Branded ‘English pigs’, rumours of devil-worship and string of mystery pet deaths: How family’s dream life in Portugal turned into a nightmare when they were targeted by locals who saw them on C4 show – as more Brits are hounded out of their foreign homes

A British family who were chased out of Portugal by locals who branded them ‘English pigs’ and spread rumors of devil worship have told how their dream life turned into a nightmare.

Lynn and Richard Appleby-Brisco moved to the Mediterranean country’s Guarda district in 2016 with plans to start a more ‘affordable’ life with their two young daughters.

The family’s move to the remote village was filmed for Channel 4’s Our Wildest Dreams, but it quickly became their wildest nightmare when a group of Portuguese villagers launched a hate campaign against them.

During what became a “storm of resentment,” their dog Cu – an Estrela Mountain Cross Retriever – died at the age of four after being attacked.

Appleby-Brisco’s ordeal has chilling echoes of that of Orla Dargan, who faced years of threatening behavior from a neighbor and found her rescue dog dead in a shallow well after moving to Portugal in 2016.

The family of four, from Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, also claim a local resident admitted to stealing their cat Ponyo and her kitten bubbles in January – after their goats were poisoned.

Ms Appleby-Brisco, 51, claims that when she confronted a villager about the mysterious deaths, she was told: ‘We took your pets and you’re next.’

The family’s move to the remote village was filmed for Channel 4’s Our Wildest Dreams. They are pictured here on the show in 2018

Lynn said she was ‘afraid of being alone in the house’ and would ‘carry a knife’ when she went to the farm

She said The sun: ‘I just couldn’t take it anymore and it was my absolute low point.

‘I was afraid of being alone in the house, so I hung around the main local town all day to feel safe.

“It was so bad that when I went to the farm I had a knife with me, and I consider myself a pacifist.”

The family believes they accidentally put a target on their backs after their episode aired in 2018.

Among the scandalous incidents of harassment, the family were spat at and called ‘English pigs’ – while rumors spread that Mrs Appleby-Brisco was a devil-worshipping prostitute after planting flowers outside their home.

The family flew to Britain in February with a small suitcase containing a change of clothes and pajamas.

Mrs Appleby-Brisco and her children, Emily, 12, and Yvie, 10, now live in a one-bed apartment, while their father is still trying to sell the property in Portugal and float back all their belongings.

It comes after a former City investment banker who retired told the Algarve MailOnline of her years of hell after an ‘aggressive’ neighbor took over her land and forced her out of her home, forcing her into hiding.

Orla Dargan bought her dream Portuguese villa in 2016 for around €600,000, and happily lived there for several years before her neighbour, a real estate agent she describes as a ‘dangerous’ man, moved in next door.

The mother-of-two said she was warned about his “temper” and endured years of threatening behavior, including an alleged attempt to run her off the road near her home.

Her beloved rescue dog was also found dead, floating in a shallow well with horrific injuries.

Orla Dargan in Portugal with her rescue dog Henry, who she says was ‘killed’ amid an ongoing border dispute

Orla Dargan bought her dream Portuguese villa in 2016 for around £600,000

Richard is shown building their house in Portugal before they were forced to return to Britain

The family have raised £3,700 via a GoFundMe page to try and recover from failed plan to move abroad

The Appleby-Briscos have raised £3,800 through a GoFundMe page to try to recover from the failed plan to move abroad.

On the page, Ms Appleby-Brisco wrote: ‘We arrived in Portugal almost eight years ago, full of excitement about starting a new, sustainable life. We were followed by the film crew of Channel Four’s Our Wildest Dreams because we wanted to inspire others.

‘Initially our life was great, we wanted to integrate locally, so we didn’t hang out with the expats so much, we put our girls in the village school, bought a small farm on the edge of the village, started to learn the language better, did everything what we liked.

‘We didn’t know that there was a storm of resentment against us in the village. We hadn’t done anything wrong, so why should we even question that?’

Channel 4 has been contacted for comment.