Pennod 4 04 Wal

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-Tonight, a corner of France

-in the Vale of Glamorgan...

-..North Carolina in Llanharan...

-..and stacks of Staffordshire

-in Flintshire.

-Welcome to 04Wal.

-In the Vale of Glamorgan,

-not far from Rhoose airport...

-..stands the home

-of Rhodri Elis Owen.

-It's near the sea and in the shadow

-of Aberthaw Power Station.

-Mam saw this house in the newspaper.

-We came here, saw the power station

-and saw this perfect little house.

-I don't care about its location.

-It's become like an old friend

-to me.

-I've come to love it.

-I like the contrast between

-this cottage and the power station.

-In what condition was the house

-when you bought it?

-There were big holes

-in the thatched roof.

-The walls were patched up

-with concrete.

-It had no electricity or hot water.

-It's a listed building, so we were

-restricted in what we could do.

-We had to seek permission

-for aspects of the work.

-We wanted to make sure

-we did the work properly.

-I worked with CADW at the time,

-so my job depended on it!

-We carried out extensive research

-into things like the thatched roof.

-We had to repair the thatch.

-The problem was finding craftsmen

-who could do the work.

-The local authority provided us

-with a list of thatchers.

-They're actually master thatchers...

-..and they can adapt their work

-to suit the location.

-Glamorgan has its own thatch style.

-Different parts of Glamorgan

-adopt a variation on that style.

-Every thatcher leaves

-his own signature on the roof...

-..be it a curve or a gaping hole,

-so he can come back and repair it!

-The external stone walls

-had been patched up with concrete.

-Experts told us we had to act now,

-or the house would deteriorate.

-The concrete was all removed...

-..and some sort of mortar

-was applied to the walls.

-It was then

-covered with a lime mortar.

-We matched the colour of the mortar

-to lime we found in the back garden.

-People remark on

-its bright colour...

-..but that was the colour of houses

-in olden days.

-People used bright colours.

-It's interesting to see

-just how colourful houses were...

-..in past centuries.

-Would you say that you're pickling

-this house in a certain period?

-No, this isn't a museum.

-This is a home.

-I wanted to be able to live here

-in a contemporary manner.

-I've kept

-all the original features...

-..but what I tried to do

-was bring them out a little.

-I'm a firm believer in

-Old with Bold.

-Mixing the old and

-the brand new works for me.

-The Philip Stark furniture

-is modern, with a twist.

-It looks like an old sofa

-but it's plastic garden furniture.

-It's a lovely combination

-of the old and the new.

-We lived in Toulouse, France,

-for a year.

-I embraced French furniture

-and the French way of life.

-There's a strong French theme

-upstairs.

-The chandelier above the stairs

-is an example of that.

-Almost everything

-in the master bedroom is French.

-That includes the wallpaper,

-the bedspread, and the bed itself.

-It's surprising...

-..how well big pieces of furniture

-fit into this fairly small room.

-There are some lovely

-unusual touches in here.

-This chair

-is covered in a leopard skin print.

-The old wireless

-also catches the eye.

-The most unusual touch of all

-is the head lamp!

-# Quand il me prend dans ses bras

-# Il me parle tout bas

-# Je vois la vie en rose

-# Il me dit des mots d'amour

-# Des mots de tous les jours

-# Et ca me fait quelque chose

-# Il est entre dans mon coeur

-# Une part de bonheur

-# Dont je connais la cause

-# C'est lui pour moi.

-Moi pour lui

-# Dans la vie

-# Il me l'a dit,

-l'a jure pour la vie... #

-Let's go back out, onto the landing.

-The bathroom is in front of me.

-In contrast to the warm, red room

-next door...

-..this, as you can see,

-is white and cool.

-There are splashes of blue here

-and it's a far more modern space.

-The expanse of white

-makes the room feel big.

-There are more items

-of French furniture in here...

-..such as this distressed table.

-There are Welsh chairs here, too.

-The special painting on the wall

-dominates this room.

-It carries us away

-to distant lands.

-If I lived in France...

-..this is

-how I would furnish my house.

-Petite France, en Glamorgan!

-There's an old fireplace

-with a big inglenook in the lounge.

-I haven't changed that.

-I had a wood burner installed

-to replace the old, rusty one.

-The fireplace in the dining room

-dates back to 1620.

-It still works fantastically well.

-It's priceless, really.

-This room is very cosy

-once we've lit the fire.

-It's lovely and warm.

-The windows let in plenty of light,

-which makes it feel quite spacious.

-The lounge is quite big

-for such an old house.

-We found some old letters

-in the cupboards when we moved in.

-I kept those.

-Mrs Thomas, whose family lived here

-in the early 20th century...

-..worked as a buyer for Harrods.

-Her family lived here

-and she was raised here.

-She came back to live here

-during the War.

-Her son was the last person

-to live in this house.

-He died when he was in his nineties.

-He was a remarkable character,

-by all accounts.

-Nobody knew he'd been a spy

-until he was on his deathbed.

-He was in the Navy

-during the War...

-..and he worked as a spy for Britain

-in The Netherlands.

-The only thing left here

-was the chair in the lounge.

-It was by the fire

-when we arrived at the house.

-We wanted to keep the chair and we

-had it re-covered, as you can see.

-It forms a link with the past.

-That's one of my favourite chairs.

-The shape of the house

-hasn't changed since Day One.

-I didn't want to be the person

-who changed the building for ever.

-I wanted to keep within the shape

-of the walls of the house...

-..and leave it as I found it.

-I'm proud of the work I've done

-to this house.

-At least the house is complete.

-The next owners

-can put their own stamp on it.

-Hopefully, this house will be here

-for centuries to come.

-Petite France en Glamorgan!

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-A Flintshire farmhouse which has

-an extension on the extension.

-This is high-quality, clever

-building work.

-This is the home

-of Paula and John Jones.

-From the hall,

-through the dining room...

-..to the original hall.

-Where there was once a door,

-there is now a window.

-Classic patterns in new colours

-adorn the walls.

-The clock at the top of the stairs

-belonged to John's father.

-Tell me about the collections.

-Tell me about the collections.

-

-They're gifts - things my sister

-and John bought for me.

-Like most collections,

-they just seem to evolve.

-They take on a life of their own.

-Yes, they grow naturally.

-John's mother started our collection

-of Staffordshire dogs.

-It's grown, like everything else.

-There's another collection

-in the kitchen.

-My husband comes from Swansea

-and he loves rugby.

-We go to France, Italy and Ireland

-to watch Wales play.

-Tell me about

-some of your other collections.

-You collect cockerels.

-You collect cockerels.

-

-That's another rugby connection.

-I bought my first clown

-on a rugby trip to France.

-I was a bit tipsy when I bought it!

-My first clown was called Coco...

-..after Coco Chanel,

-not Coco the Clown!

-John is fond of old wood.

-He isn't keen on new wood.

-You can feel something in it.

-The wood is old

-and it has a story of its own.

-Something comes out from it,

-like an old house.

-There are no ghosts here

-but there are plenty of stories.

-When this house was built...

-..people came upstairs this way,

-around the bannister...

-..to the bedrooms

-at the front of the house.

-Paula and John moved the rooms

-to the front.

-They blocked off that corridor

-and created a new one.

-Why? All will be revealed.

-Here we are, walking down

-what is the corridor at the rear.

-This is narrow

-because this is the old chimney.

-One advantage of having a corridor

-running across the rear...

-..is you can venture through

-the wall into a new extension.

-This double bedroom

-is the new extension.

-The colours are lighter than those

-used in the rest of the house.

-You'd swear this had always

-been here, wouldn't you?

-It looks natural

-and it suits the house.

-This is one of two extensions.

-Let's head back.

-This wall is very uneven.

-It's an old wall,

-plastered to look like an old wall!

-There's no point

-trying to fool anyone!

-This is the second extension.

-A bathroom.

-We're in the roof

-above the kitchen.

-You can relax in the bath and watch

-'Dechrau Canu Dechrau Canmol'...

-..or even '04Wal' on the television.

-This is the master bedroom.

-If you could weigh luxury,

-this room would be very, very heavy.

-These curtains are very substantial

-and the colours are rich.

-A lovely shade of red and feathers.

-Please!

-The dark wood adds to

-the luxurious feel of the room.

-You'd want to spend time in here.

-It's really cosy.

-There's even more through here.

-Walk through the dressing room

-and you find a majestic bathroom.

-There's a bath

-and a separate shower in here.

-If only you had a fridge

-to keep your lager cold...

-..what would be the point

-of leaving these two rooms?

-You're interested

-in your surroundings...

-..judging by the maps on the walls.

-I liked geography and maps,

-as a child.

-I wanted to buy a John Blaeu

-or a John Speed.

-I found a John Speed map

-of Flintshire.

-Do you know anything about the

-previous occupants of the house?

-Yes, thanks to a census

-carried out in the 1880s.

-A John Jones lived here.

-He had a son called Daniel Jones

-and so do we, peculiarly enough.

-The children have left and this is

-a big house for the two of you.

-Would you consider

-moving to a smaller house?

-No, both my heart and John's heart

-are in this house.

-The children also love the house and

-we've buried our pets in the garden.

-You'll stay here for ever?

-You'll stay here for ever?

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-Yes.

-Yes.

-The only way I'm leaving

-is in a box.

-'Log Village'.

-We must be on the right road.

-I'm looking for a wooden village

-on the top of the hill.

-This is more North America

-than South Wales.

-You can see a log cabin

-under construction.

-People hanging around

-doing nothing, as usual.

-Even so,

-they have completed Winkipop...

-..the home of Eirlys and Rhys

-Edwards and Ela and little Tomi.

-We saw a picture of it.

-Eirlys was keener than me, at first.

-We saw a picture in the newspaper

-about two years ago.

-It was an architect's drawing

-of a log cabin.

-I loved the idea of sitting

-in a rocking chair on a veranda.

-We came up here

-but there was nothing to see.

-All we saw was lots of wood!

-We fell in love with the place.

-We wanted to live in

-an unusual house...

-..with something happening

-outside it.

-This house is quite small inside...

-..but the veranda

-gives you a second living area.

-That idea appealed to me.

-The Waltons lived in a log cabin...

-..and I like to think

-we're like the Waltons!

-The name comes from

-a beach in Australia.

-We were out there on our honeymoon.

-We were on the beach

-next to Bells Beach in Melbourne.

-It isn't really a beach -

-it's a break.

-It's called Winkipop.

-I said it was a great name.

-We came back from our honeymoon and

-talked about names for the house.

-This name came up.

-I thought it was nice but I didn't

-think we'd call our house Winkipop.

-I came home one day and Eirlys had

-put a wooden plaque near the door.

-I had no choice in the matter!

-We lived in the centre of Cardiff.

-There were

-shops and takeaways nearby.

-You become too familiar with

-having everything on your doorstep.

-It's nice not to have that here.

-Now, we go for walks in the woods

-or sit outside and read a book...

-..rather than going to town

-to buy CDs.

-You revel in the fact

-you're cut off from amenities?

-Yes.

-Did you have any say

-in the layout of the house?

-Yes, in theory.

-We told them what we wanted

-and they ignored us and built this!

-You can choose between

-four different models...

-..depending on

-the size of the house.

-We went for the small one.

-The cheapest one!

-Everyone tried to put us off

-coming here.

-People I hadn't been in touch with

-for years wrote to me...

-..and told us not to do it!

-That went on for a while.

-People's attitudes changed

-when we moved in last year.

-Our friends and families

-came up here for the first time.

-They'd heard about it

-and they thought we were crazy.

-They came here, had a look around

-and thought it was fantastic.

-They all wish they lived here.

-That was enough for us to finally

-believe we made the right decision.

-The only company

-willing to give us a mortgage...

-..was the Organic Mortgage Company.

-We asked loads of companies...

-..but we were told we couldn't

-get a mortgage on a log cabin.

-The Organic Mortgage Company

-even offer mortgages on mud huts!

-They ship the stuff

-from North Carolina to Liverpool...

-..and these huge chunks of wood

-turn up on the site.

-Once the stuff arrives,

-the houses go up in no time.

-It's like Lego.

-Number One sticks to Number Two

-to Number Three to Number Four.

-The windows and doors

-come with the kit.

-They say a log cabin's insulation is

-six times better than a brick house.

-There's a big gap between the houses

-and we have sizeable gardens.

-Two of our neighbours

-have a hot tub in their gardens.

-We can't afford a hot tub, so we

-hope to be invited to their parties!

-We could be sitting outside in one

-drinking wine in the winter!

-Yes, the red fridge!

-If you put a big, red object

-in the centre of your house...

-..it gives the house and the family

-some sort of energy.

-I don't know if that's true,

-but that's why we have a red fridge.

-We got the fridge

-in the price of the kitchen.

-The more expensive the fridge,

-the smaller the kitchen!

-S4C subtitles by

-Eirlys A Jones