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Well that's impressive.
Snatched success from the quagmire of OCD.
And it's stunning.
(Although they won't say, I bet they're £500k over)
Well that was one of the best GDs ever for me. I thought they were a pair of lunatics at the start but they grew on me and I love the house when I had expected to hate it. You have to give him respect for the monumental achievement. Christ knows how much it cost in the end though.
I hadn't anticipated that he was Thunderlips: the ultimate man, who can turn his hand to particularly difficult plastering, joinery and electrical work and do it to a high standard in his spare time Silly me
It’s a very nice hole in the ground. I’m not sure I could live without more of a changing view out of most of the windows.
But it’s impressive.
No mention of the tech behind the house; I wonder what the heating system is? Hopefully not just a dirty big gas boiler…
Monumental effort, commitment and skill. Credit to him and them. Bet it’s 500k over, but truly stunning. Great result.
Impressive, but horrible.. But I couldn't live there.
I suspect he must be a nightmare to work for
It’s a very nice hole in the ground. I’m not sure I could live without more of a changing view out of most of the windows.
But it’s impressive.
No mention of the tech behind the house; I wonder what the heating system is? Hopefully not just a dirty big gas boiler…
Ground source heat pump possibly based upon a brief section when he was unravelling the black pipework with 2 other guys. Certainly had the space available and I think it was a horizontal system, not vertical. Looked like a mvhr system in place too judging by the ductwork shown on the ceiling before it was boarded over.
I'll echo davosaurusrex, I really enjoyed it. The guy seemed quite cold to begin with but when they showed the family moving in and his kids were hugging him, he very much showed his warmer side.
when they showed the family moving in and his kids were hugging him, he very much showed his warmer side.
For me, he showed his 'really awkward at giving hugs' side 😄
House was nice. I didn't like their attitude that all trades are incompetent. The builder's right to reply piece was interesting.
The builder’s right to reply piece was interesting.
Indeed. It suggested that the client had directly said 'no', causing the roof covering issue (and others?).
Good episode but didn’t like the end result much. Which is unusual, most houses end up with some kind of wow even if grudgingly. That one I just kept thinking what they could have had with £1m+. Something with more going for it than that hole in the ground.
Wonder how much ch4 pays folk to be in programme. Surely something to compel folk to share on TV.
Not that it would go far in compensating for some of his poor and expensive decisions. Glad the contractor got right of reply.
We will never know the truth re the original membrane, it certainly didn’t look good, but I respected the builders point. Either way, as capable as the owner is, I don’t believe he did it all himself. As said before, finishing the electrics was extreme in such a big project. He must be almost impossible to work for.
Wonder how much ch4 pays folk to be in programme. Surely something to compel folk to share on TV.
They didn't used to when I was selling kit to a few.
We as a company even got so fed up of GD builders phoning up and a) demanding huge discounts so we could be on the telly and b) because they choose nutters to make good telly, they were usually a risky total nightmare to work with, that we all but instigated 'no' to any GD...
Bless her, she was still sticking to her guns until we asked her to imagine rolling over one morning and coming face to face with my dad laying cable about 15ft away.
🤣
My wife is asking me why I’m laughing so much. I suspect there will be eye rolling.
Actually I didn't like it!
If I was paying that much money to live in the countryside then I'd actually like to see it rather that live in a hole with just one window to look over the grass [that was too high].
I wonder how long it took for the car lift to break so that they were stranded?
Whilst I was impressed with his skill and commitment I couldn’t warm to him.
The house was pretty cool in a retro sci-fi sort of way in a future where everything is perfect... a bit like Logan’s Run.
I thought the finished building had huge wow! Factor, although I've no idea what it's like to live in. The guy's OCD was the driver for the cost and schedule overrun and nearly broke them I thought. They did well to survive. I'm pretty sure there was a magic money tree and a magic helper team and lots of other stuff were weren't shown, but.... Wow.
I agree with sharkbait, I didn't like it. Although I'm sure the garage lift would get its own bullet point if it's ever put on Rightmove.
The outdoor seating was very much sitting in a shady concrete ditch
The low profile though would get you Kudos from the neighbours I suppose
I've just found it on Google maps if anyone's interested:
https://www.google.com/maps/ @51.2771185,1.0358277,236m/data=!3m1!1e3
As others have said, a complete nightmare to work with/for - completely unrealistic expectations of quality for the trades he'd employed/money he was paying, seemingly wanting Rolls Royce finish for Ford money.
Given that, I quite liked the result. it did seem well finished but I doubt the extra quality will ever be realised in a sale.
one thing I couldn't get over, given his OCD, was the square window in the oval hole. It looked absolutely shocking from the outside. Surely it was designed for a custom shaped window?
Wonder how much ch4 pays folk to be in programme. Surely something to compel folk to share on TV.
Sweet FA, and having spoken to someone who's been on it also adds a level of extra stress and complexity to the process. Having a film crew on site is disruptive (with some re-shoots - 'can you do that again') and you also end up with a deadline if they want to show the finish house (which is why you fairly often end up with, as someone mentions above, some turf badly thrown about to make the garden look less like a building site).
I always ponder the motivation of the people who are on there - if they're an architect then it's clearly got potential to be good exposure (and I'd guess maybe it's the architects that suggest/persuade some of the others) but for a lot it's a bit of a puzzle
For all his obsessive attention to detail i could see plenty of things that were not 100% at the end of the program, the plastering of the ceilings was all over the place and the curved looped terracing was all wonky and you could see where the shuttering for the pour was done in curved stages with a variable radius and straight bits, i bet there’s more little annoyances that the camera doesn’t show.
I had a wow factor but the place left me cold, not sure why but i have seen more impressive places that cost a lot less, i would imagine the cost of unnecessary digging down ate up a lot of money which could have built a stunning above ground dwelling.
Imagine having to work with him? i bet he gets off the ship and gives all the ropes a tug as he doesn’t trust anyone to do the job properly.
What I couldn’t fathom (hehe) was why they went with a design that someone else had commissioned. All that obsession over executing someone else’s ideas! For the money they could have had their own dream house designed.
Agree with Mr Smith I thought I saw poor, or at least not outstanding, finishing at the end. I commented to my wife that his of OCD had gone into'quality' where it wouldn't show and probably wouldn't make any functional difference and although he had the skills for that, when it comes to visible quality of the finish could be match the pro trades people or would his inability to step away leave him with a poorer final finish?
I’ve just found it on Google maps if anyone’s interested:
https://www.google.com/maps/ @51.2771185,1.0358277,236m/data=!3m1!1e3
looks like a giant lady garden from above!
As others have said, a complete nightmare to work with/for – completely unrealistic expectations of quality for the trades he’d employed/money he was paying, seemingly wanting Rolls Royce finish for Ford money.
He had a very condescending manner about him, especially when he was with the guy on the roof nailing down the strip.
His job appeared to be him overseeing installation of equipment that is built to a high tolerance in a factory.
I bet everything on that site was within building tolerances, just seemed he was looking for mm tolerance rather than what is actually achievable. Had a chippy like him who moaned our 10 ton steel structure was 3mm out of tolerance on a job. Wasn't best pleased when the grownups told him to STFU and get on with it after he had tried to complain higher up about it. BTW erected steel tolerance is generally +-10mm
What I couldn’t fathom (hehe) was why they went with a design that someone else had commissioned. All that obsession over executing someone else’s ideas! For the money they could have had their own dream house designed.
I would guess the land was sold with planning permission for the design built. Obviously, he could get a new design and re-submit for planning but that would take months. I assume they thought the design was ok so went with it.
There's a couple of plots near me at the moment, both with planning permission for designs I wouldn't build!
The building looked cool at the end, but i wouldn't want to live there.
Like others i wondered on the finishing of the roof, would be annoyed if a plasterer left that at my house.
I think he was a royal pain in the arse and surprised no one lamped him during the build. His wife must be either mental or have the patience of a saint
Fair play the guy wanted it done his way and stuck to it !! I mean it was his money 🤷♂️
If Hambini built a house…
I thought the house was amazing but living in a hole in the ground has too many disadvantages for me. Primarily the lack of a view.
The interior level of the living area was significantly below the only outwards facing window they had. When you sit at the dining table all you see is the sky. The guy must've been a nightmare to work for but, fair play to him, he was able to turn his hand to absolutely everything. Quite admirable.
Looking at the google maps link I don't know why they didn't just build a more conventional house on the hill rather than in it.
Looking at the google maps link I don’t know why they didn’t just build a more conventional house on the hill rather than in it.
plannign permission was only granted for something in the ground, rather than on the ground - the house next door looks much nicer.
grahamt1980
His wife must be either mental or have the patience of a saint
She seemed a less enthusiastic at the start of the programme but was as bad as he was by the end - #stockholmsyndrome
I didn’t really believe the planning restriction. Ok, that is the plan that land was sold with, but we don’t know which nimby sold the land. Looking at Google maps I reckon it was the one behind with the South facing gable end with a gap in the trees for their view.
It was supposedly to retain the levels of the hill fort that was on the site
Not for me I can't see how they have got away with trashing an Iron age hill fort.
Wasn't the hill fort dug up when it was a quarry? That's why it was just sand there were digging into. But I may have mis-heard.
Yes, already dug up and full of sand. There are quite few houses along that edge of the hill. Presumably if the site was intact enough to be of much value then there would be no building allowed at all.
I’ve just watched the second one, I love the idea of building a house. I’ll never do it, but if I do it’ll be a few modules that get bolted together on site.
I think that’s the smoothest GD I’ve ever watched and I really liked the end result 😎
So, most cost effective way to the house they want is to flatten a £800k house🤣
Can't see £550k building that either when they were quite double 🤣
Might be nice..
Well this series has given me confidence that brexit hasn't scared off foreign trades👍👍👍👍
They always seem surprised when it goes well over time and over budget. Have they never watched the show before?
Literally put next door in the shade.
I have given up on it - it's just badly organised people , with lots of money, grandstanding. And preparing the pro folio for when they sell.
It stop being interesting when it is all about big budgets
I would love to know how a relatively young couple found £1.5m without a mortgage to buy the plot and then fund the build.
I always ponder the motivation of the people who are on there – if they’re an architect then it’s clearly got potential to be good exposure (and I’d guess maybe it’s the architects that suggest/persuade some of the others) but for a lot it’s a bit of a puzzle
Having watched a presentation from someone on who appeared on the show then you dont want to be chosen. It means the programme makers think it will make good tv which means a horrible build or massive overspends.
Asfor the architect angle the programme usually makes them look useless. If you believe the programme most of them must be incapable of designing a house that can be built,let alone within the clients budget. It makes me wonder why it takes 7 years to train
Asfor the architect angle the programme usually makes them look useless.
There are few that know how to build safely and cost effectively from my experiences in the late noughties.
Speeder
Full Member
grahamt1980
His wife must be either mental or have the patience of a saintShe seemed a less enthusiastic at the start of the programme but was as bad as he was by the end – #stockholmsyndrome
She made quite a sharp comment about 3/4s of the way through about him getting back to his proper work. It made me wonder whether he'd taken time out voluntarily to build his house, or whether there was another reason. (Sacked, made redundant, breakdown, etc) If that, saying that he was building his house would be a good excuse, and also account for some of the other oddities about this build, like the lack of detail, guardedness on camera. Of course, I might be thinking far too much into it. 😀
What's going on with Kevins hair ?
I counted Kevin wearing four jackets at the same time in last night's episode.
He usually wears two, occasionally three, but four is a new record.
That was one of the ugliest houses I've seen in quite sometime, nice details in isolation but an incoherent mess. The bit where she started welling up because they had to drive by the site a few times on the way home, paint the odd room and hang some pictures had me on the verge of shouting at the TV, absolutely clueless.
Episode 1 - Something seriously dodgy going on with Latvian glass, that made no sense at all, I just don't trust him.
Episode 2 (modular build) has been, by quite some distance, the best of this series. Its up there with my top 5 of all time. Nice couple. Sensible budget, realistic build, interesting process, it obviously meant so much to them. There were aspects of the house I didn't like but the world would be a boring place if we all liked the same things.
Episode 3 - Truly awful man builds truly awful house, made out he was a perfectionist but he sounds like a nightmare to work for and probably ended up doing it himself trades just refused to work for him. He spent so much money, there are some beautiful houses for sale within 10 miles of his build for a lot less money.
Episode 4 - They got what they wanted, a lot of their time and cost costs were due to COVID so skews things slightly. House was all over the place, on a standalone site fair enough but on a street like that it just jarred. Finance is nuts though, cost of build and site could have got them a very nice house in the area.
Is this a new jacket record? I'm sure that's 5 layers he's wearing...
I like the design
I love the parents. WTF would we want to move here? 🤣
That house is massive. Just ridiculous for what will be 2 of them v soon
I love the parents. WTF would we want to move here?
Did they not say that some of the planning decision was based on intergenerational occupation. And it explains why his parents had a room, but her mum a full wing with kitchen, lounge etc
Sad news of his dad and mum.
looks like a visitor centre.
We thought sub-visitor centre, more outward bounds centre. It just needs some feral teenagers from Wythenshawe smoking weed outside
I guarantee that both granny’s will have started a proxy war with each other within a week that will make everyone’s else’s life hell
Commercial unit to let....
Inside's alright though
wife said its more like a respite care home...
Oh boy...that looks horrible. Why is it clad with salmon pink corrugated steel. Yuck.
Pretty sad that his dad died before it was finished. The elderly mother is somewhat rude too.
Ugly house - looks like a commercial building - rather than a home. They seem a very self-satisfied couple.
Commercial unit to let….
Inside’s alright though
^ that.
(And that was hilarious when Kevin realised that the sheep are pets, not products...)
Outside was a bit challenging and not too welcoming. Too much wriggly tin cladding. Some nice timber or stone cladding would have softened the overall look.
I reckon that within a couple of years the exterior won’t look too different to the barn/cowshed it replaced
Looks like those accountancy offices you see on industrial units.
The elderly mother is somewhat rude too.
Blunt northerner, having no truck with softy southerner! I thought she was great, zero ***** given about Kevin. 🤣
And nice to see the daughter being glad to be home with her family and no longer in That London - a proper multi-generation home.
I quite liked the sheet-metal finish too - pretty much weather resistant, no upkeep or treatments required in the future, and almost zero running costs. I’d rather have that than the bland identikit little boxes that are being built literally in their thousands on green-field sites very close to me; very soon Corsham and Lacock with just be extensions of Chippenham! 😖
Makes me spit feathers when the "architectural merit" card is played, basically if you've got a shit tonne of money you can, in the words of our King, "build a carbuncle in the countryside" whereas genuine small holders wouldn't be able to get planning to build a real (as in not ****ing huge) eco house to support their low impact lifestyle grrrrr. Also recon the multi generational living card must have been played at planning stage - moving the older generation to the countryside where they have no connections and will need lifts or taxis (in that location ha ha) to get anywhere is not insightful and is usually better done in built up areas with only relatively minor adaptions done to a normal house.
Yup, wasn’t hugely convinced that it had architectural merit, as the roof was the only unusual feature and despite claims that it matched the contours, looked more like the fuselage of a F-117 nighthawk. Perhaps when the vertical element and the walkway is added to the first floor, it won’t look like “ accountancy offices you see on industrial units” as so aptly noted above. Can’t help but think they’ll soon be down to 3 rattling around in 5k sq ft with two full size dining tables.
I reckon that within a couple of years the exterior won’t look too different to the barn/cowshed it replaced
Yeah, tuned in halfway through, looked at the exterior, first word that came to mind was 'barn'.
All this show does is highlight the important bits of life you are missing while you are ****ing around with a ridiculous self-indulgent self-build. Your kids are in a shit rental, you never see them, you're not around to support your parents through bereavement and illness while you shovel cash at a minimalist cowshed in a puddle.
Didn't make it to the end - did the poor mum live long enough to be moved in?
Looked like an office as someone said up there, then i decided it felt more like a hospice. Truly wonder why people like this sort of design. Also, oddly specific build for particular needs. Guess that's ok if you accept it has a use for a short term period then you are left with something hardly anyone would want to buy nor work on when something goes wrong.
Imagine the roofing bills when something needs done.
Another very indulgent, oversized and over budget house.
It wasn't even interesting ...
Blunt northerner, having no truck with softy southerner! I thought she was great, zero ***** given about Kevin. 🤣
She had a Brummie accent - lived in Stratford and I am from Birmingham and still not quite that rude.
I was confused by the artisan bespoke roof vs the bargain basement crappy corrugated cladding. Was the roof a part of the planning condition to make it a suitably meritorious bit of architecture? They also seemed surprised by the size of the thing and could've probably lost 25% off the volume, saved a packet of cash and still been more than adequate for their needs.
Intergenerational wing will be an Airbnb rental soon enough.
I also wonder if the intergenerational aspect was code for accessing parents capital to help fund the build.
End result was pretty awful, the roof shape had promise, but the sheer size of it and the baby-poo brown cladding killed it for me.
The larger the build the more the owners yak on trying to justify the purpose as being something more than just a fancy ego fulfilling house - I get the multi-generational need, but not sure how that justifies a 9m high ceiling with a 20ft chandelier.
As someone else has already said, getting round permission based on something as subjective as Section 79/Architectural merit is a slap in the face for everyone else. If you can afford the most expensive architect and the most expensive build then you can beat the system…...so totally apt for the current political climate then.
How on earth that got planning permission on the grounds of exceptional architectural merit is a mystery to me. It was huge and, as others have said, looked more like a small business park than a home.
Clearly daughter is eithe unemployed / starting a new job / or has very understanding employers to WFH and not going to the office very often as it would be a right PITA from there to get to the train station every time. I did laugh out loud when the parents said they saw no merit in moving in, especially given the way it was designed, and no doubt sold to the planners.
a 9m high ceiling
I think this is close to the height of my whole 2-storey house, and we don't have low ceilings. How do people keep ceilings clear of cobwebs when they are this high? How do they heat their houses? Though, I'll bet my kids could still get food up there!
I would love to know how a relatively young couple found £1.5m without a mortgage to buy the plot and then fund the build.
In my experience (friend was a Est Agent in Richmond for years), … daddy
Couple on scooter looking for £800k flat in Richmond. Nothing on books. We have this for £1.2 though. Next weekend yes sure we can up our budget to that now. Daddy bunged us more…
Idle Jon, you think they will clean their own house? We are the only people I know who cleans our own house. Fact