Warwick Castle Flog It!

Today we're in the magnificent Warwick Castle.

The history of this site dates back to 914AD

and on many occasions it's been the seat of the Earl of Warwick.

I would imagine over the years it's been well and truly plundered,

but today I'm hoping some of our visitors will bring in some history of their very own.

This castle has seen some drama with its ramparts and towers,

but the best is yet to come because this magnificent queue

is going to make their way through to the courtyard to ask that all-important question,

-"What's it worth?" And what'll you do when you've found out?

-ALL: Flog it!

-That's drama.

Getting a sneak preview are our team of experts led by Thomas Plant and Anita Manning.

-Flog It regular Anita might be on a rival expert's territory.

-David Barbie sold me that.

-Who?!

-David Barbie.

-He sold it to you?

-A long time ago.

And toy specialist Thomas talks obsessive boyhood collecting.

-Are you still a nerd?

-Absolutely not.

-You turned into an old rocker, did you?

-Possibly!

And I look for something original.

-Look at that lovely bluebell wood. Isn't that gorgeous?

-CRASH

oh, something's broken. Hang on. Let's go and check it out.

What happened? What happened?

-We dropped it.

-Oh, no.

Oh, let's have a look.

-It fell off the wall.

-Oh, gosh. Are there going to be tears?

-No!

-Was it a charity shop find?

-No!

-Was it a family heirloom?

-Yes!

Oh, no! I'm going to cry!

-Oh, thank you.

-Let's pick some bits up.

-In there.

-These things do happen. That's the unfortunate thing about antiques.

-Yes.

'Coming up:

-'Thomas gets over-excited about cars.'

-It's nostalgia, passion.

-'Anita is put under a magical spell.'

-We may make a spectacle of ourselves.

'And me? Well...' You look fabulous. Your complexions are beautiful.

'I'm just my normal self.

-'We're here to enjoy the sunshine and hopefully...'

-Flog it!

Let's get on with the show! Let's get everybody inside. Ready?

-Yes!

-Yay! Come on!

MUSIC: "La Bamba" BY LOS LOBOS

Well, I've done all the hard work of getting this massive crowd in.

Let's hand over to Anita Manning, our first expert to the table, and take a wee peep at what she has.

'Deborah's brought along a stunning set of silver.'

Deborah, welcome to Flog It and thank you for bringing this lovely little boxed set of salts

for us to look at.

-Tell me, where did you get them?

-They were my aunt's. She very sadly died last year.

And it wasn't quite the right time to sell them straight away, but I don't have any use for them.

My table isn't that long! But they are beautiful and I'll be sad to see them go.

These would have been used in grander times with grander tables

with lots and lots of guests. You'd have a long Victorian table

and these little salt pots would have been distributed along the length of the table.

What I like about this is the condition. The condition is absolutely wonderful.

And the set is complete.

If we pick up one and we look at it,

we have embossed work which is fresh,

we have our hallmark and they are dated for 1883.

And it's a London hallmark, so it's quality. Quality kit.

If we look at the inside, we see that the interior has been gilded.

And again that's very fresh. I doubt, Deborah, if these have ever been used.

I doubt if they've ever been used. And they're over 100 years old.

And the other exciting thing is

that we have all the little salt spoons matching and they are all there, none missing at all.

They're in this delightful box, the original box.

This has kept them in good condition and fresh.

-this is your wee girl here.

-Yes, I'm Beth.

-What do you think?

I think they're gorgeous. I'd love to keep them, they're beautiful.

They'll definitely be good for someone who will make use of them.

Yeah, uh-huh. OK, well, we can put them into auction.

The estimate I would put on them would be £200-£300.

I think that they deserve surely 200 and they may go beyond that.

Are you happy, Deborah, with that estimate and would you be happy to sell them?

-Yes, yes.

-What are you going to do with the money when you sell them?

-Well, we'd put it towards a holiday.

-Uh-huh.

