Episode 3 Antiques Road Trip

It's the nation's favourite antiques experts, with £200 each...

I want something shiny.

..a classic car... HORN TOOTS

and a goal - to scour Britain for antiques.

I like a rummage!

I can't resist.

The aim - to make the biggest profit at auction.

But it's no mean feat.

Why do I always do this to myself?!

There'll be worthy winners.

Give us a kiss!

And valiant losers.

Come on, stick 'em up!

So, will it be the high road to glory...

Onwards and upwards!

..or the slow road to disaster?

Take me home!

This is Antiques Road Trip.

Yeah!

On this third leg of the road trip,

we're in some Tudor towns in Warwickshire,

with the king and queen of the antiques trade,

Catherine Southon and Charles Hanson.

He's the king, she's the queen.

We are in Middle England.

Welcome to what I would call the home of heritage.

It is beautiful round here.

Catherine started her career at one of London's top auction houses,

and still deals with a straight-talking logic and acumen,

as you would expect.

-B&W.

-B&W?

-Black and white.

-Yeah?

Black and white timber-frame cottages.

I love the way, Charles, you talk in riddles,

you make absolutely no sense whatsoever.

Quite!

While Charles runs a Derbyshire saleroom with his trademark passion

for all things antiquated and archaic.

And chaotic and really rather lovely.

This area is renowned for black and white timber-frame cottages,

Anne Hathaway's,

Shakespeare's...

Ah, to be or not to be.

With our bards of buying starting off with £200,

Catherine now has £207.30...

..while Charles has proved himself a true titan of trading,

having accumulated £660.98.

He learned everything from me.

How much have you got? You've got thousands!

Oh, get out of here! I've got...tens of pounds.

Today they're driving a green goddess,

this 1981 MGB GT,

which they're calling Meg, as you do.

Are you with us, Meg? She's with us.

Well, you wouldn't be going very far if she wasn't, would you? Ha!

On this whole road trip,

Catherine and Charles began in southern England

before wending their way up the country,

journeying several hundred miles.

They'll finally finish up in Congleton in Cheshire.

On this leg, they start off in the Warwickshire village of Long Marston

and aim for auction in Newport, Shropshire.

But what might be their dream buys on this leg, eh?

See, I don't have sweet dreams any more on the road trip,

-I have nightmares.

-Get out of here!

Wondering what else you're going to buy!

It's treasure hunting, it's like my hobby of metal detecting.

-You can't guarantee...

-You don't do metal detecting!

As a young boy, what got me into treasure hunting...

-SHE LAUGHS

-..was metal detecting,

I love it. What's so funny?!

SHE MIMICS DETECTOR BLEEPING

Let's hope they can both find something that glitters

as they head for their first shops,

and, having dropped Charles off,

Catherine's striding towards her first destination.

Ooh, hello!

-Good morning.

-Hi, I'm Catherine, very nice to meet you.

Pleasantries over, time to shop.

But what's this chapeau, then?

That...

is amazing.

It's a beautiful dancer's headdress.

I have to try this on.

It's actually not as heavy as I thought it was going to be.

Oh, you are the queen, indeed, the pearly queen!

What's the price? I don't even want to look.

395.

I'm nowhere near this.

Well, that's clear out of your budget, then.

But this little joker looks cheaper and interesting.

Oh, now, that's cute, look at that!

It's in terrible condition.

Wow, I love that!

I love it!

It's a miniature model of a sedan chair,

a type of box in which a small seat or cabin

would be carried by servants or horses. Hm!

This one might have been used as a display case

and probably dates from the 19th century.

Dealer Laura owns this little curiosity.

Obviously, we've got a stain on the top.

What is your very, very best on that?

You've got 88 on it.

I could do it for 50.

I don't think I'd spend any more than 40, to be honest.

-Would you be willing to...

-You couldn't go to 45?

45...

45, yeah, that's a possibility, yeah.

-Can I put that on the back burner?

-Course you can.

Well, I wouldn't burn it, exactly.

Anything else?

This I'm kind of drawn towards.

A copper letter rack, yes. It does have a maker's mark on it.

This copper and brass letter rack also hails from France,

where Laura sources a lot of her stock.

The ticket price on that is £55.

What could that be?

I could do that one for...

30.

I think I'd want to be more around 20 on that, to be honest.

Could we meet in the middle, 25?

Shall we see again?

Cos we've got this, with the sedan chair...

With two items reserved, time for a peek outside.

How much is the Belfast sink?

Oh, do you know, I can't remember, I think it's 40-something,

but that can be cheap.

Cheap, you say, Laura?

That's music to Road Trippers' ears!

But let's not rush to a decision, eh, Catherine?

Have a tea, love!

Meanwhile, Charles has raced onwards

to the multistorey town of Stratford-upon-Avon.

Stratford was Shakespeare's old stomping ground.

Here, Charles is aiming towards Stratford Antiques Centre,

and dealer Raymond.

To be or not to be, Ray?

Good morning!

Hello, good morning, sir.

-Your name is...

-Raymond.

It is great to be here in Stratford.

Indeed it is.

And just as Charles has come through the door,

Raymondo already has a little item he's keen to show him.

Raymond's got all these wonderful jades,

all these wonderful Chinese porcelains.

But this is not Chinese.

But Raymond has got a fairly interesting Bohemian,

-continental, could be German...

-Oh!

Could be a French porcelain plaque.

-Let's get it out, Ray.

-Have a look.

Pretty, isn't it? Is it on porcelain?

-Yes!

-Are you sure about that?

Yeah, because there's some marks at the back.

So what we've got here, it appears to be, what...?

Madonna and child? It's a religious scene, isn't it?

Yes.

This little plaque appears to bear the mark of the German ceramics firm

Meissen, the very first European manufacturer to create porcelain

in 1708, a skill previously only held in East Asia.

But Charles thinks something about this is a bit suspicious,

and I think he's right.

It carries a mock Meissen mark.

-OK.

-So it's an imitation of Meissen.

And this was made in Germany, probably around 1880.

-OK.

-I like it, I like it a lot.

That will need further investigation,

but it's still an attractive 19th century lump.

What's your best price on that?

-50.

-15? £15 sounds good to me.

Not 15, 50!

-Oh, say again?

-50! Five zero.

-Oh! Sorry, sorry!

-RAY LAUGHS

Put him down, Charles.

-I'm tempted.

-OK.

What would be your best price?

-30 for you.

-30?

You wouldn't do a bit more at all, would you, no?

Because to me it's probably worth between £20 and £40.

OK.

-25's rock bottom.

-OK.

It's so early, I'm...

not even sparked up yet.

£25, I'm going to say, well, life is too short, I'll take it.

Deal done at £25.

Thank you, Raymondo!

Back in Long Marston,

Catherine's been busy negotiating for the miniature sedan chair,

French letter rack,

and Belfast sink.

What a mixture!

Dealer Laura's suggesting £85 for the three.

Catherine?!

Could we do 75 for the three, rather than 85?

No, but I could go to 80.

-OK, OK, shall we do that?

-Yeah.

-Are you happy with that?

-I am.

-We'll go on that.

-Thank you.

-Right.

Magnifique, eh?

Catherine has bagged the sedan chair for £35,

the letter rack for 30

and the sink for 15.

-Lovely to meet you.

-Nice to meet you too.

And carry on buying en francais.

-We will!

-Au revoir!

-Au revoir!

-Au revoir!

In Stratford, Charles is still on the hunt,

and helped by dealer Raymond.

And what's this he's stumbled upon?

An early footman.

A footman was used for keeping plates or food or wine warm

in front of a dining-room fire.

Handy.

-Raymond?

-Hello, yeah?

What's your best price on this footman?

The price tag is 58.

-That's a lot.

-I can do...

-38.

-Oh, you can't!

Oh, he can do anything.

-The really important thing is to determine its age.

-Mm.

So I'm hoping this might just be late 18th century,

because I say so... but I might be wrong!

He's keen, but what about the price?

Would you take 30 for it?

OK, 30, then.

Done, thank you very much, that's great.

Cor, things are hotting up.

Another deal in the bag. Thank you, Raymondo.

See you!

Now, Catherine's enjoying the quiet of a drive

without Charles in the car.

When he's here driving, he's just...

SHE BLATHERS

He's so on all the time, talking, he doesn't stop.

She's motoring on to the ancient town of Warwick.

Being a lover of historical intrigue,

she's keen to spend a tranquil afternoon

exploring one of the area's best kept secrets.

She's heading for the Lord Leycester Hospital

and meeting its master, Lieutenant Colonel Gerald Lesinski.

-Hello there!

-How do you do?

Catherine, hi. Nice to meet you.

-And you.

-This is quite a spectacular building, isn't it?

-It is.

These medieval structures house an ancient charitable institution,

but although it's a hospital,

you won't find any doctors or nurses here.

The word "hospital" is used in its ancient sense,

where it meant a shelter, a refuge.

We became a hospital, a shelter, a refuge,

a retirement home for old soldiers, old warriors,

445 years ago.

And the hospital is still a home for retired service people

to this very day.

It owes its centuries of existence

to a nobleman of the 16th century Elizabethan period,

Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester.

He was a friend of Queen Elizabeth,

a close friend of Queen Elizabeth.

-Oh!

-A very, very close friend of Queen Elizabeth.

-Say no more!

-Lived up the road in Kenilworth.

-Right.

-And at the time, there was a problem with people like me.

I was a soldier for 35 years.

Back in those days,

if you were disabled in the service of the Queen,

there was no pension or resettlement schemes,

so old warriors often became beggars or vagrants,

and a general pain in the backside to normal law-abiding citizens,

who complained to the Queen.

And she let it be known

she expected her noblemen to do something about it,

and so Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester,

one of her close associates,

decided that he would. And so in 1571,

he took over these old guild buildings,

and here he established his shelter, his refuge.

The hospital was first established to house 12 retired soldiers

known as brothers, presided over by one master,

the role that the Lieutenant Colonel takes today.

It might not be the most famous British institution

for ex-service pensioners,

but it's certainly one of its most venerable.

Nowadays, of course, we've got the Royal Hospital at Chelsea,

which of course is much younger than us.

But we have married brothers, unlike, again, Chelsea,

which we know very well,

we have married couples here, so our little community here is about...

I don't know, 20 strong?

And each of the brothers has a self-contained flat.

So has that always been the case?

Yes, we've always had married couples.

And Robert Dudley set down more rules for life at the hospital,

which are still followed today.

-This is the chapel.

-Beautiful!

Built in the 12th century, 1126.

-Was it?

-And...

..one of the rules that Robert Dudley laid down,

when he founded the place,

was that the master and the brothers should meet for prayers

in the chapel every morning.

And the other thing about this chapel is there's no heating in here

so you can probably imagine,

-walking through that door in the winter.

-Absolutely freezing.

It's like walking into a deep freeze and if you were watching,

you'd see me shivering.

-Is it a very quick prayer service?

-Very quick,

you'll hear me leading the prayers like a machinegun.

-SHE CHUCKLES

-"Ba-da-ba-da-ba!"

To get through quickly as possible before we get hypothermia, Amen.

The brothers wear these traditional uniforms for high days

and ceremonial events,

and it's they who staff and maintain these beautiful buildings,

and tend to visitors.

Brother Bill... Do I call you brother Bill or is it Bill?

-Just Bill.

-Just Bill. Bill, it's good to meet you.

So, you're ex... Is it ex-Navy?

Navy. Coming here, it's...

..it's a fantastic place to live and work.

Keeps the grey matter going.

-What's your name, sir?

-Albert.

How long have you been here for, Albert?

Let me see, 21st year, just starting.

Brother John, what attracted you to be in the hospital?

I think the main single reason is I felt that it allowed us,

my wife and I,

to take a step closer to history,

because this place is steeped in history.

It certainly is.

But it's time for Sister Catherine to be on her way.

It's been lovely to meet you all, so thank you very much indeed.

You're very welcome, nice to see you.

-And thank you for sharing your stories.

-Yes!

Now, Charles has travelled on to the town of Henley-in-Arden,

where he's about to trip off into Henley Vintage & Interiors.

Always on the run, Charles.

-Hello, ladies.

-Hello.

-How are you?

-Hi.

-Charles Hamilton.

-Hi, Christine.

-Hi, Christine. And?

-Julie.

Hi, Julie, good to see you. What a lovely shop.

-Thank you.

-And walking through Henley, there's such style.

And again, ladies, you have great style.

-Thank you.

-I almost feel...

I almost feel slightly alien being from Derbyshire

that I'm not quite dressed for the occasion.

-You look lovely.

-Well, thank you very much.

I say!

If you've quite finished fishing for compliments, Charles,

you'd better pull your socks up and get on the hunt.

Oh, I can see in here already there's a nice array of silver.

-Is it your...?

-It isn't.

-No.

-But it's... I'm more than happy to open it up for you.

And, and, and, oh, thank you very much,

and are you always open to some degree of negotiation?

As long as you're kind.

Always, Christine, always.

I quite like these old pails.

-Yes.

-Are they silver?

I believe they are, let's just open up and have a look.

These are lovely, Christine.

Oh, God, they're really nice!

That's a set of four silver seasoning dishes, or salts,

bearing a Victorian hallmark,

and the monogram of their original owner, and they're very sweet.

Here we've got W Pound, esquire,

and we've got the hallmarks on there for London.

It's a young sovereign head, so we know they're about 1884.

-Have they been here a while?

-No.

They're lovely. So, four of those.

-Yes.

-How much could they be?

-You had...

-£50 on them.

What's your offer, Charles?

Well, I was going to say to you, Christine,

whether I could buy them at £10 a piece, and go in at £40?

42?

I'll happily buy them.

-Lovely.

-For £42, thank you.

-Thank you...

-I've just bought...

-Oh, let's throw them around!

-CLINK ON FLOOR

There we go, I caught it almost.

I almost caught it.

-LAUGHTER

-And I was in the slips, and...

Right, there we go, it's OK.

You know, I used to play cricket, you know,

so I just caught it as it came off the foot.

Well done, Charles.

We'll make a wicket keeper of you yet.

Bye. Bye.

And with that, we're quite hit for six

at the end of a jam-packed first day on the trip, so...

nighty-night, you two.

But the morning finds these two back in the MG

and getting along as swimmingly as ever.

-How are you?

-Get off, get off.

-Let's stay together.

-You're a bit close for my liking.

Well, thanks a lot.

This is my impression of you, Charles.

Why's that?

You're kind of like a little...

I don't know what you are, you're like a little...

-Weasel?

-Yeah.

-Thank you very much.

So far, Charles has squirrelled away three lots.

The little porcelain plaque,

the polished steel footman,

and the set of four salts.

He still has £563.98 for the day ahead...

-Bye-bye.

-Bye-bye.

-See you.

-Bye.

-..which is a lot of dough.

While Catherine also has three lots.

The miniature sedan chair,

the letter rack

and the Belfast sink.

She still has £127.30 in her coin purse.

Don't you feel in our week thus far we've grown quite close together?

No.

Don't quarrel, now.

Of course we have.

That's better.

This morning, Catherine's beginning her buying

in the pretty Cotswold town of Chipping Campden.

You are going to be chipping away.

I am chipping away at Chipping Campden.

Now you can't get a better England than this.

Good luck, and don't miss me too much, OK?

-Don't what?

-Don't miss me too much.

Oh, gosh, I won't miss you.

Oh, thanks. I thought you might miss me.

No, I'm not, I'm not going to miss you, Charles.

You're an uptown girl in Chipping Campden.

-See you later.

-Mwah!

Ah, this doesn't look promising.

This is not good. It's closed.

There is no sign of life, so...

I'm going to get a coffee.

While Catherine has some well-deserved quiet time,

Charles is driving onwards, and hopefully upwards.

Just... I think Catherine has left some sandals in the car

and actually, they are quite stylish.

They've got a certain vintage retro look.

I reckon...

based on the fact, I mean, they are a bit outdated,

but I'm sure they'll make between £10 and £15 at auction.

And if I get a bit stuck later,

I might even put them into the sale myself.

Let's hope it doesn't come to that,

for Catherine's sake, at least.

Gorgeous.

In Chipping Campden, we're now open for business.

And Catherine has her coffee,

and is just about to stroll into Stuart House Antiques

to meet Rachel. Where's Stuart, then?

Excellent. "Come in, we are open."

Good morning.

Good morning.

Welcome to Chipping Campden.

Thank you. And you are?

I'm Rachel. Nice to meet you.

Rachel, lovely to meet you.

Catherine will scour this jam-packed place for buys.

And she will, you know.

My goodness, I've never seen so many ceramics.

Plates, plates, plates, plates, cups, cups, cups.

Crikey. But upstairs there is a collection of ceramics

that might just signal the hunt's over.

-Rachel?

-Yeah?

Can I just ask you, you've got a lot more of this hunting,

the hunting china here...?

-Yes.

-Crown Staffordshire.

Crown Staffordshire was a ceramic maker

whose origins date back to the mid-1800s.

The set Catherine has alighted on hails from the 1930s,

decorated with hunting scenes. Rather jolly.

-It's quite fun, isn't it?

-It is quite fun. Yeah.

I wouldn't buy the whole lot.

I haven't got the money to buy the whole lot.

But something like the sugar bowl and the jug...

-Yes.

-Would you sell those two?

Yes.

Combined ticket price on those is £66.

But what might Rachel accept?

I'd let you have it for...

25.

-For the two.

-For the two.

Should I go for a cup and saucer, as well?

-And do a whole kind of...?

-Nice little set, wouldn't it?

Catherine's adding a cup, saucer and tea plate set to the bundle,

but what could Rachel do on those AND the cream jug and sugar bowl?

I'd be able to have one, two and three for £30.

RACHEL INHALES

What about 35?

I'm going to shake your hand...

-Good...

-..at 35, because I really like that.

And I hope you do really well on that, yes.

So, Catherine has her quarry.

And she's cantering off.

HORSE NEIGHS

MUSIC: Hound Dog by Elvis Presley

Meanwhile, Charles is heading for the environs of

the town of Moreton-in-Marsh.

This morning, dog-lover Charles has come here to learn

the fascinating story of some of the nation's favourite dog breeds.

He's meeting breeder Gay Robertson.

-Good morning.

-How are you?

-I'm fine, nice to meet you.

Good to see you, Gay. I'm Charles Hanson.

-And who's your friend beside you?

-This is Fickle.

-Hello, Fickle.

Good to see you, Fickle. Hello, I won't bite.

I should hope not, Charles.

Gay breeds, shows and races whippets like Fickle,

and is something of an authority on the fascinating history

of racing dogs like whippets and greyhounds.

These sighthounds were bred over centuries to chase small prey,

like hare, by sight rather than by smell,

as breeds like foxhounds and beagles.

Sighthounds have been raced in Britain for many centuries.

-Really, in this country...

-Yes.

-..we started with the Romans.

-Right.

-And the Romans, who used them for sport,

the sport entailed the dogs chasing the hare...

-Yes.

-..not to catch it, but to see which dog was the fastest.

-Yes.

-And that's been true ever since.

This sport was known as hare coursing,

and was popular in Britain down the ages.

It found particular favour with the aristocracy of the 16th century,

when Queen Elizabeth I took an interest.

The Duke of Norfolk was told by Queen Elizabeth I

to draw up a complete set of rules for the sport.

And it's because betting figured very, very heavily.

And you don't want somebody saying "S'not fair!" You know?

THEY LAUGH

No, you don't, do you?

It had to be...

..absolutely which dog can run fastest,

turn the hare most often, and score the most points.

This made for a great spectator sport,

popular for centuries,

and regularly drew large crowds to coursing events.

In the 19th century, the banks closed for the Waterloo Cup,

for instance.

Wow. Such was the popularity of greyhounds?

The whole thing was very popular.

Although today we might most associate the greyhound breed

with dog racing,

the similar but smaller whippet was also very popular,

particularly in working-class mining areas of the 19th century.

In the north, and also in Wales, as you know,

mining was a big thing.

And whippets were more user-friendly than greyhounds.

I mean, you can have a whippet or two in your house,

and there's room.

They did take great care of them

because to win a race with a whippet could earn you more

than you earned in a week.

Nowadays of course,

dogs don't chase a live hare but rather a mechanised lure,

as all of Gay's whippets have been trained to do.

This taps in to the dog's instinct to pursue,

with no risks to wildlife.

I think the hooligan, he's the quickest, almost as quick as me.

THEY LAUGH

Come on!

So, so this activity's all part of their training?

It keeps them in good shape...?

It keeps them in good shape and it's...

They just love to do it.

So, it's all about looking at antiques

and always look at the bottom shelf first, keep your head down,

just stay with the object, and then towards the finishing line,

if it's worth buying, get it bought,

and hit that finish line, OK?

BARKING

Frank! Pack it in.

Whoops!

Charles is down! Oh, Lord.

I was taken down by a whippet.

BARKING

MUSIC: Dog Days Are Over by Florence And The Machine

-Go!

-Go on! Go!

Come on, Potter.

Look at them go! Whoo!

Come on, Morgan.

Bring it home. Imagine that's Catherine Southon, OK?

Oh, Charles!

Get set. Go!

He's off! He's off!

-Well...

-Their speed's incredible.

It's like lightning across the field.

Come on. Ooh, I've lost my dog now.

Once Charles's catches up, it's time to hit the road.

I've been delighted to have been here, so...

-Well, it was lovely.

-Thank you so much, Gay.

It's been such a revelation and I shall not forget today.

WOOFING

In the meantime, Catherine's

moved on to the town of Burford,

where she is still on the hunt for another item

with her remaining £92.30.

That's £325 on it, so...

..I'm not buying it.

My goodness.

1920s.

French grapepickers' bins.

So, this is going to come round, like this.

You put your grapes in there. That's incredible.

But this grape bin is ticketed at around £200,

more than double what Catherine has remaining.

Let's leave her to look for lower-hanging fruit.

Meanwhile, Charles has trotted off to the town of Evesham...

..where he's wandered into his next shop.

Time for antique-ing.

And it's a familiar sort of place.

I've been here before.

-Good to see you.

-Hi, hello, Charles.

Yes, you have been here before.

-I forget your name.

-Andy.

-Good to see you. It's about two years ago...

-Yes.

I came to this very antique centre and bought quite well.

You did.

Well, that sounds 'andy, Andy.

Let's hope Charles can repeat that success.

What a chair. Look at that for a chair.

-BOX CLATTERS TO FLOOR

-Sorry.

Oh, Lord, Charles.

This might be interesting,

if it's in one piece.

The only reason this jumps out at me is it's a survivor.

It's made of timber, which can be easily burned,

and on many great bonfires of stately homes in the 20th century,

this entire chair...

..would have been, I suppose, put to that bonfire,

but you'll see has this beautiful shaped apron back,

with these scrolls,

this beautiful tired rush back,

these wonderful arms,

and when you just rest your arms on these rests,

you almost close your eyes, and you're in a time warp...

don't you?

Yep.

This chair's certainly seen its fair share of life.

It's been extensively repaired over the years,

but its bones look true and ancient.

I'm fairly confident in saying... would date to around 1700.

-Yep.

-Oh.

-Would you agree?

-I would agree, yes.

It's somewhere... Give or take a couple of years.

Ticket price on the armchair is a hefty £240.

Be careful, Charles.

-What could it be?

-We could take that down to half price.

Dear me.

That's it. Goes in eventually.

Has it been here a long time?

Yes, it has. Er...

So, that's often a bad sign, isn't it?

So, your very, very best price would be...

Yep.

100. I can't go any lower.

-May I give it some thought?

-Yep.

So, Charles will ponder that offer at a cool £100, and browse on.

Back in Burford, though,

Catherine's just about exhausted her options.

There is an awful lot to see and some beautiful pieces,

but it's just not for me.

The prices are just way, way over what I have.

It's lovely stock, but for another day.

Back in Evesham,

Charles has spotted something else with an intriguing past.

Just...down here, what I'm looking at now

is just a very, very nice microscope.

This Victorian brass example was made by Bryson of Edinburgh,

a quality maker of clocks and instruments from the very heyday

of the gentleman scientist.

What's attractive is this microscope comes in its original fitted box.

There we are.

With its divisions... and original slides.

There's no ticket price on it,

but there is another smaller microscope here, too.

This one isn't so good.

Another fairly simple microscope.

Andy, how much could the two be together?

Make it 25 for the pair.

Golly.

I mean... Very tempting.

And his beloved ancient chair is still offered at around 100.

It's make your mind up time, Carlos.

I'm going to take it with me,

-and hopefully impress Catherine by what will be...

-Yes.

..the earliest item I've bought so far.

It's just a wonderful chair.

And the microscopes?

Anyway, I think for £25, I'll take them.

-Yes.

-Thanks a lot.

-Right.

-Andy, I'm delighted with those two purchases.

I really feel...

..I'm spent.

Spent out, or spent up?

We all are, Charles. We all are.

As well as the chair and the microscopes,

Charles has the porcelain plaque,

the polished steel footman

and the set of four salts.

He spent £222 exactly...

..while Catherine has the miniature sedan chair,

the French letter rack,

the Belfast sink

and the collection of Crown Staffordshire.

She spent a total of £115.

But what do they make of each other's hauls?

I do love that miniature sedan chair.

It's a really good object, Catherine.

I think for £35 it could make £100, so good job.

I cannot tell you how devastated I am

that Charles has bought those four salts

in the shape of pails for £42.

It pains me to even think about them.

They are amazing!

Catherine is a very decorative lady,

she's quite calculating,

she has a scientific mind,

and almost she is my Queen Catherine,

I'm King Charles,

and hopefully the next auction won't be off with my head.

On this leg of the trip,

they began in Long Marston,

and are now aiming for auction in the Shropshire town of Newport,

a handsome market town that seems just the place to hawk their wares.

But sad news.

Things have taken an unexpected turn this morning.

Unfortunately, Charles has been detained on urgent family business,

so he can't make the auction today.

Catherine is driving solo.

I know I do moan about him, but I actually quite miss Charles.

It's not the same without him.

It's kind of... What can I say?

..quiet.

It's too peaceful!

But we wouldn't want things to get too quiet.

So an old pal will step into the breach

to rally Charles's lots along.

Hello there, legendary Road Tripper.

It's Phil Serrell.

-Hello!

-Hello, how are you?

I'm good. Do you think my parking's improved?

Oh, it's unbelievably good.

Thank you for stepping in.

They wanted someone with Charlie's disposition, you know -

happy, smiley, effervescent, bubbly...

Here I am.

-LAUGHING:

-Come on!

-Come on. How are you?

Catherine and Philip are strolling into Brettells Auctioneers,

where appropriately presides auctioneer David Brettell.

..with spare lenses...

Before the off, what does he make of our lots?

Down at 48...

The copper and brass French letter holder, that's got a good look.

It's quirky, it's interesting, it's useful.

Of all of the things,

that's the one that I would think will attract the most interest.

The chair's certainly an early chair.

Do I think if its 16th, 17th century?

I wouldn't go that far.

It's been a good chair, don't get me wrong,

it's been a good chair, but it needs a lot, lot of work.

And age doesn't mean value.

But Philip's now had a chance to scout out Charles's items, too.

Well, your little plaque here...

And that's cost Charles Hanson £25.

That'll do really well.

Well, that's very promising, as the sale kicks off.

And with internet bidding as well.

-Excited?

-I'm very excited.

You're going to have to talk me through this

because I haven't done this before.

Come, come now, Philip, you're a seasoned veteran.

Charles couldn't have anyone better in his corner.

First off, it's Charles...

and Philip's two microscopes.

Can they scope out some cash?

30 on the net, £30...

See, I'm into profit straightaway.

-Aren't I? Aren't I?

-Oh, all right. All right.

We've got 37 on the net, now.

37.

42 on the net.

Five on the net.

45 bid, 45. 48, 48.

Nobody in the room. I sell this time at 48.

GAVEL BANGS

That scores an enlarged profit for Team Charles and Phil.

-We're all pleased for Charlie.

-Charlie who?

-Charlie slash Phil.

-Charlie...?

He had no input on those.

I bought those.

Hey! I'm sure you bought them in spirit, Philip.

Next, it's one for Catherine, as her Belfast sink meets the room.

We go ten, 12, 15, 18, £20 bid.

Two, five, eight, £30 bid.

-Yes.

-Ooh!

£30 bid, £30 got. 32...

-Keep going.

-Five, eight, £40 bid.

-Rubbish thing.

-I knew this would make money.

Didn't I say it all the time?

-"Make a good profit on this."

-Just shush.

Can't say I heard you, Philip.

Will be sold. Hammer's up. Anybody else going?

-Oooh...yes!

-At £40...

GAVEL BANGS

SHE CLICKS HER FINGERS

No sinking feeling for Catherine, as that earns her a nice little bundle.

I learned from you.

I learned it all from you.

Oh-ho, I don't know about that.

Mwah.

Lordy, they ARE getting on well.

Now it's Charles's big gamble,

the chair with some real age,

but needs a lot of restoration.

£30.

£20.

Really is for nothing.

£10.

-Oh, dear.

-Can I put my hand up?

-No.

-No, you can't!

£10 on the net. 12, 15.

-15.

-20 bid.

22.

-22.

-22, got to be sold.

Hammer's up. Shout me now.

Charlie will be really upset.

Fair warning.

GAVEL BANGS

Do you know, I'd never have bought that? Never, never have bought that.

-SHE LAUGHS

-I don't know what on earth...

-You've changed your tune!

-Don't know what possessed him to buy that.

Despite some 20-20 hindsight from Philip,

that's a stinging loss on a chair Charles loves.

Bad luck.

I feel sad for him, because he really believed in that.

-Really believed in that.

-Let me tell you,

it's a much better chair than 20 quid.

Now it's another for Catherine,

as her collection of Crown Staffordshire

goes hunting for profit.

Giddy up.

£10 here for the hunting.

-Come on.

-No, ten, 12, 15.

-This is ridiculously cheap, you know?

-It's ridiculously cheap.

Selling, then.

I'm not selling, I'm giving away now.

-He is giving it away.

-At 15...

-HAMMER BANGS

-That is really, really cheap.

Oh, chance of a profit gallops off there.

Oh, well.

There we go. What's next?

Glad you asked, Catherine.

It's Charles's set of four silver salts.

Can his seasoned stand-in Philip will them to a profit?

£50 for those?

They've got to make 100.

Well, 40 then? It's only a tenner each.

40, thank you, Bill.

£40 bid, £40 got.

£40 bid. 45.

50.

£50 bid, £50 got. Five?

-BIDDER: 60.

-60.

£60. Five? Hammer's up.

70. £70 sat there.

Five? 75?

No, he says. 75 bid...

-I think these are for nothing.

-Me too.

Quickly round at 75.

It's a decent profit, but our experts hoped for more.

To be honest, they should have made £100.

-They are really nice things!

-Yeah.

I agree.

Another chance to give Catherine a bit of a lift now,

as her miniature sedan chair is up.

Nice little display. For 50.

It's a good thing. Come on.

OK, then. 60.

-Yes!

-Five in the room.

65 bid, 65, in the room...

This is my only chance.

70. Five.

Come on, this is a good thing.

I'm selling at 75. 80 on the net.

85. 85 bid.

85. 90...

Yes!

-100.

-Yes!

£100 in the room.

I'm selling, in the room at 100.

All done at 100?

I still don't think that was that dear.

-Just shush, I'm happy with that.

-I don't.

As well you might be, Catherine.

Another splendid profit, darling.

Thanks, you bring good luck.

You're like my little leprechaun.

We should get him a hat!

Another for Team Charles and Philip now,

as the 19th century polished steel footman

will try to ignite some interest.

Bid. £10, I'm bid,

10, 12, 15, 18, 20 on my left.

Sat down here, £20, you're out, £20 bid.

£20 got. £20 to you on the left...

-On the internet.

-25 on the net.

25 bid on the net, now 28 on the net.

Hammer's up then. All done,

round we go, quickly round at 28.

GAVEL BANGS

A little, a little loss.

A smidge.

Sadly, that lights no fires for Charles.

I'm quite happy for you to come on again.

I'm just thinking, I could rent myself out

to all the other Road Trippers, couldn't I? You know,

if anybody is having a really bad day or a good day,

-get Phil in.

-Yeah.

Now it's the little French letter rack

that Catherine felt had some je ne sais quoi.

£50 on the net, £50 got.

No...

Five, 55 bid, 55 got.

55, lovely thing. 60...

60? Where did that come from?

A bidder, Catherine.

Five on, for Andrea, 65 bid.

We've got the two internets playing each other here.

70. At £70 bid.

£70, up to you.

-Five for UK Auctioneers...

-Ooh!

75 bid. 70, 80, back to sale room

at £80 bid...

-Yes.

-Ooh.

85 bid, 85.

I wish Charles was here to see this,

cos I always lose money when I'm with Charles.

100 on the net. £100 bid, £100 got.

Ten. 110 bid, 110...

£110? Is he on the same lot?

120 bid.

120 got. 120 you're at, Andrea.

120 bid. No?

Selling at 120...

GAVEL BANGS

Yeeeeees!

Thank you so much.

That really was something to write home about.

I do really like you, Phil.

Now it's Charles and indeed Philip's very last shot at a profit.

The little porcelain plaque.

£100 for it. 100 bid on the net.

-£100 bid...

-£100!

110...

-# There may be trouble ahead... #

-Shush!

130, 40.

140 on the net...

Well, at least he's kind of making it up for the chair.

Nobody in the room. 140 bid, 140, going to be sold, this time.

£140, then, bid.

140. Hammer is up.

At £140.

Anybody on the UK Auctioneer one?

At £140, hammer's up, going to be sold.

All done? Anybody else? 140...

-GAVEL BANGS

-He's done brilliantly.

-Yeah, I knew that'd make money.

-He'll be happy.

-Yeah.

-And you would've bought that, wouldn't you?

-Yeah, yeah.

Oh, yeah, yeah.

Well, that's a winner that's almost Heaven sent

to help the absent Charles on his last lot.

Philip was right about that.

So, let's do the maths.

Charles, ably assisted by Philip, started this leg with £660.98.

He made a profit of £34.66,

meaning he has £695.64 to carry forward...

..while Catherine put a little bit of a dent in his lead in this sale.

She started with £207.30.

She made a profit, though, of £110.50, which is magnificent!

So she has £317.80 in her coffers,

and is today's winner.

So, all that remains is to pass on the good news to Charles.

This is exciting.

"You've reached the voicemail of Charles Hanson..."

BEEP

NARRATOR LAUGHS

I'm sure they'll catch him before the next leg.

Next time on the Antiques Road Trip...

our pair reconnect with nature, as Catherine gets hands-on in a shop...

You can't not touch this beautiful oak.

..while Charles gets hands dirty in a field.

What is lurking under there?