Episode 15 Antiques Road Trip

It's the nation's favourite antiques experts

with £200 each, a classic car...

We're going roond!

..and a goal to scour Britain for antiques.

I want to spend lots of money.

The aim - to make the biggest profit at auction.

But it's no mean feat.

-Oh, no!

-There'll be worthy winners...

-Yes!

-We've done it!

-..and valiant losers.

-You are kidding me on!

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

-What am I doing?

-You've got a deal.

This is the Antiques Road Trip!

It's the final leg of the road trip for Thomas Plant and

Anita Manning and it's a beautiful day in the South Downs of Sussex.

Anita, our last day on the road together.

-I'm going to miss you, Thomas.

-I'm going to miss you, too.

-It's been a real rollercoaster. You've done really very well.

-I know.

-You're like the...

-The outsider?

-The outsider, coming round.

A mature old nag!

Oh, no! I think you're a thoroughbred, Anita.

Thomas Plant is an antiques expert who knows

that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Mainly himself.

An experienced auctioneer, Anita Manning certainly knows

how to compliment a dealer's collection.

I had a little luck with some broken pottery before.

-It's like every day is an adventure with you, Thomas.

-Is it?

Oh, I like the sound of that! An adventure! An antiques adventure!

Both Thomas and Anita started the trip with £200.

Thomas started off the trip well but is now trailing with only £261.84.

After four auctions it's Anita who is in the lead with £401.94.

-This car has been lovely.

-Yes, I've enjoyed this car.

I enjoyed these wonderful country lanes down in the south of England.

Oh, it's been just...

-It's God's own country.

-Quite!

Driving for the last time in the 1968 Lotus Elan,

let's find out where they're off to.

On this Road Trip Thomas and Anita will have travelled 550 miles

from the village of Redbourn in Hertfordshire

all the way to Maidstone in Kent.

Today's final leg is starting in Brighton

before finishing at auction in Maidstone.

Anita! Have a fabulous time buying!

Yes, darling, I will.

Barter well but remember, if all else fails, flatter your eyelashes.

I'll do my best.

Flattery will get you everywhere, you know.

While Thomas heads off along the coast,

our Anita is on the hunt in Brighton,

Georgian England's most famous seaside resort.

She's starting her day in Oasis Antiques

and I hope she's got the right glasses on today.

Hello. I'm Anita.

I think a human might be more helpful.

-SHE LAUGHS

-Hello, I'm Anne.

and this is Martha.

-Are these girls your assistants?

-Yes.

This is Amanda, this is Heather

and over there's Elizabeth and Tracey.

But it's not long until Anita's well-trained eye spots something.

-This little item here is an 18th century lady.

-Yeah.

She's rather pretty.

The piece isn't 18th-century,

it's a more modern tourist piece, I would say.

-Maybe 20th century anyway.

-Yes.

It's the sort of thing maybe in the '50s...

It's looking back to sort of Regency times

with that extravagant hairdo.

Gorgeous courtesans.

Yes! Yes, yeah.

What do you think it would...?

Well, I'm thinking sort of...

£15 to £18.

Well, we've got 30 on it.

-Could it be bought for...

-20?

Still a wee bit dear. Could you do it for 15?

Erm...

-OK, I'll do it for 15.

-Excellent.

First deal of the day down and 50% off the ticket price.

Great start, Anita. What else can she find?

What about these big fish? What have you got these in at?

-We'll do 60 for two if it's any...

-Are they in good condition?

-Yes.

I actually like...

I mean, in my bathroom I have a sort of fishy theme

and I have these glass fish and I think they're good fun.

-Again, they are from, what, the '60s?

-Yes.

In stylish Brighton, the cool kids would like them,

but in a rural auction I'm not sure if people like them in the same way,

you know, because different areas have different markets.

The final auction is in Maidstone -

not quite the country but maybe not as bohemian as Brighton.

But cool and groovy Anita is still interested.

These fish are a type of Italian class known as Murano,

named after the Venetian town where they were made.

What about a price for them, though?

75 for three.

75's too dear to...

you know, to put them into auction and hope to...

I think I'd like to be paying £40 for them.

Oh, 40, it's...

Yeah, no. I'll do the three for 50.

-Let's go for it.

-All right.

-Let's go for it, yes.

Caught. Hook, line and sinker.

£50 for the three fish and £15 for the miniature.

Thomas, meanwhile, has made the journey 24 miles east to Eastbourne.

The younger East Sussex seaside sibling to Brighton,

Eastbourne is the quintessential Victorian resort.

Originally laid out in 1859 as a new town for gentlemen by gentlemen,

such terrible chauvinism would never be tolerated

by our Thomas, oh, no.

He's off to Old Bank Antiques.

Here to help is a very charming lady called Dorrit.

-Hello, I'm Thomas.

-Hi.

This is our last game to play and these are the last die I will throw.

Anita has got £150 more than me.

She's been really canny with her buying. So canny!

Tom, now you've seen the rest, you might as well see the best.

-The best? This means this is yours?

-How did you guess?

Because you said it was the best!

Cheeky, but I like it.

That's a lovely scent bottle, isn't it?

And with a stopper, even.

Now when anybody comes in, I shall say you have touched it

so I can put another fiver on it!

Oh!

Watch the stopper.

-Touch everything else so I can say, "Look!"

-Of course.

CUPBOARD RATTLES Oh!

Careful!

-That's OK. Did I break anything?

-I don't think so.

It's fine, Dorrit.

It's normally Thomas who breaks the stuff.

I've got to spend a little to try and beat Anita.

So, with Dorrit there to advise, Tom looks for an Anita beater.

-Well, this is a funny thing, isn't it?

-Yeah.

You've got these Indian coins inlaid in this sort of

-quite pretty oval tray, isn't it?

-Lot of work went into it.

A lot of work, a lot of work. Quite sort of colonial in its look.

It's a condiment set,

all ingeniously made from old Indian silver alloy coins.

I don't think it's worth a huge amount.

I have a figure in mind I'd like to offer you.

-Now you want to insult me. Go on.

-I don't WANT to insult you.

-I don't WANT to insult you at all.

-But you will.

Oh, here we go!

The thing is, Anita has been buying things very cheaply

and she's basically thrashed me. She's bought everything under £30.

Hang on, I have to take a handkerchief to wipe my tears.

Yeah, you wipe your tears.

I know, I know. It's hard work.

Oh, get on with it, Tom.

Anyway, she's been buying things for under £30.

-Everything of hers has been under 30.

-29?

Oh!

I like the lady's style!

Can we keep figures round? I'm simple.

-25. Ah!

-Are you sure?

-Can you see how painful it is?

-It is painful.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.

First deal of the day done for Mr Plant.

£25 for the Indian condiment tray.

Anita, meanwhile, has travelled 36 miles

along the south coast to Hastings,

once the area's epicentre for smuggling.

And she's come to the Smugglers Adventure at St Clements Caves

to find out the reality behind the romance.

Here to meet her is curator Catherine Harvey.

-Smugglers Caves.

-I hope you're not scared of the dark.

I am scared of the dark and I'm scared of enclosed spaces,

-but I'm so excited.

-Perfect for you! Come on.

-Let's go.

Catherine's taking Anita down into the caves

where they think smugglers operated 200 years ago.

-This is a labyrinth of caves.

-You do have to mind your head.

Smuggling of goods like wine and wool had existed for centuries

but it was after the Napoleonic wars in 1815 that it really took off.

Britain was broke and introduced sky-high import duties,

like 129% tax on tea to pay off its debts.

Families were desperate for money, too

and pretty soon you had about 4,000 people in Sussex alone

involved in what became part of everyday life.

People didn't set out to become a smuggler.

They would have other jobs, as well, but they were looking

to get extra money because they had very meagre incomes.

And you could earn as much in one night helping a smuggling operation

as you would for a whole week as an agricultural labourer.

So, for people who were really on the margins,

they needed to get as much money as they could.

So everybody in a community could be involved in smuggling of an area?

Yes, and there's evidence that women and children were also involved,

and that women might hide barrels within piles of washing

and that kind of thing. But it wasn't a romantic trade.

It sounds romantic.

We have a perception of it, smugglers, pirates of bygone ages,

of being a sort of romantic thing. You're saying it wasn't like that?

I don't think they were romantic figures in the way

that we think of them through films and literature.

It may not have been romantic but it was ingenious,

as this little contraption illustrates.

We've got something like this, which, from the outside,

to all intents and purposes, looks like a common cork float

that you would have on your fishing net.

But if you open it up you can see it's been hollowed out

to take a small amount of very precious cargo.

And I think you can see how valuable

something like tobacco or tea would be,

that it was worth bringing it in in such small amounts.

As the illegal trade increased,

the government turned from stopping the goods to stopping the smugglers.

They recruited violent ex-Navy men to arrest the crews

who, in turn, began to carry weapons.

They would also have things like this. This is a cosh.

If you feel it, it's actually quite a weight.

You would certainly know

if you were hit round the head with that, I can tell you.

-And they could carry it in their pocket.

-Absolutely.

The increasing violence and tensions on both sides

reached a head in 1828 in the nearby Battle of Sidley Green,

where around 200 smugglers moving contraband over open ground

met more than 200 customs men determined to stop them.

There was a fatality on each side,

so a revenue man was killed, as was a smuggler.

There were rewards out for information.

For example, they would offer quite a large reward -

£50, at that time, would be the equivalent of around £2,500 today.

So that is a lot of money in an area where traditional industries

are in decline and people are quite desperate.

Incidents like this led to the formation of the coastguard in 1831,

which, along with the hugely effective measure

of reducing duties, caused a massive reduction in smuggling

by the end of the 19th century.

The heyday of the smuggler was over.

Thomas has now hit the road from Eastbourne

and is driving 16 miles

along the coast into Hastings.

He's at Kings Road Antiques, run by Charles.

That's not him.

That is.

Now, what has Thomas found?

I just think this is just weird.

It's just strange. Laboratory pressure gauge.

But it's a lot of work in there, you know, mahogany base and, you know...

It could be a really cool lamp.

I wonder if I blow on this here...

Maybe if I open the tap!

It's opened up.

Don't try this at home, please.

-HE COUGHS

-In fact, don't try it at all.

I'm dying, here. I think that's really fun.

It was made by Philip Harris in Birmingham,

who's been making educational scientific equipment since 1817.

This gauge probably dates from the 1960s.

What you do is, I think, you'd get the old cable,

the electric cable, and you try and fill it in here.

And you'd actually...you'd make this a fluorescent tube.

It would be just a fun thing, just mad. But you could do it.

It's a bit of fun, really.

Yeah. Well, OK then, Thomas.

But first you need to buy the thing.

Let's see if Charles can gauge its value.

It has a ticket price of £40.

It could be off the scale.

I might be able to go down to 30 for you.

I was wanting to give you a £20 note for it, to be honest with you.

-(He's hard.)

-I'm not that hard, it's just got to go to auction.

I don't know what it's worth. I don't think anybody knows what it's worth.

But the decision isn't up to Charles.

The gauge belongs to a figure only known as the dealer,

or Nigel, who's about to be given a quick call.

He's looking at really only about 29.

Can he do me a favour,

keep the figures round, and 25?

He's saying that basically at 25 he's going to be making a loss

so he needs a cup of coffee, which will make it 27.

He has a deal. Thank you very much.

-Thanks a lot, Nigel.

-Thank Nigel. Thank you!

Yes! Thanks, Nigel. Now, what else is there?

What I've seen is a circular deco mirror.

Art Deco in shape, and you know how I like style?

And it's got a bevelled edge.

I like the oak and the red design.

It's quite cool.

Charles has brought the stepladder, look.

Charles, you all right up there?

-Just about surviving.

-Surviving.

-Oh, there we go.

Oh! Oh! We've lost the price. It's free.

The price tag said £20.

It's got a look, hasn't it?

The owner is Ralph.

Thomas asks Charles to phone him with a cheeky £13 offer.

All right. See you later, mate.

What did Ralph say? Is he a toughie?

He is, but he's a pussycat if you know how to handle him.

-He can't do the 13. Certainly can't do that.

-No, OK.

15?

HE SUCKS HIS TEETH

Could you make it 16? I like even numbers.

Oh, for God's sake!

-Yes! Yes!

-Excellent!

16 and 27...

-Is...

-Sh!

12... 12...

32...

42.

You sure about that?

-Just double check. 43.

-43.

-Nice try!

-43! Sorry!

-No, 43.

-43.

Yeah, good try, Thomas!

So, that's two more items in the old bag -

the pressure gauge for £27 and the mirror for 16.

So, with Thomas's third item under his belt,

that brings us to the end of day one.

Nighty night.

It's the start of another gorgeous day on the final leg

of Thomas and Anita's Road Trip.

Anita, this is a lovely day.

# The sun has got its hat on

# Hip-hip-hip hooray! #

It's good, isn't it?

-Our final day shopping and the sun's come out!

-I know.

You know, you can't beat a bit of old-fashioned British sunshine.

Yesterday, Thomas only spent £68 on three items -

the condiment set,

the pressure gauge

and the mirror,

leaving him with £193.84 for the day ahead.

Anita was a bit more carefree than usual

and spent £65 on only two items -

the portrait miniature and the Murano fish.

That leaves her with a generous £336.94.

You've got plenty of dosh, Thomas.

-I was very careful, Anita.

-Good. That's my boy, that's my boy.

I was very careful.

I had, in the back of my head, "Don't spend over £30 on an item.

"Do an Anita. Do an Anita."

Our pair are now in Kent

and heading for the beautiful old village of Brasted.

Just to spice things up a bit, our competitive duo are starting

their day in the same place, Courtyard Antiques.

Stand by.

Shopping with Anita.

Shopping with Anita! Oh, I'm so excited!

-What snippets can you teach me?

-Oh, stop gushing, Thomas!

Thomas is going to start shopping at one end of the courtyard

while Anita starts at the other.

Running things at this end is Jackie.

-Hello, I'm Anita.

-Hello, Anita. Nice to meet you.

It's lovely to be here.

Now she's on her final day,

our Anita is going to throw caution to the wind.

I would kind of like to spend a lot of money.

But I'm not going to be pulled in. It's happened before.

Anita has always been a sucker for the shiny stuff in a cabinet,

and today is no different.

I mean, it's just a wee thing but it's quite...

-It's pretty, isn't it?

-It's quite sweet.

-You could put Smarties on it.

-You could.

THEY CHUCKLE

This tray is of sterling silver and it looks to be of sterling quality.

It's got 28 on it.

What I would like to pay on it, though, Jackie,

is about £16. Is that possible?

I'll just have a look.

Erm...OK.

-You think we're OK at that?

-Yes, OK.

First blood to Anita and more than a tenner off.

But wait, she's not finished yet.

-Oriental sauce pot.

-Yes, it's lovely.

-I really love that.

-Yeah.

-Damage.

-Yeah, I'm afraid.

Well, those little bits of damage

should help cut the ticket price of £24.

And Anita did very well last time with some damaged pottery.

-Sold at 110.

-Kiss me there!

This porcelain sauce boat is 19th century

and would have been part of a larger service.

That would be 16?

I don't think he'd do it for 16.

-18.

-You think 18 is the most he would go on that?

OK. I had a little luck with some broken pottery before,

-so I'm hoping that it won't make any difference.

-It might happen again.

-OK, that's a double deal.

-Lovely.

-Thank you very much. Thank you.

Well, that was a brisk bit of business.

The tray for £16 and the sauce boat for 18.

I wonder how Thomas is getting on.

Elaine, nice to meet you.

Well, he's met Elaine, who runs the other end of the business,

and he's also seen something in a cabinet.

Amber is fossilised tree sap.

And the most wonderful thing about amber is sometimes you get insects,

leaves, spiders.

This looks like Baltic amber cos it's quite translucent.

How do people tell if amber is amber?

Well..

I think you can put a hot needle in it or something.

You can, but it's not yours, is it?

-A hot needle and you smell that tree sap.

-That's right.

Can I give you another tip?

It floats in cola.

And plastic will sink in cola.

-Plastic will sink, amber will float.

-Clarified.

Yeah. It's brilliant, isn't it?

OK, we know you like it, Thomas,

so let's get down to prices, shall we?

-What's your very best price? You have £65.

-Yes.

Have you got a suggestion of the price in mind?

-Well, I don't want to be sort of too rude to you...

-No.

..but, erm...

I suppose anything with a four in front would be too..

-too difficult for you?

-A five would be...

A five would be better, would it?

OK. So, 50?

Thank you very much. I'd better give you some money.

-Oh, lovely. Thank you.

-Is that all right?

-Perfect.

Hmm, I thought Thomas was going to be careful.

That big-ticket item could be a bit of a gamble.

Right, let's go and pester Anita.

-Anita!

-Oh, Thomas!

-Sneaking up behind me here.

-THEY LAUGH

-How are you doing, darling?

-Good. Have you bought?

-Yes, I've bought two items.

-That was quick!

-That was quick. I'm fast.

-You are. Furious and fast.

-Can I ask some advice?

-Of course, darling.

What should I buy?

No, you have to make up your own lovely mind.

-I will.

-You'll have to make up your own mind.

-So, we're not telling one another much here.

-We will do, in a min.

-In a min?

-I'll just have to blurt it all out.

-You can't keep a secret, can you?

-No!

Oh! There's some gamesmanship going on between these two.

But the hunt is back on for Thomas

and it's not long before he finds something a little bit different

and dealer Hugh is on hand to help him get a closer look.

I think this is a piece of folk art, 19th century jointed figure.

But it's of Pinocchio,

with the extra long nose.

Pinocchio was, of course, the little wooden puppet

that became a real-life boy,

Created by the Italian writer Carlo Collodi in 1886.

this little chap is based on an early illustration from the book.

This probably would have been made

by your toymaker in a village in Italy or in Europe.

I think it's a European figure. What can he be?

Right, here's the label.

Now, no telling tall tales here, Hugh.

£28 is the ticket price.

-But what's your price for him?

-24.

Oh, that's very fair. That's extremely fair. Thank you very much.

I think we'll have them for £24.

-I think he's a bit of fun.

-Yeah, thank you.

-He's great.

Not much negotiating there, then.

So, Thomas has got the Pinocchio toy for £24 to go with his earlier

purchase of the necklace for £50.

Meanwhile, Anita's off to her next shop

26 miles away in Rochester in Kent - the Garden of England.

Anita is visiting Cottage Style Antiques.

She still has nearly £300 burning a hole in her purse.

Could she be going for a big buy this time?

Owner Bill had better watch out.

And, sure enough, in this packed shop

Anita is heading for something rather special.

These cloisonne plates, I do like them.

I think cloisonne is lovely.

Cloisonne is a technique for enamelling metalwork

that includes enamel and wires.

These plaques are probably early 20th century

but they have a whopping ticket price of £220.

I see they're covered in dust.

-Have you had them a long time?

-No, just come in.

-Oh!

-About three years.

-SHE LAUGHS

-Three years!

Is there movement?

There'll be some movement, yes.

-Is there huge movement?

-Not huge.

Not huge. Maybe I shouldn't even ask you

how much movement there is on it.

Should I?

You're normally cheeky. You just say something.

What I'd like to be paying for them would be 100 to £130.

I'll tell you what, if you wanted them I could do them for 100.

-You could do them for 100?

-Yeah.

100?! You're suppose to say £130, Bill.

Not 90.

You are about to be kissed 1,000 times.

Put your hand there before you change your mind.

Thank you very much.

At £100 - less than half price -

I reckon Anita has surpassed herself here.

Well done, girl!

Tom, meanwhile, has travelled 30 miles across Kent

from Brasted to Gillingham.

He's come to the Royal Engineers Museum

to hear about a Victorian celebrity beloved by the Queen herself,

the legendary but controversial General Gordon.

Showing him round is Amy.

-Hello.

-Hello.

-I'm Thomas.

-Hi, I'm Amy.

-Hi, Amy, nice to meet you.

-Nice to meet you, too.

-So, the Royal Engineers, massive historic regiment.

-Yes.

-Huge.

-Yes.

-What are you going to show me today?

Today I'm going to show you a lot of Gordon memorabilia,

all to do with General Gordon.

-Show me more.

-OK.

Charles George Gordon first came to public attention

with his reckless bravery during the Crimean War.

But it was his service in China during the brutal

Taiping Rebellion that earned him his first nickname Chinese Gordon.

He paid scant regard for his own safety

and would often lead his men into battle unarmed

except for one unusual item.

He would go into battle armed only with a stick,

which was named his Wand of Victory.

-A stick?

-Yes!

-That was it?

-Yes.

We've got this one here in the cabinet.

-It does look like a sort of wizard's wand.

-Yes. It does, yes.

It's extraordinary that you have all these people coming at you

-with swords, knives, guns...

-Yep.

God, that's a brave man.

-Yes.

-A braver man than me, I think.

This must have really built up his mysticism, his absolute celebrity?

Yes.

While his maverick streak made him unpopular with the military brass,

thanks to the press back home

Gordon was hailed as an imperial hero even by Queen Victoria herself.

He spent the next 20 years after Taiping putting down rebellions

and napping the British Empire.

Amy, would you mind informing me,

we've spoken about Chinese Gordon, but why do I see lots

of commemorative plates with Gordon of Khartoum?

He was sent there to evacuate the Egyptian garrisons

due to the revolt that was being led by the Mahdi.

As the rebels of the Mahdi Army moved in, Gordon managed to evacuate

2,500 women and children from the garrisons in Khartoum, Egypt

but refused to evacuate the troops.

The government planned on abandoning him

but reports of his exploits back home meant the government

and even Queen Victoria herself demanded his safety.

Eventually, due to public pressure, they did send a relief force

and it was led by Lord Wolseley but, unfortunately,

due to the amount of time it took for them to get there

they arrived two days after the fall of Khartoum and Gordon's death.

And we've actually got the last letter that was sent from Gordon

-out of Khartoum.

-Oh, really?

-Yes.

-Is this it here?

-Yes.

"Khartoum, 14th of the 12th, 1884.

"My dear Watson, I think the game is up."

God. Oh!

"Expect a catastrophe after ten days".

He was predicting a catastrophic end in ten day's time.

-Yeah.

-That's very sanguine that it's going to end,

-"I'm going to die, this is bye."

-Yes.

-But he probably put up a good fight.

-I imagine he probably did, yes.

The accounts of his death differ and his body was never recovered

but to Victorian England his death was the cause for national mourning.

What have we got here on the table?

This is supposedly a piece of stone that Gordon was standing on.

It's part of his step of his palace that he standing on

when he was killed, and it was kept by Queen Victoria

and it was supposedly kept by her bedside for many years.

-Really, she was that much of a fan of his?

-Yes.

I wonder why, cos he was brave, he was eccentric, he's a good man.

-Victorian hero.

-Absolutely.

-I bet you Queen Victoria was livid.

-Yes, I can imagine she probably was.

The sun may never have set on the British Empire

but it's rapidly setting today, so let's have a little reminder

of what Thomas and Anita bought for auction.

Thomas bought a condiment set,

a pressure gauge,

a mirror,

an amber necklace

and a Pinocchio doll.

This lot of loot cost him £142.

Anita spent her money on a portrait miniature,

the Murano fish,

the silver tray,

the sauceboat

and the cloisonne plaques,

costing a grand total of £199.

So, let's hear what they think of each other's treasures

and who they think might win at the final auction.

Thomas's items in general are quite delightful in different ways.

But he hasn't found that big ticket item

that will push him forward, I don't think.

Anita's gone all-out and spent £100 on one item.

Thrashing me by my spending power by over £50.

That has got to be a help.

You can never be too confident in an auction situation.

It's an unknown, so we're both stepping into the unknown.

And I never count my chickens before they're hatched.

Well, unless something really great happens to me,

Anita's going to creep it.

But if her plates bomb I've got a real good chance.

So now it's onwards into the Garden of England

for the final auction in Maidstone, the county town of Kent.

So, Anita, this is it!

This is it! This is our swansong.

Our swansong!

This is the last time we're going to be driving to an auction together,

having this blether, as you like to call it.

And I've loved being in the car with you.

The car's been quite a good little girl.

She's been wonderful!

She certainly has.

The auction today is taking place at Frederick Andrews Auctions,

who founded their first shop in nearby Sheerness in 2004.

Well, you never know, anything can happen.

-Auctions are full of surprises.

-They are, aren't they?

The man at the rostrum today is Michael Walkling.

I like the cloisonne plates, they should do rather well today, I hope.

And there's a few bits there they might struggle with.

I think the little wooden puppet may be a difficulty to get away.

Obviously the little silver pin dish is quite nice,

but only of very limited value with us.

This isn't quite our usual auction house -

for a start, it's huge,

and there's another auction going on at the same time over there.

What kind of auction is this, Anita?

I would call it a sort of a general auction.

Lots of variety but we've got bundles of sheets

along with soft cuddly toys along with...

-It's a household sale, isn't it?

-Yeah.

-House clearances.

They've done house clearances and they've put them into lots,

trays, boxes, stamps, vinyl...

I think, you know, there's a chance to find a bargain.

The phone and internet bidders are all ready

so let's get the final auction of the trip under way.

The first item is Anita's sauceboat.

Will it make a profit?

Everybody needs a sauceboat.

Antique Oriental sauceboat showing now.

£20 for that.

Ten then. At ten now.

Who wants that one for a tenner?

Start me at £8.

-£5 is all I'm bid. Six anywhere?

-Six now.

£5 I have. Six anywhere now?

There at the back at five...

£5.

There you are. Well done.

I think I'm going to burst out greetin'!

Oh, dear, that sank and it means a big loss for Anita.

It's so big, this auditorium.

I can hardly hear the auctioneer!

Now, can Pinocchio bring some profit for Thomas?

Pinocchio. Will it tell a tall tale today?

What do we say for that? Quite a nice one there. £10 for that.

-Ten I have.

-Ten!

12 anywhere now?

Why are you celebrating my ten?

Well, it's better than five, isn't it?

18.

18 in the house.

-18 in the house.

-Fabulous!

18 then...

I know, but to me that's a triumph.

The little fellow failed to come to life for the punters.

It's Anita's miniature now.

Let's hope it can bring a profit.

-There we are.

-It's lovely.

-Yes. Fine quality.

-Beautiful, beautiful.

£10 for that somewhere.

Give me £5 start.

£5 bid. Six anywhere now?

Five I have. Six bid. Eight. Ten.

12. 14. 16...

Oh, yes!

16 with the lady. 18 anywhere?

16 with the lady.

18 anywhere now?

There at £16.

You all done at 16?

-Oh, Anita.

-Things are looking up.

They are, aren't they?

Success! The miniature's brought a profit.

One whole £1.

We're going to crack open the champagne with that.

Now it's Anita's big ticket buy.

Auctioneer Michael thought these might do well, too.

Nice pair, those. What shall we say, £80 somewhere?

50 then somewhere.

30 I've got. 35 anywhere now?

£30 bid. 35 there.

35. It'll creep up, don't worry.

50 with me. Five now?

50 right here, five where?

55 right in the room.

55, it's creeping.

55 in the room. 60 where?

There at 55.

You all done?

55.

Bad luck, Anita.

I thought they'd go on. I thought they'd go on.

Anita spent big, but she's lost big.

With a ticket price of £225, that's a real bargain for the buyer.

If I'm going to make losses I want to make spectacular losses.

Things are not boding well for Thomas's makeshift lamp.

Very rare thing, this. Very rare.

20 anywhere? Give me a tenner.

-Tenner?

-Five I'm bid now.

Ten I have. 12 anywhere?

£10 bid. 12 anywhere now?

Only at a tenner. Are you all done at ten?

That's beautiful. There we are, we love that.

Yes!

Thomas, that's probably all it's worth.

It's another loss. Have our duo misjudged the market?

Gloss over that. We're on to the fish.

Anita's Murano glass fish next.

Let's hope they bring some profit.

£20 for the three somewhere.

£20 for those somewhere.

20. Ten.

Ten bid. 12 where?

Lady at ten. 12 anywhere now?

Push! Push! Push it up.

15. 15 bid. 18 where?

-18 bid.

-18 now.

18 there. 20 anywhere?

Cheap lot there. At 18, then.

£18.

It's a loss for Anita, but another great buy for a punter.

-It could have been worse.

-It sold. You could have been taking them home.

Cos I know you would have liked them at home.

I've got fish like that in my bathroom.

Have you? Well, they're very sweet.

Now it's Thomas's classic Art Deco mirror.

Surely that will make a profit.

Time for some audience participation.

Here we are. Come on.

We want to see you bid on this lot.

-It's a very fine mirror.

-Lovely Art Deco mirror.

Glam, eh?

Who wants that one there for a tenner?

-£5.

-This is it!

Put your hands up!

Stick your hands up!

Oh, look, there's somebody!

Six bid. Eight now.

Eight's bid. Ten I have.

12. 12 bid.

12, we need more. Go on.

Here at 12.

-£12.

-Oh!

Did you try?

-Yeah, I helped you a bit.

-Thank you.

-That's all right.

-Thank you.

It was a good try, but still a loss.

Our duo seem to be taking this remarkably well, though.

-It's only a loss of four.

-Oh, that's all right.

I helped you.

We'll survive.

You're the experts, then?

-LAUGHTER

-We're the experts!

Absolutely.

It's the amber necklace now.

£8 start me.

Who wants that for £8?

Thanks. £6.

£6 amber necklace.

A whole £5 note.

£5 somewhere for it. Who wants that for a fiver?

Five. Six.

-Well done. Well done, Thomas.

-Yeah.

Six there. Seven now. Eight now. Eight's bid in the centre.

Nine where? Eight there. Nine with the lady.

Ten now. Ten bid. 12 now.

Ten there. 12 I have.

14. 14 bid.

A long way to go to 50, right enough.

Got a long way, Anita.

18 there. 20 now.

-18!

-20 now. 20 I've got.

Two now. 22 bid.

-She's creeping up.

-22 there.

Four now. 22...

£22.

-Are you happy with that?

-I'm ecstatic.

The amber has gone into the red and so have Thomas's profits.

We've got two lots. One lot each.

Both silver lots and these, Thomas, could soar!

They could certainly soar.

I think it's becoming a question now of who can lose the least?

It's Anita's silver tray next.

Who wants that one for £10?

I'll take eight.

£8 somewhere. Real silver.

Five bid. Six bid.

Seven bid. Eight.

Eight bid. Nine. Ten...

-Come on!

-Silver.

There at nine. Ten now where?

At £9. Ten now?

Ten I have. 12 now.

-We're getting there, Thomas.

-12, like my mirror.

There are 12.

Oh! Another loss for Anita.

But she's still smiling, bless her. That's the spirit.

Thomas has yet to make a single profit on any item.

But his losses haven't been quite as big as Anita's.

His last item is the condiment set.

This might be the lot which captures the imagination of this crowd.

Might be.

But I think you could be wrong.

£20 for that somewhere.

£10 start me.

Ten bid. 12 there. 15. 18.

20. 22. 25.

28. 30.

28 bid. 30 where?

-Profit!

-Thomas, this is wonderful.

-I don't believe it!

-There at 28...

-Yes!

Get in there!

Thomas, you are my hero!

That is wonderful.

It's a profit for Planter.

Only £3, but they all count.

Are you sad?

I've had such a great time today.

Same here. Let me take you down. Oh! There we go.

Sadly, they may not have made much money in their last auction

but it was a lot of fun.

What are the scores on the doors at the end of the week?

Despite making a loss of £68.20 today after paying auction costs,

it's less of a loss than Anita.

Thomas has won the final leg of the trip

and finishes after five days of trading with £193.64.

Anita made a staggering loss of £112.08 today

but in the overall standings she's ended the week with...

£289.86, making her the champion for this Road Trip.

Congratulations, Anita.

And remember, all profits go to Children In Need.

Well, Thomas, that's it. That's the last one.

I'm gutted.

I'm so sad to be leaving you.

It's been so fabulous.

It's been sweet, it's been lovely.

How have you found it?

Well, it's been a bit of a rollercoaster ride

but that's what made it so exciting.

Let me put you in the car.

Let me drive off the winner.

It's been a wonderful week of surprises for our duo...

Do you know, it's the first time I've ever been with a woman?

Oh, Thomas!

-On the trip!

-Oh!

There have been trips down memory lane...

..but Mum soon brought him back to earth.

It's dairy free for my poor,

pathetic little boy who can't eat any dairy.

For Anita, it's been a week of romance...

Oh, thank you very much.

..memories...

It reminds me a bit of one of my old boyfriends.

..and music...

# Doing the Lambeth Walk

# Oi! #

But for both of them it's been a lot of laughs.

Next week, two old Road Trip hands get behind the wheel.

That's a bit racy, isn't it?

James Braxton is hoping to spot a bargain.

Hello. Is anybody out there?

And, true to form, Philip Serrell goes off piste.

Oh, I love that.