To be a bit fuming at Escape To The Country

[jamoncrumpets]

Yes, yes, I know I am watching tv in the day and should be out working or volunteering or something, but both kids are ill so we're all having a down day today.

Anyway, I'm fuming because the couple (male, female) are viewing houses and every single time they walk into a kitchen the presenter says 'Well, will this do for you Sharon?' and then when they get to the outside space, garage etc, he turns to the man and says 'What do you think then, Nigel?'

The woman has already said that she isn't much of a cook. He's not letting her off the hook, he is absolutely DESPERATE to sell her a big old kitchen so she fit more neatly into her gender role.

I've never seen this show before, is it always like this? AIBU to want to take the presenter to a female boxing club and have him pummelled for a few bouts?

The thing that gets me about Escape To The Country is that they get a couple in their 50s or 60s from the suburbs who have taken early retirement and show them four bedroom houses with two living rooms, a conservatory and an inglenook and an acre of garden that looks like a big mowing headache.

I know they might have children and grandchildren and friends to come to stay but for most of the year, they are going to be living there on their own. They are just going to go slowly mad and descend into alcoholic rows like Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf.

And what's with the en-suites that the women rave over? I don't want to hear and smell my husband having a shit in a macerator toilet.

I assume that programmes like this, Location(x3) and Grand Designs have been developed to work as the nation's daily Two Minute Hate. Normal people shout at otherwise blameless people about their insistance on trivial items in a house instead of getting angry at the government.

Did you see the LLL where it was a couple expecting DC1 looking for a house and the bloke was insisting on being no more than a few streets away from his mother? Kirsty practically staged an intervention, it was brilliant.

I would like an en suite myself as we all fight over our tiny bathroom, but i would also want an extractor fan fitted in the ceiling..

You should all have watched ' bad move' with Jack Dee - summed up country living perfectly - they both hated it!
i bet half of the relatives dont travel miles and miles to see them all either - too much money to get there and its probably dead boring for kids once they are past the ' oh, lets go blackberrying ' age groups.

Years ago when the programme first started the properties they showed were from all budgets including modest ones, they showed cute little cottages that were the average price for the area, I think as the years have rolled by it has become more elitist and just a place for people to show of their money or their pretend money, and why do the couples always pretty much currently live in a really dull 3 bed semi in the middle of dullsville, generally on the slip road of a motorway and under the main flight path and then have a budget of £950,000 and then moan about how small the houses are? Err your house is grim love you should be jumping for joy

‘They all want to set up a glamping site...’
or a llama farm!

We were contacted by Escape From The Country when we were attempting to sell ours. A so-called researcher asked me a load of questions which she should have researched herself. They then sent us a sort of third party liability form which made us liable if, say, a stupidly high-heeled, tight skirted presenter tripped on our steep garden steps. I refused to sign this and that was the end of that. I must admit, I didn't know anything about the programme before they contacted us. p.s. We'd still like to sell if anyone is interested in a move to the country. I'm glad we didn't bring children up here. The local primary and secondary schools are coming under tremendous criticism for their poor results. (Like many rural coastal towns).

My mum loves these shows but everytime i watch it is so frustrating, it ends with "roger and penny decided not to buy anyof the houses they were shown". It feels l8ke my time was even more wasted!

Hmm. I’m on the fence. If he’s genuinely assuming that Sharon cares about big kitchens purely becuase she’s a woman then YANBU. Although even people who hate cooking still need to do it sometimes and no one actually wants a dreadful poky kitchen.

But I watch this show all the time and it’s usually th man going on about wanting his man cave/space for his motorbikes/car renovation project and the woman drooling over the kitchen. Although sometimes they want a hobby space too.

And they usually ask who does the cooking in the family and direct all kitchen related questions to them.

I watched 8 episodes in a row of that Love it or List it with the ever-present Kirstie and Phil and noticed that every time they went out in the car, the man sat in the front and the woman in the back. Then wondered if I was being ridiculous to even think it was a thing and maybe it wasn't at all.

I agree with older people should think about being nearer to facilities, but young families should also think about the future. It’s great to move there with a couple of toddlers and a baby. Just think about when you have three teenagers who want to be out late and you have to pick them up.

Its always really wealthy people, not people with 100-200K to spend. the man will be something like a surgeon or a recently retired admiral from the Royal Navy.
Its an absolute joke and doesn't reflect the majority of people in this country.

Makes me laugh when they walk into a kitchen bigger than my whole downstairs area and they say it's bit small!!! Really weird idea for a programme imo; watching loaded people spend their money on a naice country pile! Snobby lot!

Chickens Maybe because the man's legs are longer. my DH is a foot taller than me so would be silly for him to scrunch up in the back.

I very rarely watch the whole programme as I invariably fall asleep. Sometimes there is a week in which they revisit peple who have bought. And sometimes they do say whether people have bought or not.
I agree that the programme with the Downs boy was lovely, but again, I didn’t see the whole of the programme.
Remainrevokerebuild I love your username

I’ve always thought the should do ‘Escape to the ghetto’ rich snobby couple who lost everything at the races have to downsize to a bedsit in a crime ridden area! We need a bit of balance in our lives. Not everyone has 1.1 mil to spend on a new house in the country (obviously could stretch to 2 mil if it had an annexe for granny 🙄)

linited

City living does have its advantages, they should do a ' escape FROM the country' ! for balance purposes.

I used to watch it occasionally in the U.K. what used to get me was when they would turn down house after house because they could hear a car in very far distance if they tried very very hard but then it would show them moving in with a Land Rover and two cars. So it’s ok for them to disturb others with their cars but woe betide anyone who dares to drive their car within 10 miles of their piece of paradise.

It’s quite annoying show, I can only bear about 10 mins of it whilst waiting for my DC to return from school. A couple of the male presenters are very snooty.

Mind you, they sometimes have some awkward folk to work with. There was one show I watched most of cos it was set locally. The couple were loaded and disliked a lovely house in favour of a sad over modernised space

brit wife - agreed, They fail to realise that you need cars in these places as public transport is a non starter and everyone needs to buy food and other stuff they cant grow themselves! i suppose they could have it delivered, but you still need to get away from the country pile for other things. hospitals for starters if they are getting on a bit.

" l have a she-shed."

Would that be a she-ed? :D

I just love the way that they have to mention the wood burner. Like that would be the deciding factor in a house choice. Just so easy to put one in yourself for comparatively little money when your budget is £1m

I do love property shows but I don’t understand this.....
Presenter: “So Steve and Jane, you have an absolute maximum budget of £500,000, can you guess the price of this property?”
Steve: “It’s got to be close to the top end of our budget, I’m going to say £495,000.”
Jane: “I’m going to say a bit less, I think £485,000.”
Presenter: “Steve your guess is the closest. It’s actually on the market for £580,000. How do you feel about that?”

Why do they show over the budget houses?????????? A budget is a budget!!!

The 'mystery house' makes me laugh as they are all a mystery to them at first as they haven't seen them before.
yes, the budget thing is a joke ' oh, you can barter them down' they say smugly, then discover that they cant/ oh dear.