Malvern Flog It!

'Today's show from Malvern gets our expert Kate Bateman's pulse racing.'

-He has got lots then?

-Oh, he's got loads.

-All boxed?

Yep. Every single one of them.

That's enough to make an auctioneer's heart start to race.

How have you come to own these lovely rugby caps?

'The discovery of some Welsh rugby memorabilia causes excitement all round.'

-I'm excited about these.

-So was Philip, just before the sale.

-He knows, they're going to go back to Wales.

-Really?

Fingers crossed.

"Flog It!" is visiting the charming town of Malvern -

famous for its pure water, the beautiful hills it nestles next to

and the stirring music of one of its most famous sons,

Sir Edward Elgar.

And I'm hoping for a show-stopper here at the Malvern Theatres.

'By the size of the queue,

'it looks like we'll have a full house.

'So, who's leading our team of experts today?

'Well, it's Adam Partridge, who has loved antiques since he was a boy.

'He made his first purchase at the age of ten.

'At 17, he bought a van and started going to auctions - and the rest, as they say, is history.

'And Kate Bateman, who has also got antiques in the blood.

'Her father was a successful artist

'who ran an antique shop and art gallery

'before the family decided to set up their own auction house in Lincolnshire.'

I don't think you're going to appreciate the ducks,

-really, are you?

-Not at all.

Hurray!

'While people are busy taking their seats, it's a perfect time for me to see what's come in.

'Meanwhile, some of our experts are already centre stage.

'Let's catch up with Kate.

'She's with Jan, who's brought in a little gem in mint condition,

'belonging to her husband, John.

'I'm sure this will bring back memories for most of us.'

He's had it since he was very, very small.

But he was very careful.

He never, ever played with it.

Right.

I can see it is perfect condition, in terms of the actual car.

The box has seen better days, but it is boxed, which is brilliant.

It is Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

-Was he a fan of the film?

-I think he was, yes.

We're going to date him horribly, by saying, the date here is 1967.

-So we shan't mention how old he must be to have been a child when it came out.

-No.

But it's a great thing. It's so unusual to get them in their boxes.

Children get it for Christmas, rip open the box, throw it away, play with it.

So it's so nice to see it in working condition with all its bits.

Do you know its secret - what it does?

Yeah, the wings pop out.

-Do you want to give it a go?

-No, you do it.

So if I break it, that's fine?!

This is your item. You've said it live now, we can't go back.

I'm petrified. Do we pull it forward?

There we go.

So it works, and presumably flies off into the distance.

I think it's a really fun thing. Why are you selling?

Well, we've got four boys.

You can't really divide it between the four of them.

The general consensus is to sell it

and it will go towards our holiday fund.

-OK. Flying off in a motorised car somewhere!

-Not quite, I don't think, but...

In this condition I would have thought estimate for auction is £80-£120.

-Mm-hmm.

-I think we'd reserve it at slightly lower than that, maybe a £60 reserve.

But £80-£120 estimate.

-Would you be happy with that?

-Yeah, fine, lovely.

I take it you don't have an attic full of other boxed toys?

-We do.

-You do?

-We do, yeah.

My husband had two brothers, so whenever one was bought something all three of them were.

He used to hide his and put them away and play with his brothers'.

So his were never touched.

-So are the brothers' completely ruined?

-They're wrecked.

-Excellent.

He can have the last laugh if this sells for £100.

That would be brilliant.

-So we'll take it to the sale and see if it goes.

-OK, lovely. Thank you.

-Thanks for bringing it in.

-Thanks.

'It just goes to show, it is well worth looking after things.

'These rugby caps look in pretty good condition.'

-Newport, in Wales.

-Wow!

But there's loads of different things.

1905-1906.

'I've no time to stop now.

'Waiting to see me are Kay and Simon,

'and my favourite girl of the day, baby Sienna.'

Can you give me a high five? Yeah! Ah!

So, whose is this then? Who likes the taxidermy?

-My father liked it.

-OK.

It was a bit of a talking point in the family.

He was the only one that liked it.

So when my mum moved she didn't want to take it with her, so I took it -

otherwise it was going to end up in the skip.

