0:00:30 > 0:00:36In its mission to visit all points of the compass, the Roadshow has arrived for the first time at the
0:00:36 > 0:00:40UK's most westerly port, a position that more than once has placed the
0:00:40 > 0:00:45walled city of Londonderry at the very heart of historic events.
0:00:45 > 0:00:51During the Battle of the Atlantic, the longest campaign of World War II, more than 20,000 Royal Navy
0:00:51 > 0:00:54personnel were stationed here, but these shores
0:00:54 > 0:00:57haven't always offered a warm welcome to the weary sailor.
0:01:06 > 0:01:10In 1588, ships of the Spanish Armada, limping home from defeat
0:01:10 > 0:01:14in the English Channel, were driven way off course by storms.
0:01:14 > 0:01:19One ship, La Trinidad Valencera was grounded on a reef at Kinnagoe Bay,
0:01:19 > 0:01:2230 miles from the city of Derry, and broke up.
0:01:24 > 0:01:26Ironically it was bad weather that resurrected the vessel.
0:01:26 > 0:01:34400 years later on a miserable February day in 1971 the City of Derry Sub-aqua Club
0:01:34 > 0:01:39were forced by conditions to do their diving a lot closer to the shore than usual.
0:01:44 > 0:01:48The first clue to the lost ship was a bronze cannon, but the divers soon
0:01:48 > 0:01:52realised that the wreckage was spread over a huge area.
0:01:57 > 0:02:00Over the next number of years, club members, with the help of
0:02:00 > 0:02:06the Ulster Museum, catalogued and conserved each fragment they found.
0:02:09 > 0:02:14In every war, each side considers its cause to be just, and both Protestant England
0:02:14 > 0:02:18and Catholic Spain believed they fought in the name of God.
0:02:18 > 0:02:24Before going into battle, Spaniards were given a certificate absolving them of their sins.
0:02:24 > 0:02:31They were also given a holy medallion and this one was found on the sea-bed at Kinnagoe Bay.
0:02:41 > 0:02:46You won't find a finer set of city walls in Europe - they date back to the early 1600s and they've been
0:02:46 > 0:02:53through several sieges without ever being breached, that's why Derry is called "The Maiden City".
0:02:55 > 0:03:01Our venue today is tucked neatly inside the walls. The Millennium Forum is a state-of-the-art theatre.
0:03:06 > 0:03:11It's been adapted to accommodate the special needs of the Antiques Roadshow.
0:03:19 > 0:03:24Well, we're sort of dressed for a cream tea - we've got the jam and
0:03:24 > 0:03:26cream dish and we have a nice little teapot.
0:03:26 > 0:03:29Tell me, where does this teapot come from?
0:03:29 > 0:03:35It was a wedding present to my grandparents, and it's Belleek but it's very unusual.
0:03:35 > 0:03:39They haven't got a record of that teapot in the Belleek factory.
0:03:39 > 0:03:42And Belleek, of course, is an incredibly, and rightly celebrated,
0:03:42 > 0:03:45Irish factory based in County Fermanagh.
0:03:45 > 0:03:49If we take the lid off to have a look at the mark underneath, there it is,
0:03:49 > 0:03:55there's the mark, the dog, the harp and the tower, it says "Belleek"
0:03:55 > 0:03:57and it says "County Fermanagh, Ireland".
0:03:58 > 0:04:01Now, that mark immediately tells me what period of Belleek this belongs to.
0:04:01 > 0:04:06This particular mark doesn't come in until the very end of the 1880s...
0:04:06 > 0:04:11- Does that square with your own family record?- Yes.
0:04:11 > 0:04:16My grandparents were married in 1896 so that would fit in.
0:04:16 > 0:04:18So this was a wedding present in 1896?
0:04:18 > 0:04:20Yes, yes.
0:04:20 > 0:04:25You happen to have brought along one of my favourite teapot models of all time.
0:04:25 > 0:04:29Look at that shape. First of all you've got a pentagonal shape.
0:04:29 > 0:04:32How often do you see a teapot with five sides?
0:04:32 > 0:04:38And each of the sides is conceived as a bundle of bamboo, with these notches overlapping
0:04:38 > 0:04:45and they've even gone into that delicious detail of the severed ends of each of these rods of bamboo.
0:04:45 > 0:04:48You can see the pith - they've actually taken the trouble to
0:04:48 > 0:04:51model the pith that you would see on bamboo.
0:04:51 > 0:04:57And then you have a bamboo spout and you have a nice bamboo stem for the handle.
0:04:57 > 0:05:02Now this is not a Belleek invention, that may be why it doesn't appear in the pattern books.
0:05:02 > 0:05:09Royal Worcester produced this shape, in this very material, this Parian body,
0:05:09 > 0:05:17back in the 1880s and Belleek took a lot of designs, almost copied them straight off, from Royal Worcester.
0:05:17 > 0:05:23So you could say, "Hang on, that's a Royal Worcester shape." But no, it goes further back than that.
0:05:23 > 0:05:29If you go back into the 18th century, back to around the 1760s-1770s,
0:05:29 > 0:05:33this shape was being produced by Josiah Wedgwood.
0:05:35 > 0:05:37- But it doesn't stop there.- Really?
0:05:37 > 0:05:44If you go back another 60 years to China, and to a part of China called Yixing,
0:05:44 > 0:05:49that's where we find the original pentagonal bamboo teapot.
0:05:49 > 0:05:54- Bamboo teapot.- And there it's made in a red stoneware but it's exactly the same and it's come through...
0:05:54 > 0:06:00- That's very interesting.- ..That hop, skip and a jump, over the water to Ireland, to Belleek.- Oh, right.
0:06:00 > 0:06:04So how much would it cost to lay something like this out for tea?
0:06:04 > 0:06:10Well, your little Victorian coloured glass jam-and-cream set on its electro-plated stand would probably
0:06:10 > 0:06:14cost you in the region of £100, £150.
0:06:14 > 0:06:20The teapot... I would expect if you were to sell a piece like this to a
0:06:20 > 0:06:22collector of Belleek, and let's remember that
0:06:22 > 0:06:28Belleek collectors aren't merely in Ireland, but also in England and, more to the point, in America.
0:06:28 > 0:06:33A rarity like this would probably cost them at least £1,000.
0:06:33 > 0:06:36For that teapot?
0:06:36 > 0:06:37Oh, my goodness.
0:06:37 > 0:06:39One lump or two?
0:06:39 > 0:06:41Oh!
0:06:41 > 0:06:45That's... For that simple teapot? I can't...
0:06:45 > 0:06:47I cannot believe that.
0:06:47 > 0:06:50Thank you very much indeed. That's...that's amazing.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55So now, you inherited this from your great aunt?
0:06:55 > 0:06:56- That's right, yes. - How did she come by it?
0:06:56 > 0:07:01Well, she'd always collected a lot of paintings and all sorts of stuff, I mean from my going to
0:07:01 > 0:07:05the house there was always, there was lot of bits and pieces in it,
0:07:05 > 0:07:10but this one here was one that she particularly liked herself and I always liked too, and when she did
0:07:10 > 0:07:16get, um, you know, iller, when she became older, she had to move into a small flat and this is one
0:07:16 > 0:07:21of the few things she kept from, you know, all her belongings, so she had a great fondness for this and...
0:07:21 > 0:07:24And, rather poignantly, this is about, about an ill child, isn't it?
0:07:24 > 0:07:26Yes, yes.
0:07:26 > 0:07:32Well, I must say it's really lovely to see this, not least because it's by a very interesting artist.
0:07:32 > 0:07:39Caroline Paterson, who painted this, is the sister of the famous watercolourist, Helen Allingham.
0:07:39 > 0:07:47Now Allingham is known for her cottages and her flowers. She did them with exquisite detail,
0:07:47 > 0:07:49and in this case you can see that her sister has obviously
0:07:49 > 0:07:55got a bit of that genetic skill. But, of course, the thing that really strikes one about this picture
0:07:55 > 0:08:02is the subject matter, because we're dealing with the passing of a life in the form of a child,
0:08:02 > 0:08:07the pale face indicates to me something pretty chronic, don't you?
0:08:07 > 0:08:12- I would say so.- It suggests to me that he may well be suffering from
0:08:12 > 0:08:18- consumption, from tuberculosis, quite a killer at the period.- Yes.
0:08:18 > 0:08:22- There he is, wrapped up, his face pointed downwards. His sister, I imagine.- Yes.
0:08:22 > 0:08:27..Looking rather poignantly at him, almost as if she knows.
0:08:27 > 0:08:30That's strange because it's so sort of pretty-looking, then when
0:08:30 > 0:08:32you start to look into it, it's actually quite dark.
0:08:32 > 0:08:34- It is, isn't it?- Yes.
0:08:34 > 0:08:38It, it's...it's real life, but there is a sinister element,
0:08:38 > 0:08:42and, of course, that aspect is underlined by the symbolism in the
0:08:42 > 0:08:45picture as well, because the beautifully delineated clock
0:08:45 > 0:08:50- indicates time, the passing of time. - Yes.
0:08:50 > 0:08:55A memento mori, used for hundreds of years as a device just to remind people they're not here for ever.
0:08:55 > 0:09:01- Yes.- And then the flowers dropping on the ground. Again, the passing of spring and summer. Spring -
0:09:01 > 0:09:03that's a tragically short season...
0:09:03 > 0:09:09A wonderful image of imparting the notion of death of a child.
0:09:09 > 0:09:11I must say, it's very moving.
0:09:11 > 0:09:16- It is.- And it's moving because it's done by an artist who has this skill with detail.
0:09:16 > 0:09:21- Yes.- Who knows how to impart on a literal and a poetic level.
0:09:21 > 0:09:24If the subject matter were a little bit more
0:09:24 > 0:09:27- upbeat, it might be worth more.- Yes.
0:09:27 > 0:09:30But it's still worth about £4,000.
0:09:30 > 0:09:35Really? Goodness, that's... Thank you very much, that's very nice to know.
0:09:36 > 0:09:41"Soft, pliant spirits who can playful stoop...
0:09:43 > 0:09:48"..To purchase, capture from the rolling hoop,
0:09:48 > 0:10:00- "Who watch the sleeping top with keen delight and gaze with transport on the graceful kite."- Yes.
0:10:00 > 0:10:05- Isn't that lovely?- Yes, it's lovely. - Oh, so romantic, isn't it?
0:10:05 > 0:10:11It's the most fantastic three pictures I have ever ever seen, you must be so proud of them.
0:10:11 > 0:10:14- Yes, I am. - Shall we just look at the back?
0:10:14 > 0:10:19- Because you've got an inscription there which is very difficult to read.- Yes, yes.
0:10:19 > 0:10:25- It says, "This was designed and cut by Martha Dorothea Bennett."- Yes.
0:10:25 > 0:10:29"Castle Crea in County Limerick".
0:10:29 > 0:10:33- Yes.- And, "In the year 1817 or 1812"...
0:10:33 > 0:10:37So, they're not quite sure.
0:10:38 > 0:10:44- Tell me about them. - Well, I had a Miss Eileen Bennett living with us for a few years.
0:10:44 > 0:10:48- Yes.- And, er, she knew that I done handiwork
0:10:48 > 0:10:52and, was very interested perhaps.
0:10:52 > 0:10:59- Yes.- So one day she come in and she said to me, "Would you like those pictures, because when I die...",
0:10:59 > 0:11:03she said, "..I don't know where they'll go."
0:11:03 > 0:11:06- So she give me those. - So she was called Bennett.
0:11:06 > 0:11:11She was called Bennett, she'll be ancestor, that'll be her ancestors that's on this.
0:11:11 > 0:11:20Well, what in fact we are looking at is someone who's cut out the oval piece of paper and put it down,
0:11:20 > 0:11:29they've pinned it all the way round and then with a very, very fine razor they have cut every single little
0:11:29 > 0:11:34branch, flower, all the way round this charming watercolour
0:11:34 > 0:11:38and what's so lovely is that's also a watercolour,
0:11:38 > 0:11:41a little harp.
0:11:41 > 0:11:46- Yes. - And I think this is a very romantic mother and daughter scene, ladies
0:11:46 > 0:11:53embracing. This possibly is an older daughter with her mother and I'd like to think that is what it is.
0:11:53 > 0:12:02If you think about the intricacy - candlelight, 1812. They used, if they could, a magnifying glass
0:12:02 > 0:12:08- and I should think it really hurt the eyes too.- It sure did.
0:12:08 > 0:12:10- What a lot of patience.- Yes.
0:12:10 > 0:12:12And love.
0:12:12 > 0:12:15- They are incredibly rare.- Are they?
0:12:15 > 0:12:19And it is very difficult to put a price on them.
0:12:19 > 0:12:22I would say that if these three went up for auction,
0:12:22 > 0:12:27I can see them making something as much as £2,000 to £3,000.
0:12:33 > 0:12:35Well, they'll not be sold.
0:12:35 > 0:12:38- Good.- No way.
0:12:38 > 0:12:43I agree with you, because that something that you're given, you can't sell, can you?
0:12:43 > 0:12:46No. What did you say again?
0:12:46 > 0:12:50- You've forgotten already? Forget it, forget it.- Forget it.
0:12:54 > 0:12:58For this sort of furniture, this is a belter, but I must say,
0:12:58 > 0:13:04I just imagine... Did you have trouble getting this in, on the top of your car?
0:13:04 > 0:13:07No, actually your people came and brought it in here, so they did.
0:13:07 > 0:13:09Well, that's a great relief. I was just wondering what it must have looked like.
0:13:09 > 0:13:12Do your friends like it?
0:13:12 > 0:13:13They do.
0:13:13 > 0:13:16They don't think, "What on earth is that great monster?"
0:13:16 > 0:13:19They don't tell me, anyway.
0:13:19 > 0:13:20- They don't go out of the house thinking...!- Maybe.
0:13:20 > 0:13:26The angle of this is that at no time before the 1880s
0:13:26 > 0:13:29was there such a combination piece of furniture design.
0:13:29 > 0:13:35This is of that period and it lasted till about 1910, just before
0:13:35 > 0:13:39the First World War, so this is of the period and there were two styles.
0:13:39 > 0:13:44One was this, which is the Sheraton revival, the other was Chippendale, which is all carved.
0:13:44 > 0:13:47They both had mirrors in the backs, they had shelves, they had columns,
0:13:47 > 0:13:53we had cupboards, we had doors with glass in, everything is in this combination piece.
0:13:53 > 0:14:00This is rosewood, it's decorated with satinwood, it has beech, it has ivorine, the one thing about these
0:14:00 > 0:14:05pieces is that they are now rare in their entirety because in the 1950s
0:14:05 > 0:14:12and '60s, you couldn't sell them - nobody wanted these great pieces, so they used to take the top off here...
0:14:12 > 0:14:17Right? ..You could fill the holes in and this would go over a mantelpiece
0:14:17 > 0:14:21- and this part would be the other side of the room as a sideboard.- Right.
0:14:21 > 0:14:24Now then, they got split up because Auntie Edie had the mirror and
0:14:24 > 0:14:27Uncle George had the sideboard and they were never the two seen again together.
0:14:27 > 0:14:34Now, when you get one that's original, it's not a rarity but it is a more unusual thing to see, OK?
0:14:34 > 0:14:40- Right.- So that puts great added value, historical value to it, and of course you have a genuine antique.
0:14:40 > 0:14:44- Mm.- Now, it's been moved recently.
0:14:44 > 0:14:46- It has. - It has. OK, tell me the story.
0:14:46 > 0:14:49At the start of this year, it was moved - my aunt and
0:14:49 > 0:14:51her husband gave it to me and my husband as a present.
0:14:51 > 0:14:54- OK.- So they did,
0:14:54 > 0:14:57and that was just at the start of the year.
0:14:57 > 0:14:59OK.
0:14:59 > 0:15:02- So where had they had it stored before?- There was no heating.
0:15:02 > 0:15:05- Ah.- There was no central heating.
0:15:05 > 0:15:07- OK.- So there wasn't. - And you've got central heating?
0:15:07 > 0:15:10But I kept the heating off in the room it was in.
0:15:10 > 0:15:15OK, but it has, it has been moved and I'll tell you why.
0:15:15 > 0:15:19You can see the top, that panel on the left-hand side.
0:15:19 > 0:15:22- Right.- It's bevelled, it's done that, hasn't it?- Mm.
0:15:22 > 0:15:25That's because it's veneered onto pine and mahogany,
0:15:25 > 0:15:28and not very thick sheets, so you've got a one-sided sandwich.
0:15:28 > 0:15:31You know, like the vicar's sandwiches, that all sort of curled up,
0:15:31 > 0:15:34and that's what's happening.
0:15:34 > 0:15:39Now you needn't remedy that, but you want to prevent the rest of it going that way, otherwise this is all going
0:15:39 > 0:15:46to pop out, you know, there will be little bits flying all over the place because ivorine, boxwood, satinwood,
0:15:46 > 0:15:49are all different timbers and materials which react to the heat
0:15:49 > 0:15:53- at a different rate, to the rosewood and the pine and the mahogany.- Right.
0:15:53 > 0:15:59So you need to keep in the room, just keep a bowl of water either end underneath.
0:15:59 > 0:16:01Right.
0:16:01 > 0:16:05That will just add enough humidity to ease it into its new situation.
0:16:05 > 0:16:09If you get any popping out, if you get any damage, don't do anything with it
0:16:09 > 0:16:14for at least a year, because it needs to settle in its new home, OK?
0:16:14 > 0:16:17- Right.- It will settle and it will be repairable.
0:16:17 > 0:16:21Now, the rest of it is purely that it is of its type.
0:16:21 > 0:16:27It is as good as you'll see, it has everything on it that it should have and it would have been made in one of
0:16:27 > 0:16:35the leading furniture manufacturers of that period and between 1885 and 1910, and it's worth today,
0:16:35 > 0:16:37a market that is rising,
0:16:37 > 0:16:42- because of the fact that it's altogether, round about £2,500 to £3,000.- Very good.- All right?
0:16:42 > 0:16:45- Lovely, OK. Thank you.- Thank you.
0:16:46 > 0:16:50I'm assuming that you're both a couple of collectors, is that right?
0:16:50 > 0:16:53Well, car boots I'd say more, collectors...
0:16:53 > 0:16:58We buy at car boot sales, markets and some auctions but mostly markets and car boot sales and that.
0:16:58 > 0:17:01OK, because I go to car booting, you know, but I'm a solo booter.
0:17:01 > 0:17:06- Yeah.- Because I like to whizz down the tables, how do you, how do you play it between the two of you?
0:17:06 > 0:17:09Well, he be my, he be my apprentice. He's been in training, you know?
0:17:09 > 0:17:14- Oh, yes.- We be up early on a Sunday morning and generally make a day of it, till about one or two o'clock.
0:17:14 > 0:17:18Do you always use your proper names? Because some people don't, you know.
0:17:18 > 0:17:19Well, he has a name...
0:17:19 > 0:17:21Just kind of picked it up...
0:17:21 > 0:17:25- He calls me Fagin. - Fagin?- Yes.- Well, then.
0:17:25 > 0:17:27- He calls me Dodger.- Dodger!
0:17:27 > 0:17:32- And we even have a dog, we even have a dog called Bullseye.- No! - Yeah, he was a stray, so he was.
0:17:32 > 0:17:34Now hang on, your mother's not called Nancy, is she?
0:17:34 > 0:17:38- No.- OK, let's get that one sorted, but, um, let's have a look at the,
0:17:38 > 0:17:41er, the box of goodies. What have you got for starters?
0:17:41 > 0:17:43The first one's...
0:17:46 > 0:17:52Yeah, well I always raise a smile when I see this, this character, because I used to have an office in,
0:17:52 > 0:17:56in London and my office window used to look out onto the man who
0:17:56 > 0:18:02actually drew this, his house was directly across the road, his name was Bruce Bairnsfather.
0:18:02 > 0:18:08It says: "Well, if you knows of a better 'ole, go to it."
0:18:08 > 0:18:14He brings humour into what was really a terrible scenario in the First World War and often on the back
0:18:14 > 0:18:20they're marked by Grimwades and there's this lovely little line saying,
0:18:20 > 0:18:25"Made by the girls of Staffordshire when the boys were away fighting in the trenches."
0:18:25 > 0:18:28So, car boot. Got a crack. How much did that cost you?
0:18:28 > 0:18:31Well, in euros about ten euros, so that was about five quid, I'd say sterling.
0:18:31 > 0:18:34About five pound, when you say euros, you're buying these in the south?
0:18:34 > 0:18:36- Dublin, we're from. - You're from Dublin?
0:18:36 > 0:18:38Yeah, from Dublin, yeah.
0:18:38 > 0:18:41- Yeah.- OK, so you came all the way from Dublin?- Oh, yeah. Well it's not much. We spent two, over two hours.
0:18:41 > 0:18:45Well, obviously the condition affects it and I mean for £5 though, you can't go wrong.
0:18:45 > 0:18:47- Oh, no.- I mean you could treble your money, OK.
0:18:47 > 0:18:52Not a huge amount. If it was perfect, £40 or £50, no problem.
0:18:52 > 0:18:54- Yes.- OK, what else have we got? - I have this here.
0:18:56 > 0:19:01Very nice, I like that. When you bought it, I mean, what did you think it was?
0:19:01 > 0:19:06I was there late, I was there about half nine, there was two or three fellas having a conversation.
0:19:06 > 0:19:10Well, they were talking. I was just interested enough to not talk and just buy it.
0:19:10 > 0:19:16- Oh, right.- So I bought it, I was reasonably sure that it was a Victorian dog trough.
0:19:16 > 0:19:20I gave him 15 euros, I don't know only about £8 sterling or something,
0:19:20 > 0:19:24I don't know where it was made, I don't know the potters and that.
0:19:24 > 0:19:29Let's have a look because there's nothing, there's no real marks. It's impressed new stone,
0:19:29 > 0:19:33which is a form of stone china, so transfer-printed, yep.
0:19:33 > 0:19:40- Made in Staffordshire, um, date-wise about 1835, 1845. - Well, I heard they were rare.
0:19:40 > 0:19:46It is rare because, you know, by definition, you know a dog bowl like this, or a dog trough as they're
0:19:46 > 0:19:51often referred to, they suffer the ravages of time what with, especially...
0:19:51 > 0:19:53It depends on the size of your dog.
0:19:53 > 0:19:59Anyway it's got a little bit of damage, I notice, but there are plenty of collectors out there
0:19:59 > 0:20:05would be very happy to give you the best part of £100 for that, OK?
0:20:05 > 0:20:07So, things are getting better. What else have we got?
0:20:08 > 0:20:13This is one of the ugliest pieces of silver plate
0:20:13 > 0:20:17I've seen on any Roadshow. Where on earth did you get it from?
0:20:17 > 0:20:20Well, actually it was a friend of mine that came from England
0:20:20 > 0:20:24and he brought it with him and he came along to me and said, "Would you like this?"
0:20:24 > 0:20:28and I looked at it and I...I had my own impression,
0:20:28 > 0:20:31but I said, "I don't mind", so obviously he had a price against it and I bought it.
0:20:31 > 0:20:34- You did?- We've never had it on display within the house, we keep it in the corner.
0:20:34 > 0:20:37- I'm not surprised. - My friend would agree with you!
0:20:39 > 0:20:40And what did you have to give for it?
0:20:40 > 0:20:42- I had to give £50.- £50?- Yes.
0:20:42 > 0:20:44- Well.- That wasn't too bad, was it?
0:20:44 > 0:20:48- It's got quite an Indian influence to it.- Yes.
0:20:48 > 0:20:53With these ivory-tusk handles and this lid, which is really bizarre,
0:20:53 > 0:20:56looks a bit like a pith helmet, but with a feather on top.
0:20:56 > 0:21:00Reminiscent of the raj. But the most interesting
0:21:00 > 0:21:04thing about this piece is the maker's mark on the bottom.
0:21:04 > 0:21:06- Right.- The mark "H & H"
0:21:06 > 0:21:08is for the firm of Hukin and Heath.
0:21:08 > 0:21:16Now, they were most famous for producing articles for Dr Christopher Dresser,
0:21:16 > 0:21:20who was a very well-known designer from the 1880s.
0:21:20 > 0:21:24And that's about the date this piece was made.
0:21:24 > 0:21:26It's a really wonderful example of Victorian kitsch.
0:21:28 > 0:21:34The good news is though, even something as rather weird as this...
0:21:34 > 0:21:37- Yes. - ..There's a market for.- Oh, good.
0:21:37 > 0:21:42And I wouldn't be surprised if somebody paid £300 or £400 for it.
0:21:42 > 0:21:46Mm, well that's an interesting seeing I only paid £50 for it.
0:21:46 > 0:21:50- Well, you've done very well. Thank you very much. - Not at all, delighted to be here.
0:21:51 > 0:21:53So tell me all about this.
0:21:53 > 0:21:55Just move those up a little bit.
0:21:55 > 0:21:58Let's get comfortable over here.
0:22:00 > 0:22:02OK. Let's just pop it there.
0:22:02 > 0:22:05Can I say... Car boot sale again, Sunday morning.
0:22:05 > 0:22:08- Were you with your dad at the time? - He was, yes.
0:22:08 > 0:22:10- Did you, did you want your dad to buy this?- Yes, I did.- You did?- Yes.
0:22:10 > 0:22:13Did you fancy playing with it yourself?
0:22:13 > 0:22:16No, I wouldn't play with it, because it looked old when I was looking at it,
0:22:16 > 0:22:22because it was in an old condition and I think it was just used for a model, used for modelling.
0:22:22 > 0:22:25I think you may well be right there in some respects.
0:22:25 > 0:22:28Um, it says on here...
0:22:28 > 0:22:35"Uncle Wiggily's Crazy Car", um, and what's this...? "Copyright",
0:22:35 > 0:22:39and we've got there "Howard Garis".
0:22:39 > 0:22:43Now, he's the man who invented Uncle Wiggily.
0:22:43 > 0:22:53He was invented in the early part of the 20th century for the Newark News in America, just outside New York.
0:22:53 > 0:22:57Mention Uncle Wiggily to any American over the age of 60 and they'll know
0:22:57 > 0:23:03exactly who you're talking about, but over here he's a bit of a rarity, bit of a rarity.
0:23:03 > 0:23:07Now I notice on the back, just above that tie there...
0:23:07 > 0:23:12- Germany.- Germany, so I am pretty well convinced that your car
0:23:12 > 0:23:19was made by a firm called Distler, and they were known for making these tin-plate toys.
0:23:19 > 0:23:25- What date would it have been made? - This, I would suggest, is around about 1925.- '25, that's nice.
0:23:25 > 0:23:28Mm, so it's quite a... quite an ancient vehicle.
0:23:28 > 0:23:33- The point is, it's all down to condition when it comes to the value of something like this.- Yes, yes.
0:23:33 > 0:23:37However, having said all that, it obviously begs the question
0:23:37 > 0:23:40as to exactly how much did you end up paying for
0:23:40 > 0:23:43Uncle Wiggily's Crazy Car?
0:23:43 > 0:23:50Well, um, I paid 40 euros, be about...a little less than £20 sterling, that's what I paid for it.
0:23:50 > 0:23:54But I... I just had a feeling about it, that's all, so I just couldn't leave it there, you know?
0:23:54 > 0:23:57Yes, you couldn't. You had to take it home with you.
0:23:57 > 0:24:00It was a good instinct, I think there's every chance
0:24:00 > 0:24:08that if this came up for auction, that the bidding would be somewhere between £800 and possibly £1,000.
0:24:08 > 0:24:13- Sterling?- Sterling. - That's very good. - And that's the good news.
0:24:14 > 0:24:18- Yes.- The bad news, which is not really relevant, is that if
0:24:18 > 0:24:24it had been in perfect condition, one of these was sold in London not so very long ago for £4,000.
0:24:24 > 0:24:26Wow.
0:24:26 > 0:24:31- So it, it's worth getting up in the mornings, isn't it?- Yes.
0:24:31 > 0:24:33If you can find treasure like this.
0:24:34 > 0:24:38When I was evacuated to Somerset during the war, one of the highlights was
0:24:38 > 0:24:43the arrival of the American troops who were stationed there for a while before they were taken off to D-Day.
0:24:43 > 0:24:47They got to Northern Ireland quite a while before they got to Somerset
0:24:47 > 0:24:50though, as this week's collector, David Fitzsimmons will bear witness.
0:24:50 > 0:24:54David, you weren't around at the time, so why are you so interested in the Yanks?
0:24:54 > 0:24:57Well, about ten years ago
0:24:57 > 0:25:01I heard me Uncle Gerald and my father talking about an
0:25:01 > 0:25:04American soldier that used to come to my grandmother's during the war
0:25:04 > 0:25:09and they knew he was killed in the war but they didn't actually know what actually happened
0:25:09 > 0:25:14to the man, where he ended up, or one thing and another, and I thought, "I'll look into this."
0:25:14 > 0:25:21I happened to be searching on the website one day and I come up with this site "World War II Search",
0:25:21 > 0:25:27and I put in his details and up he come, Iris L Bradshaw, the plot, the row and his grave.
0:25:27 > 0:25:33He's buried in Laurent-Sur-Mer in France and I sent the details over to my Uncle Jim
0:25:33 > 0:25:36in England and he was delighted - he actually then went over to visit the
0:25:36 > 0:25:39- grave and you can see the picture of the grave, there.- So this is it?
0:25:39 > 0:25:42- Yes, this is it, there, yes. - And where was that?
0:25:42 > 0:25:46That's in Laurent-Sur-Mer... That's near Omaha Beach, there.
0:25:46 > 0:25:52That's amazing to be able to follow and find out not only what happened to the man but where he rests.
0:25:52 > 0:25:56Why were so many of the troops stationed here in Derry?
0:25:56 > 0:26:01Derry was the first European port that the US Navy had actually got.
0:26:01 > 0:26:06This was the closest, they accounted the first European port and they needed a deep-water port,
0:26:06 > 0:26:10so they dredged the place, they dredged that port down there,
0:26:10 > 0:26:12but they were actually neutral when they did it, so they knew then
0:26:12 > 0:26:15they were going to have plans, they would be here some day.
0:26:15 > 0:26:19It was quite a thing, wasn't it, the families would kind of adopt the troops?
0:26:19 > 0:26:21Well, there was a lot of young soldiers
0:26:21 > 0:26:26between the ages of 18 and 22, and they were a long way from home, literally 3,000 miles, and they
0:26:26 > 0:26:32couldn't get no leave to get back home, not like the British soldiers,
0:26:32 > 0:26:35so the COs of the different units said at that time,
0:26:35 > 0:26:41"Would you please adopt a soldier, you know, take him into your family and share your home with him?"
0:26:41 > 0:26:46The girls found them attractive, hence the GI brides, got evidence of that?
0:26:46 > 0:26:48Well, yes, as you can see here...
0:26:48 > 0:26:53This is a young local girl and she's by the name of Phoebe Ford,
0:26:53 > 0:27:00and she met this fellow here, he's called Ellis Hench and he's from Alabama
0:27:00 > 0:27:05and he was in the tanks, he met this young local girl and they married,
0:27:05 > 0:27:09so they did, and she's now, now this man has passed on,
0:27:09 > 0:27:14so he has, but this lady's still alive and she's 80-odd and she's still living in Alabama.
0:27:14 > 0:27:20- And he survived the war?- And he survived the war. There's another picture there, taken in the '70s.
0:27:20 > 0:27:26See them wee things will tell a story, just like I got a phone call one night from a lady in Derby,
0:27:26 > 0:27:28she was going to marry an American soldier
0:27:28 > 0:27:32and she regretted not marrying him before he left here.
0:27:32 > 0:27:36She never found out, he'd actually wrote letters when he left here,
0:27:36 > 0:27:40they were going to get married, but she never actually found out until her mother died
0:27:40 > 0:27:44that he'd sent letters to her mother but the mother wouldn't let her see them.
0:27:44 > 0:27:46- Like a movie script, isn't it? - It's sad.
0:27:46 > 0:27:52These are extraordinary insights into that time. Why do you think your collection is important?
0:27:52 > 0:27:58Well, I think there's an emotional side to it all. I believe every piece tells a story
0:27:58 > 0:28:03and I believe these young men, they were only 18-20, average age, like, and they come
0:28:03 > 0:28:09an awful long way to fight for our freedom, 3,000 mile, and a lot of them didn't get home.
0:28:09 > 0:28:14And I would say to the people, especially older people that took
0:28:14 > 0:28:18an American soldier into their home, the Lord bless you for that,
0:28:18 > 0:28:23because that's the last piece of home them young lads would have received,
0:28:23 > 0:28:27because a lot of them, as you can see, went out there and they didn't come home.
0:28:27 > 0:28:30They ended up dead. So I think it's worth it to preserve that,
0:28:30 > 0:28:32you know, because they did come a long way for our freedom.
0:28:35 > 0:28:40This is very attractive silk binding you've got on here.
0:28:40 > 0:28:43- Everything she had, had lovely things.- Who is she?
0:28:43 > 0:28:50My great aunt. I mean folders of paintings that her mother had done, beautifully bound.
0:28:50 > 0:28:52- Was she a traveller? - Yes, very much so.
0:28:52 > 0:28:55- Where did she go, do you know? - She was born in Tasmania.
0:28:55 > 0:28:59- Gosh.- And, er... It's a very long story.
0:28:59 > 0:29:02- I can't possibly tell you, but I'm writing the history of it. - Oh, wonderful.
0:29:02 > 0:29:07Yes, and then she married an Irishman eventually, and had
0:29:07 > 0:29:11a home in County Tyrone at The Argory which is now National Trust.
0:29:11 > 0:29:21We've got here an inscription on this album which says, "Rice drawings collected in Cheltenham, 1833."
0:29:21 > 0:29:24- Mm, they were bought in Cheltenham. - They were bought in Cheltenham.
0:29:24 > 0:29:30They would have been not very old at the time, 1820s maybe,
0:29:30 > 0:29:34but they were almost new when they were bought.
0:29:35 > 0:29:37This is called rice paper.
0:29:37 > 0:29:42I don't know where the word came from, I suppose it looks like cooked rice
0:29:42 > 0:29:45or something and people imagine it's made from rice, it's not,
0:29:45 > 0:29:49it's pith and the pith comes from a tree
0:29:49 > 0:29:51which largely grew in Formosa
0:29:51 > 0:29:58and it was then imported into Canton as paper and then these were painted
0:29:58 > 0:30:02in Canton, and I mean, it's a huge industry, and
0:30:02 > 0:30:07they did them from the 18th century right through into the 20th century.
0:30:07 > 0:30:09What paint did they use?
0:30:09 > 0:30:14It's actually what we would call gouache - watercolour with body colour -
0:30:14 > 0:30:19and that would give you a greater depth and a strength.
0:30:19 > 0:30:22But the colours are so vibrant and zinging at you.
0:30:22 > 0:30:25I mean, this is...
0:30:25 > 0:30:29170 years old and it's absolutely...
0:30:29 > 0:30:31as fresh as...
0:30:31 > 0:30:34And they've been in the folder and the light has
0:30:34 > 0:30:36- been absent.- That's it, exactly.
0:30:36 > 0:30:42So we've got a basket of flowers, a traditional Chinese subject there, and another one, which is
0:30:42 > 0:30:47wonderful - that is just magic, that.
0:30:51 > 0:30:54The colours are extraordinary, aren't they?
0:30:54 > 0:30:56They are. Oh, isn't that wonderful?
0:30:56 > 0:31:00- You could eat that! - God, that's good!- Very tempting.
0:31:00 > 0:31:07"The nutmeg in the shell, 1832." Oh, so we've gone back a year from the early one anyway.
0:31:07 > 0:31:10- Yes.- So that's what a nutmeg looks like. And a tree-frog.
0:31:17 > 0:31:18No, it is that way, isn't it?
0:31:18 > 0:31:24Because they're hanging down, gourds. Cucumbery-type things hanging down there and butterflies.
0:31:24 > 0:31:26This is fantastic.
0:31:26 > 0:31:28A live, a live butterfly.
0:31:29 > 0:31:30Do you have a favourite?
0:31:30 > 0:31:36I think, yes, these last two. Not so much those ones, but this, I think.
0:31:36 > 0:31:38It's wonderful, isn't it?
0:31:38 > 0:31:39Gorgeous.
0:31:39 > 0:31:45Well, I think you've actually got a really quite expensive album here,
0:31:45 > 0:31:50because, A, the quality is so good, B, the condition is perfect,
0:31:50 > 0:31:53C, you've got very good subject matter,
0:31:53 > 0:31:56you haven't got people having their heads chopped off
0:31:56 > 0:31:59and hands chopped off, which they did rather a lot.
0:31:59 > 0:32:01- I know, I know.- Um, botanical things are always popular,
0:32:01 > 0:32:04butterflies are always popular.
0:32:04 > 0:32:08I think we're looking at somewhere around...
0:32:09 > 0:32:11£2,000-£2,500.
0:32:12 > 0:32:15I had no idea, but I've always thought they were wonderful.
0:32:15 > 0:32:19- You were right. Thank you very much. - Thank you.
0:32:19 > 0:32:21Do you know what this is made of?
0:32:21 > 0:32:23No, I haven't a notion at all.
0:32:23 > 0:32:28Can't believe it, the intricacy of it. Do you know it is human hair?
0:32:31 > 0:32:33It is human hair.
0:32:33 > 0:32:36It is with little tiny beads.
0:32:37 > 0:32:38It's a pin cushion.
0:32:38 > 0:32:41It's dated 1812.
0:32:41 > 0:32:44That is just so unusual.
0:32:44 > 0:32:49I've never seen one all of human hair - what a lot of work! Are you a seamstress yourself?
0:32:49 > 0:32:51- No, I'm not.- I would...
0:32:51 > 0:32:52It's difficult to put a price on it.
0:32:52 > 0:32:58I suppose it could be worth £300, it could be worth £3. It's really a question of who would want it.
0:32:58 > 0:33:01So where did you get this fellow from then?
0:33:01 > 0:33:04I got it about 18 months ago at an auction.
0:33:04 > 0:33:10- How much did you pay for it? - £30.- £30! £30! Look at that.
0:33:10 > 0:33:11I was...
0:33:11 > 0:33:16It was an early-morning auction and I was still suffering from the night before.
0:33:16 > 0:33:20So, were you in need of a wheelchair particularly or, or, what was the plan?
0:33:20 > 0:33:22Plan, twofold.
0:33:22 > 0:33:27- Yes.- One, it would get me back from the pub on a Saturday night.
0:33:27 > 0:33:30- Oh, yes.- My wife would always would have transport for me.
0:33:30 > 0:33:32Save the taxi.
0:33:32 > 0:33:37- Thank you, yes, yes.- Yes. - And secondly perhaps, you know, it may be useful.- Advancing years.- Yes.
0:33:37 > 0:33:42Well, I'll tell you, you want to be really careful on this chap, see all these little holes here?
0:33:42 > 0:33:45That's the hungry woodworm. I mean, lose a bit of weight
0:33:45 > 0:33:49before you depend on this for your method of transportation.
0:33:49 > 0:33:51The other thing that I think is interesting is it's cheaply made of beech,
0:33:51 > 0:34:02because suddenly in 1914, you needed not one or two of these, but several hundred thousand of these fellows.
0:34:02 > 0:34:08And every long ward on a First World War hospital - and they converted lots of country houses for these
0:34:08 > 0:34:16gassed chaps to escape to - had one of these at the end of the bed and the poor military patient
0:34:16 > 0:34:21would have been wheeled outside and stuck out in the fresh air with the traditional blanket over him,
0:34:21 > 0:34:24and that's why we've got this plaque here, see?
0:34:24 > 0:34:30"E & R Garrould, Hospital Furnishers, London W." See that?
0:34:30 > 0:34:32- Yes.- That's because those people supplied top end
0:34:32 > 0:34:38of half a million of these things to the Red Cross and the St John's and off they went to the hospital.
0:34:38 > 0:34:41Lightweight, very easy to use.
0:34:41 > 0:34:45Do you know something? I think this is £30 very well spent.
0:34:49 > 0:34:56You know, just occasionally, I see a piece of furniture and you think...double-take.
0:34:56 > 0:35:03It's not a very good expression but you stop and look again because there is something extra about it
0:35:03 > 0:35:08and this table has that quality, so tell me the family history.
0:35:08 > 0:35:11I assume family history because it looks like it's come from the family.
0:35:11 > 0:35:16- Um, well no, actually, it was bought at a local auction.- Really?
0:35:16 > 0:35:22About 17, 18 years ago. We had it about three or four years
0:35:22 > 0:35:26and a gentleman came in and was admiring it
0:35:26 > 0:35:31and we turned it over, and there was a maker's stamp on it.
0:35:31 > 0:35:33- It is stamped?- It is stamped, yes.
0:35:33 > 0:35:38Let's have a look. Who's it by? Let's roll it forward and then just tip it back.
0:35:38 > 0:35:42- Well, it's by... - Straight on the floor is fine. OK.
0:35:42 > 0:35:44- Where is it?- It's here.
0:35:44 > 0:35:46Oh, there.
0:35:47 > 0:35:51- T Seddon.- T Seddon, whoever he was.
0:35:51 > 0:35:56Seddon was the great family of furniture makers from the 18th century
0:35:56 > 0:36:00but this isn't 18th century, so Mr T Seddon...
0:36:00 > 0:36:03- Well, I did look it up on the internet.- Ah! And?
0:36:03 > 0:36:08And I found Seddon, but then there's so many T Seddons.
0:36:08 > 0:36:13It seemed everybody... every generation seemed to have a Thomas Seddon,
0:36:13 > 0:36:17so I gave up. I got totally confused.
0:36:17 > 0:36:20Well, what we have to do is to establish a T Seddon,
0:36:20 > 0:36:25and looking at the date of the table, from its design,
0:36:25 > 0:36:31we can, it has to be 1870 or 1860, it's that sort of period.
0:36:31 > 0:36:34And that would have been a grandson of George Seddon.
0:36:34 > 0:36:39- Right.- We know where he was working and we know that he worked for a company in London
0:36:39 > 0:36:45and we know that some of Seddon's work, T Seddon's work, went into the exhibition of 1862.
0:36:45 > 0:36:49The first tables you'll see like this were just prior to a man called Pugin.
0:36:49 > 0:36:56It was a late-Regency design and it came in in the 1810-1815 period,
0:36:56 > 0:36:59and lasted through to the Houses of Parliament.
0:36:59 > 0:37:02And here you've got a host of different timbers,
0:37:02 > 0:37:06all of which, when this was new, would have been bright colours.
0:37:06 > 0:37:10This is a type of burr, it's almost, it's a sycamore,
0:37:10 > 0:37:16but it has a particular cut to it. This would have been bright green, it was dyed with oxide of iron.
0:37:16 > 0:37:21- Oh.- This is purple heart, this would have been a deep purple.
0:37:21 > 0:37:23Oh, it must have been fabulous once.
0:37:23 > 0:37:25Well, yes, but it's lovely now.
0:37:25 > 0:37:31This is a type of partridge wood here, which has this wonderful cross-grain.
0:37:31 > 0:37:36Again, vibrant colours. Blacks and whites when new. Fabulous.
0:37:36 > 0:37:38- Right. - And how much did you pay for it?
0:37:38 > 0:37:42I think it was about £460, £470.
0:37:42 > 0:37:44- Really?- Yeah.
0:37:44 > 0:37:46Do you think it's worth that?
0:37:46 > 0:37:48- Oh, yes.- Good.
0:37:48 > 0:37:51I think if you were to insure it, up it a little bit...
0:37:51 > 0:37:52to...
0:37:53 > 0:37:55..Probably £12,000.
0:37:57 > 0:37:5912,000?!
0:37:59 > 0:38:00You're joking.
0:38:01 > 0:38:03- Aye, you are joking.- No.
0:38:03 > 0:38:06It's wonderful, it's wonderful.
0:38:06 > 0:38:09I wonder were there two of them there that day?!
0:38:09 > 0:38:14It's just a joy to see and a very important piece of furniture.
0:38:14 > 0:38:16SHE MOUTHS
0:38:16 > 0:38:18- 12,000.- God.
0:38:21 > 0:38:27I understand that you are the dean of one of the two cathedrals, St Columbs in Londonderry.
0:38:27 > 0:38:29Yes, that's right.
0:38:29 > 0:38:33Um, what actually made you decide to bring these along today?
0:38:33 > 0:38:37They've been in the keeping of the cathedral for a few centuries now,
0:38:37 > 0:38:41and in fact these pieces, the collecting plates and
0:38:41 > 0:38:45the flagons, they come from the collection of one of the bishops.
0:38:45 > 0:38:51- Right.- Going right back to the 1680s, a man called Bishop Ezekiel Hopkins.
0:38:51 > 0:38:53OK, because I notice that they've...
0:38:53 > 0:38:56All of these pieces have an inscription on them.
0:38:56 > 0:38:59- Yes, they've got his name on. - On this one it says...
0:39:00 > 0:39:05"The gift of Ezekiel, Lord Bishop of Derry,
0:39:05 > 0:39:10"to the Cathedral Church of Derry, 1683."
0:39:10 > 0:39:13That's right, the year they were given to the cathedral.
0:39:13 > 0:39:17Right, well, if I tell you that these are
0:39:17 > 0:39:22probably the finest bits of silver I have ever seen on an Antiques Roadshow
0:39:22 > 0:39:27you can understand that I'm getting a bit excited about this.
0:39:27 > 0:39:30- Sure.- This is the stuff dreams are made of, for us.- Really?
0:39:30 > 0:39:34They are truly truly great rarities.
0:39:34 > 0:39:39- Are they?- Yeah, and the great thing about this is its colour.
0:39:39 > 0:39:48- It's got a glorious dark grey colour, this is absolutely typical of the period it was made.- Right, yes.
0:39:48 > 0:39:54And this is a Communion flagon, for the Communion wine and it was made
0:39:54 > 0:39:59in 1655, a lot earlier than the inscription.
0:39:59 > 0:40:01- Right.- ..In Dublin.
0:40:01 > 0:40:05Now, if this was an English-made flagon,
0:40:05 > 0:40:09it wouldn't be worth anything like what it is as an Irish one.
0:40:09 > 0:40:13It has this very wide flared base that's absolutely typical
0:40:13 > 0:40:20- of flagons made in the Commonwealth period, the mid-17th century.- Yes.
0:40:20 > 0:40:25We have another one over there, and I've noticed,
0:40:25 > 0:40:32looking at the makers, that they are actually by two different makers but made in the same year.
0:40:32 > 0:40:34- Yes.- Both 1655.
0:40:35 > 0:40:41I have to tell you that the records of Irish silver at that date
0:40:41 > 0:40:47are so thin on the ground that I can't actually tell you who the makers are. Right.
0:40:47 > 0:40:51But they have got a lovely set of marks stamped around the side here.
0:40:51 > 0:40:53Oh, yes.
0:40:54 > 0:40:59- And we also have a pair of alms dishes here.- Yes.
0:40:59 > 0:41:05- These are actually made in London in 1674.- Right.
0:41:05 > 0:41:10What I have to ask you is, are these used on a regular basis or...?
0:41:10 > 0:41:13Yes, oh, they are. Yes, they're used week by week.
0:41:13 > 0:41:16- All these...all these pieces are. - All these pieces?
0:41:16 > 0:41:22But they're kept under very tight security in the cathedral, they're well and securely locked away.
0:41:22 > 0:41:25Well, I was just going to say to you that
0:41:25 > 0:41:33- something as special as these really should only be used on special occasions.- Right.
0:41:33 > 0:41:41And...because these are so early, these flagons, and because they are Irish,
0:41:41 > 0:41:46I have to tell you that this group on the table here
0:41:46 > 0:41:49is worth in excess of £100,000.
0:41:49 > 0:41:53- Are they really?- Yes, yes.
0:41:53 > 0:42:00These are so rare, they are so wonderful, they're in such lovely condition, they really are.
0:42:00 > 0:42:03- Absolutely amazing. - They are just so fine,
0:42:03 > 0:42:10so rare it's been a total and utter privilege and excitement for me to see these today.
0:42:10 > 0:42:13- Well, thank you very much.- Thank you.- It's good to talk with you.
0:42:14 > 0:42:20It's always interesting to follow up items that appear on the Roadshow and this painting, or the original,
0:42:20 > 0:42:23is a Roadshow veteran. Where and when was this?
0:42:23 > 0:42:28Well, in 1999 I brought the original of this painting to the Roadshow in Coleraine
0:42:28 > 0:42:31and it was valued between £60,000 and £80,000.
0:42:31 > 0:42:34That was in 1999, what's happened to it since?
0:42:34 > 0:42:37Well, since that, because of the value of it, we now show it,
0:42:37 > 0:42:41- it belongs to St Columb's cathedral and we now show it in the National Gallery in Dublin.- Perfect home.
0:42:41 > 0:42:43- Yes.- Did you bring anything today?
0:42:43 > 0:42:46We did, we brought some silver.
0:42:46 > 0:42:48- Nice result?- Oh, yes.
0:42:48 > 0:42:50But the great thing is, of course, that we'll now be able to follow up
0:42:50 > 0:42:54on our next visit to Northern Ireland, the things that we've seen today in Derry.
0:42:54 > 0:42:58So, until that time, from Derry, goodbye.