Episode 3 Antiques Road Trip

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

-What a job!

-..with £200 each...

-Are you with me?

-..a classic car...

-Buckle up.

..and a goal to scour Britain for antiques.

-Ooh, sorry!

-Ha-ha!

The aim? To make the biggest profit at auction.

But it's no mean feat.

-There'll be worthy winners...

-Yes!

-..and valiant losers.

So, will it be the high road to glory,

or the slow road to disaster?

Have a good trip!

This is the Antiques Road Trip.

Yeah!

Say bonjour to Bucks, in the company of seasoned trippers

James Braxton and Charlie Ross.

-I was born just down the road here.

-Really?

-Yeah.

And when my mother gave birth to me, there was a band outside playing.

So, is this where you get your musicality from?

-It must be.

-It must be.

-It must have come lofting through the window.

That explains so much.

Auctioneer and am-dram fan Charlie

made some canny purchases on the last leg.

I love it, I love it, I love it.

He fared better than his fellow gaveller James,

after he bought one particularly

questionable bit of art.

-Erm...

-That's not good, is it?

-No.

Wasn't your finest hour, yesterday, was it?

I entered that auction room with some trepidation

knowing that my Achilles heel was hanging on the wall.

For some, it was hideous. To me, it was an uncut jewel.

A bit like their motor for this trip -

a classic Alfa Romeo Spider.

-I like the way this car has a voice, this one, doesn't it?

-It does.

-Every time you turn the wheel, it blows at you.

-Yeah.

It has a sort of involuntary horn.

HORN HONKS Gesundheit.

Despite his disappointing daub, James is still on the up,

increasing his initial £200 to a modest £259.62,

while Charlie has narrowly squeaked ahead,

turning his £200 into £282.46.

-That's no lead.

-It isn't, really.

-That's just time in the bar.

After kicking off at Chart Sutton in Kent,

Charlie and James are motoring around the South East,

moseying up towards the Midlands, and then heading west,

before eventually making Dorset their destination,

and a D-Day in Dorchester.

This time out, they'll be cruising to a Cotswold auction

at Wotton-under-Edge,

but they start off sharing a shop in Wendover.

If I see something I want to buy, if you would prefer it,

I would have absolutely no compunction

-in saying, "James, apres vous!"

-"Take it."

Very gallant.

HORN HONKS

Nestled at the foot of the Chiltern Hills,

parts of Wendover were apparently a wedding present

from Henry VIII to Anne Boleyn.

Now it's home to this antiques establishment.

Marvellous. Well done, sir.

-Beautiful driving, James.

-Thank you.

Now, I wonder how long their gentlemanly conduct

is going to last.

-Come on, James. After you.

-No, no, no, after you.

-Age before beauty.

-Winners first.

They've barely got through the door.

-Good morning, sir.

-Good morning.

-Morning.

-Are you the boss?

-Yes, definitely the boss.

-Splendid.

-James.

-How do you do, James?

-Good.

-Pleased to meet you.

-Dave.

-Dave. Hello, Dave. I'm Charlie.

-I'm heading that way.

-I'm heading this way.

And they're off. There's lots of room to roam in here,

and some genuinely old stuff, too.

Now, James, if you want to get ahead...

-Hats suit me.

-Some people just carry it off.

-Charlie?

-Oh, yes!

Erm, let's get on with it, though, shall we?

Ooh, I like this. A lead mallet.

I think that's probably a roofer's lead mallet,

roofing churches and the like.

Why the bamboo handle?

If that was an elm or an ash handle, feel the jar,

but a bamboo would just have a little bit of give in it,

which would make it much, much easier to use, softer on the hand.

You're bashing your lead all the time, and I like it.

The ticket price is £25. Already been reduced, though.

And I think the handle is original.

It's quite crude, but it's seen a lot of use.

I think we're going to call for Dave.

Dave!

Who seems keen, certainly.

I love this. I think it's super.

-I don't think it's a priceless antique, I have to say.

-How much is it?

Well, it's £25, which isn't a lot of money.

It's already come down, but, you know,

I think that would make £15 to £20 at auction.

-It doesn't belong to you, does it?

-No, but I'm allowed to negotiate.

20 quid?

I'm going to be really parsimonious about this.

I think it will make 15-20 at auction.

Well, the lowest I could go is 15, really.

A small amount to pay, but the great thing is,

there's not a lot of downside.

-I can't lose more than £15.

-Exactly. Very good.

-I'll have it.

-Good man. Good man.

-Top stuff, sir. Thank you very much.

-That's what we like.

So, Charlie is now a man with a mallet.

Any luck, James?

I like this. Look. It says "pastry board".

This ain't no pastry board. It's the base of a Chinese table.

-Tell us more.

-So, this is huanghuali.

This is this rosewood, sort of hardwood here.

And then you've got this pink marble stone here.

And it would have had legs. You see the sockets for there.

These things make quite good money now,

if you have the whole thing in its entirety.

