Build a New Life In the Country

Architect George Clarke helps a building surveyor and his wife, who have grown tired of city life and the expense of their mortgage and wish to downsize to the Lincolnshire countryside. With a budget of £90,000, the couple plan to renovate a small chapel and convert it into a three-bedroom home. They also intend to retire from their jobs and open an equestrian livery business

Middle-aged couple Terry and Marilyn attempt to relocate from Whitby to a 500-year-old farmhouse in the Pennines, which they set out to transform into a home for their large family. Architect George Clarke offers advice about restoring the collapsed roof and laying a concrete floor, and lends moral support when flooding means they lose precious time and have to seek shelter with Marilyn's father

Architect George Clarke helps a Buckinghamshire couple escape their demanding jobs and relocate to Scotland, where they intend to modernise a 120-year-old farmhouse with their own designs. Businesswoman Carol becomes project manager and aims to be settled before Christmas, but bad weather and delayed planning permission put the date back, forcing the family to spend more time apart

Architect George Clarke offers advice to a married couple relocating to Ireland, where they plan to live a mortgage-free, self-sufficient existence with their daughter. With a budget of £14,000 to renovate a derelict house that has been empty for more than 30 years, they expect to move into their new home within four months. If they miss their deadline, they face spending Christmas in a tiny caravan

Architect George Clarke lends his expertise to couple Adrian and Denise Nuttall, who have invested their money in a run-down garden centre and a 400-year-old barn and farmhouse in the Suffolk countryside. The pair plan to open a chilli farm, shop and restaurant on the site, but things take a drastic turn for the worse just one month into the project

Architect George Clarke meets a couple who want to move from Surrey to the wilds of Lincolnshire, where they hope to start a business and convert a ruined 18th-century granary into an idyllic rural home

David Forster is converting a Victorian watertower in the woods into a family home where he and his family can withdraw from modern life and commune with Nature. His first year on this project made one of the most popular programmes in the first series of Build a New Life in the Country. Now we are back to follow him again for a whole new programme as this eccentric inventor and his fantastic project enter their third and final year. David’s enthusiasm hasn’t waned one bit. He presses on, spending what little money his wife releases for him, and relying on free labour from his reluctant teenage sons. All his family and friends question whether the tower will ever be finished. But David is determined to see his romantic dream through to its glorious end.

Richard and Jane snap up an incredible bargain – an abandoned historic building in a grand country estate sitting in 8 acres of Capability Jones designed grounds. For the price of a 4-bed semi, they plan to create a magnificent family home fit for a Lord. But the building is a ruin, and a Listed one at that. Jane is a first-time project manager, running the entire restoration on her own. And they may aspire to a home fit for Kings, but they have a budget that’s definitely for Commoners.

Following a heart attack scare aged 29, workaholic Mick Wilmer from Grimsby needs a complete change of life. He’s given up his job in a chemical plant to move to the rugged south west coast of Scotland with his wife Jenny and their two children. Their dream is to set up and run a small farm, and build a home from the ruins of a 600 year old farmhouse. Their budget is a mere £90,000 pounds, which quickly disappears, leaving the family with rising debts, and Mick facing exhaustion as he battles night and day to hold onto their dream.

Architectural designer Charlie Luxton takes over as presenter, following British people who dream of living in perfect rural locations. He starts off in West Yorkshire, where married couple Ian and Becky Sheveling have given up successful careers to convert a Grade II listed farmhouse and barn into a stylish modern dwelling. But although Charlie is impressed by the couple's drive and determination, he is astounded by their plans to establish a hillside vineyard with no experience of the wine trade

Dave and Caroline Taylor uproot their family from the suburbs of Bristol to follow their dream of becoming self-sufficient by converting a barn in the Brecon Beacons, South Wales. The Taylors have £150,000 to spend on creating a five-bedroom home complete with a holiday annexe, but find their budget dwindles quickly as the project encounters a few snags, including the discovery of two natural springs underneath the farmhouse

Ian and Elpi move from Wigan to the Lancashire countryside, where they plan to transform a Grade II-listed windmill and an Eighties-era house into a modern family home. While Ian works long hours at his solicitor's firm, Elpi takes on the role of project manager despite having a one-year-old son to look after, but she becomes disillusioned with the conversion when the budget runs out before the build is complete

This week, Lisa and Michael attempt to convert a 400-year-old barn into an eco-friendly family home. The project begins well, but progress is slow thanks to problems with planning permission, bad weather, illness and damp. Will the couple manage to complete the build before another winter arrives? For many years, entrepreneurs Michael and Lisa have dreamed of creating a sustainable life for themselves and their two children, four-year-old Thomas and three-year-old Lucy. To turn their dream into reality, they plan to convert a 400-year-old barn in rural Nottinghamshire into a contemporary, eco-friendly family home with six bedrooms and five bathrooms. The couple also want to reinstate a 1960s extension to house a wet room and a snug. The new house will feature all the latest environmental technology, including doublethick insulation, a rainwater-harvesting tank and a heat-recovery system. Michael and Lisa bought the barn and six acres of land for £495,000 and plan to spend £450,000 on the renovation. After living on site in a caravan for a year, the couple finally receive planning permission for the conversion and can start work. However, the builders’ quote comes in at £560,000 – a massive £110,000 more than the couple were expecting. To cut costs, Michael decides to take on much of the work himself. He begins by excavating the original sandstone to rebuild the extension and digging trenches for the ground-source heat pumps. Despite beginning well, the project soon runs into trouble. When the coldest winter for 30 years arrives, it looks as if the roof could fall in and take the walls of the barn with it. The cold weather delays the work as the lime mortar used to repair the walls cannot set in freezing temperatures. In addition to the weather, the family must also cope with Lisa’s illness. As a lupus sufferer, she is often unable to work, meaning Michael must manage the build alone whilst looking after the children and running the rainwater-harvesting business. To top it all, problems with the bank then threaten to derail the whole project. As the delays begin to mount, Lisa worries that they will have to spend another winter in the caravan. To spend more time on site, Lisa brings home work from the office, while Michael plants 4,000 trees that will be turned into fuel for the new house. However, as one problem is solved, another arises. This time, it is damp in the extension causing concern - while Michael’s exacting standards lead to their own delays. It is not until the 100-tonne steel frame finally arrives that the build begins to take shape. For the first time, Lisa and Michael can see that the barn is slowly turning into their dream home. Can the couple finish the build on time, or are Thomas and Lucy set to spend another cold winter in the caravan?

Charlie Luxton visits Beachy Head cliffs in East Sussex, where a couple face mounting costs and legal wrangles as they try to transform one of England's oldest lighthouses into a luxury B With £500,000 already spent on the ambitious project, Charlie believes they have underestimated the cost of the renovation and the problems multiply as they deal with strong sea winds, a perilous access road and a delayed schedule.

This week, Charlie meets a couple who have moved their four young children from Oxfordshire to France to begin a new, idyllic life. Keith and Antoinette dream of converting a 19th century chateau-style mansion in Languedoc into a family home and B&B. However, increasing financial demands threaten to derail the project. When Keith and Antoinette met six years ago, they had two children from previous relationships. Since then, they have had two more children of their own. However, Keith’s long working hours running his own company have left them with little time together as a family. Having always dreamed of moving to France, the couple have finally taken the plunge. Their hope is that the children will lead an idyllic village life and become bilingual. However, in order to finance the build, Keith has to sell his IT business in the UK. While Keith divides his time between England and France, Antoinette faces the huge task of project-managing a team of French builders – a job made even more difficult as she does not speak fluent French. She also has to keep an eye on the four kids. The plan is to have the guest accommodation ready to rent for the summer season – but when the couple’s financial situation worsens, their hopes of a better life begin to recede. Can Keith and Antoinette realise their dream?