Orrett Family Wanted Down Under Revisited

Moving your family is extremely stressful.

But when it involves taking them to the other side of the world,

it could push everyone to their limits.

In 2012, the Orrett family faced a massive decision -

whether to stay in the UK or start a new life in Australia.

One year on, we've caught up with them to find out how

and where they are now.

Gill and Stuart Orrett were desperate to move closer to their eldest

daughter, Christine, and get to know their first granddaughter, Olivia,

-who was growing up thousands of miles away.

-She changes every day.

It's something that...can only make you beam inside with happiness

and pleasure, more than anything else.

But Australia didn't live up to expectations.

I'm sorry, but this is horrendous.

And the whole family faced heartbreaking decisions.

We knew we'd have to make this choice between being

there for our parents and being here for our kids and our grandchildren.

It's a tough one.

Oh, come on.

So one year on, are the Orretts finally reunited on the other

side of the world?

I personally don't question whether we made the right decision.

The future for us is very exciting.

Australia's the most popular destination for Brits emigrating abroad.

They're tempted by the promise of a better life down under.

But the reality of leaving behind everything and everyone

can sometimes turn that dream into a nightmare.

In 2012, the Orrett family set off on a journey

they hoped would change their lives forever.

They'd just one week to decide whether to leave behind friends

and loved ones so they could be closer to their baby granddaughter.

Today we're going back to see what happened to the Orretts.

In 2012, Stuart and Gill Orrett were living in Chester.

Stuart worked in catering while wife Gill was a paramedic.

Of their four children, the two youngest, Matt, then 14,

and Lauren, 17, were still living at home.

They were enjoying life, but at a cost.

For the past 20 years, Stuart had been working incredibly long hours to

-build up his catering business.

-These days I don't...

I mean, I might do a 60-, 70-hour week,

but that feels part-time to me.

When you've done...probably 100 plus hours a week,

going down to 60 or 70, it's like being let off early.

You feel guilty coming home.

Providing for his family had meant missing out on seeing

-some of his children grow up.

-It has taken its toll.

I, um...feel as though with the two older children

I didn't spend as much time with them as I do with the younger ones.

And...'cause we were developing the businesses when they were young.

Stuart and Gill have two other daughters - Samantha,

who's spent a lot of time working away on cruise ships,

was happy to emigrate,

and eldest daughter Christine was already living in Australia.

With Christine expecting her first baby, Stuart and Gill were desperate

to move down under and bring their family together.

Christine's emigrated out there in January

and married to a chap who lives in Perth and having a baby.

So it's going to be our first grandchild.

And we just feel this is a big sort of transition in our lives.

We don't want to be just visiting them for two or three months

-and have to come back here.

-But moving wasn't going to be easy.

As a qualified paramedic, Gill was the only family member

eligible for a visa, and that meant finding work in Australia.

It's our ticket into Australia, me getting a job, so we do feel as

if there's a certain responsibility on my shoulders at the moment -

is to...you know, for the family.

You know, I will feel quite disappointed if I let them

down by not getting a job.

And the clock was ticking.

With the age limit for a skilled migration visa set at 50,

Gill was running out of time.

-You know, the years just sort of ticked by, didn't they?

-They did.

And then we realised...

Keep talking about it - we're going to have to do it.

Fortunately, the children shared Mum and Dad's ideas on emigrating.

I think it's quite good because there's,

like, nothing here in England for, like, me and my brother any more.

My sister's moved and she's doing her own thing.

We've always had it on our mind for, like, the past year or so.

Me and my dad are, like, set. We want to go.

My mum keeps it to herself a bit. She's like, "Well, this and that."

She takes everything into consideration when me

and my dad are just like, "Yeah, whatever. Let's just do it."

However, the ideal life in Australia could mean potential

heartache for the Orretts and those they loved.

I do think things through, I must admit.

And I think this is probably why I'm at the moment coming over a little

bit more hesitant than he is.

Talking about Stuart's parents -

they're not going to be able to travel over to Australia.

We know that. They won't make that journey.

The people I would miss the most are obviously my parents. Um...

There's...you know... That would be the hardest thing of all.

Everything would rest on their week in Australia.

Could they find the life they were dreaming of,

or would it be too difficult to leave family and friends behind?

Thanks to its warm Mediterranean climate

and plenty of job opportunities,

Perth looked like the perfect place for the Orretts to explore.

But it wasn't just the appeal of big city living than interested them.

Because their daughter Christine and her new family were already there,

Stuart and Gill were desperate to see

if they could make a go of it in the city as well.

All the Orretts, including older sister Samantha,

made the 10,000-mile, 24-hour trip to Perth.

And their first priority when they arrived was to meet the new arrival.

This was what the move was all about -

a chance to bring their family together again.

Hello.

I'd come over to Australia about two weeks ago

for the birth of my first grandchild.

Um...Stuart, my husband,

came over about a week after and...while he was in flight,

our eldest daughter gave birth to a lovely 8-pound, 1-ounce little girl.

So cute.

It's...really opens your eyes to see your eldest with a baby of her own

and a new family starting.

We're going to be considering our grandchildren as well as our own children.

My mum and dad have come grandparents like ducks to water, really.

Bit scary at first, but, yeah, they're enjoying it.

Think everyone wants a hold all at once, so...

Especially my dad when he gets a minute. He sneaks off with her.

To be able to hold Olivia on a daily basis is fabulous.

And just been tremendous,

just watching expressions change as her face starts to open up a little bit.

Everyone was smitten with the new baby, but the Orretts had only seven

days to see if they could make a life here.

I don't know. It's going to be difficult with her being the other side of the world.

Hopefully we'll be here to spoil her and watch her grow up,

but...only time will tell.

Beautiful girl, aren't you? Yeah.

The Orretts' stayed near Christine in the Rockingham area of Perth.

Their accommodation for the week would give them

a good idea of Australian-style living.

-Oh.

-LAUREN:

-This is nice, isn't it?

-It's good.

-I like it open plan.

The layout went down well.

How do you turn on the TV?

-SAMANTHA:

-You get the remote.

And then you...you can watch it when you're cleaning all the dishes.

Nice try, Stuart. Overall, the reactions were positive.

-GILL:

-For rented accommodation, yeah, I like it. Do you?

-Yeah.

It's OK. It's practical for what we need at the moment.

It's a good base. The area's right for us to have a look.

Everything seems simplistic, which is ideal for what we need.

Back in the UK,

the Orretts were renting a four-bedroom house in Chester.

They had a budget of £350,000 mortgage free to around £500,000

if they took out a mortgage.

An Australian home would have to give them

everything they needed straight away.

I think what I'm looking for in an Australian house is

-I would like a pool.

-Snooker table.

-I like the open plan living.

-Easier to maintain.

-Some outside space to entertain.

-A hot tub or something.

-Modern.

-Modern.

-A nice balcony.

-Games room.

We would very much like to be able to just move in,

put our furniture there and go out and enjoy the Australian lifestyle.

The family had strong ideas about what

they wanted from a house in Perth, but couldn't be sure

their budget would be enough to buy them their dream home.

Australian house prices had been rising while exchange rates

and property prices had dropped in the UK.

We gave the Orretts a taste of the housing market in Perth.

We lined up three properties based on their price range

and what they wanted from their ideal home.

Only after seeing what was on offer would we reveal how much they cost.

The first house was in the Secret Harbour area.

An hour from Perth city centre and in an established neighbourhood,

there were plenty of facilities nearby for families.

This four-bedroom house was typically Aussie in style.

-Oh, this is nice, isn't it?

-This must be the lounge.

-SAMANTHA:

-It's a big lounge, I think, though, Mum.

-Big lounge, isn't it?

-Especially when...

-I think it's quite dark, though.

-Kitchen's nice. It's got cupboards. It's got walk-in cupboards.

-Has it?

I love that.

It was sounding positive,

but would this be a house worth moving across the world for?

No, there's nothing that I've walked in and gone, like,

-"Wow, that's amazing."

-No. It hasn't got the wow factor.

It's got the sensibility factor.

