If you’re one of the 1.7million viewers who tuned into Channel 4’s Escape to the Chateau last Sunday 12th June, then you’ve probably googled “chateau for £280k” once or twice this week.
Bells & Whistles PR was appointed to handle the press for Dick Strawbridge and Angel Adoree, the stars of the new 3-part series. It’s been a whirlwind few weeks and we are delighted with the reviews of the show and the feedback from the public.
Not only has Escape to the Chateau received rave reviews in the Daily Mail, The Daily Telegraph and The Guardian, but it’s been in the top 10 trending topics on Twitter for the last two weeks AND beaten off competition from BBC2 and Channel 5.
Bells & Whistles PR has also secured profile slots, interviews and features in print, online and broadcast including:
- Daily Telegraph Weekend
- Metro
- Vintage Life
- Daily Mail
- Psychologies
- ITV Weekend with Aled Jones
- Sunday Times Magazine
- BBC Radio Essex
- French Entree
- French Living
In case you’ve missed it, there’s always Catch Up! Here’s a brief summary of the show:
Engineer and TV presenter, Dick Strawbridge (Scrapheap Challenge, Coast, Celebrity Masterchef, Two Hungry Sailors) and his wife, the vintage-clad best-selling author Angel Adoree (Dragons Den, The Vintage Tea Party book series), have a dream: to swap their two-bedroom flat in Southend on Sea for an abandoned 45 room, five-storey 19th century chateau in rural France. Not ones to procrastinate, they do just that in a new three-part Channel 4 documentary.
Escape to the Chateau is a heartwarming adventure into the unknown, as the Strawbridge family join the other 10,000 Brits who make the journey across the channel every year for a better life in France. It’s a story about love, family, DIY, art and engineering on the grandest of scales.
Join Dick, Angel, two-year-old Arthur and 10-month-old Dorothy, as they navigate their way around the imposing fairytale chateau with no heat, electricity or sewage, uncovering a secret past and turning an unloved, empty shell into a family home, just in time for their November wedding.
Chateau-de-la-Motte Husson is set in 12 acres of parkland in the Pays de la Loire. It has a moat, a walled garden, seven outbuildings, and a price tag of £280,000. When Dick and Angel discover their dream home is the size of nine modern British-built houses and costs less than one, they know they have to buy it.
Chateau-de-la-Motte Husson is set in 12 acres of parkland in the Pays de la Loire. It has a moat, a walled garden, seven outbuildings, and a price tag of £280,000. When Dick and Angel discover their dream home is the size of nine modern British-built houses and costs less than one, they know they have to buy it.
With Dick’s engineering background and boundless energy, tasks such as stripping lead paint from 79 100-year-old window frames, the construction of a pissoir for wedding guests, and the design of a new central heating system using 600 metres of piping are left in his capable hands. He even finds time to build a smoker and produce his own ‘Strawbridge Cheese’.
Vintage tea party pioneer Angel is known internationally for her best-selling Vintage Tea Party books. A hardworking city girl born and bred, Angel has plans to open the country chateau for elegant vintage weddings. They just need to get theirs out of the way first!
Over the course of 10 months, Escape to the Chateau follows the Strawbridge family as they discover the chateau’s secrets, try to live like the locals, and work day and night to restore the rooms back to their 19th century glory. Their commitment to the project is a tour de force, fuelled by their love of France, the food, the culture, and the way of life.
As Dick points out, “Going to live in France allows you to have all the things you dream of – decent wine, decent food, a really nice place to live.”
For Angel, the move will change their lives forever, “We’re looking for a better standard of life, family life…living the dream. We are in fact searching for the dream.”
Find out more about Dick and Angel’s new home Chateau-de-la-Motte Husson by visiting www.chateaudelamottehusson.com
For more information about PR and personal representation, contact Christabel Saunders at Bells & Whistles PR on hello@bellsandwhistlespr.com