0:00:06 > 0:00:07Take a look at this seat.
0:00:07 > 0:00:10It's not any ordinary seat - it does this.
0:00:12 > 0:00:16The technology to eject pilots was developed in the 1940s,
0:00:16 > 0:00:19and here, at the RAF Museum in London,
0:00:19 > 0:00:21we're going to be looking at plenty more examples
0:00:21 > 0:00:23of amazing design and innovation.
0:00:23 > 0:00:25Welcome to "Flog It!"
0:00:48 > 0:00:50Our valuation day is at the RAF Museum
0:00:50 > 0:00:52at Hendon, in north London.
0:00:52 > 0:00:54Here there's one of the largest collections
0:00:54 > 0:00:57of military aircraft in the UK.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00You can see how planes have developed through the ages,
0:01:00 > 0:01:03from flimsy canvas and wooden contraptions
0:01:03 > 0:01:07to the latest state-of-the-art jets flown by the RAF.
0:01:08 > 0:01:10So, it's time to get our show on the road,
0:01:10 > 0:01:14and the crowd is pouring in laden with bags and boxes.
0:01:16 > 0:01:18We need to see their antiques,
0:01:18 > 0:01:20but more importantly, what happens to them at auction,
0:01:20 > 0:01:23so let's get the engines roaring!
0:01:25 > 0:01:28And we've brought out our top guns for our valuations.
0:01:28 > 0:01:31Expert Anita Manning is keeping spirits up...
0:01:31 > 0:01:34You're going to get a wee tot of whisky when you sit down.
0:01:34 > 0:01:37- Oh, right!- Do you believe me? - No.- Oh!
0:01:38 > 0:01:40..and her partner in crime,
0:01:40 > 0:01:44a dab hand at navigating his way through the real gems,
0:01:44 > 0:01:45Michael Baggott.
0:01:45 > 0:01:47- I'll give you a sticker... - All right.
0:01:47 > 0:01:50..which means you're marked for life now.
0:01:51 > 0:01:52We better get ourselves strapped in
0:01:52 > 0:01:55because there's no holding back this lot.
0:01:55 > 0:01:57Literally hundreds and hundreds of people have turned up,
0:01:57 > 0:01:59and they're in a great mood, aren't you?
0:01:59 > 0:02:01Now, before we get on with the valuations,
0:02:01 > 0:02:05here's a quick look at what we've got in our sights on today's show.
0:02:07 > 0:02:09Anita's up for battle...
0:02:09 > 0:02:12Can we have a look at it attacking?
0:02:12 > 0:02:14ROBOT WHIRS
0:02:14 > 0:02:17..and Michael uncovers an unloved ornament.
0:02:17 > 0:02:22- Did it go on pride of place or...? - No!- We thought how ugly it was.
0:02:22 > 0:02:24HE CHUCKLES
0:02:24 > 0:02:26And I'll be looking at some of the famous faces
0:02:26 > 0:02:28that have made the Royal College of Art
0:02:28 > 0:02:31the premier home of design and innovation
0:02:31 > 0:02:34as well as catching up with an artistic hero of mine.
0:02:39 > 0:02:42So, it's time to get our valuations under way,
0:02:42 > 0:02:44and fingers crossed we do not have a bumpy ride.
0:02:44 > 0:02:47We're going to ask our experts to steer us through any turbulence,
0:02:47 > 0:02:50and it looks like Anita has liftoff.
0:02:56 > 0:03:00Edward, "Flog It!" can be great fun,
0:03:00 > 0:03:04especially when wonderful things like this are brought along.
0:03:04 > 0:03:07Now, tell me, how did you come by it?
0:03:07 > 0:03:12Well, it was a present to my son via my brother-in-law,
0:03:12 > 0:03:14and the boy is now 43.
0:03:14 > 0:03:17He's not playing with it any more?
0:03:17 > 0:03:19He's got a better one to play with.
0:03:19 > 0:03:21- THEY CHUCKLE - A human one.
0:03:21 > 0:03:25- What about grandchildren? Are they not interested in it?- No.
