We ditched our high-flying London jobs to move into a narrowboat – and despite our income dropping by £125,000, we’ve never been happier
- Joanna and Victor Gould, both 34, ditched high-flying London jobs for boat life
- The pair now run a café on anther barge as they travel the country on narrowboat
- READ MORE: I’m saving £3,000 a month after moving onto a narrowboat following my divorce
A couple have ditched their high-flying nine-to-fives to live on a narrowboat with their toddler – before buying another to run a café on the canal.
Joanna and Victor Gould, both 34, put the corporate grind behind them, and insist they’ve ‘never been happier’ – despite raking in a combined £25,000, compared to their previous total of £150,000.
The couple are now delighted to ‘live life on their own terms’ and travel the country with their one-year-old in their humble vessel.
‘Back then we were getting up at 6am for a gruelling two hour commute into the city,’ Joanna said. ‘Now we are open to a more wholesome pace of life.
‘Don’t get us wrong, we have long days, not only with the café boat but with our little one.
Joanna and Victor Gould, both 34, revealed how they ditched their high-flying nine-to-fives to live on a narrowboat with their toddler – before buying another to run a café on the canal
‘But it just means we are able live life for ourselves, not on the company clock.’
She added that while maintaining the boat can be time consuming, it’s ‘so worth it’.
The couple – who met in April 2015 – were working up 80-hour weeks as freelance TV editors in London.
That same year, they purchased a canal boat – with renovations costing £30,000 – and decided to give up their old lives to start afresh.
By the spring of 2017, the barge – called Zero – was fully renovated, and the pair moved in to start their new life.
Now, they spend their days roaming up and down the canals between Croydon and Nottinghamshire with their main base in Cheshire.
The couple – who previously rented in Hackney, East London – bought a second boat and now run a café from it, which opens seasonally from 10am until 3pm.
Joanna and Victor take it in turns to take care of their tot, William, while the other serves up teas, coffees and cakes.
The couple put the corporate grind behind them, and insist they’ve ‘never been happier’ than they are running a cafe on a boat
The inside of Zero, the couple’s narrowboat. Now, they spend their days roaming up and down the canals between Croydon and Nottinghamshire with their main base in Cheshire
By the spring of 2017, the barge – called Zero (interior pictured) – was fully renovated, and the pair moved in to start their new life
‘Our life now, compared to the city, is so much better,’ Joanna said, revealing that it was liberating to start anew.
‘I had to shrink my wardrobe down a lot as there’s very limited space on a boat,’ she explained. ‘I’d been travelling, so was used to living out of a suitcase, but this was a whole new level.
‘When I met Victor, he’d already had a boat which he’d sold and was having another one built,’ Joanna added.
‘He was so passionate about narrowboat life and I was so intrigued, but I never thought I’d be living on a boat too.’
She recalled the challenges with decluttering her life to prepare for life on the barge, admitting she used tips from organisation guru Marie Kondo.
The couple – who previously rented in Hackney, East London – bought a second boat and now run a café from it, which opens seasonally from 10am until 3pm. Pictured while working in London
Joanna and Victor take it in turns to take care of their tot, William, while the other serves up teas, coffees and cakes. The café boat pictured before renovation
They also learned to stay vigilant when it comes to boat maintenance over the years. The café boat pictured before renovation
‘It was really freeing to get rid of things that I didn’t need like old clothes I’d forgotten about and household clutter,’ she said. ‘But, it was hard not being able to use my hairdryer.
They also learned to stay vigilant when it comes to boat maintenance over the years.
‘On a boat we have to make sure the water is topped up, making sure we have the diesel for the Aga,’ Joanna revealed.
‘When living on the River Thames, the tide would go up and down and some mornings we’d wake up in the centre of the canal.’
The couple didn’t ditch their TV gigs straight away, braving a two-hour commute from Otford, Kent, to Old Street, East London, every day.
‘We’d be getting up at 6am for the two-hour commute which consisted of paddling to the river bank from the boat, walking to the train station and then from the station to work,’ Victor said.
The couple now have a combined salary of £25,000, compared to their previous total of £150,000
They were able to put their editing skills to use when starting their YouTube channel in April 2020 – which details the practicalities of life on a boat and the cities they visit
‘It was always a great conversation point – being able to say you paddle to work – but it wasn’t sustainable.’
The pair left their freelance work in December 2019 – ‘just before Covid hit’ – and haven’t looked back since.
They were able to put their editing skills to use when starting their YouTube channel in April 2020 – which details the practicalities of life on a boat and the cities they visit.
In April 2021, the pair renovated a second boat which they opened as Holly The Café Boat.
The couple didn’t ditch their TV gigs straight away, braving a two-hour commute from Otford, Kent, to Old Street, East London, every day. Victor pictured going to work in 2017
They now boast more than 44,000 YouTube subscribers – and nearly 10,000 on Instagram – with followers all across the country
The couple say Hampton, South West London and Oxford are their firm favourites to visit – as well as Macclesfield, Cheshire and Coventry, West Midlands
Their little boy, William, is a favourite with their online fans. Pictured in January, at 15 months old
The venture allows the couple to ‘give back to the communities that they travel to through barista coffee and conversations with locals’.
‘It’s lovely when people recognise us from our social media because it’s like we know them already,’ Victor added.
The couple have now visited more than 50 location – stopping at them for two weeks at a time, with Hampton, South West London and Oxford being firm favourites – as well as Macclesfield, Cheshire and Coventry, West Midlands.
They now boast more than 44,000 YouTube subscribers – and nearly 10,000 on Instagram – with followers all across the country.
Their little boy, William, is a firm favourite with their online fans.
‘We’re so thankful that he’s having this childhood, not two parents working all hours in the city,’ Victor said.
‘He loves nature and his first work was “duck”.
‘We’re able to spend lots of family time and people who come to the café always get a smile off him.’
Joanna and Victor can be found @hollythecafeboat on both Instagram and YouTube.
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