0:00:02 > 0:00:03Come on, Ted. Come on, Ted.
0:00:04 > 0:00:06Good boy!
0:00:06 > 0:00:10Another summer has passed at Wiveton Hall Farm
0:00:10 > 0:00:12on the north coast of Norfolk,
0:00:12 > 0:00:15home to gentleman farmer... BIRD SQUAWKS
0:00:15 > 0:00:17..Desmond MacCarthy.
0:00:17 > 0:00:20He's the one that's been keeping my mother awake
0:00:20 > 0:00:22for weeks.
0:00:22 > 0:00:25Desmond's lived here all his life with his mother, Chloe,
0:00:25 > 0:00:28now 101 years old.
0:00:28 > 0:00:31My mother's lived so long because she's never drunk milk.
0:00:31 > 0:00:34I like cream, you know.
0:00:34 > 0:00:36What are your other tricks?
0:00:36 > 0:00:39When they're not at university, he's joined by his children,
0:00:39 > 0:00:41Isabel and Edmund.
0:00:41 > 0:00:43Does Granny pay rent?
0:00:43 > 0:00:44She does pay rent.
0:00:44 > 0:00:45Bastard.
0:00:47 > 0:00:50Oh. Oh, my God!
0:00:50 > 0:00:53Last year, Desmond kept the wolf from the door
0:00:53 > 0:00:56by the seat of his tweed pants...
0:00:56 > 0:00:57Do I have a lot of cash around?
0:00:57 > 0:01:00No. Other people's cash, yes.
0:01:00 > 0:01:05- Mostly the bank's.- ..earning just enough money from his 250-acre farm,
0:01:05 > 0:01:10cafe and holiday cottages to maintain a country way of life
0:01:10 > 0:01:13and preserve the hall for generations to come.
0:01:13 > 0:01:15Perhaps this is where the nostrils came from.
0:01:15 > 0:01:19Thank goodness the double chin has been bred out.
0:01:19 > 0:01:21- Has it?- Yes. - SHE LAUGHS
0:01:21 > 0:01:25Now, a year on, with his debts continuing to rise,
0:01:25 > 0:01:29Desmond must find new ways to balance the books.
0:01:29 > 0:01:30I've had a brainwave.
0:01:32 > 0:01:35There's going to be a yoga gathering.
0:01:35 > 0:01:37Trying to get 12 people in here, do you think we'll...?
0:01:37 > 0:01:38Yes, easy.
0:01:38 > 0:01:42He plans to open up his 17th-century manor house...
0:01:42 > 0:01:44It's a brief tour, this one.
0:01:44 > 0:01:48- Oh, my God!- ..to make it pay its way in a modern world.
0:01:48 > 0:01:50We need to maintain the mansion.
0:02:02 > 0:02:07The summer tourist season is almost over at Wiveton Hall Farm and it's
0:02:07 > 0:02:11time for Desmond to take financial stock.
0:02:11 > 0:02:13How many dishes do you do a day?
0:02:13 > 0:02:17We normally get through four trays of tomatoes per day.
0:02:17 > 0:02:21The cafe is the energetic hub which turns the biggest profit.
0:02:22 > 0:02:25This basil - look how much they're using.
0:02:25 > 0:02:27Can you smell it?
0:02:29 > 0:02:32It's been the busiest summer we've ever had, which is good.
0:02:32 > 0:02:34Good for us. Good for the bank manager.
0:02:34 > 0:02:35Calm him down.
0:02:39 > 0:02:43We've been pretty much fully booked every day, which has been amazing.
0:02:44 > 0:02:47We have incredible produce to work with that's come straight off
0:02:47 > 0:02:49the farm, you know, so that's a real chef's dream, really.
0:02:52 > 0:02:55But the house and grounds don't pay their way
0:02:55 > 0:03:00and quickly soak up profits from the cafe and other areas of the farm.
0:03:01 > 0:03:03Now, what am I on here?
0:03:03 > 0:03:05- August.- Business manager Kim
0:03:05 > 0:03:09has to do deal with this grim financial reality.
0:03:10 > 0:03:15It is a money pit. It's difficult to fund the house and the maintenance
0:03:15 > 0:03:17that it requires.
0:03:17 > 0:03:19The walls need to be repaired.
0:03:19 > 0:03:21The garden takes an awful lot of work.
0:03:21 > 0:03:26So the rest of the business has to fund the house and grounds.
0:03:27 > 0:03:29What sort of debt are you in?
0:03:29 > 0:03:31Erm...
0:03:33 > 0:03:35In the hundreds of thousands.
0:03:38 > 0:03:40Could this place ruin you?
0:03:40 > 0:03:41Course it could, easily.
0:03:42 > 0:03:44Anyway, not at the moment.
0:03:44 > 0:03:45We're fending it off.
