Episode 19 Antiques Road Trip

It's the nation's favourite antiques experts.

What about that?!

With £200 each,

a classic car

and a goal, to scour Britain for antiques.

Can I buy everything here?

The aim, to make the biggest profit at auction

but it's no mean feat.

Feeling a little saw.

This is going to be an epic battle.

There'll be worthy winners

and valiant losers.

So, will it be the high road to glory

or the slow road to disaster?

-The honeymoon is over.

-I'm sorry.

This is the Antiques Road Trip!

Yeah!

MUSIC: Hoots Mon by Lord Rockingham's XI

It's approaching crunch time in the battle of Scot versus Scot,

with the female of the species just in front.

We're onto our fourth leg here and we're neck and neck!

There's a whisper between us.

Sadly, your tail is still in my face.

Anita Manning and Paul Laidlaw...

Auctioneers both,

and did we mention highly competitive?

Yes!

You've taken your fair share of a drubbing.

..have had a lot of fun in their Morris called Whooty, this week.

And this wee baby, she's really only happy about 40, isn't she?

What are you trying to tell me? Is it...

That's coded for, "Slow down, Laidlaw."

But it's all about glory for those two

and Paul's not used to being runner-up.

If it takes the whip,

I might have to use it!

Paul started out with £200 and so far he's won two auctions

and amassed £261.25.

While Anita, who also began with 200,

has that all important wee slither of a lead

with £286.90.

BUT there's still a long road to travel.

It might only be three inches on the map

but it's 300 miles in reality.

Our epic journey begins in Northumberland at Ford

and takes in an awful lot of eastern England before ending up

over 1,000 miles later at Stamford in Lincolnshire.

Today, were starting out in Lincolnshire at Navenby

and making for an auction in the Norfolk town of Diss.

We're seeing a good old bit of the country on this one, aren't we?

I think we've only got two more counties left.

Welcome to Navenby,

your latest battleground.

That was a lovely piece of parking.

I couldn't have got in there.

I'm trying to butter you up before we go in.

You go into that post office, get me a stamp,

I'll go into this antique shop.

They've started already.

OK, I think this is a bunnets off job.

Which might, in the circumstances, translate as gauntlet down.

On your metal, everyone,

because there's little margin for error in this struggle.

We're still very close together

and it takes only one good buy

for someone to surge ahead,

and Paul Laidlaw is a titan!

And doesn't he know it?

Have a look at this.

Two little chimps underneath a somewhat stylised tree.

There's just a touch of the Jugendstil about this.

It's a Germanic piece, I think,

Storer, cast-iron,

late 19th century.

I want to cut to the chase, I'm going to buy it.

I'm going to try and buy it and this may be a problem

because it's got a whopping price tag of £49.

Is this, erm...?

-It's mine.

-This is yours, you own this?

-Yeah.

Isn't it great to be in an antique centre talking to someone

that owns the thing?!

OK, Paul, your move.

If it's just a little cast iron funny dish, can it be £10 or £15?

-I can't go as low as that, I'm afraid.

-OK.

-I could go 30.

-Oh, my word.

Let's go through the motions and see where we end up, yeah?

-I'm going to say 20...

-And I'll say 25.

-And I'll go... I don't know your name?

-Stella.

Stella. Stella,

you were a star.

I haven't heard that before!

Wonderful, you've got a deal.

So, what is it with those chimps, Paul?

-At £25, I think I'm going to struggle.

-Hmm.

Unless I'm right about this!

Two chimps under a tree, not any old tree,

the tree of knowledge.

Well, you know why it's the tree of knowledge,

because chimp number two is offering chimp number one an apple.

Chimp number one,

look at the face.

Mutton chop whiskers.

Is that Charles Darwin?

-I put it to you that that IS Charles Darwin...

-Really?

..and this is mocking

Darwin's theory of evolution.

There was a great reaction to Darwin's theories

of evolution from the Christian fraternity,

it has to be said, because it undermined the Bible.

Now we've got more than just a silly little novelty dish with chimps,

have we not? We've tapped into an extremely exciting

period in the history of science and the development of human thought.

Now, you see why I love it?

Good theory, Paul.

Or might it just appeal to fans of cute chimps?

-Stella, £25.

-Yeah.

I shall settle my debt to you.

There you go.

Anita, meanwhile, has also unearthed a curiosity.

Well, two actually.

It's a pair of bookends,

they are commemorative bookends.

They're made of a metal,

sounds like tin.

