0:00:26 > 0:00:28This is Wales.
0:00:28 > 0:00:30My country.
0:00:30 > 0:00:33I suppose you'd be forgiven for not guessing that,
0:00:33 > 0:00:36because I am a bit of a bogus Welshman.
0:00:36 > 0:00:39I was born in Cardiff and my family moved away
0:00:39 > 0:00:43for some unaccountable reason when I was six months old.
0:00:43 > 0:00:49But my mother, Gwyneth, and my father, Elwyn,
0:00:49 > 0:00:55called me Griffith Rhys Jones so I'd never forget my Welsh roots.
0:00:55 > 0:00:57And I never have.
0:01:02 > 0:01:06I was raised in Essex as one of the Epping Welsh.
0:01:06 > 0:01:08It's only recently that I've returned to Wales
0:01:08 > 0:01:12and realised exactly what I've been missing
0:01:12 > 0:01:16particularly amid the rugged beauty of north Pembrokeshire.
0:01:19 > 0:01:22A few miles up the coast there
0:01:22 > 0:01:26is a little fishing village called Llangrannog.
0:01:26 > 0:01:28All I really know about my roots
0:01:28 > 0:01:32is that my grandfather had a house there at some time.
0:01:32 > 0:01:35Before that they were farming stock from North Wales.
0:01:35 > 0:01:39This is as good a place as any to try and set down my roots,
0:01:39 > 0:01:42to rediscover where I come from.
0:01:42 > 0:01:44I'm standing on a granite outcrop
0:01:44 > 0:01:47surrounded by a fringe of bracken and heather.
0:01:47 > 0:01:49What's absolutely extraordinary from up here
0:01:49 > 0:01:53is the view, the vista that's spread out.
0:01:53 > 0:01:57With these little grey farmsteads
0:01:57 > 0:02:02dotted in what is almost an alarming green.
0:02:04 > 0:02:07It's one of those farms that's brought me here.
0:02:07 > 0:02:09It's called Trehilyn.
0:02:09 > 0:02:11It stands on 70 acres of farmland
0:02:11 > 0:02:15and I've bought it as a going concern - a working farm.
0:02:15 > 0:02:18Now, I'm actually not a farmer,
0:02:18 > 0:02:22but it wasn't the land that interested me first of all.
0:02:26 > 0:02:30All over Wales, farm buildings like these have been disappearing
0:02:30 > 0:02:32at an alarming rate.
0:02:32 > 0:02:36The problem is they're too small for modern farming methods
0:02:36 > 0:02:38and they don't meet EC regulations.
0:02:38 > 0:02:42They don't get anywhere near the same level of protection
0:02:42 > 0:02:45as country houses or castles,
0:02:45 > 0:02:49but I think they're just as important to our Welsh landscape
0:02:49 > 0:02:51and our heritage.
0:02:51 > 0:02:53I want to have a go
0:02:53 > 0:02:57at putting these buildings to new use, restoring them.
0:02:58 > 0:03:01And the really big question is
0:03:01 > 0:03:04what should they look like and how do you do that?
0:03:06 > 0:03:09Trehilyn is a typical small Pembrokeshire farm.
0:03:09 > 0:03:12The main house was built about 1840,
0:03:12 > 0:03:14but I think it's been extended over the years.
0:03:14 > 0:03:19The courtyard looks to me as if it was built at the same time,
0:03:19 > 0:03:23although here too there are modern additions.
0:03:24 > 0:03:29It was a mixed farm, sheep and cows, horses and chickens were kept,
0:03:29 > 0:03:31and potatoes and corn were grown.
0:03:31 > 0:03:35And there was a building for all of them.
0:03:35 > 0:03:38Isn't that fantastic? This is great.
0:03:38 > 0:03:40When you come from London,
0:03:40 > 0:03:44and life is a series of living in pokey little houses,
0:03:44 > 0:03:47what can be better than discovering
0:03:47 > 0:03:52you've got extra little sheds and rooms tagged on at the end.
0:03:53 > 0:03:55Marvellous.
0:03:57 > 0:04:00Down the lane there are two more buildings -
0:04:00 > 0:04:05a cattle shed and a building used as a barn, but originally a mill.
0:04:05 > 0:04:08At one time, all the farms around here had their own mill.
0:04:08 > 0:04:11They wanted to be as self-sufficient as possible.