But obviously the base is missing.

And somebody, very resourcefully, has called it a pastry board.

That's quite a pastry board.

Better pass on that one, then. What else grabs you?

Looking for something slightly out of place, something unusual.

That's interesting.

Looks like ceramic. "Early font/fountain."

Well, I think they're right with the fountain.

We've got these lion masks here,

and their mouths are open, so water could come out.

What it feels like to me is architectural stoneware.

Looks more like worse for wear!

It's really been bashed around.

We've got remnants of some glue there.

I don't know what's going on there.

What have they got on it? They've got £75.

If it had a mark of the Compton Pottery,

or Coldstone or something like that, I'd be all over it like a rash,

but it's really badly damaged.

Something I might buy at 35.

I'm going to chance my arm at 35. Otherwise, it's back on the shelf.

Sounds like a plan. Now, Charlie's got his eye on something else.

Love those Art Deco frames. They are so lovely.

If they were silver, you know, they would be hundreds of pounds.

But they're pewter, you know. How saleable are they?

Let's get it out and have a closer look.

Now, are they reproduction or are they Art Deco?

They are Art Deco.

Look at those oak backboards. Wonderful!

Look at that sort of rigid, lightning motif on the top there,

and these pure Deco panels - the angular panels.

Art Deco - I love the Art Deco period,

what I call the Charleston period.

Pretty girls with champagne glasses -

the old-shape champagne glasses - dancing the Charleston.

HE HUMS THE CHARLESTON

Uh-oh, he's off.

Those frames are priced up at £44 each, or 95 for all three.

That's a good discount already.

HE EXHALES

If I was cruel, like James Braxton, I'd offer a silly price for those,

but I'm not that nasty.

Or am I? Dave!

-Gird your loins.

-See these three Deco frames?

-Oh, yeah, they're nice.

-Well, they're wonderful.

-I thought, for a moment, they were silver. I almost...

-Yeah.

In some ways, they're better. They don't dull off like silver.

-You don't have to keep cleaning them like you do silver.

-Yeah.

Less likely to be stolen.

-Exactly. They're wonderful.

-HE LAUGHS

-Do you want to just ask...?

-Yeah. I will, yeah.

-What are you thinking, though?

-I'd rather not say because it would be rude.

-Right, I'll go and find out.

-Just go and see.

-Yeah.

So, while Dave consults the dealer, James is planning his next move.

James Braxton, there's a little chess set there

which reminds me of my youth.

I was given a portable chess set like that...

-Yeah?

-..which you could fold into a little box.

I know, I know, and it retained your position, didn't it?

And I had such an interest in chess then.

I won a competition.

-No!

-I've got a book at home -

Prep School Chess Champion, or something.

-Excellent.

-It's all been downhill since then.

Excellent, excellent!

You could have been the next Bobby Fischer.

Ah, Dave's back.

The lowest she can afford to go is £25 each.

I think they're fabulous. I'm going to have them.

Oh, you're a gentleman.

So, 75 for those, and with that lead hammer,

you owe the man £90.

-It's been an absolute pleasure. Grab and run.

-Cheers.

-Thank you very much. Bye.

-Thanks a lot.

But James is yet to get off the blocks.

He's still got his eye on that bit of a fountain.

Now, I spotted this. I'm just in two minds about it.

It has suffered extraordinary damage.

It looks as though somebody has taken a sledgehammer to it.

Now, £75...

-The best I can offer is 30 or 35.

-We're going to struggle with that

because I've spoken to the lady previously about this,

-and 60 was the lowest she would ever come down.

-Oh. Oh, well.

-Maybe one day, she'll get 60, but not from me!

-Right, OK.

So, while James heads off empty-handed,

Charlie's taken our route towards Bletchley Park,

where the Enigma code was cracked in World War II.

But he's here to discover how British code-breakers

also dramatically changed the course of the Great War...

-Michael.

-Hello!

-Charlie Ross. Lovely to see you.

-And you, too.

..in the company of the grandson of heroic cracker Nigel de Grey.

He was head of a group which included bright people,

intelligent people,

people with special brains who could do decoding.

Former publisher de Grey

joined naval intelligence division Room 40 in early 1915.

-So, was Room 40 here or in London?

-Room 40 was at the Admiralty.

So, how many people have we got working, then?

-About ten, I think.

-Really?

-Yeah, that was all.

But by the end of the war,

that had been multiplied by ten and there were over 100.

Room 40 and their War Office counterparts in MI1b

were tasked with trying to decode enemy radio signals

using code books seized from German vessels.

Where were the codes going to?

-Through Sweden, Denmark.

-Two neutral countries.

-Yeah.

We'd cut all the other cables.

They only had two running out of Germany, and this was one of them.

The team, under director William "Blinker" Hall,

had great success charting the movements of enemy vessels.

These copies of Jane's Fighting Ships,

complete with the crosses that indicate a ship sinking,

offer a graphic reminder of the importance of good intelligence.

