Lucas Family Gimme a Break

Do you think your family holidays are the pits?

Are you sick of going on the same old break,

doing exactly what your parents want to do?

Well, it's time YOU took charge.

On Gimme A Break, it's the kids who decide where to go and what to do.

Parents don't get a look in,

especially when it comes to the holiday rules.

Breaking the rules can only lead to one thing - trouble.

Today, I'm in Croydon,

and the lucky family who will be getting a break are...

The Lucases.

Making up this dynamic duo -

nine-year-old Dr Who fanatic Rachel...

and her dad, who's the king of the long lie-in.

Why does Rachel deserve to be given a break?

The reasons I need a break is my dad.

He always lies in and I never get to do many things.

I'm very, very good at sleeping.

Rach tends to want to get up in what I'd say is the middle of the night.

He's always asleep and says,

"Five more minutes," and then I'm, like, "Ooh!"

One of my greatest passions is eating chocolate.

You won't hear many nine-year-olds say this,

but I get a bit sick of chocolate.

'I do have a secret stash

'all around the house that Rachel doesn't know about.'

My dad hates animals.

I'm just scared of animals for some reason.

No reason, I'm just a great big wuss.

Every time he comes across an animal, he's just, like,

"Ahh, help! Get off me!"

Frankly, I'm scared stiff of them.

He hates cold water.

I just don't have the bottle to jump into the pool.

It's like he has a phobia but he's not telling me.

The worst possible holiday would definitely be

one where I have to get up at the crack of dawn

to go somewhere with icy water,

surrounded by loads and loads of animals,

and a long, long way to the nearest shop that sold any chocolate.

I think it's time for ME to be in charge

and ME to do the things that I want to do.

Right, Dad, it seems to me, from what I've heard from Rachel,

you need to stop having so many lie-ins,

-and get up and entertain you, Rachel. Am I right?

-Yes!

-Are you agreeing with me?

-Yes!

-Rachel?

-Yeah.

-Are you ready to take control of your family holiday?

-Yes!

-Are you sure?

-Yes!

-Right, Dad, it's that time that parents dread.

It is the Parents' Promise.

I, the parent of Rachel,

hereby hand over control of the next family break.

-MUSIC: HALLELUJAH!

-Yeah! Here we go, Rach!

You have handed over complete control to Rachel. How do you feel?

I'm a little bit scared. >

-Is it time to go into the parent-free zone?

-Yes!

-Are you sure?

-Yes!

-Let's get out of here! See you later, Dad.

-Bye.

'We were off to Rachel's tree-house

'to find out what's on her holiday wish list.'

I would like to do something to do with reindeers

and seeing lots of animals.

Cos I love animals but my dad hates them

and we never get to do anything with them.

And also something to do with cold water.

How do you think your dad's going to cope?

I think he's not going to like it,

but he's going to learn a lesson

that you have to be quite energetic on holidays and not lie in.

I think I've got a good idea of what you're after,

-so I'll catch you in a little while.

-Bye!

After chatting to Rachel,

I've come up with two fantastic breaks.

But before she makes her choice,

she has to work out what's in store

by solving a series of curious clues.

That means it's time for a costume change.

Well, you did say you like reindeers, Rachel.

Follow the paw prints and crack the clues

for a break that Dad wouldn't consider in his wildest dreams.

Dip your paw-print gloves

and make your way from top left to bottom right,

then from top right to bottom left.

Don't get confused. It could leave you flagging.

Keep going, Rachel.

There's no time to "paws".

Oh, that's like the flag of Scotland a bit, isn't it?

Rachel's seen right through that clue,

-but how will she do the next one for this break?

A chef's hat.

Ah! The clue's hidden under it.

Piece together this activity.

It will give you food for thought.

Hmm. Well...

I don't really get this.

Well, there's a four.

Oh, I don't get it.

Oh dear, Rachel,

it looks like this clue

has gone right over your head.

Time to move on to Break Number 2.

An outfit.

Well, I'll put it on.

Maybe this is meant to be with sheep.

Not "baaad", Rachel.

Haven't you "herd"?

Little Bo Peep has lost her furry friends.

Don't delay, grab your "baaa-sket"

and collect the sheep,

to discover what this break has to offer.

Round up, round up! Move your animals safely,

but it will be the last straw if you use your hands.

'What I needed to do

'was get the balls

'by sucking on the straw into the pen pot.'

Yes, I've got another one in!

I thought it had...

maybe you rounded up all the sheep

into a pen or something.

Well done, Rachel. But will you get stuck with this final clue?

OK. Well, it looks like a B,

so it must be something to do with bees.

And of course, bees make honey.

So I think it's clear to say

that this is a very sticky activity.

It's been a tough task

and it's time to reveal where the breaks will "bee".

So Rachel, do you have any idea what breaks they could be?

I think the first break could be in Scotland.

What made you think that?

There was a piece of blue backing paper

and I had to get some paw-print gloves and make a white cross.

So that's a Scottish flag.

OK, and was there any clues that you struggled with?

I struggled with one which was a cooking one,

when we had to put the pieces together.

So let me explain it to you. We've got the number four.

-And we've got a cage.

-Yes.

-We've got the letter C, crossed out.

How do you say cage without the letter C?

-Age.

-Age.

-Four-age...

-Forage.

-Forage.

-Forage.

So you're going to be foraging for food.

OK, I can reveal to you that the first break that you could pick...

is a survival trip to Scotland -

up in the Highlands.

-Should we have a little look?

-Yeah.

-Should we press the button?

Break Number 1 is a Scottish survival holiday

in the breathtaking Cairngorm National Park.

There will be no chance for lazing around here,

as you'll learn to live in the wild

and make your own shelter to stay in overnight.

You'll be foraging for food

and tracking some amazing animals.

To top it all of, you'll even get a chance to feed reindeer.

So let's talk about the second break.

-What clues did you find?

-Well, there was balls

with little pictures of sheep on it.

So I thought it might be something to do with sheep.

-So, are you ready...

-Yes.

..to see Break Number 2?

-Yeah.

-Yeah?

-Yeah.

-Yeah?

-Yeah.

-Yeah?

-Yeah.

-Yeah?

-Yeah.

Break Number 2 is a farming holiday in Northern Ireland.

-Oh, cool!

-Do you want to have a look at it?

-Yeah.

-Let's go.

Break Number 2

is a fabulous farming holiday in Northern Ireland.

You'll be in the great outdoors,

glamour-camping on a working farm.

You'll try your hand

at herding sheep with a real sheepdog,

you'll get a buzz out of beekeeping,

and you'll even take to the water and try to feed some wild seals.

You've got to decide between the first one and the second one,

and I know, they're both so good.

-Do you want me to stay here with you?

-Yeah.

-Yeah?

-Yeah.

-OK.

So it's Scotland or Ireland, Scotland or Ireland.

I don't know!

Which one do you think you'll have most fun with?

-OK, I'm going to say the Irish one.

-Yeah?

-So you want to go for...

-Yeah.

-..the farming break in Northern Ireland?

-Yeah.

-So when I press this button...it's booked, there's no turning back.

-OK.

-Should we press the button together?

-Yeah.

-Are you sure?

-Yeah.

-..Booked.

-You're going to Ireland.

-Yeah!

So, will Dad be able to get up early

and come face to face with his animal fears

on this farming break in Northern Ireland?

Will it be Rachel or Dad

who's top of the crops when it comes

to winning the final treat?

BOTH: Cheers!

I'll be catching up with you later on,

for your chance to win your final treat.

All you have to do is answer three questions. But...

if you get them wrong, your dad gets the treat.

-We don't want that to happen, do we?

-No.

-Promise?

-Yeah.

-Promise?

-Yeah.

-Promise?

-Yeah.

-All right?

-Yeah.

-Good.

Right, let's get packing.

It's the day before the break, and it's time to get sorted.

Rachel is on the case and has taken control of Dad's holiday wardrobe.

She gets to pick everything he wears for the next five days.

Usually, I do the packing, and to be honest,

I probably do the packing as badly as Rachel has done for me.

These are very big ones.

Such a dull colour.

How does he get in these?

I'd be extremely surprised

if Rachel has made anything neat or tidy

or folded or rolled or anything.

Stuff that in there.

She might try to put one over on me

by only giving me one pair of underpants.

Eugh, gross! I have to stuff these in here.

What she's probably going to have done

is gone to the cupboards and got everything she could

and thrown it into the suitcase and jumped on it to make it all fit in.

# Toast! #

It's the big day and it's time for Rachel to give Dad a wake-up call

and reveal where they're going on their break.

-Wakey-wakey!

-Mmm.

Ooh, what's all this?

There you are.

Oooh!

Ah! Northern Ireland farming break.

-It's going to be good.

-That's good.

Is that going to be loads of sleeps-in?

