Cirencester Flog It!

The buzz of the auction room, there's nothing like it.

This is where dreams are made or hopes are shattered.

One thing is for sure. There will never be a dull moment. Welcome to Flog It!

Our venue today is the Corn Hall, right in the heart of Cirencester.

We've got a massive queue already gathering.

Some of them have been here since 8:30 this morning.

The bells are ringing out. It is a Sunday morning,

but we've got a Flog It faithful right here laden with bags and boxes.

Hopefully, the best items will go off to auction and make a fortune.

It is now 9:30. It's time to get the doors open and get this massive crowd inside.

-Are you ready to go in?

-ALL: Yes!

-Come on, then, follow me.

'Helping them discover exactly what they've got is our team of experts,

'and today, it's headed up by Thomas Plant and Michael Baggott.'

I'll leave that for my colleague, cos he's the toy man.

'Thomas has an auction business which specialises in, amongst other things, toys.

'But he won't be playing around when it comes to today's valuations.'

If it was all polished up, it would be shiny-shiny glitzy-glitzy.

-It's not Clarice Cliff, is it?

-'And Michael's interest in antiques began as a young child.

'Today, he runs a business specialising in silver.

'But there isn't much Michael doesn't know about antiques,

'so our crowd are guaranteed a sterling valuation.

'And coming up on today's programme, I take a walk in the wild side

'with a pair of naturist gardeners.'

He did this to calm the rebellious nature of his body.

HE LAUGHS Read into that what you will!

I think I understand.

'And both our experts feel a little more than excited about some of their finds.'

I think you've got a very rare early Barbie here.

-It's got the Michael Baggott seal of approval all over it.

-It should walk out of the door.

'And Thomas is up first after spotting these smart ceramics.'

-So we have three generations here, don't we?

-We do. Tim, Claire, my daughter, granddaughter Libby.

Is this a Deco service which was been within your family?

The history of it is that my mother used to look after

a lady called Yvonne Darwin,

who was married to Robin Darwin,

and he, in fact, was the great grandson of Charles Darwin.

-Oh, right! OK.

-And my mother used to look after Yvonne Darwin

as she got older and became ill,

and before she died, she asked my mother if she would like this service as a present.

-Did she use it?

-Yes, all the time.

-Really?

-Regularly.

I remember going for Christmas dinner and she had these out.

-Not every day.

-No, special occasions.

-Weekends.

-High days and holidays.

-Well, OK.

Birthday parties and Sunday lunches with the family. Isn't that sweet?

-Did she know then what she was using?

-No.

I think, for the cameras and everybody at home, let's reveal all.

On the back here, we have "Designed by Billy Walters,

"produced in the Bizarre range by Clarice Cliff."

And we've got the date, 1934.

Now, Billy Walters was the designer.

Clarice Cliff probably had little or no input.

So she would've had an association with Billy Walters

but she wouldn't have gone in on the design with him on this.

-Do you see what I mean?

-Yes.

-We see plates and other associated designers with Clarice Cliff,

such as Dame Laura Knight and Frank Brangwyn.

Those are two famous artists who have done associations with Clarice.

I've seen those more often. I have to admit, I have never seen this service before, or this pattern.

So it is quite interesting. Now, you said it was a whole dinner service. How whole is it?

There are 12 of each plate,

two serving dishes,

two terrine dishes and the meat platter.

-So it's 41 pieces altogether.

-41 pieces altogether.

I think this could do quite well at auction.

I mean, I certainly know that a plate has sold in 2006

for £100, which is quite good.

Now, we're not valuing every single bit at £100.

Some things might be worth more than 100 and some things will be worth less than 100.

I personally believe that, if you put it up for auction

and you put the estimate at £2,000 to £3,000,

I think you've got a good opportunity to sell it.

-Really?

-Yeah.

With regards to a reserve,

-I think as it's been in your family, we should have a reserve.

-Yes, I'd like a reserve.

And I think that should be fixed at the bottom estimate of £2,000.

-I'm going to be so intrigued.

-So am I.

'Gosh, what an immense dinner service with an equally huge price tag.

'I think it's worth every penny, but will the bidders? We'll find out later on.

'Flog It valuation days are always very busy,

'and I can't help having a good nose around.'

HE LAUGHS

I don't think it's signed at all, is it?

Oh, they're nice. Split cane fly rods.

Fishing for antiques, that's what this is all about. Hello!

-Hello.

