Norfolk Bargain Hunt

We've got oceans of territory to cover today, so clamber on board and let's go Bargain Hunting.

Hello, and welcome to the Norfolk Showground in Norwich.

This place is usually home to agricultural events.

You get the odd circus popping in here occasionally, but today, it's all about antiques.

There's plenty to look forward to on today's programme.

The Blues are interested in something that's not for sale.

-How much is it?

-I'm not going to sell it.

Oh, right. Oh, right. Thanks for telling us about that!

The Reds seem to have struck it lucky in one particular tent.

Shall we have a sit down as well?

We'll bring the bits to you now.

And will the prediction of profits and losses at the auction come true?

So, who have we got today?

We've got Sadie and Richard, who are friends, for the Reds.

And we've got father and daughter, Natasha and Gary, for the Blues.

Welcome to Bargain Hunt.

How do you happen to know each other?

I've always known Richard. His parents owned the local post office

when I was a child and he would serve behind the counter and everybody just knew Richard.

Did you get your sweeties from him?

-I did indeed.

-Yes.

-Yes.

Lovely. You never forget those moments.

Going shopping first as a child.

-Blackjacks and stuff like that.

-Yeah.

Brilliant. And you're about to have a baby.

-I am indeed, yes.

-Brilliant.

Congratulations on that. When's your baby due?

-About six weeks.

-After our auction.

-After the auction.

Brilliant. Now, Richard, or should I say Richard Bailey MBE?

-Tell us about that experience.

-Well, that was fantastic.

It was a shock.

When the letter came from the Prime Minister,

I was emptying the mailbox and I straightaway opened it, read this letter, just couldn't believe it.

-I actually read it four times.

-Yes.

It was absolutely fantastic. I was really thrilled and very pleased.

And you got your MBE for what?

Well, mainly for the youth work that I do

in the area and also the community work that I've done over many years.

-I've been youth leader for 39 years now.

-Have you really?

We run football teams. We run from under-fives to under-16s.

And then in the summer we have the cricket.

And first week of the school holiday, we have a sports activity week.

-We run a very successful youth club and thanks to Sadie and her husband, Tony...

-Yes.

-..and Sharon, we have a very good team.

-Well, good for you.

And congratulations on getting your award.

Thank you very much.

-Very good luck to both of you.

-Thank you.

Now for the father and daughter combo.

Natasha, you're a bit of a thrill-seeker, aren't you?

Yeah. Last year I got into wakeboarding, which is basically

being pulled along on a board behind a boat or behind a cable.

-Really.

-Yeah. Myself and my partner sort of started that last year.

-This year I'm not going to be able to, because of having a baby.

-You too?

This is lovely.

We've got the Bargain Hunt creche going on.

You're a stallholder yourself, experienced in buying and selling?

Yeah. I regularly have a car-boot sale at our local car-boot area.

But it's not selling collectables or anything.

It's basically things that I no longer want or need.

-But the most that I've made is about £80.

-That's pretty good.

-Yes. It's not bad for a morning.

-Fine.

-And it's the ultimate recycling, which is good.

-Yes.

-Very green.

-Exactly.

-Now, talking about green, Gary, you're keen on your tortoises.

-Yeah. Very keen. Yes. We have ten giant tortoises.

-Ten giants?

Yeah. From all over the world.

Different species. Our main ones are Aldabran tortoises.

-Who?

-Aldabran tortoises.

-Oh, yeah.

-Which can grow up to about half a ton in weight.

-How many have you got?

-We've got ten, but we've only got two of the really giant ones.

And they're five years old.

And we can't pick them up now.

-No.

-They're too heavy.

-And still growing?

-They're still growing.

But tortoises aren't the only thing that you collect, are they, Gary?

No. I collect Swarovski crystal.

Been collecting that for about nine years now.

Have about 150 pieces.

You two enjoy a few unusual sports.

We've heard about that. Which is your favourite?

Jet skiing's very enjoyable.

-Jet skiing?

-Yeah.

Although it can be annoying to people on the beach.

-It's one of the most irritating things that anybody has to listen to.

-Yes, it is.

And there are a lot of people out there that shouldn't be on the skis.

-They're the people that you need off the water.

-Yes.

And responsible people back on.