But not the wow factor.

It's got "within our grasp" factor.

It wasn't a great start for the Orretts' dream,

but there was one feature that would lift their spirits.

See the pool? This is my ideal outdoor space. It's lovely.

It's not overlooked.

This would probably be a very good stepping stone property -

to feel our way over here and find out our actual needs

when we get here.

Overall, the house wasn't wowing the family,

but would it be one Stuart and Gill could see themselves living in?

Perhaps the price would make it more appealing.

OK, Sam. Would you like to do the honours?

Wow.

-That's good.

-That's cheap.

-That's OK.

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-That's acceptable.

-It's about what I thought it was probably worth.

-Yeah.

-In all honesty, so there's no shocks there.

-No.

£358,000 was well within their £500,000 budget,

-but that wasn't enough for Lauren.

-You'd be comfortable in this house?

Nah, I think it's too boring. I think there's no view.

I don't think there's anything exciting about it.

I think it's more for, like, an...old people.

Lauren was setting the bar pretty high, but Australian houses weren't

really exciting the rest of the family either.

Perhaps the second house would bring them round.

Also in Secret Harbour,

this four-bedroom house was big enough for the Orretts and had

a style that wasn't typically Aussie on the outside...or on the inside.

Ooh. That surprised me.

Expected that to be a bit more open plan there. Yeah.

There was just something about the look that wasn't working.

-It's not a typical Australian home, I feel. It's...

-Too English.

Too British.

-And things went from bad to worse.

-I'm sorry, but this is horrendous.

-Yeah.

-It's not what I'd expect to see.

Maybe the unusual feature in the open plan living room would add some appeal.

I wouldn't imagine a kitchen, dining room, snooker table

rather than a kitchen, dining room, lounge.

Luckily there was something not

so typically English to bring the family round.

-That's a nice pool. I love this pool.

-Look out.

-This bar area is...it's very usable.

-HE LAUGHS

-The outside bit, I think, is so cool.

-I like it.

While the house wasn't to everyone's taste,

the outdoor space certainly tickled the family's fancy.

But was it affordable on their £500,000 budget?

Moment of truth.

Let's see what this is all about.

-£467,000.

-No.

-AU750,000.

-No. I think that's...

No, that is well overpriced in my estimation.

It wasn't their idea of good value, but that could mean

they were overestimating what they could achieve on their budget.

It would all boil down to the last property.

Staying in Secret Harbour, the third house was closer to the beach

and surrounded by lots of open spaces.

With plenty of room for the family,

perhaps they could see themselves living in this five-bedroom house.

-That's nice, isn't it?

-MATT:

-Oh, my God.

-Oh, that's nice. Oh, my!

-You want to see this?

-SHE LAUGHS

Oh, wow.

-Now, this is an entrance, isn't it?

-This is a lot better.

-Oh, it's gorgeous, isn't it?

-Yeah, it's nice.

-Oh, my God.

It looked like they could imagine living here.

-Oh. Oh.

-Oh, my God.

-This is fab, isn't it?

Oh, it's dead good, isn't it?

-Stuart, get me a drink from the kitchen.

-This is stunning.

This is my ideal house.

-And it wasn't just the inside winning Gill over.

-Perfect.

-I need this house.

-Do you, darling?

-Yeah. I need this house.

-SHE LAUGHS

-You NEED?

-I do.

-And what do you NEED about this house?

Well, this is moving to Australia, isn't it? Look at it.

The Orretts seemed to have finally arrived.

I feel like I'm at home already.

You've got your long drive, your gates and your hammock and your...

Yeah, and my jacuzzi. And a barbecue.

I think it's...I think it's gorgeous.

I feel really comfortable here.

This house got a great reaction all around,

but there was still the small matter of the price.

Ready? OK. No sharp intake of breath.

-The house cost nearly £600,000.

-That's not bad.

-Do you know what, that is actually...

-That is not...

I thought it'd be well over 1 million.

-That's not out of our reach completely. Is it?

-No.

-Nod, Stuart.

HE LAUGHS

It's just, um...it's certainly one to think about, isn't it?

