North East Wales Escape to the Country

This masterpiece of engineering behind me is 1,000 feet long

and 126 feet high, and it is

the highest and longest aqueduct,

made of cast iron, in the world.

Find out what it's called and where I am in just a moment.

On today's show, I'm setting out to find a working property

for a couple who run their own business and, at first,

the enthusiasm takes a bit of time to get going.

It's...well, yes, interesting!

But then, their reactions are almost off the scale.

I'm going to shock you here now...

a nine-and-a-half.

THEY GASP AND LAUGH

Zowie, wowee!

Today, we're in North East Wales,

and this is the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct,

which, amazingly, was designed back in 1795

by Thomas Telford.

It's part of the very ambitious scheme to join

the Rivers Dee and the Mersey.

Now, the whole project took about ten years

and £47,000, in their money,

which is about £50 million in today's money,

and they never quite finished the whole complex,

but they did finish this very impressive stretch,

and over 5,000 canal boats still cross it to this day,

and it's going to be a very vertiginous journey.

North East Wales is a region that encompasses

the counties of Wrexham, Flintshire and Denbighshire

and shares its coastline with the Irish Sea.

It's a largely rural area, and the main industry

is in sheep and cattle farming,

although crops, such as wheat and barley, are grown here too.

Tourism is a big part of the economy, bringing in £1.8 billion

across the whole of North Wales each year,

as well as over 37,000 jobs.

When you look at the stunning scenery this part of Wales

has to offer, from the picturesque Horseshoe Pass in the Dee Valley,

to the historical and charming towns of Llangollen and Denbigh,

it's no wonder these counties are so popular

with tourists and house-buyers alike.

But let's meet today's house-hunting couple

and find out what's on their wish list.

John and Sally run a forestry business

and have been married for almost 40 years.

They've been in their four-bedroom home in Shrewsbury, Shropshire,

for six years,

but it's the business that's providing the main impetus

for their tenth house purchase.

Since we've moved here...

our family business has changed direction,

and, so, we're in commercial forestry

and we need to have land,

we need to have two or three acres round our home.

We need space round the property to store rather large machinery

and, um, if we go to a place in the country,

we will immediately turn to renewables and, obviously,

wood is our business and we would heat it with wood,

it's quite simple.

So, a renewable forever-home set in a couple of acres

is what this couple are after and, naturally,

they'd like to be near some woodland too.

Well, we do a lot of work in North Wales's forests, so...

On the outskirts of Chester,

on the Welsh side of Chester, in Denbighshire and Flintshire,

that's really where we want to move to.

But if they have a chance to relax, there are pursuits

old and new they'd like to spend time on.

We already like walking with the dog.

One thing I would like to do in the country,

I quite like doing craftwork and I do craftwork with the local school

where my grandchildren go, and I would...

I'd like to throw pottery, make pottery.

One of the interesting aspects of the move is to gear up

a little bit more for my hobby, which is sailing

and the latest acquisition, sailing-wise,

is an Australian design trimaran

which, um...is quite portable

and I can bring it home and work on it in the winter.

They've got a pretty substantial list of preferences

for the new property, inside and out.

I don't think we'd consider living in a house with low beams

so that you've got to bend your head, or houses which are...

um...

..very old.

What we need in our next home

would be three bedrooms, two bathrooms,

a large study for John,

a good, spacious entrance hall,

a large kitchen-dining room big enough to put a range in,

and somewhere that we can put in a wood burner,

so we need a chimney.

The land really needs to have a couple of buildings on it,

like a Dutch barn or workshop, so that we can service our

harvesting equipment as and when,

and store our boat in the winter.

Just one last thing to check out,

and that's how much money they'd like to spend.

Our maximum budget is £550,000.

John and Sally would like us to concentrate our house search

to the west of Chester

in the Welsh counties of Flintshire and Denbighshire.

We've got some fantastic houses in store for our buyers

and, as usual, they'll need to guess the price before I reveal it.

Our final option is, of course, our Mystery House, which aims to

challenge their preconceptions about their perfect home.

-Morning, guys.

-BOTH:

-Morning, Alistair.

-A beautiful morning here in North East Wales.

-It certainly is.

-Do you know this area very well?

-We were married in this area.

-Really?

-Yeah.

-Well, it's like a coming home.

-It is.

-It is a little, yes.

And what are the qualities that you're looking for?

We'd like a little bit of land, Alistair,

up to about three acres, not too much more.

Um... A nice building.

A Dutch barn would be great.

-Right.

-Um...

But, as far as the house is concerned, I think

Sally will have the say on that.

I want a cosy home, I want a home with soul,

-and I want to know that it's going to be ours forever.

-Sure.

I shall know quite quickly, Alistair.

Right. Well, they say that you can tell in the first few seconds.

-Yes.

-Well, it's a beautiful day for property shopping, so let's go.

-Let's go.

-Follow me.

-Can't wait!

For a maximum budget of £550,000,

John and Sally are looking for a house with...

..with outbuildings for machinery maintenance and boat storage.

We've travelled 70 miles from Chester, close to Ruthin,

the county town of Denbighshire, located in the Vale of Clwyd.

The church here dates back to 1310, and there are amenities

such as a regular market for local produce

as well as a post office and a friendly, traditional inn.

Our first property is three miles outside Ruthin

and is set in over two-and-a-half acres of land

with splendid views along the western slopes

of the Clwydian hills.

Here we are - house number one.

-Wow!

-Right.

-It's a beautiful spot, isn't it?

-It certainly is, Alistair, it's fantastic.

-Yeah, amazing.

-And this is the house I want to show you.

-Hmm.

-As you can see, it's a barn conversion.

-Yeah.

It's rather attractive, it's lovely stone.

It's very interesting.

It's...well, yes, interesting, but on the small side.

-A bit small?

-Yes.

'Well, this property may not look spacious from the outside,

'but appearances can be deceiving, as they'll find

'when they step through the front door.'

So, we come into this really nice...

hallway. If you can shut the door.

-We go straight through into...

-Very spacious!

-..the kitchen.

Oh, yes. That's rather nice.

-It doesn't really feel like a barn conversion at all.

-No, it doesn't.

No, it just feels like a modern kitchen

-and I can see a space to put a range cooker in.

-There is a range, yes.

Which is quite essential for me, yes. I like it. I like it.

Nice, big travertine floors.

I love the floor and I like the view of the cows through the window.

Yeah. So, you know, we were talking about getting the first feel

in the first ten seconds. Has it, er...?

I don't know yet. It's a nice, cosy feel.

-We haven't ruled it out in the first ten seconds.

-No, no, no, no!

With space for the range cooker a big tick for Sally,

and those stunning views a plus for both of them,

we're bypassing the dining room to have a look

at the equally cosy sitting room.

Wow.

-Again, a lovely view.

-Yeah.

-And French windows.

I mean, this is half the size of our present sitting room.

-Right.

-Um...

-And we do like a bit of space round us, don't we?

-Yeah.

-But it's...

-It's not vast, it's not roomy and cavernous.

-No.

-It could be cosy.

-It's definitely going to be cosy in here.

-Yes.

That's another word that we keep using, but it's cosy.

Well, it is a word that certainly fits this house.

Also on the ground floor is a study,

and the hallway definitely has the spaciousness that Sally likes.

Upstairs, there are three bedrooms.

A bright double room for guests,

along with a good-sized single room.

And there's a large bathroom too,

but we're heading for where they could be sleeping.

This is the master bedroom.

This is a nice bedroom.

-It's got three aspects.

-Yep.

-Four, five!

-Five aspects! Quintuple aspects!

Yes, yes, yes, yes! It's really, really nice.

It's a really lovely bedroom, actually. Yeah.

Outside continues to deliver,

with plenty of land on offer for all their forestry business needs.

In total, there's half an acre of gardens and two acres of paddock

with space for a large outbuilding,

although this may require permission from the local county council.

There's also a large garage where they could store their boat.

But what I wanted to surprise them with

is the area that sits above the garage.

Come on in, cos then there's this.

-Wow!

-Gosh.

-That's a surprise.

-Fully kitted out above the garage...

-Yes?

-So, you've got a little bathroom in there.

-Right.

-Storage here.

-And I thought this would make a lovely office.

-It certainly would!

-Yeah.

-I think there's something nice about going to work,

even though you're working at home.

John's worked at home all our married life.

I'm quite...

quite taken with this.

Well, I'm glad they're pleased with this part of the property,

but the outside is the all-important factor.

So, I think we should discuss the land.

So, you would use this field to store your bits.

Yeah, I would, and I'd see

whether we could put a building up just behind me on the boundary.

-Great, so that would be enough space for you, do you think?

-Definitely.

-Yes, yes.

-So, how much do you think this package is on the market for?

-I would say 480.

-480? OK.

I would say 500.

OK, so, it's a little bit between.

It's actually on the market for 495.

-Oh.

-Right.

-So, you were closer.

At £495,000, this property is well within their budget,

offering a large kitchen,

with room for a range cooker,

three bedrooms,

self-contained office space for John,

a garage for storing their boat,

and over two-and-a-half acres of land for business use.

I'm a convert to the Vale here. It's a beautiful spot.

-Glad to hear it.

-Good. Let's go and see house number two.

-Right.

The Church of St Matthew is the oldest parish church

in the Flintshire town of Buckley.

Built in 1822, it was updated in the early 1900s

around the same time as

the North Wales Association of Church Bell Ringers

was founded in Bangor, Gwynedd.

I've come to meet expert campanologist Geoff Parting,

who's been bell-ringing since he was 13 years old,

and he's going to teach me more about this rather unique art.

The church has a dozen bell-ringers,

but only six to eight are needed at any one time.

-Good morning.

-This is Bernard, he's the master of the tower.

-Master of the tower!

-Nice to meet you, yes.

You're the captain of the tower, you're the master of the tower.

-Well, if I just explain to you how it works...

-You've got eight bells.

Eight bells up there, yes. And, when you pull the bell,

-it turns through 360 degrees.

-Mm-hmm.

The stay hits what we call a slider over there

and that stops it going any further.

-So, when we pull the bell down again like this...

-Mh-hm.

..it comes all the way that way... BELL RINGS

Ah, so each ring is a ring on both ways.

-A ring going up and a ring going down.

-Hand-stroke and back-stroke we call it.

When ringing, the best method is to allow the weight of the bell

to do most of the work.

You give the rope a sharp pull to start it on its journey down

and keep it as straight as possible.

BELL RINGS That's the pace

that we would be ringing at, if we got all eight going.

So, it's time for me to try my hand

at the campanologists' art.

Right, pull. Go on.

BELL RINGS Down and catch.

Whoa!

-Don't look up.

-Don't look up? Don't look up.

-Right down.

-It's going a bit faster than it was before. Wahey!

BELL RINGS

I rather enjoyed that.

But, for now, it's time to return to our house-hunt.

We've travelled 16 miles from Chester

to the Flintshire market town of Caerwys.

It has a church with a late-13th century tower and nave

as well as day-to-day essentials such as a pharmacy,

a post office and a traditional pub

set in a grade-two listed 16th century building.

Just down the round in the old mining village of Lixwm

is property number two,

a 1990s build that's been recently remodelled.

So, here we are - house number two.

Well, that's rather nice, Alistair.

-Yeah?

-Very nice.

-Yes.

-Oh, big smiles on your faces. That's good.

-Quite a different offering. This is a much more modern property.

-Right.

-It's actually just 20 years old.

-Very nice. Very good.

Seven out of ten so far, and we're only outside,

so you're in the right direction there, Alistair.

Ah, well, that's high praise coming from you.

-I know these things don't come easily.

-No, they don't.

Let's get inside while the compliments are flowing from Sally,

and I've got a feeling she's going to love what she sees.

So...

In you come.

So, let's go straight here into the sitting room.

What a fantastic room.

It's light...

A nice pair of French doors there and...

three aspects of light coming in.

It's what I would call a bonny room.

-A bonny room?

-Yes.

-Oh, excellent.

-Yes.

And a proper fire here, so that's...

-Could we put a wood burner in there, do you think, Alistair?

-Yeah, of course.

So, you're getting a good vibe?

-Yes.

-Yeah.

-Really?

-Yes.

-Oh, cautious, I can see you're like...

-Careful, yes.

-Careful.

A little panting there.

Could this be the one?

Could be. Could be, yes.

Well, I think I know how to change "could be" into "will be."

I want to go straight in here.

-Spacious.

-This is your kitchen.

-Oh!

-Oh, ho-ho!

THEY LAUGH

-A bit bigger than the last one, isn't it?

-It certainly is.

It certainly is. Yes.

-I could do things in here, Alistair.

-Yeah?

I can see a nice range cooker over there,

-and eating here.

-Yeah.

-Cooking...

Yes. What do you think, John?

I think it's excellent. Excellent.

Well, the really great thing about this kitchen is,

if you look behind you, there's a snug which gets lots of

lovely afternoon light, so you can have your tea.

You've also got this outside room,

so you can bring the dogs in there, the boots and everything,

and, in here, are all of your white goods -

-a utility room.

-Wonderful!

-That is good.

-So, sealed off.

So, points?

I'm going to shock you here now.

A nine-and-a-half.

THEY GASP AND LAUGH

Zowie, wowee!

-Very excited!

-Yeah.

While the going's good, we're heading upstairs to see

if this house can keep scoring highly,

and there's four very good-sized bedrooms up here -

two bright double rooms for guests

and a neat twin room with wooden flooring,

all of which share a family bathroom with a shower cubicle.

Then we come to a very impressive main bedroom,

which is complete with an en-suite shower room.

If you come through over here, you get a view of the...

full extent of your master suite.

Goodness me!

-I can see an

-en-suite. Yeah, you've got an en-suite.

-Thank you. And all this lovely storage for shoes.

-Yeah, yeah.

We're coming up to a ten again.

-Oh!

-Towards it, not quite, but we're nearly there, Alistair.

-Push the ten boundary.

-Nearly.

I'm really delighted that Sally is so enthused about this property,

but I know exactly what could push her rating up even higher,

and it's on the way outside to the garden.

Wow.

-Oh, a nice...

-Nice dining room.

-Nice separate dining room.

And then, this! Step in.

-Alistair, it's just getting better and better, isn't it?

-Cool.

This is a lovely big dining room, big size,

-and it sweeps into this beautiful...

-Yeah.

-..conservatory.

And it's a nice-shaped conservatory, isn't it? Yes.

Well, this is what runs all the way down cos it's separated

by those doors, but that on the other side

is a continuation of the conservatory and that's the doggy utility room.

That's an excellent idea, isn't it?

Well, this is another bonny room, that's all I can say.

I'm coming to appreciate that bonny in your lexicon

is like AMAZING in everyone else's!

Yes.

I think we've almost got a sale here,

and the outside could seal the deal.

A short walk from the house is the self-contained annexe,

which has plenty of space for that office,

and it has a wood burner too.

Very bonny!

Along with a well-equipped kitchen, it also provides extra accommodation

in the form of a double bedroom with a handy bathroom.

Behind it, there are some outbuildings

which might work as storage for wood or the boat.

And, in the paddock, there's enough space to carry out maintenance work.

Away from the business, there's also a patio area for leisure.

OK, well, I suppose the crunch is how much does it cost?

Well, I'm going to go in somewhere round about, say, 530.

What about you, Sally?

I'm going to go for exactly the same as the first one -

-500.

-500?

-Yes.

Well, in this instance...

Sally, you are...

-exactly right.

-Wow.

-It's on at

just a pound or two under...

£500,000 - 499,950.

And it seems that it gets a lot higher rating.

Oh, yes, yes!

THEY LAUGH

Well, if I might say it, this one has gobsmacked me.

-Oh!

-Oh!

-Wow!

Well within budget at a shade under £500,000,

this bonny property

gives them absolutely everything they've dreamed of.

A lovely social reception space with log-burner potential,

and a kitchen with range cooker.

Four bedrooms and two bathrooms,

along with a separate annexe that could serve as business premises.

Outside, there's also two-and-a-half acres of land, with outbuildings.

-Good vibes?

-Yes.

-Excellent.

-That's a good note to finish the day on!

-It is.

A perfect end to our first day of house-hunting as the sun sets

over the spectacular scenery of the Welsh countryside.

I've noticed on this series that the Mystery House has often

helped us out of a sticky situation,

sort of saved the day at the last minute,

but, on this show, I think we've already given John and Sally

exactly what they want, so they don't need saving.

So, the Mystery House for us is a bit more of a punt.

I mean, it still has all the beautiful Welsh landscape,

but it has one thing...

they're not so keen on.

A mere six miles from Chester is the Flintshire town of Mold,

a busy community that grew up around its Norman castle.

Its attractions include a 15th century church

as well as the usual high street amenities,

such as pubs and shops aplenty.

A couple of miles south-west of Mold,

close to the village of Llanberis, is our Mystery House,

an 18th century cottage lying at the end of its own private track

and surrounded by open countryside.

So, this is the Mystery House.

The kern of the house is from 1799.

What are your first impressions?

Quite small. Pretty.

-Quaint.

-Quaint?

-Quaint.

What does that decode as?

-Interesting.

-Well, that's even worse!

THEY LAUGH

Quaint and interesting, they strike fear into an estate agent's heart.

-No.

-Um...

It is though, quaint, yeah. And the view is splendid.

I don't know. It's one of those...

You don't know till you get inside, do you, really?

Well, I hope Sally is right

and the enthusiasm of yesterday returns

once they get inside this quirky property,

which is a mix of old alongside the modern they prefer.

We go through into here. Straight into...

the most modern part of the house. This is from 2002,

and this extension actually even more recently.

Very individual, isn't it?

-Mm-hmm.

-It's very, very...

-How about you, John?

Yeah, I see it as a Sally house,

there's little nooks and crannies

everywhere and it's... Yes, it's very homely.

Do you see it as a John house?

Um...

I do actually, yeah.

I mean, the fantastic view out of the window here.

And there are more spectacular views of the Clwyd Valley

from the beautiful conservatory area, which should appeal to Sally.

But we're here to challenge their preconceptions

about period properties,

so let's move onto the older part of the house.

This was actually the original cottage, it was just this width.

Very small.

And the present owner dug out the original hearth,

and they've turned this into the snug, so the snug heart of the home.

-I'd find it TOO snug.

-Too snug!

THEY LAUGH

-And John?

-No, I quite like the room, actually, because, in the winter,

I could imagine the heat coming out of that

-and everything would be locked down.

-It would be a winter room,

you're right, John. It would be cosy and comfortable and very warm.

John's trying his best, but maybe the open-plan family room

with dining area and kitchen will get a stronger reaction from Sally?

Yes, now, this is... This is an improvement.

-Oh, your face has lit up!

-Yes. Yes, this is lovely.

You'd have to put your range in it.

Well, I was just looking over there to see if there was a...

-It's an outside wall, isn't it?

-Mmm. Yeah.

And I could put a range on there.

What do you think about this room, John?

I think it's wonderfully light

and it's a homely room, definitely.

-Yeah.

-And considering that it was really just that room next door,

initially, and all of these extensions,

-I think they've been tremendously well done.

-Clever. Clever.

-Yeah.

With Sally considering where to put her range cooker,

things are definitely looking up for this lovely property

and I think upstairs won't disappoint.

Here, there are three very good-sized double bedrooms

all dual aspect, with amazing unspoilt views,

some of which can be seen through the unique round feature windows.

There's also the family bathroom.

But we're heading to the room

that John and Sally could be calling their own.

This has its own en-suite and, of course,

upstairs, everything revolves around these amazing views.

-Hmm.

-They certainly do.

No, it's a nice little room and though it looks old,

nothing seems to be falling to bits.

It looks very good.

Obviously, yesterday was such a big hit.

-It's quite a hard act to follow.

-It is, really, I'm afraid to say. It is!

Just one part of this property left,

and that's the one-and-a-half acres of land that surround it.

As well as a garden,

there's a huge amount of yard and parking space

for machinery maintenance.

There's also a whole host of outbuildings,

including a double garage for the boat, open-front units

for wood storage, a summer house

and a small timber-built office.

OK, so the big question - how much does it cost?

I would put a price on...

400.

I'm going to go for rather low, and say 399.

It's actually on the market for...

-454,000.

-Oh!

-Good Lord!

Yeah, yeah.

So, quite a bit higher than your guess.

For £454,000, this house, in its idyllic setting,

is well within their budget.

It offers a wood burner in the cosy lounge,

potential for a range in the kitchen,

three bedrooms, two bathrooms,

and almost two acres of land with outbuildings

for storage and office use.

Let's regroup, think about all the houses we've seen

and have a cup of tea.

-Lovely!

-Grand.

-This way.

Hello, guys. Ah, you've found the nice warm fire.

-It's been a bit nippy here in Wales, hasn't it?

-It has.

Let's review, shall we? What did you think of the first one?

I think the house as such wouldn't have appealed to Sally,

but, obviously, the location was fantastic,

but the biggest killer of that was the distance from Chester.

I would like to live much nearer to Chester

so we could have a house that I really like.

And the second house... Now, this was a bit more impressive.

Purpose-built house,

access for awkward vehicles, big vehicles -

perfect in many, many ways.

I still think it's fantastic.

It's a lovely house, there's not much maintenance to do

in the future, it's got all we need,

it's got everything for John, hasn't it?

-Yeah.

-And...

-..it's not too far from Chester.

-What about the Mystery House?

Cos that was a bit of a curveball in the sense that it was a period property.

When I arrived I thought, "Good grief!"

But it got better

and, had we been a lot younger,

it would have been very much a John and Sally house, wouldn't it?

Yes, absolutely.

But the access killed it.

We wouldn't get lorries up there,

but the view was outstanding of the back of the Byrwynds and Morfemer.

Excellent.

You talked a lot about the "Sally and John" house.

Do you have an idea what that might be?

Probably, quite near to the house we... The number two house...

-yesterday...that was quite near, wasn't it?

-IS the number two house?

Could well be. There's a really good chance, Alistair.

Well, fingers crossed.

I really hope that you like the second house on

the second viewing and that you move in.

Thank you, Alistair, we've enjoyed it.

-We've had a lovely, lovely time.

-Great fun.

I'm truly hoping that we have found

a "Sally and John" house, cos they're a lovely couple

and they have picked a stunning part of the country to live in.

And if you've enjoyed our property-hunting exploits in the UK,

then make sure you join us next time for more Escape To The Country.

Although John and Sally loved our second property,

they eventually decided it was a journey too far from Chester,

and so their house-hunt continues.

And if you want to escape to the country in Northern Ireland,

Scotland, Wales or England, and you need our help,

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