0:00:02 > 0:00:05One year ago, we followed the stories of six historic buildings,
0:00:05 > 0:00:08each crumbling and at risk of being lost forever.
0:00:13 > 0:00:16Six brave new owners made a commitment to save them,
0:00:16 > 0:00:20attempting to transform them into their dream home.
0:00:20 > 0:00:22Well, she found it. HE LAUGHS
0:00:26 > 0:00:30But there was more to rescuing these incredible buildings than anyone imagined.
0:00:30 > 0:00:34- HE GROANS - I don't think we'd ever buy another listed building.
0:00:34 > 0:00:35Ever.
0:00:35 > 0:00:38With architectural expert, Kieran Long,
0:00:38 > 0:00:42and historian, Dr Kate Williams, we've not only been following
0:00:42 > 0:00:46the restoration of these magnificent buildings, we've dug deep
0:00:46 > 0:00:49into their history, and uncovered some extraordinary stories.
0:00:50 > 0:00:55One thing led to another, and they murdered her in this hall, somewhere.
0:01:00 > 0:01:06Now we're going back to discover what happened to these buildings and their owners - one year on.
0:01:14 > 0:01:18Today we're revisiting two of our great restoration projects.
0:01:18 > 0:01:22Stoke Hall was the grandest of them all.
0:01:23 > 0:01:28Nutbourne Pumping Station, the most controversial.
0:01:28 > 0:01:33One year on, we'll discover what new stories have come to light...
0:01:35 > 0:01:38Constant tennis parties in the summer.
0:01:38 > 0:01:42I often had to be ball boy, which I quite enjoyed.
0:01:42 > 0:01:46..what new work has been completed...
0:01:46 > 0:01:48What an extraordinary room this is.
0:01:48 > 0:01:52..and just what it's like living in our Restoration Homes.
0:01:52 > 0:01:58I still get exactly the same buzz that we got when we first moved in.
0:01:58 > 0:02:00I'm glad we're doing this.
0:02:00 > 0:02:03I'm glad we live here.
0:02:10 > 0:02:13Our first restoration story is Stoke Hall,
0:02:13 > 0:02:17a 30-room Georgian mansion in the Peak District National Park
0:02:17 > 0:02:18in Derbyshire.
0:02:19 > 0:02:23When our cameras first arrived, its future had been
0:02:23 > 0:02:26dangling by a thread for decades.
0:02:26 > 0:02:30A leaking roof and widespread dry rot had been eating away
0:02:30 > 0:02:31at the building for years.
0:02:33 > 0:02:37At risk of being lost was the original 18th-century decor,
0:02:37 > 0:02:41which gives the hall a Grade II star listing, which means it's
0:02:41 > 0:02:44a building of special historic interest,
0:02:44 > 0:02:48and all plans must be approved by the heritage bodies.
0:02:52 > 0:02:57Saving such a building, with its rare and ornate interiors,
0:02:57 > 0:03:01was going to be not just difficult, but also incredibly expensive.
0:03:01 > 0:03:06It was in need of a saviour with deep pockets.
0:03:06 > 0:03:11In stepped Steve and Natalie Drury and their children, Tom and Laura.
0:03:11 > 0:03:15They bought Stoke Hall in 2009,
0:03:15 > 0:03:17after a search for their perfect family home.
0:03:17 > 0:03:22This one was the one we loved. This was the house,
0:03:22 > 0:03:24so this was going to be our home.
0:03:24 > 0:03:27- This was the house to bring the family up in. - Yeah. Yes, definitely.
0:03:27 > 0:03:32Steve and Natalie started life together in a three-bed semi,
0:03:32 > 0:03:35but since then, Steve's become a self-made millionaire,
0:03:35 > 0:03:39with a successful business supplying hi-tech products to the energy industry.
0:03:41 > 0:03:46Full-time mum, Natalie, is also from a modest background. Her dad's a plumber.
0:03:48 > 0:03:51They hope Stoke Hall will be their home for life.
0:03:52 > 0:03:54You do get a very good feel.
0:03:54 > 0:03:58When you drive over the hill and you can see it in the distance, and you see the striped lawns,
0:03:58 > 0:04:02you do think, "Yeah, actually, you've done well".
0:04:02 > 0:04:07Stoke Hall's last owner had started to restore parts of the building,
0:04:07 > 0:04:10but sadly, he died with work still in progress.
0:04:11 > 0:04:15Steve and Natalie paid 2.5 million just to buy Stoke Hall
0:04:15 > 0:04:19and knew the restoration wasn't going to come cheap.
0:04:20 > 0:04:23We're looking to spend £4 million in total,
0:04:23 > 0:04:27an extra £1.5 million over what we bought.
0:04:27 > 0:04:31The rooms they plan to transform include one on the first floor
0:04:31 > 0:04:35with an original ceiling, earmarked to be the master bedroom.
0:04:38 > 0:04:42The 1980s kitchen, which faced a total revamp.
0:04:42 > 0:04:45And the two ground-floor rooms on the south side of the house
0:04:45 > 0:04:48with their spectacular Georgian decor.
0:04:48 > 0:04:52This is the room that gives me the most apprehension about the house.
0:04:52 > 0:04:57I'm used to the painted walls and the plain ceilings and quite modern lights,
0:04:57 > 0:05:00so when I first came in this room I thought, "Oh, my goodness!"
0:05:00 > 0:05:03I don't think we'd ever take anything away from the house.
0:05:03 > 0:05:05The house is amazing.
0:05:07 > 0:05:12But we just want to make it more ours, more of a home.
0:05:17 > 0:05:20Whilst Steve and Natalie started their work to make it a home,
0:05:20 > 0:05:23our architectural expert, Kieran Long,
0:05:23 > 0:05:27started his investigation to uncover more about the building.
0:05:28 > 0:05:35So it's just a simply beautiful, old Georgian mansion in the landscape,
0:05:35 > 0:05:39a really, really, really beautiful Palladian villa, in Derbyshire.
0:05:41 > 0:05:44It was clear it had been built with appearances in mind.
0:05:45 > 0:05:48You arrive from the south, and you see
0:05:48 > 0:05:51the corner of the building, and all of the money and design effort
0:05:51 > 0:05:55was spent on making those two facades as impressive as they can be,
0:05:55 > 0:05:58making the building seem perhaps more grand than it is.
0:06:00 > 0:06:03Whilst it is impressive on the outside,
0:06:03 > 0:06:07it's what's on the inside that makes it so unique.
0:06:13 > 0:06:15Well, this is an incredible room.
0:06:26 > 0:06:30The fire surround is a really high quality, I think.
0:06:30 > 0:06:34This is timber carving, and whoever did this is a very fine craftsman.
0:06:35 > 0:06:39Two other features of the fireplace suggest it was inspired
0:06:39 > 0:06:41by someone with rather racy artistic tastes.
0:06:41 > 0:06:45There's a pair of young men,
0:06:45 > 0:06:49made of plaster, who look somehow like they're in a kind of ecstasy,
0:06:49 > 0:06:51running their hands through their hair.
0:06:51 > 0:06:53This guy seems to have a moustache.
0:06:53 > 0:06:58It's like a footballer or a '70s porn star. I'm not sure which.
0:06:58 > 0:07:01But who was it who commissioned these interiors
0:07:01 > 0:07:02and built this house?
0:07:02 > 0:07:06Kieran needed to do more digging to find out.
0:07:08 > 0:07:13To do justice to such quality interiors, Steve put together a band
0:07:13 > 0:07:17of highly-skilled local craftsmen to lovingly restore each detail.
0:07:17 > 0:07:21This small team soon became part of the household.
0:07:21 > 0:07:23They love having the workmen here, Tom especially,
0:07:23 > 0:07:25because he likes to help them.
0:07:25 > 0:07:27And Laura likes them to be here...
0:07:30 > 0:07:32- ..cos she's a little bit bossy! - SHE LAUGHS
0:07:32 > 0:07:35You have to work extra hard.
0:07:36 > 0:07:38Or you're fired!
0:07:41 > 0:07:43Some work moved ahead quickly.
