0:00:06 > 0:00:08Now, who was Britain's first Christian martyr?
0:00:08 > 0:00:12This might be a clue. This marvellous cathedral
0:00:12 > 0:00:15and abbey church behind me was dedicated to him.
0:00:15 > 0:00:16He was St Alban and today,
0:00:16 > 0:00:20Flog It comes from the town named after him... St Albans.
0:00:56 > 0:00:59Even though St Alban sounds virtuous, which indeed he was,
0:00:59 > 0:01:01and I'll tell you why a bit later,
0:01:01 > 0:01:05this place is reputed to have more pubs per square mile
0:01:05 > 0:01:08than any other town in the United Kingdom.
0:01:10 > 0:01:13And this one is supposed to be the oldest in Britain.
0:01:13 > 0:01:15It's called Ye Fighting Cocks
0:01:15 > 0:01:18and it boasts many illustrious visitors,
0:01:18 > 0:01:20one of whom was Sir Walter Raleigh.
0:01:33 > 0:01:36Well, the weather is slightly inclement. It's been raining
0:01:36 > 0:01:37but thankfully there are no puddles,
0:01:37 > 0:01:41so our gallant expert, Mark Stacey, doesn't have to take his cloak off
0:01:41 > 0:01:44for the wonderful Kate Bliss. Are you enjoying this today?
0:01:44 > 0:01:46- Yeah. Loads of people. - What have you seen so far?
0:01:46 > 0:01:50Oh, lots of interesting items, Paul. I can't wait to get them inside and unwrapped.
0:01:50 > 0:01:54Well, I think it's 9:30, the doors are open, let's get them in.
0:02:04 > 0:02:06We're in the town hall today
0:02:06 > 0:02:09and some of the owners of family heirlooms you can see below
0:02:09 > 0:02:10are getting rather excited.
0:02:10 > 0:02:13Let's see who has made it to the valuation table first.
0:02:20 > 0:02:22- Hello, Dee.- Hello.
0:02:22 > 0:02:25It wouldn't be Flog It if we didn't have another piece of Troika.
0:02:25 > 0:02:28- Yes.- Now, where did it come from?
0:02:28 > 0:02:29Well, it belonged to my parents,
0:02:29 > 0:02:35and in the '60s and early '70s we took many holidays in Cornwall,
0:02:35 > 0:02:38although I don't remember exactly where they bought it.
0:02:38 > 0:02:42It was probably on one of those summer holidays
0:02:42 > 0:02:44and they've had it ever since, and my father
0:02:44 > 0:02:49died several years ago and my mother has recently moved into a care home,
0:02:49 > 0:02:53so this has come to me, and I wondered if I ought to keep it
0:02:53 > 0:02:58but I think they would rather like to think that other people had seen it,
0:02:58 > 0:03:01- someone else had bought it. - And do you like it yourself?
0:03:01 > 0:03:04I do like it, yes, I do.
0:03:04 > 0:03:06- And this looks almost the original shade?- It is.
0:03:06 > 0:03:08So, if we take the shade off, Dee,
0:03:08 > 0:03:11and then we can have a little look at the lamp base.
0:03:11 > 0:03:13We've got a typical Troika shade...
0:03:13 > 0:03:17very geometric, very abstract, this circular shape,
0:03:17 > 0:03:19and if we turn it round,
0:03:19 > 0:03:23you've got a completely different design on the other side,
0:03:23 > 0:03:26so you can actually use all sides,
0:03:26 > 0:03:29so if you get bored with looking at that one, you turn it around.
0:03:29 > 0:03:34If we turn it upside down, we can see we've got a cover which will almost certainly be marked Troika,
0:03:34 > 0:03:38possibly then with an artist or designer signature on it,
0:03:38 > 0:03:41initials, but very much late '60s.
0:03:41 > 0:03:44I think if it was a slightly stronger colour,
0:03:44 > 0:03:48where we had a sort of dark blue background and brighter colours,
0:03:48 > 0:03:51we would probably be looking at £300, £400.
0:03:51 > 0:03:55I think because it's got that sort of paler, earthier colours,
0:03:55 > 0:04:01we're probably looking at sort of £150 to £250, with £150 reserve.
0:04:01 > 0:04:03How do you feel about flogging it?
0:04:03 > 0:04:07- Yes.- Wonderful! Well, I look forward to seeing you at the auction.
0:04:07 > 0:04:10Thank you very much, Mark. I look forward to it as well.
0:04:10 > 0:04:11- Thank you.- Thank you.
0:04:21 > 0:04:25What a handsome bear, Zoe! So has he got a name?
0:04:25 > 0:04:27- Rupert.- Rupert? Rupert the Bear!
0:04:27 > 0:04:31- Now we've got three generations here. How old are you, Zoe?- Six.
0:04:31 > 0:04:35And this is mum, Caroline, isn't it? And we've got your grandma with us,
0:04:35 > 0:04:37so who does this bear belong to?
0:04:37 > 0:04:39- My mum.- Your mum?
0:04:39 > 0:04:41So how did your mum come by this?
0:04:41 > 0:04:43When I was about three,
0:04:43 > 0:04:47my mum's family worked in a house in St Albans, in Hangar House.
0:04:47 > 0:04:49- Called what, sorry?- Hangar House.
0:04:49 > 0:04:52Which is a big country house, not far from here?
0:04:52 > 0:04:54- Hangar Park in London Colney.- OK.
0:04:54 > 0:04:58And apparently when I was three, the lady...what was her name?
0:04:58 > 0:05:02- Calladine.- Lady Calladine, she took me upstairs to choose something from the nursery, and I chose this.
0:05:02 > 0:05:06- What a lucky girl!- Mum said there were loads of soft lions up there,
0:05:06 > 0:05:08but I chose the bear.
0:05:08 > 0:05:11- You wanted the bear?- Yes. - Not interested in anything else?
0:05:11 > 0:05:14No, the bear. I don't remember it, but I still like him!
0:05:14 > 0:05:17- So has he been much loved? - Yes, very loved, yes.
0:05:17 > 0:05:21- Ride it up and down the road! - Did you?- Yes. Mum lives on a hill,
0:05:21 > 0:05:24so my brother had his go kart and I had Rupert!
0:05:24 > 0:05:27- Did you have races?- Yes!- Poor Rupert!
0:05:27 > 0:05:29Now he's up in Mum's loft
0:05:29 > 0:05:33and that's where he's been for quite a few years, so he's just up there.
0:05:33 > 0:05:36I've got three daughters, my brother has children as well
0:05:36 > 0:05:39and you can't divide him between six children, or...
0:05:39 > 0:05:41He's in a remarkable condition
0:05:41 > 0:05:43considering you used to ride him down the hill!
0:05:43 > 0:05:46He's got lovely fur, and he's straw-filled,
0:05:46 > 0:05:49and he's got a few characteristics which help us to date him.
0:05:49 > 0:05:54If we look at his eyes, the early bears that were made -
0:05:54 > 0:05:57in Germany - of this sort of type,
0:05:57 > 0:06:01had what were called "boot black" eyes, or "boot button" eyes...
0:06:01 > 0:06:05little tiny black button eyes, rather like the buttons on boots,
0:06:05 > 0:06:06hence they got their name,
0:06:06 > 0:06:09and then from the 1920s, glass eyes replaced them
0:06:09 > 0:06:13and then from the 1950s, the plastic eyes came in,
0:06:13 > 0:06:17and I think that's what we've got here, with the amber surrounds,
0:06:17 > 0:06:19and also the wheels help us date it.
0:06:19 > 0:06:23Now I would put this probably Post-War, perhaps 1950s even,
0:06:23 > 0:06:26and we've got two little tell-tale signs as well.
0:06:26 > 0:06:31We've got a label actually on the wheels' axle, on the base here.
0:06:31 > 0:06:34It's Muhlhauser,
0:06:34 > 0:06:38and it says sportspiel, which is German for a sporting toy,
0:06:38 > 0:06:45or something that moves, basically, I think, and Muhlhauser would be the manufacturer of that metal base,
0:06:45 > 0:06:49but...is there anything else you have noticed about his ears?
0:06:49 > 0:06:51Have you seen a little button in his ear?
0:06:51 > 0:06:55- Well, you've pointed it out to us... - But you didn't see it before?- No.
0:06:55 > 0:06:58Well, we've got a little button here,
0:06:58 > 0:07:02which is characteristic for, really, the top of the tree
0:07:02 > 0:07:06in toy manufacturing in Germany, the factory called Steiff,
0:07:06 > 0:07:09and there were different little buttons in ears
0:07:09 > 0:07:11for different periods of manufacture
0:07:11 > 0:07:15and this also helps me to tell me that it is 1950s.
0:07:15 > 0:07:17Does it do anything else, Zoe?
0:07:17 > 0:07:20- Yes. It growls!- Listen to that! BEAR GROWLS
0:07:20 > 0:07:22Can we hear it again? Oh, yeah! BEAR GROWLS
0:07:22 > 0:07:25Well, I think it is super that that still works. Lovely.
0:07:25 > 0:07:28So what about value? Any ideas?
0:07:28 > 0:07:31- Not at all.- Well, if he was slightly earlier,
0:07:31 > 0:07:33if he was 1910 or slightly later,
0:07:33 > 0:07:36then we'd be talking several hundred pounds,
0:07:36 > 0:07:38but I still think
0:07:38 > 0:07:40as a sort of 1950s in date,
0:07:40 > 0:07:43he's going to be worth £100 to £150 at auction.
0:07:43 > 0:07:47Not bad for an old bear, is he? Thank you very much for bringing him along.
0:07:47 > 0:07:49- OK.- I rather fancy him myself!
0:08:01 > 0:08:05Cathy, this doesn't look like the usual violin cases we normally see.
0:08:05 > 0:08:07Well, I presume it is a violin.
