'I remember standing on the hillside looking at our land and property, and thinking: "I can't believe this is ours. Read More, Sep 19, 2020   Dick and Angel, then and now. I stopped drinking during this period, as my main focus became getting the girls through what was going on between us.'. After a ski season in the Alps, the family headed towards the Loire Valley where, in May, they paid just over £250,000 for a seven-bedroom farmhouse set in six hectares of land. He confirmed her suspicions towards the end of that month. Escape to the Château DIY Just over a year ago we were contacted to take part in a television series about Brits renovating chateaux in France. Read More, Sep 1, 2020    Madame Mystery Fan Art. Read More, Sep 30, 2020   Claire’s Beautiful Portraits are Now Available. It was against this backdrop that Gillian found herself starting to drink increasingly heavily. Watch us chasing our French Dream on Channel 4. Escape to the Chateau: DIY. Yorkshire pensioner gives thoughts on Tier 3, Entire contentious 60 Minutes interview between Trump and Stahl, Moment murderer Craig Savage's 'fake pity party' gave him away, CCTV footage shows Joel Osei entering building of dancer he poisoned, Stephen Barclay warns a Covid Christmas won't be like normal, IN FULL: Nicola Sturgeon lays out her five Tier restrictions, Kay Burley presses Welsh Health Minister on 'trolley police' rules, 'Killer dad' records video apologizing to kids after shooting wife. Some like it hot! She stayed at the centre for four weeks. 'To outsiders, it would have looked as though I was living this gilded existence having escaped the rat race, but I'd never felt so full of despair in my life.'. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. It is narrated by Dick Strawbridge who, along with his wife Angel Adoree, provides help and advice to some of these owners. By January last year, Gillian suspected her husband was having an affair. 'Whether or not I would have ended up in a psychiatric ward, and whether my marriage would have failed if we'd stayed in England, is a question I ask myself all the time. Once a dark and somewhat dingy property in southern France now transformed into a bright, light and very comfortable home available for holiday rental. 'Generally, Robert would stay with his mistress overnight, returning home to shower and to tinker in the garden, then he'd be back to hers by the time she finished work. Read More, Sep 22, 2020   Cost of an overnight and a wedding at Motte Husson. For the first few months at least, Gillian had little reason to look back to the UK with any sense of nostalgia. Read More, Sep 11, 2020   Cadeaux at the Chateau de Lalande. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are as essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. Read More Oct 10, 2020 A wee puppy with a kilt at Chateau de Lalande. I drank an entire bottle myself. By the time the B&B opened in 2005, Gillian was drinking on a daily basis. 'We were sick of everything about life in the UK, and I hated watching Robert become increasingly burned out by the pressure of running the business. When the girls were at school and Robert was out tinkering on the tractor living off our life savings, I often sat in the farmhouse, crying. 'I remember looking at all the other patients, drugged up to their eyeballs on anti-depressants, and wondering how I'd ended up in such a place,' says Gillian. The renovation process took over three years to complete and involved the learning new skills so as to effectively work with and use local materials. It was spawned from the associated series Escape to the Chateau We'd planned to put in 20 caravans and room for 20 tents, and it represented a large chunk of the income we'd expected to earn. 'The house was like something from a postcard, with a wonderful long driveway lined by pine trees, chickens running around everywhere and even a stream through the garden. All views expressed on this site are my own and do not represent the opinions of any entity whatsoever with which I have been, am now, or will be affiliated. By moving to France and renovating their chateau, Dick & Angel have discovered that the French are not as interested in their old castles as we are. Modern taxidermist reveals his VERY bizarre 'Animalgamations' including a mouse and... Eyebrow lamentation! 'I called the clinic, and I packed my bags and went the next day, leaving the girls with Robert.'. The aim is to respect where possible the crumbling beauty of this once impressive and dominant building. So in 2003, they sold their property in East Sussex, and the computer business in Brighton that they had spent over a decade building up, and set off to France in a camper van. Read More, Sep 18, 2020   Escape to the “OTHER” Chateau de Chambiers. 'I have come to understand through rehab that I most likely was born with a propensity towards alcoholism, although that may never have come to light had I not faced the pressures I did in France. Soon, he was meeting his friends for aperitifs at the local cafe every day, as though he'd been living in the area for years. I remember one occasion I made a phone call to try to get car insurance. My chateau of broken dreams - How my escape to the sun destroyed my marriage and drove me to drink . Read More, Sep 16, 2020   Wonderful Wednesday at Motte Husson New Products! She was drunk day and night, and in October 2006 was admitted to a psychiatric ward to be treated for depression for two weeks, having taken an overdose of paracetamol. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. I always aim to create an ambience of comfort and ease, although I’m certainly not impartial to a touch of glam! Things were very strained between Robert and me  -  he had taken to spending more time than ever with his male friends and not coming home until 3am. The process for me is a spontaneous one, drawn from the particular mood, style, and setting of each individual property and its owners. With selling our property and business, we felt very well-off. 'I felt as though I was experiencing a living torture, and as though he was slapping me in the face with his infidelity every day. Read More, Sep, 2020   The Chateau Art Gallery is Open! The aim is to respect where possible the crumbling beauty of this once impressive and dominant building. # television # renovation # chateau # channel4 # challenge # france # interior # interiordesign # historic He didn't understand the urgency, but I didn't feel we could afford for him to swan around.'. Over the following weeks, despite the anti-depressants, Gillian's mood continued to worsen. Escape to the Chateau DIY is a Channel 4 documentary series which follows the stories of various British families that are renovating châteaux in France, or looking at ones to purchase. 'I confided in my mother, who said to me: "There is something wrong with you and you need help." Like so many of us, they dreamed of trading a cramped home and long working hours for a rambling farmhouse and a relaxed lifestyle. Happy to undertake a range of commissions smaller scale more advisory roles, through to larger and more involved projects of refurbishment and redecoration. By the start of 2006, Gillian was drinking up to two bottles of wine a day, and tension between her and her husband escalated with his ongoing reluctance to get a job. In particular, I had to face the reality that I'd been a terrible mother. The information provided by S&L LaCount Entreprises (“we,” “us” or “our”) on http://www.chateauxescapesfrance.com (the “Site”) and our mobile application is for general informational purposes only. Town branded 'chic capital of the North' by Tatler is fast becoming a society hotspot... Is THIS the first look at the John Lewis Christmas advert? Read More, Sep 17, 2020   Escape to the Chateau Series 1-6 Box Set! I felt he'd let me down at the time I needed him most. Language barrier: Gillian Coleman found paperwork virtually impossible to deal with. Added to Watchlist. Read More Oct 15, 2020 Inside Dick and Angel Strawbridge’s castle from Escape to the Chateau. She is hoping to open an internet cafe. Read More, Sep 20, 2020   Shopping for antiques with Billy from Chateau de la Basmaignee. Mother is left terrified after posing for a selfie and spotting a mysterious reflection in her sunglasses -... Would YOU recognise coercive control? 'I remember the day we set off as though it were yesterday. This is an on-going project to bring life back to a once forgotten chateau in the north of France. When Gillian Coleman and her husband Robert first considered moving to France with their two daughters, then aged seven and eight, they were simply motivated by a desire for a better life. She says: 'The girls loved their new school and picked up the language in weeks. It felt idyllic  -  my husband and I, the two girls and our labrador dog squashed into a camper van on our way to start a new life. 'With hindsight, I can see I was drinking to ease the stress and make myself feel better, but at the time it didn't even cross my mind I was drinking too much, or using alcohol as a crutch. Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group, PrettyLittleThing - Offers on women's clothing, Get inspired by the newest styles and offers, Click through for ASOS promo codes this Autumn, Spend less with Missguided's exclusive codes, Treat yourself to offers on make-up and accessories, Check out the latest Wayfair sale to save on furniture, Former Chancellor George Osborne on PM's pandemic approach, Nicola Sturgeon brands Santa a key worker at daily press conference, Breathtaking moment daring diver jumps off 35-metre-high cliff, Hit-and-run driver causes fatal four-car accident killing one person, 'I don't give a sod!' But in January this year, while driving home from the local town, a drunken Gillian skidded on the icy road and crashed into a ditch. Not surprisingly, given all she has been through, Gillian can't help but reflect whether, had she not moved to France, she would not only still be married, but would never have become an alcoholic. 'I knew I was drinking too much  -  on more than one occasion I had no memory of cooking dinner,' says Gillian. 'But without being able to speak French, I found even the most basic of tasks extremely difficult. YOUR USE OF THE SITE AND OUR MOBILE APPLICATION AND YOUR RELIANCE ON ANY INFORMATION ON THE SITE AND OUR MOBILE APPLICATION IS SOLELY AT YOUR OWN RISK. Required fields are marked *. Things got worse after returning to England for Christmas. Read More, Oct 1, 2020    A Night in with Dick and Angel Strawbridge. But France has a very male-orientated culture, and now he was hanging around in a big group of blokes behaving like a different person. ... Nicole and Stephan make a drastic decision. When I got back to France, I hated being away from my friends and family and sought even more solace in alcohol.'. 'I couldn't understand why, when we were supposed to be living this fantastic lifestyle, everything felt so horribly wrong. Last week, it was revealed that the number of Britons leaving the country each year to live abroad has reached 200,000 for the first time, with more than a quarter of those moving to France or Spain. And Robert, who is fluent in French, immediately began to have the time of his life, overseeing the builders and making friends with locals. Château de Lucheux as seen on Escape to the Château DIY Picardie, As seen on Channel 4’s Escape to the Château DIY Series 2, Click to View Channel 4 Episode Guide to Escape to the Chateau DIY Series 1-3, *Information derived from https://en.wikipedia.org/, Click for View MANY more Chateau Wedding, Special Event, and Accommodation Choices in Picardie, Your email address will not be published. Read More, Sep 25, 2020   Brenda is live at Chateau de Lalalande. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. ', Since being back in France Gillian hasn't touched alcohol. We'd been burgled twice in the year before we sold up, and we'd just had enough. Nicole and Stefan continue their renovation of their historic chateau in Lucheux.