Grand Designs Episode Guide

Episode Guide

Grand Designs: Season 9 (2009)

• Season 9 Episode 9: EPISODE: 9

  An update on Kelly and Masoko Neville, who built an oak-framed, straw-baled hexagonal house in the Cambridgeshire Fens in 2005. The unusual two-storey house was built around a spiral staircase carved out of an 800-year-old tree trunk, the centrepiece of an interior that drew inspiration from JRR Tolkien's The Hobbit. Kevin McCloud visits the Nevilles to see if they have managed to find the idyllic, self-sufficient life they craved

• Season 9 Episode 8: Yorkshire

  Kevin McCloud revisits Francis and Karen Shaw, who bought a 15th-century peel tower in the Yorkshire Dales in 2006. Kevin soon discovers that the cost of restoring the ancient building has meant the reality of living there is nothing like the couple's dream

• Season 9 Episode 7: Kent

  Kevin McCloud follows the progress of Mimi and Andre d'Costa, who have moved to the Kent countryside to bring up their two children. They have a large plot of land and want to build a house that will be functional enough to serve their young family, but will also blend in with the beautiful landscape. They turn to architect Nick Eldridge, who designs a simple modular home using state-of-the-art materials and technologies

• Season 9 Episode 6: EPISODE: 6

  Kevin McCloud meets dairy farmer Andrew Ainslie and his artist wife Meryl. Their current house is separate from their land, so they want to build a new home close to their 200-head herd of cattle. The project involves constructing an ultra-modern barn-like building from engineered timber, with a barrel-shaped zinc roof, which will combine functionality with high-finish craftsmanship

• Season 9 Episode 5: Brighton

  Kevin McCloud follows the progress of Brighton couple Daren Howarth and Adi Nortje, who want to build an earth-sheltered home from recycled materials, based on ideas pioneered in New Mexico in the 1970s. However, land prices and planning laws have forced the pair out of England and into Brittany. To keep costs down, Daren and Adi enlist the help of unskilled volunteers to work on the home, in exchange for teaching them the construction techniques

• Season 9 Episode 4: Kent

  Kevin McCloud follows the progress of architect Richard Hawkes and his wife Sophie, who are moving from London to the Kent countryside to build a hi-tech eco-friendly house with room to grow their own food. Richard also wants their new home to blend effortlessly into the surrounding countryside, concealed beneath a huge arch of clay tiles covered with earth and planted with grass

• Season 9 Episode 2: Chilterns

  Londoner Chris Ostwald decides to build a New England-style water mill in the Chilterns, on a hill and nowhere near any water, after being inspired by an illustration on a yoghurt pot. He bought the plot 20 years ago and it has always been his dream to build a retreat for himself and his family. Everything seems to be going smoothly, until a neighbour complains the house is breaking its planning consent. Kevin McCloud presents

• Season 9 Episode 1: Newport

  New series of the property programme, which celebrates its 10th birthday this year. The first episode features a couple who have returned to their home town of Newport, Wales, after 17 years and bought an 18th-century folly - a castle perched on a hilltop. They not only plan to restore the building to its former glory, but also to erect a modern extension around the original structure. Kevin McCloud follows their progress

Grand Designs: Season 8 (2003)

• Season 8 Episode 11: Cumbria

  Kevin McCloud charts the progress of Helen Gould and Phil Reddy, who want to build an environmentally friendly dream house in Cumbria which will be almost completely covered by earth and boast a south-facing frontage built entirely of glass. With a budget of £220,000 and a 22-week deadline, the presenter is unsure whether they can deal with the problems of waterproofing and light sources before the arrival of their first baby

• Season 8 Episode 6: Bath

  A couple build a modernist home a mile from Bath, opting for an environmentally friendly German pre-fabricated kit house. The project takes place on a steep hillside and results in the biggest ground works project the programme has ever seen. When they are close to completing preparations for the build, disaster strikes as their neighbour's wall collapses in a storm, with the damage potentially costing them nearly £100,000

