Love It or List It viewers have been left baffled after a couple opted to leave their newly renovated home for a ‘run down shack in the middle of nowhere’.
On tonight’s episode of the Channel 4 show, hosts Kirstie Allsopp and Phil Spencer headed back to Albrighton in Shropshire to catch up with Jamie Lea and Curtis, who started their journey on the show in 2019.
From their first appearance up until 2023, Curtis worked tirelessly to transform their three-bed terrace home into a sanctuary for his growing family, while his wife Jamie Lea, juggled parenthood, and university.
While Jamie Lea favoured their home because it was close to family, Curtis was frustrated by the lack of open space and wanted a larger garden so his children could comfortably play outdoors.
Phil showed the couple three properties to persuade them to ‘list it’ – including a spacious four-bedroom farmhouse with a sprawling garden like Curtis had dreamed of.
However, determined to stay put, Jamie Lea convinced her husband that the home was right for them, so the couple originally decided to Love It with Kirstie, who helped make the home feel more spacious by knocking down walls to create an open plan layout.
While Phil and Kirstie’s initial work took up most of the episode, the final minutes saw the couple make a new, shocking decision – to sell their renovated home, which Curtis had dramatically transformed, in favour of another project home.
Because Curtis hadn’t given up his dream of living in the countryside, the family moved to a £290,000 cottage, which was in a very different shape to the one they had left behind, leaving viewers shocked.
Love It or List It viewers have been left baffled after a couple opted to leave their newly renovated home (pictured) for a ‘run down shack in the middle of nowhere’
At the start of the programme, pregnant Jamie Lea was focused on family life with her young daughter Scarlett and the new baby on the way.
However, Curtis was set on different horizons, determined to secure a larger space for his family with a fixer-upper in the countryside.
Discussing the downfalls of his home, Curtis said: ‘The internal layout is just not ideal,’ adding, ‘I think we could have our dream house with everything we want.’
Following his request, Phil went on a mission to find three four-bedroom properties in a semi-rural area that wasn’t too far away from Curtis and Jamie Lea’s family.
Meanwhile, Kirstie got to work with her £30,000 ‘love it budget’, where she set out to remove walls at the back of the house to give the family more open space, a utility room, and a downstairs toilet.
While Phil’s first and third suggestions didn’t quite meet the couple’s expectations, Curtis ‘loved’ the second option, which was 85 per cent bigger than their current home.
As Phil found impressive properties, Kirstie created an enhanced social space for the family to cook, relax, and entertain friends and family.
Her savvy work maximised the space and left the couple stunned, with even Phil admitting to his on-screen competitor, ‘you have done well’.
On tonight’s episode of the Channel 4 show, hosts Kirstie Allsopp and Phil Spencer headed back to Albrighton in Shropshire to catch up with Jamie Lea and Curtis (pictured), who started their journey on the show in 2019
While Phil and Kirstie’s initial work took up most of the episode, the final minutes saw the couple make a new, shocking decision – to sell their renovated home, which Curtis had dramatically transformed, in favour of another project home (pictured)
Because Curtis hadn’t given up his dream of living in the countryside, the family moved to a £290,000 cottage (pictured), which was in a very different shape to the one they had left behind, leaving viewers shocked
Curtis and Jamie Lea purchased a £290,000 countryside home with sprawling gardens (pictured) – but it was a serious doer-upper
While the new purchase (pictured) came with an acre of land, outbuildings, and had extended family in reach, it had been empty for 18 months and came without basic necessities, such as heating
Though Curtis admitted that it was ‘a tough decision’, the couple ultimately went with Jamie Lea’s instincts and decided to Love It.
Curtis added: ‘I’m not saying we’re going to stay here forever, but this a perfect current house’.
His thoughts rang true four years later in 2023, the time stamp that the show fast forwarded to in the final moments of tonight’s episode.
The couple’s children had grown up slightly, and Jamie Lea had finished her psychology degree and secured a new job.
Curtis, who had also changed jobs to open up a table-making business, had transformed the home even further since the Channel 4 team last visited, with an updated attic space and further cosmetic adjustments.
Due to their changed work and family circumstances, the couple had finally settled on moving home.
‘It’s time to move now,’ Curtis said, adding that they had renovated ‘every inch’ of the home, including transforming the attic into a stunning bedroom, for a total of £20,000.
However, after selling their home, the couple’s next move left viewers – and host Kirstie – surprised.
From their first appearance up until 2023, Curtis worked tirelessly to transform their three-bed terrace home (pictured) into a sanctuary for his growing family, while his wife Jamie Lea, juggled parenthood, and university
While Jamie Lea favoured their home because it was close to family, Curtis was frustrated by the lack of open space and wanted a larger garden so his children could comfortably play outdoors
However, determined to stay put, Jamie Lea convinced her husband that the home was right for them, so the couple originally decided to Love It with Kirstie, who helped make the home feel more spacious by knocking down walls to create an open plan layout
Curtis and Jamie Lea purchased a £290,000 countryside home with sprawling gardens – but it was a serious doer-upper.
While the new purchase came with an acre of land, outbuildings, and had extended family in reach, it had been empty for 18 months and came without basic necessities, such as heating.
The unsafe conditions led Jamie Lea and the children to move in with family while Curtis worked on the project, including putting in an entirely new electric system.
‘I really think we rescued this house, there was no central heating, it was a very damp cold house,’ Curtis said.
The couple are now injecting £40,000 of cash into the new home to complete an extension and an extra bedroom.
‘Bravery has to be in the top three words to describe you two,’ Kirstie said after seeing the state of the new abode.
‘I really think we rescued this house, there was no central heating, it was a very damp cold house,’ Curtis said (pictured)
Reaction: While Kirstie maintained an optimistic approach to the new home, others online thought differently
While Kirstie maintained an optimistic approach to the new home, others online thought differently.
Taking to X, one wrote: ‘The best thing they could have done with that hodgepodge house was knock it down and starting again.’
A second added: ‘This house the bought is awful, it’s a mix of lots of ugly house styles and timeframes.’
‘They did a great job in doing up their home and then moved to a run-down shack in the middle of nowhere’, said another.
A fourth said: ‘Should have razed it to the ground, built new and gone all Scandinavian design on it.’