Escape To The Country host Jules Hudson floored by most expensive budget in BBC show’s history – and it doesn’t end well
ESCAPE To The Country host Jules Hudson was left absolutely floored by the most expensive budget in the show's history.
Two guests on the BBC One house hunting programme decided to move back to the UK after living abroad for three decades.
Jules, 54, was tasked with finding Mike and Carol their dram home after they lived in the Netherlands for over 30 years.
He met the pair in the Peak District as they were looking for a new luxury abode, in order to be closer to their kids.
Jules was given a very specific brief for the couple which included a large downstairs area, three or four bedrooms with plenty of space and at least two annexes.
They also insisted the house to sit on land if it did not have any outside living space.
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The duo insisted it was absolutely crucial for them to have living space away from the house, so they would need land to potentially build more.
When the subject on budget came up, initially the host expected the couple to say a few hundred thousand pounds, which is what the cost would be for the average property in the area.
But they had an eye-watering budget of £1.5Million, which left Jules absolutely startled.
Mike explained: "If we're talking about a house that needs a lot of effort spent on it then probably about a million is as far as we'd want to go.
"And if it was ready to move into tomorrow, with everything organised, even up to £1.5 million, that's the absolute limit."
He was practically speechless as he replied: "I have to confess, I think £1.5million is the biggest budget I've ever had to play with on this show.
"But I do want to get it right, so we've got a lot of work to do."
Later on Escape To The Country, he took the duo on a tour across a range of beautiful properties in the peak district area.
The first home on the list was a stunning £1.5M 18th-century abode in Kettleshulme, Cheshire.
The second house was in Marple Bridge in Stockport which would have set the couple back a staggering £1.3Million.
Derbyshire was the next location which featured The Mystery House which came in the form of a humble farmhouse.
In the end, the couple not not put an offer on any of the houses that they had a look around.
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However, they did want to have a second look around the first property that they toured.
Carol explained: "I think for me, the house that stood out was property number one because it was almost ready to move into and it had a lot of things we needed."