0:04:11 > 0:04:16The mill was used for grinding corn to feed the cows and also the horses
0:04:16 > 0:04:19which worked the land until the mid 20th Century
0:04:19 > 0:04:21when machinery first came in.
0:04:21 > 0:04:26So I've started fantasising about getting this place working again,
0:04:26 > 0:04:29maybe to generate electricity.
0:04:32 > 0:04:34Lastly, about half a mile away
0:04:34 > 0:04:39is this ruined cottage, which is much older than the other buildings,
0:04:39 > 0:04:42and stands as a sort of symbol
0:04:42 > 0:04:47for what could happen to the rest of the place if left to nature.
0:04:48 > 0:04:51I want to restore the main house to live in it.
0:04:51 > 0:04:54I feel responsible to the other structures.
0:04:54 > 0:04:57They will have to earn their keep, but how?
0:04:57 > 0:05:01Pembrokeshire is littered with derelict outbuildings like these.
0:05:01 > 0:05:04I've come to another farm just down the road
0:05:04 > 0:05:08to meet someone who's going to give me some expert help.
0:05:08 > 0:05:12There is a huge problem in Wales. People, developers are buying farms.
0:05:12 > 0:05:15They're splitting them up into units,
0:05:15 > 0:05:18the cowshed, the hay barn, the stables, the mill maybe.
0:05:18 > 0:05:21All being sold for £150,000 a piece.
0:05:21 > 0:05:23Someone is making £500,000 profit.
0:05:23 > 0:05:26We're ending up with miniature villages.
0:05:26 > 0:05:29You get to a point with an outbuilding where you can say
0:05:29 > 0:05:32you can't convert this into a house.
0:05:32 > 0:05:37You can convert it into something else which might be useful.
0:05:37 > 0:05:39What can you convert it into?
0:05:39 > 0:05:41Some kind of business use.
0:05:41 > 0:05:44Is that to retain the space?
0:05:44 > 0:05:47To retain the space, where the doors are.
0:05:47 > 0:05:51If you've got a wall without any windows and you put in windows,
0:05:51 > 0:05:55you might as well knock it down and build your bungalow.
0:05:55 > 0:05:59You're doing fundamentally the same thing. What are we going to do?
0:05:59 > 0:06:03You could have a string of holiday cottages on the courtyard,
0:06:03 > 0:06:06which is what every other person does around here.
0:06:06 > 0:06:09That was on the back of my mind, I must admit.
0:06:09 > 0:06:13If it was one or two people, I wouldn't be so touchy about it.
0:06:13 > 0:06:16We need to look at the use of those.
0:06:16 > 0:06:21Hmm. This might not be as straightforward as I thought.
0:06:21 > 0:06:24Trehilyn is also listed and inside the National Park area.
0:06:24 > 0:06:28Permits, paperwork, permissions.
0:06:28 > 0:06:32I've turned to local conservation architect, Martin Davies
0:06:32 > 0:06:36who has plenty of experience of dealing with these things.
0:06:36 > 0:06:41What we're talking about here is specialist sort of work.
0:06:41 > 0:06:45It's building restoration work. It's not building bungalows,
0:06:45 > 0:06:49or even bog standard extending a building,
0:06:49 > 0:06:51or doing a place up and gutting it.
0:06:51 > 0:06:56This is much more sensitive restoration type work that's wanted.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59Some architects like doing it, some don't.
0:06:59 > 0:07:02Some will do it, but maybe aren't used to doing it.
0:07:02 > 0:07:08If you get the wrong architect, you might end up doing more damage.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12Yes. But will you do it, Martin?
0:07:12 > 0:07:14Luckily, the answer is yes.
0:07:14 > 0:07:18I've discovered that coming up with a new use for the outbuildings
0:07:18 > 0:07:20needs a lot of consideration,
0:07:20 > 0:07:24so perhaps I'd better concentrate first on the main house.
0:07:26 > 0:07:29I'm not going to live at Trehilyn, at least not full time.
0:07:29 > 0:07:33I want to use it as rented accommodation of some kind,
0:07:33 > 0:07:38although I should be slightly nervous about the ethics of this.
0:07:41 > 0:07:45I'd rather see a building having a use than falling down.
0:07:45 > 0:07:49When people come to Pembrokeshire and buy second homes
0:07:49 > 0:07:51and leaving them empty most of the year,
0:07:51 > 0:07:54that makes me sick, quite angry.
0:07:54 > 0:07:57You can have a holiday let business where you keep it full
0:07:57 > 0:08:01every single night of the year if you can.
0:08:01 > 0:08:03Maybe a week off for maintenance.
0:08:03 > 0:08:07That way you bring people into an area, they spend money all year.
0:08:07 > 0:08:10If you have a holiday business which employs local people
0:08:10 > 0:08:12and is full all year,
0:08:12 > 0:08:16you're making a contribution to the economy. That's acceptable.
0:08:16 > 0:08:20Good! Above all, I want to do a conscientious,
0:08:20 > 0:08:25historically correct restoration for historical reasons of my own.
0:08:26 > 0:08:28I need a damn good builder.
0:08:28 > 0:08:31Martin has brought in Gill Wickenden.
0:08:31 > 0:08:33Once we know how much we're going to re-do,
0:08:33 > 0:08:36we'll get these people to bring the stuff in.
0:08:36 > 0:08:41We would look at this farmhouse from a conservation point of view,
0:08:41 > 0:08:44wanting to conserve every element that we can.
0:08:44 > 0:08:48Looking at the technologies that were used in the building of it,
0:08:48 > 0:08:53in the stone, lime etc, and working with those materials.
0:08:53 > 0:08:56Using the same materials again.
0:08:58 > 0:09:00Martin is already drawing up plans,
0:09:00 > 0:09:03so perhaps I ought to have a bit of a look around.
0:09:06 > 0:09:12So, Greg, can we call this a classic Pembrokeshire farmhouse?
0:09:12 > 0:09:15Absolutely. Late 18th Century, early 19th Century.
0:09:15 > 0:09:18There were hundreds built like this.
0:09:18 > 0:09:22They'd have been built by unqualified people, no architects,
0:09:22 > 0:09:25they do follow the same pattern time after time.
0:09:25 > 0:09:28This is a substantial building today.
0:09:28 > 0:09:31It's a vernacular building, built by the people.
0:09:31 > 0:09:34This is a large farm. There would have been money here.
0:09:34 > 0:09:37Let's go and have a look. Come on.
0:09:39 > 0:09:40Come on!
0:09:45 > 0:09:47The house is split into three sections
0:09:47 > 0:09:51suggesting it might have been extended at least twice.
0:09:51 > 0:09:54The front door opens straight onto the main living room
0:09:54 > 0:09:58which has a large bricked up fireplace in one corner.
0:09:58 > 0:10:02This was the heart of the house, the Cegin Fawr, or great kitchen.
0:10:03 > 0:10:07You can see that wonderful beam, the simne fawr, great chimney.
0:10:07 > 0:10:11If you imagine a fire roaring away in there,
0:10:11 > 0:10:15you've got a settle here, another one there, maybe for that side.
0:10:15 > 0:10:19A partition here. It's a huge house this one.
0:10:19 > 0:10:21You've got a really warm heart.
0:10:21 > 0:10:24This is a lump of concrete that's been stuck in.
0:10:24 > 0:10:28It's probably a breeze block. It appears to have been put up in 1983.
0:10:28 > 0:10:31I can't wait to knock that out.
0:10:31 > 0:10:35But there are traces down here of paint. It was painted at one point.
0:10:35 > 0:10:38This room would have been that red colour.
0:10:38 > 0:10:42We wouldn't have had a nice 80s aluminum glass door either.
0:10:42 > 0:10:46No light coming from that direction and that deep red colour.
0:10:46 > 0:10:48This was a very dark space.
0:10:48 > 0:10:52They were showing off that they could buy the pigment.
0:10:52 > 0:10:54A lot of people were in and out of here.
0:10:54 > 0:10:58What my father used to say was they'd got a nice fug up in here.
0:10:58 > 0:11:03I don't where it came from, but he was very keen on getting a fug up.
0:11:03 > 0:11:05Let's go on through here.
0:11:06 > 0:11:10Next to the Cegin Fawr is a single-storey shed
0:11:10 > 0:11:13which is definitely a later addition.
0:11:13 > 0:11:14This goes through here.
0:11:16 > 0:11:18And this is the storage room, is it?
0:11:18 > 0:11:20They used what they had to hand.
