Oxfordshire Escape to the Country

Now, legend has it that buried somewhere within the walls of this

now crumbling but once grand manor house

is a secret chamber that was once the hiding place

for one of the richest men in medieval England.

But who was he? Why was he hiding? And where are we?

Well, join me in just a moment

and I will tell you a remarkable story.

Today, a pair of bubbly newlyweds are leaving the big smoke behind

in a bid to return to their country roots...

There's an effervescence about your response to this property.

There's a lot of fizz going on.

..and some of our houses take their breath away.

Wow.

You've...

-I don't know what to say.

-Ooh.

We haven't bought it yet!

You haven't bought it yet, exactly. You don't know what it's worth yet.

Well, today, we are in Oxfordshire and these are the impressive remains

of Minster Lovell Hall.

It was one of several estates owned by Francis Lord Lovell

in the 15th century.

Now, he was a close ally of Richard III.

He fought alongside him

at the Battle of Boswell in 1485 when, of course, famously,

Richard III was killed.

Now, not only did the battle end the Wars of the Roses,

it also ushered in the Tudors.

But what fate befell Lovell himself?

Well, it's thought that Lovell survived the battle,

but what happens next remains a mystery.

One popular theory based upon a chance discovery here,

during the 18th century, of a skeleton sat at a table in a vault,

might suggest that he came back and went into hiding.

But were those the remains of Lord Francis?

In truth, of course, only these ruins probably know.

Situated in the south east of England,

landlocked Oxfordshire is bordered by six counties

including Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Berkshire.

With its network of fields framed by dense woodland

and a host of rural homes,

the county's stunning scenery and striking architecture

give the region its identity.

Towns such as Woodstock, meaning clearing in the woods,

was the birthplace of Winston Churchill,

and features narrow lanes brimming with curiosity shops,

hotels and restaurants,

housed in caramel-coloured stone.

The market town of Wallingford,

that sits on the west bank of the River Thames,

is a newcomer to Oxfordshire from Berkshire,

where it had an address until 1974.

The town was home to crime writer Agatha Christie for 40 years.

There's also a plethora of visitor attractions in the county,

such as the beautiful 11th century Waterperry House and Gardens

to the east of Oxford.

Once a renowned horticultural college,

today there are eight acres of superbly maintained grounds

for visitors to explore.

So, whether it's breathtaking scenery you're after

or fabulous architecture,

escapees cant get much better than Oxfordshire,

which offers the complete package.

Well, there is no getting away from it - Oxfordshire isn't cheap.

Here, the average price of a detached property is currently

£453,000.

That's some 60% above the national figure.

And the reason is simple - for decades,

it's been popular with commuters keen to get a slice of this

glorious countryside, but within easy reach of London.

And as road and rail links have continued to improve,

so prices have continued to rise.

A notable hotspot is Henley-on-Thames.

But, as a broad rule of thumb,

the further north and west you go from London,

well, the cheaper it gets.

So, let's meet today's buyers and find out what's attracted them

to this part of the world.

Rachel and Tristam currently live in a one-bedroom garden flat

in Forest Hill, Southeast London.

They've been married for just over a year,

but first met five years ago

during a two-wheeled trip to the French capital.

So, we met on a bike ride from London to Paris, didn't we?

I was actually taking part and you were...

-I was leading the trip.

-..leading the trip.

And, yeah, we spent quite a bit of the time cycling together

and then, erm,

sort of cycled into Paris, sort of, together.

-And then...

-Over the finish line, had a party together after.

-Yeah.

And, then, when we got back I asked her out on a date and

we didn't look back since.

Both Rachel and Tristam work in the charity sector in London

but, having lived in the city suburbs for a number of years,

these newlyweds want to upsize to a country home.

We're currently in a, sort of, one-bed, sort of...

-Multilevel abode.

-..multilevel place.

Erm, so, I mean it's not bad in terms of space-wise.

-I guess it'd be nice to just have a bigger place and...

-Yeah.

..more space and more of a garden area and everything.

Like, if you open any of the cupboards,

things will probably fall out...

-Rachel's things.

-..because there's no storage space at all.

And our couple, who both grew up in the countryside,

feel that London life is no longer for them,

particularly since they plan on starting a family in the future.

I think from both of us growing up in the countryside, it was just...

Well, we just had such... I had such a good childhood and...

We've always said if we have kids we want to bring them up in the

countryside and not in a city, and make sure that they've got the space

-to just play and have fun that we both had when we were kids.

-Yeah.

Rachel grew up in the Oxfordshire town of Witney,

which is where her mum still lives,

so they've set their sights on a return to the county.

Well, it's...it's got lovely old Cotswold stone towns and villages,

lots of sweeping, rolling hills and rivers

and just lots of space to go and enjoy the countryside out there.

And Oxfordshire also lends itself to their hobbies.

At the moment, we don't really do as much cycling as we'd like to.

It's mainly commuting in and out of London sort of cycling.

But, yeah, in the countryside we hope to do a lot more,

be more active and much more weekend cycling.

And although they'll miss their London friends, of course,

they've no qualms about moving to a rural setting.

Definitely think the move will change our life, erm...

Everything we look for now when we go away for weekends,

we could just have on our doorstep.

And what we're missing at the moment is the going for walks,

going for nice long bike rides and having space, so we think, erm,

going to the countryside will just give us exactly what we want.

It's just a new adventure and

-we've always kind of wanted to do it, haven't we?

-Yeah.

-So, yeah.

-Can't wait to leave London.

-Just excited.

Tristam will still be commuting to work in London,

so we'll be concentrating our search

in areas with good rail links into the capital.

But before we get started on our country mission,

I'm meeting them in the county

to get to grips with the finer details of their property move.

Well, guys...

Rachel, Tristam, welcome to Escape To The Country.

Now, I gather there is some really exciting news

concerning the sale of your current property.

We accepted an offer yesterday.

-Yeah.

-Brilliant!

-It was perfect timing!

What timing! I mean, we couldn't write that in, really,

that's amazing.

So, give us an idea of what property you're looking for -

a kind of bullet list of its key features.

-Well, ideally, two bedrooms or more.

-Yeah, two plus.

-Erm...

-So, that's one more than you've got.

-Yeah.

-OK.

Erm, a good garden, erm...

Cotswold cottage would be amazing, perfect.

-Yeah, traditional features, I think.

-Yeah.

-Log burner would be a plus.

Yep. And just space, in a bit of a community.

-They're the main things, aren't they?

-Definitely.

-Good-sized kitchen.

-Is there anything that you don't want?

-Probably...we're less interested in new builds.

-Yes.

The only thing I'd say about new builds -

you can get a bit more for your money sometimes because they aren't

as sought-after as your classic, characterful cottage.

What's the budget for this move?

So, we're looking at around £400,000.

So, £400,000.

We've got three properties to show you, including, of course,

our Mystery House, which we'll get to tomorrow morning.

But today - look, it's sunny - we've got two to show you.

-Yeah.

-Let's go.

Fantastic.

For their budget of £400,000,

Rachel and Tristam are hoping for a spacious country cottage with

character and traditional features.

They want a good-sized kitchen and upstairs they'd like

at least two bedrooms.

Outside, they're after a nice garden and they'd love a location

that can link them to the local community.

We've hand-picked three fabulous properties to show them,

but only after they've finished the tour of each

will they be given its price.

Our last visit, to our mystery house, might leave them wondering

if they've turned up at the correct address,

but, once they step through the door,

I think they'll be more than pleasantly surprised.

We're starting off our house search in the village of Freeland,

some nine miles from Oxford.

Freeland is a medium-sized village with its own pub and two churches

all built from Cotswold stone,

as well as a modern village hall

which hosts a number of local clubs and societies.

For a wider range of services, the market town of Witney,

home to Rachel's mum, is a mere 10-minute drive away.

Witney prospered in the Middle Ages

from a lucrative trade in woollen blankets,

which built the many grand and honey-coloured limestone buildings

that now grace its pavements.

For train services into London,

Hanborough station will get you into Paddington in an hour and a quarter.

What's more, it's just under a two-mile cycle-ride

from our first property,

in the heart of Freeland itself.

OK, here we are, house number one.

-Wow.

-Wow!

-Looks good. Yeah?

-It's very pretty.

-Yeah, I like the look of this.

-It's sweet, isn't it?

-Yeah, really lovely.

I really like the garden, actually, out the front and the lavender -

-that's really lovely.

-It's got the olde-worlde look we're looking for.

Come on, let's have a look and see what you think.

Dating to the mid-18th century, and essentially a two-up two-down,

this detached stone-built cottage

benefits from many characterful features

including original flooring.

-Look at this.

-Ooh...

Flagstone hallway.

-Lovely.

-I love the floor.

Grab the door, Tris.

Come on into here.

Ah...

-Wow.

-Lovely.

-Thankfully, you ducked. It's all good.

There's a bit of that in this place, to be honest,

-but it does give you this lovely, cosy, quaint feel.

-It's very cosy.

-How about the fireplace?

-That fireplace is really lovely.

-It's amazing.

-There's a lot of little quirks, isn't there?

-Yeah.

-It's really sweet. The window seat...

-Lovely exposed beams.

-Yeah, what are you thinking?

-I think it's nice. I just...

-It's nice that it's got the features.

-I absolutely love the character to it.

This would always have been the main living area because you've got

the inglenook there. It could also have been where most of the cooking

-happened, back in the day.

-Yeah.

But now, of course, it has a kitchen,

which is the second part of the two-down,

and that is in here.

This is a nice kitchen.

-It's nice and bright.

-I like it. Nice and bright, it's a good size.

-It does feel quite big, actually in here.

-Yeah. It's deceptively big.

I like the wood flooring, as well.

-Right then, so, you currently have one bedroom...

-Mmm-hmm.

..that you've just sold. LAUGHTER

We might sell you...

two bedrooms. Let's have a look upstairs, yeah.

So, good vibes coming from both Tristam and Rachel

to this lovely stone cottage.

Upstairs, one of the two double bedrooms on the first floor

could be perfect as a future nursery,

and there's a family bath and shower room next-door.

The loft has been converted into a living space

with a single dormer window to the front,

but we're staying on the first floor

to check out our couple's potential bedroom.

This is what is currently being used as the master bedroom.

-OK.

-Mm-hm. It's nice. It feels quite compact.

-It does feel compact.

I don't know whether it's cos it could be lighter.

You're right, I mean, it... You know, it is a bit compact.

I mean, I don't how this compares with what you've got at the moment in London.

-Probably around the same size, isn't it?

-It's probably about the same size, yeah.

Well, I think it's certainly one to consider.

Let's take a trip back downstairs out to the garden

-and see what you think it's worth.

-Okey-dokey, sounds good.

Right then. Follow me down here.

As we head outside,

I'm beginning to sense that the size of this cottage may be of some

concern to Rachel.

All the outdoor space is located at the front.

Largely laid to lawn, it's a pretty,

classic, cottage garden bordered by dry stone walling.

Now, you know this area well.

So, in terms of, you know, guessing the price,

-you should be pretty good at this, Rachel.

-Oh, I hope so.

I think it's on at 365.

365? Yeah?

Tris? I reckon it's on...

for about 350,000.

An optimistic 350.

Do you know what, I would probably have said that myself, actually.

But here's the exciting news,

it's 325.

-Oh!

-Oh, really?

-Yeah.

-OK.

-Oh, crikey.

I should have done better.

You should have done a lot better!

-A lot better.

-She's very good at spending the money...

-Yeah.

You've got two more chances coming up, right?

But, no - I think 325 for this, given its location,

what it offers you in terms of space and character...

-Yeah, really good.

-That's an absolute bargain. I can't get over that.

-There you go, then - go and buy it!

-Exactly. Job done.

-Well, look...have another look around.

-Yeah.

Now you know what it's worth that will, I'm sure,

change the way you look at it,

and I will catch up with you a little bit later on.

-Brilliant.

-OK.

-Thank you.

-Off you go.

-See you later.

£75,000 under budget,

this 18th century Cotswold cottage

comes with a wealth of classic features.

Originally a two-up two-down,

there's the added bonus of a converted loft space

and a pretty garden to the front.

Located in a vibrant village,

it's just a 10-minute bike-ride to the nearest station

for Tristam's work.

-Watch the...

-Wow.

-..ceiling.

Oh, wow!

Crikey. What would you do with it?

-Baby room.

-Baby room!

In terms of a Cotswoldy feel and house, it...it's very pretty.

I think the rooms, they had some interesting features but, erm,

perhaps a little bit compact.

I think the main thing, actually, for me, was the garden,

perhaps, being out the front.

I think location's great, but perhaps this might make us think

that we could get more space if we were, perhaps,

slightly further away from the station.

I quite like this property.

It's certainly got a character, which is what we're looking for.

The curb-appeal's great, the front garden is lovely -

exactly what I'd look for in a garden.

The house itself?

Yeah, it's probably a bit on the small side for me.

-Right, you two, all done?

-Yep.

Not bad for the money, is it?

-It's good.

-It's pretty good.

-Yeah.

-And let's be honest,

if you did have children, having your mum round the corner is really good news, isn't it?

Oh, yeah. She'll love you for that.

Yeah, I bet she will. Come on.

One of the best ways to enjoy the Oxfordshire countryside

is on the water,

and that's easy with a large stretch of the 215-mile River Thames

running right through the county.

One master craftsman who makes the most of the river

is Alistair Phillips.

He runs workshops in constructing coracles -

simple, circular boats that date back to the Bronze Age.

For centuries, their main uses have been for fishing

and to transport goods or people across waterways,

but today, they're mainly used for leisure.

Coracles are made all over the world, but Alistair's are based

on a traditional Welsh craft.

As well as avid cyclers,

our couple are also keen kayakers

and are sure to be interested in this rather unusual vessel.

They've come to meet Alistair at his workshop near Henley.

So, how did you get into it, then?

Erm, I love making things out of wood and,

when I was about 15,

I saw a coracle being made at a country fair,

thought it looked fun and I happened to have the opportunity to go on a

coracle-making course and just fell in love with them,

and I've making them ever since.

Coracles are much more circular than regular kayaks or canoes.

How does that affect the balance of the boat?

They are famously unstable,

but if you stay in the middle of the boat

and follow my instructions, you'll be OK.

