A couple who transformed a Grade II listed 16th century cottage into a modern home for their family-of-five were delighted with the finished results, but viewers of George Clarke's Old House, New Home were not so enthused by the renovations after last night's episode.
George Clarke visited Tim and Emily, from the Cotswolds, for the Channel 4 show, to discuss renovating the five-bedroom cottage they had bought for £415,000.
The couple were determined to give the outdated home a complete overhaul and restoration for £100,000, but struggled after two ceilings collapsed and they were forced to plaster every wall in the home, pushing them over budget by £65,000.
But while Tim and Emily were ultimately overjoyed with their renovation at the end of the project, viewers were left unimpressed, with some questioning why the house didn't even include a television, and pointing out Tim could barely stand up straight in the 'tiny' home.
Another wrote: 'Cotswold house is lovely but it's not big enough for that family, the husband can't even stand up straight in the sitting room...and where's the TV?'
Tim and Emily, from the Cotswolds, bought the Grade II listed property for £415,000 and budgeted £100,000 to transform the house into a modern family home fit for 20th century living. But viewers slammed their conversion efforts on George Clarke's Old House, New Home last night, and pointed out the lack of TV was impractical for a modern family-of-five
The couple are amazed by the renovation of the main room, with Emily admitting she finds it 'so calming and beautiful'
One commented: 'The Cotswolds house was lovely for a couple but with three small kids, tiny lounge, no TV (again) and of course, the budget always expands, even though they said at the beginning they've run out...'
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ShareTim, who works in the military, and his wife Emily said they fell in love with the home as soon as they saw it, revealing: 'We walked in and just fell in love with it, beautiful old crumbling house that we could just about afford.'
Meanwhile Emily said: 'It doesn't feel claustrophobic, which sometimes they can do.'
Emily was left speechless as she stepped into her home, with the first 'parlour' transformed into a cosy snug
And the kitchen is transformed after the couple raise the ceiling of the room and add a new skylight
The couple, who have three children, have moved every two years because of Tim's job in the military.
But they wanted to lay down their roots, and bought the stunning cottage to be their 'forever' home.
And the couple, who have never done a conversion before, were initially feeling ambitious about what they could achieve on their own.
Tim revealed: 'We plan to do as much as we can physically do ourselves within our own limitations.'
The couple suggested the property hadn't ticked any of their boxes, but they'd fallen in love with it as soon as they'd seen it
The couple said the house didn't tick any of their boxes, with the wooden beams being something they actually didn't want in their home
To the back of the property is a kitchen extension, joined to the house with a boot room, while there's also a small parlour at the front of the home.
Emily admitted: 'A house with beams was actually one of the things that we didn't want. I really liked 1930s houses but we just fell in love with it.'
The couple joked that Tim kept bumping his head on the low-hanging central beam in the sitting room, adding: 'We had a whole list of things we wanted and this ticked none of them.'
George chuckled, saying: 'That's brilliant. This literally doesn't tick a single box. What a stunning place to live.'
The main room in the Cotswolds property was dark and dingy ahead of the conversion, and needed a complete overhaul
The couple wanted to transform the 16th century cottage into a modern and livable family home for their three children> Pictured the attic space before the restoration
And a determined Tim continued: 'It will be an amazing house, I have faith.'
The couple showed George the back of the property, revealing a mismatched kitchen which is grey on one side and white on the other.
But the architect admitted he could see the potential of the home, saying: 'As ugly as this might be, when it's all taken out the proportions are really good.'
The first floor contains two good sized bedrooms, and a smaller back bedroom, as well as a family bathroom.
Despite it's need for an extensive renovation, the couple say they fell in love with the home the moment that they saw it for the first time
Meanwhile there are also two bedrooms in the attic, and a second bathroom.
Due to the Grade II listing, any restoration work had to use the same materials and techniques as the period when it was first built, requiring special craftsmen.
But despite the huge project, Emily felt excited and hoped they would stay within their £100,000 budget, saying: 'We're pretty efficient, we've got a spreadsheet.'
She added: 'But everything costs more than you think.'
Tim and Emily admitted they 'loathed' converting a Grade II listed property on Channel 4's George Clarke's Old House, New Home, which airs on Sunday at 8pm. George was amazed by the conversion project of the Grade II listed building, meaning any restoration work had to use the same materials and techniques as the original period
George suggested the couple start at the back of the home, by transforming the kitchen, widening the door, lifting the ceiling and putting a large skylight in.
He also said the couple could try moving the dining table into the main living room, while the first parlour room could act as a snug for the children.
How do you renovate a listed building?
Buildings are given a listed status to mark their historical and architectural interest.
It also protects them from inappropriate alterations that may detract from their special interest.
Renovating a listed home requires a lot of thought and planning, in part because the listed status gives the property legal protection.
Therefore prior 'listed building consent' (or LBC) and planning permission may be required for changes to the home that otherwise, wouldn't be needed.
<!- - ad: https://mads.dailymail.co.uk/v8/us/femail/none/article/other/mpu_factbox.html?id=mpu_factbox_1 - ->AdvertisementHe also revealed how Tim and Emily should select light colours and natural materials through their home to give the idea of a handcrafted interior and add hints of colour in the artwork and accessories.
Pending planning permission, the couple also hoped to add dormer windows into the attic space to give the room a view and more head height.
George said: 'We've got a lot to do but let's see if we can make miracles happen. It's the perfect place for Tim, Emily and their kids to put down roots.'
He added: 'And you never know what's lurking in a renovation project.'
The couple were excited as they started the project, adding dormer windows into the attic, ripping out the old kitchen and tearing down the ceiling in the snug.
They went on to 'microstrip' the beams throughout the house, removing dirt from the timber without causing any damage to the wood.
But the excitement soon ground to a halt as they began to encounter difficulties in the project.
Emily revealed: 'The more you reveal, the more you reveal needs to be replaced. Everything has been more expensive, more complicated, taking longer.'
Meanwhile George called the kitchen 'ugly', but also suggested the space was 'well proportioned' ahead of the renovation
'I hadn't budgeted for building materials on top of the quote they gave us, which was a massive learning curve for me, and my naivety, my fault really....
The biggest problem the couple initially faced was that their lime-plastered walls were in worse condition than they thought.
Emily said: 'The whole house needs re-lime plastering, which is an epic job and has tripled our budget for lime plastering, so it's a bit of a shocker.'
She added: 'I would never buy a house with wood chip wallpaper on again. I didn't even know how difficult it was to get off.
One of the two attic bedrooms was impractical and dingy before the renovation, with the couple determined to transform it into a bright children's room
'The entire house has had wood chip wallpaper and then 20 years of paint on top of it.'
And then, to top it all off almost overnight, a bulge appeared on the largest ceiling of the home because it struggled to cope with the footfall of builders through the house.
Tim said: 'It's just not designed for heavy traffic.'
Emily added: 'I'm worried about that, it's going to significantly add to the budget.'
To begin with, the couple are excited and determined about the project ahead, but later admit they were 'naive' about the extent of the renovation
With costs spiraling on the renovation, Emily admitted she was struggling to stay positive, saying: 'It's been pretty rubbish, we've been through some pretty low phases.
'There's been some tears, it's been a very frustrating process. Every single thing we've touched has been harder, more complicated, unforseen problems.'
'It's just so much money and on an already really tight budget...it's just escalating.'
Tim explained: 'We're effectively rebuilding bits of it, because the stonework would perish behind it.
The couple were keen to make use of the 'boot-room' in their property, which connects the kitchen to the rest of the house
'It's probably chucked on another £30,000 on top of our budget. We had some deep savings, which are now gone.'
Emily added: 'It's terrifying.'
But Tim was determined, saying: 'If we were spending it on carpets, that would worry me, but we're not. We've cataloged it to show we've done a proper job.'
Having repaired every wall and a couple of ceilings, the couple start on the multilayered process of lime plastering.
After the couple spend their 'deep savings' on the home, Emily admits she feels 'terrified' about the conversion
Emily said: 'I can see a lot of change happening very suddenly, but it feels like a long time getting here.
'By the evenings I'm pretty anxious and upset, it's a lot of sleepless nights. I may seem very calm but I'm not, its all fake.'
After seven months, the couple stayed away from the home for a few days while George completed their transformation.
And Emily was left speechless when the home was revealed to her, with the dark and dinghy entrance hall transformed into a stunning snug.
She said: 'Wow, oh my goodness. I can't believe it. It's rare for me to be speechless.
'I just remember I spent two days scraping with the smallest knife that wall, and now...'
The couple admit to George they ended up going over their original budget by £65,000 as they tried to finish the project
Meanwhile the lounge was painted with neutral tones, while modest furniture made it feel comfortable without being too twee.
Emily said: 'It's just so beautiful, it's so calm. I love those bits of colour.'
The so-called boot room was also transformed with the help of bespoke floor to ceiling units that brought purpose to the space.
And the kitchen, which was another dark space with a mix of tired units, was transformed with clean lines, a raised ceiling and a new skylight.
George said: 'I am amazed by this room. the quality of everything in here is just stunning.'
Tim and Emily transformed one of their attic bedrooms on the programme, creating a light and bright hideaway for their son
Emily went on: 'It just makes you so happy, I love it so much.'
Meanwhile upstairs, the seventies staircase was also been replaced with an oak staircase, while the bathroom was modernised with panelled walls and a free-standing bath.
And in the attic room, the addition of the dormer window made it the perfect hideaway.
Reflecting on the project, Emily said: 'I can't believe we've done it. We didn't have any idea, we were so naive. We just thought a bit of paper stripping...'
Emily admits to George that she has 'loathed and loved' the project and felt it had pushed her 'to the brink' (pictured with the architect and her husband Tim)
Many viewers were left questioning the practicality of the home, with some pointing out Tim was barely able to stand-up straight in the tiny sitting room
Tim added: 'We didn't really clock that one job inevitably leads to two more. We hadn't really clocked the scale of it.'
And when George suggested the project pushed Emily 'to the brink', she agreed, saying: 'I think that's a really good description.'
'I have absolutely loathed doing this project, and loved it in equal measures.'
They reveal they spent £165,000 on the project, with Tim justifying the spend: 'We were pretty boxed in, we had two ceilings collapse. It's been the restoration of a full five bedroom house.'
Viewers were less than impressed with the renovation, with some suggesting it was impractical and too small for a family-of-five
Meanwhile George said: 'I can't believe you've done it.'
But while the couple said they were overjoyed with their renovation efforts, viewers were less than impressed with the change.
Many were baffled at how they home would function for a family-of-five, with one saying: 'What was that lounge all about? "Hi, please take a seat right in front of the log burner and let it melt your face. You may want to stare at the wall before it happens."'
Another added: 'But where is the telly? Every single episode. They must watch telly or they wouldn't know about the programme, but never a TV in sight!'
George Clarke's Old House, New Home, continues on Channel 4 on Sunday at 8pm
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