Escape To The Country fans were left fuming tonight over a special episode of the BBC show.
Linford Christie was the subject of the special celebrity episode, which saw the sprinter joined by his daughter Briannah as they looked for a property in the countryside of Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire.
Joined by host Alistair Appleton, the pair were looking for a property for the whole family, including a trip to a house in the Oxfordshire town of Shiplake. They wanted somewhere with an entertaining space both inside and out – but fans tuning into the show were left fuming over the celebrity version and Linford’s huge budget.
One wrote on social media: “As if Escape to the Country wasn’t bad enough with people’s ridiculous budgets, BBC1 is now subjecting us to #celebrityescapetothecountry Obscene amounts of money whilst most normal folks are worried about putting their heating on. Get in the sea,” while a second added: “£2 million budget. P*** off BBC, the regular rich ones with £750K+ are bad enough!”
Linford was joined by his daughter Briannah on the search -Credit:BBC
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A third penned: “Sorry, had to turn off tonight, what’s a waste of taxpayers money. Hope Christie wasn’t paid to appear in this, all so staged #escapetothecountry,” with another adding: “The #BBC showing us how out of touch they are with the times with #escapetothecountry Rich celebs looking for £2 million 4 bedroom houses, all ensuite with swimming pools & cinema rooms. Nice to know where the poor people’s #tvlicence fee goes.”
Another wrote: “Not entirely convinced that #EscapeToTheCountry lends itself to a celebrity version, particularly at midweek prime time.” However, some liked the celebrity edition and took to Twitter to share their thoughts. One shared: “Watching #CelebrityEscapetotheCountry This is fun, Linford Christie is looking for a house in the country.”
The houses were incredible! -Credit:BBC
The celebrity version of the popular BBC show will also feature Ian ‘H’ Watkins from Steps and singer Alfie Boe. Broadcaster Anita Rani, Loose Women star Kaye Adams, and The Apprentice’s Tim Campbell are also looking for a countryside property.
Julie Shaw, the BBC’s Daytime Commissioner, said of the series: “In this series, we get an insight into the celebrities, their careers and their families, essentially the journey they’ve been on from where they began long before the cameras and spotlights.
“We cover the UK, including the beautiful hills and valleys in the Vale of Glamorgan and Stirlingshire, helping people to escape from world-famous cities like Glasgow and London – it’s a magical tour around some of the UK’s most beautiful homes.”
*Celebrity Escape To The Country airs on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.