And they are a souvenir for the formal opening

of the Stevens,

which is the world's greatest hotel.

Well, that's what these bookends are telling us anyway.

And this hotel is in Chicago,

and it's dated 2 May 1927.

Quite a place it is, too.

Although, it's not called that any more.

The Stevens was once the largest hotel in the world,

as I'm sure Al Capone could have told you.

The shape of them takes us to the Art Deco period,

but we have these figures here,

two little children with a big fish.

I don't know what that's about.

The ticket price is £18.

Time to consult Dean.

We're selling in Norfolk, not in Chicago.

-Oh, right.

-Yeah, not even Norfolk, Virginia either.

Could they be bought for 10?

I can certainly give them a ring. I mean, the best I can do,

I can take 10% off which will make it 16.

-Uh-huh.

-I'll go and give them a bell now.

-OK, thank you.

While Dean makes a call, Paul's come up with something similar.

It's a Victorian presentation tankard.

Now, we see presentation tankards all over the place, yeah?

Every golf club hands them out like sweeties and so on,

and they're generally dull as dishwater.

However, show me a tankard

presented in 1870

by the Hythe School of Musketry...

This is the British army's training establishment

for excellence in sharpshooting, musketry, yeah?

..and you've got my attention.

Very pleasingly engraved, curlicues all over the place,

cracking little imperial crown, there.

It paints a picture of these chaps in their scarlet frocks

and their Enfield rifles

shooting away at Hythe in 1870.

That's quite a vision.

There are a few blemishes though.

-It's got a big hole in the bottom.

-Whoops.

And it is £68.

This is an issue.

Quite. What about those bookends, then?

We haven't got hold of him, but I've been told that we can do them at 12.

Do them at 12? Put it there.

That's lovely, thank you very much.

I'll put them on the counter for you, then.

That was an offer she couldn't refuse!

Will Paul get his tankard?

I wondered what your very best price would be?

And Paul Laidlaw says to tell you it's got no bottom.

Seems the lowest the dealer can go is £55.

Paul doesn't seem too crestfallen though.

I've not bought any silver this road trip.

Base values for silver are lean at the moment, but...

there's a few wee bits in there that are pretty

and seem to be fairly priced.

Tankard? What tankard?

You've got a perpetual calendar.

Silver framed, it's actually cast,

so there's some substance to that,

it's not stamped out of relatively thin plate.

And it carries this series of printed little cards,

and we should have 30 days in there.

-Is this yours, Dean?

-It is mine, yeah.

The wee perpetual calendar, is it all there?

-It's all there, yes.

-Seriously?

The cards, they're kind of turned upside down and turn them

back to front. There's like four on each card.

-I get you. Clever, clever, clever.

-Yeah.

The ticket price is £28,

but there's more.

Picture frame, that could be a little French piece,

imported by the London Silver trade

and, by law, re-assayed.

The frame itself is a little ribbon tied laurel bezel,

but it's being supported by a little Cupid,

nicely executed, bow in hand.

So, herein we would place surely a little miniature

portrait of a loved one, a sweetheart.

-I'm going all gooey!

-Oh, Lordy!

Oh, it's not French. It's German.

I think that's an Augsburg pine cone mark,

-could be wrong.

-Unlikely, Paul.

That one's also £28.

This pillbox is a bit pricier, however.

There's no dings, dents, warps,

deformations,

gilt interior.

£98 though.

It's all right. It's not the most exciting...it's not

a standout piece.

Rule of the three, eh?

What can Dean do on them?

100, for the three.

20, 20 and 60 is probably where you'd put it, wouldn't you?

-Yeah, 20...

-That is the one that's hardest work.

I'd like to give you 30 for that,

I kid you not.

Making it 70 for the three.

I can do it 80 for the three.

-That's 40 for the box, 20 for each of the others.

-40, 20 and 20.

That's got him seriously pondering.

The wee devil on that side's going, "Buy them all!"

The devil on that side's saying, "You crazy fool!"

-I'll take the lot.

-Thank you.

-"In for a penny," as he said, yeah?

He who dares wins and all of the above. You're a good man.

£80 plus £25 for the dish,

not a bad morning's work.

Over to you, Anita.

This is rather a nice wee thing.

It's a little mahogany rack.

Now, I don't know, what...would you put a photograph in there,

or would you keep letters, or whatever?

But I don't think it's a made up thing,

I think it's a thing that has been manufactured.

