Colchester Flog It!

This is Colchester town hall,

our fabulous venue for today. All these wonderful people

have come to ask our experts that all-important question:

"What's it worth?" When they find out, it's off to auction.

Colchester is Britain's oldest recorded town.

It thrived during the 16th century

when large numbers of weavers and cloth-makers from Flanders immigrated to the area.

It became one of the most prosperous wool towns in England

and an area in Colchester is still known as the Dutch Quarter.

Heading our team of experts in this prestigious setting

are the youthful Kate Bateman and David Barby.

Kate is a second-generation auctioneer

who knows how to cherish and care for antiques.

-Don't be horrified that I'm going to spit on your picture!

-Is that for luck?

David is a valuer and consultant who knows what he likes!

-Oh, just look at that!

-Yes, I like it.

Coming up on the show, David tries to do a deal!

-I'll give you a profit. I'll give you six pounds for it!

-No, thank you!

Things don't go too well for me at auction.

Help!

And I get to learn about the creator of a much-loved aristocratic detective.

She loved life and lived it to the full.

What a fantastic turnout we have here.

I think we're in for a good day!

First up, cat-lover David is talking to Vivien about a rather sweet little dog!

Vivien, this is an extraordinary piece to bring along.

It's heavy because it's bronze.

-Did you buy it from an important gallery?

-No, a boot sale!

-A boot sale where?

-Lacock in Wiltshire.

-Where Lacock Abbey was? Is.

-Yes.

-Where they filmed Pride and Prejudice.

-Yes.

Extraordinary. How much did you pay?

Five pounds.

Oh, I don't believe it! I cannot believe anybody would part with this for five pounds!

-Yep.

-What an eye you've got.

This is a lovely, lovely piece of French bronze sculpture.

We have the name of the artist here,

which is Emmanuel Fremiet, at the front here.

What's important about this sculpture

is he was born in the early part of the 19th century

and died just into the 20th, in 1910.

He produced these wonderful small models of animals

up until round about the 1860s.

-Oh.

-This was his speciality and probably dates from around 1855.

But he had that sort of sympathetic quality with animals.

He was able to imbue them with a sympathetic nature.

So if they were sad or affectionate or happy,

he was able to produce it in these small bronzes.

He was very, very popular. They don't come on the market very often.

-Oh. Right.

-So this is a lovely find of yours.

I think at one time or another, some attempt has been made

to maybe polish it?

-No, not me!

-Not you. You're far too sensible!

-I don't know about that!

-In the past I think somebody may have taken a cloth to it.

-Right.

-Because it's got highlights here and there.

-He looks sad.

Melancholy.

A melancholy pooch!

He brings all the sympathetic response when you look at him.

He's almost saying, "No walkies today!"

But I can imagine people holding this

and stroking it and feeling it.

It's very comforting.

The description of the hair by the sculptor is very good.

Has it been in pride of place in your home?

First of all, it acted as a doorstop, then it just sat on the shelf!

Sat on the shelf! Gosh!

I think it's lovely. It's basically a desk ornament.

I can imagine this in a gentleman's study.

Or in a collection of bronze on the shelf.

Why do you want to sell it now?

It's just sat there, doing nothing, so I thought, "Why not bring it along and see what it's all about?"

At auction, I think somebody is going to buy this

because they love bronzes,

or because they like animalia sculptures, dogs in particular.

I think they'll pay between 250 and £400 for it.

-Do you really?!

-I do, indeed.

-Ooh, lovely!

-Are you happy with that sort of money?

-Definitely!

-Portugal, here I come!

-I'll give you a profit. I'll give you six pounds for it!

No, thank you!

Great. Our first item found. What a wonderful find for five pounds.

No hang-dog expressions there!

It's me, next, with a bit of a thirst for a bargain.

-All we need, Lena, are two glasses and we're well away!

-I know.

But would one want to drink that, though, it's so old?

You might.

-You pay your money and you take your chance, with a vintage wine.

-Yes.

-1928.

-It is some vintage, 1928. How did you come by it?

I found it in the cellar of a house I bought.

-A proper wine cellar, or just under the stairs?

-Just a cellar with coal and stuff.