• Season 8 Episode 5: Midlothian

  A couple decide to build a family home on an industrial site in the Midlothian countryside complete with lime kilns, but are only allowed to do so if they become custodians of the kilns and their house blends in with the landscape. This proves challenging for the pair as they want to build a modern property that could be seen as a blot on the landscape to the locals. The task is made all the more demanding when they underestimate the long hours needed to be a project manager

• Season 8 Episode 4: Monmouth

  A couple with a love of gothic architecture and horror movies plan to use their budget of £400,000 to build a house inspired by the Addams Family, complete with a stained glass window, a stone fireplace and an oak staircase featuring gargoyles. However, completing the five-bedroom house on limited funds proves difficult and the pair experience financial difficulties

• Season 8 Episode 2: Oxford

  Kevin McCloud meets a commercial surveyor with an £800,000 budget who is planning to build an unusual home in Oxford. His chosen plot is situated behind a listed wall and strict planning conditions mean the house has to be only one storey high. With the help of an architect, the owner comes up with a design that makes the most of the land and available light, but his perfectionist nature causes the project to run behind schedule

• Season 8 Episode 1: Cheltenham

  A couple who live in a Regency house in Cheltenham that is expensive to run decide to sell up and build a modern low-maintenance house in their back garden. However, height restrictions mean they have to build 60 per cent of their new home underground and neighbours make 90 complaints about their planning application. Undeterred, the pair continue to press ahead, but the project encounters further problems including the departure of the builders

Grand Designs: Season 7

• Season 7 Episode 12: South London

  Kevin McCloud meets carpenter Bill Bradley, who is building two timber houses on the site of his old wood workshop in south London, hoping that selling one off will leave him and his wife Sarah mortgage-free. However, the awkward size and location of the site mean serious changes are made to the design, and as the budget soars and Bill's inexperience starts to show, the couple's dream of debt-free living looks increasingly remote

• Season 7 Episode 11: Tuscany

  Janne Hoffe-Tilled and Howard Smyth moved to Italy in 1999, hoping to build their dream home in Tuscany. They faced a battle to obtain planning permission to develop a 1,000-year-old derelict castle, and struggled to reclaim parts of their land from their neighbours while adapting their ambitious design to please the authorities. Kevin McCloud revisits the couple to discover if they managed to overcome their problems and realise their vision

• Season 7 Episode 10: Cambridgeshire

  Kevin McCloud visits carpenter Kelly Neville and his partner Masoko in the Cambridgeshire Fens, as they realise their dream of building an eco-friendly, self-sustaining house from straw and oak, in a complex design constructed around an 800-year-old tree trunk. But with the project proving a stern challenge and no architect to consult for help, the couple soon find themselves struggling to cope

• Season 7 Episode 9: Argyll

  Musicians Tony and Jo Moffat began building a home on the west coast of Scotland, investing in an architect who developed an experimental design emulating a Norwegian longhouse, using a medieval-style oak frame. However, the project soon hit problems, with rocketing costs leaving them struggling to continue. Three years on, Kevin McCloud revisits the couple to discover how their unique creation has progressed

• Season 7 Episode 7: Surrey

  A couple with a passion for art deco decide to create a sense of the Thirties glamour in their five-bedroom Surrey home by incorporating features including a curved glass walls and crittle-style windows. To meet modern standards, the pair go to Miami to research the latest eco-friendly materials, but the real challenge comes when they are back home on the building site. Kevin McCloud presents

• Season 7 Episode 6: Tipton

  Kevin McCloud follows builder Dean Marks and his family as they pursue their dream of converting a church into a home, buying a derelict Grade II listed building for £12,750 and planning to give up their jobs to complete the project themselves. But as their £100,000 budget begins to dry up, they face an even bigger problem when the ownership of the building is called into question