0:03:25 > 0:03:28The youngest one actually got scared of it once
0:03:28 > 0:03:31- because of the firing action that it does...- Ah, right.
0:03:31 > 0:03:33..and didn't want to know.
0:03:33 > 0:03:35Now he's eight, we haven't tried again,
0:03:35 > 0:03:37- so I said, "Oh, well, that's it." - Just leave it. OK.
0:03:37 > 0:03:41Let's have a look at it, because it's a great thing.
0:03:41 > 0:03:44This was made in Japan in the 1960s.
0:03:44 > 0:03:49Now, Japan has always made wonderful tin plate toys.
0:03:49 > 0:03:53They made them prewar and then post-war,
0:03:53 > 0:03:56and they always had a certain quality.
0:03:56 > 0:03:59These toys in Japan were made for
0:03:59 > 0:04:02- the European and the American market.- Ah!
0:04:02 > 0:04:05- So they were influenced by what was happening...- OK.
0:04:05 > 0:04:08..in Europe and in America at that time.
0:04:08 > 0:04:12So we see great interest in robots and science fiction and so on
0:04:12 > 0:04:14in the European market.
0:04:14 > 0:04:19- And this one was actually called The Attacking Martian.- Really?
0:04:19 > 0:04:22- Can we have a look at it attacking? - Well, if you like, yes.
0:04:22 > 0:04:25- I'll just switch it on. - Switch it on, baby.
0:04:25 > 0:04:27ROBOTS WHIRS
0:04:32 > 0:04:35I can see why these grandchildren
0:04:35 > 0:04:38- might have been frightened by it. - SHE CHUCKLES
0:04:38 > 0:04:41It's in perfect working order.
0:04:41 > 0:04:43Tell me, did you ever have a box for it?
0:04:43 > 0:04:46- No, unfortunately not.- OK.
0:04:46 > 0:04:49- Your son's grown up...- Yes. - ..and his mind's on other things,
0:04:49 > 0:04:52- your grandchildren are scared of it...- Mm-hm.
0:04:52 > 0:04:53..so you want to pass it on.
0:04:53 > 0:04:56Good condition, but no box.
0:04:57 > 0:05:02In auction, I would say we would probably be looking at,
0:05:02 > 0:05:05say, £50 to £80,
0:05:05 > 0:05:07and the fact that it is working
0:05:07 > 0:05:10and that it is a super piece,
0:05:10 > 0:05:13I'm sure that it will draw a lot of interest.
0:05:13 > 0:05:16But we'll put a reserve on it, if you're happy with that,
0:05:16 > 0:05:20- and we would put the reserve, then, at £50.- Mm-hm.
0:05:20 > 0:05:24Shall we let him attack the auction?
0:05:35 > 0:05:38Now, there's something very odd on Michael's table.
0:05:39 > 0:05:43Alison, Nancy, thank you for carrying this...
0:05:43 > 0:05:45Oh! ..hefty fellow in today.
0:05:45 > 0:05:51It's late 19th-century stoneware body that's been high-fired
0:05:51 > 0:05:54in these lovely...well, lovely glazes to me,
0:05:54 > 0:05:58and you've go this wonderful representation of an elephant.
0:05:58 > 0:06:00We've got the long ears, we've got the tusks.
0:06:00 > 0:06:02What is the object he's holding?
0:06:02 > 0:06:04- He's holding a whisk.- Right.
0:06:04 > 0:06:06You're not beating the elephant with it -
0:06:06 > 0:06:09you're whisking away the flies.
0:06:09 > 0:06:12Whether it was one or part of a pair...
0:06:12 > 0:06:15Because it's very much facing this way,
0:06:15 > 0:06:18I'd expect there might be a counter figure going the other way.
0:06:18 > 0:06:19Oh, OK.
0:06:19 > 0:06:22Where did it come from?
0:06:22 > 0:06:24About 40 years ago,
0:06:24 > 0:06:30we had a elderly lady living at the bottom of our garden.
