Ugbrooke 37 Flog It!

On Flog It! today we're taking you on a tour of the country,

revisiting some of the stunning locations we've seen on the series.

And as always we're on the hunt for special items to sell at auction.

And to top all that, I'll be exploring Ugbrooke House in Devon.

A fascinating stately home full of interesting characters.

Welcome to Flog It!

Here at Ugbrooke, this impressive castle-style house has been home

to 13 generations of the Clifford family.

The Cliffords can trace their ancestry all the way back to

the time of the Vikings, some 2,500 years ago,

through their role in the Battle of Hastings,

right up to the present day and it really is a fascinating tale.

I'll be exploring that story later but first we are off on a journey

around the country.

On today's show we'll be at Greenwich Royal Naval College

where Mark was very impressed with some first class family silver.

Gosh, I wish I had a grandfather like that

who gave me a lovely set of your Jensen silver.

At Reading's glorious Victorian town hall, there was music...

ORGAN MUSIC

..laughter...

There is a resemblance there.

..and utter disbelief.

I mean, I can't believe that.

My husband will not believe that.

And we revisit one of our most impressive venues to date,

Althorp House, home to the Spencer family for more than five centuries.

And Will's found a touch of class.

Stylish, expensive.

That's all for later, but first stop on the tour is one of London's most

famous riverside landmarks - the Royal Naval College in Greenwich,

designed by Sir Christopher Wren in the late 1600s

and Mark seems pleased as punch already.

-Hello, Linda.

-Hello.

Oh, you've made my day.

-Good.

-You really have.

You've brought in a lovely cutlery set for us.

-Yes.

-Which when you look at it can only be one designer.

And I'm only going to try and pronounce this once

and then I'm going back to the English version.

-It's by Georg Jensen.

-Fantastic.

A Danish designer who is

very well-known for his silverware.

Originally started actually producing ceramics but at

the turn-of-the-century turned his hand to making silver.

And later jewellery.

You get some wonderful funky designs in the '30s and '40s and '50s

of Jensen jewellery.

-Yeah.

-But you've brought us a service

which is known as the cactus pattern.

-Yeah.

-And we have actually got six of everything.

We haven't put it all out but some of the other pieces, I think, are in

original plastic lining?

-Yeah, they are.

-So we haven't taken them out.

-OK.

-This particular pattern was introduced in the 1920s, 1930s.

But it's still produced today.

-Is it? I didn't know that.

-I think this is probably mid-century.

-OK.

-Even '60s or '70s. If that ties in with your knowledge of it?

Yeah, I have no knowledge about it at all.

-So where did you get it from?

-My grandfather gave it to me...

-Gosh.

-..quite a few years ago.

And it has literally just sat, as you can see, by the

-colour of it.

-Well, I wasn't going to point it out.

I know we always say don't clean...

It could have done with a good polish. Yes.

But it has literally just sat in the cupboard.

Gosh, I wish I had a grandfather

like that who'd give me a lovely set of your Jensen silver.

It's so Art Deco, isn't it?

-It's beautiful.

-You can see why it's known as the cactus pattern.

-Yeah.

-Jensen has stylised them.

Each one of them has got the Jensen mark here.

You can date it through that.

-Oh, right.

-The earlier ones had certain dots around the Jensen mark.

-OK.

-The thing to point out is that all these are silver.

-Yeah.

-Except the blades of the knives. Those are stainless steel.

-OK.

-Because they're stronger than silver.

Right, OK. I think it's still quite modern, you could still use it now.

-Absolutely.

-Yeah.

-And you're absolutely right, the collecting

now, anybody under 40 wants that mid-20th century design.

-Yeah.

-Or the Art Deco period.

-Simple designs, you know?

-Yeah, yeah.

We've got to put the right estimate on to attract people in.

-Yeah.

-Have you had any thoughts on price yourself?

I have no idea, I really, I have no idea what the value is.

Well, I think we should put £600-£800 on that.

-Oh, my God.

-Is that all right?

-Yeah.

-I can put less if you want?

No, I'm shocked. No, don't put less!

SHE LAUGHS

I can't believe that.

I honestly do, I think we should put 600-800, with a 600 reserve, fixed.

-OK.

-And if it doesn't sell then take it back.

It should make a lot of money.

My goodness, I'm so shocked.

And you can put it to something to worthwhile I'm sure?

Yeah, I'm going to try and get a nice antique dining set,

-table and chairs.

-Oh, wonderful.

So I'm going to put it to something that I can keep.

That's fantastic. And your grandfather would so pleased.

-Yeah.

-So we're happy to put it in?

-Definitely.

-Thanks for making my day, Linda.

-Done deal.

-Done deal!

That's the great thing about passing on antiques,

each generation has the chance to take an item from the past

and reinvest in the future.

Here at Ugbrooke, the house is full of family heirlooms

and they've come from a long line of impressive Clifford characters.

"Heroic, passionate, reckless.

"Wedded from boyhood to bold measures.

"Rugged and impetuous as the Dartmoor

"from which his ancient race spring."

Now that's how this man, Thomas Clifford,

is described in a biography

of King Charles II.

Thomas had an illustrious career in Royal service and he became one of

King Charles's most important advisers

during the mid-17th century.

In fact, Charles made him first Baron Clifford

for his advice on money matters.

But Thomas also made up one of five men known for their wheeling and

dealing as the Cabal.

The Cabal was formed of five men, Ugbrooke's Thomas Clifford,

Baron Arlington,

George Buckingham,

Anthony Ashley and the Earl of Lauderdale, John Maitland.

The word "cabal" has long been associated with secrets but when

these men got together it became a byword for political intrigue.

For the first time in British history, power in the Royal Council

was shared by a group of men rather than a favoured individual.

And Thomas Clifford was one of those men.

The Cabal had the power to redirect

government policy at home and abroad.

And they conspired to write one of the most controversial treaties

in British history.

We will be finding out more about the secret treaty

later on in the show.

But now our trip around the UK is touching down at Reading

town hall where more than 500 people came to have their items valued by

our experts. And David Harper looks like the cat that got the cream.

Linda, hello.

-Hello.

-Hello, I'm hoping you're a big cat lover.

I am a massive cat fancying cat lover, yes.

-Absolutely.

-Good for you, me too as well.

Tell me about your love of cats.

It started when I was a child.

And then I had my own cats, obviously when I sort of left home

and eventually I came into breeding Tonkinese cats.

-Right.

-And I'm now learning to be a cat judge.

So, this is why, hence we have a rather lovely, funny, amusing,

very appealing sketch here of two cats.

-Yeah.

-By an incredibly famous cat lover himself,

Louis Wain.

He was one of the founding members of the National Cat Club.

He was obviously interested in cats, he worked with cats.

He judged cats.

But sadly I also know that in later years he was put into a home,

and pretty much forgotten.

But this one I love, it just makes me smile.

How did you come about it?

In the early '90s I was at an antique show and I found it in one

of the bins under the table so it was virtually a boot sale.

-Right.

-But it just amused me and it was only £5.

Well, then it doesn't matter if it is Louis Wain or not Louis Wain at that level.

-Absolutely.

-The problem of course is that because he is so well known and

popular and valuable there are huge amounts of copies on the market.

But the original frame had a piece

of paper on the back which is round the back.

OK, which is this piece here.

And it had that address on it.

If you look at the handwriting itself,

you would certainly believe that is 1906.

It's a beautiful hand. So that's looking good.

But, still, the market is ruthless

and, you know, that's not enough proof to the next buyer.

I'm not confident that it's genuine, only through bitter experience

of handling literally thousands of objects in my life

and coming across very good fakes

and I know it's so easy to fake this.

If I could categorically

be convinced that was a real Louis Wain,

with all the history and provenance, it's £300- £500 in auction.

Easily make £500, everybody would be excited.

But, we're not sure, we can't be sure,

I think it needs to go with an estimate of 80-120

as an unsure thing, which means, Linda,

you have to be a bit of a risk taker.

Because if it's good, you might go home with 500.

If it's bad you might go home with 50.

And if it's really bad I get to take it home again.

Exactly, exactly. So how do you feel about that?

-Yeah, that's...

-You're good.

-I'm up for that, yeah.

-And I've got to tell you something,

you've got a fantastic big smile and, there we go.

If you just come closer, give me that beautiful smile.

Look at this, there is a resemblance there!

So, we'll meet at the auction.

-Lovely.

-Up for it?

-Yes.

-Linda. Thank you.

Fabulous.

I've heard of dogs who look like their owners,

maybe the same's true for cats?

Now we are travelling to the other side of the country to East Sussex,

stopping off at the 15th century Herstmonceux Castle

where Catherine Southon has hunted

out another family piece that is soon to find a new home.

