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After years spent working abroad, | 0:00:02 | 0:00:03 | |
you're more than happy to finally be back home. | 0:00:03 | 0:00:06 | |
Your partner, though, wants a new life | 0:00:06 | 0:00:08 | |
and already has a job offer on the other side of the world. | 0:00:08 | 0:00:13 | |
Would you sacrifice everything that keeps you content to allow | 0:00:13 | 0:00:16 | |
them to follow their dream? | 0:00:16 | 0:00:18 | |
Air traffic controller Andrew Crompton thinks his family's | 0:00:21 | 0:00:23 | |
life could really take off in Australia. | 0:00:23 | 0:00:26 | |
This opportunity is once in a lifetime. | 0:00:26 | 0:00:29 | |
All he needs to do now is convince wife Gemma to give up | 0:00:29 | 0:00:32 | |
everything she loves in the UK. | 0:00:32 | 0:00:35 | |
It's starting a new life. | 0:00:35 | 0:00:37 | |
Everything is from scratch. | 0:00:37 | 0:00:39 | |
So when a trial week reveals some home truths... | 0:00:39 | 0:00:42 | |
That's insane? | 0:00:44 | 0:00:47 | |
..will Gemma be persuaded to green-light Andrew's dream or | 0:00:47 | 0:00:50 | |
keep the family grounded in the UK? | 0:00:50 | 0:00:52 | |
How do you choose between a life you love and the man you love and | 0:00:54 | 0:00:57 | |
what he wants from his life? | 0:00:57 | 0:01:00 | |
Home to over a million expats, Australia's long been | 0:01:28 | 0:01:31 | |
the destination of choice for British families on the move. | 0:01:31 | 0:01:35 | |
Promising average annual temperatures of 21 degrees, | 0:01:35 | 0:01:38 | |
some of the best features on the planet | 0:01:38 | 0:01:41 | |
and a world-famous laid-back lifestyle, it's easy to see | 0:01:41 | 0:01:44 | |
the attraction for the thousands who emigrate there every year. | 0:01:44 | 0:01:48 | |
But it isn't idyllic for everyone who makes the move. | 0:01:48 | 0:01:51 | |
Almost half return home with their dream in tatters. | 0:01:51 | 0:01:54 | |
Former Naval Officer Gemma Crompton is used to navigating her way | 0:01:57 | 0:02:01 | |
through stormy situations, | 0:02:01 | 0:02:03 | |
but her most challenging journey yet is on the horizon. | 0:02:03 | 0:02:07 | |
While she is happy with a new career and life in the English | 0:02:07 | 0:02:11 | |
countryside, husband Andrew has a very different outlook. | 0:02:11 | 0:02:15 | |
He is convinced his family will be better off living in Australia. | 0:02:15 | 0:02:20 | |
With a job offer already on the table, | 0:02:20 | 0:02:22 | |
it is crunch time for the Cromptons. | 0:02:22 | 0:02:25 | |
In just one week, can Andrew steer Gemma towards the life | 0:02:25 | 0:02:29 | |
he's wanted for years? | 0:02:29 | 0:02:31 | |
The family's first ever visit to Australia gets underway with | 0:02:32 | 0:02:35 | |
just over 22 hours in the sky flying from London | 0:02:35 | 0:02:39 | |
to Brisbane with stopovers in Dubai and Sydney. | 0:02:39 | 0:02:42 | |
When they finally arrive, Andrew admits it has been quite a journey. | 0:02:42 | 0:02:46 | |
It was pretty long. | 0:02:47 | 0:02:49 | |
It was quite tiring trying to grab a few hours' sleep. | 0:02:49 | 0:02:52 | |
Now he's here, Andrew is excited about the week ahead. | 0:02:54 | 0:02:58 | |
It is really warm, | 0:02:58 | 0:02:59 | |
I am loving it, so I can't wait to see where we get to go. | 0:02:59 | 0:03:02 | |
-It is better than England. -Better than England? You are right. | 0:03:02 | 0:03:05 | |
Your five-minute experience of Australia. | 0:03:05 | 0:03:09 | |
And that is all it took. | 0:03:09 | 0:03:11 | |
Henry is on board already but Gemma is going to take | 0:03:11 | 0:03:13 | |
a lot more work despite the sunshine. | 0:03:13 | 0:03:17 | |
It makes it a lot more appealing, but as far as moving | 0:03:17 | 0:03:21 | |
my entire life here, I am still... I still need to be convinced. | 0:03:21 | 0:03:25 | |
As they take their first steps into Brisbane, Andrew knows where | 0:03:28 | 0:03:32 | |
his family will spend the rest of their lives is anything but certain. | 0:03:32 | 0:03:36 | |
Back in the UK, the Crompton family live in Fishburn in County Durham. | 0:03:42 | 0:03:46 | |
They are dad Andrew, mum Gemma, | 0:03:46 | 0:03:48 | |
seven-year-old Henry and five-year-old Matilda. | 0:03:48 | 0:03:51 | |
Andrew and Gemma met in the Royal Navy 15 years ago. | 0:03:53 | 0:03:57 | |
Andrew stayed on dry land while Gemma sailed the world | 0:03:58 | 0:04:01 | |
deployed to conflicts such as Iraq and Afghanistan. | 0:04:01 | 0:04:04 | |
Andrew then became a civil air-traffic controller and after | 0:04:06 | 0:04:09 | |
six years at sea, Gemma retrained as a radiographer. | 0:04:09 | 0:04:13 | |
-Right, we are going to make chocolate brownies. -Yay! | 0:04:14 | 0:04:17 | |
Now parents to Henry and Matilda, Gemma loves being permanently | 0:04:17 | 0:04:21 | |
on home turf. | 0:04:21 | 0:04:23 | |
Having been in the Navy and travelled the world as much | 0:04:23 | 0:04:25 | |
as I have, it made me really appreciate the UK | 0:04:25 | 0:04:29 | |
and convinced I would stay here forever. | 0:04:29 | 0:04:32 | |
Not if Andrew has his way, though. | 0:04:33 | 0:04:36 | |
Seeing an advert for air-traffic controllers in Brisbane | 0:04:36 | 0:04:40 | |
set him thinking about a new life on the other side of the world. | 0:04:40 | 0:04:44 | |
He got in the car and said, "Australia are recruiting, | 0:04:44 | 0:04:47 | |
"do you want to move there?" I said I am not going. | 0:04:47 | 0:04:50 | |
Despite Gemma's reluctance, Andrew went ahead and applied for | 0:04:50 | 0:04:54 | |
the position and months later he has landed himself a job offer. | 0:04:54 | 0:04:57 | |
I've been through all the testing that is required and as long as | 0:04:59 | 0:05:02 | |
I successfully complete my training, I will be accepted for the job. | 0:05:02 | 0:05:07 | |
Andrew is now determined to put the country on Gemma's radar. | 0:05:07 | 0:05:11 | |
Everything about it just screams this would be | 0:05:12 | 0:05:15 | |
a great place to go to. | 0:05:15 | 0:05:17 | |
The opportunities for the children as they grow up | 0:05:17 | 0:05:20 | |
far outweigh the opportunities that are in the UK. | 0:05:20 | 0:05:24 | |
We are outdoors people and being in a climate like Australia, | 0:05:24 | 0:05:28 | |
that would afford us all the more opportunity to do that. | 0:05:28 | 0:05:31 | |
The only thing standing between Andrew and the life he wants | 0:05:35 | 0:05:38 | |
is Gemma. | 0:05:38 | 0:05:40 | |
It is difficult knowing that Gemma is very happy with our life here. | 0:05:40 | 0:05:44 | |
If you had asked me last year if I would move to Australia, | 0:05:46 | 0:05:50 | |
I would have said never, I will never move to Australia. | 0:05:50 | 0:05:53 | |
Gemma is happy with life in the UK. | 0:05:55 | 0:05:58 | |
Dedicated to her new career, she is passionate about practising | 0:05:58 | 0:06:01 | |
tae kwon do at her local club and has a close-knit group of friends. | 0:06:01 | 0:06:05 | |
Convincing her to give all that up will be a massive challenge. | 0:06:05 | 0:06:09 | |
I don't know if I could make the sacrifices. | 0:06:11 | 0:06:14 | |
I find it all very unsettling that I knew exactly where my life | 0:06:14 | 0:06:18 | |
was going and I was going to work for promotion in the hospitals | 0:06:18 | 0:06:21 | |
I was in and stay there until I retired. | 0:06:21 | 0:06:24 | |
Moving half the world away would also mean spitting Gemma from | 0:06:24 | 0:06:27 | |
sister Joanne, who she sees every day, and that prospect is | 0:06:27 | 0:06:31 | |
already causing heartache. | 0:06:31 | 0:06:32 | |
She has been extremely emotional about it. | 0:06:35 | 0:06:38 | |
Out of everybody, she would be the one that is hard to leave. | 0:06:40 | 0:06:44 | |
We're best friends. | 0:06:44 | 0:06:46 | |
She makes me laugh. | 0:06:50 | 0:06:52 | |
I can tell her anything and I can rely on her and she knows me | 0:06:52 | 0:06:56 | |
inside out and to be able to just turn up at somebody's house | 0:06:56 | 0:06:59 | |
and have that is really, really special. | 0:06:59 | 0:07:01 | |
The couple are at polar opposites when it comes to where they | 0:07:02 | 0:07:05 | |
should be living, but Andrew's job offer means it is now decision time. | 0:07:05 | 0:07:10 | |
In one week, Gemma will face an agonising choice between | 0:07:10 | 0:07:13 | |
the life she loves and the one her husband is longing for. | 0:07:13 | 0:07:17 | |
This opportunity is once in a lifetime. | 0:07:17 | 0:07:20 | |
If we don't go now, we never will go and I think if we didn't even | 0:07:20 | 0:07:23 | |
attempt to go, we will regret it for the rest of our lives. | 0:07:23 | 0:07:27 | |
How do you choose between a life you love and the man you love | 0:07:27 | 0:07:32 | |
and what he wants from his life? | 0:07:32 | 0:07:34 | |
To find out where their future lies, | 0:07:42 | 0:07:44 | |
the family are visiting Queensland in the north-east of Australia. | 0:07:44 | 0:07:49 | |
Often referred to as the Sunshine State, | 0:07:49 | 0:07:51 | |
