Can’t afford to buy a house in Tuscany? These TV shows will let you dream about it

Most reality shows rely on jeopardy or some kind of life-changing quest. They feature lucky contestants hoping to be recognised for their cooking or singing talents. Or average folk renovating a home or searching for a soulmate. The higher the stakes, the more relatable the challenge, the better.

But a spate of recent shows have upped the ante on a stalwart TV genre: the home renovation. They’ve set their sights on something more ambitious than plumping the cushions or installing the latest must-have kitchen gadget.

What if you could up sticks, leave the nine-to-five grind behind and start a new life on the other side of the world? Say, in a hilltop town in Tuscany; in a fairytale-worthy chateau in France; bottling your own wine in Spain; capping off a day on the tools with an Aperol spritz on a beach in Sicily?

Producers are always looking for a good hook and a bargain. So when a number of European nations introduced “one Euro schemes” several years ago, TV-makers were quick to see the possibilities.

These schemes, which have been flooded with interest, allow non-residents to purchase rundown and abandoned houses in remote villages that are at risk of becoming ghost towns. For a token sum, the houses can be purchased on the condition that they are renovated, to be used by foreigners looking for a life change, a holiday house or the chance to turn a tidy profit when the house is flipped.

Admittedly, the appealing proposition masks some sobering facts. Across Europe, traditional villages are dying because of declining birthrates and ageing populations, inheritance laws, poverty, unemployment and industrialisation.