0:00:49 > 0:00:52This week, the Antiques Roadshow's cameras zoom in
0:00:52 > 0:00:56on a unique square mile of our capital city.
0:00:56 > 0:00:58Here, kings and queens have walked
0:00:58 > 0:01:01and their ministers have trodden the corridors of power.
0:01:07 > 0:01:13This part of London is the birthplace of the pinstriped bureaucracy we know and love.
0:01:13 > 0:01:15A place of spin and political mischief.
0:01:15 > 0:01:17Well, you might say that -
0:01:17 > 0:01:20I couldn't possibly comment.
0:01:21 > 0:01:23Downing Street, Whitehall,
0:01:23 > 0:01:25the address that Francis Urquhart, Chief Whip
0:01:25 > 0:01:29and television's most fascinating villain, yearned to call home.
0:01:29 > 0:01:33Millions of us watched as he trampled his way to the top.
0:01:36 > 0:01:41People come from all over the world to see for themselves the icons and the institutions of SW1.
0:01:41 > 0:01:45The Queen's Household Cavalry have their photographs taken a thousand times a day,
0:01:45 > 0:01:48but they never smile or offer autographs.
0:01:48 > 0:01:52Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the road is our venue for today,
0:01:52 > 0:01:54Whitehall's Banqueting House.
0:01:54 > 0:01:58It's seen countless royal and society occasion.
0:01:58 > 0:02:05It also witnessed, on a dark January day in 1649, one dreadful event.
0:02:05 > 0:02:08Having been found guilty of treason by Cromwell's men,
0:02:08 > 0:02:12King Charles I walked through the Banqueting House for the last time.
0:02:12 > 0:02:15He was taken out onto the scaffold and executed
0:02:15 > 0:02:18to a great groan from the crowd below.
0:02:18 > 0:02:22Eleven years later, his son Charles II was restored to the throne
0:02:22 > 0:02:26and returned to the Banqueting House to general rejoicing.
0:02:26 > 0:02:29This, then, is the background to today's Antiques Roadshow.
0:02:29 > 0:02:31Shall we see treasures?
0:02:31 > 0:02:33Our experts will hope so -
0:02:33 > 0:02:35I couldn't possibly comment.
0:02:37 > 0:02:40We've got the royal arms appearing on the front here,
0:02:40 > 0:02:43those are actually the Hanoverian royal arms.
0:02:43 > 0:02:50This wonderful inscription: "God Preserve King George 1725."
0:02:50 > 0:02:52But what's it doing with the Yeoman Warders?
0:02:52 > 0:02:55Well, it was presented, as we understand,
0:02:55 > 0:02:58by a Yeoman Warder in the 1720s
0:02:58 > 0:03:03to commemorate the swearing in of a Yeoman Warder.
0:03:03 > 0:03:06Right. So what exactly is a Yeoman Warder?
0:03:06 > 0:03:08Well, we all come from a military background.
0:03:08 > 0:03:11We are the part of the Sovereign's bodyguard
0:03:11 > 0:03:14known as "The Yeomen of the Guard in extraordinaire".
0:03:14 > 0:03:16We live and work in the Tower of London,
0:03:16 > 0:03:18but to qualify to become a Yeoman Warder,
0:03:18 > 0:03:22you have to have served a minimum of 22 years military service,
0:03:22 > 0:03:25currently in the Army, the Air Force, or the Royal Marines.
0:03:25 > 0:03:29- Right.- You have to have been awarded, during your service career,
0:03:29 > 0:03:32the long service and good conduct medal which we...
0:03:32 > 0:03:35So you have to keep your nose clean then!
0:03:35 > 0:03:39Basically, 18 years of undetected crime is the way that we look at it.
0:03:39 > 0:03:42You also have to have achieved the minimum rank of Warrant Officer
0:03:42 > 0:03:44during your service in the Armed Forces,
0:03:44 > 0:03:47and be between 40 and 55 years of age on appointment.
0:03:47 > 0:03:51The pewter bowl is all to do with the swearing in,
0:03:51 > 0:03:58which takes place after a Yeoman Warder has been at the Tower for about six or eight weeks.
0:03:58 > 0:04:01And, after his induction, he takes the oath of allegiance
0:04:01 > 0:04:05to Her Majesty the Queen in front of the constable
0:04:05 > 0:04:07or the resident governor of the Tower of London,
0:04:07 > 0:04:11and then the tradition is he comes down to the Yeoman Warders' Club
0:04:11 > 0:04:13- where we drink a toast. - And what do you drink?
0:04:13 > 0:04:17Oh, it's port usually, which is put in a glass bowl
0:04:17 > 0:04:20which is kept inside the pewter bowl and it's a great tradition
0:04:20 > 0:04:23that's been going on for literally hundreds of years.
0:04:23 > 0:04:27We really wanted to just make sure that it is the genuine item.
0:04:27 > 0:04:30- It is absolutely genuine. - That's fascinating.
0:04:30 > 0:04:34- It is a jolly rare punch bowl.- Is it?
0:04:34 > 0:04:39Punch bowls of this date in silver, you don't see that many of them.
0:04:39 > 0:04:42In pewter, pewter is a difficult thing on the market,
0:04:42 > 0:04:46it's not very fashionable as a collector's area,
0:04:46 > 0:04:51but this one is historically so fascinating.
0:04:51 > 0:04:53Almost impossible to put a true value on,
0:04:53 > 0:04:56- You're never going to sell it. - No, not at all, it'll stay with us.
0:04:56 > 0:04:58What are you going to put on it?
0:04:58 > 0:05:01I don't know whether you've got it insured at all,
0:05:01 > 0:05:04but I would think you'd have to insure it for at least £5,000.
0:05:04 > 0:05:06Really? My goodness!
0:05:06 > 0:05:08Because it is such a rarity
0:05:08 > 0:05:11and there's so much history attached to it.
0:05:11 > 0:05:13Well, that's absolutely fascinating.
0:05:13 > 0:05:15- Good.- Thank you so much.
0:05:16 > 0:05:21This is a beautiful Russian Easter egg, an Imperial Easter egg
0:05:21 > 0:05:26made in the 19th century, probably about 1860, something like that.
0:05:26 > 0:05:28Superbly hand painted,
0:05:28 > 0:05:31not like those ones that are coming out of Russia now,
0:05:31 > 0:05:33which are mass produced and printed.
0:05:33 > 0:05:36Every tiny little inch is painted
0:05:36 > 0:05:39and the gilding of course is so wonderful as well,
0:05:39 > 0:05:44that blue colour is marvellous and the gilding is great.
0:05:44 > 0:05:47How did it come into your possession?
0:05:47 > 0:05:50Well, it was... It belonged to my grandfather
0:05:50 > 0:05:54who was the Count Boris Konstantinovich Konstantinov
0:05:54 > 0:06:00in Russia, and he was of course dispossessed after the Revolution.
0:06:00 > 0:06:02He had a daughter, my mother,
0:06:02 > 0:06:05she was orphaned at the age of 10,
0:06:05 > 0:06:08and she was taken out of Russia by a cousin
0:06:08 > 0:06:12who took certain things to remind her of her family,
0:06:12 > 0:06:15so this is what she has from her father.
0:06:15 > 0:06:17This came with her?
0:06:17 > 0:06:19This came with her in 1928,
0:06:19 > 0:06:23first to Germany where she was hidden for four years
0:06:23 > 0:06:26and then sent on to America in 1933
0:06:26 > 0:06:30and it's just remained in the family ever since.
0:06:30 > 0:06:33And when my mother passed away, it came to me.
0:06:33 > 0:06:36Of course they're difficult to display, how do you display it?
0:06:36 > 0:06:40My mother arranged a meat thermometer that has a pole,
0:06:40 > 0:06:45so she would pole the egg on it, and she had a little finial on top.
0:06:45 > 0:06:48So it now sits in my cupboard on the famous meat thermometer.
0:06:48 > 0:06:50But they shouldn't be on that.
0:06:50 > 0:06:54- It might be causing a little bit of damage on that.- Right.
0:06:54 > 0:06:58It should be threaded on a ribbon and hung, the proper way of doing them,
0:06:58 > 0:07:03so if you can do that, it will be kinder to the egg.
0:07:03 > 0:07:06Well, we must be kind to the egg.
0:07:06 > 0:07:09Now, it's of fair value.
0:07:09 > 0:07:13The Russians are madly collecting their home-made things now,
0:07:13 > 0:07:19going back to the past, and this one, 1860-70 something like that,
0:07:19 > 0:07:22they'd love this over in Russia.
0:07:22 > 0:07:26I reckon, because of its qualities,
0:07:26 > 0:07:29I think you're looking at something like between £3,000 and £4,000.
0:07:29 > 0:07:31Oh, lovely, very nice, a good egg.
0:07:35 > 0:07:38Now my colleagues tell me this is something I can get my teeth into,
0:07:38 > 0:07:40which you don't understand the joke
0:07:40 > 0:07:44- until you realise it's actually a dental cabinet.- Yes, it is.
0:07:44 > 0:07:46Why do you want to own a dental cabinet?
0:07:46 > 0:07:48Well, we didn't. I didn't know it was a dental cabinet.
0:07:48 > 0:07:51I was shopping for a second-hand violin for my son,
0:07:51 > 0:07:56and it was in the next door shop window and I fell in love with it,
0:07:56 > 0:07:57and went in and bought it.
0:07:57 > 0:07:59And what did you love about it?
0:07:59 > 0:08:03Its shape and its colour and the fact that this went up and down
0:08:03 > 0:08:05and it has lots of drawers.
0:08:05 > 0:08:08I agree with you, I mean I still hate the dentist.
0:08:08 > 0:08:12- Yes.- But if you can imagine going back to the end of the 19th century,
0:08:12 > 0:08:15the wonderful leather chair, foot treadle, drill
0:08:15 > 0:08:17and this would have been in the corner,
0:08:17 > 0:08:20holding all the dentist's instruments.
0:08:20 > 0:08:21It does lots of things, doesn't it?
0:08:21 > 0:08:24I mean there's a tiny little cabinet at the top
0:08:24 > 0:08:26and you open up the roll top here.
0:08:26 > 0:08:29You could have put some instruments out here with the mirror back,
0:08:29 > 0:08:32and then all these little drawers open up
0:08:32 > 0:08:36and you would have had all your probes and drill heads.
0:08:36 > 0:08:38- There's some still left in here, aren't there?- Yes.
0:08:38 > 0:08:41So this would have been attached to a foot drill,
0:08:41 > 0:08:44and "zzzzz", they would have been drilling your teeth.
0:08:44 > 0:08:46Oh, he's actually left some teeth behind as well!
0:08:46 > 0:08:48So what do you keep in it now?
0:08:48 > 0:08:52Well, we keep bits and pieces in it, the spare keys,
0:08:52 > 0:08:57but the thing that I loved about it was it's a sort of a celebration
0:08:57 > 0:09:00of Victorian professionalism really,
0:09:00 > 0:09:04and the sort of thing you'd see in the set of a Bernard Shaw play
0:09:04 > 0:09:07like "The Doctor's Dilemma".
0:09:07 > 0:09:08There's two market values to this.
0:09:08 > 0:09:10There are people who collect dental instruments
0:09:10 > 0:09:13and, you know, this would make a wonderful housing
0:09:13 > 0:09:14for a collection of dental instruments.
0:09:14 > 0:09:18Also, it will be a wonderful collector's cabinet for anything small,
0:09:18 > 0:09:20so for coins or medals
0:09:20 > 0:09:23or something that would fit nicely in these drawers,
0:09:23 > 0:09:26- because it all locks away, doesn't it?- Yes.
0:09:26 > 0:09:29- If you just lock that one lock there, all these lock.- Correct.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32This locks, that locks, so it's a very secure collector's cabinet
0:09:32 > 0:09:36- and I think it's worth more as that than as a dental piece.- Right.
0:09:36 > 0:09:39- How much did you pay for it? Can you remember?- About 80 quid.
0:09:39 > 0:09:42- 80 quid, how long ago?- 1970?
0:09:42 > 0:09:43'75 or '6, something like that.
0:09:43 > 0:09:46So 20, 25 odd years ago, right.
0:09:46 > 0:09:51Today, probably you'd get between £1,500 and £2,000.
0:09:51 > 0:09:53- So, a lovely piece.- Thank you.
0:09:53 > 0:09:56As you say, it's a delightful Victorian extravaganza
0:09:56 > 0:09:59- and I'm sure it gives you much pleasure.- Thank you so much.
0:09:59 > 0:10:02It does, I'm so glad you like it too, thank you.
0:10:06 > 0:10:07- A glass and pewter jug.- Yes.
0:10:07 > 0:10:10- What's the history? - Well, the history of it...
0:10:10 > 0:10:12I don't know much about the history of the jug
0:10:12 > 0:10:17- except that it is late 19th century. - Aha.
0:10:17 > 0:10:23I got it from my father buying it in Portobello Road before the war.
0:10:23 > 0:10:26- Before the war?- That's when we... Before the Second World War.
0:10:26 > 0:10:28How much did it cost him, have you any idea?
0:10:28 > 0:10:30It wouldn't have been much - everybody always says that -
0:10:30 > 0:10:33- probably a shilling, half a crown maybe.- A shilling.- Yes.
0:10:33 > 0:10:37- So... Well, that's good because I don't want your expectations to be overambitious.- No, no.
0:10:37 > 0:10:41I picked it up because it is a wonderful design, incredibly elegant,
0:10:41 > 0:10:46this long tapering piece of green glass and then these pewter mounts,
0:10:46 > 0:10:49and looking at the mounts we've got something
0:10:49 > 0:10:51- which is absolutely typical of the Art Nouveau.- Mm.
0:10:51 > 0:10:55You say late 19th century, I'm going to quibble a little bit,
0:10:55 > 0:10:58I'm going to go for maybe ten years later.
0:10:58 > 0:11:03This is typical of the Art Nouveau style that was used by Liberty's,
0:11:03 > 0:11:05that great shop in Regent Street.
0:11:05 > 0:11:07- Oh, yes, yes.- Around that time.
0:11:07 > 0:11:13And if we turn it upside down, we've got a mark and it says "Tudric"
0:11:13 > 0:11:16which is one of the two trademarks
0:11:16 > 0:11:19that Liberty sold their pewter through
0:11:19 > 0:11:21in the early years of the 20th century.
0:11:21 > 0:11:25Now, the clue to who designed this is in that Celtic motif
0:11:25 > 0:11:28and let's just have a look, if we're talking about design,
0:11:28 > 0:11:31that's not just a sort of straightforward strap handle,
0:11:31 > 0:11:34that is a handle which is stepped down at the top
0:11:34 > 0:11:36and then it steps back up again at the bottom.
0:11:36 > 0:11:40If you look at it side on, it swells, tapers and swells out again.
0:11:40 > 0:11:44- Yes, yes.- Every element of this has been thought out.
0:11:44 > 0:11:47And the glass has been made specifically for the pewter
0:11:47 > 0:11:50and vice versa, the whole is an organic piece of design.
0:11:50 > 0:11:54The only tragedy is that, at some stage, the tip of it has been punched
0:11:54 > 0:11:56so that this lid is sort of sitting back,
0:11:56 > 0:11:58you see it sort of doesn't quite flush.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01Oh, yes, it doesn't quite... no, I've noticed that.
0:12:01 > 0:12:03Yes, that it doesn't quite fit.
0:12:03 > 0:12:05- Well, I think I know who designed this.- Oh, yes?
0:12:05 > 0:12:09Almost certainly a man from the Isle of Man called Archibald Knox.
0:12:09 > 0:12:14- Oh, yes.- He was one of Liberty's principal designers.
0:12:14 > 0:12:18In fact, when Liberty died Archibald Knox actually designed his headstone.
0:12:18 > 0:12:20Highly thought of designer.
0:12:20 > 0:12:22Oh, indeed, mm.
0:12:22 > 0:12:26So in 50-odd years it's crept up a little bit.
0:12:26 > 0:12:30I mean, we've got allow for this, this damage up here,
0:12:30 > 0:12:31but I think it's crept up
0:12:31 > 0:12:35- to somewhere in the region of £1,500 to £2,500.- Oh, no, really?
0:12:35 > 0:12:40I was thinking of perhaps 200, but really, as much as that?
0:12:40 > 0:12:42Oh, well, thank you very much.
0:12:43 > 0:12:44I was totally intrigued
0:12:44 > 0:12:48when you brought me this enigmatic piece of painted wood.
0:12:48 > 0:12:51Let's start with where did you get it from?
0:12:51 > 0:12:53Well, I live in a large block of flats
0:12:53 > 0:12:55and my husband, who was then my boyfriend,
0:12:55 > 0:12:57came in one day and said "Yvonne,"
0:12:57 > 0:13:00we have a bin room just around the corner from where I am,
0:13:00 > 0:13:03he said, "Oh, come and see some interesting things in here."
0:13:03 > 0:13:05So we ran and we just happened to see this.
0:13:05 > 0:13:06He said "What's this?"
0:13:06 > 0:13:09"Oh, painting on a bit of wood." I said "What do you think?"
0:13:09 > 0:13:12He said, "Well, it looks OK, you know we'll hold on to it."
0:13:12 > 0:13:16And we put it on the mantelpiece and sort of just left it, and that's it.
0:13:16 > 0:13:19Well, on one hand, it is a piece of painted wood
0:13:19 > 0:13:22and possibly the sort of thing that might end up in a dustbin,
0:13:22 > 0:13:25but when we turn it round we get a bit more of the story, don't we?
0:13:25 > 0:13:26Yes, that's right.
0:13:26 > 0:13:31And it says here, "Vesuvius, November 22nd 1886
0:13:31 > 0:13:35"from Castle Mare di Stabia by Herbert Sidney."
0:13:35 > 0:13:37Yes.
0:13:37 > 0:13:40And have you done any research yourself?
0:13:40 > 0:13:44I looked on the internet, and sure enough I found that he is, you know,
0:13:44 > 0:13:48an artist of some renown and there is information about him there.
0:13:48 > 0:13:52Well, he was indeed and he was actually quite a prominent painter
0:13:52 > 0:13:55but before we go any further there is something missing here, isn't there?
0:13:55 > 0:13:57- The bottom half is missing. - Yes, the bottom.
0:13:57 > 0:14:01I suspect there many even be a bottom two thirds or even more, who knows?
0:14:01 > 0:14:04- Right.- So at some point this picture has become broken up.- Yes.
0:14:04 > 0:14:08So we're in the rather delightful position of being able to speculate
0:14:08 > 0:14:11on what the rest of the picture might have consisted of
0:14:11 > 0:14:16and here we have the advantage of knowing a little bit about Herbert Sidney's work
0:14:16 > 0:14:19because he did do history pictures with titles
0:14:19 > 0:14:24to the effect of people running from blowing up volcanoes,
0:14:24 > 0:14:30and it may well be that at the bottom of this tempting looking mountainscape at the top
0:14:30 > 0:14:32was some real action scene.
0:14:32 > 0:14:36Could have been anything from two or three figures fleeing,
0:14:36 > 0:14:39to figures fighting, to horses galloping.
0:14:39 > 0:14:42In other words you can sit and look at this fragment
0:14:42 > 0:14:45and just imagine what there might have been beneath.
0:14:45 > 0:14:48- Absolutely, yes. It's a pity it wasn't erupting.- I know.
0:14:48 > 0:14:52- An erupting volcano would have been rather better, I must say.- Yes.
0:14:52 > 0:14:54I think what had happened was, this is on panel,
0:14:54 > 0:14:58therefore canvas which would normally last the test of time,
0:14:58 > 0:15:00might get a bit blistered, might get a bit rotten,
0:15:00 > 0:15:05it's not like wood because if wood drops it sometimes cracks.
0:15:05 > 0:15:07We know that Elizabeth I would go into houses
0:15:07 > 0:15:09and if she didn't like portraits of herself,
0:15:09 > 0:15:13she'd knock them into pieces and hurl them into the fire.
0:15:13 > 0:15:17- So wood, although it's hard, is also very vulnerable.- That's right.
0:15:17 > 0:15:20Now I suppose we have to talk about value.
0:15:20 > 0:15:24- Well, the value of this picture depends on whether we can find the other bit.- That's right.
0:15:24 > 0:15:27So if someone out there...
0:15:27 > 0:15:28Please help me!
0:15:28 > 0:15:31Exactly. And if you two could get together,
0:15:31 > 0:15:35you could end up with a rather valuable marriage.
0:15:35 > 0:15:38Well, let's just wait and hope,
0:15:38 > 0:15:42- because, as it stands, it ain't worth much.- I understand that.
0:15:42 > 0:15:44It was a nice find anyway.
0:15:46 > 0:15:48I've brought along my umbrella,
0:15:48 > 0:15:51and I just wondered if you'd ever seen anything like this before.
0:15:51 > 0:15:56- Well, I've never seen one with a donkey's terminal before.- Right.
0:15:56 > 0:16:00But before I talk to you about it, tell me a little bit about the story.
0:16:00 > 0:16:04It was a gift to my great grandmother from Queen Mary,
0:16:04 > 0:16:08because my great grandmother was her lady in waiting,
0:16:08 > 0:16:12from 1923 until Queen Mary's death in 1953.
0:16:12 > 0:16:13- Really?- Yes.
0:16:13 > 0:16:17So at some point your great grandmother must have said
0:16:17 > 0:16:19to Queen Mary, "I really love that."
0:16:19 > 0:16:21I'm sure she would have done, yes.
0:16:21 > 0:16:24- And they remembered.- Yes. - And now it's come down to you.
0:16:24 > 0:16:27Yes, it's come down through the girls' line.
0:16:27 > 0:16:29One thing that is very unusual
0:16:29 > 0:16:34is that it's got this lovely glazed cotton outer cover to keep it safe.
0:16:34 > 0:16:38- Right.- I mean that is a real mark of distinction, if I may say so,
0:16:38 > 0:16:40but if we take it off, let's have a look.
0:16:40 > 0:16:43- Is it in good condition?- Yes, it is.
0:16:43 > 0:16:46Now you see that's another lovely thing.
0:16:46 > 0:16:49You normally expect to see umbrellas,
0:16:49 > 0:16:51- I mean our standard umbrellas are black.- Yes.
0:16:51 > 0:16:54But this wonderful vibrant purple.
0:16:54 > 0:17:00- Yes.- And, of course, this was probably made, let's say about 1890,
0:17:00 > 0:17:05and in the 1890s -1900s there was a very formal etiquette about mourning.
0:17:05 > 0:17:08And if you were in full mourning, you had black,
0:17:08 > 0:17:11- if you were in semi-mourning you were allowed to use purple.- Oh, right.
0:17:11 > 0:17:17So, this is an umbrella on a day when you're in semi-mourning.
0:17:17 > 0:17:20So you've got this fabulous carved donkey's head.
0:17:20 > 0:17:25It's the sort of thing that would have been bought in the shops around the Louvre in Paris,
0:17:25 > 0:17:30- it's a real tourist, up-market tourist type gift.- Right.
0:17:30 > 0:17:33Fantastic carving, I mean look at the bridle
0:17:33 > 0:17:35and this lovely sort of swag and tassel.
0:17:35 > 0:17:37I mean it's absolutely super
0:17:37 > 0:17:39and the donkey's face has just got such character.
0:17:39 > 0:17:42- Yes, he's smiling at you, isn't he? - He is, absolutely.
0:17:42 > 0:17:44- This is bamboo.- Right.
0:17:44 > 0:17:47And then this lovely... Why don't you put it up?
0:17:47 > 0:17:49OK. Are you superstitious?
0:17:49 > 0:17:51Well, sort of.
0:17:52 > 0:17:56Yeah, the lovely thing is, I mean it's practically never been used,
0:17:56 > 0:17:59because what happens is of course the umbrella goes at the seams,
0:17:59 > 0:18:03so it's in super, super condition.
0:18:04 > 0:18:07- I know you're never going to sell it. - No.
0:18:07 > 0:18:12I think, with its outer case...
0:18:12 > 0:18:17lovely provenance, couldn't be better if it tried,
0:18:17 > 0:18:20makes it quite a rare and special little thing.
0:18:20 > 0:18:23I think it would be worth about £1,000.
0:18:23 > 0:18:24Good grief!
0:18:27 > 0:18:29Um, I'm stunned.
0:18:29 > 0:18:32- You'd better get on and have some girls yourself.- Yeah!
0:18:43 > 0:18:45If at this point I shouted, "Order! Order!"
0:18:45 > 0:18:49I should be slapped on the wrist by the lady with me, because that's her line.
0:18:49 > 0:18:52The only woman Speaker in 700 years of the British Parliament,
0:18:52 > 0:18:56her voice has echoed around Whitehall, the House of Lords,
0:18:56 > 0:18:57and today the Banqueting House.
0:18:57 > 0:19:00Baroness Boothroyd, welcome to the Antiques Roadshow.
0:19:00 > 0:19:01Thank you for having me.
0:19:01 > 0:19:04And may I say, many congratulations, Antiques Roadshow.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07- What a great show it is. - Thank you very much.
0:19:07 > 0:19:10You've seen the back of a few Prime Ministers in your time,
0:19:10 > 0:19:13and rumour has it that you've watched quite a few of the Roadshows
0:19:13 > 0:19:15over their 30 years, right?
0:19:15 > 0:19:19That's right, I see it whenever I can, early Sunday evening,
0:19:19 > 0:19:22a nice time of relaxation. It's a great educational show.
0:19:22 > 0:19:23I try not to miss it.
0:19:23 > 0:19:26What particularly has caught your eye, over the years?
0:19:26 > 0:19:28Oh, Michael, I love jewellery.
0:19:28 > 0:19:32Diamonds are a girl's best friend as far as I'm concerned.
0:19:32 > 0:19:35I love jewellery and so...
0:19:35 > 0:19:40I saw one piece, because opals are my birth stone.
0:19:40 > 0:19:42It's not everybody's favourite stone,
0:19:42 > 0:19:44but I did see one lovely piece
0:19:44 > 0:19:47which you can have as a tiara or a necklace,
0:19:47 > 0:19:49and I thought that was lovely.
0:19:49 > 0:19:52It is an Edwardian necklace, it dates from about 1900
0:19:52 > 0:19:56and it's a fantastic display of Australian opals
0:19:56 > 0:19:57and the thing about opals is
0:19:57 > 0:19:59they're a mineralogical jelly,
0:19:59 > 0:20:02they're not a sort of crystalline gem stone
0:20:02 > 0:20:05in the same way that rubies and sapphires and diamonds are.
0:20:05 > 0:20:08Lying on the table, we have this curious piece of metal.
0:20:08 > 0:20:09Tell me what that is.
0:20:09 > 0:20:10Um, that's for a tiara.
0:20:10 > 0:20:14For a tiara, a tiara frame, and we have to make the necklace.
0:20:14 > 0:20:17- I wanted my daughter to wear it for her wedding.- Wouldn't she do that?
0:20:17 > 0:20:19No, she wouldn't. She wore it as a necklace.
0:20:19 > 0:20:23It's not much to ask of her, and it sits upside down like that,
0:20:23 > 0:20:25and many necklaces do make tiaras
0:20:25 > 0:20:27when they're put up on these base metal frames.
0:20:27 > 0:20:29Let's think about it financially,
0:20:29 > 0:20:31everybody's lusting after it, looking at it.
0:20:31 > 0:20:34I don't know what it's worth and I wouldn't part with it.
0:20:34 > 0:20:37No, I don't think it would be very easy to buy this necklace
0:20:37 > 0:20:41for any less than about £5,000 or £6,000, maybe even more today.
0:20:41 > 0:20:42Oh, my God!
0:20:42 > 0:20:44Oh, that's quite a lot then.
0:20:44 > 0:20:45- That's good.- That's good.
0:20:45 > 0:20:49Well, the price of a good man's above opals, certainly.
0:20:49 > 0:20:51- Oh, I think so.- Thank you.
0:20:52 > 0:20:55So apart from your first love, which seems to be jewellery,
0:20:55 > 0:20:57what else has attracted you over the years?
0:20:57 > 0:20:59I like looking at furniture.
0:20:59 > 0:21:02Some of the large pieces that are on display
0:21:02 > 0:21:05and come to the Antiques Roadshow I'm not envious about,
0:21:05 > 0:21:08because I associate myself with things,
0:21:08 > 0:21:11and those big pieces wouldn't fit in my tiny home, so I'm not envious.
0:21:11 > 0:21:13But I like the smaller pieces,
0:21:13 > 0:21:17and there was one piece called a credenza. I liked that.
0:21:17 > 0:21:19I could find a spot in my living room
0:21:19 > 0:21:22where that would fit very nicely.
0:21:22 > 0:21:25One should never judge a book by its cover
0:21:25 > 0:21:28how do you come to have a piece like this?
0:21:28 > 0:21:32I wouldn't put the two of you together, obviously.
0:21:32 > 0:21:39Well, the truth is, my grandmother left me this in 1976
0:21:39 > 0:21:41and my grandfather bought it
0:21:41 > 0:21:46from a house clearance, and I think he paid 30 shillings.
0:21:46 > 0:21:49My grandmother said to me, "Mark, if anything should happen to me,
0:21:49 > 0:21:52"is there anything in this house that you'd like?"
0:21:52 > 0:21:58- And I said, "Well, I've always liked the credenza."- I think it's so attractive, it's so visual.
0:21:58 > 0:22:03I think you're looking at between £5,000 and £7,000.
0:22:03 > 0:22:05Blimey! Really?
0:22:05 > 0:22:07Fantastic!
0:22:08 > 0:22:12So, you've got a place in your home for that piece of furniture,
0:22:12 > 0:22:17but were there any bits in Parliament that you wish you could have taken home?
0:22:17 > 0:22:20Oh, nice pieces when I was in Speaker's House.
0:22:20 > 0:22:23Lovely collection we have in Parliament, yes.
0:22:23 > 0:22:28There were one or two I would have liked. Alas, I had to kiss them goodbye, say goodbye to them.
0:22:28 > 0:22:32- Not a perk of the job? - No perks there, none at all!
0:22:32 > 0:22:36- Betty Boothroyd, it's a joy to meet you, thank you very much... - My pleasure.
0:22:36 > 0:22:39- On behalf of the Roadshow in its 30th anniversary.- Thank you.
0:22:46 > 0:22:51Well, here we are in one of London's most iconic buildings,
0:22:51 > 0:22:54only to find some reminders of another.
0:22:54 > 0:22:57Tell me how you came by these clocks.
0:22:57 > 0:22:59Well, unfortunately, they aren't mine.
0:22:59 > 0:23:01They do in fact belong to my boss
0:23:01 > 0:23:06who picked them up about ten years ago on Brick Lane market in east London.
0:23:06 > 0:23:08Which is just a weekly market, is it?
0:23:08 > 0:23:11Just popping down there on a Sunday
0:23:11 > 0:23:14looking for sort of fabulous old bits of junk and that sort of thing.
0:23:14 > 0:23:20He saw a pile of old bits of kitchen and appliances, and he was going through it and found these
0:23:20 > 0:23:25and spoke to the dealer who told him that they were in fact the clocks from the Stock Exchange.
0:23:25 > 0:23:31He didn't necessarily believe this, but bought them anyway as they were only £10 each.
0:23:31 > 0:23:34- And how many were there? - There are nine.- Nine?- Yeah.
0:23:34 > 0:23:37- So another six like these?- Yes, yes.
0:23:37 > 0:23:40- Right.- And I think that's it, that's the complete set.
0:23:40 > 0:23:42- But you're clutching a book.- I am.
0:23:42 > 0:23:44And that shows a photograph.
0:23:44 > 0:23:46Well, he contacted the Stock Exchange to
0:23:46 > 0:23:51find out, you know, really to verify if they were what he'd been told.
0:23:51 > 0:23:55As you can see they're here and, I mean, that is them.
0:23:55 > 0:24:00- This is brilliant, because this is the trading floor of the Stock Exchange.- Yes, yeah.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03It's brilliant to have that photograph,
0:24:03 > 0:24:07it pinpoints these timepieces exactly in that building
0:24:07 > 0:24:09- at that moment in time.- Yeah.
0:24:09 > 0:24:15- The Queen opened the new Stock Exchange and that trading floor in 1972.- Oh, OK.
0:24:15 > 0:24:21- So it's quite likely that these were installed in 1971 or 1972.- OK.
0:24:21 > 0:24:26And they're rather wacky things, actually, because if we can open this one up,
0:24:26 > 0:24:30you would expect there to be some sort of movement behind it.
0:24:30 > 0:24:36But, in fact, all you've got are a series of wirings and condensers
0:24:36 > 0:24:40that, in turn, would have been wired up to one central clock.
0:24:40 > 0:24:47- OK.- And one central clock would have sent a series of messages to these nine repeaters.
0:24:47 > 0:24:50Because you wanted the time to be absolutely accurate
0:24:50 > 0:24:52through all nine of these.
0:24:52 > 0:24:55OK. What would the little lights have done?
0:24:55 > 0:25:00I would imagine that the lights probably flashed a few moments before
0:25:00 > 0:25:04- trading ceased in either one of the trading centres.- Oh, OK.
0:25:04 > 0:25:09So you could look at the wall and you could just remind yourself that Tokyo Stock Exchange is about to shut.
0:25:09 > 0:25:10Oh, OK.
0:25:10 > 0:25:14But if you were a big city whizz kid, right,
0:25:14 > 0:25:16and your bonus this year is only £8 million
0:25:16 > 0:25:22and you want something for your loft building that you're going to really enjoy
0:25:22 > 0:25:24and have a whizz of a time with your mates.
0:25:24 > 0:25:26Have them on and flashing, it would be amazing.
0:25:26 > 0:25:28It would be something else, wouldn't it?
0:25:28 > 0:25:32So I think this lot, the nine of them,
0:25:32 > 0:25:34in the right sale, to the right audience,
0:25:34 > 0:25:38might make perhaps between £1,000 and £2,000 each.
0:25:38 > 0:25:44- So you might be talking about between £10,000 and £20,000 for these. - OK.- So, will your boss be pleased?
0:25:44 > 0:25:47I think definitely. How could you not be, with that?
0:25:47 > 0:25:50At £90, it was certainly an investment, I think.
0:25:50 > 0:25:53- Great, thanks for bringing them in. - Thank you very much.
0:25:53 > 0:26:00Well, I know what this is, familiar action, but I've never ever seen one looking like that. What's the story?
0:26:00 > 0:26:04Very few of them were made, they were manufacturer's demonstration pieces.
0:26:04 > 0:26:09That particular one was made by Ericsson of Beeston in Nottinghamshire in 1937.
0:26:09 > 0:26:12But specially made for exhibition purposes,
0:26:12 > 0:26:15- because it's all polished inside. - It is indeed.
0:26:15 > 0:26:17Well, I know what that is. I don't know what this is.
0:26:17 > 0:26:22This is a House of Commons Division Bell transmitter, this is the apparatus that
0:26:22 > 0:26:27was used in the House of Commons to signal to the MPs that a division or vote was about to take place.
0:26:27 > 0:26:33Right, so let's get this right. So, before every vote, there is the famous division bell.
0:26:33 > 0:26:35- Exactly.- I think we've all heard of the division bell.- Yes.
0:26:35 > 0:26:38I hadn't realised it actually really was a bell.
0:26:38 > 0:26:45- And so this would sound and it would repeat its sounding several times, is that right?- Yes.
0:26:45 > 0:26:47And then after six minutes the doors of the lobbies would shut.
0:26:47 > 0:26:52The door keeper shuts the door and locks them and any MP who comes after that is too late.
0:26:52 > 0:26:55- He cannot vote, so this is democracy. - It is.
0:26:55 > 0:26:59It was in the Palace of Westminster, the House of Commons -why isn't it now?
0:26:59 > 0:27:02It was sold at the British Telecom auction.
0:27:02 > 0:27:07The museum sold off the contents of its stores and so on, and that included this apparatus.
0:27:07 > 0:27:09It says number one, is it the first one?
0:27:09 > 0:27:13It's the first one made, late 19th century, 1880s-1890s, I would say.
0:27:13 > 0:27:17So this had been there since it was installed in the late 19th century,
0:27:17 > 0:27:19day by day, operating the division.
0:27:19 > 0:27:23Yes, but it's the only one of the original transmitters that survived.
0:27:23 > 0:27:25- This is it? - This is it.- This is the only one.
0:27:25 > 0:27:32So, only here can we hear the division bell driven by the original technology?
0:27:32 > 0:27:35- Yes.- Think of who's used this, or heard it.
0:27:35 > 0:27:38We start with Gladstone, you know, Gladstone heard this bell.
0:27:38 > 0:27:43- Mm, he certainly did.- So did Asquith, so did Lloyd George, so did...
0:27:43 > 0:27:44Well, right up to Churchill.
0:27:44 > 0:27:47- Indeed.- Every Prime Minister would have heard it.- That's quite correct.
0:27:47 > 0:27:51Let's deal with two things. We have to talk about value.
0:27:51 > 0:27:55Now, you're the telephone enthusiast, specialist collector,
0:27:55 > 0:27:58you have much more knowledge than me, so I'm going
0:27:58 > 0:28:02to reverse the normal process and say to you, what's that worth?
0:28:02 > 0:28:06That is worth £5,000 to £6,000 depending, you know, on the day.
0:28:06 > 0:28:10And it's my turn to say, "Good heavens, you can't be serious!"
0:28:10 > 0:28:13And now I'm going to say to you, what's this worth?
0:28:13 > 0:28:16First of all, I'll say I agree with you entirely on that.
0:28:16 > 0:28:19It is such a rarity, this is Mecca for a telephone collector.
0:28:19 > 0:28:22And I think that price is perfectly reasonable.
0:28:22 > 0:28:26What's this worth? Well, as a piece of technical machinery,
0:28:26 > 0:28:32without its wonderful political historical overtones, it's worth a few hundred pounds.
0:28:32 > 0:28:37If you factor in that this is the only surviving division bell
0:28:37 > 0:28:43telegraph machine, I could imagine someone paying, God, £15,000 for it.
0:28:43 > 0:28:47Well, I'm going to be the Clerk and I'm going to call the division.
0:28:49 > 0:28:52BELL RINGS
0:28:54 > 0:28:56It's a unique sound.
0:28:56 > 0:28:59- Actually, can I ask you, can you do it?- Yes, why not?
0:28:59 > 0:29:01We say, "Clear the lobbies!"
0:29:01 > 0:29:04- Clear the lobbies! - Clear the lobbies!
0:29:13 > 0:29:19So how come you're bringing me a rusty old tin of whatever it's supposed to be...roasted veal?
0:29:19 > 0:29:23Well, the simple answer is that it's not just any tin,
0:29:23 > 0:29:29it's probably one of the first tins of preserved food in existence.
0:29:29 > 0:29:33It was taken by Captain, subsequently Sir William Parry,
0:29:33 > 0:29:39on the Arctic Expedition in 1824, and, uniquely, it was taken twice.
0:29:39 > 0:29:46It was brought back to England in 1825 and taken out again in 1826 to the Arctic.
0:29:46 > 0:29:53Now, this was deposited after 1826 in the Museum of the Royal United Services Institute,
0:29:53 > 0:29:58which used to be in this building in the Banqueting House,
0:29:58 > 0:30:01and it was kept with the preserved meat inside.
0:30:01 > 0:30:11It was essentially as a result of the success of these tins that the Royal Navy adopted, in 1831, canned
0:30:11 > 0:30:16food as one of its requirements and the canning industry took off.
0:30:16 > 0:30:20Brilliant, so it went out to the Arctic on a voyage,
0:30:20 > 0:30:25it came back from the Arctic, it went out to the Arctic, it came back from the Arctic
0:30:25 > 0:30:28and we're talking about the 1820s here, aren't we?
0:30:28 > 0:30:31- We are indeed.- And then it comes back into the museum.
0:30:31 > 0:30:36Why does it have this dirty great ugly hole in the bottom now?
0:30:36 > 0:30:41Well, unfortunately it was opened in 1939 by
0:30:41 > 0:30:46- some curious gentlemen together with the tin industry at the time.- Right.
0:30:46 > 0:30:53I suspect their idea was to prove that the canning industry started so well and did so well.
0:30:53 > 0:30:59- But did they eat what was inside? - No, they didn't, but they subjected it to chemical examination.- Right.
0:30:59 > 0:31:03And as it turned out, the veal in 1939, over 100 years later,
0:31:03 > 0:31:06was perfectly fit for consumption.
0:31:06 > 0:31:12Well, isn't that brilliant? Because I think this early preservation of food is most interesting, really.
0:31:12 > 0:31:16The fact that in 1811, when the British started doing it, but with
0:31:16 > 0:31:20metal, with iron, effectively tinned iron,
0:31:20 > 0:31:24and then by excluding the air, you were able to prove, by taking it
0:31:24 > 0:31:30to the Arctic and back and forth, that for over 100 years it would keep meat fresh,
0:31:30 > 0:31:33meat and vegetables fresh, it's quite extraordinary, isn't it?
0:31:33 > 0:31:37And you know that it's A proper one because it's got this sealed little nipple
0:31:37 > 0:31:39and that's where the air came out.
0:31:39 > 0:31:42Absolutely riveting. Do you like veal yourself?
0:31:42 > 0:31:44- I don't, actually.- Ah.
0:31:44 > 0:31:48And I most certainly will not try the one from this can.
0:31:48 > 0:31:52when you come to valuing an object like this, it's difficult.
0:31:52 > 0:31:56Frankly, it's a question of the association of personality.
0:31:56 > 0:32:01If this had been to the Antarctic with Scott, that tin could be worth
0:32:01 > 0:32:03several thousand pounds, £5,000 to £8,000.
0:32:03 > 0:32:07But as it is, even though it's earlier than Scott
0:32:07 > 0:32:13and very interesting as far as the canning industry's concerned, and the preservation of food,
0:32:13 > 0:32:20I would imagine that if that came on the market, it would probably realise a tad under £1,000.
0:32:20 > 0:32:24But it's nevertheless a heck of an interesting tin. Thank you.
0:32:24 > 0:32:27We've got an unusual combination here. We've got
0:32:27 > 0:32:31a lifesaving medal,
0:32:31 > 0:32:32an Iron Cross second class,
0:32:32 > 0:32:36so there's a nice story here, I'm sure.
0:32:36 > 0:32:41Well, my husband was in the Merchant Navy and during the war, in 1944, he
0:32:41 > 0:32:47dived off the liner Queen Elizabeth and rescued a German prisoner of war from drowning.
0:32:47 > 0:32:52And as a result he was awarded the medal and the German gave him his swastika,
0:32:52 > 0:32:57and the crew of the ship presented him with an inscribed cigarette case.
0:32:57 > 0:33:03And these are the letters from the Liverpool Shipwreck and Humane Society who presented the medal.
0:33:03 > 0:33:07So, what were the prisoners of war doing on the Elizabeth?
0:33:07 > 0:33:11Well, I'm pretty sure they were going to America
0:33:11 > 0:33:14and then the liner would come back with troops on board.
0:33:14 > 0:33:21That's right, they did so. And also they took Italian prisoners of war to America,
0:33:21 > 0:33:23because in the convoy I was in
0:33:23 > 0:33:28there was the Empress of Canada, and she was full up with Italian prisoners of war.
0:33:28 > 0:33:29But they sunk her.
0:33:29 > 0:33:31I remember that, yes.
0:33:31 > 0:33:38So, now, you've got the silver medal for saving life from the Humane Society,
0:33:38 > 0:33:43you've got the letter explaining it, and here we have a picture of him?
0:33:43 > 0:33:46- Yes.- Which is your husband?
0:33:47 > 0:33:49The waiter.
0:33:49 > 0:33:55He was mostly in the library or the swimming pool,
0:33:55 > 0:33:58but sometimes he was the waiter.
0:33:58 > 0:34:00Oh, right.
0:34:00 > 0:34:04And of course, he's not with you any more?
0:34:04 > 0:34:06- No. He died in 1976.- 1976.
0:34:06 > 0:34:08Yes. But what a lovely combination.
0:34:08 > 0:34:12Now, we've got to come to value.
0:34:12 > 0:34:19- Your humane medal on its own would be about £300, £350.- Oh!
0:34:19 > 0:34:23But, of course, you see, with this lovely story and the Iron Cross,
0:34:23 > 0:34:26you know the whole thing, I mean you can sort of double that value.
0:34:26 > 0:34:31Because, if a collector had the opportunity to buy it, which he won't,
0:34:31 > 0:34:34it is worth twice that amount.
0:34:34 > 0:34:37- It's lovely to know.- Thank you. - Thank you very much indeed.
0:34:39 > 0:34:43Well, this is a wonderfully romantic Russian scene.
0:34:43 > 0:34:49The moon is out and this troika is rushing over the snow there.
0:34:49 > 0:34:55- So this album is completely full of Russian royalty.- Yes.
0:34:55 > 0:34:59Over 55 images. So did you buy them all together?
0:34:59 > 0:35:04No. I collected them over a period of time and I actually bought the album separately.
0:35:04 > 0:35:07I bought it because it was a Russian album
0:35:07 > 0:35:13and thought it was appropriate to put the family back into something that they would have been in.
0:35:13 > 0:35:16Yes, absolutely. So here we've got
0:35:16 > 0:35:18the Empress, Empress...
0:35:18 > 0:35:21Marie with her son, Tsar Nicholas II as a baby.
0:35:21 > 0:35:27Tsar Nicholas II as a baby, now you hardly ever see photographs of Tsar Nicholas II as a baby.
0:35:27 > 0:35:29And also, it's hand-coloured.
0:35:29 > 0:35:31It's hand coloured, you're quite right.
0:35:31 > 0:35:35So tell me, what made you start collecting Russian royalty?
0:35:35 > 0:35:39When I was quite young, I watched a programme called Children Of Destiny
0:35:39 > 0:35:44about the Tsar's children, and that's what made my interest in the Russian royal family.
0:35:44 > 0:35:48And when I was about 17, I saw an original photograph of Nicholas
0:35:48 > 0:35:55and Alexandra at the time of their engagement, and I bought that, and from there the collection grew.
0:35:55 > 0:35:56It's absolutely splendid.
0:35:56 > 0:35:59Now, here is one that particularly interests me.
0:35:59 > 0:36:02You explain who these people are. This one I think is Ella, isn't it?
0:36:02 > 0:36:06Yes, it's Grand Duchess Elizabeth with Grand Duke Serge.
0:36:06 > 0:36:10He was murdered in a dress rehearsal in 1905 of the First Revolution
0:36:10 > 0:36:17and she was thrown down a mine shaft by the Bolsheviks in 1918 in the Second Revolution.
0:36:17 > 0:36:19- Yes, yes.- And she became a saint.
0:36:19 > 0:36:23And she became a saint, became a saint of the Russian Orthodox Church.
0:36:23 > 0:36:28- And I believe the horrible story, you could hear her singing hymns at the bottom of this shaft.- Yes.
0:36:28 > 0:36:33She was meant to be a great beauty, in the whole of Europe everybody thought she was enchanting.
0:36:33 > 0:36:37The Kaiser wanted to marry her, Kaiser Wilhelm of the First World War
0:36:37 > 0:36:40was in love with his first cousin Ella,
0:36:40 > 0:36:43but sadly they never married and she married Serge instead.
0:36:43 > 0:36:48That's a very romantic story. Look at this, this is absolutely splendid. This is Queen Victoria.
0:36:48 > 0:36:52- Yes.- And Edward VII, Tsar Nicholas.
0:36:52 > 0:36:55Empress Alexandra and Grand Duchess Olga.
0:36:55 > 0:37:01- And Grand Duchess Olga, now that is absolutely...- At Balmoral in 1896 when they came over for their visit,
0:37:01 > 0:37:07and the Empress brought her child to see her grandmother, which was very important to her.
0:37:07 > 0:37:14She was very close to Queen Victoria and she'd been brought up by the Queen, and so Alexandra looked on
0:37:14 > 0:37:19Queen Victoria as her mother, and Queen Victoria looked on her as her child.
0:37:19 > 0:37:24It's a beautifully presented thing. You've got, what, over 55?
0:37:24 > 0:37:2955 in this particular album, which I think is quite remarkable.
0:37:29 > 0:37:34- I mean, how long has it taken you to collect this lot?- Probably about 20 years,
0:37:34 > 0:37:35and...
0:37:35 > 0:37:39I probably couldn't start it again now,
0:37:39 > 0:37:43with the price they are today, but over 20 years, I would say.
0:37:43 > 0:37:46Well, you probably have as much idea about how much they're worth as I do,
0:37:46 > 0:37:49because you keep your eye on the market.
0:37:49 > 0:37:50But I'm going to hazard a guess.
0:37:50 > 0:37:54I reckon that you've got an album there that's worth
0:37:54 > 0:37:58upwards of £35,000, would you agree with that?
0:37:58 > 0:38:01Um, yes, slightly shocked.
0:38:01 > 0:38:03But happily will agree.
0:38:03 > 0:38:08I was going to say that you don't look surprised, but that's a bit better!
0:38:08 > 0:38:11That's the sort of reaction we encourage. Thanks for bringing it in.
0:38:11 > 0:38:13OK, lovely. Thank you very much.
0:38:16 > 0:38:21We bought a new house and we had to remove a bay window and we found it
0:38:21 > 0:38:23under there and I've had it ever since,
0:38:23 > 0:38:27but my husband just keeps saying it's a bit of old tat.
0:38:27 > 0:38:31- Bit of old tat! Have you worn this bit of old tat?- No.
0:38:31 > 0:38:33- You haven't?- No. - It's beautifully made,
0:38:33 > 0:38:36it wouldn't matter what it was made of, really, it's so superb.
0:38:36 > 0:38:39And have you thought about the imagery behind it at all?
0:38:39 > 0:38:42I mean, is it something that you feel there's a message there?
0:38:42 > 0:38:46Apart from an obvious one, that it sparkles like mad.
0:38:46 > 0:38:52Sparkles like mad! No, I just liked it and I just kept it, I just thought it was very pretty.
0:38:52 > 0:38:54It's a jolly good thing you did keep it.
0:38:54 > 0:38:59It's actually like a lot of jewellery, there's a subliminal message of love here.
0:38:59 > 0:39:01These are forget-me-not flowers.
0:39:01 > 0:39:05In the Victorian language of flowers, forget-me-not stands for true love.
0:39:05 > 0:39:10When you turn it into diamonds, it's forever true love, and they're true lovers' knots here.
0:39:10 > 0:39:14It's a highly sophisticated piece of setting
0:39:14 > 0:39:18and I think it's safe to tell you now that this is gem setting.
0:39:18 > 0:39:21These are indeed real stones, they are diamonds.
0:39:21 > 0:39:23- Oh!- I know!
0:39:23 > 0:39:25So much for my tat!
0:39:25 > 0:39:28So much for your tat, and it's going to be awkward when you go back home,
0:39:28 > 0:39:30because you'll have to tell him all of this!
0:39:30 > 0:39:39And this is a little jewel from 1900, which is probably the most perfect time for craftsmanship in jewellery.
0:39:39 > 0:39:41It's very minutely observed.
0:39:41 > 0:39:43The design rules the composition, not the stones.
0:39:43 > 0:39:49They're secured in what we call mille grain settings, there are tiny little pellets running round these
0:39:49 > 0:39:52channels of metal, which is an indication
0:39:52 > 0:39:59that what we have before us now is a piece of the highest possible quality gem setting from 1900.
0:39:59 > 0:40:00- Wow!- Yeah.
0:40:00 > 0:40:02- Wow!- Wow.
0:40:02 > 0:40:07And it gets better and better because, when we turn it over, we can see that
0:40:07 > 0:40:12there's a bit of engineering in the form of a hinge that tells us that this was almost certainly strung
0:40:12 > 0:40:16onto some pearls to be worn high at the neck of an Edwardian lady.
0:40:16 > 0:40:19And we call it a "collier de chien", a dog's collar
0:40:19 > 0:40:24ornament, in diamonds, and a breathtakingly poetic one it is too.
0:40:24 > 0:40:27It may well be made by a firm such as Cartier or Boucheron.
0:40:27 > 0:40:29- Oh, my goodness.- Or La Cloche.
0:40:29 > 0:40:32Well, it's a bombshell, isn't it?
0:40:32 > 0:40:34It's a bombshell to me.
0:40:34 > 0:40:36I'm speechless.
0:40:36 > 0:40:39Good, good! And is it going to be a test of true love when you go back
0:40:39 > 0:40:42and tell him that I told you that it might be worth...
0:40:43 > 0:40:45..£8,000 or £9,000?
0:40:49 > 0:40:51Oh, my God!
0:40:57 > 0:40:59You're Palace Manager of the Banqueting House
0:40:59 > 0:41:05- and one of your myriad tasks is to look after this intriguing object which is downstairs in the hall.- Yes.
0:41:05 > 0:41:09Now, I can see that it represents the Banqueting Hall from the outside, but
0:41:09 > 0:41:12in a certain way at a certain time, by the looks of it.
0:41:12 > 0:41:19Yes, it's the proposed contingency plan for the coronation of Edward VIII and Mrs Simpson.
0:41:19 > 0:41:21- The coronation that never took place. - Exactly.
0:41:21 > 0:41:27We found it in a box in the Royal United Services Institute, which is next door to us,
0:41:27 > 0:41:34when we were refurbishing in 1991 and we rescued it, framed it, because it's an intriguing object
0:41:34 > 0:41:38because it's part of the constitutional history of England.
0:41:38 > 0:41:44Now, I take it, therefore, that because she was a twice divorced American,
0:41:44 > 0:41:48they didn't like the idea - "they" being the powers that be -
0:41:48 > 0:41:51of having the coronation over at the abbey.
0:41:51 > 0:41:54It was to be in this secular building.
0:41:54 > 0:41:57Yes, I guess that's why.
0:41:57 > 0:42:01So this was done by the party planners to the royal family at the time.
0:42:01 > 0:42:03And I can see it's "Hampton and Sons".
0:42:03 > 0:42:06Yes, and November 1936.
0:42:06 > 0:42:13So 1936 being just before, as it were, news breaks that it's not going to happen.
0:42:13 > 0:42:17- Yes, yes.- So it gives you an idea of just what a constitutional crisis it represented.
0:42:17 > 0:42:21How on so many levels, so much was being prepared
0:42:21 > 0:42:22- here at the Hall and elsewhere.- Yes.
0:42:22 > 0:42:25- That wasn't to happen.- No, that's it.
0:42:25 > 0:42:28Have you considered a value for this object?
0:42:28 > 0:42:30Never, because it was...
0:42:30 > 0:42:36I suppose because it was in a box and it was all folded up and... No, we haven't.
0:42:36 > 0:42:41Well, I think it's very intriguing and one knows quite a lot about the
0:42:41 > 0:42:45emotive commercial nature of things to do with Edward and Mrs Simpson.
0:42:45 > 0:42:50- Oh, right.- Well, in 1997 there was a huge sale of all the objects
0:42:50 > 0:42:56that were associated with them and I remember being utterly amazed, as I think many other people were, when
0:42:56 > 0:43:04- just a single piece of wedding cake associated with their marriage made just under £18,000.- Oh, my God!
0:43:04 > 0:43:11And it seems to be the combination of the constitutional crisis, which was big, the romantic association of the
0:43:11 > 0:43:15couple, and just general nostalgia for that period.
0:43:15 > 0:43:18It seems to have done it for a big group of rich people, all of whom
0:43:18 > 0:43:21beat it out to try and buy anything to do with the event.
0:43:21 > 0:43:27But as the Banqueting House Manager, a piece of cake as old as that would not be of any value to me at all.
0:43:27 > 0:43:29Well, I couldn't agree more.
0:43:29 > 0:43:35On the basis of that, I would confidently value this drawing
0:43:35 > 0:43:37- at over £20,000.- What?! Oh, my God!
0:43:37 > 0:43:40You'd prefer that piece of cake now, wouldn't you?
0:43:40 > 0:43:44Yeah... No, but it's amazing. Wow.
0:43:49 > 0:43:51Hovering above us throughout the Roadshow
0:43:51 > 0:43:55has been something that makes everything on the floor level seem fairly insignificant,
0:43:55 > 0:43:59although we have seen some fabulous pieces today.
0:43:59 > 0:44:06The ceiling here at the Banqueting House was painted by Paul Rubens to glorify the Stuart dynasty.
0:44:06 > 0:44:13It took him four years to complete and he was paid £3,000 and a large lump of gold.
0:44:13 > 0:44:15Well, masterpieces don't come cheap.
0:44:15 > 0:44:20More treasures very soon, but for now, from Whitehall in London, goodbye.