Aww.

And a little cat running across the bridge roof tile.

Oh, that's lovely.

What are you planning to make this with?

I'm going to buy some icing.

I love this design. I really, really like it.

I love the touches with the little cats.

I do think it's a bit ambitious though.

You know, particularly as you've never done this before.

And you're only going to get one chance at it.

Lee can't afford to get it wrong.

With so much at stake, he can only hope

the guests won't give it a frosty reception.

In the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of Western France is

the impressive 19th century Chateau de Brives.

This beautiful property sits in 30 acres,

has 25 rooms, several outbuildings and a swimming pool.

Since 2011, it's been home to antiques dealers Sarah and George,

children Tatiana and Alexi, and dogs Rosie and Elsa.

I love Christmas in the chateau.

It's having the space to be able

to entertain properly is what I love.

Mm. So, we invite lots of friends, we have parties.

It's just homely and fun.

I love getting all the decorations out.

Once it's done and all the lights are on

and candles are lit, it really is magical.

Mm.

Located an hour's drive from Bordeaux,

they bought it for £415,000

and have spent more than double that renovating it,

and now run it as a high-end wedding venue.

That ceremony was absolutely extraordinary. It was just great.

This winter, they're having their own celebration

by hosting a day of festive fun.

Sarah's doing a little course on how to prepare

and cook foie gras,

which is an absolute French delicacy for Christmas.

We've got a little floral workshop going on.

All the people who are here will then sit down with us for dinner.

And it's just a really lovely way, at Christmas-time,

to get people to come together.

They don't have long,

as their guests are due in a couple of hours.

And budding florist Tatiana is eager to create

an alternative Christmas tree.

So, I've been given the job of doing the carpentry bit,

making the frame and then you're going to do your floristry bit,

making it with pampas grass. Is that right?

That's right.

I haven't worked with pampas grass before

but I saw some inspiration on the internet

and I thought it would create

a really interesting and new design.

So, that would join the tops together.

It's a novel idea and is also eco-friendly.

Well, we saw this being made

and I liked the idea that it was all done with ties

and it seemed a simple solution to make a Christmas tree

but without having to, having to chop one down.

Goes through there.

Whoops.

I'll hold it.

You don't need screws, you don't need nails.

And then you can re-use the wood

and everything else afterwards.

These can be used for growing sweet peas or something.

Yep, that one's in.

With the frame secure,

the trickier challenge is adding the chicken wire.

You know it's bigger at the bottom than the top.

So, how are we going to do that then?

The idea of the chicken wire is to wrap it

all the way around,

so that there's a nice structure form

and then we can put the pampas grass through

and it holds everything together.

So, something like that.

That worked. OK.

We're getting there.

Yep. Lovely.

Your job now is to make it into

an amazing Christmas tree. Good luck.

Thank you.

While Tatiana puts her plan into action,

Sarah and George are eager to impress their guests with

a lavish table display.

That's fine, no? Perfect.

And we've got the other chairs. Yeah, I'll do that.

OK. Don't worry. Thank you very much.

And they're hoping their antique finds will make a big impression.

We could have silver ones and gilt ones.

Christmas is a lovely time to be able to

show off with your things.

You know, there's nothing worse than having..

..having nice things and they don't come out.

It all goes together to make everything a bit special.

It's slowly coming together.

But with time beginning to tick and food to prepare,

Sarah and George's day of festive fun

still needs lots more ingredients.

Still to come...

One couple's party event is going nowhere fast.

Just putting a little bit more gravel in behind the wheel.

And Lee gets tied up in Christmas knots.

Oh, no. Just when I thought...

It's worse than plaster.

In Normandy in Northern France,

is the charming 19th century Chateau Trois Cloches.

Set in several acres,

this beautiful property has 20 rooms,

a unique bell tower and a stunning orangery.

Since 2002,

it's been home to celebrity assistant Chris

and husband Jolyon,

a civil servant, who bought it for £520,000.

This place just comes alive at Christmas. It's incredible.

It just suddenly becomes magic.

Yeah, we have a motto now. You just go big or you go home.

Yeah. I always think of some of

the movies that you get around Christmas

and I think we can almost recreate that.

And it's like living in our own movie in a way.

Located just a short drive from the town of Honfleur,

Chris and Jolyon run the chateau as an events venue.

And last year, transformed the orangery

into a space full of Christmas cheer...

Cocktails.

..and surprised their guests with an extra special treat.

Happy Christmas. Well done. Yeah. Happy Christmas.

This time, they're hoping to celebrate in the garden,

as they're hoping to finish building

a natural swimming pool that has been two years in the making.

We call it our Pit of Despair at the moment.

LAUGHTER

This has been the worst job probably ever in my life.

I won't exaggerate. Erm, literally months in there.

Rain, snow, mud. It's just awful.

And we're so close to finishing.

But that means we can have a nice party at the end of it

and properly celebrate.

It's come on in leaps and bounds,

as the swimming pool is now built.

And with the rainwater filling it up,

they're in the midst of adding

a mammoth 30 tonnes of gravel for their plants.

Are you ready?

But heavy overnight rain means their truck is not going anywhere.

We need more under this front wheel. Yeah, the front.

The ground is really saturated and it's completely stuck and wedged.

Can't get forward, can't go backwards and it weighs tonnes.

So, now we've got to work out a way of getting it out.

Let's see.

Hold on two secs. I'll give it a push.

A push?

Yeah.

OK.

One, two, three, go.

ENGINE REVS

Argh. No. There's no grip on it.

Really push them in.

With the truck still not budging,

desperate times call for desperate measures.

I'm trying to pump the water away from here.

The wheels are slipping quite a lot,

so I'm hoping if we can get rid of some of this water,

it might just help. But, I don't know.

We're trying everything now.

ENGINE STARTS

OK.

OK, I've locked it in there. That's good.

It's moved forward loads.

We're really close.

Just putting a little bit more gravel in behind the wheel.

Hopefully that will give it the traction it needs.

This is literally chateau life.

Ten steps backwards, one step forwards.

Well, it's moved. Ah!

Yay!

Woohoo.

Well done. Woo!

Oh, I'm very relieved we got that out.

Because having the conversation with the local farmer

to try and pull us out would just be too embarrassing. Yeah.

Is there anything we can't do now? Don't know. Feel like...

Well, maybe fill it up with gravel. But let's see. Yeah.

It's been a bumpy start.

And with 30 tonnes of gravel to lay

and a Christmas party to prepare for,

Chris and Jolyon's festive workload shows no sign of lightening.

In western France, at Chateau de Brives,

Sarah and George's guests for their day of festive fun

are due imminently.

Oh. Brilliant, Georgie.

I think when we get the flowers on,

give it the colour and all the candles are alight.

Yeah, gorgeous.

Right, we've only got half an hour.

The lavish table for the dinner party is coming along nicely.

I'm starting to get quite excited now.

And in the hallway, Tatiana and Alexi

are close to finishing their pampas grass Christmas tree.

one, two, three.

Lovely.

Would you like to put the last piece on?

Right, there you go. OK.

Yay! Perfect.

TATIANA CLAPS

I think that looks great.

Mum. Papa. Come and have a look.

That's brilliant. Well done. Thank you.

That is so much better than I had in my head.

Good! Well done, darling.

I'm absolutely thrilled with that.

I had no idea it was going to look so gorgeous.

Starting to feel like Christmas. Exciting.

Which is just as well, as their friends are starting to arrive.

Hiya. How are you doing?

Come on in. Come on in, guys.

Amazing tree. Yeah. Tati and Alexi made it yesterday.

It's the alternate Christmas tree.

Beautiful tree.

Having already got a festive seal of approval,

it's over to professional chef, Sarah...

..who is hoping her foie gras cooking class

will also get brownie points.

It is incredibly simple, how to make foie gras terrine.

This is a duck liver.

And it's a delicacy in France for Christmas.

And all you do is you put some salt and pepper in the bottom.

Pretty generous, cos they need quite a lot of seasoning.

And then you're just going to take your foie gras.

It's quite pliable, so you can just mould it in,

but you just need to press down all the time.

And season it as you go.

And squidge them in.

Lots of squidging.

And then, little bit of cognac.

There we go.

It goes into the oven at 100 degrees for 45 minutes.

And then they go into the fridge.

So that one is ready, and now it's your turn.

I'll let you play.

You do, yeah.

No. They do say strong - strong on the seasoning. Yeah.

Is yours done, Julia? Yeah? Well done.

With the lesson over, the guests certainly seem impressed.

It's been so good, actually.

I would never dream to make that and Sarah made it look so easy.

And I can't wait to taste it, actually.

Yeah, they're an absolutely great family.

I was happy, really happy with the foie gras workshop.

Just a delicious thing to have in your fridge over Christmas.

It's been a promising start.

But with a festive floral class to come

and a dinner party feast to prepare,

Sarah and George are not ringing the bells for Christmas just yet.

In western France, at Chateau Mareuil...

Well, you saved the biggest spoon to yourself.

It's loaded, that spoon!

Sorry. There was hardly anything on this.

Belinda and Lee's Christmas cake for their charity event

is already creating a stir.

Wow. Lovely, isn't it?

It smells amazing. I know, it smells amazing. Yeah.

I've done my bit. Over to you now. No pressure.

The icing will have to wait until the cake cools down.

But Belinda does want some help to make decorative scented candles

for the dinner table.

Got some choices here. I can't remember what they are, Lee.

We've got Casa "Armour".

Casa Amor. That means "house of love".

I thought it meant something to do with armour,

being it's a medieval thing. No, it's to do with love. Oh.

This is the one. Have a sniff. Let me smell.

That's vanilla. We're going to use that one.

It should be a straightforward job.

Especially as Belinda has it all planned out.

This is a kilo of wax.

I've got this over a pan of boiling water.

And I'm going to melt it until the temperature reaches 70 degrees.

That's the nerve-racking bit done with now.

I'm quite pleased. I didn't make too much of a mess.

With the wax ready and the jars wicked up...

Gently. Stir it slowly.

..it's just a matter of adding the scent.

Oh, it smells lovely.

And you have to do all in one pour.

Well, as near as you can.

Yeah, because otherwise it separates

and you end up with a dimple around the wick. Mm.

I think we're done.

There we go.

The room smells wonderful, doesn't it?

The whole ground floor of the castle... It smells lovely.

..smells fragrant.

It's a case of so far, so good.

And with their charity event only a couple of days away...

I'll get this stuff out.

..they're eager to check in on the cat sanctuary

they're raising money for.

How are you? All right? Hey. Oh.

Lovely to see you both again. Nice to see you.

These are for your cats. Oh, brilliant. Absolutely superb.

Thank you so much. Thanks a lot.

How many cats have you actually got here?

In total we've got about 45. 45 cats!

That's a huge food bill.

It's so expensive. Vet bills are extortionate.

We've also got to fork out for worm treatments

and it goes on and on and on.

The sanctuary is run by Tracey and Billie,

who take in abandoned and neglected cats and give them a new home.

Oh, look.

Who's this?

This is Clarence. Aww.

Clarence is about 11 years old. Beautiful.

Hello, gorgeous.

Hello. Aww. Oh, he loves you, look.

What a home you've got. Yeah. The perfect life now.

Clarence is from the street but he was always in fights

and getting very ill with it.

These cats get fed morning and night.

They get biscuits all day long.

And in the winter, they actually get warm milk...

Aww. Aww. ..and treats just to sort of...

Tracey! I know. I know. It's just... Warm milk. Aww.

..something that we do just to make their lives nice.

It means so much to me - and I think to both of us, really -

to know that you're looking after these cats really

that nobody else would care for, would they?

Absolutely. And the thing is, with cats like Clarence,

if he was left on the street then he would have died.

Yeah, for sure. It really has inspired us, I think,

to do as much as we possibly can.

Fantastic. It's absolutely brilliant. Thank you, guys.

To see the work these guys are doing,

and it's just the two of them, is incredible.

Let's make this Christmas event the very best we can possibly make it.

Yeah, I think so.

It's been a worthwhile trip, but Belinda and Lee don't have long

to come up with some more money-making ideas.

Coming up. Chris and Jolyon hit a brick wall...

Finish with a medium? No. Too big.

Finish with a small one? Too small.

..and George and Sarah put Tatiana under the spotlight.

This will be the first workshop I have ever done.

These guys are sort of my guinea pigs.

In Normandy, at Chateau Trois Cloches,

Chris and Jolyon have managed to lay ten of the 30 tonnes of gravel

they need to surround their natural swimming pool.

Today, along with dog, Bo,

they're eager to ensure the rest of the space is ship shape

for their Christmas party.

We're going to be putting the brick slips on the small wall that's left.

So, make it look pretty. Yeah.

They're really nice travertine slips.

They look, kind of, quite natural and rough edged.

Yeah, it'll make the wall look quite nice, hopefully.

Yeah, I did the brick slips on the other wall.

It feels like wallpapering of the outdoor world.

The big difference is it comes in hundreds of pieces.

Finish with a medium? No. Too big.

Finish with a small one?

Too small.

That's it. Look, has to be it.

Well, maybe do we go higher? You see what I mean?

Go higher and then have a bigger thing there.

Oh, yeah, that'll work.

Having come up with a theory,

Chris just hopes his "outdoor wallpapering" plan will pay off.

Have you already tried?

I love doing this bit.

Cos you see such a quick transformation.

So, Chris is...gets the joy of seeing the whole wall come together.

I always get lumbered with the fiddly bits.

It's gradually coming together,

which is just as well as they are eager to impress their VIP guests.

I'm really looking forward to the party.

I haven't seen Kath and Simon for two years.

They were last here on New Year's Eve.

They're coming all the way from Dublin for it

and we're going to have some tables, chairs,

like, fur throws, some nice cocktails.

So it should be a really lovely, nice evening.

And I'm so excited for it.

Are you still working on your little bit,

and I've done all of this wall? LAUGHTER

My little corner's very beautiful, thank you very much.

Finally finished the tiles. It's a very good job done.

Very happy with that. It looks good.

Once the capping's are on and these bits are filled...

Yeah, be lovely. Well done. Woohoo.

To add a touch more glamour, Chris is eager to spruce up the entrance.

So, this should be pretty simple.

And it's just soil, plants and decoration.

This is literally right up my street.

It's a perfect job.

These plants are looking like they were made for these pots.

They're, like, perfect.

They've kind of given me Versailles vibes.

That's it. So I just need the finishing bits, the Christmas decs.

It's starting to come together.

But with 20 tonnes of gravel still to lay

Chris and Jolyon are going to have to work their Christmas socks off.

Over in western France...

This is the only template I've got.

..Lee's beginning to decorate the Christmas cake

for tomorrow's charity event.

Everything is geared towards making as much as we can.

I feel a lot of pressure to get this right.

Just never done anything like this in my life before.

That could work.

Next door, Belinda is also getting creative

by making a Christmassy jumper to put in the auction.

I think I'm getting there.

What's left to are these epaulettes,

which I'm going to try and fix here on the shoulders.

And then we've got some very jaunty baubles,

which are going to make this look like a clown's outfit.

I want Lee to try this on.

And I might sew a bit more of the tinsel round the sleeves

just to give it a sparkly edge.

It's all hands on deck.

Ah, no. Just when I thought...

Although Lee is not having much luck.

This stuff, it's worse than plaster.

Ugh. It's getting there.

HE SIGHS, GRUMBLES

It's all for a good cause.

I don't think that's too bad, actually.

I declare this...a work of art.

Belinda, come and have a look at what I've done.

Stand behind me.

Yeah. Are you ready? Yes.

Ta-da. A thing of beauty!

That's amazing.

And look at all the lovely little decorations. I know.

Oh, it's fantastic. Well done.

It's slowly falling into place.

Do you want to come and try it on?

And with Belinda's jumper finished, too...

Perfect.

I think it's absolutely fabulous. CAMERA CLICKS

The full Christmas effect.

..it's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas.

But with a salon to get ready

and the food to prepare for tomorrow,

Belinda and Lee can't pop the champagne corks just yet.

In the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of western France,

Sarah's preparing a special festive feast for tonight.

We are having the foie gras as a starter

and then we are doing a fish pie

and Christmas pudding, which should be lovely.

Tatiana, meanwhile, is continuing their day of festive fun

by hosting a Christmas flower arranging session.

This will be the first workshop I've ever done.

These guys are sort of my guinea pigs.

Erm, but I'm sure it'll go well.

To start with, I'm going to just take a few of the main flowers

and then with the foliage,

you want to try and hide all of the structure.

But you want to still make it so it's nice and light and airy.

Are you guys ready to go? Mm-hm.

If you guys need any help at all, just let me know.

Don't forget to keep spinning your bowls.

Lovely.

Despite all the guests being novices...

I have to say I've made a mess. HE CHUCKLES

..it seems Tatiana's class is beginning to flourish.

Getting there. Running out of space now.

What about that? Yeah, lovely. Yeah?

How gorgeous. Thank you.

There you go, Tati! Oh, I love that.

You like it? It's so orange and bright.

Thank you. Do I get a sticker?

Er, I'll try and get you one, yes.

Everyone happy with their pieces and creations? Yeah. Yeah.

With the vases blooming, it's been a great success.

Everyone really got stuck in and was so excited about making it

and I think they all created something really, really gorgeous.

Let's put them on the stairs and then we'll put them on the table

and all around the house.

With the Christmas classes over

and the evening drawing in, the celebrations can begin.

Tatiana and Sarah are preparing to serve up.

This is looking fabulous.

While Alexi dishes out his fancy cocktails.

Thank you very much. You're very welcome.

All that's left is for George to put the finishing touches

to his lavish table display.

I think we're in for a good night.

I think the table's looking great. I love the flowers.

That's really good.

No, super. Very happy.

With the scene set, it's showtime.

OK. Please come in.

Find your name.

Amazing.

Beautiful flowers. I love this.

Yes, the flower arrangements. The flowers are just amazing.

With the table getting a big thumbs up...

Please be seated.

..the feast can begin.

And Sarah hopes the foie gras hits the sweet spot.

OK. Bon appetit.

First foie gras I've had that we've made ourselves.

The foie gras was a huge success.

Everybody loved it, actually. Did you enjoy?

Yes. I did. Yeah. You know, it was delicious, actually.

With enough food to last well into the night,

it's been a great start to the party season.

Happy Christmas! Cheers. Happy Christmas.

Fantastic afternoon and fantastic evening, yes.

Sarah and George, they are impeccable hosts.

Everything is so natural.

They've made us feel completely at home.

Everyone seems really happy.

So, it's just a lovely way of everybody coming together,

and just can't wait for Christmas Day.

Just with the kids, relaxing and... Fire, television, yeah.

Feet up and chocolates. Yeah.

Sarah, George, Tatiana and Alexi

have pulled out all the stops,

and it will definitely be a Christmas to remember

for many years to come.

Still to come, it's all hands on deck for Chris and Jolyon...

Starting to feel a bit more festive.

..and the pressure starts to mount for Belinda and Lee.

Getting tough now, cos we're running out of time.

In the Vienne department of western France,

Belinda's busy cooking a hearty stew for today's charity event.

Smells absolutely delicious.

But it will take a bit more cooking.

The guests are due in half an hour,

and Lee's eager to add some Christmas cheer in the chateau.

Ooh, look at this one. This is a nice one.

Yeah, this is perfect.

You get some nice foliage and berries and stuff.

And it transforms the whole room

and suddenly you've got Christmas in four walls.

It's brilliant. And I love Christmas.

I love this time of year.

It's a nice, special, extra touch,

which Lee hopes will put their guests in the party mood.

You're only as good as your last event.

We need to make sure every time we do something

that we do it to the best of our ability.

And, of course, the thing above all else

is Belinda and I love doing this.

Getting tough now, cos we're running out of time.

Belinda?! Yeah. Come and have a quick look.

Yeah, OK. I just want you to look at the table.

Make sure you're happy with it.

Yeah, that looks lovely.

I hope it's going to be a really good, good evening.

With the salon Christmas-ready, their guests arrive on time.

How are you? All right? Good to see you, mate.

Good to see you. Thank you for coming.

I'm Belinda. Hello. Hi.

Nice to see you. And you too.

Let's get the drinks out and then we can get going.

Belinda and Lee are eager to make a good impression,

as they hope to raise at least 1,500 euros.

Everyone's here.

Everyone seems to be enjoying themselves so far.

With fabulous food and fine wine aplenty,

they're hoping the guests will dig deep.

Good evening everyone. It's really nice to see

so many of you here this evening. Can't thank you enough.

Let's raise loads of money together.

APPLAUSE

On your table, there's a list of all the items that we're auctioning.

Your first item, jeroboam of fizz.

Say, erm, 20 euros?

Is there 20? 20. Thank you, madam.

40 euros. It's against you, madam.

Is there any advance on 40? Hang on, I'll just check the internet.

No, nothing there. LAUGHTER

40 euros. Colin Welsh.

Thank you very much, Colin. That's very generous of you.

APPLAUSE

It's got off to a great start.

Lee just hopes their Christmas cake can follow suit.

It is quite a special item.

It's decorated in icing by me.

HE CHUCKLES

40 euros. Starting point.

Colin. So, we've got 40 euros there.

Have we got any more in the room?

50 euros. Thank you.

60 euros.

70. 70. Thank you, sir. 70.

Is there any advance on 70 in the room?

Right, 70 euros to the gentleman.

Thank you very much, sir. APPLAUSE

The money is rolling in

and everyone seems to be enjoying themselves.

It's been amazing. We've loved it. We've had lots of laughs.

We've had fun. They're lovely people.

They are the heart of the community, really.

And what they do is just brilliant.

Here's the jumper and the wearer.

Who's going to give me 20? 20.

20 euros. 20 euros. 20 euros!

25.

Belinda's Christmas jumper has also sold well,

but is it enough to reach their 1,500 euros target?

Tonight's amazing result.

You are amazing, all of you.

2,215 euros.

CHEERS AND APPLAUSE

Thank you. Thank you.

Fantastic result.

I never, ever thought we would make that much.

2,215 - wow!

And the generosity and kindness of those that came here tonight

is unbelievable. We couldn't have asked for it better.

It's been a huge triumph for a worthwhile cause

and the perfect way for Belinda and Lee to begin the season of goodwill.

Up in Normandy, in northern France,

it's the day of Chris and Jolyon's natural pool party.

And they've finally managed to lay all 30 tonnes of gravel.

It's sort of felt an endless task.

HE EXHALES Yeah.

But, at least I'll have, like, guns for Christmas.

LAUGHTER

And the good thing is, the gravel's done and it looks incredible now.

With their guests due any minute...

Right.

..Jolyon's on clearing up duty.

While Chris makes the rest of the space sparkle.

I think that's all right. Two swags in the middle of the pool.

Aah, they're lovely.

I love their reflection in the water as well.

It's starting to feel a bit more festive.

With Christmas in the air and time running out...

Superhero.

..it's now a matter of adding those extra special touches.

Lovely.

So I've brought this ribbon,

so we can have, like, an official grand opening ceremony.

Cut the ribbon and the pool's open and the Christmas party can begin.

That's good. That'll create the effect.

We're finished and I'm really, really chuffed. It looks brilliant.

And just in the nick of time,

as their friends Kath and Simon have arrived.

Hi, guys. Welcome.

Hi. Hello!

Two years ago, the garden was nothing more than a giant hole,

which was so bad it was given its own nickname.

Now, they have transformed it

into an inviting natural swimming pool area.

With the rain water filling up nicely

and tonnes of gravel ready for plants,

by the spring the whole garden area will be blossoming

for years to come.

While the addition of a walled terrace,

seating area

and stylish ornaments makes it an extra special

and unique place to celebrate Christmas.

With everyone armed with drinks and nibbles, the ceremony can begin.

Woohoo! CHEERING

Finally! Finally. It's beautiful.

It looks amazing. I declare the pool officially open.

THEY CHEER

With the formalities out of the way...

So, I've got some little Christmas hats to get us in the mood.

..it's party time.

CORK POPS Woohoo!

All right, cheers everyone. Cheers, guys. Happy Christmas.

Thank you so much for having us. Merry Christmas. Merry Christmas.

Come on, let's get in. Let's get in the pool.

Come on. Woo, woo, woo.

LAUGHTER

Ooh, ah.

So nice to go for a dip in December at Christmas.

Oh, God.

Is it really cold? It's very, very cold. Yeah.

It was so good, and Chris and Jolyon are fabulous hosts.

It was really, really good fun.

And who expected it, like, I'd end swimming in the pool?!

The pool is open for business.

It's been hard work. Has been really hard work.

Like, the hardest thing I've ever done, really, to be honest.

But the Pit of Despair... Yeah. ..is no more.

Just get rid. Shall I dispense of it? Yes!

You did it. Well done.

Chris and Jolyon have done an incredible job.

And what better way to celebrate than with a festive bang?

FIREWORKS EXPLODE

THEY CHEER

Oh, wow!

We did it!

Next time...

Are we in the hole, Ash?

..Christmas plans get tree-mendously out of hand...

Watch it go over.

..a gingerbread chateau requires emergency DIY...

Now, I assume this will have a very soggy bottom.

..and can this couple crystalise their first-ever Christmas party

at their chateau?

See if we can do this without breaking anything.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media