0:11:20 > 0:11:23Telegraph poles being used for purlins.
0:11:23 > 0:11:26One of them up there has even got the old warning sign.
0:11:26 > 0:11:33I love walls like this. It's been cobbled together again. Cemented in.
0:11:33 > 0:11:35The real stuff, they should use this stuff,
0:11:35 > 0:11:38which is the original lime.
0:11:38 > 0:11:40Yeah, if we have a look at this.
0:11:40 > 0:11:43- This is a...this is a... - Ah!
0:11:43 > 0:11:45This is a soily mortar here.
0:11:45 > 0:11:49There will be some lime in it, but it's not a very strong mix.
0:11:49 > 0:11:52Just there, we've got some more cement.
0:11:52 > 0:11:54That to me, speaking as a layman,
0:11:54 > 0:11:57I'd have said that was stronger for holding the wall up.
0:11:57 > 0:11:59It's hard, that is, it's hard.
0:11:59 > 0:12:04As soon as you start adding cement to it, which is too hard,
0:12:04 > 0:12:06either it's going to cause damage to the stone,
0:12:06 > 0:12:10or it's going to crack the cement.
0:12:10 > 0:12:12Once it cracks, water will get behind it
0:12:12 > 0:12:18and you start getting problems with damp and deterioration of the stone.
0:12:21 > 0:12:24I might have to make a few tiny alterations to the layout.
0:12:24 > 0:12:28The only bathroom is in a cold unwelcoming corner.
0:12:28 > 0:12:33To get to it, you have to negotiate the Cegin Fawr and the kitchen.
0:12:33 > 0:12:36The other rooms on the ground floor lie in wait
0:12:36 > 0:12:38like overdecorated bandits.
0:12:38 > 0:12:40Ooh!
0:12:42 > 0:12:46You definitely need sunglasses in here.
0:12:46 > 0:12:49This is gorgeous, isn't it? It's fantastic.
0:12:49 > 0:12:52The combination of colours. It's like Van Gogh.
0:12:52 > 0:12:55We look up though, and we've got hooks
0:12:55 > 0:12:57in the ceiling. Mysterious those.
0:12:57 > 0:13:01That seems to imply there were hands hanging in here.
0:13:01 > 0:13:05It suggests it was a kitchen. This house has had different periods.
0:13:05 > 0:13:09We can see it's had periods of neglect and of great wealth.
0:13:11 > 0:13:14Across the hallway is the posh front parlour.
0:13:14 > 0:13:16Not so posh these days.
0:13:18 > 0:13:22Now what have we got? We've got damp problems, big damp problems.
0:13:22 > 0:13:26A major problem in this chimney. There's damp along here.
0:13:27 > 0:13:29You've got a bigger problem over here.
0:13:29 > 0:13:32It's subsidence of some description.
0:13:32 > 0:13:34Another bit of old patching here.
0:13:34 > 0:13:37Yeah, and our joist is rotting out in the wall.
0:13:37 > 0:13:40I suspect... Do you think the lintel has gone?
0:13:40 > 0:13:43Prop that up. It could collapse.
0:13:43 > 0:13:47I'm always being told you don't have damp problems in an old house.
0:13:47 > 0:13:50- Some of the damp... - Don't put a damp course in.
0:13:50 > 0:13:53- This is not rising damp. - This is falling damp.
0:13:53 > 0:13:58Most of the damp that is in the base of the wall got there by gravity.
0:13:58 > 0:14:01So this is to do with the wall collapsing a bit,
0:14:01 > 0:14:04holes appearing between the roof and the wall.
0:14:04 > 0:14:06The moisture gets in and falls down.
0:14:06 > 0:14:11If there's been any kind of cement or coating put on the house,
0:14:11 > 0:14:15- the water can't escape again. - This wall is in bad nick.
0:14:15 > 0:14:16The house is in bad nick.
0:14:17 > 0:14:22Yes, yes, Griff. Grandmother, eggs and sucking come to mind.
0:14:22 > 0:14:25And in the room next door, falling, rising,
0:14:25 > 0:14:29damp is advancing in battle formation.
0:14:29 > 0:14:33Yes. Oh, that's pretty horrible, isn't it?
0:14:33 > 0:14:35What's happened here then?
0:14:35 > 0:14:41You've got a concrete yard that's higher than the ground level here.
