0:00:02 > 0:00:03Even in Britain's grandest houses,
0:00:03 > 0:00:08belts are tightening as the deepest recession since the war bites.
0:00:08 > 0:00:12Some are battling for survival as decay takes hold,
0:00:12 > 0:00:15threatening their future and our very history.
0:00:15 > 0:00:22Well, Morgan inherited the estate just as the credit crunch hit.
0:00:22 > 0:00:27With heritage grants scarce, they are faced with a stark choice.
0:00:27 > 0:00:29It would break my heart to see those go.
0:00:29 > 0:00:31To preserve these precious places,
0:00:31 > 0:00:34will they sell the family silver to save their stately?
0:00:36 > 0:00:40I've no intention on my watch of seeing this building deteriorate.
0:00:41 > 0:00:47This is John Foster. He's had 20 years as a fine arts and antiques specialist.
0:00:47 > 0:00:51He's offering his expertise to try to throw these treasured properties a lifeline.
0:00:52 > 0:00:55All done at £15,000? All done.
0:00:56 > 0:01:00This week, John travels to Marston Hall, the centuries-old
0:01:00 > 0:01:04seat of the Thorold family, who are trying desperately to hang on to it.
0:01:04 > 0:01:08You feel you're letting the side down if you don't keep the thing going.
0:01:08 > 0:01:11Weighed down by 700 years of history, can John Foster
0:01:11 > 0:01:15persuade them to take the difficult decisions needed to save Marston?
0:01:16 > 0:01:21I'm a guardian here. I'll be here for 25 years if I'm lucky and that's it.
0:01:21 > 0:01:24With any luck, this building goes on, and it goes on with the history.
0:01:42 > 0:01:44Marston in Lincolnshire is home to the Thorolds,
0:01:44 > 0:01:46one of England's oldest families.
0:01:48 > 0:01:51I'm just coming up to the village of Marston.
0:01:51 > 0:01:56I've been really excited to meet this family and, I must say, a bit daunted.
0:01:56 > 0:02:02They need to raise a lot of money to fund their project, and I just hope
0:02:02 > 0:02:06that they've got the items and we can find the items to sell.
0:02:09 > 0:02:11Tracing their line to William the Conqueror,
0:02:11 > 0:02:15the Thorolds were once a powerful and influential family who
0:02:15 > 0:02:18owned a number of grand houses in Lincolnshire.
0:02:19 > 0:02:23But Marston Hall is their last link with this illustrious past.
0:02:23 > 0:02:26It has been home to the family since the 1300s.
0:02:28 > 0:02:32If you were to have a row of people behind me, stretching to that door
0:02:32 > 0:02:37it would represent roughly every Thorold that's lived here.
0:02:38 > 0:02:42The burden of all this history is borne by John Thorold,
0:02:42 > 0:02:46a surveyor from London who inherited the house when his cousin, Henry Thorold, died.
0:02:47 > 0:02:52When I actually took over, and the building had been empty for a little while,
0:02:52 > 0:02:58everything was covered in that mould white bloom that you get on a bad grape.
0:02:59 > 0:03:02It's been a labour of love for John, his wife Liz
0:03:02 > 0:03:04and their twins Ali and Guy.
0:03:04 > 0:03:07This is not following the rules, Mrs Thorold.
0:03:08 > 0:03:12The very first time we ever came here when we knew that the house
0:03:12 > 0:03:18was ours it was a pitch dark Saturday morning, pouring rain.
0:03:18 > 0:03:22I flicked the light switch and immediately fused the whole house.
0:03:22 > 0:03:25And I thought - is this a good idea?
0:03:25 > 0:03:31When we first inherited it we were both nine, because we're twins and...
0:03:31 > 0:03:34- There was water running down the floor...- Yeah.
0:03:34 > 0:03:36..in the kitchen when we first got here.
0:03:36 > 0:03:39- It wasn't what we excepted.- No.
0:03:41 > 0:03:43John is a chartered surveyor.
0:03:43 > 0:03:46But this house still throws plenty of nasty surprises his way.
0:03:47 > 0:03:51The wet on the floor, and it's permanently wet here, has soaked
0:03:51 > 0:03:56up into some of the wood, and it's, as you can see, perfectly rotten.
0:03:56 > 0:04:00What I don't know at this point is if it's just an area local to here,
0:04:00 > 0:04:04or whether it's spread back into the room as a whole.
0:04:04 > 0:04:09I dread that, frankly, because if we've just got a square here
0:04:09 > 0:04:13that will be a few days' work and that's fine.
0:04:13 > 0:04:17If it's spread to the whole area here, for whatever reason,
0:04:17 > 0:04:20we've got another big job on our hands.
0:04:22 > 0:04:26This damp is the latest in a long line of problems at Marston.
0:04:26 > 0:04:29But John also now faces a new crisis,
0:04:29 > 0:04:32that threatens the entire structure.
0:04:32 > 0:04:35The south-east corner of this house is moving.
0:04:36 > 0:04:40This part of the wall is moving outwards.
0:04:40 > 0:04:44There will come a day when the thing will collapse,
0:04:44 > 0:04:46and this very definitely needs money now.
0:04:48 > 0:04:50The costs of repairs to this 700-year-old house
0:04:50 > 0:04:54are crippling the Thorolds, but John can't walk away.
0:04:55 > 0:04:59People often ask me why I bother with this, I could have a house
0:04:59 > 0:05:03twice as comfortable, half the size, much easier to look after,
0:05:03 > 0:05:07and without much meaning to me.
0:05:09 > 0:05:13It's a cliche to say these things are in your blood, but actually they are.
0:05:15 > 0:05:19They've called in antiques expert John Foster to see
0:05:19 > 0:05:21if family heirlooms could be sold to raise the money
0:05:21 > 0:05:25they urgently need to fix the wall and roof before winter strikes.
0:05:30 > 0:05:33- Mr Thorold?- Good morning. - John Foster, nice to meet you.
0:05:33 > 0:05:36- Welcome to Marston. This is my wife, Liz.- Hello, Liz Thorold.
0:05:37 > 0:05:39Wow, it's lovely.
0:05:40 > 0:05:42So how long has the Thorold family lived here?
0:05:42 > 0:05:44We've been here about 700 years.
0:05:44 > 0:05:46Many ancestors who you can see gazing down at you...
0:05:46 > 0:05:48Who's this?
0:05:48 > 0:05:50..including Sir John.
0:05:50 > 0:05:55He looks down at me when I'm working there which reminds me of how to behave.
0:05:56 > 0:06:01I've no intention on my watch of seeing this building deteriorate.
0:06:02 > 0:06:06I want to keep it in the family and going forward.
0:06:06 > 0:06:09So it must be quite a hard decision to actually have to sell some things.
0:06:09 > 0:06:13Well, one doesn't want to have to do that but really we have no option at this stage.
0:06:13 > 0:06:19- So pressure on you, and then pressure on me.- Yes. Exactly.
0:06:19 > 0:06:22- You're the short-term saviour, I think.- Excellent.
0:06:28 > 0:06:31Marston Hall now houses the relics of this once powerful
0:06:31 > 0:06:37and wealthy family of politicians, playboys and royal confidants.
0:06:37 > 0:06:42The Thorolds are eager to show John one picture in particular.
0:06:44 > 0:06:48I mean Rubens, big name. And so what do you know about it?
0:06:48 > 0:06:53- It's down in a family record as being by Rubens.- Hmmm.
0:06:53 > 0:06:57There was a probate valuation before I came here that has it
0:06:57 > 0:07:01as Circle of Rubens, and obviously there's a difference there.
0:07:01 > 0:07:04Absolutely there's a difference,
0:07:04 > 0:07:08that's not saying one's right and one's wrong,
0:07:08 > 0:07:11new attributions are happening all the time,
0:07:11 > 0:07:14but it is a big ask for it to be by Rubens,
0:07:14 > 0:07:18we do need to do quite a bit of checking.
0:07:18 > 0:07:20- Let's not put all our eggs in one basket is the key.- Yes.
0:07:20 > 0:07:22I mean, I know there are other things to look at.
0:07:22 > 0:07:24- Why don't you have a look around? - Perfect. Thank you.
0:07:28 > 0:07:32Well, if it is by Rubens then that's really good news.
0:07:33 > 0:07:36A painting by the 17th century Flemish painter,
0:07:36 > 0:07:40Peter Paul Rubens could make millions for Marston Hall.
0:07:40 > 0:07:42If it is an original.
0:07:43 > 0:07:45Just 10 years ago the newly discovered
0:07:45 > 0:07:50Massacre Of The Innocents made a record price of 49 million pounds.
0:07:52 > 0:07:54Even copies by known students and followers of Rubens
0:07:54 > 0:07:57can reach hundreds of thousands of pounds at auction.
0:08:00 > 0:08:04But separating a good copy from a poor imitation is a specialist skill.
0:08:07 > 0:08:13The trouble is, artists like Rubens had so many followers after them because the style was so popular.
0:08:13 > 0:08:16People would copy and copy and copy.
0:08:16 > 0:08:20I really hope they're not pinning everything on this picture because...
0:08:20 > 0:08:23it may be, but it's almost certainly not.
0:08:25 > 0:08:30John wants to find other items that have a more reliable price tag.
0:08:31 > 0:08:39This really is an unbelievable chest of drawers. It would date from 1760.
0:08:39 > 0:08:44This serpentine front here, with the brushing slide
0:08:44 > 0:08:49which you pull out and the man of the house would have prepared
0:08:49 > 0:08:53his clothes on here for that final brush-off to make them perfect.
0:08:54 > 0:08:57And not only have you got one,
0:08:57 > 0:09:00you've also got its pair over there, which makes a massive difference.
0:09:03 > 0:09:07If the chests are an exact pair, John Foster believes
0:09:07 > 0:09:09they could be worth up to £25,000.
0:09:11 > 0:09:16This is another lovely room, you can really see that they've worked hard.
0:09:16 > 0:09:20I mean it looks so homely in here.
0:09:20 > 0:09:23These actually are a really handsome set of chairs,
0:09:23 > 0:09:25almost certainly by Gillows.
0:09:25 > 0:09:32I mean, Gillows being arguably one of the top furniture makers of the 18th century.
0:09:32 > 0:09:37What's really nice is you've got a child's high chair.
0:09:37 > 0:09:40Again by Gillows, it's nice you've still got the original footboard,
0:09:40 > 0:09:45a lot of the time these were lost, and it just shows
0:09:45 > 0:09:49that this family included the whole family in dinners.
0:09:49 > 0:09:52This stereotypical view we have of the Victorians, of having
0:09:52 > 0:09:55children seen and not heard, I don't think applies in this case.
0:09:56 > 0:09:59The family collected the highest quality furniture
0:09:59 > 0:10:00and liked to show it off.
0:10:03 > 0:10:04That's a cellaret made by Gillows.
0:10:04 > 0:10:07A cellaret would have been where you'd have stored
0:10:07 > 0:10:10all your bottles and this would have had a lined section.
0:10:10 > 0:10:14And to impress your friends with a cold glass of wine
0:10:14 > 0:10:18at the grandest parties.
0:10:18 > 0:10:21It seems that when the Thorolds inherited Marston it wasn't
0:10:21 > 0:10:24only the house that needed some TLC.
0:10:24 > 0:10:27Many of the antiques were in a pitiful state, too,
0:10:27 > 0:10:28particularly the paintings.
0:10:30 > 0:10:33Clearly, with the amount of stuff piled into here, I mean
0:10:33 > 0:10:38there are pictures, paintings, badly stacked all over the place,
0:10:38 > 0:10:43it's obvious they're finding it quite difficult to cope with it all.
0:10:43 > 0:10:46And so badly looked after, really.
0:10:50 > 0:10:55Now for the hard bit. What will the Thorolds be prepared to part with?
0:10:55 > 0:10:59- So, tell me what you've found out. - Oh, well, it's been fascinating.
0:10:59 > 0:11:02I love this set of chairs, there are six, or is it just five?
0:11:02 > 0:11:05- No, there are more of those, a set of 12.- Oh, perfect.
0:11:05 > 0:11:07Some of which aren't here.
0:11:07 > 0:11:11Now, I've found quite a few sort of interesting pieces,
0:11:11 > 0:11:14and one of the first ones in here is this cellaret.
0:11:14 > 0:11:16It's missing its liner which will hurt it,
0:11:16 > 0:11:21so I mean something like that I would estimate at £2-3,000.
0:11:21 > 0:11:24Did you see anything else that caught your eye?
0:11:24 > 0:11:27Well, there's that pair of chest of drawers which I'd like to do
0:11:27 > 0:11:31a bit more checking on, would you consider letting those go, I know it's...
0:11:31 > 0:11:34Yes, we'd certainly look and consider these things
0:11:34 > 0:11:36because quite clearly we have to get to our total.
0:11:36 > 0:11:39We do need to get some of those big numbers,
0:11:39 > 0:11:41they would bump up the figures.
0:11:41 > 0:11:44- It's nice to have a pair. - Exactly, it's nice to have a pair.
0:11:44 > 0:11:48Then we go on to paintings, really, the Rubens.
0:11:48 > 0:11:52I have worries about it, it does look a little bit flat to me,
0:11:52 > 0:11:55but I would like to just get another opinion on that.
0:11:57 > 0:12:02But that's not all. There's also the storeroom of paintings to consider.
0:12:02 > 0:12:04There are so many interesting paintings here.
0:12:04 > 0:12:06I'm curious to know where they all come from.
0:12:06 > 0:12:09Well, here, really. This is Syston Park, it's a house that was
0:12:09 > 0:12:15built on the estate in 1760, very much grander than here.
0:12:15 > 0:12:17The family came into money then.
0:12:17 > 0:12:20- It had a wonderful library, a sensational one.- Right.
0:12:20 > 0:12:24The family gave up on it in about 1925 when it was pulled down.
0:12:24 > 0:12:27- It was demolished?- Demolished, yes. - Why?
0:12:27 > 0:12:30People did that, you know, there were a whole string of reasons,
0:12:30 > 0:12:34and they felt they didn't want to live there anymore.
0:12:34 > 0:12:39The contents on the other hand, quite a lot of it came here.
0:12:39 > 0:12:43- Hence the paintings.- The Gutenberg rival sadly went elsewhere.
0:12:43 > 0:12:45Right, I think because of the interesting paintings
0:12:45 > 0:12:48that you've got here I think the best way forward really is to get
0:12:48 > 0:12:52a picture specialist here, we'll get him to go through all of the paintings.
0:12:52 > 0:12:53I think that's an excellent idea.
0:12:56 > 0:13:00To help John Foster understand their urgent need for funds,
0:13:00 > 0:13:01John and Liz want to show him
0:13:01 > 0:13:04the leaning wall that threatens the future of Marston Hall.
0:13:06 > 0:13:08You can see it bulging out.
0:13:08 > 0:13:11You can really see that line there, can't you?
0:13:11 > 0:13:14You can, if you look at that gutter, that's vertical.
0:13:14 > 0:13:15So that sounds expensive.
0:13:15 > 0:13:19It is, this building should cost about £40,000 a year to run,
0:13:19 > 0:13:26normally, and this wall and the roof above it will be another £50,000 or so.
0:13:26 > 0:13:31- £50,000 on top of the £40,000 annual upkeep?- Yes. You heard that correctly.
0:13:31 > 0:13:34- Hideous, isn't it?- That is a hell of a lot.
0:13:34 > 0:13:36The mixture of Elizabethan, Georgian
0:13:36 > 0:13:40and mediaeval architecture here requires constant work.
0:13:40 > 0:13:43To finance it in the future the Thorolds need a reliable income stream.
0:13:45 > 0:13:46So what's your plans then?
0:13:46 > 0:13:49Well, our plan really is to be able to do weddings here,
0:13:49 > 0:13:51that's what we'd like to do, because...
0:13:51 > 0:13:53It sounds perfect for weddings.
0:13:53 > 0:13:57It would be but my application has been refused,
0:13:57 > 0:13:59there's a long story to it.
0:13:59 > 0:14:03- We will apply again, and I mean to get it.- Hmmm.
0:14:03 > 0:14:06I put in this detail, I modified that detail,
0:14:06 > 0:14:09I've tried to please in a great many ways,
0:14:09 > 0:14:11but so far no good.
0:14:15 > 0:14:20John Foster wants to move quickly with research into the chests and the Gillow cellaret.
0:14:20 > 0:14:23But he also wants to go into the village to see why the Thorolds'
0:14:23 > 0:14:27application to hold weddings at the house has been refused.
0:14:29 > 0:14:32You've got Marston Hall right behind me
0:14:32 > 0:14:35and it's bang, smack in the middle of a really pretty village.
0:14:35 > 0:14:39You've got residential areas, and a really beautiful church.
0:14:39 > 0:14:43Then there's this Victorian school which, incidentally,
0:14:43 > 0:14:45is called the Marston Thorold's School.
0:14:45 > 0:14:49Conveniently, you've got the pub across the road, the Thorold Arms.
0:14:49 > 0:14:52It just shows how important this family was to the area.
0:14:56 > 0:14:59I've looked at John and Liz's planning application
0:14:59 > 0:15:02which has been refused by the council's planning inspectorate
0:15:02 > 0:15:05on the grounds of, apparently, objections raised by local residents.
0:15:05 > 0:15:10The main problems really seem to be that marquees will be unsightly,
0:15:10 > 0:15:15noise late at night and also problems with parking.
0:15:15 > 0:15:17This is a really tough situation for John and Liz
0:15:17 > 0:15:21and I just hope that they can come to some sort of compromise with the council,
0:15:21 > 0:15:24but until they do we really need to raise some money for them.
0:15:30 > 0:15:35You make such a mess. I spend my entire life either clearing up...
0:15:35 > 0:15:37Move the thing this way and it will catch it, come on.
0:15:37 > 0:15:39...clearing up either house or garden.
0:15:39 > 0:15:40Yes, yes.
0:15:43 > 0:15:46The running costs here mean that Liz and John must commute to jobs
0:15:46 > 0:15:48in London, leaving caretakers at the house.
0:15:49 > 0:15:55This has made it difficult for them to win local support for their business plan.
0:15:55 > 0:15:58They see somebody like me as an outsider or a Londoner.
0:15:58 > 0:16:02Actually, our family have been here for a while now.
0:16:02 > 0:16:06I think they're frightened of the unknown, they think that
0:16:06 > 0:16:10if they say yes to something, it isn't that they object to something
0:16:10 > 0:16:14happening twice a year or four times a year, but they panic
0:16:14 > 0:16:17that it will then happen twice a weekend
0:16:17 > 0:16:20and then of course nobody's going to want to, and that isn't what
0:16:20 > 0:16:22will happen anyway, it's not what we're looking for.
0:16:22 > 0:16:25But not to be able to anything at all, ever, actually,
0:16:25 > 0:16:27makes life pretty difficult.
0:16:28 > 0:16:31I was brought up in a village, and I know there's always village politics,
0:16:31 > 0:16:34but I like the whole business of being part of a community,
0:16:34 > 0:16:37everybody helping everybody else, that sort of thing.
0:16:37 > 0:16:40But you've got to feel welcome to want to do it.
0:16:42 > 0:16:47Until we can be here all the time it's difficult to spread oneself across everything,
0:16:47 > 0:16:51trying to run a house in London, work in London, run the house here,
0:16:51 > 0:16:54it's difficult to get everything done.
0:16:54 > 0:16:56There you are. All the rest will blow away.
0:16:56 > 0:17:02- Well, not out here.- Yes.- No, I don't think that's a good idea.
0:17:02 > 0:17:05As they prepare to submit another planning application,
0:17:05 > 0:17:08the urgent need to fix the wall and the roof remains.
0:17:10 > 0:17:12John's called in pictures expert, Rupert Maas,
0:17:12 > 0:17:14to see if the paintings can help.
0:17:14 > 0:17:18- Rupert, hello. Good morning.- Hello, I'm Rupert.- Welcome to Marston.
0:17:18 > 0:17:21- Liz, my wife.- Hello.- How do you do?
0:17:21 > 0:17:24The Thorolds have high hopes for the Rubens from Syston Park,
0:17:24 > 0:17:26and they want Rupert's view on that straight away.
0:17:35 > 0:17:40OK, so, we're looking at a picture that purports to be a Rubens,
0:17:40 > 0:17:44and we've got to decide whether it's right or not.
0:17:44 > 0:17:47Is it by Rubens? Erm...
0:17:51 > 0:17:55..you see, I'm afraid I don't think so.
0:17:58 > 0:18:01- Shame. - Do you think it's of the period?
0:18:01 > 0:18:03I don't think that's even Circle of Rubens,
0:18:03 > 0:18:07because if you say Circle then you're implying that Rubens knew the guy,
0:18:07 > 0:18:10that they went to the pub together or something.
0:18:10 > 0:18:12Well, that just isn't the case.
0:18:12 > 0:18:14It's, I think, a copy.
0:18:14 > 0:18:16In fact I think it's a straight copy of a known picture.
0:18:16 > 0:18:19- I recognise it.- How can you tell, that, Rupert?
0:18:19 > 0:18:23I think the first thing to say is that we've got some clunky figures.
0:18:23 > 0:18:25They are slightly clunky, all of them.
0:18:25 > 0:18:30It seems to me they're not lively, and naturalistic enough.
0:18:30 > 0:18:32I'm so sorry if that's rather disappointing.
0:18:32 > 0:18:35Well, one can always hope that things are better than they are,
0:18:35 > 0:18:37but life doesn't necessarily turn out that way.
0:18:38 > 0:18:40But Rupert isn't finished.
0:18:40 > 0:18:44The study, piled with paintings, may yet produce a real old master.
0:18:44 > 0:18:48If Rupert can find them, beneath the Christmas decorations.
0:18:48 > 0:18:51- Are you happy if I just rustle through?- Yes, look at anything.
0:18:51 > 0:18:52- Brilliant.- Absolutely.
0:18:52 > 0:18:56Rupert's eye is immediately drawn to one painting.
0:18:56 > 0:18:59So I think this picture is meant to be a Rembrandt.
0:18:59 > 0:19:04What we've got to decide is how close to Rembrandt it is, in fact.
0:19:04 > 0:19:06It goes something like this, it's either by Rembrandt or it's
0:19:06 > 0:19:14Studio of Rembrandt or Circle of Rembrandt or it's Manner of Rembrandt.
0:19:14 > 0:19:18Manner of Rembrandt can be 100 years later,
0:19:18 > 0:19:23or 200 or 300 years later even, and nowhere near the real thing.
0:19:23 > 0:19:25So, where are we with this?
0:19:25 > 0:19:28Always go to hands. Artists find hands difficult.
0:19:28 > 0:19:32In this case I think you might agree that the hands are just
0:19:32 > 0:19:36like chipolatas that have been defrosted rather too quickly.
0:19:39 > 0:19:43That's definitely Manner of Rembrandt, then.
0:19:43 > 0:19:45These are meant to be by Teniers.
0:19:45 > 0:19:48It's rather interesting because the name is spelt slightly wrong,
0:19:48 > 0:19:52that should be I before E, and it isn't, it's Teneirs.
0:19:53 > 0:19:56This room is full of slightly familiar pictures,
0:19:56 > 0:20:00but in families like the Thorolds that's normal.
0:20:00 > 0:20:02Often you'd go on the Grand Tour
0:20:02 > 0:20:04and you wanted to decorate your house back in England
0:20:04 > 0:20:08and you quite consciously bought copies, not the real thing.
0:20:08 > 0:20:12You'd do this simply on grounds of budget, you couldn't afford the real thing.
0:20:12 > 0:20:14There was no fakery going on.
0:20:14 > 0:20:16This is meant to be Annibale Carracci,
0:20:16 > 0:20:19it's actually not very good, I'm afraid.
0:20:19 > 0:20:22Practically speaking, coming to sell them now,
0:20:22 > 0:20:26people buy them for the same reasons, they want to decorate their houses.
0:20:26 > 0:20:29We're talking about one, two, three thousand pounds
0:20:29 > 0:20:32every time you're looking at one of them, something like that.
0:20:32 > 0:20:38Will there be anything of enough value in here to really boost the funds?
0:20:38 > 0:20:40I've slightly saved this up till the end
0:20:40 > 0:20:44because I've had my eye on it since I came in the room.
0:20:44 > 0:20:46The thing is, it's good.
0:20:47 > 0:20:51In the other room there are some quite interesting things,
0:20:51 > 0:20:54I don't think there's anything particularly special, but there was this.
0:20:54 > 0:20:57I just picked this out because, apart from the fact that,
0:20:57 > 0:21:00if you don't mind me saying, it's actually falling off,
0:21:00 > 0:21:03- the condition is really quite parlous.- Country house.
0:21:03 > 0:21:05Country house condition, well put.
0:21:05 > 0:21:09Having said all that, I thought I saw some quality in this picture.
0:21:09 > 0:21:10What do you know about it?
0:21:10 > 0:21:13Other than it's a family member actually not a great deal.
0:21:13 > 0:21:18Well, it does look like a Raeburn, I can't get away from it,
0:21:18 > 0:21:19it's well painted enough.
0:21:19 > 0:21:24Raeburn was a very fashionable and an extremely good portrait painter,
0:21:24 > 0:21:26of all the famous Scots at the time.
0:21:26 > 0:21:29I mean that would be good news in monetary terms, wouldn't it,
0:21:29 > 0:21:31if it was a Raeburn?
0:21:32 > 0:21:35Yes. Put it this way...
0:21:35 > 0:21:41put it this way, it's just possible it could prop the house up on its own.
0:21:41 > 0:21:43- Oh really?- That's very pleasing.
0:21:44 > 0:21:48- That would be seriously pleasing, actually.- Yes, it would.
0:21:48 > 0:21:50But Rupert sounds a note of caution.
0:21:50 > 0:21:54I think that that date of 1824 is very late for it to be Raeburn.
0:21:54 > 0:21:56I'm not even sure if that isn't after he died.
0:21:58 > 0:22:00Where do we go from here?
0:22:00 > 0:22:04Well, we've got to show it to a Raeburn specialist.
0:22:04 > 0:22:09That's got to be done. If he gives it the thumbs up it's all systems go.
0:22:12 > 0:22:15This could be exciting news for the Thorolds.
0:22:15 > 0:22:22Sir Henry Raeburn was the most prominent portrait painter of the late 18th and early 19th century.
0:22:22 > 0:22:26A member of the Royal Academy, his paintings range hugely in value,
0:22:26 > 0:22:28depending on the sitter and the style.
0:22:28 > 0:22:31Today a Raeburn can be worth anything from a couple
0:22:31 > 0:22:34of thousand, to over a million pounds.
0:22:36 > 0:22:41Raeburn died in 1823. The painting is dated 1824.
0:22:41 > 0:22:45But it's just possible that it could be authentic.
0:22:45 > 0:22:47A Raeburn specialist is needed to be certain.
0:23:00 > 0:23:03The damp issues in the dining room have got worse.
0:23:03 > 0:23:05John has called in his builder, Glynn.
0:23:05 > 0:23:09What we've done now is we've pulled a lot of this loose stuff away
0:23:09 > 0:23:12back to the bare floor, as much as we can.
0:23:14 > 0:23:17You're looking at the best part of £1,500.
0:23:17 > 0:23:21- It's lucky it hasn't spread... - Yes, I dreaded the thought of that.
0:23:21 > 0:23:23..otherwise it could be quadruple that.
0:23:23 > 0:23:25HAMMERING
0:23:25 > 0:23:27Even though it's Glynn's 40th birthday today,
0:23:27 > 0:23:30he's left the celebrations at home to fix the floor at Marsden.
0:23:33 > 0:23:35Is this good enough and the answer is certainly no,
0:23:35 > 0:23:39but I don't really know what to do about it.
0:23:39 > 0:23:43It's a constant battle at this house, I've been coming here doing
0:23:43 > 0:23:46maintenance now on and off for the last 15 years.
0:23:46 > 0:23:50I've known John and his family for quite a bit longer than that,
0:23:50 > 0:23:52I used to work for his mother,
0:23:52 > 0:23:59but here we have ever-increasing damp problems for a really old house, which is what it is,
0:23:59 > 0:24:02starting from the roof downwards, to be honest with you.
0:24:02 > 0:24:05And now we've got the floor problems. It must be hard for him.
0:24:05 > 0:24:11It's just a constant drain for him to try and find, obviously the money.
0:24:11 > 0:24:13We will go and spring this on Glynn.
0:24:17 > 0:24:22- Right, Glynn, can I interrupt you for a few moments?- Yes.
0:24:22 > 0:24:25Erm, you've been working, I've calculated,
0:24:25 > 0:24:29for something like 23 years between my mother and myself.
0:24:29 > 0:24:33- Yes, it probably is now, yeah. - Welcome to being 40.- Thank you.
0:24:33 > 0:24:35A small amount of drink.
0:24:35 > 0:24:39And that will get you two Premiership football tickets.
0:24:39 > 0:24:40You'll have to arrange it.
0:24:40 > 0:24:43- Thank you very much, John. - Not at all.- Thank you very much.
0:24:43 > 0:24:45No, we deeply appreciate what you've done.
0:24:45 > 0:24:48Thank you!
0:24:57 > 0:25:00- Thank you very much.- That's all right, I'll see you next week.
0:25:00 > 0:25:02- Well done.- OK, cheers.
0:25:02 > 0:25:05So the floor's fixed, but at a cost.
0:25:05 > 0:25:08The Thorolds are hoping that the solution to the leaning wall
0:25:08 > 0:25:11and the roof may lie with the Raeburn painting.
0:25:13 > 0:25:17John's consulting a world authority, Dr Duncan Thomson.
0:25:17 > 0:25:21Will he be able to solve the mystery of the date?
0:25:21 > 0:25:27The painting is signed 1824, but Sir Henry Raeburn died in 1823.
0:25:28 > 0:25:31Dr Thomson, this is John and Liz.
0:25:31 > 0:25:33- Hello, how do you do?- Hello.
0:25:33 > 0:25:35- How do you do?- What do you think?
0:25:35 > 0:25:38It looks wonderful in this light, actually.
0:25:38 > 0:25:39It's a charming picture.
0:25:39 > 0:25:43We've swung it towards the daylight and it really benefits from being seen in daylight.
0:25:45 > 0:25:49The condition is not perfect, this sort of verve
0:25:49 > 0:25:51but delicacy in the young child.
0:25:53 > 0:25:56- I don't doubt whatsoever that it's by Raeburn. - Oh good.- Good.
0:25:56 > 0:25:58No doubts, whatsoever.
0:25:58 > 0:26:03I see Raeburn's typical handwriting which is very delicate, fragile.
0:26:03 > 0:26:05- You see the way he lets the background...- Yes.
0:26:05 > 0:26:08- ..show through the muslin, there. - Absolutely.
0:26:08 > 0:26:12- And the face is so sensitive. - Yes, charming.- So immediate.
0:26:12 > 0:26:13And what about the date?
0:26:13 > 0:26:17Well, I should think the date represents the time the family got the picture.
0:26:17 > 0:26:18- Yes.- Very likely.
0:26:18 > 0:26:21It came via the Raeburn Studio after Raeburn had died.
0:26:21 > 0:26:23And how do you think this painting ranks,
0:26:23 > 0:26:26I mean you've obviously seen a lot of Raeburns in your time?
0:26:26 > 0:26:28I think it ranks highly,
0:26:28 > 0:26:33certainly among the fairly large number of paintings he did of children.
0:26:33 > 0:26:36The only problem obviously is the condition, you know if there was
0:26:36 > 0:26:38a sudden minor earthquake bits of that would fall off.
0:26:38 > 0:26:40Absolutely.
0:26:40 > 0:26:43And how is the market for paintings by Raeburn at the moment?
0:26:43 > 0:26:46It varies tremendously, actually,
0:26:46 > 0:26:49perhaps more than for most artists of this period,
0:26:49 > 0:26:54in that some Raeburns go at auction for just £2-3000,
0:26:54 > 0:26:58but I know of other Raeburns being valued at over one million pounds.
0:26:58 > 0:27:01Why is there such a vast range in prices?
0:27:01 > 0:27:05I think there was a feeling that Raeburn was careless, he was over-productive.
0:27:05 > 0:27:09When you say he was over-productive, did he get sloppy in his work, is that why some...
0:27:09 > 0:27:12Well, I think that's where the carelessness notion comes from,
0:27:12 > 0:27:17he was painting too many portraits and an element of carelessness crept in.
0:27:17 > 0:27:21So the ones he really took his time on are worth loads...
0:27:21 > 0:27:23Yes, absolutely.
0:27:23 > 0:27:26There's this tremendous range of prices,
0:27:26 > 0:27:28I think this fits in the middle somewhere.
0:27:28 > 0:27:32- OK.- That's quite encouraging. - You mean half a million? Right.
0:27:32 > 0:27:37Well, between the £2-3,000 and the half million.
0:27:39 > 0:27:41It's encouraging that the painting is authentic.
0:27:41 > 0:27:44But more work will be needed to establish where best to sell it,
0:27:44 > 0:27:48and how to price it.
0:27:52 > 0:27:56Marston Hall needs a cash injection just to keep it standing.
0:27:56 > 0:28:01But it also needs a sustainable business plan
0:28:01 > 0:28:04which Liz and John are keen to develop.
0:28:04 > 0:28:07Well the idea of having weddings here would be that we have a marquee
0:28:07 > 0:28:11at the back of the house and this garden actually lends itself
0:28:11 > 0:28:16very well, cos it's a good size lawn to have a certain number of people on.
0:28:16 > 0:28:18This garden actually is quite pretty as it's quite enclosed,
0:28:18 > 0:28:21so if it's windy they won't lose their hats.
0:28:21 > 0:28:24And actually, funnily enough,
0:28:24 > 0:28:27the house is such a block of stone that we discovered that
0:28:27 > 0:28:32virtually no noise can be heard the other side of it.
0:28:32 > 0:28:35We basically created a new garden here because it was
0:28:35 > 0:28:39so different when we came, with very high hedges which I didn't like because I like to see the view,
0:28:39 > 0:28:41because it's lovely, so we've opened the whole
0:28:41 > 0:28:45thing out so we completely planted a new lawn and put in these new flower
0:28:45 > 0:28:49beds and all that sort of thing, so all this is still relatively new.
0:28:49 > 0:28:54Also, with the garden, it needs a lot of work done to it,
0:28:54 > 0:28:57and at the moment it's just us,
0:28:57 > 0:29:01really struggling with a gardener once a week for a couple of hours.
0:29:03 > 0:29:07The wedding business is on hold.
0:29:07 > 0:29:12But John Foster is keen to get the 18th century chests valued.
0:29:12 > 0:29:15He's invited leading furniture historian, Dr Adam Bowett,
0:29:15 > 0:29:18to help decide their worth.
0:29:18 > 0:29:22If they are a genuine pair they could make up to £25,000.
0:29:24 > 0:29:27How are you getting on? I see you've had a bit of a move around.
0:29:27 > 0:29:31Indeed. Well, we thought it would be best to get them side-by-side so we could see
0:29:31 > 0:29:34- whether they were a genuine pair. - Hmmm.
0:29:34 > 0:29:38In fact they're not, they're very close, but one is slightly smaller than the other.
0:29:38 > 0:29:40Why would they do that?
0:29:40 > 0:29:42It's likely one was supplied to the client
0:29:42 > 0:29:45and then shortly after, perhaps a year later, the client asked
0:29:45 > 0:29:50for another of the same model. My guess is these were made about 1770.
0:29:50 > 0:29:52They are relatively plain.
0:29:52 > 0:29:55There are no carved elements, there's no inlay.
0:29:55 > 0:29:57Why would a family have ordered a plainer one rather
0:29:57 > 0:30:01than have the carved styles and the big ormolu handles.
0:30:01 > 0:30:04I mean does that say anything about the family that owned them?
0:30:04 > 0:30:08Well, yes, it does. What that tells us is that here is a family
0:30:08 > 0:30:12that is interested in quality. They're not interested in something that's flashy.
0:30:12 > 0:30:16They want something that's good and they're prepared to pay for it.
0:30:16 > 0:30:19I think that tells you a lot about your ancestors.
0:30:19 > 0:30:23I'm very pleased to hear it, yes. You may be interested to know that the gentlemen
0:30:23 > 0:30:27you see above my desk refused a peerage. Which was unusual.
0:30:27 > 0:30:31He considered himself a Lincolnshire country gentleman,
0:30:31 > 0:30:32despite high office.
0:30:32 > 0:30:35That's a perfect description of a an old-school Tory
0:30:35 > 0:30:37in the 18th century sense.
0:30:37 > 0:30:39Absolutely perfect, yeah.
0:30:39 > 0:30:41I must confound you on one small matter, he was a wig.
0:30:41 > 0:30:43He was a wig, was he?
0:30:45 > 0:30:49- What date are we talking about? - Well... 1772.
0:30:49 > 0:30:51Perfect.
0:30:51 > 0:30:54Absolutely perfect for these, yep.
0:30:54 > 0:30:56It's a great thing to think that these chest of drawers
0:30:56 > 0:30:59were owned by that man. You know?
0:30:59 > 0:31:01And he may have been an MP
0:31:01 > 0:31:04but he still needed somewhere to put his socks. And here they are.
0:31:06 > 0:31:11The ninth baronet could afford plenty of socks and fine furniture.
0:31:11 > 0:31:15He built Syston in the 1760s and was renowned as a straight-talking
0:31:15 > 0:31:17and rebellious MP for Lincolnshire.
0:31:19 > 0:31:24- With restoration of them, do we leave that?- Do absolutely nothing.- Nothing.
0:31:24 > 0:31:26For instance, feel this.
0:31:26 > 0:31:30- Feel that slight roughness.- Yes. - That has never been touched.
0:31:30 > 0:31:34The worst thing you can do is have that polished off and restored.
0:31:34 > 0:31:38Selling them in their original state, can only really help them.
0:31:38 > 0:31:39It can only really help them.
0:31:39 > 0:31:46In fact, what the trade likes is goods that are fresh to the market.
0:31:46 > 0:31:52And so these have not been sold, probably since the day they were bought by your family.
0:31:52 > 0:31:55John Foster thinks that the chests could still generate
0:31:55 > 0:31:59a lot of excitement at auction as a near-pair.
0:31:59 > 0:32:02He's identified a fine furniture sale in Edinburgh.
0:32:02 > 0:32:05But first, he must agree an estimate with John Thorold.
0:32:07 > 0:32:13I would like to put them in at 12 to 15 or even £18,000 as an estimate.
0:32:13 > 0:32:15That's extremely encouraging.
0:32:15 > 0:32:19That's still a tempting estimate, which is the way I like to do things.
0:32:19 > 0:32:23I think we can get them into that sale, we could be onto quite a good one.
0:32:23 > 0:32:27- I think it's a very realistic contribution to the problems I have with the house.- Absolutely.
0:32:28 > 0:32:32John's pleased that Liz and John Thorold have also agreed
0:32:32 > 0:32:36to sell both of the serpentine chests and the Gillows cellarette.
0:32:36 > 0:32:39Together, they should go some way towards the restoration work
0:32:39 > 0:32:41required at Marston.
0:32:43 > 0:32:46It's been fascinating to discover that these chests
0:32:46 > 0:32:49were commissioned by Sir John Thorold, ninth baronet.
0:32:49 > 0:32:54Because he was the man largely responsible for building Syston Park.
0:32:54 > 0:32:58This elegant Georgian mansion had 70 rooms,
0:32:58 > 0:33:00so it's no wonder they needed new furniture.
0:33:00 > 0:33:03Also, the Gillows furniture here would have been specifically
0:33:03 > 0:33:07commissioned for Syston Park.
0:33:07 > 0:33:10This was the grandest of all the Thorold Houses,
0:33:10 > 0:33:13but sadly, it was demolished in the 1930s.
0:33:16 > 0:33:19John wants to understand the scale and grandeur of Syston,
0:33:19 > 0:33:22so he's going to Tatton Park in Cheshire.
0:33:24 > 0:33:27Like the Thorolds, the Egerton family, who built Tatton,
0:33:27 > 0:33:30could afford the very best.
0:33:30 > 0:33:34And that meant one name in particular, Gillows of Lancaster,
0:33:34 > 0:33:37who, in the 1700s, won commissions to craft bespoke pieces
0:33:37 > 0:33:39for Britain's grandest houses.
0:33:39 > 0:33:43The library at Tatton Park is a fabulous example.
0:33:46 > 0:33:50This is the best place to see Gillows at its absolute finest.
0:33:50 > 0:33:53Nearly all of the furniture was specifically designed
0:33:53 > 0:33:56for this room, including these quite staggering bookcases.
0:33:56 > 0:34:00Only the best craftsman were employed and the best materials used.
0:34:02 > 0:34:05As impressive as this library is, it's actually smaller
0:34:05 > 0:34:09than the library at Syston, which the tenth baronet, John Thorold,
0:34:09 > 0:34:12filled with a magnificent collection of books,
0:34:12 > 0:34:14including a rare Gutenberg Bible.
0:34:16 > 0:34:19Sadly, the majority of the Syston collection
0:34:19 > 0:34:21was sold at auction in the 1880s.
0:34:21 > 0:34:23But by extraordinary coincidence,
0:34:23 > 0:34:26John has found a remnant of that library here.
0:34:28 > 0:34:31They've got the label there "For Syston Park"
0:34:31 > 0:34:33and "John Hayford Thorold"
0:34:33 > 0:34:37and lovely, as well, that they've got the Egerton family label in there.
0:34:37 > 0:34:41And this just shows how important the library at Syston was.
0:34:42 > 0:34:48Syston was furnished in exactly this style, offering the last word in luxury.
0:34:48 > 0:34:50Pieces like this wine-cooler are the last relics
0:34:50 > 0:34:53of those flamboyant times, when fine wine flowed
0:34:53 > 0:34:55at glittering social gatherings.
0:34:58 > 0:35:01Imagine that full of ice, champagne, wine bottles.
0:35:01 > 0:35:04It would have just set the tone.
0:35:06 > 0:35:10Whilst Tatton thrived, Syston grew gradually derelict
0:35:10 > 0:35:12and was demolished in 1934.
0:35:15 > 0:35:19Saving Marston from the same fate means tough choices.
0:35:27 > 0:35:29The last remaining pieces of furniture
0:35:29 > 0:35:32and paintings from Syston are now at Marston Hall.
0:35:32 > 0:35:36And John Thorold is having to decide what he must let go.
0:35:39 > 0:35:42He's hired a van to take both the ninth baronet's chests
0:35:42 > 0:35:44and the Gillows cellarette to auction.
0:35:46 > 0:35:51I'm a little sorry to see them go. But you know, we have to adapt.
0:35:51 > 0:35:55That's how businesses survive and that's roughly how I'm going to survive.
0:35:55 > 0:35:58If that's necessary, this is what we do.
0:35:59 > 0:36:03Tomorrow, John Thorold will deliver the pieces to Edinburgh
0:36:03 > 0:36:06to a specialist furniture sale that John Foster has recommended.
0:36:17 > 0:36:1920-year-old twins, Ali and Guy,
0:36:19 > 0:36:23are observing their parents cope with these dilemmas,
0:36:23 > 0:36:26and are considering how they will manage Marston Hall
0:36:26 > 0:36:29when it eventually passes to Guy.
0:36:31 > 0:36:35So, what do you think about selling stuff for the house to keep it going?
0:36:35 > 0:36:38I don't know, it's not something that's ideal.
0:36:38 > 0:36:42- In terms of the short-term, I guess that's really our only option.- Yeah.
0:36:42 > 0:36:44Till we really get business...
0:36:44 > 0:36:49In the long-term, what do you feel about keeping it and running it?
0:36:49 > 0:36:52I don't know. As sad as it is to say,
0:36:52 > 0:36:55it is going to be one of those things,
0:36:55 > 0:36:58if the planning doesn't go through, the chances are it will basically
0:36:58 > 0:37:02be a burden on the family rather than what it should be,
0:37:02 > 0:37:05which is a great house to have with your family name attached.
0:37:05 > 0:37:08But the one thing I'd say is there's no point in keeping it,
0:37:08 > 0:37:10because others before have kept it.
0:37:10 > 0:37:12I'm not going to keep it
0:37:12 > 0:37:15- because 750 years have passed whilst we've had it.- Yeah.
0:37:15 > 0:37:20What do you think about it? Because obviously it's all very...
0:37:20 > 0:37:23It's obviously a different situation for me
0:37:23 > 0:37:27because I'm not the one that's going to inherit it in the end anyway.
0:37:27 > 0:37:29It is ultimately in your name
0:37:29 > 0:37:32and it's going to be your children who would get it.
0:37:32 > 0:37:35So, it really depends how much I'm earning as to how much money
0:37:35 > 0:37:37I'd want to put in.
0:37:37 > 0:37:41Yeah. As a counter-argument to that, I guess you could say...
0:37:41 > 0:37:43- SHE LAUGHS - You're like, "I want your money".
0:37:43 > 0:37:45I want you money. No...
0:37:47 > 0:37:49Marston needs money urgently,
0:37:49 > 0:37:52and two serpentine chests and a cellaret from the house
0:37:52 > 0:37:56should now be with an auction house in Edinburgh.
0:37:56 > 0:37:59But letting go of three precious family pieces
0:37:59 > 0:38:02proved too much for John Thorold.
0:38:02 > 0:38:05It started in the course of the evening, it rather prayed on my mind.
0:38:05 > 0:38:11And by about 11 o'clock that night I realised it was something I wasn't going to do.
0:38:11 > 0:38:15And this one went all the way up there,
0:38:15 > 0:38:18and I'm afraid it came all the way back down again.
0:38:18 > 0:38:21Having thought about it, I'm quite pleased I did that.
0:38:22 > 0:38:27In the end, the value of things is not the financial value.
0:38:27 > 0:38:29That sounds rather romantic,
0:38:29 > 0:38:34but it's how any object absorbs human influences around it.
0:38:34 > 0:38:36You know, what's a house?
0:38:36 > 0:38:39It's a pile of stones or brick, keeps the weather out,
0:38:39 > 0:38:43that's all it is until a human comes to it and makes it into something better.
0:38:45 > 0:38:47In a few moments time I'm going to have to meet John again,
0:38:47 > 0:38:49who is coming to the Hall.
0:38:49 > 0:38:51He gave me some very good advice.
0:38:51 > 0:38:55And I haven't taken it. And we will see what he says.
0:38:57 > 0:39:02- So, I hear things have changed a bit, John.- Um, yes. They have, I'm afraid.
0:39:02 > 0:39:05This was something I wasn't expecting to see.
0:39:05 > 0:39:10No, I've gone straight against your advice, I'm afraid.
0:39:10 > 0:39:12But in this case, actually,
0:39:12 > 0:39:16it wasn't anything to do with the technical contents of what you said,
0:39:16 > 0:39:19but I started looking at this piece,
0:39:19 > 0:39:23which had been in my mother's house and...
0:39:23 > 0:39:27I realised the emotional attachment to it was...
0:39:27 > 0:39:29- Too much?- It was really too strong,
0:39:29 > 0:39:31I simply didn't want to get rid of it.
0:39:31 > 0:39:35To be honest, I think it's crazy to split these chests of drawers up.
0:39:35 > 0:39:38That's where the money is, is the fact that they're a near-pair.
0:39:38 > 0:39:43You're right. But the whole romance of this house,
0:39:43 > 0:39:47the meaning to me, the meaning to many other people,
0:39:47 > 0:39:53is that it has a significance. It isn't just "What's it worth?"
0:39:53 > 0:39:56John, you've got a wall which is falling out of the end of the house.
0:39:56 > 0:39:58Yes.
0:39:58 > 0:40:01It's lovely to have all these things in the house looking pretty,
0:40:01 > 0:40:04but if the end of the house is falling down,
0:40:04 > 0:40:08ultimately, at the end of the day, you've got to raise the money, John.
0:40:08 > 0:40:11No, you're right. But, where you're wrong, I'm afraid,
0:40:11 > 0:40:14is that it's not here looking pretty.
0:40:14 > 0:40:17By splitting these up, some way or another we've got to make that shortfall up,
0:40:17 > 0:40:21because it's quite a big shortfall. How are we going to...?
0:40:21 > 0:40:23I think we may have to look at other things.
0:40:24 > 0:40:28John has reluctantly agreed to sell a single chest,
0:40:28 > 0:40:30with a reserve of £5,000.
0:40:30 > 0:40:34Even though selling both together could fetch 15-20,000.
0:40:42 > 0:40:47In Edinburgh, just a few days later, the furniture sale is happening.
0:40:51 > 0:40:54£2,600...
0:40:54 > 0:40:56AUCTIONEER MUTTERS
0:40:56 > 0:40:59The Thorolds and John are anxious for the single chest
0:40:59 > 0:41:04to make a reasonable sum with a reserve of £5,000.
0:41:04 > 0:41:082-1, 2-2, £2,300 I have. 2-4. 2-5 now. Nope. 3-6.
0:41:08 > 0:41:11Will the provenance of Sir John Thorold's 18th century
0:41:11 > 0:41:14serpentine fronted chest win bids?
0:41:15 > 0:41:18Lot 11 19 A.
0:41:18 > 0:41:21George III mahogany serpentine chest of drawers.
0:41:21 > 0:41:26- £4,200 I have... - JOHN: Blue stamp.
0:41:26 > 0:41:28£4,200...
0:41:28 > 0:41:31The bidding starts of £4,200.
0:41:31 > 0:41:34And it doesn't budge.
0:41:35 > 0:41:42- 4,200. 4-4.- Then a few bids push the price slowly up.
0:41:42 > 0:41:44£5,000.
0:41:44 > 0:41:47Bidder in the room.
0:41:48 > 0:41:50But only just above the reserve.
0:41:52 > 0:41:55Are we sure? At £5,200, last chance at 5-2.
0:41:55 > 0:41:58Bit disappointing, isn't it?
0:41:58 > 0:42:01If it had been with a reserve at 3,000 and it had run up to 5-2,
0:42:01 > 0:42:05then one would feel excited, but somehow, with a reserve of 5, to just get over.
0:42:05 > 0:42:08So maybe just as well we've only sold one.
0:42:08 > 0:42:11- We've still got one to go... - John's not going to agree with that.
0:42:11 > 0:42:13I still disagree. Nice try.
0:42:14 > 0:42:18Still, it's too late for regrets now,
0:42:18 > 0:42:21because about to take the stage is the other heirloom from the
0:42:21 > 0:42:25Thorolds' Regency past. The rosewood cellarette by Gillows of Lancaster.
0:42:27 > 0:42:32Nice looking piece, this. Let's get started at £800.
0:42:32 > 0:42:36800. 800. 900...
0:42:36 > 0:42:39- And this time, there's a bit of a fight.- Bidder in the room.
0:42:39 > 0:42:411,300. 1,400.
0:42:41 > 0:42:441,500. 1,600.
0:42:47 > 0:42:50It flies up to 1,600, but will it keep going?
0:42:50 > 0:42:53Are you all done? Any advance on 1,600?
0:42:53 > 0:43:00I will sell then to the lady at the back of the room, selling at £1,600.
0:43:00 > 0:43:04Though it has sold for £600 more than its reserve of £1,000.
0:43:04 > 0:43:06What do you think?
0:43:06 > 0:43:09- It's not too bad. - I think it's pretty good.
0:43:09 > 0:43:12- And at least there was a bit of battle.- Yes, exactly.
0:43:12 > 0:43:15Makes it more exciting, anyway. Definitely.
0:43:15 > 0:43:19Right, I think we're done, have we seen enough? Let's get out of here.
0:43:20 > 0:43:26After commission, the Gillows cellarette made...
0:43:26 > 0:43:28And the chest...
0:43:28 > 0:43:31The total made is £6,120.
0:43:39 > 0:43:41All hopes are now pinned on the paintings,
0:43:41 > 0:43:44particularly, the Raeburn.
0:43:44 > 0:43:48The mystery of the date solved and its authenticity proved,
0:43:48 > 0:43:50its value is the next issue.
0:43:50 > 0:43:54John has researched the market for Raeburn portraits of this kind
0:43:54 > 0:43:57and has made a surprising discovery.
0:43:58 > 0:44:00I've just found this portrait of children
0:44:00 > 0:44:04painted by Raeburn, on the internet, and remarkably,
0:44:04 > 0:44:08the children in this painting are William and Charles Thorold Wood,
0:44:08 > 0:44:10and they're the brothers of the painting here,
0:44:10 > 0:44:11Arthur and Willoughby.
0:44:11 > 0:44:16Now, that's quite a breakthrough, but I've also found out how much
0:44:16 > 0:44:20this painting sold for at auction in 1995 and that's not so good news.
0:44:20 > 0:44:23So, I've now got to break this news to John.
0:44:26 > 0:44:29I've had a bit of an interesting time with this one
0:44:29 > 0:44:33and I've actually found, believe it or not, its twin.
0:44:33 > 0:44:37- There was another painting.- That's quite clever of you.
0:44:38 > 0:44:41This one is the twin to it.
0:44:41 > 0:44:43How do you know that?
0:44:43 > 0:44:45This was sold at auction in 1995
0:44:45 > 0:44:49and in the catalogue it talks about who's in the painting and the date.
0:44:49 > 0:44:52This is actually a better painting, commercially.
0:44:52 > 0:44:55This one, sold in 1995 for £8,000.
0:44:55 > 0:44:57Yes.
0:44:57 > 0:45:01Being a prettier picture, it really is hard for me
0:45:01 > 0:45:03to work out how we do this one.
0:45:03 > 0:45:07What I would like to put this in at is 10,000 to 15,000.
0:45:08 > 0:45:13My difficulty is that I know what the probate valuation was.
0:45:13 > 0:45:15And...
0:45:15 > 0:45:18- What was the probate valuation? - I think it was around 30.
0:45:18 > 0:45:23You could put it in at 20,000 to 30,000 or even 30,000 to 40,000.
0:45:23 > 0:45:27My gut feeling is it won't sell. What about if we put it in at 15 to 25?
0:45:27 > 0:45:31If I am convinced it would sell between those two figures,
0:45:31 > 0:45:35then I think, having asked my wife first,
0:45:35 > 0:45:38that would make sense to me.
0:45:38 > 0:45:41I'm a guardian, here.
0:45:41 > 0:45:44I'll be here for 25 years if I'm lucky, and that's it.
0:45:44 > 0:45:49With any luck this building goes on and it goes on with the history.
0:45:49 > 0:45:52That's really the important bit. And that is really the dilemma.
0:45:52 > 0:45:55So, if you can have a chat with Liz, then,
0:45:55 > 0:45:59and see if we can put a reserve on it of 18,000.
0:45:59 > 0:46:01- Yes, I think I would be quite happy with that.- Yeah.
0:46:01 > 0:46:05There's other paintings, John, that Rupert's identified.
0:46:05 > 0:46:09Which ones in here then would you be willing to let go?
0:46:09 > 0:46:12There is no association,
0:46:12 > 0:46:15so I don't have any reluctance in letting them go.
0:46:15 > 0:46:18- So, what, this one? - This one, yes, certainly.
0:46:18 > 0:46:20- That one?- That one.
0:46:22 > 0:46:25The Giorgione up on the wall.
0:46:25 > 0:46:29If we get those checked and then I'll give you a call and we can work out...?
0:46:29 > 0:46:31- Yes, I think that would be the best way of doing it.- OK.
0:46:32 > 0:46:36John Thorold has agreed to part with five Old Master copies,
0:46:36 > 0:46:39which Rupert has valued at £1,000 to £2,000 each.
0:46:39 > 0:46:45And he's agreed to set the Raeburn estimate at a high £15,000 to £20,000.
0:46:49 > 0:46:52As the total needed at Marston is some way off, John is searching
0:46:52 > 0:46:56for more items to boost funds for the wall and the roof.
0:47:00 > 0:47:03Another relic from Syston Park has caught John's eye.
0:47:03 > 0:47:07This really is an amazing clock.
0:47:07 > 0:47:12It would date from about 1895, 1900-ish.
0:47:12 > 0:47:15And the quality of it and the size of it, it's massive.
0:47:15 > 0:47:19It will raise quite a bit towards our target.
0:47:19 > 0:47:22The Thorolds really need to sell more antiques.
0:47:22 > 0:47:24Can John persuade them to let go?
0:47:26 > 0:47:28It is a handsome mirror.
0:47:28 > 0:47:32It's in nice original condition, the lion cresting,
0:47:32 > 0:47:34it's bang on period Regency 1820-ish.
0:47:34 > 0:47:37Really?
0:47:37 > 0:47:41And with these lovely branches, they're quite sought after things.
0:47:41 > 0:47:43They're sort of sphinx, aren't they?
0:47:43 > 0:47:46- Yeah, that whole Egyptian theme was really hot then.- Yeah.
0:47:46 > 0:47:49What would you think about selling something like that?
0:47:49 > 0:47:54I must admit, I think I'd like to look elsewhere in the house.
0:47:54 > 0:47:57Well, there is still the longcase clock,
0:47:57 > 0:48:00we've got to look at. I know there was some issue, before.
0:48:00 > 0:48:04It's something on which I would very much like to involve my son.
0:48:06 > 0:48:08Now John also has to contend with Guy,
0:48:08 > 0:48:11the 20-year-old heir to Marston, who, like his father,
0:48:11 > 0:48:15has developed an attachment to some of the pieces.
0:48:17 > 0:48:20- You two are the deciders on the clock?- Yes.
0:48:20 > 0:48:21Why are you so attached to it?
0:48:21 > 0:48:23I think it adds a lot to the house.
0:48:23 > 0:48:27I think that, unlike some of the other things we're choosing to sell,
0:48:27 > 0:48:32this really does capture the imagination of how people imagine a big house,
0:48:32 > 0:48:35and it should have something like a grandfather clock in it.
0:48:35 > 0:48:37- And do you think the same?- Yeah. I agree with him,
0:48:37 > 0:48:40I think it's a classic thing to have in a house like this.
0:48:40 > 0:48:42And I think also you can have a variety of paintings
0:48:42 > 0:48:44but you can only have one grandfather clock.
0:48:45 > 0:48:47Yeah, I think that's a good point.
0:48:47 > 0:48:50But, it's 3,000 to 4,000. That's quite a chunk of money.
0:48:50 > 0:48:55So, are you dead against selling it, can we twist your arm?
0:48:55 > 0:49:00- I think we're dead against it. - Yeah, definitely.- Dead against it.
0:49:00 > 0:49:02You're as bad as your dad!
0:49:02 > 0:49:06John's only option now is to rely on the painting to fund repairs
0:49:06 > 0:49:09to the wall and the roof before winter.
0:49:16 > 0:49:17But John Foster is concerned
0:49:17 > 0:49:20that the estimates on the Raeburn are too high.
0:49:20 > 0:49:24He's meeting Allan Darwell, at Tennants Auction House,
0:49:24 > 0:49:26who will sell the paintings.
0:49:26 > 0:49:29He's been examining the damage on the Raeburn.
0:49:29 > 0:49:32How bad is the condition? You can see it's pretty bad.
0:49:32 > 0:49:34It can be sorted, but at quite a lot of money.
0:49:34 > 0:49:37I mean, you know it's quite costly to reline these things,
0:49:37 > 0:49:41and basically, stabilise all this loose paintwork.
0:49:41 > 0:49:44I am dying to ask you what you think it'll make.
0:49:44 > 0:49:48- My estimate, would be in the region of £7,000 to £9,000.- Mmm, yeah.
0:49:48 > 0:49:51I was a bit more generous on it,
0:49:51 > 0:49:54I thought around £10,000,
0:49:54 > 0:49:57- so we're in the same ball park. - We are.
0:49:57 > 0:50:01I think with something like this, it's so important that if you overestimate it,
0:50:01 > 0:50:04it will kill it dead. No one will even come to see it.
0:50:04 > 0:50:06Yes, it will. This has happened before with pictures.
0:50:08 > 0:50:12This final verdict on the Raeburn has convinced John Thorold
0:50:12 > 0:50:16to lower the estimate from £15,000 to £20,000, to £10,000 to £15,000.
0:50:24 > 0:50:27Anxious that he might not be able to raise as much as he'd hoped
0:50:27 > 0:50:30from the sale of antiques, John Thorold is reviewing
0:50:30 > 0:50:33his planning application to hold weddings.
0:50:35 > 0:50:38He hopes to address the objections from locals to marquees,
0:50:38 > 0:50:40parking and traffic issues.
0:50:40 > 0:50:47The difference that we've done with this application is that
0:50:47 > 0:50:52the marquee, which was to take 150 people, 160 people,
0:50:52 > 0:50:55we've deleted that.
0:50:55 > 0:50:57It's not a permanent idea.
0:50:57 > 0:50:59So, with this application are you then limited
0:50:59 > 0:51:02to the number of people you are allowed?
0:51:02 > 0:51:05We've said 60 because actually that really is the practical
0:51:05 > 0:51:09upper limit of the number of people you can fit in the Great Hall.
0:51:09 > 0:51:12This is the last throw of the dice for John and Liz,
0:51:12 > 0:51:17who have been working on their planning application for three and a half years.
0:51:17 > 0:51:19I just hope we can resolve the thing, really,
0:51:19 > 0:51:22because it's just hung over us for too long.
0:51:23 > 0:51:26Hopefully they will be able to see that we've got to do something
0:51:26 > 0:51:28to keep the place going.
0:51:28 > 0:51:31And it is different because it isn't a house that any of us
0:51:31 > 0:51:34were brought up in so there isn't that sort of pull,
0:51:34 > 0:51:38but it's still a responsibility that you feel you're letting
0:51:38 > 0:51:40the side down if you don't keep the thing going.
0:51:40 > 0:51:43But if you're not allowed to do anything it makes it
0:51:43 > 0:51:45pretty well impossible.
0:51:45 > 0:51:46I was talking to Guy about it.
0:51:46 > 0:51:49Will he be able to afford to keep this place going?
0:51:49 > 0:51:51He won't be able to run it.
0:51:51 > 0:51:54But if he can't do that I can't imagine that he'll be able
0:51:54 > 0:51:57to hang on to it anymore than, really, we'll be able to
0:51:57 > 0:52:01if we can't ever do anything to make it pay for itself.
0:52:09 > 0:52:11It's the day of the painting sale in Yorkshire.
0:52:11 > 0:52:15There are six paintings here from Marston Hall.
0:52:15 > 0:52:18Since John changed his mind about selling the chest at the last auction,
0:52:18 > 0:52:21this is their last chance to raise enough money to save the wall.
0:52:23 > 0:52:24Last time then...
0:52:27 > 0:52:30- All right, Liz, hi John.- Hi, John, how are you?- Good to see you.
0:52:30 > 0:52:34- How are you?- How you feeling? - Yes, again, apprehensive.
0:52:34 > 0:52:37Though there's rather more to feel apprehensive about, isn't there?
0:52:37 > 0:52:39- This is the biggy, isn't it?- Yes.
0:52:39 > 0:52:42There are quite a lot of things coming up.
0:52:42 > 0:52:45- There's a good buzz, here. It's alive.- It really is.
0:52:45 > 0:52:47850, on the telephone, selling now!
0:52:49 > 0:52:52First, there are the five Old Master copies up for sale.
0:52:52 > 0:52:56John is hoping that together they could raise up to £10,000.
0:52:57 > 0:53:01There's a real buzz in the room about these paintings.
0:53:01 > 0:53:06The next five lots are all from this very good estate,
0:53:06 > 0:53:08exceptional provenance for you,
0:53:08 > 0:53:11it's 18th century of Saint Anthony,
0:53:11 > 0:53:14£1,100.
0:53:14 > 0:53:17- That's fantastic.- Well, there we are, got it.- Can't believe it.
0:53:17 > 0:53:21Selling at £1,500.
0:53:21 > 0:53:241,500. Pretty good.
0:53:24 > 0:53:26Come on.
0:53:26 > 0:53:28That's good.
0:53:28 > 0:53:32AUCTIONEER: Last time then, selling at £850.
0:53:32 > 0:53:34That's astounding.
0:53:35 > 0:53:39The last of the Old Master copies to go under the hammer is the Rubens.
0:53:39 > 0:53:42Will it go above its reserve of £2,500?
0:53:42 > 0:53:442,000 to start me.
0:53:44 > 0:53:471,000 bid. £1,000 only bid.
0:53:47 > 0:53:501,200. 1,400. At £1,400...
0:53:50 > 0:53:53It's off to a good start with two bidders competing.
0:53:53 > 0:53:55At £2,000 only.
0:53:55 > 0:53:572-2.
0:53:57 > 0:53:59He's saying bid up.
0:53:59 > 0:54:01AUCTIONEER: 2-6.
0:54:01 > 0:54:04The bids race up to £2,600.
0:54:04 > 0:54:05But will it go higher?
0:54:05 > 0:54:08Phones are out, in the room there,
0:54:08 > 0:54:11last time, selling at £2,600.
0:54:11 > 0:54:17The Rubens copy scrapes over its reserve, selling for £2,600.
0:54:19 > 0:54:22The five Old Master copies after commission
0:54:22 > 0:54:24sold for a total of...
0:54:27 > 0:54:31Although everything sold and a couple things went over the estimate,
0:54:31 > 0:54:35it still is peanuts in the pot compared to the Raeburn selling,
0:54:35 > 0:54:38so it is quite tense in here.
0:54:38 > 0:54:40I think John and Liz are feeling the pressure,
0:54:40 > 0:54:44but all is now resting on the Raeburn.
0:54:44 > 0:54:47AUCTIONEER: And I start the bidding at £5,000.
0:54:47 > 0:54:50To save time, a 5,000 bid.
0:54:50 > 0:54:526,000. 7,000.
0:54:52 > 0:54:54That's £7,000.
0:54:54 > 0:54:59Again, bids come thick and fast and the price climbs to £8,000.
0:54:59 > 0:55:02At 8,000. 8-5.
0:55:02 > 0:55:059,000. 9-5.
0:55:05 > 0:55:08- 10,000.- Go on.- Come on.
0:55:08 > 0:55:13The last time then, selling at £10,000.
0:55:13 > 0:55:14Oh, dear.
0:55:16 > 0:55:18- It's not so good.- It's not too good.
0:55:18 > 0:55:21But it's still 10,000 towards the wall, isn't it?
0:55:21 > 0:55:25One can only look at it that way. It's sad, but it's...
0:55:25 > 0:55:26It is sad, but then...
0:55:26 > 0:55:29It is a lesson to not let things get in such poor condition,
0:55:29 > 0:55:32because it's mostly its poor condition that goes against it.
0:55:32 > 0:55:34- It sat in a very damp place.- It is a lesson to us.
0:55:34 > 0:55:37The Raeburn reached its lower estimate,
0:55:37 > 0:55:42and the Old Master copies have boosted funds.
0:55:42 > 0:55:44After commission, the total raised from the picture sale is...
0:55:54 > 0:55:59John is heading back to Marston for one last visit.
0:56:00 > 0:56:03I don't know about you, but I found it quite a tense day at the auction.
0:56:03 > 0:56:06What do you think, now that you've been able to come back
0:56:06 > 0:56:09and think about it all?
0:56:09 > 0:56:13I actually felt in the end we were very lucky.
0:56:13 > 0:56:16Our pictures were not perhaps the highest of fashion,
0:56:16 > 0:56:21the market's not good, and we got rid of them at, you know,
0:56:21 > 0:56:23the prices that were suggested.
0:56:23 > 0:56:26- So, that's good.- And of course the condition was so bad.- I know.
0:56:26 > 0:56:28Particularly the Raeburn, gosh.
0:56:28 > 0:56:31It was a bit of a nightmare even getting it there, wasn't it?
0:56:31 > 0:56:34Wondering if the paint was mostly going to be in the back of the car.
0:56:34 > 0:56:37No, I think it was good, I think they did us jolly well.
0:56:37 > 0:56:39I really do, I think it went well.
0:56:39 > 0:56:43So, the target was £50,000 and we didn't quite make that,
0:56:43 > 0:56:45we didn't get close, really.
0:56:45 > 0:56:49After commissions were paid, we got to just shy of £22,000.
0:56:50 > 0:56:52It's all a help, isn't it?
0:56:52 > 0:56:56The real point for me, is the bit of wall that is actively dangerous,
0:56:56 > 0:56:59I can cope with now.
0:56:59 > 0:57:02I do need more because I need to progress through
0:57:02 > 0:57:05that part of the building but I got enough to keep going.
0:57:05 > 0:57:10What is more important is that other things have started to move forward.
0:57:10 > 0:57:15The parish council would like to see me in a month's time,
0:57:15 > 0:57:19and they've said they'll come and have a look at the problems here.
0:57:19 > 0:57:21- So at least that's a start. - That's a huge start.
0:57:21 > 0:57:25And have you made progress on your plans to hold weddings here?
0:57:25 > 0:57:27I'm putting in a new application,
0:57:27 > 0:57:29it's slightly reduced from the original one I did.
0:57:29 > 0:57:33If we can get a business generated from here,
0:57:33 > 0:57:35which is what you must do with a house of this age.
0:57:35 > 0:57:38You can't support it on a professional salary,
0:57:38 > 0:57:39it just won't work.
0:57:41 > 0:57:44I've thoroughly enjoyed my time here
0:57:44 > 0:57:46and I'm dying to see...
0:57:46 > 0:57:48You must keep me posted as to how you get on.
0:57:48 > 0:57:50Well, thank you, you were terrific.
0:57:50 > 0:57:53We are genuinely, extraordinarily grateful.
0:57:56 > 0:57:59Owning an impressive house like Marston Hall
0:57:59 > 0:58:01must seem like a dream to most of us,
0:58:01 > 0:58:03but what I've come to learn,
0:58:03 > 0:58:09is that with all of the splendour comes a huge amount of risk and responsibility,
0:58:09 > 0:58:12and seeing the pictures of the demolished Syston Park really
0:58:12 > 0:58:17act as a reminder of how important it is to save these treasured country houses.
0:58:17 > 0:58:20It's amazing to think that the Thorold family have been here
0:58:20 > 0:58:24for 700 years, and hopefully John and Liz have bought this place a bit more time
0:58:24 > 0:58:28and I wish them all the best for their future here.
0:58:52 > 0:58:56Subtitles By Red Bee Media Ltd