Episode 4 Antiques Road Trip

It's the nation's favourite antiques experts...

I don't know what to do!

..with £200 each, a classic car, and a goal

to scour Britain for antiques.

What an old diamond!

The aim, to make the biggest profit at auction, but it's no mean feat.

Back in the game! Charlie!

There'll be worthy winners, and valiant losers.

So, will it be the high road to glory, or the slow road to disaster?

Oh!

This is the Antiques Road Trip.

Yeah!

Today our experts shop in Shropshire.

See if you can tell which one lives here.

Ah, John Deere. Got to love a John Deere.

Yep, tractor spotter Christina Trevanion's a country lass,

as well as an auctioneer.

She even learned to drive in a Land Rover.

This is the life, driving round my home county, in this car,

being a tour guide, boring you senseless.

Sorry, what were you saying again? Were you talking there?

I just caught Shropshire, Wrekin... Severn, yeah.

Wrekin, eh? That big hill, almost as prominent as her co-driver's wallet.

You've got so much money to spend.

I'm walking lopsided!

I'm not surprised, because Cumbrian auctioneer and dapper Dan,

Paul Laidlaw, has been fairly raking it in on this trip,

thanks very much.

300!

His latest coup, some Georgian glass, that he bought for £1

and sold for £360!

-Bravo! Well done.

-Christina has so far increased her £200 stake to a modest £224.54.

While Paul, who began with the same sum,

has already managed to almost quadruple it

with £780.34 now at his disposal.

Our trip begins in Clare, Suffolk, before careering around the heart of

England, and heading north, to end

up at a Cheshire climax in Northwich.

But today, their HMC Mark IV starts out in Shrewsbury,

in Shropshire, and makes its way towards an auction

in the Potteries at Stoke-on-Trent.

But first, to the Salopian county town, where,

until a few years ago, Shrewsbury Football Club

played their matches beside the Severn

at the picturesque Gay Meadow.

Ah, there's a little reminder.

-Hello. Hi, Christina.

-Nice to meet you.

-Hi. What's your name?

-Jim.

-Jim.

-Lovely to meet you, Jim.

-Handsome Jim.

Handsome Jim. That's the name, is it?

Especially if you want a bargain, Christina.

-Has she found something already?

-Oh, hello.

Now, that's a bit of magic.

Ah, a pair of Alexander Blaikley paintings, by the look of it.

-Very nice, aren't they?

-Aren't they just, yeah.

So, they're a pair? Is that £195 for the pair?

-No.

-So you've got them individually priced, but you won't split them?

I won't split them, yeah.

-OK.

-All right, I can do a deal on the pair, then. £250.

-That's a good price.

-They are very beautiful, but I don't have £250!

-Then you can't have them, can you!

-Exactly.

Have they got any provenance? Where have become from?

I don't do the history, it costs extra(!)

Fair enough, Jim. Scottish born Blaikley was a 19th-century portrait

painter, these two are very typical of his work.

They look a bit faded to me.

I would be looking to pay probably 150...

Good Lord! I'll do you the pair for 200.

-Now, that's a good deal.

-Split the difference with me at 180.

-Split the difference and go 190.

-No, not going to go more than 180.

-185?

-Nope.

-Oh, good Lord. There's a dog to be fed.

Blimey, Jim. What on earth are you giving him?

Let me have a really good look at them, and we'll talk again.

-OK.

-All right.

-Yes.

-They are quite interesting, these pictures.

I've sold one of these in my auction and it sold incredibly well.

The only reservation is, unfortunately,

the auction that we're going to I don't think has internet bidding

and therefore doesn't have an international audience.

These pictures, to do them justice, need an international audience,

and they could bomb.

Yet, they could very well do that.

I said I was going to buy five things for £1, I can't

go and spend all my money on the first item!

Argh!

Ignorant of that agony, Paul's on the way to his first shop

just outside Shrewsbury, at Atcham.

Hello. Hello! How are you?

-Gerard, is it?

-Yes. Welcome to Mytton Antiques.

Thank you, very much. What a property,

it's like something out of Hansel and Gretel, this.

But only in a nice way, because this cottage is full of fine things.

Not cheap, but then our Paul does have a few bob.

A nice little George III Sheraton, satinwood-veneered, crossbanded,

burr walnut-inlaid caddie, circa 1780.

Nah, it's a biscuit tin(!)

Empty too, by the sound of it.

But it's great, isn't it? I don't think this is expensive.

£58. It's a little joy, it's fun, and you can use it.

You can still put your teabags in it, or whatever.

Is it for me? Not at the moment.

But I like it.

Not enough, though. Keep looking.

Jim, can we have another chat?

While back in Shrewsbury, it looks like things

may be about to get interesting.

Where did we get to?

185 for the pair.

Stupid price.

Well, I did say maybe. Gird your loins.

My issue is, obviously, there's a lot of damage to the frames and they

have been re-lined. They've had new backs on,

so somebody has taken them out.