Sarah, gorgeous box.

-Thank you.

-Love this little box, where did it come from?

It was my great aunt's. And she left it to me.

Been a treasured possession in the family?

Not really, no. No. I don't actually like it very much.

-Why don't you like it?

-It's silver, I don't really like silver.

-I prefer gold, I'm a gold girl.

-CATHERINE LAUGHS

Why not, why not? It is a very simple piece,

not a lot to it, but as you turn over we've got the name Asprey's.

-Right.

-Surely that means something to you?

-Not really. Do they sell gold?

-No, they don't sell gold,

but they sell wonderful quality objects and that's just what

-you've got here.

-It's growing on me.

-Is it growing on you?

Am I selling it? I'm selling it well.

So where did this come from, Sarah?

It belonged to my great aunt, and her husband

was a jeweller and a clock maker.

So she had lots of lovely bits and bobs?

She had lots of little bits and bobs hanging around the house, yeah.

And how did this come into your possession?

She died and my aunt inherited and then my aunt died and now I've

-inherited it.

-Well, let's turn it around here and have a little look

at the marks because here we've got the initials WC.

-Right.

-Which stands for one of the main silversmiths

of the 20th century, William Cummins.

So it's a pretty good name here.

But this is probably William Cummins' family, I would say.

Very simple in its style with this lovely little turquoise stone on the top.

It's essentially a little trinket box.

-Oh, right, OK.

-And once upon a time perhaps you would have kept your

little trinkets, your rings, your earrings or something like that.

You don't keep anything in it?

No, no. It just sits in my drawer, unused, unloved.

It really is unloved, isn't it? But it is top-quality, top-maker,

top-retailer because that's the retailer on the bottom, Asprey's.

So value, I'm not going to tell you it's worth a vast amount of money

but I am going to tell you that it's probably worth around £60-£80.

And I think if you pop that into auction everyone's going to go for

-it because of the name and it wouldn't surprise me if it made a bit more.

-Good.

-How does that sound?

-Good, yeah, sounds good.

-You really love it now,

-don't you?

-Yeah, I do, yeah. It's growing on me.

We'll find out how it fares in just a moment but first it's back to

Ugbrooke, home to the 17th-century Cabal member Sir Thomas Clifford.

And I met the current man of the house, Alexander,

to hear more about the secret treaty

and how it was found here at Ugbrooke.

Alexander, this is a marvellous looking 17th-century chest,

what was inside it?

This is the Cabinet Minister's chest.

A bit like the red briefcase that George Osborne would hold up outside

Downing Street today. The document that was held in this was incredibly

inflammatory and dangerous to the state.

It was the Secret Treaty of Dover signed in 1670 between

King Charles II and King Louis XIV of France.

What this treaty was all about was two things.

One, was for King Charles to declare that he was actually a Roman Catholic.

At the time, there was 100 years of hatred of Rome.

If Charles, the King, said, "Right, we should be Catholic again,"

then you know, it would be a disaster.

And two, for the French to give England

a whole load of money to go to war against the Dutch.

Absolutely incredible.

An amazing piece of history and I gather it's now,

that document's now in the British Museum?

That's correct. Unfortunately we had to sell so many things in the '80s.

The roofs, the leaks, you know, we're in a beautiful library but

unfortunately a lot of that was damaged.

So to be able to pay for the repairs, we had to sell things

and such wonderful documents like this secret treaty.

That went for £350,000 to an anonymous bidder.

That really was some find. Hopefully now you're in charge

of the house you're going to find something like this

hidden away under the floorboards somewhere.

The only things that I've found so far is a letter opener

and a picture of the Ugbrooke Park football team

so I think I've got a long way to go and a lot of hunting.

What an incredible piece of our national history.

But now it's time to take our items off to auction,

and here's a reminder of what we're selling.

Georg Jensen is a huge name in silver

so this cutlery set is a cut above the rest.

There is a question mark over its authenticity

but we love this friendly feline.

And Sarah might not like the silver Asprey box

but perhaps the bidders will.

And we're going to find out right now,

as our first auction is on the south coast of Sussex

at Rye Auction Galleries.

And like all auctions, there's commission to pay.

Here today it's 15% plus VAT.

And it's time for Sarah's silver to go under the hammer.

-Sarah, good luck.

-Thank you.

We've got that little silver box, the Asprey.

It's a great name, going under the hammer.

And you just said to Catherine earlier, "I don't like silver."

