Episode 14 Antiques Road Trip

The nation's favourite antiques experts, £200 each and one big challenge.

Testing, testing.

-Who can make the most money buying and selling antiques as they scour the UK?

-It's a deal!

The aim is to trade up and hope each antique turns a profit.

But it's not as easy as it sounds and there can only be one winner.

Yes!

So will it be the highway to success or the B-road to bankruptcy?

I'm feeling very sorry for myself.

This is the Antiques Road Trip.

We're in Edinburgh today, on the road and the pavements with auctioneer James Lewis.

And fine art valuer Kate Bliss.

You made me jump out of my skin.

-How are you?

-Welcome back

-What a warm welcome.

These must be our cosiest competitors.

-I felt awful not being here.

-I missed you.

-It was a good auction though wasn't it?

-It seemed fantastic.

James missed it but Kate made the most money at yesterday's auction here at Edinburgh.

She'd taken a gamble on a pair of candelabrum.

They weren't cheap but made a great profit.

At 380 last call at 380 and I'm selling them at 380.

380? Yes!

Kate was miles behind James in terms of buying power but now the gap is closing

and she has £497.55 in her purse today

thanks to the candelabrum success and James doubted her on them.

I remember showing you and you sort of went, "How much?!"

I thought we were going to both crash and burn.

Er, perhaps a touch of false modesty there James.

It would take a lot for him to crash and burn at this stage.

James has been well out in front profit-wise all week.

His pockets are bulging with £1,006.95 to spend on this leg of the journey.

They're staying put in Edinburgh today for more antique searching.

I'm quite excited, because I think there is going to be some

really good things here but it could be quite expensive being Edinburgh.

I agree, it's going to be very expensive here.

James and Kate started their week in Helmsdale

and are taking the roads both high and low to the delights of Ayr.

On this leg they'll ferret out bargains in the Scottish capital

and the village of Croftamie and then head for auction in Hamilton.

Edinburgh's sometimes fondly called Auld Reekie, that's Scots for Old Smoky

because there was smoke aplenty back in the day of coal and wood fires.

These days it's a tourist mecca so antique prices might be high and there's another challenge.

Their next auction in Hamilton will be quite different from the Edinburgh one.

The word from the auction house there is that it's a general household sale with only a small antique section.

-So what's James's strategy?

-There's nothing I love more than spending money, I love it,

but if we're going to take these things to this auction room

it means really that I can't buy the very finest things.

I've got to be sensible. I can't spend a lot of money here, it would be suicide.

So melodramatic, old chap.

It's a competition, not a matter of life or death!

But if you're going to play it safe, maybe Kate can win this leg as well as the last.

She's starting her search today in an antique shop with a difference.

Frenchman Cedric sells antiques at the back but the front of the shop

is his own little tea emporium with 65 flavours on offer.

Let's hope Kate doesn't look for her fortune in the tea leaves.

-Morning.

-Morning.

-How are you?

Hi, I'm Kate. How do you do?

I'm Cedric. Pleased to meet you.

Is the mild-mannered Cedric Kate's next victim in the bargaining charm offensive?

She's learned fast this week how to parlez her charms into bargaining power.

Couldn't you do just a nice round figure of 20.

Just for me?

-55?

-And she's not above using emotional manipulation.

I've just got to beat the other guy, the problem is James is just

streaking ahead and I've got to try my very best.

Now she's spotted a cafe au lait set.

It was the French who first added milk to coffee.

They didn't care for the Turkish style of drinking it black.

So coffee and hot milk.

-That's correct yes.

-The French way?

And you would have to pour them together.

Ah, is that very important?

Well, some people think it's important.

It's a bit like would you put milk first or...

In tea? I'm definitely a milk afterwards person. Are you milk first?

-I don't do milk at all.

-You don't do milk at all. Typically French.

It's always my problem.

Is our English rose flirting with the Frenchman over coffee?

The jugs are late Victorian and silver-plated but priced at £75.