Somebody took them out to put money inside, covered it over and left it.

-Gold sovereigns?

-Well, could be.

-I'm still thinking 150, 160.

-No, you didn't, you went up to 170.

-Yeah, well, I changed my mind.

-You went up to 170.

-I've changed my mind.

-You can't go back down!

It's a woman's prerogative.

-She's right, Jim.

-I think 160 would be a fair price on the two.

Good Lord, no! Can I go and make myself a cup of tea?

-A man'll die of thirst here!

-No!

I leave you to it. That's it.

-He's off again?

-Jim?

-That's robbery. Daylight robbery!

-Jim? Jim?

-Yes, darling.

It's like some sort of courtship ritual, isn't it?

-160.

-Nope.

-165?

-No!

Come on, a fiver.

175. I'll start going up if you keep coming down.

Do you feel insulted?

I do. Highly.

165, you've got a deal.

And I'll get out of your hair for the rest of the day. Go on.

-OK, go on.

-165.

-You bring tears to a glass eye, you know that?

So, that's one deal happily arrived at.

Bye, Murphy, bye.

Bye. Bye.

He'll bite you!

But, Paul, it seems, has drawn a blank

so he's now heading back towards Shrewsbury, and Christina's shop

and the dog.

Four floors of antiques and vintage. It may be big enough for both of us.

Junk 'n' Disorderly. That's got my name on it!

-Hello!

-Is your work here done?

-What are you doing here?

-Remember me?

-You're like a bad penny. What are you doing here?

-Oh, don't say it like that!

-What's going on?

Well, I bought so well in that first shop that I'm on a roll.

-Yeah, out! Out!

-You're offski, yeah?

-Yeah, I'm done.

-Seriously, you've done here?

-Yeah.

-Aw!

-See later, have fun.

-It's a plan. See you later.

Paul's turn, then.

And apart from the missing paintings, there's still plenty to

choose from, including a little militaria.

-Here we go.

-Well, quite a lot, actually.

A rack of uniforms.

And that's my bag.

However, that's post-war German, Bundeswehr.

That's post-war dress, who cares!

It's all well buying fancy dress, history is what we are looking for.

This, however, is Second World War Royal Navy.

Right, OK. Watch this. Switch, geek mode! Anorak mode!

This is called a jumper.

Yes, you think a jumper is a woolly pully,

but in admiralty language this is a jumper.

And it would indeed be worn with bell-bottomed trousers,

with seven folds that represent the seven seas.

These five stripes, here, are war service chevrons.

These were given in the Second World War for each year of service,

that guy served for the duration of the war, and he was still

wearing this in 1944, because in 1944 he had earned four stripes,

see this one is a bolt on.

Isn't that a great wee bit of detective work?

We can pin this thing down to a period without a label or a date.

I can tell you more about the guy, he is, by my reckoning, a signaller,

is he not? Because they are semaphore flags.

It all starts to reveal itself.

Clever stuff.

Jim, though, wishes to put a more eccentric item forward.

-It's a good 'un.

-It's all about the story, isn't it?

Well, I can give you any story you like!

It's a mounted horse's hoof, complete with shoe,

fitted with a brass collar and a hinged mahogany lid.

It would serve as a baccy pot or a match pot, or whatever you want.

I'm giving you 95. I'm open to a bit of hardball. Look, I've removed the

price, what does that tell you? I'm ready for a sale.

I need some money, I've a dog to feed, look at him.

Didn't he say the same thing to Christina?

Just how much dog food does that dog want? He's so small.

For my money, the best of these are hooves of mounts that charged

with the Light Brigade, or whatever.

Then you've got me going, cos frankly, that's disgusting!

Show me some history, and then you've got me attention.

Now, if that ST is Sergeant Lamb, of the 17th Lancers, I'm interested.

Quite. Now let the horse trading recommence without the dog.

-Give me 45.

-No.

-I can't...

I reckon that's going to make 30-40 quid under the hammer.

You're joking me! Give me 40 and I'll take it

-and that's the end of it now.

-Have you not listened to me?

We've got an old uniform and a green helmet there.

What would be the price if on the three pieces?

And I don't rate them, by the way,

I'm just trying to take the pain out of that.

-Give me 75 for the lot.

-No!

-That's dirt cheap!

-Because the blue uniform...

-50 quid, there you go.

-..is neither here nor there.

-That's what you wanted. 50 quid.

-Do you want to shake on it, yes or no?

-Yeah.

-Done.

-No problem.

Well, Jim, yet again it's been emotional.

Well, I tell you what, you'll do well to get a tenner for it.

This is no joking matter.

-Look after yourself, my friend.

-You too, man.

-All the best to you.

-And I hope I don't see you again.

I'll wash out my mouth, big man.

Now, still in Shrewsbury, where's our local lass got to?

-Bill, how are you?

-Christina, how are you?

-Nice to see you. Very well, thank you.