-But you're wearing silver!

-I know! But normally I wouldn't.

You're a gold girl, aren't you?

-I'm a gold girl.

-Why are you selling this anyway?

Because it just sits in my drawer unloved.

So it needs to find a nice home.

Right, it's going under the hammer.

Prepare to say goodbye to this one, because this will definitely sell.

The Asprey of London Square section box.

It's dated London 1903 by William Cummins & Sons Limited.

And I've got to start it at 38.

I've got 38 here.

42, 45. 48, 50.

50 here. 5? 55. 60. 5. 70.

5. Pretty good.

-See, you like it now.

-80. 5.

90. 5.

At £90 with you, sir.

At £90. Do I see five, now?

At £90, are we all done and finished here?

At £90, then.

That's a good price, £90. That's lovely.

I'm pleased with that. Buy some gold now.

Buy some gold!

Got to be gone. At £10, then.

From Rye, we're heading 100 miles west to the market town

of Wokingham, where Martin & Pole's Saleroom is our host.

The Louis Wain picture with no reserve is up next,

and the jury's out as to whether it's genuine or not.

Let's see what the bidders think.

Oh, Linda!

The fuss you've been causing.

-She's trouble, isn't she, this one?

-Louis Wain, yes.

It's the sketches from the valuation day.

And I know you love your cats, don't you?

-I do. Yes.

-Why are you selling this, then?

-I've had it for some time.

And we're downsizing.

All right, OK. Now, you're not sure it's an original.

-No.

-You think it is.

Other people have looked at it and they think it is.

This is great because this is where we let the market decide.

Let's put it under the hammer right now.

OK, come on, let's have our fingers crossed.

Let's do this. Here we go, this is it.

The Louis Wain study of cats' heads.

Start this with me at £65.

70 anywhere? With me at £65.

Any further offers at 65?

70. 75. 80, with you now.

£80. Any more? At £80.

Are we selling at £80? Are we all done? Was that a bid?

Come on! 85 now.

90. 95. 100.

At £100 now at the front.

Any more than £100?

Selling, then, for £100.

-All done.

-GAVEL BANGS

-Oh, after all that.

-I was so excited.

-That's all right.

-You got £100.

Look, he's mid-estimate. You were right.

Anyway, look, we're really sorry we didn't get the 500 plus.

-No, I'm quite happy.

-OK.

-I'm quite happy.

£5, and I've enjoyed the picture.

-Brilliant.

-That's the spirit, Linda.

From Berkshire, we're nipping over to West London to Chiswick Auctions,

where that beautiful Georg Jensen cutlery set is up for grabs.

I'm casting my mind back to the valuation day and I was

wandering around doing pieces to camera,

and I came across a load of Georg Jensen silver.

Yes, 20th-century modern. We've heard the name before.

Great Danish design, and it all belonged to Linda.

And here you are. That was my spot, wasn't it?

-Yeah, it was.

-And do you know, I was so busy, I said,

"I know who'd like to do that." This man!

-Well, I ended up with them. They're lovely, aren't they?

-Yeah.

Fingers crossed. Ready? Everything crossed.

It's going under the hammer right now. Here we go, this is it.

The Jensen set of cactus pattern silver cutlery.

Start me £400 for this.

400. 420, 440, 460, 480, 500, 520,

540, 560, 580, 600. 620.

He's out. 620, then, with the lady.

-620.

-Internet, come on.

-Yeah.

In the room at 620.

Is that it? I'm going to sell it.

620, then, it goes.

GAVEL BANGS It sold in the room.

-That's OK.

-That's OK.

It sold at the bottom estimate.

-It's gone to a good home.

-Yes.

And you're happy. You didn't realise it was going to be £600.

No, not at all.

Sold at the bottom end of the estimate.

But that's still a lot of cash for something Linda never used.

That's the first three items sold,

and there's more auction action later.

Now we're heading back to Greenwich Royal Naval College,

where Mark is never one to miss a connection.

-Pat, isn't this a wonderful room?

-It is amazing, isn't it?

-It's wonderful, yeah.

-Fabulous.

And it's known as the Painted Room, isn't it?

-Yes, it is, yeah.

-And you've brought a painting in.

-I have, indeed.

-It's caused quite a conundrum, this, hasn't it?

Give us the history that you know.

Your husband fell in love with it, is that right?

Yes. We bought it in the north-east up in South Shields

in the early '70s. And he fell in love with this painting.

He felt it was probably a colliery manager.

I can see why he thinks that, because when you look at

the portrait, he's a very handsome man, what, in his 40s, I guess?

-Yeah, yeah.

-Very nicely dressed.

He's got his tie, he's got his little gold stick pin there.

He's looking very self assured, isn't he?

He is, very, yeah.

And you could imagine somebody who maybe has just achieved,

owns a small business.

Or as you say is a colliery manager.

It's oil painting very matching the Malton British School.

-You know, there's earthy, slate-y colours.

-Yeah, gorgeous colours.

-Lovely colours!

-I like the tones that are in it.

I like the colours that are in it. But I just don't like...

His eyes follow me.

Wherever he is on the wall, in the room, his eyes follow me.

Well, they say, of course, if that happens, it's a very good portrait.

-Oh, right.

-It's signed by the artist, JP Turnbull.

Now, in our limited time we've managed to do a bit of

research and have come up with absolutely nothing.

So we can't tell you much about that.

If we turn the picture round and put it back on the easel,

we have got here, Mr P Brooks,

and then an address, Durham,

-which fits in again.

-Yeah.

And then April 1934.

-Yeah.

-So that could be the sitter, which is nice to know.

Yeah.

Has it been up in the wall in prime position?

He has. He was on the wall up until about...

six or seven years ago.

And when I sort of had a change round of things, I decided then,

OK, he can come off the wall, and he went under the sofa.

Under the... Oh, well, I... Oh.

Such a shame. I'm so glad he's out from under the sofa.

I think in terms of the value we've got to look at it

as a decorative piece. And I think if we put it into auction,

-we should put an estimate of 100-150.

-OK.

-Now, would you be happy with that?

-Very happy.

You're happy to get rid of it, aren't you?

I'm happy to get rid of it.

See, if I'd only known that, I could have put 10-20 on it!

But, no, seriously, I think we've got to put a figure that reflects

the quality of the item.

-Yeah.

-And we'll put 100 discretionary reserve on it.

That means the auctioneer will go within 10% of that.

-Thank you very much for bringing him in, Pat.

-Thank you.

He is a charming looking fellow.

Next we continue our journey by heading north to another sensational

location - Althorp, in Northamptonshire.

And the Flog It! crowd didn't disappoint, either,

bringing bags laden with treasures.

And Will Axon found two eye-catching pieces of jewellery.

Christine and Neville, thank you for coming along today.

And I'm assuming these are yours, Christine.

-Yes.

-Were these gifts from your good husband sat next to you?

Well, yes and no. Because they caught my eye in the shop.

And what was it that caught your eye about them?

The star brooch, which is dainty, I thought.

Well, it is very pretty, isn't it?

It's almost given that very light feeling by those little

seed pearls that are inset into the gold.

Very late Victorian, into the Edwardian period.

There were a lot of this type of brooch being made.

So they're not particularly rare.

And as a motif, that star was very popular at the time as well.

But then we move across to this,

what I would call a sort of stick pin.

-Yes.

-And, again, very different in both colour and style.

Tell me what drew you to that?

Well, at the time I wanted something to put in my brooch because I had

like, a tie brooch.

She sounds like a very stylish lady, Neville.

I mean, you obviously took a lot of thought

and care about how you looked.

-Not just stylish, expensive!

-Oh, there he is.

There's a man talking for you, isn't it?

Let's talk about the stick pin. Obviously, that's diamonds.

I think that middle stone there is probably around the sort of

half carat mark, that sort of size, I would have thought.

You're probably looking at a total weight of about

a carat in diamond weight.

-Yeah.

-And it's in this white metal mount, which is unmarked,

but I'm almost certain that's going to be platinum.

Now my suggestion for the auction is

that we do split them into two separate lots.

-OK.

-The little, shall we say, Edwardian gold seed pearls set,

I can see that at sort of around the £100 mark.

How does that sound to you as a sort of figure?

-That's fine.

-So maybe if we straddle that hundred pounds,

say, the old favourite, 80-120.

-Yeah.

-Reserve it at 80 with a bit of discretion and I'm sure we'll get

-that away.

-Right.

-Now, the other piece,

I think we're going to have to be a

little bit more generous in our estimate.

-Right.

-I think easily sort of £500, that sort of figure.

What I would suggest that is an estimate of 500-700.

-OK.

-And, again,

reserve it at that £500 with maybe a little bit of discretion.

-Yeah.

-It would be a shame not to sell them for the sake of a single

-bid if you've...

-Yes.

-..you know,

you've got yourself into the mind-set of selling them.

And, well, who knows?

You might find something to replace them at the auction!

The brooch's quality and the design is timeless.

Hopefully the bidders will agree.

Back at Herstmonceux Castle,

James Lewis has found another family piece

that's been saved from the skip.

The sound of a concertina being played on the streets

always makes me think about Paris.

-Right.

-Sitting in one of those streetside cafes with a lovely cup

of hot chocolate for me, actually.

Right, OK.

And maybe a little French tart.

-Eating one, not being with one!

-OK!

And, you know, with that sound in the background.

It's so Parisian, isn't it?

-That is.

-And this is a really good example.

-Is it?

-Jane, where did you find it?

It's my father-in-law's.

-OK.

-And it was just given to us.

Basically, he died a few years ago,

and we were given that and a piano accordion, which we got rid of.

But we just put that to one side.

-Did he play?

-I don't know.

But I think maybe his father did.

-OK.

-And he just sort of bought it for him, I think.

So we've got a concertina in its original case,

and we've got JJ Vickers' label inside the lid.

-Is that the retailer?

-That's the retailer.

-Right, fair enough.

-On the side here, we've got

"Jefferies Brothers Maker, Proud Street."

In London. So we've got Jefferies as the maker.

-Right.

-Charles Jefferies.

-Which is Italian?

-Well, Charles Jefferies is

an interesting character because Charles Jefferies

started life as a tinker.

-OK.

-And then became an accordion player.

And he would sit out on the streets playing his accordion.

-Oh, he played? Oh, wow.

-I've got real talent, haven't I?

-Yeah, you have! Brilliant!

-I won't give up the day job.

Oh, it's fine. Brilliant.

And he would play his accordion.

And people would come to him in the street and say,

what a wonderful accordion, could you make me one?

And he started making them as part of the business.

Oh, I see. That's brilliant.

And they are the Rolls-Royce of accordions.

-Really?

-They're really good makers.

But it is in wonderful condition as well.

It's never been out of the box, as far as I know.

Well, not since I've had it. I've never even taken it out.

-OK.

-Sorry!

So concertinas vary dramatically in price.

And they are a mine field.

Date - 1870, 1880.

-Really?

-Something around there.

-Oh, brilliant.

What do you think it's worth? Do you think you'd take 80 for it?

I don't know. I suppose so.

I just... It doesn't...

-I really don't know.

-So if somebody offered you 150, would you take it?

-I think so.

-You would?

-Sure, yeah.

-I wouldn't.

-You wouldn't?

-No.

-Really?

-No.

-Really?!

-No, it's worth more than that.

-Wow!

-If I said to you I think...

..that the estimate, the estimate should be £1,000-1,500.

What?!

I... I... Well.

I mean, I can't believe that.

My husband will not believe that!

Really? What did your husband think it was worth?

My husband said, "Why are you taking it?

"It's not worth anything.

-"Throw it away!"

-Throw it away?!

Well, good job you didn't listen to the husband.

I am shocked. I am genuinely shocked.

I think it will make that easily.

-Really?

-And let's just see what it makes on the day.

-It's a great thing.

-Thank you, that's fabulous.

What a find. And that's the last to come from Reading.

Before we take our three items to auction,

I wanted to visit Ugbrooke one last time to find out about that

incredible family history, from the people who know it best.

Ugbrooke has been home to the Cliffords for more than 400 years.

The family and staff have lived on this estate,

and over time transformed the humble Tudor dwelling into this impressive

castle-style home.

The Clifford family is ancient and fascinating with a family tree so

large, its roots go all the way back to 500 AD.

They descended from early Vikings, and when William the Conqueror

invaded these shores in 1066, it was a forefather of the Cliffords by his side.

Few families can boast such a varied cast of characters,

with politicians, military men and adventurers at every turn.

Today, Ugbrooke is still the Clifford family home,

with the Honourable Alexander tasked with preserving the family seat,

and keeping its history well and truly alive.

At his side are a team of staff and volunteers who are dedicated to

helping Ugbrooke live on.

I wanted to know who their favourite Clifford was, and why.

So let's meet the people of Ugbrooke, past and present.

Alexander Clifford, future Lord and custodian of Clifford.

Catherine Fender, guide and history buff.

Alan Easterbrook, gamekeeper for an incredible 50 years.

