Charlie Ross v Catherine Southon - Showdown 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...

-Mwah!

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

It's amazing, truly amazing!

Buckle up and get ready for the ride of your life -

it's the Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is Showdown,

the greatest challenge our experts have faced yet.

Two heavyweights of the antiques world will be tested to the max,

as they have to dig deep at four different buying venues

to find antiques and collectibles to sell on for maximum profit.

Sold! Ha-ha-ha-ha!

Coming up - Charlie shows us how NOT to do it...

I offered 50, he said 50! Bother - wish I'd offered 40!

..Catherine goes on a - hmm-hmm - spending frenzy...

20p? Oh, come on!

..and Charlie tries to reel in a millionaire.

Morning, Chris! I've brought a fishing reel for you.

-I won't like it.

-Why?

-Sorry, you're a nice guy, but I won't want it.

There will be highs and lows, but there can only be one winner.

This is the Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is Showdown!

Welcome to the Showdown,

pitting two of our most highly-trained antiques experts

against each other in the ultimate challenge.

Two of the antiques world's most prestigious professionals -

the First Lady of Cunning, Catherine Southon,

a woman who drives the hardest of bargains...

-How about £7?

-How about £6.50?

Oh, you are a one!

..going up against our smooth- talking international auctioneer

Charlie "The Charmer" Ross.

-How about 15?

-Sold.

We will test their knowledge, stamina and know-how to the absolute limit,

so let's find out what's in store.

-Catherine!

-Charlie, me old fruit! Mwah! Mwah!

-How are you?

-OK. A bit nervous about this, though.

-You've got an envelope.

-I have.

-So have I! Ready away!

Catherine and Charlie - welcome to your last and biggest challenge yet,

the Showdown.

You must each buy eight items during your regular Put Your Money challenges.

-You have to buy two at each event.

-Mm-hmm.

You can spend up to £1,000 of your own money.

You can sell up to four items wherever you want.

The remaining items will go into an auction, which will be in Warwickshire,

in approximately eight weeks from now, in direct competition with your opponent -

-that's you, darling.

-Oh - so it is.

Choose your items wisely. The winner will be the one who makes the most profit.

-Good luck.

-I'll see you later. Mwah!

Both our antiques giants have £1,000 of their own money

including any restoration, repairs and buying fees.

It's a fierce competition, but who will make the most profit?

They must each buy two items at each of their usual hunting grounds -

a UK antiques fair,

an auction, a car-boot sale

and a foreign antiques market.

First up is the Ardleigh car-boot sale in Essex.

Of all the buying environments our experts will face,

this will have the cheapest items on offer,

so they need to find the best profit-makers

-and

-save enough money for the rounds ahead.

Charlie pounces on an opportunity to strike an early deal...

A couple of chaps just said to me, "Hello, you got any tips?"

Well, I haven't got any tips for them, but they have got

rather a nice fishing reel - I'm not expert on fishing reels,

but I'm hoping to buy it. Gentlemen! I spotted this, it looks quite fun.

-Did you buy this here today?

-Yes, I did.

-Are you looking to sell it?

-If the price is right.

-Of course you are!

-It's great, a snapper reel.

-Yeah.

-How much do you want for it - tenner?

-No, 18.

-18?

-Yeah.

I'll give you 18 quid if you promise to tell me what you paid for it.

-Yep.

-Good man, you hold on to that.

-£18... There we go, sir.

-Thank you very much.

I thank you very much indeed. Now, what did you pay for it earlier?

-Tenner.

-A tenner? Oh, well, that's not too bad, is it?

-No.

-Pleasure to do business with you.

-See you later.

First catch of the day to Mr Ross, a fishing reel for just £18.

REEL CLICKS

Now I've just got to reel in a profit!

Charlie knows he can't stop there - the Showdown is a case of sink or swim.

I've got the fishing reel, I'm about to buy the boat...

Which way's the sea?

# We are sailing...! #

Plain sailing for Charlie so far,

but Catherine's spotted a Belleek preserve bowl and milk jug.

-How much do you want for your Belleek?

-I want 60, dear.

Can you do any better than that?

-50.

-Could we do 40?

-£45, and I'll have a little think. Thank you.

-Thank you.

Catherine leaves the deal to ponder,

a dangerous tactic in a competitive market,

where hesitation can spell disaster.

I don't know whether to go back. It's a bit of a gamble, but...

Oh, I'll tell you what, actually, I'm going to go back.

With the deal on a knife-edge, can Catherine negotiate a reduction

on the £45 asking price?

-43?

-43...

Still too much, I've got to make a profit on this.

-Can we meet in the middle and say 40?

-If that's your best offer.

OK. Shall we shake on it? Thank you.

Deal done - the Cunning One spends just £40.

I'm happy, it's quite nice to see something with a bit of age,

and with a nice mark on it. Belleek is a great factory

in County Fermanagh in Ireland.

They always make quite good money at auction.

These ones aren't so collectible, they're a bit later,

about 1920s to 1940s. Would have been nice to get them a bit cheaper.

Someone wants them - they just don't know it yet.

While Catherine worries she may have spent too much on her first buy,

The Charmer has no such concerns about his second item.

Do you know, it was a pound - one pound!

I bought it because I play golf, very badly,

and I'm dying to know what golf course it was.

It's after an original by somebody called Roy Perry.

It is of course just a print, and it's in this rather naff frame,

which have use seen - just have a look at this!

It's been artificially woodwormed.

They've gone, "Bong, bong, bong, bong," to pretend it's an old frame

and it looks like the worm have eaten it.

But it's visually quite good and the most exciting thing is,

having bought it for a pound, the man that sold it to me

had second thoughts and offered me £2 for it and I turned it down.

Charlie bags item number two, a golfing print, for just £1.

Someone else with a birdie in sight is Cunning Catherine.

This owl, for some reason, is staring at me.

-What could you do on this?

-50p on that. Half price.

20p.

I'll do 50p for you.

-30p?

-I'm dropping it to half price for you.

-40?

-50.

Shall we say 40? Come on, let's shake on it.

Go on then, 40p.

Brilliant. There we are.

She drives a hard bargain,

an owl pot stand for just 40 pence.

The first round of this buying bonanza draws to a close

so let's see how much our dealers have spent so far.

They each had a budget of £1,000.

Charlie "The Charmer" Ross has hardly dipped in to his kitty,

spending only £19.

That leaves him with a very luxurious £981

for the rest of the showdown.

Cunning Catherine Southon spent just over £40,

leaving her with a little under £960 still to spend.

They've both saved the bulk of their bounty for later,

which is good news

because they've still got three more rounds to get through.

And so to round two, the auction,

and it's time to wage war

in the Anglo-Saxon town of Market Harborough.

Armed with their spears of knowledge

and shields of antique understanding,

our warriors will fight their way through 760 lots

to conquer the best bargains.

Here they both need to bag two more items for their showdown extravaganza.

After nearly a decade working at Sotheby's, Cunning Miss Southon feels right at home here.

Time is ticking away and it's not long before she clocks an interesting timepiece.

I do quite like these Art Nouveau garnitures and they do sell well,

but I don't really think it's got a huge amount going for it.

It's got a really punchy estimate as well, 150-250.

I think if it goes sort of low end, perhaps 150, up to 160,

I might have a go, but I'm going to stick to my guns and not go beyond that

because I think it's going to be a bit hard to sell.

Catherine is quick to spot another item that catches her interest. But what is it?

What we've got here is a chamber stick.

It's marked in the catalogue as probably by Archibald Knox.

Archibald Knox was working for Liberty and Co.

He designed quite a lot of items, predominantly a jewellery designer

but he did lots of items in Arts and Crafts, Art Nouveau style.

Problem is there's a little bit of damage here.

And here.

But I think that I might have someone for it.

So if we can go with that, I think it's going to be worth a go.

Catherine knows there's a market for the piece,

but that could also mean stiff competition in the bidding.

Now, we haven't heard anything yet from Charlie,

and the auction has begun.

But the Charmer's been busy working his way

through the catalogue, and there's a Vera Huggins Royal Doulton vase coming up that he's got his eye on.

The vase at £100, I'm bid at £100. 110. 120.

130, do I see it? 130.

140. 140. Bid at 140. 150.

I've got 150. 160. At 160, now. At 160. 170.

170, I'm bid at 170. The bid's in the room at 170. Now buying at 170.

-170.

-Selling at 170.

-Oh, I'm buying a Vera!

-That's 752.

And it's Charlie who's first out of the traps.

He's bought a Royal Doulton vase for just under £201, including fees.

I think I might even have a buyer.

Catherine is wasting no time, either.

She launches into bidding on the marble clock.

170 to bid into that is 165.

170, now at 170.

-Five, if you like.

-Five.

175.

It's Miss Southon against the internet.

She's against the whole world!

175, I'm bid. At 175. Fair warning. I will sell.

It's mine.

And no surprise, the Cunning One beats the whole world

and takes the clock set for £206.50, including fees.

I see you bought a clock set.

Have you no taste at all, woman?

-Listen.

-Where is it?

-Did you look at it?

-No.

It's garniture. It's Art Deco.

-Beautiful(!)

-It's not your thing, is it?

I should think you'd get 120 for it.

Cheeky!

The Charmer may not have eyes for the clock set but the chamber stick's a different story.

208 is a pewter chamber stick.

-Opening bid here, £50.

-I think Charlie's going to go for it, too.

80. 90.

-Hang on, don't panic.

-£90. I'm hearing 95. 100.

100, I'm bid. At £100. 110, I'll take.

-110. 120.

-125.

-130.

-35.

At 135, it's in the room at 135.

Our experts are going head-to-head.

£135. 140.

Was that Miss Southon?

140. I'll take five.

-I've lost my number!

-145.

-Let him have it.

-145.

-Was that me?

-That's you.

-Oh, bother.

LAUGHTER

Catherine's not happy.

They fought tooth and nail but Charlie takes

the Archibald Knox chamber stick for just over £171 with fees.

Cunning Catherine still needs one more item

and starts to bid blind on a pair of mirrors.

30. £30.

Still in the room at £30.

I just bought a couple of mirrors. I haven't even seen them.

Two mirrors bought for a little over £35, including fees.

But without seeing them before the bidding,

how does Catherine feel upon reflection?

This is OK.

It's what I thought it was going to be, to be honest.

Edwardian mirror. Got the cross banding, there. It's not bad.

This, which comes with it, is absolutely ghastly.

SCREAMING

That is not good news.

Oh, dear. While Catherine takes a long, hard look at herself,

we move on to assess our warriors' war chests.

From the £1,000 they started with, Charlie has now spent just

under £391, leaving him with a little over £609 in his kitty.

Catherine, meanwhile, has spent a touch over £282,

leaving her with just under £718 for the last two rounds.

For the penultimate round, our duelling dealers will be

competing against one another at the Newark International

Antiques and Collectibles Fair in Nottinghamshire.

They both have well over half their kitties to spend

so they can afford to look at more expensive items.

And the Charmer is feeling confident.

The people here are traders. They want to sell.

And, by and large, they base their selling on what the cost price was.

So here is the place where I'm going to make my money for the showdown.

Yes, like a Basset hound, Charlie soon sniffs out a bargain,

but our well-trained tracker, Catherine, isn't far behind.

Ah-hah! What have you found here, Charlie?

A very, very pretty little satinwood Edwardian cabinet,

which I'm falling in love with.

-Are you going to buy it?

-I'm going to try.

-It depends how much money it is.

-I'll leave you to it.

MUSIC: "Je T'aime (Moi, Non Plus)" by Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg.

It may be love at first sight for Charlie

but the Queen of Classics is looking for something a little more unusual.

I like this. This is silver and it's a little trug, a little gardener's trug.

If you turn it round, it's got a lovely, clear hallmark.

Nice maker's initials, there.

JD and Sons. James Dixon and Sons.

Priced up at £89, which is a bit punchy,

but I think I might give it a go.

And while Charlie's lost in adoration for his cabinet,

Catherine takes the initiative

and blasts her way to her first purchase of the day.

I paid £70 for it, which was slightly more than I wanted to pay.

I was hoping to get it around the £60 mark

but he just would not budge.

Good work by Catherine.

And now, at last, Charlie is ready to start the negotiations on his cabinet.

275, mate. Not a penny less, not a penny more.

250? No. 275, I'm going to have that.

Because I've had a good look at it and, erm, it's very pretty.

Charlie bags his pretty little cabinet

and love is clearly in the air

because the Charmer soon spots something else that tickles his fancy.

It's quite sweet, isn't it? Very nice little stool.

Needs a little bit of upholstery,

but don't we all?

-Yeah. £20.

-£20? That's Victorian!

-I've got to have that for £20.

-Good man.

I mean I couldn't possibly not buy that for £20.

Yes, that was a walk in the park.

Charlie's second item is a Victorian footstool,

and he was so taken with it, he didn't even haggle.

Gosh, doesn't it make shopping easier when you do all your shopping in one place?

Cunning Catherine, however, is biding her time.

She knows it's all about quality today and, like a magpie,

it's not long before she's lured in by another piece of silver.

Can I have a little look at your jewellery box?

You can.

So the tortoiseshell, to me, looks in beautiful condition.

It is, yes. It's got the inlay as well.

You've got a nice little bit of silver inlay. Hallmarked here.

We've got maker's initials. Looks like W and S.

It's slightly rubbed but the initial,

-so Birmingham and we've got a B.

-A capital B.

-And that's 1920...

-1926.

-26.

This tortoiseshell piece won't be to everyone's taste,

but it's perfectly safe to buy it and sell it

as it predates the 1947 legislation.

-What sort of price can you do on this?

-165. That would be the best.

-Can we not do 150?

-No.

-Can we do 155, and then we're...

No, I couldn't do that because I've come down quite a long way.

You see, I have come down from 230, so I feel as though...

No, I know you have, I know.

The vendor's not budging on price and time isn't on Catherine's side.

She needs to make a decision, and fast.

Oh, this is so difficult.

I'll buy it.

I hope I'm not going to regret this.

Deal done. After a tense negotiation, Cunning Catherine snaps up the tortoiseshell case for £160.

Round three is now over and both our antiques savvy soldiers have emerged

unscathed with the items they hope will net them a prodigious profit.

Charlie has spent nearly £686,

leaving him with just over £314 in his kitty.

While Catherine has spent over £512,

leaving her a little under £488 available to spend in round four.

And so we come to the final round of buying.

Armed with a fistful of euros, our duelling dealers have been sent

to the Cygne market in Belgium, where their challenge

is to each find two potential profit-makers amidst over 700 stalls

bulging with booty.

Like a true Brit abroad, Charlie is on the hunt for things

that remind him of home and before long, he spots something.

Oh-ho! How quintessentially English is that?

Allumettes? Ah, for the matches. Allumettes. It's 70 euros.

£63.

I want to be buying that for £35, £40, don't I?

-Cinquante, oui? Oui?

-Oui.

C'est possible a cinquante?

Monsieur, encore une fois!

I offered 50, he said 50!

Bother! Wish I'd offered 40!

Never mind, Roscoe, you've bagged your first deal of the day and spent just over £45.

It's going back to England, and so am I, with it.

Our charming Brit abroad certainly knows what he's after.

He's just spotted another English item to add to his haul.

Good English stoneware.

Royal coat of arms.

Doulton Lambeth.

Doulton Lambeth made a huge amount of, erm,

pottery, earthenware.

In fact, the Doulton factory started making sewage pipes,

and of course, they ended up, Doulton today make delicate figures of ladies.

They've come a long way, haven't they?

The gentleman has asked me 30 euros for this.

Would it be too rude if I offered you 10 euros?

If you said 20, you can have it.

WHISPERS: He's coming down a bit!

-(How about 15?)

-Sold.

-Sold! Ha-ha-ha!

-(Well done, Charlie!)

You certainly had him over a barrel, there, with your charming chat.

-Back to England, where it belongs.

-Yes.

And Charlie takes the barrel for nearly £14.

And that's the Charmer done.

But with no purchases to her name yet,

Catherine needs to make up ground.

-Vingt cinq.

-Vingt cinq, OK.

She buys a powder box for almost £23.

But the wheels of time are rolling on and as the market closes,

the pressure rises.

Like a phoenix from the flames,

Cunning Catherine soars into her final deal

and takes a gamble on an Arts and Crafts belt buckle.

-I'm taking the biggest risk of my life.

-OK.

It's OK.

The Cunning One gives her a budget a right belting

and spends over £118 on the belt buckle.

Probably English-made.

I think this is going to sell a lot easier in England, I hope.

It is the biggest gamble of the day for me,

but it's the end of the day and I had to buy something.

And on that note, round four comes to an end

and our antiques adventurers have now purchased all their showdown items.

Time to assess their spending.

Our duelling duo started this epic showdown

with £1,000 of their own cash to buy eight items.

At the close of play,

Charlie's final bill comes in at just under £745.

Catherine has been more cautious. She spent just over £653.

Before our dealers go their separate ways,

there's just time for them to assess each other's weapons of war.

Well, I don't know how you found it,

but for me, buying the last two items for the showdown today was awful.

Not easy, is it, being in Belgium buying things for England.

-But I like that, that buckle.

-Do you? I do.

-But I paid so much money for it.

-What about this?

That, I really like that. That's gorgeous.

And our Showdown auction is in Warwickshire, isn't it?

There's lots of hunts in Warwickshire.

That is going to make you a very nice profit.

Can I swap that for one of mine?

With a small cash incentive, yes.

And now our tireless troopers return to base

where they must refocus all their energies into selling their items

to achieve the highest possible profits.

The dealer with the most money will take the title,

but this is the Showdown and it's not quite that simple.

Both our dealers have eight items to sell,

and at least four must be sold at auction without any reserve price.

So it's a white-knuckle ride

where our competitors might win big or they might lose massively.

Both our experts must start by choosing which items to put under the hammer.

Minimum of four, but I've gone for five. Why?

I've put my Archibald Knox chamber stick in,

and I've seen one make £400 before.

Why have I put my stool into auction?

Because I think private buyers will be there to buy that. So that's that.

The next item I've put into auction is my satinwood cabinet.

I think the colour of it will attract somebody. So I'm hopeful of that.

I put the spirit barrel in simply because I bought it in a rash moment

because it seemed cheap and it was English and I bought it abroad.

So hopefully that'll make a profit.

And the final thing, number five object,

was the cigarette box.

The sale room is in a hunting area and it's got hunting scenes on top

so I think that is the right reason for putting it into auction.

And Cunning Catherine,

which of her items does she think will gain the most under the gavel?

The first item that I've picked were these two items of Belleek.

I'm hoping that for £40 I should make a little bit of profit on that.

This is probably the one I'm most happy with because I really like this.

It's nice quality, James Dixon & Sons.

I'm hoping something like this should do well at auction.

This I picked up, it's quite a nice novelty thing.

It's an Art Deco compact.

It would be nice if it made £40 or £50, but I'm not holding my breath.

Now this one, the Arts and Crafts buckle.

I really love this, but I've paid far too much money on this.

I think I've made a big mistake. And the only place for it is at auction.

There's no way I'm going to get a profit on it.

If I do, I will be very surprised and very happy.

Before any auction action, our captains of collectibles

have items they need to find private buyers for.

Charlie needs to shift a fishing reel, a golf print and a Vera Huggins Royal Doulton vase.

Catherine will have to find a home for a pair of mirrors,

an owl pot stand, a tortoiseshell case and an Art Deco clock set.

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

no deal is truly sealed.

Our purveyors of products from the past hit the phones,

and it's Charlie who's first out on the road.

He's arranged to take his vase, bought for nearly £201,

to his friend, singing teacher Cheryl.

And he's determined that it's not going to go for a song.

-Are you ready?

-I'm ready.

-Can we sit it over there?

-Yeah.

Between those two, just to see how it looks.

Cos that's what I envisaged.

It was designed by Vera to sit there.

-That is amazing.

-You could look for a long time to find a vase of those colours.

It picks up all these colours within this room.

It picks up everything.

It picks up the sill, it picks up a little bit of the floor.

And I'm hoping to pick up your money!

Well, of course, I do really love it.

-We'll just have to see how much you're going to scare me.

-325.

-How about 250?

-I will come down.

And I won't move lower, and I mean that, at 275.

270.

I did say I wouldn't move any lower.

But frankly, for a fiver it's not worth arguing with, is it?

-I think it's fantastic.

-270.

-Yes.

-And a singing lesson?

-All right then.

-Done.

SHE SINGS OPERATICALLY

Ooh, that "vase" a great sale!

Charlie takes a profit to the tune of over £69.

SINGING

DOGS HOWL

For a first singing lesson, that is amazing. You have promise.

Vase-selling, ten out of ten. Singing, nought out of ten.

Well, don't give up your day job yet then, Charlie.

Hoping to hit the right note

and mirror Charlie's success is Cunning Catherine.

She's taking her walnut mirror, one of the pair bought at auction for £35.50,

to Chris, who runs an antiques shop in Kent.

Condition wise it's not bad for its age, is it?

There's a couple on the veneer here and on the top somewhere up here.

-But essentially I thought it was a lovely frame.

-Yes.

-Nice walnut frame.

-Yeah, not bad at all.

Nice little bit of cross banding round here.

Original glass, which is good.

Um... You know, really, it's quite a clean little mirror.

How interested would you be you then, Chris?

I would be happy to pay around £30.

Hmm.

-Perhaps my first offer was a bit mean.

-I like your way of thinking!

-I'd go up to 40. How's that?

-Can we say 50?

-No. 45.

-45. 45 sounds good to me.

-That's great.

Catherine gets a sale

and she follows up by selling her other mirror for £15,

giving her a profit on that lot of £24.60.

But time stands still for no woman, and Catherine surges onwards,

selling her Art Deco clock for £210,

which leaves her with £3.50 profit.

It's now Catherine three, Charlie one, in this super selling slog.

But the Charmer is gearing up for a counter-attack.

He's phoned a friend and is heading for London,

hoping that the fishing reel that he bought for £18 could make him a millionaire.

In my briefcase, one fishing reel.

In here, one fisherman.

-Hello, Charlie. Come on in. I'll let you in.

-Thank you.

Chris, I never realised that you're a serious fishermen.

Yes, one of the best you've ever met.

-I've brought a fishing reel for you.

-I won't like it.

-Why?

I'm sorry, Charlie, you're a nice guy but I won't want it. Cos I've got hundreds.

-You'll have a look?

-I'll look, but I won't want it.

Of course you will. You'll never have one.

-Why are you looking at me like that?

-I want you to hold it and feel it.

-And tell me all about it.

-It's very, very heavy.

CLICKING

-Oh, listen to that!

-It's a collector's piece!

-Who wants to collect... Listen to it!

-A lot of people.

Listen to that.

-You're a very nice man.

-You could add it to your collection.

-No.

Oh, dear, could that be Chris' final answer?

-How much do you want for it?

-18 quid. That's what it cost.

-Really?

-Yeah.

-Boy, did they see you coming!

-No.

-Go on, 18.

-No.

-It's worth 18 quid.

-No, it's not.

-You could make a profit on it.

-Eight quid.

-15 quid.

-I've gone off the idea. Forget it.

-No, no, come back.

-What?

12 quid.

-No. 11.

-Come on, Chris.

-Slap hands, 11 quid. Yes!

-And you really want it.

-That was so begrudging, that.

-You are horrible because you really wanted it, didn't you?

-Yeah, I love it.

I've always wanted one of these. I've wanted one of these since I was a kid.

Oh, Charlie, you were absolutely kippered there.

Chris certainly has a "Tarrant" for negotiation.

That sale hits our Charlie with a £7 loss.

-Cheerio, Chris.

-Bye. Thanks!

What have I done?

I've just lost money to somebody who really wanted to buy it in the first place.

I'm pathetic at this!

Bye, Charlie. Thanks.

Cunning Catherine is driving down to Folkestone in Kent

with the owl pot stand she splashed out a mighty 40 pence on,

in the hope that she can sell it to Brian who runs an owl rescue Sanctuary.

-Are they safe?

-They are extremely safe.

To-wit to-woo'd have thought it? Our Catherine is afraid of owls.

My heart is beating so fast.

That's enormous.

Do you know what, I am secretly petrified of owls, actually.

I can't believe how close you're getting to him.

-Aren't you worried he's just going to...?

-He won't do it.

I've got complete trust in him.

Oh! He touched me!

-The beak is for eating.

-No, it's the beak I worry about.

The talons are for killing.

Oh, Catherine, you'd better get dealing, and let's hope your asking price doesn't ruffle any feathers.

-Right. OK, Brian. Down to business.

-Surprise me.

-Are you ready?

-Yes.

-Wow!

-Now, what would you be prepared to pay?

I know what I would like for it.

I'd like to give you a £5 note.

I'd like to get a little bit more than that, if possible.

-How about 10?

-How about £6?

-How about £7?

-How about £6.50?

You are a one, aren't you?!

-How about £7?

-How about £6.50?

-£6.50.

-How can I refuse such a lovely, lovely man?

-You are gorgeous.

How's that?

Catherine makes over £6 from that sale and she is unleashing

a selling salvo because she goes on to sell her tortoiseshell

silver case for £230, which leaves her with a whopping £70 profit.

Now, our Charlie loves to mix business with pleasure.

So he's travelling to Bicester to indulge in two of his favourite

pastimes, golf and making a smashing profit.

After a couple of rounds to warm-up,

Charlie gets down to business with his friend, Richard, and sells

the painting he bought for a pound for £24, pocketing a £23 profit.

So, as we approach the halfway point of this savage selling struggle,

let's check on our pros' profits.

The Charmer has sold three items and bagged himself just over £85.

Cunning Catherine is slightly ahead.

She has sold five items and made just over £104 profit.

The wheeler-dealing must all end there. Our duelling dealers must sell everything else at auction,

a place where they are in the hands of the auctioneer

and totally powerless in negotiating prices.

Before the bidding begins, our competitors snatch a quick look at each other's wares.

Charlie's Archibald Knox.

I think, in my opinion, it looks like it has been spray-painted.

Miss Southon has bought a bit of Art Nouveau here.

I think Miss Southon will be losing money here.

Hee-hee-hee! She might lose quite a lot!

I'm really surprised that he didn't sell this privately because

I think it would have made more money there than it will today.

Here, you are looking at Roscoe's profit.

The webbing had gone at the bottom but I've had that done

in exchange for talking to the lady's local club.

I think that's a very fair deal. £20. Could make 50.

As part of the same agreement, Charlie has also

had his silver-plated casket restored, a total of about £50

worth of restoration work in exchange for his talk.

Now, it's the moment of truth, as bidding begins

and first up is Charlie's cabinet.

Edwardian satin wood two-door cabinet. Who will start me on £300?

-What?

-Start me at £300?

-Optimistic.

-Start me at £200?

-I can't stop laughing.

Has it got a bid?

-Oh, dear. There's no interest.

-£100.

-30 quid would be good.

-100 I'm bid.

100, we're off. 100, is there 110? Thank you, sir. 120.

120, looking for 130. Seems cheap to me. It will sell at 120.

Miss Southon. My world has fallen apart.

I'm really sorry but that is quite funny!

I think that's back to the drawing board, isn't it, Miss Southon?

Catastrophe for Charlie.

After fees, he has made a thumping loss of just over £179.

Cost 275, loss, 175.

Chin up, Charlie, your stool is up next

and surely, it must be a banker since it only cost £20.

47A is an early 19th century walnut-framed stool

with floral patterned tapestry.

Start me at £80. £50 to start. Is there 50 anywhere?

Kick us off at 30, then. 30 I am bid. At 30, and five.

Profit!

-Profit.

-Is there 40 anywhere?

-40.

-40, here.

-D

# Double your money, I'm gonna get rich. #

Selling at 40.

-It's a profit.

-Thank goodness for that.

Charlie makes a profit of over £11.

But, he's got no time to celebrate

because his chamber stick is up next and it's a big one.

He purchased it for just over £171,

and he spent £120 from his remaining kitty having it restored.

So, in total, this item has cost him over £291.

-At £200 then...

-Come on, squeeze it, woman, squeeze it.

GAVEL COMES DOWN

-200.

-Oh, dear. This is turning into an absolute nightmare for Charlie.

He's just lost £131.50 after fees.

Where does it go from here?

Well, Charlie, right over to Catherine, is the answer.

Next under the hammer is the compact she bought for nearly £23

and bidding has already reached £22.

-At 22. In the room at 22. 25.

-See?

-28. 30.

-Yes!

-35, 40. At £40.

-£40 for this rubbish?

-At £40. Yours.

-Well done.

Grrr!

Catherine's made over £8 profit, but she's not one to crow about it.

-So, Charlie Loss, I mean, Ross.

-Cruel!

This is the big one for me.

This is the moment when Southon comes down to Ross's level!

352 A, and early 20th century Arts and Crafts

white metal belt buckle.

-£100, somebody, a £100?

-Come on.

-100. Anyone want to come in at £80?

-Or 50?

-Try 30.

-Try a 30 pound bid to start.

-I think 20 would be better.

-30 I'm bid, and five anywhere?

-At 35 here on the internet.

-Internet!

-40 anywhere? At £35.

Come on. No.

Ooh, that's got to hurt, over £91 lost after fees.

This is turning into a disaster for both our competitors.

Charlie's next. He loses just over £2 on his casket.

Frankly, this has just been a national disaster!

What am I going to do? I can't bear it!

But Catherine makes a bigger loss when her silver bonbon dish,

purchased for £70, sells for just 40.

So, after fees, our lady makes a loss of £39.

And the losses just keeps on coming.

After fees, Catherine loses nearly £32 on her Belleek,

which plunges her even deeper into the red.

You are joking!

Can Charlie fare any better on his final item of the day,

-the barrel bought for nearly £14?

-Here we are, £20.

-£30, start me at 30.

-I've got 16 bidders on the net.

-Why is she asking for 30?

-20, I'm bid. Is there anywhere else?

-At £20 here.

-£20?!

-That a profit!

-It's a profit!

-It's profit, Charlie!

-It's a profit!

-I think he is in shock.

The Charmer's taken a profit of,

wait for it, £1.52. Come on!

Our proud profit-pursuers have taken a almighty beating at the auction.

But, before we find out just how badly they've been walloped, let's recap on their spending.

Both our experts started the contest with £1,000 of their own money

to spend on eight items each.

After all costs, Charlie has spent nearly £865.

And Cunning Catherine spent slightly more modestly at just over £653.

All of the money that Catherine and Charlie have made from today

will be going to a charity of their choice, so without further ado,

it's time to find out who is today's Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is champion.

-Charlie! Hello.

-How are you?

-Fine, thank you. And yourself?

Absolutely dreadful. I feel like I've been through a mincer, not an auction.

What about your private sales? How did you get on?

-Vera came up trumps.

-Oh, well she was good.

I took her to a private lady, it just spoke to her

and she had to buy it.

-Fantastic.

-That was my good success story. What about you?

Well, I had quite a few, actually, but one that was particularly good.

Do you remember my little owl pot stand which I bought for 40p.

-I went to the perfect place, an owl sanctuary.

-Good Lord!

I was scared to death of the owls but it was a fantastic place.

-Shall we have a look?

-I think we're both dreading this, aren't we?

-I'm dreading it more than you, Miss Southon. Three!

-Two!

-One!

-Ta-da! Oh, come on, Charlie, get it open!

-It won't open!

Open!

-Fantastic!

-That's why I didn't want to open it.

In the words of Charlie Loss, I mean, Ross, I am cooking on gas.

Terrible losses all round but Catherine emerges the victor.

Both experts have been building up their profit pots

all week over a series of challenges and it is now time to reveal

whether Catherine or Charlie will be this week's overall champion.

I've had huge fun. It's been a great, great competition.

-It's been a good experience.

-I'm not looking forward to this either.

-Ready?

-Steady.

-Go!

Yippee!

Yes!

A resounding victory for Cunning Catherine.

Both our experts have made fantastic profits

and all the money will be going to their chosen charities.

I'm delighted to have won this competition

and so proud to have raised so much money to give to my chosen charity,

which is Starlight, The Children's Foundation.

My chosen charity is the Matt Hampson Trust.

Matt Hampson is a remarkable guy.

A rugby player who broke his neck some years ago

practising for the England Under-21 team.

He is now a quadriplegic. He needs all the help he can get.

It has been a week of no-holds-barred combat.

Catherine and Charlie both put their money where their mouths are

and they've proved they can make a solid profit from antiques

when their own money is on the line.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd

E-mail [email protected]