-Oh, what a surprise. Nice of you to drop in.

-Yeah, I'm sorry about this gate-crashing.

-You're always welcome.

Now, I don't know about you but I reckon those two have met before.

Could local knowledge help? It's certainly a very nice shop.

-Bill, I love... This is a printing block tray, isn't it?

-It is.

It's a printing block tray that you've put on the wall

and it just makes a really lovely display cabinet.

It takes all those lovely little items that you've got that

you just don't know what to do with but they're beautiful to look at.

-Yeah, that my husband curses.

-Does he?

Yeah, I bet they're all over the place.

Christina could certainly do with pointing in the right direction.

Oh, Bill, I need to find something I'm going to make

-about £500 profit on.

-Are you? I'm not sure that's the object.

-I know.

-Anything else, Billy?

-Oh, I tell you what I do like.

-Oh, the tin-plate?

-That's pretty cool, isn't it?

-That's fabulous.

-I like that.

-OK, missing its front.

-Yeah. There's bits wrong with it.

-Oh, but look at him driving his train!

-It is '50s. It is Japanese.

It needs a little bit of care and attention.

It does, doesn't it? But that's great. Does it work?

Well, no, it doesn't. Well, I don't know if it's bad off working.

-The bits are there.

-Oh, yeah. What have we got on it? £20.

-Yep.

-It looks great but...

-It's a decorative object.

Like me, it has issues. HE LAUGHS

-Don't we all?

-Speak for yourselves.

-12 quid, it's yours.

-Yeah?

-You'll make a profit.

-Will I?

-What do you think?

-Can we make it a tenner?

-Oh, sure.

-Tenner?

What have you got there? Is that a handshake or what?

-It's a handshake.

-All right.

-Thank you very much.

-You're welcome.

You're an angel.

Deal sealed and, issues or not, she should be chuffed

about that little buy.

But whilst Christina's been bargaining, Paul's back

behind the wheel heading east towards the Birmingham suburb

of Erdington, where inside this mysterious warehouse

there's a wealth of incredible history.

-RADIO: Good afternoon. Reception, can I help you?

-Paul Laidlaw.

I've arranged to pop in and see you.

Oh, look at that! Holy Moses, here it goes.

Paul's about to get a close look

at where the government keeps our wills.

-Hello there, Phil.

-Paul, good to see you.

-Good to see you.

-Welcome to Iron Mountain.

-Thanks very much. What a place this is!

It certainly is because since 1858, when our wills were made public,

they have been archived and there's an awful lot of them here.

We store the wills, 80 million of them,

on behalf of Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service

and we've got some really, really strict controls in place

around the temperature, humidity and, as you've seen, security,

-when you came through.

-Indeed.

Nowadays, they're hard at work digitising all this

and putting it online for everyone,

from those studying their family history

to biographers of great Britons.

-Oh, it is, it's amazing. This is Indiana Jones.

-Oh, absolutely.

But there's nothing quite like taking a close-up look

at the originals.

These are hundreds of thousands of people we're looking at.

Each one of these pages, each one of these documents

can tell you a story, and then you've got

the more interesting people such as Edward William Elgar.

-Right, the composer. Right.

-Absolutely.

"I regret that owing to the sudden collapse of everything artistic

"and commercial, I have found it necessary to revoke the will,

"which I previously made and to make this present will."

So even in the wills of famous people, of people that we know,

there are still stories to be told about how fortunes were made

and sometimes were lost or fortunes changed.

So why has he rewritten the will?

At this time in his life, you can see here that he's struggling with everything around him

and that was caused by the death of his wife, Alice.

-So tragic circumstances led to this.

-It reads like a book.

-It does.

-Not how I expected.

-Absolutely, yeah.

Who else have you got?

Straight away here is a name you may recognise.

-Florence Nightingale, the lady with the lamp?

-It is, absolutely.

-You could just keep doing this, blow my mind.

-Followed by...

HE GASPS

Whoa! Winston Churchill. Just beyond belief.

I know who that is - Beatrix Heelis

-That's the married name of Beatrix Potter.

-It absolutely is.

Well, there you go.

The lady that left all of her estate to the National Trust.

Yup, they're all in here,

everyone from your great-granny, to the Kray twins.

Take a look online at the YouGov website.

After you.

There's also a touch of the James Bond about this, is there not?

There is.

Especially poignant on the centenary of the Great War,

is a collection of almost 300,000 soldiers' wills.

"In the event of my death I give the whole of my property

"and effects to Mrs Catherine McCarthy."

Signed 6184 Private McCarthy. Deary me.

Such different circumstances than some of the other wills that we saw.

Who died in their bed, the great and the good.

This guy in the mud of France and Flanders,

an officer saying, "You'd better fill that in."

And it could be tomorrow that it's applicable.

And nothing brings it home more than the pocketbook

that we've got in front of us. It's actually got a bullet hole in it.