And Mary Holman, expert guide with 15 years' experience.

My favourite Clifford character,

although there are so many going down the line,

would have to be the great adventurer,

Lewis, the ninth Lord Clifford.

His stories of when he was in the US joining up with Custer's

expeditionary force on his battles with Chief Sitting Bull.

He was on the banks of the Yellowstone River.

He was picking up his bedding,

and when he ducked to bend over to pick it up,

he then heard a shot from a musket.

Just above his head, hitting a tree above him,

from an Indian firing across the river.

The way he says it, is as though it was exciting.

He's enjoying it.

Only a month or so later, Custer and his whole force was wiped out.

So he was in the States with Custer's expeditionary force

until two weeks before the massacre.

And as we come into the morning room, here,

we have a wonderful portrait of Elizabeth.

My favourite person within the Ugbrooke history, I think,

has to be the ninth Lady Clifford, Lady Mabel Clifford.

She was a very formidable lady.

I don't think you argued with her.

But she obviously had great presence.

She was a wonderful hostess.

She loved weekend house parties.

And she was a great one for putting on plays with her weekend house guests.

She used to send them invitations six months in advance.

She would send them a copy of the play she wanted to put on,

and they had to come knowing their part.

And I think bringing their own costumes to play in the play.

They were very privileged to have the Duke and Duchess of York,

as they then were, who later became George V and Queen Mary.

And what is wonderful that in the archives of the house,

we have a programme for the weekend that the Duke and Duchess of York

came to stay here.

I've been here 50 years.

Just turned 50 years.

I come when I was 16 to meet His Lordship.

I was probably shaking in me boots.

He said, "When can you start?"

And I never looked back.

Lord Clifford, the 13th Lord of Chudleigh.

To me, he was like a father.

We spent a lot of time together.

Though His Lordship, Mondays, would go off to the House of Lords,

he'd probably come back on the Thursday and with the woodmen,

he would go out in the park and help them get the park shipshape.

He was a man that was always active, doing something.

Three generations that I've been with now have treated me

like family, really. I know nothing else, but here.

And it's just my life.

It's a privilege, it really is.

I'm a guide here, and I've been here for eight years.

It's a special treat in the summer,

coming here for three or four months.

You come down the drive and you come into a different world.

I'm very interested in the tenth Earl,

because he was the black sheep of the family in many ways.

And his nickname in the family was Silly Willy.

He was actually sent out to New Zealand when he was 18,

because the family knew that he couldn't cope with money at all.

He tried to earn some money out there by rounding up the rabbits and

canning them, which was a great idea,

until at least a dozen people died of lead poisoning because they

sealed the tins with lead.

But the reason I like him is because

for most of his life, people said he was a failure.

And the nickname, Silly Willy, shows that.

But he was actually brilliant.

He became very interested in radiology,

and realised that the rays right at the edge of the spectrum could

actually kill tumours.

He was one of the very first people in the 1920s to realise that.

And having been in the medical world all of my life,

I know how special that is.

It's crazy that I have my own museum in the house.

I can pick up things and wear... You know, my ancestors have worn.

I can pick up a crazy hat or a sword.

Be careful not to hit any of the equipment here!

It is the most fascinating house and fascinating family.

Wonderful portraits.

And in the most marvellous setting.

I always worried when I was younger that

I would be the generation that would lose it.

No thoughts on retiring.

Go on as long as I can.

I'm hoping that they'll carry me off, of the estate

while I'm out there working!

It is one family, and it's about looking after everyone.

Our trip around the country is nearly at a close.

All that remains is to put our last three items under the hammer.

And here's a reminder of what we're selling.

The colliery man with the beady eyes.

Will anyone want to take him home?

Some sparkling jewellery, which we've separated into two lots.

And the concertina that proved a big surprise to Jane.

First, we're back at Chiswick in west London to put that dapper

looking gentleman up for sale.

£100 to go. 100 is bid.

110, 120.

-Pat, good luck.

-Thank you.

Are the eyes following her around?

We're talking about that wonderful oil painting, the gentleman.

Art is subjective.

I mean, I like it, you like it,

-and I know you don't like it.

-I like the colours.

I like the colours. That's what Mark says, they are modern,

they are to date. Hopefully this lot out there,

that room full of bidders will like it as well.

Let's put it to the test. It's going under the hammer now.

Now we come onto this lovely lot.

JF Turnbull, the oil on canvas portrait of a gentleman.