0:06:30 > 0:06:33She was downsizing - she was going into a home -
0:06:33 > 0:06:37and she actually passed this to my father over the garden fence.
0:06:37 > 0:06:39Oh, so she was at the house at the bottom of the...
0:06:39 > 0:06:41- At the bottom of... - She wasn't just sort of...- No.
0:06:41 > 0:06:43- ..in the shed or something? - She wasn't a fairy.
0:06:43 > 0:06:47A fairy or anything like that. What was her name?
0:06:47 > 0:06:52Gladys Saxby, and she was a Welsh opera singer.
0:06:52 > 0:06:54- A Welsh opera singer?- Mm. - At the bottom of the garden?
0:06:54 > 0:06:56That's amazing.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59So, was it something when it came, Nancy,
0:06:59 > 0:07:02that you thought that's a wonderful thing?
0:07:02 > 0:07:04Did it go on pride of place or...?
0:07:04 > 0:07:06- No!- We thought how ugly it was.
0:07:06 > 0:07:08Oh, so it was a...
0:07:08 > 0:07:10It wasn't a "Thank you very much!" over the fence,
0:07:10 > 0:07:12it was a "Er...thank you very much."
0:07:12 > 0:07:13Yes.
0:07:13 > 0:07:16But it is very ugly.
0:07:16 > 0:07:21- I will give you that you either love it or hate it...- Yes, yes.
0:07:21 > 0:07:24..and it is a particular Eastern aesthetic
0:07:24 > 0:07:26because this is where it comes from.
0:07:26 > 0:07:28It's a class of stoneware
0:07:28 > 0:07:32that's not greatly appreciated in this country.
0:07:32 > 0:07:36It's just starting to be sought after and collected
0:07:36 > 0:07:40- if you like that sort of thing... - Yes.- ..which you don't.- No.
0:07:40 > 0:07:43So it comes to a question of price.
0:07:44 > 0:07:48- I think we'd be sensible putting a reserve of about £90 on this.- Right.
0:07:48 > 0:07:54- But let's put an estimate that's a bit more upbeat of 120 to 180.- OK.
0:07:54 > 0:07:57- It's fascinating how these things travel.- Yes.
0:07:57 > 0:08:00And it's obviously come from Japan,
0:08:00 > 0:08:04- given to her, maybe when she's been singing, as a gift...- Yes, yes.
0:08:04 > 0:08:07..and then it goes over the garden fence
0:08:07 > 0:08:10- and eventually comes to the RAF Museum with "Flog It!"- Yes.
0:08:10 > 0:08:12We've all become a little bit of
0:08:12 > 0:08:14the part of the story of this elephant,
0:08:14 > 0:08:16and we're just going to wave him goodbye at the auction
0:08:16 > 0:08:18when we get there.
0:08:19 > 0:08:22Hopefully the elephant will soon be out of their hands.
0:08:31 > 0:08:33Now, I've come to central London
0:08:33 > 0:08:35to the home of a venerable institution
0:08:35 > 0:08:39that spawned some great artists and designers.
0:08:39 > 0:08:41The Royal College of Art has long been
0:08:41 > 0:08:44a hothouse of talent and innovation.
0:08:44 > 0:08:46Sculptors, artists and innovators
0:08:46 > 0:08:50like James Dyson and designers including Zandra Rhodes
0:08:50 > 0:08:52have all been former pupils.
0:08:52 > 0:08:54Even the silver screen's Ridley Scott,
0:08:54 > 0:08:56who directed the blockbuster Gladiator,
0:08:56 > 0:08:57was an ex-student.
0:08:59 > 0:09:01The RCA began life as
0:09:01 > 0:09:04the Government School for Design in 1837,
0:09:04 > 0:09:06set up with a very practical mission,
0:09:06 > 0:09:07and that was to train designers
0:09:07 > 0:09:11to help out with the country's growing industrial output.
0:09:11 > 0:09:14And after the Great Exhibition in 1851,
0:09:14 > 0:09:16art was introduced as a subject,
0:09:16 > 0:09:19the building was rechristened the National Art Training School,
0:09:19 > 0:09:24before finally becoming the Royal College of Art in 1896.