0:08:07 > 0:08:09I can see the violin bow there.
0:08:09 > 0:08:11Let's have a look. Shall I take this out?
0:08:11 > 0:08:14- Yes, please do.- You don't sound like you're from St Albans.
0:08:14 > 0:08:16There's a slight Irish...
0:08:16 > 0:08:19There is an Irish undertone there
0:08:19 > 0:08:23but I have been made a British citizen now. You're in safe hands.
0:08:23 > 0:08:26- A St Albans citizen! - St Albans citizen, yes.
0:08:26 > 0:08:28Well, let's move the case.
0:08:28 > 0:08:31I'm kind of getting the picture of what this is all about now.
0:08:31 > 0:08:34I like the original case, that's nice.
0:08:34 > 0:08:37The bow, that's OK.
0:08:37 > 0:08:38It's a typical student bow.
0:08:38 > 0:08:41Some bows are worth an awful lot of money
0:08:41 > 0:08:44if they're silver mounted, but this one is a typical student bow
0:08:44 > 0:08:46with probably no value whatsoever,
0:08:46 > 0:08:49but this is what is intriguing me, because it's not a violin, is it?
0:08:49 > 0:08:52- No, it isn't!- Aah, look at that!
0:08:52 > 0:08:55It's a practice violin!
0:08:55 > 0:08:57How wonderful!
0:08:57 > 0:08:59Tell me all about this.
0:08:59 > 0:09:03Well, unfortunately, I have very little to tell you
0:09:03 > 0:09:05because it was given to my husband by an uncle
0:09:05 > 0:09:11and he gave us no information about where it came from at all.
0:09:11 > 0:09:14My husband plays the violin, but has a very long neck
0:09:14 > 0:09:17and consequently can't make use of the practice violin.
0:09:17 > 0:09:20- Can I have a look?- You may.
0:09:20 > 0:09:22Aah! That is exquisite!
0:09:22 > 0:09:25Just look at that shape!
0:09:25 > 0:09:28That's a typical "S" scroll
0:09:28 > 0:09:33that you see on the sound holes either side on the violin.
0:09:33 > 0:09:35That is so beautiful.
0:09:36 > 0:09:39There's a little bit of age to this, you know.
0:09:39 > 0:09:41I would say that is over 100 years old.
0:09:41 > 0:09:43- Really?- Yes, yes.
0:09:43 > 0:09:46- This is made of mahogany.- Really?
0:09:46 > 0:09:50Yes, and obviously it would be used to practice fingering positions.
0:09:50 > 0:09:52Yes. I'm sure you're right.
0:09:53 > 0:09:55Any idea of the value?
0:09:55 > 0:09:59None whatsoever. None whatsoever.
0:09:59 > 0:10:03It has kind of puzzled me, really, because this is a hard one to value.
0:10:03 > 0:10:06I can see this quite easily doing £300, put it that way.
0:10:06 > 0:10:09Oh, goodness, wow, yes, OK.
0:10:09 > 0:10:12- That sounds good to start with, doesn't it?- It does.
0:10:12 > 0:10:16It might even do £400. I don't want to get your hopes up.
0:10:16 > 0:10:19- No.- But I think that is where we have got to pitch this.
0:10:19 > 0:10:22Yes, let's protect this with a fixed reserve
0:10:22 > 0:10:24- of £250...- Mm-hm.
0:10:24 > 0:10:28..And put it into auction with a value of, hopefully £300 to £400.
0:10:28 > 0:10:30- Wonderful!- I'm sure it will find...
0:10:30 > 0:10:33- A good home.- ..A really lovely home. - Yes, indeed.
0:10:37 > 0:10:42Irene, James. Now, you've brought a nice gold Albert chain to show us.
0:10:42 > 0:10:43It is a family piece?
0:10:43 > 0:10:45Yes. It's my husband's.
0:10:45 > 0:10:47Is it? Where did it come from, James?
0:10:47 > 0:10:51My father gave it to me 20, 25 years ago.
0:10:51 > 0:10:55Do you think it was handed down to him by his father, or did he...?
0:10:55 > 0:10:58Really, that's where I haven't got a clue.
0:10:58 > 0:11:01I don't know where it came from originally.
0:11:01 > 0:11:04I don't know whether it has ever been used. I can assume it has,
0:11:04 > 0:11:06but I don't know for sure.
0:11:06 > 0:11:08- Have you used it yourself?- No.
0:11:08 > 0:11:10- Have you?- No.
0:11:10 > 0:11:14Because people do wear them, actually, these days as neck chains,
0:11:14 > 0:11:15but basically what we've got
0:11:15 > 0:11:18is a nice nine-carat gold Albert watch chain.
0:11:18 > 0:11:22This is a gentleman's accessory for keeping his pocket watch
0:11:22 > 0:11:26and other things on and we've got a nice little seal down here
0:11:26 > 0:11:28which has got bloodstone on one side
0:11:28 > 0:11:31and a cornelian on the other side.
0:11:31 > 0:11:34Not marked, so nobody has put their family crest on that,
0:11:34 > 0:11:37and that's quite a typical sort of shape.
0:11:37 > 0:11:40So, where has it lived with you all these years?
0:11:40 > 0:11:42In a little...
0:11:42 > 0:11:44leather pouch...
0:11:44 > 0:11:45In my bedside table.
0:11:45 > 0:11:49It never sees the light of day, really.
0:11:49 > 0:11:5217 years it has been in there, and Jim hasn't known!
0:11:52 > 0:11:54So, it's time for it to go?
0:11:54 > 0:11:56Yes, I think so.
0:11:56 > 0:12:00Well, gold is doing quite well at the moment, the prices are quite high
0:12:00 > 0:12:05because of the current world economic situation, and we've weighed it.
0:12:05 > 0:12:07It comes in at about 60 grams, I think.
0:12:07 > 0:12:13I would have thought we should put this in with an estimate of something like £250 to £350...
0:12:13 > 0:12:15- Wow!- With a £250 reserve.
0:12:15 > 0:12:17Crikey! I didn't realise that.
0:12:17 > 0:12:21- Is that all right?- That's good. - Does that please you?- It does.
0:12:21 > 0:12:23Better than sitting on the bedside table.
0:12:23 > 0:12:27- Yeah.- You can put the money to better use, although it's a very attractive thing.
0:12:27 > 0:12:30That's wonderful, so I look forward to seeing you at auction,
0:12:30 > 0:12:31and let's hope you get a good price.
0:12:31 > 0:12:33Thank you very much.
0:12:37 > 0:12:39Marion and Jim, a lovely little period jewellery box.
0:12:39 > 0:12:44Always nice to see jewellery in its original case. But what's inside?
0:12:44 > 0:12:45Let's have a little look.
0:12:45 > 0:12:48We've got a super little dress ring there.
0:12:48 > 0:12:50Now, tell me, is this a family piece?
0:12:50 > 0:12:53Yes. It was a family piece of my mother's at one time,
0:12:53 > 0:12:55we possibly believe.
0:12:55 > 0:12:58So, do you remember your mother wearing this, Jim?
0:12:58 > 0:13:01I remember my mother wearing a ring similar to that.
0:13:01 > 0:13:06Because it was so long ago, I can't swear that was the actual ring.
0:13:06 > 0:13:09- OK.- So I'm now thinking that is too large.
0:13:09 > 0:13:12So we're not sure whether this is her engagement ring or not?
0:13:12 > 0:13:15- No. We're not.- OK. Well, certainly, looking at it
0:13:15 > 0:13:16from a jeweller's point of view,
0:13:16 > 0:13:19it certainly could well be an engagement ring.
0:13:19 > 0:13:24I would think, probably, between the wars. Possibly 1930s.
0:13:24 > 0:13:25Maybe a little bit earlier.
0:13:25 > 0:13:30We've got old cut diamond, what we call old cut.
0:13:30 > 0:13:31These ones are slightly duller.
0:13:31 > 0:13:35And diamonds are also graded according to their colour.
0:13:35 > 0:13:38These are slightly tinged with a browny colour,
0:13:38 > 0:13:42so that they're towards the lesser good quality end of the scale.
0:13:42 > 0:13:45What you would expect from stones of this sort of size
0:13:45 > 0:13:47in this sort of quality ring.
0:13:47 > 0:13:50And then we've got a sapphire in the centre.
0:13:50 > 0:13:54And the sapphire is called trap cut, or step cut.
0:13:54 > 0:13:56You can see why with that square shape
0:13:56 > 0:14:01and then the step up to what we call a table, the top of the stone.
0:14:01 > 0:14:07And that's actually quite a good cut for an engagement ring.
0:14:07 > 0:14:10It's in a rubover setting so it doesn't sit too proud.
0:14:10 > 0:14:14So you could wear it every day as engagement rings were designed to be.
0:14:14 > 0:14:16Even do the washing-up in that one.
0:14:16 > 0:14:20Sapphires vary a lot in their blue tone.
0:14:20 > 0:14:23Sapphires from Burma and Sri Lanka and India tend to be
0:14:23 > 0:14:26slightly lighter in colour and you can see that in mine.
0:14:26 > 0:14:28That much lighter blue colour.
0:14:28 > 0:14:33And what we call the more inky stones are generally from Australia
0:14:33 > 0:14:36and from Thailand. What about value?
0:14:36 > 0:14:38- Any ideas?- Haven't got a clue.
0:14:38 > 0:14:42I think the condition of this sapphire will affect the value quite a bit.
0:14:42 > 0:14:47At auction, I think we've got to be looking at probably 150 to 200.
0:14:47 > 0:14:51I would hope it would make the 200, possibly 250 on a good day,
0:14:51 > 0:14:52if two people like it.
0:14:52 > 0:14:56It would be sensible to set a reserve at 150, if you're happy with that.
0:14:56 > 0:14:57- Yes.- Yes.
0:14:57 > 0:15:00- So no regrets about getting rid of it?- No.
0:15:00 > 0:15:02No. Don't think so.
0:15:08 > 0:15:11If you come to Tring during the school holidays,
0:15:11 > 0:15:14you're going to find this building full of excited schoolchildren.
0:15:14 > 0:15:16And they're absolutely loving this place.
0:15:16 > 0:15:20They've been brought here by family that are in the know,
0:15:20 > 0:15:22because this place, it's a real hidden gem.
0:15:22 > 0:15:25It's part of the Natural History Museum.
0:15:28 > 0:15:31Coming here to the Natural History Museum at Tring
0:15:31 > 0:15:33is like stepping back in time
0:15:33 > 0:15:36and visiting a museum straight out of the Victorian era.
0:15:39 > 0:15:44The museum was built in 1889 for the second Baron Rothschild,
0:15:44 > 0:15:47Walter, who turned out to be one of the country's greatest
0:15:47 > 0:15:49collectors of natural history.
0:15:50 > 0:15:54Walter had been obsessed by the natural world from an early age
0:15:54 > 0:15:58and by the time he was ten, he had amassed a collection of insects
0:15:58 > 0:16:02and birds large enough to start his first museum in a garden shed.
0:16:02 > 0:16:07But before long, his collections were filling rented rooms and sheds all over Tring.
0:16:07 > 0:16:11The museum was built as a 21st birthday present from his father,
0:16:11 > 0:16:15to provide a permanent place for them all to be housed.
0:16:15 > 0:16:17For the next 18 years, under duress,
0:16:17 > 0:16:21Walter went to work for the family's banking business,
0:16:21 > 0:16:24but during that time, he spent all his money, his energies
0:16:24 > 0:16:26and his enthusiasm on this place,
0:16:26 > 0:16:30creating possibly the greatest ever natural history collection
0:16:30 > 0:16:32ever assembled by one man.
0:16:32 > 0:16:37His collections included thousands of mammals, reptiles and fish.
0:16:37 > 0:16:41It had everything from gorillas through to hummingbirds
0:16:41 > 0:16:42and even a group of domestic dogs.
0:16:44 > 0:16:46I'm here to meet Katrina Cook, who's a curator here
0:16:46 > 0:16:49at the museum's ornithological department,
0:16:49 > 0:16:52whose passion with animals also started when she was really young.
0:16:52 > 0:16:56Pleased to meet you. So, when and where did it all start?
0:16:56 > 0:16:59It was my mother's fault! When I was very, very young,
0:16:59 > 0:17:01she'd bring me here to the museum
0:17:01 > 0:17:03at least every week of every school holidays.
0:17:03 > 0:17:06I can't remember the first time I came cos every time,
0:17:06 > 0:17:09as you walk in the door, there's that great wow factor, when you walk in
0:17:09 > 0:17:12and see the polar bear. Even now, I've spent a lifetime coming,
0:17:12 > 0:17:16there's always new exhibits to see that you hadn't noticed before.
0:17:16 > 0:17:21But also, I draw and I was obsessive about drawing. In fact, at 11,
0:17:21 > 0:17:24I tried to draw all the birds on the British list.
0:17:24 > 0:17:28- Oh, wow. Did you get through them? - I've got about halfway. Not too bad.
0:17:28 > 0:17:31Always obsessed with animals. My room was a museum.
0:17:31 > 0:17:34It was full of skins and wings and pinned insects and things.
0:17:34 > 0:17:39- Fantastic.- I stuffed my first bat at seven.- Did you really?- I did. Yeah.
0:17:39 > 0:17:43- At home?- At home.- What did your friends think of you doing this,
0:17:43 > 0:17:45cos they're all into their dolls, probably?
0:17:45 > 0:17:49I don't actually think I had many!
0:17:49 > 0:17:51Most young girls get into ponies and horses.
0:17:51 > 0:17:53You got into bats and taxidermy!
0:17:55 > 0:17:57Walter must have been quite an incredible man.
0:17:57 > 0:18:00Possibly slightly eccentric, don't you think?
0:18:00 > 0:18:05I think all natural historians have a slight tendency towards eccentricity
0:18:05 > 0:18:07and Walter had the dangerous combination
0:18:07 > 0:18:11- of sort of money with the madness. - He's got a lot in common with you!
0:18:11 > 0:18:14- If only you could have met! - We would have got on like a house on fire.- Yes!
0:18:14 > 0:18:17# Wild thing... #
0:18:17 > 0:18:19Walter was a complete eccentric.
0:18:19 > 0:18:22He had kept an extraordinary menagerie of exotic animals
0:18:22 > 0:18:26at his home in nearby Tring Park. Among them were kangaroos,
0:18:26 > 0:18:29a tame wolf, 64 cassowaries
0:18:29 > 0:18:30and a giant tortoise.
0:18:30 > 0:18:32He could often be seen in his coach,
0:18:32 > 0:18:34being drawn by zebras, both locally
0:18:34 > 0:18:37and on the occasional trip to the capital.
0:18:44 > 0:18:48Some of the animals which Walter brought back, both alive and dead,
0:18:48 > 0:18:52from his travels and the collecting expeditions that he financed,
0:18:52 > 0:18:54you know, had never been seen before.
0:18:54 > 0:18:57It's really important to remember that not only was he an
0:18:57 > 0:19:02eccentric scientist and a man who did crazy things, but he was also
0:19:02 > 0:19:04a very, very, very serious natural historian
0:19:04 > 0:19:06and made an enormous contribution
0:19:06 > 0:19:08to the understanding of science at that time.
0:19:08 > 0:19:11Your department, the ornithological department,
0:19:11 > 0:19:13that's not open to the general public,
0:19:13 > 0:19:15so can I have a sneak behind the scenes, please?
0:19:15 > 0:19:18- I think we can arrange that. - OK. This way?
0:19:18 > 0:19:19Follow me.
0:19:22 > 0:19:25The Natural History Museum moved its ornithological collection
0:19:25 > 0:19:28from London to Tring in the 1970s.
0:19:28 > 0:19:32There are 17,000 specimens preserved in jars
0:19:32 > 0:19:35and 16,000 bird skeletons.
0:19:35 > 0:19:39Most impressively, there are almost 700,000 bird skins,
0:19:39 > 0:19:4395% of the world's species.
0:19:43 > 0:19:46How do the birds vary from the mounts, then?
0:19:46 > 0:19:49What's the difference in stuffing them?
0:19:49 > 0:19:54Well, these are what we call skins as opposed to mounts. So they're all
0:19:54 > 0:19:56prepared just lying flat.
0:19:56 > 0:20:00They've got just cotton wool for eyes. They don't need glass eyes.
0:20:00 > 0:20:03They don't have to be wired into a lifelike position.
0:20:03 > 0:20:06This way, they're easier for scientists to look at and measure
0:20:06 > 0:20:08and compare one with another.
0:20:08 > 0:20:10Can I have a look at that? Is that a parakeet?
0:20:10 > 0:20:13That certainly is. That's not just any old parakeet.
0:20:13 > 0:20:14Why? What's different about it?
0:20:14 > 0:20:17This is a Carolina parakeet, which is now extinct in the wild.
0:20:17 > 0:20:22And this is also prepared by the famous artist, John James Audubon,
0:20:22 > 0:20:25who produced a mammoth book of the birds of America.
0:20:25 > 0:20:28You do this as well here, don't you?
0:20:28 > 0:20:30- Actually prepare specimens? - Part of your job remit?
0:20:30 > 0:20:31Oh, yes. It certainly is. Yep.
0:20:31 > 0:20:36We're adding to the collection all the time. Nowadays, we're not going out and shooting.
0:20:36 > 0:20:40We rely on people to bring birds in to us that they found dead.
0:20:40 > 0:20:43How do you go about preserving this bird?
0:20:43 > 0:20:45OK. When the bird's freshly dead,
0:20:45 > 0:20:48you make an incision from here, mid-sternum,
0:20:48 > 0:20:52down to the vent and then prise the skin away from the actual body.
0:20:52 > 0:20:55Some of the bones stay in. The bones of the legs and the wings.
0:20:55 > 0:20:58- OK.- Skull, that's the original skull in there, as well.
0:20:58 > 0:21:02So you're literally just taking the skin off the carcass of the bird
0:21:02 > 0:21:04and then when it's all off,
0:21:04 > 0:21:08- make a false body the same size to go back into the skin again.- Right. OK.
0:21:08 > 0:21:10It's not as gory as people think.
0:21:10 > 0:21:14Now, I believe in this section somewhere,
0:21:14 > 0:21:16there's something quite special you're going to show me?
0:21:16 > 0:21:19- They're all special.- To you, they are, aren't they?- Yes.
0:21:19 > 0:21:22I think you're probably referring to these little chaps.
0:21:22 > 0:21:24- Gosh.- These are Galapagos finches.
0:21:24 > 0:21:27Some of these were actually collected by Charles Darwin himself.
0:21:27 > 0:21:29Is that his handwriting as well?
0:21:29 > 0:21:32No, none of these bear Darwin's original labels,
0:21:32 > 0:21:35but I can show you a bird, not a Galapagos finch,
0:21:35 > 0:21:38but it is one of Darwin's. Most of Darwin's specimens
0:21:38 > 0:21:42don't actually have his own labels on anymore. They were taken off.
0:21:42 > 0:21:46- But this chappy, this is a bobolink, an American bird. It's...- 3374.
0:21:46 > 0:21:493374, in Darwin's own fair hand.
0:21:49 > 0:21:53Absolutely incredible. It is such a fascinating place, Katrina.
0:21:53 > 0:21:55Thank you so much for showing me around
0:21:55 > 0:21:57and especially behind the scenes.
0:21:57 > 0:21:59Most welcome. My pleasure.
0:22:07 > 0:22:11Well, we're seeing such a variety of items here today,
0:22:11 > 0:22:14but right now it is time to put our experts' theories to the test,
0:22:14 > 0:22:16and find out if they're on the money.
0:22:16 > 0:22:21It's our first visit to the sale room. Here are the items we're taking with us.
0:22:25 > 0:22:27Pity about the colour, Dee!
0:22:27 > 0:22:30Blue might have been better, but Troika always does well.
0:22:33 > 0:22:36Zoe's Steiff bear, Rupert, climbed out of the loft
0:22:36 > 0:22:38straight into the auction room,
0:22:38 > 0:22:41where, with a bit of luck, he's going to find a new home.
0:22:41 > 0:22:43BEAR GRUNTS
0:22:43 > 0:22:46What an unusual piece! I'm hoping there will be plenty of bidders
0:22:46 > 0:22:52in the sale room who might appreciate Cathy's shapely practice violin.
0:22:52 > 0:22:54And with gold prices riding high,
0:22:54 > 0:22:58Irene and James' chain should do really well.
0:22:58 > 0:23:01Or will Kate's choice, the sapphire and gold ring,
0:23:01 > 0:23:04turn out to be the real jewel in the crown?
0:23:06 > 0:23:10Now, I wonder whose heirlooms will be tempting the bidders today
0:23:10 > 0:23:13at Tring Market Auction.
0:23:13 > 0:23:15Well, it's nearly auction time.
0:23:15 > 0:23:18You've just heard what our valuers think back at the valuation day,
0:23:18 > 0:23:21but what does Steven Hearn think, our auctioneer?
0:23:21 > 0:23:23Let's get his opinion.
0:23:23 > 0:23:26This is a bit of quality. It belongs to Irene and James.
0:23:26 > 0:23:29It's a nine-carat fob chain.
0:23:29 > 0:23:33We've got £250 to £350 on here.
0:23:33 > 0:23:36"Phew!" Well, gold is fetching a lot of money right now.
0:23:36 > 0:23:38Well, yes. We're in a period of good pricing for gold
0:23:38 > 0:23:41and other precious metals, and it's just right
0:23:41 > 0:23:45for that gentleman about town, PAUL, isn't it?!
0:23:45 > 0:23:47That's right, gentleman about town.
0:23:47 > 0:23:49I don't like the bloodstone, though.
0:23:49 > 0:23:52Oh, dear! Well, it's a good weight, you know.
0:23:52 > 0:23:54You've got 60 grams,
0:23:54 > 0:23:58excluding the fob, so if you start breaking it down,
0:23:58 > 0:24:03and also a lot of the value now can be attributed to the fact
0:24:03 > 0:24:04that unfortunately,
0:24:04 > 0:24:10once it moves on from the sale room we could have two ladies' bracelets,
0:24:10 > 0:24:14we could have a pendant, or we could just have it... With 60 grams,
0:24:14 > 0:24:1760 grams at metal prices today...
0:24:17 > 0:24:20- Scrap metal.- ..That's going to achieve its reserve for scrap metal!
0:24:20 > 0:24:24And it may get broken up by the trade, so it has legs, hasn't it?
0:24:24 > 0:24:28I think so. I think so, and I think
0:24:28 > 0:24:31we could be close to £500.
0:24:31 > 0:24:34- Suits you!- Suits me!
0:24:42 > 0:24:47This Troika lamp should light up the room. Your mum bought this in Cornwall, didn't she?
0:24:47 > 0:24:50Yes, she did. My mum and dad, on a holiday in Cornwall
0:24:50 > 0:24:53and she's now moved into a care home.
0:24:53 > 0:24:56- Does she mind you flogging it? - Oh, no! She's given her permission.
0:24:56 > 0:24:58She's very happy for us to sell it
0:24:58 > 0:25:01and she'd like the money to go towards my daughter's wedding.
0:25:01 > 0:25:03Oh, how super! She will be watching this!
0:25:03 > 0:25:08- Yes, she will!- I think you'll enjoy this and what a great way of putting money towards the wedding.
0:25:08 > 0:25:10We've got lots of Troika in today's sale.
0:25:10 > 0:25:14- Which is a good thing.- The buyers are here, the collectors are here.
0:25:14 > 0:25:19- Let's find out what this is going to do.- Let's.- This is going under the hammer now.
0:25:19 > 0:25:20Lot number 214.
0:25:20 > 0:25:23Troika, and we have the vase and the shade is in the store.
0:25:23 > 0:25:26£100 to start me, thank you. £100 I'm bid then.
0:25:26 > 0:25:30And ten I have bid now. 120... and 30. Are you 40, sir?
0:25:30 > 0:25:35140, 50 is it? £150 now.
0:25:35 > 0:25:36And 60 I'm bid for.
0:25:36 > 0:25:39And 70 now. No? 160 then.
0:25:39 > 0:25:4160, we've reached it.
0:25:41 > 0:25:44Thank you. At £160, then. Thank you.
0:25:44 > 0:25:46He sold it - £160!
0:25:46 > 0:25:48- Brilliant, brilliant! - That's not bad, is it!
0:25:48 > 0:25:51No. That might pay for my outfit!
0:25:51 > 0:25:53No, it will pay for the hat!
0:25:53 > 0:25:57You know as well as I do, a wedding is so expensive, isn't it?
0:25:57 > 0:26:02- But it will pay for...- I'll tell you what you can do. You could buy the shoes and hire the hat for that!
0:26:02 > 0:26:04Yes, what a brilliant idea!
0:26:04 > 0:26:06Thank you, Paul!
0:26:14 > 0:26:17We see plenty of Steiff bears on the show, and they all go,
0:26:17 > 0:26:20but a Steiff with wheels, that's definitely going to go!
0:26:20 > 0:26:22It's about to go under the hammer.
0:26:22 > 0:26:26I've been joined by the gorgeous Zoe, Kate, and, of course,
0:26:26 > 0:26:28mum and grandma - Maureen and Caroline.
0:26:28 > 0:26:32Three generations are going to wave off... What's teddy called?
0:26:32 > 0:26:36- Rupert.- Rupert! They're all going to wave Rupert off!
0:26:36 > 0:26:40We've got £100 to £150, so what are you going to do with the money?
0:26:40 > 0:26:42Hopefully we're going to get loads.
0:26:42 > 0:26:45I'll put it in the building society for my three daughters.
0:26:45 > 0:26:48I think we could do... ooh, £250 hopefully.
0:26:48 > 0:26:51Well, there are two other bears in the sale.
0:26:51 > 0:26:55They're just ordinary teddy bears and they've actually got good labels too,
0:26:55 > 0:26:57so I think that will attract the toy buyers.
0:26:57 > 0:27:00- I think it is in for a good chance. - Right. Good luck, you two.
0:27:00 > 0:27:03Good luck, Zoe. It's going under the hammer now.
0:27:03 > 0:27:07Lot number ten. We have now the Steiff pull-along bear.
0:27:07 > 0:27:08This is a lovely one.
0:27:08 > 0:27:12What a lovely condition this is in. Isn't that a grand one?
0:27:12 > 0:27:13Rupert's going! Oh, no!
0:27:13 > 0:27:14At least, we think he's going!
0:27:14 > 0:27:16120 for him, 80 for him.
0:27:16 > 0:27:19Are you £80, madam? £80. £90.
0:27:19 > 0:27:21Are you £100?
0:27:21 > 0:27:22Yes, 100 I'm bid then.
0:27:22 > 0:27:26100 for the bear. £110 I am bid now for it.
0:27:26 > 0:27:28£120. £130 now...
0:27:28 > 0:27:31- It's going up, Zoe!- 140. 150, sir.
0:27:31 > 0:27:35£150. And 60, and 170 we have now.
0:27:35 > 0:27:37170 for him. Are you 80?
0:27:37 > 0:27:40180, yes, that's... 190 now.
0:27:40 > 0:27:43180, then, I'm selling bear.
0:27:43 > 0:27:45At £180 then. Thank you very much.
0:27:45 > 0:27:48- Yes. Great result! - Well, done!- Yeah!
0:27:48 > 0:27:50- 180!- Rupert has done the business!
0:27:50 > 0:27:52180!
0:27:52 > 0:27:55We're all happy with that, aren't we? Lots of smiles?
0:27:55 > 0:28:00- Yes.- They can share the 80, I'll have the 100.- Sorry?
0:28:00 > 0:28:03She'll have the 100. They can share the 80!
0:28:03 > 0:28:07- What a smart cookie!- That is a shrewd business lady down there!
0:28:14 > 0:28:17Right. My turn to be the expert. I've just been joined by Cathy
0:28:17 > 0:28:20and we've got that wonderful "S" scroll training violin,
0:28:20 > 0:28:24it doesn't make a lot of noise, so you can put up with somebody practising
0:28:24 > 0:28:26and learning their fingering.
0:28:26 > 0:28:29- Yes indeed.- It is a great cause. All the money is going to charity,
0:28:29 > 0:28:31so tell us a little bit about it.
0:28:31 > 0:28:34Well, I have been a volunteer for many years at Grove House in St Albans.
0:28:34 > 0:28:39It is the local day hospice and we treat not only cancer patients,
0:28:39 > 0:28:42but patients with other life-threatening illnesses
0:28:42 > 0:28:45and we have to raise an awful lot of money
0:28:45 > 0:28:48so anything that we can do, we like to in order to boost the funds.
0:28:48 > 0:28:53- Right. So we need top dollar, right here, right now, don't we, basically?- We'll do our best.
0:28:53 > 0:28:56We'll find out because it's going under the hammer.
0:28:56 > 0:28:58There we are, the training violin.
0:28:58 > 0:29:01I think that one, we ought to be looking somewhere in the region
0:29:01 > 0:29:02of £300 for it, surely.
0:29:02 > 0:29:04300, 200 for it.
0:29:04 > 0:29:06Yes, at £200 then.