• Season 7 Episode 5: Carmarthen

  Kevin McCloud returns to rural Wales to visit Andrew and Lowri Davies, a couple who dreamt of replacing their cramped cottage with an environmentally friendly farmhouse, built using state-of-the-art eco materials. However, with downsizing their mortgage a priority, a strict budget, clueless builders and a row with the architect, they found it increasingly difficult to balance the books

• Season 7 Episode 4: Bournemouth

  Katrin and James Gray buy a redundant solarium on the roof of some flats in Bournemouth to convert into a luxury penthouse with stunning coastal views. However, they don't realise the problems that building on top of another structure can bring, and soon find themselves lifting heavy materials six storeys high with 60 angry neighbours to placate. Kevin McCloud presents

• Season 7 Episode 3: Medway

  Kevin McCloud presents as a family who have outgrown their tiny east-London flat build a new life on the water. With just £50,000 and a rusty Thames barge, Chris Miller and his wife Sze Liu Laine aim to create an environmentally friendly three-bedroom houseboat entirely from recycled scrap, but without drawings, plans or building regulations to keep them in check, things begin to unravel

• Season 7 Episode 1: Skipton

  Kevin McCloud meets Francis and Karen Shaw, who are hoping to save a crumbling, romantic, 14th-century castle in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales. While the opportunity is a chance to fulfil a childhood dream, it is not just any old building - it's a scheduled ancient monument protected by mountains of red tape. As their budget rockets skywards and they enter their second year of building, they suffer many setbacks

Grand Designs: Season 6 (2004)

• Season 6 Episode 7: Exeter

  Charting the building plans of Peter and Christine Benjamin, who are hoping to construct a small retirement home within a walled garden in the grounds of the Edwardian manor house where they used to live. The proposed property has floor-to-ceiling glass on one side, with a traditional potting shed-style exterior on the other, but Peter's ambition to design as they build causes problems. Last in the series

• Season 6 Episode 6: Les Gets, French Alps

  Kevin McCloud returns to view the result of a couple's project to convert a traditional farmhouse into a luxurious eight-bedroom chalet in the Alpine ski resort of Les Gets, France. With the owners tied up back in London, the builders initially struggled to interpret the plans for a structure unlike anything they had seen before - but two years later, the owners' vision is complete

• Season 6 Episode 5: Creuse, France

  Kevin McCloud reviews the progress of Denise Daniel and Doug Ibbs, who set out three years ago to turn a dilapidated 19th-century manor house in the remote Creuse region of central France into a B&B. At the time, Kevin was concerned to find the couple did not speak French, planned to do most of the work themselves and only had enough money to survive for a year

• Season 6 Episode 4: Ashford

  A Kent couple raise funds to convert a concrete water tower in their back garden into a dream home by selling their Victorian cottage. A cutting-edge extension of steel and glass on stilts is an ambitious design, especially on a budget of £250,000, and a rise in steel prices leaves their plans in serious trouble. Presented by Kevin McCloud

• Season 6 Episode 3: Stirling

  After 20 years of travelling, a couple decide to build a sustainable contemporary family home in the remote Campsie Fells in Stirlingshire, Scotland. They have given themselves six months to finish the project on a very tight budget, but complications soon arise as they attempt to obtain materials from all over the world, including a Swedish timber frame and cedar wood from Canada

• Season 6 Episode 2: Ross-on-Wye

  Kevin McCloud follows designers Jane and Robert Ellis as they plan the conversion of a 300-year-old Ross-on-Wye barn into a contemporary home using modern steel and glass. The planning authorities have ruled that no extra windows can be put in, so the architect has to find ingenious ways of introducing light to the property. However, as the budget spirals out of control, the project appears to be in jeopardy

• Season 6 Episode 1: Killearn

  Kevin McCloud meets more people with a vision to build their dream home, beginning with Jim and Simone Fairfull, who are planning a light-filled glass pavilion projecting over a private Scottish loch. As the labourers attend to hand-crafted details the spectacular design takes its toll on Jim, who suffers from a stress-related disease exacerbated by the prolonged building work