Here, we have a listed frequency of German names that they used.

Started "Auf" down to "Wagon" - 26.

-So, someone's gone through all these things and listed these.

-Yes.

-I mean, painstaking work.

-Painstaking work.

-Hours and hours.

Yes, absolutely. And then, you know, suddenly,

you hope that you have inspiration, and you can suddenly say, "Ah!"

-"I've got it!"

-Yeah.

Code-breaker Dilly Knox, who managed his best work in the bathtub,

was just one of the more eccentric residents of Room 40.

There was no qualification for doing it.

It was just having the right sort of brain.

-So, they could have been mathematicians?

-Mathematicians.

There was certainly one member of the Church.

-It was the brains they needed.

-Yeah.

-You know?

And it hadn't been done before, so there was no training.

But for all their eccentricities,

the code-breakers played a decisive role

when, in January 1917,

Michael's grandfather intercepted a message from Germany to Mexico,

which was to help persuade the United States to join the Allies.

When he partially decoded the telegram,

he realised how important it was,

so he rushed to Blinker Hall, who was the boss, and said,

"Sir, sir, do you want America to join the war?"

"Yes, of course I do, my boy."

"Well, sir, I think I might have something here that will help."

The cable from Foreign Minister Zimmerman

to his Mexican ambassador promised that the country would regain Texas,

New Mexico and Arizona

if they joined Germany in a war against the USA.

I will read to you from my grandfather's fair copy

of the decoding of this telegram.

It says, "We intend to begin, on the 1st of February,

"unrestricted submarine warfare.

"We make Mexico a proposal of an alliance on the following terms -

"make war together, make peace together."

And, of course, the reason that they're doing that

is they want to keep the Americans busy

so that they don't join the war in Europe.

No wonder America came into the war!

Once the telegram was published,

the US public's opposition to participation in the conflict

was soon overcome,

and the country declared war on Germany in April 1917.

If I had been your grandfather...

-..the war would have ended much quicker the wrong way.

-Well...

Because I would still be looking at these numbers thinking,

"What on Earth is this?" Michael, it's been absolutely fascinating.

I'd like to thank you hugely.

Now, what's the mood in the Alfa?

Braxton is the name, bargains is the game.

In high spirits, I'd say, and James needs to be.

He's drawn a blank so far.

He's heading into Bedfordshire, and Dunstable...

..paying a visit to Mannuccis Antiques.

-Hello.

-Oh, hello. Hi.

-James.

-Pleased to meet you, James. I'm Richard.

-Hello, Richard.

-Mannucci - it's a good name, isn't it?

-It is, yes.

Could be an antiques shop, could be an ice cream parlour.

Well, maybe you can get a double scoop in here, then.

Something with extra sprinkles!

Pretty zany, isn't it?

Nice bit of oak, tile top. It's quite different.

It's structurally different. It looks quite strong.

So, that's been made sort of turn of the century,

and I'm talking about the 1900s here.

Ou est the Jessie J?

Yes, don't forget about the price tag.

Very discreet. 135.

It's too much. That should be...

You know, I should be picking up that for 50 or 60,

and then I'm in with a chance.

Well, don't worry, James. There's plenty more in here.

Maybe Richard can help.

-Rather impressive fellow here.

-What are we looking at?

-I like the look of this here.

-OK.

An old sea chest.

It looks as though it's been around a bit, doesn't it?

-It has.

-It's carrying a couple of scars here.

-Yes.

It's not mahogany.

I think it's a hardwood, and I think we should be smelling.

-We should, yes.

-Ah, the Braxton sniff test.

-I'm getting camphor.

-Camphor, yes.

Probably for linen, then. Keeps the moths away.

Hey, I like this. What's this?

"US ship of the line Pennsylvania. 141 guns."

-It's got quite a nice shape to it.

-It goes up, doesn't it, unusually?

Do you know what they call that shape?

-Pylon. Like a pylon.

-Oh, pylon. OK.

So, Egyptians liked these pylons,

-and we adapted it for electricity cables.

-Yes.

Cor, every day is a schoolday around here.

I like that. What's the price?

-110.

-Do you think we could do better than that, chief?

I think we could do something, certainly.

-What are we talking? 70?

-Ooh, I don't know.

I'll make a phone call and see what we can do, shall I?

All dovetail-jointed, as well.

-Stop talking it up, Richard. Get on the phone.

-OK.

Patience, James. Let's see what the dealer has to say.

You have a box, a trunk.

You've got 110 on it,

and the gentleman's made an offer of £70.

Can you do that?

Yeah, all right, I shall tell him. OK. Thanks, Rob.

What did he tell me to do, Richard?

-Leave the shop?

-He said that's fine. You're OK.

-Wow! Sold.

-Sold.

Looks like the drought is over, then.

-Now the flood.

-Any moths, Richard?

-No, no. No moths here.

-So, what have we got here? We've got a footstool.

-We have.

And then turn it over.

-Turned over, you've got a lid there.

-Oh, we've got a lid!

-Oh, yes.

-You've got everything.

-All the extras.

-What are you calling this, a footstool?

-Yeah.

-For want of a better word.

-You need to call it an ottoman.

And then you can charge James more for it.

-What can you do this for, Richard?

-Erm, 45.

-What shall we say?

-30?

-I was just going to say 35.

Go on, Richard. You can do better than that.

-32.

-32, come on.

-That meets somewhere in the middle.

-There we go.

-The deals are coming thick and fast now.

Anything else in the vicinity?

-Keep searching.

-I'm just sort of looking around.

-Keep searching.

-Looking around.

-Don't let me stop you.

What's that? That was to put your kettle on, wasn't it?

It would have gone by the fire, yeah.

You'd have had your kettle and the various things there.

Quite fancy, isn't it?

I don't think I've ever seen such a thick bit of brass in my life.

The acid test to anything worth buying is weight, Richard.

-Look at that.

-HE GROANS

And the lift. Just straightening up.

Lordy! Mind your back, old bean.

I tell you what - all these gym memberships,

-what a waste of time.

-Who needs it?

-That's good, isn't it?

-It is, actually, yeah.

-What is the price on that, actually?

-I'm going to sit down for a minute.

-What does that say?

-God!

-Are you all right?

-The old ticker.

-£50. Look at that.

-£50. How much? 50?

-£50.

-35, Richard. Come on.

-How about 40?

-40. Oh, dear! 38.

-Go on.

-38. Come on, put it there.

That's three large lumps for a combined total of £140.

-That's lovely. Thank you, James.

-Thank you very much indeed.

And with that little spree over, time to get back on the open road.

Have you noticed you've picked up a bit of countryside

on your wing mirror? It looks like a mint from here.

I held it to my nose. I hope it's not a...

-No, I think it's nettle.

-Nettle.

It's dangerous business, this smell test.

Nighty-night.

Next day, James is still taken with his latest trick of the trade.

The Braxton lexicon of indicators has now gone up.

I'm buying purely on sense of smell.

Did the job, too.

Yesterday, James acquired a smell-tested sea chest,

an ottoman and a brass fire fender.

He still has just shy of £120 to spend today.

I bought three items, one of them an absolute belter.

No! No!

Whilst Charlie also sniffed out a couple of goodies,

acquiring a roofer's lead mallet and some Art Deco picture frames...

# The Charleston... #

..leaving him little over £190 to play with.

Well, I made a little inroad into my substantial profits.

I just wonder whether I paid a little too much money, but...

-Excellent!

-HE LAUGHS

Later, they'll be heading to auction at Wotton-under-Edge,

but first, James is getting dropped off

at Stoke Bruerne on the bank

of the Grand Union Canal.

-Right, off you go, old chap.

-Off we go.

-Have a good trip!

I think he just did. Oh, dear.

For goodness' sake, James!

I think I've mastered it now, Charlie.

-Well done.

-Bye.

-Have a good time.

Canals were the motorways of their day,

allowing large quantities of goods

to be transported across the country,

with the Grand Union connecting London to Birmingham.

James is meeting a local historian whose family worked on the canals,

Lorna York.

-Hello. James.

-Hello. Lorna.

-Hello, Lorna. Lovely to meet you.

I hear you're the first generation to live on land.

I am, yes. My father was the last one born on the boats.

-Really?

-Yeah, and we go back to the 1790s on the canal.

The narrow boats hauled everything

from raw materials to finished products,

and also provided a living space for the men who worked them,

and their families.

You were allowed two adults and two children in this cabin,

but it would frequently have what they called a butty boat,

-which is an unpowered boat which they would tow.

-Yeah.

In that cabin, you could have another six children in.

Because the boats were where the bargees lived as well as worked,

they wanted to make them feel more homely,

and so the art style that we still associate with canals was born.

The women had come onto the canal more

and they liked to have some decoration.

And this was the fashion at the time,

so the boat people wanted that themselves.

Known as Roses and Castles after two of its most prominent motifs,

the pretty floral designs were usually created

in the boats' builders yard

by the men who constructed and painted these vessels.

This is a style of Braunston dockyard,

-just north of here.

-I like the ribbons.

-And the bands.

-So, this was for cups of tea and washing, as well.

-Yeah, and cooking.

-Where would this be placed, then?

-On the cabin top.

-On the cabin top.

-Yeah.

-So, yeah, it would be seen...

-Oh, yeah.

-..by lots of people. So, decoration.

-Yeah.

They hadn't got any actual furniture,

so they embellished everyday things like the water cans,

the washing bowls, the doors, the cupboard doors,

so that they had something that was pretty, that they could enjoy.

Fashions in the outside world moved on,

but because the narrow boat men were an isolated community,

their traditional design continues to this day.

How did they get on with the latest sort of neoclassical

and Art Nouveau periods?

-No, you didn't.

-No.