0:14:41 > 0:14:44That could be throwing any amount of water into this room.
0:14:44 > 0:14:48There's so much water, it's sitting on the corridor.
0:14:48 > 0:14:53That suggests to me there may be a spring, or well under this floor.
0:14:53 > 0:14:55Still you tell me we don't need a damp course.
0:14:55 > 0:14:57Absolutely. No damp course.
0:14:57 > 0:15:00We'll have to get rid of the water sources.
0:15:00 > 0:15:03If not, we just grow mushrooms.
0:15:03 > 0:15:08For a humble Welsh farmhouse, the staircase is nicely ostentatious,
0:15:08 > 0:15:11probably put in when the farm was on the up.
0:15:11 > 0:15:14Going up is not an easy option these days.
0:15:15 > 0:15:20The house has three bedrooms and a loft above the Cegin Fawr.
0:15:20 > 0:15:23But, ah, hold on, there's no bathroom.
0:15:23 > 0:15:30Ok, the house has two bedrooms and a loft above the Cegin Fawr.
0:15:37 > 0:15:39- Excuse me. - Feel free.
0:15:39 > 0:15:44That's a completely different timber there. That's an earlier timber.
0:15:44 > 0:15:49Having this timber here, not matching any of the others
0:15:49 > 0:15:52does suggest that this building was partially standing.
0:15:52 > 0:15:55A part of it got knocked down and rebuilt.
0:15:55 > 0:16:00Every room in the house is in need of a complete and utter restoration.
0:16:00 > 0:16:04It's going to be a big job and there's no rule book about doing it.
0:16:04 > 0:16:07We'll just have to make it up as we go along.
0:16:07 > 0:16:10I suppose what I'm looking for is a way
0:16:10 > 0:16:15to help everybody who might be restoring a house
0:16:15 > 0:16:17to make value judgements.
0:16:18 > 0:16:21These judgements have to be made all the time.
0:16:21 > 0:16:24How do you fit a modern lifestyle
0:16:24 > 0:16:29into a building where you can't start wearing full-bottom wigs
0:16:29 > 0:16:32and...and shoes with buckles on
0:16:32 > 0:16:37in order to try and pretend to be an 18th Century farmer living there.
0:16:37 > 0:16:39You've got to live in the house.
0:16:39 > 0:16:43It's got to have central heating, and a nice warm bath.
0:16:43 > 0:16:48And yet, at the same time, you begin to feel a responsibility
0:16:48 > 0:16:51to the building itself and the people who use it.
0:16:53 > 0:16:56Now, don't faint. I've rustled up a budget of £200,000.
0:16:56 > 0:16:59I hope it'll be enough for the whole job.
0:16:59 > 0:17:01Our main enemy is water,
0:17:01 > 0:17:04so the simplest thing to start with is the roof.
0:17:05 > 0:17:07Did I say simple?
0:17:08 > 0:17:10Naturally, this is no ordinary roof.
0:17:10 > 0:17:13It's a Pembrokeshire grouted roof.
0:17:13 > 0:17:15Originally, it was made of slates
0:17:15 > 0:17:19which were hung on wooden laths using individual oak pegs.
0:17:19 > 0:17:22The slate was locally quarried and was poor quality.
0:17:22 > 0:17:24So when it began to deteriorate,
0:17:24 > 0:17:27it was covered over with a layer of lime render.
0:17:27 > 0:17:31Over the years, further layers of render were added.
0:17:31 > 0:17:35There are very few original roofs like this remaining.
0:17:35 > 0:17:36But can it be saved?
0:17:39 > 0:17:41OK, here is the actual stuff.
0:17:41 > 0:17:45- Here is the laminated slate. - That means, you see,
0:17:45 > 0:17:47it's all falling to pieces.
0:17:47 > 0:17:49We need to do more inspection.
0:17:49 > 0:17:53We need to find out what we can do to save this.
0:17:53 > 0:17:57Structural engineers would condemn this roof within five minutes.
0:17:57 > 0:18:00- What do you think? - It's possible to conserve.
0:18:00 > 0:18:05You'd never guarantee there wouldn't continue to be
0:18:05 > 0:18:09a deterioration of the laths. It would need continuous maintenance.
0:18:09 > 0:18:12What makes this house special is its roof.
0:18:12 > 0:18:16This is a grouted roof with 170 years of additions and movement.
0:18:16 > 0:18:21If we do recreate it, that's what we're doing, recreating it.
0:18:21 > 0:18:25If we can conserve it for less money than replacing it,
0:18:25 > 0:18:29we may have to come back in ten years and do it again,
0:18:29 > 0:18:32but we've stretched its life for another ten years.
0:18:32 > 0:18:35Will it be expensive to repair this roof?
0:18:35 > 0:18:37If you want to do it in peg slates, yeah.
0:18:37 > 0:18:40- Mighty expensive. - Roughly?
0:18:40 > 0:18:42Um, I'm thinking of one,
0:18:42 > 0:18:46I'm thinking of one 30,000 quid. Yeah.
0:18:46 > 0:18:48One, one what? One roof?
0:18:48 > 0:18:52Yes, one similar sized to this, it's not far from here.
0:18:52 > 0:18:54It was something like £30,000.
0:18:54 > 0:18:59Blimey! That's going to blow a bit of a hole in my budget.
0:18:59 > 0:19:02Your recommendation here, Martin, would be
0:19:02 > 0:19:05that we take the lot off and rebuild the same thing again?
0:19:05 > 0:19:09Yes, that's what building restoration is.
0:19:09 > 0:19:12My interest in the project, if we lose this roof,
0:19:12 > 0:19:14to me personally, diminishes.
0:19:14 > 0:19:18- He's threatening to leave. - We'll lose our chief advisor.
0:19:18 > 0:19:22That's it! If you take the roof off, I'm having no more to do with it.
0:19:22 > 0:19:28Argh! It's terrible. We can't make up our mind what we're gonna do.
0:19:30 > 0:19:34I'll leave the decision on whether to repair or replace to the experts.
0:19:34 > 0:19:36That's what they're there for.
0:19:36 > 0:19:40In my new role as lord of the manor, I have other pressing concerns.
0:19:40 > 0:19:45I haven't bought a few buildings, I've bought an entire farm.
0:19:51 > 0:19:54These are hard times for farmers though.
0:19:54 > 0:20:00The previous owners found it difficult to make a living here
0:20:00 > 0:20:02which is why they sold up and moved out.
0:20:02 > 0:20:06If they couldn't make a go of it, I'm sure I can't.
0:20:06 > 0:20:09So I'm renting my 70 acres to Peter George
0:20:09 > 0:20:11who keeps sheep and cattle.
0:20:11 > 0:20:15As well as owning his own farm, Peter rents land from landowners.
0:20:18 > 0:20:22Most of the farms here are owned and farmed by families
0:20:22 > 0:20:26that have been on the peninsula for centuries.
0:20:26 > 0:20:28Oh, yes. Many years ago,
0:20:28 > 0:20:31the farms weren't actually owned by the farmers.
0:20:31 > 0:20:34It all belonged to large estates.
0:20:34 > 0:20:37People tended to...
0:20:37 > 0:20:40..farm for a few years and move to another farm.
0:20:40 > 0:20:43Like in a way of bettering themselves, I would say.
0:20:43 > 0:20:48And your great uncles once owned this farm?
0:20:48 > 0:20:50Yes, that's right.
0:20:50 > 0:20:54They came here in the early 20s.
0:20:54 > 0:20:59- Right.- And farmed here then until they died here in the early 60s.
0:20:59 > 0:21:03How many acres do you farm at the moment?
0:21:04 > 0:21:07In the region of about 350 acres.
0:21:07 > 0:21:12That's sort of like a reasonable size for you to manage, is it?
0:21:12 > 0:21:14Um, yes, it is at the moment.
0:21:15 > 0:21:21But the average size of a farm about 20 years ago
0:21:21 > 0:21:23tended to be a little bit smaller.
0:21:23 > 0:21:26My farm, my main farm where I was brought up,
0:21:26 > 0:21:31the workable land acreage was about 117.
0:21:31 > 0:21:34That was big enough for my father to pay his mortgage
0:21:34 > 0:21:36and give us a good upbringing.
0:21:39 > 0:21:41With increasing competition and expenses,
0:21:41 > 0:21:46it makes sense for farms to be put together to form bigger units.
0:21:46 > 0:21:49Just because I'm renting out my land,
0:21:49 > 0:21:52it doesn't mean I don't feel responsible for it.
0:21:54 > 0:21:56# Oh, give me land
0:21:56 > 0:21:58# Lots of land
0:21:58 > 0:22:01# Under starry skies above
0:22:01 > 0:22:05# Don't fence me in...#
0:22:05 > 0:22:07Land.
0:22:07 > 0:22:11It's spectacular. Of course, I'm not really going to farm it,
0:22:11 > 0:22:14I'm a toy farmer - the Marie Antoinette of this operation.
0:22:14 > 0:22:18I should get myself a porcelain shepherd's crook
0:22:18 > 0:22:21with a little silvery blue silk bow on it.
0:22:21 > 0:22:25I'll leave the actual looking after of the sheep to Peter George.
0:22:25 > 0:22:29But of course, this is a real farm.
0:22:29 > 0:22:31I can't help noticing that there's...
0:22:33 > 0:22:37..there's quite a lot of stuff lying around.
0:22:39 > 0:22:44In fact, there's junk all over the shop. It makes me nervous.
0:22:44 > 0:22:47Someone could impale themselves on an old plough,
0:22:47 > 0:22:50or get stuck in one of these fridges.
0:22:50 > 0:22:52I need a little help to clear the rubbish,
0:22:52 > 0:22:56hack down the undergrowth, and generally tidy the place up.
0:22:56 > 0:22:59I'll hire a man and a lorry for a few days.
0:23:01 > 0:23:04What have we got on the site then that we have to get rid of?
0:23:04 > 0:23:06We do have a lot of metals,
0:23:06 > 0:23:09all of which can be recycled,
0:23:09 > 0:23:11and various plastics.
0:23:11 > 0:23:14There is a small amount of domestic waste.
0:23:14 > 0:23:18A lot of it has been put here through resourcefulness.
0:23:18 > 0:23:21- Farmers never throw anything away, do they?- Very often not.
0:23:21 > 0:23:25They think they can find a use for it later on.
0:23:25 > 0:23:29There is a corner you can hide it in, or a mat you can brush it under.
0:23:29 > 0:23:33How many weeks work will it take to get all this done?
0:23:33 > 0:23:37I think we might be looking at more than weeks. It might be months.
0:23:39 > 0:23:41That's fantastic. Thank you.
0:23:41 > 0:23:43OK, so months. Alright, yes.
0:23:43 > 0:23:45What the hell, you get going.
0:23:45 > 0:23:49Come and tell me how you're getting on in a little bit. Thank you.
0:23:49 > 0:23:52- Thank you. - See you around.
0:23:52 > 0:23:55For months, I'll see you around.
0:23:56 > 0:24:00Martin and Gill are inspecting the internal roof structure.
0:24:00 > 0:24:02I hope they come down with good news.
0:24:02 > 0:24:05So what do you think, Gill?
0:24:05 > 0:24:08We've got some serious damage to the A frames there.
0:24:08 > 0:24:10Complete split.
0:24:10 > 0:24:15It looks like it's got woodworm. It's a huge load on the roof
0:24:15 > 0:24:18to peg slates on it. Still, for it to snap like that, amazing.
0:24:18 > 0:24:23Usually, they bend, or they push out. That one's gone. See?
0:24:24 > 0:24:27They may be possible to repair in situ,
0:24:27 > 0:24:31but because the wood is so badly damaged, possibly with worm
0:24:31 > 0:24:36and other damp, there's not that much to fix to with a repair.
0:24:39 > 0:24:41Well, it's nice and clean up here
0:24:41 > 0:24:44so we can get a good idea of how broken it is.
0:24:46 > 0:24:49Unlike a modern roof which has batons,
0:24:49 > 0:24:53and you nail the slates into the batons, and they're quite thick,
0:24:53 > 0:24:56these are just laths that are split by hand.
0:24:56 > 0:24:59These pegs here hook onto the laths.
0:24:59 > 0:25:02To hold the slate on, pegs are fixed through the slate
0:25:02 > 0:25:04and they hang off the laths.
0:25:04 > 0:25:09They're all diminishing in size from large at the bottom of the roof,
0:25:09 > 0:25:12to smaller slates as they get to the top of the roof.
0:25:15 > 0:25:18Colin has started clearing the undergrowth by the mill,
0:25:18 > 0:25:23which proves handy as the National Park ranger has rolled in.