-In memory of Auntie Jean.

-In memory of Auntie Jean.

I think that's a very nice idea. It'll bring a smile to your face and it would be nice for your aunt.

Let's go for it and I look forward to seeing these sold at auction.

-Thank you.

-OK.

So many people and so many antiques, I don't know what to look at first.

Everything is vying for my attention. I could lose my marbles!

Thank goodness some people are holding it together. Thomas is with Joanne and her coins.

-Tell me, how have you got hold of them?

-I just got them off a well-known internet auction site.

-Did you?

-Yes.

-Why did you buy them?

-I do like collecting coins.

I collect lots of things and have lots of things around the house.

-They're just something I collected.

-They're commemorative medallions

for the three kings, which happened quite quickly in the 1930s.

-You've got George V...

-Yeah.

-..with Queen Mary and the Silver Jubilee for 1935,

-then in 1937 Edward VIII became King.

-That's right, yeah.

And we've got the description on the reverse because he abdicated soon after.

-He wasn't interested in becoming King. He'd rather marry his fiancee at the time.

-Yeah.

We all know that story. Then we have George VI and Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother,

in 1937. What a time to come to the throne. In two years we were at war.

What an interesting, amazing, stressful time.

So these are a nice group, a well-presented group

because they are silver. You can see that with the hallmark.

Now did you pay a lot for them on this well-known internet auction?

-I paid about £30.

-Did you?

-Yes.

-I think you've done rather well.

-That's good!

-You might see a small profit of £10. We'll put them at £40-£60.

-Yeah.

-How does that grab you?

-That's fine.

-I think you'll get a result there.

-I'm intrigued about you on the internet. Are you always buying things?

-Yeah. My husband gets mad.

-Really?

-Yes, he does.

-Have you ever been to a real auction?

-No.

-You're an auction virgin.

-Yes.

-It's much more exciting.

-Is it?

-Oh, yeah. I look forward to you having a great experience.

-Thank you.

But roll up, roll up, because the circus has come to town.

Fran's brought along a silent clown.

Isn't that just fun? That deserves a round of applause. I don't know what he was playing!

Fran, wonderful little toy and still working. That's the best thing.

-Where did you get it from?

-It belonged to an aunt of my husband's. I think it was her husband's.

-He played the violin.

-So it was more of a comical take on him.

-It was.

Schuco dates back to 1921. Made in Germany. The factory was bombed during the war, but then rebuilt.

Then they had a massive market to the States. This was for export.

This isn't particularly early, this isn't the 1920s ones.

-This is a 1950s one.

-Really?

-That's why it's in very good condition.

-The colours and felt are very good.

-I want to sell it while it works!

I don't blame you, in a way. We've had the monkeys before and they've done really well.

In good condition and boxed, this little clown should do

-around about £120-£180.

-Gosh.

-Even with the state of the box?

-The box is not very good.

-No.

-So I suggest we put it into auction with a valuation of £60-£120.

-Fine. More than I thought it was worth.

It's interesting that it was bought as a joke for your husband's uncle because he played the violin.

Somebody thought, "That'll put a smile on his face." I played the drums.

My relations would buy a battery-operated monkey on drums

because they thought it'd be funny, but it wasn't really!

Paul has a surprise for Anita.

Paul, thank you for coming along and I am intrigued

to find out what's in this wee box.

-Can I open it up?

-You can. It IS a magic box.

SHE LAUGHS

What are these? A pair of spectacles!

-Can you open them out for me?

-I'll try.

It's not the first place to have things in small packages.

That's a wonderful pair of specs.

I can see Harry Potter there. Could you try them on? Let's look.

That's what I call bags of style. That's absolutely wonderful.

Eh, what?

Right, let's have a look. They're made of tortoiseshell.

They are of quality. If we look at these hinges, these are beautifully made.

And they are gold.

And all the fittings are gold, which gives them a certain value.

It tells us they are quality specs.

-Can you tell me where you got these?

-I bought them in a job lot in an auction in Derbyshire,

-with some watches and jewellery.

-Did you pay a lot for them?

About £100 for the box about 3 or 4 years ago, so it was good value.

There's two sorts of collectors.

One are people who collect good-quality spectacles

and also someone who's got a Harry Potter thing going on.

-They are magic glasses, aren't they?

-They certainly are!

-So you can have a modern twist.

-So what do you think about price?

-I'm not as good as you.

-Come on, it's easy!

I'm going to say, I don't know, maybe £100 plus?

I would probably like to bring them down a little bit from that.

-Would you be happy to put them in at £60-£80?

-With a reserve of 60.

-Shall we give it a go?

-Yes, why not?

-I think they're great fun.

We may make a spectacle of ourselves.

-That's all right.

-I hope not!

This is going to be great fun. I just love these to bits.

We are now halfway through our day and people still keep pouring in.

But right now it's time to put our first valuations to the test.

We found some real gems, so let's find out what the bidders think.

We'll leave you with a quick rundown to jog your memory of all the items that are going under the hammer.

So we're selling Joanne's silver medallions off the internet.

How have you got hold of them?

Paul's vintage pair of specs which got Anita rather excited.

Fran's silent clown complete with slightly tatty box.

And Deborah's barely used silver salt pot set.

Now it's time to put those valuations to the test

at Bigwood Auctioneers in Stratford-upon-Avon.

It's a busy day. We have two auctioneers.

I'm going in to catch up with our owners. They feel really nervous.

Fingers crossed we get top results today.

Christopher Ironmonger is going to sell Joanne's medallions.

Daughter Jodie has joined her for their first ever auction experience.

It's good to chat with you both. You look fabulous, by the way!

-I love all this. You're testing the market for the first time.

-Yes.

-You got these commemorative coins...

-Yes.

-..in auction, not so long ago.

-Yes.

-Now you're going to see if you can make a profit.

-It's a tall order!

-It IS a tall order!

-We'll have to wait and see.

-Hopefully!

-Were you happy with the valuation?

-Yes.

-What did you pay for them?

-It was about £30.

-£30. So we need to make above that to make this work.

The George VI silver medallions. I'd like to start bidding at 40.

-On my book at £40.

-Straight in.

At £40. I'm going to sell them. Do you want 5?

I thought we'd do better than this. Are we done? 45. I've got 50. 5?

55. I've got 60 now.

5? 60 with me. All done at 60.

-£60.

-Brilliant.

-That's good.

-You just need to do it 20 times and you're in the money definitely.

-That's brilliant.

-What did you think of that, Jodie? It's your first auction.

-Really good.

-Good fun?

-Yeah.

Just keep your hands by your side or you can accidentally buy something!

A lovely result for Joanne and Jodie's first auction.

Paul has joined Anita and me for an item he bought as part of a job lot at a sale.

We're about to sell some tortoiseshell glasses. Hopefully, they'll do £90.

-Somewhere around there?

-That would be nice.

-They've got a Harry Potter angle to them.

Yes, they do have. Yeah.

A pair of early-20th-century tortoiseshell and gold-coloured metal mounted spectacles.

Marked 14 carat. Harry Potter style.

-Rather nice they are. Folding.

-Very trendy.

£40 to get me going?

40 straight in. 45 is it?

-They'd look good on you.

-No!

At 45, at 45.

Do I hear 50 now? At 45.

Will you go 50 now? 50? At 45. 50. 5 is it?

-£50. Do you want to carry on?

-Go on.

Are we done at 50? 2, surely? Are we done? All sure?

No. We're just a couple of bids short there. We've a reserve of £60.

Christopher had 50 in the room.

Maybe the bidders weren't that focused today.

Puntastic! I can't even get serious as we're sending in the clowns next.

Right, it is now my turn to be the expert and I hope it's not going to end up like this.

tears of sorrow. I've just been joined by Fran and we've got that clockwork toy

playing the violin. Love it to bits. The box isn't in brilliant condition but it is a box.

We've a fixed reserve of £60. You don't want to sell it for less.

-No.

-Happy with all of that?

-Yes, thank you.

-Excited by all this?

-Excited.

Let's hope it flies away. We're going to find out now.

That brings us to the collectible toy. 1950s Schuco soloist clown violin player.

A little blue felt hat, red pants, et cetera.

-We had a lot of fun with this, didn't we?

-Yes.

Who's going to give me £50 to get me going? 40 to start me.

40 I've got. And 5 is it? At £40. 5.

50. 5. 60.

We've sold it. It's gone.

At 60. Make no mistake, it'll go.

At £60. Are we all finished at 60?

-The hammer's gone down. That's good.

-Very good.

-I'm happy with that.

-Thank you.

-Just on the reserve.

-You can treat yourself now.

-Yes.

A day out at Warwick Castle! With lunch!

-No, I'm taking our grandchildren away, so that'll buy ice creams.

-Where are you taking them?

-Torquay.

-Are you?

-Your neck of the woods.

-On the old Riviera.

-Yes.

That sale certainly put a smile on Fran's face.

Now let's see how Deborah and Beth's silver fares. Stephen Kay is on the rostrum for this sale.

-Now the money's going towards a holiday.

-It is.

-Do we know where?

-Have you talked about it yet?

-Yes. We're going to Minorca on Sunday.

-Just the two of you?

-No, my mother and sister Lucinda as well.

-OK, And this is all in memory of Auntie...

-Jean. My father's twin sister who sadly died last year.

Well, fingers crossed. You look like you don't need a lot of sunshine.

-Your complexions are beautiful.

-Thank you!

-Here we go.

That lovely boxed cruets, 1883. Showing here.

Somebody start me at £100?

100 I've got. 110. 120. 130.

140. 150. 160.

170. 180. 190.

200? 190 I've got. Anybody else?

Are we all done at £190? 200.

And 10? 200 I have in the aisle. Anybody 210?

£200. Are we all done?

-It's gone.

-Yes!

-The hammer went down really fast.

-Excellent.

-You happy, everybody?

-Yes, thank you.

-Enjoy the holiday.

-Thank you very much.

Sometimes we're all guilty for driving past historic buildings and monuments

without stopping and pausing and maybe having a look.

Well, here in the centre of Warwick, just up the road from the castle,

be prepared to go back some 400 years in time to the wonder that is the Lord Leycester Hospital.

'This estate actually dates back to the end of the 14th century

'when it was built for the United Guilds of Warwick,

'who were merchants, craftsmen and men of importance.

'The great hall they built was used for public functions and is still used today for that.'

After the guilds left in 1571, this building became known as the Lord Leycester Hospital

because of a problem with ex-servicemen. If you were a soldier and were badly injured

in the service of Queen Elizabeth I, when you returned you were probably unlikely to find a job

so you became a vagrant. This upset a lot of local people.

They appealed to the Queen to find a solution and this was it.

The Queen's favourite dear old friend and confidant Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester,

the man she was once rumoured to be close to marrying, lived nearby in Kenilworth Castle.

He transformed this building into a retirement home

with space for 12 old or disabled ex-soldiers and their wives.

These men were known as Brethren.

They lived here for free in return for managing the estate.

Although it was called a hospital,

the word was used in its old sense meaning "shelter" or "refuge".

You can see Robert Dudley's mark all over the exterior and interior of this magnificent building.

The bear and the ragged staff, that dates back to 1268 and it implies courage and strength.

It's sort of propping up all the timbers. This image is all over the site in stone and in wood.

But look at this three-dimensional, blue porcupine.

That's the device of Dudley's relatives, the Sidney family.

However grand these buildings look today and, let's face it, we all love them,

living here back then wouldn't have been a luxury,

although it did mean a place to live, thank goodness!

The living accommodation was confined to the Guild Hall,

so you can imagine this wonderful space being carved up

into sections with partitions, if you like, to house the soldiers and their wives.

Ex-servicemen still live on the estate today,

although the Brethren now have more comfortable individual flats.

Dressed in smart Tudor uniforms, they keep the traditions alive.

In return for their lodgings, these modern-day Brethren show visitors around the hospital

and attend prayers every weekday morning at the beautiful Chantry Chapel of St James.

'Out in the Master's Garden, one of the oldest in Warwick and looking beautiful today,

'I couldn't leave without speaking to some of the current Brethren - Geoff, Bruce and Albert.'

So what's it like living in these wonderful historic buildings?

You meet a lot of people coming through the place and it's very pleasant.

Do you get a sense of connection to the history? Are you adding to it with your prayer and your tours?

Yes, I think so. Originally from 1571 when the first brothers came here...

We... We are just part of that machine.

We carry on the tradition.

Albert, you're on the end there and you all have these wonderful bears with ragged staffs on your sashes.

Can you tell me about them? I know it's solid silver.

These were given to 12 brothers,

one each.

And the name of the brother is still on the back of these... the bear and ragged staff.

Gosh, what history, what history! You're very proud men to be carrying those around.

-Absolutely.

-You treasure them as well.

-Thank you so much for meeting up with me. You all look very smart.

-Thank you.

There are centuries of stories behind these oak timber frames,

all tucked away in the bustling market town of Warwick.

Everywhere you turn, there are bears with ragged staffs protecting the hospital's history,

along with the Brethren of Lord Leycester's Hospital.

They've done a magnificent job of preserving it for visitors like me to have a look around.

TRUMPET FANFARE

And back at our valuation day at the magnificent venue of Warwick Castle,

we're blessed with beautiful weather.

-The sun is shining, everybody is smiling. Are you enjoying yourselves?

-Yes!

All sorts of people have turned up, big people, little people, young people, old people.

-They all want to sell their antiques. What are they going to do?

-Flog it!

Toy specialist Thomas couldn't get those toy cars from earlier out of his mind,

so up next, it's Mike and his enviable collection.

-You must have been such a good boy.

-I like to think I was when I was younger.

Were you well-behaved, so you got lots of presents, or did you have quite a lot of pocket money?

-I had some pocket money.

-Did you do a paper round?

No, my parents were just very generous to me.

What we're looking at here is your childhood collection of Corgi cars.

-I believe you were collecting these in the '60s.

-In the '60s, yeah.

I would have been ten going on to 13.

-And at 13, you stopped?

-At 13, I stopped and became more interested in cricket and football.

-And a few years later, the girls.

-Have you got any favourites?

-Of all of them, I think the James Bond 007 car is my favourite.

-Absolutely.

It is wonderful in the gold. Did you buy it because you'd seen Goldfinger?

I think I'd seen Goldfinger,

but I remember going up to Hamleys and queueing to buy this car.

-Really?

-Yeah.

-Certainly interesting things about these cars.

First of all, it's condition

and the box condition is important.

The James Bond one here, you've got a bit of scuffing to the edges

and certainly within the fold-down inner flap,

there was another flap here which has been lost in the mists of time.

But you do have the secret instructions

and also the assassin is still in there.

You've got the blue assassin, the ejector seat and the guns and it all still works.

This kind of car, at auction today,

would make between £80 and £120, just on its own.

-That does sound pretty good.

-It's quite a good value, isn't it?

-Yes, it is.

-So moving on...

-Yeah, OK.

That's probably the most valuable one you've got, apart from the racing car transporter.

-Right.

-That is quite a valuable piece.

-I hadn't realised that.

You would have put the cars on it, played with it, it would have probably got damaged.

Also boys wanted sports cars, so more sports cars were sold.

The Corgi Constructor Set and the Priestman Cub Shovel,

I would say that those are worth, as a three,

about £120 to £180.

-Oh, right.

-As a three.

-Yes, I understand. As a lot, yes.

Then we've got a collection of cars and also a boat in there. There's 20 of them, I've counted.

They're all of a similar value.

I know that's really easy to say, that they're all of a similar value.

-But I wouldn't be surprised if they made £400.

-Really?

-That's averaging only £20 a car.

-Yes.

-And they might make £30 a car.

That surprises me very much.

Well, it's a very pleasant surprise.

So this is probably about £600 to £800-worth here.

If we get that sort of money for you, what will you do with it?

-I might buy my wife a present.

-You're a generous man.

-She's seen a new computer.

-The moment she touched it, she wanted one, so I think it'll be a present for her.

-That's fantastic.

Our lovely Anita is with Wendy, inspecting her jewellery.

Wendy, this is a bonnie wee pendant.

It's a wee Edwardian pendant

and I see many of these coming into my saleroom every week. Every week.

I always think they're very sweet.

I used to wear one in my younger days.

Where did you get this one?

Well, I bought an old jewellery box, a musical one, in a sale.

And it didn't work.

When I turned it upside down and gave it a big bang on the base,

that fell out and it was OK. ANITA LAUGHS

-I wound it up and it went.

-That's wonderful.

-You got two things for the price of one.

-I did, yes.

-Did you like this?

-I do like it, yes. I think it's pretty.

-Have you ever worn it?

I don't think I ever have, no.

Well, it dates from the early 1900s.

And these little pendants are made with a variety of stones.

And very often we have seed pearls inset.

-Yes.

-This one has a little, tiny seed pearl here.

-And this is fairly typical of this type of thing.

-Yes.

And these are little garnet-coloured stones.

It's in nine-carat gold

and it has a nine-carat gold chain.

The chain is not compatible with the period of the pendant.

This is a much later one, but I'll tell you, Wendy, it's all right for nothing!

Yes. Yes, that was the free gift.

That was the free gift and quite a nice, wee free gift.

This little pendant is not an item of any great quality.

You have more elaborate ones in higher carat of gold

with precious stones, sapphires, diamonds and so on,

and these are of more substance and worth more money.

-This is just a little flirtation.

-I see. Yes.

I, uh...

I would put an estimate of maybe £20 to £30.

Is it not something you could give to a younger member of the family?

My daughter likes it, but she's just started this fostering for the Cats Protection League,

so we thought we'd sell it and maybe she could buy the cats something.

-Well, you didn't pay anything for it and whatever it gets will go to your charity.

-Yes.

-Thank you very much.

-We'll keep our fingers crossed.

-Yeah. Thank you.

Thomas is over at the tables with Marjory.

Marjory, you've brought something quite interesting.

-Is it?

-It is really interesting.

-I've got no idea what it is.

-Where did you get it from?

My sister found it in one of her packing cases when she moved to America.

-You and your sister, you're from Jamaica?

-Yeah, originally.

-You said, "No, I want you to keep it."

-I wanted to look at it. She was getting ready to put it in the bin.

-Really?

-I said to her, "No. It's too heavy. It can't be just rubbish."

It's probably the best thing I've seen all day. It doesn't mean it's worth a tremendous amount of money.

But I think it's rather special.

-Obviously, it's a bronze measure.

-Yeah.

And we've got on the front

"St Andrew, Jamaica, 1834".

And on the reverse, it says "imperial pint", so it's a pint measure.

-I reckon it's a pint measure for rum.

-Right.

-And it's a naval piece.

If you were on the ship, I think the ration was a pint a day.

-A lot, isn't it?

-It was quite a lot. They did drink quite a lot. A bit of Dutch courage as well.

If you had a pint of rum, you could conquer anything.

-It almost looks sort of quite naval in the shape. It's almost like a cannon really.

-Yeah.