-Don't worry about that one.

This was still going.

The museum also has a replica of a typical narrow boat interior

and our James is keen to squeeze in and take a look.

Mind your head.

My goodness me, what a space!

So, four people, potentially, lived in here.

Two adults and two children, yes. That would be the permitted amount.

-It is tiny, isn't it?

-Yes, but everything has got its place.

So, we've got the range.

-Yes, for cooking, hot water, making the cups of tea.

-Yeah.

This would be your cupboard to store your crockery,

and when you drop the cupboard door down,

it becomes a table. This is your bed.

-That's our beds, is it?

-Right.

-HE LAUGHS

It would undo and that flap would come down,

and that would be the bed for the parents.

It's a double bed, but it's only actually 37in wide.

-How long would it be?

-Well, it's just about 6ft.

-Just 6ft.

-Yeah.

Most boatmen were not of a tall stature.

Average height was about 5'3".

Well, Lorna, given the fact that I'm well over 6ft,

-I don't think the boating life is for me, is it?

-Not really, no.

Better stick to the antiques business, James.

And look, here's a bit of a reminder.

A boat called Charlie. I can't get away from the man!

Now, where's the proper Charlie?

He's steering the Spider south-west

and he's a little concerned about his rival.

James is far too chipper today.

He obviously had a good day buying.

I just wish he'd buy a few more of those ghastly paintings.

Charlie's making a beeline for Northamptonshire and Brackley,

which was once one of Richard the Lionheart's

official jousting sites.

But with around £190 in his pocket, what will Charlie tilt towards?

Aha! There's a face I recognise.

-Jim, how are you?

-Hello, Charlie. Good morning.

-Good to see you.

-You're looking very flowery, very Caribbean.

This place is quite a size. Easy to get lost in here.

Perhaps a friendly local guide might help.

I always like a recommendation, Jim. Well, that's a proper table.

-It's lovely, isn't it?

-That's George II.

Pad foot, lovely Honduras mahogany.

Why am I building it up? It's unsaleable today.

-No, it's lovely.

-Absolutely unsaleable.

-It's lovely.

-What we have to look for here is,

are the leaves original to the top?

-They look as if they are, don't they?

-They do.

I'm going to look underneath it because that's the key.

Yes, always good to get under the bonnet.

I've got an odd request. You haven't got a torch, have you?

We have, yes. I'll get one.

And as if by magic...

That's amazing.

-What do you think?

-I think the top is absolutely spot-on.

Got some new blocks under there, but so what?

If I was a couple of hundred years old,

I'd want some new blocks, I should think.

-Lovely.

-18th-century heaven.

-I think it's a lovely table.

Well, of course you would. You own it!

Right, down to the thorny subject of money.

Tell you what, this has got to be rudely cheap.

I reckon, at auction, that would make something absolutely absurd,

like 60-80 quid, which is a joke.

-Yes, it is.

-It should be worth £350, but it isn't.

-So, £40 would be a bargain.

-Cor!

I'm probably going to be shown the door in a minute.

I'm going to say something to you which you're not going to like.

Would £30 show you a profit?

I can see that Caribbean shirt twitching.

-Well, I want you to beat James...

-HE LAUGHS

-..so we will do a deal at that.

-Are you honestly...?

-Yes.

It's a wonder. You know, even if the auctioneer gives it away,

I love it, and it's made me think of the good old days, Jim.

-Yes.

-Do you think we'll see them back?

-Don't know. Hope so.

-Yeah.

-I do. Tomorrow!

-Yes!

-THEY LAUGH

Well, fingers crossed, Charlie.

It might be cheap, but it's still a gamble.

Cor, you've put a skip in my step.

But whilst Charlie heads off happy, James is about to get shopping.

His last retail opportunity of the day

is in the county town of Northamptonshire.

He's got around £120 to splash about

and Edora Antiques gives him two floors

crammed with goodies in which to do it.

But is he feeling the pressure?

This is a crucial stage for me.

I'm in my third shop of my third leg.

I've bought three strong items already yesterday.

Now, today, I want profit, profit and profit.

Sounds like a firm of solicitors! What's tickled his fancy there?

Now, these are great fun.

This is figures after a very famous cartoonist

called Norman Thelwell and this one is entitled Kick Start.

It's done by Beswick Pottery. Little pony club girls.

Here's Penelope on her very reluctant Shetland pony.

How much have we got on this? £60.

That's about the price of these things.

I think there were four or five of these figures

that were produced by Beswick. Very comical.

But probably a bit of an also-ran in terms of profit.

Keep looking. Charlie, meanwhile,

has arrived at the Oxfordshire town of Bicester.

With just over £160 left, what can he find in here?

-Ian!

-Hi, Charlie.

-How are you?

-Good. How are you?

-Nice to see you.

-Have you got anything that might suit me, do you think?

-You might find a few bits.

Do make sure to look under everything.

-Look under everything?

-There's bits everywhere.

Let's have a look under everything, then.

Right, viewers, what's in there?

Oh, goody, I love a quiz.

Yes, nothing at all.

But what was in there? This is a music box.

Well, this is the box for a music box.

Probably made in Switzerland.

You can see a couple of grooves in here where the movement,

which was a cylinder movement...

There would be a lever which moved the cylinder

so that you got a different configuration of pins

so it played another tune. Unfortunately, all that is missing.

-It is just an empty box.

-And where's the fun in that?

-But he looks quite jolly.

-It's great. Look at it!

Little toby jug. Most toby jugs are pottery, earthenware.

It's actually silver plate.

It's got a bit of age, without a doubt.

I don't think it's quite Victorian. I think it's probably Edwardian.

Ian, talk to me about this.

-I've never seen anything quite like this.

-It's lovely, isn't it?

-Oh, no, I think it's ghastly.

-See, I love it.

I love that sort of beaten effect.

They've always got this rather standard face on them, Toby jugs,

-all the teeth showing. How much is it?

-I'm looking for 45.

Are you? I can't see 45 in there.

But I'm sure, for you, I can do something. I could do 30.

-How's that?

-Could you?

Not 25?

-28.

-Ha! 28!

-Oh! Is that all right?

-That's absolutely fine.

-Are you sure?

-Yeah.

-Keep that safely.

-Will do.

-I need one more thing.

So, while Charlie continues to peruse,

is there anything to declare in Northampton?

This is rather nice. What do they say?

"Silver gilt cufflinks."

I like the price - 15 quid.

So, I think I can just about read those.

Nine carat and silver.

Cufflinks are always a good present.

They're presents for weddings, presents for christenings.

They've got a case - that looks rather nice -

and at £15, that's a purchase.

Very decisive, James. Best to talk to the dealer.

Sonia, I've found something.

-Ooh, what have you found?

-Oh, it didn't take me long.

I've got a little pair of...

They're silver gilt cufflinks.

15 squid. What could you do that for?

Is there a little discount to help me along my way?

-I could do 12.

-12?

-Mm.

-How about ten?

-How about 11?

-Sonia's a fighter.

-I'll give you 12. I don't want to be mean.

-Thank you.

-12. Thank you, Sonia.

What else have you got? Have you got anything tucked behind there, Sonia?

-Something caught your eye, James?

-What's that picture?

-Reveal your goodies.

-We know you like your pictures.

They don't always like him, though.

OK, clue's in the place - Sandringham Estate.

-What have you got on that?

-Don't faint. It's 145.

-145.

-Mm-hm.

-Can we do a deal?

Give me a price and I'll see if it's good enough.

-50 quid.

-Ooh!

-As it's you, go on. £50.

-Really? 50 quid?

OK, put it there. Thank you very much indeed, Sonia.

Another lightning purchase - £62 altogether.

He thinks he's got something good there.

-Ooh, why the long face?

-That is not good news.

I got slightly overexcited in there.

I looked at farm buildings, Sandringham Estate,

and I looked at the Prince of Wales, so, Prince Charles.

I know he's a keen artist,

and I thought, "Oh, original watercolour.

"That's worth some money." It's a print! James, it's a print!

Has no signatures whatsoever on it. When am I going to learn?

I bought a picture in the last one. That made a tenner.

This is likely to make another tenner.

That's the quickest bit of buyer's remorse I've ever seen!

Back in Bicester, Charlie is being pointed towards a sizeable item.

-What about the big desk?

-What, this?

-Oh, it's beautiful, that.

-That's ghastly!

Got a fair amount of bling on it, certainly.

Was 595, now 350.

I mean, that is, you know, French...

..ghastliness at its best.

Well, actually, of course,

an 18th-century one would have been rather splendid, wouldn't it?

You've got me going here.

I walked straight past that cos I thought,

"This is just absolutely ridiculous."

Nice bit of 18th-century French furniture.

The trouble is, Ian, it's probably about ten years old.

It's absolutely awful.

I'm getting the impression he's not a fan.

If I bought this, I'd be mad.

-How much is it? Go on, give me a death price.

-150.

Hang on, he's not thinking about it, is he?

I'll be absolutely honest with you. I've got £134.46 left.

If I gave you £134.46, would you sell me your desk?

-You are now the proud owner...

-No! No! No, no, no!

-..of a lovely, French-style desk.

-Good grief!

We're all making dubious decisions today.

There's no doubt that's the most ridiculous thing I have ever bought.

-It's a lot of desk for the money.

-Somebody might like it.

Well, they might.

So, the desk and that toby jug clean him out.

-Thank you very much.

-I can tell you that

that is everything I've got in the world.

-Lovely.

-Thank you very much indeed.

-Thank you very much, Charlie.

Now, back together again. Are we ready for the auction?

In boxing terms, the corner sponge has been applied,

the bell is ringing and here comes the sledgehammer left.

Them's fighting words. But first, time for some shut-eye.

Welcome to Wotton, a lovely market town

nestled beneath a limestone cliff, which is why it's "under-Edge".

What a lovely day, isn't it? It's a day for profits, Charlie.

-You think so? You're confident, aren't you?

-I am.

I can feel profits.

I can feel profits, or it was that fried slice I got for lunch.

Charming! After kicking off in Wendover, Buckinghamshire,

our two have wandered west to Wotton in the Cotswolds.

Here to sell at Wotton Auction Rooms,

complete with its own stained-glass window

and internet bidding.

James parted with £202 on his five auction lots...

Wow! Sold!

..while Charlie blew his whole £282.46 on his five lots.

But do they rate each other's items?

This is absolutely beautiful,

but it just shows you the state of the furniture market.

£30 for something that would have been in an aristocrat's home

or a very smart London home during the period of George II.

He's bought this on weight.

The gauge is extraordinary, the quality is magnificent,

but sadly, who needs a fender nowadays?

How many people have fireplaces in their houses,

other than James Braxton?

But what's attracted the attention of auctioneer Philip Taubenheim?

By pure chance, we've got a big collection of toby jugs in today.

18th-19th century ceramic Toby jugs.

This, sadly, doesn't quite come into that range,

but we will have toby jug collectors in the room, so we've got hopes there.

We've got a signed watercolour by Prince Charles in today,

which we think will make 1,000.

Sadly, this is not that.

They have bought a print rather than a watercolour,

which will make just maybe £20.

The desk will either fly or it will floor.

If Liberace were here,

we'd have a really good chance of selling that desk.

Sadly, he's no longer with us.

They've bought some quite quirky things amongst them,

and, actually, quirky works well at Wotton-under-Edge.

Oh, these two are all about novelty.

We're very close to the action here.

-I can really taste the dust. Can you taste the dust?

-Mm.

It's those rugs. I think I might recommend a Hoover.

There's probably one on sale.

First up is Charlie's lead basher. It would make a great gavel.

20 to start. 20. It's at £10.

-That's all right.

-£10.

15, I'm bid. Thank you. At 15, I'm bid.

And 20, I'm bid. 25, will you?

At 25, I'm bid. Bid's there at £25.

-£25!

-What a splendid auctioneer. Pretty good.

-At £25, it goes.

-GAVEL BANGS

-Congratulations, sir.

-I think you got away with that one.

Yes, not a bad hammer price there.

What's coming up next?

I don't know. Something of value, hopefully.

Well, it's James's right royal blunder.

This could be the greatest mistake you've ever made in your life.

It'd be very funny if I got a profit cos I don't deserve it.

What will we say? £20 for it?

Prince Charles' work for £20. 25, I'm bid.

30, I'm bid. At £30, I'm bid.

On the wings there at £30, I'm bid.

35. At 35. No mistake. All considered it, then?

-At £35, and it's sold.

-GAVEL BANGS

-It could have been a lot worse.

-It could have been. Congratulations.

I think we'll consider that a result, James.

But you've got your quality items still to come.

Or have you?

Well, these cuff links are rather nice.

Go with the nails.

-£20, I'm bid, thank you.

-20 already! It's a big profit.

-It's only the start.

-30, I'm bid.

-Look at this.

-At £30, I'm bid.

At £30. Not dear, are they?

-They're lovely.

-Happy enough with that?

-£30, the best we can manage. At 30.

-GAVEL BANGS

That's just about made up for the print.

Not by a long chalk, but James is a trier.

I have got to win this one to stay in the running.

Otherwise, you're just going to coast home.

When have you ever known me to coast home?

Well, there was that one time with the elephant.

His picture frames are next.

At £30, I'm bid. 55 online. At 55.

-That's better.

-55 - that's better.

-55, I'm bid.

55, I'm bid. 60 in the room, I'm bid.

At 60, I'm bid. 65, I'm bid. Online bid. At 65, I'm bid.

-70. New buyer in at £70.

-Come on!

-£70, I'm bid.

Quite happy with that? No mistake. At £70, and they sell.

-GAVEL BANGS

-70 is the price.

-A small loss.

Ah, but you did love them, unlike some of your other lots.

-Can I withdraw the desk?

-No, you may not.

-Can I pull out now?

-No.

-Can I phone up the man in the shop

and sell it back to him for 50 quid?

Next is James's footstool, or ottoman, if we're being posh.

30, if you like. At £30 for a low start.

Ooh, you're in at 30. It cost what? It cost 32!

45. 50, I'm bid. 55, I'm bid. Online again. 60, I'm bid.

It climbs, as you can see. 65, I'm bid. 70, I'm bid.

At 75, I'm bid. At 75.

A cheap thing for the money at £75.

Yeah, well done. Well done to him.

-All done at £75?

-That's all right.

-GAVEL BANGS

Braxton!

If I may say so, Braxton is back.

Ottoman it is, then. Well done, James.

HRH print is now a distant memory. I've sponged...

