Muncaster Castle 30 Flog It!

Today, we're in Cambria and I'm in the Great Hall of Muncaster Castle.

Just outside of Ravenglass, this place is a real architectural gem.

Through here, if you follow me, that's the magnificent dining room.

Normally place-set with the finest family silver,

but a special event is just about to take place.

And here's another clue, if you come in this room here,

the Drawing Room.

Well, you see generations of family portraits

adorning all the walls. Look at this!

And, crew setting up, making their final preparations,

because this is our magnificent

valuation day venue.

Welcome to Flog It!

Do you know? I got a cracking feeling we're going to be in for

a really special day.

Just look at the size of the queue, everyone's happy,

the weather is fantastic and the view is so spectacular.

Over there is Scafell Pike, England's highest mountain,

measuring a whopping 978 metres!

And talking about big and great things,

just look at the size of this fantastic queue!

Hundreds of people have turned up today,

laden with antiques and collectables.

And they're here to challenge our experts to find out...

-ALL:

-What's it worth?

Stay tuned and you'll find out.

Would everyone like to take one thing out for me?

Their star lot.

Only the very best will do for James Lewis.

You got some nice things today, folks.

And he's teamed up with Caroline Hawley...

-You've a bit of carnival glass?

-Ah, yeah.

..who always knows what to do to bring out the best.

Hold it up to this lovely sunshine.

See, it's shining?

-It's from my grandma, you know?

-Yeah? It's lovely.

Although, it doesn't stop them monkeying around

when they get together.

Hold that,

here we go.

Oh, wow!

I'm just going...

-See you!

-Oh, right.

Now, let's get inside and get these valuations under way.

Now, there's a touch of class on today's show

with a dress fit for a ball.

That would move wonderfully as you danced.

And a decanter to dazzle a dinner party.

Well, I do know Disraeli was there.

Really?

-Yes!

-Disraeli could have been served from this claret jug?

He could...

Quite possibly, yes.

And I take a trip on a Victorian steamboat

to find out what life was like on the lakes,

here in Cumbria!

BOAT HORN HONKS

The only thing left now is to take a bow.

I enjoyed that.

Enjoying yourselves?

-ALL:

-Yes!

-That's what it's all about.

We have taken over every room in the castle today.

So many people have turned up.

Here in the Drawing Room, we're surrounded by family portraits,

but also by owners laden with antiques and collectables.

James Lewis is at the table and he's just about to start his valuation.

Laura, let me take you back to a different era.

We're in the middle of Queen Victoria's reign.

-All right.

-The date of this is 1867...

a long dining table,

string quartet in the corner.

The diners are all sitting there

with their black tie and dinner jackets.

And that is the type of scene that this would have graced.

It is a fantastic claret jug.

Is it something that you've used?

Not used, no.

But I remember it as a child.

It belonged to my father's side of the family.

It was his great-grandfather that purchased it, I should imagine.

They bought the Strand Hotel in 1850-something,

I can't remember the exact date.

OK, what sort of guests did they have?

-Well, I do know Disraeli was there.

-Really?

-Yes!

-Disraeli could've been served from this claret jug.

Quite possibly, yes.

Of that period.

-Yes.

-How wonderful? That speaks volumes, doesn't it?

It was clearly a very good quality hotel.

Oh, yes, but I remember as a child, going to the hotel...

and Friday was silver cleaning day.

And, occasionally, this was out to be cleaned.

So, how did you come to eventually own it?

Well...

at the end of the lifespan of the hotel,

back in the '70s, there were three spinsters who

were left with the hotel and they were getting on in years.

One of them died and so the other two decided to sell up.

-Oh!

-And we had a big, fantastic clearance sale.

That happened to be in the sale and it all came flooding back to me.

And my father was with me and he said,

"You really liked that, didn't you?"

And I said, "Yes."

Next thing I knew, he'd bought it.

Aw, lovely.

And he said, "There you are. There's the present for you."

-Wonderful.

-Yes.

In terms of quality, it doesn't get much better than this.

It's by a maker, Daniel and Charles Houle,

who are London makers,

and specialised in this near-Renaissance style.

You could imagine the shape

almost on a Roman table.

But then when you apply the decoration,

it becomes more of a Renaissance style.

We've got these embossed flower heads

and scrolling foliage applied to the body.

The hallmark is up at the top, exactly where you want to see it,

just under the lip. And it hasn't rubbed at all.

It's in lovely condition.

I guess you want to know what it's worth?

-Yes, please.

-Um...

I think we should put an estimate of...

£600 to £900.

I think it's a wonderful thing.

-That's fantastic.

-It's lovely.

I would like to see a reserve of...

£550 as a safety net.

-Yes.

-But, you know, it's a lovely thing to see.

And thank you so much for bringing it today.

-It's an absolute pleasure.

-Thank you.

Our style guru, Caroline, has found something

to send the ladies into a spin.

Joan, how wonderful is it to see these two lovely dresses?

Aren't they beautiful?

And they combine my favourite things -

fashion, France, antiques.

Tell me what you know about them.

I can certainly tell you that

once I used to be able to get into both of them,

but certainly no longer.

And I bought this one when I lived in London during the '80s.

And that one was given to me by a dear friend

who went to live in New York.

He actually felt it was too heavy to put in his suitcase to take.

-Which it is, it's very heavy.

-How fortunate for you!

So, he gave it to me, which is lovely.

It's beautifully fitted.

1950s. It has the look, you know the Dior New Look shape?

So, it would give you a tiny waist and when you walked,

it would just be wonderful.

I'm going to dream about this tonight, it's gorgeous.

-It felt very elegant wearing it.

-I bet it did!

Did you wear it a lot?

Yeah, quite a bit. When I lived in London,

I used to go to the opera and to music and so on.

So, it was perfect, the little black dress with just a little bit extra.

And Jean Desses, Paris...

excellent make.

I've looked inside, I cannot see any labels.

It's not haute couture,

so it hasn't been made specially for anybody.

I think it's been pret-a-porter, so you'd go into a shop and buy it.

Nonetheless, you would pay a lot of money.

Now, the other dress... Do you know, I would've worn that.

-I would've bought that, it's fabulous!

-It's gorgeous, isn't it?

1950s...

puffball...

strapless...

boned.

Again, I used to wear this when I lived in London for parties.

And again, sadly, I can no longer get into it.

But it's great fun.

You know that would sell nowadays

for the girls where they want to wear them to the proms, parties...

anywhere. It's really interesting, if we look inside,

we've got a make here...

Ricci Michaels and nylon which it is.

You know, that's not a bad thing.

It's been retailed in Harrods.

-Yes.

-So, it would've been a very expensive thing.

That would move wonderfully as you danced or just walked.

And then, it's got boning in the bodice, which is just as well.

-So, it wouldn't drop off as you were dancing.

-Absolutely.

It really is lovely.

I don't know...

To give it a presales estimate, I would say £50-80.

But if we put a fixed reserve of £50,

are you happy with that?

-Yeah, that's fine.

-Not to stop it getting lots more.

All right, OK.

Now, this one is a different kettle of fish.

I would think £300-500.

Yeah. Well, that one was a gift

to me and I think it's a work of art in its own right.

So, it's of sentimental value.

I think I'd probably want to keep that one.

But it's interesting to hear its value.

I don't blame you one bit, I think it's gorgeous.

Oh, wonderful! Thank you, you made my day.

Oh! Thank you very much.

It was a pleasure.

It's nice to see a touch of glamour being brought in.

Now, James has spotted something rather unusual.

Now, Lynn, Peter, I have to say this is about

as far from my comfort zone as is possible.

For me, I'm an old-fashioned sort of character, really.

So, tell me what you know.

We bought it from an antique shop in Melrose in Scotland,

last November.

And, originally, I thought they were just three plates

that I thought would look nice in my conservatory.

When I went to pick it up, I realised it was a light fitting.

And it was £15.

-OK.

-Which I tried to reduce.

That's my game!

When I tried to reduce him, he said,

"I'm selling it on behalf of somebody else, he wants £15 for it."

"If you don't buy it, I'm buying it."

So then, I thought, alarm bells started ringing,

then I started to research and found out that it was Danish...

and, um, Soholm?

Yeah. If we turn it over and have a look on the reverse,

Um, there we go. The great thing about modern ceramics,

is it says a lot of it on the back, a lot of the time.

So, we've got Soholm, the factory...

And then see that S-T-E-N-T-O-I, Stentoi?

What that means...

..earthenware, stoneware.

It's incised. It's very much in the

Hans Coper and Lucie Rie style of pottery,

with these incised decoration and the colours that flow from them.

And...

I actually quite like it.

It's quite impressive when it's lit up.

-Yeah, lovely.

-Quite impressive.

We've got holes behind that central disc, haven't we, just in here.

You can see the beams of light would shine out from behind there.

It also shines across these as well, obviously.

With the front plate being away from the back two,

the light also comes out the side

and does the same thing across all three.

-It's quite a clever piece of design, isn't it?

-Yup.

And the great thing about it is it's very now.

Ten years ago, this would have been in a general sale in a box,

might've made £10 or £20.

At the moment, there's a massive fashion for antique furniture,

Danish, simple clean lines.

1960s, 1970s furniture.

And, therefore,

the kids today...

the new money are looking for this sort of thing.

And we found a couple of them that have sold in auctions

and the two that we found made about £200.

If you'd put a £15 bet on and got a £200 return,

you'd be quite happy.

You would, you would.

Let's put £200-300 on it at the moment.

£200 reserve and see what you come up with on the day.

-All right.

-All right, OK, that's fine.

Good luck. Let's hope we do well with it.

OK, thank you.

That goes to prove there are still bargains to be found.

Caroline's spotted yet another piece of the finest silver.

-Hi, Anne-Marie.

-Yes.

Why have you brought a soldier to see me?

Well, I must have had it over 20 years

and it's been stuck in the cupboard and must have been for the last ten.

And where did you find it?

I found it in a car-boot sale, a local car-boot sale.

Do you know, I hear people all the time that find things at car-boot sales.

I don't think I've ever... Well, yeah, the odd time.

But not like this.

And how much did you pay?

I think it was £20, might have been 18.

£18, gosh!

-Now, what do you know about him?

-Nothing.

I just know that it's combat uniform.

Now, one thing - it's silver. Solid silver.

-I did think it was just silver plate.

-No, it's not silver plate.

-So, was it as clean as this when you found it?

-No, I cleaned it.

Well, you lucky lady - I'm going to follow you around

to the next car boot you go to.

It's 1973, London.

It's made by Garrard and Company, Regent Street,

who are jewellers to the Queen.

-Marvellous.

-Which IS pretty marvellous.

You don't get better than that.

So, all of which points to a fine quality item.

It's an Northern Ireland soldier from the Northern Irish conflict.

I think he's probably a bomb disposal...person.

-Sadly, there is some damage.

-Yeah.

The top of his rifle, here.

Do you know anything about that?

It was complete, but I think it was packed away

and in between moving, it's been lost.

-Has it, so you haven't got it anywhere, lurking?

-No, couldn't find it.

See, that is going to make a huge difference.

You know, it's bad enough if it was broken.

But if we had it and could reattach it, it would be better.

But also it would have had a plaque on the front - that's missing.