And we have this border of inlaid,

it's like a boxwood

over the mahogany and I think that's a nice wee thing.

It's priced at £29 and if I can get a wee bit off that

I think I would be happy.

-Dean? I picked this up.

-Beautiful.

And I thought it was a nice wee thing. What's the death on that?

I can go and find out for you. The lady is here whose it is.

Oh, right, yeah. Could you ask her if maybe it could be bought for 20?

-I'll have a word with her for you.

-OK, thank you very much.

Thank you. When I looked at all of these jewellery cabinets, I thought,

"I'm going to buy jewellery here," I love jewellery.

-And I haven't.

-Maybe next time.

Anita, I've spoken to the owner and that's fine.

That's great, I'm happy, I'm happy.

-I'll put it with your bookends.

-Yeah.

Another crafty buy,

just £32 spent.

That's 30 and 32.

That's fantastic, thank you very much.

-It's been an absolute pleasure.

-Oh, great.

They're both on top form, this morning.

Meanwhile, Paul's gone on ahead,

making his way south from Navenby to Woolsthorpe to visit

the home of one of the

greatest scientists of all time.

Picked the right time of year, too.

Yes, he's here at Woolsthorpe Manor to learn about the early

years of Sir Isaac Newton.

-Is it Margaret?

-It is. Welcome, Paul.

So, was Newton actually born at the Manor?

He was, yes, in 1642.

He spent his childhood here and evidence on the wall,

we think, of some of his graffiti.

Paper was very scarce in those days

but he'd got stuff teaming through his brain and he had to record it.

-Yeah, so what is this, Margaret? Is it a cathedral?

-It's a church.

Newton was fascinated by spires and all things that pointed heavenwards.

Were these lost and rediscovered?

They were, yes. They were discovered completely by accident in about 1947

when the tenants of the house then

were doing a spot of decorating.

-Oh, my word.

-And we've got about nine examples of graffiti.

That could have been a wee boy, "Oh, that's a windmill,"

but there is a strict geometry,

I think, there.

Knowing the man, that really gets you thinking, doesn't it?

Yes, interesting. Yes, it is, yes.

Newton's mother was keen to make young Isaac into a farmer

so that he could one day run things round here.

But, thankfully, a schoolmaster persuaded her to let him

continue his education and Newton went to Cambridge in 1661.

A few years later, however, he came back home to avoid the great plague.

And it was here that he spent 18 months doing his most

important scientific thinking.

And he actually said to one of his early biographers,

"I was in the prime of my age for invention".

So, now, this is his bedchamber

but also his study and laboratory?

He formulated his law of gravitation during this time.

He also worked out his three laws of motion

and he split white light.

So, he wasn't idle by any means.

Certainly not. Although Newton's great work, the Principia,

wouldn't be published for another 20 years,

many of his most influential ideas

had their origin during his Woolsthorpe annus mirabilis.

Is that not the classic sketch of his splitting

-of white light into the spectrum?

-It is, and...

So, that's the kind of thing that we're talking about, in this room?

Yes, and it happened here.

Over here.

In his work about it, he said the image travelled 22 feet.

We got very excited one day when we had another film crew,

would you believe, and they said,

"Well, do you know what this area measures?"

And we went, "Do you know, we've never tried it,"

but we did

and from that wall to that window

-is 22 feet.

-Oh, please.

So, it's here it happened.

Blackened room, a little peephole in the shutter,

a beam of white light comes in,

and science at that point thinks white light is pure, heavenly,

but he splits the light using a prism

and casts a rainbow on that wall,

-not any wall, that wall. Oh, my word.

-Yes.

Yes, not only did our understanding of light originate

in this room, tempting some to try to find it for themselves...

I can't really believe I'm doing this.

..but out in the garden, with the help of an apple,

Newton was hit with his now famous laws of gravity.

-Stephen.

-Paul, lovely to see you.

Good to see you.

So, are you going to tell me this is it?

After 350 years of careful preservation and loving attention...

-And it is THE tree?

-There's pretty good historical evidence.

We know the tree blew down in a storm, the way it fell

and sketches that have been taken over the years that identify

this as the tree that Newton described.

Although the fruit is still falling in the very spot where Newton

began his enquiries, there is one popular misconception

that Stephen can clear up.

So, it didn't hit him on the head?

Newton never said that the apple actually hit him on the head,

but he told his biographers that

in 1665, as a young man, here at Woolsthorpe

he saw an apple fall from that tree

as he sat in the garden in contemplative mood.

