Impossible Builds

Heather Li and Phil Lines lead jet-setting lives and for years they have dreamt of creating a wilderness bolthole where they can escape to and unwind. Having stumbled across their perfect plot on the rugged North West coast of Scotland, they realised that conventional house building would be nigh on impossible due to the remoteness of the site and its narrow, windy 8 mile access road. 

To overcome these challenges, the couple commission a house from a specialist kit home company in Invergordon Scotland, who use the latest sustainable materials and ground-breaking techniques. But the team must split the house into 13 individual sections to even attempt to negotiate the treacherous access road. As the lorries ferry the modules to site, the weather worsens, threatening to bring the whole build to a standstill. 

John Henry and Ruth Hamilton fell in love with the rugged and isolated wilderness of the Isle of Harris while on holiday in the Outer Hebrides. They have decided to take the plunge and move to their dream destination, but have been unable to find a suitable house for sale. However during their search, they chanced upon a stunning plot for sale with panoramic views along the timeless coastline. But building a traditional bricks and mortar house on this remote island, infamous for its gale-force winds, would be a Herculean - and very expensive - challenge.

Luckily, the couple found an innovative construction company on the neighbouring island of Skye, who specialise in pioneering kit houses. The team fabricate the home in a factory, before shipping it to the plot on a lorry, and - hopefully - putting everything together in a matter of just hours. But with a craggy, rock solid site to flatten, only one ferry a day to the isle, and a storm blowing in from the Atlantic, will this prove an impossible build?

The Lambert family have spent the last 9 years searching for a home to call their own. The family of five have been living with relatives but are desperate to find a house big enough for their needs, which they can afford. 7 years ago they happened upon a secluded, wood-flanked plot in Buckinghamshire, but the quote they received to construct their dream home was twice their budget.

Luckily the family discovered a futuristic kit house company in Poland, which could make building their new home affordable. The factory employs state-of-the-art, autonomous machinery to make the process extremely efficient and fabricate highly insulated panels, which can be quickly assembled on site. But the entire house must be transported over a thousand miles on the back of five lorries, and with trees making the access to the plot extremely tight, it is an emotional roller coaster as the larger-than-life family attempt to complete their impossible build.

Having sold their previous home two years ago, Scott, Lisa and their 12-year-old son Archie live in a rented house in the suburbs of Inverness. But it doesn't have the space and individuality they desire from a home, so the family are determined to move into a new place. After failing to find a suitable house on the market, they bought an acre-and-a-half plot in the Scottish countryside and have decided to realise their dream of building a bespoke log home there. But on their limited budget constructing a spacious log house from scratch on such a remote plot would be impossible.

Instead the family have ordered their new home from a specialist log construction company based in Shropshire. All the logs are processed and cut to size at the yard and the entire structure is erected to make sure it all fits. The kit of logs must then be completely dismantled before it can be shipped to the plot 450 miles away, where it must then be re-assembled. But as the logs begin to arrive, the infamous Highland weather worsens, wreaking havoc with the build schedule and budget.

IT guru Steve Langstone and his wedding entrepreneur wife Sharon have to balance busy working lives with looking after their 7-year-old daughter and 10-month-old cocker-poo Willow. For months they had been searching for a weekend getaway, off the beaten track, until they stumbled across Fritton Lake on the border between Suffolk and Norfolk. They found their perfect plot in some ancient woodland on the side of the lake and decided they wanted to construct a new home there. But getting planning permission to build a permanent structure in woodland is virtually impossible

Bill and Sukie Barber are life-long nature lovers and live on a 6-acre smallholding in the picturesque Scottish Borders. The couple have regular visitors from around the globe, along with their eight, grown up children and four grandchildren. With their croft bursting at the seams, they have decided to build a new house in one of their fields using primarily locally sourced materials to fit with their sustainable lifestyle: an ambitious remit in such a secluded corner of the Borders. 

Wolfgang Rauch is never happier than when he is cruising around the leafy lanes of Surrey in one of his classic cars. But after amassing an impressive ten cars, he is now in desperate need of a place to bring his collection together. He wants to build a dual-purpose property: to house his cars and with the flexibility to be converted into a large, sustainable family home in the future. But Wolfgang lives in the greenbelt so finding a viable plot and gaining planning permission is virtually impossible.