Worcestershire Escape to the Country

Today we're in a county that's home to the oldest motorsport venue in the world.

But where are we, and why is it here?

Well, join me in just a few moments and I'll tell you.

On today's show, I'm helping a couple bid farewell

to life down under, to reunite them with family on English soil.

And our house hunt gets them in a bit of a flap.

I think I wasn't expecting quite as quirkiness,

so I'll reserve judgement.

But later on, confusion turns to jubilation.

That is fantastic.

Well, today we're in Worcestershire at Shelsley Walsh,

a tongue twister of a place with a racetrack to match.

Established back in 1905, it predates Le Mans and Monza

and is a lovely testament to the history of British motorsport.

The Hill Climb here is thought to be one of the oldest motorsports events

in the world. Some of the greats have raced here,

including Stirling Moss, back in 1947.

Now, later on in the programme, I'll be back,

sampling the delights of this racetrack,

but it's a lovely taster as to what the rest of Worcestershire

has to offer.

Set in the West Midlands, Worcestershire is bordered

by Herefordshire, Shropshire and Gloucestershire.

To the west of the county sits the spa town of Malvern

in the shadow of the Malvern Hills.

With over 100 miles of footpaths and bridleways,

this area offers spectacular panoramic views of the countryside.

As the River Severn makes part of its 220-mile journey

through this county, it passes through

the historic city of Worcester.

Besides the magnificent cathedral, which dates back to Norman times,

it's the home of Royal Worcester porcelain,

whose former factory building from 1840 still survives.

Even though production ceased in 2008,

there's a museum which houses the largest collection

of Royal Worcester in the world.

Indeed, the heritage of its market towns and villages,

combined with stunning countryside, make this county

an appealing proposition for those seeking a rural move.

Now, in England and Wales,

the average detached property will set you back around £255,000.

Here in Worcestershire, that figure is pretty comparable

at £259,000, so as you can see, as counties go, this one

is pretty much on a par with the rest of the country,

but as ever, there are variations.

House hunt around Evesham and you'll certainly get a bit more

for your money, but head down south toward Broadway,

with its lovely feel of the Cotswolds,

you could easily add 40% to those national figures.

But wherever you decide to live in Worcestershire, as you can see,

there's a rich array of architectural styles to tempt you.

Head to the south of the county, to villages like Wickhamford,

and you'll find historic black-and-white timbered properties

like this four-bedroom cottage, on the market for £525,000.

If you're looking for Cotswold stone property with stature

then head to Broadway, well known

as one of the area's prettiest villages.

This handsome house has four bedrooms

and its very own music hall

and if that strikes a chord, it could be yours for £925,000.

Cotswold villages such as Broadway are also home

to some very affordable cottages.

Here, from around £275,000, you'll find two-bedroom properties

brimming with character and charm.

So, as you can see, some wonderful property on offer,

plenty to whet the appetite if you think Worcestershire

is where you would like to escape to the country.

No surprise, then, that this part of the world

also is where today's buyers hope to call home.

Lyndon and his wife Paula have been living in Australia.

They moved there to be closer to two of Paula's children

and a growing brood of grandchildren.

One of my sons moved out ten years ago

and he moved out with four children.

-We went out to visit him and we really liked it, didn't we?

-Yep.

That was five years ago. Now they're back in the UK

and staying temporarily with family in Surrey.

As Lyndon recently retired from his work as a doctor,

they've decided the time is right to return home

and reconnect with family and friends.

We're returning to our roots. We have family here, our ties are here.

They were also starting to miss the English outdoors.

On top of that, they want to get involved with the local community.

If you took away the sunshine,

the weather, aspects of English life, you just don't get there,

you could never go down to a village and go in a village pub

and have a drink. It would be nice to be back here

and be able to go to English villages.

Having sold their house in Australia already,

they're keen to find their country home here as soon as possible.

The area we're looking to move to is North Worcestershire.

There, we know fairly well and it's lovely countryside

and, I'm happy to say, there are a lot of really lovely golf courses

in the area, which would suit me enormously!

Because I had a swimming pool in Australia,

if there happened to be one with an indoor swimming pool,

that would be fantastic.