0:09:27 > 0:09:30In the early days, teaching was traditional and strict.
0:09:30 > 0:09:35Even in the 1930s, male and female students were separated.
0:09:35 > 0:09:40A key turning point in the RCA's history came in 1948.
0:09:40 > 0:09:43The austerity period of the post-war meant that design institutions
0:09:43 > 0:09:47had to be more in tune with British commerce and industry,
0:09:47 > 0:09:51so new faculties were set up in fashion and graphic design
0:09:51 > 0:09:54under the principle of Robin Darwin.
0:09:56 > 0:09:58Robin Darwin's dream was to create
0:09:58 > 0:10:01the most important art and design school in the world.
0:10:01 > 0:10:04To achieve this, he had to make the curriculum more relevant
0:10:04 > 0:10:07to the needs of a developing society.
0:10:07 > 0:10:11But it meant design products still had to be aesthetic, effective
0:10:11 > 0:10:14and be items people wanted to spend their money on.
0:10:16 > 0:10:18Studying here during that great era of change
0:10:18 > 0:10:21is somebody I've met on the show before.
0:10:21 > 0:10:24Back in 2008, I was lucky enough to be shown around
0:10:24 > 0:10:28an exhibition of work by the artist Sir Peter Blake.
0:10:28 > 0:10:30Peter Blake was the pioneer of pop art,
0:10:30 > 0:10:33drawing inspiration from the fast-changing era
0:10:33 > 0:10:36with his famous artwork of The Beatles and Elvis.
0:10:36 > 0:10:39He was the forerunner to the likes of David Hockney,
0:10:39 > 0:10:42who popularised the pop art movement.
0:10:43 > 0:10:45- Well, it's great to see you again, Peter.- And you.
0:10:45 > 0:10:46I think it was about eight years ago
0:10:46 > 0:10:49- we met at the Pallant Gallery... - That's right.- ..at your exhibition.
0:10:49 > 0:10:52Now, I'm going to take you back even further in time
0:10:52 > 0:10:54to your student days here.
0:10:54 > 0:10:58Well, I came here 62 years ago,
0:10:58 > 0:11:00- which is a bit scary, isn't it?- Yeah.
0:11:00 > 0:11:02So, I came here at the age of 21.
0:11:02 > 0:11:04Gosh. So, what was it like back then?
0:11:04 > 0:11:06We were grateful to be here.
0:11:06 > 0:11:09I mean, we were a generation who before the war
0:11:09 > 0:11:11probably wouldn't have gone to art school.
0:11:11 > 0:11:15The Labour government had given grants to go to colleges.
0:11:15 > 0:11:17It just was wonderful to be in London,
0:11:17 > 0:11:19wonderful to be at the Royal College.
0:11:19 > 0:11:21Now, I want you to tell me what this is,
0:11:21 > 0:11:23because, to me, it looks like a cobbler's workbench,
0:11:23 > 0:11:26but I know it's one of the easels, isn't it, really?
0:11:26 > 0:11:27Yeah, they were called donkeys.
0:11:27 > 0:11:30- I mean, they're vaguely like a donkey.- Yeah.
0:11:30 > 0:11:33And you would have had a life model in the middle
0:11:33 > 0:11:36and probably 30 of those around the model,
0:11:36 > 0:11:37and you sat on the seat.
0:11:37 > 0:11:39That's quite handy, that, isn't it?
0:11:39 > 0:11:41It's handy, but I don't see how we did it.
0:11:41 > 0:11:44- I mean, I suppose you fitted your drawing board...- Up here?
0:11:44 > 0:11:47- ..onto that nodge. - Up there?- Yeah.- Yeah.
0:11:47 > 0:11:50- But it looks incredibly uncomfortable.- It does, doesn't it?
0:11:50 > 0:11:53I mean, you sat astride that for about three or four hours.
0:11:53 > 0:11:55And now I sit with the board on my lap very close
0:11:55 > 0:11:59so I don't know how I would've actually done it, but...