0:07:43 > 0:07:50Up on the leaking roof, £150,000 worth of urgent repairs had finally made it watertight.
0:07:52 > 0:07:55But inside, work was not moving as fast.
0:07:56 > 0:08:00The Grade II star listing, which recognised Stoke Hall's
0:08:00 > 0:08:04architectural and historic importance, also meant
0:08:04 > 0:08:08all plans had to be approved by the conservation bodies.
0:08:08 > 0:08:11They do their best to protect our heritage,
0:08:11 > 0:08:15but their views don't always coincide with those of the owners.
0:08:17 > 0:08:20Everything's ready, but we can't cut the wood to size,
0:08:20 > 0:08:23because we don't know how high the floor's going to be,
0:08:23 > 0:08:25what kind of floor it's going to be yet.
0:08:25 > 0:08:29We have to wait for a decision to be made,
0:08:29 > 0:08:33so we're in limbo land, really, at the moment, for this room.
0:08:33 > 0:08:37And it wasn't just in the Georgian rooms that decisions were out of their hands.
0:08:37 > 0:08:42Even replacing the 1980s vinyl floor tiles in the kitchen
0:08:42 > 0:08:45needed approval by the conservation body.
0:08:45 > 0:08:49Steve and Natalie wanted a polished limestone floor.
0:08:49 > 0:08:51They think it should be flagstones
0:08:51 > 0:08:53because that's what would have been down.
0:08:53 > 0:08:58Putting the flags down would just make it feel really cold.
0:09:00 > 0:09:04I really think it would totally change the dynamic of it,
0:09:04 > 0:09:08and it would really, really upset me, to be fair.
0:09:08 > 0:09:14Agreement on restoration plans is often a matter of negotiation.
0:09:14 > 0:09:18But with work stalled, and so many decisions still to be resolved,
0:09:18 > 0:09:21the stress was taking its toll on Natalie.
0:09:21 > 0:09:23We've never owned a listed building before.
0:09:27 > 0:09:30If we did have to sell this house for whatever reason,
0:09:30 > 0:09:32and it would not be our choice, I don't think, but if we did,
0:09:32 > 0:09:36I don't think we'd ever buy another listed building.
0:09:36 > 0:09:38Ever. So...
0:09:42 > 0:09:47Whilst Steve and Natalie were deep in negotiations over listed building consent,
0:09:47 > 0:09:50incredibly, at the other end of the country,
0:09:50 > 0:09:51the owners of our second building
0:09:51 > 0:09:54had no such problems with their plans.
0:09:57 > 0:10:02That's because, despite being a part of our nation's industrial heritage,
0:10:02 > 0:10:08Nutbourne Pumping Station in West Sussex had never been listed.
0:10:10 > 0:10:13In its day, it had been a building that pumped fresh water
0:10:13 > 0:10:16to the surrounding population, but by the 1970s,
0:10:16 > 0:10:18it was defunct.
0:10:18 > 0:10:22Unused and neglected, it soon became a wreck.
0:10:24 > 0:10:27Who on earth wanted to make it their home?
0:10:30 > 0:10:33Hello, my name is Nick Sweet, and this is my wife.
0:10:33 > 0:10:37Hello, my name's Brigitte, and we've bought Nutbourne...
0:10:37 > 0:10:39BOTH: Pumping Station!
0:10:39 > 0:10:41THEY LAUGH
0:10:47 > 0:10:50With their five-year-old twins, Francesca and Willem,
0:10:50 > 0:10:54they wanted to turn this large industrial building
0:10:54 > 0:10:55into a family home.
0:10:55 > 0:10:57Nobody's ever used it as a home,
0:10:57 > 0:11:00and that's why I feel it's easier to make it into a home,
0:11:00 > 0:11:02because you're not following anybody else's design.
0:11:02 > 0:11:07To transform the building, Nick had his own professional expertise to draw on.
0:11:07 > 0:11:12He's a partner in an international urban design consultancy.
0:11:13 > 0:11:16Computer-generated images showed how the building might look
0:11:16 > 0:11:20as a home, and there was no sentimental attachment
0:11:20 > 0:11:23to its former life as a pumping station.
0:11:23 > 0:11:26The notion of keeping some sort of twee pump in the middle of the room
0:11:26 > 0:11:30or hoist in the ceiling, out of some deferential reference
0:11:30 > 0:11:33to the original use of the building is stupid, as far as I'm concerned.
0:11:35 > 0:11:38As the pumping station wasn't a listed building,
0:11:38 > 0:11:42Nick and Brigitte had full planning permission for the conversion.
0:11:42 > 0:11:47Bought for £260,000, their further £400,000 budget
0:11:47 > 0:11:50included the removal of all the pumping machinery,
0:11:50 > 0:11:53and the installation of a new concrete floor
0:11:53 > 0:11:55over the old basement.
0:11:55 > 0:11:59To maximise space, the industrial staircase
0:11:59 > 0:12:01and walkway would be stripped out.
0:12:02 > 0:12:06The old water filtration tanks at the back would become bedrooms.
0:12:06 > 0:12:08It's going to be lovely. And there won't be any stairs.
0:12:08 > 0:12:11It's like a giant bungalow.
0:12:11 > 0:12:14Don't tell him I said "bungalow". He'd die!
0:12:15 > 0:12:18And up on the roof of his giant bungalow, Nick planned
0:12:18 > 0:12:21to install solar panels to create a carbon-efficient home.
0:12:24 > 0:12:27I quite like the idea of going "nil-bill".
0:12:27 > 0:12:30You know, where you have no gas bills, no power bills.
0:12:30 > 0:12:33Ultimately and potentially, no water bills.
0:12:33 > 0:12:38You just get the Council Tax, which is, I suppose, unavoidable.
0:12:40 > 0:12:43With his modern eco technologies, Nick hoped to turn the pumping station
0:12:43 > 0:12:48into a 21st-century, ground-breaking, nil-bill home.
0:12:48 > 0:12:51But when it was built, back in the 1930s,
0:12:51 > 0:12:55the pumping station's machinery was equally ground-breaking.
0:12:55 > 0:12:58Its pumps and filters were instrumental in the fight
0:12:58 > 0:13:02against a terrible killer, typhoid.
0:13:02 > 0:13:05At the turn of the century, contaminated water sources
0:13:05 > 0:13:08led to the death of huge numbers of people.
0:13:08 > 0:13:13Buildings like Nutbourne Pumping Station were to change all that,
0:13:13 > 0:13:17bringing safe, clean water to the local population.
0:13:19 > 0:13:22Our historian, Kate Williams, uncovered evidence
0:13:22 > 0:13:26that the opening day was a grand VIP event.
0:13:28 > 0:13:29APPLAUSE AND CHEERING
0:13:29 > 0:13:31We found the pictures of the day!
0:13:31 > 0:13:35Lord Leconfield, the Lord Lieutenant of the county,
0:13:35 > 0:13:37is coming to see the pumping station open.
0:13:37 > 0:13:40So this is a marvellous moment.
0:13:42 > 0:13:44And this is my favourite.
0:13:44 > 0:13:46Lord Leconfield is turning on the tap.
0:13:48 > 0:13:53The first drop of clean, pure water that is safe to drink.
0:13:55 > 0:13:57It would revolutionise society, revolutionise health.
0:13:57 > 0:14:00Infant mortality would drop.
0:14:00 > 0:14:04The pumping station, the saviour of Nutbourne.
0:14:04 > 0:14:08And it was felt that such a modern, revolutionary building
0:14:08 > 0:14:11should be built in the modern architectural style.
0:14:16 > 0:14:21The 1930s was a heyday for British architecture and design,
0:14:21 > 0:14:24giving us the BBC's Broadcasting House,
0:14:24 > 0:14:28Battersea Power Station, the iconic red telephone box,
0:14:28 > 0:14:31and stations like Cockfosters, on London's Piccadilly line,
0:14:31 > 0:14:33opened in 1933,
0:14:33 > 0:14:37where our architectural expert, Kieran, went to investigate.
0:14:41 > 0:14:44We're in exactly the world of Nutbourne Pumping Station here.
