Escape To The Country

[BringMeTea]

I have often wondered why no thread about this show. Anyway. I am inordinately happy when Alistair Appleton is on. He is today. Getting to my point... I noticed they were all in stocking feet and think it's the first time I have seen this. Given the strength of feeling about shoes off on here I am surprised it doesn't happen more often. Alistair's socks were a fetching dark blue.

I love the show too, but the houses so expensive. I'd love to see folk moving from a 'normal' house to another 'normal' elsewhere. But there probably isn't a market for it.

Me too Millions! I think both equally watchable. I suppose they might have to tweak the title.

What channel? Is it on now?

I have to watch it on the I Player, property porn any time I need it.

I am always a bit WTF when a retired couple who have grown up children that have left home want to buy a mahoosive house in the remote countryside with acres of land.

I would be looking for a swish flat walking distance to all amenities and a lift. With no garden to maintain.

We always laugh at the city folk retiring and taking on acres of land to have a stress-free retirement (we have half an acre with a veg plot in rural France and in summer we call it the Gulag).
We especially liked the one this week where the wife appeared to want an orchard, a market garden and a chocolate factory. One of the properties would have needed a day a week on the ride-on mower for starters.
Oh and the ones who want a B and B or holiday cottage so they can spend their retirement cleaning toilets.

I love watching this too! But I would never dream of escaping to the country - I'm like you Sparkling

Emily I totally agree.

One lot wanted to run a cattery.

Those old country houses must cost a fortune to maintain, and they are so remote you wouldn't be able to get anywhere if it snowed. Really ideal when you are in your old age.

Or the ones where all of their children have left home & they want to downsize from a 3 bed to a 5 bed.

Saying that, my DAunt and uncle moved to the west Wales coast about 8-10 years ago. Great views but you have to drive up and down tiny winding roads to get to a shop/pub/beach, etc. They love it and have made a great life there

But if you move away from your DC, you need bedrooms for them when they come to stay

The driving in the car bits are funny. Alistair is driving, and they squidge the couple really close together into the back seats so they can get them all in the camera shot.

Another one here who loves the deluded souls who want to retire to a place with a large garden, chickens and a b&b on the side, for a slower pace of life. Or the young couple who still need to commute for work and think living in the country is going to be relaxing. But the ones I really want to shout at, both on ETTC and other property abroad programmes, is all the people who buy houses so that their guests can come and be comfortable. So for 50 weeks a year they live in a too big, too expensive house for the few weeks their family come to stay. They all expect to have loads of visitors, but they probably won't.

I always smile if Aled Jones or NickyPopidol are presenting. Well known for their knowledge of property buying and country living.

Yes, EmilyAlice that is the episode. I just watched with the divine Alistair's socks. Why oh why do they want a couple of acres in their retirement? One the other day was a couple 'downsizing' to a minimum 4-bed as their only child would be moving with them. She was 24!!

And Sparkling. I have seen some folks in the front seat, not many. If I was on with Alistair I would deffo ride shotgun.

My favourites are the ones who are shown houses with massive rooms, rooms that I could fit my entire house into, and then complain that they're "a bit small for our needs"

The front seat episodes are the new series. They show old repeats, old unshown and newer episodes all in the same run for some reason and on top of that it's showing fairly constantly on Really too

I'm a bit obsessed about how many episodes take the couple into the middle of a random field to film a bit to camera. Very odd.

Have you noticed that there's always some sheep or cow that wants to be famous wandering into shot? "Quick, it's the Escape crew, we're on!"

It would be more realistic to show pensioners moving from the country "Escape from the Country"

It's hard work living rurally. Why someone would want to "downsize" to a large old/inefficient house with several acres is beyond me. I suspect that often they'll like the idea of country living more than the reality.

I agree Malice.

I love it when they go to basket weaving workshops and learn how to milk goats or something. Random aspects of country life.

They always want to integrate into village life, and I often wonder if the villagers always want them. 'OOh it's that couple off ETTC wanting to befriend us-run away!!'

I love that they all want to keep chicken and goats and need 3 acres and with outbuildings for their "new business". For why, Elderly Housemover? You are a retired middle manager in a paper factory from Barnet and your wife is a part time medical secretary. Are you really going to do spend your twilight years 100 miles from your friends cheese making?

Oh and you need to play the "Nice" drinking game. You have to have a sip of tea and a bite of fruitcake every time the participants say "yes, it's nice" "it's nice""quite nice" "it's ok, nice". "I like it - quite nice"

Extra points for them rejecting the property because their Land Of Leather recliner corner sofa won't fit between the ancient beams and inglenook fireplace of the cottage.

Does anyone actually buy any of the houses?

Sparkling took - never.

Not like Location where the participants must be contractually bound to get Phil and Kirsty negotiating a binding contract.

ETTC is just a trip to Northamptonshire to look at Ye olde property porn with a crash course in whittling chair legs from English oak

Made. Bit like Wanted Down Under where they get a free jolly to Oz?