He certainly is, he's just down here.

Let's start this off at £100.

£100.

It's not looking terribly good, is it?

It's not looking good, is it?

£90, otherwise we're going to pass it.

Any interest at £90?

£90 is bid in the room.

It's at £90.

A particularly interesting lot, this. At £90.

That's it, it is selling.

And it is now sold at £90.

-Sold.

-Sorry.

-Fine.

-But we had a discretionary reserve

so we got it away.

-It's OK. Look, we're happy. Pat's happy!

-Good, good.

Those eyes are not going to be following her around.

It's not going back under the sofa.

Do you know what? That's the wrong place to put it.

I think that's why he's looking at you, with disdain.

I really do.

Let's hope its new owner hangs in pride of place.

Now we're heading two hours north to Market Harborough in Leicestershire,

where Gildings are in charge of the sale.

Christine, you seem to be selling your jewellery at the moment.

-Well...

-Why?

-Needs must.

Oh, needs must. We've got two items, haven't we?

The seed pearl brooch, and the stick pin.

180-120, the stick pin.

-The stick pin's worth an awful lot of money. Did you know that?

-Yes.

-You did know that?

-Yes.

Right, we're starting off with the seed pearl.

The cluster, star burst brooch.

Let's find out what the bidders think.

The yellow metal star brooch, and starting here at £55.

At 55? 60. 60, five.

-Come on, come on, we're there.

-75, internet.

80, five.

90. Room bid at 90.

You're out online. Five.

100. 110, 120.

130, 140, 150. Back in.

Thank you, anyway. 150 now, with the online bidder at £150.

Watching the floor carefully at 150.

This is good. The auctioneer's doing really well.

Last chance and selling online at 150.

And that's £150.

-Yeah.

-One more to go, it's that bar brooch.

Let's hope we get the top end.

Yeah, I hope so.

The white metal bar brooch.

Let's start the bidding, if you will, at 360.

At 360, here, at 360.

At £360, at 360.

Yeah, come on, Will. Move it on!

400. 420, 440.

And 60. In the room at 460, and I'm out.

-We've got fresh bidders here, look.

-Gosh, that was good.

500. 550. 600.

Shake of the head, standing right at £600.

-At 600, we've done it.

-Lady's bid, seated, at £600.

At 600, are we all done?

Last chance. If you're quick online...

Brilliant. Well done, Will Gilding.

£600 for the second lot, 150 for the first lot.

That's £750.

-Wow.

-Where there's a Will, there's a way!

-That's good, yeah.

-Where there's a Will, there's a way!

-Smashing.

-Well done, Will.

-Thank you, sir.

-Smashing.

That's a great result for Christine.

Finally, it's back down south to Rye Auctions,

to see if James's whopping estimate proves true.

At £290.

The concertina, Jane.

Best one I've seen on Flog It!

-Best one you've seen?

-Really?

-Without a shadow of a doubt.

-For a long, long time.

Because this one is the Rolls-Royce.

-Do you think?

-Did you know?

-No, I didn't know that.

-So where's it been all its life?

-It's been... It's my father-in-law's.

We inherited it. It's just been sitting upstairs.

-My husband wanted to throw it away.

-No!

-Yes!

Well, I'm excited about this. I hope you are.

I hope this lot, here, in this packed sale room are as well.

Hopefully we've got some phone lines,

we're putting it under the hammer right now.

-Good luck, Jane.

-Thank you.

The Jeffries Brothers Duet concertina,

and I can start this in at 1050, 1100.

1100, I've got.

1100, do I see 1150?

At 1100. At 1100, do I see 1150 now?

1200. 1200 still on commission.

At 1200, do I see 1250?

At 1200.

Are we all done? At 1200?

Are you all done and finished?

It's sold at 1200, we got it mid-estimate.

-Good, thank you.

-That's OK, that's all right, isn't it?

-Thank you so much.

-It's better than putting it in the skip.

Absolutely. Absolutely, thank you so much.

That's all right. Thank you for bringing it in. That was great.

Well, that's it for today's show.

We've had a wonderful time here at Ugbrooke House.

And what an incredible family history,

one that's still being kept alive by family members today.

We've also heard some of your fascinating stories,

and we've seen some great results in auction rooms all over the country.

I was particularly pleased for Jane. That concertina was first class.

And it deserved to get over £1,000.

Not bad for a squeeze-box!

I hope you've enjoyed the show.

So until the next time, it's goodbye.