Lovely. Well, I'm glad you enjoy that, Gary(!)

Got that bee out of the bonnet. Now, the money moment.

The money moment. The £300 money moment.

Here we go. £300. There we go. £300 apiece. You know the rules.

Your experts await. And off you go. And very, very, very good luck.

So, will it be the footy-mad Reds

who will give those exotic Blues a run for their money today?

The pressure is really on for our teams as they only have one hour

to find three items, although they do have £300 to blow on them.

So, with plenty of ground to cover, I'm sure they'll be grateful for some expert guidance.

Captain for the Reds is Jonathan Pratt.

And riding the waves with the Blues is Charles Hanson. Oh, dear!

-They've got their flag raised, as well.

-Wow.

Is it your flag, madam?

-What's the best price, sir, on it?

-I can do you 75.

-Yeah.

Yeah. I'm a very patriotic guy.

-Yeah.

-Born and bred.

-That's very interesting.

-Yeah.

-I quite like it, cos it's got nice social, military interest, of course.

-Yeah.

It's in fairly good condition and if it's hung well in the sale room, you could do quite well with that.

I think if it was a little bit cheaper.

Would you be interested in it, Tash? I think at the moment, the way things are,

the climate, everything else, people may rise to it a little bit.

Absolutely. Stand up for your country.

-We'll have a think, but thank you for your time.

-Thank you.

I'm quite interested in that. I don't know...

Sounds like they might be back for that.

Now, have the Reds spotted anything that's taken their fancy?

How's that, then?

-Scary Spice.

-Yeah.

Possibly not antique, that.

Is there no discount?

Hello, sir.

-We like your cane.

-Are you going to go for it?

Well, well, we've just seen it, actually.

Curiosity, how much would it cost to buy?

-We've got 75 on it and the best on it is 60.

-Right.

OK. And it's what, 1885, thereabouts?

-Yeah. It's fully hallmarked.

-Right. London hallmarked. Yes.

Nice, ebonised work.

Still got the original bottom on it, as well, which is nice.

Yes. Very, very nice. And the absolute best?

60.

60. Yeah. Yeah. It's nice. Nice example.

What do you think, Natasha?

What would it make at auction if we were to take it?

Well, obviously we're going back to wholesale, back to wholesale market.

My guide price would be 50, 70.

-Suits you.

-It does suit me and I love walking with sticks.

-Do you really?

-I've started making my own now.

They're made out of silver.

Yeah. That's very good.

It's a stylish cane. It's a good cane.

The absolute best, is that?

-That is the very, very best on it.

-OK. Shall we think about it?

Think about it, because that's one of my favourite pieces.

-Yeah.

-40 minutes to go.

-Fine.

-Plenty of time.

We can make a dash back, I think.

-Let's come back.

-Thanks for your time.

-Thank you.

-Appreciate it.

-Thank you.

Another item Gary is interested in.

The Blues seem to have found lots that they like, but they haven't actually parted with any cash yet.

That is the eagle which is on the parliament building in Berlin.

-Yes.

-It's bronze and the actual moulding was made by a watchmaker's.

Yeah. Good for you. Look after it.

How much is it?

I'm not going to sell it.

Oh, right. Oh, right. Thanks for telling us about that!

OK. Good to see you.

That's five minutes gone now. Thanks(!)

With almost half their time gone, our teams should think about buying something, sooner rather than later.

Now, what are those Reds up to?

Well, it weighs a blinking ton, which is actually quite a good sign.

Lacquered brass. A lacquered brass theodolite, or a level.

It's a difficult one, really. I'm no great expert when it comes to this sort of thing,

but it would be used as a surveyor's instrument.

What I would obviously be wary of is that you do get fakes of this sort of thing made in the Far East.

But I think the quality's too good.

-Would you reduce the price on it?

-I would.

-Like 80?

-I can't do 80, but I can do 85. 110 at the moment.

What do you think, Richard?

I was going to say to you, "What do you think?"

Well, she's come down by £25, so if it is really...

It's well made.

It's lacquered brass.

If you just have one in a sale, the internet generates the people.

I mean, you rarely get a collection of these at auction.

-Yeah.

-But £85, I think that's probably a good deal.

-Shall we try that one?

-OK. Thank you very much.