0:11:59 > 0:12:01Was it very traditional and disciplined?
0:12:01 > 0:12:03It was very ordered, yeah.
0:12:03 > 0:12:05I mean, we had to be there by 9.30.
0:12:05 > 0:12:09There was a kind of warder waiting with the signing-in book,
0:12:09 > 0:12:11and you signed in,
0:12:11 > 0:12:14and the book went at 9.30 and then you were late or absent,
0:12:14 > 0:12:17so...so there was a certain discipline.
0:12:17 > 0:12:21And the thing was I'd just done two years' National Service,
0:12:21 > 0:12:25so you'd had two pretty hard years, so you were in heaven,
0:12:25 > 0:12:28and...and very pretty girls.
0:12:28 > 0:12:29It was fun.
0:12:29 > 0:12:33Students like Sir Peter were at the forefront of a cultural revolution
0:12:33 > 0:12:36that would take place across the country.
0:12:36 > 0:12:39Young people began to enjoy a freedom they'd not known.
0:12:44 > 0:12:45How old are you here?
0:12:45 > 0:12:48Well, I was 21 when I came to the college,
0:12:48 > 0:12:50- so I was probably 22.- Gosh.
0:12:50 > 0:12:55That shed's in Dartford - it was my dad's studio.
0:12:55 > 0:12:57It's a proper old shed, isn't it?
0:12:57 > 0:12:59- Proper pot shed. - PAUL LAUGHS
0:12:59 > 0:13:02- All dads only painted half a shed, didn't they?- Yeah.
0:13:02 > 0:13:03They ran out of paint.
0:13:03 > 0:13:06- Gosh, this is where it all started for you, really, isn't it?- Yeah.
0:13:06 > 0:13:08You were so ahead of your time.
0:13:08 > 0:13:10There were other painters here at the college
0:13:10 > 0:13:12like the Kitchen Sink artists.
0:13:12 > 0:13:16In a way, I was the end of that and the beginning of pop art,
0:13:16 > 0:13:20because the group that Hockney was part of came six years later.
0:13:20 > 0:13:22An amazing kind of group
0:13:22 > 0:13:26who also were a next generation of pop artists,
0:13:26 > 0:13:29- so I did kind of anticipate that. - Yeah, yeah, you certainly did.
0:13:39 > 0:13:42There's always been a strong link with industry in the RCA.
0:13:42 > 0:13:46More than 20,000 students have passed through the door here,
0:13:46 > 0:13:49and many of the things they've created are in our homes,
0:13:49 > 0:13:51whether it's enhanced our wardrobe
0:13:51 > 0:13:53or their pictures and items that are on our walls.
0:13:53 > 0:13:55One thing is for sure -
0:13:55 > 0:13:57the next generation of graduates that leaves here
0:13:57 > 0:14:01will continue to inspire and shape the way we live our lives.
0:14:07 > 0:14:09We don't have to fly too far today -
0:14:09 > 0:14:1310 miles south of Hendon to Chiswick Auctions in West London,
0:14:13 > 0:14:15and it looks like there are some keen bidders.
0:14:15 > 0:14:19Commission here is 15% plus VAT.
0:14:19 > 0:14:22And, on the rostrum, we have both Matt Caddick
0:14:22 > 0:14:25and William Rouse wielding the gavel.
0:14:25 > 0:14:28And first under the hammer is Edward's Japanese robot.
0:14:29 > 0:14:31Do you know, if I was selling the robot right now,
0:14:31 > 0:14:34I'd have him on the rostrum with me, wouldn't you? You would.
0:14:34 > 0:14:37- You definitely would.- Yeah. - Yes, you would.
0:14:37 > 0:14:40- He'd be up there with you. - I'd let him distract me.
0:14:40 > 0:14:42You'd let him put his fist down going, crash! Sold.
0:14:42 > 0:14:45That's the way to do it. That's the way to do it, yeah?
0:14:45 > 0:14:50- The wonderful thing about this is it's...it's still working.- Yeah.