The soldiers carried their pocketbooks around with them

when they were on the front line and probably one of the last things

that was ever written in here was the will.

-So that's the reason...

-That's why it's here?

-That's why it's here. Absolutely, yeah.

And quite interesting with the will that we've got here,

a request from the soldier, Horace Henry Cook, saying,

"Had not the hand of the Almighty intervened,"

the lady in question would have been his wife,

so he's asking in this for his girlfriend

to be treated as though she would have been his wife

had he not gone to war and had he not died.

I would never have guessed walking in here that I'd be so moved.

Acres and acres of paper but it's much more than that, isn't it?

It absolutely is, yeah.

Now, they have a saying hereabouts, "All around the Wrekin."

-Driving off into the sunset.

-This is it.

It means, "Taking the scenic route."

-Thelma and Louise.

-Night-night, you two.

Next day, we're back on the hot topic.

So, how are you doing with your sovereigns?

Have you managed to walk very far or are your pockets weighing you down?

Well, he didn't part with too many of them yesterday,

that's for sure, shelling out just £50

for a sailor's uniform, a helmet and a horse's hoof.

-Do you want to shake on it, yes or no?

-Yeah.

-Done.

So he still has well over £700 left,

while Christina took her modest hoard and gambled,

splashing out £175 on a tin-plate train and two Victorian portraits.

Aah!

So, she now has less than 50 left

although what they do have in common is a bruising encounter with Jim.

I'm spending a chunk of my profit on some therapy.

SHE LAUGHS

Two Celts going at it. It was like 13 rounds with Barry McGuigan.

SHE LAUGHS

Later, they'll be making for a Staffordshire auction

at Stoke-on-Trent but their next stop

is back in Shropshire at Shifnal.

It was around these parts that PG Wodehouse

set his famous Blandings Castle saga and Shifnal is rumoured to be

the inspiration for the fictional town of Market Blandings.

Nothing quite like a shared shop to up the ante.

-Hello! Hi. Hello. Hi. Christina. Nice to meet you.

-Hello.

-What was your name?

-I'm Jackie.

-Jackie. Lovely to meet you, Jackie.

-How are you doing, Jackie? I'm Paul.

-Hello, Paul.

You don't need to know him.

What did I say? Deep breaths all round.

Should we risk upsetting the kilter of the universe

and my feng shui?

-I'm going to deviate from clockwise from the door.

-No!

-Your OCD won't cope with that.

-You heard it. No, I cannae.

-"I can't do it." OK. I'm going this way.

-Plenty to choose from, you two.

-So, how much is on that?

-995.

-Ooh!

-Yeah.

-Wow!

Yeah, that's about £990 more than I've got.

Close enough, Christina. Now, what Paul's game?

-Jackie?

-Hm?

-You've got a sense of humour, haven't you?

-Why?

Do you want to play a wee joke?

So, that's celebrating the centenary of the Great Exhibition.

The Great Exhibition obviously was put on by Victoria and Albert.

-Aye, aye.

-It is effectively a tourist piece

so there would have been a lot of them produced

so if we're looking for scarcity factor, it's not going to be there.

It's a very generous discount.

-350 to 60, are you quite sure about that?

-Yes.

HE LAUGHS

The icy look! We were kidding, by the way.

You're a blighter!

I'm looking at £2 items.

Yes, you should be ashamed of yourself, Paul.

That looks affordable at least.

This is quite fun, what's this? Is that for sale?

This is a display cabinet for cigars and it's something that we've had

that we use to display cigarettes, lighters and cigarette cases in.

-Is it for sale?

-Well, if you'd like it, yeah.

-I quite like that.

So what would you price that at?

-I would probably put something like £45 on it.

-Oh, would you?

-I wouldn't be looking to pay that for it?

-But I am open to offers.

Would you be very, very insulted if I said a fiver?

-Not really.

-Really?

-Mm.

-Could I have it for a fiver?

-Yeah, you can have it for £5.

-Are you sure?

-Yes, I'm positive.

-Are you happy at that?

-Yep.

Deal. Brilliant. Jackie, you're a star.

I didn't think I wanted to buy a Henri Wintermans display cabinet

-but life is a journey, isn't it?

-That's right.

It sure is and Paul seems to be taking a brief detour

getting to know the trading estate.

Bureau - £10. It's for sale, this stuff.

-Vintage bike...

-Who's behind all of this treasure?

-Hello.

-Hello there.

-It looks like you're selling, yeah?

Yes, I'm selling a few things to try and get rid of them.

Sounding cheap.

-Is your clock running, or no?

-No, it's not.

I don't know whether it's worth me bothering or not.

I've been told what it's worth.

He says he wants about 20 quid for it.

Now, there's nothing Paul likes more than a wonky clock.

These are commonly referred to as anniversary clocks.

This is a torsion clock.

So, instead of a swinging pendulum you have got

an oscillating, rotating weight here.

Now, your average domestic clock will run for eight days,

which means you've got to wind it once a week

and if you forget, you've got a day to remember.

Your torsion clock is a fantastic piece of engineering.

It's so sophisticated.

We wind our torsion clock typically once every 400 days.

What do you think of that for horological sophistication?

You've got to wind it once a year and what day might you wind it on?

Why don't you wind it on your anniversary? Anniversary clock.

And if it slips your mind, you've still got 35 days to remember.

I suspect there's not much missing there.

Would you take a wee cheeky offer on your clock as a project?

-Well, yes, I would.

-I'm no interested in 20 quid.

It's... There's too much uncertainty in it.

If a fiver would buy it, I'll shake your hand.

-I wouldn't do it at a fiver.

-There was no harm in asking.

-It would have to be a tenner.

-A tenner? Take a punt...

Nah. A fiver if it will buy it but that's it.

-Yes. Oh, go on. I'll take a fiver.

-I'll take a punt, then.

How badly wrong can it go for a fiver?

-Well, I thank you very much.

-Thank you very much. Cheers.

-Cheers.

He just couldn't resist, could he?

Christina meanwhile is likewise exploring

her inner rag-and-bone woman.

It's a mangle. That's fab, isn't it?

-What have you got on your mangle?

-I've got... I think it's £60.

-Is it?

-Would you be open to a deal on that?

-Yeah, I think so.

Squeeze out a profit maybe?

For our younger viewers, a mangle was once how we dried

our newly washed clothes, as Christina demonstrates.

What can the price be squeezed down to?

-Would you take very little for it?

-How little is very little?

I don't need a wee, I'm just very nervous.

-Would £20 be too much?

-Oh...

What would be the very, very least you could do it for?

10? It's a deal.

Thank you very much. The sun shines on the righteous, Jackie.

-Yes, definitely.

-Oh, my God, I just bought a mangle!

Yes, and spent a mere £15 in total for that and the display cabinet.

-You're an angel.

-There you go.

-Thank you very much. What a star.

-Thank you.

-So, with Christina out of the picture,

Paul now has the shop to himself.

-Right.

-Oh, I feel liberated.

Right, well, I managed to have a look around the bulk of the shop

but I couldn't get near your cabinets.

They're sweet, aren't they? Those wee coffee spoons, there.

-Cute little terminals with the little bird feeding the chicks.

-Mm.

I think they've got novelty and jam by the bucket-load.

-Can I just make you an offer?

-Yeah.

-25 quid for those.

I think I can accept that.

Have you played this game before?

-You're supposed to go, "No, I couldn't possibly!"

-No.

And given that you're clearly a joy to do business with,

-I'll just shake your hand and give you some money.

-OK.

-That was easy.

To the victor! The spoons.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in Shropshire, Christina's taking

a bit of a break in the little town of Much Wenlock,

where she's come to find out about the local GP,

who inspired Olympic history.

-Hello, hi. I'm Christina.

-Welcome to Much Wenlock Museum.

-Thank you.

Curator Emma can tell her about the progressive influence

of Much Wenlock's most famous son, Dr William Penny Brookes.

One of the things that he saw both as being a doctor

and a magistrate was that young people needed something

to focus their attentions, to keep them out of the local pubs

and to get them out in the fields and get them fit.

And by 1850 he had set up the first Wenlock Olympian Games.

Local people were invited to come and take part.

Local families gave prizes for the games

and really it all took off and then became an annual event.

So, what, you might ask,

was so incredible about organising the town sports day?

Well, the good doctor was ahead of his time

in just about everything from understanding the need

for physical fitness, to encouraging social inclusion.

Did you have to be a certain somebody or could anybody take part?

No, that's what was really unique about the Wenlock Games,

was it was not only just open to people of all ages,

it would also open to people of all classes and at this time

a lot of sporting events were very much

for gentlemen of the gentleman class.

Of course, rowing... It's all quite public-school, isn't it?

-Indeed.

-But this was open to everybody and anybody?

-Yes.

-Gosh, he was obviously a man of vision.

-He really was.

It seems to be anything that was new and exciting and radical that

happened in Wenlock, William Penny Brookes was involved in.

I mean, he brought gas to the town and set up the local gasworks.

He brought the railway here,

which was partly about getting people in to visit the Games

and to take part but also about making sure

that Wenlock prospered as a town.

Just like Charles Darwin, born the same year

in nearby Shrewsbury, Dr Brookes was shaking things up.

So Shropshire was a real hotbed of scientific thinkers, wasn't it?

That's really exciting! I'm feeling quite proud.

It was a place where lots of new ideas developed.

Within a few years, the Much Wenlock Games had become established

in the sporting calendar, with contests for both sexes

and all results scrupulously recorded

in the doctor's book of victors.

And you've got a really interesting mix of traditional sports,

like running the high leap, which was to become the high jump.

-Yeah.

-You've got the hurdle race, one mile, which is quite impressive.

-A wheelbarrow race?