OK, I'll have a think on those.

As luck would have it, James might have picked the right shop for a general household sale,

but what's he made a beeline for?

-Top hats!

-With these silk top hats

occasionally if you get a big one and it's right for the modern day big heads like mine

they make quite a lot of money - £500 to £800. Small one - 20 quid.

Absolute nightmare to sell but for those of you who go to Ascot

or Royal Ascot, these things can be £3,000, £4,000 from a retailer

so keep your eyes open in the antiques shops and if it's a big size, buy it if it's cheap.

Top tip, James.

Better diet these days means bigger bones, so there's money in finding

an antique top hat to fit the modern head.

And thoughts of Ascot lead James in the direction of champagne - a champagne bucket, to be precise.

It's not great quality but at the end of the day, it's a tenner.

This champagne bucket is a classic campana shape,

inspired by the shape of lots of artefacts excavated from Pompeii.

A similar silver plated example from say 1800 might fetch

around £500 at auction but this a very recent and cheap reproduction.

-It's glitzy.

-Correct me if I'm wrong but is this not the ANTIQUE Road Trip?

That's more like it, a cast iron door knocker with an un-engraved brass plaque.

-How much is the door knocker?

-£25.

25? Blimey!

That's not expensive.

It's a nice early thing.

Gosh.

The difficulty is for me I love this door knocker - it's got everything about it, it's architectural,

it's a good, solid casting, it's got a plaque at the top to engrave the name of the house.

I guess it's about 1850, lovely.

That would really set off a fine Edinburgh town house, it really would.

Alas, the auction's in Hamilton but it's only £25 and you do have over £1,000 to spend.

Kate's moved on from a pair of coffee pots to a pair of table lamps.

They've got a bit of a look about them, I think.

But she's also veered off the antique track.

I don't think they're very old at all.

These things can be knocked out quite quickly but

I think it's quite nice to have the pair.

They're antique in style but as Kate suspects, the lamps are a very recent reproduction and the high

polish finish suggests they're not a good quality English alabaster, which tends to be more matte.

These are probably a white soapstone so if Kate's going to buy them

she doesn't want to pay Cedric's asking price of £60.

Let's hope the flirting over coffee has softened him up.

The best I could do on those is £40 for the pair. That's the really...

That is the lowest. I was really hoping for - it's really cheeky - I was thinking around 20.

That is very low. I couldn't really do that, sorry.

That's a lot.

Could you help any more at all?

Erm, I could go halfway and I could do 30.

You could do 30.

But that's...

the very, very best I can do.

Mm-hm. Let me have another look at them.

On the road this week, as well as bargaining with ladylike charm,

Kate's also played the uncomfortable silence tactic to good effect, but usually the dealer is present.

I'm not sure out-silencing the lamp bases on your own is going to work.

Cedric. Final offer, can you do 25 cash?

HE LAUGHS

-You're very hard.

-Just for me.

Just for you?

-Right, OK.

-Could you?

-In this particular case, yes.

-I'll buy a cup of tea from you.

That's very kind of you.

That would be brilliant, all right, thank you very much indeed.

Put a premium on that cup of tea, Cedric!

Across town I sense James is gearing up for some negotiation.

Owner Bobby is only asking for £25 for the door knocker

and £10 for the glitzy champagne bucket. Let's see what happens.

OK.

What would you do the two for?

If only Bobby realised just how much money James actually has.

I'll take a tenner off the two.

At that you've got a deal.

You've got a deal.

Well, there we go, I don't know if I've made a complete and utter howler or done a really good deal.

-So we'll see.

-What do you mean, a howler? You spent £25,

with the warm champagne thrown in as well! That's brilliant.

Kate's moved on to her next shop.

It's got all sorts of treasures and it seems another one is on the way.

-Hello.

-Hey, what are you doing here?

Of all the places, of all the antiques shops in all of Edinburgh you had to come into mine.

Enough of the Bogart impressions, Kate upstairs, James down.

