Manchester 31 Flog It!

The city today has a long association with this, TV.

It's home to the world's longest-running soap drama.

CORONATION STREET THEME TUNE

And the award-winning programmes such as a Mastermind...

and Question Of Sport.

And just a few miles down the road, there's a media hub which

boasts state-of-the-art technology for the BBC.

ITV and dozens of other creative companies.

The city with a massive reputation for media is of course Manchester.

Welcome to Flog It.

Manchester's media legacy is not just confined to the box.

In 1821, a local newspaper called the Manchester Guardian,

was formed by cotton merchant, John Edward Taylor.

It became nationally important

and nearly 200 years later is still found on newsstands

across the country, albeit with a slightly different name.

And you can read all about it at our Flog It location,

the Museum of Science and Industry.

The front-page news starts here

at the doors of our Flog It valuation day.

We've got our cameras ready to record the moment some lucky

person here in this queue makes a small fortune

later on in the programme at auction.

And sniffing out the stories

and checking the facts are Caroline Hawley...

Goodness me!

She's lovely. We'll show your bust inside, sir. When you get in.

And Michael Baggot.

-Bless you for coming out - not the best day in Manchester today.

-I know, I'm frozen.

But everyone's turned out, isn't it lovely?

Oh yea! Oh yea! Oh yea! Flog It's in town.

Yes, we are here!

And we better get the doors open to our fantastic venue today.

The Museum of Science and Industry charts Manchester's integral

role in the Industrial Revolution, from a working example

of a treacherous loom, to the steam engines that powered it all.

The MOSI also holds a huge archive of material relating to

Manchester's history.

And later in the show, I get the chance to read the first ever

edition of the Manchester Guardian.

I explored the city's forgotten film industry.

And this lady gets a rather large surprise.

Flog It, Flog It, Flog It, Flog It, Flog It.

That's what it's all about here today.

Hundreds of people have turned up.

They're all safely seated inside hoping

they're one of the lucky ones to go through to the auction later on.

Our experts are now at the valuation tables,

so let's catch up with Caroline and see what she's found.

I'm joined by Vic, Huddersfield's town crier,

-who really has brought something to shout about.

-Yeah, hopefully.

-Can we look inside?

-Yes, certainly. By all means.

What a lovely piece.

Well, this piece of jewellery was given to me after I'd done

a little job at the Town Hall in Huddersfield for Age Concern.

The lady in charge had asked all the ladies in the audience

if they'd any pieces of jewellery,

would they like to donate it to me because I was going to

-try for the most pieces of jewellery on the costume.

-Right.

And I got a message that this had been left.

I went along and she left me this card and then the local paper picked

it up because of the provenance, and so I've brought it along today.

And the provenance is what?

-The provenance is that belonged to Charlie Chaplin.

-Wow.

-Apparently he married the lady's mother...

-Right.

In a round about 1905.

So Charlie bought this for his wife?

-For his wife at the time.

-Yes, at the time.

-He was a bit of a lad, was Charlie.

-Was he? Tell me.

He was married three, four times over the years.

-So he'd have to do by quite a bit of jewellery.

-Yes.

This is a lovely piece.

It's around turn-of-the-century, so that would tie in.

Sadly, it's not diamonds. It's paste.

It's just silver plated on brass, you can see here.

I don't know if you've noticed,

-there's more to this little brooch than meets the eye.

-Oh, yes.

It's a brooch here, but we can unclip these,

so you've got the brooch and then these double as lapel badges.

We thought they were earrings at first,

but then you see the big points in them.

They'd make a hell of a mess of your ears!

They've got big, sharp teeth to clip onto lapels.

Which are really lovely, so you get three bits of jewellery for the price of one.

-So he was a mean old chaplain, wasn't he?

-Yes, he was.

But very nice indeed, so we've got a letter here which gives us

brilliant provenance from the daughter of Charlie Chaplin stating

this is her mother's jewel, given by her father, Charlie Chaplin.

And then a press cutting about you receiving

the jewel from Charlie Chaplin's daughter.

But as a piece of jewellery by itself,

it isn't worth a huge amounts of money, £10, £20, that sort of thing.

But with all this, I think it's going to get a premium.

-So I would say...£40-£60. Are you happy with that?

-Yes, absolutely.

We're running the Town Crier Championships this year

in Huddersfield, so it's all going towards that.

That will be a noisy event? Oh, yes!

25 town criers, all their wives in their troop, crinoline dresses.

-Oh, and what's the collective term?

-A cacophony of town criers.

-Is it?

Cacophony of town criers, yes.

I look forward to seeing you at the auction.

-Yes, it'll be nice, I shall enjoy that. Thank you very much.

-Brilliant.

The experts at the auction house will research this provenance

and try to validate it.

That's the great thing about selling at auction.

Caroline's not the only expert to spot a sparkler today,

but can you guess what's in this box?

Nicky, Maddie, thanks for coming along today

and bringing some jewellery with you.

These aren't things you're tempted, either of you, to wear?

I haven't been tempted.

Nicola used to wear the bracelet when she was a little girl.

My mum used to give it to her to dress up in.

This is a charm bracelet, it's a relatively early one,

early part of the 20th century.

You've got all the individual charms.

It isn't something that's greatly of intrinsic value

and artistically, it's something we see a lot of.

So really, that's its weight in gold in terms of value.

-So that worth about £100-£150.

-Right.

What's much more interesting,

and the reason I grabbed you both is the contents of the mystery box.

-Shall we open the mystery box?

-Yes, please.

-Don't be scared.

THEY GIGGLE

Good God!

I don't want to offend you but that has to be possibly the most

grotesque pair of earrings I've ever seen in my life.

-That's why we're trying to flog it.

-We agree!

You've basically got something that's supposed to be

a branch of coral or something. But with a fly on it!

You get bumblebees, you get dragonflies.

You don't get flies on things.

And then you've got this sort of disembodied hand hanging down

and from it you've got this little heart.

The main parts are carved in Mother of Pearl

and then they're set with coral, which makes me think, especially from

the way it's constructed that it's from around the Mediterranean area.

-Yeah.

-Have you got any family history with this?

My grandmother is from Las Palmas, Gran Canaria.

Perfect. A sort of Spanish feel, Mediterranean jewellery.

Of course, the coral was supposed to protect you from evil.

So you would wear them, bad things wouldn't happen to you.

They're quite old. Have you any idea when they were made?

I think they might be about 100 years old.

Probably a little bit earlier than that.

They're probably about 1860, 1880.

Really?! Oh, my God!

Value is difficult because we've got one little fly missing

and a little heart missing.

But sometimes things come along that are so quirky, you give them a go.

Give them a go at auction. I think...

£40-£80 and put a fixed reserve of £30 on them.

Because that's intrinsic value of the materials.

We'll see, they might make 100 quid, they might make 30.

We've got 100 to 150 for the bracelet and a fixed reserve of 100 on that.

So, if we get the top end, what are the plans for the money?

Buy more beads and make my own jewellery.

-You make your own jewellery?!

-Yeah.

I can't think of any better thing to do than to sell something old

and outdated and make something new and beautiful with it.

Marvellous, let's hope they do really well on the day.

-Thank you.

-Thanks very much.

Love them or hate them, they are up for auction.

Will anyone want to give these quirky earrings a new home?

Now, earlier on in the show I mentioned the Guardian newspaper

started out life here in Manchester and in front of me

is a copy of one of the very first editions.

It came out on 5th May in 1821.

At a cover price of seven old pence, which is equivalent

to about £1.22 in today's money.

It was only published once a week

because the stamp duty on newspapers was incredibly high.

When the stamp duty was cut in 1836, it was published twice a week,

it came out on Wednesday and Saturday.

Now, if you notice, on the front page,

it's not actually given over to any headline news.

All the news is on the second page. But look at this, number one, right.

The very first edition.

But look it starts with an advert for a lost dog.

"A black Newfoundland bitch.

Any person having lost the same may have her again...

..on describing her marks and paying all the expenses."

Isn't this marvellous?

Absolutely incredible.

The condition is pretty good really,

considering this would have been read time and time again and

probably passed on to two or three different other people to read.

Here we are in the Power Hall, surrounded by the noisy,

steamy engines and all that made Manchester great.

To the peaceful pastime of card playing.

And this lovely box. Tell me about it, Edna.

I bought it at a car-boot sale about five years ago.

-Do you remember what you paid for it?

-£10.

£10! I love it. Do you?

I do, I like it, it's just been on top of the piano in my dining room.

You don't play cards?

-Play the odd game of snap.

-Do you?

-That it.

-Let's have a look at it.

It's walnut, mid-Victorian.

Gilded brass edges to it,

it's amounted with ivory cards on the top.

It's a really lovely, quality thing.

-Shall we look inside?

-Yes

This would have long to a fairly wealthy family.

It's very, very good quality.

It's lying in watermarked silk taffeta...at the top.

Beautiful condition.

Even the little pulls here that pull out the cards,

perfect condition.

Possibly would have been two other packs of cards there.

-And I think in here there would have been counters.

-Oh, would they? right.

And these here, are square cut cards

because the modern cards are rounded edges, aren't they?

Now, it's all indicative of quality, taste.

Somebody, perhaps made wealthy by the Industrial Revolution

-in Manchester. A wealthy card player.

-Yeah.

I think there's lots of all would want it,

not least the bridge players, poker players.

I would put a valuation on this of between £100 and £200.

SHE GASPS

-You happy with that?

-Very.

Good, that's a fair return on your £10 investment.

There you are, you've just seen them,

three wonderful items are experts have picked out.

I've got my favourite, you've probably got yours, but right now

it's time to put those valuations to the test in the saleroom.

So while we make our way over to the auction room, here's a quick

recap, just to jog your memory of everything that's coming with us.

This brooch and lapel badges have a great story behind them,

but will the auction house confirm the provenance?

The gold bracelet has a high intrinsic value,

so it's a sure-fire winner, but that can't be said of the earrings.

Will anyone fall in love with them

or will the damage the "fly" in the ointment!

And Edna's Victorian card case is adorned with ivory cards.

And because they were made before 1947,

it's legal to sell them at auction.

But what profit will she see on her £10 car boot investment?

Just about ten miles from Manchester city centre,

you find the historic town of Knutsford.

This is where our auction is coming from today,

courtesy of Frank Marshall.

Fingers crossed we can make some history of our own.

The auctioneers wielding the gavel today are Nick Hall

and Peter Ashburner.

Combined they have 25 years of experience,

so we're in very safe hands.

All I can say is I wish I was wearing green as well.

I am slightly.

I've just been joined by Victor and our expert, Caroline here.

You're the town crier for Huddersfield. You were in the queue...

I was, yes.

..when I was doing my pieces to camera and you were shouting ho yea, ho yea, ho yea.

-And...

-"Oh, yea."

-Oh, yea.

-You were hard to miss, Victor(!)

Yes, but you made it onto the show with that little brooch

-and the two collar clips.

-Yes.

-And that accompanying letter.

We thought there might be a connection with Charlie Chaplin?

The letter was supposed to have been...

The lady who gave it me

said her mother was married to Charlie Chaplin.

-The auction house have done...

-They've done a lot of research.

She was apparently married to Aubrey Chaplin, who was Charlie's cousin.

So it's not really a proper connection, there might be a tenuous connection

but we're not really going to play on that.

-It hasn't affected the value, then?

-No, no. It'll still stand alone.

Hopefully you will be ringing the bell outside with joy

because it's going under the hammer now. Let's find out what the bidders think.

The Art Deco, paste brooch and matching collar clips.

I can start the bidding on this at £40. Anybody got five? At £40 only.

Is there five? At £40 I have.

On commission at £40. Any advance?

Quickly. I am selling it, anybody else interested?

At £40 it goes to the maiden bid.

It went in on a maiden bid and straight out, blink and you miss it.

-It only needs one.

-And there was no competition.

-No, no.

Well, that's the advantage of auction research.

There was a connection to Chaplin,

but not the one that meant big money.

Next, it's time to play our cards right.

Sadly, we do not have Edna. She couldn't make it today.

But we do have our gorgeous expert, Caroline, with us. Wants £200.

-I think that's good value for money, don't you?

-I do too.

It's got two packs of Reynolds cards.

Reynolds was a great company making cards from 1809 to 1890.

-Square cut.

-Right, OK.

-Two packs.

-They're quite valuable in their own right.

-They are.

Recently one has got about £60 for one pack of cards.

So, I think two packs, plus the box, it's going to get the reserve.

It is. Hopefully, you are watching this, Edna, and you're going to be enjoying this

-because we should get the top end of the estimate plus a little bit more.

-I'm sure.

-Let's put it to the test.

It's going under the hammer right now.

Nice thing this. I've got a bit of commission interest in this.

I'm going to come straight in here at £80. 80 I'm bid. Bid at £80.

Any advance on £80? It's worth more, I'm sure. Come on. Bid it up.

Thank you. 85 I've got. 90 against you.

Five. 100.

110 I'm bid. At £110.

-Cheap.

-At £110, the bid's in the room. Any more? At 110. 120. 130.

-Thank goodness for that.

-Yeah.

-Against you, sir. With me now.

On commission against the room. The internet's out. It's £130.

Hammer's going. Selling away at 130.

Well, it's gone. It's gone. Made estimate. You were right.

-But it just goes to show, on the day, you can be quite lucky.

-Yes.

You can get things at the lower end, rather than at the top end.

-I'm sure Edna will be pleased.

-I'm sure she will.

-She wanted to sell it. She paid £10 for that.

Hell of a return!

There's a cheque in the post for you, Edna.

And next, that intriguing jewellery.

I've just been joined by Maddy and Nicky and Michael, our expert.

We're just about to sell a couple of lots which we've split

into two sales. The first lot, we're selling something that's hideous.

Well, I tell you what, I don't think they're hideous.

-I think they're quirky.

-That's the point. They are quirky.

-I've never seen anything like it.

-Nor have I.

And we've got a nine carat gold bracelet as well.

-Which is more down to its bullion value.

-Exactly.

Right. Anyway, let's find out what the bidders think about

our first lot, these earrings. They're going under the hammer now.

The cased pair Victorian earrings. Start me where? At £50?

40. 30 online.

You bidding against? I've got 30 here. Five. 35. 40. Speed up.

You'll lose it. £40. 45. The phone's in now. 45. 50. Have I got 60?

I've got £60. It's all online. 65. 70. It's climbing away.

At £70. 75. 80.

£80. 85.

Off she goes. £90.

-There is no accounting for taste.

-110 now. Had 110. 120.

130. 140. The phones are out. It's online. 150. Online at £150.

Are we done? At 150, the bid's online. Nothing in the room?

Phones are quiet. It's online. At £150, I sell now.

£150 for top, hammer's gone down, crack. That's good, isn't it?

That's £149 for the box,

£1 for the earrings.

-My mum's in shock.

-I am in shock!

Well, nobody expected that result and it just goes to show,

one person's trash is another's treasure.

And so to the charming bracelet.

Nice little lot, this.

Nine carat gold, flat, curb-link charm bracelet.

I'm going to start the bidding straight in now at £100.

100, I'm bid. 110 against. 120 with me now.

At 120. Come back at me. Still in? 120.

-30 I'll take.

-Working out the bullion price in the corner.

160 now. This commission's against you at 160.

Are you coming back, try another?

£160. With me now. Commissions have it. Internet's out.

It's all on the book at 160 and selling.

£160. Sold.

-So, that's a good day out for you both, isn't it?

-Definitely. It was worth coming!

She's already spent it around the corner.

A total of £310 to put towards the jewellery making

and you'll get a few beads for that!

There we are. That's our first visit to the auction room complete.

So far, so good. We are coming back here later on in the programme.

Now, there's a story that I want to explore

while I'm here in the area and it's about one Mancunian's family

whose ambition it was to make northern films for northern people.

I'm talking about the early black and white talkies

and it all started here in Manchester.

Take a look at this.

Who put George Formby on our screens well before he was cleaning windows?

Nice weather we're having, isn't it?

Which Manchester film company made over 60 feature films

and was one of the few that continually made a profit?

And which man resolutely stuck to his northern roots in humour

and in film-making, despite being panned by the critics?

-Hello?

-The names on the credits are Mancunian Films and John E Blakeley

and their story is one of ambition and foresight.

The cast is bursting with colourful characters

and the script is full of laughs.

-Why marry an American?

-I want to see the world.

That's all right. I'll buy you a map.

Welcome to the world of Mancunian Films,

Manchester's very own Hollywood. The first scene takes place in 1909.

Just a year after the first cinema came to Manchester,

a market trader called James Blakeley took a huge risk

by converting his small shop into a 200-seater cinema.

Blakeley Senior and his two sons, John E and James Junior,

realised the potential of the silver screen

and they grabbed their opportunity with both hands.

The Blakeley family were one of the first film distributors in the North.

But it was John E who spotted an opportunity to take things further.

What happened next was a real testament to the ambition,

foresight and bravery of the Blakeleys.

From owning a cinema, they decided to rent out films.

And from renting films, they decided to have a go at making them.

I mean, how hard could it be?

Well, actually, for John E's film-making debut, not hard at all.

His vision was to bring opera to the masses,

so he filmed actors playing out the story,

rather than the usual piano accompaniment.

John E sent a quartet of opera singers to the theatre

to give the film a musical voice.

# Il Giovanni... #

But just as John E started producing silent full-length movies

in the late 1920s, the talkies hit the screen.

It was a revolution in cinematography

and it left the Blakeleys waiting in the wings.

There were no studios here in the North that could produce a talkie.

It was almost a wrap for the Blakeleys.

But in 1933, John E sought advice from two of the biggest film stars

of the day, Oliver Hardy and fellow northerner Stan Laurel.

Their meeting at the Midland Hotel

changed the path of Mancunian Films forever.

As the story goes, Stan Laurel said to John E,

"Why aren't you making movies any more?"

John E replied, "Well, there are no studios here in the North

"that can accommodate a sound production."

So, Laurel said, "Well, why don't you rent a studio down in London?"

Buoyed by Laurel's advice, John E rented a studio in London

and just three weeks later, Mancunian Films released

"Boots! Boots!".

The nation was introduced to a local lad who became

one of the biggest stars of the era.

This was the very first time he was seen singing.

# Baby

# Baby, you're my sweetheart... #

To tell me more about the halcyon days of Mancunian Films,

historian CP Lee. How did John E go about making his films?

John E loved musical hall and he considered himself

quite a connoisseur at sporting up-and-coming stars

and he would pick acts who he thought would transfer onto film.

That was John E's cleverness. If people would go and see them

in the halls, well, he'd put them on the screen.

And it's why he uses proscenium shot a lot

where the camera appears to be stationary. It's not moving.

In effect, he's showing us theatre. And in every film, at some point,

somebody almost says, "Let's have a concert party."

It's John E's excuse to put in all his favourite musical acts.

The plots were very basic.

Literally, I know Penny Pool which was written on the back

of a cigarette packet.

The dialogue would be produced by the artist very often

-in a state of improvisation.

-Do you know who I am?

-Let me think.

I haven't the faintest idea.

And what is more, I am not the slightest bit interested.

So, how successful were they?

In the North of England, they were very, very successful.

We've got box office figures from during the Second World War.

The Mancunians often out ran Hollywood at the box office.

In 1947, having produced 14 films in London, John E finally

realised his dream and bought an old church in Manchester

that he converted into a studio.

-What did the critics think of this at the time?

-They were appalled.

They used to call the studio the Corn Exchange

cos the jokes were so bad.

But the locals called it Jollywood

because there was such a great atmosphere.

What's important is the bloodline of northern comedy.

Les Dawson freely acknowledged his debt to Norman Evans

when he played his over-the-garden-wall character

where they mouth everything which is what the mill girls did

cos they lip read.

Peter Kay, for instance, has got lovely little glimpses of that

northern bloodline of northern comedy in his performance.

So, that concept of northern comedy has carried through very successfully

by the genetics of the films.

The Mancunian Films archive was largely destroyed by a fire in 1980.

But most of the titles have been recovered

and are now being kept safe by the North West Film Archive.

Well, we've heard that the films were slated by the critics,

but loved by the masses.

So, we're going to play a few clips from some Mancunian Films

and see what the people think of it today.

That was brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. I hope you enjoyed that.

We have a special guest with us right now, John E's grandson, Mike.

-Pleasure to meet you.

-Pleased to meet you.

-What was it like watching Grandad's work then?

-I don't know.

Just brings back memories, I suppose, from...

-Proud, I suppose, for my grandfather.

-Still refreshing watching it.

-You've see it many times.

-Well, yeah. It must have been chaos in those days filming it

cos they never knew what they were going to do.

You get these comedians who worked on the musical hall

and there must have been so much humour actually working on the programmes themselves.

What about the archives? Are there films missing?

There's one film that's always been missing which is

-Somewhere In Politics.

-OK.

-So, we all should keep a lookout for that one.

-Absolutely.

Collectors like to keep these things.

From our point of view, we're saying, "You can still keep it,

"all we want to do is copy it," so that it's there for the future,

-for everybody to see.

-Exactly.

-Let the nation look at it.

-Yeah, absolutely.

-It's been a pleasure to meet you.

-Thank you very much indeed.

Lost treasure isn't always in the form of gold and silver,

so have a hunt in your attic for the missing film,

and you'll contribute to the legacy of British cinema.

I think we found a hidden treasure here today

and discovered a hero in John E Blakeley

and his contribution towards the British film industry.

His movies may not have been the most sophisticated,

but everybody loved them.

Because really, who couldn't resist a bit of slapstick?

Back at our valuation day in the very heart of Manchester,

our cameras are still rolling and next up,

it's Michael, Jan and a plethora of pots.

Jan, thank you for coming in today.

Are there any vases left in your house, or do you have a vase fetish?

Erm...there are a few more,

but I'm trying to get rid of a lot cos I'm fed up of dusting everything.

So are you a vase collector, or did these come through the family?

No, they were left to me by my Auntie Maud.

Well, these are fascinating.

Let's look at the pot first, cos to me

that's the least interesting of the group.

-OK.

-It's Italian - it's maiolica.

So that's the thing that majolica was based on.

It's a tin-glazed earthenware, so you got a clay body

and this white glaze put over it to make it look like porcelain.

Then you've go these lovely colours that tend to run

and flow a little bit, like ink into blotting paper.

So you get this effect.

I've shown it to my colleague off-screen, I thought there was

a chance it was 18th century.

She's seen more of these than I have

and she thinks it's more early-19th century in date.

Let's say it's early-19th century.

Did you, before coming to Flog It hit it hard with a hammer?

-No!

-So you're not responsible...?

-It's always been like that!

That's a problem with it.

But it's not dramatically valuable - £40-£60.

-Yes, that's fine.

-£40 reserve, see where it goes.

-If two people think it's earlier, it might make over 100.

-OK.

Now onto these.

These are pretty. let's pick one of them up.

We've got a matching pair and these are called cloisonne.

Japanese, and they're lovely.

There's only two things I've got against them -

they're not signed and the very, very,

very best ones always were signed.

And secondly, the hammer that you didn't hit this with...

I know what you're going to say.

You didn't hit these either?

-No.

-Erm, we've got a percussion crack there, where it's just pinged.

And if we look at this one, we've got a little crack there as well.

But they're pretty and they're small and I love them.

And a huge amount of work went into making them.

I might be being optimistic,

but let's say they might be worth £100-£200.

OK.

-And put a fixed reserve of £100 on them.

-Yes.

-Happy to sell them?

-Yes.

Don't want any more dusting?

No.

If they do well, what are you going to do with the money?

-Buy shoes.

-Buy shoes?!

Yes!

Well, let's get you a good pair, at least, possibly two.

Could be.

Thank you very much for bringing them in.

-OK. Thank you.

-Pleasure.

Back in the power hall, Caroline's surrounded by precision

engineering - big and small.

Can you tell me about it, Steve?

It belonged to my father.

I can vividly remember him wearing it - he had a waistcoat

and it was on a chain.

Not all the time, just on special occasions,

cos it was considered a special piece, really.

And it is a gentleman's pocket watch

so he was quite right to proudly wear it for Sunday best.

And very dapper, I'm sure he looked in it.

It is a lovely piece.

It's 18-carat gold, and it's an American movement - Waltham.

Have you ever opened this up before and had a look inside?

-It's the first time...

-Is it, really?

-Really looks lovely inside.

-It does.

It's absolutely a precision work of engineering.

And the outer case is marked

18-carat and the date mark is 1908,

which ties in with your father's dates.

White enamel dial, altogether a very saleable item.

At the moment, gold is at a very high level, very high price,

so I think it's a very good time to sell it.

I think we're going to put an estimate of £400-£600 on it.

-Happy? Smiling?

-Yes. Yeah.

And if we put a fixed reserve of 400?

I don't think we'll need it, I think it'll exceed that.

But...we'll do that. Happy?

-Be happy with that, yeah.

-Brilliant.

Well, let's go and flog it.

Thank you.

Now, for the last item of the day,

Michael is indulging his personal passion.

Janet, thank you so much.

I know my colleagues were almost sending you away,

when I swooped on your little spoon.

Before I tell you anything about it, what do you know?

The only thing I know about it is, it's just always been in the family.

And when my mother died, 41 years ago, I just brought it home.

Has it gone in the cutlery drawer?

Have you stirred your tea and coffee with it?

No, it's just been in another pot with little spoons in a cabinet

-and that's it.

-That's it.

It's very interesting.

It's only a teaspoon, but it is very, very interesting.

It's a piece of Arts and Crafts - British silver.

You can see that they tried to show the construction,

so you've got all the hammer marks still showing.

And these beautiful pierced out - all by hand, terminal,

making it look hand-wrought.

If we turn it over...

Very small hallmarks. We'll have a look.

It was made in London in 1924.

Which, in itself, means nothing.

But the maker's mark is SD.

I've noticed that, but I've looked on the internet and I couldn't find SD.

SD is probably the most important

Arts and Crafts female goldsmith.

-Oh, female.

-It's Sybil Dunlop.

-Oh...

-And the thing about Sybil Dunlop,

there's very much more jewellery by her than there is silver.

-Oh.

-Her silver is rare.

So it's only a teaspoon from 1924 - if it was a bog-standard one,

it would be worth it's weight in silver of £5.

But it's changed it from £5 to £50.

-Has it really?!

-And we would put it into auction at £50-£100.

-Gosh.

-And we'd put a fixed reserve of say, £40, on it.

And it's probably...only the tenth piece of silver I've ever

-seen by her.

-Oh, gosh.

It's made my day, made my year, Janet!

-Made my year.

-I'm glad I brought it!

I'm delighted. Thank you so much.

Thank you.

It just shows, you cannot judge an item's value by its size

and shape alone.

That's it, our experts have now found their final items,

so it's time to say goodbye to our valuation day venue -

Manchester's Museum of Science And Industry.

We've had a marvellous time here and learnt so much,

but right now, it's full steam ahead to Marshall's Auction Rooms

in Knutsford, and here's what's coming with us.

TOOT TOOT!

Michael liked these vases for their beauty and their history,

but the damage as lead to a low valuation.

Could he have got it wrong? Keep watching for a jaw-dropping auction.

Will it be a wind up for Steve and his gentleman's pocket watch?

A classic Arts and Crafts design, but from a unique maker.

Will the bidders be as excited as Michael was about this

Sybil Dunlop spoon?

So it's back to Knutsford for the last time,

and can you guess which item steals the show?

Steven, good luck.

The time is now up - we're selling an 18-carat gold Edwardian

pocket watch belonging to Steven, and it is quality, isn't it?

-Oh, yeah.

-18-carat, Dennison case - it's a lovely piece.

Let's hope we get the top end of the estimate.

Let's put it under the hammer now. We need top money for this.

Edward VII, 18-carat gold Waltham pocket watch.

And I can start the bidding on this one at £400.

420. 440.

460. 480. 500.

-520.

-It's going...

560. 580.

600. 620. 640.

Commission bid of 640.

Any advance? 660.

Your hand up...

Someone else is joining the party here in the room.

They want your watch.

700 - fresh bidder.

720...yes?

720.

720 in the centre.

You're out left at 720.

Seated in the centre at 720...

-GAVEL BANGS

-Sold in the room.

720.

Well done. Congratulations.

That was worth doing, wasn't it?

Stylish, useful and solid gold - no wonder it smashed the estimate.

Next under the hammer, the tiny teaspoon.

You loved that. You instantly recognised the initials.

-Sybil Dunlop.

-Yes.

Sybil Dunlop is very important,

and that is translated in a little teaspoon.

So somebody's buying something quite precious.

Let's find out what the bidders think right now.

The George V hallmarked silver spoon,

with a pierced decorated handle and a planished bowl,

by Sybil Dunlop.

Where we going to be for this one then?

£40 and start me... 40?

Where do you want to start?

25 I have. At £25.

Any advance on 25?

Take 30 now?

At 30. And 5.

Anybody got 40?

At £35. Any advance?

Anybody online?

Someone's woken up.

Is there another 5?

You're out in the room, and I'm selling now at 40.

Gosh, it's gone.

The thing is, it's very...academic.

Mm.

We didn't have two people that wanted it, we had one person online.

But we protected it with a reserve, and that's what it's for.

It was so tiny. Very tiny.

Thank you for coming in.

We've all learned something - you knew it all along,

but hopefully you have as well.

So have a rummage in your cutlery drawer,

maybe you'll have a spoon that says a two-letter mark

that says history and money!

And now, those striking, but damaged vases.

-Jan, fingers crossed - good luck.

-Thank you.

-You're looking very smart today.

-Thank you very much.

You're off shopping after this, aren't you?

-Could be. Depends how much we make.

-Are you, really?

-Yes.

-Dressed to kill - dressed to go shopping!

What's top of the list, what you looking for today?

-Shoes!

-I knew it! I knew it!

I don't know if we can pay for a good pair of shoes with it.

Not in Knutsford!

Heels to go on maybe!

We're looking at £100-£200 with the two cloisonne vases.

Let's find out what the bidders think. Good luck.

Pair of Japanese cloisonne vases.

Good lot this one, we're going to open the bidding.

£100 and start me quickly now.

80?

80 bid. 85. 85. 90.

95, I'm bid. At 95 in the room.

100 online. Any advance?

And 10 on the phone.

120 online.

130 on the phone.

At 130 bid. And 40.

140. 50 now?

150 telephone bid.

60. 170 on the phone.

At 170. 80.

This is good, getting the top end.

Online bidder at 200.

10. At 220.

230 now? 240.

250 now? 250.

60. 270 I you like?

270 telephone.

At 270 on the phone.

280. At 280. 90 now?

Shakes his head on the phone.

It's 280 and it's on the internet.

It's an internet bidder and I'm selling at 280.

Hammer's gone down - £280.

I'm coming again now!

You are!

A great result for the cloisonne vases.

Next, Jan's majolica. Will it go the same way?

Nick Hall takes to the rostrum for the last time.

The 19th-century Italian maiolica vase.

Nice thing this, good early look about it.

Start me where?

Not a lot of money at £40. 30? 20?

I like that.

It's got a wonderful look.

Let's get the ball rolling now.

At 30. 5. 40.

45. At 45 I've got.

And 50 I've got. And 5 I've got.

And 60. 65 - it's all climbing online.

At £70 we're back on the phone.

Thank goodness for the internet, it eluded the people of Knutsford.

I've got 100.

I've got 100 and 120.

130. At 140.

You coming back in now?

This is good, isn't it?

-You've got your shoes already.

-Yes, I have.

210 now. The bid's on the phone at 210.

220. Against you in Italy.

"Against you in Italy."

I think two people are convinced it's early.

360 now. 360 I'm bid.

At 380 here.

400. 420.

At 420 now.

440. 460 here.

Online at 480.

480 I'm bid.

500 now. At £500.

Any advance on 500?

-520.

-You might be buying a shoe shop, you realise this, don't you?!

560. 580 here. 600.

At 600 now. 620.

It was a come and buy me, Michael.

It was a run and buy me, wasn't it?

At £700. 720. 740.

740. 760.

780.

-I'll buy you two pair of shoes now.

-Oh, thank you.

840. 880. 880 now.

At 900.

£900 here.

That's a compete outfit now - handbag and shoes.

They're bidding in Italy, they're bidding on the phone.

Fresh phone bidder - he's in at 980!

At 980.

Wouldn't this be funny?

1,000 I'm bid.

Take a 50 with you. Thank you - 1,050.

At 1050.

1,100. 1,100 here now.

-1,150.

-I did have a feeling, on the day, it was early.

-No, you didn't.

-I did!

I said to you!

I said, "I think this is early."

At 1,200 now. I've got 1,200 with Niall.

At £1,200.

This is a great auction.

This is what auctions are all about.

Last and final time at £1,200...

£1,200! Jan!

Yeah, well done!

Oh, Jan's off shopping!

Congratulations to you lot, by the way!

That is what a good auction is all about, isn't it?

-Course it is.

-Yeah! Well done, Jan!

We'd love to take the cameras and follow you shopping,

that's for sure. We just don't have time!

We've all had a brilliant time in Knutsford.

I hope you've enjoyed the show.

See you next time for plenty more surprises from Flog It!