Grand Designs: Season 5 (2004 - 2007)

• Season 5 Episode 11: Carmarthen

  Andrew and Lowri Davies embark on a project to build an eco-friendly farmhouse in rural Wales. They opt for state-of-the-art experimental building materials, but their budget quickly spirals out of control. Finding it increasingly difficult to balance the books with their desire for a sustainable home, they fear their dreams are set to be dashed

• Season 5 Episode 10: Devon

  Kevin McCloud meets Julie and Mark Veysey, whose vision is a Miami-style beach house overlooking the south Devon coast. The design resembles a series of white interlocking boxes topped with a flat zinc roof. A barbecue and hot tub on the veranda, as well as a cinema room, are all part of the project. However, with a budget of just £200,000, they may have a hard time realising their dreams. Last in the series

• Season 5 Episode 9: Belfast

  Kevin McCloud meets an ambitious couple planning to build a spectacular split-level home cascading down an almost vertical Belfast hillside. The project is expected to be completed quickly, but getting suppliers to the site proves difficult and managing the complicated project proves a real challenge

• Season 5 Episode 6: Waterloo

  An update on Louise and Milko Ostendorf, who embarked on a project three years ago to transform an old violin factory in London into a luxury home. The work was threatened by a battle with their neighbours over a jointly owned wall, and Kevin McCloud returns to find out whether their dispute has been settled

• Season 5 Episode 5: Devon

  Empty nester Pat Becker has decided her Georgian family house has grown too big for her. She decides to build a new seashell-shaped home at the bottom of the garden, with concrete and polystyrene spiral walls. The architect has promised it will take only six months to construct - but a round house is never going to be a straightforward proposition. Presented by Kevin McCloud

• Season 5 Episode 4: EPISODE: 4

  A couple reveal their plans for a glass pavilion on a private loch in Scotland, and builders set to work on the design. However, they encounter a series of problems along the way that affects the husband's stress-related illness

• Season 5 Episode 4: London

  Three years ago Monty Ravenscroft and Clare Loewe's bought a plot of land in Peckham to build their own home - only to be told it was too small for a traditional house. Engineering expert Monty designed a space-age property with a sliding glass roof and mezzanine bedroom pods, but with obstacles including an unexpected pregnancy to overcome, Kevin McCloud pays them a visit to discover how the ambitious project has progressed

• Season 5 Episode 3: Gloucester

  Kevin McCloud watches over developments as Jeremy and Louise Brown try to convert a Grade II-listed 16th-century farmhouse that has barely been touched for more than 400 years into a luxurious modern home. They hope to reconcile the old with the new and retain the building's original historic features, including its doorways, beams and hay loft

• Season 5 Episode 2: Peckham

  Kevin McCloud meets a couple planning to build an experimental home on a small plot of land in Peckham, south London. Unable to afford a conventional house, the pair envisage a finished product that is a miracle of space-age design, complete with sliding-glass roof lights and mezzanine bedroom pods

• Season 5 Episode 1: Kent

  Kent carpenter John Cadney, whose family has not had a permanent home for 16 years, decides to import an environmentally friendly four-bedroom log cabin from Finland and assemble it himself. With hundreds of pre-cut pieces of wood to fit together, his skills are tested to the limits. Presented by Kevin McCloud

Grand Designs: Season 4 (2003 - 2004)

• Season 4 Episode 8: Amersham, Cloud Eight

  Kevin McCloud revisits Tom Perry, previously seen attempting to build an ambitious house in Buckinghamshire. When the pair last met, the project looked set to end in disaster - and a year later, things have hardly improved. However, the amateur architect refuses to admit defeat, and remains confident he will have his dream home

• Season 4 Episode 6: Huf Haus

  Kevin McCloud meets a couple who have built their own houses in the past but have now come up with a scheme far more ambitious than anything they have undertaken previously. Their new home is being designed and fabricated in Germany, then transported to Surrey to be assembled within a week. Once it has been erected, they have the challenge of putting their own unique stamp on the 'factory-fresh' property

• Season 4 Episode 5: Edinburgh

  Kevin McCloud meets a thrill-seeking couple who face the tough challenge of creating their own home. The pair have bought a 19th-century stone house in Leith, Edinburgh, and are intent on restoring the derelict property to its former glory - even though they have no construction experience

• Season 4 Episode 4: Clapham

  Kevin McCloud pays a return visit to Anjana and David Devoy, who tired of their cluttered, Victorian house and decided to build a new home from scratch in their back garden two years ago. The couple planned to create a modern, minimalist property out of concrete and glass and pursued their dream despite having little money and even less building experience

• Season 4 Episode 3: Hastings

  The Pet Shop Boys' former manager Tom Watkins and his partner Darron have planned for years to build a modernist, Bauhaus-inspired white cube to live in and house their sizeable collection of art. However, they are unsure whether Hastings, the Sussex coastal town where they reside, is ready to accept such a structure. Presented by Kevin McCloud

• Season 4 Episode 2: Oak-framed House

  Kevin McCloud meets a couple who plan to build a green oak-framed house, mixing traditional and modern styles

• Season 4 Episode 1: Dorset

  Kevin McCloud meets a couple who have spent the past 15 years planning their dream home. They have taken inspiration from their travels around the world, particularly visits to America and Japan, and plan to create a highly individual wooden-framed house in the New Forest

Grand Designs: Season 3 (2003 - 2004)

• Season 3 Episode 7: Sussex

  Kevin McCloud follows Ben Law's attempt to build a handmade wooden house, which is totally self-sufficient - with no mains services - in a West Sussex forest. With a budget of just £25,000 and the help of local builders persuaded to work for free, the task soon becomes a race against time as adverse weather threatens the project

• Season 3 Episode 6: Barn Conversion
• Season 3 Episode 5: Peterborough

  Following the progress of John and Terri Westlake as they set out to build a modern timber and glass home rather than renovate their tumbledown cottage which is set in acres of Cambridgeshire woodland - a decision that is likely to upset their traditionally-minded neighbours

• Season 3 Episode 4: Hackney

  Kevin McCloud follows John and Eleni Flood as they turn their Victorian terraced property into a cool, contemporary space. However, in revolutionising the structure of their Hackney home, the couple find remedial damp-proofing work is necessary, the roof needs replacing and the weather is against them. As the budget looks set to keep on rising, the presenter wonders if a 150-year-old house can be reborn as a designer's dream

• Season 3 Episode 3: Hereford

  Kevin McCloud meets a Hereford couple planning to build their own home in the centre of a historic village, surrounded by medieval cottages. The presenter follows their progress as they ensure their new house is not only full of all the latest mod cons, but blends in with the 600-year-old surrounding buildings

• Season 3 Episode 2: Chesterfield

  Kevin McCloud charts the progress of Leanne Smith and Chris Jones as they embark on an ambitious project in Chesterfield - converting a disused waterworks into a dream home. As the site is totally run-down and disconnected from any services, the couple face an uphill battle to complete the task and stay within their £145,000 budget

• Season 3 Episode 1: Peterborough

  After going back on their decision not to self-build, John and Terri Westlake set out to construct a modern timber and glass home in the middle of the countryside near Peterborough. Five years on, Kevin McCloud returns to their home to discover how the small family are coping with their compact living space

Grand Designs: Season 2 (2001 - 2007)

• Season 2 Episode 12: Maidstone

  In Maidstone, Bill and Jean Letley plan a highly contemporary bungalow in their back garden, complete with underfloor heating and prototype steel foundations. The project would test even the most accomplished workmen, but has been entrusted to their daughter and son-in-law, who have little building experience and will need to make personal sacrifices

• Season 2 Episode 8: Lambourn

  Kevin McCloud returns after two and a half years to the Lambourn Valley amid the undulating Berkshire Downs to see how Rupert and Julie Upton have fared since the building of their dream home was completed. The couple recall the spiralling costs and setbacks of the original project, and Kevin wonders if the spectacular views and rural location make up for the stress and huge mortgage

• Season 2 Episode 7: Wales

  Kevin McCloud revisits Adrian and Corrina, who decided to build their first home out of a 300-year-old ruin in the Brecon Beacons. For the couple to complete the project a lot of work is needed - a difficult task on a restricted budget

• Season 2 Episode 6: Sussex Downs

  Kevin McCloud meets a woman intent on fulfilling her ambition to build a New England-style kit house on the Sussex Downs that was designed over the Internet. The entire package, which contains no fewer than 6,000 pieces, is shipped over in one go - now all that remains is to fit it all together like a jigsaw, a task easier said than done

• Season 2 Episode 5: Farnham

  Kevin McCloud meets a couple determined to fulfil their dream of building a Georgian-style mansion. Having spent the last five years finding the perfect plot of land in Farnham and meticulously planning the project, Helen Saunders and her husband Mark Eisenstadt are ready to get the building under way - but their plans soon falter and the whole experience becomes a nightmare

• Season 2 Episode 5: Surrey

  Kevin McCloud watches over developments as a couple attempt to convert a Grade II-listed Victorian barn in a picturesque Surrey village into an ultra-modern home complete with suspended walkways, pod-like bedrooms and hi-tech fittings. However, living on site seems a mixed blessing as they cause friction with the builders and encounter mixed reactions from local residents

• Season 2 Episode 4: London

  Kevin McCloud follows the progress of people designing their dream home in London

• Season 2 Episode 3: Devon

  Kevin McCloud follows Sarah and Dean Berry, who returned to live in their home town of Newport, Gwent, after spending 17 years in London. The couple have bought an 18th-century folly - a castle perched on a hilltop - and plan to restore the building to its former glory, while also wrapping a large modern extension around the original structure. Postponed from 28 January

• Season 2 Episode 2: Birmingham

  Co-operative team build.

• Season 2 Episode 1: Huddersfield

  A 19th century steel mill is transformed into a home.

Grand Designs: Season 1 (2001 - 2004)

• Season 1 Episode 8: Doncaster

  Charting the progress of a Doncaster couple building a futuristic glass and steel dream house on the edge of a conservation area. However, sibling rivalry threatens derail the project as the maverick architect of the project is the woman's brother

• Season 1 Episode 7: Islington

  An Islington couple draw up plans for an unusual home-cum-office, made of straw bales and sandbags. Kevin McCloud finds out whether they will be able to grow strawberries on the earth roof and make their dreams come true

• Season 1 Episode 6: Cornwall

  Kevin McCloud follows the progress of people designing their dream home

• Season 1 Episode 5: Suffolk

  Kevin McCloud visits Rob Roy and Alida Saunders in Suffolk. The couple are attempting to build an environmentally friendly dwelling, complete with solar-powered heating, a grey-water system and a composting toilet, but Alida is also keen to ensure the eco-house is a real home for them and their children

• Season 1 Episode 4: Amersham

  Kevin McCloud follows the progress of Tom Perry and his partner Judy as they embark on an ambitious project to build their dream home in Amersham, Buckinghamshire, incorporating hi-tech gadgetry, glass walls, exposed steel and a wing-shaped roof

• Season 1 Episode 3: Brighton

  This edition looks at a Brighton co-operative of ten young families, including ex-travellers and single parents, who are helping to build their own homes in return for substantial rent subsidies.

• Season 1 Episode 2: Berkshire

  Kevin McCloud meets Denys and Marjorie Randolph in Berkshire. Ten years ago the couple built their own house, and now that they're both into their seventies they've decided the time is right to start a new building project, opting to construct their very own classic English barn

• Season 1 Episode 2: The Lot, France

  Kevin McCloud visits the French region of Lot, where Mark and Debbie Sampson are embarking on an ambitious project to create an open-framed house built partly out of straw bales. The couple moved to France eight years ago, but have never really felt at home, and their unorthodox plans could further alienate them from the locals

• Season 1 Episode 1: Newhaven

  Kevin McCloud visits Newhaven to see how Tim Cox and Julia Brock are getting on with plans to build a dream home on a clifftop. They hope to complete the project before the arrival of their baby, and after weighing up the pros and cons, have decided to construct a kit house

Grand Designs:

• Alicante, Spain

  Kevin McCloud travels to Spain to meet a family who have bought a plot of land in Alicante and plan to build a modern, hexagonal 'super villa' with grounds that will be landscaped into a family playground. However, in their bid for a dream life, they have taken numerous risks - they do not speak Spanish and their business in London has yet to be sold to fund their ambitious project

• Birmingham

  Kevin McCloud investigates the innovative scheme launched by a Birmingham housing association, aimed at allowing people who can't afford to buy their own homes to build them instead. The presenter questions the feasibility of completely unskilled men and women constructing habitable houses

• Glasgow

  Kevin McCloud meets two musicians who have bought a plot of land on the west coast of Scotland, but aren't sure what to do with it. They decide to hire an unconventional architect and give him free rein to create whatever kind of house he sees fit. However, the building he comes up with is an experimental design that provokes scepticism

• Hampshire

  Kevin McCloud meets Alex and Cheryl Reay, whose lovingly restored medieval cottage in Hampshire was ravaged by fire months after their insurance policy lapsed. Determined to rebuild the property, they have taken the opportunity to transform it into a stunning modern home, but with project manager Alex's lack of experience and the debt piling up, they face disaster for a second time

• Huddersfield

  Kevin McCloud meets a couple renovating a deserted textile mill near Huddersfield, hoping to transform it into an airy, modern interior. Uninhabited for four years, it looks rather the worse for wear, but with a little creativity and a great deal of planning, the design begins to take shape : how will it fare in practice?

• Kevin's Favourite

  Kevin McCloud returns to Sussex to see how Ben Law's woodsman's cottage has developed. The house was built on a low budget, using methods dating back to the early medieval period with raw materials from the surrounding countryside. During the past 18 months the upstairs has been completed and the outside has been landscaped. Kevin also discovers how the property has changed Ben's life since the original programme was broadcast

• Lambourn

  Kevin McCloud meets Rupert and Julie, a couple planning to build a cross-shaped oak-and-glass home in the picturesque Lambourn Valley. The project is experimental and very expensive, but they're determined to see it through : even though every last component has to be custom-made

• Malaga, Spain

  Kevin McCloud visits Malaga, where he follows the progress of English architect Gil Briffa and wife Hilary. The couple have to put their trust in local Spanish builders to construct their vision of a dream contemporary home in the heart of a sleepy Andalusian community

• Puglia, Italy

  Kevin McCloud charts the progress of two artists who have moved to the rural Italian region of Puglia, Italy, as they set out to turn a derelict olive farm into a luxurious summer school for fellow painters. However, with their funds rapidly dwindling, the couple are forced to build the house themselves

• Tuscany, Italy

  Kevin McCloud visits Tuscany to meet Janne Hoffe-Tilley and Howard Smyth, who moved to Italy in 1999 hoping to build their dream home. The couple face a battle to obtain permission to develop a derelict 1,000-year-old castle, and struggle to reclaim parts of their land from neighbours while adapting their ambitious design to please the local authorities

• Westport, Ireland

  Kevin McCloud travels to the romantic west coast of Ireland, where Andrew Lohan is converting a ruined 150-year-old church into a home for his family. The ambitious project is further complicated by the fact that Andrew is taking on the roles of architect and manager, and is currently residing on the other side of the country in Dublin