0:14:50 > 0:14:53It's still there, and it's still quite fun.
0:14:53 > 0:14:55It looks great, it's sculptural.
0:14:55 > 0:14:58This is going to find a new home and it's time for you to say goodbye.
0:14:58 > 0:15:00- Let's hope they're going to enjoy it.- Yeah.
0:15:00 > 0:15:02- Oh, they will. A collector will snap this up.- He or she.
0:15:02 > 0:15:04Hey, it's your lot now. This is it. Good luck.
0:15:04 > 0:15:06It's going under the hammer.
0:15:06 > 0:15:09- Let's find out what the robot's worth.- Oh, excellent.
0:15:09 > 0:15:12The 1960s Japanese battery-operated tin plate robot.
0:15:12 > 0:15:14Come on, come on. I want to see this do really well.
0:15:14 > 0:15:15Yeah, me too.
0:15:17 > 0:15:20With me at 40. 45. 50 here.
0:15:20 > 0:15:22Staying already at £50 on the book with me.
0:15:22 > 0:15:24And 5, I'll take, please.
0:15:24 > 0:15:2755. Commission bid is now beaten. It's on the web at £55.
0:15:27 > 0:15:2960, we need.
0:15:29 > 0:15:30For £55, then.
0:15:30 > 0:15:33Are we finished, all done at 55? I think we are.
0:15:33 > 0:15:3455.
0:15:34 > 0:15:37- Gone!- He's gone. Hey, did he have a name?
0:15:37 > 0:15:41- Did you ever give him the name? - No.- Aw.- I didn't. I didn't.
0:15:41 > 0:15:45Maybe his next owner will give him a name.
0:15:45 > 0:15:46And do you know?
0:15:46 > 0:15:48I hope the next owner has him on a desk
0:15:48 > 0:15:49- in the office.- More than likely.
0:15:49 > 0:15:52I hope he's on the desk near the phone.
0:15:52 > 0:15:56So, Edward's a happy man, and his robot has a proud new owner.
0:15:57 > 0:16:00Now, let's see how the pottery fares with the bidders.
0:16:00 > 0:16:04Nancy and Alison, good luck, and it's great to see you again.
0:16:04 > 0:16:07While Michael and I sit back and relax, like you at home,
0:16:07 > 0:16:08we can all enjoy this sitting down.
0:16:08 > 0:16:11- This is good, this, isn't it? - This is good, yes. It's lovely.
0:16:11 > 0:16:13We've got the ceramic elephant going under the hammer.
0:16:13 > 0:16:15A little bit of Orient comes to west London.
0:16:15 > 0:16:17Good luck, OK?
0:16:17 > 0:16:20It's going under the hammer right now. This is it.
0:16:20 > 0:16:23A pottery seated man on an elephant.
0:16:25 > 0:16:28There we go. What's it worth? £50 for it.
0:16:28 > 0:16:3150 is bid. 55. 60. 65.
0:16:31 > 0:16:35£65 for the pottery elephant. At 65.
0:16:35 > 0:16:36I'll take 70 in the room.
0:16:38 > 0:16:3975.
0:16:39 > 0:16:4280. 85.
0:16:42 > 0:16:43- 90 in the far end.- Great!
0:16:43 > 0:16:46At £90, we're bid.
0:16:46 > 0:16:47Anybody else, then?
0:16:47 > 0:16:49At £90. I can sell it at 90.
0:16:51 > 0:16:55- Sold. Hammer's gone down. Are you happy with that?- Absolutely.
0:16:55 > 0:16:58- Brilliant.- It's gone from my house.
0:16:59 > 0:17:00It's gone. Job done.
0:17:08 > 0:17:10Well, that's it, it's all over,
0:17:10 > 0:17:13and what a brilliant day we've had here in the auction rooms.
0:17:13 > 0:17:15I hope you've enjoyed the show.
0:17:15 > 0:17:17Join us again for many more surprises,
0:17:17 > 0:17:19but until then, it's goodbye from Chiswick.