Then this little one's just turned one.

So we want to invest the money into an antique jewellery box for her.

-Wow!

-That's the plan.

That's slightly more girly than a group of arranged dead birds!

You hit the nail on the head -

you either loathe this kind of thing or you love it. And I do love it.

I must admit, I'm a big fan of taxidermy that's done really well. But it has to be good.

It has to be very, very good. This is a nice gathering.

I would say it is an Edwardian piece.

1910, something like that, when everybody

was hunting, shooting and fishing, and they liked to have these trophies of the things they shot.

I know it's a bit macabre, but it was very fashionable then.

And I think this is a good entry piece for somebody who wants to buy some taxidermy.

Because what you've got going for it is, you have actually got a pictorial image.

Somebody's taken the time to make some rock formations,

some fern, some grasses, with this very nice grouping of English birds.

I know that's a little thrush and there's a mallard duck here.

Taxidermy goes right back, believe it or not, to the ancient Egyptians,

-because they used to mummify cats and put them in the tombs as a deity.

-Yeah.

The word taxidermy comes from the Greek.

"Taxi", meaning to move around, and "dermy", skin.

So you are moving the skin around. That is exactly what the Victorians did.

They were the consummate artists in taxidermy.

Back in the late 1800s, early 1900s, English taxidermy really was a big thing.

Every parlour had something stuffed.

-Let's get it into auction with a value of £60-£100 and put a reserve of £50, shall we?

-Yeah, great.

-Happy with that?

-Absolutely.

-And I'm sure somebody that wants

some entry level taxidermy, this is the thing to buy.

I know Philip will be annoyed with me, because he said no dead things.

But unfortunately, Philip, this one's on the bill.

'The next item might be more to Philip's taste.

'Remember those rugby caps I spotted earlier?

'Well, Adam's going to value them.'

-Jackie, Christine...?

-That's right.

-I believe you are sisters, are you?

-Yes, we are.

-Welcome to "Flog It!"

-Thank you.

Now, how have you come to own these lovely rugby caps?

Our dad died a couple of months ago so we were searching through all

his stuff and we came across them in a suitcase up in the loft.

So you never knew they were there?

-No.

-Really?

No. It was quite a find.

It was, really, wasn't it? Quite surprising.

Can you explain... I'm presuming that this distinguished-looking

rugby player here was the owner of these earlier caps.

That's what we believe. We found the photo with the caps in the suitcase.

OK. These are Newport Rugby Club, aren't they?

-Yes, Newport Gwent.

-That's right.

Famous rugby club, aren't they?

Do we know who this person is?

We're not sure, are we?

We think it might be a cousin of my father's.

-Right.

-Charlie Priest.

That's Charlie Priest's cap, cos his name is in the cap. It is signed.

-Is it?

-Yeah.

CW Priest.

We assume that this is either his father or his grandfather.

Yeah. So you've got four of them there.

They're in fair condition. Some are a bit worn, aren't they?

-Yes.

-That one's all right. Is it that one?

-It's this one.

That one was heavily worn, was it?

Must have been, mustn't it? Yeah.

-Must have been very proud of that one.

-Must have been.

I see you've got this South Wales rugger souvenir over here.

And there's a team photo of some of the Newport lads from '48 to '49,

-which also adds in with this bit, which is '50 to '51.

-Yeah.

I had a scan through this line-up here. I'm sure you have as well.

-Yes, we have.

-No priests!

-No!

We're going to a place where... He's a former rugby player himself.

I know the auction house quite well, Philip Serrell's.

-In fact, he looks kind of...

-The rugby build!

Yeah. And I think it's quite a good choice of items to go there.

I think he's going to like them.

Value-wise, I mean, at what price would you rather have them back?

Well, we said we wanted to put a £100 reserve on all of them.

I think that's sensible. You are pitching about the right level.

You don't want to overdo it, cos that will kill it off and no-one will bid.

But £25 each, with a few other bits, £100 reserve sounds sensible.

'Well, that's a nice collection of rugby memorabilia for £100 or so.

'Now, a reminder of the first items going up for auction.'

'Kate's truly scrumptious find - the little toy car,

'in excellent condition, which should grab the bidders' interest.

'Next, my choice, the Edwardian taxidermy,

'which I think is the perfect starter piece

'for a would-be collector.'

'And Adam picked up on those rugby caps I spotted earlier,

'which are bound to appeal to our old friend, Philip Serrell.'

'Our items haven't got far to travel.

'They're being sold down the road in Malvern

'at Serrell's Auctioneers and Valuers.

'There are plenty of people browsing,

'so it should be a good sale.'

'Before the auction starts, I'm going to find out

'what Philip's research about the rugby caps has unearthed.'

I know you're the best person in the business

to bring these to because you are a rugby player.

I love my rugby, Paul,

and these caps, this is where the expression "being capped for your country" came from.

So, England, Scotland, Ireland or Wales,

-every time you played you got a cap.

-These are Newport, though.

Yes. The interesting thing about Welsh rugby, now it's all changed and it's regionalised.

So you've got the Ospreys, you've got the Dragons, Cardiff Blues.

And sides like Newport, Pontypool, Pontypridd, Maesteg, Neath, they have all evaporated, in a way.

But these early caps belonged to a splendidly-named Knacker Priest.

What a man, Knacker Priest, he's obviously got that nickname from something.

Whether he dealt with dead horses or it was his style of rugby, I don't know.

But they're just wonderful.

And I think they've been estimated at what, £100-£150.

-We have a lot of interest in them and I think we'll do well.

-Good.

'We're kicking off with Jan who's selling her husband John's toy car.

'It should do well,

'because he's kept it boxed and in mint condition.'

-He's a good boy because he kept the box.

-He always did, yeah.

I never did. Bad boy!

It's unnatural. It's unnatural not to keep it.

You rip the box up and you play with the toys.

-Christmas Day.

-Or birthdays.

-Normal children do.

What are you saying about him then?

It's got all the bits. There's all those bits to lose and break on it.

-So that's why it should sell.

-And we've got £80-£120, haven't we?

-Yep.

-It's a real iconic car.

Every schoolboy knows this car, they loved the film.

-We won't sing.

-We won't sing, no, I won't embarrass myself.

-I can't sing anyway. Can you, have you got a good voice?

-Er, no.

-I won't put you to the test, then. Good luck.

-Thank you.

-This is it.

A very collectable Corgi Chitty Chitty Bang Bang model,

complete with its plastic inserts,

and nobody should be without theirs.

I am bid on the book, £40, £45, 50, 60, 70 and five...

-Don't shake your head.

-Come on.

It is with me. At 75, one more...

£80, and five, 85.

The bid's with me on the book.

Commission bid. The net's out, the room's out.

£85 on the book.

Can I sell then at £85 and done? Thank you.

-It's gone.

-Well done.

He'll be pleased.

-He'll take you out for supper now, do you think?

-Oh, it's mine.

It's yours. It's your money. Shoes?

You'll have to dig out the other ones now - see what else you've got!

-He's got lots, then, you said?

-Oh, he's got loads.

-All boxed?

Yep. Every single one of them.

It's enough to make an auctioneer's heart just start to race.

'I bet Kate wishes her attic was full of boxed,

'mint condition toy cars.

'My choice next, and it's time for my heart to start racing.

'It's Kay and Simon and baby Sienna with the collection of taxidermy.'

Well, we're talking about the water fowl.

We've got those stuffed Edwardian birds in the cabinet going under the hammer right now.

Philip didn't give me a ticking off.

-He didn't say anything, he avoided the subject.

-Thankfully.

I just hope they sell after all the effort of bringing them here. Fingers crossed, OK?

-Fingers crossed?

-Little one and all.

There we are, the case of taxidermy, two duck and other water fowl.

Bid me £100 for that lot.

The case of taxidermy. £100 to start me.

Well, bid me £50, someone.

Just down here on the left. I'm bid £20 for that lot.

20, and five, 30, and five, 35, bid 40,

40 bid. At 40.

You're not bidding?

Any more at all? At 45. 45. 45. One more?

Come on, one more.

Are you bidding, sir?

At 45, any more at all? No, well, I'm sorry, I can't do that.

-Oh, close.

-Close, but no cigar.

I'm ever so sorry. Ever so sorry.

It's been a very worthwhile experience.

-Have you enjoyed it?

-It's been really enjoyable.

And we've had a good day out as well.

-Great.

-I guess we can hang them up on the wall now.

'Well, that was disappointing, but I'm glad they have enjoyed the day.

'Christine and Jackie's mum needs picking up from the hospital today,

'so we've only got one of the sisters at auction.

'Let's see how the bidders tackle the rugby caps.'

We have got the four rugby caps going under the hammer.

-Early 1900s.

-I'm excited about these. I really like these.

So was Philip, just before the sale. He waxed lyrical.

-Because you know he loves rugby, don't you?

-Yeah.

-I said that the other day at the valuation desk, he's going to love these.

-Perfect place to bring them.

He has contacted a few old mates and he knows they are going back to Wales.

-There are three or four phone lines booked, so...

-Really?

Mmm. Fingers crossed.

Lot number 241 is the Newport rugby caps,

and the splendidly-named Knacker Priest.

If you are going to be a rugby player, that's the name for you.

I'm bid £100 on the book bid. Commission bid at £100.

-Well, they're already sold anyway.

-120, 130, 140,

150, 160, 170, 180.

190, 200, 210...

They might do 300.

240, 250, 260, 270, 280.

They might do more.

-This is good!

-It is.

310.

At £310 only. 320, 330.

330. 340 on the Net, is it?

340, 350. 360?

370. 380 is it on the Net?

380. 390. 400 on the Net, is it?

£390 in the room. Any more?

At £390, and I sell then, thank you.

You must be so pleased. That's great news for your mum.

-That will cheer her up no end.

-It certainly will.

Especially as she's coming out of hospital today.

Oh, get on the phone and tell her. You will go around to see her.

I'm going to do the text, yeah.

-What a result!

-Philip had a really good TRY there and converted us a good result, didn't he?

'That was a super result.

'I love it when things sell well over their estimate.

'It shows this was the right place to sell them.'

'When we return, Adam sniffs out another interesting item.'

-It did smell a bit when we...cleaned it out.

-Perhaps it still does.

I was wondering, we're blaming John here, but it could be the object itself.

I always get the blame for everything anyway.

I'm at the Ruskin Mill Glass House College, right in the heart

of the historic glass quarter of Stourbridge. Now, this whole area

was the Royal Dalton factory, but now this site provides studio space and workshops for many

artisans, both in traditional and contemporary glass-making, but also many other crafts.

'For last 400 years, they have been making glass in Stourbridge.

'It is one of the great names, world-renowned for its cut crystal.

'Not only have the factories in the Stourbridge area created some of the finest glass ever made,

'but the craftsmen from here have influenced the most famous international makers.'

The golden era was in the Victorian period, when everybody wanted cut-glass crystal.

It was hugely fashionable, but sadly, tastes do change

and many of the big manufacturers went out of business.

But Stourbridge today is well and truly alive and kicking in glass.

Many of the traditional methods are still going on around me right now.

But there is also a new wave of creative artisans providing

the most wonderful, exciting and contemporary studio glass.

'This is also the site of the International Festival of Glass,

'which attracts as many as 15,000 visitors every two years.

'It hosts a huge programme of events -

'demonstrations, talks, activities and exhibitions.'

Including the prestigious British Glass Biennale, which is part of the dynamic celebration of

the British modern glass-makers, and I'm here to meet Martin Andrews, who is part of this revival.

Martin, you have got some fabulous pieces here.

How did you get started in glass-making?

I did a degree at West Surrey College of Art and Design in Farnham,

in 1991, and then after that I went to Sweden and I was very fortunate

to work with Asa Brandt, who was one of first studio glass artists.

She set up in 1968.

Do you use traditional methods, but sort of put your own slant on?

Yes, the traditional glass blowing has not really changed for 400 years.

Same sort of tools, same benches.

How do you make something like that? How do you get all the colours?

The plates, in the furnace I have clear glass.

All the colour is added while it is still a solid blob.

Once the design is on, then you start to actually blow the shape.

The skill of the glass-maker is working as fast as possible.

You are literally chasing it - the working temperature of glass

is between 600 and 1,000 degrees, and it will go through that temperature barrier in about 40 seconds.

So every time you reheat it you've got about 40 seconds to do something with it, and then you reheat it.

-Got you.

-So you're up and down the bench a lot.

I really do love that, I love the colours in that, I love the golden hues.

Could you show me how to make something?

For a novice like me to attempt something like that?

I'd like to have a go at that, because that looks like a big challenge.

-OK, let's go and have a go.

-How long will that take?

It would take about an hour - with my help.

-Come on, then.

-OK!

This is actually for real. We're going to take an hour to do this.

I don't know what to do, so just talk me through it.

If you start by heating that up, get that hot. Just keep it there.

We want to heat the tip up, so it is hot enough for the glass to stick to it when we gather.

I'm actually feeling quite nervous, to tell you the truth.

Because I want this to work well.

We can take that out. That's fine.

Right. Now you are going to gather from the furnace.

-Right.

-You do the first gather.

-Gosh, that's hot.

-And you need to be in and out in about seven seconds.

OK, keep turning. Keep turning.

And go to the bench. Don't touch.

Roll it forward, use all of your arm.

OK, we are just going to reheat that, so, put the paper down.

Reheat it in the glory hole.

-Keep turning?

-Keep turning it.

-It's not easy, is it?

-No.

I'm actually quite frightened.

This is all by feel, you just know, don't you, by instinct?

Yes, it's all by touch.

I will put some of the other colour out as well.

-This is cooling all the time now.

-It is cooling, but the coloured glass is sticking to the clear glass.

-From here, OK...

-Pulling back all the time.

Yes. That's good, take it off.

Now, the hard bit is the technique called thumbing.

What you need to do is blow down.

Blow, this in your mouth.

Put your thumb over it and trap the air, so the air expands in the pipe.

-Like that, ready? One big blow?

-Yes.

That's good.

You now need to reheat it and repeat that process.

-Keep my thumb on the end?

-No.

I see, you could do this for several times, you could just

-keep going until you are happy with the size of air bubble?

-Yes.

Roll. Turn.

-Oh, wow.

-And then back the other way.

-That's good.

-That is better.

-Now blow.

It is looking more like a light bulb at the moment.

It is getting bigger and bigger. It's getting harder to come out of that glory hole.

-OK, Martin.

-OK, out you come, yep.

Ah!

-Nearly. That's it.

-Hang on.

-Ah!

-Ah.

That's it. I just ruined it.

Nearly had it. That was about 55 minutes' work, wasn't it?

-Sorry.

-That's all right. Never mind.

-It's so difficult, isn't it?

-It is very, very difficult. It is.

Thank you so much, you have been brilliant.

You know, we were so close,

ten minutes away from seeing that dish open up.

But I said we would only do this once.

I said we would have an hour on this.

And I knew it. I just knew it would go wrong.

Do you know that? Oh...

Oh, so close, yet so far.

I was five minutes away from creating a wonderful glass charger and it all went wrong.

That is the most stressful thing I have ever, ever done on "Flog It!" in nine years.

Not only is Martin Andrews

a wonderful glass designer and blower, he's also a great teacher -

teaching traditional skills and methods,

and that was really difficult, please believe me.

And if you don't, have a go yourself - you'll see.

'At the Malvern Theatres, there is still plenty to be discovered.'

'The crowds on our valuation day are keeping our team of experts very busy.'

'Kate's been bedazzled by something rather glamorous, that Erica inherited.'

Erica, you brought in something sparkly which has caught my eye.

What can you tell me about it?

Well, originally, it came from Germany,

it belonged to my mum's great aunty,

and it was passed to my mother when she died

and then when my mother died it was passed on to me.

-So, family history.

-Yes, but my mother didn't like it.

As soon as she picked it up, it went in her jewellery box and she didn't like it. She didn't wear it.

And I like it, but I'm not... I don't wear it very often.

-Not that attached to it.

-Probably a couple of times a year, I wear it.

-It is what you call a dress ring.

-It is a dress ring, yeah.

It is very dressy. I'm going to give it a go.

I might have a bit of a Cinderella fantasy and give it a go.

See, I can see that on my finger... if my husband's watching!

But it's very attractive.

I think date-wise, you're talking between...

Probably between the wars, maybe.

So 1930s - does that fit in with the sort of family background?

Or maybe a bit earlier, '20s?

I would think a bit earlier, '20s, probably.

Yes. But it is a classic dress evening ring.

You've got diamonds and sapphire in the middle, an oval cut sapphire.

And it is on continental, so 14 carat gold, which again,

-is not something we usually get in England.

-No.

But it's quite a pretty thing.

Very sparkly, you can see this is an old cut brilliant on the diamond,

so it makes it this lovely, sparkly colour.

The diamonds aren't very big, but they are nice and clean.

And they have a good colour to them.

I suppose at auction

you would be talking between £300 and £500 for it.

Is that the kind of figure you would be happy to get?

I think so, yes.

-I would like to think I would get more than £400 for it.

-Right.

It depends on the day.

If you don't wear it, you've got to think of who the buyer will be,

and who would wear it.

I suppose if a dealer's buying it, they would make a mark-up

if they were selling it in a shop.

So I think probably,

you can maybe reserve it at 350 and put 400-500 guide price.

Then if it doesn't reach 350, it hasn't sold, so at least you are not disappointed if it only gets to 300.

-Would you be OK with that?

-Yes, I would be fine with that.

-Brilliant.

-Hopefully we'll get the higher end.

'Let's hope Erica has not set her sights too high.

'From crossed fingers to the work of tiny fingers - I love these samplers.'

'Next, Jill and John get an unusual reaction from Adam.'

A very distinctive object here, isn't it?

-It is, yes.

-And quite a distinctive aroma of silage, is it?

It's him, not me. He has been doing the cattle this morning.

-Oh, right, you're farmers?

-Yes.

-Yes, we are. We're beef farmers.

-Local beef farmers.

-Yes, we are.

-Farmers are working very hard.

Yes, a lot of hours, not much money, the same as everybody!

-If only they washed their hands!

-I did. I did!

-Anyway we are here to talk about this object.

-Yes.

Why did you bring it, where's it from, tell me about it, please.

Well, I remember my grandmother growing hyacinths in it.

And then we moved into the farmhouse, we wanted to redecorate,

-so we put it in the cellar and we forgot about it.

-Yeah.

One day I went down into the cellar -

or tried to get into the cellar -

and I found that it was over five foot deep in water.

-Ah.

-So we had a blocked drain.

-We had a blocked drain.

So everything in the cellar was covered in mud and silt.

Luckily it was not toilet drains, it was only water drains!

Lucky it wasn't poo!

That's right, yes, it did smell a bit when we cleaned it out.

-Perhaps it still does.

-I was wondering, we are blaming John here,

-but it could be the object itself.

-I always get the blame for everything anyway.

Did you have to dig it out of the cellar?

Well, when we uncovered it, it was all covered in silt and mud and what have you.

So we cleaned it up and thought, oh, we don't really like that.

-No.

-So, and it has been sort of, sat, hanging around doing nothing, really.

Yeah. It is a bit damaged so we are not expecting it to be a big value. But you never know.

I could tell that you didn't have high expectations.

-No!

-Well, it looks to me as though it is Italian,

and a piece of majolica, the tin-glazed earthenware.

Probably the late 19th century is around the date of it.

-Oh, yeah.

-There have been quite a few losses, haven't there?

-There have, yes.

-We have got some damage this end.

Yes. Even more this end, I'm afraid.

Top of the wing is missing here.

And I'm afraid her head fell off.

It is a very brittle material anyway, it is very prone to damage.

You rarely see them in good condition.

If that was in perfect condition, it would be quite a valuable object.

-But it is far from in good condition.

-Well, yes.

-Far from it. Erm, is it something you want back?

-No.

-No.

-I didn't think so. I would share that opinion.

A lot of people at home will either love this or hate it.

-There is not going to be any middle ground.

-No, that's right.

-No, yes.

I would suggest taking a gamble and sticking it in at no reserve.

-Fair enough.

-It is "Flog It!"

-I don't think it will do more than £100 to £200.

-Fair enough.

-That's more than I thought.

I would be tempted to put a bit of a lower estimate on it than that.

But let's go with 100-200, shall we? Let's go in bullish.

-Yes, we'll do that.

-But don't blame me if it makes 40 quid.

-All right!

'No reserve? Well, Adam's taking no risks there.'

'Let's see if Kate's prepared to stick her neck out on the next find.'

Now, you've brought in this fantastic snuff box.

Is it a firm favourite of yours?

Well, not particularly. We do have it on display, and we like it, yes.

It wasn't a romantic present from one to the other?

-No, no, no, no, no, no.

-Oh, OK, fine.

What's the story behind it?

Well, I inherited it from my great-grandfather.

Well, it came down through the family, obviously.

-And that's about it.

-That's it? Do you know what it is?

Well, it's a snuff box. I understand it's a snuff box.

OK. Well, if we take a look at it, it's obviously very pretty from the outside, and we've got this sort of

machined enamel on the front and a little cartouche in the centre

with a chap on a chariot, and then a floral border.

And at first glance, it looks continental, with all this highly decorated stuff going on,

but if we open it, it's silver gilt, there's gold on the inside, and the hallmark, which is in here,

tells us that it's actually English and Georgian.

And the hallmark, if we look at it, is for 1817.

And we've got a "DH" there for David Hennell, who is the maker.

So, he's a fairly well-known maker of snuff boxes.

Regency, so you're talking George III, basically. It's a lovely thing.

I used to polish it every week!

Oh, my goodness! Because, obviously, it is quite soft, so you can overrub silver.

Yes, I learnt that from "Flog It!"

Ah-ha! We've taught you something!

Public information broadcasting at its best.

So, in terms of valuation, he's a known maker, it's a very pretty thing.

You do have a little bit of wear, I've noticed, on the bottom here,

-which will affect the price a little bit.

-Mm.

But it's still very pretty,

and for a snuff box collector I think it's going to be quite fun.

-Auction estimate would be between maybe £200 and £300, something like that.

-Mm!

Would that be the sort of price you'd be happy to sell it for?

-Yeah, round about that, yes, certainly.

-OK.

Well, we'd normally set a reserve of just below that, so maybe 150 reserve, an estimate of 200 to 300.

-Yeah.

-That's OK?

-Yes.

-You'd not be sorry to see it go, then?

-No.

-No, not really.

-No, no.

-Not having to polish it any more?

-Well, I haven't polished it for two years, so...!

-No loss. No loss.

OK, we'll try it, and I have high hopes for it at the auction, so hopefully it will go.

-Thank you.

-Fingers crossed. Thanks.

-Thank you.

'Now, that's more like it! We love a bit of optimism.

'Let's remind ourselves of the final items going off to auction.

'If the bidders like Erica's dress ring as much as Kate does, it should do very well.'

'Jill and John don't like their majolica bowl, so it's time for it to go under the hammer.

'If the serious snuff collectors are in the room on the day,

'I think Bill and Jan could be in for a nice surprise.

'Auctioneer Philip Serrell will be selling the rest of our lots

'in his saleroom in Malvern.

'The room's getting busy, which is always a hopeful sign.

'First, let's find out how Jill and John do with their majolica bowl.

A lovely bit of earthenware. Love it, love it, love it. Why are you selling this?

Well, YOU may love it, but we don't, I'm afraid.

We found it in our cellar, underwater.

Neither of us like it, so we thought, "Well, we'll sell it."

We're going to find out what the bidders think and also what the collectors think.

-It's going under the hammer now. Here we go.

-Fingers crossed.

Lot number 540 is this really nice Cantagalli-style oval dish,

a lovely thing. Will you bid me for that?

Start me at £100, someone.

Well, start me!

Bid me £60 for it.

Bid me £50 for it.

20 I am bid. At £20 only. At 20.

At £20 only. At 30. 40.

50. 50 bid. At 50.

At £50 only. Lady's bid at 50.

At £50 only. Your bid, ma'am.

At 50. At 50. 60. At 60. At £60. Have another go!

At 60.

Philip's got to work hard on this.

Is 70 anywhere now? At £60 it's yours.

It's not dear, this, at £60.

Is there any more at all? Any more?

At £60. And it's done and sold, then, at 60. And done.

-JILL:

-Oh, well.

-Just a bit too badly damaged.

Yes. Well, they said they didn't want it back. Didn't you?

Well, that's right, yes. Yes.

She could have lost her head altogether, so...!

'Well, I can't help thinking that somebody got a real bargain there.'

'Erica's brought her son Kurt to the auction room.

'Let's hope the bidders give them a good price for the diamond and sapphire ring.'

Why have you decided now is the best time to sell this?

Well, I don't wear it.

My mum didn't like it, either.

She had it in her jewellery box and never wore it, and I thought,

-I might as well sell it and use the money to get something I'd like.

-OK.

Hopefully the money will go to something you like as well, Kurt.

But I know you really like this, don't you, Kate?

It's a bit of sparkle. It's a girlie lot.

-Something you could wear?

-I like to think so, yeah!

Well, let's hope this lot want a bit of sparkle as well, shall we?

Here we go. Let's find out.

The diamond and sapphire cocktail ring, set with a central sapphire.

Come on...

I'm bid £250 bid. At 250. 260.

At 260 bid. 260. At 260.

This is good.

270. 270. 280.

290. At 300 bid.

At £300 only. At 300.

At £300. At 300 out on my left.

At £300 only. Any more?

At £300. Is there any more at all?

At £300 only on my left. Any more?

At 300. There it is.

At 300. Your bid. At £300. Any more?

And done, then, or not at 300.

Well, I'm sorry, I can't do that.

-Oh, well.

-No!

-It was close, wasn't it?

We had a fixed reserve of 350.

Yeah. So it didn't quite make it.

Oh, I'll take it home and try again another time.

-You're stuck with it, Kurt!

-That's it!

Better start liking it!

'Erica's right, there will be another auction on another day.

'No point giving good things away.

'Now, this is a lovely lot, Bill and Jan's silver Regency snuff box.'

Absolutely beautiful, it really is, isn't it?

It's a lovely example of what it is, yeah.

-£200 to £300.

-Yeah. Nice.

Why are you selling this now?

I don't know why. It just happened.

We wanted to bring something to "Flog It!"

You thought that was a good item?

We didn't realise it was as old as it is. It's 1817.

That's the great thing about hallmarks, is you can date it precisely, yeah.

Good luck, because this is a piece to treasure.

And there's lots of collectors for

this kind of decorative item, so it should do well.

-And here we go. We're going to find out.

-All right.

Georgian silver snuff box.

Bid me, chaps. 150 to start?

Thank you. 150 I'm bid. At 150. 160.

-170. 180.

-Still cheap!

-190. 200.

-Oh, it's not finished yet!

-Go on!

-210. 220. 230. 240.

Don't shake your head, ma'am. One more?

240 with me. At 240. 250. 260.

260. 270. 280.

290. 300. 310, is it?

310. 320.

£320 on the book.

330. 340. 350. 360. 370. 380.

390. 400. And 10 with me. At 410.

Is there any more?

At £410. Any more in the room, phone or internet?

At £410. Any more?

And I sell, then, at £410. And done.

Yes, the hammer's gone down.

What a lovely moment. Well, thank you so much for bringing that in.

-Good result!

-Yes!

Just goes to show, quality always sells, doesn't it?

And if you've got anything like that, we want to see it!

-So, what are you going to spend all that money on?

-There's still a debate on that.

-You could open a bottle of something and toast Grandad.

-We could do that!

Thank you for bringing such a wonderful item in, it really made our day.

And it's a wonderful, fitting end to a great day here in Malvern.

All credit to Philip Serrell. He's done us really proud.

If you've got anything like that, we want to see you.

Bring it along to one of our valuation days.

But from Malvern, until then, it's cheerio.

'And you can find details of our next valuation days

'by logging on to the internet and going to...'

'Click F for "Flog It!"

'then follow the links and find the list of towns

'we're coming to very soon.'

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd