Y Smith Cash in the Attic

Welcome to Cash In The Attic.

In life, often special occasions crop up and we could do with a few extra funds

to really celebrate in style.

That's the case with the family I'm about to meet, so let's hope we find some hidden treasures in their home.

'Today on Cash In The Attic, a fascinating piece of social history.'

October the 5th, 1901, given in Berlin and signed by the Consul-General.

This is a very early passport. That's what it is.

'And some incredibly rare English currency.'

I'm not sure I'd be able to get these past in a shop, Paul. Spot the mistake!

'They're all up for auction for a very special occasion.'

-We're going to have a dirty...

-A knees-up.

-We're not going to have a dirty weekend.

You're allowed. You're married. You've had 50 years' practice. You can do what you like!

'That all to come when the gavel falls.'

Today, I'm at Exmouth in South Devon

and I'm about to meet a couple who have some really interesting items,

so let's hope they make really interesting prices under the hammer.

'Yvonne and Gordon Smith met in the 1960s through a church youth organisation and have been married

'for just shy of 50 years.

'During their time together, they've lived all over the country

'and worked in every sort of establishment

'from banks to prisons.

'Today, they're enjoying their much deserved retirement.

'Yvonne indulges her long-held passion for flower arranging whilst Gordon enjoys photography.

'But with a very special occasion on the horizon, they've called in the Cash In The Attic team to help.

'Paul Hayes is today's antiques expert, so whilst he starts hunting for valuables, I meet our hosts.'

Hi, Gordon, Yvonne. Don't those flowers look absolutely beautiful?

-Flower arranging is a hobby of yours, isn't it?

-Yes.

-It's a bit more than that. You're pretty good at it.

-I try to be.

-And Gordon, your hobby is taking photographs, isn't it?

-It has been from quite an early date, actually.

Now, why have the two of you called in Cash In The Attic?

Because this year is our 50th wedding anniversary, our golden,

so we want to go up to where our family is in Lancashire and our grandchildren

and have a bit of a knees-up.

You can tell me more about that golden wedding party a bit later on. How much are you hoping to raise?

-£500.

-500?

-Yes.

-That should make a bit of a knees-up, shouldn't it?

I've brought Paul Hayes with me and when it comes to raising money for a bit of a knees-up, he's your man.

Shall we go and find him and see how he's doing so far?

'I'm hoping that after 50 years together,

'Yvonne and Gordon will have collected plenty of goodies for us to find today.

'Paul's wasted no time and it looks as if he's already found something to get excited about.'

-Hello. How are you? All right?

-That looks a bit heavy.

-It is a bit.

-If you just grab it there...

-Yeah, let's take a look at this.

A collection of tiles - where did these come from, Yvonne?

These were part of an old mahogany fireplace

which I bought to go into our last house, which was very old.

Was it in this condition when you got it?

No, it was covered in hardwood,

so we removed the hardwood and used the actual fireplace for a long time.

They don't look chipped or marked in any way at all.

That's right. The '60s style was to cover anything up behind hardboard, but it's preserved it really well.

If you had to take the board off, Gordon, that was a carpentry job that you had to do?

I most certainly did.

I wanted to try and get the tiles out and the only way I could do it

was to cut down the sides and take this bit out,

but even when I'd done that, I couldn't get the tiles out without breaking them,

so I left them and just had the top part.

You were looking at the back, Paul. What does that tell you?

This tells you who made them and these were made by Mintons.

Mintons are one of Britain's best known ceramic manufacturers of tiles and porcelain.

They're individually stamped, but it doesn't tell us where they are.

It says "from the left", so I don't know if it means left of this frame.

Have you ever speculated on where they might be?

First of all, I thought they might be French, but I've been to a few old towns in France

and none of them are recognisable.

It would be fascinating to find out.

If we did take it to auction, what do you think we might make on it?

I really like them and having a set like this is great.

If I said £60 to £100, how does that sound?

-It could be a night on the tiles!

-LAUGHTER

'What an intriguing item to kick off our day here in Exmouth!

'I have the feeling that the set of tiles is just the tip of the iceberg

'in a house that looks to be full of collectables.

'Yvonne heads to the kitchen and digs out a rather unusual cruet set

'she bought to mark their 25th wedding anniversary.

'Each piece is individually hallmarked, manufactured in Birmingham in 1943.

'Paul thinks they could fetch £40 to £60 at auction.'

Sorry to drag you downstairs, Gordon, but I wanted to ask you about this fantastic clock.

I love it. Where has that come from?

-It came from Lancashire.

-All the best things do.

-Yes, they do.

I went to an auction at a very old cottage which was part of a farm

and they were having an auction of all their bits and pieces.

I saw this on the wall. I really didn't go there to buy it, but it was such a nice piece,

I put my hand up and nobody else put their hand up after me.

-So you got it?

-I got it for £10, ten shillings.

-That's amazing. What a good price!

-It wasn't made in Lancashire.

-I don't know where it was made.

-This is Vienna.

-Is it?

-Mm-hm.

-A very nice Viennese clock.

-Viennese.

And it dates from about 1880, 1900.

But the idea with them is that they're wonderfully accurate clocks.

-How often do you wind it?

-Only about once a fortnight.

Yeah. This is an eight-day clock.

It was designed to run at least eight days, so you wind it up once a week.

The basic concept is you use this wonderful, weight-driven mechanism,

so the power of the gravity forces the clock to go round

and the pendulum regulates how long it takes to tick.

-It's a beautiful example. Will that go to auction?

-Yes.

I've had it for so long and I have other clocks.

I'd like somebody else to have a little share of it.

Why not? The spring-driven examples tend to fetch £100, maybe £150.

The weight-driven is always better.

If I said between £250 and £400, I mean, how does that sound?

That sounds absolutely marvellous.

'It's a handsome valuation, but will the Viennese clock be to the bidders' taste on auction day?'

180. 190. 200.

210. 220...

'Only time will tell.

'I spot two rather attractive porcelain figurines in the hallway.

'They're by Royal Doulton and they're known as the Bridesmaid and He Loves Me.

'These popular figures were produced from the '40s through to the '60s

'and are still highly collectable.

'They've seen better days,

'but Paul still thinks we should be able to get £40 to £50 for them.'

Now then, you two, have you found anything interesting?

You might be interested in that. This was left to me by the priest who married us 50 years ago.

He asked me to execute his will and, much to my surprise, when I executed it,

he'd left me all his furniture. There were some really lovely pieces.

-This is one of them.

-That's a type of console table. You often find this demi-lune or half-moon shape,

pressed against a wall with a big mirror on the back.

It would be the first thing you'd see coming into a hallway.

This is typically late 18th century, early 19th century, so it's 200 years old.

This one wasn't always against the wall. It has wheels on the bottom.

You would take this out and add it on the end of a Georgian dining table.

That would mean you could sit more people around it.

This is made from flame mahogany and it's a very distinctive grain.

-It looks like it's almost on fire.

-I've never noticed that before.

It needs a bit of restoration to bring this colour back up

and you've got a bit of water damage on here. Somebody had a plant pot on here.

Well, I ain't gonna say who did that.

That can be restored, no problem.

There's no splits or cracks or chips or anything like that.

That could be restored and brought back to life and make that flame mahogany come back again.

If we said around the £100 mark,

sort of 60 to 100, how does that sound?

-That sounds pretty good.

-That sounds very reasonable.

-Excellent. Let's keep looking. We're not quite there yet.

-OK.

'It's clear that our hosts have collected some super pieces over their time together

'and Gordon proves this when he adds another clock to the list of items heading off to the saleroom.

'This brass carriage clock was given to him when he retired from his job at the local prison.

'It is in good working order and Paul thinks any collector would be happy

'to pay £80 to £120 for it.

'Now, that's what we like to hear.'

Gordon and Yvonne, 50 years of marriage, your golden anniversary coming up...

That's quite a record. How did you two meet?

I met her in the church where I used to go.

She was in charge of the Girls' Brigade and I was in charge of the Boys' Brigade.

I was there one evening when she was leading the Girls' Brigade in the march up the road.

She was passing by with these church girls behind her.

I'm marching up like this and I thought, "She seems a pretty strong character, that one there."

I wasn't aware that he was watching me while I was marching!

I didn't know that you were into uniforms!

LAUGHTER

You have two children, a son and a daughter. They live up in the north.

-Is that why you're going up there for the party?

-Yes.

What have you got planned?

We're hoping to go to Southport which is where our daughter and son-in-law and their children live.

And my youngest son and his family will all come over for a party to Southport,

then we're going to have a knees-up.

'While I've been hearing all about those party plans, Paul has continued hunting for valuables.

'He's come across more figurines.

'Yvonne bought this pair at auction for £5

'when they were in a terrible state and she restored them to their former glory.

'They're made of spelter, the alloy commonly used as a cheap alternative to bronze.

'Paul thinks these could snatch upwards of £60 on sale day.'

-I don't know whether these are of any interest. I've had these put away for quite some time.

-Look at that.

-It's a piggy bank in a frame! I've got a couple of fivers. What have you?

-I've got ten £1 notes.

-Do you remember the old £1 note?

-Yeah.

-How old are those?

-We're looking early '80s.

'82, '83, they introduced the pound coin. How did you get hold of these?

I worked in the bank and each week, we would have new notes come down from the Mint.

I knew I wouldn't be getting any more of those, they would all be in coins,

so I thought I'd keep just ten of them.

I'm not sure that I'd be able to get these past in a shop, Paul. Spot the mistake!

-Yeah, they're amazing.

-What's going on here?

-Again they came down in the Mint.

I spotted that they were not quite the ticket, so I thought, "Hmm, I'll keep a couple of them."

-I've never seen anything like that. They're amazing. They shouldn't have left the Mint?

-No.

-Has something like this got a value to it?

-Yes, people love to collect bank notes from all over the world.

They also look for imperfections. Sometimes you get the wrong printing or it hasn't been cut properly.

-That makes them very collectable.

-You paid a fiver each for these?

-Yes, I just put £10 in the till.

LAUGHTER

-That is amazing!

-These pound notes you can take to the bank and get their face value,

but a collector would pay more than face value, maybe £10 or £15?

Those, however, I would say about £20 each. They're so collectable and so different.

So we're looking at maybe £50 as a parcel.

-That's not a bad return on 20 quid.

-Yeah, I'm glad I put them up in the loft.

That's what you call cash in the attic! Shall we go and see what else you've got in the house?

'We are unearthing some truly fascinating items.

'I can't wait to see what bidders make of our imperfect bank notes.

'In the hallway, Gordon has decided that the time has come to part with another flawed item.

'This Royal Doulton setter and pheasant would be worth upwards of £150 in mint condition,

'but this one has a nasty crack at the base

'and as a result, 30 to 50 is all we can expect.

'What a pity!'

-What did you want to show me?

-Have a look at these.

-These are great. These are Lladro.

-Have you bought these in Spain?

-We did. This one was our first one.

-That was in Minorca.

-Right.

That was the first time I'd seen Lladro and I thought they were so attractive.

I like the colours, I like the elongated figures.

Some of this Spanish pottery has a very distinctive style,

these muted browns and blues, but that sums up the 1960s and '70s.

That Spanish style was all about this look, very skinny, very tall.

A lot of the paintings of the day are done like that.

You have a bit of damage. Restoration makes a massive difference,

but value-wise, allowing for the bits of damage,

-if I said £200, maybe £250...

-Really?

-Does that sound all right?

-It sounds fine to me.

-I'll tell you something. That would be worth at least that on its own if it was perfect.

-Don't tell me!

-Sorry. Let's blame Gordon.

-Yeah, let's blame Gordon.

-Talking of which, let's go and find him.

Those are great. Those are going.

'If only the figurines hadn't been so damaged,

'but then again, Gordon and Yvonne have moved all over the UK during their time together,

'so we should be thankful they survived at all.'

How did you come to settle here in Exmouth?

When we bought our first house, we had some really good neighbours who we stayed extremely friendly with.

They had moved down to Devon and we moved up to Lancashire.

We always came down here quite regularly to see them.

We thought if we had to move anywhere, Exmouth would be a nice place.

-You went into the prison service, didn't you?

-I decided the prison service was a good place to be in.

And I wanted to go to Exeter Prison.

So I had a word with Yvonne and we decided, seeing as our friends were down here

and that's what I wanted to do, we would come down here.

You, Yvonne, went back to banking and you landed rather a plum place to work, didn't you?

It certainly was.

It was at the Royal Marine Commando Training Centre

where they train all the Royal Marine personnel -

young officers, recruits,

NCOs.

It was a hormone check every morning.

LAUGHTER

-You met lots of members of the Royal Family.

-Yes.

Princess Di was the first one who came,

then the Queen,

and of course, Prince Edward came there to do some Young Officer Training as well.

-While all of this was going on, you were also a marriage guidance counsellor?

-Yes.

So what would you say is the secret to having a happily married life for 50 years?

Well, I would say tolerance and understanding.

And a will to make things work.

I think really it's just a case of determining that you are going to stick at it, no matter what.

The celebration is coming up, so let's see what else we'll take to auction to make that party special.

'Our day here in Exmouth is drawing to a close, but Paul Hayes shows no sign of slowing down.

'He's attracted to this Victorian, button-back armchair which Yvonne and Gordon are happy to part with.

'On its own, it could fetch £80 to £120,

'but the couple are also keen to sell two Edwardian tub chairs.

'Paul thinks, as one lot, they could bring in

'£150 to £200.'

I don't know whether you'd find this interesting,

but this I found in the papers of the priest who married us when he died.

I've never seen anything like it

and it's obviously his father's travel documents of some sort or another.

What an impressive-looking document! Royal coat of arms on the top there.

"By Her Britannic Majesty's Ambassador

"Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to His Majesty the German Emperor, King of Prussia,

-"to allow Mr Wallace Thompson..." That was him?

-Yes.

"..a British subject travelling on the continent to pass freely and without hindrance." What's the date?

October the 5th, 1901,

given in Berlin and signed by the Consul-General.

This is a very early passport. That's what it is. What do you know about Mr Wallace Thompson?

He was an engineer of some sort. I think he was a civil engineer.

-He certainly had a lot to do with bridge-building.

-We should get Paul to look at this.

Paul! Do you want to come and join us a minute?

-Take a look at that.

-Wow!

-It's an early passport.

-I've never seen one like that before.

-Yeah.

1901, that is very early for passports.

The British passport came out some time around the First World War.

The German Emperor at the time, the King of Prussia, was the Kaiser.

That was Wilhelm II.

-That's who we went to war with?

-Yeah. There might have been some tension at that time

and they needed a document to get through borders.

Would somebody bid for that, Paul?

Lots of people are interested in old documents. People will go for certain examples.

But anybody interested in travel would go for this.

I think we should put it in with a relatively low estimate to give it a chance.

-Who knows what it will bring on the day? If I said £50 to £80...

-Really?

Yeah, it's great. I love that.

Let's add that £50 to everything else that we've looked at today.

I know you want to raise £500 for this wonderful celebration of your golden wedding anniversary.

But I think that we just might be able to make as much

-as 1,070.

-You're joking!

You've got to be joking. That's two bottles of champagne now then!

You are going to have an absolutely wonderful golden wedding celebration.

'Gordon and Yvonne are clearly over the moon at the prospect of raising so much money.

'What a delightful collection of treasures we have heading for the saleroom!

'There are old bank notes, including those rare faulty fivers.

'We're hoping that the bidders are going to dig deep and pay upwards of £50.

'The early passport that dates from 1901.

'Paul hasn't seen one before and I doubt that the bidders will have either.

'This important piece of social history could bring in another £50 to £80.

'And the magnificent Viennese wall clock.

'Gordon bought it for £10 and ten shillings,

'but if it reaches its £250 estimate,

'it could mean the golden wedding celebrations will go with a bang.

'Still to come on Cash In The Attic, spectacular results leave some of us lost for words.'

What do you think of that, Gordon?

-He's speechless.

-I'm speechless, yeah.

'Though not every sale goes according to plan.'

-That's a real disappointment, isn't it?

-Yes.

-It is.

-Somebody's got a real bargain there.

'Will the auction result have us opening the bubbly early or putting it on ice?

'Find out very soon.'

We really did find some fascinating items at Yvonne and Gordon's home,

including this very impressive Viennese clock,

and we've brought all of them to the Lyme Bay Auction Rooms at Seaton in Devon.

£500 is their target, so that they can have a slap-up celebration for their golden wedding anniversary,

so I rather hope that the bidders who come here today will help to make that happen.

'This family-run business started 30 years ago.

'It's very popular with the locals and is based in a pretty seaside town on the Devon-Dorset border.

'They always have a very wide range of antiques on sale, so we've got high hopes of a full house today.

'Before the auction, our expert Paul did some more research on one of the items

'which he thinks will do really well for the Smiths.'

-Good morning, Paul.

-Good morning, Angela.

Have you cracked the code as to where these tiles are?

I feel like an armchair detective. Part of this job is research and I do really enjoy doing this.

-With the help of our team here, we've come up with exactly where these tiles are.

-Fantastic.

They're a set of 12 tiles and they are all different views of Europe.

Not many in London itself, just in the provinces and in Europe.

This one definitely is the village of Splugen in the Alps.

-Great holiday destination.

-Lovely name - Splugen.

Famous for these buildings near the edge of the water.

This one is Conwy Castle and I think this one over here is Rodez Cathedral.

They're all over the place, but I think they're fantastic.

What gave it away, at the bottom of this one is a set of initials - LTS, which is LT Swetman.

He was the engraver working at Mintons in the late 19th century.

Gordon and Yvonne have just arrived. Shall we tell them what they've had over the fireplace all these years?

See if they fancy a holiday in Splugen!

'Research is just like a jigsaw puzzle and I love it when all the pieces come together.

'And that name, LT Swetman, was the final piece to complete this picture.'

Remember the tiles? How could you forget them? They've been over the top of your fireplace!

We think we've located where some of those places are.

They're all views from the late 19th century throughout Europe.

-One of them in particular is my favourite - the village of Splugen.

-Where's that?

-In the Alps.

-Oh.

-They're very interesting and very collectable.

-Oh, good.

-You've put a reserve on the clock.

-Yes.

-How much?

-250.

-Because that's got quite a lot of sentimental value for you both.

-Yes.

-You bought it for next to nothing, didn't you?

-Yes.

-How much?

-£10.

-For a tenner. And you've got a £250 reserve on it!

-That'll be a good return. That should set the tone for the day.

-Fantastic.

-I hope it does.

Let's go and take our places and get started.

'With the auction under way, we begin our sale with the Royal Doulton gun dog,

'the first of several lots by this ever collectable manufacturer.'

-Who bought that one?

-I did.

-For...?

-£65...

30 years ago?

We've got 30 to 50 on it, Paul. That's a bit of a comedown.

Yes, but this one has been damaged. With it being a hunting dog, it's had a few accidents.

It would have been worth at least £60, but I put this in between 30 and 50.

Several commission bids. Start me straight off at £30.

-£30, we're in already.

-£30 there. 35.

-40. 45. 50.

-Wow!

-55.

-It's going well.

It's in the room at 55. 60.

65? £60 to my left, at 60.

65 anywhere? And I will sell at £60...

£60, which is over Paul's estimate.

-Yeah.

-He's clever, isn't he?

-It's almost what you paid for it without the damage.

-Exactly.

'As luck would have it, the bidders weren't too put off by the crack

'and we have our first contribution to the party fund.

'Our next lot has also seen better days, but nothing some restoration won't sort out.

'It's the mahogany table left to our couple by the priest who married them 50 years ago.'

-One less piece of furniture?

-That's right, to polish.

-£60 to £100 is what we've got on it, Paul.

It's very plain, very elegant, it doesn't take up a lot of room, so it should be away at £60.

60? No? £50 then?

-Oh, no.

-30?

That's got to be worth £30. Nobody want it? £20? Nobody want it?

I'll take £20.

22 anywhere? 22. 25?

-28. 30.

-We're moving.

£30 now. At 30. It's in the room at 30. 35 anywhere? 35 anywhere?

I will sell at £30...

-That's a real disappointment, isn't it?

-Yes.

-It is.

-Somebody's got a real bargain there.

-Yeah.

'That is a lot less than we'd hoped

'for such a lovely piece of furniture,

'especially when you think how much new ones cost these days.

'Silver is doing well at the moment, so our next lot should do better.'

This is a little silver cruet set. How did you come by this?

It was a present for our silver wedding, so it's 25 years old now.

It's a very usable piece of silver, these cruet sets.

If you're entertaining or you have a restaurant, they're nice things to have. So, yes, £40 to £60 for it.

-This time, we'll start off at £30.

-We're starting at 30.

-£30.

-32.

35. 38. And 40.

Still with me at £40.

-40. 45. 50.

-Bang on your estimate.

Still with me at £50. On the book at 50. £50 with me. 55 anywhere?

I will sell at £50...

-£50, right in the middle of your estimate.

-That's great, isn't it?

'Another good result,

'but I wonder if the cruet set will ever be used again

'or just melted down, as is sadly often the case with these items?

'Something that never goes out of fashion, though, is hard cash.'

It's quite difficult to put a price on this, but they could be very valuable.

It's the sort of thing that collectors tend to go for. There's something unusual about them.

I stuck my neck out here and put these in at £50 which is far more than the face value.

Let's hope someone puts them away for ten years to see what happens.

Very unusual lot. A lot of interest on the internet.

-Interest on the internet!

-I'll start here at £50...

-50!

With me at 50. 55 and 60. Still with me at £60.

-£60!

-62. 65. Still with me at £65. 70 anywhere?

70 anywhere? It's now in the room at £70.

70. 75 anywhere? 75 anywhere?

No? I'll sell it to the room for £70...

Terrific!

Perhaps I should go to the bank and get some more!

LAUGHTER

'That's what you call a great transaction.

'Yvonne's old bank notes certainly accrued a much better interest

'than any bank could offer.

'Next up, more Royal Doulton,

'a name that's always guaranteed to gain interest at auction.'

These are very collectable items, a fraction of what they cost in the shop. I put these in at £40 to £50.

Quite rare ornaments. What shall we say? £50 to start?

50? £40 for 'em?

Anybody? Got to make £40, surely? £30 then?

Nobody interested? 30, thank you, sir. £30. 32 anywhere?

32 anywhere? 32.

35. 38. 40. 42.

45. 48. 50?

£48 in front. At 48. 50 anywhere?

50 anywhere? I will sell at £48...

-Very good.

-How's that?

-Just two below Paul's highest estimate.

-That's all right - £48.

'Paul's estimates are proving to be spot-on

'and our kitty for the knees-up is starting to pile up nicely.

'Our next lot is something of an unknown entity.

'It's the Prussian document, an early kind of passport from 1901.

'It'll be fascinating to see what the bidders make of it.'

-We've not found out much more about this.

-I've never found another one on the market.

I put this in at between £50 and £80. Let's just see how it goes.

There are some other documents in the sale, so fingers crossed.

Quite a bit of interest on this one. I'll start off at £30.

-£30 to start.

-30 already.

-32.

35. 38.

It's now in the room at £38. 40 anywhere?

40 anywhere? We'll sell... 40. 45. 50.

-Oh, good.

-55. 60. 65. 70.

-75. 80.

-Wow!

-85. 90.

-95. 100?

-They're desperate for it.

To my right at 95. 100 anywhere? 100 anywhere?

I will sell at £95...

That's a terrific result. I bet when it was used, it didn't cost him £95 to travel round the whole of Europe!

'After a hesitant start, the bidding really took off, didn't it?

'We sold it for £15 over Paul's top estimate.

'What a first half we've had!

'So how have we done at this midway stage?'

-We're more than halfway to your £500.

-Really?

Because we've made...three hundred and fifty-three pounds.

-Great.

-Marvellous.

-And you're aiming at 500 for the golden wedding.

-Yeah.

-Yes.

-Have you got it all planned out?

-We have.

-What are you going to do?

We're going to get the family together up north where they live

and we're going to have a nice meal in a nice hotel.

-We're going to have a dirty...

-A knees-up.

-We're not going to have a dirty weekend.

You're allowed. You're married. You've had 50 years' practice. You can do what you like! £353 so far...

You've still got some great items to come up.

Paul, you want to have a look at some of the other things here.

-It's always good to have a look round in the auction house and I'll show you something very unusual.

-OK.

'So now we all know what Yvonne really has in store for their anniversary weekend!

'If you're thinking of heading to auction to raise money for something special,

'then do remember that fees like commission will be charged.

'Your local auction house will be able to advise you on the small print.'

Paul, there are lots of fascinating things here in this auction room.

-What's taken your eye?

-I always look for things I haven't seen before and I love the area of medals.

This is a whole group of medals belonging to one gentleman.

This is one you'll see quite a lot. He was in the Royal Air Force and he was Flight Lieutenant Stonestreet.

That's his Efficiency Medal. There's nothing unusual there, but along with it are these.

These are presented from the people of China for good deeds done by non-Chinese people

in aid of the greatness of China. Look at the quality of them!

-They're beautifully decorated. This is enamel?

-Solid silver and enamel.

And the tiger is very much a power symbol, a managerial symbol in China.

They're fascinating things and just something that I've never seen before.

-I don't know how he got them.

-I wonder what he did for them?

-Exactly, yes.

-What do we think they might make?

-They're absolutely beautiful.

Just for rarity and novelty value,

they must be £300 to £500.

As the internet is such a massive thing now, people from all over the world can view what's happening here

and who knows what these will fetch?

Being sold in Seaton, Devon today, the world tomorrow!

That's something we've got to keep our eye on.

-Meanwhile, I think we'd better get back to our auction.

-OK.

'And we don't have to wait too long for that fascinating collection of medals to come up.'

I will sell at £1,100...

'More than twice their top estimate

'and once again they prove the popularity of this area of collecting.

'It's time for the second half of our sale and let's hope the bidders are still feeling generous

'as up first are the spelter figurines.'

-I bought them at auction. They were all rusty.

-Really?

-Yeah.

-Who cleaned them up?

Well, Gordon tried with water. It made them worse.

I tried olive oil and they are as you see them now. They're lovely.

-Were they very expensive when you bought them?

-£5.

-£5. Gosh!

Right, I put these in at 60 to 100, so you're doing all right.

-I shall be more than happy.

-How much for the elbow grease?

Complete with plinths as well, these two. What shall we say for those? £100 for them?

100? Anybody? £80 for them? Give me 50?

-50, thank you, sir.

-50.

-£50 there. 55 anywhere?

They should fetch a lot more than this. At 50. 55 anywhere?

55 anywhere? I will sell at £50. Anybody...?

-That's amazing. You've just got to show a bit of elbow grease.

-And olive oil.

-Yeah.

'You learn something new every day.

'Sadly, no amount of olive oil can help the condition of our next lot.'

-They have got a bit of damage on them, Gordon.

-They have, yes.

How has that happened?

When our children were growing up, playing football, ping-pong on the table and... Oh!

And you had to mend them?

Yeah, almost one a week.

That might affect the restoration cost which we've got to look at.

I was quite optimistic in the house. I said between £200 and £250.

The auctioneer had a look at them. He thinks they might not fetch that.

Let's see how we get on.

Anybody start me off at 200?

£200 on them then?

No? Nobody? 150?

Nobody interested? £100 surely?

-£100?

-Come on!

100. Thank you, sir. £100. At 100. They've got to make more than this, surely? £100 I have.

110. 120. 130.

-140.

-Now they've started, they've just got to keep going.

£140 I have. 140. I'll take 5? 145? £140 to my right.

At 140. 145 anywhere? 145 anywhere?

I will sell at £140...

-Bearing in mind they did have that damage, that's not bad.

-No.

'You know, considering the importance of condition to buyers,

'I think we should be quite satisfied with that,

'but no concerns about the condition

'of the fully functioning brass carriage clock.'

Where has this come from? Was it like a presentation piece?

Yes, it was presented to me by the officers of Exeter Prison

on my retirement from the prison service.

-It's a gold watch or a gold clock, isn't it?

-Yeah.

-What a nice thing to have! Lovely little items, these.

-I said 80 to 120.

-We should do well on this.

100? Nobody? £50 then?

Anybody interested? Got to be worth £50, surely, this one? Nobody interested at 50?

Give me 30? 30, thank you, sir. 30. 32. 35.

38. 40. 45.

50. 55.

They take a bit of get going, but once they get going, they keep going.

60 anywhere? One more? In the room at 55...

-There you go, 55.

-£55?

-That's quite low.

'How disappointing! I thought once the bidding got into its stride,

'we'd reach Paul's lower estimate.

'Sadly, it wasn't to be. I do hope this isn't a sign that the clock lovers are absent from the room

'as we have another timepiece up next,

'our highest valued lot of the day.'

-So, a £250 reserve - optimistic or about right, Paul?

-That's about right. I'm glad of that.

That's the bottom of my estimate, £250 to £400. It should sell for that sort of figure.

-You're right to put your reserve on there. Let's hope it goes. Fingers crossed.

-OK.

I've got bids on this. I must start at 150.

-He's started at 150.

-150. 160 anywhere?

-160 anywhere? 150 I have with me. 160.

-160 there.

170. 180. 190?

No. £180. With me at 180. 190.

200. 210.

220. No? £220. Still with me at 220.

230 anywhere?

One more? 220 with me. 230?

Nobody interested?

Sorry, not sold.

-I think because the reserve was on there, he has to take that off.

-Yes.

'Despite getting within a whisper of its reserve,

'the clock remains unsold and now the Smiths have a choice -

'to enter it into another sale or take it home.

'But it's not good news for our target though

'as we were counting on the clock making a substantial addition to that party fund.

'When the Victorian chairs failed to get the bidders on their feet...'

£80...

'..they sell for just over half their estimate.

'We're beginning to worry if the crowd

'have spent all their hard-earned cash already.

'Let's hope not as we have one lot still to sell and it's a hidden gem -

'the set of Minton tiles once covered by Gordon and Yvonne's fireplace.'

People now buy these individually and make them into teapot stands.

-That's how I managed to find the exact same ones online.

-Oh, right.

-Yeah, very good. OK...

-So we've got these in at, what, £60 to £100?

Just over a tenner each. Let's see how they get on.

There's a set of 12 of these in the series. There's five of them. Lots of interest again on the internet.

-On the internet.

-Straight in at £100. 100.

£100 with me. 110. 120.

-He started at 100!

-130. 140.

150. 160. 170.

180. 190.

It's in the room at 190. 200. 210. 220.

230. 240.

260. 280...? No.

-270?

-Gosh!

-Unbelievable.

-At the back at 260. 270 anywhere?

-£260!

-270 anywhere?

I will sell at £260...

What do you think of that then, Gordon?

-He's speechless.

-I'm speechless, yeah.

-That was buried behind the wall. You unearthed those.

-That's right.

'Well, how about that? Talk about finishing the day on a high!

'I think that really does make up for the disappointment of the unsold clock.

'I'm wondering just how much we have raised?'

Without the clock, you still have done incredibly well today.

I know £500 is what you're hoping to raise towards your celebrations for your golden wedding anniversary.

I think we heard at the halfway point what you intend to do with some of the money,

but you're probably going to be able to have a really wonderful weekend away with the family

because what you've actually made in total is £938.

-That's all right, innit?

-And that's without the clock?

-That's without the clock.

-It's great, isn't it?

-That's fantastic.

-That's wonderful.

What a great way to celebrate your golden wedding anniversary, a very, very special anniversary!

Thank you very much for your help and your help.

Having recovered from their exciting day, Yvonne and Gordon are at home planning their party.

Well, to be accurate, Yvonne is busy planning the party with her daughter in Lancashire.

Anyway, how are the arrangements going for us to...for the knees-up?

Oh, good. That's great.

So there's a date in the diary and with a full family turnout expected,

how are the couple feeling five decades after tying the knot?

I can't believe it's 50 years.

I think if you can go through the ups and downs of 50 years,

then I think we deserve a knees-up, more than a knees-up.

And the family. It'll be nice to get the family all together because we're all a bit scattered now.

It'll be absolutely fabulous to come together as a family again.

If there's something special you would like to raise money for

and you have things lying around the house you could take to auction,

get in touch with the programme. All our details are on our website.

We look forward to seeing you on Cash In The Attic.

Subtitles by Subtext for Red Bee Media Ltd 2011

Email [email protected]