The Chase star Jenny Ryan and former Strictly pros Janette Manrara and Aljaž Škorjanec are among the famous faces to take part.

By Patrick Cremona

Published: Friday, 10 November 2023 at 11:00 AM


Escape to the Country has announced some famous faces for the first-ever celebrity season of the popular house-hunting show.

Five specials will air on BBC One and iPlayer in December, with participants including Christopher Biggins and The Chase quizzer Jenny Ryan, AKA The Vixen.

Former Strictly Come Dancing professionals Janette Manrara and Aljaž Škorjanec – who are married – will star together in an episode, while Bucks Fizz singer Cheryl Baker and TV doctor Ranj Singh are the other two celebrity property buyers.

As in the regular show, the stars will be guided by property experts as they look for a countryside home in the likes of the Home Counties, Cheshire, the Peak District, Lancashire, Kent and Sussex.

Speaking about the specials, Julie Shaw, the BBC’s commissioning editor for Daytime and Factual, said that she “can’t wait for this to land in the schedules”.

She said: “Escape to the Country has been a staple in the BBC daytime schedule for 21 years. Audiences love this programme and watching the journeys the house-hunters go on, so it was about time we got to go house-hunting with some famous faces.”

Beat the Chasers Jenny Ryan
Jenny “The Vixen” Ryan will star in the celebrity specials.

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Meanwhile, John Comerford, who heads up production company Naked West, said: “We love helping prospective rural dwellers find their dream homes and we’re delighted the BBC have commissioned this special series giving us all an insight into our favourite celebrities’ lives as they look to swap the city for a new home in the country.”