I don't think I'm as confident as I ought to be!

-SELLER:

-If it makes 200, I want a cut!

I hope for the Reds' sake it does make £200.

Wouldn't that be nice?

That's nice.

That's lovely. That's a really nice jug.

It's had some restoration and what we do is test it by doing this.

OK. So it's been restored there.

You might think, "My God, that's awful."

By rubbing your tooth on that part, you can see it's been restored.

-That's a nice jug.

-How do you know? What do you feel for?

-It's very soft.

-Oh, OK.

Whilst...

Got a coin on you at all?

-Yeah.

-You tap this side.

-Yeah.

-And that side there...

-is very soft.

-OK.

-That's from being restored.

-Oh, OK.

-But it's a nice jug. Is it yours, sir, this jug?

It's nice. ..No, it's priced at £58.

What's the best you'll take? £50.

1820-ish?

-Yes.

-Yeah.

-Like it? Not really.

-I don't.

-Don't you?

-No.

-Well, thanks for inviting me(!)

That's OK!

Well, at least she's honest.

But yet another item they haven't bought.

This team seem to know exactly what they like and, funnily enough, so do I.

This is my favourite find of the day. What do you think about it?

Technically, this thing is described as a chamber candlestick.

It's of a form that would have held a candle

that you'd have lit your way to bed, to your bed chamber.

Hence, chamber candlestick.

Chamber candlesticks only ever hold one candle.

Sometimes, these things were made in a small form like this, to hold a little taper candle, a small candle.

And that might be used on a desk where you need an open flame

to heat up sealing wax if you were sealing letters and so forth.

This little fellow, though, is neither.

It's not a chamber candlestick, nor is it a taper candlestick...

cos he's got a little secret.

What looks like a candle is actually made of metal

and I can unscrew it like that and reveal a hollow central tube

and that central tube goes into the base.

You'd fill the shaft with methylated spirits, screw this chap down...

like that. It would then have a bit of wick sticking out of the top

and use the thing for lighting cigars.

It was made in London in 1892

and I think it's probably worth, in a specialist sale, around £400 to £600.

But what would it cost you here today in the fair?

Well, it could be yours for £200.

So, strictly speaking, it's a bargain,

which is nice, isn't it?

Have our teams found anything as interesting?

Well, it looks like Sadie has.

What do you think? Is it a bit heavy?

Well, the key for these things is condition, and the glass is in good order.

You've got some scratches on the foot rim which essentially helps you say it's...

This is an object that would have been picked up quite often.

Picking up and putting down on a dressing table,

it's going to get wear on the foot rim. That's about right.

The other thing is, you often find that you get later mounts

put onto glass where they ground down something slightly larger.

But looking inside, obviously, it's got a thread and the glass seems to be in nice order inside.

I think it's quite original, really, and it hasn't been dropped in any way, obviously. There's no dents.

What do you think it'd make at auction?

Well, again, it's...

What's on there? 40?

65.

It's quite a pretty design.

Got little swags on the glass.

-What is your...?

-Yeah.

-50, I'd say.

£50 is the lady's best.

45?

Cos you quite like the idea?

Yes, a scent bottle with a silver top.

-Go on, then. 45.

-OK.

-Thank you.

-There we go.

Shall we have a sit down as well?

We'll bring the bits to you now.

Come on, Jonathan. This isn't the time to be sitting down.

You might be two items ahead of the Blues,

but don't relax too much, as they're going back to look at the flag.

OK, hi. Do you mind if I have a quick word with you?

-No.

-That's great. Just remind me, the provenance to this...

How do you know it's come from the Falklands?

This was on HMS Active and there is a pennant that comes with it.

-Right.

-It's here.

Right.

That's the pennant.

Oh, yes.

Which has HMS Active and there's the serial number on there.

Great. So it's all completely...?

-Yeah. I did a little research.

-Good.

We like it. You know we're very proud, of course.

-As you should be.

-Yeah. Quite right.

Yeah. But we're hoping we can perhaps negotiate a little.

-Now, your best price, sir, will be how much?

-Well, I'll do 75.

£75 for you, best.

I'm thinking more of 55, 60.

Erm, I'm afraid, no.

75 and I think you've still got some room on that one.

-70 and we have a deal?

-Go on, then.

-Yeah. 70.

-Shake on it. Shake on it.

-Thank you very much.

-Thanks, sir.

Not bad work, Gary, although it has taken you 35 minutes to buy your first item.

The Blues banked the cane earlier and, surprise, surprise, they're back for a second look.

All importantly, Natasha, we've got here the sets of hallmarks.

-There we've got the all-important lion passant to confirm it's sterling silver.

-Yeah.

There, Gary, is our hallmark for London, the leopard's head.

And the all-important date letter which is, what, circa 1890.

1885, that one.

1885, so it's a good, late Victorian and it's ebonised stone colour.

It was popular at that time, of course.

Would you take 55?

I will take another £2 off. I'll meet you 58 and that'll be me done.

It hasn't been through the sale room cos I bought it privately, that one.

How about 57.50, then?

I'll do you 57.

Lovely. 57, then? Yeah.

The female touch here. The female touch.

Oh, Natasha, you do drive a hard bargain, love.

But that extra pound at auction could make all the difference.

So it's 2-2 to our teams and 20 minutes remaining on the clock.

The Reds have £170 left, the Blues have just a few pounds more - 173.

The jug isn't Natasha's cup of tea, but she seems to trust

Charles' opinion and the Blues are back, weighing it up.

I think it's a really nice jug.

John and Ruth Wild.

Don't know who they were, but it doesn't matter. It's 190 years old.

OK. It's printed,

Gary, and hand-enamelled. "God speed the plough".

Obviously made, I think, to commemorate a wedding

in the 1820s, so again, back to five years after Waterloo.

You know, 15 years before Queen Victoria came on the throne.

Great history. Have a handle.

-There's ten minutes to go.

-I've already said I don't like it, but...

I think it would probably do well.

At the end of the day, Mr Wonnacott, you know, Dad, you might tell me,

son, it's a bad buy, but I like this and I think it will make a profit.

At £50, it might be, Charles.

Don't be too hard on yourself, lad.

The Reds started off so well.

Now there's less than ten minutes left and still one item to find.

Luckily for them, they've got £170 to blow on it.

I like the colours.

Exactly. That's a nice bit of decorative glass. You like the colours.

-Yeah.

-Is there a problem with it?

Just twist it back or was it how the light caught it?

-It's quite modern, though, isn't it?

-Yeah.

-It is modern. Yeah.

I actually quite like this type of coloured glass, personally.

-Yeah.

-It's probably made out of white glass.

We need to ask...Dad?

-Yes!

-How much is it?

-£25.

-£25.

-I'll do it for 20 quid.

You can do it for £20. Not a lot of money.

Can you actually put something in there?

What is that?

-There's a few lines going across here.

-No.

-No.

Little bit of a chip. I think it's been polished out slightly. 15?

-15.

-Do you think we're going to make anything on it if it's not perfect?

Cos there are a few lines going across it as well.

That's just part of the body. That's just the way the colour is done.

That's not a flaw in itself.

There's a little bruise there, which I think...

Yes, you know...

12 quid?

Toss you a coin. 12 or 15.

Go on, then.

It's not a special coin out the van. Here we go.

Yeah. Heads I win, tails you lose.

Can we use that after?

Let's call it 10 or 15.

Call it 5 or 20.

Oh, blimey. We have to buy it, then, don't we?

-You call.

-You call. Yeah. Go on.

-Heads.

-Heads.

Tails.

-15 quid.

-Never mind, then.

Even though they lost the coin toss, Sadie worked her charm

on the stallholder and convinced him to sell it to them for £12.

No. It's not the half-time whistle.

It's full-time. Game's over.

Stop the shopping.

Jonathan isn't so certain about the theodolite,

but Sadie weighed it up and decided £25 off was a good deal.

They paid 85.

Just a few minutes later, in the same tent,

Sadie spotted the scent bottle and again,

got a bit extra knocked off and it was hers for £45.

With just five minutes remaining,

Jonathan recommended some glass.

And with Sadie's help, they knocked the price down to £12.

Well, that was fun, wasn't it?

A real riot. Now, you cantered round to get two items from one stall in the first half an hour.

-We did. Yeah.

-Very proud of you, Dad.

-We were lucky.

All that training, Richard. Sadie, which is your favourite piece?

-The perfume bottle.

-Yes. What about you, Rich?

-The theodolite.

-Your favourite.

Which piece for the biggest profit, Sadie?

-I hope the theodolite.

-And you agree with that?

-I would agree.

OK. Fine. We'll hope for the best there.

You spent £142. I'd like £158 of leftover lolly, please.

£158, which is an awful lot of dosh.

-I don't understand what's going on here.

-A bit of shrapnel.

But straight over to you, Jonathan.

-Thank you.

-Are you feeling kind of confident?

I've seen the right place to go to.

-You have confidence?

-Yes.

Well, we look forward to the fruits of your labour.

-As long as it's just my labour.

-Yes.

-OK.

-Talking about labour...

We'll skip this subject!

-OK.

-Very good luck, Jonathan. See what I mean? Really dodgy, this.

Anyway, let's check up what the Blues bought, eh?

Both Gary and Nattie came over all patriotic,

so let's hope the bidders get behind them at the auction.

They bought the flag for £70.

Gary was instantly taken with the cane

and with Natasha's help, they got the price down to £57.

Like all their purchases today,

the jug was also something they spotted earlier.

It wasn't to Natasha's taste, but they went with it anyway, for £50.

You were very methodical in your walk around the fair and decisive,

which is admirable, and you managed to get inside

before it started to rain too, which is very clever.

-Did you have a great time, Natasha?

-I had a great time.

-Was it good for you, Dad?

-Yeah. Very, very good.

-Which is your favourite piece?

-I like the cane.

-The cane?

-Yeah.

-And what about you, Gary?

I like the cane, yes, very much so.

We're into a flagellation party. What fun!

And which piece is going to bring the biggest profit, do you think?

The cane will bring the biggest profit.

It's ridiculous.

-The biggest profit, Dad?

-The flag.

-Oh, the flag.

-Yes.

-Ah, we've got a change of heart here. Excellent.

-You spent £177, yes?

-Yes. We did.

I'd like £123 of leftover lolly.

Thank you very much. £123.

-What are you going to do with all that money?

-I'm feeling broody.

-Broody?

-With Natasha's forthcoming events,

I'm looking for something with a certain baby feel about it.

Cute, you know. Cuddly, and all of that.

What's this hip movement that goes with this cuddly arrangement?

I don't quite follow that.

-It's quite groovy.

-It happens all the time.

-Does it?

-Yes.

-Lovely. I should stop while you're ahead.

Go off and make a serious purchase, Charles.

Now, do you fancy a nice little day trip? Then follow me.

Felbrigg Hall in Norfolk.

Converted from a Tudor building in 1620 to a fine Jacobean manor house.

The south front, seen here with its flat roof and octagonal brick chimneys, are typical of the period.

The inscription, Gloria Deo In Excelsius - Glory Be To God In The Highest -

is also familiar for the period and region of Norfolk.

The biting North Sea wind has made its presence felt, exposing pebbles, stones, brick, plaster, flint.

In fact, all manor of materials.

But that doesn't stop the place being utterly charming.

But if I take a walk round to the west wing, it looks like a completely different house.

The Windham family didn't feel the necessity to tie themselves to any one particular style.

I can't wait to have a look inside.

Here we go.

This extremely deep doorway connects the original

17th-century part of the house with the extension

and leads to the dining room.

The first thing that grabs you in this space is the colour scheme.

This lovely, soft, gentle, lilac colour, which is thought to be original.

This space, when built, would have been relatively unadorned.

But the plasterwork, all these exotic and delicate

plaster mouldings, were all added in 1752

by the celebrated plasterer, Joseph Rose.

One of the best effects created by Rose is the integration

of no less than eight oval mirrors running around the lower part of the dining room.

Nine-tenths of the houses that you visit have mirrors in dining rooms, but they're separate from the wall.

Here, Rose has created a plaster frame that looks exactly the same

as a giltwood one, but actually, it's simply a protuberance from the wall itself.

What do you think about this fireplace surround? Handsome, isn't it?

Designed specifically for this space by James Paine, the architect.

The focal point of fireplaces like this is the keystone, or tablet, that sits in the middle,

and here we've got, most appropriately for a dining room, a rather dozy-looking lion

with these delicious grapes spewing out of his mouth.

Appropriate, of course, because in this room, an awful lot of wine would have been consumed.

The Windham family had incredible taste.

The big question today is, will our teams be displaying any taste over at the auction?

Very, very flat, Norfolk.

Well, most of it is, but here in Diss, it's extremely hilly and we've come to see

Elizabeth Talbot at TW Gaze, auction house extraordinaire.

-Very nice to be here.

-Thank you.

-Our Red team, Sadie and Richard, they went with this theodolite.

-Yes.

Actually, it's no more a theodolite than I am, is it?

It looks like a theodolite.

It does. It is a 20th-century and very late 20th-century reproduction of the real thing.

And we do see quite a lot of these now.

People must be aware of them,

-because if you are untoward, you don't know you're buying the wrong thing.

-Yes.

What do you think it's going to bring, or might bring?

-Well, we've put an estimate of £100 to 150 on it.

-Oh, have you?

Oh, well, that's very generous.

No. £85 they paid.

Next is something completely different.

A little silver-topped scent bottle.

Forever popular, silver-topped bottles, aren't they?

They are. This is not cut. This is sort of a moulded glass piece.

Very pretty item and to have a screw lid rather than a hinged lid is quite unusual too. Condition is nice.

-Pretty and elegant.

-Like you.

I'm lost for words now.

Don't worry. Just blush. That's fine.

So we've put an estimate of £48 to £58 on that.

48 to 58. They paid £45, so they'll be delighted if they turn a small profit on that, which is great.

And now we swim over very quickly to the Isle of Wight,

which is a long way from Norfolk, and we got this little turquoise...

-The medina.

-The medina glass vase.

Is that something that lights people up here?

There is a collector's market for that ware.

It isn't 100% perfect, but it is a good colour.

Nice size. Our estimate is £15 to £25.

-Well, they only paid £12, which is cheap enough, isn't it?

-Yes.

It depends on what happens with the theodolite.

And just in case we catch the wrong angle with that, we'd better go and have a look at the bonus buy.

So, Sadie and Richard, you spent £142. You gave £158 to Jonathan,

who has your bonus buy. Let's have a look.

That's hideous. Oh, that is awful.

-Isn't that fantastic?

-That is really atrocious.

-Sorry.

-Oh...right.

We have a stuffed fish in a case.

It's not that old, but it's nicely presented. It's in good condition

and it's very decorative for the people who like this sort of thing.

Are there many people out there that like stuffed fish these days?

Well, let me tell you first of all how much I paid for it.

-£35.

-You were done.

-Not a lot of money.

That's interesting.

-A shark.

-Thank you very much.

-It's a bit of a red herring, I suppose.

-Here we go.

-The only fish joke I can come out with.

-Well, on that happy note...(!)

Cos they obviously love it.

Why don't we find out, at least for the audience at home,

what the auctioneer thinks about the old fish case.

So, Elizabeth, here comes supper.

-Thank you, Tim.

-How does that grab you, seriously?

It doesn't grab me at all, I'm afraid.

This, to me, is the fishy version of the theodolite.

-I personally think this is a reproduction bogus piece.

-Do you?

It's in a new case with new backing, which automatically makes me think

that it's not a good piece for collectors.

Well spotted, Elizabeth, cos that would be so easy not to reckon.

Anyway, for only £35,

which is what Jonathan Pratt paid for this as a bonus buy,

is there any prospect, if it's a modern reproduction of it, making any sort of profit, do you think?

-We put a £20 to £30 estimate on it, as a decorative item.

-Hmm.

Now, that's it for the Reds.

Moving on seamlessly to the Blues, Natasha and Gary.

Their first item, I think, is most interesting, this Union Jack.

What about that for a historically-interesting flag?

-Full-sized flags do sell quite well.

-Hmm.

Good condition. It has its pennant which goes with it.

So, we have hopes that it will make between £80 to £120.

£80 to £120. Well, that would be brilliant, because they paid £70.

-That's fair.

-Yeah. What about the cane?

The cane is late Victorian, it dates from the late 1880s,

silver-topped, fairly straightforward,

but it is pretty. The silver is quite well repused.