Stephen, one last favour to ask.

-Going to give me that apple?

-Absolute pleasure, Paul.

-And it's off that tree?

-It's from Newton's tree, it's Newton's apple.

I'm going to take that home and blow some young kid's mind.

Now, where's Anita gravitated to?

Taking our route north and east towards Sleaford,

the fabulous birthplace of Jennifer Saunders

and also Eric Thompson of Magic Roundabout fame.

-Oh.

-Oh, this is so beautiful.

-How are you?

-I'm Anita.

-Javed.

Javed, it's lovely to be here.

Yeah, I think you'll enjoy it here, Anita.

Maybe acquire that jewellery you were thinking of?

I must look at your favourite one.

Is it a reasonable price?

-£200 is very reasonable.

-Ahh...

That's too much money.

Well, it was worth a try. Anything else?

-Peridot.

-Peridot, yeah.

-1910.

That's a particularly beautiful one.

-It's lovely.

-In original box.

In original box.

I think that might be too expensive for me as well.

£700.

Blimey!

I don't even want to look at it!

Let's be sensible, shall we?

-I rather like these Agate Brooches.

-Yes.

Favourite sort of items of Queen Victoria and they collected all

these lovely polished Agate's from the beaches of Bonny Scotland.

No ticket price, apparently though.

-These are quite pretty little pieces.

-Yes.

We've got a sterling silver one with,

-I would say that was Amethyst glass rather than an Amethyst.

-Mm-hm.

My auction estimate on that would be

-25 to 35.

-Mm-hm.

Would I be able to buy these for...

in that region?

-Each, or both together?

-Both together.

If you just give me a little bit more, I'll go ahead with it.

Erm, what sort of...?

35?

-Could you do them for 30?

-Yeah, OK.

-You do them for 30?

-I knew that you were going to say that.

OK, thank you very much. That's great, that's a deal.

Off to a flying start.

The pendant that Javed showed me was priced at 700,

which is not dear because it was the Rolls-Royce of pendants.

I was looking at a cheaper example, really.

It's of the same period, but it's not in gold,

just a gilt finish on it.

But it does have the look of it.

Although not quite an old banger at £50.

-See, that's quite pretty as well, isn't it?

-Very nice.

You know, I like these lovely Edwardian pendants.

-These type of pendants are coming back into fashion...

-Exactly.

..and they're doing a bit better.

I'd like to be able to buy that for 30 though.

I think £40, that would be my...

-Would that be your bottom on that?

-Yes.

Could you go to, say, 36?

40's good.

I know 40's good.

Is there any chance of taking even another little bit off of it?

-38.

-38.

-Shall we go for that?

-Yes.

That's wonderful, Javed.

That's wonderful, thank you so much.

She's certainly bought jewellery now, for some keen prices, too.

-30, 40, 60, 80.

-Thank you very much.

-That's you.

And now I have to pay you back £12.

Is that the till?!

That's where I keep my change.

Gives "stocking up" a completely new meaning.

Now time to find Paul. On the Minor road again.

It's raining, I don't know where I am.

Don't worry, you're with me! You are in safe hands, Laidlaw.

Night, night, then.

Sure enough, next morning we're heading south.

We're a long way from home, us two northerners.

-Yeah, you've no tried to pay with any Scottish money, have you?

-No!

I had somebody look at a fiver,

he said, "I thought that was foreign currency."

I said, "It very nearly was."

Their cash was good yesterday, for sure.

Anita parting with £100 for some bookends.

Various items of jewellery - some Scottish - and a frame.

Put a picture of my boyfriend in there. Or one of my boyfriends.

One of your boyfriends, yeah.

Leaving her just over £186 available for today.

While Paul picked up three little silver items,

and a cast-iron dish, with a possible Darwinian theme.

Two chimps under a tree.

That lot cost £105,

which means he has a little bit more from the £150 to spend.

You want that item that'll just tip the whole thing,

and you can blow a kiss to me as you surge ahead.

I won't even be able to see you in the rear view mirror.

Later, they'll be heading for a Norfolk auction

at Diss, but our first stop is in the

Northamptonshire town of Oundle.

-Good luck, Paul!

-See you later.

Where it's said, at the age of 21,

Billy Bragg wrote A New England.

-How you doing? I'm Paul.

-I'm Vicky, nice to meet you.

It is good to see you, Vicky. Great to be here.

-What a pretty little town this is!

-Isn't it cute?

Cute shop too, Vicky.

Proper antiques.

That clock's ticking away - it's like Mr Pipkin's shop.

You'll be too young to remember that.

Paul's good start yesterday means he can afford to be choosey here.

I had lots of monkeys yesterday.

I'll no buy some more, but they're good fun, those.

-They're quite menacing little chaps those, aren't they?

-They are.

They're monkeys. That still leaves quite a lot.

-May I see the sweetheart brooch there, please?

-Of course.

I'm getting old, my poor eyes aren't what they were, I'll tell you.

I'll be reading books like that...

-It's the Seal of Gibraltar.

-Is that what it is?

And it's 1916, but other than that...

-Those are the arms of Gibraltar.

-Yep.

Also a good place to find monkeys, by the way.

Simply a little touristy souvenir - of no mean quality.

I mean, that is really lovely work.

Whether it was sent home by somebody serving in Gibraltar...

That's what it is, isn't it? Without a shadow of a doubt.

-What have you got on there, out of interest?

-Um, £30 on that.

Cutting to the chase, is there slack in the price of that?

Uh, I could do it for 25?

Let's hold that thought. Thank you!

-You're welcome.

-Here, we're off and running, are we not?

We certainly are. And those could be useful.

I'm really toying with the idea of trying period specs,

because I fear - as I've suggested - I need new specs.

And I'm seeing all these hipsters and so on with, you know,

old horn-rimmed specs, looking like Dr Crippen, and I'm quite envious.

Not of the Crippen look,

but I've got such a massive bonce, my problem is,

they look like tiny, little...

-That's not going to work, is it? I'm going to go cross-eyed.

-Scary.

So, vintage specs are out too. I'm not sure he needs them though.

-That looks like Arab script on that, doesn't it?

-It is.

-Is it?

-Yes.

How interesting.

Ah, it's a marching compass.

The rose is all described in Islamic characters.

That'll no be dear, surely? 50...

-Do you want me to make you an offer?

-You can try.

I'll take a cheeky little punt at 20 quid

to relieve you of an Islamic compass.

Shall we go half, and go 25?

-No...

-THEY LAUGH

That compass, I think, was manufactured in Germany.

Because I've seen very close variations on this format

issued to the Wehrmacht, and German military forces.

An ally of the Germans in the Great War

was the Ottomans - modern Turkey.

There's just a possibility that this is Ottoman Turkish army issue.

A fairly big assumption, Paul.

There's a lot of wishful thinking in here.

It is smothered in wishful thinking.

If I'm unlucky, it's just a compass made for sale to North Africa,

or Turkey, or wherever.

And I suspect that's a niche market.

THEY LAUGH

-Can we do a deal?

-I can do a deal at 22.

You're quite right, you can.

Loving your work, Vicky, that's grand.

Only you could come into a classy antique shop

and turn up some obscure militaria, Paul.

That's for you.

-Thank you very much.

-Vicky, what a pleasure. Lovely to see you.

-Very nice to meet you.

-Likewise. Thank you!

But while Paul's been enjoying Oundle...

..Anita's motored on.

Making her way

to Cambridgeshire,

and Helpston.

The birthplace of one of Britain's greatest,

and yet most neglected, poets.

-Hi, I'm Anita.

-Hi, I'm David. Welcome to John Clare Cottage.

John Clare was born into a farm-labouring family in 1793.

At that time, this little cottage was shared by five households.

During his schooldays -

often interrupted by the need to help his parents scratch a living -

the young man fell in love with the beautiful countryside

around his village.

A friend of his showed him James Thomson - a Scottish poet -

a book called The Seasons.

And he had to have a copy, so he walks to Stamford, buys a copy...

-How old was he?

-He is 13.

The story goes that he's walking back from Stamford,

he jumps over the wall at Burghley, which is just along the road.

Reads it from cover to cover, and here he sees

a vehicle by which he can express the joy that the wildlife gives him.

And he writes his first poem, The Morning Walk.

Clare's understanding of nature extended far beyond

that of other romantic poets, like Wordsworth or Blake.

He writes about the countryside from first-hand knowledge.

If he describes you a bird's nest, it's a specific bird's nest,

a sky lark, a bluetit.

He's writing about the countryside from living on it.

But the landscape was changing fast.

The Inclosure Acts of the early 19th century meant landowners

were able to fence in what had once been common land.

Around Helpston, trees were felled and streams diverted,

as the landscape became commercialised.

