The Big Build - Duxford DIY SOS

Last year, Paul and Sarah decided to extend their house

so their children, Jess and Josh could both have a room of their own.

But the week after they dug the foundations,

Josh started to complain of stomach pains.

I remember walking up the road with him and saying, "Come on, Josh. There's nothing wrong with you."

Typical dad. A week later he was laying in a bed, desperately ill.

Right up until that last moment,

I never suspected that it would be cancer.

Cancer so severe that Josh needed a liver transplant

and now he's going to need a lot of care for the rest of his life.

You're helpless.

If you could take the pain away from him... It's just horrible.

If you could make everything better, what would be the first thing on your list?

To make our family normal again.

And just be happy.

'And to do that, this house needs to become a home that will help the family face the future together.'

-What makes you happy?

-Going home.

-Going home makes you happy?

Home is so important. I want them to feel safe and loved and warm.

And that's where we come in. With the support of local trades, we're going to try

and give this family the space they need to help Josh get better.

We've got just nine days to get the job done.

We need an army of builders who know what they're doing.

That's handy. I'm glad you're here.

-Can you tell us where we can find an army of builders who know what they're doing?

-ALL: No!

I guess we'll have to make do with this lot.

This is DIY SOS, The Big Build.

Last spring, Paul and Sarah started to extend their cramped bungalow in Duxford near Cambridge.

Their son Josh was growing up fast.

It seems such a long time ago now.

He had football tournaments, and I just thought to myself,

"He's just lost his little spark."

The next week, he was sent home from school poorly,

with just a tummy ache and it was just a very, very gradual decline

until that last week when his pain was just uncontrollable.

Ultrasound tests revealed a lump in Josh's liver.

The doctor never said it will be all right. Don't worry.

And I know that's.... I know the drill.

Sarah knew the drill because she's an oncology nurse, working with cancer patients every day.

Josh was diagnosed with hepatoblastoma, a very rare and aggressive form of liver cancer.

Three painful sessions of chemotherapy were followed by a successful liver transplant.

But Josh's condition still has a huge impact on his life.

Josh can't do anything really.

So he just stays in bed and watches TV.

A horrible moment. We were with some friends of ours and he had a pump on

and a little rucksack and he has his feed that was 24 hours a day,

and they've got one of these trampolines in their back garden

and his three little friends were jumping around in there and there was Josh sat on the side. Hard.

Josh's life has changed beyond recognition,

putting huge demands on the family's small and cramped bungalow.

We have to give him about 12 drugs a day, so his body accepts his liver.

But he's on other drugs as well to help him because his immune system is suppressed,

he is at risk of infection, so we give him anti-viral drugs,

just to hopefully safeguard him against any infection.

All right Josh, take your medicines, darling?

'It's the responsibility, it's all on my shoulders.

'And because I'm a nurse, it is a control thing as well.'

But then you shouldn't be doing that with your son. Your own son. It's really hard.

With no room in the house, those drugs have got to go somewhere.

In here we've got all his nutrient milk,

they call it, which is basically pumped into his stomach via a line.

Its job is to maintain his weight.

As well as needing more space to store Josh's medicines, the family urgently need another bedroom.

Jess and Josh have always shared a room, but now that puts Josh at greater risk of picking up

an infection that could make him seriously ill.

I don't want to be poorly because I don't...

Cos it's harder to share a room when Josh's poorly.

In the night, his pump beeps when I try to get to sleep.

But if I've got a cold or something, I can't go near Josh.

It's really hard.

By any measure, this family has been through the mill.

We're going to try and give them a home which will help them cope with whatever comes next.

What about you two? Let's find out about a bit out about you first.

Jessica, what sort of things do you do in your spare time?

-I like drawing.

-Are you a member of any clubs or anything?

-Cubs.

You're in the Cubs? What about you?

You're a bit busy, going backwards and forwards to the hospital.

-I like sports.

-What's your favourite sport?

-Anything with a ball.

-OK.

-Let's find out what you want. What do you need?

-Storage. Josh's medicines and his equipment

take up most of the kitchen and Josh and Jessica can't share a bedroom

because of Josh's condition anyway, but she's going to be ten next year

so somewhere for her to just go and gather her thoughts.

It strikes me that you're sort of getting to the end of your tether a little bit.

I am. I am.

I'm tired. I just want to be their mum.

And it's been really hard.

I can see how it would get to you as well. We'll try and give you the best possible house that we can.

There's nothing to pack now because it's an empty house.

-Where is it all?

-At the dump.

-At the dump?!

-THEY LAUGH

-You're not supposed to say that!

Kids, you can't trust them to come up with the right story, can you?

So it's goodbye to the family, hello, trades people.

It's freezing cold and it's nearly the shortest day of the year.

But the support were getting is amazing.

Who's in charge? THEY LAUGH

So Billy's here and so is the rest of the team, eventually.

-What kind you call this?

-Ten o'clock.

-Quarter two.

-What?

-Quarter to your supposed to be here.

-No. Ten o'clock.

I said I'd probably be early so try and make it.

As long as we're taking the casual attitude towards this job.

-I called, the director said ten o'clock.

-Don't you worry about it.

-I'm not worried about it.

Get out of the van.

Honestly, I hope they show our new designer a little more respect.