it is the second-largest and third most populated state in the country. | 0:07:51 | 0:07:55 | |
Their temporary base is the suburb of Buddina just | 0:07:56 | 0:07:59 | |
over 60 miles north of Brisbane on the Sunshine Coast. | 0:07:59 | 0:08:03 | |
But will their first glimpse of Aussie living be enough to | 0:08:03 | 0:08:06 | |
get Gemma excited? | 0:08:06 | 0:08:07 | |
-Woo! -It has only got a pool. Wow. -We have got our very own swimming pool. | 0:08:09 | 0:08:16 | |
-This is unbelievable. -Don't start crying. -No. | 0:08:16 | 0:08:21 | |
I just feel a bit overwhelmed because I didn't expect | 0:08:21 | 0:08:24 | |
anything this amazing and grand and luxurious. | 0:08:24 | 0:08:29 | |
Inside is impressive too. | 0:08:32 | 0:08:35 | |
-This is the biggest front door I have ever seen in my life. -Whoa! | 0:08:35 | 0:08:40 | |
-Oh, my goodness. -What could be upstairs? | 0:08:43 | 0:08:46 | |
I don't know because all the bedrooms are downstairs. | 0:08:46 | 0:08:50 | |
Its location might be surprising, | 0:08:50 | 0:08:52 | |
-but the main living area is an instant hit. -Oh, my goodness. | 0:08:52 | 0:08:56 | |
-This is amazing. -Isn't it? | 0:08:57 | 0:09:01 | |
You can see the sea. | 0:09:01 | 0:09:04 | |
With the beach on their doorstep, | 0:09:04 | 0:09:06 | |
the family can't wait to feel the sand between their toes. | 0:09:06 | 0:09:09 | |
Andrew is already feeling more confident about the week ahead. | 0:09:11 | 0:09:15 | |
I think we have got out the traps quite well. | 0:09:15 | 0:09:17 | |
I think this was pretty much spot on the money for the start. | 0:09:17 | 0:09:21 | |
I think it will be a bit of a rollercoaster, but after today, | 0:09:21 | 0:09:24 | |
I can't see us going too far backwards. | 0:09:24 | 0:09:27 | |
It can only get better. | 0:09:27 | 0:09:29 | |
But despite her earlier enthusiasm, | 0:09:30 | 0:09:33 | |
Gemma is already thinking about the decision she will soon face. | 0:09:33 | 0:09:37 | |
Do I sacrifice their family and their relationships with their | 0:09:37 | 0:09:41 | |
grandparents and my relationships to come and live somewhere sunny? | 0:09:41 | 0:09:45 | |
Is it that shallow? | 0:09:45 | 0:09:47 | |
Or is this really a better life for us? | 0:09:47 | 0:09:49 | |
And if the answer to that really is yes, the answer will be easy. | 0:09:49 | 0:09:53 | |
If I'm still on the fence at the end of the week, | 0:09:53 | 0:09:56 | |
then it's going to be a much different question, I think. | 0:09:56 | 0:09:59 | |
In the UK, home for the Cromptons is a modern four-bedroom | 0:10:06 | 0:10:09 | |
detached house in Fishburn in County Durham. | 0:10:09 | 0:10:13 | |
If Andrew can convince Gemma to make the move, | 0:10:13 | 0:10:16 | |
their budget for a property in Australia is around £300,000. | 0:10:16 | 0:10:22 | |
I'm hoping that if we did go, the house would be less important. | 0:10:22 | 0:10:26 | |
So it would be more of location - close to beaches, | 0:10:26 | 0:10:29 | |
close to parks, close to things that we can do. | 0:10:29 | 0:10:31 | |
As long as it has got a decent bit of outside space, | 0:10:31 | 0:10:34 | |
I don't think there's any real... Nothing would be a show stopper. | 0:10:34 | 0:10:37 | |
My ideal home, we would love to have a pool and a large garden. | 0:10:37 | 0:10:42 | |
With one of those shoe racks that rotates. | 0:10:42 | 0:10:45 | |
All right, don't push the boat out. | 0:10:45 | 0:10:47 | |
To find out what kind of house they could actually have in | 0:10:50 | 0:10:53 | |
Australia, today we'll show the Cromptons three properties, | 0:10:53 | 0:10:56 | |
two on budget and a third which could be their dream home. | 0:10:56 | 0:11:01 | |
Only after they have seen each one, will they find out what it costs. | 0:11:01 | 0:11:05 | |
The family's search begins in Pelican Waters. | 0:11:05 | 0:11:08 | |
Nice isn't the right word! | 0:11:08 | 0:11:10 | |
Unbelievable. | 0:11:10 | 0:11:11 | |
Situated in the heart of Caloundra, this area is around | 0:11:11 | 0:11:15 | |
an hour-and-a-half north of Brisbane but | 0:11:15 | 0:11:17 | |
only minutes from Sunshine Coast beaches. | 0:11:17 | 0:11:20 | |
Offering a wide range of coastal and sporting activities, | 0:11:20 | 0:11:23 | |
the location should appeal to Andrew and Gemma. | 0:11:23 | 0:11:26 | |
But will the house be on their wavelength too? | 0:11:26 | 0:11:29 | |
-What do you think? I'm liking it, I am liking it. -So far, so good. -Wow. | 0:11:30 | 0:11:35 | |
-THEY GASP -Wow. | 0:11:35 | 0:11:38 | |
-Oh, I love it. -The modern interiors win Gemma over straight away. | 0:11:38 | 0:11:42 | |
This is absolutely sensational. | 0:11:42 | 0:11:45 | |
-Open-plan living. -Yeah. | 0:11:45 | 0:11:48 | |
This home's living area opens out onto a large garden, | 0:11:48 | 0:11:51 | |
just what the couple were hoping for. | 0:11:51 | 0:11:54 | |
I love this outside space. | 0:11:55 | 0:11:57 | |
This is really the thing that gets me excited. | 0:11:57 | 0:12:01 | |
The garden has plenty of room to roam and discovering it backs | 0:12:01 | 0:12:05 | |
onto a golf club, there is little to dent enthusiasm. | 0:12:05 | 0:12:08 | |
You feel like you're in the country even though you're in this | 0:12:08 | 0:12:11 | |
big housing estate because you look over the golf course and | 0:12:11 | 0:12:14 | |
it's trees and it's quiet. | 0:12:14 | 0:12:16 | |
Moving back inside to check out the bedrooms, | 0:12:16 | 0:12:18 | |
Andrew's chances of convincing Gemma seem to be on the up. | 0:12:18 | 0:12:22 | |
This is going to be the bedrooms. | 0:12:22 | 0:12:25 | |
-I think I just spied a walk-in wardrobe. -Wow. | 0:12:25 | 0:12:28 | |
-The master bedroom with ensuite is a definite hit. -His and hers sinks. | 0:12:30 | 0:12:34 | |
-That is what you have always wanted. -I know. I can have my untidy side. | 0:12:34 | 0:12:39 | |
And decent-sized bedrooms for the children go down well too. | 0:12:39 | 0:12:42 | |
Ooh. I think this could be Tilda's room. | 0:12:42 | 0:12:46 | |
This is actually what you need, it is not too big, | 0:12:46 | 0:12:49 | |
it has got great outside space. Come on, you guys. | 0:12:49 | 0:12:54 | |
And finally, a space for the boys. | 0:12:54 | 0:12:57 | |
Look at the size of this garage. | 0:12:57 | 0:12:59 | |
Everything is just so big. It's just the scale. | 0:12:59 | 0:13:02 | |
It's like a little maze, this house, isn't it? | 0:13:04 | 0:13:07 | |
It is the first place they've viewed, but it looks like | 0:13:07 | 0:13:09 | |
this is somewhere the Cromptons could be comfortable. | 0:13:09 | 0:13:13 | |
Is it affordable, though, with their £300,000 budget? | 0:13:13 | 0:13:16 | |
Henry, what do you think? | 0:13:16 | 0:13:18 | |
1,284 or something. | 0:13:18 | 0:13:21 | |
1,284? That would be great. | 0:13:21 | 0:13:24 | |
-I'll take it. -It is immaculate, you could just move straight in. | 0:13:24 | 0:13:28 | |
It is, yeah. | 0:13:28 | 0:13:29 | |
Time to find out how much it costs. | 0:13:29 | 0:13:32 | |
-OK, this is it, Tilda. -Turn it over. | 0:13:35 | 0:13:39 | |
-Ooh. -Ooh. | 0:13:39 | 0:13:41 | |
-So pretty much top of our budget. -But doable. -Yeah. | 0:13:41 | 0:13:47 | |
It is doable. | 0:13:47 | 0:13:48 | |
But if I was going top of the budget, | 0:13:48 | 0:13:51 | |
we'd need a bigger guest room. | 0:13:51 | 0:13:53 | |
-I am a bit disappointed actually at how much that is. -Really? | 0:13:53 | 0:13:56 | |
In my heart, I was hoping it would be a bit more affordable which would | 0:13:56 | 0:13:59 | |
give us a bit more kind of leeway to look at something slightly bigger. | 0:13:59 | 0:14:04 | |
-I think it is what we expected, though. -Yeah. Right, come on then. | 0:14:04 | 0:14:08 | |
Despite positive reactions to the house, | 0:14:08 | 0:14:10 | |
the price has disappointed Gemma. | 0:14:10 | 0:14:12 | |
If Andrew is to convince her to make the move, the next property | 0:14:12 | 0:14:15 | |
will need to deliver what Gemma wants | 0:14:15 | 0:14:17 | |
at a price she is happy to pay. | 0:14:17 | 0:14:19 | |
To find out, the family travel to Maleny, | 0:14:20 | 0:14:23 | |
a quaint town situated in the heart of the Sunshine Coast. | 0:14:23 | 0:14:27 | |
Surrounded by mountains and lush green hills, | 0:14:27 | 0:14:29 | |
the area combines countryside with coastal living. | 0:14:29 | 0:14:32 | |
But will this traditional character home be made-to-measure for | 0:14:32 | 0:14:35 | |
the Cromptons? | 0:14:35 | 0:14:37 | |
-Look at that. -You could get a nice rocking chair on this deck. | 0:14:38 | 0:14:43 | |
Gemma can see herself enjoying a seat in the sunshine, | 0:14:43 | 0:14:46 | |
but will inside be as appealing? | 0:14:46 | 0:14:49 | |
Let's have a look. | 0:14:49 | 0:14:51 | |
It is a little bit old. | 0:14:51 | 0:14:53 | |
Andrew is not as concerned about the dated decor. | 0:14:53 | 0:14:56 | |
I like the log burner. | 0:14:56 | 0:14:58 | |
Didn't even notice the log burner because the chair was in the way. | 0:14:58 | 0:15:02 | |
The kitchen has one pleasing aspect. | 0:15:02 | 0:15:05 | |
Oh, yeah, I like the kitchen. | 0:15:05 | 0:15:07 | |
My goodness. | 0:15:07 | 0:15:09 | |
This might change my view of this house. | 0:15:10 | 0:15:13 | |
Gemma could be coming round. | 0:15:13 | 0:15:15 | |
If you just take out the chairs and the pictures, then wow, | 0:15:17 | 0:15:21 | |
it could be amazing, couldn't it? | 0:15:21 | 0:15:24 | |
Will the bedrooms be to her liking too? | 0:15:24 | 0:15:27 | |
Wow. | 0:15:27 | 0:15:28 | |
-Mummy, this is mine and your bedroom. -Mine and your bedroom? | 0:15:28 | 0:15:32 | |
Where is Daddy going to sleep? In the garden? | 0:15:32 | 0:15:35 | |
Might be some negotiating to do over sleeping arrangements but is | 0:15:35 | 0:15:39 | |
-the en-suite worth fighting over? -Not quite in our taste. | 0:15:39 | 0:15:44 | |
No, it is a bit out-of-date, I think. | 0:15:44 | 0:15:47 | |
The house might need upgrading but the generous gardens could be | 0:15:47 | 0:15:50 | |
a big selling point. | 0:15:50 | 0:15:51 | |
It is all about this view, isn't it? | 0:15:51 | 0:15:54 | |
It is an impressive outlook and Andrew has spotted something | 0:15:54 | 0:15:58 | |
which could please Gemma. | 0:15:58 | 0:16:01 | |
-Gem, it is a granny flat. -Oh, my goodness. | 0:16:01 | 0:16:03 | |
-Check it out. -I just love this garden. | 0:16:03 | 0:16:08 | |
A studio cottage with its own kitchen and bathroom could be the | 0:16:08 | 0:16:11 | |
perfect home from home for visitors. | 0:16:11 | 0:16:14 | |
This is lovely. Oh, yeah. | 0:16:14 | 0:16:18 | |
-This is amazing. -This is fabulous. | 0:16:18 | 0:16:21 | |
The furniture and fittings are more to Gemma's style. | 0:16:22 | 0:16:25 | |
This bathroom is nice. This is nicer than the main house. | 0:16:25 | 0:16:28 | |
Ooh! | 0:16:28 | 0:16:30 | |
And the property's half-acre of gardens | 0:16:32 | 0:16:35 | |
has taken Gemma's breath away. | 0:16:35 | 0:16:37 | |
Let's have a quick look down here because this is absolutely colossal. | 0:16:37 | 0:16:41 | |
We have found a football pitch. | 0:16:41 | 0:16:44 | |
I love this. I love this. | 0:16:44 | 0:16:46 | |
This is fabulous. | 0:16:46 | 0:16:47 | |
Although underwhelmed at first, | 0:16:50 | 0:16:52 | |
this home's hidden features have worked wonders on Gemma. | 0:16:52 | 0:16:55 | |
I just love the garden and the views and I can see myself | 0:16:55 | 0:16:59 | |
pottering my hours away. | 0:16:59 | 0:17:00 | |
If you took the garden out of it, though, I don't think you'd feel the same. | 0:17:00 | 0:17:03 | |
No, if the garden wasn't here, I wouldn't feel the same. | 0:17:03 | 0:17:07 | |
So, is it a place they could afford to call home with £300,000 to spend? | 0:17:07 | 0:17:11 | |
THEY GASP | 0:17:22 | 0:17:25 | |
That is way over. | 0:17:27 | 0:17:29 | |
That is £35,000 over budget. | 0:17:30 | 0:17:33 | |
I mean, I love the garden, it is gorgeous, it is beautiful, | 0:17:33 | 0:17:36 | |
but it doesn't tick all our boxes for that amount of money. | 0:17:36 | 0:17:40 | |
-It doesn't tick many of them, really. -No. | 0:17:40 | 0:17:43 | |
The home just hasn't offered enough to justify | 0:17:43 | 0:17:46 | |
a price tag £35,000 over the couple's budget. | 0:17:46 | 0:17:50 | |
The family head back to Pelican Waters to check out what | 0:17:50 | 0:17:53 | |
we think could be their dream home. | 0:17:53 | 0:17:55 | |
-My goodness, these are, like, palatial. -Wow. | 0:17:57 | 0:18:02 | |
Based on their ideal wish list, will this contemporary | 0:18:02 | 0:18:07 | |
five-bedroom house in a private gated community | 0:18:07 | 0:18:09 | |
be an all-round winner? | 0:18:09 | 0:18:10 | |
Oh, yeah. | 0:18:13 | 0:18:15 | |
This is going to be a good one. | 0:18:17 | 0:18:19 | |
Hopefully inside won't disappoint. | 0:18:19 | 0:18:22 | |
-Oh, my goodness. Look at this. -Wow. -It is massive. | 0:18:22 | 0:18:27 | |
It is huge. | 0:18:27 | 0:18:29 | |
With a wine cellar and cinema room, | 0:18:29 | 0:18:31 | |
this house definitely isn't run-of-the-mill. | 0:18:31 | 0:18:34 | |
But will it be the one to convince Gemma to make the move? | 0:18:34 | 0:18:37 | |
Look at that kitchen. | 0:18:39 | 0:18:40 | |
I love how all just opens out, | 0:18:40 | 0:18:42 | |
the whole living area is just in and out at the same time. It is amazing. | 0:18:42 | 0:18:48 | |
Wandering outside, | 0:18:48 | 0:18:49 | |
Matilda soon spots something else to get excited about. | 0:18:49 | 0:18:53 | |
-Swimming pool. -Massive. | 0:18:53 | 0:18:56 | |
Not only that, there is a slide. | 0:18:56 | 0:18:58 | |
And you've got a garden on the side. | 0:19:01 | 0:19:03 | |
It is less roomy than the last one, but still enough for Gemma. | 0:19:03 | 0:19:07 | |
-The garden is gorgeous. -I'm coming. | 0:19:08 | 0:19:11 | |
-It is just so quiet. -It is quiet. -I know. | 0:19:11 | 0:19:14 | |
Back inside, a perfect play area for Henry and Matilda. | 0:19:14 | 0:19:18 | |
-Table football? -This is your space, Henry. | 0:19:18 | 0:19:22 | |
There's something for everyone. | 0:19:22 | 0:19:24 | |
But Gemma is trying not to get carried away. | 0:19:24 | 0:19:26 | |
The problem is, everything from this point on | 0:19:26 | 0:19:29 | |
would be a disappointment, you know what I mean? | 0:19:29 | 0:19:31 | |
Nothing else can complete with this house. | 0:19:31 | 0:19:34 | |
It's just absolutely unreal. | 0:19:34 | 0:19:36 | |
The only thing missing is a granny flat, but with five bedrooms, | 0:19:36 | 0:19:40 | |
there is still plenty of room for guests. | 0:19:40 | 0:19:43 | |
There's a double downstairs bed and then | 0:19:45 | 0:19:47 | |
a single upstairs bed for when people come and sleep over. | 0:19:47 | 0:19:51 | |
Gemma can definitely see herself living in a house like this, | 0:19:51 | 0:19:55 | |
and the enormous master bedroom with en suite | 0:19:55 | 0:19:58 | |
almost leaves her speechless. | 0:19:58 | 0:20:00 | |
This is my bedroom, remember! | 0:20:00 | 0:20:02 | |
Don't think so, Henry! | 0:20:03 | 0:20:05 | |
-It's just absolutely perfect, isn't it? -It is. | 0:20:08 | 0:20:11 | |
Everything's really high standard. | 0:20:11 | 0:20:14 | |
This house has sold itself to the whole family. | 0:20:14 | 0:20:17 | |
But with £300,000 to spend, will they be able to afford it? | 0:20:17 | 0:20:22 | |
I think it's really way smashed over the budget. | 0:20:24 | 0:20:27 | |
It's way out of our budget. | 0:20:27 | 0:20:28 | |
It's beautiful and I've loved seeing it, and it's going to just | 0:20:28 | 0:20:31 | |
ruin my life that we can't afford it. | 0:20:31 | 0:20:33 | |
Go for it. | 0:20:37 | 0:20:38 | |
-Oh! -Wow. | 0:20:44 | 0:20:46 | |
That is even... It's way higher than we predicted. | 0:20:46 | 0:20:49 | |
Yeah, that is a lot more. | 0:20:49 | 0:20:51 | |
Yeah, that is colossally more money than we can afford. | 0:20:51 | 0:20:55 | |
Will we save up? | 0:20:55 | 0:20:57 | |
-I guess we'll have to save up. -Yeah. | 0:20:57 | 0:21:00 | |
Never mind! | 0:21:00 | 0:21:01 | |
At £150,000 over budget this house would be a stretch, | 0:21:01 | 0:21:07 | |
unless the couple could substantially increase their earnings down under. | 0:21:07 | 0:21:11 | |
Property one had the space and gorgeous garden | 0:21:11 | 0:21:14 | |
the couple wanted, but Gemma wanted more for the money. | 0:21:14 | 0:21:17 | |
Despite substantial grounds and a granny flat, | 0:21:19 | 0:21:22 | |
the interiors of property two weren't quite to anyone's taste. | 0:21:22 | 0:21:26 | |
Complete with a pool and cinema room, | 0:21:28 | 0:21:30 | |
property three was everything the family wanted. | 0:21:30 | 0:21:33 | |
But at more than £150,000 over budget, | 0:21:33 | 0:21:37 | |
sadly the price tag wasn't quite as agreeable. | 0:21:37 | 0:21:40 | |
So, based on everything they've seen, | 0:21:40 | 0:21:42 | |
how will the family vote when it comes to choosing between | 0:21:42 | 0:21:45 | |
property in Australia and the UK? | 0:21:45 | 0:21:47 | |
-Australia. -Undecided. | 0:22:06 | 0:22:09 | |
Australia. | 0:22:09 | 0:22:11 | |
Why are you undecided, then? | 0:22:11 | 0:22:13 | |
I loved all the houses, they were all gorgeous, | 0:22:14 | 0:22:16 | |
but for the top of our budget | 0:22:16 | 0:22:19 | |
we still didn't get exactly what we wanted. | 0:22:19 | 0:22:22 | |
The last one was just fabulous | 0:22:22 | 0:22:24 | |
and if it would start with a different number down... | 0:22:24 | 0:22:28 | |
I don't know that we can afford to have, you know, | 0:22:28 | 0:22:32 | |
a house that will meet our needs. | 0:22:32 | 0:22:34 | |
Hoping for more for her money, | 0:22:40 | 0:22:41 | |
the Sunshine Coast's property prices have added to Gemma's doubts | 0:22:41 | 0:22:45 | |
about leaving the life she loves in the UK. | 0:22:45 | 0:22:48 | |
She's passionate about her job at home, | 0:22:48 | 0:22:51 | |
but the right work prospects down under could help Andrew's case. | 0:22:51 | 0:22:54 | |
Back in the UK, he's an air traffic controller | 0:22:57 | 0:22:59 | |
at Durham Tees Valley Airport, | 0:22:59 | 0:23:02 | |
but he's already landed himself a job down under. | 0:23:02 | 0:23:05 | |
..have the DME report back to us. | 0:23:05 | 0:23:07 | |
Airservices Australia have offered me a position where I would | 0:23:07 | 0:23:11 | |
control at Brisbane Tower and, subject to successfully completing | 0:23:11 | 0:23:15 | |
a probationary period and training, | 0:23:15 | 0:23:17 | |
they would make my position permanent. | 0:23:17 | 0:23:20 | |
Right, I just need to check some details with you. | 0:23:20 | 0:23:22 | |
Gemma has been a diagnostic radiographer at North Tees Hospital | 0:23:22 | 0:23:26 | |
for the past four years. | 0:23:26 | 0:23:28 | |
Most of my day involves doing 3-D body scans of patients who come in. | 0:23:29 | 0:23:34 | |
If Andrew's career down under is to take off, | 0:23:34 | 0:23:37 | |
it's a job she'd have to sacrifice, and that's a devastating thought. | 0:23:37 | 0:23:42 | |
It's a really important part of my life. | 0:23:42 | 0:23:45 | |
And... | 0:23:45 | 0:23:46 | |
..I would find it really difficult to go. | 0:23:48 | 0:23:50 | |
To explore her work opportunities in Australia, | 0:23:55 | 0:23:58 | |
we've arranged for Gemma to visit a private radiology clinic | 0:23:58 | 0:24:01 | |
where she meets operations manager Trevor Gourlay. | 0:24:01 | 0:24:04 | |
-Hi, nice to meet you. -I'm Trevor. How are you? -Very well, thanks. | 0:24:04 | 0:24:07 | |
After a quick tour of the facilities, | 0:24:07 | 0:24:09 | |
Gemma is ready to quiz Trevor on her prospects. | 0:24:09 | 0:24:12 | |
Looking at my experience, would you consider me for a position here? | 0:24:14 | 0:24:17 | |
Yeah, absolutely, absolutely. You seem well rounded. | 0:24:17 | 0:24:21 | |
It's a good start, and opportunities could be plentiful | 0:24:21 | 0:24:24 | |
with a new public hospital being built on the Sunshine Coast. | 0:24:24 | 0:24:28 | |
One of the most advanced hospitals in the world, we're led to believe, | 0:24:29 | 0:24:34 | |
and looking at somewhere about 140 imaging staff, which is... | 0:24:34 | 0:24:38 | |
Wow, that's really nice to know that there's going to be such demand | 0:24:38 | 0:24:41 | |
for my profession in the coming year. | 0:24:41 | 0:24:43 | |
As Andrew has already secured a job, | 0:24:43 | 0:24:46 | |
he takes the time to explore education options for Harry | 0:24:46 | 0:24:49 | |
and Matilda, visiting Suncoast Christian College, | 0:24:49 | 0:24:52 | |
a popular private school. | 0:24:52 | 0:24:54 | |
If we can't give them the education and the opportunities that | 0:24:54 | 0:24:58 | |
they've got in the UK then it's a no-go, really. | 0:24:58 | 0:25:01 | |
The family are welcomed by school principal, Mark Ash. | 0:25:01 | 0:25:04 | |
Right, so, I gather you guys are ready for a bit of | 0:25:04 | 0:25:07 | |
-a look around the school. -Yeah. | 0:25:07 | 0:25:09 | |
While Henry and Matilda sit in on a lesson, | 0:25:16 | 0:25:19 | |
Andrew asks Mark about their potential Aussie schooling. | 0:25:19 | 0:25:22 | |
Matilda is just about to turn five and in the UK she's been | 0:25:24 | 0:25:27 | |
at school for a year, almost. | 0:25:27 | 0:25:30 | |
Coming to Australia, I think we'd be concerned | 0:25:30 | 0:25:32 | |
that she would re-sit a year. | 0:25:32 | 0:25:34 | |
In Queensland here, there's a lot of flexibility given to schools | 0:25:34 | 0:25:37 | |
around starting age, so our head of primary would do an interview, | 0:25:37 | 0:25:41 | |
do an assessment of where she's at in terms of literacy, numeracy, | 0:25:41 | 0:25:45 | |
look at her social skills and then, in consultation with you, | 0:25:45 | 0:25:48 | |
determine whether it's best to start in prep, year one, | 0:25:48 | 0:25:51 | |
what's going to give her the best outcome. | 0:25:51 | 0:25:53 | |
It's welcome news. | 0:25:53 | 0:25:55 | |
Andrew's also keen to find out about their physical education. | 0:25:55 | 0:25:59 | |
What sort of sports programme do you have | 0:25:59 | 0:26:00 | |
on a day to day, week to week basis? | 0:26:00 | 0:26:02 | |
Yeah, we've just finished seasons of volleyball and football | 0:26:02 | 0:26:05 | |
in secondary after-school sport | 0:26:05 | 0:26:07 | |
and the primary kids are just midway through their first season | 0:26:07 | 0:26:11 | |
with touch, netball, volleyball, basketball. | 0:26:11 | 0:26:13 | |
Andrew is happy with what he's heard and Harry and Matilda | 0:26:15 | 0:26:18 | |
sound like they'd have no problem fitting in. | 0:26:18 | 0:26:22 | |
-So, what did you guys think of the school, then, today? -I like it. | 0:26:22 | 0:26:25 | |
-You like it. You want to come here? -I love it! -You love it? | 0:26:25 | 0:26:28 | |
That should make Gemma happy too. | 0:26:28 | 0:26:30 | |
Back at the clinic, she's finding out about potential work hours. | 0:26:30 | 0:26:35 | |
Well, our MRI starts here at seven, goes through till nine every night. | 0:26:35 | 0:26:39 | |
We occasionally do Saturdays if the workload demands it. | 0:26:39 | 0:26:44 | |
All she needs to know is her potential salary. | 0:26:44 | 0:26:48 | |
So, what kind of wage would I be expecting to earn | 0:26:48 | 0:26:50 | |
if I was working in the private radiography sector? | 0:26:50 | 0:26:52 | |
With your qualifications, | 0:26:52 | 0:26:54 | |
you'd probably start off at 90,000 to 100,000. | 0:26:54 | 0:26:56 | |
It sort of gets up to about 115, I suppose. | 0:26:56 | 0:26:59 | |
That's unbelievable. | 0:26:59 | 0:27:01 | |
That's more than double what I earn in the UK. | 0:27:01 | 0:27:03 | |
It's been encouraging news for Gemma all the way. | 0:27:03 | 0:27:06 | |
But has she had enough to choose a career in Australia over the UK? | 0:27:06 | 0:27:11 | |
I'm ready to vote. | 0:27:11 | 0:27:12 | |
Australia! | 0:27:20 | 0:27:22 | |
It's just so much better than it could be at home. | 0:27:22 | 0:27:24 | |
It was an easy decision to make after the conversation I had. | 0:27:24 | 0:27:27 | |
Australia all the way. | 0:27:27 | 0:27:29 | |
Mind made up, Gemma is keen to share her news with Andrew | 0:27:32 | 0:27:35 | |
-and find out how he got on at school. -So, how did the kids get on? | 0:27:35 | 0:27:38 | |
It was impressive. It was, like, loads of resources. | 0:27:38 | 0:27:41 | |
I think both of them thought it was brilliant. | 0:27:41 | 0:27:44 | |
-So you'd be really, really happy for them to go... -Oh, yeah, absolutely. | 0:27:44 | 0:27:46 | |
-Yeah, it was brilliant. -Oh, that's great news. | 0:27:46 | 0:27:48 | |
Andrew is anxious to hear how Gemma got on. | 0:27:48 | 0:27:51 | |
So, how was your day? How did the job go? | 0:27:51 | 0:27:54 | |
My qualifications were really good. | 0:27:54 | 0:27:57 | |
I'd be quite desirable in Australia. | 0:27:57 | 0:27:59 | |
And the best bit was he said I would earn 115,000. | 0:27:59 | 0:28:03 | |
-115,000? -Yeah. | 0:28:03 | 0:28:06 | |
-That is mint. -Yeah. | 0:28:06 | 0:28:07 | |
Discovering she could earn more doing the job she loves | 0:28:11 | 0:28:15 | |
could mean Gemma is beginning to understand Australia's appeal. | 0:28:15 | 0:28:19 | |
But there's a long way yet to go before the move's a done deal. | 0:28:19 | 0:28:23 | |
A key part of Andrew's desire to emigrate is the lifestyle | 0:28:23 | 0:28:26 | |
he believes the country could offer. | 0:28:26 | 0:28:28 | |
So, will a typically Aussie family day out | 0:28:28 | 0:28:31 | |
bring him one step closer to achieving his goal? | 0:28:31 | 0:28:34 | |
Making the most of the fine weather, | 0:28:42 | 0:28:45 | |
the family head east of Caloundra to enjoy a day at Kings Beach. | 0:28:45 | 0:28:48 | |
It's going to be fun. | 0:28:50 | 0:28:51 | |
With its water fountains and playground right on the oceanfront, | 0:28:53 | 0:28:57 | |
this is a popular spot for families with young children, | 0:28:57 | 0:29:00 | |
and Henry and Matilda take to the lifestyle like ducks to water. | 0:29:00 | 0:29:05 | |
This is awesome. | 0:29:05 | 0:29:06 | |
Henry spots an adventurous activity he'd like to try. | 0:29:07 | 0:29:10 | |
Bungee jump! | 0:29:10 | 0:29:12 | |
-Do you fancy doing bungee jumping? -Do you want to go on the jump? | 0:29:12 | 0:29:14 | |
It's the perfect way to burn off some energy. | 0:29:14 | 0:29:17 | |
OK, little man, move into the middle and I'll tell you when to jump. | 0:29:17 | 0:29:20 | |
-Do you think you could get used to this, then? -Oh, yeah. | 0:29:20 | 0:29:22 | |
It beats hanging out in Fishburn in the rain. | 0:29:22 | 0:29:25 | |
That should be music to Andrew's ears. | 0:29:25 | 0:29:27 | |
Time for a spot of lunch in the park. | 0:29:33 | 0:29:35 | |
Is this our first picnic? | 0:29:38 | 0:29:39 | |
First-ever picnic in Australia. | 0:29:39 | 0:29:41 | |
Andrew is delighted to finally experience Aussie living. | 0:29:44 | 0:29:48 | |
Before we came, I felt, is it going to live up to my expectations? | 0:29:48 | 0:29:51 | |
And it's gone way past everything that I thought it would be. | 0:29:51 | 0:29:54 | |
Gemma could be warming to the idea of | 0:29:54 | 0:29:57 | |
a life in the southern hemisphere. | 0:29:57 | 0:29:59 | |
It just really has opened my eyes to what kind of a life we can have. | 0:29:59 | 0:30:03 | |
The weather, obviously, is a huge bonus. | 0:30:03 | 0:30:04 | |
You can do so much more with your children when you've got | 0:30:04 | 0:30:07 | |
a sunny day pretty much guaranteed every day. | 0:30:07 | 0:30:08 | |
But she's still mindful sunshine isn't everything. | 0:30:08 | 0:30:12 | |
It's starting a new life. You know, everything is from scratch. | 0:30:13 | 0:30:17 | |
And I'm still kind of on a bit of an emotional rollercoaster, | 0:30:19 | 0:30:22 | |
and I find it hard to think of this place as home. | 0:30:22 | 0:30:25 | |
Andrew is all too aware Gemma is torn | 0:30:26 | 0:30:29 | |
and that come the end of the week, she'll hold the key to their future. | 0:30:29 | 0:30:33 | |
She has the ultimate veto. | 0:30:33 | 0:30:34 | |
If she doesn't want to come, she doesn't have to come, | 0:30:34 | 0:30:37 | |
and none of us will. | 0:30:37 | 0:30:39 | |
As the afternoon draws to a close, | 0:30:39 | 0:30:41 | |
Gemma is pondering the reality of leaving her sister in the UK. | 0:30:41 | 0:30:45 | |
I don't know if I'm ready for that, and I'm pretty sure she's not. | 0:30:48 | 0:30:52 | |
I mean, she's texted me every day that we've been here | 0:30:52 | 0:30:55 | |
and I just can't imagine having a life without her being in it. | 0:30:55 | 0:30:58 | |
A difficult decision lies ahead for Gemma, | 0:31:00 | 0:31:02 | |
but based on today alone, it's time to find out if the family | 0:31:02 | 0:31:06 | |
prefer the lifestyle in the UK or Australia. | 0:31:06 | 0:31:09 | |
-Australia! -Australia. | 0:31:24 | 0:31:26 | |
Is everybody the same? Yay! | 0:31:27 | 0:31:29 | |
I just loved how everything was just | 0:31:29 | 0:31:31 | |
all so close to the beach as well, so you could have a really full day | 0:31:31 | 0:31:34 | |
without really getting bored of doing any activities. | 0:31:34 | 0:31:37 | |
And then we had a picnic in the park and it was all in the same place. | 0:31:37 | 0:31:41 | |
Everything was together. | 0:31:41 | 0:31:42 | |
And it was all free, really, it was really good. Had a great day. | 0:31:42 | 0:31:45 | |
Did you have a great day? Yeah! | 0:31:45 | 0:31:47 | |
With another vote going his way, Andrew could be inching closer | 0:31:52 | 0:31:56 | |
to achieving the life he wants for his family. | 0:31:56 | 0:31:59 | |
But will the finances down under stack up? | 0:31:59 | 0:32:02 | |
The couple would sell their house in the UK and believe it's worth | 0:32:02 | 0:32:05 | |
around £200,000. | 0:32:05 | 0:32:07 | |
We sent round two estate agents to give their valuations. | 0:32:07 | 0:32:11 | |
I'm a bit nervous about this. | 0:32:11 | 0:32:12 | |
I'm nervous in case it looks messy or dirty. | 0:32:12 | 0:32:14 | |
So weird. | 0:32:16 | 0:32:17 | |
This is a really airy, modern hall. | 0:32:19 | 0:32:22 | |
Lovely wooden flooring. | 0:32:22 | 0:32:24 | |
It's a really, really modern kitchen. Lovely range cooker. | 0:32:27 | 0:32:31 | |
-Looks really nice. -It does, yeah. | 0:32:31 | 0:32:33 | |
That's my dad. | 0:32:33 | 0:32:35 | |
Nice big family space. Lots of happy pictures on the wall. | 0:32:35 | 0:32:40 | |
It looks really nice. | 0:32:40 | 0:32:42 | |
Oh, what a lovely room. | 0:32:42 | 0:32:44 | |
Like having a hotel room in your home. | 0:32:44 | 0:32:47 | |
Lots of space, lots of storage. | 0:32:47 | 0:32:49 | |
Right, nice neutral white bathroom suite. | 0:32:50 | 0:32:53 | |
Do you think he's saying it's a bit boring? | 0:32:53 | 0:32:56 | |
Yeah, everything seems to be working fine. Great. | 0:32:56 | 0:32:58 | |
He flushed the toilet! | 0:32:58 | 0:33:00 | |
It's a great spare room, | 0:33:03 | 0:33:05 | |
and a lovely view at the back over the fields. | 0:33:05 | 0:33:07 | |
We've got a family dog here, who's obviously very happy. | 0:33:07 | 0:33:11 | |
Oh, Earl's on! Fantastic. | 0:33:11 | 0:33:13 | |
And we've got all this countryside here, here, and here. | 0:33:13 | 0:33:16 | |
Really appealing for any family. | 0:33:18 | 0:33:20 | |
It's gorgeous. Looks good. | 0:33:20 | 0:33:22 | |
In the current market conditions, | 0:33:22 | 0:33:23 | |
I would value this property at £180,000. | 0:33:23 | 0:33:27 | |
And for a quick sale, I would value this property at £170,000. | 0:33:27 | 0:33:32 | |
What? | 0:33:32 | 0:33:33 | |
I would value this house at £195,000. | 0:33:33 | 0:33:37 | |
For a quick sale, I would value it at £175,000. | 0:33:37 | 0:33:41 | |
So, that's a bit under. | 0:33:41 | 0:33:43 | |
That changes what we would be able to afford over here, | 0:33:43 | 0:33:46 | |
-if we decide to come... -True. | 0:33:46 | 0:33:47 | |
..because that's 20 grand less than we were expecting. | 0:33:47 | 0:33:50 | |
Hopefully there won't be more nasty shocks when the couple | 0:33:55 | 0:33:58 | |
examine finances in Australia. | 0:33:58 | 0:34:00 | |
To see how they add up, | 0:34:00 | 0:34:01 | |
we've prepared a comparison of costs with the UK. | 0:34:01 | 0:34:05 | |
Here we go. | 0:34:05 | 0:34:06 | |
First up, a look at the weekly grocery shop. | 0:34:07 | 0:34:10 | |
Brown sauce is, like, way more expensive. | 0:34:10 | 0:34:13 | |
We'll have to source our own supply. | 0:34:13 | 0:34:16 | |
-Bananas are a lot more expensive. -Yeah, they are. | 0:34:16 | 0:34:19 | |
-It's just surprising, really. -And potatoes. | 0:34:19 | 0:34:22 | |
Most of it is slightly more expensive, I would say. | 0:34:22 | 0:34:26 | |
A quick tot up of the figures reveals what they'll be | 0:34:26 | 0:34:29 | |
paying out for food every week. | 0:34:29 | 0:34:31 | |
153.23. | 0:34:33 | 0:34:34 | |
So, the UK was 133.72. | 0:34:34 | 0:34:37 | |
So, £19.51 more expensive. | 0:34:38 | 0:34:40 | |
That's almost £80 more every month. | 0:34:41 | 0:34:45 | |
-Not too bad, though, could have been worse. -No, happy days. | 0:34:45 | 0:34:48 | |
Encouraged, the couple move on to the bigger monthly bills. | 0:34:48 | 0:34:51 | |
The mortgage here, based on the first house we viewed, | 0:34:51 | 0:34:54 | |
is 1,507.33. | 0:34:54 | 0:34:57 | |
Childcare is a lot more, | 0:34:57 | 0:35:00 | |
because obviously we won't have our family. | 0:35:00 | 0:35:02 | |
And then private school fees per month for both kids, | 0:35:02 | 0:35:06 | |
436.13. | 0:35:06 | 0:35:08 | |
The added extras quickly stack up and it's clear the couple | 0:35:08 | 0:35:13 | |
will be spending much more down under. | 0:35:13 | 0:35:15 | |
-1,326.69... -Yeah. | 0:35:15 | 0:35:18 | |
..more expensive per month. | 0:35:19 | 0:35:21 | |
-Yeah. -Wowzers. | 0:35:21 | 0:35:23 | |
It's a considerable hit, but Gemma could almost double her salary | 0:35:25 | 0:35:29 | |
in Australia and that could help massively. | 0:35:29 | 0:35:32 | |
-7,654. -And that's per month. | 0:35:34 | 0:35:38 | |
We earn just under £32,000 a year more than we do in the UK. | 0:35:38 | 0:35:42 | |
But then, it's obviously more expensive to live. | 0:35:42 | 0:35:44 | |
It's a phenomenal increase in earnings, | 0:35:44 | 0:35:46 | |
and when the couple subtract their outgoings, | 0:35:46 | 0:35:49 | |
they discover they'd be £1,300 better off each month. | 0:35:49 | 0:35:54 | |
-That's £16,000 a year. -SHE GASPS | 0:35:54 | 0:35:56 | |
That's insane. | 0:36:11 | 0:36:13 | |
That's insane. | 0:36:17 | 0:36:18 | |
-16 grand? That's like a wage, isn't it? -Yeah. | 0:36:20 | 0:36:23 | |
That's a whole wage on top. | 0:36:23 | 0:36:25 | |
That's really overwhelming. | 0:36:29 | 0:36:30 | |
It's got to be a positive result for Andrew as the couple vote | 0:36:32 | 0:36:36 | |
on finances in Australia versus the UK. | 0:36:36 | 0:36:39 | |
Based on our finances, the UK versus Australia, | 0:36:41 | 0:36:44 | |
we're going to vote for... | 0:36:44 | 0:36:46 | |
..Australia. | 0:36:57 | 0:36:58 | |
Australia! | 0:36:58 | 0:36:59 | |
-So, you're happy with that, then? -Oh! | 0:37:01 | 0:37:03 | |
Happy with an extra 16 grand a year? | 0:37:03 | 0:37:05 | |
I'd be insane to vote anything else based on finances. | 0:37:05 | 0:37:08 | |
So far, Gemma has discovered the work, lifestyle | 0:37:09 | 0:37:12 | |
and financial opportunities Australia could offer | 0:37:12 | 0:37:15 | |
are hard to argue with. | 0:37:15 | 0:37:17 | |
But Andrew's dream could still stall as Gemma confronts | 0:37:17 | 0:37:21 | |
the reality of leaving loved ones. | 0:37:21 | 0:37:23 | |
The family sit down to watch messages from home. | 0:37:23 | 0:37:26 | |
So, we're going to watch our family and friends' videos from home | 0:37:26 | 0:37:30 | |
and it might be a little bit sad, OK? | 0:37:30 | 0:37:32 | |
Because it's going to be all your family telling you | 0:37:32 | 0:37:36 | |
what they think about us maybe moving to Australia. | 0:37:36 | 0:37:38 | |
So, do you think you're happy to watch that, | 0:37:38 | 0:37:40 | |
-even though it might make you sad? -It won't make me sad. | 0:37:40 | 0:37:43 | |
-It won't make you sad, OK. So, are you sure? -Mm-mm. -Yeah, OK. | 0:37:43 | 0:37:46 | |
-Should we watch it, then? -Yeah. | 0:37:46 | 0:37:47 | |
-Hi! -Hi, Gemma, Andy, Henry, Matilda. | 0:37:49 | 0:37:53 | |
Hi, kids, this is your nanna. | 0:37:53 | 0:37:56 | |
Hi! Hi, Gemma, Andy, Matilda and Henry. | 0:37:56 | 0:38:00 | |
My son, wonderful boy. | 0:38:00 | 0:38:03 | |
Just like his father. | 0:38:04 | 0:38:05 | |
My relationship with my sister is she's my best friend. | 0:38:07 | 0:38:10 | |
We're there for each other, we're on the phone a lot of the time. | 0:38:10 | 0:38:14 | |
She's a very outgoing girl, she's a very loving girl, | 0:38:14 | 0:38:17 | |
very proud of her. | 0:38:17 | 0:38:19 | |
Two lovely kids. Very well brought up, very well-behaved. | 0:38:20 | 0:38:23 | |
It will bring them on leaps and bounds down under. | 0:38:23 | 0:38:26 | |
I ain't going to last forever. | 0:38:27 | 0:38:29 | |
She's hopefully going to live a lot longer than I will now | 0:38:29 | 0:38:32 | |
and I want what's best for them. | 0:38:32 | 0:38:34 | |
It's going to break my heart. | 0:38:35 | 0:38:37 | |
There would be a huge hole in my life if the grandchildren go. | 0:38:42 | 0:38:47 | |
Whatever you do, you have our full backing and our full support. | 0:38:49 | 0:38:53 | |
I love you all very much. | 0:38:53 | 0:38:55 | |
SHE EXHALES | 0:38:57 | 0:38:59 | |
I hope you make the right decision for yourselves. | 0:38:59 | 0:39:02 | |
Love you both, and adore my grandchildren. | 0:39:02 | 0:39:06 | |
(Bye.) | 0:39:06 | 0:39:07 | |
I'm gutted that you're going to be across the world. | 0:39:09 | 0:39:12 | |
SHE SOBS | 0:39:12 | 0:39:14 | |
But I know you're only on the other end of a phone, | 0:39:22 | 0:39:24 | |
and I know we'll still stay in touch and still be close. | 0:39:24 | 0:39:28 | |
I'm very proud of you. | 0:39:28 | 0:39:29 | |
You all right? | 0:39:32 | 0:39:34 | |
I know Joanne was going to be the hard one. | 0:39:35 | 0:39:38 | |
SHE EXHALES | 0:39:38 | 0:39:39 | |
She's just such a huge part of our life, | 0:39:40 | 0:39:43 | |
and I need her, I need her. | 0:39:43 | 0:39:46 | |
So it will be hard to leave. | 0:39:47 | 0:39:50 | |
Are you worried about me? | 0:39:50 | 0:39:52 | |
No, I'm OK. | 0:39:52 | 0:39:54 | |
Hearing messages from home was particularly tough for Gemma, | 0:39:56 | 0:39:59 | |
who, after years at sea, | 0:39:59 | 0:40:01 | |
has grown accustomed to having loved ones close by once more. | 0:40:01 | 0:40:06 | |
Knowing friends and family will support whatever decision | 0:40:06 | 0:40:08 | |
they reach is reassuring, but will the thought of how much they'll | 0:40:08 | 0:40:13 | |
be missed mean Andrew's dream is about to run aground for ever? | 0:40:13 | 0:40:16 | |
When the Cromptons touched down in Australia a week ago, | 0:40:21 | 0:40:24 | |
Andrew was hoping the country would sell itself as somewhere the | 0:40:24 | 0:40:27 | |
family could make themselves at home. | 0:40:27 | 0:40:29 | |
I don't want to apply all the pressure on Gemma, but, obviously, | 0:40:31 | 0:40:34 | |
I was already sold on the idea of coming here in the first place. | 0:40:34 | 0:40:37 | |
But this was all about convincing her. | 0:40:37 | 0:40:39 | |
It was more for me about whether I could still be happy here as well, | 0:40:39 | 0:40:43 | |
and I'm feeling a lot more positive. | 0:40:43 | 0:40:46 | |
But there's still a bit of a niggle, you know, | 0:40:46 | 0:40:48 | |
my family and my friends, and also how we'd settle over in Australia. | 0:40:48 | 0:40:53 | |
With his job offer already on the table, | 0:40:53 | 0:40:56 | |
Gemma knows Andrew's more determined than ever to make the move. | 0:40:56 | 0:41:00 | |
He's already here, he's made this move in his head and his heart. | 0:41:01 | 0:41:05 | |
This week has just cemented 100% that this is the right place | 0:41:05 | 0:41:08 | |
for us to be. | 0:41:08 | 0:41:10 | |
And Henry's been convinced too. | 0:41:10 | 0:41:12 | |
I think it'll be quite nice being here for a long time, | 0:41:13 | 0:41:16 | |
being in the sunshine. | 0:41:16 | 0:41:18 | |
I don't like being in the rain. | 0:41:18 | 0:41:21 | |
But as the final decision approaches, | 0:41:21 | 0:41:23 | |
Andrew's still not sure what life his wife will choose. | 0:41:23 | 0:41:27 | |
If she votes yes, that would be fantastic, | 0:41:27 | 0:41:30 | |
we would make a brilliant life here. | 0:41:30 | 0:41:32 | |
If she decides that it's just not what she wants, then, | 0:41:32 | 0:41:35 | |
OK, I'll have to console myself to that fact. | 0:41:35 | 0:41:38 | |
It's totally emotional, my head is in Australia now, | 0:41:38 | 0:41:42 | |
my heart is just still attached, and I can't really explain it. | 0:41:42 | 0:41:46 | |
I just feel sad when I think about leaving home. | 0:41:46 | 0:41:49 | |
What Gemma decides next will change the family's path for ever, | 0:41:52 | 0:41:56 | |
as Andrew prepares to find out whether the week's done enough to | 0:41:56 | 0:42:00 | |
finally convince her to follow his dream. | 0:42:00 | 0:42:03 | |
So, after a trial week in Australia, we're ready to make our final vote. | 0:42:03 | 0:42:07 | |
-Australia. -Australia! -Really? Good news. | 0:42:21 | 0:42:25 | |
Yeah, I think so. I mean, there's always going to be... | 0:42:25 | 0:42:28 | |
It's going to be an emotional rollercoaster, | 0:42:28 | 0:42:30 | |
and it's going to be hard to leave, but this is definitely the | 0:42:30 | 0:42:33 | |
right place to raise our kids, and it's the right place for us. | 0:42:33 | 0:42:37 | |
And employment-wise, financially, | 0:42:37 | 0:42:39 | |
and the lifestyle is what I want for me as well as them, | 0:42:39 | 0:42:42 | |
so I might be a bit crazy on the transition but let's go for it. | 0:42:42 | 0:42:47 | |
-Are you guys happy with that? -Right, guys, let's go! | 0:42:47 | 0:42:49 | |
It was a really tough decision for Gemma, | 0:43:00 | 0:43:04 | |
but after much deliberating, | 0:43:04 | 0:43:06 | |
Andrew had finally got the all-clear to start his new job as an | 0:43:06 | 0:43:10 | |
air traffic controller down under. | 0:43:10 | 0:43:13 | |
One year on, it's time to find out if the family's journey of | 0:43:13 | 0:43:18 | |
a lifetime had taken off. | 0:43:18 | 0:43:20 | |
It's April 2016, and the Cromptons are living in Queensland, Australia. | 0:43:20 | 0:43:26 | |
When they all chose to move down under at the end of their | 0:43:26 | 0:43:29 | |
trial week, Andrew felt all his dreams had come true. | 0:43:29 | 0:43:33 | |
I was really made up. | 0:43:33 | 0:43:35 | |
I always thought we'd make that decision and, er, I believed that | 0:43:35 | 0:43:38 | |
Gem would come round to the idea that Australia was | 0:43:38 | 0:43:41 | |
a better life for us. | 0:43:41 | 0:43:42 | |
But when everybody voted, and everybody at the same time | 0:43:42 | 0:43:45 | |
shouted out "Australia," it was, er... | 0:43:45 | 0:43:47 | |
I thought, "It's going to happen, we're going to move," | 0:43:47 | 0:43:49 | |
and that's everything I wanted. | 0:43:49 | 0:43:51 | |
Go, quick! | 0:43:52 | 0:43:53 | |
Their week in Australia had convinced Gemma | 0:43:55 | 0:43:57 | |
a move was worth the sacrifice of breaking close ties to home. | 0:43:57 | 0:44:01 | |
There wasn't really anything holding me back except leaving my family. | 0:44:01 | 0:44:05 | |
Everything else was better here, and I didn't expect that. | 0:44:05 | 0:44:08 | |
With their minds made up, she began putting the wheels in motion | 0:44:08 | 0:44:12 | |
before they even landed back in the UK. | 0:44:12 | 0:44:15 | |
I started making lists, and I think that made Andy very uneasy, | 0:44:15 | 0:44:18 | |
just how manic I was going to get as soon as we hit UK soil. | 0:44:18 | 0:44:23 | |
I think he started to see what he'd let himself in for. | 0:44:23 | 0:44:26 | |
Breaking the news to family wasn't as painful as they'd anticipated. | 0:44:26 | 0:44:31 | |
I think they all secretly, whether they voiced it or not, were | 0:44:31 | 0:44:34 | |
expecting us to go back and say, "We're going to go to Australia." | 0:44:34 | 0:44:36 | |
Andrew had already been given a start date in October for his | 0:44:36 | 0:44:40 | |
new job, so there was no time to lose. | 0:44:40 | 0:44:43 | |
We arrived back in April 2015, and we left on the 30th of September. | 0:44:43 | 0:44:47 | |
I think that was the hardest thing, having the finish line, so we had | 0:44:47 | 0:44:51 | |
to fit everything in before that, and that was the trickiest bit. | 0:44:51 | 0:44:54 | |
It was full throttle, making sure that we had everything in place. | 0:44:54 | 0:44:57 | |
Andrew had already secured a temporary visa because of his | 0:44:57 | 0:45:00 | |
job offer, but Gemma was keen to put things on a more permanent basis. | 0:45:00 | 0:45:04 | |
I didn't want to move across the world on a temporary anything, | 0:45:05 | 0:45:09 | |
so I realised that my job would get us a permanent visa. | 0:45:09 | 0:45:12 | |
Gemma's visa came through within three months, then... | 0:45:12 | 0:45:16 | |
I was just hit with this, "Wow, this is real! | 0:45:16 | 0:45:18 | |
"We are really going to Australia." | 0:45:18 | 0:45:20 | |
It was exciting that it was happening and we could have | 0:45:20 | 0:45:24 | |
this new life, but then it was like a real bold underline - | 0:45:24 | 0:45:28 | |
"You are leaving everything behind." | 0:45:28 | 0:45:30 | |
The couple began the mammoth task of packing up their lives in the UK. | 0:45:30 | 0:45:35 | |
We had to empty our loft, | 0:45:35 | 0:45:36 | |
which I'm sure everyone can understand what an epic job that is. | 0:45:36 | 0:45:40 | |
But there were some things they were determined not to get rid of. | 0:45:40 | 0:45:44 | |
We knew that if we were coming there was | 0:45:44 | 0:45:46 | |
no way we were leaving our dogs behind, and that was really tough. | 0:45:46 | 0:45:49 | |
To get your dogs into Australia is no mean feat. | 0:45:49 | 0:45:52 | |
With such a quick turnaround, before they knew it, it was time to go. | 0:45:55 | 0:46:00 | |
I get emotional just thinking about saying goodbye. | 0:46:00 | 0:46:03 | |
It was an emotional time for Gemma, | 0:46:05 | 0:46:06 | |
particularly saying goodbye to her sister, | 0:46:06 | 0:46:09 | |
and I think they were putting it off until that very last moment. | 0:46:09 | 0:46:12 | |
I knew that was going to be the hard one for me, and it really was awful. | 0:46:12 | 0:46:16 | |
But when departure day dawned, it was time to dry the tears. | 0:46:16 | 0:46:20 | |
It was more of a release, wasn't it? It was, er... | 0:46:20 | 0:46:22 | |
It had finally arrived and we were embarking on the adventure. | 0:46:22 | 0:46:26 | |
Once we got on the plane, that bit was done, | 0:46:26 | 0:46:28 | |
and it was all exciting from there on, | 0:46:28 | 0:46:29 | |
and every time we got a step closer to Australia we were kind of | 0:46:29 | 0:46:32 | |
pinching ourselves thinking, | 0:46:32 | 0:46:34 | |
"We're doing this, we're really moving to Australia." | 0:46:34 | 0:46:37 | |
The Cromptons touched down in Brisbane at the end of | 0:46:37 | 0:46:39 | |
September 2015, less than six months after their trial week, | 0:46:39 | 0:46:44 | |
and moved into their new home on the Sunshine Coast. | 0:46:44 | 0:46:47 | |
We looked on the internet, | 0:46:47 | 0:46:49 | |
we found some houses that were in our price range, and we decided | 0:46:49 | 0:46:52 | |
that this was the house we wanted, this was the "Wow" house. | 0:46:52 | 0:46:56 | |
It was a great start to their new life. | 0:46:56 | 0:46:59 | |
It was so impressive. | 0:46:59 | 0:47:01 | |
The sun was shining, the garden was all in full flower... | 0:47:01 | 0:47:04 | |
We got into the house, and it was just gorgeous. | 0:47:04 | 0:47:06 | |
It was a lovely time, it was like being on holiday but then | 0:47:06 | 0:47:09 | |
knowing that we were here to live. | 0:47:09 | 0:47:11 | |
Their house is in Buderim, | 0:47:11 | 0:47:12 | |
a picturesque township overlooking Queensland's Sunshine Coast. | 0:47:12 | 0:47:17 | |
This area's just fabulous. | 0:47:17 | 0:47:19 | |
It's a mountain with rainforests, and what a place to live, | 0:47:19 | 0:47:23 | |
-it's just sensational. -This is our open plan living area. | 0:47:23 | 0:47:27 | |
It's really nice and bright. | 0:47:27 | 0:47:28 | |
This is exactly what we wanted from a house in Australia. | 0:47:28 | 0:47:31 | |
We all get to stay together, | 0:47:31 | 0:47:32 | |
even when somebody's cooking dinner, it's ideal. | 0:47:32 | 0:47:34 | |
But it's not perfect in every aspect. | 0:47:34 | 0:47:37 | |
We've got a beautiful view, but the kitchen is just tiny. | 0:47:37 | 0:47:39 | |
-But I like the view from down here. -The view is exceptional. | 0:47:39 | 0:47:44 | |
It's nice to sit and eat your dinner here looking out at that. | 0:47:44 | 0:47:47 | |
The master bedroom's got a pleasing outlook too. | 0:47:47 | 0:47:50 | |
We've got beautiful views out into the forest. | 0:47:50 | 0:47:52 | |
Erm, it's nice and big and spacious, | 0:47:52 | 0:47:54 | |
and we've got a walk-in wardrobe, which was one of my tick-lists. | 0:47:54 | 0:47:58 | |
Again, though, it does have a downside. | 0:47:58 | 0:48:00 | |
It's right on the living room, | 0:48:00 | 0:48:02 | |
and when your children get up at 5am, it's less than ideal. | 0:48:02 | 0:48:06 | |
Henry and Matilda are happy with their lot. | 0:48:06 | 0:48:09 | |
This is my bedroom. | 0:48:09 | 0:48:11 | |
My bed has got a slide. | 0:48:11 | 0:48:14 | |
It was important for us to bring, like, the beds and the furniture | 0:48:14 | 0:48:18 | |
just to give the kids as much continuity as they could from home. | 0:48:18 | 0:48:22 | |
This is my bedroom. | 0:48:22 | 0:48:23 | |
I've got a bunk bed, so when people come to stay they can sleep, | 0:48:23 | 0:48:28 | |
and Tink, she sleeps on the end there. | 0:48:28 | 0:48:31 | |
The room's a bit dark, but it's close to the man-cave, | 0:48:31 | 0:48:35 | |
so that's why I picked it. | 0:48:35 | 0:48:37 | |
This is the man-cave. | 0:48:37 | 0:48:39 | |
We've got a TV up here, and there's a nice view of all the house. | 0:48:39 | 0:48:43 | |
Me and Daddy like to hang out up here sometimes. | 0:48:43 | 0:48:46 | |
We thought it would be great, but to be honest it's so hot up here... | 0:48:46 | 0:48:50 | |
-We could live without it, I think. -What?! | 0:48:50 | 0:48:53 | |
Maybe not, Mum! | 0:48:54 | 0:48:56 | |
The house is situated right in the middle of a forest. | 0:48:56 | 0:49:00 | |
It's gorgeous, isn't it? | 0:49:00 | 0:49:02 | |
You get the Australian king parrots come and land, and we can feed them | 0:49:02 | 0:49:06 | |
and, you know, that's so different from pigeons at home and sparrows. | 0:49:06 | 0:49:09 | |
It's ideal for the dogs, | 0:49:09 | 0:49:11 | |
we've got a bit of a grass area so they can have a run. | 0:49:11 | 0:49:13 | |
We can leave them out here when we're at work. | 0:49:13 | 0:49:15 | |
We're very in love with our dogs, | 0:49:15 | 0:49:16 | |
it was important that they were happy here. | 0:49:16 | 0:49:18 | |
With Andrew starting his work just a couple of weeks after arriving | 0:49:18 | 0:49:22 | |
back in Australia, the family were jet-propelled into life down under. | 0:49:22 | 0:49:26 | |
So we had to get the kids set up in school, set up bank accounts, | 0:49:26 | 0:49:30 | |
set up medicare accounts... | 0:49:30 | 0:49:32 | |
So we expected to arrive and have 18 days lying in the sun, | 0:49:32 | 0:49:35 | |
and what happened was we spent 18 days sitting in offices | 0:49:35 | 0:49:38 | |
around the Sunshine Coast waiting for pieces of paper. | 0:49:38 | 0:49:41 | |
-And then I flew to Melbourne for... -Three months. -..three months, yeah. | 0:49:41 | 0:49:45 | |
So that was pretty tough. | 0:49:45 | 0:49:47 | |
With Andrew off training, Gemma was left flying solo. | 0:49:47 | 0:49:50 | |
But unfortunately her settling in period was about to | 0:49:50 | 0:49:54 | |
hit some turbulence. | 0:49:54 | 0:49:55 | |
Having decided to rent out their home in the UK rather than | 0:49:55 | 0:49:58 | |
sell it, Gemma was devastated to receive some very unsettling news | 0:49:58 | 0:50:02 | |
from the other side of the world. | 0:50:02 | 0:50:04 | |
The tenants we had in our home took out identity theft in our name. | 0:50:05 | 0:50:09 | |
We were getting bills dropping in to family where we'd had our | 0:50:09 | 0:50:13 | |
mail redirected saying that we were owing £1,000 on credit cards | 0:50:13 | 0:50:17 | |
and store cards. | 0:50:17 | 0:50:18 | |
You hear about it happening, you don't expect it to happen to you. | 0:50:18 | 0:50:21 | |
The stress of knowing I had criminals living in my home, | 0:50:21 | 0:50:25 | |
I found that really, really emotional. | 0:50:25 | 0:50:28 | |
More than 1,000 miles away from Andrew, Gemma felt very alone. | 0:50:28 | 0:50:32 | |
It was really hard trying to set up a new life here with all of that | 0:50:32 | 0:50:36 | |
going on in the UK and not really having a support network to help me. | 0:50:36 | 0:50:40 | |
At times, Andrew feared the worst. | 0:50:40 | 0:50:42 | |
Every day was kind of like maybe Gemma will turn around and go, | 0:50:42 | 0:50:45 | |
"D'you know what? It's too hard, I can't do it," | 0:50:45 | 0:50:47 | |
and we'd have to go home. | 0:50:47 | 0:50:49 | |
Eventually, the situation was resolved, the tenants evicted, | 0:50:49 | 0:50:52 | |
and the debt cleared. | 0:50:52 | 0:50:54 | |
The Cromptons got on with establishing their new lives | 0:50:54 | 0:50:57 | |
in Australia, but being away from his family for long periods | 0:50:57 | 0:51:00 | |
began to tell on Andrew. | 0:51:00 | 0:51:02 | |
And I only got back for a couple of weekends through that entire time, | 0:51:02 | 0:51:06 | |
and that was hard. | 0:51:06 | 0:51:07 | |
Being separated from Henry and Matilda was especially difficult. | 0:51:07 | 0:51:11 | |
I hadn't been away from the children for more than | 0:51:11 | 0:51:13 | |
a couple of nights here or there. | 0:51:13 | 0:51:15 | |
It was hard not to have that physical contact with them, | 0:51:15 | 0:51:18 | |
giving them a hug when they felt bad, | 0:51:18 | 0:51:20 | |
or sharing their successes at school or their new friends. | 0:51:20 | 0:51:24 | |
It was less than ideal, but we knew there was no other way to do it. | 0:51:24 | 0:51:28 | |
It was a challenging time for the couple, but it didn't put them off. | 0:51:28 | 0:51:33 | |
On the really bad days, I was like, | 0:51:33 | 0:51:34 | |
"Well, on a good note, at least I'm in Australia!" | 0:51:34 | 0:51:38 | |
The children have adapted well to life down under. | 0:51:38 | 0:51:41 | |
They are always outside, they love school, they've got new friends. | 0:51:41 | 0:51:45 | |
They love the lifestyle that it affords them, you know, | 0:51:45 | 0:51:47 | |
every day when they're not at school we're out and about doing something. | 0:51:47 | 0:51:51 | |
I like living here because there's more sunshine | 0:51:51 | 0:51:54 | |
so I get more time to play out. | 0:51:54 | 0:51:56 | |
I think moving to Australia was a good idea. | 0:51:56 | 0:52:02 | |
After about three weeks, Henry said, | 0:52:02 | 0:52:04 | |
"Thank you, Mammy, for bringing us to Australia. | 0:52:04 | 0:52:06 | |
"I love my new life." | 0:52:06 | 0:52:08 | |
And I was like, "Oh! | 0:52:08 | 0:52:09 | |
"We've made the right choice!" | 0:52:10 | 0:52:12 | |
And Mum and Dad feel very at home too. | 0:52:13 | 0:52:15 | |
Everybody's really friendly, | 0:52:15 | 0:52:17 | |
you walk past people on the street and they say hi. | 0:52:17 | 0:52:20 | |
I was really moved by just how welcoming everybody was. | 0:52:20 | 0:52:23 | |
It's been... It's been fabulous. | 0:52:23 | 0:52:25 | |
Andrew's now in the final stages of his training. | 0:52:25 | 0:52:28 | |
I always wanted to continue to be an air traffic controller, | 0:52:28 | 0:52:31 | |
but I'd have probably come and been a bin man or anything, really. | 0:52:31 | 0:52:34 | |
The fact that I could come and continue to do | 0:52:34 | 0:52:36 | |
a job that I love was a bonus. | 0:52:36 | 0:52:39 | |
It's taken a bit of getting used to, though. | 0:52:39 | 0:52:42 | |
Brisbane Airport is completely different to the airport | 0:52:42 | 0:52:45 | |
I used to control out of Durham Tees Valley. | 0:52:45 | 0:52:47 | |
The number of aeroplanes, the amount of passengers, | 0:52:47 | 0:52:50 | |
just the scale of the airport itself, everything's different. | 0:52:50 | 0:52:53 | |
There's an awful lot of mental discipline to unlearn the way | 0:52:53 | 0:52:56 | |
you've done things historically to then start doing it the way | 0:52:56 | 0:52:59 | |
you're meant to do it in the new way. | 0:52:59 | 0:53:01 | |
Getting to work's a lot different as well. | 0:53:01 | 0:53:03 | |
My commute in England was 20-25 minutes at worst, | 0:53:03 | 0:53:08 | |
whereas here, at best, it's 65 minutes. Now, that's hard. | 0:53:08 | 0:53:13 | |
It makes an early start a really very early start. | 0:53:13 | 0:53:16 | |
On the flipside of that coin, when I'm not at work, | 0:53:16 | 0:53:19 | |
I'm exactly where I want to be, on the Sunshine Coast. | 0:53:19 | 0:53:23 | |
Gemma's recently started work too. | 0:53:23 | 0:53:25 | |
Having moved into the private sector, she finds working as | 0:53:25 | 0:53:28 | |
a radiographer down under a lot less stressful than in the UK. | 0:53:28 | 0:53:32 | |
We have a lot more space between our patients | 0:53:32 | 0:53:34 | |
so there's more time to really build up a rapport with your | 0:53:34 | 0:53:37 | |
patients and look after them, so I do enjoy that, that's nice. | 0:53:37 | 0:53:40 | |
Everybody here's really happy in their job. | 0:53:40 | 0:53:42 | |
There's a much calmer working environment | 0:53:42 | 0:53:45 | |
than I've ever been used to. | 0:53:45 | 0:53:46 | |
And it's not just Gemma reaping the benefits of her new job. | 0:53:46 | 0:53:50 | |
Where I work is actually only 10 minutes drive from my home. | 0:53:50 | 0:53:54 | |
It tends to be eight till five, Monday to Friday, | 0:53:54 | 0:53:57 | |
which fits really well with the children going to afterschool care. | 0:53:57 | 0:54:00 | |
I'm at work when they're at school. | 0:54:00 | 0:54:02 | |
There's no more me going out to work when they're going to bed, | 0:54:02 | 0:54:04 | |
and then being asleep all day when they're home, | 0:54:04 | 0:54:07 | |
so we have much better family time, much better balance. | 0:54:07 | 0:54:09 | |
That's not the only bonus either. | 0:54:09 | 0:54:11 | |
I'm earning more now in Australia doing three days a week than | 0:54:11 | 0:54:14 | |
I did in the UK working four days a week, so it's no comparison. | 0:54:14 | 0:54:18 | |
Overall, Gemma's very content with her lot. | 0:54:18 | 0:54:21 | |
I always had big aspirations when I was in the UK | 0:54:21 | 0:54:23 | |
of what I wanted to do. | 0:54:23 | 0:54:24 | |
I think those have changed, actually, with my move to Australia. | 0:54:24 | 0:54:27 | |
But in terms of career ladder-climbing, | 0:54:27 | 0:54:30 | |
I think I'm just going to enjoy my life on the coast. | 0:54:30 | 0:54:33 | |
The family have already had plenty of visitors. | 0:54:33 | 0:54:36 | |
First out was Andrew's mum. | 0:54:36 | 0:54:38 | |
She arrived two months in, | 0:54:38 | 0:54:39 | |
and stayed right through Christmas and New Year, | 0:54:39 | 0:54:42 | |
and during that time Andy's sister flew in, | 0:54:42 | 0:54:44 | |
and then my mum arrived three weeks ago, so we've had a lot of visitors. | 0:54:44 | 0:54:49 | |
-We haven't had much time on our own, really. -No. | 0:54:49 | 0:54:52 | |
If you're aching for some bacon... | 0:54:52 | 0:54:53 | |
THEY LAUGH | 0:54:53 | 0:54:55 | |
Life's been so busy there's scarcely time to be homesick, | 0:54:55 | 0:54:59 | |
but the distance from home did hit hard when Gemma missed an | 0:54:59 | 0:55:02 | |
important family occasion back in the UK. | 0:55:02 | 0:55:05 | |
Joanne got married a month ago, | 0:55:05 | 0:55:08 | |
and I couldn't be there because I'm here, | 0:55:08 | 0:55:11 | |
so nothing will ever... | 0:55:11 | 0:55:15 | |
give me that back, and I feel awful cos that was my choice to come. | 0:55:15 | 0:55:19 | |
She may not have been able to be there in person, but thanks | 0:55:19 | 0:55:23 | |
to modern technology, Gemma still played a part in the big day. | 0:55:23 | 0:55:26 | |
I watched her put her dress on, | 0:55:26 | 0:55:28 | |
and I watched her get her hair done, and just before she walked | 0:55:28 | 0:55:31 | |
down the aisle it was just me and her talking! | 0:55:31 | 0:55:33 | |
That's amazing that you can do that in this day and age, | 0:55:33 | 0:55:35 | |
and that really does make the distance less, and it does help. | 0:55:35 | 0:55:39 | |
So far, Australia's surpassed all of the couple's expectations. | 0:55:39 | 0:55:43 | |
You can't even get anywhere close to living in the UK as we live here. | 0:55:43 | 0:55:47 | |
Our spare time as a family's exceptional now. | 0:55:47 | 0:55:49 | |
We're never in, so we spend a lot of time at the beach, | 0:55:49 | 0:55:53 | |
that is never going to get old for us. | 0:55:53 | 0:55:55 | |
We go swimming in the river, | 0:55:55 | 0:55:56 | |
and the dogs are swimming alongside us, and that's great fun. | 0:55:56 | 0:55:59 | |
Everything we do here is as a family, and it's a lovely lifestyle. | 0:55:59 | 0:56:03 | |
Even your worst day here is just amazing. | 0:56:03 | 0:56:06 | |
That sounds cheesy, but it is. | 0:56:06 | 0:56:08 | |
They've no doubt they've made the right move. | 0:56:08 | 0:56:11 | |
With all the emotional ups and downs we've had since we moved to | 0:56:11 | 0:56:14 | |
Australia, there's not a moment where I've regretted my decision. | 0:56:14 | 0:56:18 | |
We've been in Australia six months now, | 0:56:18 | 0:56:20 | |
and I can honestly say every day I've woken up and thought, | 0:56:20 | 0:56:23 | |
"Thank goodness we made the choice to come." | 0:56:23 | 0:56:26 | |
They really are living the dream. | 0:56:26 | 0:56:27 | |
I didn't even know that my life could be this good. | 0:56:27 | 0:56:30 | |
So we're kind of creating a new bar for the dream, | 0:56:30 | 0:56:33 | |
and it's much higher than it used to be. | 0:56:33 | 0:56:34 | |
I will always be English and British, but Australia is my home. | 0:56:34 | 0:56:38 | |
I'm just so grateful that we did this for our children because | 0:56:38 | 0:56:42 | |
their life will be so much better here than it ever would have | 0:56:42 | 0:56:45 | |
been in the UK. | 0:56:45 | 0:56:46 | |
Everything about who we are fits perfectly with what Australia | 0:56:48 | 0:56:51 | |
has to offer, and I can't ever see us going back. | 0:56:51 | 0:56:55 | |
We love Australia, it's just the most amazing place, | 0:56:55 | 0:57:00 | |
and I'm so grateful that they let us in! | 0:57:00 | 0:57:02 | |
Life has really taken off for the Cromptons down under, | 0:57:05 | 0:57:09 | |
and despite Gemma's initial reservations, | 0:57:09 | 0:57:12 | |
it looks like she's more than happy to have made the move. | 0:57:12 | 0:57:16 | |
We wish her, Andrew, Henry and Matilda | 0:57:16 | 0:57:20 | |
a long and happy future living the dream on Australia's Sunshine Coast. | 0:57:20 | 0:57:25 |