-Indeed.

-Really?

There was always a novelty game and this year the novelty game

was the wheelbarrow race where everyone was blindfolded.

Oh, my goodness!

I think my favourite one is where the old ladies of the town

-raced for a pound of tea, which is an awful lot of tea.

-Right, OK.

It was never repeated, though, because everyone was outraged

that the ladies lifted their skirts and revealed their ankles.

-Oh, really?

-Too many men were shocked and flustered.

Competitions included a version of jousting called tilting at the ring

and keenly fought arts and crafts events

like knitting and even recitation.

There was nothing amateur about the event though,

with big prize money available.

It was really worth coming and taking part in the Games,

especially for the working class people.

This was a really significant sum of money for them.

Also awarded were medals and soon Brookes

was behind the formation of the National Olympian Association.

Then, many years later, his Wenlock Games influenced

the young French baron who would create the modern Olympic movement.

In 1890, de Coubertin came to Wenlock.

He spent every night sitting up

until very late at the Raven Hotel talking to Brookes

about their ideas, and they worked very closely together after that

-on setting up the games.

-Oh, brilliant.

In fact, here in 1891, the following year, he sends a French medal...

Wow! Goodness me.

And it was won by a local boy, Edward Marsden Farmer,

and in fact his descendants

presented to the Wenlock Olympian Society in the 1980s the very medal.

Oh, wow!

This is the only sporting medal that de Coubertin ever presented.

That's incredible!

-This is the precursor to our modern-day Olympic medals.

-Indeed.

-That's phenomenal! You're holding it in your hands!

-Yes.

-Wow.

-At this point in time I am an incredibly proud Salopian.

-Excellent.

Thank you so much for showing me through it.

It's been an absolute joy, it really has.

Yeah. In 2012, the torch relay came to Much Wenlock

and they named one of the mascots after the town.

But were the synchronised rummage ever to make it

to the Olympic Games, you would have one sure-fire medallist

and here he is en route

to the Worcestershire town of Kidderminster.

-Hello. Are you the man?

-Ian Warner.

-Good to see you, I'm Paul.

Hi, nice to meet you.

Ian has quite an assortment on display here.

-Good things.

-Plus there's the stuff out the back.

-Have a look at this.

Feast your eyes on this lot.

A box to make one particular customer very interested.

-That was him.

-What a lovely portrait.

A major in the Royal Tank Regiment.

-"An expression of our gratitude to our liberators."

-Yeah.

-Fantastic.

So, these are all items from the life of one soldier.

So, he was East Riding yeomanry into Royal Tank Regiment.

You've got somebody's life there, haven't you?

Birth certificate? Yeah.

That's his war identity.

I've never seen one of those in that format. There he is.

Temporary Major Scott. E J Scott, Royal Armoured Corps, born 1908.

We've even got... These are all his buttons off his tunics and his pips

and everything else in there. These are his badges...

-That's the collar and badges...

-These are some of his pips.

There's a good photo. What's he in there?

Armoured scout cars. Fantastic stuff.

He's got his miniatures. I haven't sadly got his full set of medals.

Oh, and there's a named medal in there as well, isn't there?

There's a territorial medal. Those, what's he got there?

About 30 quid's worth of medals there

but if you had that one named medal, you'd have the lot!

Yeah, the lady who brought them in...

Obviously I did actually ask her where the medals were and...

-You never saw them?

-I never saw them.

-Is it dear?

-65 quid for the lot.

-There's no point in clowning about.

-Take my paw. I don't want to clown about.

-Thank you very much.

Accepted with enthusiasm and no wonder.

You had me from hello, as she said in the film.

-That's a very moving collection.

-Take care. Thank you.

But back on the banks of the River Severn,

Christina's made her way to beautiful Bewdley

-for just one more shop.

-Hello.

-Hi.

-Hello, hi.

-You must be Christina.

-I am, yes, for my sins.

-Matt.

Matt. Lovely to meet you, Matt. How are you?

I've been better but not too bad now I've seen you.

-Oh, why, what's wrong?

-Just had a bit of a heavy night last night.

Oh, really? Brilliant, so I've got you on a weak day?

A very weak day, yes. I'll roll over now.

WHISPERS: Do you want me to whisper? Are you all right?

-HE WHISPERS:

-I'll be all right.

-Are you sure?

-Yeah.

-OK, I'll give you a shout if I see anything.

-OK.

-OK.

Only £34 left now, Christina, so choose wisely.

Ooh, this is very Laidlaw.

-Ooh, shall I buy some militaria?

-Why not? Everybody else does.

-I don't know anything about militaria.

-Nor does anybody else.

World War II astrocompass.

It looks very complicated, very scientific.

SHE GASPS Shall I phone Paul and ask him?

Wouldn't Matt be a better choice?

-Could I have a look in one of your cabinets?

-Of course you can.

And I know nothing about it. I'm guessing.

All bearings white... Declination...