0:29:06 > 0:29:09At £210. Are you 20? 30 now
0:29:09 > 0:29:14and 240 and 250, is it? At £260.
0:29:14 > 0:29:18and 70 now... 280 and 90. No?
0:29:18 > 0:29:22At £280... then I'm selling at £280.
0:29:22 > 0:29:26- Thank you.- Yes! That's OK, isn't it? - It will do very nicely, thank you.
0:29:26 > 0:29:31- He sold it. Just did it, just, just, just did it.- Mmm-hmm.
0:29:33 > 0:29:35Jim and Marion, Kate, good luck.
0:29:35 > 0:29:37It's just about to go under the hammer.
0:29:37 > 0:29:40It's that gold and sapphire ring. We've got £150 on this.
0:29:40 > 0:29:43You never thought of wearing it, did you?
0:29:43 > 0:29:45- Too small.- Too small. Wouldn't get past the knuckle.
0:29:45 > 0:29:47With jewellery, you have to wear it.
0:29:47 > 0:29:50- There's no point sticking it in the bank.- No, no. No.
0:29:50 > 0:29:53So, hopefully, someone's going to fall in love with it.
0:29:53 > 0:29:55It's going under the hammer.
0:29:55 > 0:29:57Good-looking gold, sapphire and diamond ring.
0:29:57 > 0:29:59Are we going to bid £200 for it?
0:29:59 > 0:30:01£100 bid. 100, I'm bid there now.
0:30:01 > 0:30:0410. Thank you. 120, I've got. 130.
0:30:04 > 0:30:07And 40, I'm bid. 140. And 50 now.
0:30:07 > 0:30:09At 150. And 60?
0:30:09 > 0:30:12A bit more. A bit more. A bit more.
0:30:12 > 0:30:15No more? At £160, then.
0:30:15 > 0:30:18I'm selling at £160.
0:30:18 > 0:30:22Yes! £160. The hammer's gone down.
0:30:22 > 0:30:24Good valuation. It's a hard pitch, isn't it?
0:30:24 > 0:30:27Yeah. I think it's cos that sapphire is really quite worn.
0:30:27 > 0:30:30It's obviously been worn and loved and the wear on the stones
0:30:30 > 0:30:33is going to count against it, but it's a fair price.
0:30:42 > 0:30:43Remember that swivel!
0:30:43 > 0:30:46My word, didn't it go on the end of that Albert watch chain.
0:30:46 > 0:30:48It belongs to James and Irene.
0:30:48 > 0:30:53We're looking for around £300, aren't we? £250 to £350.
0:30:53 > 0:30:56Had a chat to the auctioneer and he said it's got to do that.
0:30:56 > 0:30:58The gold is worth that at scrap value.
0:30:58 > 0:31:02Unfortunately that is what you judge a lot of these values on,
0:31:02 > 0:31:05because the fob itself, while it is quite nice quality, it is not rare,
0:31:05 > 0:31:06it is not 18th century,
0:31:06 > 0:31:09it hasn't got a good armorial or anything like that on it,
0:31:09 > 0:31:11so it basically is the gold value
0:31:11 > 0:31:13and we're riding a bit of a high in gold at the moment.
0:31:13 > 0:31:18- It's selling well. - The right time to sell it.- It's going under the hammer. This is it.
0:31:18 > 0:31:22Very fine quality Albert chain, with the bloodstone swivel fob.
0:31:22 > 0:31:25Lot 586. Where do we start for this one?
0:31:25 > 0:31:26Do we start at 200? Thank you.
0:31:26 > 0:31:29200, I'm bid there. At 220...
0:31:29 > 0:31:30That's a good in.
0:31:30 > 0:31:35240, 260, at 280, £300, 320,
0:31:35 > 0:31:38340, 360, 380...
0:31:38 > 0:31:40Wow, they love it!
0:31:40 > 0:31:44£400, 420, 450, 480,
0:31:44 > 0:31:47£500, 520, 520.
0:31:47 > 0:31:49On my right at 520, then.
0:31:49 > 0:31:51You lose it, sir. I'm selling on the right here.
0:31:51 > 0:31:54It's going for £520. Sold.
0:31:54 > 0:31:58Yeah, £520! James, you were standing with your mouth open!
0:31:58 > 0:32:01Good grief!
0:32:01 > 0:32:03- Wow!- That was wonderful!
0:32:03 > 0:32:05Just goes to show, doesn't it? If you've got stuff like this
0:32:05 > 0:32:08lying around, bring it into one of our valuation days.
0:32:08 > 0:32:13We'd love to see you. You can get details on our BBC website or just check details in your local press.
0:32:13 > 0:32:15Come on, bring it along!
0:32:25 > 0:32:28Have you ever wondered what is behind the name of the village,
0:32:28 > 0:32:30the town or the city that you live in?
0:32:30 > 0:32:34Well, sometimes the answer can often reveal a fascinating glimpse
0:32:34 > 0:32:38into the historical events that have shaped the place you live in,
0:32:38 > 0:32:41and St Albans, well, that's definitely no exception.
0:32:43 > 0:32:46During the Roman occupation in the third century AD,
0:32:46 > 0:32:49St Albans was called Verulamium.
0:32:49 > 0:32:52It was the second largest town in the Britain.
0:32:52 > 0:32:56You can still see remnants of the Roman occupation here today.
0:32:56 > 0:33:01The ruins of St Albans' Roman theatre, for example,
0:33:01 > 0:33:03were unearthed in 1847.
0:33:03 > 0:33:07This was the scene of all sorts of Pagan ceremonies and entertainments
0:33:07 > 0:33:13played out in front of several thousand cheering spectators.
0:33:13 > 0:33:16Now, among the crowd here, some 1800 years ago,
0:33:16 > 0:33:19was a man whose name would go down in history.
0:33:19 > 0:33:22And he was called Alban.
0:33:28 > 0:33:32St Alban was the first Christian martyr in Britain and is venerated
0:33:32 > 0:33:35to this day by the cathedral for his integrity,
0:33:35 > 0:33:37courage and self-sacrifice.
0:33:40 > 0:33:44And someone who knows all about Alban's extraordinary life story
0:33:44 > 0:33:48is Jeffrey John, the Dean of St Albans Cathedral.
0:33:48 > 0:33:51So, tell me about this extraordinary man, Alban.
0:33:51 > 0:33:54Well, Alban was a citizen of Verulamium,
0:33:54 > 0:34:00that's the Roman city that is down the hill from the cathedral.
0:34:00 > 0:34:03It was one of the biggest of the Roman cities.
0:34:03 > 0:34:09Alban lived around about the middle of the third century, about 250 AD,
0:34:09 > 0:34:14and it was a time when the Christian faith
0:34:14 > 0:34:16fell in and out of favour with the empire.
0:34:16 > 0:34:21It all rather depended on the whim of the Emperor whether Christianity was legal or not.
0:34:21 > 0:34:24Alban himself was not a Christian, he was a Pagan.
0:34:24 > 0:34:30He would have worshipped the old Roman gods and sacrificed to the Emperor as citizens had to do,
0:34:30 > 0:34:32but the important thing is
0:34:32 > 0:34:36that he befriended a Christian priest
0:34:36 > 0:34:40at a time when Christianity was out of favour
0:34:40 > 0:34:42and when a time of serious persecution came,
0:34:42 > 0:34:45he took him into his house, he hid him from the authorities.
0:34:45 > 0:34:49This is despite the fact that he wasn't Christian himself,
0:34:49 > 0:34:51but he must have been impressed by this priest,
0:34:51 > 0:34:56and began to learn a little bit about Jesus and about the Christian faith.
0:34:56 > 0:35:00But of course, the day came when the Roman soldiers were looking for him,
0:35:00 > 0:35:04came to the house and Alban protected the priest by changing clothes with him.
0:35:04 > 0:35:07Because Alban was a citizen, he had a special cloak.
0:35:07 > 0:35:10The priest, by taking the cloak, would have been able to pass
0:35:10 > 0:35:14through the guards, through the city walls and escape, which he did.
0:35:14 > 0:35:17Alban took the priest's garb, so he was wearing a priest's cloak
0:35:17 > 0:35:23and when the soldiers came they therefore arrested Alban as the priest, so he took his place.
0:35:23 > 0:35:26Incredibly brave, deeply Christian thing to do.
0:35:29 > 0:35:32So Alban was taken to the Roman forum, put on trial
0:35:32 > 0:35:35and asked his name and religion.
0:35:35 > 0:35:38He replied, "My name is Alban and I'm Christian".
0:35:38 > 0:35:42This was enough to incriminate him and he was taken to be beheaded
0:35:42 > 0:35:45on the site of where the cathedral stands today.
0:35:48 > 0:35:52Legend tells us that spring water miraculously
0:35:52 > 0:35:54popped up out of nowhere
0:35:54 > 0:35:58and began to refresh Alban right at the moment of his death,
0:35:58 > 0:36:03and on seeing this, his executioner refused to carry out the deed
0:36:03 > 0:36:06and converted to the faith, there and then.
0:36:06 > 0:36:10He was also beheaded and became Britain's second martyr.
0:36:10 > 0:36:15His replacement, another executioner who did carry out the execution
0:36:15 > 0:36:20on Alban, is said to have gone blind shortly after.
0:36:20 > 0:36:23His eyes literally fell out.
0:36:23 > 0:36:26Now that is an incredible story.
0:36:36 > 0:36:41Do you think we can witness the same sort of courage today, Jeffrey?
0:36:41 > 0:36:44Well, there's an answer here, I think. Here we've got a...
0:36:44 > 0:36:46Gosh! Brightly coloured!
0:36:46 > 0:36:48- They are, yes.- They would have been originally, wouldn't they?
0:36:48 > 0:36:53Yes. The Medieval statues would have been very brightly coloured. These are very modern ones.
0:36:53 > 0:36:56These were made by our young people here at the abbey.
0:36:56 > 0:36:58They're actually made of papier mache.
0:36:58 > 0:37:01- Very clever, very lightweight. - Yes, they are!
0:37:01 > 0:37:05Yes, they were made by a group of our young people for our pilgrimage
0:37:05 > 0:37:08and they represent modern martyrs.
0:37:08 > 0:37:12We've got Alban in the middle there, with St Amphibalus, the priest
0:37:12 > 0:37:16that he rescued on his left, but all the others are 20th century martyrs.
0:37:16 > 0:37:19I can recognise one - that's Martin Luther King.
0:37:19 > 0:37:21That's Martin Luther King, yes.
0:37:21 > 0:37:25Then on Amphibalus's left here, we have Manche Masemola.
0:37:25 > 0:37:27She is a South African martyr, a young girl
0:37:27 > 0:37:30who was converted to Christianity
0:37:30 > 0:37:34but very much against the wishes of her family, and very tragically,
0:37:34 > 0:37:37her martyrdom, her death, was arranged by her own parents.
0:37:37 > 0:37:42She was stoned to death in the Transvaal, that was about 1928.
0:37:42 > 0:37:46And then more famously, I think, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, right at the end,
0:37:46 > 0:37:50of course, was martyred under the Nazis in 1945,
0:37:50 > 0:37:52just right at the end of the War.
0:37:52 > 0:37:55- It looks like St Alban is in good company today!- Absolutely.
0:37:57 > 0:38:01I wonder how many people today know the remarkable tale of heroism
0:38:01 > 0:38:03attached to the city of St Albans
0:38:03 > 0:38:06or that their home town's name commemorates a man
0:38:06 > 0:38:09who was prepared to give his life for what he believed in.
0:38:12 > 0:38:15St Alban is buried in the tomb behind me, and as you can see,
0:38:15 > 0:38:18the stonemason's work is absolutely incredible.
0:38:18 > 0:38:22His shrine really is the centrepiece of the cathedral,
0:38:22 > 0:38:25and for nearly two millennia, thousands of Christians
0:38:25 > 0:38:29have made the pilgrimage to his final resting place.
0:38:36 > 0:38:38Back in St Alban's town hall,
0:38:38 > 0:38:42Kate has found something for a sweet tooth.
0:38:42 > 0:38:45Lynne, I would call this a pretty smart silver sugar caster.
0:38:45 > 0:38:46But I doubt you use it, do you?
0:38:46 > 0:38:48No, not at all. It's kept in the cupboard.
0:38:48 > 0:38:51- Is it?- Yes.- Stashed away? - Yes, it certainly is.
0:38:51 > 0:38:52Where did it come from?
0:38:52 > 0:38:56It was actually a wedding anniversary present for my parents
0:38:56 > 0:38:58for their 25th wedding anniversary.
0:38:58 > 0:39:01OK. So how long ago was that?
0:39:01 > 0:39:04- Mid '80s, I think that was. - OK. Right.
0:39:04 > 0:39:05So, do you like it?
0:39:05 > 0:39:07Yes, I like it,
0:39:07 > 0:39:11but it's not, sort of to my taste to actually have out on display.
0:39:11 > 0:39:14The sad thing is, they're just not very practical these days.
0:39:14 > 0:39:18People don't need sugar casters really. I know in the States
0:39:18 > 0:39:20they sprinkle on their doughnuts,
0:39:20 > 0:39:22but today, we don't use them in this country at all.
0:39:22 > 0:39:25- No, no.- I have to say, the design
0:39:25 > 0:39:29dates right back to the mid 18th century, to about 1760,
0:39:29 > 0:39:33the Georgian period, when things, of course,
0:39:33 > 0:39:36would have been used at the table
0:39:36 > 0:39:40in a pretty well-to-do household in the dining room and would have
0:39:40 > 0:39:45been a very normal accoutrement to have on the dining table.
0:39:45 > 0:39:47It's what I call a baluster shape,
0:39:47 > 0:39:51obviously with this pierced lid here, which comes off.
0:39:52 > 0:39:53There we go.
0:39:53 > 0:39:57So we've got the hallmark just here, as you would expect, on the side,
0:39:57 > 0:40:02dated for London 1894 and these initials here,
0:40:02 > 0:40:07"GM", stand for GM Jackson, who is the silversmith, quite well known.
0:40:07 > 0:40:10- Yeah.- But the date, I just told you, is 1894.
0:40:10 > 0:40:12So it is a Victorian piece,
0:40:12 > 0:40:15although the design goes right back to the Georgian period.
0:40:15 > 0:40:19- Oh, right!- So, I am afraid the good news is, if it was Georgian,
0:40:19 > 0:40:22it would be about £600 to £800 at auction.
0:40:22 > 0:40:26The bad news is that it is Victorian,
0:40:26 > 0:40:29- and, if you like, it is in the Georgian style.- Yes.
0:40:29 > 0:40:33And as it is, it is worth £60 to £90.
0:40:33 > 0:40:36Right. I won't moan at that.
0:40:36 > 0:40:39- If you're not using it...- Yes. - ..it's going to be a bonus.
0:40:39 > 0:40:42- That's right, yes.- So you're not worried about getting rid of it?
0:40:42 > 0:40:45- Not at all. - Pleased to see the back of it?
0:40:45 > 0:40:49- Yep!- Well, thank you very much for bringing it along.- Thank you. Thanks.
0:41:03 > 0:41:05- Hello, Neil.- Hello. - One of my favourite items.
0:41:05 > 0:41:09Now, Geoffrey Baxter for Whitefriars, this Banjo vase.
0:41:09 > 0:41:11Tell me about it. Where did you get it from?
0:41:11 > 0:41:15Well, I used to work in a department store up in Oxford Street,
0:41:15 > 0:41:19and Whitefriars were clearing out a warehouse,
0:41:19 > 0:41:22and they found a load of vases,
0:41:22 > 0:41:27and they were selling them for 15 shillings or 75 pence.
0:41:27 > 0:41:29- 75 pence?- And it didn't matter
0:41:29 > 0:41:31whether it was a large vase like that
0:41:31 > 0:41:34or one of the small Whitefriars' vases.
0:41:34 > 0:41:37- So you bought it for 75p? - Yes, I bought it for 75 pence,
0:41:37 > 0:41:41and in fact, on the first day of clearance,
0:41:41 > 0:41:44only about half a dozen vases went out on display.
0:41:44 > 0:41:46They were bought by the staff, weren't they?
0:41:46 > 0:41:48Most of the staff bought them for wedding presents.
0:41:48 > 0:41:52- Of course, at that sort of price! It's amazing, isn't it?- It is indeed.
0:41:52 > 0:41:54And you've had it on display, have you, at home?
0:41:54 > 0:41:57- Yes, but it's been at my parents' house.- Oh, right.
0:41:57 > 0:41:59And my dad's not very well,
0:41:59 > 0:42:03so basically, we would like to buy him something with it.
0:42:03 > 0:42:06To cheer him up? Oh, wonderful!
0:42:06 > 0:42:08Well, I hope we can, because I think...
0:42:08 > 0:42:12We can certainly turn 75p into a bit of a profit,
0:42:12 > 0:42:15because this particular shape vase - the Banjo vase -
0:42:15 > 0:42:18comes, of course, in 12 different colourways,
0:42:18 > 0:42:22and depending on the colour, depends on the value, really.
0:42:22 > 0:42:25Those striking ones, all the rare colours that were tried,
0:42:25 > 0:42:29but weren't commercial, so weren't produced so much.
0:42:29 > 0:42:33This is the willow pattern, which isn't the more sought-after design.
0:42:33 > 0:42:36- Oh, no, but for 15 shillings... - For 15 shillings...
0:42:36 > 0:42:38You had not much choice, really.
0:42:38 > 0:42:40No, no, but it's fantastic,
0:42:40 > 0:42:42and we've done a lot of Whitefriars on the show,
0:42:42 > 0:42:44so we all know how it was made.
0:42:44 > 0:42:46Now, we know it was by Geoffrey Baxter,
0:42:46 > 0:42:48but it still remains quite popular,
0:42:48 > 0:42:50although the prices have become more realistic
0:42:50 > 0:42:54than they were two or three years ago, so my estimate
0:42:54 > 0:42:58- on this would be somewhere around £500 to £700.- That would be fine!
0:42:58 > 0:43:02- So quite a lot more than the 75p! - Indeed!- Which is really good news.
0:43:02 > 0:43:07We'll put the reserve at £500, with 10% discretion,
0:43:07 > 0:43:09but I think, you know, we'll have...
0:43:09 > 0:43:12Hopefully, there'll be a few other bits of Whitefriars in the sale
0:43:12 > 0:43:16- and that will rub together and we'll get a good price.- Let's hope so.
0:43:16 > 0:43:19- And you're happy to flog it now? - Yes, indeed.- Wonderful!
0:43:19 > 0:43:22- I look forward to seeing you at the auction.- Thank you.
0:43:33 > 0:43:35Denise, what a splendid piggy-wig!
0:43:35 > 0:43:36Isn't he great?
0:43:36 > 0:43:38Yes, he's lovely. Always loved him.
0:43:38 > 0:43:41- Do you feel quite attached to him? - Well, I do, really.
0:43:41 > 0:43:45He belonged to my husband's nana, and he used to sit on her hearth,
0:43:45 > 0:43:47and when she passed away,
0:43:47 > 0:43:50it was the first thing I said, could I have?
0:43:50 > 0:43:53What can you tell me about the manufacturer of him?
0:43:53 > 0:43:55Do you know what factory he is?
0:43:55 > 0:43:58- He's Wemyss, which is a Scottish factory.- That's right.
0:43:58 > 0:44:01And I know they closed in the 1930s.
0:44:01 > 0:44:03The factory was in Fife, in Scotland,
0:44:03 > 0:44:08- named after Wemyss Castle and the family who lived there.- Oh, right!
0:44:08 > 0:44:10So it wasn't the manufacturer, then?
0:44:10 > 0:44:13- No.- Ah!- And if we just have a look underneath,
0:44:13 > 0:44:16I'm just looking for the all-important mark,
0:44:16 > 0:44:20and there we go, so we've got the standard mark here,
0:44:20 > 0:44:23impressed on the base, and that helps us to date it as well.
0:44:23 > 0:44:25We've got Wemyss Ware there.
0:44:25 > 0:44:27I would say he's roughly sort of circa 1900.
0:44:27 > 0:44:30- Oh, right! - Perhaps a little bit later.
0:44:30 > 0:44:35The factory started in 1880, but in 1883, a very important man joined.
0:44:35 > 0:44:39His name was Karel Nekola. He was actually a Bohemian designer,
0:44:39 > 0:44:45and he brought to the factory a very distinctive hand-painted style,
0:44:45 > 0:44:47which is what you normally associate with Wemyss,
0:44:47 > 0:44:50and instead of this sort of lime green glaze,
0:44:50 > 0:44:54he hand-decorated useful and ornamental wares
0:44:54 > 0:44:59with big cabbage roses, with animals...
0:44:59 > 0:45:02The most sought-after of his designs are cockerels and hens...
0:45:02 > 0:45:05- I didn't know that!- Or ducks amongst reeds, which he hand-painted.
0:45:05 > 0:45:10I have to say, the hand-decorated wares are more commercial.
0:45:10 > 0:45:13They're a little bit prettier, and I have noticed,
0:45:13 > 0:45:16- sadly, he's lost his tail! - Yes, he's missing his tail!
0:45:16 > 0:45:19Did that happen when he came to you?
0:45:19 > 0:45:20- No. He was always like that.- Right.
0:45:20 > 0:45:23I guess it was because he was against the hearth.
0:45:23 > 0:45:25So what about value?
0:45:25 > 0:45:29You've always been attached to him, you say. What about monetary value?
0:45:29 > 0:45:32I've always thought he was collectable,
0:45:32 > 0:45:35but I've never really known how much he was worth,
0:45:35 > 0:45:37because he is a plain glaze.
0:45:37 > 0:45:40I know the ones that are painted are more valuable,
0:45:40 > 0:45:43- so that's why I brought him along today.- OK.
0:45:43 > 0:45:49- I can see a collector paying £400 to £600 for him...- Really?
0:45:49 > 0:45:50..certainly at auction.
0:45:50 > 0:45:53- Would it be all right to put a reserve on?- Certainly. Yes.
0:45:53 > 0:45:56- I would suggest a reserve at the bottom level, so at £400.- Right.
0:45:56 > 0:45:59- OK.- I certainly hope he would fetch that.- Yes, I would as well.
0:45:59 > 0:46:01Will you be sad to see him go?
0:46:01 > 0:46:05I will, in a way, but then, my husband has just retired and we're
0:46:05 > 0:46:09planning on spreading our wings, so we don't want to take a pig with us!
0:46:16 > 0:46:18- Hello, Robert.- Hello.
0:46:18 > 0:46:21You've bought this absolutely exquisite piece of porcelain in.
0:46:21 > 0:46:22Tell me about it.
0:46:22 > 0:46:28Well, my father-in-law was a polo pony trainer
0:46:28 > 0:46:30and he was employed by a wealthy man
0:46:30 > 0:46:33in the south of France, in the 1930s.
0:46:33 > 0:46:37And he married a local French lady
0:46:37 > 0:46:42and they lived down there quite comfortably until the War.
0:46:42 > 0:46:46And at that stage, all English people were advised to get out
0:46:46 > 0:46:48of the country within 24 hours.
0:46:48 > 0:46:50When they knew they had to get out of France,
0:46:50 > 0:46:54they decided to hide a few things,
0:46:54 > 0:46:56- cos you couldn't take it with you.- Quite.
0:46:56 > 0:46:58So they dug a hole in the garden, put that in it,
0:46:58 > 0:47:03- but obviously with packing, of course...- And buried it.
0:47:03 > 0:47:07- In 1946, they went back for a holiday, dug it up.- Oh, God.
0:47:07 > 0:47:10So between burying it and digging it up,
0:47:10 > 0:47:12that's where the damage occurred.
0:47:12 > 0:47:16There is a little bit of damage to two of the legs
0:47:16 > 0:47:18and also to some of the beading.
0:47:18 > 0:47:20If we actually look at the piece,
0:47:20 > 0:47:23it's like a jewelled golden egg, isn't it?
0:47:23 > 0:47:27- Yes.- You know, with this wonderful finial on the top and this wonderful
0:47:27 > 0:47:33turquoise enamelling, forming these graduated beading decoration
0:47:33 > 0:47:36from tiny, tiny bits at the top to larger bits at the bottom.
0:47:36 > 0:47:38All this decoration behind it.
0:47:38 > 0:47:43And then these, sort of, almost pearl-like beading down the side.
0:47:43 > 0:47:45And when we open it up, we've got the mark
0:47:45 > 0:47:49of one of Britain's finest porcelain makers, Worcester.
0:47:49 > 0:47:51I think it's a very difficult thing to value.
0:47:51 > 0:47:53I think in perfect condition,
0:47:53 > 0:47:57- we could be looking for something like £500, £1,000.- Yes.
0:47:57 > 0:48:01The damage will hold it back, so I think what we've got to do is put
0:48:01 > 0:48:04an estimate at auction which reflects the fact that we know it's damaged,
0:48:04 > 0:48:07- but it won't put off the buyers. - No, no.
0:48:07 > 0:48:13I would like to put, maybe, £150 to £200 on it, with 150 reserve.
0:48:13 > 0:48:15- It wouldn't surprise me if it doubled.- Oh, good.
0:48:15 > 0:48:19Cos I think there'll be a lot of people who are saying,
0:48:19 > 0:48:22- "Well, actually, I can have that restored better."- Yes.
0:48:22 > 0:48:25Have you had it out on display all these years since you've had it?
0:48:25 > 0:48:29It's been on my wife's dressing table all these years and it hasn't
0:48:29 > 0:48:33come in the way of any damage or accidents,
0:48:33 > 0:48:37- but you never know. And I would hate to knock that over.- Yes. Exactly.
0:48:37 > 0:48:39Your wife is happy to sell?
0:48:39 > 0:48:42- Yes, indeed.- Fantastic. - That's why she sent me along today.
0:48:45 > 0:48:48Let's just remind ourselves of what we've got
0:48:48 > 0:48:51before we head off to the sale room.
0:48:51 > 0:48:54First, the fabulous Worcester egg with the unforgettable story
0:48:54 > 0:48:58of being buried during the Second World War.
0:48:58 > 0:49:00Lynne's glad to be rid of her sugar shaker,
0:49:00 > 0:49:03so let's hope it spreads sweetness in the auction today!
0:49:05 > 0:49:08Well done, Neil! What a buy!
0:49:08 > 0:49:14I don't think we'll have any problem making a profit out of your 75p!
0:49:14 > 0:49:16And if pigs had wings,
0:49:16 > 0:49:18Denise's should fly right out of the auction room!
0:49:29 > 0:49:30So, it's back to the auction room
0:49:30 > 0:49:33where Steven Hearn is on the rostrum.
0:49:37 > 0:49:39Denise's Wemyss pig.
0:49:39 > 0:49:44Now, Kate's put a valuation on this at £400 to £600.
0:49:44 > 0:49:50- Well, that's a fair valuation for a pig without a tail, isn't it?- Mmm.
0:49:50 > 0:49:54He is an old pig. If we turn him over, belly up as they say,
0:49:54 > 0:49:56you can see underneath,
0:49:56 > 0:49:58he's got a good impressed crescent mark on there.
0:49:58 > 0:50:01- Yes.- Which is going to put him as one of the earlier piggies,
0:50:01 > 0:50:04and he is probably going to be 1885, 1890.
0:50:04 > 0:50:08Another good sign of these older pigs is the furrowing
0:50:08 > 0:50:12or the wrinkles on his snout and his face.
0:50:12 > 0:50:14You know, they do say, Paul,
0:50:14 > 0:50:17the more wrinkles you get, that dates you, you know!
0:50:17 > 0:50:20Ha ha ha! Well, I'm getting a few!
0:50:20 > 0:50:24Well, there you go. Say no more about the pig and the wrinkles,
0:50:24 > 0:50:26but price-wise, I think it's...
0:50:26 > 0:50:29I think he'll go beyond the estimate.
0:50:29 > 0:50:31Yes, he's got to, hasn't he?
0:50:31 > 0:50:33It's a great name, the condition is there.
0:50:33 > 0:50:36As you say, the tail's missing. If we had the tail,
0:50:36 > 0:50:39- you'd be looking at £800 to £1,000. - Well, there you are!
0:50:48 > 0:50:51Robert, I don't know. How could he sell this after
0:50:51 > 0:50:54that story we've just heard back at the valuation day?
0:50:54 > 0:50:56This little egg has been through hell and high water.
0:50:56 > 0:50:58The story's wonderful.
0:50:58 > 0:51:02It's just so touching and it's lovely. It's absolutely lovely.
0:51:02 > 0:51:05- It really is.- It's a pity it's damaged but otherwise,
0:51:05 > 0:51:08- it'd have been triple the figure, I suppose.- Yeah.
0:51:08 > 0:51:12But it is Worcester at its height of opulence.
0:51:12 > 0:51:15The wonderful quality of that pearl beading.
0:51:15 > 0:51:18And everything is decorated. I love it to bits.
0:51:18 > 0:51:20Every little facet of it.
0:51:20 > 0:51:24Any way you look at it, it just smacks quality.
0:51:24 > 0:51:27Let's find out what this lot here in Tring think of it, shall we?
0:51:27 > 0:51:30Because here it is, going under the hammer.
0:51:30 > 0:51:32Lot 290, this time.
0:51:32 > 0:51:34This is interesting, this one.
0:51:34 > 0:51:37Worcester jewel ovoid vase and cover, there you are.
0:51:37 > 0:51:41I think we ought to be looking for £200 for this one. At £200 for it.
0:51:41 > 0:51:45200. At £100. Are we a £100 bid? 100, I'm bid for that one, then.
0:51:45 > 0:51:48Thank you. 110, I'm bid for it.
0:51:48 > 0:51:51120. And 30. 140. And 50.
0:51:51 > 0:51:53Are you 60, sir?
0:51:53 > 0:51:56160. And 70, is it? 180.
0:51:56 > 0:52:01£180. At £180. At 190, now.
0:52:01 > 0:52:04No? 180, I'm selling, then. At 180.
0:52:04 > 0:52:0690, is it? I'm selling at 180.
0:52:06 > 0:52:10Yes? £180, then.
0:52:10 > 0:52:12- Happy with that?- Absolutely. Yes.
0:52:12 > 0:52:15- Will the wife be pleased? - She's there.- Is she?
0:52:15 > 0:52:17It was what the buyer's taken
0:52:17 > 0:52:20into account, of course. they've got to get it restored.
0:52:20 > 0:52:23That will take a bit of money, but it's a beautiful thing.
0:52:23 > 0:52:27- A great story and it's wonderful to have something like that.- It is.
0:52:32 > 0:52:36Right, it's time to put the Victorian sugar caster under the hammer,
0:52:36 > 0:52:40and we've got £90 hopefully, top end... £60 to £90 on this.
0:52:40 > 0:52:42- It's good to see you, Lynne. - Thank you.
0:52:42 > 0:52:43- Who is this you?- This is Katie.
0:52:43 > 0:52:46Hello, Katie. We've got our expert Kate here,
0:52:46 > 0:52:48who fell in love with this. You like this.
0:52:48 > 0:52:51Yeah. It's a Georgian design but of course, it's Victorian.
0:52:51 > 0:52:54Silver... It's not the most commercial item in the world,
0:52:54 > 0:52:56but it should sell well!
0:52:56 > 0:53:01It's just about to go under the hammer, Katie. Not really bothered!
0:53:01 > 0:53:02Anyway, this is it.
0:53:02 > 0:53:06There you are, lot 629, the sugar caster.
0:53:06 > 0:53:081894. Victorian one.
0:53:08 > 0:53:10£80 for it. 50 I'm bid for it.
0:53:10 > 0:53:13Five, 60, five, 70, five, 80...
0:53:13 > 0:53:15- Brilliant!- Five, 90...- Fantastic!
0:53:15 > 0:53:17- Five, 100, surely.- Excellent!
0:53:17 > 0:53:20At £100...and five now. No?
0:53:20 > 0:53:22Sir's got it then, for £100.
0:53:22 > 0:53:25I'm selling to sir for £100, then.
0:53:25 > 0:53:29- Sweet!- Brilliant!- Perfect!- £100! - Top of the estimate.
0:53:29 > 0:53:32Perfect! What do you think, Katie?
0:53:32 > 0:53:34£100!
0:53:34 > 0:53:37Oh, it's still gone right over her head, hasn't it?
0:53:37 > 0:53:39- That was a great result. - Yes, that was brilliant!
0:53:53 > 0:53:56My mum's got one of these at home - a Banjo Whitefriars vase.
0:53:56 > 0:53:57She'll be interested to know.
0:53:57 > 0:54:00She's got the same colourway. This one goes under the hammer.
0:54:00 > 0:54:03It doesn't belong to my mum, but to Neil.
0:54:03 > 0:54:04We've got £500 to £700 on this, Mark.
0:54:04 > 0:54:07- Yes, we should... - I think we're going to get that.
0:54:07 > 0:54:09We should do, should do.
0:54:09 > 0:54:10- Happy with that?- I am indeed!
0:54:10 > 0:54:14He should be, cos he only paid 75p for it, didn't you?
0:54:14 > 0:54:18- I did indeed!- If we get £700, what would you put the money towards?
0:54:18 > 0:54:20Well, hopefully towards my dad's...
0:54:20 > 0:54:23helping him towards some of his care at home.
0:54:23 > 0:54:26Well, it's about to go under the hammer right now!
0:54:26 > 0:54:29Right. Here's another good piece of Whitefriars. There you are.
0:54:29 > 0:54:33Nice Banjo, in willow. What do we say for this one?
0:54:33 > 0:54:36Are we going to get around 600 for this one? 600?
0:54:36 > 0:54:38Are we 400? 300 bid, thank you.
0:54:38 > 0:54:43320 I have it now. At 350 and 80, 400, three of you, 420...
0:54:43 > 0:54:47- Good!- Are you 80? 480 now.
0:54:47 > 0:54:50- Come on!- 480 I'm bid for it. 480.
0:54:50 > 0:54:56500 I'm bid, 520, sir, and 550 there. 58... 50 in the corner.
0:54:56 > 0:54:59580, yes? 600 we've got it.
0:54:59 > 0:55:04At 620 now. 620, 650, 680 now.
0:55:04 > 0:55:08At £680 then, you're out in the room.
0:55:08 > 0:55:11I'm selling away from you then at £680, then. Thank you.
0:55:11 > 0:55:16£680! We're going to settle for that! I think you are, Neil!
0:55:16 > 0:55:19- Yes, I am indeed. - Better than 75 pence, isn't it?
0:55:19 > 0:55:21It is, indeed! It's a good profit.
0:55:36 > 0:55:38Right. What's next off to market?
0:55:38 > 0:55:41Yes, you've guessed it, the Wemyss pig, which belongs to Denise.
0:55:41 > 0:55:43- Hello, Denise!- Hi. - Who have you brought?
0:55:43 > 0:55:46- This is my son George. - George, pleased to meet you.- Hi.
0:55:46 > 0:55:50- I gather all the proceeds are going to George's...- Driving...
0:55:50 > 0:55:52- Driving lessons. - How many have you had so far?
0:55:52 > 0:55:55None so far. I'm waiting until summer, cos I've got my exams.
0:55:55 > 0:56:01Oh, OK. OK. So this Wemyss pig should do...should do £400 to £600!
0:56:01 > 0:56:05- Kate, you fell in love with it. - I'm hoping!- It will!- Even with the missing tail?- He's off to market.
0:56:05 > 0:56:09This is it. Ready? He's hot to trot. It's going under the hammer.
0:56:09 > 0:56:14Right. Now we change direction, and we start off with the Wemyss pig.
0:56:14 > 0:56:17There he is. Lost his tail.
0:56:17 > 0:56:20What shall we say for him? Are we going to start him off at £500?
0:56:20 > 0:56:24500, 400 for him? Yes. 400. That's it. I thought you would like that.
0:56:24 > 0:56:27- 400 is bid for him, then. - Straight in!- At £400.
0:56:27 > 0:56:30420 we're bid, at 450,
0:56:30 > 0:56:34480, 500, £520, 550...
0:56:34 > 0:56:38- That's good!- Yeah.- That's very good! - 580, 600...
0:56:38 > 0:56:41We've got somebody on the phone, that means they're keen!
0:56:41 > 0:56:43680 is it for him? 680,
0:56:43 > 0:56:45700 we're bid, 720...
0:56:45 > 0:56:48- Ooh!- 720 and 750, I have it.
0:56:48 > 0:56:49780, yes.
0:56:49 > 0:56:53- This could be a new car as well! - At 750 for him. 780.
0:56:53 > 0:56:56800 bid. Are you going to bid 20?
0:56:56 > 0:57:01820, 850, 880 now, £900.
0:57:01 > 0:57:04Gosh! Could we do that magic thousand?
0:57:04 > 0:57:06920. 950. Is he 980?
0:57:06 > 0:57:10- Let's get where we should have started. £1,000.- Yeah!
0:57:10 > 0:57:131,000 I'm bid for him. 1,020 now?
0:57:13 > 0:57:17Yes? No. £1,000 then for pig.
0:57:17 > 0:57:22- £1020.- Oh! - We have a new bidder at £1,020.
0:57:22 > 0:57:25The new bid against it, there you go, just one bid takes it.
0:57:25 > 0:57:29He's going then at £1,020, then.
0:57:29 > 0:57:33- £1,020, yes, bang, under the hammer! - Oh, that's brilliant!
0:57:33 > 0:57:36- George and Denise, what do you think of that?- That's fabulous!
0:57:36 > 0:57:41- Oh, I'm really, really pleased! - You're pleased!- I'm just ecstatic!
0:57:41 > 0:57:42A group of lessons.
0:57:42 > 0:57:46If you pass first time, well, there's probably £500 left
0:57:46 > 0:57:48in the kitty to put towards a car.
0:57:48 > 0:57:50That's definitely going towards a car, then!
0:57:50 > 0:57:52Oh, what a kind mum! Give your mum a big hug!
0:57:52 > 0:57:55Yeah, thanks, Mum, for the new car as well!
0:57:55 > 0:57:59- "Thanks, Mum!" "Thanks, Mum!" - And maybe some new clothes?
0:57:59 > 0:58:03That's what I call a great mum. I mean, what a great result as well.
0:58:03 > 0:58:05That is double what I thought.
0:58:05 > 0:58:07I thought we might top the top of my estimate,
0:58:07 > 0:58:09but with the damage, that's a very good price.
0:58:09 > 0:58:13- I'm really pleased!- Right. I think that's great!- That's brilliant!
0:58:13 > 0:58:17George got his driving lessons, we've had a brilliant day in Tring.
0:58:17 > 0:58:21I hope you've enjoyed the show. Join us next time for plenty more surprises on Flog It.
0:58:41 > 0:58:44Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd