I was single mum-of-3 surviving on £70 a week & couldn’t afford kids’ birthday presents – then stranger changed my life
IT'S the show that casts a spotlight on the stark divide between rich and poor - and helps foster unlikely friendships.
This week's Rich House Poor House saw a skint dad-of-two living on £66-a-week in a one-bed council flat break down when the millionaire CEO he'd swapped lives with for a week offered him a 'dream job'.
The Channel 5 show, where two families from contrasting ends of the financial spectrum trade their homes and lifestyles for seven days and then meet up, regularly features heartwarming acts of generosity - and in some cases changes lives.
Widow Kiptieu Sheriff's life took a complete U-turn after meeting millionaire business consultant Adam Scott.
She and her three daughters lived in a small council flat in Abbey Wood, London and barely survived on £70 a week.
Her plight was made worse when she lost her job during the pandemic, and she couldn't even afford to buy her children birthday presents.
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At the end of the experiment having lived her life for seven days, Adam decided to invest in Kiptieu and help her set up her food company Bongo's Kitchen.
Kiptieu took him up on the offer and is now a thriving business owner - with Adam still helping out behind the scenes as a marketer.
In a catch-up episode, she said: "I do the cooking and he does the marketing - and God, he is doing it well!"
Here we've rounded up more of the incredible ways families have been given a helping hand on the show.
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Desperate dad offered lifeline
After a string of agonising knee injuries, Michael Howard was forced to abandon his dreams of becoming a professional footballer.
Forced to take a job in a sports shop, he and his wife Natasha struggled to keep up with their bills and had to raise their two kids, Isiah and Tiani, on £100-a-week.
Michael's job meant he had to drive a 13-mile trip to work six times a week - missing out on quality time with his family.
They were so hard up that Natasha regularly had to cook in a dressing gown as their house in Lincolnshire would get so cold.
But Rich House Poor House was the catalyst for a remarkable turnaround in fortunes.
After swapping houses with the Howards and hearing their touching story, millionaire businessman Trevor Cutmore offered them a £24,000 lifeline - which left Michael in floods of tears.
Before ditching a career as a chef, Trevor and his family also barely made ends meet with just £30-week.
Trevor later revealed he was planning to start a business with the ex semi-professional player, which would help him buy his own house in two years.
Last year, Michael said: "He's given us that chance. I'll forever be thankful for the opportunity. But I still say to Tasha, 'Is this actually still happening?!'"
Debt cleared
Sarah and Ross Timmins lived on a weekly budget of £121 with their two kids in Cornwall.
Although they worked hard to make ends meet, they still found themselves "trapped in a debt spiral" of £11,500.
On Rich House Poor House, it was revealed that although Ross worked a gruelling 90 hours a week, he would still help their kids with their homework when he got home.
At the end of the swap with rich couple Colin and Lizzy Whiting, who live in a sprawling five-bedroom home, it was revealed they had decided to pay off most of the Timmins' debt.
Talking about the decision to help the family, Colin said: "Once we had come to an understanding, we decided that we wanted to help this family to move away from that situation, from the debt dragging them down."
Life-changing investment
Anna Bardgett was so out of her depth when she swapped lives with entrepreneur Matt Haycox that she had to Google how to use a posh cooker.
The mother-of-two lived in a cramped two-bedroom house with her children Sarah and William, and survived on £67 each week.
Inspired by her fighting spirit, Matt - who has a net worth of £50million - poured a massive £10,000 into Anna's fledgling dog care business, Fur Everything.
At the time, Anna said: "How can I describe it, it's like a dream come true. This is something I have wanted to do my whole life."
On why he was moved to help her, Matt said: "She works hard every single day for her kids and anyone close to her.
"When I met her everything I had come to expect and more was true."
Anna and Matt have kept in touch since the show and meet up on a regular basis.
Second chance
Before featuring on the show, Ed and Tracey Llewellyn were £25,000 in debt and had bailiffs pounding on their door.
Their financial situation meant they were forced to live on £97-a-week with their two children Mikey and Miley.
Former estate agent Ed revealed he had been careless with money in his younger days and had splurged on flashy cars and expensive suits.
They swapped their small Enfield apartment for Ladisclav and Qi Horning's five bedroom mansion in Rickmansworth.
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After the experiment, the rich family offered to help Ed with his debt after seeing how loving they were as parents.
An emotional Ed said: "I want the kids to be successful and for them to have that nest egg and be set up for life."