0:03:47 > 0:03:48Up till recently, I mean,
0:03:48 > 0:03:51talking about money was like talking about sex.
0:03:53 > 0:03:54- Didn't do it.- No.
0:03:56 > 0:03:59- But since Mrs Thatcher it's all opened up.- Mm.
0:04:01 > 0:04:03You have to think of the five-year plan.
0:04:03 > 0:04:04We're going Soviet.
0:04:05 > 0:04:09- We want the five and ten-year plans. - Mm.
0:04:10 > 0:04:13Because if we just carry on year-to-year...
0:04:13 > 0:04:15it's a little bit...
0:04:15 > 0:04:18Well, it's rather nice to have some proper ideas of knowing
0:04:18 > 0:04:20- where we're actually getting to.- Mm.
0:04:21 > 0:04:24- The end goal.- The end goal.- Mm.
0:04:24 > 0:04:25What is the end goal?
0:04:25 > 0:04:26- Oh.- Oh!
0:04:26 > 0:04:28That's the bit we don't know.
0:04:33 > 0:04:37Desmond's been able to afford to live in Wiveton Hall all his life.
0:04:37 > 0:04:43But now the annual running costs have shot up to well over £50,000.
0:04:45 > 0:04:47- Morning.- Ah, hello.
0:04:48 > 0:04:53Nice to see you. Now, there's the most terrible smell in here.
0:04:53 > 0:04:58The hall's new wing was built in 1907, has a grand living room,
0:04:58 > 0:05:01former billiard room and four bedrooms.
0:05:02 > 0:05:04For many years, it's laid empty,
0:05:04 > 0:05:09a drain on resources and only rented out to the occasional guest.
0:05:09 > 0:05:14When you live in a house you love and you've lived there a long time,
0:05:14 > 0:05:19it seems incredibly sensible to want to preserve it and keep it
0:05:19 > 0:05:24as a thriving way of living, but it all is very time consuming.
0:05:24 > 0:05:29Well, when I was a child, that was my parents' room,
0:05:29 > 0:05:32that was my room and that round the corner was my sister's room.
0:05:33 > 0:05:35And that was a spare room.
0:05:35 > 0:05:36Or the nursery.
0:05:36 > 0:05:38One's always
0:05:38 > 0:05:40putting money into the place,
0:05:40 > 0:05:45often with not huge prospects of massive return.
0:05:46 > 0:05:51Desmond wants his home to be less of a financial millstone so he's
0:05:51 > 0:05:53employed property manager Emma
0:05:53 > 0:05:57to come up with ways for the hall to make some money.
0:05:57 > 0:06:00Wiveton is rather beautiful
0:06:00 > 0:06:03and slightly wonky but in a good way.
0:06:05 > 0:06:08- A big house needs...- People. - ..money. And people.- Yeah.
0:06:08 > 0:06:09And people. It does.
0:06:09 > 0:06:12Otherwise they become like museums, don't they?
0:06:12 > 0:06:14Yes.
0:06:14 > 0:06:16There's not much in this museum.
0:06:18 > 0:06:23My job here is to market the wing as a venue
0:06:23 > 0:06:27and, so, whether it's weddings, big birthday parties,
0:06:27 > 0:06:30people wanting corporate weekends.
0:06:30 > 0:06:32One, two, three, four, five, six, seven.
0:06:32 > 0:06:37It's thinking of other things to do which can make this house into a
0:06:37 > 0:06:39moneymaking business.
0:06:39 > 0:06:44Without ruining it and keeping it still as Desmond's family home.
0:06:46 > 0:06:47Now...
0:06:47 > 0:06:50If the wing is to host more big events,
0:06:50 > 0:06:53Desmond will have to reverse decades of decline.
0:06:53 > 0:06:55Oh!
0:06:55 > 0:06:56There's a smell in here as well.
0:06:56 > 0:06:58Yeah, you've got something...
0:06:58 > 0:07:01- Oh, my God! - ..gone off somewhere round here.
0:07:01 > 0:07:02Let's open the door, shall we?
0:07:02 > 0:07:04Everything's to do with smells today.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12- This window could do with a bit of work, couldn't it, Emma?- Yes. Yes.
0:07:12 > 0:07:14Lead work. Oh, my God.
0:07:14 > 0:07:17- Oh, my God, look at this! - Yes, no, I think...
0:07:17 > 0:07:18Oh, look, Emma.
0:07:18 > 0:07:20Look at this. This is more than a windowpane.
0:07:20 > 0:07:23The bloody thing's come apart.
0:07:23 > 0:07:25Lovely view making up for it.
0:07:25 > 0:07:27- Shall we make this our priority? - You can peer into Noel's bedroom
0:07:27 > 0:07:29- from here.- Desmond?
0:07:29 > 0:07:32Come on. Emma said we had to decorate.
0:07:32 > 0:07:34- Well, there was a great big wet patch.- Oh!