Gabrielle Blackman has worked on many big builds, collaborating with the other designers.

This week, she steps into the spotlight. Gabrielle's portfolio contains some incredible work.

If your yacht needs a revamp like this, she's your woman, but she is just as good at designing homes

that really work for the people that live in them.

It's got to be what they want because there's no point

in all of these lovely trades doing all this work and then me putting something stupid

and controversial in that they won't like.

The only thing we don't want is white, glossy minimalist,

is not them at all. They want a cosy family home.

Why do you think they don't want white glossy?

We don't want anything to do with hospital in this house.

I just want it to be a cosy home and nothing that feels clinical or cold.

-We're not going to have any of that.

-That's a very good point.

I was just about to explain that we call Gabrielle "Gabriel",

-when you would think it would be "Gabri-elle".

-Gabi is fine.

I've even got it written on my hat. I've given up now.

Why did your parents call you "Gabriel" rather than "Gabri-elle"?

-I don't know. It's cos... Yeah, an angel thing.

-Gabriel the Angel?

She's a little angel.

Aw! Here's Gabrielle's heavenly plan. At the front of the house,

a new wall will give Jess that much-needed room of her own.

That will make the living room smaller, so we're moving another wall to make up for it,

and adding a window, creating a cosy haven for the family to relax in.

At the back comes the big change.

We're adding a kitchen diner where the family can be together.

Where the kitchen was, it will be a utility room

with lots of storage for all Josh's medical staff.

Finally a small extension to Sarah and Paul's room will add more space

and an en suite.

And Gabrielle spoke unto them and said, "Knock those walls down."

And Lo! It came to pass.

We've started at breakneck pace but I've always got time to say hello to a fan.

-New motor, is it?

-It's for my wife. She's a big fan of yours, Tony.

Tony?!

Tony Knowles.

THEY LAUGH

That's nice(!) You think you've built a career, eh?

This pile of wood is the shell of the new extension.

When I was a lad, extensions took weeks to build. Not any more.

-How fast is this going to go up and get together?

-We hope to finish this today.

-Really?

-Not including the roof bit?

-Yes.

-Including the roof joists where we're cutting into this?

-If we get a good run of it, yes.

As long as we stop interrupting you, basically. All right, fair enough.

Just hours in and were making real progress

but every chain is only as strong as its weakest link. Oh, here we go.

Let me ask you a question. What's in there?

That's the bathroom. We're not supposed to go in there.

Who drilled into the wall into the new bathroom and broke the tiles?

That was so unlucky. I was that far out of being lucky.

-But you weren't.

-I weren't, I was unlucky.

You can't make an omelette without breaking eggs, son.

It's a hell of an omelette when you're around.

Thankfully, there's plenty of people on site that do know what they're doing.

43 on day one alone, all giving us their time, skill and support.

You can be round the corner and not know what trauma some families go through.

People are here for a good cause as opposed to earning a living.

It's hard out there and people have come in. It's like a breath of fresh air.

It's great.

Great laugh, good people and it will be great just to see them happy at the end of it.

Why did you decide to come and join in and help out?

You could have been somewhere else earning a lot more money.

I could have been but I found out the little boy had liver cancer.

I've just finished a course of chemotherapy for cancer.

-Oh, have you?

-I have. So I know how important it is to get help.

How are you doing now?

-Yeah, still waiting for the final results but everything's looking good. It's all positive.

-Good.

-You understand the need for a clean and tidy home.

-Absolutely.

-A safe environment.

-I do, yeah.

-But you're happy to come along and help out.

-More than happy. Yeah.

-Thanks very much.

-Wouldn't have it any other way.

-Really appreciate it.

'Aren't people amazing?

'We've been here a few hours, but already I've noticed something.

'If you stand on this scaffold long enough, something unusual will fly over.

'It's probably on its way to land at one of Josh's favourite places,

'the Imperial War Museum's plane collection.

'He loves walking around here. Look around, you can see why.'

I hear you've been back into hospital again. How did it go?

-I had to have a needle in my leg.

-Did you? I bet that's not very nice.

-No.

-How did he manage yesterday?

He wasn't too bad, but you know that he's really frightened

because his blood pressure went through the roof.

They had try and let him calm down a little bit and leave him

until he could calm down and then they put the needle in there.

Basically so he can have an injection in his leg

over the next few days to lift his blood count.

-How are you feeling now?

-Fine.

-Fine?

-Yes.

When do you feel unwell then?

When I've had chemo and sometimes when I've had anti-sickness drugs.

How does it make you feel?

A bit tired and worried.

-What makes you happy?

-Going home.

Going home makes you happy?

I suppose you have do spend a long time at the hospital.

-Yes.

-How much do you look forward to going home?

-A lot.

-What part of your house do you like the best?

-My bedroom.

-Do you?

-Even though you have to share it?

-Yes.

-Would you like to have a bedroom all of your own?

-Yes.

-Why would that be cool?

-So I get some peace and I can play with my toys a bit more.

-Right.

I can see how that would work.

-Anything less than that and we are in trouble?

-Yes!

'Well, we'd better get on with it then. Wow! That really is getting on with it.

'We all know that when it gets dark, scary things come out to play.'

There was nothing here this morning.

This is day one of the job and we actually didn't start building

until nearly 10:30, 11 o'clock this morning.

So really, they've put a timber frame extension up,

two-thirds of the way through the roof.

The flat roof's gone on over there. I tell you what, this is a seriously good team.

It's like having a gargoyle on the roof, isn't it?

So, outside, it's all about what's gone up.

Inside, it's all about what's come down.

Most of the walls by the look of it.

It may seem scary but it's all part of the plan. Well, they say it's all part of the plan(!)

Ladies and gentlemen, for your entertainment, God Save The Queen played on a saw.

HE PLAYS GOD SAVE THE QUEEN

HE CONTINUES PLAYING

Genius! If you think that's good, you should see what he can do with a hammer.

Day two and the brickies have arrived.

We're adding a lot of space but most rooms will still be quite small.

In the lounge, Gabrielle has to find room for a fire, a sofa and one of her pet hates.

Designers don't really like TVs because they don't look very nice.

It's not a very attractive thing to have in the sitting room.

It's so important in this house, particularly for Josh.

Part of him getting better and recuperating is that he needs

to be comfortable and I can see him lying on the sofa here,

watching the TV, and it's really important that all works,

the room still looks... this lovely, elegant sitting-room that Sarah wants.

We're just trying to make that happen.

You need to make it happen fast

because the plasterers are chomping at the bit.

We want to chase these door linings up. Get the door linings on.

And then we've got two rooms we can skim this afternoon.

We're catching everyone up.

Up on the scaffold, two roofs are about to be made one.

We're ready to get the roof done,

trying to get it covered in because it looks fine now,

but it was raining earlier, so we can't take any chances.

Down below, Jules has solved some problems I don't quite understand.

He got us out of a large problem there.

'Aw, that's better.

'Everyone needs a hug now and again and I mean everyone.'

You now. Aw!

It's working for me.

-I feel better now.

-Do you feel better?

-I feel better now.

-Ah, lovely. How does that feel?

-Yeah, it's nice.

-Where's his hand?

Get off!

When Josh became ill, Sarah knew that both her children were going to need a lot of support.

She knew that both her and Paul would be away for months

while Josh was in hospital, so she asked her three best friends,

Helen, Lara and Julia to get together and look after Jess.

She went in to organise mode and said this is what I would like.

She spoke to all of us individually. Got us all together.

That's a lot of trust and an amazing friendship, that she could come to you with something so important.

-I think she knew it wouldn't be an issue.

-It wasn't an issue.

There was no second thought. It was just absolutely fine.

But it also made us feel that we were doing some good.

-Something to help.

-Something to help. You feel helpless.

You know that they're in hospital, to know that they're doing something, she could go there

and not worry about Jessica, because she was OK and she was with us.

-It helped us too.

-When I was talking to her the other day,

I was watching her and I said, "You're pretty near the end of your tether" and she said, "Yes, I am."

She stayed with us last week.

I think she's ready for that end and the end of the chemo

and just really start looking ahead and just having that family

back together and protecting them all in the same environment

and having a home again.

And what a home it's going to be,

thanks to the hard work of all these people.

It makes you feel all warm inside. Perhaps that's why the hugging just won't stop.

Look at Nigel over there. Safety glasses, obviously, because he's health and safety officer.

There's another one going on now, look.

'I was slightly worried about what I've started here.

'As the sun sets at about 2:45, the timber frame is finished,

'ready to be felted and tiled tomorrow.'

-Thank you.

-It's been emotional. Show some of that man love!

-Aww!

-This hugging's catching on, isn't it?

LAUGHTER

-See you later.

-Cheers, guys. Thanks a lot. Take care, Cheers.

Cubs, do your best.

ALL SHOUT IN UNISON: We will do our best.

I'm not sure what's harder - a day on the building site

or the nine-mile walk that Jess and her cub pack are doing today.

Sometimes it's easy to forget just how much a child's illness

can affect their brothers and sisters.

This is very cool, isn't it? This place that you're camping in.

Actually, I was worried about you camping outside in the open

but this is actually quite warm and nice and twinkly in here, isn't it?

It's been really difficult, the last...what,

-I suppose about six months, hasn't it?

-Mm-hmm.

So tell us what's been going on.

Well, we just, kind of...

-just keep going.

-Do you worry about Josh?

Yes, I do. I'm scared quite a lot what's going to happen to him.

Because I just don't like being away from Josh and Mum and Dad.

-And has that had to happen a lot?

-Yeah.

-When does that happen?

Like when they go to Birmingham,

when they go to hospital. Um...that kind of stuff.

You know Mum and Dad are a bit worried they haven't paid enough attention to you

-cos they've had to look after Josh, do you know that?

-Yeah.

-And how do you know that?

-Because they always tell me.

-Do they?

-Yeah.

-But you understand?

-Yeah, I do.

If I was a genie and I could grant three wishes,

what would those three wishes be?

Well, one to get Josh better and the family happy.

And then two, if I could have my own bedroom

and everyone...and the whole house really nice.

-You've still got a wish left.

-Um...to be normal.

For everything to be normal again? Mmm.

-Is it fun when you come away to something like this?

-Um...

-Does it take your minds off things for a little while?

-Yeah.

-Does it?

Yeah. It does.

-See you, everyone. See you soon. Bye.

-ALL: Bye!

HE LAUGHS

Now, I don't want to tempt fate

but we might be about to make one of those wishes come true.

I'm not quite sure what I'm most impressed with at the moment.

The fact that we have a bedroom here for Jessica

which is all she's ever wanted for the last few years

or that it's plastered along with this room

which is already plastered which is pretty incredible

or that if you follow me through the utility room,

we now have an extension which is about 40% extra house for them

and isn't it beautiful? And all this in just two days.

The bricklayers are doing so well, they've started taking walls down to give themselves something to do.

This will be the new living room window.

-So what's the plan today?

-We'll get this insulated out and then plasterboarded

and then get it all skimmed out hopefully.

We'll come back tomorrow if not.

-Depends what the little fella... What's his name again?

-Who?

-He told us what to do. Is he Irish?

-Mark.

-Or Scottish.

Look, I'll... Describe him again. Go on, go on!

I just said the little fella.

-What's going on?

-He said, "Where's the little..." No, I didn't mean that. Where's...

I said, "Do you know..."

-What did you just say?

-I said...

-What did you just say?

-I said "little fella" but I didn't mean it like that. I forgot your name, sorry.

-Little Mark.

LAUGHTER

Or to give him his full title, Project Manager Little Mark.

He must be doing something right because the roof is taking shape.

-You all right, son?

-Getting there.

And he's managed to find this gas fitter

who I think is one of the smartest, most handsome tradesmen

I've ever met. Not that I'm biased(!)

-Have you met my nephew?

-I have.

-What do you think?

LAUGHTER

You can tell by the vacant stare!

That was a bit harsh, wasn't it? Now in the past we've had to intervene

and stop tradespeople from physically attacking our designer.

Fortunately, Gaby seems to know how to get on with everyone.

-So you've enjoyed yourself so far?

-I'm really enjoying it and it's just going...

-Oh no, I can't say going well cos we'll be doomed.

-No, we don't do that.

We don't say that too early. Paint a picture for us. What will it look like?

Here we've got a lovely fire going in over there.

-Lovely.

-So they've got a centrepiece there.

Imaginary armchairs that we don't yet have here.

Still struggling to get hold of those?

The budget is a nightmare on this one.

We've got no appliances and no chairs.

Yeah, we have - a brand-new boiler so their bills will be cheaper.

I know but if we've got no washing machines and stuff...

-so I'm a bit stressed about that.

-HE CLEARS HIS THROAT

-So you should be.

-Should've had that organised by now, shouldn't you?

-Yes.

Don't worry, I'm only playing.

Let's hope all the disruption we're causing the Behan family

is going to pay off.

Since we moved in, they've been staying at Helen's

but wherever Josh is, his treatment doesn't stop.

Visits like this one from the district nurse

are part of his life now.

We only had two nights in hospital. Chemo went well.

He has been feeling quite sick these last few days

but at the moment, he's...he's OK.

Do you want me to get rid of all your rubbish?

You might think that being a nurse who works with cancer patients

would give Sarah an advantage when it comes to looking after Josh.

But it also means that she's all too aware of the challenges ahead.

There are days where I'm fine and think, "Everything's fine,

"we're getting through this," and other days where I realise

what Joshua has been through, we have been through as a family.

So what's the glue holding it all together?

The children have given me strength.

And I think the love of our family, actually.

We've realised what's important.

But now, my fear is the future and what it holds.

It's daring to hope.

Do you not... Y-you... You don't allow yourself to?

I do, but then I worry.

But, um...because we've had six months of sheer hell,

I can't explain my emotions that I've been through.

My heart has been so heavy, I just want it...

It's been pounding out of my chest

because I just want to get him well, I want to get him better,

I want him to have...the future that his little friends will have.

It just breaks my heart

and...to explain to somebody who's got children,

they would understand

but actually the deepest feelings you feel, it's so difficult to explain.

-So how important...is coming home?

-He doesn't feel safe in hospital.

All these bad things happened...

Well, not bad things but things that he doesn't like

happened to him in hospital. He feels safe at home and I want them

to feel safe and loved and warm.

So that's what we're working towards.

I'm always amazed at the fantastic turnout we get for Big Builds

but if you'd been waiting six months for a plumber,

you might be wondering how we find all these great tradespeople.

-How did we end up with him on site?

-I was driving up the motorway to have a look at this job

-and on the way I was listening to Radio 2.

-Yeah.

-And Ken Bruce was talking to him on the phone.

-Is that right?

-So he came on and did PopMaster.

-A bit of a pop genius, is he?

-Absolutely.

-I am, actually, yeah.

He got the worst score in 25 years' history of PopMaster.

I think I was set up cos no-one gets that score, really.

-What did you get?

-Two points.

-Out of?

-A possible 39.

THEY LAUGH

Ask him a pop question, any pop question you like, go on.

-Oh, my God.

-Step in here.

-Ah, see? Um...

-What?

-I can't even think of one.

-Exactly.

-It's difficult.

-When you've got 13 million people...

-Your questions were really easy that day cos I think I got 36.

-Oh, God.

-Most of the country got 36!

-I think so.

-Name me two Village People hits.

-YMCA, In The Navy.

-That's slightly worrying.

THEY LAUGH

Well, let's face it, you're not going to make your money on quiz shows.

