Restoration Australia Season 7 Episode 5
Restoration Australia S7E05,
Restoration Australia - Season 7 Episode 5,
Restoration Australia Season 7 Episode 5 ,
Restoration Australia ,
#RestorationAustralia
Restoration Australia S7E05,
Restoration Australia - Season 7 Episode 5,
Restoration Australia Season 7 Episode 5 ,
Restoration Australia ,
#RestorationAustralia
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FunTranscript
00:00Online shopping has made it so much easier to buy things on a whim. Things we
00:11probably shouldn't buy, we probably don't need, and things we maybe can't afford.
00:16But how many of us have scrolled through the endless offerings and bought
00:20ourselves a 19th century building in an interstate town that we've never even
00:25been to? Well, there are at least two people among us who have done exactly
00:30that, and they're about to discover that impulse buying a school is a learning
00:35experience that will dramatically change your life.
00:42I'm Anthony Berg, a professor of architecture, passionate about
00:47buildings of the past, and what they can tell us about
00:52better ways to live in the future. This is very confronting. It's a ruin.
00:56Join me as I travel the country meeting homeowners embarking on the
01:01challenge of a lifetime, restoring homes from the 1800s to the swinging 60s,
01:07looking to balance our rich cultural heritage with life in modern Australia.
01:23It's hard to believe much of this vibrant stretch of Sydney waterfront was
01:30once a dour and dirty industrial precinct. Breakfast Point is a
01:35residential community that's risen in large part from rehabilitated land, and
01:40it's now home to sales exec Charlie and nursing consultant Monique.
01:46I love old things that need a good overhaul. I found him. I'm old. I always wanted
01:51something old. That'd be me. Their kids from previous marriages have grown and
01:58flown the coop. So Mon and Charlie, downsized from a rattling family home
02:09nearby, to a neat, bright, modern apartment in the thick of things.
02:16We got the pub down the road. We got restaurants over the road. Yeah, we're
02:22pretty happy. With life simplified and streamlined in a comfy suburb, a half an
02:27hour or so from Sydney's CBD, the next move was obvious. Make things complicated.
02:38Not slightly complicated. Long-distance, sight-unseen, heritage-layered, termite
02:44chewed, unsympathetically altered, and seriously neglected. Complicated. Mon and
02:51Charlie bought a school on the internet, in a part of the world they knew next to
02:57nothing about. A town called Balhanna. We'd never been to Balhanna. We felt we
03:03didn't really have a strategy, did we? No, we didn't. It just sort of happened. Has to be said, we
03:07didn't have a strategy. It's pretty unscientific. One little look what I found and it was all
03:11done. I think most people are saying it's either brave or insane. They can't work out which.
03:15The only thing this place has in common with their current setup is
03:21its proximity to the CBD, the Adelaide CBD. It's in the rolling Adelaide Hills,
03:28on a good day, a half an hour or so from the city, and 1,300 kilometres from Sydney.
03:36By the time we saw it, the walls were way thicker than we ever imagined they
03:41would be, and it was a bit more dilapidated than we thought it would be
03:45too. It needs completely rewiring and re-plumbing and all the sort of the
03:51basic services. There's lots of things. We have no idea how much work it's gonna
03:55be. We have no idea. A lot. I think a lot, but we don't know whether it's a
04:01very lot or just a lot. The odds, you'd have to say, are on a very lot.
04:09Balhanna School has been closed for more than 80 years and its uses since then
04:15have brought a catalogue of disrespectful additions and a whole lot
04:19of neglect. Mon and Charlie paid $850,000 for an enormous 19th century
04:27classroom and attached residence, cleaved into a maze of small rooms and
04:32sitting on about three and a half thousand square metres of land. Trying to
04:37renovate and restore a heritage property in the Adelaide Hills from Sydney is
04:43borderline insane. Doing a normal renovation, there's so many decisions to
04:48make. Can you imagine making those decisions from so far away? They love
04:54their life in Sydney where they're both still working, but Mon and Charlie are
04:58eyeing the not-too-distant future beyond their careers. They want to exit the big
05:03busy city for sleepy Balhanna and live happily ever after in a home versatile
05:09enough to offer holiday accommodation and supporting income. You know, we could
05:14stay here and end our days here and never actually see or do very much else.
05:17I think that'd be a bit boring really, wouldn't it? I mean, you've got the whole of the
05:22Adelaide Hills to explore, you've got all the vineyards, you've got all the beaches down
05:26the peninsulas. It'll be fun. I'm really looking forward to the gear
05:30change from Sydney to Adelaide. It's gonna be a much quieter life, I think.
05:36It's such a beautiful building. I'm so pleased that we will get to save it.
05:42Well, let's hope we haven't bitten off more than we can chew. Let's hope.
05:47It is beautiful here, but the Adelaide Hills are a world away from Breakfast Point.
05:53Not just in distance, but in character. But I still can't quite get my head
05:58around the decision to buy what is surely going to be a challenging and
06:03complex restoration project so far from home. I mean, when things go pear-shaped
06:09and, you know, what are the chances? You can't just drop everything and be on
06:14site. So this is going to be an exercise in trust and delegation, require nerves
06:21of steel, as well as about a million or so text messages and phone calls to the
06:25building team, and more than the occasional interstate flight.
06:30It's going to be a bit of an adventure. Hopefully it'll be a pleasant adventure
06:35and we'll love living there when we're done.
06:39Hello there. Hey, Charlie. Hello, Anthony. Mon, how are you? Nice to see you. Welcome to the schoolhouse.
06:45Welcome to the school. Thank you very much. This is absolutely glorious. What a fantastic project.
06:50It certainly will be glorious. It's early days and it's gloriosity, which isn't a word, but hey-ho.
06:56So you bought a schoolhouse based on the internet and you'd never seen it before
07:01and taking on a pretty full-on restoration project at the same time.
07:06Yes. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Are you guys okay? No. We were still nervous about the decision we made.
07:13Yeah, we started to really believe that we were bonkers, but it was too late.
07:20Yeah. We'd done it. I didn't expect such magnificent stonework underneath what
07:26was a fairly grotty exterior before. And those gothic windows. I get that.
07:33You're buying a whole lot of, you know, unique architecture and a whole bunch of unique problems,
07:37but a whole bunch of unique architecture. Lots of stuff to do. Fantastic.
07:41But why don't you come inside and have a look? Oh, please. Show me. Come on. Follow us. Lead on.
07:47There are a couple of entrances to the building. So, Anthony, welcome to the entryway.
07:54It's definitely got that institutional kind of vibe to it, doesn't it?
07:57I doubt too many Balhanna students would have been thrilled to arrive this way.
08:02This is where the school headmaster would have been. Okay. All right.
08:06So, you only came in here if you were in trouble? Yeah. That's why Charlie's here.
08:10I'll spend all my time here, Isis. Please.
08:13Apparently, there is a punishment record, and I'm really trying hard to find that.
08:18I'm not sure I want to see that, to be honest with you.
08:21This room obviously wasn't part of the original build.
08:24We don't think so. So, we think school was built first,
08:27then this was added on very, very soon after this room, and then the room next door.
08:33This would have been the office, and that would have been bedroom next door.
08:38Yeah, it's pretty simple accommodation. And property. Everything else.
08:42Not an easy job to do, a teacher, back then. No.
08:46School kids over in that room, family life in this room, and not much separating the two. No.
08:52Mon and Charlie and their team have already made good headway
08:56removing many of the partitions and rooms and clutter
08:59added in the years after the school ceased operation.
09:03As advertised, right, this is the whole schoolhouse suddenly sort of revealed.
09:08It's a beautiful room. It is absolutely fantastic.
09:12You should have seen it four months ago when we had a bedroom here,
09:16there was a bedroom here, there was a loft bedroom over there.
09:21I mean, quite frankly, it was an absolute mess, so we stripped all that out
09:25and now we've got this wonderful, huge space that we can play with
09:30and we can do what we need to do with. Yeah. It's tremendous.
09:33And it's just got history sort of coming out of every corner, which is wonderful.
09:38It does paint a very interesting picture of what this would have been like back in the day.
09:43Your beautiful Gothic windows are, you know, very proudly displayed across the whole room now.
09:48And this was the original front door, is that right? Yeah.
09:50One of these things is not like the other,
09:53and the door that became a rectangular window among this array of Gothic shapes
09:58really sticks out like a sore thumb.
10:00What you want is these Gothic windows to do all the talking, really.
10:03We've had lots of discussion with Heritage SA about what to do with that,
10:06and they have kindly allowed us to keep it as a window.
10:09We don't need to reinstate it as a door.
10:11So Gothic arch going back in. Mm-hm. OK.
10:14I mean, I tell you what, all this kind of great height to work with,
10:18so much glorious light flowing in.
10:20There's, like, opportunity for, you know, using the section,
10:24using the height of the space,
10:25and that's something that we just don't get in contemporary homes.
10:28Not like this.
10:30So how are Mon and Charlie going to transform a redundant classroom
10:34and attached quarters into a flexible residence that can accommodate them,
10:39visiting family and friends,
10:40and their plans for income-supporting short stays?
10:45They'll make use of the enormous volume of the classroom
10:48with a large living area at one end,
10:50a kitchen at the other,
10:52and above, on a mezzanine level, a large bathroom.
10:56A bedroom will be tucked into the roof space above the entrance.
11:00Over where the principal once lived,
11:03there'll be a bedroom with its own veranda,
11:05a dressing room with walk-in robe, and a bathroom.
11:09There's a study, and behind all of this,
11:11a large living area with a kitchen as well.
11:15The old, forbidding headmaster's office
11:17will hopefully be a more welcoming space,
11:20recast as a foyer with a separate entrance for either dwelling.
11:24Mon and Charlie's architects have pitched this
11:27as a respectful, adaptive reuse project,
11:30conserving the original fabric of the building.
11:35There's a lot of restoration to do here.
11:36It's not a minor undertaking.
11:39So on a scale of one to ten,
11:41how would you rate yourselves in terms of experience
11:44restoring projects like this?
11:46Zero, in my case. Not ten.
11:48LAUGHTER
11:50I can see how you two get along.
11:52Zero, one. Mm-hm.
11:54We're probably at the novice level.
11:55Are you going to sort of roll up the sleeves here
11:57and really get involved in the work yourselves?
12:00We've got a builder that's expert in that,
12:02and he's going to teach us what we can do,
12:05and we'll get in there as well.
12:07We'd love to do a lot more.
12:08We're still living in Sydney, still working.
12:13So we're getting down as often as we can,
12:15which is about once a month.
12:17Our aim is to finish it,
12:18and our aim is to spend as little as money as possible
12:22and to get it finished sometime in the next 12 months.
12:25OK. Maybe even 18 months.
12:27Yeah. All right. Well, then let's talk about that.
12:30How much money are you intending to spend on this project?
12:35Anticipating...
12:37$400,000. $400,000.
12:40$400,000.
12:41We think that's realistic. OK. Mm-hm.
12:43We sort of factored in a little bit of a...
12:46Well, quite a lot of wriggle room.
12:47So we think $400,000 we could get away with.
12:49OK. It does sound like a pretty low number,
12:51given you've got quite a lot of house there
12:54and you've got to transform a school into a home.
12:58Yeah. So it's not just cosmetic.
13:00There are organisational changes that have to happen
13:03and a lot of updating that has to go on.
13:06Oh, an enormous amount of updating.
13:08There's going to be a lot of time and love and effort
13:10going into restoring this place,
13:12and it's going to make a tangible difference.
13:15How often does someone get the opportunity to do this?
13:18Yeah. Not very often at all. No.
13:23There's impulse buyers that scratch and itch,
13:25and then there's this,
13:26an impulse buyer that threatens to own its starry-eyed buyers.
13:30Mon and Charlie have already learned
13:32that those real estate pics can only convey so much,
13:36and even a first-hand inspection
13:37will only reveal just a little bit more.
13:40The real story of what they've bought here
13:42will only become clear
13:43once the layers of neglect and additions are removed
13:47and the bones of this old place are clear for all to behold.
13:51And then they've got to turn an old schoolhouse
13:53built for 19th-century kids
13:55into a home and accommodation for 21st-century adults.
14:00Ring the bell?
14:01I suspect the old Balhanna Schoolhouse
14:03is about to teach two new students some life-changing lessons.
14:10Oh, my God.
14:20On site, nothing yells,
14:22''Let's get serious'' quite like a jackhammer.
14:25Look at that. It's like chocolate.
14:28As the effort to strip the school back to its authentic core
14:32keeps demolition dynamo Gary...
14:34And this is Ollie. Say hello, Ollie.
14:37..and sidekick Ollie...
14:40They got the A-team on doing the hard labour.
14:477 to 3.30, pretty much a straight jackhammering.
14:51I just put a podcast on
14:53and that gets you through the day pretty easy.
14:56We've gone through probably about close to six skip bins
15:00full of concrete refuse, old pipework,
15:04window frames that were rotted.
15:11This is sort of like getting towards the fun bit.
15:15The fun bit is getting to the essence of the school's components.
15:20And look at that. How wonderful.
15:23Like the original stonework
15:25underneath layers of unsightly paint and crumbling plaster.
15:29This is the type of job you could do all day long.
15:35That stone's going to crack.
15:38That stone's going to clean up lovely.
15:44It's been covered up over the years with additions
15:47and several layers of paint.
15:49You know, it's not the building where it used to be
15:52when it was traditionally built.
15:54We've taken all down the verandah here.
15:56That's all been dismantled.
15:58The slab's been dismantled too.
16:01With his own heritage as an accomplished stonemason,
16:04builder Keith has a particular affection
16:07for the old Balhanna schoolhouse.
16:09Still quite a bit of work to do,
16:11but we'll be pretty ready for the reinstatement
16:15of the original verandah back in this location.
16:21Hoping it will be easy, but I don't think so.
16:24We'll see how we go.
16:27That's what I'm going to love about it,
16:29how we're going to transform that back to how it looks now,
16:33to how it used to look in 1857.
16:36It may in fact end up looking more 1857 than it did in 1857.
16:42It's just a matter of nice and steady.
16:45Take your time.
16:47This window that was once a door will remain a window,
16:51but no longer as the odd one out.
16:55Now the trick is not to break the window.
16:59It will be reborn in a Gothic shape.
17:02In keeping with those surrounding it.
17:06Like that!
17:08All the glass in these classroom windows will go,
17:11though hopefully not as dramatically.
17:14New double glazing will be going in
17:16to mute the sound of passing traffic
17:18on a pretty active road out the front.
17:21So we'll just continue chipping away.
17:26So, nice and easy.
17:28As you see, I'm not actually belting the living daylights out of it.
17:31No.
17:33Nice clean edges.
17:35And that's what we're looking for.
17:37OK.
17:40A couple of self-professed, zero-rated restoration novices
17:44are down from Sydney for the weekend.
17:47Try and work backwards, Charles.
17:49Yeah, yeah.
17:51That's it. There you go.
17:54It is habit-forming.
17:56It's therapy.
17:58There's no such thing as idle hands on this site,
18:01and stonemason Steve assigns them some grunt work
18:04at the side of the schoolhouse.
18:06You can see why they painted the bastard red, can't you?
18:09I did...
18:11You know, people paint things a lot of times for a reason.
18:14And, you know, it is to hide stuff.
18:17Big time.
18:19The digital age may have enabled them to discover
18:21and buy this place with the click of a mouse, but...
18:24There's no real shortcut to this at all, is there?
18:26No, you've just got to get on with it and get it done.
18:29Removing stone render remains...
18:31What's the term?
18:33That's it. Old school.
18:35I can't believe the difference it's making.
18:38She was dirty and grey and horrible before,
18:41and now this gorgeous stone's coming through.
18:46It's very rewarding when it's all done,
18:48and you see the change in the particular project
18:51from start to finish.
18:53Especially when you come back after each day,
18:55you think, oh, yeah, that looks pretty good, you know?
18:57Every little bit we knock out
18:59is a bit we haven't got to knock out down the track,
19:01so it's quite a good fun.
19:04And you're outside, it's not raining,
19:08so, you know, let's be grateful for small mercies.
19:18CLICKING
19:34When we say wet, it's been really wet.
19:37What do you do? It's like being at Glastonbury, isn't it?
19:42Without the fun.
19:44Oh! Yeah, nice.
19:48It's been a miserable rain-soaked stretch in the Adelaide Hills.
19:53This has been the wettest winter I can remember.
19:56The place is like a bog.
19:58We've had serious winds, we've had rain,
20:00and that's what we're getting.
20:02It's like being back in Blighty, what can I say?
20:04These are treacherous conditions for roofer Anthony
20:07as he tackles one of the most important heritage assignments on site.
20:12These vents, they're seriously old.
20:15They're 120-something years old.
20:18Authorities have decreed that these old vents have to be retained.
20:22I just need to make sure my ropes are nice and tight,
20:25my knots are good, and hopefully we can get it to the scaffold.
20:29And once we get it to the scaffold, we can get it onto the ground.
20:35These Victorian vents are considered an integral part
20:39of the old school story.
20:41Right, I'm out.
20:43We need to get these vents down and we don't damage these vents
20:46because this whole heritage build is pivotal on these vents,
20:51and being responsible for these vents is quite a nerve-wracking moment,
20:55let's say.
20:57Yep.
21:01Yep.
21:05Yep.
21:13Yep.
21:20Oh, you swine!
21:23Josh!
21:25Can you run round and put a piece of ply underneath it?
21:28I'm going to drop it in the mud!
21:35Right, you ready?
21:38Yes. You got it?
21:40That's it.
21:42That's it.
21:46Look at that!
21:51There's relief at getting these old relics to the ground.
21:55It's going to be cleaned up and galv-dipped,
21:58so it'll last another 120 years minimum.
22:02While the vents are off getting their specialist makeover,
22:05the roofing team hopes to conquer the other big heritage mission up top.
22:09The disintegrating tin roof has to be replaced with corrugated sheeting
22:13that matches exactly the deeper contours of the original.
22:18The order's in with an overseas fabricator.
22:21PHONE RINGS Keith.
22:23Keith, brilliant.
22:24But there's a hitch.
22:25Hi, Keith, how are you? Hello.
22:26What news do you have?
22:28Unfortunately, I do have some bad news.
22:30The roofer has just informed me that there's been a delay
22:35in resourcing the heritage galv sheets.
22:39I knew that.
22:41You're not going to like what I'm going to tell you,
22:43but we're talking around a six-month delay, eh?
22:45No. Far enough.
22:47Yeah.
22:48Global supply chain pressures have forced their project down the queue.
22:52Six months is an eternity.
22:55I didn't expect six months.
22:57I didn't expect you to tell us six months.
22:59The issue is it's not fully waterproof, as you know.
23:03No.
23:04There's areas of the roof which is deteriorated,
23:07so it puts everything into delay, basically.
23:12Without a new weatherproof roof,
23:14there'll be knock-on delays for a lot of the internal work.
23:18There's been sleet, there's been storms that bring huge trees down,
23:23there's been all sorts of things, and that roof is not great.
23:26No. No.
23:28Well, hopefully, fingers crossed it'll stay standing
23:32and keep the bulk of the water out.
23:35It's oddly reminiscent of the challenges
23:38confronting the original builders.
23:40This is the Onkaparika Valley Road crossing the railway line
23:45and approaching Balhanna from Adelaide side of the town.
23:51Coming to the old school.
23:56Back in the mid-1850s,
23:59Australia's corrugated tin, so emblematic of our heartland,
24:03was brought in ever so slowly and weather-dependent
24:06on ships from the UK.
24:08When Balhanna School was completed, roof and all,
24:11a reporter covering its opening described...
24:20The opening ceremony drew civic leaders
24:23and 105 children of both sexes
24:26with tea and cake to their hearts' content.
24:29But behind all this civic bonhomie lurked the real story,
24:33a saga of rivalry and conflict.
24:37The hamlets and villages of the Onkaparika Valley,
24:40the meanders through this part of the Adelaide Hills,
24:43developed cheek by jowl.
24:45Balhanna was established right next door
24:48to another slightly bigger place named Oakbank.
24:52But the two towns matched each other for civic pride,
24:55fiercely protecting their patch
24:57and vigorously representing their own interests.
25:00And there'd be a showdown over schooling.
25:03My great-grandfather moved here in the mid-1800s
25:08and we've been here for generations ever since.
25:12Mon's getting to the bottom of the school feud with Dai
25:15from the Balhanna Historical Society.
25:17Well, welcome to the Onkaparika Valley archive.
25:20Thank you. Come in.
25:22Isn't it a beautiful building?
25:25Dai's family have been instrumental
25:27in capturing Balhanna's history.
25:30The first bus service to Adelaide,
25:33Bartholomew's Bus Service,
25:35which ran daily from Mount Torrens to Adelaide and returned.
25:40In the 1930s,
25:42her grandfather filmed a comprehensive documentary
25:45focusing on the industries then thriving around the town
25:48and the broader Onkaparika Valley.
25:52And the load drawn by the horses
25:55arrives at the Balhanna timber mill.
26:02But by the time this was being shot,
26:05the Balhanna school had already closed
26:07after decades of feuding for funding with rival Oakbank.
26:12There was a lot of talk about this rivalry
26:15between Balhanna school and Oakbank school.
26:18Yes.
26:19So what happened with all that to-ing and fro-ing?
26:22The Balhanna school obviously had run down
26:25and was badly in need of very expensive repairs,
26:28which was very sad.
26:30But the Council of Education had decided
26:33that they would spend money repairing Oakbank
26:36but not repair Balhanna.
26:38So they had more children and they won.
26:40They had more children.
26:41Oakbank's school community had lobbied hard and long
26:44to be the area's sole school.
26:46So it was a bit sad that our school closed?
26:49It was. It was very sad.
26:51But in a quick twist,
26:52the department decided to close Oakbank as well
26:55and start anew.
26:57It gave Oakbank naming rights to a new, amalgamated school
27:01that serves the area to this day.
27:03Once the consolidated school was up and running,
27:06the pupils from both the Oakbank school
27:09and the Balhanna school
27:11marched up the road to the consolidated school.
27:15Oh, how lovely.
27:17And it's been going along happily ever since.
27:26Oh, I like that one.
27:28I like that one.
27:30I do like that one.
27:32So that one goes there.
27:34Back on site...
27:35And this one.
27:37..the team's getting on with what can be done
27:39while the wait for the new roof drags on.
27:42Gary and Steve are switching exit ways
27:45at the back of the building.
27:46That's now been turned into a doorway,
27:48whereas that was the original doorway
27:50and now it's been turned into a window.
27:52Yes, it's been swapped over.
27:53It's been swapped over.
27:54Yes. Yeah.
27:55It's what we're here for.
27:57How are we going?
27:58Steve, you're doing the hard work again, mate.
28:01Jigsaw puzzle.
28:03Look at that.
28:05What a nice one.
28:06That's the window that was the door.
28:08That's the window and the door.
28:09The hole in the wall.
28:11Mon and Charlie are relieved to see a hive of activity
28:14and some dramatic developments.
28:16That's lots of ventilation it didn't have.
28:18That's really cool.
28:20That air's going to get in under there, isn't it?
28:22Oh, yeah, it is.
28:23The old floorboards are up, many of them rotten and irredeemable.
28:27He said that all of this needed to be done,
28:29but I just didn't realise it was going to be so much work.
28:32And that eyesore window installed in place
28:34of the original front entrance to the classroom...
28:37That is the old school doors right there.
28:40..has been expelled,
28:42and the space awaits its Gothic replacement.
28:45That's where the Gothic arch is going to go back.
28:47Yep.
28:48You can see where it's sort of bending round, can't you?
28:50Yeah.
28:51That's going to be very cool when that's done.
28:53It's going to take some clever detective work
28:56to return this doorway to its original Gothic shape.
29:00OK, Charlie, so these are the archive photographs we've got,
29:03and this is all we can go by at the moment.
29:06Yep.
29:07And then repurpose it as a Gothic window.
29:09So this is the original door opening.
29:11Yep.
29:12And you can see the Gothic arch here is higher
29:15than the existing windows.
29:17Yeah.
29:18Keith and stonemason Charlie will draw up their blueprint
29:21from old faded photos of the door
29:24and current snaps of the surrounding windows.
29:27So you can see that we've got the arch,
29:30which replicates the one, two, three, four, five, six stones.
29:34And with clues from two surviving arch stones,
29:37Charlie will set about freehanding
29:39and then constructing a full-size template.
29:42So this will give me an idea of the external curve.
29:45It's a job of forensics, intuition and craftsmanship
29:49that calls for skills Keith has to summon from the UK.
29:54Because there's no qualifications,
29:56no accreditations here in Australia,
29:58we tend to go overseas and select stonemasons
30:01who are actually coming to the end of their time,
30:03their apprenticeship.
30:05So Charlie is what we call a banker-fixer mason.
30:08A banker mason is a mason that actually carves stone.
30:12And a fixer mason is actually a mason that installs a stone.
30:17I've always wanted to do something practical
30:19and I'm absolutely loving it.
30:21That's all up there. Perfect.
30:23So that first face mould is now complete.
30:28PHONE RINGS
30:31GUNSHOT
30:33There's breakthrough news on Keith's other important project.
30:37Some cajoling, arm-twisting and persistence
30:40has seen the overseas fabricator finally come good
30:43with the Order of Heritage corrugated tin.
30:46This is the galve that we've been waiting for
30:49and this is what's caused a lot of the hold-ups.
30:52The waiting time was halved to three months.
30:55We're going to have to tear them up.
30:57Still, there's no time to waste
30:59as Anthony and the roofing team get to work.
31:01Yep. Yep. Yep.
31:03Yep.
31:11Well, maybe a moment to marvel at the original shingles
31:15that have been exposed in the re-roofing process.
31:18Everything about this is just absolutely beautiful,
31:21even you just take a nail
31:23and the workmanship and craft that goes into something like that,
31:26these are all hand-poured and it would have been done by the local farrier.
31:29We will clean them up, we'll give all this a good dust-off
31:32and I can take a couple of nice photographs for Charlie and Mon as well
31:36so they can see what they've got.
31:38Unfortunately, it's going to be hidden but, hey, they're still there.
31:41That's the main thing, they're still there.
31:54G'day, Mon. G'day, Charlie.
31:57We'll just slide on down the hill.
31:59It's like you're skating down the mud to see me.
32:02It's a good thing the new roof is now in place.
32:05More than six months on and on the cusp of summer,
32:09the rain just keeps on coming.
32:12Oh, no, Anthony's boots.
32:14The raked and cleaned stonework
32:16waits patiently for dry weather and traditional re-pointing
32:20but it still manages to pop in the gloom.
32:23Right, no-one fall over.
32:27The site is an absolute bog.
32:31This trench down here looks a bit ominous.
32:34And trenches tell of efforts to divert water away from
32:38and out of the building itself.
32:40Necessary water management. Absolutely essential.
32:43While the Gothic window project remains a work in progress
32:47and our way inside.
32:48Wow, there has been some real change in here, hasn't there?
32:51There's been a bit of change. Wow, brilliant.
32:54Where new levels and spaces are developing.
32:57So we're watertight, which means you can carry on with this work.
33:00Yeah.
33:01And I can see the staircase is looking brilliant.
33:04Actually, it's looking like a lot of fun. Yeah.
33:06They're kind of like a nice, gentle, sort of slower staircase.
33:10Yes.
33:11A bit more leisurely as you kind of ascend, which is lovely.
33:15Some of the design challenges are clearer now.
33:18Like somehow protecting the lines and integrity
33:21of the vast coffered ceiling
33:23when the main bedroom is punched into that roof space
33:26over the old principal's dwelling.
33:29The floorboards had to come up. Yeah.
33:31And we could only save about a quarter of those.
33:34But right now another supply problem
33:36threatens progress and schedules.
33:38Suitable recycled timber to replace the rotten boards
33:42in the vast classroom floor space is proving impossible to source.
33:46The floorboards is an issue. Yeah.
33:48And it will be a concern until we do source new, old floorboards.
33:53There's no point in getting new ones.
33:55It just will not be in keeping with the schoolroom. Yeah.
33:58And we're not prepared to compromise on that. Yeah, yeah.
34:01Don't you both worry that the budget just sort of keeps opening up?
34:05Well, obviously, you know, it's not a bottomless pit... Yeah.
34:09..of funds.
34:11And, yes, it is a concern, but at the moment it's not gone crucial.
34:15Yep.
34:16And hopefully if we can keep being careful with how we plan,
34:20we'll be able to keep a check on things.
34:23This is a project that I think Mon has taken on a lot of
34:26the machinations for, if you like.
34:28You're about halfway through. It's quite a long road to go.
34:32Some big finishing decisions to make. Yes.
34:34Where's that stress going?
34:36Is that landing on your shoulders or on hers?
34:39I think we sort of share the stress
34:41and maybe some of the stress that she feels gets deflected to me.
34:45Not surprisingly.
34:46There's no point in getting too uptight about these things
34:49because the more anxious and upset and uptight you could get...
34:53Yeah. ..it doesn't actually help.
34:55It doesn't make it any better.
34:56In fact, it probably compounds the problem a little bit.
34:58Right. Yeah.
34:59Yeah.
35:07A couple of weeks later, the weather is finally being kind.
35:11The site is drying and tradie Steve...
35:14Nice creamy texture to it.
35:16..and Callum...
35:18I do not like this bit of stone where it's all...
35:23..worn.
35:24..are beginning the enormous job
35:26of repointing the old school stonework from the inside out.
35:30So, mine and Charlie have decided
35:33that they want to go for two different colours of repointing.
35:37On the inside of the building here,
35:39which is sort of the laundry room, et cetera,
35:41they're going for this sort of tinted finish
35:44and then it will just be a natural finish on the outside,
35:47which is slightly different, slightly lighter than this.
35:51It's an important job that's going to take patience and time.
35:55It's key to the authenticity
35:57and ultimate success of the restoration.
36:00And so is this.
36:02This is the stone I've got.
36:04Oh, this is a Balhanna one?
36:05This is the old schoolhouse, Balhanna.
36:08The ground-up recrafting of the new Gothic window
36:11has put Keith on the same trail as the school's original builders...
36:15I'm going to have a look at where we're actually
36:17pulling the rock from at the moment. Yeah.
36:19..to a local quarry for raw materials.
36:23Just look at this one.
36:25And I reckon that colour... Yeah.
36:28..is exactly what you want.
36:30Well, that looks pretty good to me.
36:32So that's close, isn't it? Yeah.
36:34This is the art of restoration at its most elemental
36:38and it requires a confident eye.
36:41It's perfect, isn't it? Yeah.
36:46Carefully sourcing and selecting stone
36:48that, when it's cut, shaped and finished,
36:51is going to match exactly those
36:53in the existing original suite of Gothic windows.
36:57And while Keith brings these freshly-minted sandstone pieces
37:00back to site...
37:01OK. Perfect, sir.
37:03Beautiful.
37:07..the original windows are being brought back to new and beyond.
37:12We're actually restoring these frames.
37:14Some of them we are reusing
37:16and some of them we've had to make.
37:18Some of them were too far gone to be restored.
37:20Where some of these frames are rotten,
37:23I've made new frames to go back into the existing hole.
37:26I mean, then we're double-glazing all the windows.
37:30Glazier Stephen and his team are trying to retain
37:33as much of the old timber as they can.
37:35A good deal of it has endured the more than 150 years of wear,
37:40tear, weather and neglect pretty well.
37:44The slick new double glazing
37:46will hopefully crush the noise of Balhanna's main road
37:49and improve thermal performance of the big, airy classroom space.
37:57Speaking of big, airy places of learning,
37:59the State Library of South Australia
38:01is one of the most beautiful repositories of knowledge
38:04and historical record in the country.
38:07The Mortlock wing is a mid-Victorian stunner.
38:12Mon's come here to see what information and inspiration
38:16she can find about Balhanna School.
38:18Look at that.
38:20Among the gems, a grander plan.
38:23So isn't this fancy?
38:25There's Gothic windows, but there's a spire and an extension.
38:31I think this is probably the 700-pound version.
38:36They only had 395 pounds
38:39and that's why it didn't get built this way.
38:42It's very pretty, though.
38:45Ah, they were dreaming in 1857.
38:49The performance of the school is well documented in volumes here.
38:53This one looks like an inspector's report book
38:57and it starts very early, I think, by the look of it.
39:011897.
39:04And it gives a report on the school.
39:08Oh, moderate to fair. That's not great, is it?
39:12Hopefully it'll get better as we go.
39:16But there's another set of records
39:18Mon has been chasing for some time.
39:20So what have we got here? We've got the punishment book.
39:23It has the children's name...
39:26..the offence and the amount with a number.
39:31They provide fascinating but, frankly, chilling insight
39:35into a time of corporal punishment.
39:37Swearing.
39:39Disobedience.
39:41Cheating.
39:44Continued laziness.
39:48Repeated acts of bullying and quarrelling.
39:51Six.
39:53I suppose that means the number of lashings that they got, was it?
39:56Oh, dear.
39:58Copies of these records and documents
40:00will form part of Mon's plan for the old headmaster's office
40:04that's becoming a foyer in the makeover.
40:07And the tone of the school is very pleasing.
40:10There is life in the work.
40:12And I am confident that next year
40:15the results will be very satisfactory.
40:18Well, there you go. It took till 1910.
40:28It's good news.
40:30We've been looking all over South Australia, all over Melbourne.
40:33Looks everywhere.
40:35Builder Keith's cracked that other supply issue
40:38that's been bedevilling progress at Balhanna.
40:40And we've got enough 480 lineal metres.
40:43Perfect condition. All in the same batch.
40:45Same, same. Absolutely.
40:47Almost given up hope.
40:49And the colouring's great.
40:51I mean, the colouring is perfect, as you can see.
40:53Look at the old Melbourne. Really good condition.
40:55Mon and Charlie's patience and Keith's perseverance
40:58have been rewarded.
41:00These recycled boards should be a perfect period fit for the classroom.
41:04And the age?
41:06About late 1800s.
41:08Out of a homestead.
41:10Oh, man. Historical homestead.
41:12We could not hope for any better.
41:14It's unbelievable. Honestly, it's a fantastic find.
41:19Good for another 150 years.
41:26As work rolls on at the schoolhouse,
41:29an interesting arrival has rolled in.
41:32We are in our home away from home.
41:35The caravan.
41:37Beautifully decked out with bed, first priority.
41:41Air conditioning, second priority.
41:44Closely followed by shower and a loo.
41:48We needed to find a cheaper place to stay.
41:51Every time we came, it was a major organisational feat.
41:55So we decided if we hired a caravan,
41:58then we might save some money.
42:00Mon and Charlie have scratched together some holiday time
42:03so they can spend a few weeks on this visit
42:05and really dig in and get involved.
42:08We've taken the house apart
42:10and we've repaired and restored back all of the structural stuff.
42:14And now the pretty stuff's going on that we have to live with.
42:18There's 100 decisions that need to be made a day
42:21and the tradies might make the decision that they think is the best,
42:25but then I might have a different idea of what's the best.
42:28So it's nice to be here.
42:30It's a hive of activity, isn't it?
42:32And, you know, our contribution, I guess,
42:34is fairly meagre in the overall scheme of things,
42:37but it's just great to get involved and get stuck in.
42:39And I suppose it sounds a bit twee,
42:41but, you know, getting a little bit of ownership in the whole project.
42:44It's been really good fun.
42:46A bit of a Buston's holiday, I think.
42:48I'm chopping down the doors so they fit in the skid, basically.
42:54Nothing very sophisticated.
42:57Charlie has been promoted to power tools...
43:02..and the important role of Chief Skip Bin Spacefinder.
43:06Pack as much as you can in here.
43:12Maximise your dumpster dollar.
43:15And while this Charlie is chopping stuff up and hurling it out...
43:23This is the most repetitive part of this process.
43:28..the site's other Charlie is gently chipping away.
43:32Delicately ageing fresh sandstone
43:35in the marathon recreation of the school's new Gothic window.
43:39It's just slightly hitting it, very gently,
43:43with the edge of a hammer,
43:45just to damage the surface of a stone
43:49to create this more rustic look.
43:53So by doing that and using the wire brush after...
43:58..this will then create more of a weathered look
44:02to match the existing stone.
44:07As all elements of this painstaking and challenging restoration
44:11slowly and steadily come together...
44:15I'm trying to take some of the years off my old school desk.
44:19..Mon's turning her labours
44:21to a much-loved and, as it turns out,
44:24very appropriate family relic.
44:26We got it out of the classroom that I was at, at my old high school.
44:30So Dad was painting at the school in the holidays
44:33and they were swapping them out for modern ones.
44:35So Dad asked if he could keep one for his daughters.
44:39So we always had it in the house growing up.
44:42I've always had a love for it and we've brought it down here
44:45because now we know why we've kept it all these years.
44:48It's going into the schoolhouse.
44:50Now we know it was meant to be here.
45:13Look at this magic countryside.
45:15The sun's just sloping through the beautiful Adelaide Hills.
45:19It's unbelievable.
45:21It's been 10 months since I last drove into Balhanna
45:24and during that time the rain has been plentiful,
45:27even while the supply of materials and the availability of trades
45:31has been the exact opposite.
45:33Challenging.
45:42The home stretch has demanded closer involvement
45:45but hopefully the caravan's gone
45:47and the old schoolhouse is finally ready
45:50for a couple of full-time boarders
45:52and the occasional visitor looking for somewhere to stay
45:56when exploring this amazing pocket of Australia.
46:02Look at this grand driveway,
46:04big enough for a fleet of school buses.
46:11Hey, morning, Joey.
46:12Hello there.
46:13Welcome to the school.
46:14This happy couple when you're standing in front of this gorgeous thing.
46:22Congratulations.
46:23Thank you very much.
46:24What a picture.
46:25It's looking all right, isn't it?
46:27How are you feeling?
46:30Exhausted but happy.
46:33A little bit smug.
46:35Great, I'll work with smug.
46:37The stone is looking amazing here,
46:39especially in this light, it's really glowing.
46:42Yeah, really.
46:43Stunning stonework.
46:44Remarkable transformation.
46:46Yeah.
46:47She's transformed.
46:48A lot of hard work.
46:49The gale up there on the roof looks fantastic.
46:52The vents up there.
46:53The vents are gorgeous, aren't they?
46:54Aren't they?
46:55I'm so glad they made it through.
46:58It's a really beautiful little picture you've painted here
47:00and I think the big thing I'm most excited by
47:02is when this garden really becomes established,
47:05it's going to look even better.
47:07It'll frame it beautifully.
47:09Yeah, absolutely.
47:11Let's go through the red door and have a look.
47:13Oh, great.
47:14Come on.
47:15Do that.
47:16Let's do it.
47:17There's a sweet little welcoming plaque that says it all.
47:20Look, here we go, the old school.
47:22The old school.
47:23Beautiful.
47:24Fine.
47:25And inside, the old principal's office
47:27is a veritable hall of fame,
47:30summoning moments from the school's golden years.
47:35Turned it into sort of a museum in a way.
47:37Homage to the school.
47:39Look at these fabulous photos on the wall here.
47:46You know, it kind of just gives you that wonderful sense
47:49of the history being very much alive here.
47:51Yeah.
47:52Yeah, that's a great point of interest.
47:54Yeah, lovely.
48:03Mon's rustic school desk takes pride of place.
48:07But this room has a practical purpose as well.
48:11It's the gateway to two separate quarters.
48:14So, Anthony, welcome to the schoolhouse.
48:21The schoolhouse is now a home.
48:24Mon and Charlie's sanctuary.
48:28Wow, what a change.
48:30This is spectacular.
48:32Well done.
48:34The magic trick you pulled off here is to bring the scale down
48:37without losing the drama of the height
48:40and to turn it from cold school into warm home.
48:44Yeah, that was what worried me the most.
48:47Yeah.
48:48The size of it.
48:49Yeah.
48:50It is wonderful and it is so warm and welcoming
48:53and it says home.
48:55Well, that's very kind.
48:56Thank you very much.
48:57Does it feel that way to you?
48:58I hope it does.
48:59Yeah, it does feel that way.
49:00Yes, it's sunk in now.
49:02The Gothic saga of the door that really wanted to be a window
49:06has a triumphant ending.
49:08The Gothic arch is back.
49:09Yeah.
49:10The stonemasons did such a lovely job
49:12and it was a nice compromise from Heritage SA
49:15letting us make it a window instead of putting the door back.
49:18Yeah.
49:19We don't need more doors.
49:21Oh, no, I think you're fine for doors.
49:23This is always the thing, right,
49:24you had about 100 doors coming into this room.
49:26Yeah.
49:27It's the most significant and important window
49:29probably in the room.
49:30Yeah.
49:32Across vintage golden floorboards, what a find,
49:36and at the other end of this vast but somehow cosy level,
49:40Gothic windows light an understated kitchen.
49:44This has worked out really well.
49:46Yes.
49:47We wanted it not to be a show pony kitchen.
49:49Right.
49:50We just needed it to be a bit quiet.
49:52Oh, very off-trend.
49:54What's all that?
49:55Aren't we supposed to have giant kitchens
49:56with huge marble bench tops?
49:58Yeah, that one.
49:59I've spent my entire lifetime being off-trend.
50:05Staircases can gobble up space and light,
50:08but this one floats subtly up past the kitchen
50:12and offers a sweeping outlook over the serenity.
50:16Look at the view down here.
50:17Nice vista, innit, eh?
50:19The old classroom is now all class.
50:29The big bathroom.
50:30Yeah, it is.
50:31It's a very generous bathroom.
50:33It is.
50:34The angles.
50:35The angles almost did us in.
50:37Right.
50:38So, actually, there's some trickery going on
50:39between these spaces a little bit.
50:41A little bit.
50:42Yeah.
50:43So, have you used the bath yet?
50:44Too small for me.
50:47Design oversight.
50:48That one?
50:49There's a floor?
50:50That's for me.
50:51That's for you, right.
50:53At the top, modern Charlie's bedroom
50:56is tucked into the roof space above the old principal's office.
51:01They've created comfortable new spaces out of thin air.
51:08This once stark institutional space
51:11is as warm and homely as the crackling fire.
51:15Fire on, music, red wine, you know?
51:18Yeah.
51:19It's been lovely.
51:20All those things you've been thinking about for so long.
51:26Back through the lobby and into the guesthouse,
51:29I wonder what principal's past would make
51:32of what was once their dark, cramped quarters.
51:36Well, this is a surprise.
51:41Now a whimsical space right out of the pages of Lewis Carroll.
51:46I mean, this here, what do we call this?
51:49A Victorian-inspired Alice in Wonderland moment
51:53that's happened here on the wall with all these mirrors.
51:56Yeah, mayhem.
51:57Mayhem.
51:58Love it.
51:59I actually love the kind of cavern of curiosities that this is.
52:02There's some random things going on all around the place,
52:04which makes it actually really homely.
52:06Yes.
52:07Well, I was worried it was going to just be another hallway,
52:10so I think I just thought up a couple of kooky things
52:12so people wouldn't forget this room.
52:14Yeah.
52:15It makes it much more memorable.
52:20The quirkiness gives way to simple, self-contained comfort.
52:25But what's notable about all of this
52:27is that the character and heritage shine through
52:30and a once clumsy alliance of two very different buildings
52:34now feels complementary, almost seamless.
52:40But it's the stunning transformation of the old classroom
52:44that gets the gold star.
52:47Sitting here in this glorious room,
52:50what's your favourite part of this whole place now that you're done?
52:54It was always the Gothic windows for me.
52:56Yeah.
52:57Still are.
52:58Absolute artisan tradesmen.
53:00Yeah?
53:01Yeah, they're lovely.
53:03I love the wall.
53:04Yep.
53:05And the wall that it brings.
53:06I love the fireplace and the exposed brick.
53:09It's every bit as good as I imagined.
53:11It's exceeded my expectations.
53:13Yep.
53:14Yeah.
53:15Have you found people sort of moseying up to the back door?
53:18All the time.
53:19OK.
53:20People knocking on the door all the time.
53:22We had ancestors of the first teacher knock on our door.
53:26We've had people relaying that their father or their grandfather
53:31used to come to the school.
53:33We have people drive past and, you know, scream out the window,
53:36you're doing a great job!
53:38It's really lovely encouragement.
53:40It's very lucky.
53:41We've got an extraordinary community around here.
53:43Yeah.
53:44I mean, everybody's been incredibly welcoming.
53:46I mean, it's quite humbling in some respects.
53:49So the community's obviously very happy with what you've done.
53:52Yeah, it's been wonderful.
53:54I think it's a testament to your perseverance above all else.
53:58I mean, let's talk about time because you said somewhere
54:00between 12 and 18 months.
54:01Yeah.
54:02We did.
54:03So...
54:0415 months.
54:05Well, congratulations.
54:06That's actually quite good.
54:07Normally I'd expect to see, you know, 150% on the timeline
54:10and you've come in under.
54:11Yes.
54:12Yeah.
54:13Well done.
54:14Yes.
54:16Just don't ask us about the next question.
54:17OK.
54:18You know what's coming, right?
54:19Yeah.
54:20It's a nice little segue.
54:21How much money did you ultimately spend?
54:23Low 500s.
54:24Yeah.
54:25Low 500s.
54:26500.
54:27Yeah.
54:28Yeah.
54:29500, let's say.
54:30520.
54:31For a complex project of this scale, that's not bad,
54:33especially when you said you were imagining about 400,000.
54:36The blowout is not a great thing,
54:40but given the context, it's probably not unreasonable.
54:44Well, congratulations on an amazing outcome
54:46and in particular on the delicate balance
54:50of taking the institutional character away
54:53without losing the history of the schoolhouse,
54:55which is still here in this room.
54:57Everything from the stone to your desk in the entry hall
55:01and coming up with a very beautiful contemporary way of living.
55:04So it really feels like a wonderful home
55:06that is very much you two.
55:08Nicely done.
55:09Yeah, great.
55:10Well, thanks, Anthony.
55:11It's a fantastic effort.
55:13Fantastic effort.
55:14And, yeah, we've pulled it off.
55:16Well, your glass can go up, then.
55:22But I'd just like to raise a glass to the resurrection, if you like,
55:26of the old schoolhouse.
55:28Cheers, everyone.
55:29Cheers!
55:30Cheers!
55:31Cheers!
55:32Cheers!
55:33Cheers!
55:34Cheers!
55:35Cheers!
55:36Cheers!
55:37Cheers!
55:38Cheers!
55:39Cheers!
55:40Cheers!
55:41Cheers!
55:42Cheers!
55:43Cheers!
55:44Cheers!
55:45Cheers!
55:46Cheers!
55:47Cheers!
55:48Cheers!
55:49Cheers!
55:50Cheers!
55:51Cheers!
55:52Down the hatch.
56:00For Mon and Charlie, this complicated long-distance infatuation
56:04could have ended up a half-hearted, dismal affair
56:07if it wasn't for their passion, their unwavering spirit
56:11and their perseverance.
56:12Aided by a brilliant team of local heritage trades,
56:15this once dejected old school is now a wonderful reminder
56:19of Balhanna's past and ready for its new life as a holiday haven
56:23and eventually as Mon and Charlie's home.
56:26The lesson?
56:27Fortune favours the brave and the slightly bonkers.
56:31I give them top marks.
56:41I give them top marks.
56:42I give them top marks.
56:43I give them top marks.
56:44I give them top marks.
56:45I give them top marks.
56:46I give them top marks.
56:47I give them top marks.
56:48I give them top marks.
56:49I give them top marks.
56:50I give them top marks.
56:51I give them top marks.
56:52I give them top marks.
56:53I give them top marks.
56:54I give them top marks.
56:55I give them top marks.
56:56I give them top marks.
56:57I give them top marks.
56:58I give them top marks.
56:59I give them top marks.
57:00I give them top marks.
57:01I give them top marks.
57:02I give them top marks.
57:03I give them top marks.
57:04I give them top marks.
57:05I give them top marks.
57:06I give them top marks.
57:07I give them top marks.