-This was down with the coal?

-There were loads of bottles down there.

-Loads of them?! All of this?

-Yes.

-Have you still got them?

-No, I only took one.

-You've just got the one?

-Yes.

-OK.

I did some research, looked on the internet,

and I put this name in. It's from the Gironde region of southern France.

If you look on the cork, you can see the name.

Chateau Yquem.

And an amber-coloured

1928 wine is renowned for its complexity,

its sweetness and it's very drinkable after two decades of laying down.

But if laid down in the right conditions, it's still drinkable after a century!

-Ooh, my goodness!

-After 100 years!

-Oh, dear.

-You wouldn't want to try it, though, would you?

I won't be around, I suppose!

It hasn't had its seal broken, can you see?

Wine is a fantastic investment.

People make millions from investing in wine.

You're buying it at a young age and selling it six years later

but you don't take your money out, you just keep reinvesting in earlier wines.

-Have you any idea what that's worth?

-No idea at all.

I looked up this same chateau,

the same year, same vintage,

and I saw an amber-coloured liquid like that,

known for its sweetness, its high acidity.

Which it loses after a while.

After a while - that's after two decades! - it balances out.

It fetched quite a good price in auction.

One sold recently, in America...

..for 12,000!

Not wine you can't drink!

Maybe we could say speculatively,

we might get 400 to £500 for this in auction.

Really?

If I'm right. I could be wrong.

I could be going bonkers, absolutely staggering.

-You can only drink it once, can't you?

-Exactly.

Once it's open, once the cork's pulled,

-it's lost its value completely.

-Yes.

-You wouldn't want to drink it.

-Is this something you're thinking of selling?

-Well, yes! I am now!

-Stupid question!

-I wasn't when I came here, but I am now.

You took that out 30 years ago and kept it where, in your kitchen?

Yes.

Good on you, Lena, for hanging on to this for 30 years

-and not being tempted to drink it.

-I sound like an eccentric!

You're an old magpie, aren't you?

-So, I hang on to a bottle of wine!

-30 years you've hung on to that!

-Can we take a chance?

-Yes.

-Will you trust me?

-Of course!

We'll put it into auction and let the auctioneer do more research.

-See what he comes up with.

-A lovely idea.

-OK?

-Yes.

-I'll see you at the auction room.

-Yes.

And we'll put 400 to £600 on this bottle of wine.

It might be worth a bit more.

It might not be worth anything. You might break it on the way to the...

We'd better not break it!

I'll drink to that!

Now, Kate's hoping to make the headlines with Terry!

Hello. You've brought in two quite strange items. Tell me about them.

They're two wooden printing blocks.

They were used for printing the posters for The Times.

-The Times newspaper?

-The Times newspaper.

How have you ended up with these?

I worked for the Sunday Observer, which used to print on a Saturday.

-Right.

-From Sunday to Friday, The Times was printed

-at the old Printing House Square.

-Right.

-Outside Blackfriars station.

Then they moved from Printing House Square to Gray's Inn Road.

-Yes.

-When they were clearing all the bits and pieces out,

I managed to rescue them from the bin!

-Which I thought was...

-They threw them out?

-There were bins full of...

-Is this because old-school printing was dying out

and being done on computers?

It could have simply because they were moving and the printing presses were never going to be used again.

Everybody was just leaving.

You picked them up and thought you'd have a bit of history?

No, I actually picked up a piece of wood! I saw it round that way.

I thought, "What a nice piece of wood. I'll have that."

When I turned it over from out the skip, or out the bin,

I saw "The Times." I looked further down and The Times was on there again.

What's nice is the fact you have the different type faces.

This is Times New Roman, and this is quite a Gothic script.

It's great fun. It's not something we get to value every day because they don't turn up.

They're quite rare, but there's a limited number of people that will want them.

So you pulled them out of a bin. Where have they been since then?

They've been in my loft. In the loft.

Out of the bin into the loft! How long ago was that?

-Nearly 30 years, I suppose.

-Quite a long time.

They've been gathering dust, so we thought we'd come to Flog It and flog 'em!

Come to Flog It and flog it.

As a decorator's piece, they're quite quirky. I can see them on a wall in a swanky London pad.

So in terms of value, they're quite hard to put a figure on. They don't come up at auction often.

Only a limited number of people will like them, but they're quirky and somebody will love them.

So I think an estimate, really low estimate at 20 to £30, something like that.

-Yes.

-Just to see what happens.

-OK.

Put a reserve on of maybe £10, to cover the charges for the sale room

so you're not out of pocket. Are you happy with that?

-Yes, thank you very much.

-They didn't cost you anything, so anything's a profit.

-Let's see how they do at the sale.

-Thank you.

What unusual things.

And how evocative of the hot metal age!

That's our first selection of items. Here's a reminder of what we're taking to auction.

This lovely dog was bought for a fiver

at a country car boot sale.

Never happens to me! I'd have loved this!

I know about wines if they cost six, eight pounds from a supermarket, but I don't know about vintage wines.

So I hope it does well.

Interior designers would like these. I've put 20 to £30 on them,

but I think they'll do well. Let's hope the times are a'changin'!

We're taking our items to sell in Colchester. Don't forget there's commission to pay.

Here I am, in a jam-packed auction room feeling really nervous

because our job is only half done.

We put those valuations on back at the valuation day

and now it's time to put them to the test.

I'm, frankly, really worried about my bottle of wine.

Before the sale, I had a chance to talk to auctioneer James Grinter

about another one of our lots.

This poor little doggy belongs to Vivien.

She got this at a car boot sale in Lacock, near where I live,

-down in Wiltshire.

-Having a clear-out, Paul?

-A clear-out, yes!

This is one I made earlier!

David said it's a lovely little desk bronze.

-It's signed. He says circa 1850, 1860.

-Right.

-Bought for a fiver!

-Well, that was a good buy, but in my opinion,

it's far more modern that that. I think it's a re-strike.

-When you say re-strike, you mean from the original mould?

-Yes.

The quality of it just is not there.

This is by Fremiet, who's a really good animalistic bronze sculptor.

-You'd expect clearer definition?

-Much better.

-David's entered this in the sale

with a valuation of 250 to £400, with a reserve at 200. So where do we go?

Sadly, because I don't think it's quite as old as he does,

-I don't think it'll fetch that money.

-OK.

What do you print in the catalogue?

-We've called it 20th century.

-OK.

-It's 20th century. It is bronze.

-It is bronze.

-It is hopefully still French!

-Possibly!

-It's a second casting, basically.

-So it's still made from the original cast.

-But maybe that cast was at the end of its life.

-Exactly.

-So it's by "as found", then.

-Indeed. And hopefully,

if two private people fall for it, it could still make your estimate.

It's still a nice bronze, at the end of the day.

-You never know. It could still go.

-Fingers crossed. It's a nice thing.

For dog-lovers. There's lots out there, hundreds!

We'll see how Vivien's cast dog does right now as it's first to go under the hammer.

-I know we've got a £200 reserve, but you two have had a chat.

-Yes.

You're going to drop the reserve down to what, £100?

-Yeah.

-£100.

-£100.

It's still a jolly good profit on what you paid for it!

Hopefully, it'll sell. Never know, it might still sell at 200 to 250.

-I have my fingers crossed.

-Good luck. Got yours crossed?

Here we go.

Number 911 is the French bronze model of the seated dog.

Impressed Fremiet. The dog there. A handsome beast. What do you say?

I have two commissions. Start the bidding with me at £90.

Straight in now at 90.

£90 with me. 95. 100.

110. 120. 130 with you, sir.

130 is bid now. At 130.

130 is bid. 140, anywhere?

£130 is bid.

All done at 130.

That's OK. I call that a good profit on what was it, a pound?

-No, five pounds.

-Five pounds.

-They said very thoughtful.

-Exactly.

Too heavy to carry home!

I think Vivien was happy with that.

It was still a good investment.

Next, it's Terry and his Times' printing blocks.

-Excited? It's not a lot of money, but tell you what, a cracking piece of wood.

-Really quirky.

-Decorator's piece.

-Polished up.

-Let's hope they go well.

-Hopefully, they'll fetch a bit more.

-More than they were in the loft!

-You pulled them out of a skip.

-Good luck. It's recycling, anyway.

-Yes.

Number 981 is the two wooden The Times printing blocks.

£10 for these? £10 to start them.

£10 I have. £10 bid now. At ten.

£10 for these now. At ten. 12. 14.

16.

We're going to get that £20.

18. 20.

At £20, the lady's bid now at 20. £20 bid down here now. At 20.

Any advance? All done at £20.

Good result. That's what you said. A quirky bit of memorabilia.

We've never sold anything like that before, so that was fun.

-Unique.

-It is unique. And hard to put a price on.

-Somebody will enjoy that. Polish them up and it's a nice bit of treen.

-Hang them on the wall.

Another good result. Next, it's my turn and I hope I'm just as lucky!

So far, so good. We're having a fabulous time

and everything is selling.

But it could all go wrong now.

It's my turn to be the expert and next is Lena's bottle of wine.

Sadly she can't be with us today, she's not feeling well.

Hopefully you'll enjoy this, or not!

There's no reserve on this. I'm looking for 400 to 500, maybe £600.

It's dated, stamped, on the cork, it's completely sealed.

1928. Fingers crossed there's some wine dealers here!

It's sold in the past for that sort of money.

Let's see what it does. Here we go. I'm pretty nervous about this.

Lot 871 is the bottle of vintage Chateau Yquem. 1928.

What do you say to start me? £200 to start me?

£200 to start me somewhere for it?

£200 somewhere?

Oh, help!

£100 to start me?

£100 for it somewhere.

No interest?

No interest at all? Sorry, ladies and gentlemen, that lot is unsold.

Oh, well. Lena, I'm ever so sorry.

I'm pleased you didn't waste your time coming today! Get well soon!

Oh, dear. That wasn't great, was it?

Lena could do well if she takes her wine to a specialist auction sale.

It's a mystery to me why it didn't sell.

Perhaps we need to do a little detective work. In which case, I know just the man!

Lord Peter Wimsey, the aristocratic detective,

is a character loved by millions on film and in print.

He was the creation of a fascinating authoress who, for 30 years,

lived here in this house in the village of Witham, just outside Colchester.

Dorothy Sayers, or Dorothy L. Sayers,

as she was known professionally, was a renowned crime writer, poet,

playwright, theological essayist and translator.

But Lord Wimsey was the character who brought her mass appeal.

Dorothy wrote 11 Lord Peter Wimsey novels

plus numerous short stories, all evoking the Edwardian age.

They were all exciting and thrilling, but even they couldn't match the drama

of her own private life.

Dorothy was born in 1893 in Oxford,

where her father was the chaplain of Christchurch and headmaster of the Choir School.

In 1912, she won a scholarship to Somerville College, Oxford, and received First Class Honours.

At the time, women weren't awarded degrees, but a few years later, when the rules were changed,

she was one of the first women to receive a degree and she graduated with an MA.

A feisty, spirited young lady,

she went to work as a copywriter for an advertising agency in London.

She was very good and was behind the Guinness Toucan campaign - incredibly successful -

and she's also credited with coming up with the phrase, "It pays to advertise!"

While at the ad agency, she wrote her first novel

and Lord Peter Wimsey was born.

This upper-class amateur sleuth became an instant hit

and brought Dorothy international fame.

Here in Witham village library

is a centre set up by the Dorothy L. Sayers Society.

I'm going to meet one of its members to find out who Dorothy really was!

Shona Ford, who lives in Witham, isn't just a fan of Dorothy's work.

Her family also got to know the writer in her later years.

Shona, why did you get interested in Dorothy?

-This was because of my father, who was her doctor.

-The GP?

-Yes.

It was after Mac, her husband, died. Mac was a difficult man.

-But she missed him.

-Hmm.

-And she wasn't going to go out and gather people in.

She didn't want that. But of course, in my father,

she had the ideal person to invite round.

Dorothy would ring up my mother during the evening and say, "I wonder if the doctor could call in?"

-My mother knew never to ask...

-..what was the problem!

There would be a bottle of Amontillado sherry

-and a box of 100 cigarettes!

-Gosh!

And they would sit and talk.

-They had...

-Good fun.

-They had good fun, yes.

She loved life and lived it to the full.

But she made some big mistakes.

Things didn't work out quite as she had hoped with the men she fell deeply in love with.

Did that spirit of hers get her into trouble? It must have done.

Well, yes.

Because she got pregnant and he was a married car salesman.

And, in fact, she had the child secretly

-down in the country with the help of his wife.

-What happened?

She got her cousin, Ivy, to foster the child.

-Can you imagine now...

-Well, that's scandal, I guess, back then.

But nobody knew. Her parents didn't know.

She paid for his fostering.

-She sent him to school.

-Did he ever find out?

Gradually he got to know. I think when he went to boarding school,

I think that Dorothy felt it was important that he should know.

And he was very proud of his mother.

And he went to Oxford, to Balliol,

where Lord Peter Wimsey, her famous detective, also went!

What was her relationship with Lord Peter? Did she like him?

Lord Peter was, for her, an ideal.

-Yes.

-Based on someone she knew at Oxford.

-Bits of other people...

-All the elements of people put in.

A man of tremendous... Of great skills, of taste,

he was always going off to auction!

-To buy the odd rare manuscript.

-A man of taste, you see!

A man of taste!

-He was everything that...

-A superhero.

-Absolutely.

But the trouble is, when you invent a character like that,

they do rather take over.

I think there came a point

where she just felt, "Enough is enough."

That's when she was getting involved with the religious drama.

What happened in her final years?

After Mac, her husband, died,

she was working on her great translation of Dante.

And that, to her, was a wonderful intellectual exercise.

-That was the academic coming out again.

-Yes, absolutely the academic side of her.

-She lived for her work, really.

-Absolutely.

-And her cats. She liked cats.

-She loved her cats!

-Bonkers about cats!

There was once a young woman who took service for the bishop's wife.

Now, the bishop's wife, feeling a certain responsibility in the matter,

suggested that she might like to attend a class for instruction in Christian doctrine.

So she went, and came back full of enthusiasm.

She said, "The clergyman explained all about the Holy Spirit.

"I was so glad to know what it meant.

"I always thought it was something you put into lamps."

Thanks to my friend, the bishop's wife, this young woman has been preserved

from thinking that Christians worship a trinity of Father, Son and Methylated Spirit!

I remember the Peter Wimsey TV series that was on during the '70s

where you'd gather round the telly, a proper family event, trying to solve the mysteries.

But having found out more about this fascinating lady,

I wish I could have met her. She's got a lot more going for her than any of the characters!

Wouldn't it have been great to have a sherry with her, talking about cats!

Our valuation day is at the town hall in Colchester.

David's chatting to Eileen about a nice painting.

I like this particular scene

because it reflects Norfolk.

You have these fishing ketches here

which are so typical of the Norfolk scene.

They'd be sent out to catch herrings

and this one is in full jib, heading towards the harbour here.

Where did you get it from?

-I inherited it from my in-laws.

-Right.

I know they purchased it in the London area,

they lived in Wimbledon at the time,

but I know nothing more about it.

Well, on the back is a label from a picture framers at Sydenham.

If you think in terms of the time,

this was painted probably latter part of the 19th into the 20th century.

Norfolk area was very popular with Londoners to holiday.

-Yes.

-They'd take their sketching pads and their walking boots

and it was fairly flat country.

I think this may have been one of these artists that went to the Norfolk area

and painted this scene. I like to explore pictures.

This one leads to an exploration of the picture, does it not,

when you look at these figures going to a point in the background.

We've got this wonderful perspective. When you look at the quality of the picture,

it's very good perspective in that direction and down here.

It meets round about that section. Everything's in perspective up to that particular point.

Then you look at little details here, like the lobster pots

and the timbers leaning against the wall.

And the shadow and the actual glazing bars.

Then we've got fishermen in the typical striped smocks.

Do you think this might be a smoking house or maybe for drying nets?

-Yes.

-Probably for drying nets because there's no chimney.

This is a well painted scene.

The artist is E. Lewis.

It's either Edmund or Edward Lewis.

Not an artist recorded for selling large amounts of work

either in the sale rooms over the last 20 years.

So this one here,

he may have painted it for his own use, his own ability,

his own holiday memories,

rather than put it onto a commercial level.

I think it's nice. I think the price is 50 to £80.

Not an awful lot, when you consider you have to pay more for a print!

-Yes!

-But this has got so much detail.

This here, Eileen, is the problem.

This is either fading paintwork or it's some blemish coming through.

But skilful restoration could get rid of that.

So overall, I think it's a very handsome picture that needs a little bit of work

Have you ever had it hanging at home?

-No, only for a very short period.

-Right.

-You don't like it?

-Yes, actually,

I think it's a very easy to live with picture. A peaceful picture.

-So why are you selling it?

-Because I now have so much in my house,

-I really must downsize!

-Right.

You're making a sacrifice.

-Don't expect grand results.

-No.

But at least you're getting rid of something in the right manner

and it'll achieve the best possible price.

-Someone else will appreciate it.

-Someone will fall in love with it.

I like it because I explore the pictures.

Next up, Doreen is talking to small and beautiful Kate Bateman.

What's she talking about?

You have brought something small and beautiful today. Tell me about it.

I bought it at a table sale in my town and I paid a pound for it.

-A pound?! Was this 50 years ago?

-No, about four or five years ago.

-Do you know what it is you bought?

-No.

-You saw it and thought it's a nice vase.

-Yes.

-I thought it was pretty.

-Did you know it's hand-painted, who it's by?

-No.

-Just thought it was pretty.

That's the reason why you should buy it in the first place.

This is absolutely fantastic. Let's have a closer look.

What we've got is quite a strange shape, a diagonal-shaped vase.

On it, we have this fantastic hand-painted decoration

of flags or irises and in here it's etched. The background is very pale and frosted.

The more you look, the more you see.

And here, this is the magic words, "Daum, Nancy."

-What do you know about Daum? Anything?

-No, not at all.

A French factory. Turn of the century. So this is Art Nouveau,

1900, 1910, something like that.

It's a really attractive piece. There are loads of collectors for this.

-You're not a glass collector?

-No.

-You saw it and liked it.

-Yes.

-OK. You've brought it to Flog It. It looks fantastic condition.

There's a tiny chip, here on the corner,

but other than that, it's really good. No cracks, no chips.

They got the background with an acid etching, that's how it's frosted.

Then they cut away to get the coloured bits, then hand painted over the top of that.

It's quite a complex design.

The whole glass is etched pate, pate-sur-pate so you've got a different mottled effect as well.

So quite a complicated series of ways to produce it.

Price-wise, it's a lot more than your pound!

At auction, for this kind of size, I would think maybe 300 to £400.

You're surprised by that? Are you happy to sell it at that figure?

-Yes.

-You'd part with it? Make a 300% increase in your spend.

How about a reserve of 250, and put the estimate at 300 to £400.

Fingers crossed, it'll go better on the day.

This is a fantastic piece, a great buy.

I wish you'd bought more at that sale, fantastic stuff you didn't buy!

-Thanks for bringing it in. You've made my day.

-Thank you.

What a super piece of glass! That could do well.

Now, Jane has brought in a pretty pot to show David.

I'm fascinated by this particular piece.

I want to know whether in fact, do you still use it?

And why are you bringing it along today?

I bought it from a charity shop.

Its use, I'm not quite sure. I think it's for pot-pourri.

Absolutely correct.

I brought it along to Flog It so I could treat my grandchildren.

How very, very nice. Was it in danger at home as a result of grandchildren?

They don't live with me, but I have a cat

and as I think it's beautiful, I didn't want anything to happen to it.

-You're passing it on. How much did you pay for it?

-Five pounds.

-I can't believe it!

-Five pounds.

-Five pounds from a charity shop.

-Yes.

What a marvellous buy! I think it's Worcester, but it has no marks whatsoever.

But the paste, the consistency of the porcelain,

would lead me to think it is probably from the Worcester factories.

Not necessarily Royal Worcester,

but there were other concerns at Worcester,

such as Grainger & Company, and Chamberlain, but I think this is Grainger & Company.

So this has a wonderful practical use.

So if we take the lid off, that would be filled with lavender

and you have all these pierced sections here.

Put the lid back on and let the odour float round the house!

It's a lovely little piece.

But just to emphasise the fact that it was intended for pot-pourri,

we have decorated all the way round the lid

these wonderful hand-painted wild flowers

of sedges, juniper berries, forget-me-nots,

and we've got a lovely decoration of violets and other flowers here.

All hand-painted.

We actually call this Parian ware

because it resembles the marble from the Isle of Paros.

This one is classical shape

so we've got a classical urn on three paw feet on a raised plinth.

It's the most attractive piece of porcelain.

Porcelain collectors, for them, it's a little bit too late.

18th century is the porcelain to collect at the present moment.

But I think this will come back into vogue. I like the shape. It's so simple.

And the fact it has a practical use and pot-pourri today is very fashionable.

I couldn't think of anything better than putting pot-pourri or lavender in this

and let the perfume go through.

Marvellous in a bedroom, wonderful in a bathroom.

So it's a very attractive piece.

My idea of price. How much did you pay for this?

-Five pounds.

-Five pounds. Add a nought on and I think that's what you'll get. £50.

The auctioneers may put 60 to 80 as the guide.

-If you get £50, what'll you do?

-Treat the grandchildren!

-Thank you for bringing it in.

-OK. Lovely. Thank you.

So that's our final item found to take off to auction.

Here we are, back at Reeman Dansie auction rooms for our second sale.

The first half wasn't exactly plain sailing, but we got there in the end!

Stay tuned for more surprises because this next batch could fly away.

I'm going to catch up with our owners who are feeling nervous,

and leave you with a run-down of all the items we're selling.

It never ceases to amaze me how much people will pay for prints.

Here they can purchase, at very little cost,

an original work of art.

Maureen got an absolute steal when she bought this classic piece of Art Nouveau for £1 at a recent sale.

I think this is fantastic.

I wonder if we'll have the sweet smell of success at auction?

I hope so, for Jane's sake.

'Before the sale, auctioneer James and I had a quick chat about Doreen's glass vase.'

Doreen got this at a garage sale. A bit of Daum Nancy.

In a garage sale for next to nothing!

-Fantastic.

-A couple of pounds, maybe even a pound.

We've got a value of 300 to £400 on this.

I could say that's a very fair estimate on it, Paul.

-It's lovely quality, isn't it?

-Yes.

This wonderful cameo glass. It's in good condition.

One or two minor nibbles on it.

But nothing to worry you. Yes, I think it'll sell well.

The one we sold in Canterbury sold for around £600.

It was in mint condition. I don't understand - why is it so expensive

and why so highly sought-after?

It's just the quality of them, Paul. They're so stylish as well.

It's the process of all these layers of glass being put together.

So you get this wonderful, almost three-dimensional, effect

-with the background decoration.

-There's a lot of depth.

Then this raised bit on the outside.

And the wonderful colours. They are wonderful quality bits of art glass.

People appreciate them and always have.

-I guess there's not that many around.

-They are scarce.

A very good factory. Late 19th-, early 20th-century manufacturer.

-So we'll hit the top end of our estimate?

-I hope so.

Yes, I really do.

There's a smile on your face. You don't give much away, but that says it all!

We'll see how the vase does a bit later. But first up, Eileen's watercolour.

Next, something for you fine art lovers.

A watercolour, a Norfolk scene, late 19th-century, by Mr E. Lewis.

-Possibly is Edward, isn't it?

-Or Edmund.

-Edmund.

Anyway, Eileen, it's yours for the time being.

But I have a feeling this is going to go. Not a lot of money on it, but why are you selling it?

I've inherited a lot recently, and I've got to have a clear-out.

I think this is a great way of investing in a piece of original signed art.

-Rather than buying a print.

-Exactly.

-Buy yourself a lovely watercolour.

-Affordable ones.

-Where better than at auction?

Number 1019 now is the E. Lewis Victorian watercolour.

The harbour view. What do you say?

£50 to start me. £50 to start me. 50?

40, then? 40 is bid on there. At 40.

-£40 bid. 42. 44.

-That's very good.

-Excellent.

46. 48.

50. At £50 at the back now. At 50. £50 is bid.

55? £50 is bid at the back of the room. All done?

At £50.

Yes, it's just gone on the reserve. Just got it away.

-Yes.

-Are you happy with that?

Yes, I'm quite happy with that.

Thank you for coming in. Without you, we wouldn't have a show!

We'd love to see you. If you have any unwanted antiques, bring them along.

Details of up-and-coming dates and venues are on our BBC website.

Follow the links. All the information is there.

We'll be in a town not far away.

Dust them down and bring them along!

I thought that watercolour might do better

but Eileen seemed happy.

Let's hope we can do as well for Jane.

Next, a bit of Victorian Parian ware, belonging to Jane.

It's a pot-pourri vase with lovely paw feet.

A bit like your cat!

-She's got bigger feet than that!

-Much bigger.

-You're standing next to another big cat lover!

-I love cats.

-Love cats.

-Why do we have them, cos they're so destructive!

They're very therapeutic. They put you at rest and at ease.

What will you do with the money? Spend it on the cat?

-Oh, no. Grandchildren.

-Grandchildren. How many?

-Seven.

-Wow!

OK. We need a lot of money, David. Will we get top end of estimate?

We should do. It's a nice piece of porcelain. Though not in favour at the moment.

Again, not a typical thing to buy, but it will come back.

Here we go. Let's see what it's worth.

Number 350. A Victorian porcelain pot-pourri vase,

possibly Grainger & Co Worcester. Where will you start me? £50 start me?

Come on, where are these hands?

50 for it? 40, then? 40's bid. At 42.

44. 46. 48.

-This is more like it.

-50.

55.

60. £60 at the back now. At 60. £60.

65 anywhere?

All done at £60.

-Hammer's gone down. That's good.

-Yes.

Treat the grandchildren to a day out somewhere.

One wants to go to London, one wants to go to Colchester Castle.

We visited that on the valuation day. We left the camera outside.

-One of the turrets is round and not square.

-I've not been.

Go and check it out! All will be revealed!

Some pocket money there to treat the grandchildren. Just great!

Let's hope Doreen has made a nice investment

on her one-pound glass vase!

-Did you know exactly what you had when you picked it up?

-No.

-Did you do some research?

-When I got home.

I bet you were chuffed! I bet you went, "Ooh, look at this!"

-It's a nice thing.

-There's been interest.

Wonderful overlaid glass with an iridescent finish.

It's a great name. Not many have survived.

-So for one pound, well done!

-That's good!

There's a lot of fakes out there, but this is real. Hopefully it'll do the top end estimate.

Let's find out what the bidders think in this packed sale room.

Lot 199 is the fine quality Daum Nancy overlaid glass vase.

A lot of interest. I start the bidding with me at £300.

Straight in at the bottom end.

£300 with me now. At 300.

320. 340. 360 with you, sir.

£360 bid now.

360. 380. 400.

At £400. Make it 420.

-Keep going!

-Somebody on the phone.

420. 440.

440 is bid now. 440. 460. 480.

480 is bid now.

480. 500. 520. 520 is bid now.

520. 540.

This is what we like!

-540. 560.

-Great, isn't it?

At 560. 580.

600. £600 bid now. At 600. 620.

640. 640 is bid now.

640. 660. 680.

At 680 is bid now. At 680.

700. 720.

At 720. 740.

At £740 on the telephone.

760, another place. 760 over here now. 760.

At 760 against you.

At the far end of the room at £760. 780.

Round it up, sir? Make it 800? £800 I have.

At £800. Are you sure?

At £800. All done at £800.

The hammer's gone down. That's what it's worth!

-£800. You must feel on top of the world!

-Yes!

What's going through your mind?

-I can't believe it!

-Looking back to the moment you found it?

What will you do with the money? There's commission to pay.

-I'll put it towards a new car. I need a new car.

-Do you?

-Yeah, the car fund.

-That's a good deposit, isn't it?

Brilliant. Happy motoring, that's what I say!

-Well done, Kate.

-What a great result!

-What a result!

I told you somebody's going home with a lot of money. Hope you've enjoyed today's show.

But for now, from Colchester, until next time, with more surprises,

stay tuned and keep watching Flog It! Bye!