-For many Brits, renovating a property in Europe is a lifelong dream.

-I think we need to rebuild this, 100%.

-But some have bigger dreams than others... -This is crazy.

-Even I would think twice about having a go at this.

-...because scattered around Europe are thousands of villages, hamlets, and historical settlements lying abandoned... -These houses should be preserved.

The history in them.

-...on the brink of being lost forever.

-The future is about making sure that this continues.

-In this series, we meet a brand-new batch of village owners... -Glasses at the ready.

-...and return to some familiar faces as they set about rebuilding history.

-You think you know what needs to be done, but you don't know 1/10 of what needs to be done.

-They'll discover ancient mysteries... -We've got a big cavern here, and then looks like we've got a tunnel over there.

-...as they turn their crumbling ruins into amazing homes and businesses.

-We really made this place come alive again.

-But will it be a smooth ride?

-That's how you wreck a house.

-Or will their dreams come tumbling down... -Oh!

[ Groans ] -Crack a smile.

You can do it.

-[ Laughs ] -...as they restore the past to build their future?

-We bought a village.

-We bought a village.

-We bought a village.

♪♪ -Today we meet the family giving up everything to save a 400-year-old village that's been abandoned for decades.

-This is the kitchen.

-This is where we've been spending the last couple of nights just sitting around, having a baguette and some cheese.

-But can they cope without the loved ones they're leaving behind?

-Sorry.

-[ Chuckles ] -We catch up with Lesa and Ted as they continue their mission to save their stunning French hamlet.

-A property of this age, nearly 700 years old, you can't not be drawn into it, and it grab you, and it steal your heart.

And it still does on a daily basis.

-And disaster strikes at an 8th-century castello in Italy... -I got a call from my best friend, who said, "Andrew, I don't know if you've seen the news, but there's been a massive earthquake."

-...leaving the owners bereft and on the brink of ruin.

-I'd put every single penny I had into buying this, so we had no spare cash to do anything to it.

♪♪ -When medieval France was emerging as Europe's most powerful nation, over 90% of the people still lived in the countryside.

These days, it's only about 18%.

So it's no wonder the landscape is dotted with abandoned buildings and forgotten villages like La Galiserie, about an hour's drive north of Poitiers.

It's an example of a manoir -- a grand manor house built by a nobleman, who supported up to 25 peasant families in the outbuildings and in stone cottages, called chaumière, in the fields nearby.

Sadly, as people moved away, the old cottages crumbled and the manoir could have suffered the same fate until a couple from Sussex threw it a lifeline in a bid to save this amazing piece of French history.

-It was derelict.

-Yeah.

-Completely derelict.

-Yeah.

You could just about see the buildings 'cause it was just so overgrown.

-Yeah.

-Unloved.

-La Galiserie was a shadow of its former self when Sean and Lolly bought it for just £120,000.

There was no power, no running water, no doors or windows.

Despite its sorry state, though, the couple set themselves the challenge of uncovering its mysteries... -This is a proper cave.

-...unearthing its secrets... -We definitely know this was an outpost for the Resistance, and we've got many, many markings and writing scribed into our stonework.

-...and bringing it back to life.

-We both loved it straightaway.

-Yeah.

-It had that "wow" factor.

-You know, you look at it, and you -- you lead with your heart, don't you, really?

But you have to do it with your head.

You get home and you crunch the numbers a little bit and look at what you're aiming to do.

And yeah, your head has to take over at some point.

But for us here... -Yeah.

-...yeah, the heart and the head worked and we've got everything and more that we could ever imagine.

♪♪ -The couple hope to breathe new life into La Galiserie by converting it into a holiday complex.

They also intend to offer warm weather training to athletes because Sean is a coach with a glittering track record.

-I was fortunate enough to have an athletic career where I competed at two Olympic Games, four World Championships, some Commonwealth Games, and many other events.

-You're an Olympian.

-Yes, I know I'm an Olympian.

I'm just saying that... -He represented his country in... -Athens and Sydney.

So 2000 and 2004.

-The couple have no building experience, and it's an epic project spread across 2 acres.

But they're hoping that Sean's Olympian mind-set and Lolly's flair for design will be a winning ticket.

♪♪ It's now January 2021.

-Are you okay?

Are you gonna reverse?

Gonna leave it there?

-Yeah.

-Okay.

-Lolly and Sean have just sold their house in Hastings.

In two days' time, they'll move to France for good.

-We've got our cling film just in case we need our cling film.

You having that?

And baking foil in case we need to cook something on the way down there, so that's great.

-I need to sit down on my chair.

Um, and at the moment, I can't -- Unless I wear this, I can't sit in here.

[ Laughs ] I've got the gin here, so that's really important.

-[ Laughing ] Yeah, exactly.

Yeah.

[ Dog whines, vehicle door closes ] -The move to France will be especially tough for Lolly because she's leaving her children behind.

-Oh, here they are.

Hey, Phoebe.

[ Laughs ] Hi, Charlie.

-You all right?

-Hello.

Come on.

-Ohh!

-Charlie and Phoebe might be young adults, but it doesn't make it any easier to say goodbye.

-I love you.

-Love you.

-So when are you coming out?

-Once you get a bathroom... -When you get floors with nice heating, and plumbing, I'll be out.

And flooring.

It is watertight, isn't it?

-We don't know.

We haven't been in it in the rain yet, 'cause every time we've been there, it's like this.

It's beautiful.

-Our motto will be "Restoring the past.

Building the future."

-Aww.

-Lovely.

♪♪ -Au revoir.

-Au revoir!

Yeah.

-He's been learning.

-A bientôt.

-Come here, Boise.

-Come on then.

Come on, Boise.

Bye.

-Bye!

-It's really hard.

It's -- It's... [ Voice breaking ] Yeah, it's the hardest thing.

Um, we've wanted to do this for such a long time, but that is the hardest thing.

Um, I really thought that they would come with me.

Um, but they've got their lives.

They're young.

You know, they've got all their lives ahead of them, and their careers, and -- which I completely understand.

Um... [ Both laugh ] Don't laugh.

[ Sniffles ] Oh, it's so hard.

-I know.

-Despite the tears, Lolly and Sean are confident they're making the right decision.

-Sorry.

-[ Chuckles ] They're literally only a phone call... -I know, I know.

And FaceTime, so... -And before we know it, they'll be with us.

-I know, I know.

You're right.

-Yeah.

-It's just hard.

-Yeah.

-They're on the threshold of a new beginning, and they're confident that their future lies in La Galiserie.

♪♪ [ Choir vocalizing ] Building a village on top of a slope isn't easy, but it does make for a great defensive position in troubled times, and medieval Italy had plenty of those.

San Benedetto is one of Abruzzo's most picturesque hillside villages, but it took about 1,200 years to develop into what we see today.

-At the beginning, it was only seven families, I think.

-It was the seven Lombardy families.

But how big those families were, I don't know.

And then, of course, you've got the monks.

-Yeah.

-Um, and then, yeah.

Then obviously people started coming and they started, you know, building more buildings.

-Originally, San Benedetto was just an empty hillside until an order of monks laid the first stones for an abbey.

Soon, a handful of families settled alongside them, building homes and animal shelters for their livestock.

Over the centuries, the village became a castello -- a fortified commune with a high wall to keep out intruders.

And the buildings morphed into one incredible structure that's now in British hands.

♪♪ Andrew, Katja, and their children have moved here from Brighton, where Andrew worked as a videographer and Katja was a P.A.

-It's very different to what we were used to back in Brighton, um, where our last property, which we had for, well, quite a few years, was, um, a semi-detached three-bedroom house.

-This is not a house.

It doesn't have five bedrooms.

It has 50 rooms in total.

And it's not a straightforward thing.

It's a -- It's a mix of different eras spanning 1,200 years.

-The couple's set their hearts on preserving the ancient village and breathing new life into every structure that remains, like the 11th-century watchtower with its views that stretch as far as the Adriatic coast.

-This is a watchtower and a dove tower.

The whole point of this tower was to view the valley below, check for invaders, and to signal.

And this is rare.

There's not many of these left, so we feel very protective over it.

And we're like custodians.

-Every square foot of the castello is steeped in history, and in the grounds, Andrew has even found one of the original stones that would have housed a cannon in the watchtower.

-That's where the cannon would have been positioned, low down, and above it is an arrow or gun slit, where they would have fired out.

-The entrance to the castello has hardly changed since the days when villagers had to barricade themselves in from their enemies, and Andrew still uses the old methods to keep everything secure.

-This thing goes in this deep hole here, and then you slide it back in that hole.

And then you get this specially handmade wedge, and you plug that, which makes that absolutely rock-solid.

-The rooms are full of reminders of the past, when a thriving community lived behind the walls, and the living spaces were shared by people and their livestock.

-This used to be where the animals were kept.

And we've got this original feeding trough here.

And interestingly, we've still got one of the original chains that would have held one of the animals in place at the bar.

♪♪ -But like many people investing in Europe's lost villages, Andrew and Katja's story so far isn't straightforward.

They bought the castello in 2008 for just over £100,000 and were all set to transform it into holiday apartments.

But less than a year later, while the couple was still in the UK, the region was hit by an earthquake.

♪♪ It measured 5.9 on the Richter scale, and proved to be the deadliest in Italy for nearly 30 years.

The earthquake and its aftershocks killed over 300 people and left 70,000 homeless.

-I got a call from my best friend, who said, "Andrew, I don't know if you've seen the news, but there's been a massive earthquake."

Then we really didn't think about the house straightaway.

It was more about our friends, first of all.

-Luckily, their friends were fine and their castello was still standing, but their watchtower was collapsing and there were cracks in the walls.

-For us, it was sort of like, "Well, where do we go from here?

We're not gonna be able to afford to do anything."

-I'd put every single penny I had into buying this, so we had no spare cash to do anything to it.

-The Italian government stepped in and spent over 1 million euros restoring the castello.

So now, 10 years on, Andrew and Katja are about to restart their dream.

-We're both the sort of people that we don't like a dull life, and we've certainly done something that has definitely not given us a dull life.

-Yeah.

[ Birds chirping ] ♪♪ -Coming up... we're back with village owners Ted and Lesa, whose passion to save their own piece of history shows no signs of slowing down.

-The first time we came to see it, we looked at each other because we knew it was the one that was going to take our hearts.

-And at La Galiserie, Lolly and Sean have to rely on old-school technology to keep warm.

-These have been... -A godsend.

-...my savior at night.

♪♪ ♪♪ -For centuries, the mail in France was delivered on horseback, and a network of coaching inns and posthouses gave riders a place to stay and to drop off their packages.

Often whole villages grew up around these busy hubs.

But as times changed, most were swallowed up by urban sprawl or left to dereliction.

About 30 miles from Limoges, though, one old relais de poste has survived, and it sits on a 6-acre site with a 14th-century château at its heart.

Montmagner is now the home of Ted and Lesa from Essex, and they've made it t heir mission to restore it to its former glory.

-It's gonna go, it's gonna go!

-Down!

-[ Laughs ] The first time we came to see it, we looked at each other, and there was this moment of -- where our eyes locked, wasn't it, and it was kind of like dread because we knew it was the one that was going to take our hearts.

-I think when you realize a property of this age, 'cause, you know, nearly 700 years old, you can't not be drawn into it, and it grab you, and it steal your heart.

-Yeah.

-Because that's what it did for both of us.

And it still does on a daily basis.

-Ted and Lesa bought Montmagner a little over two years ago for £160,000, and they definitely picked up a bargain.

-The building that's behind us is the 14th-century side, and within that, we have the château.

We have obviously the ancient tower.

And then following on from that, we have the large barns, which eventually will become the medieval banqueting hall and the catering kitchen.

And then we have the 12th-century side, which is what the old relais de poste was.

We also then have the piggeries, and we have a lake, which is at the end of the property, and the two tower ruins.

So yeah, quite a lot.

-When we first met Ted and Lesa, Montmagner had been empty for over a decade, and the courtyard was buried under weeds.

The couple had to live in a tent in the barn while they renovated.

-And this is where we've been for the last three months.

-But it didn't seem to slow them down at all.

-It's our three-bed semi.

-[ Laughs ] -Soon they'd uncovered the original cobbles... -It was only that Ted tripped over a big root and suddenly found the stone pathway.

-...and relandscaped the grounds.

-There'll be no stopping him now.

Look at him.

Look at the little smile on his face.

-Then they set about the inside, where they made some remarkable discoveries.

-Why are all those shoes in there?

-I don't like to look too closely at this, 'cause it scares the bejesus out of me.

-With determination and building skills they didn't know they had, Ted and Lesa worked tirelessly to bring Montmagner back to life.

-Yes.

We have a full tile.

-And the results were breathtaking.

They transformed three run-down apartments into beautiful guest rooms.

They installed modern fixtures and fittings, but they also kept as many of the original features as they could.

♪♪ They turned derelict old living quarters into a thriving tearoom.

[ Indistinct conversations ] And thanks to Ted and Lesa, Montmagner's once-empty spaces were now bustling again with life.

-Yeah.

-So when they got married in the village last year... -Can we kiss now?

-You may kiss the bride.

[ Both laugh, cheers and applause ] -...it really did feel as if they had rekindled the spirit of the past.

♪♪ [ Birds chirping ] ♪♪ Two years on from their move to France, Ted and Lesa are a long way from the end of their journey.

Montmagner doesn't quite yet bring in the income they need, so they're about to start some more renovations.

-I'm really excited.

Are you?

You don't look excited.

[ Both laugh ] -The couple want to convert their piggery into a gite, and to pay for it, they plan to rent out their own apartment in the château and move into a tent again, this time inside the old animal shelter.

-The piggeries are kind of set out in two areas.

So you've got this quite large space in here, which will be a major living space.

In this first section will be where -- My plans are to have a kitchen along here, have a seating area and some -- some sofas.

So we will live in this area.

♪♪ -Without further ado, Ted and Lesa start to bring across their furniture, but it soon becomes clear there'll be lots of challenges to living in a pigsty.

-Oh!

-[ Laughs ] -The handle came off.

[ Both laugh ] -The doors are only just wide enough to squeeze the sofa through.

-That's it.

[ Sighs ] -And the floor isn't exactly level.

-Yeah.

That's gonna be well up in the air.

-Yeah.

-[ Sighs ] ♪♪ [ Birds chirping ] ♪♪ -It's not just Ted and Lesa who are making sacrifices to save their ghost village.

About 80 miles north of Montmagner, our other brave renovators, Lolly and Sean, are also living without luxuries.

It's January 2022, and having bid farewell to the UK for good two days ago, Lolly and Sean are having to get used to a very spartan existence at La Galiserie.

-This is the kitchen.

-This is where we've been spending the last couple of nights, just sitting around, having a baguette and some cheese, and also keeping the kettle warm.

-There's no running water, no electricity, and the temperatures are only just above freezing.

♪♪ None of the rooms have windows, and most of the buildings don't have doors, so the couple are sleeping in one of the barns.

-So this is how we get into our lovely boudoir.

It's... Fortunately, we had some WD-40 with us, but it's a heavy, heavy, heavy door!

It does get stuck.

[ Laughs ] -But they've added a few creative touches so that at least it feels a bit like home.

-So this is the master bedroom.

[ Chuckles ] This was a complete empty shell.

-Yeah.

-Cobwebs everywhere.

The first day was actually making this livable.

We wanted to be as cozy as possible, and I must say, these old-fashioned little items have been... -A godsend.

-...my savior at night.

So we've got three -- one for Bloom, one for Sean, and one for me.

And this is how we're gonna be rolling for the next...year?

-Maybe.

Yeah.

-[ Laughs ] -Or until the weather warms up, and then we'll have to have the door open.

-Yeah.

[ Birds chirping ] -Their main task today is to assess the buildings and figure out a plan of action.

And they're starting at the watchtower.

-Still is impressive.

We've still got a lot of work to be done.

-It was built 400 years ago and was once a vital tool in keeping the villagers safe.

-So straight into the tower.

-These days, though, it's a bit of a white elephant because its staircase has been stolen and Lolly and Sean will need a new one.

-[ Sighs ] -So we've got to, um, think about having a spiral here.

-Mm.

-Um, what do we want to do?

Do we want to try stone or maybe a wood one?

-Yeah.

I prefer, I think, stone, but it depends on which one's easier.

-Price.

-Price.

Price, as well.

But actually which one's easier to do?

-Since access to the upper floors is going to be difficult, Sean and Lolly realize they'll need to start work on the ground floor rooms first.

-Yeah, this is gonna be our kitchen.

We've already ordered our kitchen actually back in the UK.

Um, so that's gonna be coming on our big wagon.

Hold my hand.

-[ Chuckles ] -Thank you.

-Come again.

-Oh!

Oh!

-[ Laughs ] Come on.

-That's it.

So this is gonna be our really cozy snug.

Um, we don't need a big, massive lounge, do we?

And it will fit a nice settee, a couple of settees in here.

-And two massive positives in this room is, we actually have a window with glass in, which is amazing, and we have a bread oven.

-This bread oven would once have serviced all the families who lived in and around La Galiserie, and the couple hope to resurrect it eventually.

♪♪ -And you're small enough, which is fantastic, for you to get in.

-I'm gonna do the cleaning.

-But they've decided to start their renovations in a room they didn't even notice when they first looked 'round.

-Do you know, I haven't even been down here since we moved in.

-I've been down this morning, and I think we need to clean it completely out.

♪♪ -This is a proper cave.

-Yeah.

Yeah.

Literally someone's come in and dug it out of the stone that's already been here.

-Yeah.

And I just love the way the wall is, actually.

And the stone.

It's all uneven.

-For centuries, this cave à vin would have been used to store food and wine.

And it's a great place to start renovating because it will offer great protection from the winter weather.

-We love this cave.

-Yeah.

-Love the dome barrel ceiling.

Um, and ideally, we're going to clear it all out, and we're gonna have a nice traditional barrel.

-Barrel in the middle.

-And some stools or chairs around it.

Lighting.

I really do love it.

Can you clear this tomorrow?

-Yeah.

♪♪ -Coming up... in Montmagner, Ted and Lesa find that ancient buildings can pose problems for modern furniture as they wrestle with a mattress in the tower.

-We've tried it every which way.

It's not going down the tower.

-And in San Benedetto, has Andrew unearthed buried treasure?

-The metal detector's going off right now where I've put it.

So I'm gonna dig right here.

♪♪ -Back in Montmagner, Ted and Lesa are busy trying to turn their piggery into their new living quarters.

-Yeah, well... [ Grunts ] -Is that all right?

Yeah?

-To make the next phase of renovations easier, they're moving out of their rooms in the chateau... -It's all right.

Yeah.

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-...and for a second time in the course of their renovations, they're setting up home in a tent.

-I was thinking if we moved the legs over a bit, would it not -- no.

-You can't move the legs any further down.

Yeah, we could sit and eat in that, couldn't we?

-Okay.

-For the kitchen.

Always.

-A living room, kitchen... -Living room, kitchen.

-...bedroom.

-Bedroom.

Where's the bathroom?

Oh, it's out there.

-[ Laughs ] It's a bucket, yeah.

-Yeah.

-With the sofa and the table sorted, their next job is to get their bed down the steps of the 14th century tower.

-It has to go up higher.

That's it.

-I don't think that's gonna go.

-No, that's not gonna work.

-Definitely not gonna go.

-Um... -But the staircase wasn't exactly built for modern furniture.

-It isn't going.

-Go to the other side of it.

-For centuries, the people who lived here would have slept on canvas bags stuffed with straw.

So a king-size mattress poses problems.

And even though it went up about a year ago, it doesn't want to come down.

-It's definitely not going down the tower.

There's no way.

We've tried it every which way.

It's not going down the tower.

[ Laughs ] -Time for bed plan "B."

-So I found another bed that somebody gave us a long time ago.

So I think we're gonna use that.

-[ Panting ] -But even that turns out to be easier said than done.

-[ Exhales sharply ] That's nice.

It's the kind we need but... it's not really on.

-Is that not...?

-Yeah, I'm taking it out.

[ Mumbles indistinctly ] -They haven't got the right fixings.

-Ah, I don't think this is the right one either.

-So obviously this one is not gonna -- not gonna go together with the fixing we had.

If not, we'll just have to put the divan part on the -- on the ground.

Um, the only thing that happened last time we did that, the pillars kept falling down the back and then they would get all damp because the condensation is obviously in the mornings.

But, um, yeah, where there's a will, there's a way.

-Luckily, Lesa's prediction turns out to be spot on.

[ Tool whirring ] -I'm just gonna screw it together, and then that shouldn't move.

♪♪ -There's a few more bumps in the road.

-What are you doing?

Oh!

thanks for that.

Ah.

Right in the kisser.

-But after a bit more huffing and puffing... -Right.

-Put it on up.

-...it isn't long before it all comes together.

-Yeah!

-Yay!

Ah!

-Ah!

Oh, that's all right, actually.

-Oh, God, that's not bad.

-No.

-Oh!

-Oh, I can handle that.

-Okay.

-Right.

-Oh.

-I stay at that side, though, don't I?

-Yeah.

Should we roll over?

-The last job of the day is to sort out the fire pit.

-Want me get one side?

-And Ted is using stones he's convinced were part of the site's original construction.

-See, I think these were cobbles in some way, and they were sunk in the ground like threshold stones.

-Wow!

Look at that one.

-Oh, no!

That's the top.

And you can see where the line is, 'cause that -- the rest of it was in the ground.

And that will be our cobbles in the courtyard area will be like that.

They're beautiful, aren't they?

-It's quite likely that these stones were used to build the network of lanes that crisscrossed Montmagner when it was a posthouse.

Cobbled roads fixed with lime mortar were ideal for horses and stagecoaches because they didn't develop ruts or get muddy in the wet or dusty when it was dry.

-Cool.

Ready for a barbie.

-This looks pretty good.

I like it.

-I think it'll be good.

-I think it'll be great.

-It isn't glamorous, and it won't be cozy in the winter, but a project like this isn't for the faint-hearted.

And Ted and Lesa know just what it takes to rescue one of Europe's lost villages.

-Cheers, baby.

-Cheers, cheers.

-Cheers to the next chapter.

-Yeah.

-Next chapter in Montmagner.

♪♪ [ Birds chirping ] -In Abruzzo, it's October 2020 And over a decade since the earthquake that rocked Andrew and Katja's castello to its foundations.

The Italian government has paid contractors to make their buildings safe.

But constant delays mean the couple have only just got back the keys to their home.

Now they can finally take stock of the job ahead.

-This door here was the main fortified bit of what was known as the castello, which was the -- the fortified center, and it would have had a main beam going across and a drawbridge pulled up and doors shut on the inside, which happened a lot from the 8th century onwards when everyone was feuding.

-There are over 50 rooms in the castello, and Andrew and Katja have grand plans to rent them out to holidaymakers or for events.

-This would be the second bedroom to the terrace apartment, with a couple of single beds that join together.

And then in here will be the grand bedroom, which might be a matrimonial or wedding bedroom as well.

It's got a little terrace.

-Constant delays mean their savings are being drained, though, and money is getting tighter.

Katja works remotely as a P.A., but Andrew's tourism business has been in mothballs since COVID.

-Financially, we're gonna struggle.

Um, we're paying rent here.

I mean, albeit rent isn't as expensive as it is in the UK.

-It's still money.

-But it's still money.

It's all relative.

-We need it up and running by next year and hopefully the middle of next year.

-Their money worries mean Andrew is having to do whatever he can to make ends meet, and he's hoping that the grounds of the castello could provide him with one solution.

-So we're gonna go in the garden and do a bit of metal detecting now, in the hope that I can find something that's worth money and can help us to finish everything here in the way we want to.

We live in hope.

-He's already unearthed a surprising array of artifacts.

-I found a tiny glass vessel, and it is old.

The way to tell is by the color in the glass, got, like, a rainbow effect running through the glass.

I know this is not modern.

This is old.

I know glass was expensive, so things were small.

But, I mean, what was that used for?

I can only think poison, as you wouldn't need a lot, you know?

But it's -- it's beautiful.

I found lots of interesting pottery.

That's one of my favorite bits of pottery because I love the pattern and the color.

It looks very medieval.

-His prized possession, though, is from a much more recent period of the castello's history.

-It's an Italian 10-cent from 1926.

-The coin is rare because, by mistake, the image on the back was printed upside down, and it means it's highly valuable.

-And I've read that -- I did look this up that a coin similar to this that was printed by accident upside down on the back was sold for 26,000 euros.

It's the only coin I've found so far.

But I live in hope now I'm gonna find a bag of gold coins buried in the soil, and it will be worth a lot and -- and will help us finish the project here.

-With any luck, he'll be able to add to his collection of artifacts today.

[ Metal detector beeping ] -The metal detector's going off right now where I've put it.

So I'm gonna dig right here.

♪♪ Is that metal?

Ah!

It's a bloody tent peg.

[ Laughs ] -An old tent peg isn't going to solve Andrew and Katja's financial problems, but he'll look to make a profit from the things he's already found.

And that should be a boost to their coffers.

After waiting so long to get the keys back to their home, they're determined to see it through.

♪♪ Coming up, Montmagner is about to welcome guests again.

-But it would be a sin to have cobweb.

-Yeah, I see them all over the place.

-And there's no time to let sleeping dogs lie.

-That dog is underneath the bed.

Oi!

Come on.

Out.

-And at La Galiserie... -I'm your man now, Charlie.

-...work starts in earnest.

-He knows what he's doing, and I'm -- I'm learning.

[ Chuckles ] ♪♪ -It's August in Montmagner, where Ted and Lesa have spent their first night in the piggeries.

They did sleep under canvas when they first arrived in the village, and that experience has stood them in good stead.

-I should get used to this staying over here.

-I thought it was a good night.

-It's all right, yeah, yeah.

It was proper glamping, I suppose, because, you know, not only is the tent in a building, there's a proper bed in the tent [chuckles] and even a television.

[ Laughs ] We had a fan going because it was really hot in the tent.

So, yeah, you couldn't really call it camping.

-Over the next few months, Ted and Lesa will start to replace the roof tiles, add doors, windows, power, and plumbing, and rebuild any walls that are in danger of falling down.

To pay for it all, though, they need to keep attracting visitors to the tearoom and welcoming guests to the apartments.

-Go on, out, out, out, out, out, out.

-But it would be a sin to have cobweb.

-Yeah, I see them all over the place.

[ Laughs ] This is the only trouble with these old properties, innit?

-Today they're expecting five guests staying in three rooms, and they're cooking an evening meal, too.

Ted and Lesa's blood, sweat, and tears over the last year have transformed Montmagner from a crumbling relic to an historic treasure, and their enthusiasm for sharing it with new people shows no sign of wavering.

-Baby, can I just go through with you what I've got in the kitchen?

You could think of what I've not thought of.

-Right.

-I've got cleaning stuff in here.

I've got the hob under there.

I've got all pots and pans, mixing pans, plates, bowls.

Have I forgotten anything?

-I don't think so.

No, it's just the drinking glasses, and that's it.

-With the guests due to check in any minute, there's no time to hang about.

But not everybody seems to have got the memo.

-That dog is underneath the bed.

Oi!

Oi!

-Could you imagine showing them in to the room, going out, and suddenly a dog crawls out from underneath?

-Come on.

Out.

Come here.

-Bessie!

-Bessie, come on.

-She's like, "I'm not leaving my apartment!"

[ Laughs ] -At last, the rooms are pristine, and Ted heads off to tidy the grounds so he's on hand to welcome their first arrival, Philip.

-First up.

-He's traveled over from the UK and has his own connection to the village next door.

-When I was in my teens at home, we used to have -- my mum and dad used to have a lot of French students.

-Oh, right, yeah.

-So they came back regularly and one of the guys came -- his grandparents lived in Arnac-la-Poste.

-Oh, right.

-So I went over to visit them for a summer, and then they brought me down to the grandparents, down to the farm in Arnac-la-Poste.

-Right.

-That was in 1969.

I thought I had to stop by now.

-Yeah, well, thank you for that.

It's a very, very -- you know, it's nice to have somebody who's got a bit of history with it.

-It was built in 1360.

-Really?

-This is an old ship's mast we want to keep exposed.

-Yeah.

-But, um, yes, it's been a lot of work.

All I would say is every single door you go through, just duck, because it hurts, and duck for a while, because the walls are two-foot thick.

-Yeah.

-A lot of people duck here, lift up, and still hit it, so... -Oh, that's lovely.

Wow.

Oh, my gosh.

[ Laughs ] -Ted and Lesa have revitalized this ghost village and brought it back to life.

But their work in Montmagner is far from done.

Not only do they need to keep it running and complete their renovations in the piggery, but they also hope to turn their medieval barn into a banqueting hall, complete with stage and seating.

It's a tall order, but if anyone has the passion, drive, and determination to pull it off, Ted and Lesa do.

♪♪ Two hours away from Ted and Lesa, Lolly and Sean have turned a big corner on their journey to resurrect La Galiserie.

It's now April.

The harsh winter is over, and the couple have made great progress.

Now they have an outside tap, power, and a bed.

They're still living in the barn, but when you've dedicated your life to a lost village, every small step feels like a huge leap forward.

-We've done a multitude of different things that you've wanted done or that we've needed to be done.

Having a room with furniture is amazing.

Previously, we were just literally laying on the floor with a bit of plastic underneath it and we didn't have anything else, so we were kind of living out of about two or three different suitcases.

You look back and think, how did you get through January and February when you had your worst months of minus 5 and minus 10?

And we were -- literally had just a hot water bottle.

-Now the better weather is here, they can crack on with more work.

There's a mountain of stuff to do, including insulating the roofs, plumbing in sinks, toilets, and showers, and installing windows and doors.

But for now, they're taking advantage of the fact Lolly's son Charlie, who's a builder, is here.

-My son came over on Friday.

He's here for a week, but he's gonna go home.

Very important party on Saturday.

Has to go back to the UK.

So we're -- -We're flying him in and flying him back out again.

-Although they can't do structural work to the property until they find some contractors to help, they're harnessing Charlie's skills to build a sunken terrace that will rejuvenate the outside.

-I've dug all of my footings out.

Just got my levels right.

And then I've already built this retaining wall.

I've never actually had anyone working for me, but it's -- yeah, it's nice.

It's usually me doing all the running around.

But, yeah, it's nice to give a few orders about here and there.

-Charlie might not have too many years experience, but he definitely knows how to put in a hard day's graft.

-I'm your man now, Charlie.

-And he's got a very willing helper in Sean.

♪♪ -We're starting the footings, so he's asked me for a coarser mix, and that's basically what I've done.

He calls it a gauge.

I call it a mix.

He knows what he's doing, and I'm -- I'm learning.

[ Chuckles ] What do you reckon?

Is that good?

-Yeah, it's perfect.

-We'll go with that.

Okay.

♪♪ -Just clear around here because this is where it will end up sticking.

-Yeah, yeah.

-And as the boys crack on outside, the last month has seen an incredible transformation inside.

When they moved in, Lolly and Sean discovered a hidden underground cave.

This cave à vin would have stored food and wine in centuries gone by.

But now the secret room has been transformed.

The couple have repurposed this dark and dingy hole into a stunning sitting area with ambient lighting, furniture, and plenty of imagination.

-So this was a priority, um, doer-upper, and it was very easy to do, actually, because it was just a case of clearing out, wasn't it?

-Yeah, it was, yeah, and we've just turned it into... -Another drinking area.

-...a drinking area, basically.

-Another little drinking/social area, really.

We've done enough in here.

-Hmm.

-Um, apart from a little bit more wine.

[ Both laugh ] ♪♪ -The battle to resurrect La Galiserie is well and truly on.

It could take two years to save the settlement, but they're determined to see it through.

-Just having that mind-set of we will achieve it and we will do it.

and we just carry on.

-I can see us both saying to each other, "Last hurdle, get around that last bend, run through the line."

-[ Laughs ] I don't think we'll be saying that.

-Like the other hardy Brits attempting to rescue Europe's ghost villages, they hold history in their hands, and they know they're building a legacy for generations to come.

[ Birds chirping ] Next time, our village saviors move full-steam ahead.

But in La Galiserie, the ancient walls are beating Lolly's power tools.

-Look.

[ Drill whirs weakly ] -Geez.

You may have blown it up.

-In Montmagner costs are going through the roof.

-How's the wall looking?

-Probably needs rebuilding.

-And in San Benedetto, they're decorating, but progress is painfully slow.

-Ow!

Right on my finger.

-Oh, seriously?

-Yeah.

Look.

My finger was stuck in there, you twit!

-You didn't tell me it was stuck!

-Yeah!

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