MUSIC: "As Time Goes By"

Yeah, there's some brilliant things in this shop. Absolutely brilliant.

Ooh, Kate has tripped over a bargain already.

They're obviously some kind of medical instruments but I don't know what on earth they're for.

Anyway, they're all stamped.

Has James found anything as intriguing?

No, I'd say not.

But Kate has found owner Lewis to enlighten her on the strange surgical instruments.

-They're forceps for delivering babies.

-Are they? They're forceps.

And they're all different sizes.

Gosh, that makes me wince.

Hmm, and probably not something that would do well for you in a general sale.

I'm not finding this very easy at all.

Loads of stuff,

some interesting, but the interesting things are really very well priced.

They're worth it, it's not a rip off,

but there is certainly quite a way to go before I can even start to

think about negotiating with it.

Oh, come on, James, you've got stacks of cash. Live a little.

-Aren't they fun?

-That's more like it.

Fancy dress outfits, 19th century or Edwardian.

My friends normally get me dressed up as Henry VIII when we go to a fancy dress party.

I don't have to make much effort to look like Henry VIII.

Henry VIII downstairs and is that a French schoolgirl upstairs?

Is the bow meant to be at the back?

The hat's just the start of it for Kate.

Vintage clothing and accessories are all the rage these days and there are decades' worth to choose from.

Even men are getting in on the act.

Is James looking for a cardigan, perhaps?

-Hi! What do you think?

-Suits you.

Do you want to swap?

Yep, ready to swap. I could spend a fortune on clothes up here.

-Do you know there's a jacket that might just suit you in there?

-Oh, really?

-She clearly means this one.

-Well, you'd hope but who knows how Kate mentally dresses you?

Well, I hope she means this one, all the others are women's.

Mmm, I don't think I want to know.

Kate's now spotted an umbrella with a little eye-catching extra.

Hmm.

Now that, to me, says 18 carat,

which is rather smart

and you've got the name inside.

It says Paragon

and then it says S Fox and Co Ltd, made in England

and there's a little symbol of a running fox.

Fox and Paragon are among the oldest and most famous names in umbrellas.

Samuel Fox revolutionised umbrella manufacturing in the mid-1850s

with the U-shaped Paragon steel rib design.

So I would say in date this is probably '40s.

It's a lovely bit of vintage accoutrement, if you like.

This accoutrement, or accessory, used to be just for ladies.

Men were considered wet if they used an umbrella but thankfully

the brolly caught on in Britain as a unisex item in the mid-18th century.

Well, the price tag is £45

which I don't think is too bad.

Maybe not if it were going to a vintage specialist sale, Kate, but it isn't.

I don't know, it's a real gamble. I certainly wouldn't want to pay £45

so I think it's all down to what I can negotiate.

Let's go and have a chat.

I'm beaten, I think I'm beaten.

I hate being beaten.

Beaten? A jam-packed shop and close to £1,000 in your pocket?

Surely he can find something here.

Kate has. And just what technique will she try on Lewis?

£45.

-£25.

-Here we go...

Hmm. Let me put you in the picture.

My opponent is streaking ahead of me at auction in that he's

got double my profit almost, in fact I think he's got a bit more.

So I really am in desperate straits.

So I could do with a really, really

good price.

-If possible.

-20?

It's a very nice handle

-and it even works.

-Mmm.

Could we say ten?

Just for me?

We could say 15.

-12?

-Yeah. OK.

-Thank you very much.

Poor Lewis didn't stand a chance against Kate's sob story and big doe eyes.

She really milked it!

And heavens above, has James finally found something suitable for his self-imposed stingy strategy?

That is a classic bit of Art Deco ceramics.

Made around 1925, 1935 everything about that screams Deco.

Its shape, with these buttress legs, these great big mad, meant to be

fruits I guess, or stylised flower heads but mad colours.

And it all clashes, one thing after another.

The shape clashes with the colour, the colours clash with one another.

Maker, Myatt and Sons, made in England.

Hmm... it's not a great maker but it's got a bit of a look to it.

Myatt and Sons' Staffordshire pottery was more the poor man's version of Art Deco.

They tended to be slightly behind the times with their designs.

This globular style vase was popular in the mid-1920s

but Myatt and sons didn't produce their own Bulb Bowl until 1933.

Lewis.

How much is that, please?

£10 for that.

I don't think there's any cracks in it.

-RINGS

-No that's absolutely fine.

If the vase was cracked, it would make a flat sound but this one rings clear, so not bad for a tenner.

I'll take that.

Thank you very much, that's very reasonable indeed.

Lovely. Thank you so much and I hope I don't drop it.

Please don't drop it. I couldn't go through this whole routine again.

There is absolutely no chance of me spending a lot of money.

I'm happy to take a gamble, I'm not happy to commit suicide, that's the difference.

Oh, there you go again with the life and death thing, it's only a game, loosen up!

Kate must be feeling confident about the two buys under her belt.

She's headed to Edinburgh's Royal Mile to meet Rosalyn Harkness at the camera obscura.

-Hi.

-Kate? Hello. Nice to see you.

-Hi, thanks for having me.

-Not a problem.

Come along and I'll show you inside.

-Great. It's such a great building.

-It's beautiful, isn't it?

Camera obscura is the name given to an optical device which creates an

inverted image of an outside scene by letting light rays pass through a pinhole into a darkened room.

Edinburgh does the camera obscura on a grand scale.

So this is where it all happens, is it, Roslyn?

Yes, this is the camera obscura, Kate, it's essentially like walking

inside a giant camera, same sort of principle.

It's not a camera in the modern sense because it only projects images, in this case three lenses and a mirror

in a periscope at the top of the tower reflect a 360 degree panorama of Edinburgh city.

It might take your eyes a couple of minutes to adjust, as you can see.

Wow! It's great it's such a clear day isn't it, that we can see so far.

Ooh there's a seagull.

Gosh. it's amazing, you can see the flag blowing in the wind up there.

Look at that, it just brings it alive, doesn't it?

It really makes you realise what you're looking at.

Edinburgh's camera obscura exists thanks to Maria Short.

She set this up in the 1850s and it's been open to the public ever since.

In Victorian times, when she started it here in 1853,

people could come and look as they do today.

Absolutely, and they were terrified, some of them.

Obviously, Victorians, some of them hadn't even seen a photograph

so when ladies saw these live, moving, colour images,

some of them were absolutely terrified and were known to faint.

Improved lenses in the 19th century saw grand-scale camera obscuras

like this one become popular as entertainment, especially in picturesque areas.

-This is the castle, then?

-That's correct. Edinburgh Castle.

But in the 17th and 18th centuries, small, portable devices were used as drawing aids.

The reason I know the camera obscura is the way it was used in art

many centuries ago, because a lot of the old masters -

and even before that - used the camera obscura

-when they were doing their paintings.

-Absolutely.

They used them essentially for perspective

but there is some evidence now that points to cave paintings,

for example, in south-western France, and they believe

that the cave people used the same sort of principle because a lot of the images are upside down.

Light coming in through the rock,

and they saw what was going on outside and painted what they could

-see from there, so it might even go back as far as 30,000 years.

-Wow, that's amazing!

While Kate's been learning obscura facts, James has been window shopping.

He's looking in the window of a shop trading mainly in old toys.

I'm not getting the general household sale vibe here at all, but hang on...

Unlike Kate's lamps, this is not a repro.

Most likely French alabaster from the 1920s.

Alabaster comes in a variety of colours and is softer

and easier to carve than marble.

These cockatoos are a touch grimy and owner David has £100 on the ticket price.

I think, in perfect order, it's £70.

James must be thinking it's worth a punt as he's doing the usual

and pointing out the flaws to bring the price down.

That's there as well.

That doesn't worry me too much, that little bit at the back,

but there's a big chunk out of the front as well. Hmmm.

No... It's sort of 30 quid, damaged.

Is that any good to you?

I'd let it go for 50.

I could do 35...

If that was any good to you.

Hmmm...

-OK.

-Deal.

£35. Thank you very much.

-And...

-I'll miss them.

-Oh, have you had them a long time?

-Not that long but, you know...

Oh, dear. Make it a quick farewell then, James.

Edinburgh's played host to our experts who have had an excellent rummage with patchy results.

So time for a kip, I think.

We've finally got the Scottish weather everybody's been telling us about.

Come rain or shine, though, the antique deals have to be found.

James is winning the war but Kate won yesterday's show

and she's keen to find that big buy to beat James on this leg as well.

Their next auction will be in Hamilton and today our pair

are heading west from Edinburgh to just outside the village of Killearn.

Yesterday, Kate used her charms to buy a 1940s umbrella

and a pair of table lamps of indeterminate age.

She spent £37 in total, leaving her with £460.55 today.

James bought four items in the end -

the Champagne bucket, the cast iron door knocker, an art deco bulb bowl and the alabaster cockatoo lamp.

He spent a canny £70 and has £936.95 still to play with if he wants.

But it seems he doesn't.

Fantastic. I've been looking forward to this.

-Have a lovely time.

-I feel like a naughty boy.

You are a naughty boy. Tomorrow is the last leg of their road trip

and James clearly wants to hang on to his massive lead.

Talk about competitive. But a man's got to do what a man's got to do.

And this man wants to visit a distillery.

They've been making whisky at Glengoyne for nearly 200 years but not always legally.

In the early 19th century the Government taxed spirit production

heavily to fund the war against France, so lots of whisky makers operated under the radar.

A law change in the 1820s reduced the tax and the cost of a licence,

so Glengoyne went legal in 1833.

Arthur is James's guide today.

-Goodness me.

-This is our still house, James, and this is where

we do the whole production process within this building.

They produce around three million bottles of whisky here a year.

And along with some barley and yeast, it takes 100 litres of water to make the one bottle.

Just as well there's a waterfall on the premises.

The name "whisky" actually comes from the Gaelic "uisge beatha", meaning "water of life".

Uisge beatha got shortened to "uisge", which then became whisky in English,

if you see what I mean.

Is this a Highland malt here?

Yes, yes, by our finger tips.

We've got five whisky regions - Speyside, Islay, Campbeltown, the Highlands and the Lowlands.

The border between the Highlands and the Lowlands is the road that you crossed to get in here today.

-Oh, OK, so you're just Highlands.

-Yes.

So we distil here in the Highlands and then we send it underneath the road and into the Lowlands.

-To store it.

-To store it. And they lie in the Lowlands in our warehouses to mature.

At Glengoyne, all whisky is aged for at least ten years,

but for any whisky to earn the label "Scotch whisky",

it has to be aged for a minimum of three years and one day.

Gosh, you almost feel high on those fumes. Wow!

Single malts are the creme de la creme of whiskies

but distilleries also make the cheaper, blended variety.

-Right, James.

-Oh, wow, this looks like a laboratory.

This is the Glengoyne sample room.

Purists might look on them with disdain, but around 90%

of whisky produced in Scotland is blended, so someone must like it!

James is going to try his hand at this subtle art.

And if you nose that...

OK, let the fun begin.

You need to start your blend with a base of grain whiskey.

It's produced far more quickly and cheaply than a malt.

Then you add malts to build up the flavour.

Nose it.

-Different again.

-Yes.

The trick is in choosing ones which complement each other

rather than compete.

You see how the flavour's beginning to develop?

A good quality blend will have 25 to 30 different malts in it

but we don't have all day.

-Well done.

-Fantastic.

You have to think of a name. This is the difficult part, James.

In admiration of my worthy travel companion,

-Glen Bliss.

-Oh, lovely. Yes.

Well, that will be a nice surprise for Kate when she finally finishes her antique search.

Kate's still in buying mode

and she's headed a couple of miles along the road to Croftamie.

It's not like the crammed, rummagey shops of yesterday,

which should make things easier to spot.

I do really like your lamp.

Yes, it's nice. It's a Victorian one - there's nothing wrong with that.

It's a nice lamp.

The Victorian brass oil lamp is extendable and has a cast base.

Ten years ago it might have been worth £400-£500, but the popularity of Victoriana

has plummeted and dealer Bruce has a price of £100 on it.

OK, OK. I might come back to that. Let's have another little look.

You've got some Poole.

Well, this is Poole pottery,

which used to sell really well. The market's gone down a bit.

The Poole posy vase and sugar bowl are from what some people think of

as Poole's bland period - the '40s, '50s and '60s.

The most sought-after Poole pieces are from the '20s and '30s,

and then from the '70s, like this piece.

Would you sell the three bits all together?

Yeah, yeah, I'll do that for you. That's not a problem.

The ticket price on all three is only £15,

but Kate is keen on the lamp, too, it seems.

So, if I took the three pieces of Poole as one lot

and the lamp, what sort of price are we talking about, Bruce?

I'll do the whole lot for £90.

-OK, for the two...?

-For the four pieces, yeah.

Will it be silence, sob story, which?

I think done. Lovely.

That's definitely the quickest deal Kate's done all week.

She must be in a hurry to catch up with James.

It's that time again when each experts' buys have to be scrutinised by each other.

Well, in the spirit of things, why don't we just continue on the drinking theme?

-There we go.

-Oh, my goodness.

One reproduction, silver-plated, junkie ice bucket.

-So how much?

-With that.

-Well, it depends what people's tastes are.

-Fabulous, isn't it?

Well, I paid a fiver.

-Oh, my goodness!

-Well, it's cheap.

-You can't go wrong.

There we go, that's the first thing. How about yours?

Dah, dah!

I'm just going to break all the rules here. I'm just going to do this.

Oh, it's not the same!

Don't tell me it's the same.

-Well, it's pretty...

-Similar sort of thing.

Two alabaster table lamps.

No, actually...

Three alabaster table lamps. You've got another one.

I love the budgerigars.

-I think cockatoos.

-Or canaries or whatever.

Canaries! Oh, dear.

You have those and I'm going to have a look at this.

That's nice, isn't it?

But it's not very old, is it?

I think it's 1920s, Art Deco.

That's nice, James.

-Don't tell me you paid a fiver for that.

-No, £35 I paid for that.

£35. It's fun. I like it.

-OK, these.

-Yes.

They're brand new, aren't they?

-Yeah.

-What did you pay?

-25.

-Brilliant.

-Do you think?

Yeah, I do.

Kate's 1940s umbrella is next.

That really lifts it, doesn't it?

The gold? Hmmm. Just makes it really classy.

£20-£30 of scrap gold there, isn't there?

Absolutely. 18 carat, especially with gold prices the way they are.

I paid 12.

12 quid?

£12?!

That's monstrous.

That has got to make at least £30-£40 profit. It has to.

-Your turn.

-This next one is from the same shop...

James's Art Deco vase is actually something Kate looked at herself.

There it is. You've seen it, you picked it up...

-You know why I put it back.

-Why?

-It's got a big crack.

Ah... That's why it rings so nicely.

I checked! You are mean.

You're learning from me.

I am, I am! It's too long on the road with you.

It's got something about it, I thought.

-It was a tenner.

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

Kate also took a punt on some ceramics.

Hers is an assortment of Poole pottery.

OK. That is so 1970s, isn't it?

-That is such a great shape. What did you pay?

-Ten.

It's got to be worth that. There's got to be a profit there.

Right, your go.

-Right.

-A door knocker. How much?

20. What do you think...?

I think it's got potential, yeah.

That's four items for James. Time for Kate's last buy.

Well, you know my thing about lamp bases and candelabras?

Well, why not get a standard lamp?

I like it...

But what does James think it might make at auction?

-50 to 80?

-Oh! I hope a bit more.

-60 to 100.

-Well, I paid 80.

Did you?

£80 is a gamble. It's spending quite a lot on one piece again,

and I said that I wouldn't do it again.

But it worked last time. It depends on the auction, doesn't it?

It needs a couple of private buyers to fight over it.

-Your gut feeling was 50 to 80. This is worrying.

-Hmm.

Don't know.

Oh, Kate! Maybe James's special whisky blend will cheer you up.

There you go, you can unwrap that one.

See what you think.

And turn it over.

Look what it's called.

-Glen Bliss.

-Yeah.

Most girls have a rose named after them - you've got a malt whisky.

-Fantastic.

-That was what I was blending this morning.

Do you know, I looked at it, turned it over and it said "sample",

and I nearly put it down.

THEY LAUGH

Enough hilarity These two are always so nice to each other.

Let's find out what they really think of each other's lots.

The first thing I think I'm really surprised about

is that James had £1,000 in his pocket and he spent less than £100.

Some things he's got have been a real steal,

so I think potentially he could make a lot of profit there.

As for my things, well... I'm pleased with some and not so pleased with others.

After those candelabra did so well, she's got a pair of table lamps

and a standard lamp and she's done exactly what I did at the beginning of the week

when my tribal art spear did so well but then I bought more tribal art and it made a loss.

But I have to say I can't see the table lamps making a loss, but the standard lamp...

I just don't... She's been brave.

I don't know if it's the right sale for it.

For the all-important auction, our pair have Beetled

slightly southeast from Killearn to Hamilton.

You'll find Hamilton close to a point where a Scottish River Avon meets the mighty Clyde.

The town has some fine looking buildings, but one thing

that can be seen for miles in every direction is the Hamilton Mausoleum.

It might look like a giant pepper pot but apparently it has the longest echo of any building in the world.

Here we go, in there.

Will Kate hear the echo of success here at auction?

Well done.

Auction mart. It's quite a nice old building, isn't it?

-You see, you never know what these places are going to be like.

-Well, fingers crossed.

I'm really hoping I can catch you up a bit more, James.

-You did all right last time.

-It's just... It's luck, isn't it?

-It is to a degree.

Auction Mart LS Smellie & Sons

does hold regular specialist sales every three months,

but today it's a general household sale with only a small antique and collectibles section.

It could be touch and go profit-wise, so what are auctioneer

Andrew Smellie's thoughts on Kate and James's items?

A bit of a mixed bag, I would say.

From some of the lots there. The brass lamp's quite nice.

-Oh, do you think?

-Yeah, seems quite nice and...

And what isn't?

The ice bucket, to be honest. It's seen better days.

What's wrong with that? Don't you laugh!

Even if his champagne number falls flat, James is hardly going to lose big today. He didn't spend big.

He began this leg with £1006.95 and bought four items for only £70.

Kate was slightly more cavalier with her cash.

She started with £497.55 and has also bought four items but paid out £127.

James's lead may seem large but there's every chance Kate can repeat

her Edinburgh auction success and win this round as well.

How will her production line alabaster lamps perform?

Nice ones there. 50 for these? 30? 20 for a start, surely?

15 I'm bid.

15, at 16, 18, 20,

22, 24, 26...

28, 30. On the rail at 30, I'm at £30.

I'm at £30. All finished? £30.

-Aww. £30. That's a tiny, tiny profit, isn't it?

-Yeah.

Not a great return but they were a risk.

Will her vintage umbrella find the right buyer?

And, it clearly is a family business when it comes to portering

and displaying the items here at Smellie & Sons...and daughters.

50 for this, 40, 30 for a start,

20 I'm bid at the back.

20 I'm bid, £20, I'm at 20. I'm at 22,

24, 26, 28...

30, 32, 34,

36, 38, 38.

38. I'm bid 40.

-Well done.

-Out on the right, 40 I'm bid, 40, I'm at £40.

I'm at £40.

That's better. The buyers here clearly have taste.

What's that going to mean for James's glitzy Champagne bucket

he got for a fiver?

One ice bucket there, £40.

-Come on.

-He's showing it with the dent side, look.

He's showing it on the wrong side.

20 on the right, 20 I'm bid, 20 I'm bid for the ice bucket,

22, 24, 26,

28, 28 I'm bid, 28,

£28, and we're all finished here?

£28.

Chin-chin to that!

28, you weren't far off.

-His more substantial door knocker is next.

-I love this.

I think it's got real potential.

And with that brass plaque at the top, it's such a classy thing.

Door knocker there, collectible lot.

40 for this? 30?

Interest here. Start the bidding at £20. 20, I'm bid.

20 I'm bid, 20 I'm bid...

22, 24, 26...

28, 30...

32, I'm at £32.

All finished? £32.

It's not a loss but not as much as James would have liked.

The three pieces of the Poole-ware.

Three pieces there,

collectible pieces.

£40? 30 or 20 for these?

10 for a start?

10, 12, 14...

16, 18, 20...

22, 24, 26...

26, I'm bid 28...

30? 30 in front, £30. I'm at 30, 32, new bidder, 32.

32. On my right. All finished?

34, 36, 38...

40, 42, 44...

46, 48, 50...

50, I'm bid. Front have it, all finished? £50.

Kate's ceramics did the deed nicely.

Can the bulb bowl deliver as much for James?

Art Deco Myatt & Son globe vase.

Good clean lot there.

40 for this? 30? 20 then?

20 I'm bid,

£20, I'm at 20, I'm at 20, I'm at 20...

22, 24, 26,

28, 28 I'm bid, £28...

30, 30 I'm bid. Left have it.

30 I'm bid. All finished? £30.

A round £20 profit before commission for James.

Let's see how Kate's risky brass standard lamp does.

Lot 405 now - the Victorian brass telescopic standard lamp.

Nice one there.

200 for this? 150? 100 for a start, surely?

100 I'm bid.

100 at the back, 100 I'm bid.

100, 110...

120, 130...

140, 140 bid at the back...

140 I'm bid. 140, 140, 140... All done? 140.

Hello, Hamilton!

It's a good return, and with all her lots sold,

Kate's well in the lead with £133 profit today.

James has one more item to go - the cockatoo lamp.

He does have form with unexpected flyers,

but to beat Kate today, the lamp will need to make him over £110.

150 for this?

100 for it? 80 for a start, surely?

80 I'm bid on my right.

85, 90...

I'm at five...

100...

100, I'm at five.

110, on my right.

110, 110...

115, 120 I'm bid...

Finished? 120 I'm bid.

All done? 120.

-Yes!

-Well done.

It was neck and neck for the winner's sash on this round,

but in the end, James edged out ahead by less than a tenner.

Kate's consolation prize is her own malt blend.

James started today's trip with £1006.95 and after commission

he made a profit of £102.99, which means he's got a total of £1109.94

to spend on the last leg tomorrow.

Kate's starting total of £497.55

increases by £87.18, giving her £584.73 to spend.

Nothing to be ashamed of there, oh, no!

Hey, you know, it's a good end result for both of us.

I'm really pleased about the standard lamp because that was a major gamble and it paid off.

But, on the other hand, I'm disappointed about

my table lamps because I really thought they might do £40-£60 and they are what's cost me.

-I don't know about you but I'm absolutely drained.

-Me too!

It's all that nervous tension. And well done, you.

I mean, that's fantastic.

You're flying, well over £1,000 profit. 1,100 now, it must be.

-Yeah, but you're getting a bit closer - 600.

-Maybe.

I'm not closing the gap.

The gap's certainly not grown.

Kate's still got every chance of closing that gap.

There's everything to play for on the final leg of the trip.

Tomorrow, James finally spends big...

180, 190, 192.

Am I mad?

Will it pay off?

Or does Kate win the last round?

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd

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