-Did that mean he couldn't wander as a free person?

-Oh, very much so.

Keep out signs came up, fences came up - and it really hurt him.

And it hurt a lot of people, because all of a sudden they've

no longer got access to common land for fuel, or to graze their cows.

And it gave him a great inspiration for some of the anger in his poems.

Clare's first collection was published in 1820, and with his work

briefly outselling Keats, the poet made a journey to the capital.

So, he was celebrated in London, and accepted by the literary circle?

He met people like Charles Lamb, William Hazlitt - and it's while he

was down there he got the title of the Northamptonshire Peasant Poet.

This is a reprint that we have.

And this is one of the first poems that he wrote?

-This is one of his early poems.

-Can I recite?

-Yes.

This is called Helpston.

'Hail, humble Helpston

'Where thy valleys spread, and thy mean village lifts its lowly head

'Unknown to grandeur, and unknown to fame... '

Back at home, Clare, now with a family of his own to support,

was torn between two very different worlds.

A published poet, who still worked the land.

Fame came at a cost

because people didn't believe

that such poems came from such a lowly person.

And they'd come and view him, to see whether it really was the case.

Almost like a freak show.

Soon, his health began to suffer,

and Clare endured long bouts of mental illness.

But he continued to write,

until ending his days, at the age of 70, in an asylum.

John Clare, we don't see his name along with

the other great poets of that time.

Unfortunately, Clare is not part of an education curriculum.

He's still very relevant. A number of years ago,

they were going to start selling off the forests, the woodlands.

And an MP started quoting Clare

when they were debating that in the House of Commons.

So his poetry is still relevant today.

Now, what about that Paul Laidlaw?

Never adverse to an antiques shop,

he's made his way through

the Lincolnshire Fens to Long Sutton,

where, in the 18th century,

highwayman Dick Turpin hid for a short while,

under the alias of Mr John Palmer.

Beats muzak any day.

I'm still hungry to spend money.

Bear with me.

This is a huge establishment, and Paul being Paul,

there's a long and rigorous search taking place.

Firefighting material isn't something I am any authority on.

However, instantaneously recognisable as an early

20th century firefighter's helmet. Continental.

British never wore anything quite like this.

C, Z, H, J...

Sounds Czech, then.

And it's got a label, and it tells us, BRNO.

Now is that pronounced "broon"? That's in Czechoslovakia.

Thought so.

Now in the Czech Republic. South of Prague, don't you know?

An inter-war Czech firefighter's helmet.

Find me another one of those, I dare you.

The ticket price is £75.

Do I love it? Does it set my passions alight?

No, it does not.

But it shows you what you can find,

perched atop a standard lamp, in a place like this.

The search goes on.

As Anita manoeuvres the Morris

towards the Cambridgeshire Fens, and Wisbech.

The town is on the river Nene,

with some very nice Georgian architecture.

And some winding staircases.

I think that this is a primitive washing machine.

And you stick this in your tub, and you rotate it like that.

And I think you'd have to rotate it

for a long, long time to get your clothes clean.

Yes, it's called a washing dolly.

Oh, we've seen some mysteries today.

And that's one of the joys of our industry -

you're continually thinking, "What's that for?"

Meanwhile, in Long Sutton,

Paul's found something we could all do with.

Rather stylish tea for one.

You're getting - teapot, cream, sugar pot, teacup, saucer.

And what does that cry out? Yeah, that's Art Deco.

The geometry is what it's all about.

The reason I really like it is a £10 price tag. Can you believe that?

No. What's the catch?

This is very well modelled.

The gilding, on the other hand, is awful.

You can see the brushstrokes, it's clumsy, it does not follow the lines

of the modelling - I don't think that's how it left the factory.

Someone went at that with gold paint.

Now we ask ourselves, "Why would you do that?"

Well, you would do it to cover up a crack, would you not?

And there we have it - cream jug cracked.

What a crying shame.

Ugh! Foiled again.

Back in Wisbech, Anita's on the scent.

This is a rather sweet thing.

It's a bit of a girlie thing, but, well, what's wrong with that?

It's a little green glass perfume bottle.

And the perfume is lavender,

and it's made by the Crown Perfumery Company in London.

Oft!

Oh, dear. Wrong pong?

That is definitely not lavender.

So this is quite a nice wee thing.

We have the bottle, I like the green glass.

I like the fact that we have the original label intact,

and it has a lot of charm.

Ticket price £22. And what's that beside it?

There's another little piece of silver here,

it's sterling silver, and if we look at the base,

we can see it has a title.

La Pierre.

It has a bit of charm. I think it's too big to be an eggcup,

unless it's an extra-large eggcup.

Duck egg, eh? That's marked up at £20. Time for a word with Richard.

I picked up these two little things, and I thought that they were quite

a feminine thing, but I was wondering if you could give me

a drop-dead deal on both of them?

Well, as you probably already know,

the price reflects they're not in perfect condition.

They're not dear.

To you, a special deal - £15 the two.

Richard, put it there.

Thank you very much.

From £42 down to £15. Yes, that's definitely what she was after.

Thank you very much, Richard.

I'll take my treasures and depart.

So, with our shopping complete, let's have a look at their buys.

Paul, having spent a canny £127 on a perpetual desk calendar,

a dish,

a photo frame,

a compass,

and a pillbox.

While Anita parted with an even cannier £115 for

a perfume bottle

and a silver cup,

plus some bookends,

a wooden frame,

a pendant,

and two Scottish brooches.

So, what did they make of all that?

Glass toiletry jar with the silver top, and the little silver cup.

Well, I don't know how she did it. That's just genius.

Those three little silver pieces are just divine.

And I can see them in a lovely little silver collector's bijouterie cabinet.

I not only need to win the auction, I need to win it well,

because I've got to overtake her.

Well, I don't HAVE to.

But I'd really like to.

After setting off from Navenby,

in Lincolnshire, our experts are now

heading for a Norfolk auction at Diss.

It's lovely being in East Anglia.

I love the flatness of it.

-I love the big, big, big skies.

-Yeah.

-Well, we're not used to that, being northerners.

-No.

We're not used to this weather either, to be honest with you.

It's market day in Diss too. Busy, busy!

Ah, this is so exciting!

Oh, lovely, isn't it?

Are you going to make up that 20 quid?

-If there's a god in heaven.

-Let's go!

Our auction director, Elizabeth Talbot,

thinks Anita's Chicago hotel souvenirs might do very well.

The Stevens bookends, I like these very much.

It's a very posh place to stay.

But it also has a lot of scandal in its history -

there were some murders, there was some suicides and a robbery.

I have high hopes for these.

The Darwinian dish - it's a simple little piece which is quirky and fun,

but I don't think this is going to make a lot of money.

Mixed reviews then, with the scandalous bookends to start us off.

I heard a couple of American accents outside.

So maybe there's a couple that have

-flown over from Chicago to buy these.

-That's what it'll be.

Yeah, that's what it'll be(!)

I start here at £22.

-Yes!

-Tenner already.

-£22, I have.

Where's 25? 28.

30, 2.

35, 38.

Oh, go on.

Ha-ha, yeah, go on!

I think they've made enough profit.

Ah, don't give me that. 38, I have.

40, new bidder. 42.

45, 48.

Where's 50?

50, new bidder. 55, I have.

Oh, there's a lot of competition.

Right, at 60, I'm out.

At £60 bid, surely worth more?

65.

70. At £70, all done?

Yes.

Well, those attracted appropriately high-rise profits.

-I'm happy with that.

-Och, do you reckon?

Now for Paul's monkey business. Will they buy into his theory though?

I start here at £10.

At £10 bid, where's 12?

12, the lady, 15, I have.

18 bid, 20 got.

22 now, the lady standing at 22.

25, the gentleman.

28. 30. 2.

35. Are you sure?

At 35 now, looking for 8.

38, the lady. 40, the gentleman.

Are you sure?

Are you sure you're sure? 40's the gentleman.

Any advance on 40?

-Well, that's all right. A wee bit.

-Not bad, not bad at all.

Pretty good, really.

Next, it's Anita's mahogany frame.

£20. Little frame there at £20, surely?

Ah, come on.

10, I'll take.

10, the lady bid, thank you. 10, I have.

12, is gallery. 15.

18. What a pretty little frame for £18. Where's 20?

Bid, new bidder. 22.

25.

28.

28, looking for 30.

A frame there for 28. All done?

Oh, well.

More profits, Anita.

Closely followed by the first of Paul's little silver collection.

It shows us the soft side of Paul Laidlaw. I've got you blushing again.

It's marshmallow in here.

And I start at £28.

That's a charming piece at 28, don't sit on your hands at 28.

If we stop at 28, you'll let me know...

Yeah, we're away.

32 here. 35, 38.

Commission bids are in at 38, where's 40?

Are you all done? A last chance at £38.

-40, new bidder in the gallery.

-Yes, yes, yes.

40 in the gallery.

God bless the gallery.

Anyone else can join in. At £40, all done?

-£40?

-You've doubled your money.

-Doubled my money.

Yes, much more of that and he'll be at your heels.

What can your perfume bottle and cup lot do?

If I get my money back, I'll be happy, I suppose.

I'll be happy, if you just get your money back. I'll be happy.

Now, now.

And I start here at just £18. £18?

-Did she say 80?

-18.

Don't say that, I could faint.

I have 18, and 20. 22.

25, 28.

Where's 30? 30 bid, 32.

Oh, yes! Lovely!

-35, 38.

-Yes!

Still with me at 38, commission interest shown at 38, where's 40?

40, the hand. 42.

Is there any advance on 42?

Just about tripled your money with that.

He said through gritted teeth.

Time for Paul's silver calendar.

And I start at £18. Very low start for 18, now where's 20?

-Beautiful little start.

-Come on, come on, come on!

22. 25, 28.

30, by the fire. I'm out.

-32, new bidder.

-Ah, we're away again.

35. 38.

40...2.

Where's the 5?

Any advance on £42?

-45, just in time.

-45!

-Oh, stunner.

48, well done.

50? 50 bid.

Are you sure, sir?

50's the nearer bid, at me at 50. Where's 5?

-55, well done.

-Yes, yes!

You might say 60?

At 55, all done?

That's good.

That hot competition's really boosted Paul's profits.

Any Scottish brooch fans out there, I wonder?

I'm selling two Scottish brooches in Norfolk.

There'll be Scots here. There are Scots everywhere.

-Are there?

-Everywhere.

And I start at £12. £12 bid, where's 15?

15, 18. 22.

25, 28, 32.

35, 38, 42.

With me at 42 now, looking for 5.

At the 42, that's two brooches, 45 is bid, I'm out.

45 is now the lady standing ahead of me, at 45.

All done at £45?

-Yes!

-For my mother.

For your mum? Aw, that's lovely.

Everyone likes Scottish brooches, it seems. Profits, too.

Good saleroom. Good auctioneer. Lovely things.

Pair of chancers.

Now for Paul's silver pillbox.

Well, I have 40 on my sheet.

She's got 40 and she's going for it.

42, and now I'm out.

Surely worth more.

45 is in front. 48.

50. 5. 60.

Yes, yes.

70. Yes, 75 is now gallery.

Good, good, good.

80 bid.

Any advance? We'll sell...

-Yep.

-Happy days!

-That's what we wanted.

-Bang on.

Great result, he's catching up again.

Can Anita's pendant get her out in front?

50 to start.

-Lovely.

-Come on 50.

Come on, don't be shy. 50, thank you, sir.

50, I have, where's five?

55, gallery.

60, 5, 70, 5.

-Yes.

-Oh, it's flying.

This is more like it, 80 downstairs, surely worth more.

-The lady's out. It's 80 to my right. It will sell.

-Fantastic.

80 has that one, thank you.

The fight goes on. Anita's back on top.

It's all down to Paul's unusual bit of militaria.

-You need two mad collectors.

-I always need two mad...

I live for mad collectors.

And I start at 25.

-Right, OK, good start.

-I'm winning.

Surely worth more. 28, gallery. 30 bid.

32, 35.

-Yep.

-You're away, darling.

Are you sure, sir?

40, I have. I'm now looking for 2.

On the compass at £40, I have 42 by the door, and I'm out.

42 is now in blue, where's 5?

-Oh, is there any competition?

-On the floor, on the floor.

At 42?

-That's all right.

-Doubled your money.

Yes, it's been a very good day, with profits on everything.

Because of our success, we deserve a nice, wee cup of tea.

A nice, wee cup of tea it is.

Quite right. And a garibaldi, eh?

Paul, who started out with...

made - after paying auction costs - a profit of £83.74.

Leaving him with...

to spend tomorrow.

While Anita began with...

And, after paying auction costs, made a profit of £102.30.

So, she's today's winner, with...

That's two auctions apiece, by the way. But you're still ahead of me!

Aye, but only a wee bit! And it's still all to play for!

It's going to be a bumpy ride!

On the next Antiques Road Trip...

It's their final leg, so Anita's getting scary.

Boo!

And Paul's on the offensive as well.

How big a telescope have you got?

It's Manning I'm looking for!