But before they get the chance to hop on board,

Rachel and Tristam are going to help finish making one.

The local ash used to make the coracle has a natural flexibility,

even more so after it's been soaked in water for a number of days.

And what we need to do now is we need to bend the ends

of the stringers up and fix them onto the gunwale here.

So, I'll start with the middle one.

It just comes up in a nice, natural bend,

erm, sits on the rim where it wants to sit,

and then we're going to grab a clamp

and just clamp the two of those together.

So, if we take the next one up now...

-Yep.

-Bend that up.

Put the clamp on.

That's great.

Next, the stringers, which are thin vertical strips of wood,

are secured with nails...

-Is that all right?

-Yeah.

-..and then the clamps come off.

Now, when the boat's finished,

this area's completely hidden by the cover,

so, we don't have to worry too much about it being super neat.

Now, the protruding tops of the stringers are sawn off...

And that's it.

..before a hard-wearing PVC cover is attached.

The frames were traditionally covered in calico

and when they were very first made, they would have used animal hide.

It goes down like that...

..and then if you can stick that down

with the length of the boat running lengthways...

That's it.

Once the PVC has enveloped the frame and is secured,

they're ready to set sail.

Here's your complimentary paddle and dry bag.

Let's take it down to the river.

-Let's go.

-Fantastic.

Alistair is lucky enough to have the River Thames

just a short drive from his workshop.

And with another two coracles to play with,

each weighing about 15 kilos, it's time to hit the water.

Let's get your boat down into the water.

Don't worry about dragging it on the bottom.

So, I'll hold it here.

If you want to climb in and step over to the front,

and then I'll slide you out into the water.

Obviously, if you were getting in on your own,

it would be a little bit more difficult.

With both novice coracle captains safely on the water,

the fun can really begin.

Right.

You're looking to paddle in front of you.

That's exactly right.

You're now moving forwards.

The paddling stroke is called a draw stroke.

We paddle directly in front of us with a figure of eight pattern

and that slowly pulls us through the water...like so.

And, erm, if you find you're spinning round in circles,

then it means you're doing it wrong.

These coracles are stronger than they look.

Alistair's oldest is seven years old,

and has only recently needed repairing.

I can't seem to move forward very quickly.

It's not a race and coracles are not fast.

If anyone ever says to you, "How quick do they go?",

it's faster to carry it along the bank than to paddle.

Oh, really?

Well, both Rachel and Tristam have taken to coracling

like ducks to water.

Let's hope their house-hunt goes just as well.

Well, I hope you've enjoyed yourselves building a coracle today.

-Yeah.

-It's been great fun.

-It's been brilliant.

-Magic. Well, I'll er...

leave you to it.

Have fun looking for your new house.

See you!

Where are you...?

Come back, Alistair!

NERVOUS LAUGHTER

For our second offering,

we're heading north-east to the village of Chesterton,

just three miles from the town of Bicester

whose station provides a regular 45-minute rail service

into London's Marylebone Station.

Chesterton is a popular Oxfordshire village dating back to Roman times

with a predominance of Cotswold stone cottages.

Its parish church was established in the 12th century.

There's also a pub serving food,

but the real selling-point of the village is its proximity to

amenities in Bicester, just a 10-minute cycle ride away.

Our second property is situated right in the heart of Chesterton.

Here we are then,

tucked away down this little dead-end lane in Chesterton

is that - property two.

-That looks really nice.

-That looks beautiful.

-Yeah.

-Really pretty.

-It's such a lovely street.

It's a great spot. It's a bit quieter than property one.

Yeah, yeah, absolutely.

But I think this is a house

you can definitely spread out in a little more.

It's a young family here at the moment, and I think that

kind of tells you everything you need to know in terms of

-how it might fit your future...

-Yeah.

-..aspirations.

Right, let's have a look.

Dating to the 18th-century,

this end-of-terrace property was once a simple stone cottage

and even operated as a shop in the 1950s.

The current owners have refurbished much of the interior,

keeping many of its traditional features.

Come on in.

Now, technically,

I wouldn't describe this as open-plan, but when you

sweep through that hallway past this lovely pillar,

you're greeted with this space

which is essentially a main family living room

but the whole thing flows beautifully through.

-Yeah.

-I really like it. It feels like a good space.

It's different, I mean, with pillars in the way, but...

The fireplace is lovely, that's a working open fireplace.

Nice little window seat there, as well.

Imagining this is...

This is what you think it is. This is the television.

There you go! They've got a projector there.

It's lovely.

So, we're having fun in here already, aren't we?

-Yeah.

-Definitely. Yeah.

-This is good.

Fun is a great way to sell a house.

Come through here. This is the dining room.

-There we go.

-Ooh.

-Oh, lovely.

This is really nice. Really good size.

It's not bad, is it, really? Yeah.

And it goes through that door there to a new extension, which is nice.

Bifold doors out to the garden.

So, you've got an additional kind of family room, as it were, there.

-Nice play room, maybe...

-Yeah.

..for the future. Just, you know...

sowing a seed. Erm...

It's not your traditional kitchen-diner,

cos this is the kitchen - have a look at it.

It's a kind of galley kitchen that is, kind of,

attached to the dining room, I suppose.

My thought really was to just make that hole a bit bigger.

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-Sort of knock through.

There's certainly potential to knock through and make it into a

kitchen-diner and have a really nice space out here, as well.

-Yeah.

-Really liking it so far.

Yeah, I really like it.

It's really... Yeah.

There's an effervescence about your response to this property which

I didn't see in property one, to be honest.

There's a lot of fizz going on.

Well, let's hope our couple continue to bubble with excitement

as we head upstairs.

Here we're offering them three bedrooms,

all arranged off a central landing.

One of those is a double with a pull-out bed,

and there's a smaller single with a bunk bed.

A half-tiled family bathroom serves all three bedrooms,

which just leaves us with the master.

Now, this, we're thinking, is for you.

-Mmm-hmm.

-This is lovely.

By far the biggest and the brightest of the lot.

Similar aspect to bedroom two, which is next-door, again nice and bright,

-overlooking the lane.

-Mmm, just lovely.

Yeah, it's really nice.

It's really... It feels really bright and airy and

-it feels like there's much more space upstairs...

-Definitely.

..than the previous...

Absolutely, and you've got the landing area, which is really handy.

The only thing I would do up here is update the bathroom.

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-It just feels a bit more...

-You.

-Yeah!

-Yeah, you see, that's the word we were creeping towards, yeah.

Bit more you, Rachel.

-Yeah.

-Yeah. No, it's great.

-It's brilliant.

-Well, let's see if the numbers work.

-OK.

-Yeah, let's talk about the price, shall we?

So, very positive reactions inside.

Outside, the enclosed garden is largely laid to lawn

with mature trees providing a shaded eating and relaxing area

at the far end.

There's also a detached single garage at the front of the house -

handy storage for the bikes.

So, it's not the biggest garden in the world, but it does give you,

I think, a little bit of everything.

-Yeah.

-Nice bit of shade, bit of privacy there, bit of lawn here...

-and, then, there's the back of it.

-Yeah, it's lovely.

So, what do you think property two is worth, then?

Who's going to go first?

Rachel...

went first last time, so Tris?

I reckon this is on for 365,000.

-365. Did you say that last time?

-No, that was Rachel.

Right. 365.

-Yeah.

-Erm...

I'm going to go 360.

360?

What's five grand? 365 to 360.

Well, here's the thing -

you're both wrong,

but you can afford it, but you may have to spend a little bit more than

you were perhaps thinking about, because this is on the market for

-£375,000.

-Oh, OK.

-OK.

-What do you think of that?

-It's not bad, actually.

-That's not bad at all, no.

-Brilliant.

-Good. We said when we came in it was a house of great fun.

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-And I think that theme has continued.

So, while we're about it, go and continue to enjoy yourselves

-and I will find you a little bit later on.

-Brilliant.

-Thank you.

Below budget by £25,000,

our second property choice

is a traditional stone cottage

which has been refurbished,

offering light and open

reception spaces

including an extended sunroom.

Upstairs, there's one more bedroom

than our previous property, and

outside there's a peaceful garden

as well as a garage for storage.

It's located in a popular village,

and a short bike ride from a large

town and mainline station

into London.

I really like this house. It's quirky. It's different.

It's got lots of character, lots of personality.

It's got space we're looking for inside and outside.

Yes, it needs a little bit of work but we're not afraid of that,

I mean, it gives us an opportunity to put our own stamp on it, so,

yeah, really pleased with it.

I do think it's a contender.

Erm...

I...

think I could see myself living here.

I think I would just have to, sort of, scope out the area a bit

and think about,

potentially, the changes we might make.

So, yeah, quite impressed actually.

It's really, really, lovely.

-After you, Rachel.

-Thank you.

Good. Well, I would say that, all in all,

it's been a pretty good day's house-hunting.

-Yeah, definitely.

-Yeah.

-Thank you.

-Certainly a real mixture, but this one was good fun.

-Wasn't it?

-Yeah.

-Good fun. Is it top of the list at the moment?

-It is for me.

-Yes.

-It's definitely top of the list. Yeah.

-OK.

Now, that's it for today.

However, you know this area extremely well.

Where are we going out tonight, then?

Well, we can start at the pub on the corner and then...

-See what happens.

-..see where the evening takes us.

-Come on, then, let's go.

It's the second and final day of our tour around Oxfordshire,

searching out a home for newlyweds Rachel and Tristam from London

to live out their country dream.

Armed with a budget of £400,000,

we're looking for a property with character and charm.

We've still got a youthful Mystery House to come...

There. Come on, smell the newness.

