Melksham Flog It!

Have you ever wondered how much that old vase might be worth?

Or perhaps you've got an old antique tucked away that you fancy trading in for some cash.

We want to meet you. This is Flog It!

Today we're in Melksham.

So, this is how it works.

We set up valuation days, very much like this one, all over the country.

Today we're at the Assembly Hall in Melksham in the heart of Wiltshire,

but we'll be coming to a town near you very soon -

details of the dates at the end of the show.

And everybody that turns up to one of our events is guaranteed a free valuation and a good time.

-Having a good time?

-Good time.

-Yes, course we are!

-A bit more enthusiasm, please.

-Yes!

Yeah!

The most interesting items will be brought to a local auction room,

where we find out exactly what they're worth.

Providing the vital valuations are Flog It! favourites David Barby

and Philip Serrell, two of the best in the business.

But will their estimates live up to expectations when we head off to the auction room?

Under starter's orders is Philip, who's chomping at the bit to get going.

-Is this a childhood memory?

-The memory is, the game's not.

-Is it not?

-No, I had a version when I was a child,

-went to a car-boot sale, saw this one for sale for £2, and snapped it up.

-£2? Why did you buy it?

Purely nostalgia. I remembered the game from when I was small.

-It reminded you of your youth?

-Yeah.

-So, how old is it, do you think?

-I think it's post Second World War.

-How do you know that?

-Because this version's got metal horses.

The version I had in the first game had plastic horses.

So we looked on the web and saw that there are those two versions and also a version with paper horses.

Who's the expert here, you or me?

I've no idea about its value. I suspect it's worth more than £2.

-Why?

-Because that's all I paid for it.

-You don't think it might be a faller at the first fence?

-Could be.

Well, I think it's a bit of fun.

It's by Waddingtons and Totopoly clearly was a successor to Monopoly.

We've got rules. The thing that got me when I was a kid, you'd open this at Christmas or your birthday...

-It was so complicated.

-Did you really want to start reading all this stuff?

Well, we started it, and then we just made up our own version.

-Really?

-Yeah, and I think that's probably why this version's in quite good condition.

-Too complex for kids.

-Yes.

That's a good game, isn't it? Too Complex For Kids.

So, you went to a car-boot sale?

You bought it for £2.

-That's right.

-How much do think it's worth now?

I think about £20.

I think, what we've got to do is go to an auction,

-and we got to put a reserve on it of...£10.

-That sounds fair.

I think if you're really, really lucky...you might get £30 for it.

-Great.

-But if you come in at 100-1 with a red hot winner, you might get 50 quid.

-I'll be amazed.

-Are you happy with that?

-Absolutely.

-Good girl. Let's get it sold!

-Wonderful. Thank you.

Now, you're Gaye and you're Lucy?

What's the relationship?

-Mother-in-law.

-Right. So, are they all family pieces?

-Yes.

You must have come from an exceptionally wealthy family! What's the background?

My grandparents and great grandparents had a tea plantation in Ceylon, as it was then.

When did they finish with the plantations?

-'50s, 1950s.

-So, they started plantation way back in the latter part of the 19th century,

into the early part of the 20th century.

That's remarkably interesting. I'll tell you why.

All this silver dates from around about 1898, through to about 1915.

So, it's a period when they were probably making

a great deal of money and investing in family silver.

And they're all quite attractive pieces in their own right, particularly the covered cup.

It's a replica of a Charles II cup

and, if you look at the detail, it's got this wonderful canvas leaf decoration here,

first of all, in a polished leaf and then in a chased leaf, which is rather nice.

The beauty of this is the finial.

It's all leaves enclosed and it's pierced all the way through. That is absolutely beautiful.

And then we have this arrangement of condiments.

So we got pepperettes, salts and mustards.

The thing I love is this little piece here.

-I'd like to think possibly this was for place names.

-Yes, yes.

So you'd have a table laid out for supper and you'd have one of these

at each place setting with the name of the person.

They're lovely. That's even got glass eyes.

I think that's going to be quite sought-after.

And then we've quite a conventional little tea caddy of rectangular form, of a Georgian design.

All these lovely bits of silver, dating from the early part of the 20th century.

Price... I think you're going to achieve between £350 and £400.

But the auctioneer, I'm sure, will separate them into separate lots.

Obviously you want reserves. I think the most important piece for reserve is the covered cup.

I'd hate that to go under 200.

-So do we put a reserve 200 on that?

-That's fine.

OK. And I think the other pieces, we should let run in the saleroom. They'll find their own level.

-Yeah, OK.

-Are you happy with that?

-Yes, I'm fine.

Shall you both be at the auction?

No, I'll be on holiday so Lucy will be coming.

Where are you going on holiday?

-To Majorca.

-Oh, very, very nice.

-Where it's a bit warmer.

-Don't spend the money in advance.

That's what I want it for!

I hope we can guarantee another holiday out there.

-I hope so.

-Thank you very much.

-Thank you.

-Howzat?

-Out.

-Out! Yeah.

Graham, do you know something?

I've made one of these.

A Duncan Fearnley cricket bat.

I went to his workshop, and we filmed it for Flog It! in Worcester

and we selected a wonderful piece of willow, grown locally.

The right grain, the right weight, and you can knock a piece of willow.

Duncan knows exactly what it should sound like before he starts fashioning the wood.

And he helped me make a bat.

Best day of my life, it was.

So, tell me a little bit about this.

I won it in a raffle in Hampshire, Romsey.

After I was presented with it, it said an England select XI,

with Courtney Walsh and Clive Lloyd and Malcolm Marshall in it.

Wow. Let's have look at some of those autographs.

Alan Knott.

Courtney Walsh.

There's some great names on there.

Never been used, this bat?

-Oh, no.

-You wouldn't want to use it, once it's signed, would you?

-No.

Why do want to sell this?

It's been stood in the bedroom for 15 years.

The children aren't interested in cricket, and grandchildren, they don't seem to bother with it.

It's a lovely thing. Sporting memorabilia is big business.

Unfortunately, it's not like the Australian touring sides, which fetch big, big money.

And there's a lot of signed England XIs out there.

But it's on a cracking bat, isn't it?

If I had to put an auction value on this,

I'd like to think it got somewhere around the £60 to £80 mark.

Hopefully a little bit more. On a good innings, in the auction room, with two cricket lovers,

they might just push each other, but I think we've got to tempt people.

Let's give it a valuation of £40 to £60, with a reserve at 40.

That would be brilliant.

Well, thank you so much for bringing it in.

I had a wonderful day with Duncan Fearnley and that has brought back so many memories!

Can you buy it, then?

-Janet, how you doing?

-All right, thank you.

-Do you like this?

-Yes, I do, I think it's pretty.

-So why are you selling it?

-I've got three children

and I can't give one the spout, one the handle and one the lid, can I, and put my ashes in the pot?

Oh, dear, that's a bit morbid, isn't it?

I can't do that, can I?

-We're in Wiltshire.

-We are.

-Do you know where I'm from?

-Worcester.

Why is that relevant?

-Because it's a Worcester teapot.

-How did you know that?

Seen it in an antique book, and then I went to the Worcester factory

and looked in the museum and saw it there.

So we know we've got a teapot that was made in Worcester, we know how old it is, 1765-1770.

-How did this come into your family?

-It was a present for my mother.

-Why was it bought for your mum?

-She just liked things like that.

-What would have appealed to her?

-The Chinese figures.

-What do you think the relevance is there?

-No idea.

Well, let me tell you. If you go back 12, 13, 1400,

the Chinese were making wonderful bits of porcelain.

Our porcelain in this country, we didn't really have such a thing.

The inspiration came from the Orient.

In 1751, Dr John Wall set up the Worcester porcelain factory.

-Ah.

-OK? And if you look at a lot of early English porcelains,

most of them have this Chinese and oriental design, and that's why.

That's what we were trying to replicate.

-From a distance, it looks Chinese, doesn't it?

-Yes, it does.

But it's definitely English, Worcester.

-We've got a little bit of damage just here, haven't we?

-Yes.

If we just take that off as well,

we can see just there, we got a little nibble there.

I think, if it hadn't been for these two nibbles, we could have put

£300 to £500 on it, OK?

Because of those nibbles and because the market is a bit tough,

I think we've got to put a bit of a come and buy me estimate on it.

I think we've got to estimate it at £150 to £250.

If you have a good day, you might get 300 for it.

150 to 250, and put a reserve on it of £120, and it should do fine.

-Thank you.

-Are you happy with that?

-Yes, thank you.

-Are you excited about the auction?

-I won't be there.

-You won't be there?

-No, I'm going to Worcester.

-You're going to Worcester?

Yes, to look round the museum.

You're joking, no?

No, unless anything unforeseen happens, because we're going on a coach trip.

If anything unforeseen happens, I'll turn up and you'll find me there.

I'm just gonna slope off with this!

We'll be back in Melksham later to see more fascinating antiques.

I think it's extraordinary, because you rarely see this type of work.

All those things are Masonic ciphers.

But now it's time to test our first four valuations as we head off to auction.

We've travelled just a few miles from Melksham to Devizes, a market town famous for its dray horses

and this stunning flight of locks where we're the guests of Henry Aldridge and son.

Keeping family traditions alive are auctioneers Alan and Andrew,

the third and fourth generation of Aldridges to wield the gavel.

But before the sale gets under way, there's just enough time to have

a chat with Alan, who's gonna shed some light on one of our lots.

Gaye and Lucy's silver collection has grown since I saw it at the valuation day. What have you done?

-We've kept the cup, or the porringer, as it was, it's a lovely piece in its own right.

-Gorgeous.

I would hope that that little feller is going to make somewhere around 250, 350 in his own right.

We've mentioned to the young lady that, if she found other pieces,

it would obviously enhance the value of the lesser bits.

She did.

-She brought us in another one of these little owls.

-They're cute. The novelty silver collectors love owls.

Two tiny little owls, I'd hope, 120, 150, maybe 180.

So those are very nice.

Little tea box, doesn't really go with the condiments, so we broke them up.

Tea box, £40 to £60.

That's nice, it stands alone, it's architecturally quite interesting.

It's a pretty piece.

And then we come to the condiments.

We've got three nice little salts, where I believe there was only two previously.

-Lovely little peppers.

-Had those all the time.

Yeah. Beautiful little things, very pretty.

Two mustards again. So basically, you've got a nice little table lot, and the bonus, two napkin rings.

-And we're talking £80, £100.

-Well, I'm pleased they did a bit of looking around the house

-and found the rest, because they're fed up with cleaning it and looking after it, and losing it!

-Yeah!

Hopefully those additions will add serious value

to Gaye and Lucy's silver collection when it goes under the hammer.

Here's a quick reminder of the rest of our lots.

Philip hedged his bets on Gill's Totopoly board game.

If you come in at 100-1, you might get 50 quid.

I took a look at Graham's signed cricket bat. All we need are a couple of cricket lovers

for this to do well.

Janet knew exactly what she'd brought in.

It's a Worcester teapot.

And Philip seemed happy it would brew up some interest.

£60... Is it 65, quickly?

Right, the Worcester teapot, remember that? Well, we've got that.

-We've got Debbie but where's Mum?

-She's gone to Worcester for the day.

It's a cracking Worcester teapot but there is a crack in it.

It's just a lovely thing and, again, lovely shape, so fingers crossed.

281 - the Worcester teaport.

Now, very pretty little thing this. Start me 300 quid.

-300? It's only money, you can't take it with you.

-That's a punchy start.

300? I've got two bids on the book that I can start at.

So, I'll start at the bottom one. 15 quid.

-Never!

-I kid you not. £15...

Then I'll jump to the second one which is £100.

Then I'll go 120... At 120. 140.

160, 180...

200, 220, 240.

-The look on her face.

-220.

-The nerve! £15!

-It would have been a good buy, though!

-At £220 on the phone!

-All done?

-Good result.

-Well done.

-£220.

-Mum'll be pleased.

-What is she putting that money towards?

-Another trip to Worcester!

Time to find out if Graham's cricket bat is gonna be a big hitter.

You've got £40 to £60 on this.

It's a little bit of quality and let's hope we get the top end

because I know the money is going to a fantastic cause.

I've got a son-in-law in the RAF and he's served in Afghanistan and Iraq

and he's just got back safely, which we're thankful for, and it's going to Help For Heroes.

All our people out there,

the guys and the girls, they're all heroes, aren't they?

-Yes.

-I'm so pleased he's safe. How many tours has he done?

He's done nine in Afghanistan. He goes for a month and he comes back and he goes for another month.

-And his kids miss him?

-Absolutely, they follow him round now like sheep.

Right, we need top money. It's going towards the Heroes.

Lot 193, some cricket memorabilia.

Duncan Fearnley, a very good make, autographed cricket bat.

Signatures include Alan Knott, Robin Smith, the great Courtney Walsh.

What shall we say? £20... £20, thank you very much.

25 in the middle.

28, 30, 32, 34, 36,

38, 40.

-Come on.

-42.

£40 to my right.

-He's sold it.

-Anywhere else? Fair warning. £40.

Just!

Just, £40. On the low end, but at least it's £40 towards the charity.

-Thank you very much.

-That's a lovely donation. Thank you as well, Graham.

You could say we're under starter's orders, Gill - your Totopoly game.

-Philip, you put £20 to £40 on it.

-It'll race away.

-What do you do for a living?

I'm a tax inspector.

-Oh!

-Sorry!

Someone's got to be.

All our work is done by cheque, we get paid by invoice...

168 - very interesting game of Totopoly.

The horse racing version of Monopoly. A really nice item...

Give me £30 for it.

£30 anywhere? Start me at a tenner.

It's not where we start it's where we finish. £10 anywhere?

-Thank you very much, 15.

-Yes.

-20, 25?

£20 to my right. Fair warning, the lot is being sold for £20...

You were right, Philip, weren't you?

No capital gains liability on that!

We've got a great collection of silver going under the hammer.

We've got Lucy and we've got Gaye's son, Paul.

Hi, Paul. How do you do? You're Lucy's husband.

You've been searching the garden shed, the whole of the house looking for the rest of the silver.

I'm pleased now we've got a pair of owls. That's gonna put the value up.

I had a chat to Alan before the auction started and he's split the lots up now. We've got four lots.

375 - salts, mustards, good little lot.

Somewhere around about £90? 90 I'm straight in.

At 90, have I got 100? 90, at 90 is there 100?

At £90, am I done?!

It's a good start, here's the second lot.

Next, a very cute little tea box.

Very pretty little thing and, again, the same sort of money, £100.

£100 for this pretty little tea box.

80, thank you. 80 I've got, 90? 100.

At 100. 110, 115. 120, 125. At 125.

At 125, 130? 130.

135, 140. 145, 150.

155? At 150 at the back of the room.

At 150?

Yes, brilliant. Well, we did a little better that time, £150.

A two-handled cup or porringer.

I've got three with me. Three I've got.

320, 340.

360, 360... 370?

At £360.

At 360, is there 70, quickly?

At £360 with me.

-Yes, £360!

-That's good.

Next 378...

The menu card holders.

I can start at £100, I've got. At 100, 120, 130...

-Here we go.

-Come on.

-140, 150. 155, 160.

165? At 160. 170, at 170. 170, is there 80?

-180, thank you.

-It's a good job you found the other one.

-Yes.

Now 180 with me. Am I done?

180...

-You've got to be happy with that.

-Yeah.

There's commission to pay but there's plenty of spending money.

-What are you gonna put it on?

-It's my mother-in-law's so...

After our appearance fee, there won't be a lot left for her.

-You've got to ring her up, haven't you? She's in...

-Majorca.

-Tell her the good news.

-Tell her she's got £200.

Half of the appearance fee!

What a great result for Lucy and Paul, £780, that's brilliant!

And there'll be more surprises from the auction room later.

You were shaking, you've got tears in your eyes.

This is Hartham Park, a charming Georgian mansion just 10 miles from Melksham.

Hartham Park is something both intriguing and out of the ordinary.

Lurking amongst this Georgian grandeur is a precious piece of Edwardian England.

An enigmatic structure with a fascinating history.

Here it is, just look at that.

It's perched perfectly on the rise so it dominates the whole estate.

It was built in 1904.

It was all the rage at the time but now it stands defiantly

as the oldest remaining building of its kind in the world.

It's constructed primarily of wood and its shape and size is dictated

by the measurements of artillery targets.

It was used for a popular recreational pursuit during the Edwardian period. Let's take a look.

It's a sticke court. Sticke is a form of indoor tennis,

not unlike the historic real tennis.

It draws its influences from a number of different racquet sports played during the 19th century.

It was popular both here and abroad right up until the First World War.

Now, sadly, the court here at Hartham is only one of two remaining active sticke courts in the world.

Alan Bosley is the honorary secretary of the club that still play regularly at the court.

Alan, what a remarkable court.

It's a wonderful building.

-It's very austere, but I like that - it's quite evocative.

-I think it's wonderfully Edwardian.

It creates that impression that you've been playing the game for the last 100 years.

It's the simplicity of the place.

How did you get involved with the sport and this particular building?

Well, this building sits at the back of a business park

that I came to join leaving London 10 years ago.

To discover this in the grounds of the house was quite extraordinary.

At first you look through the windows and...just mesmerised by the inside.

Eventually found that there were a very small number of players who kept this place going.

-So it wasn't run down so much, it was still going.

-It was still going but it was in a dreadful state.

A lot of remedial work has been done on the building.

The whole roof has been replaced.

And over 100 years - it's a completely wooden structure -

it's obviously going to decay but it's in a fantastic state now.

Tell me a little bit about the game itself.

It goes back to the beginnings of lawn tennis.

Lawn tennis was originally known as sphairistike, that was the name it was patented under in 1874.

-The end bit has stuck to this game. It's now known as sticke tennis.

-Sticke tennis.

-From sphairistike.

Instead of playing on a court, as lawn tennis is, this was enclosed in a box.

-It creates a fantastic game.

-What about the military?

-It started...

the very first originators of the game were the military

and it was played at Shoeburyness, a gunnery range in Essex.

They built the courts out of artillery targets.

-999 artillery targets and played within that.

-So that's the footprint for this size court, is it?

It's pretty much the same.

How many are left, do you know?

We know exactly how many are left that are playable.

-Right, how many's that?

-Two in this country, one here at Hartham and the other at Knightshayes in Devon.

There is one court that is still playable

at the Rashtrapati Nivas which is in Shimla in the Himalayan foothills.

I've got a confession to make. I'd never heard of this tennis before.

Neither had I and very few people have.

You'll find very obscure articles in the Windsor magazine or the Strand magazine about the game

when it was at its height which was at the end of the century through to the beginning of the 20th century.

Do you have to be a good tennis player...?

No, in fact, it's often a disadvantage because it confuses people.

You're playing off so many different planes that it's just a very, very different game.

Although you've got the hand-eye co-ordination and can play with a racquet, it's a surprising game.

-Why don't we show you?

-OK.

Hartham sticke court is a fabulous building, a window to a bygone age and a vivid memory of times past.

It was conceived and built by one of the estate's more infamous

and colourful owners, a gentleman that delights in the name Sir John Poynder Dickson-Poynder.

He was just one of many influential people to build a court on their own estate

as the game was readily adopted by the landed gentry.

At the time, a charming description praises the game for providing a level of pleasant tiredness.

-Describe the court the way it's marked out.

-Well, there's a serving box

-which you can see marked out in front of you there.

-This big one?

Yeah. And there's a corresponding serving box at the other end.

Every serve has to be served from within that box and has to hit the penthouse roof.

-By the penthouse, you mean that 45 degree lean-to?

-That's the one.

-So you've got to serve off of that?

-Yes.

-OK. That is quite tricky.

Well, it makes it difficult because the game slows down.

The instant that you start hitting that, it slows down.

-You've got to wait for the ball to roll and then drop.

-Absolutely.

Because you're dealing not just with going up and down - you're using the walls as well -

the aim is to try and confuse your opponent. It's an evil game played well.

-Rallies last so much longer.

-Do they?

-You can have a 30- or 40-shot rally.

We haven't reached squash proportions yet but you can certainly have rallies that go 30 or 40 shots

-because it's so much harder to get the ball out of play.

-Yes.

Let's have a look at the ball, it's very soft and spongy.

It's a standard sized tennis ball but it is slightly softer than the normal ones.

-That's not a high impact ball.

-It's not a high impact ball.

-You couldn't really whack that.

-No.

You're relying on a lot of spin.

-Absolutely! We have had people playing with a power ball and the results were disastrous.

-I bet!

-Is membership strong? Is it picking up more interest?

-As more people play the game and discover it,

there are more people who want to play on a regular basis.

One of the things we want to make sure is that this court is well used.

Not just because of its rarity, but it's such a great fun game.

Brilliant. Thank you so much for introducing me to sticke tennis.

I'd never heard of it before. I'm pretty sure I'm gonna be one of your new members!

It's been a pleasure meeting you and showing you a very rare game.

Welcome back to Melksham's historic town hall.

We're halfway through the day and the good people of Wiltshire are still pouring in.

With many interesting items to see, it could be a long day.

Next, let's find out what attracted David to this unusual picture.

-Can I call you Charlotte?

-You can call me Charlotte.

Do people abbreviate your name? Do they give you another name?

They don't dare. My parents call me Carlotta.

That sounds very exotic.

I get the occasional "Shurlettes", because round here, it is...

-What do you do for a profession?

-I've got my own gardening business.

-It's a lovely area to be in.

-It is.

Around here is just a beautiful place to work.

I've a job where I make things beautiful, you have a job where you look at beautiful things.

-I'm looking at something now.

-I know.

Did you buy this recently?

I bought it about a year ago at a junk shop in Bath.

-I fell in love with it.

-Do you have a spaniel?

No, I just loves spaniels, and I have always wanted one.

I don't have room for a dog. Sadly, I don't have room for this picture either. It was a bit bonkers.

Oh, right. I think it's extraordinary.

You rarely see this type of work.

-Do you know anything about it?

-All I know is it said on the label Crossley mosaic.

I was interested to know what on earth a Crossley mosaic is.

-Basically, it's a form of carpet.

-Oh, right!

It was a technique that was developed in the middle of the 19th century.

-The actual finish is rather like a carpet pile.

-Yes.

I'm not certain whether in fact they produced a huge block,

-and sliced it off rather like...

-Like sticks of rock.

-Exactly.

-Yeah.

-We're talking in terms of the 19th century.

It was very industrial at that particular time.

They were trying to create new novelties.

This is one of the sort of novelties that was produced for a short period.

The only other one I've seen is a Leamington Spa art gallery.

That's in a dilapidated state.

It's quite rare to find them in this condition.

So I've found something fairly rare?

-Well, yes, for its condition.

-Yeah.

-Whether in fact it has a great demand or not...

-Yeah.

People have to have a period house, or be very, very keen on spaniels.

I think it's very nice. I can't imagine that you paid a terrific amount of money for it.

-I probably paid too much. I paid £60 for it.

-Oh, come on,

that's not a lot of money, is it?

I thought I'd pay up to 150 for it when I saw it.

Then I saw 60, and I thought, "Oh, that's half of it," you know, so...I don't know...

I think it's going to be in the region of

-probably 90 to 140, that sort of price range.

-Right.

-If it does more, I shall be delighted.

-Right.

Obviously, you want to cover it, because you don't want to make a loss on this.

I'm happy to put a reserve of about 75 on it.

A small profit, just to turn it over.

I thought you were going to say 150, or something like that.

There's no room for it in my house and it's responsibility, so let somebody else deal with it.

-What would you buy? Would you buy another image?

-This is very silly.

I hate it when people say this, I'm putting it towards a holiday rather than another antique.

I'm going on a cruise and I can't find anyone to share my cabin with me!

So I've got to fill up the single supplement.

Well, that was an opening gambit!

-If anyone wants to come along...

-Where is the cruise going?

-It's Eastern Mediterranean.

-Oh!

-Venice, Dubrovnik, Split.

-You'll enjoy it.

-I can't wait, it's my first time.

-Let's hope you get 500 for it. Thank you very much.

-Thank you.

-Pam, how are you, all right?

-I'm fine, thank you.

Where has this come from?

It came from a jumble sale.

-In about 1960-something.

-Why did you buy it?

We were running it to raise money for our cricket club.

-Which cricket club is that?

-Ladies' cricket.

-Ladies'?

Vagabonds, they were called.

-Did you bat or bowl?

-I used to do a bit of both.

-Ladies' cricket has come on a bit.

-Definitely.

You ran a jumble sale for the ladies' cricket team?

We did. This came in, and it was left at the end.

Nobody wanted it, so we put in... I don't know...

I said ten shillings.

It might not have been as much as that in those days.

It was quite a lot of money, I suppose.

-It was probably five bob.

-No-one wanted it?

-No.

-Can we have a look at it?

-Yeah, sure.

We've got here 1852, engraved by J Harrison, Abbeyleix.

-Does that mean anything to you?

-Nothing at all.

Then, as we move down,

we've got a giraffe, we've got a stag hound, a seal, a jay.

We've got a really lovely 19th-century walking cane here,

that's decorated with all these wonderful emblems.

-Not much else to say about it is there?

-No.

Except, if you look just here,

I think this is what makes it so much more interesting,

you can see we've got the square and compasses.

You can see we've got all sorts of other geometric symbols.

We've got a trowel, a maul, a set of pillars.

All of those things...

are Masonic ciphers.

So, if you're a Freemason...

-Which I wouldn't be!

-Well, you could be, actually.

There are lady Freemasons, which I might be.

There are lady Freemasons.

But all of these signs here are ciphers and emblems

that would be known to Freemasons.

-I think that we can put an auction estimate of £80 to £120.

-Right.

And I think we'll put a fixed reserve on it of £60.

Now, I have to say, it wouldn't surprise me if it made £200.

Masonic memorabilia is, I believe the expression is hot to trot, at the minute. People want to buy it.

There are big collectors of it.

If it goes and makes £100, what would you spend the money on?

I might put it towards my golf subscription.

So we've gone from cricket to golf, have we?

As we get older, yes.

-Are we captain of the Ladies' Golf Club?

-I have been.

-What's your handicap?

-21.

-I'll not be playing you, then.

-I might give you a game!

-I hope it sells well.

-I hope so, thank you.

-Sheila, are you a bizarre girl?

-Um...

It depends how you define bizarre, really.

Well, you collect Clarice Cliff.

-I do, yes.

-Is this part of a large collection?

-I've got several other pieces, but not in this design.

-Right.

-Why do you like Clarice Cliff?

-I just like the unusual shapes,

conical shapes, feet, particularly on this piece.

This is a lovely piece.

Each time I see a piece of Clarice Cliff,

I'm always shocked by its design.

I like this conical piece.

It's extraordinary.

It's almost surreal, the design, where you have a plant

where the actual shrubbery is huge petals, flower heads. I think it's rather nice.

But if you collect Clarice Cliff, why get rid of this?

The design I do collect is bright orange. Of course, it doesn't go.

-What, crocus?

-No, it's Rhodanthe.

-Oh, right, right.

-And it's very bold,

and, I think, quite stunning.

-This is very similar to the design. This is called Aurora.

-It is.

-But the colours are very pale.

-Indeed. That's probably why I like these.

Now that you've told me you're a collector, I'll assume that you bought this fairly recently?

-I did. I bought it last year.

-At auction?

-Yes.

So, we're going to try and sell it at auction...

-at a profit.

-Hopefully.

-One hopes.

-Yeah.

I look at that and I think, probably, on a lucky day,

-140, 160.

-OK.

-How much did you pay for it?

-120.

-120.

So you're not making a great deal of profit, are you?

-No, I'm not.

-Is that disappointing?

A little bit, I suppose. But I do think Clarice seems to go in cycles.

At the moment, I think that people aren't so interested in it as they were.

I think that's perfectly true.

I've found that it's more the abstract patterns that are making the money.

I think it's the shape that's going to sell this piece.

The conical shape with the rounded feet.

I think that is its selling point.

-What reserve do you want?

-I think 140, probably.

Right, let's put a reserve of 140.

-Can I say to reserve 140 with auctioneer's discretion?

-Yes.

And that means that you give them 10%.

-OK. Fine.

-OK.

-Thank you very much.

-Thank you.

That's the last of our valuations. We've had a great turnout and some cracking items.

Hopefully, everyone is leaving with a smile on their face.

However, there are still three people nervous with anticipation

as we head off to auction to flog our final items.

So far, everything is going well, but will our run of good luck continue?

David has got more riding on the sale of Charlotte's spaniel than normal.

-I'm going on a cruise and I can't find anyone to share my cabin with me!

-Oh!

If it makes top end, he might be sailing off.

Philip took a look at Pam's carved walking stick -

she's hoping to put the money towards a stick of another kind.

I might put it towards my golf subscription.

And Clarice Cliff collector Sheila isn't fond of this delightful piece.

-The colours are very pale.

-Indeed. That's probably why I like this.

David's hopeful we can trust in the name.

We've just been joined by Charlotte, who looks absolutely fabulous

and loves to wear vintage clothing.

Look at that, give us a twirl! What sort of a reaction do you get from people in general?

It's quite nice. You feel nervous going out,

and think you're overdressed, but everybody compliments you. It whets your ego.

-And it's fun, isn't it?

-It's wonderful, yes.

But you always look very nice.

Thank you very much.

Now, Charlotte is just about to flog the spaniel carpet.

-David, you liked this, you picked this.

-I did.

This is such a rich, coloured piece.

I think it's an interior decorator's. It needs a new frame.

Let's see what it does. It's going under the hammer now.

521, a 19th-century woolwork of a spaniel on a cushion.

Very attractive, very decorative item there. £70 I have with me.

£70 I have with me.

80, 90. 100.

100 with me. 100 with me. 110.

Anywhere else? Fair warning at £100.

There we go. £100.

There it is, it's right behind us.

-You can say goodbye now.

-Bye!

I've just been joined by Sheila, and her favourite colour is bright orange, isn't it?

It is at the moment.

This piece of Clarice Cliff isn't vibrant enough.

Why did you buy this one, if it was too pale?

I love the style of it and the shape.

The conical shape, with the round feet.

That's what attracted me.

It's a classic piece of Clarice, isn't it?

I like this and I know you like this.

Oh, yes, I like anything from the 1920s.

I think it's vibrant, the shape.

It's that new-age, isn't it?

As though you're speeding ahead to the future, with those little circular feet on it. Very good.

Clarice has never let us down on Flog It!

That sounds so positive!

Lot 291, The Clarice Cliff patterned sugar bowl.

Pretty little thing, this. Very pretty.

Lovely little bit of Clarice Cliff. Somewhere round about...160.

100, get me away, then. 60?

Going the wrong way.

Come on, hands should start going up now! All right, then.

40.

I'll not start any lower. 40. 50.

60, 70, 80, 90, £80? At £80.

That's not quite enough.

At £80. Is there 90, quickly?

At £80...

Not enough, I'm afraid.

I don't know what to say, really. The buyers just weren't here today.

-Never mind. I'll take it home and take it to another sale, another day.

-Yes.

Well, it's been lots of fun anyway, that's for sure. We've enjoyed it.

-Yes.

-What was I saying earlier?

-Clarice Cliff has...

-BOTH: ..never let us down!

There's a first time for everything, isn't there?

30?

Pam, this walking-stick is going to march right out of the room.

Isn't it, Philip?

Yep, yeah.

Well, we've 80 to 120 on this. This guy has done a bit more research.

-I'd a few second thoughts. It's Irish.

-Really?

That's going to put the value up.

And I think it might have a maritime collection.

There's a lot of history. There's a big journey that you're investing in when you buy that stick.

I think it'll find its way back to Ireland.

-I hope so.

-Just outside of Dublin.

-I hope so.

Lot 93...

A lovely hardwood poker work walking cane, by J Harrison of Abbeyleix.

150 straight in, 150, 160, 170, 180, 190, 200.

220, 240, 260, 280, 300.

320, 340, 260, 380, 400.

420, 440, 460, 480, 500.

520, 540, 560, 580, 600.

620, 640, 660, 680, 700.

£700, Pam!

720, 740? £720, to my left.

£740, anywhere else?

740, 760, 780, 800, 820. 820.

825? 830.

835? 840.

850. Let's get on with it. 860, 870?

860, to my left.

-860 to my left.

-A wonderful thing.

-Not bad for 10 bob's worth.

-No.

£860.

The hammer has gone down. That's a sold sound!

£860!

Will you pay my golf subs as well?

How much is the membership to the club?

-650.

-You are in!

-I'm covered.

And a new driver. Good old you, well done.

Fantastic, thank you very much.

Pam, that has made my day - and yours.

Oh, you've got tears in your eyes.

What a fantastic end to today's show. I hope you've enjoyed it.

There's plenty more surprises to come on Flog It! in the future. So keep watching.

Until then, goodbye from Philip and Pam. Cheerio.

For more information about Flog It! including how the programme was made,

visit the website at bbc.co.uk/lifestyle

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd