❤️Escape to the Country Season 18❤️ Episode 68❤️ Worcestershire 2017 ❤️FULL EPISODE❤️❤️❤️
100 years ago this hidey-hole meant the difference between life and death find out why and where I am in search of a dream home with wow factor in my head I had a larger kitchen to be honest this feels quite small to me does it yeah as
The house hunt continues it looks like we might be getting closer a bit lost for words this is this is what we’ve been looking for yeah this is definitely got the W factor for outside yes today I’m in westers and This Magnificent building is harvington Hall
Which in the late 1500s was a safe refuge for Catholic priests escaping persecution from a Protestant Elizabeth I now although it was one of Many religious safe houses in the Midlands this Banner boasts more pries holes than any other surviving home in the whole of England and they are hidden in the walls
In the Rafters even above a bread oven now the sad irony is the Builder Nicholas Owen who masterminded so many of these hiding places was actually starved out of one of his creations and tortured to death in the Tower of London fortunately harvington Hall survived unscathed and is an impressive reminder
Of an Elizabeth and England she border six other counties including shopshire herfordshire and glou Shere from its northernmost tip Britain’s longest river the seven meanders through the Count’s landscape running South Through The Heart of the City of Worcester whose magnificent 12th century Cathedral overlooks it in the
West of the county the mulvin hills known for their pure spring water cover just over 40 square miles and spill over into its neighboring counties its Scenic Hills are believed to have inspired the works of composer Edward Elgar who was born in the county in the mid 19th century close to the
Glester share border the pretty Village of Broadway known as The Jewel of the cotw worlds is home to an array of beautiful stone buildings its culture Hills and Heritage are all part and parcle of why house buyers want to move here now here in Worcester not only do
You get all of this but you also get what I’m going to call accessibility because it’s extremely well connected to the rest of the country Birmingham is just 30 minutes away and it has excellent Road and rail links heading in all directions in and out of the county
Now the average house price here for a detached property is around £ 343,000 10,000 above the national average but for today’s buyers finding that Perfect Blend of country living and good connections is a price worth paying new parents Nikki and Dan from brenford in London are looking to leave
Behind their cramped City lives and get away from the busy roads and noise of the capital with their six-month-old son Alfie London’s been good to us especially brenford we’ve really enjoyed our time here but I think now we’ve got an ex addition to the family it it’s
Time to Branch out get a bit more space bit more Adventure fresh air for for us all brenford is a bit too busy now for us like to be able to take Alfie for a walk and not have to cross over the M4 since Alfie arrived their lives have changed significantly with former
Football Center manager Dan now a stay-at-home dad while senior account manager Nikki works from home 4 days a week before Alfie came along I was very much really into everything new and pristine and clean um and I’ve learned very quickly um from having a baby that
It doesn’t it can’t be like that so that’s one thing that’s that’s definitely changed I’m more willing to yeah be a bit more slack with the the housework because there’s no point doing it the hope of recreating their own past experiences has prompted this move growing up in the country from what I
Remember was great I mean a lot of Adventure I remember a lot of Open Spaces you know I got a close friend base from a very young age and I’m still best friends with them now so you know those are the things I want for Alfie as
Well I grew up in a small village um in Hampshire um which was really lovely we had acres of land horses Etc um and it was really really nice it was quite quiet um growing up it was absolutely lovely they’re also hoping it will spark a change of Lifestyle for the whole
Family they can’t wait to get stuck into country living when we move i’ I’d like um to be able to go out on Family Bike Rides um it’s not something I’d feel comfortable um riding a bike around here as I don’t cycle often so being out in
The countryside um I’d feel a lot more safe especially if we had Alie you know on the on the back we’d like to turn our hand to like growing our own vegetables maybe we even looked at beekeeping I think if we’re going to move to the country we’re going to try and immerse
Ourselves in Country Life completing novices but we’re going to give it a go I think we’re looking forward to that aren’t we maybe get some chickens maybe but there’s one essential element any house they see simply must have we are looking for the well Factor um barn conversions um tick box for me
As long as we get that wild factor I know it’s hard to quantify you get a wild Factor you get that feeling when you’re inside so that’s the the task in hand really something big and Spacious Nikki needs to be close to a train station to London but she and Dan are otherwise open-minded when it comes to location we’re meeting in their chosen County to dig deeper into what they’re after well Dan and Nikki are very warm welcome to Worcester share hopefully
This is going to be your new home but I’m interested to find out why you’ve picked this County because Nikki you brought up in Hampshire weren’t you and Dan in Wiltshire so what’s the appeal of westers well I mean I went to University here 10 years ago so I know the area and
The Villages outside of Wester I always remember them being lovely Villages but I think mainly it’s what you can get for your money here yes so that’s that’s a big factor in why we’re looking back in this way you got to young son Alfie how
Old is he now he’s just coming up to 7 months um yeah and I’m back at work now um and I’m really really lucky my work have allowed me to work from home for 4 days a week which is the main reason why we can leave London and move out to the
Countryside so dad knows it’s area quite well but Nikki do you feel Worcester is going to be home for you yeah yeah I think with the fact that I need to go into London one day a week I’ll get my fix from that and then it’ll be nice to
Come back and then have six days in the countryside with with the family so in your mind mind what does your new home look like well I mean we’ve come from a one bedroom flat really so spacious is the main thing for me at the moment
Spacious with a a nice sized Garden CU we haven’t had a garden for years and we’d love Alfie to grow up with a garden like we did um three to four bedrooms ideally I’d like an office space or somewhere quite quiet within the house and obviously things that you’re going
To be considering are you know what are the schools on your doorstep and also that commute back to London one day a week yeah ideally we want to be able to drive to train station sort of 10 15 minutes so you used to Modern and contemporary with your flat are you
Looking for the same with this next home or something completely different for me I’d like something quirky that you like character yes do you like practical yeah I mean I’ve changed a lot since becoming a mom so it’s kind of it’s more all about what out what would be nice for
Alfie so um yeah I just I’ll know when I when I see it how much we’ve got to spend uh$ 400 75,000 well we have sorted out some wonderful properties to show you so should we get started yeah sounds good with a maximum budget of £475,000 Dan and Nikki would like a
Characterful home that in their words has wow factor they need at least three bedrooms and a large garden and an office space for Nikki I shall have to commute to London one day a week they need to be within a 15-minute drive to a train station we’ve got some beautiful
Properties for them to see but they won’t find out the price of each one until they’ve had a guess at the end of the tour our third and final visit will be our Mystery House a property that offers plenty of room for the family to grow if they’re willing to think
Creatively for our first house we’re heading to the quiet rural Village of menth wood in the team Valley this quiet attractive Village is tucked away amongst the trees and live here sent us on the old chapel Hall which hosts local social events and meetings throughout the year from here it’s only a short
Drive to the nearby Village of cloud toop which has a useful local shop along with the butchers back at house number one though it’s time to see how our couple will react to my first offering what do you think yes it’s cute lots of character not as big as I’d imagined but
Lovely looking house initial Impressions yeah I like it do you like the driveway in the garden as you walk up yeah yeah oh yeah Garden’s well looked after isn’t it yeah yeah so shall we take a look yeah definitely although this house appears modern from the outside inside it retains some impressive character
Features from its 19th century past we’re going to start off with the sitting room which really sort of dominates the downstairs of the property lovely original beams aren’t they R throughout they incredible aren’t they are you beam people I know you’re not at the moment in your one bedroom
Flat but uh is that something that you would like oh most definitely yeah we love those features I think the ceiling’s quite low isn’t it the ceiling though do you think yeah but I think that adds sort of car to feels quite warm and cozy if you look at the beams
You know they’re quite whittled down aren’t they there’s markings in them so much history but in actual fact take your eyes away from that and you look around and it has quite a modern clean contemporary feel definitely doesn’t feel that age does it no which is what
We’re looking for a mix of both so oh could be a good start then it’s a nice size cozy good all right and it’s again it’s adjusting your head isn’t it to having a house yeah rather than a flat so this is just our first room let’s see
What we make of next door past that beautiful window seat so here is your kitchen big enough to have a large dining table in it yeah yeah fully fitted again if this is to your taste you wouldn’t need to change it cuz it looks relatively new to
Me nice Kitchen in my head I had a larger kitchen to be honest I know what we’re coming from but it just a picture slightly bigger kitchen this feels quite small to me does it yeah for me the kitchen’s a big enough size but the fittings aren’t to my taste you could
Change all of those couldn’t you exactly and the views outside as well compared to what we got now which is amazing yeah Dan have you seen enough in here yeah I think so my slightly less than large kitchen yeah might need to manage those expectations a little
Bit let’s head upstairs you lead the way thank you just off the kitchen lies a utility room with WC but that’s not all this floor has to offer there’s also a good siiz family room which would make an excellent playroom for Alfie unless Nikki takes it as her office upstairs there’s a family
Bathroom and three bedrooms including two well-proportioned characterful doubles and this impressive Master with exposed Timbers it’s a nice size isn’t it it’s a storage got a really good size wardrobe there however what I have spotted is a wall that I personally would put more wardrobes in because I
Think what the bedrooms if there’s anything the sizes are good but I don’t know about you I like lots of storage yeah we need it yeah with the two other bedrooms as well they’ve got wardrobe space yeah all right well we’ve still got the garden to show
You I’m not sure Dan and Nikki are entirely won over by the charms of this house yet but I’m hoping the outside will prove a definite hit to the rear there’s a surprisingly large plot with space for the chickens that Nick is after perfect size Garden for us isn’t
It that’s what we thinking we wanted low mainten just somewhere Alie can run around in you can practice your football skills with him need it keep you up here in the garden to give you some geography the nearest Village has two primary schools and there’s a really good secondary
School around here as well wow which again is something worth considering isn’t it for in the next s of 5 to 10 years most definitely yeah most definitely so we got to now try and put a price on our first property what do we think our first home is on the market
For um do you want to go first yeah I’ll say 430 okay uh I think slightly more 440 I’d say interesting £430 and then £440,000 well you’re both over the asking price I know your budget was up to sort of £475,000 this asking price is
£415,000 wow okay wow it’s a lot less is it yeah okay it’s food for for go and have another look good start yeah yeah good start and um I’ll find you when you’re ready thanks thank you it is a lovely start to our search here in
Musters year I’m not quite sure on the reactions I think they’re taking it all in you know when you’re so used to living in one environment and then suddenly having an opportunity to buy something completely different it can be overwhelming and I think we might be suffering from that
Today comfortably within budget this early 19th century period property comes with three bedrooms a good siiz kitchen and a family room that could be used as either an office or a playroom plus there’s a generous Garden the house itself is beautiful um you can tell that it’s a A really lovely
Family home so could you see this space being your office yeah it’s quiet enough and it’s further away from the lounge where you’ll probably be with Alfie me taking the room as an office is nice it’s got a nice uh view but I just feel like there wouldn’t be enough space for
Alfie I think in my head I was pitching a nice open plan kitchen dining room just free flooring rooms that Alfie could run through I mean once we take the office space out of this house then there wasn’t a play room left room it’s just the front room here it is a
Beautifully presented house but it hasn’t given me the while Factor the all important while Factor feel a bit bad dragging you back out into the rain but the good news is we’ve got more houses to show you so should we get going yeah yeah let’s go With a growing Trend towards living more sustainably and an increased awareness of farm animal welfare in the UK keeping chickens has become a popular Pastime for lovers of the countryside the number of so-called backyard Keepers has risen dramatically over the last decade with hundreds of thousands across Britain Today Stuart me runs a PO farm near steam Bridge with his brother the business was set up by his parents whose Back Garden hobby became their livelihood when they expanded the farm nearly 60 years ago to meet demand as Nikki and Dan are Keen to have their own chickens when they make rural
Wor to share their home we’ve sent them to meet Steward for some advice on how to get started how easy is it to keep chickens well if you’re doing it on a small scale I think it would be fairly easy we were doing it on a bigger scale
So we have more staff there’s a lot of tension to detail if you only got half a dozen chickens then it’s going to be relatively simple so how do we make sure we’re doing it to a high standard and make sure they’ve got happy life just treat them like they’re your own family
Uh in that way uh you you’re you’re going to get excellent results year in year out although ultimately the chicken Stewart rears will be sold for meat the welfare of his flocks is his top priority the farm is soil Association certified meaning they meet the highest standards for Animal Welfare avoiding
The use of antibiotics wherever possible once a fortnite the farm receives new chicks which are reared in a barn until they’re old enough for the field so how old are these chicks well these uh chicks are 7 days old we’ve got a little boy and would you recommend starting off
With chicks rather than straight off with pens yeah I I don’t see why not it would be a a lot of fun to start them incubated and watch the chicks hatch and to see them grow up uh and see what’s involved to when they get to Point lays
Uh so what advice can you give us for raising chips as long as they’ve got heat they got food they have water they have clean bedding you’ll know if they’re if they’re happy or or if they’re not happy if they’re too hot they’ll be on the outside of the box
You’ve put them in uh if they’re too cold they they’ll be huddled what would you feed chicks is it different to what you would feed chickens uh just a a good wholesome uh starter crumb because it’s easier for them to uh digest and once they’ve been on that for a week or two
Then you can uh progress to a grow a you can get that from your your local supplier as the chicks are prone to Predators they kept inside until they’re around 3 weeks old stew ethos means that he keeps his flock to a manageable size of around 200
Chickens which may sound like a large number but on a 5 acre plot of mixed terrain and fruit trees there’s plenty of space for them to roam what breeds of chicken have we got here then people might know them as a as a cotwell white uh but they have a
Technical name which sounds like a jumbo jet which is a ja Hub 757 so obviously we’re a bit concerned about Predators um what’s the best way to protect our chickens I would recommend that you you built yourself a nice small run and that way you’ll have
The least amount of problems uh we let them out at Sunrise and we put them in at Sunset but sometimes we do run into Mr Fox and he gets there before we do you mentioned getting them out in the morning and putting them back in at
Night how how do you do that if if you put them away too early by yourself it can take forever cuz they really don’t want to go in but if there’s two or three of you like there is now uh it’s a lot easier so if you’d like to give me a
Hand that would be great okay let’s go okay the quantity of eggs produced by a chicken differs depending on a rang of factors including the breed and age of a chicken and the time of year Dan if you go around the back of those and walk
Those towards us but on average a CP of half a dozen happy young hens should provide four to five eggs a day day which sounds the perfect starting point for a young family right and if you can come back every night at AIS 9 that’ be great well done before Nikki and Dan
Make plans to set up their own chicken C we’d better return to the business of finding them their perfect property in a bid to deliver the spacious family home they want we’re making our way to the Village of ab this quiet Village is popular with Walkers and home to a country pub with
Splendid views over the surrounding ing landscape there’s also a general shop and post office as well as a well-regarded primary school which could be useful for their own son in the future the area is also home to two churches including a Norman one built on Saxon foundations just a 5minute drive from
The Village Center property number two should go down well with Nikki who’s a fan of bomb conversions wow wow a bit lost for words I think uh yes this is what we’ve been looking for yeah definitely got the well factor from outside yes well the lovely thing is
You’ve got a village right on your doorstep we are part of it but in a way I’m going to say that we’re a hamlet within a village because you’ve got that very very long driveway to get here through all the countryside but at the end of that track is everything that
You’re going to need dayto day but again let’s let’s focus on the barn itself so first impressions are really strong aren’t they very good yeah very good well let’s see what we think of the inside the barn was converted around 2006 so has a modern feel to it without
Compromising on character the exterior has certainly made an impact on our couple let’s hope we can build on that as we head inside so let’s start the tour oh wow that’s always a good start if I hear a wow behind me I’m a happy girl but I can
See why cuz it’s impressive isn’t it yeah definitely really high ceiling much different to the last one yes you’ve got again the Contemporary feel here but you’ve also got the features yeah you’ve got one room behind us which they’re using as a study but again that
Could be a playroom you’ve got this it is sort of it has an open plan feel about it doesn’t it yeah a lot more free flow in this house you can already feel that I already feel a lot more relaxed do you yeah yeah walking into this room
Definitely yeah can definitely see us sat here cold winter or doors open in the summer with access outside to part of your garden but incredible views beyond beautiful beautiful but there’s still more to show you so let’s head through to the kitchen now I’m going to get you two to
Tell me about this kitchen sell it to me Dan much better I think yeah there’s a real sense of space here I don’t know if it is much different in size to the last one but you know it just feels bigger the table in the in the middle for me
It’s absolutely perfect in terms of the way the fittings and everything the size the way it’s laid out yeah I can’t fault it actually excellent you could even have a sofa they’ve got seating as it is it can take it can’t it yeah yeah quite
Like the idea of a sofa in a kitchen yeah glass in your hand someone else hopefully cooking for me this house currently has a total of three bedrooms two upstairs one is a comfortable double and the other a cozy but characterful single both of which are served by the family bathroom but
The main bedroom is back down on the ground floor at the opposite end of the corridor now with our barn conversion we have a bedroom with an on Suite downstairs ah well take your box already isn’t it Yep this is a cracking room isn’t it y h good wardrobe space yeah how about
Having a bedroom on the ground floor how do you feel about that it’s a bit unusual it’s not something I’ve done before I’m used to it because our house in Hampshire that I grew up in was upside down house yeah um so it wouldn’t it doesn’t phas me no big enough space
For you yeah yeah definitely I’m getting a much I’m not going to say a positive vibe because you were very positive about the first house it didn’t quite sit quite right for the two of you but I’m feeling this is more like a home just going to say that it reminds me of
Home it reminds me of my childhood home with the beans and stuff yeah and I just feel I don’t know just yeah really really good vibe about it it makes me feel really happy whereas the other house wasn’t so yeah I didn’t get this feeling the large garden to the rear of
The property is lawned and faces Northwest with views of the surrounding Countryside it’s an ideal space for the chickens and for Alfie to play plus there’s a raised vegetable patch that would allow them to get stuck into the good life now it’s time to turn our attention to the price
Tag so with a top budget of £475,000 I wonder how much our barn conversion could possibly cost you what are we thinking go a bit conservative and say 450 okay that’s interesting I was going to go for 460 so £450 £460,000 I think you’re going to be surprised and
Delighted at the same time because the asking price is £425,000 wow wow okay wow that’s good isn’t it yeah very happy with that now you know I guess you’d like to have another look on your own this time yeah please okay please do thank you £50,000 under budget this Barn
Conversion might have delivered on the wow factor Nikki and Dan were after it has three bedrooms a spacious family kitchen plus that all important study or playroom there’s also a generous Garden leading up to the house coming in we had a really really good impression of the
House really good feeling um and then that was just reinforced as soon as we walked into the house to be honest lovely High ceilings real perception of space complete contrast to the last one and then to look outside and see the views it’s just unbelievable I think the
Feeling of the house is a lot different to the first house uh because of how spacious it is the way that it’s laid out perfect for us as a small family initial Impressions uh wow how are we feeling yeah it’s got better and better and being under budget is fantastic
That’s I’m in Wester helping new parents Nikki and Dan from London find their dream family home on a budget of £475,000 thereafter a country property where they can bring up son Alfie and where Nikki can work from home coming up I’m getting mixed messages at our Mystery House this
Exactly what I was looking for this feels already like a a family home but you like this yeah I’m wor it might be too big and I take time out to soak up some more inspiring scenery I would guess there’s probably about between 3 and 4 million pants individual million
Yeah it’s our second day here in worcesters and I think this house hunting experience has been a real eyeopener for Nikki and Dan and indeed me when they said they were moving from a one-bedroom flat I thought they would want a big house but oh no they want
Large they want extra large so I’m hoping our mystery property today will have the dimensions that they’re after although they may need to be creative with the outside space yep it’s going to be a compromise Nikki what do you think we’ve got lined up to show you with our mystery I’m not
Sure but it’s got to be um something special for me to move away from house number two I think you really like that second propy didn’t you yeah I did for the last stop on our property Journey we’re heading to the Village of Linton not far from The mulvin Hills
Area of outstanding natural beauty The Village includes a local shop and post office a Charming Village Pub and importantly for the community a well-regarded primary school there’s also a nursery that could be handy if Dan and Nikki want to expand their child care options and our mystery
House is only a few minutes walk from The Village Center so our final property is our Mystery House right wow big well I like the wow always a good start it is be because we’ve worked out that you two love large properties don’t you definitely take the boxes on that one
Brilliant happy now it is the mystery you’re going to Hazard a guess as to why we’ve picked this as a property to show you the garden the garden compromise yeah you’re absolutely right this is your garden okay so that is the small compromise got to weigh it up so Dad
You’re looking pleased with yourself when you look at this house what about Nikki yeah it looks massive I’m excited to see what’s inside you’re not allowed to say it’s too big that’s the deal before we step inside is that all right yeah come on this gray two listed
Mystery property was once the main farmhouse in the area with our buyers unfazed by the size of the garden I can’t wait to see their reaction to what’s inside so come on in I think the one thing that probably grabs you both as you walk through
Through that big door is not only got a huge hallway but then you’ve got two reception rooms of a similar size I mean the space again when you come in it’s exactly what I was looking for this feels already like a family home you do
It yeah yeah we could have um Alfie in there as his playroom oh I like that you see while we’re in here we can hear him and see him lovely for you to have a bit of an area and for your son to have an
Area as well but you like this yeah yeah I’m not sure yeah um um Come on talk to me yeah I don’t want to say I’m word it might be too big well that’s a fair point it’s a very large property but we are looking to
Extend the Family so it would last us for years Super okay well let’s hope it’s not too big and see what we make of the rest I suspect the huge proportions of the Living Spaces may have overwhelmed Nikki but hopefully the character of The Next Room might reassure her
And then this is your family kitchen I keep using the word family now don’t I because it’s again ample size oh yes yeah it’s has definitely got the family feel I can imagine being in here baking with the kids yes they’ve got progressively better the kitchens I
Think this is the best so far for me yeah yeah yeah Nikki yeah I’m getting there now are you you getting excited yeah wonderful right well let’s keep going y also on the ground floor is a faity room as well as a good size study perfect for when Nick is working from
Home moving upstairs and mystry offering both s generous four large double bedrooms one with an impressive halfed ceiling with exposed beams and each one with its own on Suite but our next stop is the main bedroom and I’m Keen to hear what they think of the upstairs so far unbelievable
Amazing yes yes this is the masub it’s got a really good size on sweet bath and shower but in actual fact the one next door is even bigger yeah I like how the rooms are closen up they are close together and what you get with a mystery
House that we haven’t managed to achieve before is to have four bedrooms devoted to you and the family plus a room for you for the office and a separate room for the baby yeah fantastic yeah I like the fact that when we’ve got friends and family coming to stay I like that
Everybody’s got their own bathroom yeah that really excites me is this as your master bedroom or any of the others do we like it yes you know we would’ have to put our own stamp on the place obviously but there so much potential yeah I know you’re at home with the baby
But you can do it in small chunks if you’re good at painting you don’t need to pay for some to come in you could perhaps do it yourself course yeah yeah I’d sign up for that see there you go well if as if it would get done okay I’m
Going to leave that one there outside there’s a small courtyard Garden to the rear of the property and a separate garage out to the front the driveway area comes with the house and offers potential to extend to the front garden with a bit of thought and consideration on shared access for
The neighbor we’re Gathering our thoughts to start thinking about the price so you’ve seen the Mystery House you understand that the garden might need a little bit of work I wonder what price we’re now going to put on this property well we’ve gone over both times
But I don’t think we have that problem with this one no I’m going to say top end definitely so 475 okay yeah I was going to go a little bit over so 480 okay £475 £480,000 every property we’ve shown you has been under your budget by quite a lot in some
Cases this equally perhaps surprisingly is still under your budget wow asking price 465,000 wow you can afford it with a little bit left over which is always good isn’t it did not expect that did you no no I expected it to be over so our mystery property is also an
Affordable option for them coming in at £465,000 this gray two listed period Farmhouse has four bedrooms two reception rooms and a separate study for Nikki although the majority of the outside space is to the front of the house there is potential to extend the garden
Wow this is this is huge um not what I expected that we would be able to afford on our budget um so to to be 10,000 under uh is fantastic I think from the start of this process size has been something that I’ve really wanted Without Really
Knowing and then coming into this house you know is more than met my expectations on size you know mind boggles with what I can do here I’m a bit daunted by the size of the house it’s maybe the monthly running cost that I’m a bit dubious about for me this this
Is the one it’s hard to look past this house at the so there you have our Mystery House I’m wondering will you be rattling around in it as a family no I’ll be going to work on it will you good project yeah and our feel will be
Filling up most of the House of good stuff all the baby stuff absolutely everywhere well that’s it you’ve seen all of our properties now so I think you two need some time to collect your thoughts and then tell me what your next mve is going to be Okay although I’m no expert I am a FL fanatic so while I’m in the county I thought I’d pay a visit to a Worcester share Farm where I’ve heard it’s a very special time of year Charles Hudson’s family has been based at Wick manner Farm since 1760 and for the last last 20
Years they’ve been growing 18 Acres of flowers to produce 25,000 pints of flour confetti each year and I’ve timed my visit perfectly as the flowers are in full bloom well Charles I have to say you have the most incredible Farm here as far as the eye can see just feels and
Feels of this incredibly vibrant colors what are you actually growing here these are uh various different colors of annual Delphinium um we’re growing the flowers to harvest the petals to make confetti so when did you decide that you wanted to produce these gorgeous Petals For confetti on your farm I came up with
The idea one day as a result of there being a wedding in our local church on the road was a massive dirty paper confetti which I took in subliminally went back into the house and on the dining room table I had a bunch of flowers and some petel of Fallen onto
The table and I suddenly dawned on me that if I could make a confetti out of flower petals the Vicor wouldn’t be able to object because there’d be biodegradable and everybody could throw Petals in the churchard throw throw confetti in the church yards again that
Was the Eureka moment so is this a good time to pick all the flowers have come out in flour so from now on in it’s it’s frantic well I’m here to help there’s some buckets there should we start yeah it took 2 years of triing different flowers to find a variety with pet
That would retain their vibrant color and three-dimensional shape when dried Charles experimented in his garden and on an alotment before planting the first delphiniums here on the farm so what’s the secret picking good quality confetti well you want a mature flour and want to have been pollinated and then I
Literally just take them off yeah you pick them off and put them in the bucket so everything is done by hand yeah I mean there’s hardly any weeds anywhere but I’m guessing you want to keep the pesticides down well the interesting about the annual delphiniums is slugs
And stales don’t like it which is brilliant for the next crop so you grow a crop a week you get no slug problems so what we do is we change the field each year as into a Fresh Field obviously like with growing rotations of crops it produces Vigor in the ne in the
Next crop okay guesstimate how many plants do you think you have in these 188 I think we did try and work it out once I would guess there’s probably about between 3 and 4 million individual plant million yeah literally I haven’t even finished one plant yet I better get a move on haven’t
I following this display of color towards the end of June every year Charles and his team have a window of just 3 to four weeks to pick the petals before they Wilt they’re then left to dry out in a greenhouse for anywhere between a couple of days and a week
Before being sifted graded and packed over the centuries confetti has taken various forms from sugarcoated nuts rice or wheat to pieces of paper or even plaster but not only is flour confetti kinder to those on the receiving end it’s also sustainable and fully biodegradable I’ve selected my color
Scheme so do I now mix them up yep do they go around the world or is it mainly a British thing to have petals no I mean some people like to take a little bit of Wier to a foreign wedding if they’re flying abroad to get married
They just love the idea of having these wer chaetal a little bit of Home falling around them you are part of one of the biggest days of someone’s life ever does the responsibility rest on your shoulders comfortably it’s a luxury feeling yeah so we F like one of these
Bags do we fill to the top yeah absolutely look at that hey my brother-in-law is getting married I wonder would I be able to take some of your fine petals to his wedding well you could have about half that which is what you picked today half mind I should have
Tried a little bit harder shouldn’t I well this bag of goodness is going to make a bride and groom very happy indeed Good so a very positive end to our house search here in Worcester with Dan and Nikki but are they going to buy any of our houses let’s go and ask them well you two have had some time to think things through haven’t you defitely so out of the three properties that we’ve
Shown you have we got close with any of them I’m hoping we have definitely have yeah with um with two so property two the converted barn or two properties in total we have two properties oh come on then that’s good news um I I mean for
You it was probably number two wasn’t it um yeah followed closely by number three I feel that number two is ready for us to move in we wouldn’t feel lost in it just the two of us and and Alfie um but number three would mean that we wouldn’t
Need to move again because we do plan to have a bigger family with a third for me it’s just it’s got everything we need and you know we need to get in there and do some work but the structure and the building itself was just you know
Mindblowing for me as soon as I walked in I could tell and the other thing that I like is the the school just looks beautiful with big fields and I could just really see Alfie having a having a really nice time there yeah time is obviously of the essence and you want to
Move quickly so what will the next step be I think we’re ready to go we need to take some time and have a second viewing on on the mystery house for us but yeah we both love it so we really are heading towards it aren’t we yeah well all the
Very best to the three of you with this exciting move and um we want to find out how you get on so do let us know won’t you of course thank you both thank you thank you it seems the actual reality of making this move is really hitting home
For Dan and Nikki although the mystery house would be an ideal family property for many years getting a sense of trepidation from her it’s all too real hopefully with a time to think about the finer details and a second viewing of this gorgeous home our c will be moving
To Worcester very soon indeed we wish them all the very best and that’s it from me and I’ll see you again soon on escape to the country if you would like to escape to the country in England Scotland Wales [Applause] [Applause] the [Applause] e [Applause] [Applause] the