Episode 9 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 will be worthy winners and valiant losers.

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

The hand brake's on.

This is Antiques Road Trip!

Yeah!

Welcome to a right old ramble around the country,

in the company of delectable antiques experts, Charles and Margie.

-Are you enjoying yourself?

-Of course I am.

-Really?

-In your company.

-Really?

-You're a little bright spark!

-Am I really?

-Yes, you are.

He's full of advice too.

-Be yourself. Live the dream.

-And make sure you don't win.

I...you know, always think about what you're looking for.

Like yourself, you're in good condition.

You're of a certain quality.

You are becoming that fashionable lot, Margie Cooper.

I don't know whether to be flattered or offended!

Either way, dealer and Cheshire girl

Margie Cooper is playing catch up on this road trip.

-I feel like I'm going to break it, Mike.

-No, I'm just worried that...

You'll lose the sale!

Behind the wheel of their dashing 1959 Elva is the man in front,

auctioneer and bright spark Charles Hanson.

Sometimes, when you're going into a battle,

you need your mates with you.

Yeah...

Our duo set off on this road trip with £200 each.

After three trips to auction, Margie has £325.74.

But with a clean sweep of victories so far,

Charles is boasting £545.02.

Their epic road trip started off

in the Leicestershire town of Melton Mowbray.

They've been touring around six counties

and will end their week in Leicester.

In this penultimate leg, our pair start off in Nottingham

and will make their way towards auction in Lincoln.

-This is the River Trent.

-Really?

We are now literally - and over there,

-that must be the forest where Robin Hood hung out.

-Oh, lovely.

He's going to be in there, is he?

You are the current, present-day Maid Marian.

And I can be your Robin Hood.

That would be a sight to see. Ha!

Let's see what riches our experts can uncover in Nottingham.

-Look at this! It's amazing! My jacket's off, Margie.

-Coats off.

-Can I go for a wander? Is that OK?

-Good morning!

They're on top form this morning.

Look at him go!

What do you think?

Mmm...

Yeah, I quite like that.

Really?

Oh, look here. Let's see if he growls.

Right, here we go...

BEAR GROWLS WEAKLY

He sounds like a flock of sheep!

Puzzling, that(!)

HE BLOWS HORN TUNELESSLY

Lordy, you need a mouthpiece.

Now, what's this box? And it says Derbyshire Shrievalty.

Or SHRIVE-alty... Francis Douglas Ley, Esquire,

1956-1957.

Something to do with the Sheriff's office or something? And it's £29.

What else has caught Margie's eye?

That's really nice. Lovely bit of Art Nouveau silver there.

With that lovely Art Nouveau lady at the bottom.

It's just a little bit...

I mean, that could be replaced quite easily.

£69, Art Nouveau, 1910, very, very nice indeed.

Time to speak to assistant Lynn.

It's verging on rude if I said £35.

Right, we'll give it a go.

While Lynn calls the dealer to see what can be done,

what has Charles found?

Isn't that a pretty shape? There's one word I've got for that.

It could almost melt.

It's almost organic.

It's sinuous.

It's quite unusual.

And it's what I would call the Art Nouveau.

That's a lot of words, Charles.

These Chantilly sprigs are printed rather than being painted.

That's quite nice. Condition? Oh, what a shame! What a shame!

There's a chip on the inside of the rim. Oh, dear.

But it is so stylish.

And it's made in Limoges.

Limoges is a city in central France

that has lent its name to fine porcelain since the 18th century.

This sugar box dates from around 1910.

A great-looking object.

Only £10, it's not expensive. Could be a fiver.

He likes to run up, he likes to run down. Best find salesmen Tony, then.

It's priced at a tenner.

-I wonder whether you could do it for £5.

-Erm...

-To an old mate!

-Yes.

-Is that a yes?

-Yes.

-Lovely. I'm going to take it.

Well, that was worth the jog downstairs.

A first purchase of the day and the battle has begun.

-Get off!

-I've always liked gnomes. He is early, Margie. Very nice.

-Get off!

-Would you like me to make an offer? Oh, he's nice!

-He's an early one.

-It is not very early.