I'm guessing it's some form of aircraft, isn't it?

-Possibly a Lancaster but it's actually Ian's, this is.

-Who's Ian?

-He's the chap that's stood outside.

-Oh, why's he stood outside?

Cos it's sunny, isn't it?

Well, let's hope someone can throw some light on it.

-They were used by the RAF during the war.

-What sort of plane? Lancaster?

Lancasters and Wellingtons... Halifax, yeah.

-I was right, how about that?

-Well done, Matt, well done.

-Even hungover, you're good.

-Unbelievable.

Would I make a profit on it at auction? That's the key.

Paul is beating me hands down and I'd love to buy a bit of militaria

-cos you know he loves his militaria.

-I tell you what,

he's putty in your hands if you look at him with a sort of...

-I think we may be close.

-What could that be, Ian?

-In money?

-Yeah. Well...in sweets?

-What's it down for? 30?

-30, yeah.

-15.

-10 or £15?

-Where did she get 10 from?

-No, I quite like that. £10?

-Mm-hm.

-With the instructions?

-Yeah, with the instructions.

-You can't go wrong with that.

No, exactly. Thank you, Ian. Thank you, Matt.

-WHISPERING: Sorry. Thank you, Matt.

-And also it will be useful for finding your way back from the pub.

I don't spend time in the pub, unlike some of us.

Well, despite her sketchy grasp, it's not a lot of money.

Now, let's take a look at what they've bought.

Paul parted with just over £145 for a helmet, a naval uniform,

some silver spoons, a torsion clock, a horse's hoof's box

and a box containing some mementos of a soldier.

Whilst Christina spent £200 on a toy train, a cigar display case,

a mangle, an astrocompass and two Victorian portraits.

A mangle? A mangled mangle, it has to be said, but it cost a tenner.

It might be worth 50, 60, 70, £80, for all I know.

He spent no money whatsoever, which frankly,

when you've got SO much money to spend, is rude.

Pictures... That's the one to watch. Who knows?

It could be bad news for me but it could be what saves my bacon.

At least I've taken a risk.

-You've got to take a few risks in life, haven't you?

-Yeah.

After setting off from Shrewsbury in Shropshire,

our experts are now heading north

for an auction in Staffordshire

at Stoke-on-Trent.

The last Blaikley that sold, was admittedly in a London saleroom,

sold for £900 and I bought two for £160.

-HE LAUGHS

-Well, wait and see.

Well, it might have been wise to have bought a pot or two, I suppose.

Quite well-known for that sort of thing round here.

This chap too, Sir Stanley Matthews, "The Wizard of the Dribble".

-Ta-da!

-Fantastic. Well done, pilot.

-The auction awaits, milady.

ASH Auctions takes its name from the initials of the founders

so let's hear from one of them, auctioneer Lee Sherratt.

That military stuff I believe is of one person.

Some nice interesting and quirky little bits there,

the photograph and the rest of the items that go with it.

The portraits, interesting again. I like these.

The estimate on them is between 80 and 120-something, I would imagine.

Blimey. Christina won't want to hear that.

But let's begin with one of her cannier buys, the tin-plate train.

I think I bought it for £10.

You bought everything for £10, didn't you? Everything was a tenner.

Well, apart from my pictures, which I accidentally spent a fortune on.

-I've got £18 bid straight on.

-Oh, it's my train! Here we go!

I'm going to sell. £20. Where's 2? At £20 it's in the room. Where's 2?

At £20, have we gone?

GAVEL BANGS Come on!

Great start but it will take a bit more than that to catch Paul up.

-It's the fightback.

-£10 profit. The fightback?

Yeah, if I could just get something with about £600 profit.

-Next, it's Paul's little chick spoons.

-Tweet, tweet.

-Is that a bid?

Higher up than that. Show me that high up.

A nice little set there in the original box.

25. 25, somebody. Come on. Where are you £20? Go on, 15?

15, I'm bid at 15. 16 anywhere quickly? At 15. All over the place.

-You've got bidders all over it now.

-..18, 20,

22, 24, 26.

-Your turn, 28...

-Oh, look at the leg, look at the leg!

-It's gone, hasn't it?

-Hey, well caught, knee camera.

-..32!

Selling at £30 only...

GAVEL BANGS You come across so confident

and then the leg starts going. I can feel it!

Good. But no cigar.

And look what's next! Christina's case.

-I love this.

-Was this part of that woman's shop?

-Did you buy part of her shop?

-I did.

-I thought you did!

£5. 5 there.

At 6, 8, 10, 12, 14?

12 on my right. £12. 14, surely?

-14 now...

-A man with style.

-16, 18?

-A man with style.

At £16, right-hand side.

18, 20? 20, 22?

22, 24? 24, 26?

At £24 it's being sold...

GAVEL BANGS We've spent the last three days,

just messing about.

Catching up VERY slowly.

Not bad. Are you scared yet?

Time for Paul's navy jumper and green hat.

Did you ever go out as a teenager?

-No?

-We have our resident modeller modelling this.

-She's tried it on, it won't fit.

-Aw!

-But the hat does. The hat fits.

-Fantastic.

-Well, I think it suits her.

She wears all sorts of stuff in this saleroom.

25 for it, somebody. 25. 20 bid me.

A tenner? 10 I'm bid. 12 anywhere?

He's going to sell it for a tenner? Never mind that...

Come on, it's only money. £10. It's got to be 10. All done?

-GAVEL BANGS

-I've lost money on military.

-Oh! You've made a loss!

-I'm going. I've had enough of this.

Paul makes a loss on militaria. Hold the front page.

I would laugh so much if my militaria made more than your militaria.

No, let's not.

-Go, Christina.

-What is it?

An astrocompass. A navigator's tool.

-An air navigator's tool.

-Oh.

-Yeah.

-Is that good?

25 for it. Come on, where are we? £20...

-I thought you'd get 20 or 30 quid for it.

-15 then, somebody 15.

15, I'm bid there at 15.

Where's 16 now? At £15...

16, 18, 20,

22, 24...

-What did I pay for this?

-£10! A tenner.

..I'm going to sell it at £22. The hammer's up. All finished?

-GAVEL BANGS

-Yours then at £22. Number 107.

Amazing.

Well done. A bit of a militaria coup.

Never talk to me again.

My militaria made more than your militaria.

Time for Paul's prize lot, a soldier's life.

-I've got a commission of £31.

-A long way off.

-We should have a riot here.

-32, 33...

-We should have a riot here.

..34, 36, 38, 40.

At £38. I'm going to sell then at £38.

Last call at £38. Are we done?

-GAVEL BANGS

-That's yours.

-Crying on the inside.

Call that a riot? Seems a modest sum for all those memories.

-Now, from the sublime...

-Guess how much I paid for my mangle.

Oh, let me think. Just pulling figures out of the air...

I don't know... 80? 100? A tenner?

Yeah, surprisingly enough.

£20, can I see 20? 15 for him, somebody? 15 for the mangle there.

10 to go, somebody.

£10. 10 I'm bid on my right. At £10, where's 12 now?

-12...

-Tell them it's the folding version.

-A rare folding version!

-..I'm selling it.

-GAVEL BANGS

-Don't these fools know?

It's all profits for Christina today.

Small ones anyway.

Time for Paul's equally attractive hoof.

-What shall we say? 50? 40? 30?

-BIDDER: 34.

-34 is bid on commission...

-£80. If it doesn't make £80...

I'm going to sell. No, I'm not. 36 standing.

38? 38, 40? We've got a riot now. 38...

-He's got a riot.

-He's got another riot.

-Call the police!

-..at £38, the hammer's up.

-GAVEL BANGS

-£38, there it is.

Well, it's a profit at least. A bit lame though.

Now for his bargain clock.

I've got £25 commission. It's on sale, I'm looking for 30 now.

-At £25...

-Nobody's yelling about 25 quid

but it's my first piece of profit of the day.

..at £25...

-GAVEL BANGS

-That's why I bought it.

His little stroll off-piste paid off.

-I can see you bought that with soul.

-I'm not proud of that.

But Christina is very proud of these Alexander Blaikley portraits.

-Are they in the right auction though?

-The moment of truth.

-Don't look, don't look.

-No, I can't watch. I can't hear anything.

We won't sell from the word go, ladies and gents,

-£40, I don't believe it.

-SHE GASPS

-Now we can see 50...

-60.

-..60, 70?

-70...

-That's all mine out.

-It's in the room at £70.

-They've got to be worth more then this, surely?

-Yes!

-At £70.

I'm going to sell them at £70. 80, surely?

At £70. This is for nothing.

-GAVEL BANGS

-I thought they'd have gone for

a lot more than that. £70.

She needs a hug after that.

Had the auction been online, I think they'd have done a lot better.

My heart is actually broken.

Do you think there's a cake big enough in the world

-to fix your heart?

-No.

-Let's try and find it anyway.

-Let's, yeah.

-Yeah. We could try.

-A big cake.

-Yeah.

-Come on.

Christina started out with £224.54 and made,

after paying auction costs, a loss of £78.64,

leaving her with £145.90 to spend next time.

Bad luck.

While Paul began with £780.34

and, after paying auction costs, made a loss of £29.38.

So, he's the winner today and still leaves with £750.96.

Give me the keys and don't talk to me!

HE LAUGHS

This is just all going very wrong!

-Oh, wait a minute!

-Sorry.

-Wait a minute!

-Bye!

-Bye!

-Christina!

Next on Antiques Road Trip, an alarm...

-ALARM RINGS

-Oh, no, what have I done?

IT CONTINUES TO RING

-..and several surprises.

-Yes!

-I'm winning.

-I'm not.

-I'm winning!

Is this what it feels like?