Tonight’s episode of Restoration Australia follows a young couple as they attempt to transform a large, neglected former backpacker hostel on Melbourne’s busy Punt Road into a family home.
Here’s the Lowdown: Airing Thursday, April 10 at 8.00pm on ABC and ABC iview, Episode Two focuses on “Lord’s Lodge,” a 150-year-old, two-story Italianate house in Prahran. Previously a budget hostel with a questionable past, the building shows signs of its former life. Couple Steph and Paul bought the property despite its main road location and a concerning covenant regarding potential road widening.
What This Means Now: Steph and Paul face numerous hurdles: evidence of the hostel’s rough history, the noise and bustle of Punt Road, a limited budget, and the pressure of expecting a baby. Their goal is to convert the institutional space into a comfortable, stylish inner-city family residence.
The Bigger Picture: Hosted by architecture expert Anthony Burke, this episode illustrates the immense challenges involved in heritage restoration. It highlights the compromises buyers might make for scale and location, and the personal and financial strains such ambitious projects entail. The transformation of Lord’s Lodge from a dilapidated hostel to a modern home presents a significant undertaking.
