Exmouth 14 Flog It!

Well, I'm here in Devon on the beach at Exmouth and I've got it all to myself.

It's a wonderful day to take in the sea views, the breathtaking scenery, but this is no holiday.

It's the roller-coaster ride that's "Flog It!".

There's plenty of treasure for our experts to delve into.

-Are you all happy to be beside the seaside?

-Yes!!

And what's that all-important question you're going to ask our experts?

-What's it worth?

-Stay tuned and you'll find out.

'So leading our team of valuers and ready to pounce on the crowd and their items,

'our experts - Christina Trevanion and Will Axon.'

Right, Christina, I've spotted some new people in the crowd...

-No, I'm going first.

-Pregnant women, they get all the advantages!

'Christina will be looking out for silver and jewellery, but she does love a puzzle.'

"How to drink and not to spill? We'll try the upmost of your skill." That's wonderful!

'And Will is looking for quality in items AND their owners.'

-A floral box in a floral bag.

-Yeah.

-Rather nice.

-You can sell me as well.

-Well done...

'People are flooding in to the Exmouth Pavilion

'and we're ready to put on a fantastic seaside show, so coming up...

'We're all in holiday mode. Christina's hungry.'

I could think of something to put in them. Lots of sweeties!

LAUGHTER

'Will is ready for some fizz.'

I think we could get a couple of bottles of bubbly out of this one.

'And I'm enjoying the scenery.'

This is absolutely stunning. It's like a little window into the past.

TOOT-TOOT-TOOT!

'It's time we saw some antiques

'and Mary has brought in a lovely bowl to show Will.'

-Well, Mary...

-Hello.

-Hi, there.

You've brought with you, potentially,

a very early piece of Chinese metalware.

Tell me, has this come to you via China? Have you got any connections with the Far East?

My father bought it in a house sale

at the end of the war, so that would be the end of the '40s.

OK, yes. And it was in a house sale, was it, an auction-type sale?

-Yes.

-Interesting.

-Any ideas what it is, first of all?

-I just know it's a heavy, what looks like, a brass bowl.

-And Chinese.

-Yes. Chinese. That's correct.

-It's not brass.

-Isn't it?

It's bronze. So it's cast in bronze.

So a little bit better quality than if it was cast in brass.

-Any ideas what it would have been used for, originally?

-I don't, actually.

I bet it's been in your house with a plant pot in it, has it?

-Yes, that's right.

-That's invariably how they get used.

Cos they're perfect for that, aren't they? It is, in fact, a censer.

-A Chinese censer.

-Yes.

So they were really used as sort of ceremonial incense burners.

If we spin it upside down... Aw!

And here we've got the impressed, six-character mark,

the Chinese mark, similar to the marks that you see on Chinese porcelain,

in the painted blue marks under the base.

Now this mark here, if it was right,

would mean we were holding a piece of 15th-century, Ming Dynasty bronze-ware,

which we're not.

The marks there purport to be the Xuande mark,

which is sort of 1420-1435, that sort of period.

-So that would be a Ming mark, would it?

-That would be Ming, yes.

But it isn't!

I can tell you that most of the ones that you see of these

that are sort of 19th century have that mark on them, the Xuande mark.

So if I spin it back up and if you look at the inside,

you can see the sort of finish that the bronze would be

without being polished.

You'd see more of that on the outside if it was a period, shall we say, 15th, 16th-century piece.

Before I tell you what I think it's possibly worth, tell me why you're selling it.

-12 years it's been in a cupboard.

-In a cupboard?

-Yes.

We hear it all the time on this show. It's either in a cupboard, under the stairs...

-One downsizes and you have personal things that you like to have on show.

-Yes.

-I think it should be worth around the sort of £300 mark.

-Brilliant.

-Yeah? Does that come as a surprise to you?

-It does. I honestly had no idea.

-No idea?

-No idea.

I'm going to say to you, if we can straddle that £300 mark,

-at sort of a £250-£350 estimate...

-That's fine.

-Then I think probably reserve it at that £250...

-Yes.

I don't think you're going to need any discretion on that. So let's firm that reserve at £250.

I'm hoping it will make a bit more, but if it made 250, would you be happy?

-I'd be delighted.

-That takes the pressure off me a little bit! Mary...

Thank you for bringing the censer in. I'm pretty confident it's going to find a new home.

Thank you.

That's a nice thing.

That's a good way of making the letters show up.

-You know when you clean your glasses, you go... It makes the letters stand out.

-Lovely.

'We'll always try and give you top tips on the show.

'Christina is at her table with three friends of "Flog It!" -

'Derek, Marion and good old Clarice Cliff.'

-So, Marion and Derek, we've got these two bowls here...

-Yes, yes.

-Very different in style, but by the same maker, who is...?

-Clarice Cliff.

-Clarice Cliff.

And where did you get them from? Do they belong to you, Derek, or you, Marion?

-They were my mother's.

-Right.

The great memory I have is that she used to grow hyacinth bulbs in them.

-They'd have hyacinths in them?

-On the windowsill. Lovely.

We've got two very different bowls here.

This one we're going to talk about first. This is a Holborn-shaped bowl.

-And it's what we call the "Gibraltar pattern".

-Yes.

Because, as you can see, we've got the Rock of Gibraltar there,

or what looks like the Rock of Gibraltar,

and these wonderful sailing boats and a nice cloudy landscape and nice, brightly coloured bands.

-They're pretty colours.

-They're very pretty.

What worries me slightly is this blue banding here is slightly scratched,

which might have been done when she was re-potting the hyacinths.

-Yes, I think so.

-So that will affect the value slightly.

A collector won't find it quite as appealing.

It dates from the 1930s. It's Clarice Cliff Bizarre, from the Bizarre range.

So eternally popular with collectors, as you know.

-Unfortunately... Did Mum do that chip?

-Yes!

-Oh, dear!

-I'm sure it wasn't me.

Having said that, it is quite a rare pattern.

Moving on to this one. This is her slightly later work. This is what we call the "Napoli pattern".

This, with the starry background, is really, really lovely.

But it's also on a mushroom glaze.

Slightly later. 1940s, rather than 1930s.

And still really very nice together.

Having said that, I think this is your more valuable one.

-Yeah. Even though it's got a chip in it?

-Yes.

Collectors like the Bizarre, 1930s wares, rather than the slightly later 1940s wares, OK?

I think, to be perfectly honest, we would probably offer them as one lot,

rather than offering them independently.

And I think you're probably looking in the region of about £200-£300 for the two.

-Really?

-Good.

-OK?

So I think we'll put an estimate of 200-300

and a reserve of 200 with some discretion should we need it. How do you feel about that?

-I think that's fine.

-Are you happy with that?

-Yes. Thank you.

-Good.

'It's wonderful to see a variety of objects turning up.

'Over at Will's table, Jean's brought lots of sparkle.'

Well, Jean, welcome to "Flog It!" and, can I say,

when you pulled these out of your bag, the sparkle caught my eye. Are these personal rings?

Are these something that you've decided to sell on your own behalf?

Erm, yes. I inherited them about 30, 35 years ago

-and they've been in a drawer up in the loft I think ever since.

-No!

I don't mind getting rid of them

because the person to whom they belonged I think I met once as a child.

-Right.

-So there's no real...

-Sort of sentimental value.

-Or emotional attachment to them at all.

Let's have a quick look at this first ring here.

Two diamonds. Obviously, they are diamonds.

And a little cut emerald in the middle there

in a sort of white-and-yellow setting.

I think the band is stamped. Yes, it is, so it is on a gold band.

Moving along to this one here,

which is a fairly plain sort of wedding band.

I think 22-carat gold, in this instance, which is quite nice.

-A good purity of gold.

-A gentleman's? A gent's?

Either, or. Either, or. If it fits, wear it.

-This one here with the little sapphires in...

-Yes.

..has got a bit more age than the other ones.

You can tell that by this nice scrollwork mount that the stones are set in.

And, again, on a yellow metal ring. And, lastly, this one here.

If I pick that up. With the little emeralds

interspersed with the diamonds and the centre stone there is a reasonable size.

Now I've weighed the gold band.

That in itself sort of... It's a shame to talk in these ways,

but it does scrap in at about £120 plus, so 120 for that one.

I think these at either end - they're probably going to be worth about 150 each.

-Oh!

-So we're already into sort of 400 plus.

-Yes.

Then I think this one here, you're probably looking at £80-£100.

So we're looking at around that £500 mark.

I would suggest putting them in the auction with an estimate of £400-£600. Straddle that 500 mark.

-You're going to want to reserve these?

-Please, yes.

I'm happy to do that. I'm confident these are going to make above bottom estimate.

-So let's fix the reserve at 400.

-400, yes.

-And I'm sure they are going to find a new home.

-Lovely. Thank you.

-Thanks, Jean.

'Christina has a more traditional antique on her table.'

So, Sheila and Roland.

-But you prefer to be called Bubbles, don't you?

-Yeah.

-That'll do.

OK, so we'll call you Bubbles for today, all right?

You've brought in this rather wonderful Royal Doulton jug,

which is huge.

Who carried it here?

-I did, mostly.

-You carried it, Sheila?

-Yes.

-Bubbles, what were you thinking?

-Eh?

-What were you thinking letting Sheila carry it all this way?

I've got a job to walk meself...

-Aw!

-..with that as well!

-I think you're probably right. Yes!

-Yeah.

-He leaves shopping bags all over the place.

-Oh, does he?

-Yeah.

-So, tell me, where did you get it from?

His mother had it for quite some years, and then, of course,

when she died, we inherited it.

So, how long have you had it?

Since 1974.

OK, now, when you originally had it, did it come with a certificate?

Somewhere or other it got mislaid.

Cos it did originally come with a certificate, they all did, sadly.

It's a Royal Doulton commemorative jug, Dickens commemorative jug,

and it's what they call the Dickens "Master of Smiles and Tears" jug.

And it's wonderful cos it's relief moulded with all these figures

from Dickens literature, and around the top as well

we've got these sort of London scenes

from where the stories took place.

So it really is rather lovely.

And we know who did it because they've signed it.

And we can see at the bottom here it's signed Noke.

-Noke?

-Noke, N-O-K-E.

Now, Charles Noke was a modeler and designer for Royal Doulton

in the early part of the 20th century.

He was one of their sort of quite unique designers.

He was really quite innovative and this was quite unusual for its time,

so it doesn't surprise me that Noke has put his name to it.

If we look at the bottom...it actually tells us all about itself.

Cos we've got this wonderful mark on the bottom here, which says,

"The Dickens jug",

and then the title there, "Master of Smiles and Tears...

"with the magic of his created personality.

"This is jug number 64..."

-Right.

-So it's number 64 from an edition of 1,000.

So it's great that it's actually quite early in the production run.

I think collectors will find that quite appealing.

So, if we tip it back up again... There we go.

I've had a good look over it and it doesn't look as if there's

any kind of chips or cracks,

or any kind of damage, which bearing in mind it's prewar,

is really quite impressive.

So I think it's lovely.

We have had a little look on the internet to see if we can find

any comparable prices for it because obviously, there were 1,000 made.

Through time, obviously, some have been sold in the past.

And they make anywhere in the region of maybe £250-£350,

so I think at auction

that's the sort of figure that we'd be looking at,

is sort of 250-350, with a reserve of 250.

-Are you happy with that?

-Yes, yes.

-Yeah, is that all right?

-Yes, I think so.

Well, let's see if we can find someone who can treasure it

for the next 40, 50 years.

Yeah, yeah.

Well, I'm here in the beautiful Devon countryside,

just outside of Newton Abbot, to meet a woman who has made her career

out of a fusion of art and nature,

and these wonderful equine beauties have been her inspiration.

Heather Jansch has always surrounded herself with horses.

Drawing and painting them frequently.

Although she studied fine art at Goldsmiths College,

she left before finishing, finding her own style back in the paddocks.

I absolutely adore horses,

I have three myself, and there is something so magical about them.

It's not surprising artists throughout history have

found them such a source of inspiration because they want

to harness that beauty, but also the power and all of that energy.

But what makes Heather's work so desirable to me and to many others?

Well, I can tell you,

the answer lies in her sculpture garden and with the artist herself.

-Hi, hello.

-Hello, Paul. Pleased to meet you.

What a fabulous place you've got.

-Thank you.

-It really is.

How did the idea for driftwood sculptures come about?

-Entirely accident.

-Was it?

Absolutely, yes.

My son was then about ten years old

and I'd gone out... without lighting the wood burner.

When I came back, he'd actually lit the wood burner by chopping up

-a piece of ivy that had been lying around in my workshop.

-Yeah.

It was one of those pieces that had grown around the poles,

-it was all twisted.

-Yeah, quite nice, actually.

-And the section that was left behind was about that long.

-Yeah.

The perfect size to fit into a copper wire sculpture that I was working on.

-And that was the eureka moment, absolutely.

-Really?

Yes, I went cold. And I thought, "Oh, where can I get more?"

And then I just knew that it was driftwood.

Do you draw a study or make a small mannequin

so you know exactly how it's going to go?

No, I just take a decision about what sort of...size is it going to be

and what sort of thing is it going to be doing.

-OK.

-And then, really, I draw all the steel,

-so I work with my assistant who does the welding...

-Right.

..with fairly thin pieces of wire,

and I say, "Let's have a bit here and a bit there," so it grows quickly like that.

-So that's the superstructure that carries the weight...

-Yes.

-..and the general framework of all the driftwood?

-That's right.

-D'you give all your horses a name?

-Yes.

-Do you?

-Each horse has to have a name because otherwise

-you can't differentiate between them.

-No.

How many d'you think you've made in your career?

-Of the life-size pieces, I don't suppose it's more than about 25.

-Mm.

-But in general...

-Maximum.

..all the smaller mannequins...

-All the smaller ones, probably not more than 100.

-Oh, really?!

They take quite a long time to make.

-How long was this...

-And there's nobody doing it, only me. It seems!

There's only you doing it.

OK, this would be a one-year-old sort of foal,

-how long would that take?

-I can't actually remember.

-Right.

-Because what happens is

I have probably four or five pieces of different sizes on the go

at the same time, so if I run out of material...

-If it doesn't fit that one it goes onto the next one?

-That's right.

That's a good way of working.

The longest it's taken me, though, is probably three years,

-from start to finish, on one of the very big ones.

-Mm-hm.

-So, 16.2, or something like that.

-Mm.

And I quote a three-year waiting list because that allows me the time

to make sure they're right.

I like to walk past them every day

because once they're gone from here, that's my reputation gone with them.

-So they don't go until I'm sure they're right.

-Mm.

Heather's horses can look very different according to

their location.

She's even experimented with other strong, natural figures...

..including this stag.

-The driftwood pieces have something wilder about them.

-Yeah.

Particularly the heads,

which are more about the relationship between space and wood

in an abstract sense,

-than they are about a literal translation of wood into horse.

-Sure.

Whereas the bigger pieces are much more classical, they...

I mean, you can tell whether they're a thoroughbred or whether they're

-an Arab, or...

-Yeah, anyone that knows horses can, can't they?

-You have an idea. Yeah.

-Yes, I've noticed that walking around.

-D'you want an apprentice?

-Yes, do! THEY LAUGH

Actually, I'd love to be, I'd love to come down here for a week and work on one of these.

-You can have a go in the workshop, if you want.

-Phwooh, yes, please!

-There's a big horse we're halfway through doing.

-Gosh, can I?

-Yeah, we can go and play together in the workshop.

-Come on, then.

-Lovely studio.

-I don't know about lovely, but it suffices.

Oh, no, it is.

What light as well, and I guess the mirror comes in handy

-so you can see sculpture all around, the back view's...

-It's essential.

It's essential, isn't it? The back has got to be...

It's absolutely essential because we can't always get far enough away

to look at it if the weather's inclement.

But when it's like this, I can just walk out of the door

and get a long view on it.

-How can I help? What can I do?

-Well, I'm just...

Section here's missing.

Yes, I'm just about to try and find a way into the neck

and through into the head.

You know, about this long that's got a bit of a twist in it.

That one's quite nice, isn't it? Is that any good?

-It is quite interesting.

-Will that go up there? Not really, I don't know.

-Not quite.

-No, that's no good.

-So, similar.

-OK, what about... Have you tried that one? Is that one...

-Oh, no, we've just had a look at that one.

-It all looks the same, doesn't it?

I bet you pick the same thing up about ten times.

-Actually, I don't, I've got quite a good memory like that.

-Are you good?

Let's have a look.

-Oh, is that the ear?

-Well, look at that.

Hey, look at that!

-That is fabulous, isn't it?

-It will need a bit of shaping.

If you could pass me up a piece of wire...

-Yeah.

-And can you tie it around here?

Yeah.

-Tie it quite tight, twist it round.

-Yeah. Quite therapeutic, isn't it?

-It can be really therapeutic or it can drive you mad.

-Yeah.

Oooh-aaaah! THEY CHUCKLE

And I guess once the final sections are in place

and all the screws are in place,

you take the wire that's visible off?

Yes, all of the wire comes out. We do what we call tacking.

So once I'm fairly sure that a piece is in the right position,

I get my assistant to drill a hole and put a screw in.

When I'm certain of it, the screw comes out and it's recessed

-and then the final thing is to fill it with wood.

-Plugs?

-No, just wood filler.

-Just wood filler.

But mixed with a stone so it's the right colour.

-There's a lot of process that goes on, isn't there?

-Loads.

-It's not like, "Let's just put it together with a bit of driftwood," is it?

-No.

Do you stand back and go... After, let's say, three hours' work,

and you stand back and go,

-"No, it's not right, I'm going to take it off again"?

-Oh, yeah,

-I've been known to completely deconstruct them before now.

-Really?

PAUL CHUCKLES

'Heather loves working within the landscape.

'Where her gardens were once a backdrop for the driftwood horses,

'they're now a sculptural project in their own right,

'and she's let me skip more studio work to go and explore the valley.'

'Heather clearly has green fingers as well as a talent for sculpture -

'this garden is beautiful.'

Walking through the wooded valley of Heather's grounds,

you can see what's inspired her main body of work.

Trees everywhere in their living organic form

that are naturally growing with twists and turn on every branch,

vying for sunlight, competing against their neighbours,

and everywhere you look there's interesting vistas that just

surprise you from out of nowhere.

It is the perfect place for an artist to live and work.

Oh, this is great, I like this.

But look at that canopy of woodland.

Heather's sculptures are absolutely incredible. She's a genius.

Her work encompasses artistic creativity with technical prowess,

passion... patience, and love of horses

because just look what she's created,

and when you see them outside, they belong outdoors

in the landscape, they don't look out of place.

You can view them through all the seasons

and they all look wonderful, and if you turn your back on them

for too long, they might just gallop away.

'We've got our first four items, now we're taking them off to the sale.'

'We're in Exeter at Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood

'for our sale today.'

'Chris Hampton is today's auctioneer on the rostrum,

'so let's kick things off.'

You're probably thinking, "What the Dickens is next?"

Well, I can tell you...

it's that commemorative jug.

We've got the jug, we have our wonderful expert, Christina,

but unfortunately, we do not have our owners.

But hopefully Sheila and Roland will turn up as we're speaking,

but if not, it's going ahead. You can't stop an auction.

-No, you can't.

-That's for sure.

-Yeah.

-We're looking at £250-£350

and it's going under the hammer right now.

Lot 360 is a Royal Doulton Charles Dickens jug... £200.

At £200, at 200.

Where's ten?

-210.

-There's bidding...

-Yes.

220. 230. 240. 250?

All right, 260, new place. 270. 280. 290.

300. 310.

320...

-Well, we're getting the top end of the estimate.

-Yeah, that is good.

360. 370.

380. 390. 400.

£400.

-Oh, Roland would be enjoying this.

-I know, he would, wouldn't he?

410, telephone bid. 420.

We're on the phone now.

-£420.

-Brilliant.

Selling then. Last chance...

-At 420... 430 back here.

-Oh, he's back. He's back.

-440.

-He's keen.

-He is, isn't he?

One more?

-450.

-No, he's out now.

Now, he's still bidding.

-No, he's not.

-470?

No? At £460 ahead then. Selling at £460.

Brilliant.

-What a fabulous result.

-Yeah.

-I just wish they were here, I really do.

-Aw!

Oh, that's a shame, maybe it was just difficult to park,

-I don't know.

-Possibly.

-Or traffic was bad.

-No, there is...

-Nevertheless...

-That's a very buoyant result.

'It's a shame Roland and Sheila missed seeing their jug sell,

'but hang on, look who's arrived a bit too late.'

-But we've sold your jug, haven't we?

-Yeah, we did.

-Christina, come in.

-Hello!

-How much?

-How much do you think?

I don't know, I...

-Come on, come on, top end? Or lower end?

-Top end.

-Top end.

-Lower end.

Whoo! Oh-ho, a split decision there! Well, we actually made £460.

-Oh, my word!

-Is that all right?

Yes, yes!

So it hasn't been too disappointing missing it, but at least...

-Disappointed? Oh, you've knocked 20, 50 years off me!

-Aw!

-CHRISTINA LAUGHS

-Bless you, Roland.

-Aw!

-I love it how you've brought your bag to bring it home in.

-Yeah...

'Fantastic result, and less for Sheila to carry home!'

They're a girl's best friend and they're here,

mounted on four beautiful gold rings.

They belong to Jean. Not for much longer.

We had a valuation and Will put on 400-600.

It has changed because gold prices have literally shot up.

-Keep creeping up, don't they?

-So we're looking now at £500-£700.

-Excellent news.

-Which is good for you, isn't it?

-Indeed it is.

-The longer we wait, the more they go up in value.

-Great!

Don't say that! She'll withdraw them for the next sale.

Anyway, let's find out what the bidders think. This is it.

And this lot,

an 18-carat gold, diamond and emerald five-stone ring.

An emerald and diamond three-stone ring.

A sapphire and diamond seven-stone ring

and a 22-carat gold wedding ring.

All the rings there and £400 is bid.

At £400. At 400. And 20. 450.

At £450.

With me at £450.

Commission bid then at £450. Are you all done?

Selling...

-He's selling.

-At £450.

-That's still OK. It's gone, hasn't it?

-Yes!

-We got excited though.

Obviously, we put the value up...

Well, we had to really. The gold prices went up.

-Nevertheless, it's gone within your estimate.

-I was confident with that, yeah. Good money. Sold.

-Good money?

-Yes, Yes.

-Happy?

-Very, yes. Thank you very much.

'Well, a good result, even though the gold didn't rocket away.

'Derek and Marion's two Clarice Cliff bowls are surely going to be popular with the bidders.'

-£200-£300 and, hopefully, we'll get that top end.

-Hope so.

I mean, the name "Clarice Cliff". She was such a pioneer. That will sell it for you. I hope!

-Yes, yes.

-And two nice patterns, as well.

-Yes.

-Different patterns.

I like the Gibraltar one. That's really, really pretty.

It's in good company. There's plenty of Clarice Cliff here.

So there's something for the collectors. Let's find out what they think.

Clarice Cliff Fantasque pottery bowl in the Gibraltar pattern.

And another in the Napoli pattern.

Lot 420.

And let's start at £150.

At £150.

Where's 160? At £150.

Come on!

At £150 then.

All done? 150.

-Oh!

-Well...

-That's not sold.

I can only say, in ten years of filming "Flog It!"

and the amount of Clarice Cliff on the show, I think only two items prior to this have failed to sell.

-You make me feel so special!

-LAUGHTER

You are in an elite... You are in an elite club.

There are Clarice Cliff collectors out there that will find this, eventually.

There is another day in another saleroom, or just hang on to it.

'Well, that was a surprise.

'Let's hope Mary's fantastic bronze bowl stands its ground.'

Thank you for bringing in such a wonderful thing. I'm talking about that bronze Chinese censer bowl.

-19th century. We're looking at £250-£350. Fixed at 250.

-Yes, that's right.

-Very exciting.

-Yes.

-And you're very calm about all this.

-Yes, I think I am.

I think you should be fairly confident. My only reservation

was that the patina's gone - that nice, mid-brown, mid-green patination.

-But someone's polished that away.

-That nuttiness.

-Exactly.

-You're not to blame for that.

-Let's find out what they think.

I've been waiting for this moment ever since the valuation. This is it! Good luck.

The Chinese bronze circular bowl.

Lot 495.

And let's start at £200. And ten.

220.

230. 240. 250.

At £250.

At £250. And 60 now.

At £250. Do you wish to bid?

-£250 is in the room.

-It's against you on the phone.

£250 I have. Do you wish to bid?

260. It could be a hard afternoon.

£270. On a sort of "yes" or "no" basis, really.

270! 280?

280. 290? 290.

-This is better.

-300.

-It is good, isn't it?

-310.

-If someone shows interest, they all start showing interest.

-They think, "Oh, maybe I've missed something!"

-350?

£350. The bid's in the room.

Now selling at £350. Last chance...

Well done. Hammer's gone down. Top end! It took a while, didn't it?

-Cautious bidders. But there you go. Mary...

-That's good.

-..thank you for bringing that in.

-Thank you.

95?

Well, that concludes our first visit to the auction room here in Exeter today.

We are coming back later in the programme. Don't go away.

While we were filming in the area, I took the opportunity of going back to the coast

and doing some sightseeing with a difference. Take a look at this.

The Devon coast has been popular with holiday-makers for years.

Seaton's quiet charms appealed to holiday-makers

and the arrival of the branch railway line to the town

helped to fetch tourists in droves.

And over the years, cars and coaches opened up the town

to even more new visitors.

So what was on offer to them?

Well, for over 40 years, these trams have been one of Seaton's most popular tourist attractions,

taking the visitors on a gentle little journey of around three miles

to the nearby town of Colyton.

This fleet of trams attracts around 100,000 visitors a year.

But life for Seaton's tramway started out in North London

at an electrical company whose owner was passionate about trams.

Claude Lane had a tramcar constructed at his factory

and ran it during the summers in Rhyl and on the southeast coast.

Looking for a permanent site to run his trams in the mid-1960s,

Claude came across Seaton, which just had its railway line closed.

He brought a three-mile section to Colyton

and in 1969 started the first of 36 return lorry journeys with his assistant,

transporting the whole tram system from Eastbourne to Seaton.

The tramway now has 15 trams in its system,

including a brand-new, very popular, bright pink version.

And the journey normally starts a few hundred yards down the track, that way, in Seaton itself,

which you can see there, look.

But we've been given permission to start outside the depot

with our own private tram and driver, a chap by the name of John.

Along this journey, I'm going to point out some of the historical points of interest

that this beautiful part of Britain has to offer.

And here's John. Hello.

-Hello. Morning. Welcome to my tram.

-Thank you for taking me out today.

As it's such a beautiful day, I'm going to go on the top deck.

-Be my guest.

-OK.

So come aboard with me and let's go sightseeing.

Here we go!

TOOT-TOOT!

This is absolutely stunning. It's like a little window into the past.

England in the 1930s. Time stood still.

That's the River Exe. Now, it was a lot wider than this.

But over the centuries, the shingle beds have shifted.

It's hard to imagine because all that's grazing land now.

But it's got narrower and the shingle beds have literally moved,

blocking part of the mouth of the estuary, closing it up a bit.

A lot of the locals say it was due to a big, historic storm,

but it's safe to say this part of the countryside is on the Jurassic coastline

and it's been subject to many geographical changes over the centuries.

Nevertheless, it's still beautiful.

TOOT-TOOT-TOOT!

TOOT-TOOT-TOOT!

We've stopped here at Axmouth Loop.

This is where we let other trams pass by.

And that's the village of Axmouth over there. Quite a picturesque place, really. Deep in the valley.

It's got an important place in history, because that was a port dating back to Roman times.

It was clearly a very busy place.

That connected to the Fosse Way, the Roman road,

starting near Cirencester through the Cotswolds to Leicestershire.

And it would have been a very busy place. There were 14 inns.

14 pubs in that village! Obviously, there was nothing to do but drink and fight.

You can imagine it. Lots of sailors knocking around

and the odd pirate flexing their muscles along the south coast.

It only stopped being used as a trading port in the late 19th century.

Access to the sea had become limited and there was competition from the railway.

It finally arrived in Seaton in 1868.

And you had the road bridge, which was built connecting Seaton, just over there, in 1877.

And that restricted the height of the larger vessels getting here.

But, thankfully, it's still used as a little port,

but mainly for fishermen and for tourists and for the odd yacht.

TOOT-TOOT-TOOT!

Well, that's it. We can now restart our journey.

We've just stopped - another treat for me - at Black Hole Marsh,

so I can have a look at the bird hide.

This whole area is known as the Exe Estuary wetlands.

It includes Colyford Common and Seaton Marshes.

And it is an absolute haven for wildlife, so you must bring a pair of binoculars.

Otters and roe deer have been spotted here and, of course, you'll find lots of rabbit

and even shy kingfishers have been regularly spotted.

It would be really nice to see one of those today.

Do you know, in my entire life I've only come across three kingfishers in the wild.

So I'm quite excited today. Now, let's have a look.

This is a terrific spot to come and sit if you're a bird-watcher.

And I've been told there's around 30 to 50 species of birds here. This is incredible.

Well, no kingfishers for me today, but let's get back on the tram

and keep moving.

HORN TOOTS

-Hi.

-Hello!

The tram passes through the village of Colyford as its first scheduled stop.

The village is actually a royal borough with its own mayor

and it holds a medieval-style goose fair every year.

-CROSSING ALARM BLARES

-There's enough noise, isn't there?

-TOOT-TOOT-TOOT!

-We're crossing the main road.

There's sirens and all sorts kicking off.

Colyton can be seen as we approach this station.

It's another ancient town and it's a five-minute walk over there.

Success in the wool and the farming industries brought a lot of wealth to this town,

despite it being known as the most rebellious place in Devon.

That's because its residents

took part in the Monmouth Rebellion in 1685.

You can see the ancient church there. Look at that.

Towering above the houses. Oh, that's so beautiful.

It's only one of three lantern churches left in the country,

believed to have been built

in the 14th century to aid sailors as they navigate their way

in and out of the Exe Estuary.

-Thank you so much, John.

-It's been a pleasure.

I thoroughly enjoyed that.

-Nice to see you, m'dear.

-Enjoy the return journey.

Now that is the original railway building which dates back to 1868,

where I'm going to go and have a cup of tea to round off my day.

I must say, although the tramway system here is relatively new to this ancient and historic area,

I think it sits in so comfortably with its surroundings

and I can't think of a better way of travelling

to take in all the wildlife and the sights and the history

of the Exe Valley.

TOOT-TOOT!

'Over in Exmouth, there's hardly anyone on the beach

'because Exmouth Pavilion is packed with people waiting for valuations.'

Will's with Nesta and her...

light bulbs!

These are something that I've never seen before.

What can you tell me about them?

I was given them in the '60s, about '68.

-My husband had a big electrical contract.

-Yes.

They were doing up this mansion that the Americans had lived in in Berkshire.

-Very nice.

-The builders finished.

He got the electrical contract and he went in to get bits like kettles

and irons and toasters.

So he was clearing all the electrical bits out of there?

Yes. He went into the wholesaler's and saw these few in a box.

He said, "Being as you've given me a big contract, you can take two."

Well, listen, I'm amazed they've survived in such good condition.

Let's just hold one up. They are, without doubt, bayonet-fitted light bulbs

with a crown on top.

I've done a bit of research on these

and I suspect these were made for the coronation of George VI in 1937.

Would have been the coronation of Edward VIII, but he abdicated,

so these were produced in 1937 to celebrate the coronation.

So, really, as a pair of glass light bulbs, they've survived well.

-Plus they've been to South Africa and back.

-No!

What are you doing carting these halfway around the world?

-Well, I moved to South Africa in '68.

-Yes.

-And we came back in '79.

-They stayed with me all the time.

-I bet you never unpacked them in South Africa.

-I looked at them.

But they were wrapped up in Christmas paper.

-Have they ever been used?

-No. But they do go, because I tried them this morning.

They still actually work?

-Yes, they actually light up.

-That's amazing, isn't it?

I wish we had a lamp to actually put them on.

I reckon splendid colours would be issued.

They're quite pretty when they're lit up.

This is all hand-painted.

Someone sat there along a conveyor belt, colouring them in.

So, interesting. I did a bit of digging around, looking at past auction records.

-I was quite surprised that they don't make that much money.

-No.

I would suggest that we're looking, for each of them,

a sensible estimate would be £10 or £20 for each.

I'm thinking let's put them in the catalogue with an estimate at £30 to £50.

-You're not going to want them back if they don't sell?

-No.

Let's go no reserve. Shall we live dangerously?

A guaranteed sale. You're not taking them home.

We'll see what they make. I look forward to seeing you again at the auction.

-Thank you very much.

-Thank you.

'And Christina's found a bit of quality in Sue's silver frame.'

Sue, I really, really like this frame. Where's it come from?

It's come from the top drawer of my desk.

THEY LAUGH

My mother gave it to me years and years ago when she was moving house...

-Right.

-..from the south-east to the south-west.

-Right.

As to where it came from, I don't know. So I'd be interested

to know what part of the country it came from or how old.

If we look at the frame, we've got a nice hallmark down here.

We've got a maker's mark of HM,

which is Henry Matthews, who was quite a prolific silversmith in the early 20th century,

did a lot of frames. Obviously, we've got one here.

We've got the town mark for Birmingham.

-So that is where it was hallmarked.

-Birmingham. Right.

-And a date letter for 1904.

-Ah!

So it's 100-and-something years old, which is quite good, really, isn't it?

We've got another hallmark on the inside rim.

So it tells us that these pieces have not been replaced,

-which often you do find.

-OK.

It is in remarkably good condition, but if we look at the back of the frame,

it really looks like it was made yesterday. This velvet is still in such good condition.

It's got a nice flap at the back, which when we lift up,

you can see the inside of the frame with the watered silk lining.

-Is that a watermark or is that the...?

-That's watermarked silk.

-Oh!

-OK, so really very lovely.

In great condition. We've got... We've got some what we call gadrooned

and beaded decoration around the front.

Now this would have been made in a sheet

and then embossed from the back to give these raised areas.

Also what's quite nice is that we've got this nice, vacant cartouche here.

Sometimes you find they've got initials or engravings in.

No initials, so it makes it more appealing for a buyer. They wouldn't have to get it removed.

-I see.

-With regards to an auction estimate...

we're looking at somewhere in the region of maybe £80 to £120.

-How do you feel about that?

-Oh, no. Very pleased.

-Very pleased?

-Yes. That's more than I anticipated.

Wonderful. OK. I think if we put an estimate of 80 to 120

and maybe a reserve of 70 with some slight discretion should we need it.

-Yeah.

-But fingers crossed we won't

-and it'll sail away for you.

-Thank you very much.

-You're more than welcome.

'The sun may not be shining, but I've taken a break outside with Stephanie and her vase.'

-What time did you arrive today?

-I arrived at about 10.30.

-Yeah!

-The queue was still outside by then, wasn't it?

-It was.

It's evaporated now. We're coming to the end of the day. So, how long have you had this?

-Probably about 20 years.

-Really, that long?

-Yeah.

-How did you come by this?

-A little old lady who lived in Burnham,

where I used to live, in Buckinghamshire, gave it to me.

-I used to do a bit of gardening for her, a bit of shopping.

-Right.

She used to do a bit of baby-sitting for me when my children were younger.

She said, "You collect things. Would you like this?" I said, "That's pretty. I'll have it."

-That was sweet of her. Can I have a look?

-Yeah, sure.

-You know what it is, don't you?

-It's a bit of Newlyn copper.

-Yep.

And we've seen plenty of great examples on the show before.

The whole thing was started off, really, by an artist called John Drew Mackenzie.

He felt sorry for the plight of the Cornish fishermen in the last quarter of the 1800s.

With bad weather they couldn't go out fishing. They became very poor.

They started fighting amongst each other, getting drunk, that kind of thing.

So he tried to teach them a skill to do in the winter months

when they couldn't fish, so they could earn some money.

And because they repaired their fishing vessels with copper,

he thought to himself, "Right. They know how to work with copper.

"Let's see if they can fashion pieces of copper

"to make items like this that they could sell."

You can identify Newlyn copper because it's normally full of bubbles and fishes and seaweed.

This is called repousse work.

-So this copper is laid on a wooden mould and hammered...

-Oh!

-..onto that mould.

Repousse work, yeah? It's then bent around into that circle shape and finely soldered together.

It's finished off with a rolled edge, which is typical of Newlyn copper.

And here it's stamped "Newlyn". Now, this is good because it definitely tells us it's Newlyn.

If this wasn't stamped...

this would be a piece from the late 1800s.

They started stamping the pieces in around 1912, 1914, after John Drew Mackenzie died.

So it's not a very early one. If this was a very early one, it would be worth a lot of money.

-I think it's a cylindrical vase. Any idea of value?

-I have no idea of value.

-£300.

-You're joking!

On a good day it will get that.

-I can't believe that.

-Might do a little bit more.

-Wow!

-Do you want to sell this?

-I certainly do.

-Do you really?

-Yes.

-It's lovely! And just as I've said that,

-the sun has come out. You have made my day.

-I think you've made mine!

'It will be hard to top Stephanie's thrilled reaction.

'And we agreed on £200 to £300 as an estimate and a reserve of 200.

'Now, let's see what Will thinks of Lorna's silver pincushion.'

Lorna, you've heard the saying "there's an elephant in the room". There's one in here somewhere.

There he is, look! Tiny little fella on the table in front of us.

Is this something you collect?

No, not a lot. I worked for two old ladies many years ago

and I used to clean it religiously.

-And she said it was mine, eventually.

-Very kind of them.

A little silver elephant pincushion's not bad going.

-I haven't cleaned him since. Except for today.

-You gave him a little dust-off.

That's not too bad with silver. We're telling people all the time, "Don't overpolish your silver!"

You lose the definition on the detail and you also rub the marks.

-Now, the marks on this one have been a little bit rubbed.

-That was before I had it.

-I can make out the maker's mark, Levi and Salaman...

-Right.

-..who were well-known makers.

Assayed in Birmingham. They were known for making little trinkets,

as was a lot of silversmithing around Birmingham.

That's where most hallmarking occurs for small novelty pieces.

The date letter is a little bit obscured, but I would imagine this is going to be an Edwardian one,

so pre-1910.

So of a good age, really. Have you done a bit of research on them?

No, he's just been sitting on my mantelpiece.

-So not used as a pincushion?

-No.

-Which is obviously what he was originally made for.

-Have you ever wondered why he's got his trunk up in the air?

-No!

It's supposedly meant to be good luck, isn't it?

An elephant with his trunk up is good luck, and in small, novelty silver bits like this

it's unusual to find them complete, because it's fragile,

and silver, being a soft metal, it's quite easy to break those trunks off, isn't it?

This is a really good example of a piece of silver that way exceeds its value in what it's made of.

-Right.

-Because if we weighed this little chap, he's not going to weigh a great deal.

He might scrap in at £20, £30, something like that.

What sort of value should we pitch it at the auction?

I haven't a clue what it would fetch, to be honest. I know it's collectable, but I haven't a clue.

-Would you let it go for 100?

-Well, cos it's so tiny...

It's bizarre, isn't it? Something so small can be worth £100.

-Let's put it in at £100 to £150.

-Right.

-What about a reserve?

-Yeah, 100.

-Yeah, 100?

Straight in there. 100. Let's fix it at 100.

-I think so.

-I'm confident he's going to make it.

-What's the money going towards?

-We're going on holiday. So it will go towards some champagne.

-Bubbly on holiday.

-Very nice. Where are you going?

-Spain. Majorca.

-I'm jealous! Spain.

-Half of my homeland! Half Spanish.

-Oh, are you?

-Spent a lot of years in Majorca. Enjoy it.

We could get a couple of bottles of bubbly out of this one.

-I'll see you on the day.

-Thank you.

-Well done.

'Let's get that and our other items wrapped up and sent off to auction.

'And here's a quick reminder of what we're taking.

'Next up, Nesta's crown-shaped novelties.'

Yes! Light bulbs, but with a difference. Made for Edward VIII.

It never happened for him. Made for George VI, really. Nesta, good luck.

No reserve. This is it. And I love these.

Two George VI coronation bayonet-socket light bulbs

in the form of crowns.

There we are. £20 for them?

20. 20 is bid. Thank you.

-£20. At 20.

-And they work.

Novelty items. At £20. And two, if you will.

22.

25. At £25.

Selling them, then, at £25. Last chance.

-Well, they've gone.

-Never mind.

-They've sold.

-We said they weren't going to be worth a fortune.

I had some comparables. I'd never seen them sold before.

I found comparables that had, and they were around that sort of figure.

It's all right. At least it's not on your shoulders if they break. It's someone else's problem.

-Better than being stuck in a drawer.

-Yes, for sure.

We don't want things in drawers. They should be on display for everyone to enjoy.

-Good luck. Thank you for coming in.

-Thank you.

'Will the price of silver today help out our next item?'

In the frame right now, literally, we have Sue with a wonderful silver picture frame.

-We like this.

-It is beautiful...

-It is sweet.

-Yeah, really sweet.

But I want to buy my mother a pair of handmade leather shoes.

I'm hoping to get enough. That would be of more use to my mum.

-OK, OK.

-This is really nice. Ready to go.

It's got everything going for it, so...

The trade will love this and the private buyers and the decorators.

-I'm pretty sure we'll get within estimate and, hopefully, the top end.

-Oh, I hope so.

Fingers crossed for you and your mum. We'll get those shoes!

Lot 240 - an Edward VII silver easel photograph frame.

£80 is bid. At £80. Five.

90.

Five. 100. And five.

-No messing about.

-120. 130.

Oh, Sue!

150. With me.

£150.

-Commission bid, then, and selling at £150.

-Brilliant, brilliant!

-Top price!

-Well done.

-Very good.

-£150!

-Yes.

That's fantastic! That's two pairs of shoes for Mum.

Do you think so? I think it's one, really, for handmade shoes.

-One and a half!

-Maybe a little bit of change.

-I'm absolutely amazed.

-Oh, good.

I hope it goes to a good home as well.

-What's your mum's name?

-Margaret.

-Margaret, enjoy those shoes!

Every time you walk in them think of us.

'What great news for Sue and her mum. And following that result...

'Will Lorna's elephant pincushion bring the good luck it's supposed to?'

Lorna, if we sell this elephant pincushion with its trunk up in the air, as you pointed out...

It could be quite rare. Do you know, all the money's going towards champagne on holiday?

Not the holiday, but the champagne.

If we get that top end, you'll have so much champagne you won't remember that holiday. Will you?

-Is that your favourite tipple?

-I do like champagne. Yes, I do.

-Do you?

-Bubbles, any bubbles.

-Do you like champagne?

-Yeah. Buck's fizz for breakfast. Love it.

-Do you know, it does absolutely nothing for me, champagne.

-Really?

-No, it doesn't.

-I do like it.

-Here it is! It's going under the hammer.

It's an Edwardian silver pincushion in the form of an elephant.

And at £75.

£75.

80. Five. 90. Five.

-100.

-Yes!

£100. Thank you.

And ten. 120.

130. 140. 150.

-160...

-This is good! They're having a little fight over this.

170 is bid.

At £170 and selling. At £170.

-Done it! Good valuation.

-I think that's right.

-Well done.

-Don't say it.

-I was no Dumbo on that valuation, Paul.

He had to say that! That little elephant has helped Lorna pack her trunk to go on holiday.

-How about that?

-Cheers!

-Thank you.

75. 80. 85. 90.

90 seated.

£90. 95? 100. And five.

It's my turn to be the expert, and I found what I think is the best thing of the day at the valuation,

-possibly the best thing in the auction room today.

-Really?

-It is just beautiful.

Every artist would love this. And I'm a big fan of Newlyn copper.

And I think this is quite a rare piece. So £200 to £300 I think is pretty safe.

-Fingers crossed.

-Yeah.

The Newlyn copper case of cylindrical form,

decorated with fish.

£150.

At £150.

Where's 160? 160.

170.

At 170.

Where's 180?

At £170 only. Are you all done, then?

-Come on!

-£170.

-Last chance.

-It's not selling.

At £170.

-He didn't sell it.

-Not sold!

-He didn't sell it.

I'm so sorry. I don't know what to say.

I really, genuinely, am speechless.

I've waxed lyrical about that.

-I don't understand it, but there you go. Hey, I'm pleased we put a £200 reserve on it.

-Are you?

-Yes. I am.

-Good!

-I am! I am, honestly.

-Hang on to it. It's worth that.

-Yeah?

Please hang on to it. Use it, won't you? I don't know what to say.

-But I've thoroughly enjoyed myself here today. I hope you have as well.

-I've had a great time.

We don't normally end on something like this, but that was a bit of a shock, wasn't it?

Not everyone's a winner. Join me again soon for more surprises.

But for now, from Exeter, it's goodbye.