-I love what you're wearing. Obviously, you're a couple. What's your name?

-Jim.

-Jim? That's a really unusual name for a lady.

-I liked ginger cake when I was little and I couldn't say it,

so I used to say Jimmy cake, so I've been stuck with Jimmy since I was two.

Aww! What have you brought along?

-This I bought in a charity shop for £5.

-£5, OK.

-I think you got a good bargain there.

-Yeah. It's very pretty.

-Very pretty.

-Cos you know what they say,

one person's trash is somebody else's treasure.

-Are you saying that's trash, then?

-No!

-THEY LAUGH

No, seriously, it's a bit of fun.

That's a bit of cranberry glass. That's Victorian.

-And that would've come off a centrepiece, something big and fanciful.

-I wondered that.

Obviously, it's got broken and it's been mounted at a later date

-on this 1930s piece of cut glass.

-I see.

But I kind of like the look of that. I think it's really nice. It's like a little spill vase.

And if you put a rose in there, you see the reflection, so...

-My sister wants it.

-You're buying it off her?

I am, but if it makes a lot of money, I'm happy to let it go for charity.

I think, on a good day, this could realise £30 to £50. OK?

-If it reached £50, you've got to pay commission.

-That's fine.

-But it's still better than a fiver, isn't it?

-Yeah.

-Why don't I pay £50 and have it?

-No, we've got to put it into auction.

You can't cut the auctioneer out now we're here.

THEY LAUGH

You can't... That's a different show.

THEY LAUGH

-You know!

-Ooh, she's tight!

Yeah, exactly! Think of it all going to charity.

She's frightened it goes up too high and she can't afford it.

That's even better. It means you don't have to pay for it,

-someone else has bought it and they may pay £80 for it.

-Yeah.

And that's more money for charity.

I'll see you at the auction. Hopefully, all of you. And you can be there with your paddle bidding.

That's where we're going.

'But first, we've still got room for one more item,

'and Michael has spotted Ed with an intriguing little box.'

-So, Ed, you're on an errand today.

-Yes.

-You are here in proxy for your mother.

-Yeah.

-She owns this little piece here.

-Yep.

-So are you going to get into frightful trouble now?

-Hopefully not, no.

Oh, dear! It's quite awkward! Let's hope not.

I love boxes like this, shaped boxes,

cos it took a lot of work, believe me, to make that box.

A specialist did it and usually for a very good reason.

You know what's in it already. Let's open it up and reveal

-that fabulous pendant.

-Yeah.

But being a bit of an anorak, what I also think is fabulous

is the retailer's name on the top of the box.

Henry Tessier. Tessier, one of the most important firms in the 19th century.

So, this is your mother's. Do you know where she got it from?

It's been passed from various generations. I'm not sure who owned it originally.

-But it's just come down through the family.

-Yeah.

Let's have a look. What we've got is the most fantastic cabochon,

which basically just means a polished oval or round stone, rather than it being facetted.

We've got this cabochon garnet with a little fly,

but picked out in diamonds and with little ruby eyes, so there's a lot of work in this.

If we flick it over, we've got probably a 15-carat gold mount to it

and we've got this little glazed panel at the back,

which would be for a loved one's lock of hair.

Oh, right.

What's interesting is, we've also got an engraved date,

which is LL, 1st August 1882,

12th October 1882.

And that's a very odd dated inscription,

cos it's the same year and it's different months.

I don't know to what it pertains.

My mum thinks, or what she's been told, is that it's a mourning brooch for a dead baby,

which is why she doesn't like it so much.

That was going to be my second thought.

I don't want to say for definite,

-because I'm not sure of the symbolism of garnet as a stone.

-OK.

-But it would suggest a birth and death date.

-Yeah.

Normally, though, you will have a D or a "Died"

after one of the dates, and a B for born.

Aside from that possibly gruesome explanation for it,

it is a fairly stunning little pendant.

So, have you got any idea as to the value of it?

None at all. Not in the slightest.

-You weren't given instructions by mother?

-No.

Does she know you're going to flog it with us today?

Yeah, she knows I'm here, but she doesn't know about selling it.

You're on the knife edge. So we may see it at the auction, we may not.

Well, if we do, I think we've got to put an estimate of £200 to £300 on it

-and a fixed reserve of £200.

-OK.

-And it's really worth that all day long.

A wonderful, wonderful pendant.

So let's hope, when you get home and you haven't got this with you,

you're not in too much trouble and I look forward to seeing you at the auction.

-OK. Thank you very much.

-Or your mum. Thanks very much.

'And that's where we're off to now.

'Thankfully, Ed's mother decided to go ahead, so we will be selling the pendant.

'We've also got the spectacularly rare Clarice Cliff dinner service.

'And Jim's charity shop find, the cranberry glass vase and mirror.

'It's a busy saleroom in Cirencester and things are selling well,

'so hopefully we'll achieve some top prices for our owners.

'We're starting with the interesting cranberry glass piece.

'Hopefully, we'll improve on a fiver.'

We're just about to sell that wonderful adapted bit of cranberry glass

into this lovely little wall sconce with a pocket and a nice little mirror dating from the early 1900s.

And all the money is going back to the charity.

Lots of people find things in charity shops and go off and spend the money on a holiday

-and don't really give it to the shop.

-I don't think this will be enough for a holiday, do you?

-I don't know...

-SHE LAUGHS

-Don't be pessimistic.

-THEY LAUGH

-Your sister wanted to buy it.

-Yes, she's here.

-She's in the...

-Right, OK.

-I wouldn't let them have it.

Well, she might be bidding on it, you never know. Hopefully she is.

That way, it'll put the price up a bit for someone else who wants to buy it.

Anyway, good luck. It's going under the hammer now.

1930s mirror there.

Pretty little piece. Victorian taste.

I can start you here on the book at £25.

£25 I have here. 30. 5. 40. 5.

50. The book's out at £50 now. 5 now. At £50.

5. 60 if you like, madam. At £55.

60 now. At 55, you all sure?

Happy days. Happy days!

I only paid a fiver for it.

-Yes, I know! I wonder if your sister ended up buying it.

-I don't know.

We've got to go and find out. Well done, anyway.

'Alas, it turns out that Jim's sister missed out on it by just £5.

'Still, it means a lot more money for charity.

'Now it's time for the dinner service.'

We've seen a lot of Clarice Cliff on the show before and 99 percent of the time, it hasn't let us down,

but I've never seen so much Clarice Cliff in one lot, belonging to Claire and Tim.

-Hi. Pleased to see you again.

-Hi.

-Now, this is a bit of a family piece, because it's yours

-but, technically, now it's yours. You're inheriting this.

-Yep.

Now we're selling it. £2,000 to £3,000 on this,

and I know it's worth every single penny, because there's 41 pieces.

Absolutely. It's amazing. 41 pieces, so averaging at about £60 a piece.

-Yeah.

-I think that's what the cheapest piece of Clarice Cliff is worth.

And for a big dinner service, all displayed out, it looks amazing in the saleroom.

It absolutely is stunning. My only worry, I do have a slight doubt,

is not many people use dinner services any more. There is an awful lot of it.

Will it find a home? I know the value is spot on.

It's going under the hammer now.

Lot number 50, which is the Clarice Cliff dinner service.

Designed by Billy Walters.

I can start you on the book here. Commissions at £1,150.

-Come on. We need a lot more.

-1,200 if you like.

1,250. With me at 1,250. 1,300. And 50.

1,400. And 50.

At 1,450. With me at 1,450.

1,500 now. At 1,450.

-Not sold.

-Well, it's going home. I'm so sorry. We tried our hardest.

The best thing you could do is hang onto it for a few more months,

put it back into another sale. Give it a bit of space,

otherwise people see the same thing all the time and it looks like the trade are trying to sell it.

Maybe take it to a 20th century sale, have a chat with the auctioneer.

-He might even decide to split them up into smaller lots.

-Yeah.

-Oh, well.

-Anyway...

-Ever so sorry.

-That's all right.

-Sorry about that.

'Well, today just wasn't the right day, but I'm sure it can achieve that price.

'It just needs the right people to spot it. Now, will we do any better with the pendant?'

Ed brought it along on behalf of his mum, he had to get permission to sell it and he's got it,

but unfortunately, they can't be with us today.

But Michael's here. A valuation of £200 to £300. Hopefully we'll get the top end.

-Jewellery is selling well.

-It is. And most mourning jewellery,

because this is more of a collector's piece than something you'd wear, is usually black enamel and serious.

And in its original fitted case. It's just wonderful. It's a complete thing.

-And at £200...

-You're confident.

-Don't put me on the spot!

-It's got the Michael Baggott seal of approval all over it!

-It should walk out of the door.

