Yahoo News Channel 4 Cuts Ties With ‘Escape To The Chateau’ Stars Dick & Angel Strawbridge After Investigation Into Clashes With Producers
EXCLUSIVE: Channel 4 has severed ties with two of its biggest stars, Dick and Angel Strawbridge, after ordering an independent investigation into their conduct.
Deadline can reveal that the British commercial broadcaster will no longer work with the couple, despite the success of their Escape To The Chateau series and various spin-off shows.
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Sources said Two Rivers Media, the company that produces the Escape To The Chateau franchise, raised concerns about the Strawbridges and said it would no longer work with the couple.
The precise nature of the allegations against the duo is not known, but Deadline has spoken to three of their former colleagues, who alleged that the Strawbridges have clashed with the producers.
“There has been a deteriorating relationship between Two Rivers and Dick and Angel’s Chateau TV for various reasons and it all came to a head,” said a source familiar with the situation.
The Two Rivers decision prompted Channel 4 to launch an investigation into the unrest, which was carried out by an independent HR professional.
The investigator interviewed producers and crew who have worked with the Strawbridges as they renovated their 19th-century Château de la Motte-Husson in Martigné-sur-Mayenne, France.
Her findings, which have not been disclosed to some of those interviewed, have resulted in Channel 4 ending its relationship with the Strawbridges.
A Channel 4 spokeswoman said: “Following a review, we have taken the decision not to work with Dick and Angel on any new productions in the future.”
The Strawbridges did not respond to a request for comment. A representative for the couple has previously refuted allegations of improper behavior.
Two Rivers said: “We can confirm that we will no longer work with Dick and Angel and cannot comment further at the moment.”
Two Rivers is not the first producer to have had a dispute with the Strawbridges. The pair parted ways with Spark Media Partners, which originally launched Escape To The Chateau in 2016 and made the first four seasons.
The breakdown coincides with the ninth and final season of Escape To The Chateau airing last December. It was among Channel 4’s top shows, attracting more than 2.5M viewers.
A number of spin-off series were in the works, including travel show Escape To The Chateau: Secret France, which has wrapped and is currently being edited. Channel 4 is yet to confirm whether it will be broadcast.
A Wholesome Image In Question
The Strawbridges have cultivated a wholesome family image, taking a dilapidated French Chateau and turning it into an idyllic home and wedding venue using their engineering and design skills.
But behind the scenes, sources said they would clash with producers. “They don’t suffer fools,” said a person familiar with the couple. “People who try to remote manage them from the UK, that doesn’t work. Or people who come into their house and boss them around, that doesn’t work either.”
Points of tension included filming additional shots when the Strawbridges were in the thick of renovation work. Sources claimed there have been wrangles over production budgets, with an alleged overspend on Escape to the Chateau: Make Do and Mend in 2020/21 sowing distrust.
“I have seen them swearing at people,” another source said. “Producers turn them into this perfect, brilliant, funny couple. They’re that on camera, but that’s about it.”
In 2021, The Times of London reported on recordings of the couple allegedly being abusive to production crew. In one recording, Angel is claimed to have branded a producer a “f*****g c**t” after he complained about his treatment.
At the time, a representative for the Strawbridges denied some of the claims, which were described as historical and related to creative “tensions” with former producer, Spark Media.
Concern about their behavior is not universal. Jonathan Hales, who produced and directed the final two seasons of Escape To The Chateau, said he found them “warm and welcoming.”
“Château de la Motte-Husson is primarily a family home, and since the day I arrived, I have treated the Strawbridges with a level of respect that has always been reciprocated,” he told Deadline.
“Although the location of much filming, the Chateau is not a normal film set. Allowances must be taken into account for the fact that Dick and Angel run not only a busy events company, but have three generations of family living together.”
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