0:07:34 > 0:07:37- Oh, sorry.- Oh.- There was a tiny little wet patch.
0:07:37 > 0:07:39Very small, very small.
0:07:39 > 0:07:42- Damp. Damp patch.- Hardly could notice. So I just thought...
0:07:42 > 0:07:44We ARE an Irish family.
0:07:44 > 0:07:45Oh!
0:07:45 > 0:07:47We have it in the walls in Ireland.
0:07:47 > 0:07:51Some houses in Ireland even have ferns growing on the inside.
0:07:51 > 0:07:54- The trouble is people don't appreciate that anymore.- Ah.
0:07:54 > 0:07:56- No, OK.- I think it's really pretty.
0:07:56 > 0:07:59- Well, it'll change, though, won't it? This a second coat?- First coat.
0:07:59 > 0:08:00I've only got enough for one coat, Desmond.
0:08:00 > 0:08:03- You've only got enough for one coat? - Yes.- Well, that'll probably do.
0:08:03 > 0:08:05- Yes.- Spruce it up for now, won't it?
0:08:05 > 0:08:09- Spruce it up for now. - No, no, no, I like it.
0:08:09 > 0:08:11Strange flies in here.
0:08:13 > 0:08:15Mm. There is a lot to do, isn't there?
0:08:21 > 0:08:23In the depths of the hall,
0:08:23 > 0:08:27Desmond may have sniffed out the source of one of the nasty smells.
0:08:30 > 0:08:31Terrible pungency.
0:08:33 > 0:08:34Revolting pungency.
0:08:36 > 0:08:38Would you mind? Oh.
0:08:38 > 0:08:40A late rodent.
0:08:41 > 0:08:44Over there. We'll get a trowel. Ooh!
0:08:44 > 0:08:46We'll get rid of it now. Look at that.
0:08:46 > 0:08:48Horrible!
0:08:48 > 0:08:50Must get rid of it. Ooh!
0:08:51 > 0:08:54That's probably what the problem's been.
0:08:56 > 0:08:57Horrible rat.
0:08:57 > 0:08:59We'll put him in our boiler.
0:08:59 > 0:09:00Ugh!
0:09:03 > 0:09:05There. Oh, dear.
0:09:10 > 0:09:14To entice more paying guests to Wiveton, it's not just the interior
0:09:14 > 0:09:17- needs tidying up. - It's a bit of a mess.
0:09:17 > 0:09:19The grounds need attention, too.
0:09:19 > 0:09:22I'm just setting some mole traps.
0:09:22 > 0:09:24I mean, you can use awful gas and stuff.
0:09:26 > 0:09:28It's a huge industry, mole trapping.
0:09:30 > 0:09:34The lawn must look its best as Desmond has advertised a tour of the
0:09:34 > 0:09:36- garden...- I think we'll try here.
0:09:36 > 0:09:38..at £7.50 a ticket.
0:09:40 > 0:09:42It's a small commercial venture.
0:09:42 > 0:09:44Every £200 is fantastic.
0:09:46 > 0:09:50Anyway. The weather's nice, so quite a lot of people have booked to come.
0:09:50 > 0:09:52And I'll show them around,
0:09:52 > 0:09:54tell them a bit of history and hopefully they'll enjoy it.
0:09:54 > 0:09:59And they might even have come for lunch, as well.
0:09:59 > 0:10:02They'll be so weighed down with knowledge afterwards,
0:10:02 > 0:10:05they'll, erm...want to, erm...
0:10:05 > 0:10:07be desperate for tea.
0:10:11 > 0:10:15The hall and gardens at Wiveton haven't changed much for years,
0:10:15 > 0:10:19rather like the wardrobe of their current owner.
0:10:19 > 0:10:20Are you good at sewing buttons on?
0:10:20 > 0:10:21What do you want?
0:10:21 > 0:10:24That one...is loose.
0:10:24 > 0:10:26Could it be cut off and moved to there?
0:10:26 > 0:10:28Otherwise I look like Tom Kitten.
0:10:28 > 0:10:30Bursting out of my garments.
0:10:30 > 0:10:32I do love tweed.
0:10:32 > 0:10:34I mean, it's beautiful stuff.
0:10:34 > 0:10:35Very hard wearing.
0:10:36 > 0:10:40Well-made. They'll last 20+ years.
0:10:40 > 0:10:42The lining starts to go a bit.
0:10:44 > 0:10:48That's from the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides.
0:10:48 > 0:10:50That's Harris Tweed. That's another bit of Harris Tweed.
0:10:52 > 0:10:56This is an Irish tweed and there's a tweed overcoat.
0:10:56 > 0:10:58Not very good light, is it?
0:10:58 > 0:11:00- Do you have anything that's not tweed?- Oh, hardly.
0:11:01 > 0:11:04With the shooting season on the horizon,
0:11:04 > 0:11:08Desmond's treating himself to a new suit for the occasion.
0:11:08 > 0:11:11I've got an appointment with Tina later, whose a rather good tailor.
0:11:11 > 0:11:16Despite her being my ex-wife, she'll still make some clothes and is
0:11:16 > 0:11:17very generous.
0:11:21 > 0:11:22Oh, look at this rain
0:11:22 > 0:11:25and look at this water.
0:11:25 > 0:11:30We're going to Tina's house, which is the next-door village.
0:11:30 > 0:11:32She used to be in the fashion business.
0:11:32 > 0:11:34Then she married me.
0:11:34 > 0:11:35Then she had children.
0:11:35 > 0:11:39Then she got going in the tailoring game.
0:11:39 > 0:11:40Anyway, let's go in.
0:11:44 > 0:11:47I like to say we're happily unmarried.
0:11:47 > 0:11:50We get on very well over the children.
0:11:50 > 0:11:51Oh, my goodness.
0:11:51 > 0:11:54- Look, Tina, it's winter. - SHE LAUGHS
0:11:54 > 0:11:56Wearing tweed, no-one minds.
0:11:56 > 0:11:58How are you, Tina?
0:11:58 > 0:11:59There we are. Oh, just one.
0:11:59 > 0:12:03There's too much kissing goes on nowadays.
0:12:03 > 0:12:05I've always made suits for Desmond.
0:12:05 > 0:12:13I think the first one I made him was in 1986 and it was a shooting suit
0:12:13 > 0:12:15and it was tweed of course.
0:12:17 > 0:12:20Look at Edmund on his shooting licence.
0:12:20 > 0:12:23- I know.- Now, Tina,
0:12:23 > 0:12:25this...I'm getting a little bit...I've changed shape.
0:12:25 > 0:12:27I have got the old tweeds in the car.
0:12:27 > 0:12:30- Isn't that the old tweed? - This is one of them, yes.
0:12:30 > 0:12:32I should have had the trousers lined.
0:12:32 > 0:12:34Are they scratchy?
0:12:34 > 0:12:37No, but they let the wind through.
0:12:37 > 0:12:38- And out.- Because they're Harris.
0:12:40 > 0:12:44Do you say that to your older customers?
0:12:44 > 0:12:46Oh, no!
0:12:46 > 0:12:49- Anyway...- You'll find they let the wind out, sir.
0:12:49 > 0:12:50They'll find...!
0:12:51 > 0:12:55OK, shall I get the ones that let the wind out in...?
0:12:55 > 0:12:58You've gone red. You've gone red!
0:12:58 > 0:13:00It depends on what the shooting lunch is like.
0:13:02 > 0:13:03- Anyway.- You've got to decide on the tweed,
0:13:03 > 0:13:07- which is...- That's the hardest thing.- That can take about a month.
0:13:07 > 0:13:10- Yes.- If... Sometimes it takes six months.- Shh-shh-shh.
0:13:11 > 0:13:13Erm.
0:13:13 > 0:13:15Just none of those are for me.
0:13:15 > 0:13:19- Well, just look... Look at them. - I know, I can tell at a glimpse.
0:13:19 > 0:13:21Why don't you have just a plain one for a change?
0:13:21 > 0:13:22Mmm.
0:13:23 > 0:13:25- That's really lovely.- Well.
0:13:25 > 0:13:29It's just the actual density of the cloth.
0:13:29 > 0:13:31I don't feel we're getting anywhere.
0:13:31 > 0:13:34- OK.- This is what normally happens.
0:13:34 > 0:13:37- OK.- I like to move forward...
0:13:37 > 0:13:38- All right.- ..keeping moving forward.
0:13:38 > 0:13:41OK, so, now I'm going to measure you, so come here.
0:13:41 > 0:13:43Oh, dear. I feel a bit different.
0:13:43 > 0:13:46I haven't grown taller, have I?
0:13:46 > 0:13:47Ooh.
0:13:48 > 0:13:50- Erm.- Just keep the figures to yourself.
0:13:50 > 0:13:52Yeah, I will.
0:13:52 > 0:13:56The upper waist measurement, which is this one...
0:13:56 > 0:13:58Gone up a waist.
0:14:01 > 0:14:03- Do your raising your gun.- Oh.
0:14:03 > 0:14:06- See?- See, we put vents here.
0:14:06 > 0:14:08But it's quite nice...
0:14:08 > 0:14:10It looks nice, as well.
0:14:10 > 0:14:11Yeah.
0:14:11 > 0:14:16Desmond and Tina have a good working relationship but when they lived
0:14:16 > 0:14:19together, things could get frosty.
0:14:19 > 0:14:23The house is very much warmer than when Tina lived there.
0:14:23 > 0:14:28Erm...she used to mention the C word a lot.
0:14:28 > 0:14:31Yes, I couldn't say cold...
0:14:31 > 0:14:33- No. - ..because it caused an explosion.
0:14:33 > 0:14:35Caused so much tension.
0:14:36 > 0:14:40And now it's warm as toast through this modern heating system.
0:14:45 > 0:14:48Once Desmond decides on a tweed,
0:14:48 > 0:14:51it will be ordered from the Scottish mill and sent to Tina.
0:14:54 > 0:14:57Back at Wiveton, there's good news.
0:14:57 > 0:15:00Marketing the wing as a venue is starting to pay off.
0:15:01 > 0:15:05Somebody who just e-mailed out of the blue, they've been to the cafe,
0:15:05 > 0:15:07she obviously knows about the hall
0:15:07 > 0:15:08and she just sent me an e-mail asking
0:15:08 > 0:15:11if we'd ever considered a yoga retreat.
0:15:12 > 0:15:14I ran it past Desmond, he said let's try it.
0:15:14 > 0:15:16Oh, yes, come and meet them, please.
0:15:16 > 0:15:18What's this doing? Lights on in the middle of the day.
0:15:18 > 0:15:21- Oh, yes, no, that was just me testing it.- Do tell them.
0:15:21 > 0:15:24- No, that was me.- How does the light go off?- Lisa, this is Desmond.
0:15:24 > 0:15:27- I'll do it, Desmond. Yes.- Economy at all times.
0:15:28 > 0:15:31We've got a yoga retreat.
0:15:31 > 0:15:36Retreat sends shivers up one's spine slightly but still,
0:15:36 > 0:15:40they're coming and they're going to
0:15:40 > 0:15:44do their yoga, pay handsomely,
0:15:44 > 0:15:48special food and hopefully come again.
0:15:48 > 0:15:50- Oh, hello.- This is Desmond. - We met before.
0:15:50 > 0:15:52- I think we met.- Last year.
0:15:52 > 0:15:55- Nice to see you again. - Now, remind me which one you are.
0:15:55 > 0:15:59- I'm Lisa.- Lisa, good. And your friend is here?
0:15:59 > 0:16:01Yes, she's upstairs.
0:16:01 > 0:16:03We're just sorting out massage treatment rooms.
0:16:03 > 0:16:04Oh, my God.
0:16:04 > 0:16:07- You're down for one, did you know that?- Oh, that's very good. OK.
0:16:07 > 0:16:09We're trying to get 12 people in here,
0:16:09 > 0:16:11- do you think we'll...manage? - Yes, easy.
0:16:11 > 0:16:13- Well, we could test it out. - We always get 12.
0:16:13 > 0:16:14- EMMA LAUGHS - Always.- Always?
0:16:14 > 0:16:18- Have you done this before?- Oh, yes.
0:16:18 > 0:16:20- 12 yoga mats?- Yes, easy.
0:16:20 > 0:16:23They're basically paying us for the accommodation as we would let it for
0:16:23 > 0:16:27anybody on holiday and we're also going to do some catering for it,
0:16:27 > 0:16:33some very specific gluten-free, dairy-free healthy stuff.
0:16:33 > 0:16:34And you've got the food organised?
0:16:34 > 0:16:36Yes, I've spoken to Ben. He's across everything.
0:16:36 > 0:16:38Oh, good, good, good, good.
0:16:38 > 0:16:42- And...- We just still don't know the final number, believe it or not.
0:16:42 > 0:16:43Why? Is that cos...?
0:16:43 > 0:16:44(Is it cos...?
0:16:44 > 0:16:47(Are they quite...
0:16:47 > 0:16:50- (indecisive?) - Yeah, the general public.
0:16:50 > 0:16:51They're very chilled.
0:16:53 > 0:16:54Do we call that flaky?
0:16:55 > 0:16:57- I don't know.- It's quite exasperating.- I wouldn't say that.
0:16:57 > 0:17:01- Quite exasperating. - No, so we're either 11 or 12 people.
0:17:01 > 0:17:02That's not too bad.
0:17:02 > 0:17:05I don't know much about yoga.
0:17:05 > 0:17:07- Are you going to be joining us for the yoga?- Yes.
0:17:07 > 0:17:08Morning meditation.
0:17:08 > 0:17:14I think they like cosmic smells produced from ethnic candles.
0:17:16 > 0:17:19- Yes.- Here's Penina.
0:17:19 > 0:17:21- Penina.- Oh, hello. - Come and meet Desmond.
0:17:21 > 0:17:23Hello, Desmond.
0:17:23 > 0:17:26- Nice to see you again. - Nice to see you again.
0:17:26 > 0:17:28So, are you going to have a massage?
0:17:28 > 0:17:30Well, that would be marvellous at some stage.
0:17:30 > 0:17:32I don't know who the masseur is.
0:17:32 > 0:17:33- That's me.- Oh, good.
0:17:33 > 0:17:35- You're going to have a shiatsu. - Oh, my goodness.
0:17:35 > 0:17:36Sounds very painful.
0:17:38 > 0:17:42It's testing the water, so we'll see if it
0:17:42 > 0:17:44works, and I'm sure if it works, we can convince him to do more.
0:17:52 > 0:17:55"April 1953."
0:17:55 > 0:17:56Is it me here, dear?
0:17:56 > 0:18:01- That's you.- Following the death of his father in the 1970s,
0:18:01 > 0:18:05Desmond's mother Chloe ran the hall and farm for a number of years.
0:18:05 > 0:18:08Have you had a cup of coffee?
0:18:08 > 0:18:11Desmond still keeps her informed on matters of business.
0:18:12 > 0:18:17There's going to be a yoga gathering.
0:18:19 > 0:18:20- Enormous amount.- What is that?
0:18:20 > 0:18:21That's plaice.
0:18:23 > 0:18:25What they call goujons of plaice.
0:18:25 > 0:18:28- Very good.- Looks good.
0:18:28 > 0:18:29Have you ever done yoga?
0:18:30 > 0:18:32- Yes.- Where?
0:18:32 > 0:18:34Well, in London.
0:18:34 > 0:18:35Oh, yes.
0:18:35 > 0:18:40Then there's going to be a group of people going around the garden
0:18:40 > 0:18:41- for a tour.- Yes.
0:18:43 > 0:18:44I don't know if you'd like to be part of it?
0:18:46 > 0:18:49You don't... Look, a bloody chicken under the table.
0:18:52 > 0:18:54What's that doing? Look.
0:18:57 > 0:18:59Look at it, it has rather splendid yellow legs.
0:18:59 > 0:19:01That's one of the ones might end up in the pot.
0:19:07 > 0:19:11Desmond's business ventures have to succeed.
0:19:12 > 0:19:14As well as keeping the hall going,
0:19:14 > 0:19:17the livelihoods of 50 employees across cafe,
0:19:17 > 0:19:20garden and farm depend on him.
0:19:20 > 0:19:22Oh, you are so good, Rodney.
0:19:23 > 0:19:25- Brilliant.- Over the years,
0:19:25 > 0:19:27he's pulled together a loyal team
0:19:27 > 0:19:30with whom he's developed strong bonds.
0:19:30 > 0:19:32Desmond is sort of...
0:19:33 > 0:19:35He's almost indescribable.
0:19:38 > 0:19:40I'm not gay or anything, but I do like him.
0:19:42 > 0:19:43He's an interesting man.
0:19:43 > 0:19:46Sometimes rude and obnoxious but, I mean,
0:19:46 > 0:19:47that's what makes him who he is.
0:19:47 > 0:19:49Oh... Oh, no!
0:19:49 > 0:19:50Stop!
0:19:52 > 0:19:55- Stop!- It depends what Desmond's got going on, I think.
0:19:55 > 0:19:56Yeah, there's lots going on.
0:19:56 > 0:19:58Yeah, which is good, cos when he's got lots going on,
0:19:58 > 0:20:00then he sort of, you know, tells you what to do
0:20:00 > 0:20:02and let's you get on with it.
0:20:02 > 0:20:04When he's bored, then he gets involved.
0:20:04 > 0:20:07- Yes.- And then things can go a bit...
0:20:07 > 0:20:10- Pear-shaped sometimes.- Pear-shaped! - SHE LAUGHS
0:20:10 > 0:20:12Don't you eat nuts?
0:20:12 > 0:20:17You haven't got a nut allergy as well as everything else, Debbie?
0:20:17 > 0:20:19Come on. They're delicious.
0:20:21 > 0:20:22If I'm ill, I'm blaming you.
0:20:25 > 0:20:28At the shop, a crowd is gathering.
0:20:28 > 0:20:3350 tickets have been sold for the first Wiveton Garden tour.
0:20:33 > 0:20:36- There we are.- Desmond's just got time to check the mole traps
0:20:36 > 0:20:38on his lawn.
0:20:38 > 0:20:39Oh, yes!
0:20:40 > 0:20:41Success.
0:20:42 > 0:20:44A sweet little mole.
0:20:45 > 0:20:47Isn't he nice? Beautiful.
0:20:47 > 0:20:49That's what make waistcoats.
0:20:49 > 0:20:50Look at his little hands.
0:20:52 > 0:20:53Look at his teeth.
0:20:53 > 0:20:58Well, it's a shame I'm not planning to make a moleskin waistcoat because
0:20:58 > 0:21:01we'd at least have one mole to start with.
0:21:01 > 0:21:05The other creatures are always there to combat what you're trying to
0:21:05 > 0:21:08achieve. You could say they were here first.
0:21:08 > 0:21:10Which is true. They were.
0:21:10 > 0:21:12But, I mean, if we want a lawn that's fairly nice,
0:21:12 > 0:21:15we'd like to keep the moles at bay.
0:21:15 > 0:21:18Erm. There's plenty of other places for them to live.
0:21:23 > 0:21:25Oh. Here, what have you got?
0:21:25 > 0:21:29What have you got? Eugh. Dead, dead.
0:21:29 > 0:21:31That is, erm,
0:21:31 > 0:21:32a frog.
0:21:32 > 0:21:39Sadly... I mean, French people eat frogs and so does the dog.
0:21:43 > 0:21:45If his garden tour is successful,
0:21:45 > 0:21:48it could be a new and returning form of income
0:21:48 > 0:21:50for novice tour guide Desmond.
0:21:50 > 0:21:53Hello. Is everyone here, do you think?
0:21:54 > 0:21:58Now, what we'll do is we'll go down nearer the house,
0:21:58 > 0:22:01so let's go this way.
0:22:01 > 0:22:03Hello. What a nice hat you've got.
0:22:06 > 0:22:07We start here.
0:22:09 > 0:22:10Thank you all for coming.
0:22:10 > 0:22:18I've lived here all my life and quite unfit for anything else now
0:22:18 > 0:22:23but, because I've spent so much time here, I'm clearly interested,
0:22:23 > 0:22:26so I might bore you on certain aspects,
0:22:26 > 0:22:30- but none of it'll last for long. - THEY CHUCKLE
0:22:30 > 0:22:34So that bit of the house was built during Cromwell's time.
0:22:34 > 0:22:36No known architect.
0:22:36 > 0:22:41I mean, lots of quirky bits, very much the Dutch-style gables,
0:22:41 > 0:22:46flint facades and in moonlight it looks fantastic.
0:22:48 > 0:22:50Do you like taking money off visitors?
0:22:50 > 0:22:52Well, of course, I love it.
0:22:52 > 0:22:54I come from mercantile origins.
0:22:55 > 0:22:56Love taking money off people.
0:22:57 > 0:23:00Making something work financially is very gratifying.
0:23:02 > 0:23:04Walk into the sun garden.
0:23:04 > 0:23:07This is an Edwardian garden.
0:23:07 > 0:23:09And before that, it was
0:23:09 > 0:23:14a yard in which carriages would've come in and turned round.
0:23:14 > 0:23:18Just inside the door, a little bit of a font, and as a child,
0:23:18 > 0:23:21I would sit in it as a sort of throne.
0:23:21 > 0:23:23- THEY CHUCKLE - I was tiny once.
0:23:23 > 0:23:27- Yes!- Now, we're going to go round there.
0:23:27 > 0:23:29How many of you have been here before,
0:23:29 > 0:23:31to the cafe?
0:23:31 > 0:23:33Oh, quite a lot of you, quite a lot of you.
0:23:33 > 0:23:36But quite a lot of you haven't, so that's good.
0:23:36 > 0:23:38Well, I'm always keen to take money off you.
0:23:41 > 0:23:46Mm. It's quite clear how big a house it is.
0:23:46 > 0:23:501650 it was built and it all needs maintaining.
0:23:50 > 0:23:53So you've got an insight into this place,
0:23:53 > 0:23:55which I hope you found interesting.
0:23:56 > 0:23:59- THEY CLAP - OK.
0:23:59 > 0:24:02- OK, there we are. - How did that go?
0:24:02 > 0:24:03Very well. They loved it.
0:24:05 > 0:24:09I slightly lost some of the historical references,
0:24:09 > 0:24:12but I think they got the gist of it.
0:24:12 > 0:24:14There we are. 50 people -
0:24:14 > 0:24:16£350. Marvellous.
0:24:17 > 0:24:20Not bad for 45 minutes of Desmond talking.
0:24:20 > 0:24:22CAMERAMAN LAUGHS
0:24:22 > 0:24:23He should do it more often.
0:24:26 > 0:24:31An even more lucrative form of revenue is setting up in the wing.
0:24:31 > 0:24:35Lisa and Penina are running the yoga retreat.
0:24:35 > 0:24:40North Norfolk is such a magical, I think, spiritual place.
0:24:40 > 0:24:43It's kind of the perfect setting for a yoga retreat.
0:24:45 > 0:24:49OK, I'll put the props here so people can just help themselves.
0:24:49 > 0:24:52Penina and I are going to do a welcome circle once everyone's here
0:24:52 > 0:24:55in a couple of hours, after they've arrived, and then we'll go straight
0:24:55 > 0:24:58into a gentle yoga practice, get them warmed up for the weekend.
0:24:58 > 0:25:02And then we'll have dinner and maybe a glass of wine.
0:25:02 > 0:25:05That's permitted and, you know, just have a really nice social evening.
0:25:05 > 0:25:08We've got the fires going and it should be really nice.
0:25:13 > 0:25:15Absorb any sensation.
0:25:15 > 0:25:20- Breathe it away.- Desmond will not be joining them on the mats as he's
0:25:20 > 0:25:23engrossed in his own form of therapy.
0:25:23 > 0:25:26Ah! It's a bit out of control.
0:25:28 > 0:25:31He's preparing the woods for the up-and-coming shooting season.
0:25:32 > 0:25:34Clearing the undergrowth.
0:25:35 > 0:25:37Quite soon,
0:25:37 > 0:25:39some people will want to walk through the woods
0:25:39 > 0:25:42when they're beating and they won't get through.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46Feel like you're growing roots down through the big toes
0:25:46 > 0:25:49to steady you into the earth.
0:25:49 > 0:25:51I don't think he really gets yoga.
0:25:51 > 0:25:54Yoga and power walking and anybody in Lycra,
0:25:54 > 0:25:56he's really not happy about that.
0:25:56 > 0:25:58Oh, my God, look at the size of these brambles!
0:26:00 > 0:26:02Doesn't like cyclists, runners,
0:26:02 > 0:26:05anybody who's doing anything in Lycra.
0:26:05 > 0:26:07Go from one side to the other now.
0:26:07 > 0:26:11Bring a little bit of flow, inhaling as you extend the leg.
0:26:11 > 0:26:12Bringing feet together.
0:26:16 > 0:26:19Ah! That's a nice young beech.
0:26:19 > 0:26:21We mustn't crush it.
0:26:23 > 0:26:26It's opening it up a bit and helping the trees at the same time.
0:26:28 > 0:26:31I think it'd be great for Desmond to get down on the ground and to have
0:26:31 > 0:26:33some body-work done.
0:26:33 > 0:26:35I think he's going to really enjoy it actually.
0:26:35 > 0:26:37Oh, look at the brambles!
0:26:37 > 0:26:39Oh, my God!
0:26:40 > 0:26:42Oh!
0:26:42 > 0:26:43Where is he?
0:26:45 > 0:26:47Shall we go and hunt him down?
0:26:47 > 0:26:48Ooh.
0:26:49 > 0:26:52I think he thinks he's got better things to do with his time.
0:26:52 > 0:26:54Perhaps, I think, he's just happy when people are in tweed.
0:26:56 > 0:27:00With more garden tours and yoga retreats on the cards,
0:27:00 > 0:27:03Desmond's plans for the hall are starting to bear fruit.
0:27:05 > 0:27:07And there are a few perks for its owner.
0:27:07 > 0:27:09Hey, Desmond.
0:27:09 > 0:27:12- Wow, you look fantastic, ready for your shiatsu.- Oh, yes.
0:27:12 > 0:27:15SHE LAUGHS
0:27:15 > 0:27:17So, it's going to be great.
0:27:17 > 0:27:19- Come on in.- Oh, look at that.
0:27:19 > 0:27:20Look, it's all ready for you.
0:27:20 > 0:27:23It looks as though it's a sacrifice.
0:27:23 > 0:27:27All right, been lovely, so nice to see you.
0:27:28 > 0:27:30So nice to see you.
0:27:30 > 0:27:32- Goodbye.- Goodbye.
0:27:34 > 0:27:37So, Desmond, come and lay down.
0:27:37 > 0:27:39Oh!
0:27:39 > 0:27:40We're going to get your chi moving.
0:27:40 > 0:27:42- Oh, yes.- Yeah? Does that sound good?
0:27:42 > 0:27:44Yes.
0:27:44 > 0:27:47So you can now just completely relax.
0:27:47 > 0:27:49- HE SIGHS - (There we go.)
0:27:50 > 0:27:51(Yeah.)
0:27:53 > 0:27:55- (Oh, my God.)- (OK.)
0:27:55 > 0:27:56(There we go.)
0:27:58 > 0:27:59(Oh, my God.)
0:27:59 > 0:28:00Oh, my God.
0:28:03 > 0:28:06- Next time...- Good God!
0:28:06 > 0:28:10..Desmond leads a quest for an ancient water supply...
0:28:10 > 0:28:12Do not fall down the well.
0:28:12 > 0:28:14Call the dog away.
0:28:14 > 0:28:15Bloody stupid dog.
0:28:15 > 0:28:19..pressure builds on Edmund to commit to a life at Wiveton...
0:28:19 > 0:28:20We do need to think long-term.
0:28:20 > 0:28:23You could do the cash flow with me.
0:28:23 > 0:28:25Yes!
0:28:25 > 0:28:28..and the hall welcomes some old friends.
0:28:28 > 0:28:30Mr Snodgrass and Mr Clutterbuck.
0:28:30 > 0:28:31THEY CHUCKLE
0:28:31 > 0:28:33As you say, you couldn't make it up.