Charlie Ross v Catherine Southon - UK antiques fair Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is

This is Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is,

the show that takes the titans of the antiques trade

and pitches them against each other

to see who can make the most money from buying and selling.

That's amazing, truly amazing.

Today Queen Of Cunning, Catherine Southon,

takes on King Of Charisma, Charlie Ross in a battle for profit,

giving you the inside view on the secrets of the trade.

Coming up, our dealers go to battle in their biggest market yet.

It's hard to focus out here. Thousands and thousands of stalls.

They're dazzled by the sheer quality on offer.

What a wonderful picture. Is that original?

And Roscoe faces the big guns.

It's not for sale.

THEY LAUGH

Would you take an offer?

This is Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is.

MUSIC: "Galloping Home" by Denis King

Today, our dealers are saddling up for an antiques steeplechase of epic proportions,

pitching our veteran thoroughbred Charlie "The Charmer" Ross...

I was rather hoping to buy that and sell it to an auctioneer,

but auctioneers are notoriously tight.

..Against that fiery filly, "Cunning" Catherine Southon.

Can we do 125 and I'll feel a bit happier?

And they're trotting off to Newark Antiques and Collectors Fair,

one of the largest events of its kind in Europe,

with over 4,000 stalls attracting buyers from all over the world.

Our champion steeplechasers are armed with £750 of their own money

to spend but there's a long course ahead with plenty of obstacles

and they need to bag the buys with the most profit potential,

if they want to revel in the glory of the winners' enclosure.

Catherine Southon and Charlie Ross,

it's time to put your money where your mouth is.

-Charlie!

-How are you?

-Lovely to see you again.

-And, you.

-Welcome to lovely Newark.

-This must be heaven for you.

Absolutely, I love this place. It's absolutely vast.

The real problem here is I'm going to be spent up,

I've got £750 to spend and I could spend that in an hour.

-Half an hour!

-Yes. Don't peak too soon.

No, I'm going to try and look at as much as possible before I make any decisions.

It's so easy, you spend your money,

and then, two hours later, you see something

with a thumping profit in it and you haven't got any money left.

-I know.

-But you're wiser than that, aren't you?

-I don't know about that.

The key is to pace yourself, Charlie.

When have I ever been any good at that?

-Good luck. May the best man win.

-Man(?)

And they are off! The race is on for the perfect profit maker

and it's Catherine Southon staying on the outside,

while Charlie Ross clings to the inside rail.

Charlie Ross is inching ahead.

Yes, Charlie is the first to find a potential purchase,

an ebony elephant ornament.

-Did you ever read the Babar stories? Babar The Elephant?

-No, no.

It was before my time. I'm not quite that.

HE LAUGHS

I've never seen that format. I really, really like the base.

You quite often see them carved ivory but, of course, we can't deal in that.

No, I wouldn't. I wouldn't expect you to. It's really, really nice.

-I would in fact pay you £100 for that.

-Would you?

-On a chance. Yes.

-What do you reckon?

-It's not enough.

-What!

-You'd snap my hand off.

-Not at all.

Scrape up a little bit.

120?

You are getting closer. 135.

HE LAUGHS

-130 quid.

-Go on, then.

Yes, the seller bids so long to his memento from Ceylon,

as Charlie snaps it up for £130.

That's the first item in the trunk for The Charmer.

Charlie's setting the early pace here

but Catherine has yet to make a purchase. Is she finding the going rough already?

This place is fabulous.

It is actually swarming with some really nice pieces.

There is so much to see, I'm like a rabbit in the headlights.

I'm running around.

I've seen some really nice things.

I'm quite happy that we're here.

# Run rabbit, run rabbit

# Run, run, run. #

Well, once a rabbit gets out of the headlights, it can be pretty speedy.

So, get going!

As Catherine keeps looking, chippy Charlie's captured another couple of bargains.

With a nod and a wink, the sly old charmer has extended his lead over the cunning one.

Two more purchases for Ross. One bought, almost purely on price.

A really attractive mahogany and satinwood inlaid cigar box.

All you need to do there is to find someone with a smart yacht

that likes cigars and frankly, at 30 quid you can't go wrong.

I quite like it. And it's got some age.

It's got to be, certainly, Edwardian.

It's the best part of 100 years old.

This, however, is much more interesting.

In so much, it's pub advertising ware.

The Encore whisky, I have never heard of Encore whisky.

As a whisky drinker, this has to be rare.

I think it's rare because I can name 100 whiskys

but I've never heard of Encore.

There's a bit of a bonus here because it is...

BELL RINGS

..a desk ring. Actually, I would like to think of it as a bar ring.

This was £60.

It's got a couple of small cracks in it but it's Fielding's.

A good Stoke manufacturer.

I think there's a profit-ette in these two things.

Yes, it's Charlie three, Catherine nil.

The cunning one isn't used to tasting defeat. She prefers the sweet smell of success

and soon sniffs out a potential bargain.

I started off my career in the area of collectables.

I've seen something, a little teddy bear. I'm going to hone on him.

This is a Schuco perfume bottle.

I'm hoping that there's a little perfume bottle inside.

If we lift his head up.

Sadly, he's without his perfume bottle.

But, he would have had a tiny scent bottle in there.

Lift up the head, dab it on.

That would have been perfect.

I thought it was too good to be true!

What a shame, the teddy turns out to be a stinker

but Catherine soon makes amends by bagging her first bargain for £35.

Nicely done, Catherine, but what an earth is it?

No, it's not a normal, boring piece of wood.

If you turn it over, you can see it's a biscuit mould.

I think it's absolutely beautiful. These things are very collectable.

What I like about this one is it's really beautifully carved.

I actually collect these myself, but, sadly, this one won't be for me.

I love the way that the scales on the fish have been carved.

It's absolutely brilliant, really nice quality.

I'm very happy with this. It was marked up £48 and I got it for £35.

I don't think that's too expensive.

I'd be very happy to pay that if it was mine.

Stand back, Cunning Catherine is in the race

and while our lady takes the biscuit, The Charmer is unfazed.

His keen mind racing through tactics to gain the upper hand.

Once you've bought something, one or two things,

keep something in your hands.

It's proof to anybody that you've already spent some money

so when you go up to a stall and you're looking at something,

they know you're not just a time waster and a looker.

They really get fed up with people just looking at things and never spending.

If you got something under your arm, which proves you've spent money, they know you are here to buy.

Useful tip.

Thanks for that, Roscoe.

With three buys in the bag, Charlie is surging ahead

and this war horse is showing no signs of flagging.

25 quid.

GONG SOUNDS

Next come he picks up a gong for a song at £25.

Charlie's seemingly unstoppable but don't rule out the cunning one

who seems to be finally hitting her stride.

She sets her sights on a telescope and takes it for £50.

I saw this earlier and I went back for it.

A brass, refracting telescope.

Two different types of telescopes, reflecting and refracting.

This is the refracting, with the drawers that come out.

This one is quite a bog standard one but the reason I went for it is the name, Dolland.

Dolland is a name that people will recognise,

a good maker of optical instruments.

This is going to date it between mid to late 19th century.

I'm sure I can make a profit on that one.

Having exhausted the inside stalls, our veteran auctioneer moves outdoors.

He's like lightning. A ball of energy. A hammer of the gods.

THUNDER CLAPS

Tools of my trade.

That's got a really nice handle on it which looks like a bit of yew.

That's very, very attractive.

I can sell that to an auctioneer like Knocker Knowles or Philip Serrell, do you think?

-So how much is your gavel?

-It's 40 quid.

-Oh, it's not? Crumbs!

I was rather hoping to buy that and sell it to an auctioneer

but auctioneers are notoriously tight.

-I'll go 30 quid.

-Will you?

That would be a definite.

Yes, I think 30 quid.

Sold!

# Hit me baby, one more time. #

This is where every gavel should be, in the hands of an auctioneer.

I know a lot of auctioneers who would like this gavel

because it's not only got a great head,

which I think is boxwood, but it's this shaft, the handle,

which is yew wood, which really stands it above an average gavel.

After all, when I get the right man, it will be going once,

going twice, going three times.

Sold.

The Charmer is sitting pretty. In the first half of this epic race, he's been in control of the course,

but let's see how those scorecards are stacking up.

Charlie and Catherine both started out with £750 of their own

money to spend.

The Charmer is in peak condition and racing away.

He's bought five items for £275, leaving him with £475 in his kitty.

Catherine is clinging on in Charlie's wake.

So far she's bought just two items and spent £85

leaving her with £665, still to spend.

So it's back to the race

and right now the results are just impossible to forecast.

The Charmer's out there desperately trying to extend his lead.

Cunning Catherine's desperate to find the pieces that will close the gap.

Right, which way?

Take heart, Catherine, with plenty of pounds still to play with, the only way is up.

# The only way is up, baby. #

That way? That way.

That way. That way.

And, it's not long before Catherine finds something to write home about.

I know this chap that buys up writing slopes, does them all up

and restores them and sells them on.

He's looking for some really, nice examples.

This one here is quite nice because,

unlike a lot of the writing slopes that have the tray here,

for the pens and the ink, this one has got the drawer underneath.

It's slightly earlier.

It probably Georgian, perhaps 1830, around that date.

-What is your very best you can do on this?

-140.

Can we do 125 and I'll feel a bit happier?

-Go on, then.

-Thank you.

Catherine takes the writing slope for £125, signed, sealed and delivered.

# Signed, sealed and delivered, I'm yours! #

It seems Charming Charlie's taking a leaf out of Catherine's book of cunning.

He's spotted an item for which he, too, may already have a buyer.

Ah-ha!

Now I do have an order for kitchenalia, as they call it.

I would love to buy an enamel bread bin.

I think they are so, so visual. I think they're great.

The problem is I've just asked the chap if they are for sale

and he has somebody that he hopes is going to turn up today

and he's promised them to him.

The whole lot. He wanted five bread bins and for flour bins.

He has said if he isn't here by the end of the day,

I can buy one for 20 quid.

There wouldn't be a huge profit in it, but there'd be a fiver

and, after all, if you can buy something at 20 quid and sell it five minutes later for 25,

why wouldn't you? So, I'll be coming back to this stall later on.

While Charlie waits to see if there's dough to be made from the bread bins,

Catherine's really picking up the pace. She's purchased a tantalis set for £220

and she's delighted.

This one is really nice because it's made from mahogany.

It's got lovely shaped ends, either side.

Also, I love this satinwood cross banding.

It's a really nice quality one.

It's Edwardian in date, so probably 1900, 1902, that sort of date.

I really like this. I think it has got a wonderful look.

Looking around, I think this is probably the best one I've seen.

Yes, that's a nifty know-how from Catherine

but it's Charlie who is running with the cunning today.

The Charmer's armed with a gong he purchased earlier for £25

and has come up with yet another angle to gain an advantage.

The great thing about a fair is there are many buyers and sellers.

If you buy something cheap and this was cheap,

you stand every chance of selling it the same day.

I think I've got just the man for this.

Do you like it?

With Queen Victoria and Britannia, on the back.

Royal coat of arms on the top.

To you, £50.

40?

45.

-OK.

-Yes! Sale!

That cheeky Charlie's negotiated a deal with another stallholder,

making him an instant £20 profit, before buying is even over.

Going, going, gone.

Fairs aren't just about buying, they're also about selling.

And if you get it right, you can buy

and five minutes later sell the same thing and make a profit.

It's too easy, Miss Southon.

He's on fire! And with the sun beating down on Newark,

our bargain-battling behemoths snatch a second's respite

to assess each other's progress.

-This fair is enormous.

-So, how many items have you bought?

I'm not going to tell you but a substantial number.

I did have a coup.

I bought something for 25 quid and sold it for 45.

-So, you've sold an item already?

-Mmm-hmm.

-Is that what you're going to do?

-I'm hoping to sell everything, this afternoon.

I've just really been in one area

but I'm worried I haven't really explored

so I think that's what I need to do now.

Oh, the cunning one is looking concerned.

That little chat will have done nothing for her confidence.

She ploughs straight into the stalls that she hasn't yet looked at.

The Charmer, meanwhile,

has decided to go back to the stallholder with the breadbins.

Luckily for Charlie, the buyer those items were reserved for hasn't turned up

so the seller's prepared to let Charlie take one.

What we need is a lady, don't we? So that we can choose one.

Er, there is a lady here.

The master tactician will use every ounce of his charm to ensure he gets the very best bargain.

Now, I need some advice here as to which one a lady would like.

Right, well, I always go for the writing. That's quite nice. This one's nicer.

That's got crazy... Would that bother you?

No, I'd see that as a positive cos I like things with character.

If I'm going for something old, I don't want it to look new.

No, that's fair enough. Chris, you're the man for bottoms. Is that a good bottom?

It is, yes. It's better than that one.

I suppose it's more important, that we have, if there is damage, up the top rather than at the bottom.

Yes, it is. It's character.

-Sold! Character.

-Much obliged to you.

-Very good, sir. 20 quid?

-20 quid.

-Marvellous.

Buying bargains is our Charlie's bread and butter

and he proves it here by taking the breadbin for £20.

Well, well, it's now Charlie - 6, Catherine - 4,

which means our lady needs to buy, buy, buy

otherwise it's bye-bye, Catherine.

As she returns to the inside market,

she immediately spots a cracking collectable.

Tell me a bit about these, because you obviously know a lot more than I do about jelly moulds.

-What about this number here - CM45...?

-Some of those are the sizes.

Some of them are also numbers that they would have in a Victorian kitchen or a big kitchen.

-Oh, right.

-A lot of them were numbered

and in the very early Victorian ones,

they have the owner's initials on them, presumably to stop pilfering.

Why are the copper ones so much more collectable than the ceramic ones?

Because they're more common. Every household had jelly moulds.

-Fabulous, isn't it?

-So if you lived in a cottage, you had a pot one

and later on you had the glass ones.

Those were always for the grand houses.

Now, you've got 145 on it. What can you do on that?

What's your absolute best?

Please.

-THEY LAUGH Desperation.

-It's always the crucial thing.

-Er...well I would have liked 110 but I would go to 100.

-Would you?

But couldn't do it any better.

-I'm going to have that.

-Thank you very much indeed.

So, Catherine narrows the gap once again

but is there enough time left today for her to catch up

and overtake her charming opponent?

He's just spotted a piece with some real age.

What a wonderful picture. Is that original? Looks very old.

Come on, Rossco, back to business.

With his finely-honed antiques radar pulsing,

it's not long before Charlie alights on a shiny delight.

Fantastic quality. Now, I think that could be the Royal Yacht Club.

It's a vesta case, by the way.

Put your little matches in there

and then the striking on the bottom there.

You strike them.

Before going in for the kill,

eagle-eyed Charlie spots a potential second deal on the same stall -

a silver powder compact.

That's fantastic quality. I love the engine turn decoration.

It's got loads of weight. The enamelling is good.

Royal Horse Artillery.

I need just to find someone in the Royal Horse Artillery, don't I?

The Charmer seals the deal at £180 for the two pieces.

Thank you very much indeed.

They're in tremendous condition

and I think there's a profit there to the right people.

Never mind silver, Charlie has now bought all his items

and he's looking to take gold.

Well, well, well. I'm bought out.

And I am just going to hang Catherine out to dry.

Yes, that's fighting talk from the charmer but perhaps he shouldn't be resting on his laurels just yet

because, shopping inside the last-chance saloon is Cunning Catherine

and she's spotted another gem.

I quite like this - a nice little novelty piece of silver.

I like the tennis racket on the end. It's been engraved there.

So, hallmarked on the back - Birmingham, 1926.

Will you do £10 on that? Bit of fun.

-Tenner.

-£10. There's your money. You're a good sport.

Yes, and Catherine's over the finishing line too,

as she buys her final bargain of the day for £10.

And as our prize-winning thoroughbreds catch their breath,

it's time for us to check the scorecards

and find out who spent what.

They both started the day with £750 of their own money to spend.

Charlie bagged a bountiful eight items buy he only spent £475.

Catherine was chasing hard all the way.

She only bought six items but spent more in total - £540.

After a long, hard slog spending their pennies,

it's time for our rivals to feast their beady eyes

on each other's wares.

So, Charlie, we've done it, finally.

You've bought a lot of things. How much money have you spent?

-About 550, 540, something like that.

-More than me!

I know, that makes a change, doesn't it?

I thought I was spending hundreds but I've spent less than £500.

The problem is with all my pieces, I PAID a lot for them.

But you've got to, in this day and age, pay real money for real things, haven't you?

-Yeah. I love this.

-My bell.

I bought that because it's pub memorabilia

but I've never heard of Encore whisky, so I'm going to research it.

No, but it's a fabulous piece. It's got a great look about it. That will do very well.

-I think we did really well.

-We did.

-I am exhausted.

Do you know what we're going to do?

-HE RINGS BELL

-Two beers, please, waiter.

SHE LAUGHS You're priceless, Charlie!

The good work at Newark has set our sterling soldiers in good stead

for the spectacle of selling which now awaits.

Like conquering heroes, they return to their home counties,

The Charmer to the heart of Oxfordshire

and Cunning Catherine to Kent - the garden of England.

There's no time to lose

and straightaway The Charmer is assessing his mighty haul.

The advertising bell was lovely and it was in good condition

and it was advertising a whisky I've never heard of

so it's got to be old.

The gavel was nice, wasn't it? Just a good, quality item.

And the two best bits were the two items of silver -

the vesta box and the compact. They were fabulous quality.

Rossco will also need to shift his train of elephants,

his breadbin and cigar box in the shape of a boat.

And what of Catherine?

How does the Queen of Cunning rate the weapons in her armoury?

The jelly mould was lovely.

I love it. I've always been interested in copper jelly moulds

and I thought this was a lovely, authentic Victorian piece.

The silver tennis spoon is a really cute little piece.

The biscuit mould is absolutely beautiful.

I'm slightly biased because I do like interesting pieces of kitchenalia.

Being a bit of a science buff, I am instantly drawn towards telescopes.

My best buy of the day - my favourite - was the Tantalus.

The decanters are original with really nice stoppers

and it is perfect.

And, last but not least, Catherine will also have to sell her writing slope.

Our two determined dealers must now hit the phones

and go all out to find buyers for their items.

But, until they've shaken on it and the money has changed hands,

no deal is truly sealed.

Now, The Charmer is a veteran of the game

and he knows that it isn't always about rushing in for the first sale.

Sometimes, to get the best price, a little extra investment is needed.

Just look at how shiny my bell is.

My bell has been re-silvered and it looks magnificent.

My Encore advertising bell is now so much more saleable than it was.

Cost £60, restoration £10, total cost £70.

I know just the man who's going to buy this.

That man is reclamation yard owner, Russell.

The charmer gives him a BELL

and arranges to brrring his bar bell over.

# You can ring my be-e-ell

# Ring my bell... #

-Russell, how are you?

-Good, you?

-Doing well.

Here is the moment you've been waiting for, Russell, all your life.

I'm intrigued. It looks a bit small.

What size d'you expect a bar bell to be?

I was just expecting something a little bit more...grand.

Oh, it's grand!

And, it's less than a grand.

Ready? Ta-da!

Potpourri!

-Potpourri!

-That's nice, isn't it?

BELL RINGS

-Oh, you ring it like that?

-You ring it like that.

You expect to bang the top of it.

And it rings either way.

That way, or that way.

I've not heard of Encore before.

-It IS nice.

-It's a nice thing, isn't it?

You'd love to buy it, wouldn't you?

Am I going to bid you on this,

or will I you tell me some extortionate price?

I'm not going to tell you an extortionate price. 150 quid.

HE LAUGHS

Don't laugh!

95 quid. I got a bit of profit, you got a bit?

100 quid. Come on, Russell!

-Go on, I'll give you 100 quid.

-Thank you VERY much.

-Thank you.

Ding dong! The Charmer makes a sale.

He rings out a profit of £30 on the bar bell.

It's not a massive profit, is it?

But you know the secret with dealing?

Leave a profit in it for the next man,

because he'll ALWAYS buy off you again.

Yes, sage advice from The Charmer.

Almost a lesson in life itself.

But, Cunning Catherine's in no mood

to let a penny of potential profit pass her by.

She's visiting Clive,

chairman of her local tennis club.

She's armed with her tennis-themed silver spoon,

and limbering up for one almighty match of trading tennis.

Did you have a figure in mind that you wanted to pay?

I have a figure in mind I'd like to get.

I sort of had a clutch at a figure

of sort of £15-ish.

A powerful serve from Clive.

-£15?

-Belted right back by Catherine.

I was hoping for a lot more than that.

Cos it's probably worth that in silver.

OK. Perhaps we can move towards £20?

Met and returned by Clive.

Could we move towards £40?

Lobbed high by Catherine.

Do £30?

Really happy with £40, to be honest, Clive.

£32?

-£40?

-£38?

Ooh! And she's holding her own against the champ!

£40?

-How can I refuse you?

-Oh! You are a gentleman!

You're an absolute gentleman. Thank you very much indeed.

The pleasure's almost mine.

Oh, and she's done it!

Catherine nets £30 profit from that 'ace' of a deal.

Shiny silver sure is successful so far today.

And Charlie's hotfooting it down to our grand capital city.

He's armed with his silver vesta case.

He's looking for an historic profit.

I'm here in Burlington Arcade,

one of London's premier shopping arcades,

built in 1820.

Next to the Royal Academy. The shops here are fantastic.

I'm here with my silver vesta.

Hopefully, I'm going to sell it to Daniel Bexfield,

who LOVES high quality silver.

Fingers crossed.

I have a vesta,

which you've seen an image of.

It's actually a nice gauge silver.

The enamel's had a couple of knocks, but it's not broken.

It's an attractive vesta case.

They're for long safety matches. You strike them on the bottom.

The spring is good, as well.

If this had been carried round in a pocket,

with a sovereign case, a penknife, or a pencil,

these things get normally knocked around, dented, damaged.

You haven't got that.

It's not been to a silversmith, so that's nice.

The colour's good. The hallmarks are nice.

You're saying the right things. I'm feeling optimistic.

Maybe I should be really nasty about it!

I do like it. I think it's good.

And the marks are nice.

Do you want me to make an offer, or give me your price?

No, I'll ask you a price.

£200 for it.

You're being very fair.

Really? Bother!

Now you've got it!

I'm very happy to buy that at £200.

I think that's very good.

-Let's shake, Charlie.

-Thank you very much indeed, Daniel.

Well, Charlie, it's great to have your judgement

backed by a specialist in his field but, strike a light,

you could have pushed for more on that one.

Charlie bought the vesta case

together with a compact for £180,

so on that £200 sale alone,

he's made £20 profit on the lot,

and he still has the compact to sell.

Back in Kent, Catherine is facing her moment of truth.

In Newark, she spent a whopping £220 on a tantalus,

which she purchased with someone specific in mind.

That someone is Linda.

It's time to find out whether she'll like it,

or not.

Linda, I feel an immense amount of pressure at the moment.

You said to me you'd quite like a tantalus,

and I've bought you one.

I hope, actually I pray, that it's something you like.

Are you ready?

-Ah!

-Is it what you wanted?

-Yes.

Because it's not the very pale oak. What age d'you reckon this is?

I think it's probably Edwardian. It's certainly got that look, anyway.

If you saw this in a shop, you'd probably be looking at about £400.

So, how does £300 sound?

I hate it when you're silent!

-You're NEVER silent, Linda!

-No, I know I'm not.

That's the figure I thought we'd be talking about.

Let's keep it at that, then!

Cos I'm quite happy to keep it £300.

-Yes.

-That's fantastic. Thank you, Linda.

Oh, what a result! Catherine's fears proved groundless,

and she nets a profit of £80.

Well, THAT couldn't have gone any better.

As soon as I walked into Linda's house,

and saw the rest of her furniture,

I knew that tantalus was going to fit perfectly.

And Linda was more than happy to pay £300 for it.

Charlie Ross, eat your heart out.

Our great lady isn't done there.

She zooms across to nearby Bexleyheath

to see her contact, Bulent.

I'm about to go to see a gentleman who has a restaurant.

It's called a Victorian restaurant.

I've looked it up

and apparently he has the biggest collection

of copper kitchenalia in the country,

but I have absolutely no idea how this will go.

Oh, my word.

Wow!

You must be Bulent.

Lovely to meet you. I'm Catherine Southon.

-Ready for this?

-Yes.

We have a beautiful, highly collectible Victorian jelly mould.

What d'you think?

-Perfect.

-Perfect?

-REALLY nice.

These were quite important at the time. People treasured these.

The Victorians used something like this, not necessarily for jelly.

They'd perhaps use it for blancmange.

Jelly wouldn't be a sweet jelly, it could be a savoury jelly.

Oh, yeah.

As long as it has the gelatine in.

They'd often place this in the middle of their grand table.

It was quite ostentatious.

Now, on to...money.

How about.... How does £200 sound to you?

A bit too much for this one.

Say £160, and be friends?

£155.

Go on, then. I love a five.

£155. Go on, then.

We'll be best friends.

Thank you very much.

Nicely handled, Catherine.

Never mind the copper, she's piling up the pounds.

That's a cracking £55 profit.

Beat that, Charmer.

And so, we hit the mid point in today's selling,

with both our dealers slugging it out, toe to toe.

The proof of the pudding lies in the profit,

so let's see how they're doing.

Once again, Charlie The Charmer set the early pace,

selling his first item while still at Newark.

He's sold four pieces so far, and has a profit of £70 to show for it.

Cunning Catherine has sold three items,

but has managed to make more money.

Her total profit stands at £165.

With Cunning Catherine surging ahead,

Charlie knows he needs to ramp up the pace.

This is the real deal, not a rehearsal.

So, armed with a gavel he purchased for £30,

we find The Charmer lurking outside Her Majesty's Theatre in Haymarket.

What am I doing outside a stage door?

Looking for a part? Not likely to get one of those.

I'm waiting for John Griffiths, my old friend,

who played the auctioneer in Phantom Of The Opera 20 years ago.

Played it for three years.

He's looking for a new gavel.

Go for it, Charlie.

Well, Mr Griffiths.

How many years since you were going in and out of this door?

I can barely remember, but I think it's 20, Mr Ross.

And I was here for three years.

Playing the role of the auctioneer?

That's right. At that time, Phantom was the number one show in London.

It so happens, Mr Ross, I have the very gavel here.

You can see that sometimes,

through over-enthusiasm, it gets damaged.

I've got JUST the replacement for you. Close your eyes, sir.

-Hold out your right hand.

-My RIGHT hand, yes.

-Try that, sir.

-I say, sir. That's magnificent.

-What's you best price?

-60 quid.

I was thinking somewhere in the range of £40, sir.

Were you? Griffiths, what about doing the old ham-fisted arrangement

-where we add the two up, and divide by two?

-Yes.

-50 quid?

-£45, sir.

Oh, you HARD man!

-Sold.

-£45. Thank you.

POSH VOICE: Oh, well DONE, sir!

Charlie bangs out a profit of £15,

then follows it up with a £10 profit on his bread bin.

Catherine isn't one for looking back over her shoulder.

She only looks ahead,

to find a suitable buyer for the telescope

she purchased for £50.

She finds a shop in Sussex that sells telescopes,

and in no time she's hotfooting it over to meet Peter.

I've bought you this rather nice hand-held telescope.

That's rather nice, isn't it?

D'you have any idea of the age?

Probably mid 19th century. Maybe about 1860.

It's a lovely piece. It's nice to see something of that age

that's survived without being tampered with in any way.

-No, it hasn't.

-What are you looking for?

What am I looking for?

How does £150 sound to you?

Happy for £100.

£100?

Say £110, just for a little bit more?

£105?

-£105!

-£105, done.

£105!

£105, that's brilliant. Thank you!

Catherine's taken a £55 profit,

but it's not all roses.

Our lady takes a small step

backwards when she makes a £35 loss

on her writing slope.

But, as she drives to London,

armed with a biscuit mould she purchased for £35,

surely Catherine can sniff the sweet smell of success.

Or maybe it's the sweet smell of sugar, flour, butter and eggs,

as she visits Sarah, who runs a biscuit factory.

Wow, this place is AMAZING!

But, before bargaining begins,

it seems our Catherine can't resist a quick tour.

That smell is absolutely delicious.

Fantastic.

Wonderful.

These look wonderful.

Come on, Catherine. Down to business.

Will Sarah like the biscuit mould?

-Wow, that looks amazing.

-It's absolutely beautiful, isn't it?

It'll make beautiful biscuits. I'd just love to have a go using it.

Is it something you'd probably use here to make biscuits?

I think perhaps we'd make some biscuits, not to eat,

but to have a look at how it works.

So, we come down to price.

-How does £80 sound?

-I think £70 sounds better.

Would you say £75, in the middle?

-OK, £75.

-£75 for a lovely piece of history.

Cunning Catherine takes a big bite of profit. She's just made £40.

Like his opponent, Charlie's facing some ups and downs.

There's bad news when he puts his boat-shaped cigar box into auction.

It makes a loss of £13.60.

But, good news when he sells his elephant ornament for a £40 profit.

I think it's terrific!

Charlie knows he's lagging behind,

and the only option left

is to bring out the big guns.

Namely, his silver compact case.

He bought his two pieces of silver for £180,

and has already sold the first for £200.

Whatever money he can get now will be pure profit.

We join our hero in a taxi,

speeding his way through London.

This is my powder compact.

Solid silver, enamel decorated.

Not the most trendy of items today,

but, what does it say on the top?

"Royal Horse Artillery".

Where am I going?

The St John's Wood Barracks,

to see Matthew Sykes, who I think wants to buy it for his wife.

What a charming gesture.

And what a wonderful bonus for Mr Ross, if he buys it.

Go for it, Charlie!

-Major General Sykes, is that correct?

-That's my name.

-Good!

Matthew Sykes, I prefer. Thank you.

Before I cut to the chase as to why I'm here,

can you tell me about the gun?

This gun is a 13-punder gun. We use it for ceremonial purposes.

This particular gun was used for the state funeral

of the Princess Of Wales.

-Was it?

-A really special gun.

VERY special gun, indeed.

And it's not for sale.

THEY LAUGH

-Would you take a little offer for this gun(?)

-Can't help you there.

I sent you an image of a powder compact.

Which you liked?

I like the idea of it, yes.

I won't waste any more of your time.

You can pass comment on the object.

It's hallmarked silver.

It's a king's cipher.

Royal Horse Artillery cipher.

The GR in the middle is George Rex, rather than current,

so that ages it a bit.

It's a lovely object.

It has engine-turned decoration.

It's made by JW Benson,

very famous makers in Ludgate Hill,

who made pocket watches. Can I interest you?

I AM interested in this, definitely. What are you looking for?

£200?

£200?

That's a mighty opening price.

We'll find out if 'Roscoe' can get close to that shortly.

Let's remind ourselves what our two great maestros have spent.

Our associates of antiquities have acquitted themselves adeptly.

They each started the day with £750 of their own money.

Charlie spent £485 on 8 items, including restoration and costs.

Catherine bought 6 items, spending £540.

But now, it's all about profit.

All the money they've made from today's challenge

will be going to a charity of their choice.

Let's find out who is today's

Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is champion.

Charlie!

How are you?

You are looking far too chipper.

You've made too much money, haven't you?

I think you did quite well. You found some nice things.

Found some really nice silver.

I was really jealous of those.

One of them had a motif on it relating to the Army,

and I found JUST the man to sell it to,

at the barracks in St John's Wood.

-Really?

-Isn't that exciting?

-Well done, you.

And I got a good profit.

I bet you did. They were smart buys, Charlie.

Come on, let's have a look.

-I've done you this time.

-Have you?

-Mm.

-I'm not so sure.

-One.

-Two.

-Three.

Oh! You have, as well!

What's the 40p all about?

That's a secret, Miss Southon.

It's the odd 40p that sometimes helps.

-Well done, Charlie.

-It'll buy you a bun.

Charlie pips Catherine to the post in the final yards of the race.

He must have got a great price for his silver compact.

I'd be happy to buy it for £175.

I'm happy to shake on that. Thank you very much.

Thank you, Charlie.

That's a whopping £175 profit. Great work, Charlie!

I was thrilled with the overall result.

Actually, Catherine did pretty well.

But not quite well enough, Miss Southon.

I'm rather disappointed about Newark.

I thought I might have won that one. But Charlie came up trumps.

I think it was because of those two really smashing pieces of silver.

Charlie can't revel in his victory for long, because tomorrow we're

sending our dealers to Belgium, to fight it out at an antiques market.

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