Abbey Lane Restoration Home


Abbey Lane

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Historic houses, both humble and grand,

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have all played their part in the story of our nation.

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But today many are at risk

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and some in danger of being lost for ever.

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I'm going to be following the fortunes of six properties

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all facing their own struggle for survival.

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Oh, look, you can see the round. Wow.

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It's like walking into a kind of Tudor fantasy.

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This is not quite what I was expecting.

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And they all have new owners committed to turning them into their dream home.

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It's a bit like a little old lady waiting for face lift

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and we're coming in to make her better.

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I never, ever thought I would do a project like this in my life before.

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I have spent years restoring derelict old properties,

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and having poured everything

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into trying to create my perfect family home,

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I know what a challenge it is to rescue a precious old building.

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We've a lot riding on it and it's scary times.

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We love it, we want to finish it, but sometimes it feels like too much.

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It's Restoration Home.

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A classic English country scene

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replicated on thousands of calendars and biscuit tins

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because it conjures up images of an idyllic rural life.

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These buildings are much more than just a nostalgic snapshot.

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Timber-framed buildings represent an important marker

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in British architectural history.

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In Tudor times the vast majority of buildings

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would have been built in this style.

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Tragically, today, very few remain.

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In the village of Southam in Warwickshire, is a forgotten gem -

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number one Abbey Lane.

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For decades it seems to have passed under the radar.

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Even though it's thought to date from Tudor times,

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this house has never been given formal protection as a listed building.

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Until recently it was owned by a family who'd lived here for over 50 years.

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And when they put it on the market it was clear to anyone who looked

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that number one Abbey Lane needed a lot of work.

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And that's when the Forgans came along -

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Sally, Stuart, and their daughter Scarlett.

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For some time they've been looking for the right kind of house,

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one that they could really make their own.

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It's a house we knew. We lived locally and walked past it.

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So we came and had a look and just really loved it.

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From the first day we walked in, we really fell in love with it

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and it's really become a passion of ours to bring it back to life.

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From the minute we came round we could see its potential

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and that it could be a really lovely family home.

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The rooms were a nice size, the ceilings were high,

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there were interesting beams.

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So it was an instant feeling that we had when we came

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that it could work for us.

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One of the things that has appealed to us about this project

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is being able to peel the house back to its fundamental core,

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get a real feel for the building.

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We've never done anything like this before, never.

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And I think we know that we're quite mad,

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because we didn't really think it through before we bought it.

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It may not have been sensible, but Sally and Stuart bought it anyway.

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The sale price was £330,000.

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Obviously they couldn't move in straight away,

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so they planned to remain in their present house

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until the restoration work was completed.

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But as soon as the sale went through, Sally and Stuart started making plans.

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Stuart's brother is an architect, which was handy.

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so he helped us initially put some plans together.

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But he's not based in the UK

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so we've then had a UK architect helping us.

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Turning number one Abbey Lane into their dream home

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is a project in three stages.

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First, the old building.

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The main house we just want to restore, put it back as it was.

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There are a lot of partitions that were put in

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over the last 100 years or so.

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What we will take it back to, hopefully,

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is more like what it was like when it was first built.

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So stage one is restoring the building to its former glory.

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The sides of the house were long ago rebuilt in brick,

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but the timber frame remains at the front and back.

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Stage two of the project

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is turning the inside into a comfortable living space.

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So on the ground floor they'll have separate lounge and dining rooms,

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each with a wood-burning stove.

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Upstairs, a study,

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and two generous bedrooms, both en suite.

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While in the attic they'll have two more bedrooms,

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right under the eaves.

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Then there's stage three, and that's an extension.

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This will house a large kitchen and a garage on the ground floor,

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with a family room and a guest bedroom

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built in to the roof space above.

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Five bedrooms might seem generous now,

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but the Forgans are a growing family.

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In fact, they're expecting a new baby in March.

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So Sally and Stuart know what they want,

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and they know how much they've got to spend.

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They can afford no more than a £150,000 for the whole project,

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though, of course, it's difficult to predict

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how much work a house like this will need.

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So they've called in Pete Ward to manage the project for them.

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He's a builder who specialises in heritage jobs.

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And he's already found some serious problems.

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Look at that.

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They've actually shotted and poured concrete.

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I've never seen anything like it.

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It's quite incredible and it's quite unnecessary.

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Large areas of the house, both inside and out,

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were coated in cement and concrete some time in the 20th century.

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It was supposed to strengthen and protect the aging structure,

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but it may well be the worst thing anyone could have done.

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We've just started to pull this off

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and you can see the timber underneath has just completely rotten.

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This is the sort of thing that makes me cry.

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Modern builders putting cement...

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..over timber and brick.

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And the reason the brick here is disintegrating

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is because the cement is stopping the brick from breathing.

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Under here you can see it's absolutely sopping wet.

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Wet rot is an added complication for Sally and Stuart to think about,

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in their already very busy lives.

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It's going to be a difficult few months with the new baby and everything else,

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but fun as well hopefully.

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Stuart is a solicitor in the City of London,

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and he has to spend up to three hours a day commuting.

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I try and get in as much as I can during the week,

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but with being in London most of the time I can only get in late at night.

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-When it's dark.

-When it's dark with a torch.

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Sally is working too.

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She's the managing director of a market research company in Warwick.

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At the moment she's there part time,

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but soon she'll be having some extra time off.

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My maternity leave is going to be spent running backwards and forwards

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with two babies to check on the house.

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But the guys have everything so under control I'm not too worried about it.

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So, despite the problems with rot,

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Sally and Stuart seem confident and ready for the build to get going.

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So this is day one. Six months after buying it, day one is finally here.

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So, scaffolding goes up today.

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Scaffolding is up for 16 weeks, so that's how long they've got.

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As long as we can stick to the 16 weeks it will mean that

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everything else can hopefully stick to the schedule

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and the plumbing and the lighting and the electrics can go in on time.

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So, yeah, that's the plan.

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A few weeks on, and it's time to call in our professionals

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to see what we can discover about Sally and Stuart's house.

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Historian Dr Kate Williams

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will try to find out about the people who have lived here.

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And architectural expert Kieran Long is going to investigate

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what the building can tell us.

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It's just so amazing to see it all like a skeleton.

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Completely stripped back.

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All of the cement render and 20th-century brick infill has now been removed,

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leaving the timber frame reduced to its essentials.

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It's a rare chance to see just how simple timber-frame buildings are.

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People often say they're like a series of wooden goalposts

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stood up parallel with each other, and joined by beams.

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The problem with having sets of goalposts,

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if you imagine that they want to fall that way,

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they don't have much stiffness in that direction,

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so you need to brace them diagonally.

