I Escaped to the Country

Nicki Chapman reunites with escapees who have made new lives for themselves in rural Devon.

Starting in the east of the county, Nicki catches up with a homebuyer who, in the summer of 2021, had a modest £350,000 budget to secure her dream West Country home. Having discounted all the properties she was shown, she made a surprising U-turn and bought one! Nicki then makes her way to north Devon, where she discovers how a move to a 400-year-old farmhouse has enabled a multi-generational family to flourish.

Jules Hudson retraces his steps in the county of Norfolk. Back in 2021, he helped a couple from south east London search for a new Norfolk home to accommodate them, their three children and Grandma too. A year later, Jules returns to find out that one of the houses in his initial line up, that they said was everything they didn't want, has now become their perfect escape from the capital. Jules also reconnects with another pair of his house-hunters to find out if the desire for more kitchen drawer space was fulfilled by their rural East Anglian relocation!

Denise Nurse and Alistair Appleton reunite with homebuyers they first met a decade ago.

In 2012, Denise guided young newlyweds around Wiltshire as they aimed to escape London for a new life in the countryside. Fast-forward a decade, and she is delighted to discover that one of the fantastic properties she showed them has really stood the test of time. Then, Alistair turns back the clock a decade again, revisiting a former Escape mission in Bedfordshire. But he ends up finding his house-hunters happily settled in a rural home 200 miles away, in a completely different county altogether!

Nicki Chapman reconnects with past escapees in the Cotswolds and Shropshire.

It was nearly love at first sight for a couple from Scotland, who, in 2020, wanted Nicki's help with finding them their first house together in the Cotswolds. Needless to say, Nicki succeeded and is given a warm welcome when she drops in to see how they've put their own stamp on their new cottage. Nicki then heads to Shropshire to hone her culinary skills when she reunites with an entrepreneurial couple who had ambitions of opening a cookery school in the county's beautiful countryside.

Sonali Shah meets up with former house hunters for whom land was the priority.

She retraces her steps in the Welsh Marches as she meets up with a pair of former escapees who are happily living their best lives in one of the fabulous properties she showed them in 2021. The couple wanted space to start their new ‘good life', and Sonali delivered. Next, she catches up with a family of six in their rambling Victorian rectory and hears how they went county to county in their bid to make their rural dream a reality.

Somerset is the backdrop for today's episode, in which Briony May Williams and Sonali Shah catch up with two couples who wanted to live closer to family.

Briony returns to the county to find that her very first house-hunting couple are enjoying their new life in one of the beautiful homes they viewed together. Then Sonali turns back the clock to 2020, finding that one of her Somerset adventures didn't quite turn out how anyone expected.

Nicki Chapman catches up with escapees who found dream homes with spectacular views on Scotland's west coast.

Back in 2018, Nicki was house-hunting in Ayrshire with a couple looking for a new adventure, closer to family, after 30 years in Italy. One of the houses that Nicki showed them stole their hearts, and she's back to find out how life in Scotland compares to that of the Alps. Later, Nicki enjoys a boat trip with a couple who, after losing out on one of the houses presented to them on a 2021 property hunt, eventually unearthed another absolute gem.

Alistair Appleton returns to Wales to catch up with two couples whose interests and hobbies helped them settle swiftly into their new communities.

First, he revisits a couple who bought one of the beautiful houses they viewed on their 2021 Escape to the Country property hunt, discovering that their passion for golf has helped them to forge new friendships - and rekindle old ones - both on and off the golf course. Then he reconnects with former house-hunters in Pembrokeshire. Four years on, they have settled into country life, and Alistair finds out how their faith has helped them to connect with the local community.

Jules Hudson and Steve Brown retrace their steps to visit former house-hunters in the Midlands.

In 2021, Jonnie Irwin came up trumps for an entrepreneurial couple seeking a new home with business potential in Derbyshire. Jules returns to see how they've been getting on in their beautiful new house. Later, Steve Brown heads back to Rutland to visit a couple whose home is now a lovely Grade II listed barn conversion just over the county border.

Sonali Shah heads for the West Country counties of Cornwall and Devon to catch up with former house-hunters who have settled there.

First, she makes her way to Cornwall, where she meets up with a couple she took house-hunting back in 2021 to find out how their new rural home near the coast is suiting them after 25 years abroad. Next, Sonali pops across the border to Devon to visit a young couple who had grand ambitions to tap into the county's tourist trade. Just one year on, she discovers that they've wasted no time in establishing a business and are in the process of creating their dream home, all in acres of beautiful Devonshire countryside.