-And the plinth has been repainted.

-Oh, yes.

So having said all those terrible things about this soldier,

he's still worth considerably more than the 18 or £20

that you paid for it.

Now, in great condition, some of them, similar to this,

have been known to get up towards £1,000.

In this condition, it isn't going to get anywhere near that.

I would think a realistic estimate for him is going to be £300-£500.

So, shall we put him into auction with a £300 reserve?

-Yes, please.

-Would you be happy with that and see what happens on the day?

-Yes, marvellous.

-Great. And keep hunting out.

-Will do.

Before we head off to auction, there is

something I would like to show you.

From the late 18th century up until the 1940s,

Britain's cotton industry had become such a major economic force that it

fostered the saying, "Britain's bread hangs by Lancashire's thread."

Britain had been the biggest cotton cloth producer in the world since the Victorian era.

In 1860, there were more than 2,500 cotton mills, producing half the world's cotton.

And while thousands of workers laboured away in the mills to the North,

those in the Lake District had their work cut out supplying

the bobbins - those simple wooden reels needed to retain the yarn.

Millions of them, in all different shapes

and sizes were essential for the cotton spinning and weaving machines.

More than 70 mills sprung up throughout

the Lake District during the 19th century.

When Stott Park Bobbin Mill opened in 1835,

near the village of Finsthwaite, it was the perfect setting.

This wood here was grown especially for cutting or coppicing,

as it was known.

Different species of tree were cultivated

in cycles such as birch, ash and sycamore,

harvesting these long, great poles before they were then turned into the bobbins.

And the water that you can see and hear now, well,

that was the engine room, that was the power that drove

the waterwheel, and then later, the water turbines.

So, you can see the mill used its natural, local resources right on its doorstep -

water and wood.

This mill is now the only surviving example of a bobbin mill

in the Lake District.

Today, it is a working museum, run by Nick Callahan of English Heritage.

Oh, wow! I love this place.

It's so atmospheric, it really is!

Is this exactly what the mill would have looked like back

in the 19th century when things were working at full tilt?

Well, this is exactly what it would have been like in 1835

when it was built.

It changed slightly in 1880.

It was water power, and then it was steam power

and then finally we've got electricity put in.

There was 20 men working here and six lads

at the height of the industry.

And when they were working, they could produce over 250,000 bobbins a week.

-A week?!

-A week. It was a massive industry.

Did you get paid for how many bobbins you made? Was it like that?

It was piecework. They got paid by the gross.

So for every basket or gross, they were paid an amount.

So, it's heads down, see you at the end.

It's working every day, as many hours as they could.

-Will you take me through the process?

-Yes.

I know this is still working today. And I'm itching to have a go.

We can put the machines on, and you can have a go.

-So I'll switch the line shafting on now.

-I'm ready.

Everything starts to spin and turn.

HE LAUGHS

This really is like a window back in time.

You know, I'm loving this, I really am.

-I thought you'd enjoy this!

-It's just great, it really is.

-Right, I want to get started! Can we?

-Come round this way.

There's some glasses.

-I'll show you in the first piece.

-OK.

So you put the block in, get it spinning. Bring the cutter in.

And the cutter from the other side.

-As quickly as...

-That's quick, isn't it?

As quickly as that, you've roughed a bobbin out.

-And that's ash, isn't it?

-That's ash, there.

-Do you want to have a go?

-Yeah, I want 20 goes, please.

Right. You go round in place of me.

So, put it on to this end, not this end.

Put it onto this end. That's it.

Bang it on, that's it. Hold that tight. That's it. Hand on there.

Pull it towards you. There we go.

My first bobbin turn. Ready?

Yes, keep it tight. And then go the other way.

Very good. Now, just a little loose and off a bit.

Then it just comes off. There you go.

So there's your roughed-out bobbin.

-I'll just finish this...

-It's not very good, is it? It's rubbish!

It is rubbish. Swap it for a better one.

-Have another go with that one, it's a smaller piece.

-Right.

Hold that tight. Pull that, just bring it up to it.

Pull it in. Right in. That's it.

Perfect.

-There you go. We'll make a bobbin out of that one.

-OK. OK, let's go.

OK, we go round this way.

The rough bobbin would have been passed over to the bobbin mastermaker for finishing off.

-We're now on the finishing machine.

-OK.

-We just put the bobbin on...

Get it spinning. We wind that in.

That shapes one side.

And then those two cuts its edge.

Trimming off?

Ah! It's very clever.

-And there you have a finished bobbin.

-That's brilliant. Can I have a go?

You want to have a go? Step in there.

I feel like a kid, this is so magical.

Right, push that up.

That's it. Then just wind that in. That's it.

Just round off the corners.

Oh, I like that.

There we go. Watch your hand. There you are.

Mind you, that's only one!

How many would one chap make in a day?

Maybe 2,500, 3,000, maybe more.

-Depending on the size and set-up.

-Oh, day in and day out.

-So, that's it, really. That is just one type of bobbin.

-It is.

And they made over 260 different styles

-and shapes of bobbins in this mill.

-Gosh.

Well, there's my bobbin and I'm proud of that.

But can you imagine what it would have been like working in here

back in its heyday, churning out 250,000 of these every week.

That's tough work.

So it's not surprising that many suffered from consumption

and dust-related disease.

Much of the workforce lived in the nearby village of Finsthwaite,

making this a close-knit community, centring on the mill.

-How do you do?

-Hi. What a tranquil setting.

-Pleased to meet you.

-Isn't it tremendous?

-Yeah.

Today, Sophia Martin lives in the house that was previously

owned by the bobbin master.

Over the years, she has been finding out about the people who lived

and worked around the mill.

This house was divided into two.

When we bought it, it was knocked back into one.

But in the past, it's been two separate cottages.

This man, John Gibson, he lived on the right-hand side, as we're looking at it.

-And there he is in the bobbin mill.

-Absolutely.

There he is standing at his bench,

in amongst all that machinery and these huge piles

of the wood shavings and things that you've seen.

On the other side, on the left-hand side, as we're looking at it,

there was a family called Kirwin.

And both father and one of the daughters worked in the mill.

His daughter, who is in the census when she is only 13,

she is already working as a bobbin borer.

This is not her, this is... It's a lad.

But that's the machine that she would have worked.

So, there's been a whole history of people that worked

-in the bobbin factory, here, living in this house?

-Yes.

We were lucky enough to see the factory actually working before it closed.

We went down there just a few months before it shut.

And they demonstrated the machinery to us and we had a look.

And my mother said to me, you know, look at this and remember it,

because you won't see anything quite like this again. And so we did.

We had a good look at it. Fascinating.

It was the age of plastic that finally killed off the wooden bobbin industry

in the mid-1900s.

It's so rewarding to know that this tranquil little village,

up here in the Lakes, has been able to hold on to those memories of a bygone age, when the buzz

of the bobbin mills once filled the air up here in Cumbria.

The bobbin may be a thing of the past, the little wooden one,

but it's worth remembering it was once a vital commodity that

kept the wheels of the British textile industry spinning.

And now for my favourite part of the show,

let's head straight to the auction and see what the bidders think.

The silver claret jug

has bags of style and finesse.

Just like this lovely dress that I hope

will send the sale room

into a spin.

The silver statue found in a car-boot sale was a fantastic find.

And those looking for that '70s retro look will surely fall for this

Danish ceramic wall light.

Our auction destination today is in Carlisle,

just ten miles from the Scottish border.

The city is the main shopping centre

and the commercial and industrial hub of both North Cumbria

and parts of southern Scotland.

Today's saleroom is Thomson Roddick and Medcalf,

and John Thomson and Stephen Parkinson are the auctioneers.

Remember, if you are buying or selling something in an auction room,

there is commission or a buyer's premium to pay.

Now, here,

it's 15% on the hammer, plus VAT.

Do factor that in. Do your sums because it does add up,

you don't want to get caught out.

First up, it's that stunning pink dress.

Joan, good luck and thank you for putting big smiles on our faces at the valuation day.

-We love it!

-This is something for the ladies.

It's that wonderful... It's a puffball dress, isn't it?

-It is.

-It is great and you wore it?

-I did.

It was very Bananarama in the '80s.

It was, it was great. I used to wear it to parties

and wear it with my Dr Martens and wear it with stilettos.

Guess who wants to wear it now?

-Me!

-This one.

-I think every party dress tells a tale.

-It does.

Some better than others, but I just think it is gorgeous.

Yeah.

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

It's going under the hammer now.

Let's start at £40, I think.

Not that I would know, £40 bid.

£40.

£40 bid. £5?

£50. £55.

£60.

£60.

£60. £5?

£70.

That's from Harrods, you know?

I know!

£70.

On commission on £70 only. £75.

£80.

Gosh, come on!

At £80. £85?

£85.

£85!

Last chance for this, at £85.

At £85.

-Yes!

-£85!

-Yes, well done!

-Fantastic!

-Do you like it any better?

-That's amazing!

-Brilliant.

Thank you for bringing that in.

We don't see a lot of textiles, and it cheers us up.

It does, everybody's loved it, everybody that's seen it.

I love it and I'm not a girl.

A dress like that is timeless.

Coming up next, our item was found in a car-boot sale for £20.

Let's hope we can make that £400.

Sadly, our owner Anne-Marie cannot be with us,

but we do have that wonderful silver soldier statue,

the bomb disposal expert, and we have our very own expert!

THEY LAUGH

Our fine art expert.

-It's an unusual thing.

-I've not seen one before.

-No, I haven't.

-It's not everybody's cup of tea.

-No.

We're going to put it to the test right now. This is it.

The silver standing figure of a commando

with his Northern Ireland equipment.

300 for the Garrad figure. 200? 180?

180 bid. 180 bid. 200. 220.

-240, 260...

-Selling.

-280. 300.

£300. At £300, I'm only offered.

At 300, £300 only. Last call.

All done at 300.

-£300, right on the reserve.

-I think she will be pleased.

-Yes, so do I.

20 quid to 300. She is bound to be pleased.

That's what it's all about. And it is out there, you've just got to get up early in the morning

and find the right car-boot sale and enjoy yourself and have fun.

And fingers crossed you make some money.

Now, will these wall lights dazzle our bidders?

Hopefully, right now,

we are going to try and turn £15 into £200 for Peter and Lynn.

We can normally do it when our owners buy something at a car boot.

But, it's very rare you can do it

if they buy something at an antique show,

which you did last year.

-Yeah.

-A light fitting.

-Yes.

-Flavour of the month, isn't it?

Did you buy it for your house and think, "Oh, it doesn't work"?

Yeah, we were going to get it for the conservatory

because it was the colours.

And it did work, but, uh...

-when we did a bit of research...

-You didn't like it?

I like it, but then I started researching

and thought it's got to be worth more than this.

OK, here we go, let's put it to the test.

Danish stoneware wall light.

We have a nice, attractive item, this, isn't it?

I can start a bid here with me at £140 bid.

At £140 bid.

£150.

£160.

At £160, still bid.

At £160.

Come on, it looks nice. Look at that, it's lit up as well.

At £160 bid.

At £160, is that it?

At £160, at £160.

Sorry, that's just not enough.

It didn't sell, it nearly did at £160.

Look, it just wasn't the market for it here in Carlisle.

I think you're onto a winner with that, I really do.

You'll certainly make more than 15 quid, it's at £160.

It needs to be in a design sale, doesn't it?

Yeah, 20th-century modern sale.

Get it into a specialist sale, like James has said.

-And it will do £200-300.

-We'll give that a try. OK, thank you.

It didn't shine in the saleroom, but hopefully the ewer will.

This is the one I've been waiting for,

that wonderful silver claret jug,

belonging to Nora, who's right next to me with a big smile on your face,

because it's going!

Look, claret is my tipple.

I'd like to be taking this home, but I'm not allowed to buy it.

If I was allowed to, I'd be bidding on this.

Yes. So, if we feel that way about it, then that lot out there

are definitely going to feel that way.

-It's all down to the bidders now. Ready?

-Yes. Mm-hm.

-OK.

This is it. Let's do it.

Let's start this at 450.

450. 480. 500.

520, 550.

580, 600.

620. At 620.

-At £620.

-We've sold it. Let's get a bit more.

620. 620. 620. A lovely ewer. 620.

Nobody else? At £620 only. Last chance.

-At 620...

-Sold.

-Straight in, really, and straight out.

-Yes.

-Just over the lower end.

-Phew!

-It was close, wasn't it?

-It was.

-It was close, but it's gone and that's the main thing.

-Yes.

Yeah. Whoo!

Well, that's our first lots done and dusted, under the hammer.

So far, so good. While we're here in the area, I've been exploring

the more scenic side of the Lake District.

While Coniston Water may not be the largest or the deepest of the lakes,

over the centuries,

it's certainly been a magnet for the elegant and the rich,

as well as being the scene for some fearless water-borne escapades.

Coniston Water is the Lake District's third-largest lake.

It's five miles long, half a mile wide and 180 feet deep.

The lake became famous when Donald Campbell attempted

to beat his own world water speed record

in January 1967.

You're past the point of no return the moment you start.

There is no going back.

Tragically, Donald Campbell lost his life when the boat lost control.

But this tale of tragedy is only part of Coniston's history.

It's one of England's most beautiful landscapes,

but prior to the Victorian era, few came to visit.

In the 1850s, new railway links brought tourism to the lakes.

Victorian workers began to get weekends off,

and were already holidaying in resorts like Blackpool

in Lancashire.

The Furness Railway operating in the Lake District

capitalised on the links already established

to Lancashire for ferrying minerals and industrial materials.

Now they could carry fare-paying day-trippers.

From holiday hotspots, like Blackpool, they organised

day trips touring the lakes, travelling by train,

horse-drawn coach and, of course, the steamboat.

For around five shillings,

holiday-makers could pick

from one of many day excursions

to the lakes.

One of the most popular

was the Outer Circle tour

around Lake Windermere.

These were some of the first all-inclusive tours in the UK.

And so the era of mass tourism in the English Lake District was born.

Now the more adventurous would do the Inner Circle tour

and buy their tickets from this ticket office

and leave on this very jetty,

Lake Bank Jetty on Coniston Water,

to get aboard this wonderful steam yacht, the Gondola.

Just look at the beautiful lines on this vessel.

She was built in 1859, one of the first to be commissioned

by the Furness Railway Company,

for its day-trippers.

And I'm getting on board!

It wasn't just the aspiring classes taking part in the excursions.

Restrictions in travel to Europe during the Napoleonic Wars

had established the Lake District as an alternative to the Grand Tour.

While the Victorians maintained this tradition,

they could now enjoy days out and, better still,

do it in first-class style.

I'm going to find out more from the boatmaster, Bill King.

Bill, this is the height of luxury for a steam yacht, it really is.

When I was approaching, I was thinking why is it called Gondola,

but you can see, by the bow section,

it's very elegant and it's very extravagant.

Just looking around, it's steeped in architectural detail.

You've got wonderful, sort of, Corinthian columns.

You really do feel like you're on some kind of Grand Tour, don't you?

Yes, and it was designed very much that way,

that people who were accustomed to that kind of luxury,

perhaps on the great train tours in Europe,

would see the same sort of luxury here.

And that's second-class?

It's second-class through there.

They would've had slatted wooden seats in there

and there would've probably been a door

to segregate the two classes.

I was going to say, did they ever meet? The first and second...

No, there were different places to board the boat.

Over the bow for the well-to-do

and over the stern for steerage

and the rather steamy, sooty end of the boat.

Well, I'm keen to look around.

So, will you be my tour guide and can I go see the engine room,

the nuts and bolts of the vessel?

Yes, absolutely. Paul, the engineer, is waiting for you down there

and looking forward to telling you all about it.

-Hopefully, I can fire up.

-Absolutely, yes.

Gondola is more than 150 years old

and considered to be the oldest yacht in the North.

It was in 1918 that she was brought back to her former glory

after being left beached and derelict.

This is definitely the warmest part of the vessel, that's for sure.

It's lovely in here.

But we could be, literally, standing on the foot plate of a locomotive.

Exactly, that's exactly what it is.

It's a narrow-gauge Ffestiniog standardised locomotive boiler.

Do you have to polish this?

-Every day.

-Every single day?

We polish the brasses every day, throughout the boat,

-not just in here.

-There's a lot of brass to polish.

There is. Do you want to polish some?

No, no! I'll tell you what I'm going to do,

-you've kindly given me some gloves.

-I have.

Can I start to put some logs in?

You can, indeed. Just behind you are some ready to put on.

OK.

That's looking nice.

If you put two or three pieces in...

Brilliant stuff.

We monitor the pressure from these gauges up here.

So what you've just put in will now burn,

boil the water that's in here.

And we've now got just under 130 pounds of pressure on.

So, once it's built up enough pressure and enough steam,

-we can head off?

-We can indeed.

Do you go, "toot, toot"? Have you got one of those?

We can, we can do that from the top side.

HORN TOOTS

And now the world knows we're reversing out of our berth!

Travelling at around seven knots,

which is about 7 to 8 miles per hour,

we get to experience the tranquillity of the lake

and this amazing scenery.

It's so beautiful,

just seeing all the undulating landscape around the water.

Whoa. I don't know, it's bowling me over, really.

This is such a privilege to do this.

The Victorian art critic and writer John Raskin bought a house

on the lake here called Brantwood. And we're just going by it.

We are approaching its jetty.

He was a bit of a celebrity and it must've been quite a thrill

for all the Victorian day-trippers to actually bypass his house.

You can see it in the trees, just there.

It's a lovely view of the house.

You can imagine them all trying to spot Raskin

at work in his study, the turreted room,

probably cataloguing one of his Turner paintings.

These stunning views would have been pretty much the same

for those Victorians.

And what a wonderful escape from those industrial towns.

More than 7,000 visitors, annually, took the Inner Circle trip

shortly after it opened in 1865.

Towards the turn of the 20th century,

that number had trebled, to around 22,000 visitors.

And today, it still draws in the crowds,

taking part in activities in and around it.

Let's hope that trip on the Gondola,

which you can see just disappearing in the distance, taking in all

this magic scenery, will be with us for many more generations to come.

It truly is special.

Welcome back to Muncaster Castle,

our magnificent valuation-day venue.

As you can see, the sun is still shining.

Hundreds of people are here,

which means hundreds more antiques to value.

So, it's time to go inside and catch up with our experts

to find more treasures to take off to auction.

Isn't that right, Jazz?

Yes. Woof, woof!

Now, Caroline's found a little treasure.

-Linda, hello.

-Hello. Pleased to meet you.

Pleased to meet you! Have you come far?

I've come from Grange-over-Sands,

which is apparently about an hour away.

But it took me three hours to get here.

Three hours? You're worse than me. How did it take you three hours?

I just went the wrong route. I couldn't find it. I nearly gave up.

Aw! Well, I'm glad you didn't give up.

Now, where did you find this fine thing?

About six weeks ago, I bought my dream home.

It's an Edwardian flat

on the promenade at Grange.

I had a bit of furniture, but not enough to furnish it.

So, I bought the contents of the flat...

-Right.

-..and this was in a drawer.

Fabulous.

Well, it is Turkish.

-Right.

-It's silver.

-And I would think it's 19th-century.

-Mm-hm.

There's some damage on the enamel. Can you see here?

Yeah, yeah. It's missing.

It's beautiful, this green and red enamel.

And it's the Order of Osmanieh...

created by Abdulaziz, in 1862,

for outstanding services to the state.

It would've been a very precious object

to the person that received it.

-It doesn't appeal to me.

-Does it not?

-No, no.

-Shall we turn it over and have a look on the back?

And here is the date of the beginning of the Ottoman Empire.

And it's missing something here,

-it would've had a ribbon...

-Oh, right?

-Can you see? ..to wear it.

-Yeah.

Well, fancy finding this as a little extra.

It was just in the drawer. There was a few tools and...

matchboxes and some playing cards and...

-and that!

-Yeah!

£50 to £80?

Oh, wonderful! Yeah, great.

-How's that?

-Yeah, that's smashing.

And my son gets married this...

August, in Mexico.

-I'll spend it when I'm there.

-So it'll go to the Mexico fund?

Yeah, definitely.

Well, do you want a reserve on it?

No, no. Whatever.

-You want to let it go?

-Yeah.

OK, we'll put £50 to £80...

-That'll be smashing.

-..without reserve.

-Super.

-Great!

-That's great stuff. Thank you very much!

-That's a pleasure, Linda.

-Glad to get rid of it!

What a lucky find!

Now, does luck run in your family?

Well, it seems to here for the Pennington family.

Their luck hinges on the survival of one glass bowl.

Peter, can you tell me the story of the bowl?

It's a bowl that was given us to by Holy King Harry, King Henry VI,

who was a rather unfortunate monarch

because he was really defeated in the War of the Roses.

In 1464, he was beaten in the Battle of Hexham.

He fled into this part of the world, seeking shelter.

No-one really wanted anything to do with him any more,

because that upstart, Edward of York, was king.

He turned up, found in the woods around Muncaster, and brought here.

He was so pleased that we looked after him for a number of weeks,

when he left, he left his little enamel bowl

that we have in front of us,

saying, "As long as this bowl remains unriven,

"Penningtons from Muncaster never shall be driven" -

or, "If you don't break the bowl, you'll keep the castle."

That's astonishing, from the War of the Roses.

Where do you normally keep it?

Well, it's hidden safely in the castle.

Only family members know where it is.

So it's our secret.

If I do tell you by accident, you'd better start running,

-cos I'll have to kill you.

-Please don't tell me.

-I think we'd better put this away now.

-Yes, please.

Earlier, we touched on Donald Campbell

and his presence here in the Lake District.

So it's very apt that James has happened upon his next item.

Jacqueline, 4th of January 1967, not too far from here,

at Coniston Water,

we saw one of the worst disasters in world-record history, didn't we?

We did.

Donald Campbell's Bluebird. But Donald Campbell was...

an amazing character.

-Yes.

-In the 1950s and '60s, he broke the world record on land,

and on water!

The only man ever to hold both world records at the same time.

-Yeah.

-But what do you have here?

Donald Campbell's autograph.

And my uncle,

he lived in the village and he used to go down to the boat yard

and do odd jobs.

-And...

-OK.

-..I used to go to his house for my lunch.

And one day, he said, "Would you like his autograph?"

And I said, "Oh, yes."

So I brought it in the next day

and he got both Donald Campbell's and...

his team, as well.

Oh, lovely!

Gosh, how exciting.

It must've been an amazing thing to view those world-record attempts.

I don't think we realised how important it was at the time.

We used to hear his engine set off,

and we used to all run to the office window

and watch him just disappearing to start his run.

Oh, gosh. How exciting.

Well, what we have here is...

-a piece of history, really.

-Yes.

And it's a very sad thing that autograph collectors

love rare autographs.

Those people that die young, those people that die unexpectedly,

often have more of a following,

same in pop memorabilia, same in actors and actresses,

Marilyn Monroe.

Those people that pass away early have a greater following

-and it's the same with Donald Campbell.

-Yes.

-In terms of value, it's not a huge figure.

-No.

But I should think that that's going to be worth

-somewhere between £80 and £120.

-Right.

For somebody that wasn't a film star, wasn't a rock star,

that actually is quite a lot of money for something like this.

-But it's your story that makes it and the history behind it.

-Yes.

Are you happy to let it go?

Yes, I am.

-Well, somebody's going to love it. It's going to go to a...

-I hope so.

..a collection, probably, of Donald Campbell memorabilia.

-Thank you.

-Pleasure.

Now Caroline's spotted some Art Nouveau.

Dot, how nice to meet you. Are you local to this area?

Barrow-in-Furness.

-Right.

-About an hour away.

Lovely. What do you do there?

Well, I have catteries,

I have ponies.

But I love your outfit - it would make a lovely lead rein outfit

and especially with your hat.

Oh! What's a lead rein outfit?

Well, it's an adult leading a pony with a child on it.

Anything nice that you're wearing, it catches the judge's eye.

Right. Well, next time you need a lead rein, give me a call, Dot.

I will. I don't think your outfit would fit me, though.

This is gorgeous. I love this.

Now, tell me about it. Where did you come by it?

Well, it was my mum's

and she died about four or five years ago.

And when we were cleaning the bungalow out...

my sisters put a load of stuff out for the charity shops.

And this was among it. And I just said,

"You can't throw that out." I said, "Can I have that?"

Yes, cos it was broke. It did have glass in it.

It would've had a mirror, I would think.

It's a period that I particularly adore.

Have you heard of the Art Nouveau period?

-Yes.

-Which is 1895, 1905.

This sits beautifully, right bang in the middle,

I would say about 1900.

It's silver plate. And can you see the lady here,

with this lovely flowing, sort of, hair and dress?

And she's listening.

Now, this particular model is actually called the Cuckoo,

because she is listening to a cuckoo or echo,

and it's got a little mark on it. Did you know?

No, I didn't. I've looked and looked, but I can't find the mark.

Well, I've looked and I've looked and I've looked at it again.

And I found a mark, Dot.

So, if we turn it over...

and we'll need glasses or maybe even a magnifying glass for this.

-A tiny little mark down here, can you see?

-Oh, yes!

Yes!

-Right!

-It was probably muck covering it!

THEY LAUGH

Well, there's no muck on it now.

And we can see it's WMF,

-which is a German maker, which is great to find.

-Oh, right.

..and that puts it up into, you know, a nice little value.

Even like this, I think it's easily going to get £100 to £150.

Oh, that'd be nice.

-Would you like it to go to auction?

-Yes.

Right, I think we'll put it in.

-I don't think you need to put a reserve on it.

-No, no.

I am sure you don't. It's going to get its money.

Right, lovely.

Lovely, thank you.

Aw, thank you!

I enjoyed that!

James has spotted an item fit for a castle.

Gloria, I have to say, normally when somebody says,

"I have an oak and silver-plated ice bucket",

I go, "Oh, no. How am I going to let them down

"and tell them it's worth a tenner?"

Because most of them are.

But THAT is fantastic.

I love it!

I mean, what better place can you be

looking at a castle ice bucket, than in a castle itself?

Tell me about your ice bucket.

My grandmother gave me this about 50 years ago.

It used to be in her china cabinet and I always said to her

when she dies could I have it?

Ah.

So she actually gave me it about ten years before she actually died.

But I never asked any questions about it.

So I don't know how long she'd had it, or where it came from.

The great thing about it is the word novelty.

And as soon as you're able to say a novelty postbox,

a novelty sauce boat, a novelty ice bucket,

that sort of doubles, trebles, quadruples its value.

If it's interesting.

A plain one of these, without the castle link

would be worth, as I say, £10 or £20. But this one's super.

I've never seen one like it.

It dates to about 1870, 1880.

The mounts are silver-plated,

there are no date codes on there at all.

-It has dried out over the years.

-Yeah.

And these little bits here, it's all a bit rickety.

But it's made in strips of oak, so it's coopered like a barrel.

And all it needs is putting back together in a clamp

and re-gluing and it will be fine.

The difficulty is, if this was a postbox,

a novelty country house postbox, the same shape,

maybe just six inches higher with a slot saying, "Letters", I think

it would be worth £1,000, £1,500.

Because novelty postboxes are really popular.

But it's not. It's an ice bucket.

But exactly the same quality,

exactly the same shape, but just slightly smaller.

-And it's going to be a hugely different valuation.

-Yeah.

This one, I think, would be 100 to 150.

Well, that's a fair one, isn't it?

I think we should protect it with a reserve.

-If it didn't make £100...

-Yeah.

-..then we ought to try it again.

And if it doesn't make that, I'll have it.

-LAUGHING:

-No, I'm joking.

-I take it home, I'll take it home.

I'll get into big trouble.

That's definitely a cool castle.

Here's a quick recap, just to jog your memory

of everything that's going under the hammer.

The Turkish silver medal for outstanding services

could draw in the collectors...

just like this exceptional autograph book

with Donald Campbell's signature.

We have to keep our cool when it comes to this novelty ice bucket.

And how can Dot's Art Nouveau photo frame

fail to impress the bidders?

Here we are, back at the auction.

We're certainly doing battle in the saleroom right now.

Coming up for grabs, we have Linda's medal, found in her flat,

or a house you bought recently.

-Yeah, that's right.

-Gosh!

-It was in the drawer.

-It's got the look, hasn't it?

-It's quite unusual, isn't it?

-Yeah!

Did you fancy keeping it?

Oh, definitely not!

-Not a lot of money - what, £50 to £80?

-Yeah.

But fingers crossed we get the top end and a little bit more.

This is going under the hammer now.

This is a silver enamel,

the Ottoman Military decoration.

Quite a few bids here.

I can start, straight in with me now,

at £30 bid. At £30.

-At £30.

-Come on, any interest?

At £30, £32, £35.

At £35.

£38 on the internet.

I have £38 and 40, if you like.

At £40 bid. £42.

£45.

I think this could be finding its way back to Turkey, don't you?

-Easy to post.

-At £50.

At £55 on the internet.

-And I am out. At £55.

-A few bidders.

At £55 and £60, if you like.

At £55, are we all sure?

At £55.

Sold! £55 on the internet.

-Smashing!

-That could be going back home.

Thank you for bringing that in.

That was a good find, wasn't it?

Yeah, super. Thank you very much.

And a few more pounds towards Linda's son's wedding.

Going under the hammer now, we have that wonderful autograph book -

Donald Campbell and the Bluebird team.

I don't think there's many of these about.

Sadly, we don't have our owner, Jackie, she can't make it today,

but we do have James, our expert.

A lot of local interest.

No problem with the value on this one, is there, James?

-It's such an easy thing to sell, especially here.

-Yes, exactly.

And we've all been to Lake Coniston, as well.

For me, that's my favourite lake.

My favourite, by a long shot!

Anyway, let's find out if there's a lot of local interest, shall we?

It's going under the hammer right now.

This is an interesting thing, isn't it?

The autograph book containing

the autographs of Donald Campbell

and the Bluebird team.

There's not many of them about, I am sure.

Straight in with a mere £80 bid.

At £80 bid, at £80.

At £85.

At £95 on the net, now.

£95. £100.

£100 with me.

£110. £120.

-That's very good.

-£130, £140.

Lots and lots of local interest.

£160. 160 with me, now.

If it doesn't sell well here, it won't sell well anywhere, will it?

At £160. £170.

-And I am out at £170...

-At £170.

..can you believe it?

At £170. I'm sure it's worth a bit more.

At £170, we're going to sell at £170.

-We're at £180.

-£180.

£180 is in the room, now. £180.

At £180, are we sure? At 180.

Yes, well done!

A wonderful thing, local interest and a good condition -

that's what it was all about.

-Yeah.

-Great subject matter, as well.

A great example of how stories live on through objects.

Well, things are certainly hotting up in the saleroom right now -

we need cooling down,

and what better way to do it than with Gloria's ice bucket?

And we love it. We really do.

It's a good one. I've never seen one like it.

No, neither have I.

That's why I actually brought it, to see what it was, basically.

-Did you ever use it?

-No.

I put money in it.

I think this is going to get the top end, plus. Ready?

-This is exciting, isn't it?

-Yes.

-This is what auctions are all about.

You never know what's going to happen.

Fingers crossed it really flies, we're going to find out right now.

I'm going to start at 60.

60 bid. £60.

70. 80. 90.

-It's up in the room over there.

-100.

120.

130.

140.

150. 160.

170 with Catherine.

180. 190.

-200.

-Yes.

-Come on.

220.

240.

260. 280. 300.

320. 340.

360.

£360.

-Best-looking ice bucket on the planet.

-Well...

360.

£360.

-I didn't even think it would make the reserve.

-Didn't you?

-No.

-Wonderful quality.

-Yeah.

-Thank you.

-And that's what the bidders liked about it.

-Thank you.

Well, thank you for bringing it in, as well.

A great result for Gloria.

What next?

Dot, good luck.

-I love this, and I'm pleased you took this in.

-Yeah.

WMF, that's the name to look out for,

silver plating at its very best.

It's quality, you know.

You could have it with a picture of yourself in it.

Actually, I was going to bring a book,

a very old book, with Royal pictures, photos in.

But you changed your mind at the last minute?

I couldn't find it and, when I was looking, I found...

Look, your lot is going under the hammer right now. This is it.

Straight in at £230.

Straight in, well over...

£230 I'm bid. £240, £260, £280.

£300.

That's a great name.

£320.

£340, £360.

£360. £380.

£380. £400.

-£420. £440.

-Oh!

£440.

At £440.

At £440. At £440.

At £460.

-£460.

-It hasn't stopped yet.

£480, at £480.

At £480.

£480!

Isn't that brilliant?

-I don't believe it.

-That's going to come in handy, isn't it?

The animals are going to enjoy this money, that's for sure.

-It's what everybody wants.

-Thank you very much.

-No, thank you.

-Thank you!

And if you've got anything like that, we want to flog it for you.

Bring it along to one of our valuation days

and we'll see what we can do.

-Well done, Dot.

-Thank you very much.

-Thanks for bringing it.

There you are, that's it. It's all over for our owners

and what a day it's been here.

One or two surprises we didn't expect,

but that's auctions for you.

Do join us again soon for many more.

Until then, it's goodbye from Carlisle.