-I've already forgotten about it.

-I've forgotten about it. Who is he?

Now time for Charlie's toby.

That's a £20 lot. At £20.

-Ooh, that's not enough.

-That's all right.

At £20, I'm bid. 25, I'm bid. Thank you.

-Thank you. Come on, sir.

-At 25, I'm bid.

30. It's back in the room. At £30, I'm bid.

It's still not quite a profit, is it?

35 anywhere? At £30, I'm bid.

All done? You happy enough with that at £30?

And it's sold at 30. 35, I'm bid.

-Ooh!

-35. You're out in the room.

-Well done, sir!

-At £35, I'm bid.

-No mistake. £35 is the price.

-GAVEL BANGS

Got my money back.

With a wee bit for the coffers.

It reminded me slightly of you. It was just...

-What's the polite way? Portly?

-How rude.

The sea chest now. Can James smell profit?

80 for the box? 50 for the box, I'm bid.

-Ooh, £50.

-Good travelling box at £50, I'm bid.

-55.

-Ooh, well done.

-55 online. At 55, I'm bid.

At 55. 60 on my book. At 60, I'm bid. £60, I'm bid.

-Nearly there.

-At £60. 65, I'm bid.

-Well done.

-At 65.

Back in the room now at 65, I'm bid. 70, I'm bid.

I'm expecting it to be 150, 200.

80, I'm bid. At £80, I'm bid.

-Letting it go through, then.

-£80.

-GAVEL BANGS

-80 is the price.

You're OK, James. You're all right.

You're just sort of washing along, aren't you?

I thought that was a biggie.

Yeah, he'd pinned his hopes on that one.

Sometimes, I don't think people latch onto the story.

They do not latch on.

Charlie's bargain table. He loved it. Anyone else?

Should be 100, but I'll start at... What should we start at? 50?

40, I'm bid, thank you. At 40, I'm bid.

-Don't give it away.

-£40, I'm bid.

-45. Thank you, madam, at 45.

-Oh, I can't bear this.

-50, I'm bid.

-This is so cheap.

-It's all right, it's all right.

-At £50, I'm bid.

Anybody else joining in? At £50, and it's sold.

-GAVEL BANGS

-50 is the price.

Charlie, Charlie, don't look despondent.

It's a profit.

It is, but no return to the good old days.

Don't take it personally.

You are not responsible for the whole of the furniture market.

I sometimes feel as if I am.

Hey, big fender.

£30 for it. £30 for the... £30, I'm bid. Thank you.

-Straight in.

-Got 30 straight in!

-At 30, I'm bid.

35, I'm bid. 40, can you?

40, I'm bid.

45, I'm bid. 50, will you?

-50, I'm bid.

-It's quality. It is quality.

55, I'm bid.

60, I'm bid. 65, I'm bid.

-Keep going. It's the best one we'll see.

-Fantastic.

-75, I'm bid.

-Never see a better one. I've never seen a better one.

-No mistake. At £75, then.

-GAVEL BANGS

Braxton! Braxton!

See, weight. It's all about weight, mate.

All that rigorous testing finally paid off.

Well, I think you've opened up clear water.

No, I don't think so. You've got the desk.

It passes the Braxton weight test, at least.

I am prepared to have a little wager for £1 as to the hammer price.

-Well, I don't want to be rude...

-No, no, no.

I'm going to go 160.

-High roller, high roller!

-£80.

I think Charlie's got the jitters.

£100 to start. Somebody, surely?

Thank you. At 100, I'm bid.

We're away. At £100, I'm bid.

At 110. 120. 130. 140. 150.

-Ooh, hang on.

-160.

-James, James...

-170. 180.

-Keep going, sir.

-185.

Look at the quality on it. At £185, all done?

-190 online.

-Ooh! Online, sir.

200, I'm bid. The room bid's 200.

-220, I'm bid.

-Oh!

-No!

-Ooh, Mr Braxton!

240 anywhere? At £220.

-All done at 220.

-GAVEL BANGS

-Down the hammer falls.

-Well done, well done, well done.

Well done.

The good old days are back, and with that hefty profit,

their work here is done.

Let's do the sums, shall we? There's a lot of sums to be done.

-I can't work it out at all.

-Leave it to me, Charlie.

James began with £259.62.

After auction costs, he made a profit of £39.90,

leaving him with £299.52 to spend next time...

..while Charlie started out with £282.46.

After costs, he made a profit of £45.54,

so he slightly increases his lead with £328 exactly.

-Oh, the sun is still shining!

-I know. It's lovely, isn't it?

-On my life.

-It's all gone horribly wrong.

Next on Antiques Road Trip...

-That's Glastonbury Tor.

-Where?

-Over there. South-southwest.

..a magical mystery tor...

I can't even get off the ground, let alone above my head!

..with several Braxton weight tests...

You'd need a big, heavy farmer to lift that.

-Cheers.

-..and a dozen oysters.

I think it's the best road trip I've ever had.