Episode 16 Flog It!

Welcome to Flog It!, the show where you have a bash to make hard cash out of your trash.

We sell unwanted antiques at auction after they're examined by our experts.

If they're right, you could take tea at the Ritz. If wrong, they'll eat humble pie.

There'll be surprises along the way. Later, we'll see how our owners do.

Maybe it'll go home with me.

?160, all finished at...160.

40 we have... What is it, darling? This is the teapot. We're at ?40.

?20, you're all finished at...

No railway enthusiasts today. They're all at the other auction.

?200. Anyone else? ?200, if you're all finished at...220. At 220...

He sells it, his wife gets the money. Isn't it always the way?

65. At ?100, if you're all finished at...100.

That's... ?900! I'm going to faint.

Hungerford is a treasure trove of antique shops.

What have the locals been digging out to bring to the town hall?

They're all hoping to make some money, but that depends on what our experts think.

Philip Serrell runs an auction house in Worcestershire. He loves furniture but has a quirk for wood,

especially small domestic items.

We do buying and selling. You're asking US for valuations?!

Thomas Plant has wanted to be an auctioneer since he was seven.

An original Rembrandt. Worth hundreds of thousands.

So let's see if anyone's willing to sell once they've heard our experts' valuations.

Thomas has already found something right up his street.

So, now, tell me about your lovely lady. We were on holiday in Italy about ten years ago,

and I was walking past this shop... I collect lots of Art Deco things.

I saw this, and it was tucked right down the bottom of this cabinet

and also, at the same time, I bought a doll, and then I saw her and she was absolutely divine.

So you ditched the doll... No, I bought the doll but not this.

I went away and my husband was with me, and then he went off to find the loo "or something".

Then the following Christmas, this is what I unpacked as my Christmas present. Isn't that romantic?

He's very nice like that. A great story. But you don't like it now?

Well, I've gone beyond the... The Deco period. No, I still do Deco but I collect wall pockets.

OK. She's certainly very beautiful. She's really quite a highly decorative figure, certainly.

There's a signature here, on the back, which we've both had a look at and we both can't decide.

It's stamped "Made in Italy" so it's Italian.

It actually looks like it's been hand-moulded, hand-modelled. The skirt has been created. Yes.

She's rather attractive. It's her condescending look I rather like.

She's just letting life pass her by.

She's just looking. She's just thinking. She's rather gorgeous.

That shoulder line is so elegant. That is quite beautiful, certainly.

If I only had a back like that.

I believe, at auction, she should make between ?100 and ?200, and could do a lot more, certainly.

How do you feel about that and are you willing to sell? I AM willing to sell her. She is lovely,

she'll always be a fantastic memory for me, but I'm willing to let her go to somebody that will appreciate her.

My time with her has come to an end.

Brilliant. Now it's OUR time. Yes, and somebody else's. Thank you very much for bringing it. OK.

Brenda, you've brought this along. Yeah. How did you come by this?

I've got auction fever - always at auctions. The sort of person we like.

So I saw this pile of photographs - I'm into photographs at the moment. I like social history.

I bought a pile of photographs and that was one of them. How much did you pay for the pile? ?65, but...

Were they all similar subjects? No, the others weren't as interesting as that.

That really is quite fascinating. It's quite macabre.

It's by Leonard Brightwell of Wellingborough

and, from looking at it, it's the...

probably around the '20s or so. And if we turn this round - I'll have to put me eyes on... Like me!

It's the London, Derby and Manchester Express,

that's what it says there. Yes.

And...just there, it says Midland something or other.

I mean, we think of train disasters as being a recent phenomenon.

You look at this, and they've been happening for the last 80 years.

I said it was Leonard Brightwell. I wonder if this mount was stuck on,

cos you can see the outline of another photograph that was there.

That might have been put on later. As a piece of social history, it's not worth a fortune,

but it might make around ?20 to ?30, and if you put it in with a reserve of ?15, it might stand a chance.

Photography is starting to become quite collectable. Yes.

If you can get 1900 or 1890 pictures of Red Indian tribes and things like that,

or Scott's expedition, you really are talking lots of money,

but I think this stands a chance. Shall we have a go? Super. OK. Yeah.

For an item to stand a chance at auction, it needs to be looked after.

All this gilding has rubbed off, and it really is a problem. It hammers the value.

It's like, ?20, ?30. Yeah, definitely not.

In fact you can see... It's got a hairline crack.

What can you tell me about this? Helen brought it back, I think from Ireland.

I think it's Waterford glass. Yes, it's definitely Waterford cut glass.

It's fantastic. It's a real piece which the glass-cutter was showing off how good he was.

This is almost like a hobnail cut. You can see the difference between this and a piece of moulded glass.

Moulded glass wouldn't feel as sharp as this. It would be quite soft and rounded.

There would be a seam mark through it from the mould. This has been done by hand and it's good quality.

How long have you had it? About ten years.

It's superb. I think the quality of glass is brilliant. The cutting is fantastic.

I suppose it looks good with light on it - reflects round the room.

It's difficult to put a value on something like that. To buy new, I would think it'd be expensive.

I think it was a very good present. As for second-hand, it wouldn't be worth putting through sale, really.

This is one of a pair, OK?

This would date to about 1880 or thereabouts.

These are Kate Greenaway figures. This is gilded ivory and this is painted in. There'd be a pair.

There's the boy and there's a girl, and the pair would probably be worth ?400 to ?600.

And that on its own is worth, I would suggest to you...

..probably between ?150 and ?250.

It's lovely. If you're thinking of selling him, we can use him in the programme for you, if you'd like.

Our experts aren't having much luck persuading owners to part with their antiques. Thomas isn't giving up.

I think this is fantastic. Where does it come from?

My mother's. She bought it when she went to Bournemouth on a holiday.

Brilliant. Bournemouth, Poole, exactly.

On here it's marked "Carter Stabler Adams Ltd, Poole, England".

This mark here dates from 1924.

'24. Yeah, 1924. So the '20s is right.

I don't know if it was one of two... She just bought one. Just the one ship. Lovely glaze.

It's a great bit of Poole. She used to have it on the mantelpiece. It's a great galleon, full ship in sail.

Sometimes we see chargers like this from this date with ships painted on there.

So obviously the maritime history is quite paramount in Poole production.

What was it? Was it just a figure?

It's just decoration, I would have thought, certainly.

The important thing to check - is there damage? Poole is affected by damage.

Being a soft body underneath, it sometimes chips. It seems to be OK.

So for valuation, if you want to sell it... Yes. Yes, you do.

I would have thought, at auction, if we put this in at ?200 to ?300...

Surprised me. ..then see what happens, cos I think it could do quite well. Thank you very much.

This has been a labour of love, polishing this. Not necessarily.

It's been laid under the stairs since I've had it. Really?!

It's only lately I've done it. You just polished it? So I could bring it here. Lot of elbow grease. Well...

It's nice here, cos you can just see "Shand, Mason Co., Fire Engine Makers,

"Upper Grand Street, Blackfriars Road, London."

Are they still about? I wouldn't know! But these lamps can be very collectable.

This is beautifully made with all these lovely lenses here.

If we just open it up, that opens there beautifully, doesn't it? Yes.

Then that lets us pull out the reservoir. The paraffin reservoir.

It really is in top order, isn't it? Yes. I almost wouldn't think it's ever been used. It was black.

The lead work with the sweating on there... What do you mean by "sweating"?

The lead, see where it's soldered? Joined together so it sticks. Almost the seam.

So they've soldered the seam with the lead work to make it waterproof to hold paraffin. So it doesn't leak.

Cos you can see...you can see it on here. And that lifts up as well.

You have to take that out, see? You can see where they've joined this.

A work of art for something intended to be functional.

You can see places there, you can see little drops of it.

Let's see if we can put it back together, while I think of a value.

That just... That just pushes in. ..into there, and that drops down.

In terms of value, I think these lamps are really sought-after, and I wouldn't claim to be an expert,

but I would guess that this might have a value of ?50 to ?80.

I think we could put a reserve on it at auction of about ?40.

If we get two collectors... It is a work of art in its own right.

It's got three things at the back so you can stick it on your belt.

You can do it like that to carry it or you can just carry it on top. Yep.

Makes modern torches look a bit flimsy.

When you come to look at the workmanship in there, and what they've done years ago,

sometimes it makes ours look... We haven't progressed much. We haven't.

I bet it would really glow - the reflecting inside this lens here - it would just be wonderful.

I thought about trying it, but it's a lot of trouble to go through. Get you home from the pub!

I'm sure you don't need a hand to get home from the pub. No. Would you like us to put it in a sale? Yes.

We'll do that, and keep our fingers crossed. Thank you for bringing it.

Let's see which of our items have been selected to go to the auction.

Thomas fell for the Art Deco lady.

Liz's husband bought it as a present but their time together is over.

She's very stylish, very beautiful, and at ?100 to ?200, she could almost make double that.

Brenda's hoping somebody will have auction fever

when her photo comes up for sale.

But will there be anyone interested in the macabre in Marlborough?

I think there'll be collectors for that.

Thomas went overboard on Peter Benbow's Poole ship.

He thinks that with the right buyers, this could do very well.

Bill Ralph's copper railway lamp set Philip alight.

Will it get the price it deserves?

He'd polished it up. I hope that'll do ?60 to ?90.

It should if we get some railway collectors.

By the time of the auction, things have been catalogued, advertised -

it's quite exciting. I hope we'll do all right.

There is nothing more thrilling than seeing your item under the hammer at auction.

We're in historic Marlborough, not far from Hungerford. Our owners' items will soon go up for sale.

Sheldon Cameron, master of ceremonies, has mixed views on our items.

Known to drive a hard bargain, he always has an opinion on items.

Sold it to me at 25. At ?28, the bid is against you, madam. Go on, blow the housekeeping. It's only money.

Does he think that Liz's Italian Art Deco lady will make her some euros?

We're not 100% happy with it. It is very decorative, very flowing lines.

But the base has been added at a later date - part of her skirt overhangs. It's not quite original.

Price on this, I would say, on that, I think maybe between ?60 and ?100.

You don't often see them this good. They're usually dented or damaged,

but this one's in pristine condition. I think ?50 to ?60.

Railway articles - very collectable, very popular.

Unfortunately the photograph's a little macabre,

so I don't think it'll appeal to a mass market. We'll have to see.

Thomas is being paid too much where he is at this moment.

It's a decorative object but it's moulded so it's mass-produced - not in today's terminology,

but it's been made in large numbers and I think ?200 to ?300, if we halved it, we'd still have trouble.

There's a buzz going round the auction room as the sale starts.

The buyers know what it's like to have your lot go under the hammer.

For most of our owners, it's their first time.

Although there's a lot at stake today for our experts' reputation,

there's something more important at stake for our owners. Liz is here.

It's a present from your husband and you're selling it?! I know. Feel at all guilty about that?

No, I think it's time for somebody else to have the pleasure of her company.

Will you buy your husband a gift? I didn't think of that!

You were just going to go shopping anyway! Absolutely!

Thomas, confident with this one? Quite. She's in a prominent position in the room. Everybody's seen her.

So, Liz, I've high hopes for you.

Right, good morning. Welcome to the auction.

Brenda's macabre photo is up first, but will the railway enthusiasts be here today?

Brenda, what made you buy a picture of a train crash? I buy peculiar things, you see. I can tell!

I'm known for it. But a train crash? Confident that this is going to sell well? ..No.

Lot 212 is the Edwardian mounted photograph of the railway disaster.

The Edwardian mounted photograph of the railway disaster. ?20 to ?30?

I think it's collectable. Hopefully someone likes it.

Heart going a little bit? Yes. Could be ?20 or ?30 riding on this.

Going to start with me at ?12.

Do I hear 15 anywhere? Surely it's worth 15 to someone here.

Not much interest. Surely worth ?15.

We'll lend you the money at favourable interest rates. ..?12.

No railway enthusiasts today.

At ?12, we're all finished at...

You'll be taking that home. I can have it back. I'm pleased. Pleased?!

No joy for Brenda. Peter Benbow couldn't make it today, but let's hope his ship comes in for him.

Lot 242 is the Poole pottery book end.

I can't see anyone excited, except us, of course.

Sheldon's doing his best.

Stamped on the back

with the mark, the embossed mark.

I'm going to start with me at 55.

The bid is with me here. At 55, 65,

75, 85. At 85 with me, still.

At 85, do I hear 90 anywhere?

The commission's with me. At 85, do I hear 90?

We're struggling. Haven't got the reserve. As we thought,

we couldn't make that. Perhaps better in a specialist pottery sale.

Next up, Bill's lamp. Will one of our buyers take a shine to it?

Mr Ralph, the owner of our fantastic railway lamp, can't make it today.

Lot 192 is the copper-brass railway worker's oil lamp. Great condition.

Going to start with me at 28. At ?28, the bid is with me.

At ?28, do I hear 30 now?

At 32...35, 38.

At 38 with me. One more might just do it. At 38.

Only ?38 - can't understand that. All finished at...

40, thank you, sir. At ?40 I have with you now. ?40 in the room.

At ?40, if you're all finished at...40.

211, thank you, sir.

Philip, I can't understand that!

I'm disappointed. I thought that should've made more. I'm astonished.

The railway people aren't here today. That's the gamble.

Well, it's a sale, but we haven't done as well for Bill as we'd hoped.

Now all our hopes ride on Liz's Art Deco lady, but she's not confident.

I don't think that today's the day she's going to find a new home.

I think the public will just want to buy her and put her on the mantelpiece.

Lot 262, the Art Deco Italian porcelain figure of a seated lady.

The base has been added at a later date.

Here she goes. Thomas, I think we're on a winner here. Surely to goodness someone will buy this one.

And a commission with me of ?80.

At ?80, the bid is with me. 85, 90, at 90 with me, still.

At ?90, who's going on now?

We've got no-one looking at it. We're sticking again. As we thought.

90. Not today, I'm afraid.

Tell your husband his gift lives for another day.

I am very sorry. I really thought it had a chance at 100 to 200.

Not today. I'll talk to Liz. Maybe it'll go home with me.

A few no-sales - there's a time and a place for everything.

That applies to auctions as well. Our experts will be looking for more items in the valuation room later.

First, I'm popping into town.

Hungerford is no stranger to antiques.

In fact, it has the oldest antique arcade in the country -

over 60 dealers and 39 shops in one square mile, a collector's gold mine.

But if it's barometers you're after, dealer Peter Hunwick is your man.

Peter, what is it about barometers that gives you that passion? What pulls you towards them?

Well, I think for a start it's a useful instrument.

It's not an accurate instrument.

You won't get an accurate indication of what's happening on them,

but it's also a beautiful instrument.

And there are so many hundreds of different barometers - very few are the same, which is nice.

This is a Sheraton inlaid barometer.

You can see it has this very nice, flowing, bulbous shape.

It's got lovely, early Sheraton shell inlays.

All round here, we've got chequered stringing, an added quality.

The actual bezel here is very close to the edge, which is another good sign of an early barometer.

This is by di Pellegrino, about 1785-1790.

But Peter's love of barometers isn't shared by his wife, Tania.

Though I like them visually, I actually hate clocks and barometers,

particularly if people ask me how they work.

Luckily, we had a big burglary, and we had 40 of them stolen!

I tried to ban them, but I didn't succeed. He's cunning, and gradually they've slipped back in.

Luckily, Peter's interest in antiques extends beyond all things meteorological.

Walnut is my passion in furniture. This is a fantastic example here.

What a beautiful piece this is.

I'm glad you said that, because most people would say, "A tallboy - what a mundane piece of furniture."

But this, I think, is rather special.

First of all, the original handles look really super.

It's got canted, reeded sides top and bottom. The colour is brilliant.

And it's nice to see this patination running all the way through.

The other reason I picked this piece out is because of its unusual bonnet drawer,

which was for top hats and things like that. Certainly quite a space.

Indeed. And unusually, the bonnet drawer is in the top half, giving this unusual proportion.

That in itself is rather nice,

because it gets slimmed down top and bottom by this canted, reeded side,

going down to these big clumpy feet,

which gives it a lovely line all the way down.

In the right setting, this would look absolutely fantastic.

If you wanted this tallboy, you'd need nearly the average year's salary. It's a snip at ?18,000!

Back at the town hall,

Philip's on a mission to find something priceless for the auction.

What's your name? Beryl Theakston. A good alcoholic name! Good beer!

Are you related? Yes. Really? So you're a Yorkshire girl? Of course.

Can't you tell? I'm going to Hawes in about two weeks' time. Lovely.

Top part of the world, isn't it? Do you still imbibe? Occasionally!

Do you drink the family tipple? Yes. Black Sheep - good stuff!

It looks after you? Old Peculier, too, in the old days. Why is it called Old Peculier? Oh, darling!

The Peculier was a town council of Masham and was spelt P-e-c-u-l-i-E-r.

It was brewed for those occasions.

I thought it was because it made you old and peculiar! Oh! No? You're peculiar to start with!

You're a star, Beryl! I know. You have two lovely bits of silver here. How long have you owned them?

Oh, about 50 years. This one? And this one? About the same.

You know there's an age difference between the two? I do know, yes.

I've looked up the marks underneath. I know it's old.

Shall we swap places(?) Yes, OK! Is that all right? But if we sell them, I'll get the money! Oh, you beggar!

You are a devil! Got to try! Can you tell me what you know about this?

It belonged to my mother-in-law, and it came down to me.

And I used it for quite a long time, but now I have some nice china pots, which I find easier to keep clean.

So if that's worth anything, I'd like to turn it into cash to help somebody I know who needs money.

How kind. When you reach the end of your life, you have to think what you're doing. You're not at the end!

Well... It's a bachelor's teapot. Why? Because it's small. Yes.

It looks funny, cos its spout is short. Right. What's it made of? Silver. How do we know? Its marks.

Right. Its hallmark is just there. Yes, that's right. That 'f' in the lower-case script

is actually London, 1901. Oh, is it? So this was made in 1901.

And, um... Bashed. Like me, it's a bit battered, showing signs of age.

Darling, you can't tell me anything. I'm 88.

You're looking very well on it. Yes, well.

At auction... It's not the most valuable thing in the world. I know.

I think it would make ?50-?100. Yes. And I think we would need to put a reserve on it of ?40-?50.

Because of its condition... I know. ..It's a bit tired. I know.

Its handle was made in the village by a craftsman. He's done a good job.

This, however, is a different kettle of fish. I do know.

This was made in London in 1717, so it's George I. My God!

There's the initials MC on there. Yes, Croft. Absolutely.

There's also a maker's mark there.

It's got a lovely satyr's mask here and an armorial. Yes.

And it's raised almost like these step-pad feet.

We've got this wonderful handle and it's nice and heavy.

I thought it might be valuable. I think it would make, at auction, between ?300 and ?500. Really?

I think it's a pet. It's sweet.

We ought to put a reserve on it. Do you know what that is? Not really.

A reserve is a price below which we won't sell. The reserve can't be higher than the bottom estimate. No.

So we'll estimate it at ?300 to ?500, and put a reserve on it of about ?250 or ?300,

with some discretion for you. I'm confident that will sell well. Good.

We can have a holiday on that! Come on! Where shall we go?

Mrs Theakston, like many people here, is happy to sell her things.

Not everything here is suitable for a general antiques auction!

Tell me how you came by all of these.

My nan's brother used to work at the BBC. He left them in his will to me.

They've been up in the attic with my dad and my dad passed them on to me.

When did they go into the attic? Probably about 1976... They've never been played with? No.

You never got them out? No. You have no idea of value? No. And you'd like to sell them? Yes.

They're in such fantastic condition, still in their boxes. They haven't been played with.

It's a collector's dream.

They're also extremely highly collectable. Dr Who memorabilia is quite hot property.

Unfortunately, we've got a thing about where's best to sell them.

If we went to put them through a sale in Marlborough,

I don't believe that you're going to get the best possible price.

I think for an estimate, really rough, the figures in boxes are worth ?50 to ?100,

and the big TARDIS, probably, a couple of hundred.

But these ARE rough. For something so specialist,

you really should find a specialist auction house which deals in collectable memorabilia. Right.

Now, experts love to share opinions.

I met a lovely lady with a silver teapot, and a George I silver...

That's quite early, George I. Yeah, 1717.

I saw some Dr Who toys there. How old were you when Dr Who was on?

They said 1976... You were...? One.

Right. You've just made my day(!) It's OK.

Thomas and Philip have to find more items for auction.

Both have come across bumper lots, but will the owners want to sell?

You brought some interesting things. Which is your favourite? Um...

my favourite probably is the fox.

Why? It was Matthew's mum's.

It went through all his brothers and sisters. All well behaved? Well, they all played with it.

I'd have pulled the tail off! What's your favourite? Er...

I like the Mobilgas truck best. I like those. That's my favourite.

This is a lovely old ceremonial truncheon.

It's a Victorian truncheon,

and we can see that from the VR there, which is lovely.

A lot of these get abused as time goes by.

The paint comes off. It wouldn't have been used. It IS ceremonial.

It's out of turned wood. I think it's lovely. MP was probably the owner.

It might have belonged to the chief constable.

I think that's really nice. My view is that that will make, at auction, between ?100 and ?200.

And I'd recommend that you put a reserve on this of ?80. Yeah?

It's certainly in good nick, but which of the other antiques will Rebecca and Matthew want to sell?

While they decide, Thomas faces a similar problem with Maurice.

We bought it at a flea market and it was 45p. 45p?

How long ago? I suppose about ten or 12 years ago.

We've been keeping pot pourri in it for ages and ages.

Worcester bowl. Yeah. Obviously...

With the crescent on the bottom, I wondered whether it was or wasn't.

Well, I believe it is. The only thing which is a little bit strange

is that the foot, here,

is a little bit wobbly. Mm. It's just not completely round. No.

What sort of age?

This is about 1775-1780, so it's quite early. Mm.

We've got the crescent mark of the first-period Worcester. Mm.

The fact is that this might have been a second. Oh, I see.

With this round here. So that will put off the odd collector. For the valuation, I see.

It will dampen down the price a bit.

At auction, it will certainly do better than your 45p! I'd have thought that, yes!

What kind of price do you think? Well, I honestly don't know. If somebody wants it, they'll have it.

I mean, it's nice that one person...

If it was perfect and there wasn't that wobbly foot, I'd have no problem putting ?200 on it.

However, as it DOES have that, and there are others around which are in perfect condition,

I think I'd drop the estimate to ?120 to ?150. Yeah.

Well, for 45 pence... It's a good mark-up! You did very well. Not too bad.

Have you got the box? No. Unfortunately, no. Collectors of these like to see the box as well.

That's where you get the term "mint and boxed". Yeah. They like both.

You have looked after it well.

I think, you know, ?50 to ?60, with a reserve of about the ?40 mark.

Tell me about this item here.

Well, we had two and one got broken.

But I could never understand what they were for - salt, or putting rings in...

OK. They're called cendriers. Cendriers? It's French for ashtray.

They're by Lalique, cos on the base here

it's got "R Lalique, France". It's got the number, so it's a Lalique ashtray, with a bird.

It's slightly off-centre, which is kind of strange, but it's certainly moulded glass.

It's signed on the base.

At auction, they make between ?120 and ?150. Oh.

If you had the pair, possibly...

Well, I've got the other one, but it's in pieces. It's in pieces.

I've got the bird and the name, that's all.

Sometimes these have opalescence inside them. I see. So that would be more.

But again, a very attractive item, I would say.

This is a lovely little caddy spoon. It's hallmarked silver and Georgian.

I haven't got my hallmark book, but I would think early 19th century rather than 18th century.

It's a caddy spoon, for lifting tea out of a caddy. They're collectable.

You get them in different shapes -

bowls in the shape of a jockey's head, or in the form of a spade, or flower head.

So this is bottom end of the range, and I think that will make...

between ?50 and ?60, and I'd put a reserve on it of ?40. Yeah? Yeah.

A lady's compact, retailed to Asprey's.

It's hallmarked to the inside of the compact.

9-carat gold.

And set with stones. I wonder what those stones are.

Don't ask me. Have you ever had it valued?

No, no, no. It's 4? ounce... I don't know.

It's set with five...

what we call brilliants, or eight-cuts.

But I wouldn't really expect anything other than diamonds here,

which I believe they are. And an armorial on here - diamond in the centre.

A crest of a griffin, an axe...

Isn't that wonderful?

Well, certainly it's a very pretty compact.

Yeah, but not many people use them nowadays. That's the problem.

A few people collect them, but not as many as we'd like. They don't seem to make as much as they should.

Yeah, weight-wise. Literally. What people do now is take the weight of the compact, and the diamonds,

and give it a ballpark figure then, from there.

I'd expect it to be in the ?200-?300 bracket, maybe fall between there.

Not much more, not much less. we'd be happy if you want to sell. Yeah.

It's lying in the drawer doing nothing, which is no good.

Philip tried to convince Rebecca and Matthew to auction their items, but they decided to hang onto them.

Thomas seems to have struck gold.

Mr Hefferman has agreed to put all three of his antiques into auction.

But the valuations are quite high, and if the items don't make the reserve price, they won't sell.

Thomas has three antiques in the bag. Philip still has one to find.

Early 18th century.

You've got some damage. They are very fragile things.

So tell me, when did you buy this? About four or five years ago, from a dealer.

A primitive bit of country furniture. That's right. I was told it was Irish.

My shot was going to be Welsh. A Celtic origin. Why did you buy it?

Well, we tried it. It was very comfortable. We tried to get a set,

and we did get three, but we couldn't get any more,

so we decided we'd go back... So now you want to sell it? Time to sell?

That's right. It's a Windsor chair. Do you know why? No.

Well, if you look, you have the seat here.

Everything meets in the seat, OK?

A normal chair might have the legs go back up into the back. Mm-hm.

Whereas here, everything meets in the seat. So it's a Windsor chair.

It retains some original paint.

There's a tendency, with these, to strip all this paint off, and people ruin them.

I'm not quite sure about the age of these bits on the side. They might have been put on later. I think so.

They possibly act as some sort of brace. If we just turn him over...

um...

again, I'm not overly confident that all of these are 100% original.

You have to bear in mind that a chair like this would have sat on a flag floor,

with water being chucked onto the floor, and the first thing to rot away is the legs, whatever it is.

This is a primitive country thing. You'd expect that wear on the legs.

What did you pay for it?

Er...?130. Five years ago? Yes.

It probably was enough, then. Yeah. I think you did pay enough for it.

If you want to put it into an auction, we can do so for you,

but to get your money back after the auctioneer's commission, we've got to put a reserve on it of ?150.

And I'm not 100%-convinced you're going to get your money back.

I think if you get two specialist dealers into primitive country furniture, you stand a chance.

If not, I don't think it'll sell.

So it's really...it's a gamble. Yes.

It's whether it sells or not. We can try if you like. Yes, I think so. We'll have a go for you. OK.

While the experts beaver away,

I'm grabbing a little tranquillity with Hungerford's vicar, Rev Andrew Sawyer.

Welcome on board! Thank you. A glorious morning. Isn't it just?

Andrew tells me he has some priceless 18th-century silver in his church.

How better to go there than the Kennett and Avon canal? This looks like a traditional narrow boat.

It's not quite as old as it looks? No. She looks rather pregnant to be a narrow boat. She's 10' 6" broad.

She's 55-foot long, purpose built for tripping on this canal. Rather nice on a morning like this. Wonderful!

How do you mix your church duties with canal duties? And which do you prefer? Er...! When I joined,

I thought it was a one-day-a-week job, but it turned out to be six. Which do I prefer? Um...both!

I've actually a bit of a nautical background. Can I take the tiller for a little while? Where to?

I'm a trained navigator, I'll be OK. It's all yours. This is great!

Can I not just do this for the rest of the day? By all means!

Welcome to St Lawrence's, the parish church of Hungerford. Thank you.

A remarkable church. This is the third one on the site. The previous one collapsed, in 1812.

The parishioners sent a deputation westwards along the canal - it runs past here - to find one they liked.

They found one. This is a copy of the church at Bathwick. The stone was brought up the canal from Bath.

The windows are just stunning!

This is mid-Victorian glass. They're all rather wonderful picture windows telling a story.

The "three healing miracles".

The leper who pushed through a crowd to our Lord's feet and was healed...

The paralysed man being lowered through the roof...

and Blind Bartimaeus. The story, which is really rather nice, is that when this window was put in,

the vicar was the Rev James Anstis who, for a time, went blind.

When his sight was restored, in thanks, the parishioners bought this window.

"Bartimaeus" is a pictorial representation of James Anstis.

Wonderful! That is the vicar of the time being healed by our Lord.

Well, here we are. We've got a flagon for wine and one for water,

the patten - a stand patten -

and the big chalice.

All dated 1737. You can read it, cos I haven't got my glasses. I'm getting a little ancient for this.

Tell us how they came to be with the church. You read it.

"The gift of Mrs Mary Hungerford, widow of John Hungerford - late of Lincoln's Inn - Esquire, deceased,

"who was lord of this manor of Hungerford in 1737." Then, widows would give large lumps of silver

in memory of husbands and so on. I dunno what this would've cost to have produced, but look at it!

Two flagons that hold two pints at least. That'd take a lot of wine to fill. And this. The kind of thing

that Henry VIII used to empty in one fell swoop before going off to deal with some other young lady!

It's enormous. WE don't need that kind of thing! And the stand patten

with a coat of arms. It holds wafers for LOTS of people. We don't use 'em now. They're kept in a bank safe.

Rather a shame, but what can you do? Could flog it. We could flog it!

At the end of valuation day,

our owners chose which antiques they'll sell, based on valuations given by Philip and Thomas.

Our experts have been working flat-out.

While Philip gathers his strength for the auction, here's a peep at what's going under the gavel.

Mrs Theakston will help a friend in need, if her teapot makes a profit.

Solid silver teapot for ?50-?100? Cracking value!

She'll be up for a glass of Old Peculier if her cream jug does well.

We'll have a holiday on that. Come on! Where to?

A job lot for Thomas. He chose three of Maurice Hefferman's items.

The Worcester bowl... Looking again at the wavy foot rim,

we think it's Cuffley. It's "Worcester". Got the right things but...just might not be Worcester.

He also chose the Lalique glass ashtray

and the 9-carat Asprey's compact.

Quite a good, quality, lovely item.

John Holdstock hopes to make his money back on this Irish "famine" chair. Philip's not so sure.

He polished it up, a real labour of love. If it sells, terrific.

If not, he gets it back, no problem.

We're back in Marlborough for our auction.

Everybody's hoping their items will sell. There's no shortage of interest -

but will they want to buy what we have on offer? Auctioneer Sheldon Cameron knows what buyers here like.

"What price vanity?" I say. Thank you, madam. ?10, I have...

What does he think of our owners' items and our experts' valuations? Are their estimates realistic?

He's not too impressed with the chair.

VERY utilitarian. The stick back, very straight legs to it, swab seat.

I think ?150 is a bit much. 80-120.

A very nice bowl with blue transfer decoration. A sought-after piece.

I'd say between ?100-?140.

Lalique - very collectible. Very nice little ashtray or sweetmeat dish, bonbon dish.

Price-wise, I'd say we're looking for ?80 to ?120.

Asprey, a household name. VERY nice. Compacts are very collectible.

Anything to do with ladies' toiletries is sought after. ?200-?300. Very confident.

The teapot - very decorative, very collectible, very sought-after. ?50-?90

My eyes lit up when this arrived. Very nice indeed. Actually George II. Fantastic weight to it.

The estimate was quite derisory. I think it'll exceed that somewhat.

First up is Mr Hefferman's Lalique ashtray. Maurice couldn't be here.

We're pretty confident with this. You said ?100 to ?150.

Signed underneath? Rene Lalique - "R Lalique". Lovely! Should do well.

Start at ?42. ?42. The bid is to me.

?42...! It's a low start.

42, 45, 48...55

At 65 now? At ?65.

Doesn't look like it'll sell at ?65. Well short.

Short of our reserve. Another one, Thomas, hasn't made it.

Well, it's the first that hasn't.

I'm a bit disappointed. Yeah, I am.

Let's hope Maurice's other items fare better. Now John's Irish chair.

If it doesn't make ?100, it won't sell.

We've got John Holdstock here, owner of the 19th-century

famine chair from Ireland. Are you as nervous as me?

A little apprehensive. Confident? Er, so-so.

Lot 45, a 19th-century Irish famine chair. Being shown at the back.

Lot 45, Irish famine chair. Rather nice. Lot 45.

And the bid is with me. 55...

At 55...65.

70...5.

80...5. 85.

?85, it's a bit low. Yeah.

At ?85, it does seem cheap... We've not quite got the reserve.

90...5.

Against you, sir. At ?95, the bid's against you. One more might do it.

It's stuck.

Not quite the reserve. We put it at ?100. It didn't quite do it.

Disappointed? Never mind. Can't be helped. Philip, "?150 to ?200"?

Not even 100. I said I thought we might struggle.

If you don't try, you don't know.

You have to give it a go - that's what an auction's all about.

Now, will Maurice's Worcester bowl do better than his Lalique ashtray?

Mr Hefferman bought this for 45p. He can't fail to make a profit,

but he is expecting a substantial amount.

Two bids here. Starts with me at 65. At ?65, the bid is with me here. 65.

Do I hear ?70?

We have 70...5. 80...5. ?85 with me.

?85. Any advance? At ?85, seems awfully cheap!

Not much interest being shown. Ceramics buyers just not here today.

Not sold. ?85...

A little too high, maybe, the estimate. But I still feel there weren't the right buyers here.

Maurice had a hunch about today! But there's his Asprey compact to come.

Surely Mrs Theakston's teapot WILL sell?!

Mrs Theakston - excited? Well, yes.

We'll make lots of money for you, I hope. Go on! ..Philip, "?50-?100". That'll do OK.

I'm more optimistic about the jug. If we get a REALLY good result, it could fly to four figures.

Lot 307, an Edwardian, silver bachelor's teapot.

A rather nice one, dated London 1901. Starts with me at ?28. 28...

30, 32. At ?32.

?35? At ?35...

Who's got 40? 40 I have.

40, we have. Excellent. What is it, darling? The teapot. We're at ?40.

At ?40. All finished at...40.

It's sold, but not for as much as we'd hoped. Will it be third time lucky for Maurice's Asprey compact?

..Nice griffin motif...

Some jewellery buyers are here with gold dripping off their fingers.

Start at ?200. The bid is with me here.

STARTED at 200! ..Right on your valuation.

At ?200, the bid is with me... 220.

240. 240 with me, here.

At ?240, if you're all finished.

Yes! ?240. Well done! Right on your valuation. I feel good about that.

At last, Thomas is on the money. Now, can Mrs Theakston's silver cream jug live up to expectations?

Very nice, very, VERY fine quality. Dated London, 1732, by Abraham Buteaux.

Philip has said 300-500. That do you, Mrs T? Fine!

Start the bidding with me at ?200. At ?200, the bid is with me.

?200. Who's going on, now?

220...240...260...280.

300...

320. 340.

360. 380...400.

420, 440. 460...480, 500.

?500! ..520, 550, 580...

God! We'll go to the Ritz! Fantastic.

700, 720, 750...780.

800. 820. 850, 880.

880 on the telephone.

900. At 900. It's against you on the telephone.

?900, we're at. I'm going to faint!

920. It's only money, sir. At 920...

I've a long list of things I want. You can buy a few of them now!

980...

1,000.

1,050. 1,100...

1,150...1,200.

?1,200. I can't believe it! Still going.

1,300...

At ?1,300 on this phone, then.

At 1,300...

1,300.

1,300.

?1,300! Fantastic! Well done!

..That concludes today's sale.

Philip, "300-500". It's done three times that. We knew it all the time. It's to kid them along!

The beauty of an auction is things find their own level. Whatever you have, it'll find its real price -

with a bit of luck! We've certainly had it today. ?1,300! We'll go for a beer.

Theakstons? Of course.

What an amazing finish! But it has been a day of mixed fortunes.

Maurice lost out when two items didn't reach the reserve price, but did well with the compact.

Liz's Art Deco lady failed to sell after all. Back to the mantelpiece.

But the big story of the day is Mrs Theakston's cream jug. An outstanding ?1,300.

A fantastic day at Marlborough - unpredictable and erratic.

Thomas, how do you explain this? Four unsold. I'm disappointed, very disappointed. I feel terrible!

The poor vendors! I just don't know what to say to them. Nor do I. I'm lost for words, so YOU should be.

Liz, were you desperately disappointed about your beautiful lady? Well, I was.

I wanted to buy later in the sale. I believe you spent the money before you made it? I did. Going home poor.

Philip. Two lots sold slightly under your valuations, but one spectacularly over. Absolutely.

It always was a quality thing. The benefit of having it in a saleroom is you can do some research on it,

market it properly, and off it goes. At auction, it finds its level. ..Mrs Theakston, ?1,300!

What'll you spend it on? I'd tell you, but I haven't time now! We can make a list and go shopping!

A fascinating day that proves that valuing antiques is NOT an exact science. It's ALWAYS got surprises.

See you next time on Flog It!

Well done! Right on your valuation! I feel good about that.

Your husband's gift lives another day.

Confident it'll sell well?

..No.

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