0:14:44 > 0:14:48We're in the world of the early '30s municipal modern, if you like.
0:14:50 > 0:14:51Architectural details at Cockfosters
0:14:51 > 0:14:54have uncanny echoes of the pumping station.
0:14:56 > 0:15:01From the shape of the handrails, to the design of the skylights.
0:15:03 > 0:15:08These buildings are really important to Britain's architectural heritage, and they demonstrate that,
0:15:08 > 0:15:11in the '30s, we really had an idea of civic pride in infrastructure.
0:15:11 > 0:15:14The way that the water was pumped to and from houses was something
0:15:14 > 0:15:17that people were proud of. "It's amazing technology that we can do it at all."
0:15:17 > 0:15:19And so they almost built monuments to that.
0:15:23 > 0:15:27One person who was incredibly proud of this building was the engineer
0:15:27 > 0:15:31resident at Nutbourne for over a quarter of a century, Mr Brown.
0:15:34 > 0:15:38His widow, Marjorie, is one of the few people who remembers it
0:15:38 > 0:15:40as a working pumping station.
0:15:43 > 0:15:44Oh, my goodness me!
0:15:45 > 0:15:50Oh! I can't believe it could be so different.
0:15:52 > 0:15:53Look at it.
0:15:55 > 0:15:57Her late husband maintained all the machinery
0:15:57 > 0:16:01until the pumps fell silent in the 1970s.
0:16:01 > 0:16:02Gosh.
0:16:04 > 0:16:09So quiet. And yet it was always noisy.
0:16:09 > 0:16:11Alive, if you like,
0:16:11 > 0:16:14with the noise of the pumps and everything.
0:16:16 > 0:16:20Marjorie will never forget the pride her husband took in this building.
0:16:20 > 0:16:23You could have eaten your meal off the floor.
0:16:23 > 0:16:27It was all clean.
0:16:27 > 0:16:29Beautiful.
0:16:29 > 0:16:32All the handrails were all cream,
0:16:32 > 0:16:36and it was just always spotlessly clean.
0:16:36 > 0:16:39And now it's just a wreck.
0:16:39 > 0:16:46Sad, isn't it, how anything can deteriorate like this?
0:16:48 > 0:16:52But Marjorie believed the past was the past, and that Nick
0:16:52 > 0:16:55and Brigitte's restoration plans were just what the building needed.
0:16:55 > 0:16:59I don't think it does matter if everything goes.
0:16:59 > 0:17:04It's much better that it should be something totally different
0:17:04 > 0:17:07than see it in this sad and sorry state.
0:17:09 > 0:17:12And it was just as well,
0:17:12 > 0:17:15because two weeks later, the demolition boys were in.
0:17:24 > 0:17:2815 tons of seriously heavy pumping machinery was dismantled
0:17:28 > 0:17:30and lifted out of the building.
0:17:39 > 0:17:42And the pumping station's past was carried off to be
0:17:42 > 0:17:44reincarnated at the scrap yard.
0:17:56 > 0:17:57Whilst Nick and Brigitte
0:17:57 > 0:18:02were junking many of its original features,
0:18:02 > 0:18:07200 miles away, Steve and Natalie were striving to save
0:18:07 > 0:18:09every last surviving detail at Stoke Hall.
0:18:09 > 0:18:12And there had been good news.
0:18:12 > 0:18:16Five months in, and after weeks of delay,
0:18:16 > 0:18:20the conservation body had approved the plans for their floors.
0:18:20 > 0:18:25We've been told we can put oak all the way through and take that pine up,
0:18:25 > 0:18:27so now we can start doing these two rooms.
0:18:29 > 0:18:33And the 1980s vinyl floor in the kitchen could also be replaced.
0:18:34 > 0:18:39But Steve and Natalie weren't to get their polished limestone floor.
0:18:39 > 0:18:41It had to be black slate instead.
0:18:41 > 0:18:44They did agree to the black slate.
0:18:44 > 0:18:46Not exactly what we wanted, but...
0:18:46 > 0:18:51We either wait three months and argue about the floor we want, or we find a compromise.
0:18:53 > 0:18:55So... we compromised.
0:19:01 > 0:19:04'I thought it was about time I paid them a visit.'
0:19:04 > 0:19:08Steve and Natalie have been working on their house for months now,
0:19:08 > 0:19:11so I'll go inside and find out how they're coping
0:19:11 > 0:19:15with this massive,
0:19:15 > 0:19:17massive refurbishment.
0:19:18 > 0:19:21'But first, I found out they were going to be coping with
0:19:21 > 0:19:24'a little extra something, too.'
0:19:24 > 0:19:26Natalie's expecting a baby,
0:19:26 > 0:19:30and by November, we'll have filled another one of the bedrooms.
0:19:30 > 0:19:34- Congratulations! - Thank you.- That's really fantastic.
0:19:34 > 0:19:38'But with just four months till the baby was due,
0:19:38 > 0:19:43'it wasn't looking like Steve and Natalie would be in their new master bedroom by that deadline.'
0:19:44 > 0:19:47This is the ceiling that's caused you all the grief, isn't it?
0:19:47 > 0:19:52- Oh! Yeah. We're not sure if it's going to stay up.- Really?- Yeah.
0:19:52 > 0:19:56There's still a long way to go, isn't there, Natalie?
0:19:56 > 0:20:01Erm, I mean, it looks that way.
0:20:01 > 0:20:04It looks that way. If you look around and you see
0:20:04 > 0:20:05the exposed stonework and everything,
0:20:05 > 0:20:09but it's going to be fine. It's going to be absolutely fine.
0:20:09 > 0:20:13Is that fear?
0:20:13 > 0:20:15Is that hysteria?
0:20:15 > 0:20:19'Saving precious interiors like these is a mammoth task.'
0:20:19 > 0:20:23But Natalie has never known who chose them originally.
0:20:23 > 0:20:28So, who might have lived in Stoke Hall 250 years ago?
0:20:28 > 0:20:30I imagine they'd be very well to do,
0:20:30 > 0:20:35maybe, you know, aristocracy sort of thing, you know, Lord of the Manor.
0:20:35 > 0:20:39Had to go and open garden fetes or something like that, you know.
0:20:41 > 0:20:44But our historian, Kate, had discovered
0:20:44 > 0:20:46that contrary to Natalie's suspicions,
0:20:46 > 0:20:50the man who'd built their mansion wasn't an aristocrat at all.
0:20:51 > 0:20:55He was a man of the cloth. A Reverend John Simpson.
0:20:55 > 0:21:00She traced his origins to the country parish of Babworth in Nottinghamshire,
0:21:00 > 0:21:0330 miles from Stoke Hall.
0:21:03 > 0:21:06Here's our man.
0:21:06 > 0:21:08"Within the family vault of this Church are deposited the remains of
0:21:08 > 0:21:15the Reverend John Simpson, late of Stoke Hall in the County of Derby."
0:21:15 > 0:21:19John Simpson was a member of the English gentry,
0:21:19 > 0:21:24who, in the 18th century, were on their way up the social ladder.
0:21:24 > 0:21:27He made a very good marriage to the granddaughter
0:21:27 > 0:21:30of English Naval hero Admiral Benbow,
0:21:30 > 0:21:35and inherited Stoke Hall Estate as part of his marriage settlement.
0:21:36 > 0:21:39In the 1750s, the up-and-coming Reverend
0:21:39 > 0:21:43built his fashionable new mansion, Stoke Hall.
0:21:43 > 0:21:47But who designed the house was still a mystery.
0:21:48 > 0:21:52Architects often leave a tell-tale signature of their work
0:21:52 > 0:21:56and Stoke Hall had given Kieran a great lead.
0:21:56 > 0:22:01To me, the biggest clue is this kind of central arch surround
0:22:01 > 0:22:04to the main central bay of the facade.
0:22:04 > 0:22:07You know, just the way that geometrically, the arch
0:22:07 > 0:22:11interacts with these kind of drapery-like surrounds on the sides of the window.
0:22:11 > 0:22:14There's something geometrically pleasing about it that is not an accident.
0:22:14 > 0:22:17The hunt was on to find the same detail
0:22:17 > 0:22:21on another mid 18th-century building.
0:22:27 > 0:22:30In the library of the Royal Institute of British Architects,
0:22:30 > 0:22:33Kieran found an astonishing link.
0:22:33 > 0:22:37It was in a book by 18th century architect James Paine,
0:22:37 > 0:22:42whose latest house designs were the talk of Georgian high society.
0:22:46 > 0:22:50This is almost identical to the window surrounds
0:22:50 > 0:22:53on the exterior of Stoke Hall.
0:22:53 > 0:22:57James Paine was one of the hottest architects around.
0:22:57 > 0:23:00As a subscriber to the book, Reverend Simpson could pick
0:23:00 > 0:23:03and choose from his trendy designs.
0:23:03 > 0:23:07It's likely the Reverend hired a local man, a Mr Booth,
0:23:07 > 0:23:09to build Stoke Hall.
0:23:09 > 0:23:12And it's the designer, Paine, and builder, Booth,
0:23:12 > 0:23:16who connect Stoke Hall to one of the grandest houses of all.
0:23:16 > 0:23:20Chatsworth. Just a few miles away.
0:23:21 > 0:23:25What we have down the road is one of the most important houses in this country
0:23:25 > 0:23:29or any other country, Chatsworth, which Paine and Booth were involved in,
0:23:29 > 0:23:33so it's a great discovery that Stoke Hall has this link
0:23:33 > 0:23:36with one of the greatest works of architecture in the country.
0:23:36 > 0:23:39So, it seems the Reverend Simpson had been inspired
0:23:39 > 0:23:42by the big house up the road.
0:23:42 > 0:23:46And 250 years later, his stunning interiors at Stoke Hall
0:23:46 > 0:23:49were proving to be a huge challenge
0:23:49 > 0:23:53in Steve and Natalie's restoration plans.
0:23:53 > 0:23:57Countless coats of paint needed to be very delicately removed.
0:23:57 > 0:24:02As a test, the cornice above one of the doors was encased
0:24:02 > 0:24:05with a chemical stripper to see if it stood up
0:24:05 > 0:24:09to having two and a half centuries of paint removed in one go.
0:24:11 > 0:24:16It should come off with the paper and strip all the paint off.
0:24:17 > 0:24:19We shall have a look.
0:24:22 > 0:24:24We've got to be very careful.
0:24:24 > 0:24:28If things went wrong, the Reverend's precious interior
0:24:28 > 0:24:30was at risk of being damaged even further.
0:24:33 > 0:24:37That's right down to the original plaster.
0:24:39 > 0:24:43On this piece here, it's not damaged anything. so...
0:24:43 > 0:24:45I'm not as nervous now.
0:24:47 > 0:24:49It was still going to be a huge job
0:24:49 > 0:24:53to reveal all the decorative detail in this extraordinary room.
0:24:53 > 0:24:56And whilst careful restoration of the plasterwork
0:24:56 > 0:24:58was being carried out at Stoke Hall,
0:24:58 > 0:25:01down at the Pumping Station,
0:25:01 > 0:25:05two weeks of demolition had come to an end.
0:25:11 > 0:25:13'By the time I went back,
0:25:13 > 0:25:18'all evidence of the Pumping Station's former life had vanished.'
0:25:18 > 0:25:22- Well, this is a bit different, isn't it?- It is, isn't it?
0:25:22 > 0:25:25This is looking absolutely awesome.
0:25:26 > 0:25:31With so much flexible space, the debate about the layout had started
0:25:31 > 0:25:33and Brigitte had won the first battle.
0:25:33 > 0:25:37- So, in here... - This is the kitchen.- Very good.
0:25:37 > 0:25:40And then that's the new back door going out into the garden.
0:25:40 > 0:25:42That's fantastic, isn't it?
0:25:42 > 0:25:45This has opened it up. You can get out, get the children out.
0:25:45 > 0:25:47- It was the other way round. - Was it?- Yes.
0:25:47 > 0:25:50I kept saying I wanted the kitchen by the back door. Strange, that!
0:25:50 > 0:25:54- Got to have it.- But Nick decided, no - we're going to have it there.
0:25:54 > 0:25:57The interior designer, first thing she came down and said,
0:25:57 > 0:26:00"Why are you having the kitchen at the front and not by the back door?"
0:26:00 > 0:26:02So, now we're having it.
0:26:02 > 0:26:05'Whilst there were differences of opinion downstairs...'
0:26:05 > 0:26:09- Ooh, I say!- Are you all right? - Yeah, I think so. Thank you.
0:26:09 > 0:26:13'..up on the roof, it was all Nick's world.'
0:26:13 > 0:26:16- Wow!- This is an area of opportunity for us,
0:26:16 > 0:26:18now that it's all been fixed and laid,
0:26:18 > 0:26:23in that we can retro-fit the photovoltaic array up here.
0:26:23 > 0:26:26What are you talking about?
0:26:26 > 0:26:30- You know solar cells?- Yeah.- OK. We generate enough electricity up here
0:26:30 > 0:26:33through solar cells - with about a third of the roof area -
0:26:33 > 0:26:35to sort out the needs of the house.
0:26:35 > 0:26:37The other two thirds - on the remaining area -
0:26:37 > 0:26:41we can generate electricity and feed it back into the Grid.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44So, in the end, we get no bills - ever. For anything.
0:26:44 > 0:26:47You love all that stuff, don't you, Nick?
0:26:47 > 0:26:50That makes you so happy, doesn't it?
0:26:50 > 0:26:53I would say smug, more than happy, actually.
0:26:59 > 0:27:04A few weeks later and the inside of the building was coming together.
0:27:04 > 0:27:10For the first time, the family could see what it would be like as a home.
0:27:10 > 0:27:12There was even a new addition to the family -
0:27:12 > 0:27:15a gigantic puppy called Mulligan.
0:27:15 > 0:27:19And there had been a slight change of heart too.
0:27:19 > 0:27:21Nick and Brigitte had decided
0:27:21 > 0:27:25to hang onto some of the original features after all.
0:27:25 > 0:27:29They had planned to replace the old teak windows and doors
0:27:29 > 0:27:32with aluminium versions. But not now.
0:27:33 > 0:27:35We were going to lose them.
0:27:35 > 0:27:40I think they're heavily varnished and Tony, our blessed site manager,
0:27:40 > 0:27:44who knows everybody, found someone who could bring them back to life.
0:27:44 > 0:27:48This is one of the original handles on the front door.
0:27:48 > 0:27:50Oh, right, OK.
0:27:50 > 0:27:54- They dip it to get it back to clean and then polish it up - buff it right up.- Beautiful!
0:27:54 > 0:27:58For Brigitte, it was a small but significant gesture
0:27:58 > 0:28:00to their building's proud origins.
0:28:00 > 0:28:03So, these wonderful people, who made this building,
0:28:03 > 0:28:05I think they put a lot of care into it.
0:28:05 > 0:28:07They didn't have to use something as stunning as this,
0:28:07 > 0:28:10and it would have been a shame to replace it
0:28:10 > 0:28:14with something 21st-century that wasn't quite so beautiful.
0:28:14 > 0:28:18Whilst cutting edge techniques, such as spray plastering,
0:28:18 > 0:28:23were putting the finishing touches on the Pumping Station's interior,
0:28:23 > 0:28:28over at Stoke Hall, the slow, traditional methods
0:28:28 > 0:28:33of lime plastering were adding time and money to the schedule.
0:28:33 > 0:28:38Just to re-plaster the study cost a whopping £8,000.
0:28:41 > 0:28:45If it was in a modern situation, it would be huge,
0:28:45 > 0:28:48great big sheets of plasterboard and then it would just be a skim
0:28:48 > 0:28:50and this would all be done in a day,
0:28:50 > 0:28:53whereas this takes up to a week to do a wall.
0:28:58 > 0:29:02And there were some other noticeable changes in the Drury household.
0:29:03 > 0:29:05His hair's all puffed up.
0:29:05 > 0:29:08No, he likes it puffed up!
0:29:09 > 0:29:14This is our newborn, Stanley.
0:29:14 > 0:29:17Just to make it a little bit more interesting,
0:29:17 > 0:29:21restoring a house, working full time, having a hectic life
0:29:21 > 0:29:26with the kids, we have an additional baby to look after,
0:29:26 > 0:29:29just to fill those hours between ten and six
0:29:29 > 0:29:32which aren't filled at the moment!
0:29:32 > 0:29:35But with one project delivered on time,
0:29:35 > 0:29:38it was clear the restoration project was going to stretch on
0:29:38 > 0:29:41well beyond the Christmas 2010 deadline.
0:29:48 > 0:29:52But on my last visit, Steve and Natalie had finished lots of rooms.
0:29:54 > 0:29:59My tour started in the old 1980s kitchen.
0:29:59 > 0:30:02- Do you want to go and have a look? - May I?- You may.- Thank you very much.
0:30:02 > 0:30:06Oh, yeah. This is fantastic!
0:30:08 > 0:30:14It had been transformed into a light, modern, family kitchen.
0:30:22 > 0:30:26A whole series of other family rooms had been completed.
0:30:37 > 0:30:40And one of the original Georgian rooms
0:30:40 > 0:30:42had been spectacularly finished.
0:30:49 > 0:30:54Steve's home study had been fully restored.
0:30:56 > 0:30:59Oh, this is completely different!
0:31:01 > 0:31:04This had mud on the floor.
0:31:04 > 0:31:08There was nothing on the walls. The walls were just bare stone.
0:31:11 > 0:31:15Go and sit in the chair. Come on!
0:31:21 > 0:31:25Ready to take on bank managers.
0:31:25 > 0:31:30This is a huge desk. This is like a ship's desk.
0:31:30 > 0:31:35- This is a drawer?- It's a drawer with my secret button in.
0:31:35 > 0:31:40Am I about to explode, Mr Bond?
0:31:40 > 0:31:44CAROLINE LAUGHS
0:31:47 > 0:31:52I have to say, I didn't expect that to happen!
0:31:53 > 0:31:57Just like Stoke's first owner, the 21st-century one
0:31:57 > 0:32:00liked to live in some style.
0:32:00 > 0:32:03His state-of-the-art desk didn't come cheap.
0:32:03 > 0:32:06It's quite a complicated bit of kit, so what did it cost?
0:32:08 > 0:32:13It cost over £10,000. So...
0:32:17 > 0:32:20But Reverend Simpson's ornate drawing room
0:32:20 > 0:32:24was still giving them the biggest headache.
0:32:26 > 0:32:32He's costing you a fortune, isn't he? It's all his stuff that needs to be renovated, isn't it?
0:32:32 > 0:32:35Perhaps it is expensive, but perhaps that's where the value of the house is as well.
0:32:35 > 0:32:39Because we understand a lot of the history now,
0:32:39 > 0:32:42I think doing it right is what matters and, you know,
0:32:42 > 0:32:46we're not quite ready to fully decide, you know, what colours and...
0:32:46 > 0:32:50- Before we commit to colours, we need to research it a little bit more, don't we?- We do, yeah.
0:32:52 > 0:32:56Steve and Natalie weren't finished but they were well on their way
0:32:56 > 0:33:00to returning their Georgian mansion back to a family house.
0:33:09 > 0:33:13It's now one year on, and Steve and Natalie's team of craftsmen
0:33:13 > 0:33:15are still on the job,
0:33:15 > 0:33:19two and a half years after they first arrived on site.
0:33:21 > 0:33:25We could get a big company in, I suppose, and then be done in so many months.
0:33:25 > 0:33:27But, I mean, here,
0:33:27 > 0:33:31we've tried to go about things quite a bit more particularly,
0:33:31 > 0:33:35quite a lot of patience has had to go into it -
0:33:35 > 0:33:37in doing individual things -
0:33:37 > 0:33:40but then you can see the rewards afterwards, like, really.
0:33:43 > 0:33:48John Bacon has re-pointed every inch of the house's walls.
0:33:49 > 0:33:52I love this. This is my favourite thing.
0:33:52 > 0:33:55They all think I'm barmy, but I love doing this.
0:33:55 > 0:33:57Quiet, away from them all.
0:33:57 > 0:33:59In my little corner, pointing away.
0:33:59 > 0:34:02They all think it's boring but I love this bit.
0:34:05 > 0:34:07I feel lucky to work here.
0:34:07 > 0:34:10I do feel proud of it coming together.
0:34:10 > 0:34:13Especially with some of the more decorative rooms
0:34:13 > 0:34:15I've been able to work on, it gives you an idea
0:34:15 > 0:34:18of how it would have looked originally.
0:34:18 > 0:34:21It's going to be like that for a long time as well.
0:34:21 > 0:34:25Being a listed building, they won't let them knock it about
0:34:25 > 0:34:28in the future. I have put my name on the back of a lot of panels.
0:34:28 > 0:34:31My name, my date of birth, and where I live,
0:34:31 > 0:34:35so, in years to come, somebody will say, "Blooming heck,
0:34:35 > 0:34:38"Steve Birds, he only lived down the road."
0:34:38 > 0:34:43And there have been some other developments with the Drury family too.
0:34:43 > 0:34:47Big piece of news is that we're expecting another baby, so number four.
0:34:47 > 0:34:50We're looking forward to it.
0:34:50 > 0:34:52We've still got eight bedrooms,
0:34:52 > 0:34:58- so, we've got the space. - No more.- No more.
0:35:00 > 0:35:04Since the programme went out, some fascinating stories
0:35:04 > 0:35:07have come out of the woodwork.
0:35:07 > 0:35:12We had some lovely letters from quite a few different people.
0:35:12 > 0:35:17People who grew up here, just saying how much
0:35:17 > 0:35:20it brings back memories for them and what they remember.
0:35:20 > 0:35:23Which was really interesting and really lovely,
0:35:23 > 0:35:26to see what it was like all those years ago.
0:35:28 > 0:35:32Some of the responses have brought incredible treasures to light.
0:35:34 > 0:35:36When one lady saw the programme,
0:35:36 > 0:35:38she got in touch with Steve and Natalie and was able
0:35:38 > 0:35:43to do more than just describe her childhood memories at Stoke Hall.
0:35:43 > 0:35:47Remarkably, she was able to show them.
0:35:47 > 0:35:50From her family's cinefilm collection,
0:35:50 > 0:35:55she dug out unique footage of Stoke Hall in its heyday.
0:35:55 > 0:35:59Lindsey Baxendale was born at the house in 1931,
0:35:59 > 0:36:02when her family, the Hunters, owned it,
0:36:02 > 0:36:05and lived there until the age of seven.
0:36:05 > 0:36:07I remember very happy days there.
0:36:07 > 0:36:10And having races with my brother,
0:36:10 > 0:36:14he in his pedal car and me on my tricycle.
0:36:16 > 0:36:20There were constant tennis parties in the summer.
0:36:20 > 0:36:23I very often had to be ball boy, which I quite enjoyed.
0:36:23 > 0:36:29In the 1930s, life at Stoke Hall was a real Upstairs Downstairs affair.
0:36:29 > 0:36:34To keep a house like this running, more than 15 permanent staff
0:36:34 > 0:36:38were needed, as a book recording all the servants' wages reveals.
0:36:39 > 0:36:45That is my governess, who came in 1934, when I was three years old.
0:36:45 > 0:36:50She got paid £70 per annum.
0:36:51 > 0:36:55Housemaid here, £18 per annum.
0:36:55 > 0:37:01And a person who was with us a very long time was the butler.
0:37:01 > 0:37:08His name was Todd. He got paid £6.16.8d a month.
0:37:08 > 0:37:11Not a week - a month.
0:37:11 > 0:37:14Life at the hall today is a world away
0:37:14 > 0:37:17from the place of Lindsey's childhood
0:37:17 > 0:37:21but she gives the seal of approval to Steve and Natalie's efforts.
0:37:23 > 0:37:28I think it's wonderful that they are going to try and make
0:37:28 > 0:37:31a family home of it. It's obviously going to be totally different,
0:37:31 > 0:37:35as it should be. Life has changed completely.
0:37:36 > 0:37:41I think Stoke has had some very sad and difficult times
0:37:41 > 0:37:45since we left all those years ago.
0:37:45 > 0:37:49Now, if something can be made of it, to make it a happy place again,
0:37:49 > 0:37:54where children can grow up and have fun, as I had,
0:37:54 > 0:37:56that will be great.
0:37:59 > 0:38:02Someone else who felt compelled to get in touch with Steve and Natalie
0:38:02 > 0:38:07was Sue Hunt. Her grandparents bought the hall in the 1950s
0:38:07 > 0:38:10and she had grown up there until the age of 18.
0:38:12 > 0:38:15Sue still lives in the area,
0:38:15 > 0:38:17and, driving past one day, she realised
0:38:17 > 0:38:20someone new was now caring for the hall.
0:38:20 > 0:38:23One of the first things I noticed
0:38:23 > 0:38:28was that for the first time since I can remember being there,
0:38:28 > 0:38:32they'd actually mown the lawns correctly, and it was in stripes,
0:38:32 > 0:38:36just how my great-uncle used to do it, when he kept all the gardens.
0:38:36 > 0:38:40I thought, this is it. I have to get in touch with these people
0:38:40 > 0:38:43to thank them for taking it on
0:38:43 > 0:38:49and hopefully restoring it to its former glory.
0:38:49 > 0:38:52- Hi! Hi, I'm Natalie.- And I'm Sue.
0:38:52 > 0:38:56Sue arranged to meet Natalie and see inside the hall
0:38:56 > 0:38:58for the first time in decades.
0:38:59 > 0:39:05Oh, it's all altered. Yes, this was the cloakroom.
0:39:05 > 0:39:09The interiors may have changed but the memories are still strong.
0:39:09 > 0:39:12Ah, yes, you've still got the staircase.
0:39:12 > 0:39:16- And the banisters that I used to slide down.- Really?
0:39:17 > 0:39:21And Sue has brought with her some incredible family photos
0:39:21 > 0:39:24of Stoke Hall's interior for Natalie to see.
0:39:24 > 0:39:27Pictures, that's what were in there.
0:39:27 > 0:39:29Oh, yes!
0:39:29 > 0:39:32It's the first time Natalie has been able to see
0:39:32 > 0:39:36what the room looked like more than 50 years ago
0:39:36 > 0:39:39and may help her with a dilemma she's been struggling with.
0:39:39 > 0:39:43- Mirrors.- Mirrors put inside.- Yes.
0:39:43 > 0:39:47I prefer that way, don't you?
0:39:47 > 0:39:49I don't like the mirrors like that.
0:39:49 > 0:39:52I'll talk to my husband but I'm pretty sure
0:39:52 > 0:39:55we're going to put that back to how it should be.
0:39:55 > 0:39:58That looks so elegant how that is.
0:39:58 > 0:40:00So much nicer.
0:40:01 > 0:40:05It's a welcome discovery for Natalie and a trip down memory lane for Sue.
0:40:05 > 0:40:06My goodness!
0:40:06 > 0:40:11And that's Nana, dressed to go to the hunt ball at Chatsworth.
0:40:14 > 0:40:17- I'm looking, and...- Yes!
0:40:17 > 0:40:18Well, that's it.
0:40:18 > 0:40:21- It's still all there, under everything that happened to it.- Yeah.
0:40:24 > 0:40:26It's just taken me back to my childhood.
0:40:26 > 0:40:30And it's just wonderful. It really is. Yes.
0:40:30 > 0:40:35I can't believe that they're managing to restore it all.
0:40:35 > 0:40:39I think it's fantastic, yes. It's been wonderful.
0:40:43 > 0:40:46It does make you think, you know, I'm glad we're doing this.
0:40:46 > 0:40:49I'm glad we live here.
0:40:49 > 0:40:52It makes you appreciate it a bit more.
0:40:54 > 0:40:57In 20 years' time, some of our kids might be bringing grand-kids
0:40:57 > 0:41:01and reliving stories about how they fell in the river here,
0:41:01 > 0:41:04or went fishing there. That's where I built the treehouse.
0:41:04 > 0:41:05And yeah, that'd be a nice legacy,
0:41:05 > 0:41:09for our children to have the same feeling towards the house
0:41:09 > 0:41:13as the other older people that lived here had when they were young.
0:41:13 > 0:41:16Kieran will be going back to Stoke Hall to find out
0:41:16 > 0:41:19how the restoration work has been coming along.
0:41:22 > 0:41:26But first, it's back to the Pumping Station.
0:41:28 > 0:41:30One year ago, on my last visit,
0:41:30 > 0:41:34Nick and Brigitte had finished its monumental conversion.
0:41:37 > 0:41:40From hopeless wreck
0:41:40 > 0:41:42to family home.
0:41:42 > 0:41:44SHE LAUGHS
0:41:44 > 0:41:45It's amazing!
0:41:45 > 0:41:48It is, isn't it? We're done! Nearly, anyway.
0:41:48 > 0:41:51It's... I thought I was going to miss the brickwork
0:41:51 > 0:41:53but it looks fantastic, doesn't it?
0:41:53 > 0:41:54It looks much better.
0:41:54 > 0:41:57Oh, you've done it! Well done!
0:41:57 > 0:42:01'But it was inside that transformation was greatest.'
0:42:04 > 0:42:06When you opened the front door at the start
0:42:06 > 0:42:08this was the view that greeted you.
0:42:11 > 0:42:14Work all completed, this was how it looked.
0:42:19 > 0:42:23Yes! It IS amazing!
0:42:25 > 0:42:28The first space is broken up by bookcases
0:42:28 > 0:42:31to make two separate areas.
0:42:31 > 0:42:35- So that's the sort of evening, sitting, fire.- Yeah.
0:42:35 > 0:42:38And then another bookcase, here.
0:42:39 > 0:42:42Sort of kids' art, kids' books and things.
0:42:42 > 0:42:43And that's where the kids do,
0:42:43 > 0:42:46actually, they don't do their homework there.
0:42:46 > 0:42:48It's where they're meant to do their homework!
0:42:48 > 0:42:52You know, in years to come, that's where they will. I hope.
0:42:53 > 0:42:57The kids' playroom was where the pumps had once been,
0:42:57 > 0:43:01giving plenty of play space for a couple of six-year-olds
0:43:01 > 0:43:02and a big, friendly dog.
0:43:06 > 0:43:08In the second large space at the back
0:43:08 > 0:43:11was the finished kitchen and dining area.
0:43:15 > 0:43:18Who'd have thought those muddy filtration tanks
0:43:18 > 0:43:21at the back of the building could become bedrooms like these?
0:43:23 > 0:43:25- Come and see the plant room. - Thank you.
0:43:25 > 0:43:27'And who'd have thought I'd volunteer
0:43:27 > 0:43:30'for another seminar with techno wizard Nick,
0:43:30 > 0:43:35'to find out exactly how he'd created his nil-bill home?'
0:43:37 > 0:43:40It's all to do with harnessing the energy of the sun
0:43:40 > 0:43:42with his array of solar cells on the roof.
0:43:44 > 0:43:46And, remarkably,
0:43:46 > 0:43:50by using the pumping station's original 90-metre deep boreholes
0:43:50 > 0:43:51to heat water for free.
0:43:52 > 0:43:57Down there, it's a lot warmer than it is up here, OK? Gotcha, right.
0:43:57 > 0:44:00So if you run a loop of water and you pump it through, recirculate it,
0:44:00 > 0:44:03you pick up all that warmth, and what this machine does,
0:44:03 > 0:44:04it extracts the warmth.
0:44:04 > 0:44:08The first ten degrees of heat in your water comes via that process.
0:44:08 > 0:44:10Does Brigitte ever come down here, Nick?
0:44:10 > 0:44:14She does. She does, to do one thing. To read this meter.
0:44:15 > 0:44:20This meter here, which is, this the ladies' meter, this one!
0:44:20 > 0:44:24All this one does is shows how much power we've generated.
0:44:24 > 0:44:27Selling that power back to the National Grid
0:44:27 > 0:44:31will turn it into earnings for Nick and Brigitte.
0:44:31 > 0:44:37And coming in at just £10,000 over their £400,000 budget
0:44:37 > 0:44:40this house has been a great success for the Sweets.
0:44:45 > 0:44:48It's now one year on.
0:44:48 > 0:44:52Nick, Brigitte and their two children
0:44:52 > 0:44:55have been living in the Pumping Station for the last 12 months.
0:44:55 > 0:44:59So has their very spacious and very eco family home remained a success?
0:45:02 > 0:45:05So how's life been in the past year?
0:45:05 > 0:45:09It's been wonderful. It took a while to get used to the open spaces.
0:45:09 > 0:45:11There's a lot of dancing goes around in the open
0:45:11 > 0:45:13because we feel the need to fill it.
0:45:15 > 0:45:17It's made life a lot easier.
0:45:17 > 0:45:20There's less arguments in this house than at other houses
0:45:20 > 0:45:23because there's just more space and we've expanded into it.
0:45:24 > 0:45:30Techno-wiz Nick was determined to make this an eco 21st-century home.
0:45:30 > 0:45:32But has it paid off?
0:45:33 > 0:45:36- I made this smug boast in the first programme...- You?
0:45:36 > 0:45:40..about the performance of the building and the earning potential
0:45:40 > 0:45:44and the fact that what we were looking to do was to earn money,
0:45:44 > 0:45:48such that that covered all the bills we'd otherwise have in the building,
0:45:48 > 0:45:52and it does. Last summer, good example.
0:45:52 > 0:45:56We got an energy bill for three months for £112.
0:45:56 > 0:46:01And the same week got a cheque for £1,600. In the same week.
0:46:02 > 0:46:05So Nick's eco dreams have been fulfilled.
0:46:06 > 0:46:10But this Restoration Home did cause a certain amount of controversy.
0:46:12 > 0:46:14There's been a lot of response about what we did.
0:46:14 > 0:46:17And it's very interesting because it's polarised.
0:46:17 > 0:46:21There were some people, obviously very passionate about heritage issues
0:46:21 > 0:46:25who took the view we should've kept a lot of the pumps and equipment,
0:46:25 > 0:46:27and that sort of thing.
0:46:27 > 0:46:30Obviously, we didn't take that view. We were converting a building
0:46:30 > 0:46:33that had lost its purpose, and that's the theme that we took.
0:46:33 > 0:46:38We did it our way. Lots of people would have done it another way.
0:46:38 > 0:46:39Everybody's different,
0:46:39 > 0:46:41and I think we're very happy with what we've got.
0:46:43 > 0:46:47And it's not just Nick and Brigitte who are happy with the result.
0:46:47 > 0:46:50The Pumping Station is now an award-winning building.
0:46:50 > 0:46:54It won the Sussex Heritage Trust Award
0:46:54 > 0:46:57and then it went in for the British Homes Awards
0:46:57 > 0:46:59and it got a commendation in that.
0:46:59 > 0:47:03And that was a confidence boost for us that we had done the right thing,
0:47:03 > 0:47:05because nobody likes criticism,
0:47:05 > 0:47:10so I think it really confirmed in our minds we'd done the right thing.
0:47:10 > 0:47:14There was another person who agreed a transformation was required.
0:47:14 > 0:47:19The old pump-master's widow, Marjorie Brown.
0:47:19 > 0:47:21I'd love to see Mrs Brown.
0:47:21 > 0:47:24She was just so encouraging.
0:47:24 > 0:47:27She was so up for us changing the use and making into a home.
0:47:27 > 0:47:31And also just to take her views now that we've done the work we've done,
0:47:31 > 0:47:33on whether we did the right thing.
0:47:33 > 0:47:35She'll probably say it's dreadful.
0:47:35 > 0:47:37HE LAUGHS
0:47:37 > 0:47:39It would be nice to get her round and see, actually.
0:47:44 > 0:47:48But what will she think of Nick and Brigitte's conversion
0:47:48 > 0:47:52of the place she remembers as a working water pumping station?
0:47:54 > 0:47:57Hmm, what a difference.
0:47:59 > 0:48:01What a difference.
0:48:14 > 0:48:16Very light and bright, isn't it?
0:48:16 > 0:48:19The inside has altered beyond recognition
0:48:19 > 0:48:22since Marjorie's last visit.
0:48:22 > 0:48:23I remember more that wall.
0:48:25 > 0:48:29There used to be steps up. You used to be able to walk along the top.
0:48:31 > 0:48:35And it's not quite the sort of house Marjorie is used to.
0:48:40 > 0:48:44I suppose for young people it's got a certain attraction.
0:48:44 > 0:48:46If you like that sort of thing.
0:48:48 > 0:48:51Can't see how it could have been kept the way it was.
0:48:51 > 0:48:54But it's done very well, hasn't it?
0:48:55 > 0:48:59It seems after her tour of inspection,
0:48:59 > 0:49:02Marjorie has given Nick and Brigitte's new home
0:49:02 > 0:49:04her seal of approval.
0:49:04 > 0:49:05- Hello.- Hello.
0:49:05 > 0:49:06HE LAUGHS
0:49:06 > 0:49:09- Hello, it's Marjorie, isn't it? - Yes, it is.- Don't get up.
0:49:09 > 0:49:12But what does she think Mr Brown would have thought
0:49:12 > 0:49:14of the Sweets' new home?
0:49:14 > 0:49:19'I think he would be pleased to see it the way it is.
0:49:19 > 0:49:21'I think it's been done very well
0:49:21 > 0:49:27'and I think he would appreciate just the finished article.'
0:49:28 > 0:49:33Nick and Brigitte started with a rusty, cavernous industrial building
0:49:33 > 0:49:37but they now have a light, spacious, 21st century family home.
0:49:40 > 0:49:42But a spanner has been thrown into the works
0:49:42 > 0:49:46after the Sweets' two children recently changed to a new school.
0:49:46 > 0:49:49It's one that's much further away.
0:49:50 > 0:49:55Brigitte came back from first day of the school run and said,
0:49:55 > 0:49:59"We're going to have to move." I said, "Oh, really?
0:49:59 > 0:50:02"I've just spent two years with all the guys sorting this place out
0:50:02 > 0:50:05"and here we are settled in, and now we're moving, are we?"
0:50:06 > 0:50:09Whilst the family's future at the Pumping Station may be uncertain,
0:50:09 > 0:50:12what is certain is that, for now,
0:50:12 > 0:50:15they are loving every moment of the home they created.
0:50:15 > 0:50:18It's amazing. It's more than what I ever hoped for.
0:50:20 > 0:50:22It's just a very uplifting place to be.
0:50:22 > 0:50:24I'm really chuffed.
0:50:24 > 0:50:27When I come home from work,
0:50:27 > 0:50:34I still get exactly the same buzz that we got when we first moved in.
0:50:34 > 0:50:37That extraordinary, thrilling feeling
0:50:37 > 0:50:40and I think it's a remarkable building.
0:50:51 > 0:50:53For our last look at Stoke Hall,
0:50:53 > 0:50:56Kieran is heading back to catch up with Steve and Natalie
0:50:56 > 0:51:00to find out if they have got any further in the restoration
0:51:00 > 0:51:03of their 30-roomed Georgian mansion.
0:51:05 > 0:51:08- Hi, Steve.- Hi, Kieran.- Nice to see you again.- Nice to see you.
0:51:08 > 0:51:10- Hi, Natalie.- Hello.- Great to see you.
0:51:12 > 0:51:16On our last visit, Steve and Natalie still had no master bedroom.
0:51:19 > 0:51:21It had been a headache from the start.
0:51:23 > 0:51:26The walls had been tied together to prevent a collapse.
0:51:26 > 0:51:31The precious original ceiling had been held in place by Acrow props.
0:51:33 > 0:51:35It was in such a perilous state,
0:51:35 > 0:51:37there were fears it might never be saved.
0:51:37 > 0:51:39But that was then.
0:51:43 > 0:51:45Just look at it now.
0:51:52 > 0:51:55What an extraordinary room this is.
0:51:57 > 0:52:01Steve and Natalie's new bedroom has five windows
0:52:01 > 0:52:03looking out over the Derbyshire countryside.
0:52:06 > 0:52:09What a beautiful place to wake up in the morning this must be.
0:52:09 > 0:52:11Absolutely stunning, isn't it?
0:52:13 > 0:52:15After months of careful restoration,
0:52:15 > 0:52:22the 250-year-old plaster ceiling is now thankfully out of danger.
0:52:22 > 0:52:23People who do the work,
0:52:23 > 0:52:27I don't think they fully understand
0:52:27 > 0:52:29how skilled a craftsman they are.
0:52:29 > 0:52:36You can't tell which parts have been filled and which parts are original.
0:52:36 > 0:52:39It looks as though it's just gone up.
0:52:41 > 0:52:46Highlighted with white gold, the ceiling is firmly Natalie's domain.
0:52:48 > 0:52:51You've gone to town, haven't you, really? It's beautiful.
0:52:51 > 0:52:54Yes, I wanted it to look quite elegant and calm.
0:52:54 > 0:52:56I'm really pleased with how it's turned out.
0:52:56 > 0:52:59He's made a beautiful job. He really has done.
0:52:59 > 0:53:02For Steve, it was this room's fireplace
0:53:02 > 0:53:05that was to be his most surprising discovery.
0:53:05 > 0:53:07I don't know if you remember,
0:53:07 > 0:53:12but the fireplace when you came was orange and brown painted.
0:53:15 > 0:53:19The craftsmanship of something like this is like living with an artwork.
0:53:19 > 0:53:23It was a treasure that we found that we weren't expecting to find.
0:53:23 > 0:53:27When the paint came off, it was hand-carved oak.
0:53:27 > 0:53:29- I really liked that. - It was a big discovery.
0:53:29 > 0:53:33It was my little part of the house that will always mean a lot to me.
0:53:37 > 0:53:39It's also kind of a dreamy room
0:53:39 > 0:53:42because you're looking out onto this extraordinary landscape
0:53:42 > 0:53:44which is the whole point of the house.
0:53:44 > 0:53:45It's got it all, really, hasn't it?
0:53:45 > 0:53:48I'm totally envious.
0:53:50 > 0:53:53In stark contrast to the light, dreamy bedroom,
0:53:53 > 0:53:55is the contemporary, black bathroom.
0:53:59 > 0:54:01It's like a nightclub in here.
0:54:01 > 0:54:02THEY LAUGH
0:54:02 > 0:54:03It's amazing.
0:54:03 > 0:54:07Sparkly fittings.
0:54:07 > 0:54:09I don't think I've ever seen a black toilet before.
0:54:09 > 0:54:11It did have to be specially made.
0:54:11 > 0:54:13The tap.
0:54:13 > 0:54:18- Which has also got LEDs.- Yeah. - Good lord.- So it changes colour.
0:54:18 > 0:54:20That's quite cool.
0:54:20 > 0:54:25Even the shower has different colour settings.
0:54:25 > 0:54:27Much more fun than my shower.
0:54:29 > 0:54:32- Andy painted the doors? - Yes, these are just wood.
0:54:32 > 0:54:36So these wooden panel doors are painted to look like stone?
0:54:36 > 0:54:39- Yes, to look like the tiles. - You've taken such care.
0:54:39 > 0:54:43Everything is authentic everywhere in the house and here it's just lies.
0:54:43 > 0:54:46All bets are off in here.
0:54:47 > 0:54:51Steve and Natalie are having fun with their modern additions.
0:54:51 > 0:54:56They're much more cautious with their precious Georgian interiors
0:54:56 > 0:54:59but they are still making progress.
0:54:59 > 0:55:05The grand Georgian dining room, one year ago, was without a floor
0:55:05 > 0:55:08and still looking a little ragged around the edges.
0:55:11 > 0:55:14But today it's a very different story.
0:55:14 > 0:55:17Well, it's quite a change from when I was last here.
0:55:17 > 0:55:21The plasterwork throughout the room has been stripped
0:55:21 > 0:55:24of 250 years' worth of paint
0:55:24 > 0:55:27and all the mouldings lovingly repaired.
0:55:27 > 0:55:30In a way, it looks beautiful white, but what you going to do next?
0:55:30 > 0:55:35Some days I think, keep it fairly neutral, put gold leaf everywhere
0:55:35 > 0:55:38and really make it quite luxurious and exuberant.
0:55:38 > 0:55:43And other days, I think we should pick out the flowers and the leaves.
0:55:43 > 0:55:46- So you're still debating?- Yeah.
0:55:46 > 0:55:49I do like the pretty plain colours but I just feel that...
0:55:49 > 0:55:54I can't believe those grapes were anything other than grape colour.
0:55:54 > 0:55:58I don't envy you the decisions but I envy you the room.
0:55:58 > 0:56:02The fireplace has also had its years of paint lifted,
0:56:02 > 0:56:06revealing the racy male sculptures to be made not of plaster,
0:56:06 > 0:56:08but of wood.
0:56:08 > 0:56:11It's this careful attention to detail that has made
0:56:11 > 0:56:15the restoration of Stoke Hall so spectacular.
0:56:15 > 0:56:19We're very glad we bought it. We think we've done a pretty good job.
0:56:21 > 0:56:26- And it's going to be your family home for some time?- Hopefully, yeah.
0:56:26 > 0:56:29I think it's amazing how you've stuck with it.
0:56:29 > 0:56:31I'm so impressed with the passion you show for it
0:56:31 > 0:56:33and the passion for the craftsmanship.
0:56:33 > 0:56:39The thing about this building that's so extraordinary is the interiors.
0:56:39 > 0:56:42And you guys have saved and kept it and that's such a compliment to you.
0:56:42 > 0:56:44I think you deserve a medal.
0:56:44 > 0:56:46The fact it's also got your personality in it
0:56:46 > 0:56:50is also something I doubted perhaps at the start was even possible.
0:56:50 > 0:56:53With a building like this, most people would have been too scared.
0:56:53 > 0:56:57I think what you've done is bring Natalie and Steve to it
0:56:57 > 0:56:59but still saved a building of national importance.
0:56:59 > 0:57:03I don't know too many people who have achieved that, so really well done.
0:57:05 > 0:57:09Steve and Natalie have most definitely saved Stoke Hall
0:57:09 > 0:57:11and the building is no longer at risk.
0:57:13 > 0:57:17But what they have also done is what they set out to do
0:57:17 > 0:57:22and turn this big Georgian mansion into their dream family home.
0:57:22 > 0:57:25What fascinated me about Stoke Hall
0:57:25 > 0:57:28was how the work of craftsmen 250 years ago
0:57:28 > 0:57:31can be so rare and so beautiful
0:57:31 > 0:57:35yet be allowed to deteriorate until almost beyond repair.
0:57:37 > 0:57:39This is no quick fix.
0:57:39 > 0:57:42What Steve and Natalie are doing is a lifelong commitment
0:57:42 > 0:57:44to saving a house and to making a home for their family.
0:57:48 > 0:57:52It also stands as a monument to all those who have worked on it.
0:58:03 > 0:58:07Next time we're revisiting two more epic restoration battles.
0:58:07 > 0:58:11The house is in a more precarious condition than even we had imagined.
0:58:11 > 0:58:12One year on,
0:58:12 > 0:58:16what intriguing new discoveries have been unearthed at Stanwick Hall?
0:58:16 > 0:58:19The builders knocked on the door and said, "We've found a tunnel."
0:58:19 > 0:58:24Has Thomas a Becket Church become the home its owners dreamt of?
0:58:24 > 0:58:27Oh, good lord.
0:58:27 > 0:58:31- You've gone to town here a bit. - We've gone for it, yeah.
0:58:55 > 0:59:00Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd