I Escaped to the Country

Jonnie Irwin revisits house buyers who haven't looked back since relocating to the countryside. His first stop is Suffolk, where he finds his the buyers happily immersed in keeping chickens and bees and taking their new dogs to the local dog agility club. Later, Jonnie heads to Kent and marvels at the new design and decor the escapees have added to their property, before heading to the beach close by where they enjoy regular moments together as a family.

Sonali Shah revisits the maritime county of Dorset to be reunited with her house hunters who had a £500,000 budget to retire to a property with coastal views and have set up home in one of the houses Sonali originally showed them. She discovers how they have put their own personal stamp on it and how it provides the writer's retreat one of them dreamed of. Sonali's house buyers also take her to Abbotsbury Swannery, one of their favourite Dorset beauty spots, as well as Bridport, where she drops in on a thriving local knitting group, a port of call for friendly chat over the clacking of needles.

Nicki Chapman is in the west country revisiting house buyers who have successfully made the leap to a new life in the country. First she catches up with an entrepreneurial couple who moved into their property in the Devon countryside. She discovers how they are managing to balance running a holiday-let business alongside their newly renovated family home. Later she heads to rural Somerset, where a couple has made some impressive architectural changes to their country property and are enjoying a busy retirement immersing themselves in village life.

Alistair Appleton revisits house buyers who made their escapes to the country and radically changed their new properties and lifestyles in the process. First he heads to Norfolk, where he discovers his buyers are now committed owners of a cattery. He sees how, while business is booming, they are in the throes of completely supersizing the country home Alistair first showed them. Later he catches up with a house buyer in the Cumbrian countryside who has made her interior design mark in the property they first viewed together. Alistair is happy to learn how her escape from the city of Edinburgh sparked a career change, a flourishing new relationship and a passion for new country pursuits.

Sonali Shah visits house buyers who moved to the country in Dorset and Derbyshire, catching up with a couple she helped to make the leap from a suburban town to the beautiful Dorset countryside. They have subsequently redressed their work-life balance and their vast, historic home has also become a rural getaway for visiting friends and family. The visit ends at the village pub, where one of them now works part-time serving the locals. Later, Sonali travels to Derbyshire where she is reunited with a buyer who moved to the county to be closer to her son and grandchildren. To experience a little of their country life, Sonali accompanies them on family outing to the National Tramway Museum in Crich.

Nicki Chapman returns to Herefordshire to catch up with her house-hunters, discovering how their plans of running holiday let business have come to fruition and how they've also become a firm port of call for the local wildlife. Whilst in the area, Nicki visits Ledbury Country Market and meets the committed food producers who are behind its ongoing success.

Jonnie Irwin is reunited with his avid equestrian house hunters in Suffolk. Since buying the unassuming property Jonnie showed them, the couple have ploughed their efforts into dramatically transforming it to suit their needs. They now enjoy the freedom of keeping horses on their own land. Whilst in the county, Jonnie visits the coastal village of Dunwich, which over the centuries has been gradually taken by the sea.

Jules Hudson returns to rural Somerset to be reunited with a retired couple, now happily living in the character home they all first saw together. As well as seeing the impressive alterations they've made to their country home, Jules discovers how they have immersed themselves in community life, including returning to work as a local church minister. Jules also catches up with other house buyers, who despite a hectic working life and serious setbacks along the way, have managed to make their personal mark on the property they purchased.

Alistair Appleton revisits the Welsh Border region and is reunited with a house hunting couple who originally had a ú475,000 budget and serious ambitions to start a smallholding. Within just a few years of moving into one of the properties Alistair showed them, they've not only transformed parts of their new home, but are also making impressive strides towards self-sufficiency on their land. Whilst in the region, Alistair takes in the countryside and heritage of the Welshpool and Llanfair Light Railway.