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The interesting thing is you see lots of office buildings today,

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for instance, skyscrapers,

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built with crossbracing, and it's exactly the same principle.

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The structure may be simple,

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but there are some tricky questions hanging over the house.

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It's believed to date from the end of the 16th century,

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but no-one knows for sure.

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And there's something unusual about the building material.

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The interesting thing about this structure is that it's not oak,

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which would have been typical. It's elm.

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So we have to do some digging to understand a bit more of that.

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And down in the cellar there are clues

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that it may not always have been just a house.

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You can see that there's some decent quality stone.

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Another thing that has caught my eye is this floor.

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It's brick, very functional.

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It suggests maybe there was some kind of use. They wear well.

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But it's really nicely done.

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There's a herringbone pattern here going round the corner.

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To me this cellar gives me a clue

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that this building was used for work.

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As the historian, it's going to be up to Kate

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to track down what people have been doing here,

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and not just the actual inhabitants.

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What I also want to find out about

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is the importance of this town in the 16th century.

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What kind of place was it? The population, the trade?

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I really want to build up an actual picture of what Southam was like.

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One other thing it would be nice to understand

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is why these buildings resonate so strongly with us today.

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When we come to the English countryside

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we want to see a timbered building standing in an unspoilt landscape.

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Why is this so powerful in our imagination?

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It's the middle of March and the scaffolding has been up

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for eight weeks - half its budgeted time.

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Round the front, repairs are well under way on the rotten timbers.

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But up on the roof they've only just started taking the tiles off.

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And there's a lot of work to be done up here,

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including structural repairs, dormer windows and modern insulation.

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So the schedule has started to slip.

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But then, Sally has had other things on her mind.

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Namely, Florence Islay Forgan, just five days old.

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So relieved she's here. The last few weeks dragged.

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We didn't know if we were having a boy or a girl.

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So it was a nice surprise to have another little girl.

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But, yeah, really glad it's over.

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While Sally's been busy elsewhere,

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the surprises here haven't been quite so nice.

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This structure depends entirely on the strength of the timber frame,

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but those timbers are in a bad way.

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About half of the rear frame will need to be rebuilt

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and that's a job for a specialised craftsman,

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a framing carpenter like Brendan White.

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He's had 25 years experience working on traditional buildings,

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mainly for English Heritage, so he knows the problems.

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You've got to prepare yourself

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and look around the job and see where it's the most unsafe and go for that one first.

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You've got to take a little bit out and put a little bit back in.

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While some of the timbers are beyond repair and will need to be completely replaced,

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many are rotten just at the ends or just on the surface.

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I only put the new stuff in where I've got no choice.

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Strength-wise we're going to face a lot of the timbers.

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These posts will have to stay. We'll face them where we need to.

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The horizontals and verticals, where they're too decayed,

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we replace them completely.

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Put splicing in where we have to.

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I've worked on a lot worse.

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This now is not as bad as the front but it looks bad.

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It took Brendan and another carpenter more than four weeks

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to do the repairs to the front.

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Wherever possible they use traditional methods -

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like wooden pegs to hold the joints together -

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so that the new matches the old.

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Sally and Stuart are determined to restore this house in a sympathetic way,

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even though that does mean extra work and expense.

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For example, the infill panels between the timbers.

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Originally these would have been wattle and daub made of sticks, mud and plaster,

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but here they're being filled with a mix of traditional and modern materials.

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Adam Williams is starting with a kind of high-tech fibreboard.

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It's called Heracliff boarding. It's basically a breathable material.

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To make the edges waterproof they use a traditional material.

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This stuff is called caulking.

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It's made of hair. It's got a type of grease, oil.

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We use this stuff because basically it was used in the ancient years

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when the houses were first erected.

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On the inside, they're going to add a layer of insulation

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made from sheep's wool, then modern plasterboard.

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But on the outside they must use lime plaster which,

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unlike modern plaster, will allow the building to breathe.

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It's more difficult to work with, but it is traditional.

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It's a part of heritage, isn't it?

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It's...how the old boys used to do it.

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Our historian Dr Kate Williams is out to discover

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more about the house, and the wider context of Southam.

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She's starting here in the town, at a local history archive

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that's run by volunteers, the Cardall Collection.

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Chairman of the group is Bernard Cadogan.

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He's found some old pictures of Abbey Lane.

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One of the most fascinating is this one of the chappie on horseback.

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But he's standing on the green in front of the house

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and at this time the house is all rendered.

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This is probably about 1920s, isn't it? Guessing from his dress and shoes.

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Probably. Um...

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Then, we've got another one over here

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-where we've got again...

-Rendered again.

-Rendered. And it's white.

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But you see what looks like the pump in front on the green there

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and a little gas lamp probably.

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With the children in their smock dresses,

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Southam of 100 years ago looks an idyllic place.

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But, going back further, it wasn't always so tranquil.

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Southam was actually quite an important town in days gone by.

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Back in the time of Waterloo, 1800s, 1815,

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Southam had a population ten times the size of Leamington Spa,

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so it really was a bustling place.

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So there is some information on the 19th and 20th centuries,

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but going back earlier won't be easy.

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I think a lot of information about these places has just been thrown out.

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So we've got our work cut out for us, trying to discover everything.

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I think you have. Yes!

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It's a common problem. Go back more than a couple of centuries

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and you'll be lucky to find any documents about one ordinary house.

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Sally and Stuart started this build in earnest about six months ago.

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Since then, all that heavy brick and concrete

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that was weighing the house down has gone.

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I've come to find out whether the fragile skeleton of the house is coping.

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The scaffolding was due to come down right about now,

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but there's still a lot to do on the structure.

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On the other hand, seeing it like this,

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Sally and Stuart can get to know every detail of their dream home.

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What do you love about the house?

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I think the history of the house, the sense of history in the wood.

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Look at this amazing timber here.

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-It's very beautiful, isn't it? Just holding up the house.

-Yeah.

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This one here is a structural beam

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but it appears to be just sitting on a cobweb actually!

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-A cobweb and tiny bit of rubble.

-There's not a lot. I wouldn't push too much away of that.

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-No. Do you think that might just collapse?

-It may do!

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But the structural issues may not be the most serious problem

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now facing Sally and Stuart.

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They've allowed £150,000 for the whole project,

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but they now realise it's going to cost a lot more.

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At the beginning of the week we had a list of jobs and prices for the remainder of the work

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that was more than the original budget, which is a problem.

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-It's going to be twice your initial budget?

-Yes.

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The house isn't worth the money we're spending on it.

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And we haven't got any more money anyway.

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And there's a second phase, the extension. We need that because it's where the kitchen is.

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So even when the house is finished we don't have a proper kitchen in there.

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We need to have the money left to do the rest of the build.

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I know from personal experience what it feels like

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when your build runs into trouble,

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and the stress must be giving Sally and Stuart sleepless nights.

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Though, with a new baby at home,

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they're probably having those anyway.

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You know, we love it we want to finish it

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but sometimes it just feels like too much of a problem.

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It's just when it feels like it could drag on much longer

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or cost more money and we don't have it,

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then it's like, "Why did we ever start it?"

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"Why didn't we buy a little tiny house somewhere?"

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-Why didn't you?

-Because we loved it really. That's the only reason.

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Cos we came in and it felt like somewhere we could make a nice home.

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But despite the delays and budget problems, Sally and Stuart are determined to press on.

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When do you plan to move in to the main house?

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So it's May now. I think realistically August.

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Sally, I'm going to ask you that question again

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and I'd like a considered answer.

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When do you think you'll be moving in?

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-Um, when will we be moving in?

-I'd like to move in August, September.

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-August, September.

-You're sticking to it!

-Yeah.

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-Do you think you'll be in by August? This year?

-We have to be really.

0:21:140:21:18

We have to be out of the other house.

0:21:180:21:20

We have to stop paying both mortgages.

0:21:200:21:24

-So it's onward and upward from here?

-Yeah. Yeah, hope so.

0:21:240:21:28

Kieran's on the trail of one of Abbey Lane's big questions.

0:21:310:21:34

If most timber-framed houses were built of oak, why was this one made of elm?

0:21:340:21:40

He's come to the Market Hall Museum in Warwick

0:21:400:21:43

to meet the senior keeper of natural history, Steven Faulk.

0:21:430:21:48

This is the home of a unique map that dates from Tudor times -

0:21:480:21:52

the Sheldon Tapestry Map.

0:21:520:21:54

Wow. Well, it's absolutely stunning.

0:21:550:21:58

It's over five metres wide, and this one is just of Warwickshire.

0:21:590:22:04

At the moment the original is away for essential conservation,

0:22:040:22:08

but this is a perfect copy.

0:22:080:22:10

It's absolutely full of information.

0:22:100:22:13

It's saying there's a real split between the east,

0:22:130:22:15

which is upwards, and the west which is downwards.

0:22:150:22:18

And it's telling you that there's a lot of trees in this area here,

0:22:180:22:22

which is called the Arden, the old Forest of Arden.

0:22:220:22:25

But there's a lack of trees and some low hills in the Feldon area.

0:22:250:22:29

Southam is in the heart of the Feldon area,

0:22:290:22:31

meaning "the area with fields."

0:22:310:22:33

It would have had a lot of elms around the settlements.

0:22:330:22:36

We're looking at a building with an elm frame,

0:22:360:22:39

so they may have used materials

0:22:390:22:40

that that would have been available in the surroundings nearby.

0:22:400:22:44

Yes, English elm was a tree of the open landscapes.

0:22:440:22:47

It wasn't a woodland tree.

0:22:470:22:48

And it really was a very, very abundant tree in Warwickshire.

0:22:480:22:53

The term the "Warwickshire weed" was the term given to the English elm,

0:22:530:22:57

and unfortunately it got decimated by Dutch elm disease in the 1970s.

0:22:570:23:01

Dutch elm disease is caused by a kind of fungus.

0:23:020:23:06

It was first recorded in Britain in the 1920s,

0:23:060:23:08

but when a new and virulent strain arrived in 1967, the disease spread rapidly.

0:23:080:23:15

Trees were felled and burned in an attempt to control the epidemic,

0:23:180:23:21

but by the end of the 1970s, the English elm was almost wiped out.

0:23:210:23:28

But there are still a few surviving elms in Warwickshire, is that right?

0:23:300:23:34

-There are. Only about a dozen.

-So we need to find one.

-I hope you do.

0:23:340:23:39

So 400 years ago elm was one of the most abundant and cheapest building materials

0:23:410:23:46

to be found in this part of Warwickshire.

0:23:460:23:49

But maybe there would be fewer problems today at Abbey Lane

0:23:490:23:52

if the house had been built of oak, rather than the Warwickshire weed

0:23:520:23:57

because oak is less prone to rot than elm.

0:23:570:24:00

Ryan Bravan is the site foreman.

0:24:010:24:04

I think that's where the budget's gone a bit AWOL

0:24:050:24:08

cos at the start of the job we didn't know what we were going to find

0:24:080:24:12

regarding the structure of the building.

0:24:120:24:14

A lot of it was rotten.

0:24:140:24:16

Timbers in brickwork rotten, rear frame rotten, corner posts rotten.

0:24:160:24:22

Pretty much what was there it wouldn't have lasted much longer

0:24:220:24:27

if we hadn't got our hands on it.

0:24:270:24:29

Dealing with all that rot has sent the costs rising,

0:24:290:24:32

but now, with Stuart and Sally desperate to be in before the end of summer,

0:24:320:24:36

the builders have mounted a big push.

0:24:360:24:40

We set the target for this Friday to complete the roof

0:24:400:24:42

and make the building watertight,

0:24:420:24:44

which is why we've drafted in the extra guys,

0:24:440:24:47

just to make sure the job's done complete come Friday.

0:24:470:24:52

Extra guys means extra costs. But if the exterior is finished by Friday,

0:24:520:24:57

the builders are hoping the end will then be in sight.

0:24:570:25:02

It'll be the final fix. We'll get the electrics in, plumbers in.

0:25:020:25:05

It'll soon fly together and within a few weeks, fingers crossed,

0:25:050:25:10

it'll be ready to move in and so on, all being well.

0:25:100:25:14

Kieran is out, searching for survivors.

0:25:400:25:43

Dutch elm disease almost wiped them out...

0:25:450:25:47

..but, just like the timber-frame house,

0:25:490:25:52

the English elm keeps turning up on calendars and chocolate boxes.

0:25:520:25:57

Certainly, for John Constable - probably the nation's favourite landscape artist,

0:25:580:26:03

the elm was the tree worth painting.

0:26:030:26:06

And now Kieran has found one alive.

0:26:090:26:13

450 years ago a tree just like this, a mature elm,

0:26:160:26:18

would have been cut down to build Abbey Lane.

0:26:180:26:21

We know that this is just one of the last 12 of these

0:26:230:26:26

that survive in Warwickshire.

0:26:260:26:28

What's really striking about it is it's a beautiful tree.

0:26:290:26:32

A delicate, billowing canopy.

0:26:320:26:33

Standing under this tree is kind of poignant.

0:26:380:26:41

It's a sight like Abbey Lane

0:26:410:26:42

that would have once characterised the whole of the British countryside.

0:26:420:26:45

And now both the tree and Abbey Lane are almost vanishingly rare.

0:26:480:26:53

It's been two weeks since the builders began their big push.

0:27:030:27:08

But they never reached their targets.

0:27:090:27:11

because the project has run into financial crisis.

0:27:110:27:15

Sally and Stuart knew the costs were rising,

0:27:150:27:19

but when the last lot of invoices came in

0:27:190:27:22

they felt that costs were still slipping.

0:27:220:27:24

If it carried on like that,

0:27:240:27:27

they simply wouldn't have the money to finish the job.

0:27:270:27:30

So the work had to stop.

0:27:300:27:31

We always knew that this kind of job is a bit unpredictable

0:27:330:27:37

and we know there have been things that have cost more money and taken longer.

0:27:370:27:42

And we've agreed to those things happening

0:27:420:27:44

and did things differently than the original plan.

0:27:440:27:47

But there has been a finite amount of money,

0:27:470:27:49

which we've been quite open about.

0:27:490:27:52

It's just really frustrating because the guys were doing a great job,

0:27:540:27:58

we were happy with the work. It's exciting.

0:27:580:28:01

It's getting to the stage where everything is coming together.

0:28:010:28:05

So to stop now is really frustrating.

0:28:050:28:07

We're really hoping that we can have a meeting next week

0:28:090:28:12

and get everybody back

0:28:120:28:13

but they've all been put on different jobs,

0:28:130:28:16

so it's not as simple as just saying, "Let's go again." I don't think so.

0:28:160:28:21

Hopefully it will only be another week or so.

0:28:210:28:23

Down in London, both of our investigators are about to hit the archives.

0:28:280:28:33

Kieran has come to the Royal Institute of British Architects to use the library

0:28:340:28:39

to put timber-framed buildings into their Tudor context.

0:28:390:28:43

While Kate is on her way to the Institute of Historical Research

0:28:430:28:49

at the University of London.

0:28:490:28:51

She's trying to find out about Southam when the house was built,

0:28:540:28:57

and she's come here because the Institute is the home of the Victoria County History -

0:28:570:29:03

often just called The Red Books.

0:29:030:29:06

The Victoria County History was begun in 1899,

0:29:060:29:09

a tribute to Queen Victoria.

0:29:090:29:11

It was meant to be an account of every county in Britain.

0:29:110:29:14

And it is still an incredible historical resource.

0:29:140:29:18

Kieran has also found a vital text, and it's a much older book.

0:29:190:29:25

So what we have here is

0:29:250:29:26

Raphael Holinshed's and William Harrison's famous description of England

0:29:260:29:31

from the late 16th century, from 1577.

0:29:310:29:33

There's a long, long description here

0:29:330:29:36

of different aspects of house construction in that period.

0:29:360:29:38

It begins by making some general statements.

0:29:380:29:42

It says here, "The greatest part of our buildings in the cities

0:29:420:29:45

"and good towns of England consisteth only of timber."

0:29:450:29:48

I found the bit on Southam and what is interesting is it says that

0:29:520:29:56

the land was under the control of St Mary's Priory in Coventry

0:29:560:29:59

up until the middle of the 16th century.

0:29:590:30:03

And it had become very valuable by 1535

0:30:030:30:05

and it was giving a huge amount of rent,

0:30:050:30:08

and then what happened was Dissolution of the Monasteries,

0:30:080:30:11

and in 1542 the manor was granted in fee

0:30:110:30:14

to one Sir Edmund Knightley and Lady Ursula, his wife.

0:30:140:30:18

So this chap, Edmund Knightley, suddenly became incredibly rich.

0:30:180:30:22

And what is really interesting is that timber of construction

0:30:220:30:26

that we see at Abbey Lane had a real meaning for them,

0:30:260:30:30

a cultural meaning, so much so that it says here

0:30:300:30:33

that Spaniards when they visited in Queen Mary's days

0:30:330:30:36

that one of no small reputation amongst them said after this manor,

0:30:360:30:40

"These English," quoth he,

0:30:400:30:42

"have their houses made of sticks and dirt

0:30:420:30:45

"but they fare commonly so well as the king."

0:30:450:30:47

This text is one that betrays a great deal of pride

0:30:470:30:50

about British house building of the period.

0:30:500:30:54

It's good for foreigners to come and be jealous

0:30:540:30:56

of the way English people live with these beautiful timber-frame houses.

0:30:560:30:59

This is an English architecture

0:30:590:31:02

that we can be proud of from the king to the common man.

0:31:020:31:05

Everybody lives in these kinds of buildings.

0:31:050:31:07

To find out more about Sir Edmund Knightley,

0:31:090:31:11

Kate has come to Victoria Tower in the Palace of Westminster.

0:31:110:31:16

He was a member of the House of Commons,

0:31:180:31:20

and this is where the parliamentary archives are housed.

0:31:200:31:23

Sir Edmund acquired the land around Southam but he never lived there

0:31:240:31:29

because, it seems, he had fingers in lots of other pies.

0:31:290:31:33

Well, Edmund Knightley seems to be a pretty colourful character.

0:31:330:31:38

He became MP for Reading, married a local widow.

0:31:380:31:40

When she died he made a rather marvellous match to a woman much younger than himself,

0:31:400:31:45

nearly 20 years younger, Ursula Vere,

0:31:450:31:48

the heir to the Earl of Oxford.

0:31:480:31:49

And after that he set about really trying to get more money.

0:31:490:31:53

He was terribly close to Henry VIII

0:31:530:31:55

and really close to Henry VIII's right-hand man, Thomas Cromwell.

0:31:550:31:59

This means he's front of the queue

0:31:590:32:01

when it comes to political power and riches being handed out.

0:32:010:32:05

So back in Tudor times the land around Southam was a valuable prize,

0:32:050:32:11

which means the house in Abbey Lane was in a prime location.

0:32:110:32:15

Kate needs to find out more.

0:32:150:32:18

It's been six weeks since work at Abbey Lane came to a complete stop.

0:32:240:32:30

HAMMERING

0:32:300:32:32

But the house is no longer silent,

0:32:320:32:35

because this restoration has been reborn.

0:32:350:32:39

We've really taken back the project. So we're managing it ourselves now,

0:32:410:32:47

which is a bit daunting but loads less stressful.

0:32:470:32:50

We know exactly what we're spending,

0:32:500:32:52

we know where it's going, we know what things are costing.

0:32:520:32:56

And it feels a lot better.

0:32:560:32:57

But it's really good to see something happening, people back here.

0:32:570:33:02

Brendan, who's the timber-framer, he's back

0:33:020:33:04

and he's brought some people in to work with him, which is brilliant.

0:33:040:33:08

So he obviously knows the building really well

0:33:080:33:10

and is just getting on with things.

0:33:100:33:12

And the end of the day I started the contract, I want to finish it.

0:33:140:33:17

The client's happy with me being here.

0:33:170:33:19

The work's great. I can get on with it.

0:33:190:33:21

Get a few more people involved, and go from there.

0:33:210:33:25

While Sally has taken over as project manager,

0:33:250:33:28

Stuart is also now putting every spare hour into the house.

0:33:280:33:33

He's no trained craftsman, but he is quite practical,

0:33:330:33:36

so Stuart's got a long list of jobs to do,

0:33:360:33:40

from laying concrete, to plasterboarding.

0:33:400:33:42

So I've been getting all of these plasterboard panels in

0:33:440:33:47

ready for the plastering to go on.

0:33:470:33:51

I've cut these out of the wall, very odd shapes and sizes,

0:33:510:33:53

so that's been a bit of fun.

0:33:530:33:56

It's been challenging at times doing the work here

0:33:570:34:01

with everything else going on, but fun too.

0:34:010:34:03

I wish... I'd love to spend more time here.

0:34:030:34:05

It's quite a lot of work trying to sort things out and look after the girls

0:34:080:34:13

and for Stuart going to work and trying to do stuff here.

0:34:130:34:18

When we can see progress it makes it all worth it.

0:34:180:34:20

So despite their hectic professional and family lives,

0:34:220:34:26

Sally and Stuart have taken control,

0:34:260:34:30

and the restoration is now back on course.

0:34:300:34:33

Kieran is investigating where the timber-framed house

0:34:360:34:39

sits in British culture.

0:34:390:34:41

He's come to one of the grandest timber-framed houses ever built in England -

0:34:410:34:45

the National Trust property of Little Moreton Hall in Cheshire.

0:34:450:34:50

It's the ancestral seat of the Moreton family.

0:34:500:34:53

They were rich and influential,

0:34:530:34:56

and they built this place to make a statement.

0:34:560:34:59

Kieran's here to find out what a timber frame can say.

0:34:590:35:02

We see this now as something that's settled down into the landscape

0:35:030:35:07

in stages over centuries.

0:35:070:35:09

Nothing straight about it any more.

0:35:090:35:11

We can see this is as charming and chocolate-boxy.

0:35:110:35:14

But I see something of real architectural sophistication.

0:35:140:35:17

This is real English architecture that's not about symmetry,

0:35:170:35:21

it's not about columns,

0:35:210:35:22

it's not about the decoration that comes 100, 200 years later.

0:35:220:35:26

This is about British craftsmen in this region,

0:35:260:35:29

making something of real visual sophistication.

0:35:290:35:32

But Little Moreton Hall saves its full impact for the courtyard.

0:35:340:35:38

Oh, wow.

0:35:390:35:41

It's absolutely amazing. It's like a whole fairytale castle.

0:35:410:35:45

Here's where you see how decorative all this timbering was

0:35:550:35:58

and how it's all for show.

0:35:580:36:00

They enjoyed just as much as we do

0:36:000:36:02

the patterns and the contrasts between these great black timbers.

0:36:020:36:06

You can't take it in at one glance. There's detail, a varied skyline,

0:36:060:36:10

there's all sorts going on and that is what still charms us about it.

0:36:100:36:14

Standing here, when all we can see is stuff from this Tudor period,

0:36:160:36:21

you start to imagine what the atmosphere must have been like around Abbey Lane

0:36:210:36:25

when that was one of the most important buildings in the town.

0:36:250:36:29

And now the restoration has been reborn with Sally in control,

0:36:350:36:39

it might soon be an important building once again - the pride of Southam.

0:36:390:36:45

Today Brendan is planning to fit a new beam into the ancient frame.

0:36:450:36:50

It weighs about half a ton, so he's hired a mechanical lift.

0:36:500:36:54

This could be dangerous.

0:36:540:36:55

If it slipped as we were trying to get it in,

0:36:550:36:58

it'd obviously do a lot of damage to us

0:36:580:37:00

and it might take the side of the wall out and pull the house out.

0:37:000:37:03

Push it over.

0:37:140:37:15

There are joints in this house that have lasted more than four centuries.

0:37:150:37:21

Brendan wants to make sure his are up to scratch,

0:37:240:37:27

but their first attempt is not perfect.

0:37:270:37:31

It's not all touching all over.

0:37:320:37:34

The joint, the half lap,

0:37:340:37:36

I want it touching top and bottom

0:37:360:37:38

so I have to saw-cut the bottom, saw-cut the top and tap it up,

0:37:380:37:42

so it touches everywhere.

0:37:420:37:43

I'm going to get it done.

0:37:450:37:47

And when the joint is made,

0:37:500:37:52

the last thing to check is how far out of parallel the beam is from end to end.

0:37:520:37:57

You know something, kid. Two mil, that's in. It's in.

0:37:580:38:02

This is the turning point. That's all the structural work done.

0:38:020:38:06

Now, at last, this build can finally progress to stage two -

0:38:070:38:12

turning the inside into a real home.

0:38:120:38:15

But Sally and Stuart have reached another turning point.

0:38:160:38:19

It's moving day.

0:38:190:38:21

BABY CRIES This is why we don't get anything done.

0:38:210:38:25

This is the reason not everything is packed.

0:38:270:38:30

Every time you start doing a box Florence wakes up.

0:38:300:38:35

Today's the day they thought they'd be moving into the house on Abbey Lane.

0:38:350:38:39

Where's your cot, then? Is it at Granny's house?

0:38:390:38:43

But in fact they're moving in with Stuart's parents.

0:38:430:38:47

I feel quite happy about moving in with them.

0:38:470:38:50

It just depends how long it's for.

0:38:500:38:51

It's for a couple of months, that's fine.

0:38:510:38:54

It's just not knowing exactly how long it will be.

0:38:540:38:57

To keep the build at Abbey Lane going,

0:38:570:39:00

they need to get some revenue from this house.

0:39:000:39:02

And for the short term, they've got a tenant moving in.

0:39:020:39:06

Meanwhile, our historian Dr Kate Williams has had to change tactics.

0:39:080:39:14

While documents can be found about the big players like Sir Edmund Knightley,

0:39:140:39:19

we want to know about one small house.

0:39:190:39:22

And when it comes to details that far back,

0:39:220:39:24

there's not much to be had.

0:39:240:39:26

It's unlikely we'll find anything from the 16th and 17th century.

0:39:280:39:32

Those records were made but they don't exist any more.

0:39:320:39:35

I'm going to start from a more recent period and work backwards.

0:39:350:39:38

To do that, Kate has come to the county archives in Warwick,

0:39:390:39:44

to search back through the land tax assessments.

0:39:440:39:47

That was the equivalent of council tax -

0:39:470:39:50

and these are the parish accounts.

0:39:500:39:53

Well, I'm going to start with this one.

0:39:540:39:56

The land tax assessment for 1922-1923.

0:39:560:39:59

Trouble is, being tax accounts, you don't get much juicy detail.

0:39:590:40:05

So Frank Matthews is the name of the occupier.

0:40:050:40:08

Land is what is being taxed and it's Abbey Lane.

0:40:080:40:11

With this kind of research, the clues are in the connections.

0:40:110:40:15

In 1881 the occupier was one Emma Boyce.

0:40:150:40:20

And what's interesting is that she didn't own the property. She just lived there.

0:40:200:40:24

And the owner was one Richard Spraggett.

0:40:240:40:27

But then in 1864 there were different people - there's no continuity.

0:40:270:40:33

So here the owner is Richard Wood, and the occupier is Mr Carmel.

0:40:330:40:38

So again we've got one owner, one occupier.

0:40:380:40:41

This is one of the earliest records. It dates from 1815.

0:40:430:40:47

And now Kate's got something.

0:40:470:40:51

I found the Woods in 1864. Here they are again in 1815,

0:40:510:40:55

so it's a lot of continuity in the owners.

0:40:550:40:57

And Thomas Wood here, he's actually living there.

0:40:570:41:00

He's the owner, and the occupier is himself. So this is a big change.

0:41:000:41:03

That means the Wood family had the house for at least two generations.

0:41:050:41:10

And now she has a name to follow, Kate can search for other documents held here.

0:41:100:41:14

She's found two.

0:41:140:41:16

So what I've got first of all

0:41:190:41:21

is the registers of marriage for the parish at the time.

0:41:210:41:23

We've got here in 1791 the marriage of Thomas Wood.

0:41:230:41:28

It's Thomas Wood, tanner, of Southam, marrying Mary Miffe.

0:41:280:41:31

But that's most fascinating because he's a tanner.

0:41:310:41:34

Here's his life, his occupation.

0:41:340:41:36

If Thomas Wood was a tanner, what does that mean for Abbey Lane?

0:41:360:41:40

What I've got is the will of Thomas Wood's father, John Wood, in 1781.

0:41:410:41:46

And here we are with Thomas Wood being left Abbey Lane.

0:41:460:41:51

It says here that, "I'm going to leave it to my son

0:41:510:41:53

"together with the yard garden, the back side buildings,

0:41:530:41:57

"the vats, kilns, fixtures

0:41:570:41:58

"and appurtenances belonging to the house."

0:41:580:42:01

So this isn't just an ordinary family house,

0:42:010:42:04

it actually is a place where work was carried on.

0:42:040:42:07

This most likely is a tannery.

0:42:070:42:10

With the end of the year approaching,

0:42:150:42:17

time I called at Abbey Lane to find out if they're making progress.

0:42:170:42:21

The scaffolding was, I know, meant to be up for 16 weeks initially.

0:42:240:42:28

How long has it been now?

0:42:280:42:30

It's been up since beginning of January and it's now November. So nearly a year.

0:42:300:42:35

So we'll be quite pleased to see it go.

0:42:350:42:38

-What's the plan next?

-We're hoping to be...

0:42:380:42:41

Well, our target date is Christmas.

0:42:410:42:44

-This is like a proper house.

-I know. Walls and everything.

-It's great.

0:42:480:42:52

I have to ask, looking at it like this,

0:42:540:42:56

how much of your budget has gone?

0:42:560:42:58

-All of it. All the original budget went quite a while ago.

-Yeah.

0:42:580:43:03

Except that we'd put aside the money for the electrics and the heating and plumbing

0:43:030:43:09

because we had those quotes right at the beginning.

0:43:090:43:13

So we're just going really slowly,

0:43:130:43:15

doing things month by month, doing what we can afford each month

0:43:150:43:19

and begging and borrowing what we can.

0:43:190:43:22

Doing a lot of the work ourselves...

0:43:220:43:23

All the internal work we've done ourselves.

0:43:230:43:26

Are you finding it hard to crack the whip? Are you tough on people?

0:43:260:43:31

-Um, I'm not tough. To start with, I think I wasn't tough enough.

-Yeah.

0:43:310:43:36

Is there something to be said for getting on everyone's case all the time?

0:43:360:43:41

-Yes.

-There is, isn't there?

-Yeah. Definitely it's helped.

0:43:410:43:45

I think Brendan's still not convinced that I'm not joking about Christmas.

0:43:450:43:51

Which isn't too surprising, given that he's still working on the roof.

0:43:510:43:55

They want to move in for Christmas. But...I'm saying nothing.

0:43:550:43:59

-What do you think really?

-Realistically, no.

0:44:000:44:03

I think they could be in for January, end of January.

0:44:030:44:06

-Are you proud of what you've done here?

-Um, yeah, I am, actually.

0:44:060:44:11

You should be because it's looking incredible.

0:44:110:44:13

-I enjoy the building trade.

-Yeah.

-I love building.

-Do you?

0:44:130:44:16

Yeah, from day one I was going to be a carpenter

0:44:160:44:19

since I was a kid. So it's my dad's fault.

0:44:190:44:21

He bought me a tool kit, carpentry kit, when I was about five.

0:44:210:44:25

I think he did it because he wanted me to do the jobs around the house.

0:44:250:44:29

-I was thinking I'll get my husband one for his birthday.

-That's it.

0:44:290:44:32

Never too old.

0:44:320:44:33

So Sally wants to be in before the end of the year,

0:44:350:44:37

and Brendan is, as always, doing his best.

0:44:370:44:40

The countdown to Christmas starts now.

0:44:400:44:44

Ten days to Christmas, and it's a big day.

0:44:550:45:00

The family are all here because the scaffolding is coming down.

0:45:000:45:04

We were a bit nervous coming over this morning

0:45:080:45:11

about what it was going to look like.

0:45:110:45:13

It's definitely a big milestone to get the scaffolding down.

0:45:130:45:16

It feels like it's finally all coming together

0:45:160:45:19

and there's so much going on inside today

0:45:190:45:22

and it's been really crazy for the last couple of weeks

0:45:220:45:25

with electricians and plastering and plumbing.

0:45:250:45:27

Well, not much plumbing.

0:45:270:45:30

We've got stonemasons in, a whole house full of people...

0:45:300:45:34

busy. So, yes, exciting.

0:45:340:45:37

So finally the house is revealed,

0:45:440:45:47

with the pattern of the timbers on full display.

0:45:470:45:50

And that might help us get a more accurate fix on when it was built...

0:45:500:45:53

..because the style of timber-frame houses changed over time

0:45:550:45:59

and varied between local areas.

0:45:590:46:02

So comparing patterns can help establish a date.

0:46:020:46:06

Abbey Lane has a distinct design, with upright supports, called studs,

0:46:060:46:11

arranged parallel downstairs, and a plain box pattern above.

0:46:110:46:15

Now, 20 miles away, Kieran may have found a match.

0:46:170:46:21

If he's right, then Abbey Lane could have a very famous relative,

0:46:210:46:25

because this is Hall's Croft,

0:46:250:46:27

the one-time home of William Shakespeare's daughter Susanna.

0:46:270:46:30

We've been on this journey through timber frames

0:46:320:46:35

just to try and understand a bit of the context of Abbey Lane.

0:46:350:46:38

And we got a tip-off that there was a similar timber frame

0:46:380:46:42

at Stratford-upon-Avon.

0:46:420:46:43

And sure enough, although it's much grander

0:46:430:46:45

and there are cosmetic differences, the general pattern is the same.

0:46:450:46:48

A stone foundation, this close-studded lower storey,

0:46:480:46:51

then a square pattern in the studs and upper storey.

0:46:510:46:55

It's really exciting to see something so similar.

0:46:560:46:58

The other exciting thing is we know the precise date of the building.

0:46:580:47:02

This has been carbon dated, the oak in this building, to 1613.

0:47:020:47:06

Because of the similarities and the way material is used -

0:47:090:47:12

there's also elm in this building, it's only 20 miles from Abbey Lane -

0:47:120:47:15

perhaps we can confidently now say that Abbey Lane can be dated

0:47:150:47:19

from the first or second decades of the 17th century.

0:47:190:47:22

1613 makes Abbey Lane a little later than previously thought,

0:47:220:47:27

but only by a few decades.

0:47:270:47:28

And back at the house right now,

0:47:310:47:33

it's the next few days that are causing concern.

0:47:330:47:36

It looks like Sally's dream of being in for Christmas could come true -

0:47:370:47:42

if they can get running water and a makeshift toilet rigged up in time.

0:47:420:47:47

So you want me to put some cement board on there for the plumber?

0:47:470:47:51

Yeah, so we need the toilet... The cistern's in a box thing,

0:47:510:47:54

so that needs to be on a flat wall.

0:47:540:47:56

OK, sorted. So we're getting there now.

0:47:560:47:59

Actually, there's still a long way to go.

0:48:000:48:03

If they do get in, it's going to be more like camping.

0:48:030:48:07

I've put this in temporary. The kids can't fall cos it's a good height.

0:48:070:48:10

-These lights work? Does that light work?

-Um, no.

0:48:100:48:13

I don't think most people would move into a house with it being not finished.

0:48:130:48:17

I think she'll struggle a bit but I think she'll be happier,

0:48:170:48:21

even though there's nothing finished.

0:48:210:48:24

Bed's going to be here.

0:48:240:48:25

And two travel cots will be wherever we can fit them.

0:48:250:48:29

Christmas tree maybe. I think we invest in a very small Christmas tree.

0:48:290:48:32

It just still looks like a building site, but it's nearly there.

0:48:340:48:38

Kate discovered that the Wood family were running a tannery from Abbey Lane.

0:48:400:48:45

But what sort of people were they,

0:48:470:48:49

and was it a cottage industry or something more substantial?

0:48:490:48:52

In 1791 Thomas Wood was married in the parish church of St James.

0:48:570:49:01

So Kate's gone to see out if he's still there.

0:49:010:49:06

He's not hard to find.

0:49:140:49:16

In fact, the whole family are all over the south aisle.

0:49:160:49:19

This entire wall of the church is really the Wood wall.

0:49:210:49:25

We've got a plaque there from Thomas to his wife and daughter,

0:49:250:49:30

another to his wife relating it to the window,

0:49:300:49:32

and over there a big plaque to John Wood.

0:49:320:49:35

And there are very telling details here.

0:49:350:49:37

Thomas Wood was the third son of John Wood, gentleman, and Margaret, his wife.

0:49:370:49:41

And that's very significant.

0:49:410:49:44

So the tanner had become a gentleman.

0:49:440:49:47

Here they are, the confirmation that these people, the Woods,

0:49:470:49:51

were really major parts of the community.

0:49:510:49:54

And this is also confirmation

0:49:540:49:55

that one Abbey Lane was a significant house from the 1700s on.

0:49:550:49:59

It's a place for a family of great standing.

0:49:590:50:02

It's Christmas day and the toilet is in, more or less.

0:50:070:50:12

So Scarlett and Sally, Stuart and little Florence

0:50:120:50:15

are enjoying what will hopefully be the first of many

0:50:150:50:18

in their very old new house.

0:50:180:50:19

What is it?

0:50:190:50:21

Happy Christmas.

0:50:210:50:24

What have you got?

0:50:240:50:25

-A hammer!

-Hurray.

0:50:250:50:27

-Can I bang on the roof now?

-Yeah.

0:50:270:50:30

So they made it in for Christmas,

0:50:300:50:32

but Sally and Stuart still have no idea of the historical significance of their house.

0:50:320:50:39

It's time for Kate and Kieran to tell all.

0:50:390:50:42

The biggest mystery of all that I wanted to find out was when this building was built.

0:50:440:50:47

So we went to Stratford to look at another house.

0:50:470:50:50

The advantage with this elm house is that it has been dated.

0:50:500:50:54

They know exactly when this was built,

0:50:540:50:56

-and the conclusion was that this was built in 1613.

-Wow.

0:50:560:51:00

-KATE:

-And then we went into the local church

0:51:000:51:03

and here we have Thomas Wood.

0:51:030:51:05

-And he lived in our house?

-Exactly. You know this plaque as well.

0:51:050:51:08

-We've walked past that many times.

-You've walked past it?

-Probably.

0:51:080:51:11

-And that was him.

-Yeah, it is exciting.

0:51:110:51:14

You think about all the things that will have happened in that house over 400 years. It's quite amazing.

0:51:140:51:20

We're really privileged to be able to have a house like it.

0:51:200:51:23

Two years ago, number one Abbey Lane was a forgotten house,

0:51:260:51:31

patched up with concrete, weighed down by brick.

0:51:310:51:34

The ancient timbers were struggling to survive and its future was bleak.

0:51:340:51:39

Sally and Stuart have faced enormous challenges

0:51:400:51:43

and invested everything in trying to save it.

0:51:430:51:46

It's now May 2012 and the big question is, how does it look today?

0:51:490:51:54

It looks incredible!

0:51:560:51:58

It's better than last time.

0:52:080:52:10

I imagine your neighbours must be pleased as well

0:52:190:52:21

because the whole corner plot is rejuvenated

0:52:210:52:25

by all the work you've put it.

0:52:250:52:27

People have been really positive.

0:52:270:52:29

We've had a letter from the local civic forum

0:52:290:52:31

saying what a great job we'd done for the town, which was nice.

0:52:310:52:33

-That's very nice.

-Really nice.

0:52:330:52:36

-So the town is appreciative of your efforts?

-Apparently.

0:52:360:52:39

Let's see if I am. Come on, let's have a look.

0:52:390:52:41

When they bought this 17th-century house,

0:52:440:52:46

it was filled with 20th-century additions that were damaging it.

0:52:460:52:51

Once stripped away, there was virtually nothing left,

0:52:510:52:53

just a fragile skeleton.

0:52:530:52:57

It was difficult to believe number one Abbey Lane could be saved at all.

0:52:570:53:02

This is...awe-inspiring. It's brilliant.

0:53:120:53:16

And it feels so open and...

0:53:160:53:19

It was open the last time I was here but it was open to the elements

0:53:190:53:22

and now it's become tranquil and beautiful, isn't it?

0:53:220:53:25

It feels really nice. It's a nice place to be.

0:53:250:53:28

Sally and Stuart have achieved the seemingly impossible.

0:53:290:53:33

The living room on the ground floor

0:53:330:53:35

had some of the most devastating problems.

0:53:350:53:37

The wood had been suffocated by concrete

0:53:380:53:41

leaving the original timber frame in desperate need of help.

0:53:410:53:45

Now the beams are the backdrop to a modern family home.

0:53:450:53:49

You've got very contemporary furniture in here, which is great.

0:53:500:53:53

Because it's hard with a Tudor building

0:53:530:53:55

not to make it look like Carry On Henry or something

0:53:550:53:59

or some sort of film set or mock-Tudor pub, isn't it?

0:53:590:54:03

It's our house and we don't want to change all the things we've got.

0:54:030:54:07

Yes. And who you are. Yeah.

0:54:070:54:09

And actually I think it works really well.

0:54:090:54:12

The other room on the ground floor houses a temporary kitchen

0:54:120:54:15

until they've completed their modern kitchen-diner

0:54:150:54:19

in the extension to the rear.

0:54:190:54:21

They hope to start work on this in a few months.

0:54:210:54:24

There's been a huge transformation, however, in the last two years.

0:54:250:54:28

The upstairs rooms were barely accessible then,

0:54:290:54:32

rotten timbers outnumbering the good.

0:54:320:54:35

Now there is a study, a bathroom and two bedrooms.

0:54:360:54:40

Sally and Stuart have been living here for five months,

0:54:400:54:43

so have come a long way since Christmas Eve.

0:54:430:54:46

This was the first room that you actually used in the house.

0:54:470:54:51

-You spent Christmas in here.

-We did.

-What was that like?

-Christmas Eve.

0:54:510:54:55

We didn't have any boards in the ceiling

0:54:550:54:57

so it was just sheep's wool, which kept falling on you.

0:54:570:55:00

Two travel cots, three little convection heaters

0:55:000:55:04

and a cold tap in the bathroom. It was really exciting.

0:55:040:55:07

The girls loved being able to wake up here on Christmas Day.

0:55:070:55:10

It's been exciting. It has been an exciting adventure.

0:55:100:55:13

The girls have been a really good part of it.

0:55:130:55:16

And they've not been fazed at all by no floors. They don't care.

0:55:160:55:20

They're happy rolling around in sawdust.

0:55:200:55:22

They've spent most of the year so filthy.

0:55:220:55:25

The roof space of the old house was the most at risk.

0:55:250:55:29

The leaking tiles had created the perfect conditions for rot to set in.

0:55:290:55:33

Now Scarlett and Florence have the ideal space to play and sleep.

0:55:360:55:40

Finally, this family has made this old house a home.

0:55:420:55:46

-It's fabulous, isn't it?

-Thank you!

0:55:460:55:50

Good one. Oh...Oh...

0:55:500:55:52

Your big girl's bed!

0:55:520:55:55

By taking charge of the project when it was in jeopardy,

0:55:580:56:02

Sally and Stuart have transformed this house for £175,000,

0:56:020:56:07

incredibly just £25,000 over their original budget.

0:56:070:56:12

They have also never lost sight of why this building is so important.

0:56:120:56:17

-I love this, Stuart.

-We're pleased with that.

0:56:180:56:22

Why did you leave that exposed?

0:56:220:56:23

We wanted to show some of the ordinal fabric of the house.

0:56:230:56:27

It's really wonderful, isn't it? It is like a little window into history.

0:56:270:56:32

If you and Sally hadn't come along,

0:56:320:56:35

what would have happened to Abbey Lane?

0:56:350:56:37

It's difficult to say.

0:56:370:56:39

Had we not spent the time in taking it right the way back to the start,

0:56:390:56:44

I think the house would have got into more and more problems.

0:56:440:56:48

Yeah. It feels like a happy place to be. It looks beautiful.

0:56:480:56:52

Yeah. We're pleased.

0:56:520:56:55

Number one Abbey Lane was at a critical point in its history.

0:57:090:57:12

It had been knocked about and patched up,

0:57:120:57:15

but the very fabric of the building was being destroyed.

0:57:150:57:19

Everybody ignored it until Stuart and Sally came along,

0:57:190:57:22

but they saw something magical here, something important.

0:57:220:57:27

So they battled through the problems.

0:57:270:57:30

They held their nerve.

0:57:300:57:33

And finally,

0:57:330:57:35

two years later,

0:57:350:57:37

number one Abbey Lane has been reborn...

0:57:370:57:41

into a beautiful family home.

0:57:410:57:44

Next time on Restoration Home...

0:57:540:57:57

I loved this place from the minute Nick showed me the brochure.

0:57:570:58:00

A brave family try to make their home in a decrepit watermill

0:58:000:58:04

but is it already too late to save it?

0:58:040:58:08

This is damp. It's all the way through the house.

0:58:080:58:11

And we discover the role it played in making Britain great.

0:58:110:58:16

This is the kind of thing we associate with Westminster Abbey,

0:58:160:58:18

not somewhere we might live.

0:58:180:58:21

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0:58:330:58:35

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