It's a big, heavy, bronze measure and that's why I believe it's for use amongst the men.

-Yeah.

-And what's lovely is you've got these William IV strike marks just there,

then chequered marks which I believe are customs and excise marks,

just to say it was definitely a pint measure.

-Right.

-Otherwise, people didn't want to get half measures or be undercut by anything.

Fascinating. I think it's a really interesting object, one of the nicest things I've seen.

-I would suggest this would be worth £70 to £100 at auction.

-OK.

-Happy with that?

-Yeah.

-Will you split the money with your sister?

-I'll just give it to her.

-You'll just give it to her?

-Yeah.

This is my favourite part of the programme.

Anything can happen in a saleroom.

You've heard what our experts have said. You've probably got your own opinions and so have this crowd.

But where are we going? Off to auction! Let's do it.

Coming up, we're selling Marjory's Jamaican bronze pint pot

which she saved from being thrown away.

Wendy's elegant pendant necklace, that was a bonus find, trapped inside a jewellery box.

And Mike's boyhood collection of beloved toy cars, including that James Bond Aston Martin DB5.

We're putting our valuations to the test at Bigwood Auctioneers in Stratford-upon-Avon.

Don't go away. Somebody's going home with a lot of money.

Stay tuned and you'll find out.

I think we're ready to see the pint measure go under the hammer.

-We've got our expert Thomas here, but not our owner Marjory. She's off to see the Queen today.

-Yeah.

Hopefully, we'll get around £70 to £100?

-Absolutely. If I was allowed to buy...

-You'd buy this. So would I. We'd be bidding against each other.

-It's so nice.

-William IV.

-It's such good quality and it's a lovely shape. Yeah, it's a good thing.

We'll find out if the bidders think like Thomas and myself because it's going under the hammer right now.

The William IV, bronze, cylindrical pint measure.

"St Andrews, Jamaica, 1834, imperial pint" there.

I've got multiple bids on the book and I can start at 70.

On the book at 70. 80. 80. 80 with you. 90.

100 here. Is it 110 on the phone? 110. 120.

130. 140. 150...? 150.

160? 160. 170...? 170.

-It's great. They absolutely love it.

-It's such a rare thing.

-Yes.

£170. Is there any advance on £170?

It's going to be sold, make no mistake. All done?

Lovely thing. If you've got something like that,

bring it along to one of our valuation days

and you could be going home with a lot of money.

It's that lovely pendant up for auction now.

I've just been joined by Wendy and Anita. I've just learnt that Wendy is a foster-grandparent for cats.

How brilliant is that! A cat lover! But you don't own them, you just foster them?

Yes. Cats lose their homes a lot these days.

My daughter fosters them and she makes sure they are healthy before they go to a new home.

So I'm the foster-grandma.

All the proceeds of this next sale, the Edwardian pendant, bought for 10p,

-are going towards the Cats Protection League.

-Yes.

-We're hoping for £10 to £20.

-Anything will help.

-It's going under the hammer right now. Good luck, Wendy.

-Thank you.

The wirework pendant, very pretty, with a trace pattern chain.

£10...?

Thank you. 10. 12. 15. 17. 20.

-This is good.

-22. 25. 27?

27. 30. 5. 40.

-5. 50?

-The cats will like this.

45 with the lady. Anybody else?

Nobody interested?

All done at £45 then...

-The hammer's gone down.

-That's a very good price.

We could say it's a purr-fect price!

'Now from talk of cats to Corgis.

'I spoke to Christopher Ironmonger about how he plans to sell Mike's cars.'

Yes, this is it, lots of toy cars.

-In fact, you have now split them up into seven separate lots.

-Yes.

This way we'll get a better result.

Different collectors want different models and if you put 20 together,

-you'll iron some of them out of the competition. So we think they'll do well.

-Good.

'Thomas's original estimate was £600 to £800 for the entire lot.

'Now, how will this new arrangement change the total, I wonder?'

-The first lot is a stand-alone lot. It's one I'm particularly fond of and you probably were.

-Absolutely.

It's the DB5, 007, Aston Martin.

The first of the Corgi models,

number 261, Aston Martin DB5, James Bond car in gold livery.

All in its original box. £50 for it?

At £50. £60. £70. £80.

90. 100, sir?

100 anywhere? 90. 100. 110?

It's going to be sold, make no mistake, at 100...

Nice round figure, £100. Mid-estimate.

The next lot is the racing car transporter.

The Corgi model racing car transporter.

Who's got 100 for that one?

100. 110. 120?

120. 130 would you like...? 130.

140? 140. 150?

-150. 160...?

-Lorries do fetch good money.

On my left at 160. And it goes at 160.

Finished and done at 160...

£160, great result!

The next lot is a collection of cars put together as one lot.

Collection of die-cast Corgis.

You've got the shovel, Land Rover breakdown, Citroen,

Mini Cooper, Rover etcetera.

190? 190. 190. 200. 210.

220. 230? 230. 240.

250? 250. 260?

-260. 270?

-There are some hardcore buyers here that know their stuff.

290. 300. 320?

320. 340...?

In blue at 320...

-Yes!

-Wow!

-Three down, four to go.

The Commer police van, the Volkswagen 1200, Mercedes,

the Buick and the Dolphin Cruiser. Who will start me?

100. 110. 120? 120. 130? 130. 140.

150. 160? 160. 170?

170. 180? 180. 190...

220? 220. 230. 240? 240.

250. 260. 270.

280? 270. Standing in blue at 270 again. At 270.

Are you all finished at 270...?

Fantastic. And another lot with five separate cars in it.

I wish I'd kept my cars. They'd be worth a lot of money.

Another five Corgi die-casts.

We have the Chevy Corvette Stingray,

Grand Prix car BRM, Ferrari,

Ford Mustang and Ferrari Berlinetta.

110? 110. 120? 120. 130?

130. 130. 130. 140?

-Would you like 140? 130 in blue...

-It's got its passion.

190. 200? 200. 210?

This is just unbelievable.

220. 230. On the left at 230 and it's going at 230...

Fantastic. Two more to go and we are really on a high here.

There's four in this one.

There's the gear model,

the Chevrolet, taxi, Lotus Climax and an Austin A60.

80. 90... 120. 130. 140?

140. 150. 160? 160. 170...

200. 10 if you want to carry on?

Finished? 210, he says. 220?

220. 230...? 220 it is. On my left at 220...

This is incredible and there's one more lot to go.

This time, an E-type Jaguar,

Triumph Herald, Chrysler Imperial and a Ford Consul.

120? 120. 130? 130. 140? 140.

150. 160?

On my left at 150. It's going to go... 160.

170. 180.

-Wow!

-Is that 180 at the back? 180. 190.

190 it is. Same buyer at 190. Are we done?

Yes!

£1,490!

And I would have been happy with 500.

Thomas, you secretly knew these were going to do quite well.

-I knew they'd do quite well.

-But you pitch it low.

-Yes, and fair's fair, they've done a really good job.

-Yeah. That's a lot of money, Mike.

-What are you going to treat yourself to?

-I'm going to treat my wife.

It's her birthday next week and she's always wanted one of these fancy new touch computers,

which I shall maybe buy for her.

-State-of-the-art science.

-State-of-the-art.

From one toy to another toy!

I'm bid 10. 15 if you like?

£10 only. £10, the maiden bid...

Well, it's all over for our owners. The auction is still going on.

I have had a fabulous day in Stratford-upon-Avon. All our owners have gone home happy.

All credit to our experts and auctioneers. Valuing antiques is not an exact science.

If you've got anything to sell, we want to see you. But from Bigwoods, it's goodbye.

Subtitles by Subtext for Red Bee Media Ltd 2011

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