-No.

-No animals?

'Uh, hello, this is a farming holiday!

'Dad doesn't look too impressed with Rachel's choice of break,

'and his mood hasn't improved on Fam Cam,

'as they travel to the airport.'

We've now been on holiday about seven minutes

and we've started playing the game

that every parent loves to play so much...

I spy with my little eye

-something beginning with...

-Joy!

Thankfully, for Dad,

it doesn't take long before he spots the airport sign.

Then they have a one-and-a-half-hour flight from London to Belfast.

It's a nice countryside.

From there, it's just a short drive towards their farm

in the heart of County Londonderry.

Dad, I forgot to tell you something.

We're not actually staying in the farmhouse.

What do you mean?

Time to check out their five-star canvas crib.

What's Dad going to make of this?

I'm not pushing any more. I want to go in the tent!

Wow!

THEY GASP

It's got a bed!

It's really good, isn't it?

Dad's pleased with where he's sleeping.

But has Rachel packed anything he can actually sleep in?

He's about to find out.

Right.

Coat - good.

Trousers - good.

Rugby socks?!

She brought underwear...

a load of T-shirts.

'And then she did some stupid stuff, like a bow tie.'

-What are you playing at?

-You look like Dr Who when you've got that on.

OK, that's OK.

I've got the clothes I need, I've got a bed to sleep in,

so it's looking better. Let's see how it pans out.

Do you know what, Rach? I think this is OK.

I think that's everything I need.

Well done.

But Dad may be celebrating a little bit too early.

Rachel's about to lay down the law of the holiday rules.

-'Hello, Lucases.'

-Hello.

-Hello, Joe.

-I hope you're enjoying your break so far.

Right, Dad, are you ready to hear the holiday rules that Rachel set?

Suppose so.

Firstly, Dad, Rachel is fed up with you having lazy lie-ins on holiday,

especially when she's raring to go and have fun.

Dad, can you justify this?

Yes, I CAN justify it.

I need to have lots of energy because I look after you so much.

And you get up early, and after about one or two hours of being up,

you're too tired to do anything in the afternoon.

Are you finished, Dad?

Because that won't wash with me on this break, OK?

Rule Number One is, there will be no more lie-ins.

Aah!

Apparently, Dad, you can't go a day without eating chocolate.

Oh, no!

Rachel would even go as far as saying

that you might be a chocoholic.

So, Rule Number Two is

there will be no more eating chocolate on this break.

All right.

Finally, Dad, Rachel tells me you fancy yourself as a bit of a joker.

After embarrassing Rachel in front of her friends one too many times,

I'm afraid Rule Number Three is

-there will be no more daft jokes on this break.

-Ah, that's OK.

No more daft jokes, but I'm allowed to do good jokes.

Be warned, Dad, if these rules are broken, there will be consequences.

A certain someone has told me that you don't like cold water.

So, if you do break any of these rules,

you'll be soaking your feet in ice-cold water for 30 seconds.

Now, that IS an incentive to stick to the rules.

I'll be back later on in your break,

to tell you how you can win the final treat.

Until then, happy camping.

Bye.

Huh!

I think it's so unfair that any parent on holiday

should have to get up at the same time as Rachel.

And then to make me get up early

and not allow me to have any healthy chocolaty snacks

to see me through the day and fuel me,

is just not fair at all.

'It's time for the Lucases to head off for their first activity.'

Forwards!

'That means another decision for Rachel.'

How will they get there?

Will she go for the four-wheel drive on a giant tractor,

or the two-wheel drive on a tandem push-bike?

The decision, Rachel, is yours.

Please, do the tractor. Please, the tractor. Please, the tractor.

'I said the decision, Rachel, is YOURS.'

-Tractor.

-Yeah!

# I've got a brand-new combine harvester

# And I'll give you the key

# Come on now, let's get together

# In perfect harmony... #

How about that?

But now he's out of the safety of the tractor,

it's time for Dad to come face to face

with one of his worst nightmares.

Rach...

Evil killer sheep!

They're scary!

-Stand there.

-OK, then.

But don't panic, Dad. Help is at hand.

Sean the farmer has over 400 sheep

that he and his sheepdog, Rock, have to herd around a 500-acre farm.

He's going to give you a sheep-herding masterclass.

Walk on, Rock. Walk on.

"Walk on," means to come on with them.

Come bye, come bye.

-Come bye.

-Come bye. "Come bye," is to the left.

That seems straightforward enough.

Let's see how the Lucases do.

I mean, how hard can sheep herding really be?

Come bye!

-Please!

-Walk on. Come bye!

-Walk on.

-Stay. Walk on.

-Away!

Oh dear. They're making a right dog's dinner of this.

The dogs didn't listen to Rachel that much.

So I'd give Rachel maybe a four out of ten.

I think I was probably nine and a half, or ten out of ten.

Rock, walk on!

Oh, yes. Oh, yes.

Rock, sit!

Yes.

Once the flock are rounded up, it's back to the farm,

where Dad has to try to conquer his fears

and give the sheep a taste of their own medicine.

Another one in.

I'm like Ghostbusters.

The medicine protects the sheep against worms

and it's vital to keep them healthy.

-No gloves?

-No gloves.

Don't be scared, Dad.

Their "baa" is worse than their bite.

Am I allowed some chocolate tonight for doing this?

Have you conquered your fear of animals?

No, I am scared stiff at this moment, Rachel.

This experience, I think, has proven

that I was completely right not to be a lover of animals.

What's that runny thing that's just gone down my leg?

And I don't want to go near a farm ever again.

After his heroics in the farm,

Dad has worked up quite a thirst.

Rachel has a surprise in store which should be much more to his taste.

-So what's this all about?

-Well, you'll need this bow tie.

-Ooh!

Very nice. I'd wondered why you'd packed that.

Right. Tonight, we're going to have a banquet.

-But I'm going to decide what you and me eat.

-Oh?

-Better be nice. Cheers.

-Cheers.

-Oh, thank you very much.

-Excuse me.

How dare you try to get it.

I'm in charge and I choose.

Thank you very much.

Turkey breast dippers.

-No way.

-Posh fish and chips.

-Definitely not.

-Irish lamb rump.

I'd really want that.

-Make your own pizza.

-No, thank you.

You can have the Irish lamb rump.

She picked some fantastic food for me and she's lovely and I love her.

-Bon appetit.

-Bon appetit.

Dad is clearly pleased with the meal so far.

But when it comes to dessert,

will Rachel let him have his cake and eat it?

There's your cheesecake.

We've added strawberries.

And the trio.

Thank you very, very much.

-I'll swap it for some strawberry cheese...

-No!

Anyway, Rachel,

thank you for a fantastic meal.

It's OK, I'm just being nice for you for today...

-Cheers.

-..but beware of tomorrow.

COCK-A-DOODLE-DOO!

It's the morning of the second day,

and Dad's trying hard to play by the rules.

He's made a nice early start,

but where's Rachel?

I think that Rachel has to suffer some consequences

because I've been up and about for two hours,

and come and have a look at this...

Rachel...

SNORING

Good morning.

When Rachel finally surfaces, it's off to the fields,

where Dad has to grab the bull by the horns and help with another job.

Feeding the cows.

Ooh! I touched a cow, I touched a cow! And I'm still alive.

Dad deserves a pat on the back for facing up to another farming fear.

But now it's time to "moooove" on to the first activity of the day.

So what's this all about, Rach?

Today, you're going to try and conquer your fear of cold water.

Welcome to the Lucas Family Canoeing Olympics

here in County Derry in Northern Ireland.

Challenge Number One - making a canoe go round in a circle.

Tricky one, this. It requires teamwork and paddles.

They've managed a perfect circle there.

But there's a bit of splashing from Dad. OK, onto Challenge Number Two.

It's the dangerous under-the-bridge test,

feared by canoeists all over the world, for obvious reasons.

It's not pretty but they're getting the job done. That's a good result.

Challenge Number Three - the boat balance bonanza.

Rachel's up first. She's made this look easy.

Now, how about Dad? Will he put his feet on the edge?

No, he's fouled, and he's going to have to do the head-dunk forfeit.

Oh, well done, Dad.

So now, it's the finale - wearing the canoe as a hat.

Look at that. They are completely submerged.

That's a fantastic result.

And that's it for the Lucas Family Canoeing Olympics,

here in Northern Ireland.

And after all the action,

it's time for something a little more relaxing.

Nice to meet you. You're Rachel, you're our star.

There we are.

They're in the capable hands of Brian, a local skipper,

who's been sailing these waters around Bangor Harbour for years.

He's got a real treat lined up, but Dad's all at sea

and doesn't know what's going on.

Help him out, Rachel.

We're going to be looking for some seals and maybe feeding them.

-What do seals eat?

-Fish.

Oh, we don't have to pick up little fishes

-and give the fishes to the seals, do we?

-I don't know... Yes.

-I don't want to pick up fishes!

-Yes, yes, yes!

-No!

Bye-bye.

It's not long before the first seal is revealed.

Ah! Wow!

This is Sarah.

-Come on, Sarah.

-Wow.

-Wow.

-Do you want to feed her, Rachel?

OK, then, I'll try.

Hold it over the side. Sarah!

Come on, Sarah.

Wow. Aw, she's so cute.

Dad, do you want to...?

Pretty soon she'll be full up, won't she?

Oh, no, Sarah can eat maybe.. 100 fish in a day.

-I'm touching a fish!

-Oh, you've eaten fish before.

It's not that much of a big deal.

There's two different types of seal.

-Sarah is a grey seal.

-OK.

And Rose, coming in now, is a common seal.

Come on, Rose, don't rush.

Common seals are much smaller than grey seals

and they prefer to stay in shallow waters near the shore,

which is why they're also known as harbour seals.

Oh, she just belted it from the top.

Brian was saying that these harbour seals

are actually evil killer seals.

'So it's hard for me to get so close to their evil fanged mouths.'

I rate this activity... 15 out of 10.

It was really good.

It's the last full day

of the Lucases' farming break in Northern Ireland,

and what better way to start, than with a hearty breakfast.

Very good.

It's been quite good, this holiday.

But this is the best bit.

Don't speak too soon, Dad,

because what's coming up next

is truly out of this world.

You need to wear protective suits

before you get a "buzz" out of this activity.

Beekeeping.

Now that they're suited and booted,

they're off to see if they can spot the A-list celeb of the bee world -

the queen bee.

I'm really excited to go in the bees,

but also a bit nervous

because I'm worried that they might get inside my suit.

Showing them the ropes, is beekeeper Hugh.

-Wow.

-Wow. Look at that.

Ooh, "bee" careful, Rachel.

-Wow, listen to the noise off this one.

-There's millions.

It's a hive of activity, but will they find the queen?

Oh, there she is.

You're now in the presence of royalty,

so you've got to bow to the queen.

-Will you give her a bow also?

-Of course.

We'll both give her a bow at the same time.

Right, Rachel, take a honeycomb. Can you lift off that lid?

Just lift up the lid. We'll stick one in here.

You see the honey, there? There you go.

Would you like to taste it?

Yeah. Bzzz.

-Mmm.

-Put that in the extractor and let's extract some honey.

Go on, Rach. Time you did some work on the holiday!

Keep it going. It's running out onto the sides.

Keep going. That's enough now, I think.

-There you go.

-Wow!

-Wow.

Liquid gold.

-What does it taste like?

-It's yummy.

-Is it?

-This doesn't count as chocolate, does it?

-No.

-Mmm.

Delicious.

It's the end of the Lucases' farming adventure

and almost time for them to return home.

But first, there's the small matter

of deciding who will win the final treat -

and experience the thrill of a hovercraft ride.

Will it be Dad or will it be Rachel?

Hello, Rachel. This is one cool treat, so good luck.

I'm going to ask you three questions about your break.

If you get two right, you win the treat

and get to go mad on the hovercraft.

If not, Dad will be whizzing around until his heart's content.

Question Number One,

which farming activity does Dad never, ever want to repeat?

Is it, A - dosing the lambs,

or, B - feeding the cows?

He really didn't like the lambs,

but he didn't like the cows because they were so big.

I'm going to say...

A - dosing the lambs.

OK, let's see if you're right.

The farming activity I will never do again in my life, is lamb-dosing.

Yes! Yes! Yes!

Well done, Rachel.

If you get the next question right,

you get to ride in the hovercraft.

Are you ready?

Aah!

Question Number Two,

which animal did Dad like the most?

Was it, A - Rock the sheepdog,

or was it, B - Rose the seal?

Ah, this is a hard one.

He really liked Rose the seal, but he liked Rock the sheepdog as well.

-So what are you going to go for?

-Rose the seal.

The animal I liked best was Rose the seal.

-That's the right answer!

-Yes! Yeah, yeah.

Unlucky, Dad.

Now, Rachel, you can go off and join your instructor, Jamie,

and have a fantastic time.

I think my dad has enjoyed it,

although he nearly got eaten by killer sheep.

We've had a good time.

We've had a laugh and we've done a load of fun stuff.

Every single activity's been great.

It's just been so good.