Back to the country etc

My last flat had a baby blue bathroom suite.
They were hard wearing too.

Over the years I’ve had blue (cold), rosé pink (I loved that, saw it in a magazine and builders merchant wasn’t happy having to order it specially), avocado (of course) and pale grey. Now white.

Bugger, so busy reading the thread, I’ve missed the first two houses on today’s show.

LauraNorderr the first house was modern and gorgeous. How much does it cost to heat these houses? Practical things like that go through my mind.

They saw a house on the edge of a village but only 2 buses a week ran- what would they do when they can no longer drive?

Where was the nearest supermarket?

I was short of 1 million to buy any of these houses.

As someone commented (sorry, I didn’t scroll back to get your name) I too think it wise to be very picky when making the biggest purchase/investment of your life. When we’ve moved house in the past, we’ve always been very choosy - the right one (or nearly right - there are usually compromises) comes along eventually, although it’s a very stressful process. I get the impression with ETTC, that more than 3 houses are actually viewed, but only 3 shown on the programme, as they often say at the end “we’ve had a wonderful WEEK.

Of course you have to be picky, but some of these people on ETTC don't seem to have much of an idea about what they actually want/what will suit their requirements.

MissAdventure

There was an absolute corker of a home on tv the other week.
The programme where they build or refurbish..
I can't remember the damn name of it!

They chose all coloured bathroom stuff; an avocado toilet, with a pink bath and a blue sink.

I loved it, but my boys thought it was gruesome!

I think it's gruesome too ?

It looks like a job lot of leftovers!

When you were describing it Miss Adventure I was but when I saw the picture I really liked it.

Like others on here I'm always amazed at the retired couples on Escape to the Country who want to move from the suburban town they've lived in for 40 years and relocate to an old farmhouse down a lonely lane, with no neighbours in site and where they will be totally car reliant in order to get to shops, doctors, or have any kind of social life. Sometimes they also want a massive garden because the husband has always wanted to use a ride on mower, or to start learning how to keep goats and chickens.

Have they actually thought this through?

Beswitched - we were a retired couple as you described, in early 60s when we moved to France. We'd been watching A Place in the Sun and got carried away.
We had to compromise a bit but spent 18 very happy years there and only left for the reasons you mentioned.
Our house was much cheaper than those in Escape to the Country. A wintry view:
www.google.com/maps/place/32300+Aujan-Mourn%C3%A8de,+France/@43.3765461,0.4981663,3a,20.7y,234.3h,91.66t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s-7UqykShW7E2sWmKk0iPdw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!4m5!3m4!1s0x12a9a441563f4511:0xed325358d160119b!8m2!3d43.381602!4d0.502269

I like property shows. If I am watching Escape to the Country TH comes in and days 'What are the poor people scraping by on now? The younger ones with a big budget always want a business opportunity which tells me they don't have that budget at all.

DH likes these programmes.
If I watch, I make pointed remarks which annoy him
"It's just a programme, don't take it seriously"

I love the people who walk into a farmhouse kitchen, rather bigger than the entire ground floor of my house, and complain that it's too small. Unless they are setting up a catering business what are they planning to do in it? Then there are the ones going into raptures about barn conversions with very high open ceilings. Am I the only one thinking "How are they going to heat all that space?" At the other extreme are the ones who want a character cottage and then don't like the tiny windows and very low doors and ceilings.

Coastpath

Ohhh it has a lovely walk in wardrobe for my extensive shoe and clothes collection.
They will spend 9 months of the year in wellies and waterproofs?

Ohhh there's a lovely big island, dining room and a terrace for entertaining.
You're moving 350 miles away from all your friends and family.

Ohhh 4 acres.
We've just seen your current garden and it's a 10 foot square paved terrace with a plastic chair and one pot in which a shrub has died.

Love it Coastpath.

They always say they want a detached house, no neighbours, and lots of land, in a totally rural area, then decide it's too solitary when they're found somewhere.

I like that idea of Cal’s Return to the City. They could move into a small tatty house because of the cost of city living, that would be worth watching . They could show crowded streets, lots of traffic etc. Would be a lot more realistic, I reckon they would get a big audience !

They did have a series ?Return to the Town but it didn't last long.

Fennel

They did have a series ?Return to the Town but it didn't last long.

I missed Return to the Town Fennel

nanna8 I think it was Franbern's idea, not mine but it's a good one - however, it might find even more people wanting to go back again to the country.

There was a programme Best House in Town. There were categories competing such as three semis, three cottages, three flats and three detached. A panel of local judges picked the best one from each category, then picked the best of all. There were some gorgeous houses on that programme.

I loved that programme. The Scottish one is still on iplayer: Scotlands Best House. They even did a Christmas special. I don’t like the latest BBC interior design challenge programme. It isn’t a patch on the original series from a few years ago.

Deedaa

I love the people who walk into a farmhouse kitchen, rather bigger than the entire ground floor of my house, and complain that it's too small. Unless they are setting up a catering business what are they planning to do in it? Then there are the ones going into raptures about barn conversions with very high open ceilings. Am I the only one thinking "How are they going to heat all that space?" At the other extreme are the ones who want a character cottage and then don't like the tiny windows and very low doors and ceilings.

How do they keep the ceiling free from cobwebs?

?????

We watched one couple recently who were retiring to Cornwall and were talking about all the entertaining they were going to do and all the local events they were going to get involved with. My son (who was born and raised in Cornwall and may be a bit biased) was highly amused "Don't they realise people will hate them?" he asked. I found you got far more kudos by helping out with the local pre school and doing door to door collections for local charities than by throwing soirees in your barn conversion.

That does look nice Fennel but rather remote for me.

Germanshepherdsmum

We have a jacuzzi bath MissA, not a corner one though. It was here when we bought the house and we’ve never used it, prefer showers. So it’s totally wasted on us.

My son refers to jacuzzis as farting baths. Sorry. As you were. Loving this thread

Charleygirl5

LauraNorderr the first house was modern and gorgeous. How much does it cost to heat these houses? Practical things like that go through my mind.

They saw a house on the edge of a village but only 2 buses a week ran- what would they do when they can no longer drive?

Where was the nearest supermarket?

I was short of 1 million to buy any of these houses.

I saw that one! The presenter said "and there are TWO buses a week!" to whatever was the nearest town, as if it was an advantage. We treat these shows as a participation event, giving our opinions on the would be purchasers (they don't look as if they could afford it), the houses (because a spiral staircase is such a good idea when you are in your late 60s), their patronising naivety as they think that everyone living there will welcome them and their helpful suggestions, not to mention their dogs chasing sheep. Nope, I don't want to spend my dotage having to make do with crap overpriced white sliced bread from the community shop, and wouldn't impose the problems my isolation fantasy would become on my adult children. But I love the shows!