-Good luck. And good luck to Ed. It's going under the hammer now.

The Victorian pendant. Has a diamond chip and ruby decorated fly

upon the garnet loop.

Start me 2.

I can start you here, then, at 150 on the book. At 150.

160 now. 160. 170.

180. 190. 200. The book's out at 200. 220 now.

220 on the phone if you like. 220. Thank you, madam.

240 if you like. 240. 260 on the phone if you like. At 260. 280.

This is good. It's going to get the top of your estimate.

It deserves to. It's a really finely worked piece.

340. 360. 380. 400.

-Oh, fantastic.

-This is very good.

-440.

At 440 in the room. 460. 480.

-500.

-What do they say? Quality always sells.

At 500.

I wish Ed could've been here, that's all I can say.

-He'd be doing cartwheels now!

-He would be!

His mum must be really pleased. At least you can enjoy watching this later on.

But well done, Michael. Unbelievable price, though.

-If it's perfect and in a fitted case, it'll always do that little bit more.

-Yeah.

And as Michael said, quality always counts.

If you're going to invest in antiques, make sure the condition is perfect if you can.

-No restorations and a good maker's name.

-Absolutely.

Well, so far, so good. You've just seen three items go under the hammer.

We are coming back later in the programme and hopefully there'll be one or two surprises.

Bob, I think you've made my day today by bringing in this absolutely fantastic piece of jewellery.

'Michael's dazzled by this diamond stunner.

'But the auctioneer is a little more cautious.'

It's got lots and lots of things going for it.

-I know what you're going to say. Brooches aren't fashionable.

-They're not.

'What will the bidders think, I wonder?'

Before we go back to the valuation day, while we've been in the area,

I had the opportunity to get some wonderful fresh air

and explore the most beautiful garden. Take a look at this.

This is the ancient hilltop town of Malmesbury in Wiltshire and it's not far from where I live.

As you can see, it is rather a busy place, but today I've come here

to show you an incredible town garden which is owned by a very special couple.

So come with me and let's explore Abbey House Gardens.

'Right in the middle of Malmesbury,

'these extraordinary gardens boast 10,000 different species of plants and trees.

'But they're particularly well known for an impressive collection of tulips and 2,000 species of rose.

'And they were all planted by husband and wife owners Ian and Barbara.

'However, Abbey House Gardens are perhaps most famous

'for the unusual style Ian and Barbara like to indulge in when they're gardening.

'Quite often, they wear absolutely nothing, hence their nickname, the naked gardeners.

'Ian and Barbara work fully clothed when the gardens are open to the public,

'apart from on special "clothes optional" days,

'when the visitors are given the opportunity to strip off, too.'

I think you'll be pleased to hear it's not a "clothing optional" day today and I'm really relieved.

I'm going to head inside and find out what else makes this place so unique.

Just taking a first glance there, you can understand what I'm going on about.

-Barbara, Ian, hello! Good to see you! Caught you at work.

-Yep!

-You look fabulous. You look really healthy.

-So do you.

The gardens look great. It's late spring. I know this is one of the hardest times of the year for you.

Everything's growing. And after such a long, hard, cold, miserable, wet winter, we've been very glad

-to see the colour come in a rush.

-Everything was three of four weeks late and now it's catch-up time.

Early tulips have come up with mid-season tulips, blossom everywhere, all happening.

-How long have you had this place?

-In a few weeks, it'll be 16 years.

-Happy birthday.

-What was it like?

-Completely different. There was no garden here at all.

This area was formal and the lawns were kept cut, but just lawn with a little bit of perennial.

-Was this just...

-An exercise in moss.

Getting the heads off the daisies and dandelions and keeping the moss down.

What a backdrop over there. Look at that.

Through into the abbey. Tell me about the history of the abbey.

It started in the late 7th century. It began from a school

and a Celtic monk coming to the hill to be a hermit

and exchanging his knowledge for food.

So the school began and then that developed into a Benedictine monastery,

which was dissolved by Henry VIII about 1539

-and then a wealthy clothier bought the site and put up that Tudor house.

-It's a lovely house.

-So that's 1600s, as well.

-1542.

-Yeah, there abouts.

-Wow.

It's absolutely fabulous, it really is.

-What's this?

-Berberis.

-I've never seen that before, but it works really well with the box.

-A number of people think it's a purple box.

-I kind of thought that.

-THEY LAUGH

-But I didn't say it.

-When you put your hands around it to weed, you know it isn't, cos it scratches you to bits.

-Beautiful.

-How do you get those levels so perfect?

-With difficulty.

-Is it?

You need a good eye, really. Piece of string and some shears.

Yes, and shears.

I used a machine to do the tops, but the sides, I still cut with hand shears.

Machines have a tendency to drag it and rip it about.

-Gardening is hard work. Can we have a tour?

-Let's go.

-You could say this is the best office in the world, the best place to work.

-Definitely.

-It's a good stress buster.

-Oh, yes!

Beautiful, aren't they? Absolutely beautiful.

-So full.

-I like this one with the stripes on it.

A splash of Monet.

The herb garden looks fabulous, it really does.

And I love the deep raised beds. Obviously keeps the herbs drier, as well.

Absolutely. Most herbs come from the Mediterranean and they don't like getting their feet wet.

-And also... Walafrid Strabo was his name, wasn't it?

-Yep.

He was a monk in the 9th century and he wrote this poem,

"To grow your herbs well and good, you should grow them in raised beds with oaken sides."

-Really?

-So we have raised beds with oaken sides.

-The monks would be proud of the herbs here.

-I think they would.

-What herbs are you growing here?

-Things like ajuga reptans, which is the little bugle.

They're really good for lowering the blood pressure and stopping internal bleeding.

And then chives, which happen to be growing beside it.

Although we eat those for flavour, they're mildly antiseptic,

so they're quite good to help keep you healthy.

We've got Solomon's Seal in flower at the moment. You can make a poultice from that

-that's good for drawing out bruising.

-Isn't it lovely?

-It's so tranquil.

-It is. And the sound of the water.

The monks would've always had water nearby.

There's an energy in that water, as well. It keeps you going.

And it draws the birds, makes the atmosphere moist, it's lovely.

Oh, I do envy you. Where next?

-Shall we go down to the river garden?

-OK.

There's still daffodils.

All the time we're walking along, you're both working, aren't you?

You're thinking, "Tomorrow, I'm going to sort you out."

-That's right. That's got to change, that's got to move, get down here and sort that.

-Make a mental note.

-Were the fish ponds originally here? Did the monks have them?

-They did.

They had three, small, medium and large, and an eel trap that ran the water back to the river.

-Oh, gosh!

-This whole area was their supermarket.

They were even farming fresh-water oysters, cos we've found the shells.

Have you? Native oysters. So it was fish on Friday here.

Fish on Friday. The fish would've been lined or netted in the river,

thrown on here, taken up to a holding tank near the kitchen that was called the stew pond.

I've got to say, I love the rear elevation of the property, the house from here with that steep bank.

When I think how that was when we came here, it was completely overgrown.

I just feel that it's one of Ian's greatest achievements,

actually getting that planted up and so colourful at this time of year.

-Do you think that's one of the hardest things?

-It was, cos I lost the digger a couple of times!

-THEY LAUGH

-Isn't that lovely?

Absolutely beautiful. I think you've done a magnificent job, I really do.

-There's one more thing we've got to show you.

-OK. Come on, then.

-Right, are we here?

-This is what I wanted to show you.

Look at this lovely, smooth area of water.

There's a pool in the riverbed here.

-Where it changes colour?

-Yes.

-You can see it's a lot deeper.

That's right. It was known as St Aldhelm's Pool and it's been a place of baptism

until as recently as 1904, and the reason is that Aldhelm,

who was the first abbot of the Benedictine monastery,

used to bring himself down to this part of the river

-and immerse himself in the water night and day, year long.

-For a wash?

-And, apparently...

-No...

..according to the record, he did this to calm the rebellious nature of his body.

-HE LAUGHS Read into that what you will.

-I think I understand.

-But, interestingly...

-Get rid of all those naughty thoughts.

-That's it.

-Cool yourself down.

-That's it.

-How wonderful!

It is wonderful, and I think it's wonderful that people followed suit

and came to immerse themselves in the water in just the same spot.

Thank you both so much. It's been delightful. The weather's been perfect.

This is just a haven for wildlife, but not only that, it's inspiration for everybody.

If you come here, you can take a bit home and be creative at home

-and hopefully follow in your footsteps.

-Thank you. We'd like to think so.

-Wonderful.

-Now for a cold bath. Come on, let's get a cup of tea.

-THEY LAUGH

'Away from the peace and quiet of the garden,

'we're holding our valuation day at the Corn Hall in Cirencester. And it's a very busy day.'

