Duxford Flog It!

Imperial War Museum, Duxford,

is a massive one and a half miles from end to end.

We've touched down in AirSpace,

the museum's largest exhibition hangar,

and, incredibly, home to over 30 historic aircraft.

Opened in 2007, AirSpace tells the story

of British and Commonwealth aviation,

from the earliest days of flight right up to space travel.

Today, we've drawn a massive crowd from Cambridge and beyond

and they're here laden with antiques and collectables,

all wanting to ask our experts that all-important question, which is...

ALL: What's it worth?!

Stay tuned and you'll find out.

Today's experts include self-confessed magpie Christina Trevanion,

who's on the lookout for perfection.

If you look, can you see that?

Such a shame, because it's gorgeous.

What would it be if that wasn't there?

Millions(!) No!

And James Lewis, who's using a bit of forces' charm on the queue.

-Got the whole set?

-We've got quite a few.

-Brilliant.

On its own, it's worth a couple of pounds,

-if you've got the whole set, there's a chance.

-Thank you.

So fasten your seat belts. It's chocks away. Let's get valuing.

Paul, this looks like it's never been played with.

That's about right. It's never been out the box.

How could you resist the temptation not to play with it?

I'm not good with fiddly things! SHE LAUGHS

Is it not every little boy's dream to have a 007 Aston Martin DB5 to play with?

I think my parents probably hid it from me, truth be known!

They knew it wouldn't last very long.

-That's right, yes. It's still in quite good nick.

-Very good nick.

Absolutely. You so rarely find them, these days, in such good condition.

-This particular model is 1965.

-Yes.

Obviously, from the James Bond film Goldfinger.

Did you watch that as a child?

-Oh, yes. Still do now.

-Oh, really? Which Bond was it?

-That would've been Sean Connery.

-Was it Sean?

Oh, you can't beat him. He's brilliant. Oof, lovely.

Right, according to some research we've done, there were over 2 million of these made,

so they're not rare.

-As such, the estimate is reflected in that.

-Yes.

They tend to make, fairly regularly at auction, about £100-£150.

-Is that all right?

-Yes, it's fine, yes.

If we said £100-£150 with a discretionary reserve at 100.

-That's slightly more than I expected, so that's not bad.

-Brilliant.

Let's hope we've got some secret agents in the sale room.

Two people competing would be nice.

We won't know who's bidding, though, will we? They're top secret!

-LAUGHTER

-Thanks so much for bringing it in. See you on the auction day.

We all know James is an inquisitive sort of chap,

but what's he poking his nose into now?

Ah, Derek, there's nothing like old tobacco smoke.

-You either love it, or hate it.

-You do.

But I LOVE pipe tobacco and I love that smell. But there we go.

What a wonderful pipe.

We've got a complete cross-section here.

We've got what I would call a Sherlock Holmes pipe,

-but what's the proper word?

-Calabash.

-A calabash.

-Calabash. They're made from a gourd.

My favourite by a long way is the bull's head. I think that's lovely.

-It's a wonderful bit of carving.

-Yep.

I reckon we ought to split them up.

I think we ought to put him on his own

and I think he should be 60 to 100.

I think the bull on its own, I think it's worth 150 to 250. On its own.

That calabash, with all of these, up here,

and I think we should probably put

those three tall, long pipes and the talon

clutching the egg, the bearded Confederate soldier,

Edwardian lady and the cuffed hand as one lot,

to give them a bit of extra.

I think that's worth £150-£200.

-Mm. Yeah.

-Not sure on those?

-I think that's a bit low, yes.

Is 200 better for you? Or do you prefer 250?

I think I prefer 250, yes.

Let's put 250 on them and see what happens.

If they don't sell, you can have them back. No problem at all.

-Right.

-Super.

-OK.

Altogether that's a final estimate of £460-£650.

Christina's joined by fellow magpie Sandra and her latest booty.

And where have all these come from?

This one, a charity shop, and these are table-top sales.

-How much did you pay for that one?

-20.

-And how much did you pay for that one?

-50p.

50p! And how much did you pay for that one?

50p. SHE LAUGHS

Well, you've got a very good eye for antiques,

because what you've brought in is quite a sweet little group of silver.

We've got this bowl. This has a nice hallmark for London, 1924.

A little bit damaged, a little bit worn,

but you'd expect that from 1924, wouldn't you?

And you've got some nice star-cut decoration. A nice star-cut base.

Really nice thing. It's not rare. We see them quite a lot.

-Moving onto the card case, which I think is my favourite.

-Yes.

It's very much in the Georgian style, this shaped surround.

Chester hallmark. It dates to 1910.

Lovely.

And this little thing, what we call a vesta case.

So you would have kept your matches in here.

It's got a Birmingham hallmark and it dates to 1933.

So we've gone from being very simple, very plain,

to this engine-turned, stripy decoration here.

We've got a cartouche, which people could that their initials on, to show that it belonged to them.

I think they're lovely.

I think at auction, we'd be putting them in as one group.

And we'd be looking at putting them in probably in the region of £60-£80.

-Mm-hm.

-Which isn't a bad return on your £21 investment.

-THEY LAUGH It's not bad at all.

-No.

-Did you want to put a reserve on them? Shall we just let them go?

-Yes.

-See what they make and keep our fingers crossed for the day.

-Yes.

-It's been a good day.

-It's been a good day. Let's hope it continues.

-Yes.

-Brilliant. Thank you.

-Thank you.

We've had the most wonderful time at our valuation day at Duxford.

Let's hope our first batch of antiques takes off at auction.

From one iconic site to another. We've flown our items in

for auction at Rowley's Fine Art Auctioneers at Tattersalls.

It's a familiar face on the rostrum, our own expert Will Axon,

who'll hopefully be helping our lots soar in the saleroom.

Going under the hammer right now, it's the James Bond car.

I've been joined by Paul and our expert, Miss Moneypenny.

-That'd be nice.

-You like that?

-Was this your toy as a kid?

-Yes.

-Do you know, I had this exact model.

I chucked the box away, like a silly fool, because a lot of the value,

30%, as we know - we keep banging out on the show -

-keep the packaging, because there's a lot of value there.

-Absolutely.

We'll find out right now. Here we go. Let's put it to the test.

Lot 212, is the boxed Corgi James Bond Aston Martin DB5.

Number 261. I'm sure it's taken a few of you back to your childhoods.

Here's your chance to gain it back. I'm bid here 50. 60, 70 bid.

At 80, thank you. At 80 now. At £80 I'm bid.

At 80. 90, seated. At £90 bid.

At £90, I shall sell it. At 90.

With you, sir, at £90 now.

-Looking round. Last chance. The hammer's up at £90.

-£90.

-All done.

It's gone, just.

-Any more toys in the attic?

-No, unfortunately not.

-Oh!

-That was the last one you saved?

-Yes.

-I don't blame you.

My mum has the DB6, still,

and she's got the really big pink Cadillac

that Parker drove Lady Penelope around in.

With the rockets missing, by the way. I lost those when I was six.

But she's still got that.

THUNDERBIRDS THEME TUNE

We have a collection going under the hammer,

which was amassed in the last year by Sandra, from charity shops

and from table-top sales and all sorts of things.

What will we get for this collection? There's a vesta, and all sorts of things.

What did we work out? You paid about £2 for the lot, something.

£20 for the bowl.

And 50p each for the other two. We've got to make more than £21.

-And there's no reserve?

-Profit, hopefully!

They must be worth more than 21.

LAUGHTER

-We're going to find out right now. Good luck, both of you.

-Best of luck.

Lot 302 is the Edwardian silver calling-card case,

together with the other pieces

in the cabinet and the silver-mounted bowl.

Interest. Start me at £50. 50? £50 bid.

Straight in at £50. 60, 70.

80. 90. 100. 110. 120.

130, I have. At 130.

-At 130 I'm bid. That's £130.

-Wow.

-Are you all done?

At £130, looking round, last chance at 130.

If we were being conservative, you could say it's £100 profit, really!

If you took out your bus fare on top of that!

-LAUGHTER

-Brilliant, well done.

Going under the hammer right now, we've got a collection of meerschaum pipes.

I've been joined by Derek, the owner, and James Lewis, our expert.

James has put these into three lots on the day.

There's a lot of pipes and I know you used to smoke.

Kicking the habit, and now you're quids-in, don't you? Let's face it.

It was 30 or 40 years ago, I smoked.

-I bet it was an enjoyable smoke, wasn't it?

-Oh, yes.

I used to smoke John Rolfe, which is American peach brandy tobacco.

Really? Peach brandy. Doesn't that sound good?

It's that Sherlock Holmes moment.

James and I are going to run outside like schoolboys

-and light up and go...

-SMACKS LIPS

Good luck. Here's the first lot going under the hammer.

And 124, the carved meerschaum pipe. There we are. Rather nice one, this.

The carved meerschaum pipe with the bull's head.

Where do you start me? You've seen the estimate.

I've got interest at 110, 120, 130, I'm bid. You're bidding 140.

150. At 150. In the room at 150.

Looking around elsewhere. 60, 170, 180.

190? At 190. 200. At 220.

240. 260. 280? No.

-At 280. Thank you for your help.

-They're fighting for that one.

Yes? 300 away. At £300. At 300.

At 300, I have you. At £300.

Last chance, looking round.

Hammer's up at 300.

£300.

That is a good start. Now, for the second lot.

And lot 130 is another of the meerschaum pipes,

in a nicely fitted case for you. Where do you start me?

I've interest at 45. 50 bid and 5 I have, just.

60. Thank you. Seated. At £60. At £60 I'm bid.

Yes, 70. 80. 90 now bid.

-Someone on the phone against someone in the room.

-At 100.

No? At 100. Who else was waving at 100 bid?

At 100. No, you've gone quiet.

At £100 I shall sell. The gentleman seated at 100.

It's gone. That's two down, one more to go.

We're already now at £400. Well done.

139 is the collection of 15 various pipes.

This is a real collection starter for you.

Where do you start me? I've got interest here.

I've got to start this at 180. 200. 220 I'm bid.

-At 220. At 220. 230.

-Someone in the room. He's keen.

His hand's still up in the air, "I want this."

280. 290. Round it up. 300.

320. 340.

340? 360.

-"It's mine!"

-400.

And 20. 440. 460. 480.

500 is a nice round number. At 480 I'm bid, in front at 480.

Yes or no? 500 bid.

Thank you. At 500. I'll take 20 now if it helps you. At 500.

He shakes the head. I helped you where I could.

At 500 next to me here. At £500.

All done at 500.

-That's a grand total of £900.

-Excellent.

-Well done.

Can you believe that?

We're still in full flight at Imperial War Museum, Duxford,

and our experts are still giving valuations, looking out for those hidden treasures.

Let's catch up with them now and see what's on James's table.

Brian, I cannot think of a more suitable place to discover

a Military Cross than here at Duxford.

-Tell me, is it a family medal?

-It's my father's, yes.

-He won it in the First World War.

-Your father's! Let's have a look.

"For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty.

"When heavily attacked by the enemy, he directed the retirement

"of his squadron with great ability, only evacuating positions

"when forced by largely superior numbers to do so.

"Bringing his men away in safety,

"though he himself was eventually wounded.

"By his example and cool leadership, in this and previous actions,

"he has maintained the best traditions of the service."

-Yes.

-Isn't that lovely?

He never, ever spoke about it.

You often find the people that never shut up are the people who never do anything any good.

A bit like me! But those people who make a difference,

I think it affects them long-term and they never speak about it.

Tell me about you father. Tell me about what you know about him.

He was very strict.

-Do you think that's the military upbringing?

-He said jump, we used to jump!

-And is this him?

-That's him, yes.

What is the watch?

He worked for the Remount Depot in Belfast, because he was a horseman.

-And they clubbed together.

-"LL Firth, Esq.

"The head foreman and men of the Belfast Remount Depot,

"as a mark of their appreciation on the occasion of his leaving

"to join the Army. 31 August, 1916."

-He wore that for the rest of his life.

-Did he?

-Yes.

-We've got the two very standard medals that everybody got.

-Everybody got those.

Anybody who was in the First World War was awarded those.

But the Military Cross is something very special.

I've been an auctioneer for 20 years and it still sends tingles up my spine to see these.

-It's something that collectors love.

-Yeah.

And time and time and time again, they do very well.

I think they're going to make £1,000. I think they're wonderful.

Auction estimate, 1,000 to 1,200, and I think you should put

a reserve of £1,000 on them and fingers crossed.

It's been an absolute pleasure. Really enjoyed meeting you.

Thank you.

Listen, your lot is a fabulous lot.

Whoever buys this is buying a wonderful piece of history.

And there is a strong market for militaria right now, especially medals.

My children never met my father, he was dead before they were born.

-That's so sad. And you didn't know about the medals until after he died.

-No.

What a hero. An unsung hero.

And there are thousands of these guys around.

A lot of people say medals are a hard thing to sell for the family.

The great thing is, whoever buys these is going to look into the history

and they're going to love them almost as much as the family.

And these will fly away. Stay tuned. Here we go.

It's going under the hammer now.

At lot 38 is the World War I MC group of three.

Again, a rather interesting lot,

together with the watch inscribed to the verso.

I'm straight in at 1,000. And £1,100 I'm bid.

1,100 I have. At 1,100 bid.

At £1,100. Looking for you. 1,200, thank you.

On the telephone now at 1,200. I'm out.

At £1,200. Either of you? 1,300.

At 1,300 on the telephone. At 1,400.

At 1,400 bid.

15? Bid.

At 15 I have. 15.

16, thank you. At 1,600.

At 1,600. You're out. With Mary.

1,700. Fresh blood.

At 1,700. In the gods at 1,700.

18? And 50. Same for you.

18, if you will. At 1,800 bid me now.

-18.

-Yes, someone at the very top there.

1,800 in the gods. At £1,800. All done?

Selling this time, then, at £1,800.

Hammer's gone down.

Just missed the phone.

-£1,800.

-Cor!

-That's a good result.

That's a very good result. Happy with that?

Yes, yes.

There's a lot of history there. A lot of history.

It's so moving to talk about. Even looking at the watch

with the inscription on the back. Beautiful item.

It's been a real pleasure to meet you.

There you are. What can I say?

We've had the most marvellous time here in Newmarket.

We've had some very happy owners and some very high prices.

All I have to say is congratulations to our experts,

they were on the money, but also to Will Axon on the rostrum.

That's what it's all about.

You put your trust in the auctioneer and he delivers.

Until the next time, it's goodbye.

Subtitles by Ericsson