-What do you think, kids? Like the house?

-Yes.

-If we move here, I'll do all the cleaning.

-What was that, Matthew?

I'll do some cleaning.

Nice try, Matthew, but affording this house would mean taking out a large

mortgage, never mind the housework.

So what did the Orretts make of Perth houses?

The first one was within budget,

and somewhere Gill and Stuart could call home - just.

The second house was far too British in its styling

and just didn't excite.

But the third property was everything the Orretts had imagined, even if

it would mean straining their chequebook.

Based on our experience of Australian property,

we are voting for...

-UK.

-Australia!

-Australia.

-Australia.

-UK, Lauren?

-HE CHUCKLES

-Yeah.

-Why have you said that?

Because I don't think there's anything interesting.

I think that out of the three houses that we've seen, only one of them

is, like, amazing,

and the two others are like typical English houses.

And we're moving from England to, like, have a fresh start,

so what's the point of going to another house which is

exactly the...well,

pretty much similar to the one that we've got in England?

So the most expensive house would obviously

swing your judgement at the end of the day.

-Yeah.

-Just a diva.

In the UK, Stuart was running a busy catering company that he'd built

up from scratch over 20 years.

However, the recession meant the business had been suffering.

It's been a very hard slog in comparison to what it was in, like,

the glory years of maybe ten years ago.

Stuart was hoping to sell his business

and work for someone else in Australia, but it was Gill

and her paramedic qualifications that held the key to emigrating.

It's our ticket into Australia, me getting a job,

so I do feel as if there's a certain responsibility on my shoulders

at the moment for the family.

You know, I will feel quite disappointed if I let them

down by not getting a job.

In Perth, we arranged for Gill to spend some time at the St John emergency centre.

Expat Christian started off her day by showing Gill what

she could be driving.

Looks smaller than what I'm used to working on.

Absolutely. It's about half the size, I think, of a UK ambulance.

-Not a lot of room, is there?

-It's good to be short.

While Gill got to grips with an Aussie ambulance,

Stuart was off exploring his job prospects with a local catering firm.

He was hoping that becoming an employee would mean an end to

the long hours he'd been putting in back home.

So, Stuart, this is our production kitchen.

Owner Michael Davis showed Stuart around.

We have a team of staff that work over here, polish everything,

straight back on the shelf ready to go again.

I have a couple of women who work for me who would die for this.

HE LAUGHS

Stuart was in familiar territory and enjoyed the tour.

Across town, Gill was getting down to the details of being

a paramedic in Australia.

As the main breadwinner, everything would depend on her potential salary.

Christian, could you tell me how I could be expected to earn

as a paramedic with three years' experience in Western Australia?

Well, a paramedic that's worked between one

-and three years would be on about 80,700 a year.

-Oh.

-That's rather a lot more than I'm earning in the UK.

-Yeah.

That includes all your shift allowances

and all your unsocial hours.

Probably approximately double to what I'm earning at the moment in the UK.

-Yeah.

-So, yeah, very encouraging.

It is very encouraging. It's a very well paid job here.

That was great news for Gill and the Orretts' hopes of affording the move.

At the catering company, Stuart was keen to hear

if a job would mean escaping the punishing hours he put in back home.

What sort of hours do you start, finish, etc?

Particularly with weekends?

The reason that we've focused so heavily on corporate catering,

it's Monday to Friday, it's during the day.

I'm home at every night to have dinner with the kids.

We work very hard when we're at work,

but we have a fantastic balance to our life.

Sounds the sort of thing I'd like to do.

Regular hours were just what Stuart wanted,

but how would the salary compare?

We'd be looking at an average wage of about 60,000 per year.

It's certainly I'd be interested in, particularly with the hours as well.

That'd be...in my eyes, I'd be working part-time for a sensible wage,

which is something I'd be interested in.

It was a great morning for Stuart and Gill, and on meeting up,

they were excited to share their news.

So what sort of hours would you be doing?

You wouldn't be doing 5:00 in the morning starts

and work till 7:00 at night still, would you?

-No, it'd be part-time - 40 hours a week.

-SHE LAUGHS

I just couldn't believe 40 hours a week is achievable even for people

who own the company.

You know, it had to offer something pretty special to leave what I've

got in the UK, but, yeah, the salary here is double what I'm earning in the UK.

-We're on a win-win situation, by the sounds of it.

-HE LAUGHS

So when it came to working in Australia, which way did they vote?

Based on our work experience in Australia, we are voting for...

-Australia!

-Australia!

That was a surprise...not.

Gill and Stuart's work prospects in Australia were looking promising, but

taking a hard look at their finances could be an unwelcome wake-up call.

Renting in the UK meant they weren't relying on the sale of a house,

so they could go straight to the cost of living.

We provide a breakdown of their expenses.

It was now time for them to work out

-if they could actually afford to live down under.

-Oh, bacon's cheaper.

-You'd be all right for your bacon butties in the morning.

-That's it.

I'd probably spend £90.87 in the UK.

And the same shop here would cost me £137.67 a week,

which makes...I'll be spending £46.80 a week more.

-So it's probably £180 a month.

-Yeah, rounding up.

The cost of a weekly food shop wasn't the best start.

Next came the bigger costs.

So we have a monthly income figure of £5,644.67,

which basically gives us

£1,144.67 increase by living in Australia per month.

It was a healthy boost in income, but basing the figures on the cheapest

house they saw, would it allow them to take on a bigger mortgage?

So we'd be £74 a month worse off living in Australia.

Quite a surprise to me considering my income's increased an awful lot.

I think this is probably mainly due the mortgage costs

'cause the interest rates here on mortgages are more expensive.

Shock, no. Reality check, yes.

£74 a month wasn't a huge amount,

so on paper it was looking like the Orretts could afford Australia,

but only if they opted for the house they least liked.

Was that a sacrifice worth making?

Based on our reality check, we are voting for...

-Australia.

-Undecided.

Why have you voted Australia?

We're not going to be much worse off, but we are going to benefit

from, you know, obviously from seeing our grandchild, the weather.

The whole lifestyle here will benefit us as a family.

Seeing their living costs in black and white was a shock for Gill,

but a move down under was always about being together as a family.

With Stuart working long hours and Gill doing shifts in the UK,

spending time outdoors was rare and limited by the British weather.

The Orretts visited Fremantle Harbour to enjoy one of their favourite activities -

a spot of fishing.

It would offer a taste of what Australia could be about for them.

Our motivation to move here is to change our lifestyle.

It's to spend more time outside as a family.

As the kids grow up, we'll start to lose the communication with them

and they'll start going their own way,

so it's important for us to have the last couple of years

we can with them as family doing things we all enjoy, really.

-SHE LAUGHS

-Hey, hey! Lovely!

-SHE LAUGHS, SCREAMS

-Oh, it's a tiny one.

All right. Thank you.

The Australian weather was helping the Orretts experience

the kind of outdoor lifestyle they could enjoy together, but it also

brought home for them just how big a decision they still faced.

We're here at the moment enjoying this wonderful lifestyle,

and I'm really...I'm trying to put family in the UK to

the back of my mind.

Particularly don't know how Stuart's going to deal with it

with his parents.

I'm very close to my parents and...they've always been

there for me and I've always been there for them.

To take that safety blanket away is going to be a big, big, you know,

wrench for me particularly.

So would the Orretts be hooked by the lifestyle

they could enjoy down under?

We've had a fantastic day fishing today,

and based on the Australian lifestyle, we are voting for...

-GILL, SAMANTHA AND LAUREN:

-Australia!

-STUART AND MATT:

-Undecided!

-Oh. Why?

-SHE LAUGHS

-Cos you didn't catch any fish.

-Sore losers.

SHE CHEERS

Voting against the girls just because they caught less fish?

That's what I call unsporting!

Emigrating would mean the Orretts

saying goodbye to loved ones in the UK.

The family decided to watch messages from friends and family together.

Would it make them rethink their move?

Hi, Stuart. Hi, Gill. Hi, kids.

-Hope you're having a great time there.

-Hi, Stu.

-Hello, Stu.

Hope you're enjoying yourself.

-Hello!

-Hello!

-Yay!

-We miss you.

Gill and Stuart and the family, they're very supportive of each other

and very caring towards each other.

They're great fun to be with,

they're committed 100% to whatever they're doing.

And, well, Stuart, I'd say, is like his mother - he's soft.

-It's true.

-He takes everybody's worries on himself. You know?

He's a good-hearted lad. Very good-hearted.

She's been my best friend since I was four and stuff

and it's going to be, like, a big part of my life, like, gone, yeah.

-We really felt...

-It wasn't going to be a holiday.

..we'd better be prepared because we're going to be told they're going

to want to go to Australia.

To think they're all going so far away, it is pretty difficult.

-We would really miss them, wouldn't we?

-Yeah, we would.

It's only when they're packing and they go,

we'll sit down and we'll realise they've gone.

And...and that's that initial link gone.

Oh, come on.

The reality check I'm seeing - friends and family -

is...so hard to take on board, really,

because you do tend to think that they're always going to be there.

And as much as they're there, they're a long way away.

We knew we'd have to make this choice between being

there for our parents and being here for our kids and our grandchildren.

-Yeah.

-It's a tough one.

A really tough one.

The week had shown the Orretts the heartache of missing family back home

had to weighed up against a huge positive.

Seeing Olivia born and obviously just a few days old,

how she changes every day is something that...can only, you know,

make you beam inside with happiness

and pleasure more than anything else.

The thought of not seeing that is very daunting

and not a thought I'd like to dwell on too much.

I still do worry when we do get on that plane,

if that's the decision we make, what are we leaving behind?

Will they be able to make this journey out here to see us?

Particularly Stuart's parents, who don't travel that well these days.

Hits home exactly how hard it is.

Being so close to them...

I don't know. It's, um...it's going to be a very hard decision to make.

There will always be the daily contact with them, no matter what.

It's just for the emergency times it's going to be hard.

So...

It was time to vote.

Would everyone have been convinced to make the move,

or would the Orretts remain divided across the globe?

We've had a fantastic week in Australia,

and based on our experiences, we have decided to live in...

-STUART, MATT, GILL AND SAMANTHA:

-Australia!

-Undecided.

-You're undecided, Lauren?

-Have you decided Australia?

-I've decided.

-SAMANTHA:

-Why did you say that?

-Cos I don't know. Still unsure.

I knew you'd be like that.

Like, now being here and now, like, seeing back with my friends

and everything, I'm just unsure.

-That's

-all right. How about you, Gill?

Just got to give it a go for the kids. For our grandchildren.

If we don't try it, we'll never know, will we?

I think Lauren could probably be convinced about the move.

I think it's just seeing your friends that's reminded

you about what you have got in the UK.

-Does make you a bit sad, doesn't it?

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

I just have to bring them all along. Put them in a suitcase.

I think the decisions have obviously spoke volumes for the family's

thoughts overall.

Weighing up all the pros and cons of what we have to do and...I think

we've got to make the decision, which we have done, and go for it.

-HE LAUGHS

-Yeah!

-Yay!

After a week of emotional highs and lows,

daughter Lauren still hasn't been convinced about a move.

But Gill and Stuart seem determined to reunite their family on the other

side of the world.

So, one year on, where are they now?

It's 2013, and the Orretts are living in...

..the UK.

Their week down under convinced Stuart

and Gill that Australia was where they wanted to be.

It was good stepping off the plane in Perth.

Felt as if we were stepping off the plane in Manchester.

Although you couldn't believe you were the other side of the world.

and not ever being there before, it was really...felt as

if you were at home, really, the minute you arrived there.

And being introduced to the couple's first granddaughter, Olivia,

was a special moment for the whole family.

Meeting our granddaughter for the first time was absolutely perfect.

To have that time with her when she was just born, seeing her just born,

it was...it was really great.

When they arrived back home, Gill

and Stuart were desperate to return to Australia as soon as they could.

We felt as if we really wanted to pack and go back again, didn't we?

And it looked like that was going to happen quickly -

paramedic Gill had a job interview at the end of the family's

stay in Perth, and received great news on her return to the UK.

When we arrived home,

one of the first things I did was check my emails and I was quite

excited because I'd passed the interview that I'd had

while we were out there, and everything was set in order,

and they said, "The next stage will be to start the visa process,"

and it was pencilled in to actually start on the 3rd of February.

In our own minds, we were all really quite excited to go over there

and Christine and Karl were really looking forward to having us over there.

Daughter Lauren had proved a sticking point.

She voted undecided in Australia, and a new boyfriend meant getting

her on board with a move could prove even more difficult.

When I got home, me and my boyfriend got together, and unfortunately,

he had to move out in September to America.

And, like, we've been back and forth.

Like, he's been back in England and we've been to see him.

But despite her long-distance relationship,

Lauren's had a change of heart about the move down under.

I do want to go out to Australia for a couple of months.

Like, the first few weeks will feel like a holiday,

and then, like, settle in a bit more,

see what it would be like as, like, a lifestyle out there.

I think Lauren is too much of a daddy's girl to not be with us.

We're too much of a close family to be apart for too long.

She may come for a year and then she may, you know,

be off somewhere else, whether it be America or...

But she'll always bounce back to wherever we are.

With Lauren coming round and Gill's job offer in hand, everyone was

excited about the prospect of being reunited as a family in Perth.

The Orretts started packing up their life in the UK.

So we did sort...started phoning a few removal companies and making

a few plans and packing a few boxes and...started to declutter the house

-a little bit, didn't we?

-Uh, yes.

Yes.

Which we knew was going to take quite a while.

And we did think, "Oh, gosh.

"Maybe this is going to be a reality."

Gill being her organised self started to pack and sell

and declutter and move out, and basically,

if it wasn't nailed down, it was sold.

And it wasn't only Stuart that saw possessions disappear.

My mum's been selling quite a lot of stuff.

Like, I think I had a desk, and she sold that.

So...I had to use, like, a plastic one.

It looked like the whole family was on its way to a new

life in Australia, but a devastating message from Gill's future employer

brought everything to a grinding halt.

Just before Christmas, I received an e-mail...a very apologetic e-mail that

due to their workforce requirements, they were unable to give me

a start date, but would be in touch in the future.

Um..."in the future" in Western Australia, as we've learned,

could mean anything from one month to 12 months and more.

We were really flat.

We've been looking forward to going for so long.

You know, it's like looking forward to going on a fabulous holiday

and then, you know, the plane breaks down and you can't go.

And there was more bad news to come.

My dad passed away at the beginning of the year.

If Gill's start date hadn't been postponed,

Stuart would have missed the chance to say goodbye to his dad.

And when we looked at it,

we would've been on the plane or had just arrived in Australia to

start our new life when his father was in intensive care here,

so...ironic as it was, in a way, we were glad we were still here.

It was a double tragedy for the family.

They'd come so close, but the loss of Stuart's father and Gill's job offer

being put on hold blew their plans out of the water.

You know, at the time, we wondered...how unfair...

We felt as if we saw the new life within touching distance

and then had the rug pulled under us.

But then...when this happened, we were glad that we were here.

Obviously, you know, we didn't know this was going to happen.

And...time does catch up on everybody.

You basically have to make your decisions, stick by them

and live with them.

With any decisions that we've made, either now or for the future, it is

for the future that we have to think of.

With the future in mind

and the thought of missing granddaughter Olivia growing up, the

Orretts are now more determined than ever to make the move down under.

She's changing all the time.

You know, we've noticed since we've come back from Australia

and speaking to her on the internet, the way she's changed.

And to miss those early days is something that we don't really want to miss.

And we want to be part of her life.

We want to be there when she grows up.

We want her to understand who we are rather than just

-the people on the television screen.

-That's it.

And it's not just Stuart

and Gill who are keen to see more of the family's youngest member.

I think since I have got back, with my niece being over there,

how much she's grown and she's, like,

being her own little personality now, that, like,

it's...I'm missing out on that type thing.

Kiss bye. Kiss. Kiss!

-Oh, look - she's kissing bye.

-SHE LAUGHS

Mwah.

But until Gill's offer of work comes through, the family have no choice

but to stay put and play the waiting game.

We feel as if...since my start date was deferred, we're in limbo.

We're in complete limbo. We don't...

We keep...we feel as if we can't book a holiday in case

I get a phone call.

We really do feel as if we're, like, teetering on the edge of a cliff,

and we want to make that leap, and we can't at the moment.

It's extremely frustrating for us, as I've decluttered the house

and packed a few boxes and we have family and friends saying to us

continually, "Are you still here?" Don't they?

Cos they thought we were going.

They might still be in the UK, but Gill

and Stuart are convinced the move is the best thing for their family.

We are making our decisions for our children as my parents

and Gill's parents would've made for us.

As a parent, you've got to make tough decisions sometimes,

and this is one of them.

And as it goes forward, we will see

whether it was the right or wrong decision, but we'll do it.

We'll suck it and see and...live with the consequences.

While daughter Samantha's still working on cruise ships,

she'll be able to catch up with her family from time to time.

It doesn't matter where we are - she'll be quite happy.

She travels the world now on a regular basis,

so...being in Australia or being in the UK...

The only nice thing is she won't see as much rain, and she doesn't like the rain.

She doesn't like coming home to the rain or the snow,

so...she's definitely a warm person.

And as for Matthew, the move can't come fast enough.

It really is frustrating not knowing when you're going to Australia, cos I just want to get out there.

People are asking me when I'm going and blah-blah-blah.

It just starts to get annoying after a while.

So I just want to get out there and go.

Matthew, like the rest of the family,

is just waiting on that crucial call confirming Jill's job is back on.

He comes in every day from school, "Have you heard? Have you heard yet?"

And...I just keep saying, "Trust me, you'll know when I heard.

"I'll be the one walking round with the billabong on me hat."

Um...and it is very frustrating.

So the Orretts are ploughing ahead with their plans to move lock,

stock and barrel to the other side of the world.

Stuart's already sold a good chunk of his business.

-So he's, um...scaled that down.

-It's ready.

I mean, we are in the situation that if we get a phone call,

we are ready to move very, very quickly.

Should we get the call, we'll have a last-minute party and off we go.

And Stuart's excited about his job prospects down under.

Stuart can't wait to get out there.

I mean, he's...you know, for the first time in 20 years,

he saw options that he hasn't seen in the UK.

He hasn't felt as if there has been any options as to working the way

he works, being self-employed here.

And it gave him a tremendous confidence boost

when he spoke to corporate catering companies, because they welcomed him

with open arms and they would welcome his experience.

Job prospects out there, there seem to be an abundance, a variety.

And that's really nice to do,

because I know obviously being in the catering environment

for the past 20-odd years, a change can be as good as a rest.

And, uh...I enjoy a little challenge and that sort of thing,

so maybe we'll diversify and see where we can end up.

The Orretts hope to be reunited in Perth sooner rather than later.

I mean, we hope to be out there

within the next sort of six or seven months.

Secretly, we'd like to be out there in the next three or four months,

but because we've had this disappointment,

we're not getting our hopes up.

But we're ready to go whenever they want us.

We won't really as feel as if we're going to be moving out

there until we're sat in Manchester Airport waiting for the plane

because it's been such a long road.

You know, anybody who's thinking of emigrating to Australia,

it's not going to happen in five minutes. It does take a long time.

Hopefully the long wait will be worth it.

I personally don't question whether we made the right decision.

The decisions were made on the positive points for the children.

They can have their future there, and their future certainly seems

a lot brighter out there than it is in the UK at the moment.

And...just very exciting to go out there

and hopefully live the life in the sunshine and enjoy it to the full.

-I think we'll be doing an awful lot of

-baby-sitting. Will you?

THEY LAUGH

After everything the Orretts have been through,

they remain determined to be reunited as a family in Australia.

We'll keep our finger crossed that Gill's job offer finally comes

through and that their dream becomes a reality.