And when our buyers do finally make the move back to the UK,

not only does Lyndon want to finish writing his book,

but he also wants to take advantage of what the countryside has to offer.

I love cooking and one thing I have missed out in Australia,

which surprised me, was a lot of good fresh produce.

I thought that would be in abundance,

but in fact, it's been quite hard to find

and I look forward to visiting the local places in the UK,

where I know that fresh produce is a priority.

But the other priority, of course,

is going to be the budget for their new home.

Our maximum budget would be £400,000,

but obviously if we've got to spend money on the house,

we would have to go down from there.

Lyndon and Paula want us to focus their house search

towards the north of the county,

preferably in the area around Blakeshall.

I'm meeting them to discover more about what they want

from their country property.

Lyndon and Paula, welcome back to the West Midlands.

-This is originally home for you.

-Yes.

-And a return to your roots.

Big change, though, from Australia.

Many people looking at your life over the last five years

will say, "Why are you coming back?" Sunshine, pool...

Well, there are several reasons, in actual fact,

but probably the main one is the fact that we

actually want to return to where we came from.

To be with family, friends and all the areas that we know.

What sort of spec are we looking for in our ideal property?

-Ideally three bedrooms.

-Yeah.

And I think one of the things that we need is another room,

either for as a bedroom to convert to a study for Lyndon

to write his book, or a study downstairs.

Now, the book writing is interesting, isn't it?

We don't often get writers on this show, but it's always an idea,

but I get the feeling with you that this is going to happen,

-you're going to write it.

-It's partly written. It's on its way.

-So, a nice writer's den...

-Absolutely.

-A light and airy kitchen, living space.

-Yes.

-Three bedrooms.

Outside space?

Not so worried about garden, because neither of us

are hugely enthusiastic gardeners,

-but the thing I really want is a view.

-Yeah.

-I want to see the country.

-OK. So, it's all to play for, then.

-Yeah, all to play for.

-All to play for.

-We've got three to show you

including, of course, our mystery house

and £400,000 of your hard-earned and saved money to spend.

-Great.

-Shall we?

-Look forward to it.

-Come on, then, follow me.

So, with a budget of £400,000 banked from the sale of their house

in Australia, Lyndon and Paula have drawn up a wish list

of what they hope this will buy them here in Worcestershire.

They want a large kitchen, three bedrooms,

a room or outbuilding for a study, views over countryside

and a manageable English country garden.

We have three properties with which to tempt them,

but I'll only reveal the price tag at the end of each tour.

Our last offering will, of course, be the mystery house,

which promises to take them right out of their comfort zone.

To begin our property shopping, we're heading to Wolverley,

a pretty village on the banks of the River Stour

and the Staffordshire

and Worcestershire Canal.

It's a peaceful location suited for connecting with life outdoors.

And the village amenities are a good starting point

to meet local residents for some inside knowledge about the area.

Well, Wolverley seems to me like a fairly nice place to live.

-You would agree, I presume?

-We certainly would. Yes, indeed.

-What are the best bits about it?

-Village community.

The village shop, certainly, is the centre of the village.

The church is 14th century. It's mentioned in the Domesday book.

The pub is about 14th century as well, so it's got massive history.

Now, you mentioned the pub - this is something you're hankering after,

-following five years in Oz.

-Yes.

We've missed the good old British pub while we've been in Australia.

We've been into four in the last two days!

You've got some catching up to do!

I'm beginning to think that we might have started in the right place!

-Yeah!

-I think we should drink up and go and find property number one.

Well, the community certainly made us feel welcome

and just a short walk away is our first property.

Well, we've already given you a taster of the delights

of Wolverley village itself, and what we'd like to offer you,

for our first property, the dovecote.

-That's pretty amazing.

-Impressive.

We thought we'd start with quirky. As you can see,

-it's arranged over four floors.

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

It's quite a clever conversion, it's quite difficult

to incorporate modern homes into structures like this,

which, of course, were never designed to be domestic.

It's worth pointing out here,

you can see this garage arrangement, but what it offers is

-a footprint, potentially, for your writing studio.

-OK.

You mean I can shut him in the shed!

-Shut him in the shed!

-THEY LAUGH

-Interesting and different.

-Yes.

-Interesting is a slightly loaded comment, isn't it, sometimes?

-Yes.

-We didn't expect that.

-No.

-Ready for a bit of quirky?

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-Come and have a look.

This extraordinary 18th-century building

has clearly stopped Lyndon and Paula in their tracks.

It extends over four levels,

so we'll start at the rear entrance and work our way up.

Come in.

LYNDON LAUGHS

-What do you reckon?

-It's a lovely kitchen.

-It's nice.

-I like that kitchen.

-Straight in to it.

I love cooking, so kitchens are important to me.

It's a real sort of usable kitchen.

We like that configuration.

-We like a dining kitchen. Yeah. I like that.

-Good.

As I said, it's arranged over four floors,

-so there is only one way to go from here.

-And that's up.

-Yeah.

Follow me this way.

So, the kitchen has definitely kept their interest on simmer.

From here, the stairs lead up to the next level

and a generous reception room.

-Wow! Different.

-Unexpected, this house, isn't it?

-Yeah.

The key thing with a building like this is space, you know,

it is a kind of vertical series of spaces.

No... Actually, that's a good-sized room.

That's fine, we don't want it too large, but that's... Yeah, I like that.

-How's the quirky going down?

-The quirkiness is going down, but...

It's got stuck!

I think I wasn't expecting quite as quirkiness,

-so I'll reserve judgement.

-OK. There are two more floors to see.

-Right.

-Let's go up and look at those.

-OK.

-Follow me.

The stairs from the front hallway lead up to the next level,

where there are two bedrooms, one of which could make a great study

for Lyndon, and there's also a small family bathroom.

Now, finally, we've reached the top.

You'll be pleased to know. Come on in.

-Come in, Lyndon, grab the door.

-Yeah.

-So, this is your master floor.

-It's nice, it has a nice feel about it.

I like all the light, I like the unusual windows, that's great.

-These round windows are lovely.

-They're lovely.

-You've also got an en suite in there, have a look at that.

-OK.

-Shower room and so on.

-Yeah, OK, another round window, the skylight.

-That's quite roomy.

-That's nice.

-You're still smiling, that's the main thing.

-I know.

It's very different.

I sense that Lyndon and Paula's initial enthusiasm

has waned somewhat, but I think they'll be impressed

by the space outside, which has an English country garden feel.

Let's settle down here, halfway down the garden,

and take in its two very distinct halves,

-because that's quite a surprise.

-It is.

-Isn't it?

-Yeah.

-Didn't expect to see that.

-No!

Lovely mature orchard, loads of apple trees in there,

at the bottom of it, quite a useful little summerhouse.

-I'm thinking another writing option.

-Another location for me to write in!

-You're getting to the bottom of the garden.

-Yeah, that could be good.

-Let's have a think about the price, then.

-Mm.

Who's going to go first?

-I think it's probably somewhere near the top of our budget.

-Yeah.

It was 400,000, I'd probably think about sort of 385.

385, yeah. Paula?

-Yes, I'd probably say 395.

-395. Well...

You're going to hate this. He's right.

Really?

THEY LAUGH

-I AM going to hate that!

-Well done, Lyndon.

-Thank you.

-Yeah.

Property number one, dovecote, could be yours for £385,000.

Go and indulge it a little bit more and I'll catch up with you later on.

-All right.

-Off you go.

-OK, thanks.

-Cheerio.

-OK.

Under budget at £385,000,

this converted dovecote may have an unconventional layout,

but it does answer the criteria on their wish list,

giving them a large modern kitchen, three bedrooms,

a garden with an orchard

and it puts them in the heart of a vibrant village community.

Well, when we first arrived, I saw a quirky

and exciting challenge, but going into the house

and seeing the various rooms around the house,

I thought it was interesting,

but the thing that put me off was the stairs, because I think that as

we get older, I don't want to be going up and down three flights of stairs.

That would be too much of a challenge for me.

When I first saw this house

I thought it wasn't quite what I wanted -

too many floors. When you see inside, it's actually quite interesting.

I don't know whether it's quite for us, so I just think

we need to have a think about that

and perhaps see what else you have to offer us.

Well, there we are. Property number one. We started with quirky for you.

You certainly did!

The question is, what's next? Let's go and find out.

A typical scene played out on village greens across England

is the game of cricket,

one of the country's most popular home-grown sports.

Although its origins are disputed,

the use of a basic ball of wool or rags to bowl

and a bat in the form of a shepherd's crooked staff

reveals that the roots of the game are distinctly rural

before it became the sport of high society in the 18th century.

Worcestershire's own sporting heritage is bound up in the sport,

with over 50 active cricket clubs in the county, meaning our

sport-loving couple will only be a backswing away from this most

traditional of British pastimes.

With that in mind, earlier in the week, we arranged for them

to visit the old village forge in the hamlet of Drayton, where

passionate cricket brothers Mike and Rob Hawk have turned their hand

to making cricket bats for the past 16 years.

What are the stages in making a bat?

It looks a long way from that to what we know as a cricket bat.

We'll draw the face off this to decide where

we're going to make the cricket bat from, which is going to be

the hitting area, and then we'll move it through a pressing process.

After it's pressed, it's roughly shaped

and then the handle is fitted, and when the two are married together

it has a basic shape of a cricket bat and then it's finally shaped,

sanded and re-pressed for its total performance.

The art of the bat maker is to make that sweet spot

as big as possible.

Why don't we pick this one up, go through to the workshop and start the process?

-OK.

-That'd be good, great.

Carry on.

In its raw form, the cricket bat is known as a cleft.

The brothers use British-sourced materials throughout

the process, which happens here in their workshop.

I'm going to show you the first stage, which is drawing the cleft.

We're going to work the wood backwards here to find out

which is the best area

to make the hitting area of the cricket bat from.

We put the drawknife at a slight angle

and work it through and across.

Work from the edge.

-If you want to try that.

-OK, thank you. I'll give it a go!

It's actually harder than it looks just to get it smooth.

I think I need a lot more practice at this, Mike!

Mike and his brother can make up to 25 bats every week.

Next up in the process is pressing the wood.

Now we've reached the final pressing process.

This puts the final performance into the bat.

Does it ever crack the bat?

Sometimes, yes, if you get it wrong

and also it causes the performance to die away

if you press it too much.

If it's pressed too softly,

the ball can damage the face in every bat, if it's done like that.

It's not done to a certain poundage, it's all down to hand and eye.

Right, if you just tap onto the face in this area

and see what you think of the performance.

So, with this bat needing a little more finessing, Mike is taking

Lyndon and Paula out to have a quick practise with the finished products.

Oh, Lyn!

Now that they've had a playful reminder of English sporting

tradition, let's hope they don't get caught out as we return

to our property search.

For our second house, we're heading to Alveley, which just nudges us

over the border into Shropshire.

Surrounded by countryside, this village has a number of historic

pubs, as well as a post office and a church dating back to 1140.

On the outskirts of Alveley, we find our second property,

a mid-19th century farm worker's cottage

set on a quiet country lane.

-There. That is property number two.

-OK.

-Aw!

-A much more conventional approach, we thought, on this one

-than property number one...

-I like it.

..with a very nice surprise in the garden.

-Really? Ah, yes.

-We're looking forward to that.

So, yes, I think, hopefully,

-this will feel a little bit more like home.

-Outside, appealing.

-Is it appealing?

-Yes.

-In what way?

I just like the look of the style,

I like the fact that it's got some frontage for cars

and I like the fact that it's in a lane,

-so it's got a country feel about it.

-OK.

Let's have a look and see what you think.

'With the thumbs up for the style and setting of this one,

'I'm hoping those positive reactions continue as we pass through

'the dining area and head towards the kitchen.'

There we are.

-Oil-fired range for you.

-That's lovely.

So, if you want that country feel...

-Yes.

-A nice kitchen.

-A nice kitchen, plenty of space.

And this sense of open-plan that we've hinted at,

coming through from the dining room into here, is it big enough?

I know we were talking about you having a chance to chat to Lyndon...

-I'll find a way with that! Yes.

-OK.

-No, that's fine.

Now, through there is a downstairs loo and a door through to the garage,

-which is quite handy.

-Excellent.

-So, if it's chucking it down

and you want to unload the car, that's fairly straightforward.

And a little hint of the garden beyond.

-Great. Living room.

-OK.

-Come through here.

-Oh, wow.

-Yes?

-Look at that!

Plenty of character, lovely. You like that?

Yes, I like that, I do. It's been modernised, so I like it.

-So, it's got a touch of Australian modernism.

-Yes. That's fine.

There's also a large conservatory with views onto the garden.

But before we head outside, let's explore upstairs, where

there are three bedrooms, including a large double and a single.

Plenty of room for when visiting friends and family come to stay.

There's also, of course, the master.

See if you can squeeze in...

to your bit.

Now, this is the focus of your interest, I think,

because it's got the en suite with the shower next door.

But obviously, across the landing we've got the main family

bathroom, guest bathroom, call it what you will.

-Smaller than we're used to.

-Yes.

-But...

-We'd never get a bedroom as big as the last two.

-No, we're not.

I think we're scoring quite well on this one, aren't we?

-We are.

-We certainly are.

-OK. Good.

Well, we've given you a conservatory,

-I keep teasing you with the surprise that's in the garden...

-OK.

I'm going to give you something you're going to love.

-OK, OK.

-I promise you.

If you don't, I'm in real trouble!

'Outside, the garden itself is mainly laid to lawn

'and will be easy for them to maintain.'

Look at this weather. Beautiful!

You see what I mean by a more manageable garden?

-Oh, definitely. That is just right.

-Yeah.

-Yes, yes.

But what about that?

-That looks interesting!

-As garden offices go, that is a beauty.

That looks perfect!

-Ready?

-Yes.

-Yes.

-I love this.

-Oh, yes.

That's really impressive.

If you can't write a book in here, Lyndon...

-It looks great.

-..you're not trying.

-This is a modern den, definitely.

-A modern den.

-The question is, of course, can we afford it?

-Yes, that's the question.

-Give us a price.

-Honestly, I think it would be over our budget.

I'd probably say about 420.

420,000? Yes.

I would like to think it was less than that, so on a positive note,

-I'm going to say our budget of 400,000.

-400,000.

If only it were 400,000. I'm afraid it's not 400,000,

nor is it £420,000.

You would have to fork out the grand sum

of £365,000.

Yes!

Seriously? How about that?! Oh, yes.

-That is great!

-I'm gobsmacked.

-I like it.

-Right, then, off you go. Go and explore.

-All right, thank you.

Go and enjoy what could be your new house.

I'm in the mood for a bit of writing. Might go and sit down.

Well, our buyers are delighted with the price tag,

which, at £365,000, comes well in under budget.

Set in a rural location,

the house is full of character with a large kitchen and three bedrooms.

Outside, there's a generous garden

that's easy to maintain, and finally,

in the words of Lyndon, a modern den at the bottom of the garden,

a perfect retreat in which to write a book.

Immediately, I felt it was the type of house that we were looking for.

Then the view going out onto the garden with the office at the bottom.

That was amazing.

A little bit small for us, so that would be my reservation.

But I think with some adaptation that we could work around that.

This is definitely a contender.

We could see ourselves moving in here

and living here straightaway, which is a real plus.

The only negative side to the house is the space upstairs.

There's a lovely studio at the end of the garden, which really is super

and the sort of place where I could write in. The ultimate male den.

Good, well...

As quick as a flash, our house tour of property number two is over.

-But I do think it worked rather well.

-It did. It worked very well.

Definitely.

OK, you've got lots to think about overnight, but not forgetting,

of course, it's an early start.

Our mystery house beckons tomorrow morning.

Are you going to sleep well, I wonder?!

As the sun sets over the Worcestershire countryside,

our buyers have a chance to mull over

the properties they've seen during their first day of house hunting.

With a budget of £400,000, Lyndon and Paula want to move back

to rural Britain after spending five years in Australia.

So far, we've taken them to two contrasting homes.

One with unique historic bones,

while the second had a fantastic writing studio.

So, could what's coming up in the mystery house

keep their dream afloat?

And I'll be ramping up a gear

and experiencing Worcestershire at high speed.

Oh, my God!

Well, with one more day to go, we have just a few hours left

to complete our house search with Paula and Lyndon.

But what, I wonder, are they going to make of our final offering,

the mystery house?

Well, following time-honoured tradition, it will challenge them

and with a bit of imagination, I think,

could produce the perfect family home for their future...

with any luck.

So, have either of you ever lived in the country before?

I certainly have because I was actually born in a small village.

A village called Highley,

which is between Bridgnorth and Kidderminster.

-Yes.

-I lived there until I went up to medical school.

You might catch a glimpse of that later. You never know.

That would be interesting!

For our mystery property,

we're heading to the village of Lindridge, set in the Teme Valley.

Lyndon and Paula are keen to reacquaint themselves with the

British countryside, and we think it's hard to beat our final location.

Our mystery house was a grade II listed barn conversion that

has huge potential, which really means it needs some work.

But Paula wanted a swimming pool and her wish is my command.

Right, we're going to start, on the mystery house, in the garden,

because of that.

-Oh, my goodness.

-Yes, you said we wouldn't find a pool!

-I know. I did. That is fantastic.

-It's a beauty, isn't it?

-I can't believe it, really.

-I know!

There's even a hot tub down there, a little pool house. It's heated.

That's the pool, all right?

I thought we'd go for the big sell first, on this one.

-Let's think about the property. This is what I want you to look at.

-OK.

-It's the bit to the left of those two white gables.

-OK.

Now, originally, it was all one property

-and they are in the process of doing up this one.

-Oh, right, OK.

And it slightly works in reverse

because it's been done up from the top down.

So, as you'll see, the kitchen and some of the ground floor

reception rooms are, you know, a work in progress, shall we say?

What's interesting is that this house was once owned by the parents of Douglas Adams,

-who wrote Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy.

-Oh, right.

It's thought that quite a lot of that was penned

in one of the spare rooms here.

-So, if you do as well as he did, mate!

-It's got a writing legacy.

Well, exactly. You could be the next writing incumbent, who knows!

-Come and have a look inside.

-OK.

'Paula is thrilled with the swimming pool.

'As for Lyndon, he seems both inspired and intrigued,

'so let's carry on our journey into the unknown and explore inside.'

-There.

-OK, that's a nice, big kitchen.

-Yeah.

-Isn't it?

-Great scale.

-Yeah, that's a lovely big kitchen.

And you can configure it exactly how you want it to be.

In terms of a project, Lyndon, you've gone very quiet.

-Certainly possibilities.

-Yeah.

"Possibilities"! Yeah, I'm not convinced!

You're thinking, "Oh, no, what have you done?"

-I'm trying to be imaginative.

-Go for it.

-Just take off the bridle and be as imaginative as you can be!

-OK.

All right? Come this way.

Now, off the kitchen, through this little hallway,

is this, which I think is quite sweet, really. It's a little snug.

-OK, yeah.

-Yeah.

-Wood burner.

But given the kitchen-diner would be a very big value room anyway,

-I think one could begin to see how the spaces might work.

-OK, yeah.

-Yeah?

-Yeah.

-Lyndon...

THEY LAUGH

-..it gets better, mate, trust me!

-OK, OK!

-We'll go up.

On this floor, there's also a cloakroom

and a utility room that also need a bit of updating, but upstairs,

there are four bedrooms laid out over two other levels.

Three of them are on the first floor.

There are a pair of good-sized doubles that showcase

and include exposed timbers.

One of them has its own en suite

and the family bathroom is perfectly positioned next to the master.

Let's wind it up...in here.

I like this one because it's vaulted.

-You've got this lovely open space...

-That is nice.

-..above, all done.

It's not en suite, but there is one down the corridor if you want that.

-Love the windows. Again, two views.

-Yes.

-That's absolutely great.

It's a bit away from my comfort zone

to be thinking in terms of lots of beams.

It's not something which I have been used to and my head is tuned into.

Interesting. What about you?

I'm more comfortable with it, but then on the other hand,

do I want to live with him if he's uncomfortable?

BOTH MEN LAUGH

I hope you recognise that what we've been able to show you

-here is scale.

-Sure.

-And the pool, come on!

-And the views.

-That's...

-The pool and the views.

-Those are certainly bonus points.

-Yeah, let's take another look at those and we'll talk about

-the price, cos that might persuade you - you never know.

-OK.

-OK.

The beams are also a feature of the fourth bedroom up in the attic,

which also has its own shower room.

As we move outside, though, I sense our buyers

are being really tested by this one, although to be honest, the scale

of the renovation wouldn't be much more than a decorative overhaul.

Mystery house. Which, you can probably tell, I think has got a lot of potential.

It has, it has got a lot of potential.

But the price is clearly going to have a major impact

-on your thoughts here, I suspect.

-Mm.

And you've got £400,000, madam.

-I would say 295.

-You are joking?

-No, I'm not.

-You are absolutely joking.

-There you go.

-OK. Right, then.

No, I think it's probably a bit nearer our budget level,

but it does need some work doing to it

and I would think 350 would be not unreasonable.

Yeah, that's a more sensible offer. 375 is what it's on the market for.

I see an awful lot here in terms of space

and, in particular, location.

Not just the pool, so bless you, I'm afraid if it was 295,

they'd be queueing up from here to the county border. It is not.

We've talked about stretching your imagination.

Go and stretch it a bit more, off you go. OK.

I'll catch up with you later. Brilliant.

Well, there you go. That was our mystery house.

To be honest, how would I summarise this one?

Well, some you win, some you lose.

Under their budget by £25,000, our mystery property has

so much potential, it really could make their dream a reality.

However, I get the feeling our buyers think it's a project too far.

But for all that, it does have a large kitchen-diner,

four double bedrooms, two with en suite,

and a lovely garden with a swimming pool.

The mystery house was certainly interesting.

I use the word advisedly!

I'm not sure whether it's the sort of house which I would

want to live in, even if it was done up

to the sort of standards which we can envisage.

The mystery house was a surprise.

There was more to do to it than I had anticipated

but then, on the other hand,

I was just really amazed that it's got a pool, and that was fantastic.

I think it would be a little too much of a challenge for us.

-All done?

-Mm, yes.

-Yes?

-All done.

-LYNDON LAUGHS

Look at you - you can't wait to go, can you?

-Right, then. I think we've shown you some interesting options.

-Yes.

-You've still got some thinking to do.

-Mm-hm.

-Let's go think.

-OK.

-OK.

-Come on.

Worcestershire is a rural county featuring open countryside

and extensive river and canal networks.

Plenty of places to get away from it all for a bit of peace and quiet.

CAR REVS

Well, that is...unless you end up at Shelsley Walsh,

the oldest operational racetrack in the world.

This famous circuit is also home to one of the oldest motorsport events,

the Speed Hill Climb organised by the Midland Automobile Club.

I've come to meet two racers, Toby Moody and Mike Cockayne,

to find out more about its contribution to

Worcestershire and Britain's sporting history,

a story that continues to this day.

Now, to anyone driving around this county,

one thing it is not short of are hills.

But why did this racetrack end up here?

The Midland Automobile Club used to have hill climbs on other hills

in the Midlands, but they were really on public roads.

In 1905, we came across this little track,

it was covered in brambles and suchlike, and we made it a bit more

of a racetrack, and on August 12th that year,

we had our first hill climb.

The ghosts of motorsport are here ever since.

Amazing. You make it sound like you were there, Toby!

-You've aged very well!

-I comb out the grey hairs quite well, I rather fancy!

What is it about a hill climb as opposed to circuit racing

that really sets it apart? What's in it? Where's the bug?

You need to be 120% committed straightaway.

-It's the 100-metre sprint, it's the Usain Bolt of motorsport.

-It is.

-You have no second chance.

-No.

Circuit racing, you have maybe a half-hour race, hundreds of corners.

Here at Shelsley, here at hill climbing, it's a one-hit.

You've got to get the start, the first, the second corner,

perfect gear changes to the hundredth of a second,

and now it's gone from a record of some 70 seconds down to 22.5.

-22.5 seconds?!

-Yes.

-147mph through the top gate to the finish.

Back in those early days of the 20th century,

pioneers of motoring wanted to prove that their motorised

horse carts could climb very steep hills - and this is very steep.

The track climbs 100 metres at an average gradient of 11%,

but at its steepest, it's as much as 16%.

I've got a chance to sample the delights of this track today.

Who's going to be my driver?

-I'll certainly offer you a ride in my Healey.

-This is a beauty, Mike.

When does that date from?

1962, the car was built, with about 200 brake horsepower at the wheels.

-It's a nice, quick car.

-Gosh, it's very low, isn't it?

-Is that as wide as it gets?

-Yes!

-OK.

-Well, that feels...

-Yes, secure.

-Secure!

-OK?

-Yep.

ENGINE STARTS

REVVING

-So, that's the tyres warm.

-Yes.

-OK, right.

REVVING

Oh, my God!

It's terrifying! Oh, my God!

JULES CHUCKLES

Oh, my God!

HE LAUGHS

Wow!

That was a very memorable trip down motoring's memory lane

and to think they've been doing this here since 1905.

-Mike, thank you very much...

-It was a pleasure.

-..indeed.

-Absolute pleasure.

-Absolutely extraordinary.

-Have we got time for one more?

-Yeah.

-One more, right, we're off.

See you later.

Playing with fast cars on a racetrack,

as you could probably tell,

that really was my idea of a great day out

and it's a nice analogy, because we are, of course, speeding towards

the end of the show, but there is one more question to ask

and that is, have we managed to find Paula and Lyndon

their new dream home of the future?

Well, they are in there thinking about it. Let's go and ask them.

Well, here we are, then. Several thousand miles from Australia.

Have we managed to satisfy you

in terms of any of the properties that we've had a chance to look at?

-We started with our very quirky dovecote.

-Mm-hm.

What were your thoughts on that one?

I thought it was interesting, I thought it was quirky,

but probably not for us.

-Because of it being on four floors.

-Yep.

-And also the size of it.

-Yep.

-It was a bit too small.

-OK. Lyndon?

-Yeah, I felt the same.

That it wasn't quite the sort of property that we had in mind.

It was just the house wasn't exactly what we wanted.

Then we went to property two which, as we said,

was a much more conventional approach

with that fantastic studio in the garden.

-What are your thoughts on that one? Cos that seemed to go rather well.

-Yeah.

There really isn't anything I don't like about the property,

with the exception of the size, probably.

It'd have to be a readjustment of thought

-on downsizing our furniture.

-OK.

-But I really liked the property.

-Lyndon?

Yeah, I think one of the really nice things about that property

was the conservatory. That's the sort of property we'd like,

the sort of conservatory,

that lovely studio office in the bottom of the garden.

Those were real positive points. We could live there.

That's really what you need to do, to think, "Could I live there?"

-The answer is, "Yes, we could live there."

-Yep.

-Good, OK.

-So, it's still on the agenda?

-Yep.

-Still on the agenda.

-Now, then.

I know the answer to this question, but I'm going to ask it anyway.

Is our mystery house on the agenda?

ALL LAUGH

I think there are two issues there, really, with that house.

One is the fact that it's still a work in progress.

That's something I found a bit difficult to come to terms with.

Also, its location. It's a bit far away from the sort of area

we were looking at as a central hub.

Well, I did try and sell it to you as best I could.

-I know.

-But I was clearly pushing uphill!

So, where do we go from here?

You've got just a few weeks till all the gear turns up.

-The pressure's on.

-Well, actually, that's quite easy.

I'm going to get some family to come and have a look at property two,

because I really like that property and I feel I could live there.

-As a reintroduction back to UK, it was spot-on.

-Brilliant.

-It was.

Guys, I'm delighted.

-Do have a look at property two.

-I will.

-And let us know how you get on.

I'd love to hear that you've managed to buy it - and soon!

THEY LAUGH

You know, in some respects, there have been some obvious

frustrations for Paula and Lyndon on this house search.

They've had to leave behind a home in Australia which

they built from scratch and which, in many ways, was perfect for them.

Then they had to reconcile the idea that the English property market

is essentially second-hand. Fitting yourself into somebody else's home

is never an easy business, but hopefully in property number two

we've found a working solution, which is just as well,

because in a few weeks' time, they'll be reunited

with all of their worldly goods, so whatever they do,

they're going to have to do it fast. I'll see you next time.

Lyndon and Paula did go back to see house number two

and I'm delighted to say they've put in an offer, which has been accepted.

So, they're set to move to the country very soon.

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