We're prepared for almost anything.

Pretend you're enjoying yourself.

-Thank you very much.

-That's OK.

-You've made my day.

-Oh! Thanks for coming in.

-We wouldn't have a show without all these people.

-Thank you.

Three, two, one.

'Toy expert Thomas is thrilled to have come across a rare doll, brought in by Susan.'

Mattel. What a toy name to conjure with.

And Barbie. The most iconic doll of the post-war era, isn't it?

Fascinating. Tell me, how did you come by this almost mint Barbie?

It was a present to me in 1963 from my auntie

and her next-door neighbour brought it back from Canada.

They weren't in this country much, I don't think, then.

-No.

-Nobody else had one that I know of,

so that's why it's still in the box.

-Were you a dolly person?

-Yes, but the original baby dolls.

-Yeah?

-You know, like, the bigger dolls.

-Oh, really? You liked the larger dolls, which looked like babies with round faces?

-Yes.

-With porcelain or celluloid heads by Pedigree?

-Yes.

-British dolls by Pedigree.

-Yes.

-Absolutely.

-And this turned up and it was slightly alien to you, was it?

-Yes.

-Especially with the wigs.

-You didn't like that?

-No, not really.

I suppose, if they weren't in the country

-and none of your friends had them, you couldn't have a Barbie tea party.

-No.

-Nobody really knew what you were talking about.

-No.

-No.

-It would've had a cellophane cover to it.

-Yes.

-Which has gone, unfortunately.

But for the... How can you put it nicely? ..anoraks

who collect Barbies, they'd like it all mint.

But, as it is, you've got Barbie here

within some sort of very risque swimming suit, really.

I don't think you could go on the beach like that in the early 1960s.

Early 60s, 1962 this was made, '63 you were given it,

you wouldn't be seen dead... It was for film stars to wear that kind of costume.

So what you've got here is a very risque and sexy Barbie

with the wigs, which I've never seen before.

-Oh.

-I think it's quite impressive.

Have you any thoughts or ideas of value?

Not really. I know she must have some worth,

but I wouldn't know what worth, really.

I wouldn't be surprised if it made £150.

-I really wouldn't.

-Really?

-Honestly.

-However, in a general sale, I would suggest we put it in at £80 to £120.

-Yes.

-We fix the reserve at £80.

-Mm-hm.

-Cos I believe it's worth it.

-Yep.

And I would imagine that the phone lines will be red hot for the auction house

wanting to know all about this. I think you've got a very rare, early Barbie here.

-Thank you for coming.

-Thank you very much.

'That Barbie might well evoke the glamour of a film star,

'but Michael has spotted Bob with something any A-lister would be proud to sport.'

Bob, I think you've made my day today by bringing in this absolutely fantastic piece of jewellery.

But before I tell you anything about it, can you tell me, where does it come from?

Well, it belonged to my mother-in-law,

and she was widowed quite early and she travelled a lot

and she liked to wear nice jewellery.

So would this be something that she would probably wear on quite a regular basis?

-Oh, yes, she would.

-Wonderful. Something like this was designed to be worn.

If we look at it closely, we've got this fantastic brooch,

made in about 1895, 1900,

turn of the last century.

What we call fin de siecle jewellery.

It's very fine, it's very light.

It's diamond-set. There's an elegance about it.

The fantastic thing about so much of this jewellery

is that it's affordable, because it's small stones, it's enamel work.

When you move up a level, as you do with your brooch,

-you start to get larger diamonds being used.

-I see.

And that's really where the value lies today, in that and its wearability.

We've got a lovely white-gold setting

and we've got a central brilliant-cut drop

that probably weighs just over a carat.

-Really?

-And we've got four similarly sized stones here

that between them are maybe 2, 2.5 carats.

So you've got a lot of carat weight in this.

It's a stunning thing. Why now have you decided to part with it?

Well, my wife did used to wear it and she inherited it from her mum.

Unfortunately, my wife is now in a nursing home.

-Oh, dear.

-And, erm, I know that a few years ago, when we discussed the jewellery that she inherited,

that she felt that it probably wouldn't be worn

and, at some point, she would like to sell it on.

I mean, this is a valuable brooch.

I think we should put it into auction with an estimate of £2,000 to £2,500.

-Oh, really? That's quite good.

-And we must protect it with a fixed reserve of £2,000.

-OK.

-And we'll instruct the auctioneer on those lines.

And I think, on the day, because a piece of jewellery isn't just worth the intrinsic parts of it,

but how wearable and attractive it is,

I could see two Cirencester ladies

becoming quite embattled about buying that brooch.

So let's put it into the auction and I think it could have a sparkling result for us at the end of the day.

-Excellent.

-Thank you so much for bringing this in, Bob.

-Not at all.

'What a stylish brooch! Now Thomas is rounding off his day

'with a beautiful but simple chalice belonging to Linda.'

Linda, thanks for coming. Tell me about your cup.

-Well, it's a silver cup. I believe it's quite old.

-Mm-hm.

It was given to me as a gift from somebody who knows that I like small silver.

-But, for me, it's a bit too big.

-It's not really a piece of small silver, is it?

-No, not as small as I usually collect.

-What do you collect?

I like spoons, all sorts of different spoons.

And I like little salt and little mustard pots.

What's your earliest piece of silver?

I think I've got a spoon and it's about 1715.

That's not bad, is it? Quite interesting.

-This is 18th century.

-Yes.

It is 1771.

-Oh, right.

-And it's by a man called Emik Romer.

-Emik Romer.

-Is he British?

-Oh, yeah, British.

He's quite a prolific maker of good-quality items.

Normally, it's candlesticks and epergnes,

but this is a sort of chalice or a footed cup.

And it's very, very plain, which is actually so appealing.

-Yes, I like plain things.

-It hasn't been got at.

-No.

Of course, what was the risk of happening with this type of silver within the 19th century,

this then would've been all decorated and repoussed with floral design.

Somebody's restrained themselves.

When Emik Romer was making it,

this sort of slight gadrooning around here

-was the only style of decoration to this.

-Right.

So it's rather fun. And you've got these quite good marks on the base here.

-Yes, they're quite big.

-They're quite big and quite fine and as you know from collecting silver,

they look quite fresh, so that's brilliant.

Because it's by Emik Romer and it's 1771,

-you've got to think that the value is going to be higher than a usual chalice from this date.

-Right.

So I would put this in at auction between £300 and £500.

-Oh, right.

-I'd fix the reserve at £300.

How does that grab you?

-That was a nice friend, wasn't it?

-It was a nice friend, wasn't it! A very nice friend!

'So that completes our selection of antiques to take off to the auction room.

'And we're spanning the ages. There's that 20th century icon, Barbie.

'The Belle Epoque brooch.

'And the 18th century silver cup.

'As with all auctions, there's a buyer's and seller's commission,

'and here it's 15 percent of the sale price, plus VAT.

'Things are hotting up in the saleroom. In a quieter moment,

'I had a chat with auctioneer Philip Allwood about Bob's brooch.'

This could be the jewel in Flog It's crown. It's absolutely stunning, isn't it?

-Smart thing.

-Yeah, lovely brooch. Belongs to Robert.

We've got £2,000 to £2,500, possibly could get £3,000, could it?

It's a very nice looking piece. It's very good quality.

The setting's nice. It's very typically that Belle Epoque style of the 1900, 1920s period.

-It's got lots and lots of things going for it.

-I know what you're going to say.

-Brooches aren't fashionable.

-They're just not fashionable. You can't get away from it.

-Maybe that's because not many people have a brooch like this.

-True.

More fashionable would be

a pair of ear studs, a solitaire ring,

another pair of ear studs for everyday use

and it would destroy the thing, of course.

-It would be a dreadful shame, it was made to look like this for a reason.

-It's got integrity.

It's very organic looking. But I guess, to maximise the value, that's what the trade would do.

-And they'd turn it into something that would be used.

-Saleable.

-Yeah.

That's the shame of it. As to the value,

I think £2,000 to £3,000 is enough for it in today's market.

I hope it'll get there. We'll do our very best with it

and if any brooch should make that, this should.

But...you're selling something people don't want to buy.

Yeah. I can see you're not sure about this one.

So there's no telephone bids at the moment, as we speak?

-That would be telling, wouldn't it?

-OK. You've got to watch to find out.

'First, Susan is going to find out whether she'll have to say goodbye to her childhood gift.'

Now, will there be tears from Susan? We're just about to find out.

We're talking about that wonderful Barbie doll from Canada, which was quite rare at the time.

-You've had this ever since you were... How old?

-I was nine.

-Nine.

-And it's still boxed!

-Yes.

-And the wigs are wonderful! I've never seen these wigs before.

Thomas is a Barbie doll specialist. You are, though, let's face it!

You specialise in lots of things like this. Collector's things.

We have a saleroom which sells toys, so I see lots of things coming up in the Barbie doll world.

But I must admit, I'm like Paul, I've never seen the three wigs in there, in the set and boxed,

so I'm a little bit excited.

But I don't want to come over like I'm excited about selling dolls.

THEY LAUGH

Lot number 145

is the new fashion queen Barbie. 50 to get on.

£50. At £30 a bid only. At £30.

At 5. 40. 5. 50. 5.

60. 5. 70. 5.

80. 5 if you like. At 80 here. At £80.

Are you all sure now, then? Lady's bid at £80.

Are you all done?

-On estimate. Well done.

-Good.

-At least someone will appreciate it.

-Oh, yeah.

-I'm pleased.

-It's been a long time.

-Yeah.

'Thomas got the valuation spot on.

'But will he do just as well for Linda?'

-Why are you selling this?

-Well, I collect small Georgian silver,

-but this is a bit large for my collection.

-Yeah.

-Hey, silver's selling well today.

-Oh, yes.

-The trade are here. And, as you know, silver prices are up

-so it's a good time to sell.

-Absolutely, great time to sell.

Lot number 28 we're onto now, which is the George III silver goblet

by Emik Romer. 2 get on. Must be 200.

At 200. Thank you. At 200.

I'll take 210 if you like now. 210. 220.

230. 240. 250.

At 250. 260 now. At 250.

260. 270.

-280. 290.

-Oh, that's better.

-300.

At 300 here. And 20 if you like now.

At 300. On my right at £300. 320.

-340. 360.

-Good!

-380.

At 380. In front of me at 380. 400 now. 400.

-Fantastic.

-Oh, excellent.

-420.

440 anywhere?

At 420.

-Yes!

-Brilliant!

-Good man, Philip!

He worked that really well, the auctioneer. £420.

Ebbed and flowed, ebbed and flowed, sticking in places.

-I was worried it wasn't going to sell.

-So was I. It was bobbling around there, wasn't it? Wow!

-That's very good.

-That'll get you a good spoon.

-Yes.

'I hope she manages to find that spoon,

'and I'm also hoping there's someone in there right now

'who's just as keen to get their hands on a wonderful diamond brooch.'

It sparkled at the valuation day. What will happen in the auction? We're just about to find out.

I've been joined by Bob. The brooch is going under the hammer.

£2,500 at the top end of the estimate is what we would love to get,

but it's got to get over £2,000 to sell.

I think it's the biggest diamond-set piece we've had on Flog It

and it actually breaks up, not that anyone would break it up,

at £2,000 for the constituent parts of it, if you just took the stones out.

We talked about that just before the sale with the auctioneer.

If the trade are really serious about this, they will break it up.

But then I said to Philip, nobody will ever have a brooch like this again.

Maybe this will be the new trend-setter. Maybe it should be kept intact.

I hope so, because people appreciate antique jewellery now

and it's still eminently wearable, even if you wanted to turn it into a pendant.

-That would look nice.

-Absolutely.

-Let's find out what the bidders think. Here we go.

The diamond brooch in the Belle Epoque taste.

Super quality brooch there. Where for that? 1,000 to get on.

1,000 bid. At 1,000.

And 50 if you like. And 50. 1,100. And 50.

1,200. And 50. 1,300. And 50.

1,400. And 50.

1,500. And 50.

1,600. And 50.

1,700. And 50.

1,800. And 50.

1,900. And 50.

2,000.

2,100. 2,200.

At 2,200 on my left now. 2,200. 2,300 now.

It's on my left. 2,300.

2,400 if you like, sir.

At 2,300. The lady's bid at 2,300.

2,400 now. At £2,300. You sure now at 2,300?

Yes! Well, Bob, £2,300!

-Ooh!

-A lady bidding. Maybe she will keep it intact as a brooch.

-Brilliant. That's good. I'm really pleased about that.

-It deserved to make every penny.

-Well done. Thank you so much for bringing such a wonderful item in.

-Well done.

-Thank you very much.

'If you think you've got something special hiding away at home like that,

'bring it along to one of our valuation days.

'You can find our more at bbc.co.uk/flogit

'We look forward to seeing you.'

I hope you've enjoyed the show. So, until the next time, from Cirencester, it's cheerio.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd

E-mail [email protected]

.