When it comes to gnomes, Margie, and their history,

-they are quite early and he's an early one.

-I was having a joke.

I picked him up and realised he was old because he's so badly painted.

-Somebody's painted it.

-It's deceptive.

-It is.

-Would you not...?

-But you're not a gnome collector, are you?

-£13.50.

I might have a go at that.

Where was it, Margie? I never saw that.

I didn't think we'd have to separate this pair over a gnome!

I don't really want this guy. I was having a laugh with Charles, really.

And I thought he was brand new. But he's not brand new.

He's just horribly painted.

Before you decide, let's find out

what Lynn can do for the box and mirror.

It would have to be 65...

-For the two?

-For the two, yeah.

Ahem, ahem! Don't forget old ugly mugs.

You're never going to sell that, are you?

You'd need a real mug punter to buy that.

It's just that I happen to like gnomes. £69 and throw him in.

OK, a deal.

-Great stuff.

-A cracking haul for Margie.

Three items in her first shop, all for £69.

Charles is back on the road and is making his way to Southwell

in rural Nottinghamshire.

He is visiting an imposing building with a bleak history.

Behind these walls, a harsh new way of treating the poorest in society

was created to tackle one of the biggest problems in Victorian Britain.

-Hello.

-Hi!

-You must be Sam.

-Hi.

-Sam, I'm Charles Hanson.

-Hi, Charles. Pleased to meet you.

-What an amazing building!

This is a workhouse and it was built in 1824,

and it was to house the destitute in society.

At the end of the 18th century,

the labouring classes were at the mercy of the harvests,

and poverty was regarded as an unavoidable part of life.

At a time before the welfare state,

hand-outs in local parishes of money and food were the only

thing preventing the poor from being left to die on the streets.

But in the newly industrialised world of the 19th century,

poverty was also rife. The strain to provide for the poor

created a crisis and a new solution was required.

Some believed charity should be made less desirable.

From that idea sprung a new type of poor relief,

and Southwell was part of the social revolution that emerged.

Reverend Beecher, who was local to Southwell and a clergyman,

looked at a new way of a workhouse,

and this was to be different.

The way that the poor would ask for relief would change from being given

help in their own homes to being compelled to come into a workhouse.

This was the only choice.

Beecher's idea meant that hand-outs were no longer provided.

Instead, the underprivileged were brought here

and made to work in return for food and shelter.

This significantly reduced the cost of looking after the poor.

But for this system to prosper,

conditions in the workhouse needed to be so harsh that only the truly

destitute would be willing to go there in the first place for help.

If you came here as a family, it must've been the hardest decision

you would ever make as a family, because you were separated once you were in.

And you would only see each other once a week, on a Sunday,

if you behaved yourself.

Regardless of age, inmates, as they were known,

were divided by gender and then into those able and those unable to work.

Each group was kept separate at all times.

It was a harsh life, with real rules and regulations.

Is that what Beecher wanted?

Was he behind the poor and looking after them?

Well, yes, he was, because, you know, he gave a home

and a place of refuge to people that were really in need,

that potentially had nobody else to look after them.

This building was designed to hold around 160 inmates.

By the mid 19th century,

there were hundreds of thousands of workhouse inmates across the country.

Poverty in Victorian Britain was so severe that the shelter

of the workhouse was the only thing that would keep them alive.

-So this duvet cover actually feels like it's filled with...

-Straw.

-Straw. It's straw?

-Yeah.

-It's straw.

Gosh, I mean...that's not very comfortable at all, is it?

No comfort. You can, yeah...

Golly, I just wonder how many eyes looked at the ceiling

and thought, "Is this my life?"

Because the bed is so uncomfortable and this cover I suppose

did add warmth, but it's not overly nice, even against my rough hands.

-But that was life.

-It was.

And it was better than a hedgerow, I should imagine.

Work was considered important to improve the moral outlook

of the inmates, but it also generated income.

For around 10 hours each day,

the inhabitants could be subjected to backbreaking physical labour.

Some would work in the fields,

while others would break up rocks to sell for road building.

The phrase "money for old rope" comes from inmates teasing

the fibres from ropes to be recycled and sold on.

This was the price paid for basic food and shelter.

It was a form of welfare.

It provided relief and it provided warmth and shelter

and a home for those that had no alternative.

The system used here became the model for the treatment of the poor

over the next century.

Workhouses were rolled out across the country

and all other forms of poor relief were abolished.

Over time, they became feared and hated places.

It was only with welfare reform and the creation of the National Health Service in the 1940s

that these brutal workhouses, that were once viewed as revolutionary, were finally brought to an end.

Close by, Margie is scouring the streets of Southwell to find

herself something to purchase.

This looks just the job.

-Ah, Terry!

-Hello!

-Terry, I must say, how great to see that.

The old-fashioned sign for an antique shop.

Ah, yes. The barber's pole of the antiques world.

-Good to meet you.

-And you. Margie, and you're Terry?

-Yeah, I'm Terry.

Introductions over, what takes your fancy?

-I see you've got lots of nice shiny stuff.

-Yes! I like my silver.

-Some of it's reasonably modern and other pieces are...

-These are old.

-There is a little piece there that is a Victorian.

-That's lovely.

But I can't see a price there.

Oh, here we go! Time for a closer look, Terry?

See, we've got that, we've got that on at £59. You'll get that at £59.

Absolutely cracking nick, late Victorian.

-What a lovely thing to give somebody for a gift, eh?

-Mm.

I'm trying to find the mark at the moment.

Oh, yeah. Oh, God, that's nice. Nice little Chester hallmark.

That's really nice. Right, OK. That's a little start.

And I'm going to start having a little wander, if I may?

Have a wander and if you spot anything,

I'll always do a price for you. I'm well known for it.

Aw, Terry, that's really nice.

Two feet from the till and Margie's got her eye on some silver. Anything else?

Right, let's just have a look.

OK, what's this?

This looks quite nice, doesn't it?

It's a marriage.

I think the base is rosewood.

A different top to how it started life.

Mahogany.

Really?

The ticket price is £65.

If it's not a lot of money, it doesn't really matter

about the marriage. But if you're spending a lot of money,

you've got to have the right top with the right base.

-Oh, yeah. One to think about, then.

-What are these here?

-The cards?

They are, I believe, from 19... Well, First World War, 1914.

I think they're called sweetheart cards.

Sweetheart cards were postcards created for soldiers to send

back home to their loved ones. These are dated from the First World War.

-They haven't been written on.

-So you bought them as a collection?

Yeah, yeah. Some people prefer them to be written on.

-Oh, my goodness me. A little bit dramatic, aren't they?

-Mm.

-But why not?

-Why not? It was dramatic times!

It was, yeah. So how much are those, Terry?

-Well, it's £25 for the whole lot.

-Doesn't sound a lot, does it?

-I don't think it's a lot.

-No.

-I've also seen - in the other room - the little table.

-Yeah.

-Maybe we could go and look together?

-Yeah, yeah. Have a look.

Got something in your eye, Margie?

So it's on at 65, I believe.

Yeah, which is, you know, you'd be lucky if it gets that.

-What are you looking at?

-So, for the three...

-For the three, yeah?

85.

Sorry?

Well, the cards are bit...

90, and they're all yours.

Done it!

And just like that, Margie polishes off a very productive day.

Nighty-night.

-It's another day and another county.

-Wakey-wakey!

We're shopping in our great country.

-We are.

-Give me an L.

-Leicestershire.

-Lincolnshire!

Geography aside, Margie went straight to the head of the class

yesterday, grabbing a silver hand mirror, a document trunk,

a painted gnome, a silver sweetmeat dish,

a set of World War I postcards and a side table -

leaving her with £166.74.

Charles had a rather more sedate start to proceedings,

picking up a Limoges sugar box,

so he still has a rather large

£540.02 to spend today.

And with some ground to make up,

Charles is hopping out to Navenby to visit his first emporium of the day.

-Pull in here, Margie. Thanks, Marge. See you later.

-Bye-bye!

-Bye!

-See you!

-Good morning, how are you?

-Good morning, Charles!

-Nice to see you.

Nice to see you again.

Do you know, I was about to say, it looks vaguely familiar.

