Episode 1 Antiques Road Trip

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

This is beautiful. That's the way to do this.

..with ?200 each, a classic car, and a goal - to scour for antiques.

Joy! Hello!

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

There'll be worthy winners and valiant losers.

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

The handbrake's on!

This is Antiques Road Trip.

Yeah.

Today, we begin a very special road trip,

starting right here in the Republic of Ireland.

Oh, yes, this'll be a treat for our top auctioneers,

Christina Trevanion and Thomas Plant.

What a combo.

Your impressions of Ireland? You've been here before, I've been here before.

You can go anywhere in the world, and you can go and visit countries

and they're beautiful, but it's all about the welcome you get, isn't it?

Yeah, absolutely.

It's wonderful, and the people are so friendly, and so accommodating,

and so sweet.

Hey, I love the Wedgwood blue wheels, guys.

Their quirky 1962 Bedford van was manufactured before it was

compulsory to fit seatbelts, so it's legal to drive without them.

Do you know what slightly worries me? What?

That's the engine!

It is the engine, isn't it? And it's quite nice as a heater.

Our jewellery and silver buffs start their trip with ?200 apiece,

but as they begin in Ireland, they'll kick off with 285 euros.

Get it?

Starting in Cashel in County Tipperary,

they'll get about Ireland, hop across to North Wales,

whizz around England,

and then end up, over 700 miles later, in Stoke-on-Trent.

This first leg will see them travel from Cashel

towards the opening auction in Birr, County Offaly.

Now, lets' begin shopping with young Thomas.

See you later. Bye! You look marvellous!

Owner Ruth Barry's in charge here.

Looks like she does more than antiques, too.

Bit of lotus, maybe.

You're Ruth? Yes, I am. I saw your name on the door. Yes.

And it's sort of Giver of Hope.

I'm a yoga teacher and when you do your teacher training,

they bestow a name on you, and that was Asha, Giver of Hope.

Giver of hope. Well, I'm going yo be giving you hope today. I hope so! I hope!

I just totally...

..love these tambour-fronted cabinets.

What's even better is this here. Wait for it...

RATTLING

Ah! And it's all hidden away.

This early 20th-century oak cabinet is 490 euros,

way over Thomas's budget.

Looks like that's not his only problem now.

Whoops, has he broken it?

Ruth, erm, is there a key for this?

I'm afraid not. What did you do?

I just pulled it down and it locked. Well...

you really should have asked for some help with that, Thomas.

Now you've broken it. I don't think I've broken it.

Bit awkward, this.

It has happened before, so Ruth knows how to fix it, thankfully.

Meanwhile, Christina has headed just half an hour north,

still in Tipperary, to the small village of Templetuohy.

Her first shop is Larkins Antiques,

a family-run affair that's been on the go for over 30 years.

Hello! Hello.

Hello, good morning. How are you, Christina? Very well, thank you.

Nice to meet you, I'm Christina. And I'm Mary.

Lovely to meet you, Mary. My goodness, what a shop!

That's rather fun, isn't it?

This isn't early enough...

..sadly, to be a George Jones piece. Quite interesting, though, isn't it?

Certainly got a look and we're finding that, in the UK,

majolica is selling incredibly well.

George Jones began manufacturing this type of elaborately moulded ceramics

in the late 1860s - however, this was made long after George Jones died

and that's why it's called "majolica-style".

What have you got on that, Mary?

Well, I could give you that for...

..40 euros.

Well, it's certainly got a look to it. Absolutely, yes.

OK, so that could be a possibility,

cos I quite like that. It's gorgeous.

But Christina's only scratched the surface of Mary's wares.

Oh, that's quite fun. How much is on that?

Do we know? Mike?

My husband. This is Christina. Hello. Nice to meet you.

You're in charge of the furniture, are you? Yes.

How much is on your chair that needs some TLC, Michael?

Er, that's 100 euros.

100 euros. It does need a lot of TLC. It does.

Indeed. At least the frame of this Victorian carved chair

is still in pretty good condition.

Is there any flexibility on that price, Michael?

Maybe a little bit.

Um, 85?

85 euro, OK.

I quite like that.

It's definitely a possibility. Thank you, Mike, you're a gentleman.

I will give it some thought.

Back in Cashel, Thomas has been doing some al fresco browsing.

Can I go inside? Of course you may, yes.

He's on to something, look.

I love these, these are fab.

They're gorgeous.

So we've got the Burgundy, we've got Chartreuse. Yes.

I have another one inside. Do you? Yeah, hang on.

By the turn of the 18th century,

decanters were popular in the homes of both the middle and upper classes.

The labels indicating the liquid contents

were originally called "bottle tickets".

Look, "Kew-rac-oh". Curacao, actually.

In perfect condition.

So they're on copper with enamel. Yeah.

And how much are these each? Ten each.

Ten each. They're a giveaway. OK, we'll talk about that.

Oh, right. And then how much are these?

This one is 12.

And these two little ones are eight.

I mean... Two, three, four, five - 50 euro.

62. OK.

78 euros. You're good at the maths.

How about we start at 40 euros and then we work somewhere...

Oh, my God, no.

Where can we meet in the middle? Thomas...really.

You're not going to sell them to me at 40, I get that. OK, 65.

Ah, that's far too much!

No. Yes, it is.

These are beautiful. They are beautiful.

I love them. You never see these. They're gorgeous.

Could say 60 and it's a deal? Oh, OK, for you. Yeah, you think so?

Yeah. Let's do it. All right.

60 euros is for the eight

silver-plated and enamelled decanter labels.

Back in Templetuohy,

Christina's enlisted Mary's help once more.

I thought these were quite fun.

Oh, you've lovely taste.

Aren't they beautiful?

I mean, typically 1830, this body to me looks like a Coalport body.

But that's really unusual decoration.

I mean, this is what we call a spur handle,

that typical spur handle of about 1830.

Is there any more of the tea set? I have.

And Mary's secret stash is in a drawer behind the counter, obviously.

What else have you got in that drawer?

No, I can't show you what's in my drawers, Christina. Oh, my goodness.

Crikey, there's loads of it, look!

Are they not fabulous? They are fabulous.

Are they not the nicest you've ever seen?

The tea and coffee service isn't complete,

but there's so much of it that you could make easily a full set of six,

with spares.

I need 180.

Can we do...

200 for the tea service and the chair?

You have a deal. I'm still quite tempted by the majolica.

Can we say 210 for all of it?

210. For the tea service, the chair and the majolica.

She's hitting me the whole time, you are a hard woman. Go on. Will you?

A smile. Will you? Yeah, thank you, Mary!

Christina has certainly gone big and bold on day one,

parting with 210 euros for three items.

Meanwhile, rival Thomas will continue his own quest for lovely gems.

He's travelled to Birr in County Offaly,

How 'Offaly' nice.

Hi, Tom, how are you? Very well.

What's your name? Breda. Breda? Yes. Nice to see you, Breda.

Indeed, nice place you've got here too.

Cool cocktail shaker.

You know, drinking is always a popular thing.

And certainly cocktail shakers, it evokes that sort of vintage style.

It's silver-plated.

And one puts your mixers in there.

It's got a cork stopper, which means that none of the mix will fall out.

Rather lovely, really, with a handle,

and it just looks rather good fun.

Not a bad option, though.

But I'm sure there's more temptation somewhere.

This is an extraordinarily thing.

Being marked "sterling" means it could be American.

But I'm not going to spend 95 euros on something I don't know what it is.

Perhaps Breda does.

What is this? It's a cake breaker.

If you have a very fresh sponge, what the Victorians -

and they had something for everything, as you know yourself -

they'd push it down through it

and it would stop the cake literally from breaking.

And they'd slip the knife in and then you'd have a perforated slice.

Oh, yes! Cor, those Victorians certainly knew how to prevent

their cakes from being squashed!

What an interesting object.

In the right sort of climate, really.

Baking is quite popular these days, isn't it?

Another one to ponder.

Some soda siphons, they could...

We could make a sort of cocktail lot.

"Mineral Waters Distributors Ltd, Dublin."

So an Irish soda siphon.

There's no price on there. It's obviously free.

Hey, time to do some buying. You're needed, Breda.

The cocktail shaker. OK. What can that be?

There's a price of 45 on it, isn't there? Yes.

OK. I was thinking maybe 25.

Well, since you're such a nice gentleman,

and you obviously need it... Yeah, I do.

OK. 25 for that. Yeah. Great.

So that's one thing out of the way. OK.

What about that rather unusual cake-breaking thingy?

What could you do that for? Well, it's 95.

Yeah. Mm.

What about 45?

Now, it is nice, and it is silver. It is, yes.

I would be very happy with 55. 55. I think you've got yourself a deal.

OK, very good. I like it very much.

He's clocking up the purchases in here,

and those soda siphons are still an option.

How much can the three of them be? 30?

35? No, I didn't have that number in my head, no.

40, then? Well, as I said, you are such a gentleman, yeah, OK,

40 would suit me.

Would that suit you? Mm.

Deal. That's another deal. You are very welcome.

Good work, Thomas, that's the Art Deco cocktail shaker,

a sterling silver cake-breaker

and three soda siphons for 120 euros.

And with that, it's time for our experts

to head off to the land of Nod.

Night-night.

Another glorious day in Ireland.

I keep on going...for...

this gear stick here.

It's here, darling. I know, I know.

The stick here is here. The stick is here, Thomas. Well done.

Fortunately, Thomas is better at dealing than driving.

This morning, our duo are starting at Portlaoise.

Don't buy too well. Enjoy. Don't break it. I won't break it.

Christina's next shop is run by David Kane and Robert Colin.

Good morning, how are you? Good morning, I'm very well.

You're very welcome to the Store Yard.

Thank you, what's your name? I'm Robert.

Lovely to meet you, Robert. And you are? David, how are you?

Pleased to meet you. This is amazing.

This is a sort of hidden world. It's a treasure inside.

Oh, yes, it's big enough

and rammed with architectural and decorative items.

That's quite nice. That's a nice little thing, actually.

It's priced very well, there is some damage.

But it's nice Florian ware.

Florian ware was the company that Moorcroft started working for.

Correct. Before he started his own factory.

And you've got "WM des", so William Moorcroft designer.

Nice Florian ware stamp.

25 euros? Yeah.

I mean, yes, it's got some damage to it, but I still think

for a Moorcroft collector, that's a really nice thing, isn't it?

A good thing, yes, a very good thing.

Well, that's a distinct possibility, David. I like this a lot.

OK, shall we keep wandering? Yeah.

Sounds positive.

Let's leave Christina to explore her new favourite shop

and join our other intrepid antiques hunter.

He's taking a breather from shopping to find out

about one of Ireland's great heroes -

a world-renowned explorer

and pioneer of the heroic age of Antarctic discovery.

Thomas is visiting Athy Heritage Centre

just a few miles from the birthplace of Sir Ernest Shackleton.

Thomas is here to meet head of the Shackleton Society, Seamus Taaffe.

Seamus, we're here because you have a famous hero, a man of great note.

Yes, we're very lucky, we have one of the greatest explorers

of all time. Ernest Shackleton was born in Kilkea.

As the eldest son of ten children,

Shackleton was expected to help support his family.

But instead, at 16 he went off to sea and became a master mariner.

He charmed his way onto Captain Scott's Antarctic expedition in 1901,

gaining experience that led to his own endeavours

into the then uncharted continent.

We know Shackleton had lots of expeditions.

Which one is the one we all know?

The greatest expedition is obviously

his 1914 Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition.

Bear in mind, at this stage,

the pole has been reached by Amundsen and Scott in 1913.

So he comes with a plan - he's going to cross the Antarctic from sea to sea.

The South Pole, the Antarctic?

Yes. Cross it? Yes.

But from the very start, it all goes terribly wrong.

The mission was to sail from South Georgia to the Weddell Sea.

Once they hit land, they would continue by foot and sledge

until they reached the Ross Sea.

It had never been done before, and when they got near,

disaster struck.

The 28-man crew got stuck in ice in the Weddell Sea.

Their ship, Endurance, eventually sank,

forcing them to set up camp on the ice.

20 months after setting out, the ice finally melted

and starts pulling them in the wrong direction.

How did they survive?

They kept three lifeboats from the ship which they're pulling

across the ice towards the direction they want to go,

but the ice is still drifting, so eventually they get into open water.

They decide to go for a place called Elephant Island,

a desolate rock in the middle of nowhere in the South Atlantic.

And they spend about seven days in the three boats

until they get to Elephant Island.

How do they do that - under sail or rowing? A bit of both.

But there's no hope of being rescued from this small, inhospitable island.

Shackleton knows, to stand the chance of survival,

he must take his five best sailors in one lifeboat and travel

over 1,000 kilometres back to the inhabited island of South Georgia.

The other 22 men are left behind.

The South Atlantic is a miserable place to be,

the southern oceans, it's the worst... Big waves.

Big waves, daylight is very poor, it's very hard to read.

And after 70 days, they reach South Georgia,

an extraordinary boat journey, there's nothing to compare to it.

Despite their incredible achievement,

they arrive on the wrong side of the island.

The boat is battered and the crew exhausted,

so Shackleton then has to lead his team across uncharted,

rough, icy terrain by foot

to get to the whaling station on the northern side.

They spent 36 hours crossing nonstop.

At one point, the men are very tired,

so Shackleton says we'll have a sleep.

He lets them sleep for five minutes.

Then he wakes them up and says, "That was an hour, lads, great."

He was very clever how he managed his men.

But eventually they get across

and they hear the sound of the steam whistle of the whaling station.

In the morning, they know they've reached safety.

But Shackleton couldn't rest

until he'd saved all his crew from Elephant Island.

He mustered boats from Norway and Chile

to make several rescue attempts.

But it wasn't until 25th August 1916 that he reached his remaining 22 men.

They'd been stranded for almost four months

with very little in the way of provisions, but they all survived.

Seamus, what have we got here?

This is actually one of the few relics

we have of the Endurance expedition.

It's the last biscuit that Shackleton had in his pocket

crossing South Georgia.

The last bit of food he had left to feed himself and his men with.

I think he kept it as a reminder to himself for the rest of his life

of how close they came to death at that time. That's marvellous.

Although Shackleton didn't achieve his scientific goals,

his heroism has gone down in history.

He set off on what would be his final Antarctic expedition

in late 1921, this time aiming to circumnavigate the continent.

Is this the album of his last voyage?

It's images from the expedition from the very get-go.

This album is in some ways a sad relic of the expedition

because that's where he died -

at the scene of his greatest triumph, where he rescued his men.

He died there. He died there.

Shackleton died of a heart attack in January 1922

and was buried on South Georgia.

His courage and skill in keeping everyone alive

on his trans-Antarctic expedition has become his enduring legacy.

Back in Portlaoise, Christina is still shopping in heaven.

That's quite smart, isn't it? Yes, nice little pond yacht, actually.

I mean, it's typically early-20th century, isn't it?

Can you imagine the hours of fun someone's had with that? Exactly.

Pure enjoyment. Yeah, exactly. And the sails are all original.

Have you got the stand? I don't have the stand, unfortunately.

But the condition is good. I do love these things.

What have you got on that, David?

125 we have on it, but we'll do something on it.

Could you do quite a lot on it?

Do I have to sit down? I think you might have to. Tell me.

I really don't have much money left and I don't want to offend you,

but I love the Moorcroft. Mm-hm.

I mean, would you really, really, really, really

throw me out of this beautiful place - please don't,

because I love it - if I said 50 euros for the two?

I'll do 60 for the two. Is that fair?

60 for the two, I think that is more than fair. Very good.

You're incredibly generous.

That you are.

That's 60 euros for a reasonably priced, but slightly damaged,

Florian ware butter dish

and a late-Victorian or early-Edwardian pond yacht.

Meanwhile, Thomas has one last chance to shop in Kilkenny,

at Darcy Ralph Antiques.

Hello. Hello. I'm Thomas.

I'm George. George, nice to see you.

Have you got anything particularly sort of Irish related?

I had Waterford glass yesterday, but I've run out today.

But I've got some Belleek. Belleek over there, is there?

This is what George mentioned, a bit of Belleek.

Belleek's founder, John Caldwell Bloomfield,

set up the Northern Irish pottery business

to provide employment after the potato famine

in the mid-19th century, and has been producing fine China ever since.

Thomas loves this Belleek so much, he's going straight in for a deal.

I do like this Belleek, because it's known and although it's modern,

its lustre, it's rather smart, very fine porcelain.

HOLLOW RINGING

Sounds good. A good jingle out of it, yes.

A bit of paint on there, but that's not the end of the world.

So, would you take 20 euros for this?

I will. You would? I will. You have a deal. Thank you.

You're a star. I'll give you some money.

Swift business. 20 euros for a Belleek jug and bowl.

I wish you good luck. Thank you. Thanks a million. You're a star.

Thank you. Thanks a lot.

And with that, their first shopping trip draws to a close.

Christina spent 270 euros on a rather worn Victorian chair,

a majolica-style jardiniere,

a tea and coffee service,

a Florian ware butter dish

and a pond yacht.

While Thomas paid out 200 euros for eight decanter labels,

an Art Deco cocktail shaker,

a cake breaker,

three soda siphons,

and a Belleek jug and bowl. So, what do they think?

One thing I think should be consigned

to the hole of hell of antique buying,

that's that reproduction jardiniere. What?!

The cocktail shaker is just Thomas through and through.

It's sleek, it's a bit glam, it's quite suave.

I think it's fabulous, I love it, I'd buy that, I think it's great.

After setting out from Cashel, our experts are now heading for

their first auction, back in Birr, County Offaly,

which is Offaly nice!

So, did you enjoy our first Irish buying leg? I did, I loved it.

I want to stay here, I don't want to go back to the United Kingdom.

But will he be saying that after round one of Trevanion Vs Plant?

Handbrake on, come on.

Ladies first. Thank you.

Welcome to 45-year-old Purcell Auctioneer's.

Today's guy with the gavel is Conor Purcell.

Time to find out who has the luck of the Irish.

First up is Thomas's Belleek jug and bowl.

20 anywhere for this lot?

20 anywhere? 10 and see what happens.

Any advance on 10? 10, he's got 10. 12? Any advance on 12. 14 online.

Any advance on 14? Come on. 16 in the room.

Still in the room at 16. It's against you, online bidder.

Last chance. I'm selling in the room at 16.

It's a shaky start, but it can only get better.

Easy for you to say.

Let's see if Thomas's Art Deco cocktail shaker

can turn his luck around?

The commission is here with me at 30, and two,

and five, and eight, and 40, and two. Profit. 42 now.

45 online. 45, 48 commission. And rightly so. Go on.

On commission at 48. All done and dusted.

It's here to be sold, and selling at 48.

All's fair in love and antiques.

Thomas has almost doubled his money on the cocktail shaker.

Now, it's over to Christina's majolica-style jardiniere.

Lovely squirrel handles there. Ah! Lovely squirrel handles.

50? Have we 40 anywhere? See what happens. 40 anywhere? 40 bid online.

At 40 bid. Christina!

42, lady's bid. 45. 45, 48. 50 bid.

50 bid online. Well done. 50 bid.

Any advance? 55. 60 bid. Two bidders online. I'd stop now, it's fine.

60 bid. Any advance on 60 bid? 65 bid. At 65. Any advance on 65?

Still there at 65. Online bidder winning. At 65, and selling at 65.

High-funf, young girl. I'm going to lose it all in a minute.

Have faith, milady, have faith.

Next up, it's Christina's biggest spend,

the tea and coffee service, loads of it.

50 anywhere for this lot? 50, 60, 70, 80 online.

You see, 90 now.

90 bid. Oh, come on. Come on, internet!

Any other hands in the room at 90? 95, 100.

It's still hugely losing money. It doesn't matter. 120.

Still there at 120. 130 bid. 140. 140 bid.

All done at 140.

Online bidder... At 150 bid.

Last chance to you all, online, in the room and elsewhere at 150.

It's selling at 150.

Well done. See? All of that. How do you feel?

You must feel exhausted. Relieved. Hugely relieved. Exhausted.

It's a lucky escape, with only a small loss after auction costs.

Now, it's back over to Thomas with his three soda siphons.

Nice lot again. And straight in. 32, 35, 40, 42, 45, 48, 50 bid.

That's a profit. That's a profit. Ugh! That's a profit. At 55.

I'm out at 55. In the room at 55.

More, more, more. Any advance on 65? 60 bid. 60. Oh, my goodness.

Any advance on 60? 60 bid. Last chance, going, going... 65.

65, go on. Stop it.

Any advance on 65?

With a little encouragement at 65. One more?

No, he doesn't need any encouragement. And selling at 65.

Well done. Seriously, well done. I'm amazed.

Top job, Thomas. Another solid profit.

Now for Christina's bargain Florian ware butter dish,

but will the damage hold it back?

Commissions in again. 30, 32, 35, 38, 40 bid. Starting bids.

Two, five, six. 45 with me. At 45. 48? 50 bid.

55. Takes me out at 55.

Come on, internet. Come on. Oh, no!

Five. That should have made more than that.

I feel bad for you, Christina. It's a profit. It's a profit.

Don't feel too bad, she's doubled her money.

Christina's Victorian chair is up now. Stand by.

Needs a bit of TLC. Who will start us at 80? 60? 50?

Have we 40 anywhere? 40 anywhere? Go on. It's beautiful.

30 have we? 20 anywhere? Ouch!

20 anywhere for this one? 20 anywhere?

I think I might take that and be grateful for it.

20, all done around the room? That's not great news, is it? Oh, no!

20 euros. I can't really... Mary.

It's not exactly in peak condition, Christina.

Can the pond yacht do any better?

50 anywhere? 50 anywhere for the pond yacht? 40, start me at 30.

30 bid. 30 bid. Come on!

32 online. 32. And 35.

One more, come on. Come on. Any advance on 35? Come on, come on!

Any advance on 35? 38 bid. 38 bid.

It needs to make a bit more than that. Last chance to you all.

It's going, going at 30... At 40 bid. Hooray!

42 bid in the room.

Oh, he's in the room as well. Two in the room now. 45, 48.

They can put their hands down now.

She's getting too big for her boots. Selling at 48.

I think you have done tremendously well.

Well done, you. That's it, I'm done.

That's Christina all out, ending with a nice little profit.

But Thomas still has two more items to go,

starting with his sterling silver cake breaker.

Commission is in at 50, and five, 60 bid.

What did you pay for it? 55. Oh! Put your hand up if you are bidding. 65.

70 bid. 70 bid, whoa, yes!

Any advance? 75. 75. It is there, isn't it?

My commission buyer is winning.

At 80 bid, make no mistake, I'm selling at 80.

Goodness. That was really good. Well spotted.

Cakes are popular, people like baking at the moment.

But it would also be very useful if you'd forgotten your hairbrush.

Another little earner for him.

Finally, it's Thomas's eight decanter labels.

Starting at 40.

30, nice things, these. 30 anywhere?

Oh, no, he we go. 20 anywhere for all the labels? 20 bid.

Any advance on 20? Go on. 22. 22. 22 bid. 22, 25.

Go on. It's a bidding war. 30 bid. Any advance on 30 bid?

Here to be sold. Selling at 30.

It's a hard loss. Welcome to my world. It's a horrible loss.

This one could be a close call.

Let's go check the figures and have a cup of tea.

Maybe we can go and use your cocktail shaker. I've sold it now.

Oh, Thomas! It's gone.

Come on. Come on, then.

Thomas began with 285 euros.

After auction costs, he lost four euros, two cents,

leaving him with almost 281 euros to spend next time.

Christina started with the same sum.

After deducting auction costs,

she made a profit of seven euros, 16 cents,

giving her the early lead and just over 292 euros.

These two titans of antiques are still road tripping in Ireland.

It's on to leg two.

So if you were an antique, what would you be?

I'd be like a beautiful golden enamel...

A beautiful bit of Edwardian jewellery.

What would you be?

I think I'd be a pitchfork. Lordy.

Today they begin in Prosperous...

HE LAUGHS

..in County Kildare, before making the journey over the water

and heading for auction in the Welsh town of Wrexham.

High-class furniture. Come on.

Brilliant. Let's go. In you go.

Hello. Hello, Thomas. How are you? Very well. Lovely to meet you.

Ger Nevin is my name. How are you? Christina, lovely to meet you.

Sorry, what was your name? Ger Nevin is my name.

Ger...? Ger.

Introductions over, it's time to get cracking.

I'm a bit confused because these things have got lot numbers on them.

Am I in the right place?

Well, this establishment is a little different,

as it also operates as an auction house.

The items here are ready to go under the hammer,

but many of the sellers are happy to let them go presale

if the money's right.

Kidney-shaped lacquer...

All these different boxes, it could be a little lot, really.

We've got a little horn snuff, with white metal ends.

That would be for cheroots, tobacco.

Probably 19th century.

A cigar case.

Sort of zinc-lined to keep that tobacco fresh.

A Japanese kidney-shaped little box,

slightly damaged but in the lacquer.

A souvenir ring box

and this Californian poppy brilliantine.

I think that is for tobacco as well.

It's a nice little lot. You know, it looks rather good.

Let's get Ger over.

I'll try and set you off on a good deal. Could you?

How about 50 euro? They are surely worth 10 euro each.

Could we do a little bit better?

How about 40, then?

That seems very fair, doesn't it? That does seem fair. 40 euros.

You're a good man. Deal. So that's my first deal. You're very welcome.

I'm going to carry on looking. First deal of the day.

How are things faring upstairs?

Beautiful, I love that.

That's a great picture. A wonderful rural scene.

You've got, obviously, bygone days.

This guy is driving his cattle down the road, leading his horse.

There's a little girl there, feeding her chickens.

It's just luminous, isn't it? It's wonderful. I like that a lot.

I suspect it'll have quite a high price tag on, I think.

That's one to consider, then.

How about Thomas?

This is like the bowl which keeps on giving.

Like a cornucopia, which, sort of, carries on.

(Oh, I love mother-of-pearl!)

Can you see the way it shimmers?

These are obviously ends off handles or something.

But I love it.

This I think is a piece of agate. Well, it is a piece of agate.

If you get the light on this...

It's got a really grey

but, sort of, translucency to it.

It could be a salt dish for the centre of the table.

Then we've got a collection of Oriental soapstone.

These are scroll weights.

So when you're laying out that Chinese scroll,

you want to weigh it down so that it doesn't roll in on itself.

I might call over Ger and see what we've got here.

See if there's a price to be had.

Ger, can I have a chat with you?

That's the little hidden gem. Is it a little hidden gem?

Was I allowed to find this bowl? Of course you were.

A bit naughty of me. Absolutely.

So you've got the contents of the bowl. Yes, exactly.

I mean, I like it. Yes.

It all depends on value-wise what you want to charge.

Well, for you... Yeah.

..I'm going to give you a good price. Do you think so?

Absolutely. Absolutely.

If we said 55 euros for the lot. That's immensely fair.

I don't think I can argue with that. No, I don't think you could.

I'm not going to argue with it. I am really not.

Are you sure you're happy with that? Absolutely. 55 euros. For you.

After that buying frenzy,

Thomas has landed the soapstone collection,

some mother-of-pearl handles

and that lovely salt, and enough boxes to start a collection.

Christina best get a move on.

Oh, look at that! SHE GASPS

It's a fantastic country house club fender with this leather top.

Brass based. Put that in front of your fire.

Can you imagine warming your back on the fire?

That's fabulous. Again, these are selling really well at the moment.

But there's no price tag.

Let's see what Ger has to say about the picture first.

Ah, fantastic.

I do really like that.

So we have got the signature down there as well. Yes.

So GC Barlow on that. Yes.

So it's oil on board? Oil on board. Exactly, yes.

Ah, GC Barlow. Artist, exhibitor, Paris.

So that's great that that label's still on there. Yes, yes.

That's fantastic. Right, can we spin it over? Absolutely.

And it's got its original frame, again. Mm-hm.

So how much is on that one?

175. And what could you do me that for?

How about 120?

120 on that one? Yes. OK.

That's a definite potential, then.

Now, onto the club fender.

How much for your tatty club fender?

There's a good... This could be a deal for you.

220 euro.

That's nearly all my budget!

Well, how about 180?

SHE SIGHS You've got to keep going.

I think it's well worth that. That's quite good value.

And how much did you want for the picture?

120. Could you come down any more on this?

What did you say on this? 180? 180.

160.

Is there any, any, any, any, any chance you could do me

the picture and the fender for 200?

HE GASPS

You are such a convincing woman.

Really? SHE LAUGHS

Am I? You have a deal. I don't think many people would say that. Yeah.

Well, Ger has been very generous to both Christina and Thomas.

And let's stick with Christina as she takes a breather from shopping

to visit the fair city of Dublin.

From medieval castles to Georgian splendour,

Dublin has a vibrant and charismatic reputation.

Ireland's capital has been home to Oscar Wilde, Samuel Beckett,

and James Joyce, and Christina is on the trail of another literary great.

She's visiting Trinity College,

Ireland's premier seat of education, where archivist Jane Maxwell

is on hand to reveal the story of former student Jonathan Swift.

Known for his masterpiece Gulliver's Travels,

he became one of the greatest satirists in the world and

started a legacy that would change the face of literature in Ireland.

He's the chap that's famous

for saying that the world was founded, more or less.

Jane, this is just visually the most stunning place I think I've ever been.

Isn't it lovely? It's wonderful. It really is, gorgeous.

The old library. It really is. So, was Swift ever here?

Not physically in this building, no. He predated this.

This is 300 years old. He was here in the 17th century.

This is an 18th-century room. Right.

Erm, but, this library has the privilege of holding

the Jonathan Swift collection.

Born in Dublin in 1667,

Swift was sent to Trinity College in the city at the age of 14.

This is the register that records him arriving in Trinity College.

Oh, there he is!

Jonathan Swift.

Did he show any talent for being a writer when,

when he was this age, when he was here?

Certainly we don't have anything that he wrote at the time

and he got into disciplinary problems, you know?

He was a naughty boy? He was a naughty boy, yeah. So...

I think I quite like him.

It ends up with... he gets his degree by special grace.

Despite a shaky academic career,

Swift began to build a reputation as a writer,

first working for former politician William Temple, then

as a clergyman, arguing the position of the church on political matters.

He becomes a political propagandist

and he is writing pamphlets left, right and centre.

That's what they did. That's how you waged war. You wrote.

And you produced pamphlets? Endless pamphlets.

And because Swift's specific talent was satire

and if you can make people laugh, you have them half won over.

So, he made it... he made it really readable?

While satire has been around for centuries,

in this age of the Enlightenment, Swift was part

of a resurgence of the craft

which interrogated moral and political views.

Later in his life, Swift was to display his moral outrage

at the treatment of Ireland's poor

in one of the most famous satirical essays in the English language.

This is The Modest Proposal which everybody knows about

even if they're not entirely sure...

"A modest proposal for preventing the children of poor people from

"being a burden to their parents or the country and for making them

"beneficial to the public"?

Yeah, they kind of liked long titles. It's snappy, isn't it?

This is a time when poor people

were considered to be slightly less human.

So, he starts off in this tone of voice,

saying, "Yeah, we all know this is a problem" and then he just,

without as much as a blink of the eye he segues

seamlessly into a... "I think they should eat their children.

"I mean, if you fed a nice plump poor baby well, you know,

"you could serve him up for dinner." What?

And then all of a sudden you realise

he's making fun of you. Yeah. And your prejudices. Yeah.

And your biases, because for a moment you might have thought yeah, he's right...

SHE GASPS Oops! Yeah, yeah.

That's what he did and he did it beautifully because he sucks you in.

You think he's writing a boring economic pamphlet.

With his wit and fearless approach, Swift towered over his predecessors.

As partisan politics emerged,

he used his satire to tackle this new complex political world.

Ah, so, here we have...

In 1726, he took his arguments to a wide audience,

creating what would become his best-known work.

This is how we know Jonathan Swift, really, isn't it? Yes.

His Gulliver's Travels. Yes.

But it says here, "Travels into several remote

"nations of the world in four parts by Lemuel Gulliver,

"first a surgeon and then a captain of several ships, volume 1..."

It goes on and on and on. Yes, I know.

Well, at the very first page he's...making a little fun

of the tradition of writing travelogues.

Right. Which were becoming very popular at the time. OK.

So, he gives the name Gulliver but also he gives a little background

to make it seem more like this is actually a genuine travelogue.

By presenting the book as Gulliver's own memoirs,

Swift distanced himself from a controversial tale

that criticised the politicians he felt had blocked his own career.

This is political satire again

because he goes to all of these countries and, erm,

he picks out individuals and characters whom

all of his readership know

who the contemporary politician is who he's making fun of.

It's not a children's book at all? It's actually political satire?

Yes. But now it's marketed as a children's book.

I mean, you couldn't get more poles apart, really, could you? No.

Each group that Gulliver encounters represents a different

section of society, all afflicted by one type of prejudice or another.

Like the character of Flimnap, a wily politician

torn by jealousy, who is understood to be a thinly veiled caricature

of Britain's first modern Prime Minister, Robert Walpole.

Scared of prosecution by those targeted in the book,

Swift's publisher used several different printers

and even changed sections of text,

the tale becoming an instant success.

It was immediately hugely popular.

Even people who said they didn't understand who the targets were

found it incredible.

And even people who didn't like Swift had to admit that

it was wonderful.

Swift's book gave readers an entirely different perspective

on this new age of politics and politicians.

Since its first release, Gulliver's Travels has never been

out of print and is heralded as a milestone in satirical literature.

Once he had an idea, he took it to its rational obvious conclusion

and he was prepared to go a step further than everybody else.

Always... Stretching the boundaries? Absolutely.

Swift died in Dublin in 1745.

His pamphlets remain amongst the most important texts

held in the great library of Trinity College,

and Gulliver's Travels

inspired readers and influenced writers for centuries to come.

Just over 15 miles back down the River Liffey,

Thomas is in the village of Straffan, in County Kildare.

Straffan Antiques is a family-run affair, managed by Eoin.

The jacket's off. He means business.

These are good.

Look at these sweet little things.

Children's folding chairs.

They look great fun. Ow!

I'd take a seat, Thomas, if I were you. Ticket price is 480 euros.

We've got a pair of them. A pair is unusual, yeah.

It is unusual, isn't it? Yeah.

And it looks like original upholstery on them. I think so.

Probably, um, maybe late 19th century,

something like that. They're quite sweet, aren't they?

What can you do those for?

Erm...we could do those about...maybe 220.

Oh, my gosh.

I don't think I've got 220.

I've only got 185 and I need some left for tomorrow.

So, I was looking at those as sort of 50 euros each, 100 euros.

But if you can do it, you can't do it. Yeah.

I'll try and find something else.

Could do 150 on them.

I think 150 is a bit, a bit strong for me.

Could you meet me halfway somewhere?

Could do 130? 125, we've got a deal.

Go on? Go on. 125. Yeah, good man.

A bold buy, Thomas.

Great discount but it doesn't leave you very much.

HE MOUTHS

(What have I done? What have I done?)

Heaven knows.

Blissfully unaware of Thomas's big spending,

Christina is hotfooting through Dublin's streets

in search of a bargain.

Hello. Hey, how you doing? Well, thank you. I'm Christina, nice to meet you.

Alistair - how are you? Alistair? Do you mind if I have a quick look around? Yeah, sure.

If there's anything I like the look of,

I'll come and give you a holler. OK. A holler, eh?

Owner Alistair has been running the shop, along with his mother,

for four years, and they do a lot of their buying in French markets,

so the shop has a certain je ne sais quoi.

You are feeling it?

So, that is quite cool, isn't it? Look at that. "The Royal Dragoon."

"Ales and prize medal beers".

So, it's obviously an old pub sign, isn't it? The Royal Dragoon.

Breweriana in advertising is quite in vogue at the moment

but that's also really a very powerful, strong image.

It's 45 euros.

I wonder what Alistair can do on that.

Alistair? Yes. Where are you, darling?

We picked this up at a French market about two months ago.

Did you? I'm not sure how old it is but it's certainly nice, anyway.

It's a decorative thing, isn't it?

It hasn't got a huge amount of age to it, has it?

Yeah, probably about 1970s, I'd say, maybe.

So, what would be your best price on that? 20.

It's quite fun, isn't it? I do quite like that.

There's something about the image which is powerful.

Yeah. That horsey strutting off to war.

Is there any chance you could do that for 15?

20 is quite cheap for it, as is... Is it? For a modern repro sign?

For a bit of fun? It is hand-painted.

Go on, 15 euros.

And you've got a sale. OK. Yeah? Yeah. It's a deal.

I shall take my Royal Dragoon and charge off into the sunset.

With 15 euros spent on an oldish pub sign,

your sunset awaits - so nighty-night, you two.

Good morning, Dublin!

I love Ireland

but I do spend a lot of money in Ireland. Join the club.

You're telling me.

Later, they will be heading for auction in Wrexham

but for the rest of the day, Dublin beckons.

Let's follow Christina

as she tries to spend the last of her remaining euros.

She's having a wander through Dublin's art and antiques quarter,

but can she uncover something special?

Hello. Hi, how are you doing? I'm all right, thanks. How are you?

Good, thanks. What's your name? Alistan. Alistan. Great name.

Alistan, you are very tall. I know. How tall are you?

6'6", 6'7" on a good day. I think I should have worn my heels today.

This is pretty cool.

It is certainly eclectic.

What is on your storage jars?

They're about 175. Are they? Yes.

They're nice, aren't they? Clean kitchenware, one pint.

I mean, they are very kitsch, aren't they?

I like the typography on them. Yeah, that text on them is fab, isn't it?

It's cool, yes.

Also you get the TG green ones,

which - obviously the blue-banded Cornishware ones -

but I really like the fact that these are in green.

It's the colour of Ireland, isn't it?

Yeah. Very cool. It's true.

I'm a bit worried, there is a little bit of damage around them.

We can talk about price. I mean, what have you got in your mind?

Uh...

Don't hate me. Go on. But I think I have 77 euros left.

77 euros? Yeah.

I tell you what, I could probably give you half the set. No!

You can't split the set! What about...? OK...

You look like a really cool, mid-century guy,

I have got a really cool mid-century vehicle outside.

OK, so we do a swap? No. OK.

Hmm... OK, OK. I thought that was where this was going.

What about 77 euros and a ride in my van?

What do you think? That sounds a bit...

Does that sound like a deal? Do you know what? OK, OK. Yeah?

OK, as long as it is going to a good home,

I think it's going to go to a good home.

Done. Happy? Yeah, I think so.

It's pretty cool, and it does go quite fast.

Here we go.

You will be amazed.

Hope on in, baby.

I hope someone is watching the shop.

Can you fit in my van?

OK, there are no straps.

There are no straps? No, it's pre-straps. You will be fine.

Are you ready for the ride of your life? Yes, let's go.

Second. Good gear change. Hold on tight.

Be careful with him, Christina.

There is just time for a quick run around the block.

I didn't terrify the life out of you? No, you didn't. Are you sure?

No, not at all. Good.

Well, that's one way to get yourself a set of storage jars for 77 euros.

You're an angel. So are you. Very, very pleased with my jars.

Nice to meet you. Take care, see you again. See you.

Just a few paces down the street, Thomas is on the prowl.

Hello, I'm Thomas. Thomas, how are you? Mervyn is my name.

You're very welcome, you're very welcome.

This looks fabulous. I'm going to have a really good look around.

Yeah, good stuff. I will warn you...

Oh, yes. Stand by.

..there is not a huge budget,

but what there is is burning a hole in my pocket.

OK, we will try and help you spend it.

I don't think he needs much help.

Look at that. That's quite a fun thing, that, isn't it?

It's a cartridge filler, isn't it? That's right, yeah.

They were for filling one's guns cartridges, weren't they? Yeah.

You clamp that onto the table. On it goes.

This is where your firing pin goes, on the top here.

You fill your beast as you wind it off with all the powder.

Then you fold it up into there.

This is when one used to make

one's own gun cartridges for shooting.

It is quite an interesting thing, isn't it? Yeah, it's nice, yeah.

I've not seen one like that before. Right, OK.

You called it Victorian. Yes, it is about that sort of level, isn't it?

Yes. Yes. OK.

Ticket price is 185 euros.

Merv, I'm going to level with you.

I said I had some money burning a hole in my pocket.

I do, and it is going to have to be spent. There is 60 euros.

What can you do for 60 euros?

What can I do for 60 euros?

Well, you were looking at that.

That would relieve me of 60 euros, would it?

It would. That would be it, done. Done and dusted.

That is really not a bad price. That has to be a purchase, really.

Very good. Very fair. You have been immensely fair.

He has relieved me of all my money...

apart from a couple of cent. Right. You can throw that in if you want.

Well, I can probably throw that in, couldn't I, really?

So that generous deal makes it 60 euros and 98 cents.

That has cleaned Thomas out and ends this trip's shopping.

Thomas spent all of his 289 euros, 98 cents on the collection of boxes,

the 19th-century soapstone items,

an agate salt,

the mother-of-pearl handles,

the cartridge loader,

and a pair of children's chairs.

Christina only left herself with loose change,

as she spent 292 euros on a set of 1950s storage jars with coffee pot,

a 19th-century brass fender,

an oil painting of a rustic scene,

and a painted pub sign.

What do they think of each other's offerings?

I think actually he has been quite risky.

He has been quite plucky and I like that.

I would happily swap probably most of my stuff,

to be perfectly honest, for that beautiful banded agate salt

that he bought, which I think is just an absolute stunner.

I really love her picture that she has bought.

I think it is delightful.

It's going to be such a close-call thing.

After starting this leg in Prosperous, in County Kildare,

our experts have travelled via Dublin to the Welsh town of Wrexham.

Today, our pair are headed straight to Wingetts Auction House.

Wielding the gavel is John Lloyd.

Now in Britain, the rest of the trip will be pounds.

So, with currency converted,

Christina has spent a total of ?205.63 on four items,

while Thomas's six lots have set him back a total of ?197.87.

First up are Thomas' collection of boxes.

I've got ?20 bid with me to go straight in.

20 bid, 5 bid, 30.

5, sir?

40. 5.

?40 bid. Profit. That's good.

I'm out. Sold on the internet.

Yes! Well done.

Good job. Result! Yeah.

A cracking start for Thomas.

Will his luck keep going?

His cartridge loader is next.

I've got ?15 bid. Straight in with me to go...

What did you spend on this?

40...

45, OK.

In the door at ?20. I'll take 2 for it.

Now at 22 I'm bid. 24. 26?

24.

41.

Next time.

That's a blow, but there's plenty left to go at, Thomas.

So disappointed. It's OK, it's OK.

It took Christina some clever negotiating

to get the storage jars,

but how will they fare?

We're on the internet, then, at ?26.

28 bid. 30.

And 5, sir. 40. God, making more.

40, bid. 5, sir? Oh, go on, sir. They're lovely.

?40 we've got bid.

All finished at 40.

Perhaps the damage to the jars has hit your chances of a profit.

I think that's disappointing.

I don't mind taking a loss

because I had such a lovely ride in the van with Alistan. Did you? Yeah.

Let's see if Thomas can get us back on track

with his mother-of-pearl handles.

I'll take ?20 to start for them.

Nobody is going to bid.

No bid for these? I can't believe that.

10, then?

?10 I've got. 12 I'm bid. 14.

16.

16, back in. 18.

20.

They're out on the net at 18 bid. It's ?18. 18.

That's good. ?7 profit.

I was expecting three figures.

I was!

Well, you know what they say about expectations.

No, don't, don't...

Perhaps your hopes were a little high, but that's still a profit.

Next up, the club fender.

This cost Christina 120 euros, which comes out at just under ?85.

Cheap.

I've got ?100 straight in with me to start, then. 100. 110. 120. 130.

140. 150.

High-five? High-five?

170. 180. 190. 200. ?200 on the internet!

?200 on the internet!

Get in there. ?220 in the room.

?220, the bid is in the room. This never happens to me.

220 bid.

All done? GAVEL BANGS

Well done.

A superb profit for the fender gives Christina a healthy lead.

I've got some catching up to do, Christina. No, you haven't. I have.

No, no.

Can the collection of Chinese soapstone perform as well for Thomas?

?10 I'm bid, starting.

12 I've got on the internet. 14 bid, 16.

See, it's going, it's going.

?18.

You're out on the internet.

Thanks for coming. 20, you're into a profit.

On the net.

Sadly, after auction costs, that's a small loss.

Next up, it's Christina's painted pub sign.

Ought to be ?20 to start.

Oh, internet bid 15, that's good.

15, see - straight in, profit.

I'll take 16 if it helps you. 16 I am bid.

At ?16 we're still on the net at ?16. It'll take 18.

18 I've got. 20?

20 bid. 2.

24. 26. 28.

28 bid. 30. 2?

In the room at 30.

That's good, isn't it? Again, high-five.

That's more of a medium-five.

Jealous.

Well jel.

Another good profit. Things are going very well for Christina.

Thomas is playing catch-up and his agate salt is next.

?5 I've got to start.

It's in the door. I'll take 6, I'm bid 8.

6, internet. 8, internet. 10, internet.

See? Profit, profit, profit, profit.

14. 16.

18.

Goes on the internet.

?18. What's that, ?7 profit? Yeah, ?7.

That's good. It's OK.

A modest profit for Thomas.

Christina's oil painting is her final lot.

Maiden bid for this one at ?30.

I'm only bid 30. 35 got, and I'm out.

At ?35 the bid is in the room.

It's cheap at 35. It'll wipe out all my profits.

No, I don't think so.

Moving on. Quite rightly.

50?

All done?

Oh, go on.

50 bid. 5? See? There you are.

Sold at 50.

A small loss, and it's not over yet.

Thomas spent a huge 125 euros on those chairs,

which is around ?90,

but will it pay off?

10 for them.

?10. Early bid on my right, standing. 12 bid. 14. 16.

18. 20. And 2?

24.

26.

It's getting there.

It's getting there. 40. And 2?

?42 I'm bid in the room, standing, at 42 bid.

I'll take 44 if you want.

It's standing.

Actually, that's like a body blow...

A hammer going through my body.

Well, someone's got a bargain,

picking up a beautiful pair of chairs for a great price.

Anyway, go on. Let's go and see how much money I've made.

I think... No. It might take us a while.

To count it all?

You're so cruel.

So how have our pair fared?

Thomas, looking grim, spent every last penny of his ?197.87.

After auction costs,

he's made a loss of ?60.93,

leaving him a total of ?136.94

to take on to the next leg.

Christina started with ?205.75

and after auction costs

made a fantastic ?73.17 profit.

So she has won the day with ?278.91 and a substantial lead,

so well done, girl.

My goodness. Well done.

I need a telescope to see where you are

and you need a telescope to see where I am.

You might have to go and get the van

because my pockets are weighing me down. Are they?

Can I borrow some money? I'm not sure I can walk.

Can I borrow some money? You've, like, made hundreds.

Cheerio.