0:25:28 > 0:25:30This is the map created back in the 1950s.
0:25:30 > 0:25:35It's the rights of way over which people had a public right to walk.
0:25:35 > 0:25:38You can see the footpath comes off the road.
0:25:38 > 0:25:39And then sets off this way.
0:25:39 > 0:25:42That's right. Off to Llandridian.
0:25:42 > 0:25:46Yes, he's discovered an ancient footpath through my land.
0:25:46 > 0:25:50Restoring it is fine by me, as long as Peter George doesn't mind.
0:25:56 > 0:26:00It must come out down there, down by that gate down there.
0:26:00 > 0:26:04According to the map, there's an old footbridge across the stream
0:26:04 > 0:26:05somewhere around here.
0:26:05 > 0:26:08That's fantastic.
0:26:08 > 0:26:09Incredible.
0:26:09 > 0:26:13There is a bridge. Unlike the average tourist
0:26:13 > 0:26:15who never cleans up after them,
0:26:15 > 0:26:19this lot are going to clean up in front of them.
0:26:20 > 0:26:23Ian is going to bring volunteers to clear the path
0:26:23 > 0:26:26and put up some new stiles and signposts.
0:26:26 > 0:26:29But this is one of the few really wild corners of Trehilyn
0:26:29 > 0:26:32so I don't want it tidied up too much.
0:26:32 > 0:26:36We'll get some experts in to ensure there's nothing special here
0:26:36 > 0:26:41so we can add to the biodiversity, rather than reduce it.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44The footpath is not a problem for Peter or myself.
0:26:44 > 0:26:49I think people should have access to beautiful parts of the countryside.
0:26:49 > 0:26:52I simply recommend they come better equipped than me.
0:26:52 > 0:26:56We'd better put a notice up saying wear wellingtons.
0:26:56 > 0:26:58I'm not wearing wellington boots.
0:26:58 > 0:27:02Now, I have sort of... my trousers are completely soaked.
0:27:07 > 0:27:10The forensic analysis of the roof continues.
0:27:10 > 0:27:13So, Doctor, what is the prognosis?
0:27:13 > 0:27:17You can see the slate here, then the layers of lime plaster.
0:27:18 > 0:27:22Then cement on top which I can lift off...
0:27:23 > 0:27:25..in pieces.
0:27:25 > 0:27:28It's very wet under there, and lots of creatures.
0:27:28 > 0:27:30The cement may have been simply a wash
0:27:30 > 0:27:33as opposed to a plaster coat.
0:27:33 > 0:27:36Even that wash is enough to hold too much moisture in
0:27:36 > 0:27:38and cause damage to the slates below.
0:27:38 > 0:27:42Holding dampness into a building is not a good idea.
0:27:42 > 0:27:46Some areas roof do look as if they've got to be re-roofed.
0:27:46 > 0:27:49I'm talking about the actual peg slates.
0:27:49 > 0:27:52There's a lot of structural work that's got to be done.
0:27:52 > 0:27:57So we're thinking to do something like 50% of the main roof
0:27:57 > 0:28:00to re-roof it, but for Gill's sake
0:28:00 > 0:28:03all the cement off first and whatever's underneath it.
0:28:03 > 0:28:07Eventually, we'll get a straight edge of peg slates
0:28:07 > 0:28:10which when we've decided what we keep,
0:28:10 > 0:28:13then I can measure all the slates and the batons
0:28:13 > 0:28:15and work out what we need.
0:28:15 > 0:28:19Oh, right, so you mean more tests then?
0:28:19 > 0:28:21Well, there's our first decision made.
0:28:21 > 0:28:24We'll replace some of the roof
0:28:24 > 0:28:28and conserve as much of the original structure as we can.
0:28:28 > 0:28:30At last, work can now begin.
0:28:31 > 0:28:34Join me next week when nature comes to call.
0:28:34 > 0:28:38I should have known about this before I bought the place.
0:28:38 > 0:28:40I meet my new neighbours,
0:28:40 > 0:28:43and the roof becomes a performance in itself
0:28:43 > 0:28:46that not everyone is ready to applaud.
0:28:46 > 0:28:49It's a real shock seeing how much has changed
0:28:49 > 0:28:51and really how much has gone.
0:29:04 > 0:29:06Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd 2006