-You were here three or four years ago. You were.

-Yes, I was.

A long time ago.

Hopefully, there's plenty of new stock for you by now, Charles.

These are quite sweet. Let me hold one.

If you close your eyes... and you grab the other one...

-And I think these are cut, aren't they?

-Yes.

-So, they're not moulded.

If they were moulded, they'd be quite smooth and not so crisp.

On my collar here, a very clear hallmark, which is for Birmingham.

And the date code, I suspect, is probably 1910, 1912.

They're probably George V. One is slightly bigger than the other one.

Hallmark for the same date code as well,

so they are a pair, which is great to see.

That's a pair of perfume bottles for a ticket price of £125.

Laura, I think what I'll do...

I will earmark these as a definitely-maybe.

-Yes, absolutely, I'll pop them on the counter for you.

-And then come back to them.

But there's so much to see here in your shop.

-I'm going to wander on.

-I'd watch out, Laura.

Charles looks like he's going to get stuck in this morning.

This is a lovely mahogany box.

On the inside, it's pine.

And what's interesting is this dealer has put

a flame mahogany two-section tea caddy, circa 1890.

In fact, it's more like 1790.

And of course, tea, back in 1790, was very expensive.

Tea was kept under lock and key, to keep the butler out.

You can buy - not a late Victorian tea caddy -

but a Georgian tea caddy for £14.

And that's amazing. Interesting.

That's a great find, and he's not hanging about...

Wow!

What we've got here is probably a panel, which is very much

in the Gothic taste.

That panel may have come off a pew, but it's certainly

a piece of timber that has come off something perhaps ecclesiastical.

This big, heavily carved piece of yew, that is probably circa 1600.

I really think it's that early.

And of course, to celebrate the panel, what somebody has done,

in maybe the 20th century, is put these oak legs

and stretcher onto it.

And it could be £65. But next to it is this.

And I love this. This stool is tribal. And it reads here,

"African? Stool?"

All we know is it's £85.

But it certainly is African and it's well-carved, with great colour.

You could almost eat off it.

It is such a well-patinated original African stool,

of circa 1890.

And that stool really has legs.

Hey, he's unearthing a lot in here.

That's nice.

That's lovely, isn't it?

This actually is Scottish.

And it's just so different.

What I like, again, if you look very closely,

is the gold specks within the actual glass body.

It's only priced at £75, which, to me,

is a fairly conservative retail price.

Importantly, has it got a good ring?

Yes, it has! It's lovely.

Again, I might go and query that, alongside the stools, with Laura.

I think Laura's got a calculator. Let's start with the bowl.

-Dean says he will do that for you...

-Look at me...

..at what he paid for it.

-Oh, crikey!

-And he'll do that for you at £40.

-So, at cost price. Wowee, that's good!

Have you got a pen? May I borrow a pen and paper?

-Yes!

-Because when I get a bit nervous and we talk money...

-You need to start writing some notes.

-My mind can go a bit blank.

Yeah... Paper at the ready, Laura also offers £30 for the church stool

and £40 for the African tribal fellow.

-£10 for the tea caddy and knocks £55 off the scent bottles.

-Wow!

I need to lie down. I've got a sweat on. I've got a sweat on!

That leaves Charles staring at a generous £174 discount.

And I will say for £190, I'm going, going, gone.

-Excellent!

-Thank you so much, Laura. Thank you so much!

-Hey, a huge haul for £190.

-Thank you.

-Very welcome. Aw!

-See you, Laura. Take care. Bye!

Keeps on kissing hands. What a charmer!

Oh, dear! I feel a bit dizzy now. Take care.

And no wonder. Top work, Charles!

Margie has toddled north to the cathedral city of Lincoln,

to learn about one of the most popular men in Victorian Britain.

Grace Timmons is introducing Margie to the Alfred Tennyson Collection,

which tells of a man

who not only became one of our most celebrated poets,

but changed the way the public viewed

and interacted with poetry forever.

In this corner, we've got the books that Tennyson grew up with.

-This is his father's library, which was in Somersby.

-Yeah.

Tennyson was born in 1809, he was one of 11 children born in 13 years.

Gosh! Tennyson's father was a scholar, who tutored Tennyson

and his brothers with a classical education.

I've got a book here that I can show you.

It's Virgil, which indicates a lot of his approach to the study

that his father set him to do.

-So we see a lot of...

-He made comments all the time.

-Yeah.

And there's a lot of translation and comments here

and this is probably his teenage work.

But what I like best, though, is if you look at the front,

apart from all the doodles that are here, we've got this,

which says Tennyson, Somersby, in Lincolnshire, in England,

in Europe, in the world, in the air, in space!

So, he's got a bit of attitude, hasn't he?

But life in the rectory wasn't always a happy place.

Alfred's father is believed

to have been prone to alcoholism and violence.

Poetry was Alfred's escape.

At the age of 18, he published a collection of poems,

with his brothers, before leaving home for Cambridge University.

When he arrived in Cambridge,

suddenly he's meeting a whole group of young men who are

like-minded but who had a very different background to him.

So, they're urbane, sophisticated, well travelled. But they really enjoyed what he was writing.

And Arthur Hallam, a friend he made, who became his best friend,

was particularly constructive about Tennyson's work

and very supportive of his creativity.

They became inseparable friends

but when Hallam died suddenly at the age of 22,

Tennyson was hit hard by grief.

He then embarked on a journey of poetic therapy,

that would last 15 years and result in one of his most celebrated works.

Probably his most famous couplet is from In Memoriam,

when he finally decided, the grief he was experiencing from

the death of Hallam was kind of worth it. He says,

I felt it, when I sorrow'd most,

'Tis better to have loved and lost, Than never to have loved at all.

Published in 1850, his work became an instant success.

His popularity was cemented that same year, when Queen Victoria

named him Wordsworth's successor as poet laureate,

thanks in part to the support of Prince Albert.

So, this is a letter from Prince Albert to Tennyson,

asking him to write his name in his copy of Idylls of the King.

He actually sends him his copy of Idylls of the King.

-He's not asking for a signed copy.

-So, do it!

Yes and he says, "You'll add a peculiar value to this book."

So, it's a very interesting autograph request, I think.

Tennyson was now a voice of the people.

In the Crimean War, he put this position to good use

when he wrote of the ill-fated miscommunication that sent

British cavalry headlong into the Russian troops with heavy losses.

The resulting poem was The Charge Of The Light Brigade.

-Is that his original draft?

-Yes, it is.

This is a particularly interesting one

because it's got the writing of his wife, as well as his own writing.

He says it was written after reading the first report of The Times.

The Crimean War was the first conflict to be covered

by photographers and reporters.

Tennyson's poem was published

in the newspaper just weeks after the tragic event.

"Forward, the Light Brigade!" Was there a man dismay'd?

Not tho' the soldier knew Someone had blunder'd:

Theirs not to make reply, Theirs not to reason why,

Theirs but to do and die:

Into the valley of Death Rode the six hundred.

It helped shape public perception of the entire war.

His work signalled a new journalistic style that changed people's

engagement with poetry.

It was so successful that soldiers took copies of it with them to war.

Tennyson had become one of the most recognisable

and influential men in the country, via poetry.

I think it's difficult for people to comprehend now just how popular

a poet could be in those days.

But in fact, he had the popularity of a songwriter

because he was writing the songs, really,

that, in the time of non-recorded music, that people would be

able to use to describe what was going on in their lives.

So, it meant that when it came to his last illness and death,

it was followed in the newspapers.

And his family labelled and kept lots of quite intimate things,

really, to do with his final illness. On this box is the label,

"Last medicine drop glass used by him and for him."

And that's the date of his death, October 6th, 1892.

Very Victorian.

And in here, is the handkerchief which covered the dear face.

And that was put on his face when he died.

-And this is meant to be the book that was in his hands when he died.

-When he died...

And his son has actually marked the page that was meant to be

open on his deathbed, in his hands.

So, to the very end, he was reading.

That was what they wanted to portray.

11,000 people applied for tickets to attend Tennyson's funeral

at Westminster Abbey.

His work changed the immediacy and relevance of poetry

and his immortal lines continue for generations to appreciate.

Meanwhile, Charles is 20 miles north,

nestled on the banks of the River Trent

in a place called Gainsborough.

Once the location of Britain's most inland port,

it is now home to what claims to be Europe's largest antiques centre.

Stand by.

Where do I start?

Something to really impress.

There's some wonderful things, it's just where to start.

But what I'm really after is that object which just speaks history.

It'll be here. It will be here.

Perhaps some help from Diane will keep you on track.

I quite like that little Georgian cordial glass down there,

-that's quite a sweet thing, isn't it?

-It is.

But it's almost like what I would call a toasting glass.

Don't you agree? It's got quite a heavy base.

So almost, to come to attention...

CLASS CLINKS

-Perfect.

-I shall make an announcement.

I would like to declare...

you are a fine lady.

And that's almost what it was.

And of course, the Georgians did enjoy their different

air twists and other wine glasses of the period. It is a lead glass.

I would say it dates to around 1780, and it's £23.

But if I said to you, what would be the best price on a toasting glass

made, let's say, 10 years before the French Revolution?

-And I'd say £21.

-Really?

There we go, that's really good.

-Could I reserve it for a wee while?

-Of course.

And then just possibly come back and make an announcement.

I might buy it.

Well, we'll wait with bated breath then.

Oh, look, Margie has arrived.

If something leaps out at me, I will buy,

but I've actually got enough...

for this leg. But gosh, look at it.

Yes, with six lots tucked away, there's no pressure.

But you never know what you might find, Margie.

-Hello, how are you?

-Very well.

Hold on, can I help you at all?

-What a lovely place.

-Isn't it?

-Are you enjoying it?

-How's your day been so far?

-Not too bad. How's your day been?

Isn't it amazing? You know this is one of four buildings?

-Really?

-What are you doing here?

Don't be silly, course there isn't! Why are you always teasing me?

-It's huge, this building is huge.

-You're trying to put me off.

Get out of here, Margie Cooper! See you later.

-Are there more buildings?

-Yes, there are. There are three more buildings.

-As big as this?

-Yes.

There are more buildings.

Good gracious me.

Overwhelming, eh?

This is quite a good place.

Crikey, you could get lost in here.

My word.

Numbered coat hooks.

Must be from the school, mustn't it?

£75.

It's quite nice having them numbered though.

Put that in a kitchen.

No. No.

Maybe a friend for your gnome.

Dogs?

So convincing, but they are brand new.

Well, Margie, you have quite enough already,

so if you can find your way out, perhaps you should leave it at that.

Bye-bye!

Diane, just over a year, I wonder, if I have a quick peek,

I've seen a toasting glass down there,

but the other glass which is interesting because the dealer

has put 19th-century Victorian -

it could be an 18th-century glass.

There we are.

"Victorian double-air twist-stem ale glass."

A big tell-tale sign is the foot room must always be wider

than the rim of the bowl - or it's a very good guideline.

So I'm happy that's 18th century.

It's actually quite heavy. Lead glass, not soda.

Actually, I quite like that.

-Got to be careful. It's got a big chip there. Can you see?

-Yeah.

Priced at £58. What could be the best on that?

-52.

-52.

If I said to you, I was going to put this with the other toasting glass,

that makes 73.

-Would you round it off to 70?

-We can't, I'm sorry,

-it's two different dealers.

-Sure. OK.

Never mind, Charles, nice try.

I'll take them. Two together. Yeah, put it there.

Thank you very much, Diana. Fine. Thank you.

The old Hanson charm never wanes.

Two glasses for £73 rounds off our shopping.

And what a spree it's been.

Margie spent £159 on a hand mirror,

a document trunk,

a painted gnome,

a silver sweetmeat dish,

a side table

and a collection of First World War postcards.

Charles spent £268 on a Limoges sugar box

which he's pairing with the wooden tea caddy,

a pair of scent bottles,

a Scottish glass bowl,

an ecclesiastic stool,

a tribal stool,

and his final lot will be his toasting glass

and a Victorian wine glass.

What do they think of each other's purchases?

If I was a gambling man, I would say, "Go, Hanson, go!"

But, Margie, you never know.

She's a bit of a lethal weapon

and I do like very much her table and her silverware.

Yes, I'm quietly confident tomorrow that I will make small profits.

And I'm not that worried about his.

Apart from maybe that stool, the African stool. They can be a worry.

So hopefully that all goes wrong for him.

After starting out in Nottingham,

our pair have zipped their way through Nottinghamshire

up and around Lincolnshire and ending this leg at an auction in Lincoln.

-Margie, I honestly can't believe how misty it is.

-Awful.

Many years ago at school, I had a maths teacher called Mr Misty.

Maybe there's a formula there.

-Maybe Charles x Margie = profit all around.

-Mr Misty!

Well, let's hope that calculation all adds up to a thrilling encounter

at Unique Auctions in Lincoln.

Come on, follow your lion. I'll follow this one.

Margie spent £159 on six lots.

Charles also picked up six lots for £268.

Unfortunately, his beautiful glass bowl was broken on its way

to the auction and has been given an insurance valuation of £50.

So the bowl may be shattered,

but Charles does get a £10 profit to start him off.

What does auctioneer Terence Woodcock make of the remaining items?

Smashing?

Postcards, very speculative lot, the postcards.

They could do £30. They could to £80.

The toasting glass is an early-Georgian toasting glass.

The hair-twist wine glass. Very nice. Could be between £60 to £80.

We'll soon find out. It's time to take your seats.

The auction is about to start.

Hold tight.

Our first lot of the day is Margie's silver sweetmeat dish.

20 I've got there. 25. 30.

35. 40, fresh bid. At 45.

-At 45. 50.

-Marge, you're flying.

-You're flying.

-At 50, I'll take five now. At £50, have you all done?

I'm selling, the second row.

-That's good, that's good.

-Fish!

Is it fish? Margie, Margie, like a flying fish, you have flown.

It may be small fry to you, Margie,

but that's a decent profit to get you started.

The day has started well.

Well, surely you can be optimistic about your silver hand mirror.

£40 straight in. At £40. I'll take five now. 50 now.

-55 now.

-Wow, Margie.

-I'll take 60 now.

At 55, have you all done?

£55, it is yours.

A good steady profit.

That's all it's worth in that condition.

Charles's first purchase is up, the cut glass perfume bottles. Lovely.

You'll get...maybe get your money back.

-Who'll start me at £100 the pair?

-Come on, come on.

-Come on, 30. 30 I've got there.

-I'm in trouble, come on, let's go.

-At 40...

-Come on!

-Ssh!

-Sorry.

-LAUGHTER

Let the man do his job, Charles.

-I'm so embarrassed.

-I'm doing my best.

40 I've got there. 40. At 45.

At 55 I've got there. 55, I'm looking for 60 I've got.

At 60, I'll take five. Now 65 in the front.

I'm looking for 70 now. At 65 I sell.

Sold.

That's a small loss. But there's plenty of time to make that back.

-How often do you make a loss?

-Margie...

-I'm really enjoying it.

Margie, it could be a big one loss today, I tell you.

Can Margie fare any better with her First World War postcards?

50 straight in. 50 I've got there. At £50. I'll take five now.

At 55, straight in at 55.

I'll take 60. 60, fresh bid.

At £60 in the room, I'll take five.

Marge, I'm in the bunker.

I'm staying in the bunker, I'm not coming out yet.

70 back in. At 75, 75, 80.

80, I'm looking for five. 85.

Margie, you know what, sometimes there is an escape to victory.

And I'm going to salute you.

I sell to the gentleman at £85.

Well, that bought the sale room to attention,

and a cracking profit for Margie. Well done.

Hold on, Margie. I'm surrendering now.

Well, there's no giving up,

and your sugar box and tea caddy could just get you back in the game.

Straight in at 10, 12, 14, 16, 18.

-I need some help now.

-20, fresh bid.

-Come on, let's move.

-Get the caddy out, man.

-28, £30. At £30, are you all done?

It's in the doorway at 30, and I sell at £30.

Doubling his money. This could be the start of a comeback for Mr Hanson.

The rollercoaster is now at the big dipper and I'm about to come down.

I thought we were supposed to be going up, not down.

That's it, Margie, going up.

It almost started a fight in the antique shop,

but will there be a brawl in the sale room for Margie's gnome?

Who'll start me at £50 on the garden gnome?

-£30 on the garden gnome?

-Get out of here.

Come on, somebody, please.

10 on the garden gnome?

Thank you, sir. At 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22.

-Oh, no.

-At 26, 28.

£30. At £30, £30 still in the doorway.

-That's brilliant.

-At £30. £30 it is. Have you all done?

It's Margie's lucky day.

They might not be paying for the paintwork,

but that's still a great profit.

-It's rolling in.

-And the gap here in Lincolnshire

-is widening and widening.

-It's rolling in.

A chance for Charles to claw back with his two glasses.

£30, I've got. At £30. At 30,

-I'm expecting this to make 100.

-Come on.

-At £30.

-And 35, 45, 50, 55.

-Come on, let's move, come on.

The little twist one used to make 200.

-Absolutely. Come on, let's go.

-At 65. At 65 and I sell now at £65.

Oh, dear me!

That's an amazing price for two glasses that are over 200 years old.

-Oh, dear, I don't know what to say.

-I could cry.

Yeah, we feel your sympathy, Margie. Time for your document trunk.

30 I've got. At £30.

-I'll take five now.

-Profit? Is that a profit?

-At £30, are we all done?

What's wrong with this? 35, thank you. 40 with the original bidder.

45, I'll take 50 now.

At 45, I'm going to sell it, and I think it's very, very cheap,

at 45, but there you are.

That's another good profit and edges Margie further into the lead.

Well chuffed.

Time for the first of Charles's wooden stools.

20 I've got there. At £20.

-Let's go.

-25 straight in.

30. 35. 38, thank you.

38, eight pounds profit.

I'll take one if it will help.

It might do.

I'll tell you the provenance afterwards. 41.

I'll tell you as well. 42.

-When the going gets tough, squeeze a bit.

-43.

-44. 45.

-He's really working hard.

Now, after what I've done, you've got to go 46. 46.

We could be up to 200 in a minute.

Good lad. I like your style.

Stylish work from Terence and a profit for Charles.

-Happy, Margie, I'm happy.

-Happy.

-Very happy indeed.

Margie wasn't convinced by the married sidetable,

but will it come back to haunt her?

I'm not holding out, but I think I might be lucky

because it's my lucky day, isn't it?

I've got the lady at 20, 25 straight in.

I'll take 30 now, at £30.

35, 35, I'll take 40. £40 I've got.

At £40 now. At £40, come on now, at £40.

-45.

-45, 45, £50.

At 50. Have you all done, at £50?

-That's good.

-Made a profit all day.

That nice little profit seals a 100% record on the day.

Something special is about to happen. I can feel it.

Will you stop it?

No pressure then, but Charles's final lot is his big hope

and the last chance to catch Margie today.

-50 I've got, thank you. At £50 now.

-Come on, guys.

-At 50.

-At 55. At 55.

-Need to run a bit here.

65, fresh bid. At 65. 70. At 70.

I'll take two if it will help.

70 I've got. Back in, 72.

75, I'm looking for now.

No, at 72 and I sell. At 72.

-That's our game over, Margie.

-Not bad.

That's a good profit, but was it enough? Time to find out.

Give me a high five. Margie, give me a high five. There we go.

Keep going, get out of here.

Charles started with £545.02,

and after auction costs he made 96p profit - ha! -

giving him a total of £545.98p.

Margie had £325.74p at the start of this leg.

After auction costs, she racked up a fantastic profit of £99.30p.

She wins the day and edges ever closer to Charles,

going into the final leg.

-What a turn-up for the books.

-I don't know what to say, Margie.

-I won at auction.

-Another day yet.

-Exactly, Margie.

-There's another day.

-One big day.

-Bye, everybody!

-Bye! See you, bye!

Cheerio!

Next time, the last chance to shop before the final auction...

-Let's just go for it.

-..as Margie races to the finish line...

I'm going to take a chance.

..Charles walks all over the competition.

The last thing I want is Hanson on stilts.