ESCAPE to the Chateau stars Dick and Angel have cleared the air and shared the ‘real’ reason behind their Channel 4 exit.
The beloved reality series aired its ninth and final series last year, but since then, the family has moved on to other ventures.
For eight years and nine seasons, Channel 4’s Escape the Chateau followed Dick and Angel Strawbridge with their two children, Dorothy, 9, and Arthur, 10, as they transformed their Château de la Motte Husson in Pays de la Loire, France, into their 'forever home'.
In May, the broadcaster announced they had severed ties with the show, and then it was later revealed that it was due to concerns over the couple's conduct after Leaked recordings appeared to show Angel in an angry rage at crew members as she blasted them as "c***s" in a shocking expletive-filled recording.
The couple later went on to deny the allegations when Lorraine host Christine Lampard questioned them about it.
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In an exclusive interview with HELLO! Dick and Angel have further detailed why they left Channel 4, claiming that leaving the show was always the plan as they needed to focus on raising their children.
Dick explained: "It was two years ago that we decided to end the Escape to the Chateau series.
"We made the decision because the kids are growing older, and all the parallel activity was not sustainable at this level. We are doers, and we are never going to stop completely, but we're also protecting them.
“Arthur is starting senior school and the pressure on our little ones is phenomenal. When he goes there, people may have heard that his parents have done stuff on television."
Angel added: "Up until this year, we were not on French television at our request because while we are the British family that bought the Chateau in the village, we are very much completely normal."
Speaking on the relationship with the camera crew, she said: "Our camera team have been a part of our family. One of whom was like our third child and was best friends with the children. And then we had other people who would come back over a long period of time. It was all very natural."
The tagline of their new book, Forever Home, is "the final chapter of our greatest adventure", but Dick insisted that t it doesn't mean that "It's the final chapter of our Escape to the Chateau journey and bringing the Chateau back to life."
He added: "It's not the end of our story, but the end of finding the Chateau and the early years.
"And it's to do with the children getting to a certain age, the chateau and our business reaching a degree of maturity, and the final chapter of the story people have been following in their living rooms on a Sunday evening."
"This is the long haul. We've had lots of people saying, 'Oh, they're selling', but this is our forever home, and Arthur and Dorthy know that, and we plan for the future.
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“When we've been away on tours and then we come back, it's stable. We've been here for nine years. I don't think I've lived anywhere for nine years of my life in one place. But the chateau just feels permanent. And it has a permanency that is to be enjoyed."
During the Interview, the couple also insisted that they had no regrets after departing the show, with Angel stating: "We've not done anything that we didn't think was right in the long run, and I think that is the key part to it.”
Dick agreed: "The first year was the hardest, but we couldn't have done it any differently. I was working away a lot, and Angela had to run the renovations.
“It was a very different year because I needed to get the income to get us started and jump-start everything.”
“The large barns, after four years of trying, have now got electricity. We've got a project plan for that next year, and it's the largest space we have at the Chateau.’
Speaking on their future plans, Angel teased: "We would like to get a swimming pool in there at some point, we've had a €299 paddling pool for many years!"
Dick concluded: "But the garden is going from strength to strength. Plus, we've got more stuff to do up in the attic, too. The work never stops."
Their latest book, Forever Home, is out now, and they have launched their podcast titled Dick & Angel's Chat…Eau earlier this year.