Smell the paint.

..and I'll be learning how to make books the old-fashioned way.

I'm going to put my head through there and try and find the

other end of it. God, that's harder than... That is...

-God, you need the patience of a saint, don't you?

-Yeah.

Well, it's 24 hours since we started our house search here in Oxfordshire

with Rachel and with Tristam,

and 48 hours since they learned that, at last, their flat in London

has gone under offer, so

we really do need to get our skates on and get this move underway.

So far, we've shown them two, I think,

beautiful properties full of history and character,

but, for our Mystery House,

well, we're going to try something a little bit different

in a place I don't think they'll have thought of.

Well, guys, one more house to come.

-I know.

-Mystery House.

-The Mystery House.

-We're excited.

Any ideas what it might be, then?

Erm...

I reckon you might have gone new build for us.

Ah. Why?

-Just because we were so anti it and...

-RACHEL LAUGHS

To give you a clue as to where we are going...

so, I am driving with the sun behind me and it's the morning.

-OK...

-There's the riddle.

-Right, we're heading west.

-Yes.

-Yes.

-Well done.

-There we go.

-We're heading west.

Yes, for the last leg of our house-hunt

we are heading west and, in fact,

we're hopping across the border into Gloucestershire

to the village of Bourton-on-the-Water.

Regularly voted as one of the prettiest villages in England,

it's fondly known as the Little Venice of the Cotswolds.

Its lovely stone buildings with their towering chimneys

look down over the elegant arching bridges that

cross the river Windrush.

A real draw to visitors, there are plenty of restaurants,

tea rooms and shops sitting behind the tree-lined embankment.

And just a few minutes walk from the centre of the village,

we find our third and final offering, our Mystery House.

OK. So, you were right, Tristam.

THEY LAUGH

It is a new build.

-There you go.

-Wow.

-What do you reckon to that?

-It looks lovely.

-Quite excited.

-I'm pleasantly surprised.

Now, the bit YOU get is all of that...

and that garage and the window above it. So, the dividing line is that

-down pipe in between those two...

-OK.

-OK.

-..garages.

It's only seven years old...

-Wow.

-Yeah.

-..but it is Cotswold stone.

-Yes.

-So, we've kept with that theme.

Now, the other thing to remind you of is that we have crossed

the border into Gloucestershire.

It does mean we are offering you the longest commute of the lot.

The nearest station is Moreton-in-the-Marsh,

which is about eight miles or so north of here,

-and it's an hour and a half...

-OK.

-..into London.

Were we right to take the risk?

Definitely. I mean, it's not something we would have ever come and looked at ourselves and...

Do you know what? We could just be shutting this out for no good reason,

and I think we both really, really like location and the close.

-Yeah.

-Really?

-Yeah.

-Just walking in here now, we've changed your mind?

-Just walking in here, yeah.

-Exciting.

-Yeah. Let's have a look.

-Yeah, absolutely.

This handsome home sits in a development of just nine properties

and, although our Mystery House is modern,

it's been designed with traditional features in mind.

The sheltered front door leads to a spacious hallway.

There. Come on, smell the newness.

Smell the paint.

Let's start in here.

-Oh, what a lovely kitchen.

-Yeah, this is lovely.

And that's the great thing about a new build -

it's designed for modern living...

-Yeah.

-...obviously. So, they've really thought about, you know,

that square shape that we all kind of know and love, you know, cooker,

sink, you know, the kind of preparation triangle is all here.

-Yeah.

-Mmm.

-No, it's a really, really good size. Really good finish.

-Yeah.

I could see me spending lots of time cooking.

It's obviously all new, it all works,

but it still feels kind of cosy and

has got that kind of countryside style to it.

There's no separate dining room as such,

that's all part of the living room which is through here.

So, you see what I mean, you've got living and dining

all in the same room...

..with a conservatory leading off there.

It's nice and airy. I like how bright it is,

and that view's amazing out there.

It just feels spacious, though, doesn't it?

It's so light and I don't think we've had that as much before with

the previous properties, have we?

Good, so, I think maybe our gamble has paid off...

-Yeah.

-..so far.

-So far.

-So far...

Now, this is pretty much it for the ground floor,

it's pretty compact.

But it does make up for it, in many ways, upstairs.

Come and have a look.

Back through the hallway,

there's some under-stairs storage and a cloakroom.

A winding stairway leads to the first floor and, off the landing,

there are an unexpected four bedrooms.

Now...

all this space to show you.

You've got a really nice guest double in there.

-Mmm-hmm.

-All right?

This is currently set up as a study, kind of, box room.

-That's the smallest of the four bedrooms.

-Mm-hmm.

This is quite nice -

-another guest double in there.

-Lovely.

What are you going to do with all this room? All right?

-Family bathroom is in here.

-Uh-huh.

-OK.

-OK.

But your bit...

This way.

Running the width of the back of the house is the master bedroom

and it comes with two added bonuses.

Well, perhaps no surprise that this is yours because you've got...

-Wow!

-Oh, wow!

Dressing area, en suite shower...

-and, obviously, bedroom.

-Oh, my goodness.

-Wow, I'm...

-A dressing room!

-..impressed with it.

-Yeah!

-This is amazing.

So, my area... Rachel's area.

THEY LAUGH

This is...

-I'm...

-You're speechless aren't you?

I actually can't say anything.

-The clever thing is...

-So much space.

..part of the footprint is occupied by the garage but,

up here, the first floor spreads over the garage, so you've

-got that sense of more space.

-Yeah.

-It's really well thought out.

Wow.

You've... I don't know what to say.

-Ooh!

-We haven't bought it yet.

-You haven't bought it yet, exactly!

You don't know what it's worth yet. Well, you'd better get thinking,

because I'm going to ask you in a minute. Come on.

Well, our Mystery House is definitely doing its job

by both surprising and delighting us. So, as we head back downstairs,

there's just the garden to see.

It may be neat but its far-reaching views across fields gives the

feeling of endless space.

A small paved patio leads to a lawn bordered by flowers.

Now, in fairness, it's probably not the biggest garden we've been able

to show you this week,

but it is all rather pretty and rather beautiful

and very easy to maintain, as is the rest of the property.

-Yes.

-Yes.

-No, it's a lovely outdoor space.

I mean, the view behind helps.

So, it's time to get down to business.

Who's going to guess the price first on this one?

Over to you, Rach.

I think for the space...

395.

OK.

I'd go for 390,000.

390? You're pretty close, to be fair, on your estimates this week.

How about this, then?

-£350,000.

-Wow.

-That is really surprising.

-Yeah.

-Certainly food for thought, isn't it?

-Yeah, absolutely.

You can't wait to get back upstairs to look at that bedroom, can you? Right, go on, off you go.

Go and enjoy yourselves and I will catch up with you a little bit later.

Well, there you go, they said it themselves - it wasn't what they were looking for, but who knows?

It may just have worked. That, of course, is the joy of the Mystery House.

Our modern, contemporary

Cotswold home is a welcome

£50,000 under budget,

meaning a healthy kitty if there's

a new addition to the family.

There's a great kitchen

and lounge-diner,

perfect for entertaining.

And with youth comes space.

Upstairs, they get double the

number of bedrooms they're after.

Outside, the pretty garden has great

views and although the commute to

London is a little further than

they'd want, the location is

within one of the Cotswolds' most

desirable villages.

Oh, this is nice.

-This is great.

-Good space.

-And you could put all your bikes in here.

-Yeah.

-Ticks all the boxes.

-Yeah, it's good!

The space is just amazing.

I can't get over the space, actually.

-You like your wardrobe, don't you?

-Yeah.

The dressing room area is very...

That's a bonus. But it's...

Yeah, absolutely blown away by this house.

Every single room felt light and airy and...

it was a good size. There was nothing that felt cramped...

and it was all modern. It's all bang up-to-date.

We could just move straight in and there'd be nothing to do.

-It's good to go, this house.

-Mmm.

Come on, you two.

-Hello.

-Isn't this wonderful?

It gives it such a wonderful setting.

It's so beautiful. It's really pretty.

-Yeah, we love it.

-Would you keep it looking like this?

-I would try.

-Yeah, we'd definitely try our best.

Well, we've certainly tried to give you three worthy options this week.

I daresay there's a bit of discussion to be had.

-Absolutely.

-It's certainly mixed it up for us a little bit, hasn't it?

Yeah, you've given us a lot to think about, which is a good thing.

That's the idea. Right then, off we go.

Oxfordshire is probably best known for the world-famous university

in Oxford, in the heart of this county.

With scholars come books and with prolific publishing

of theses and journals over the years,

bookbinding became a necessary craft.

It was at its height during Victorian times,

but with today's technology,

the art of hand-binding books is now in decline.

Malcolm Kew started his career as a bookbinder

45 years ago at the British Museum,

and is keeping this artisan tradition alive

in his workshop in Thame.

Here, he restores old books

but also makes leather-bound books from scratch.

-Malcolm.

-Hi, Jules.

-Very nice to see you.

-And you, sir.

-So, you must have seen some fabulous works over the years.

At one of the places I worked, I did the, erm,

the logbook for Captain Cook - Captain Cook's logbooks.

-You're joking!

-Yeah, yeah.

So, what's harder - a new book or a restored book?

Well, you have to, obviously,

try to restore a book carefully and thoughtfully, where, you know,

retaining as much of the original as you can.

It's a fascinating trade to be in really, I mean, it's kind of...

-No day's the same.

-There's never a dull moment, you know, really.

Well, I've come to the perfect place to see how it's done. Yep.

-Show me around.

-After you.

Although most bookbinding is now fully mechanised,

there is still a demand for hand-bound one-off books

and small runs, which keeps Malcolm busy.

And he still uses many of the traditional tools

that were common in the 19th century.

And is this some of your work?

Yes. Yeah, those are...

-That's incredible.

-Those are ones I've done over the years, yeah.

As well as having the honour of working on Captain Cook's logbook,

Malcolm's also bound special books for royalty,

including Princess Diana and Her Majesty the Queen.

So, how do you start?

How do you begin to compile all the pages together?

Well, the erm...

Most books are made up with sections, which is folded paper.

-So, effectively, they're sort of books within books, aren't they, really?

-Yeah. Yeah.

When you're hand sewing, you take a section at a time and...

So you go in like that,

go in and out around the tape.

Until the mid-1400's, when the first Bible was printed in Germany,

books as we know them didn't really exist -

they were just sections of parchment sewn together,

usually religious writings.

It does look fascinating, though.

-Do you want a go?

-Yeah, well, let's see how hard it is.

-I can't even get hold of the needle.

-Push it through.

-And then...

-And then back in on itself through there.

-That's right.

And through that one there.

I'm going to put my head through there and try and

find the other end of it. God, that's harder than...

-God, you need the patience of a saint, don't you?

-Yep, yeah.

The methods you're using presumably have not changed for

-hundreds of years?

-No, this is how they used to do all the books, yeah,

before the big old sewing machines came in, yeah,

which would have been Victorian times, of course.

All of this work is hidden by the cover,

which is the thing that really defines the beauty of a book in many respects, isn't it?

-Yes. Yeah, that's right.

-As well as what's actually on the pages.

-Yeah.

Doing a new book is one thing, but what sort of condition are books

in when you're taking them in to restore?

All sorts.

Erm, I mean...

-Oh, that's a beautiful-looking book.

-There's a good one there.

-It's a lovely book.

-I mean that, to me,

is the iconic hand-bound leather book.

I've got to try and save the old spine from that.

-It's a bit of a job.

-But, you know, for all of us, I think,

-the end result...

-Yeah.

..the really appealing bit is the cover

and, as far as you're concerned,

that really is the showcase of your work, isn't it?

For most people who pick up a beautifully restored book,

that's what we're all looking at. I guess the final bit,

the piece de resistance,

is the lettering - that lovely gold lettering. How do you do that?

Yeah. Well, I'm doing that over here, so if you'd like to come and have a look...

Malcolm has numerous brass stamps,

each engraved with a letter or design,

and they're heated before gold leaf can be applied to the book.

Show us how you're going to do this one, then.

The heat of the stamp transfers the gold leaf onto the spine.

-Can I pick up this volume here?

-Yep.

I don't know what it is, but this is the finished article.

There we are - an Encyclopaedia, Volume 1.

That is absolutely beautiful.

I mean, if ever I were to write my memoirs...

-Yeah.

-..I know where to come to get them bound.

-Yeah.

-Although, I suspect they'd be a bit smaller than that.

Would I be able to get the lettering on the spine?

-It might be more of a pamphlet, yeah!

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-Malcolm, thanks, mate, very much indeed.

-Pleasure.

Well, we've all shared in the pressure to try and find

Rachel and Tristam a home in a hurry this week.

But have we been successful?

Let's go and ask them.

Well, we certainly packed a lot in.

We've given you, I think, three very interesting properties to consider.

But the burning question as always -

is any one of them going to be your home for the future?

Have we managed to do it?

Erm, yeah, second property,

I think we're going to go back and have another look at that, actually.

-Are you?

-Yeah.

I think we all liked the setting of that, didn't we?

Just off the green, down that private track.

And then we took you, this morning, to our Mystery House.

We were totally surprised by that property.

It's absolutely everything we asked you not to find for us and, erm...

But it really changed our perception on new houses.

The space was incredible.

Yeah, the property itself was lovely.

The location just doesn't work.

It's eight miles from a station then, I think you said,

an hour and a half into London, so a bit far out, but...

like Rach says...

it was a really pleasant surprise.

So, come what may, you will make a decision soon.

-We've got a busy few weeks ahead of us, haven't we?

-Yeah.

The pressure's on with our house under offer now, so...

So, yeah. Full steam ahead.

Well, it's been a great pleasure. We wish you the very best of luck.

Let us know how you get on in the next few weeks.

I can't wait to see what you come up with.

-Aw, thank you, we've had a lovely time.

-It's been great.

Pleasure.

Well, Tristam and Rachel wouldn't be the first buyers to have

dismissed new builds

in favour of the obvious age and character

that an older property can offer them, but in truth,

if you do that, you do run the risk

of missing out on something that could be really special.

Take this place, Eynsham Hall -

on the face of it a beautiful Jacobean mansion,

potentially over 300 years old but, in truth, it was completed

in 1908.

Not bad for a new build.

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