-Oh, Patrick.

-Here you go, Patrick. Ask him any pop-related question.

He's known as the master of pop, he can answer almost any question.

Who sang:

# That was my heart years from now

# Love and pride

-The King.

-Yes!

-As bad as that, no-one!

LAUGHTER

Oh, come on!

So there you go. If you want to find great tradespeople,

listen to Radio 2.

This morning the extension looked like a shed inside.

Now it's looking like a room.

How will you plaster over the wires and get over that?

What we're going to do is run a batten - not this here obviously -

run a batten along the wall up there

all the way along the wall and make a little box.

We'll cut some timber onto it and just box the whole thing in

so Billy ran all his wires along there

and then the electricians ran all their wires along that side.

Look at the difference, look!

That one over there is a thing of beauty,

the wires just under the ceiling.

And then look at those ones up there.

-Not right, is he?

-He's not right, really. Bless him, we love him, love him, love him.

This is Andy, and before he was a plasterer, he was a chef.

And Paul was his boss.

-I wanted to have a chat with you about Paul.

-Yeah.

-Cos you've known him a while. How long have you known him?

-13 years.

How do you think you'd have done in the same circumstances?

Oh, I can't imagine it.

Cos my son comes over to play with Josh, and it's just, you know...

It's quite upsetting to think... You know, it's just a nightmare.

And he's such a brave kid, like. He's still smiling.

Paul sends us photos of him from the hospital and always still smiling and stuff, you know?

-What do you make of what's going on here then?

-Brilliant. And it'll change their lives.

Now, see that frost? That's how cold it is.

Certain days are important from a plastering point of view,

and it's Chris in charge. And today is that day.

This was done prior to us arriving,

and now we need to make this floor the same level as existing.

So, apparently, we have a superfast-setting concrete floor coming at two o'clock.

The boys will get this in, and that's why we need to get that plastered.

They can't go in and out then plaster it, cos there's too many of them.

So you've just got to feed them.

Feed them plaster, feed them tea.

And they'll look after their own room.

Perhaps the reason the job is going so well is because the house is a bungalow.

-That's just one story!

-NICK LAUGHS

Do you see what I did there? Really?!

-Do you like working on bungalows?

-I love 'em!

You're at a stage of life where you could move into a bungalow!

Well, I don't understand it, people calling me Bungalow Bill.

-I don't understand that.

-That's cos there's nothing up top!

THEY LAUGH

Here's the superfast-setting concrete known as screed.

It can't go into the big extension until the plasterers come out,

and if that doesn't happen soon, it'll set solid.

-Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick.

-I know, I know. We're under pressure.

We've got to get them in tonight, cos this floor has got to be dry and ready for tomorrow.

We've got floor-fitters, we've got kitchens coming in and stuff...

but the pressure's on, boys!

The pressure's on, lads!

Ten, nine, eight, seven, six...

I'm not sure he's helping!

Billy is loading a barrow, whether the plasterers are ready or not.

Now, we make fun of Billy, but when it comes to building, he really knows his stuff.

Listen to this.

They put fibre in it,

and the fibre helps it to...

-Bond together.

-Bond together.

If you say it quieter, then it seems as if it's coming from me, right?

So, they put the fibre in. It reads how much...

of the creed... Screed? Screed.

And then it just puts a load of fibre in.

We thought it would be a lot of fibre.

The fibre helps the screed bond together.

HE LAUGHS

If you believe that, you believe anything I say!

What did I tell you? He's a font of knowledge, that man.

-All right, gentlemen?

-Hello, mate.

-How's it going?

-Aye, good, thanks. Last wall now.

Mate, you've got there, look.

Timing to...perfection.

-Well done, boys! Thank you.

-No worries. Thanks.

So, that's the screed down, and there's more good news.

Up on the scaffold, EVERYTHING is finished.

MARK: Lovely job.

If you're in the area again, we'll help you out again.

Rough diamonds, that's what they are.

We're turning a corner.

This place feels less like a building site and more like a home.

Boys came in here and started at 6.30 this morning.

Got the hallway in, dropping through the kitchen,

so that when the kitchen arrives at 11 o'clock or so...

-All right, Ian? All right? All right?!

-No!

-What's wrong with you?

Under pressure!

-All right, John? Are you under pressure?

-Yeah, always!

Drama queens, the pair of them. Absolute drama queens.

That's rich coming from you!

It's been bitterly cold this week,

but that hasn't stopped John - another friend of Paul and Sarah's.

Here's his idea of an easy day's work.

Screed away.

..finish the patio off.

I've only just started the patio, but finish it off.

Get the path running, hopefully.

And start prepping for the turf and the finish.

We're here till the end. Till the bitter end!

And they've been here since the start.

This is make-or-break time for Gaby as the design comes together.

She's got to be all over everything. No pressure, then.

How are you finding it?

I want this house to be perfect for them, and it really stresses me out,

because I'm just worried... about every little detail.

And it's really important to me as well that if I do my job right,

then all this hard work these guys have done for nothing pays off.

But if I get it wrong, just by choosing the wrong wallpaper

or putting some furniture they don't like in,

then I've ruined it all!

-Yes.

-So that's my worry.

-No, you have.

-No, you have.

-And I know you like to...

LAUGHTER

They're all working their socks off for this family.

And working over two weekends. Actually, Mark has got a sock there.

-He's done his work so hard...

-My socks have come off!

-His sock has actually come off.

Aw, she cares so much.

Everyone here does. I love it. But she's right.

It's all about building a house that will help the family face the challenges of the future.

-Have you heard about the family?

-Yes, a little bit. Liver transplant?

Yeah. Little Josh has got cancer and it's been really...

-..really rubbish for him, actually.

-Yeah, well yeah.

Yeah, so I've made it even more important to do it, really.

-Yeah.

-Cos my daughter died from it, so...

-Well, not liver cancer, she had neuroblastoma.

-Oh, man.

So, it's nice to give something back for a change.

Doing up someone's house like this, with the experience that you've got,

I mean, your home is really important, isn't it?

Oh crumbs, yeah. That's the place you want to be.

-It's just nice to come home and it be tidy.

-Yeah.

Cos you have so many - I don't know about little Josh, what he had,

but we had so many drugs in the house.

We had to have a cupboard on the walls, lockable and all that.

And a list of what time we had to give her drugs and all that sort of thing.

To have it all neat and tidy and where you want it, it's just something less to worry about.

It's good hearing you say that, cos Sarah, she's a nurse as well,

and I think for her, her way of copway of coping with it

is just to try and organise everything,

just at least feel a little bit in control.

-Yeah, control, that's the one thing, because you've got no control.

-No.

You haven't got any control. You've got a little bit of control at home about what you're doing and all that.

But the end result you've got no control over.

To come home and it be sorted, it just... makes it so much easier.

That sense of being out of control is very hard for any parent.

But especially, I think, for fathers who feel it's their duty,

their job perhaps, to protect the family

and make things right, fix everything.

So how does Paul feel about the people helping to fix the house?

I'm humbled. I'm slightly embarrassed by it because these people,

it's tough times and they're giving up a week,

two weeks of their own time, their own money.

And, eh... It must be difficult. We appreciate it.

I mean, we're just very humbled by it all.

So if you walk back into the house that you need, how does life change?

It's just to give Josh the space that is needed to look after him

on a day-to-day basis, somewhere he can get away from things, which he will need to do.

There's going to be tough times for him. And with the drugs he is on,

each time they might change a dose or try a different drug,

there are side effects which we perhaps didn't really know about.

Em... Some of his hearing is starting to go,

which means now he'll probably need hearing aids for school and stuff like that.

So that's another hurdle he has to overcome.

Em... his heart has to be monitored and his kidneys also

can fail through the chemotherapy drugs they administer.

But the thing that gives us hope, we see other children

who have progressed through all this who have perhaps been more advanced

than Josh is in terms of their treatment,

and you think, well, that will be him hopefully in a year or two.

And while he is recovering,

we want to make Josh's room a safe haven for him.

Because he'll spend much time here,

it also needs to be a fun place to be.

So we built this - bed on top, den underneath.

And who better to judge it than our very own chubby-cheeked little toddler Jules?

Even I can fit in this den.

-Has it looking?

-Great, mate.

Nice little den. I was saying, if this was my bed,

I know it's handy for storage, but if I was little 'un

I'd want to be crawling round inside and make a den under there.

I'd have loved a den like that when I was that age.

I'd love a den like that now.

-Have you not got a shed?

-Most men have a shed, don't they? Do you have a shed?

-I've got four sheds.

-You've got four sheds?

-Four sheds and a garage.

-I've only got two.

-And a bike shed and a woodshed.

-I haven't got a shed.

-Have you not? Mate, get yourself a shed.

-Haven't you got a shed, Matt?

-Yeah, I got two.

-Billy's got a shed but he's got a bar in his shed.

Have you - Oi, Bill, have you got a bar in your shed?

Mm. When we have barbecues, we can have the door open.

Oh, so he doesn't have a shed for pottering in?

He has got a shed at the back of it, which is your space, isn't it, where your tools are?

Yeah, all my tools. Then I've got the brick shed for the other stuff.

-So you've got three sheds?

-Why don't you have a shed then?

Well, cos... cos I don't potter.

Haven't you got a place you go, phew?

Yeah, you've got to have a phew place.

-That's why you're too tense.

-You think?

-Because you don't potter.

-What makes you think I'm too tense?

-What makes you think I'm too tense?!

-I rest my case.

-What are you talking about? When have I ever been tense?

-Exactly.

We know why... At night you go to bed thinking you're a wigwam,

and when you wake up in the morning you feel like you're a teepee,

so you're two tents! Two tents!

LAUGHTER

'It was like being run over like a steamroller, wasn't it?'

You could see it coming a long way off, but there was nothing you could do to stop it.

Remember, this is more than a kitchen they're making here.

There will be extra storage

for all Joss's medicines and somewhere to prepare them.

But to make sure it doesn't feel clinical, these gentlemen have built

this table and shelves from scratch using reclaimed timber.

And they look great. Everything has to be finished today.

And there's 32 people on site trying to get it all done,

most of them in here.

-How are we doing with the kitchen?

-I think it's going all right.

There's not much space in here, but we're getting along nicely.

The spark's out and we'll all put things together.

We're all just mucking in together.

Hopefully, we'll be 99% there by tonight. That's the plan.

-Yeah?

-Show 'em your moustache.

-You've got a moustache?

-Yeah.

-What else have you got?

-LAUGHTER

-Teardrops, as well.

That's not right, is it?! It's not.

See what happens to people when they work with Bill?

He was probably a normal lad when he first started.

Can you rub that off?

-No. That is a tattoo.

-It's a tattoo?!

-Yeah.

-You had a moustache tattooed to your finger?

-Yeah.

So you could do what with it?

Just...

LAUGHTER

'If I say that's one of the maddest things I've ever seen

and that no-one's going to top that, you just know that someone will, don't you?

Can I come back in now?

Look.

"Love."

-Look what it says there. That's not going to come off.

-Oh.

Oh. Only doing it for the telly.

Who uses a permanent marker on your own face?!

After a week outside in weather that would leave a brass monkey in need of welding,

John's not going to let anyone damage his good work.

He's ready for a turf war.

You don't think you've gone too draconian with your sign?

Works either way, I think.

-You think?

-Yeah, it gets the message out.

-I think it does.

Gabrielle wants the new living room to be a cosy retreat for Josh

and family.

And it's all really starting to feel the part.

Wherever you turn, she's making sure that every detail of her traditional-

but-not-so-traditional-it-doesn't- look-great-in-a-bungalow design

comes together as planned.

-What do you think, Gabbers?

-Um...

I quite like it, actually, Mark. It works quite... Er...

No, it's not, it's lovely.

-You like it?

-It's lovely.

I think I'm being quite low maintenance today, don't you think?

Don't you think, Mark?

No?

I think that's what they call a telling silence.

But if anyone should have been getting the silent treatment,

it's Billy the bathroom wrecker.

-You've been doing the hearth?

-Yeah, that's all done.

-Lovely.

-Ready to go.

-Anything else?

-Splashback.

-Splashback.

-And change the tile.

A repair job where Billy drilled through the wall? Have you said thank you?

Thank you.

These boys have just tidied up your little...

-We took the tile out, didn't we?

-"We"?

-Yeah. John.

-I think you broke the tile, didn't you?

-Yeah.

Just two inches out, that's all it was, two inches out.

It doesn't matter whether it's two inches or a mile, Bill.

If it's wrong, it's wrong.

As this lot are finding out

with a fridge that just won't go where it should.

These need to be flush with the front of that unit.

-That's how you screw it into the unit.

-45 mil.

-And with 80 mil...

-ALL TALK OVER EACH OTHER

Got to come out and take it back again.

That's fantastic, isn't it?

You got guys who have brought the white goods along for us,

an electrician in on the conversation, two chippies,

and they've worked it out between them. And...

-Do you need an 'and? >

-No, thanks very much. We're all right, thanks, Bill.

We're not going to let him at it, are we?

'Next time there's a problem we just need everyone to put

their heads together and stress Gabrielle out completely.

Yeah, what's going on here? The island's in the wrong position.

It's too close because that corridor's too narrow.

If you bend in front of the oven like that, and bring a tray out of the oven,

you've got to turn. You need the turning space.

-Is it screwed to the floor?

-It's here.

This is centralised on the island, you see.

-We have to do something with that. Either we...

-No.

We put something with a hook on to take the light over.

That's going to be too short up there.

Can we move it along and see what it looks like?

Let's make a decision really quickly,

because there's one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight,

nine people standing over here who should be working.

-We've got to move it so let's...

-It's got to be moved.

Two, three...

Keep going, keep going, keep going. Yes!

Lie in there, get the extra key and give it slung down.

Get this kitchen finished. Come on. ALL: Yes.

Late into the night,

Gaby's still hard at it, sorting out the last details of the kitchen.

And there's one last hurdle. This worktop is attractive,

hard-wearing, hygienic

and can be bonded to form a single length.

Shame it doesn't fit.

Now we've got a problem with the splashback, as well.

Those walls are supposed to be in line with each other. That's...

-That's why...

-We need these worktops in tonight.

The boys have literary got an hour left.

-They're doing their best, let's just...

-Let's argue about it later.

Remember, lads,

measure twice, cut once.

Right. Let's cut this one.

Well, it wouldn't be a Big Build without a last-minute problem

and a late finish, would it?

Over the last few months,

the Behan family have had their world turned upside down.

I just want to be their mum.

It would be nice not to worry about the house,

just to come home, somewhere we can be safe.

And even after Josh's transplant,

they still have some big challenges ahead.

We treat every day as it comes. Some days are good, some days are bad.

If you could make everything better,

what would be the first thing on your list?

To make our family normal again.

Um, and just be happy.

So how much do you look forward to going home?

A lot.

But now they have one less thing to worry about.

Thanks to the incredible efforts of 110 tradesmen and women...

..we've given Josh a room of his own. It's comfortable and fun.

And it's somewhere to recover.

We've given Jess the room of her own she wanted

and needed so badly.

After the months she's spent staying with friends while Josh

was in hospital, at last she has a space of her own at home.

For Sarah and Paul,

there's somewhere comfortable to relax at last.

There's a cosy living room that has the traditional feel Sarah loves,

but still works in this modern bungalow.

And perhaps most important of all,

a kitchen-diner where the family can be together.

With storage space for all Josh's medicines

right in the centre of the house.

After all the difficulties of the last few months,

it's somewhere they can really enjoy coming home to.

What did you need?

Somewhere just to feel safe and normal,

just to have that sanctuary of home.

OK, well,

a lot of people worked very hard over a very short time

and I think they've done an amazing job

and I think they've given you what you need, so...

if you're ready?

Hm-hm

Open your eyes.

HE LAUGHS

Oh, my gosh!

-Wow.

-HE LAUGHS

It's beautiful.

-That is absolutely...

-It's absolutely beautiful.

It's stunning.

Probably of importance to you,

while we're in this part of the kitchen,

is if you walk into that part of the kitchen, which extends all the way through,

you've got an important storage space for you to put Josh's stuff.

This is the idea - to give you the space

to have all Josh's medical equipment

and have it available and a worktop to work on.

But not for it to dominate the whole house,

so it keeps all that under control.

It's... I never thought I'd have anything like this. Ever.

And it's just like home.

Oh! It's... Oh!

-HE LAUGHS

-Oh, deary me.

HE LAUGHS

SHE SOBS It's beautiful.

She's got it so everything is just beautiful.

It's perfect.

SHE SOBS It's... It's perfect is all I can say.

SHE GASPS

Oh. SHE LAUGHS

Look! Look!

So beautiful.

-Do you want to have a look in the cupboard behind you?

-Yep.

Open it.

Oh! HE LAUGHS

Nice. Lovely!

Nice to have, obviously, a lovely bedroom

and somewhere you can come and relax,

but not the most important thing to you, really, was it?

It was always going to be the living area and...

-Room for Jessica, space for Jessica.

-Right.

SHE GASPS

Oh, deary me!

It's lovely.

-Look at her tigers.

-Oh!

I'm going to cry again.

Oh, it's... Oh, she's got all her little arty bits.

It... Oh, she's going to love it.

Absolutely love it.

Oh, look at the little lamps with birds on them.

-Oh, that's beautiful.

-There's all the bits on the desk.

It's perfect.

This is beyond anything that we ever dreamed of, really.

It's exactly what we needed and exactly what we wanted,

but it's so much more.

-I just can't believe it.

-This is home.

That's all I can say - it's home.

And in here.

BOTH EXCLAIM

-Oh.

-Oh, look!

-He's going to go bonkers!

-HE LAUGHS

Oh, it's lovely!

SHE SOBS

It's beautiful. He'll love it. That's just what he...

SHE LAUGHS AND SOBS AT SAME TIME

It's beautiful.

SHE LAUGHS

It's just what he needs.

Space, all his little things.

-So it's a den for him, as well.

-Fantastic.

He can crawl underneath and play underneath

and there's all kinds of things for him to play with in his den.

There's also, just here....

-..an extendable mattress which goes out flat.

-Oh, lovely.

You know sometimes you like to lay in here with him.

Yeah.

The other point about the bed being this way,

-A, it's great fun for him to climb up.

-Yes.

Also, if he's feeling unwell,

you'll find it's exactly the right height for him to lift him without hurting your back.

So it looks fun,

but the point being that it can work for you

-if he's feeling tired.

-Yes.

We don't get carried away with the whole process we do.

We've made a building, we...we haven't, we haven't made Josh well,

we haven't helped Josh get better.

I think, mentally, it will be the biggest boost for him.

-It will be...

-You think, really?

-Oh, yes!

-That room is his little sanctuary.

-He feels most safe in his bedroom, doesn't he?

-He does.

And that will make a massive difference to him.

And here's...

MUM: Ah!

Ah!

Wow!

Cool!

-This is awesome!

-DAD LAUGHS

Wow!

LAUGHTER

No more girls.

-Yeah!

-LAUGHTER

ALL LAUGH

SHE GASPS

Oh!

-What do you think?

-I love it.

I like the wallpaper.

-Perfect wallpaper.

-Yeah!

-Just what...

I've got a desk.

-It's just pretty.

-Yes.

Just what you deserve, hm? SHE LAUGHS

You do.

APPLAUSE

Anyone that knows me knows that I'm never short of a word to say,

but, guys, I'm just totally and utterly speechless

over what you've done for us.

People have given up their time and, er...

HE LAUGHS NERVOUSLY

Thank you's a small word,

-but that's...

-Thank you so much.

I can't tell you what this means to me and my family. SHE SOBS

It means so much.

Thank you so much.

APPLAUSE

Oh, Gaby!

-Thank you. Thank you.

-Such a pleasure, sweetheart.

-HE LAUGHS

-Cheers.

Oh!

What's your favourite football team?

-Ipswich.

-Ipswich?

So would it be very cool if someone from Ipswich Town,

one of the players, had came along, as well?

-The goalie!

-Right, the goalkeeper!

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

I'd like to give you a signed pair of my match gloves.

They've not been worn recently, unfortunately. LAUGHTER

But they're signed to you, OK?

APPLAUSE

We don't think in any way that doing up a building makes someone well.

But if you looked to their faces at the beginning of the week,

and look at their faces now, you can see a huge weight has been lifted.

And it means they have a place where they can relax

and where Josh can look forward to coming home to in between

the really important treatment he's getting in hospital.

They've got home, at last, and that's a big thing.

Maybe you know someone who needs your help.

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