It's fairly straightforward. Think about £100, £150 on that one.

-They only paid 57.

-Oh, right.

So, that was a complete bargain.

Brilliant. And what about the lovely agricultural jug?

Just the place to sell that, here in Norfolk, I guess.

It's a lovely piece of pearlware

and it's so well decorated, front and back.

And if your surname happens to be Wild,

the family that's got the connection, so much the better.

-I think that's a super piece.

-Yes.

And we hope that it will find a happy home between 120 and £180.

Gosh. £50 is all they paid.

So they could triple their money on this. That is exciting.

We're feeling a flush coming on.

Well, before we get too flushed, let's check out their bonus buy.

Natasha and Gary, you managed to spend 177, which is pretty good going. You gave Charles £123.

He's struggling there with this bonus buy. Let's see what you bought, Charles.

I like to spend money, but thinking of Natasha's forthcoming baby and all of that, I've got...

Look at this.

It's different. It's interesting. It's quite speculative.

What I've bought is a Chinese softwood baby's bath tub.

And it will date to about 1890, 1910, in this wonderful

sort of red lacquered type of enamel and I quite like it. What do you think?

I think it'll probably do quite well if someone put plants in it.

Put a baby, Natasha.

A baby's not going in that.

-Sorry.

-"My baby's not going in there.

"My baby's not going anywhere near that thing."

It has a wonderful, historic interest and I wonder

how many babies have been in this bath tub, years ago.

-It cost me £40.

-£40.

So, hopefully, Gary, it's going to make, you know, £60 or £70.

I really hope so, Tim.

Yes. Well, we all hope so, Charles.

Having listened to that spiel.

Course, you don't have to take it.

You may decide to reject it, but for the benefit of the audience at home,

let's find out what the auctioneer thinks about Charles' baby bath.

Now, the big question is, Elizabeth...

would you be bathing one of your babies in this fellow?

I wouldn't now. They're too big.

I've never seen the like. I think this is quite charming, actually.

But not as a bath, but as just a wonderful,

decorative planter. I like the colour.

I like the mellow nature of it. It's quite rustic. Not too big.

-Lots of positives.

-Yeah.

And so we've estimated at £40 to £60, because I think for that money

you couldn't really achieve a similar decorative item elsewhere.

Charles Hanson rates it. He paid £40.

-Oh, well, I think that's fine.

-You're putting a profitable estimate on it.

-What more can one ask?

-Absolutely.

-Well, actually, I do have a question to ask you.

-Yes?

How are you feeling about today?

I'm all geared up for it, Tim, yes.

I love it when a woman is geared up.

So, team, how you feeling? Sades?

I wouldn't say I'm overly confident.

-Are you not?

-No. Hopeful.

Hopeful. Well, hope springs eternal, doesn't it? What about you, Richard?

Anxious, I think is the word to describe it. Yeah.

We haven't got a lot of confidence, really, have we? No. We'll see.

First up, then, is the theodolite and here it comes.

We have the 20th-century brass theodolite.

Start me at 80.

£80, look.

50 to start, surely. Come on. It's a good piece there at 50.

50 bid. Thank you. 50, I have. I'll take 5. 55. 60. 5.

65, in the gallery. At 65 now. Where's 70?

At £65 only. Any advance on 65?

65. That's not so good.

Could be worse, though. Minus £20.

Well done, Jonathan. Good. Now, your second one.

The crystal glass silver-topped scent bottle with a screw stopper.

I'll start at just £28. £28 bid.

At 28. 30. 2.

35. 38. 40. 2. 45. 48.

And 50. 5.

55 bid. 55. 55. With me at 55 now.

60, anywhere else?

At 55. Am I missing anybody?

At 55. And 60. 5.

Yes? 70 and I'm out. 70. It's now in the room at 70.

Any advance on £70?

70 takes that, thank you.

That's absolutely super, isn't it?

£170. That's plus £25.

Lot 222. We have the medina turquoise ground lugged vase, there.

Little bit of damage.

Interest shown. High start at £12(!)

£12 bid on the medina. At 12.

15. 18. 20. 2.

25. 28.

That is my item(?)

It's exciting. 30 bid.

32. You'll regret it. 35. A new bid at 38, with me.

40 and I'm out. 40.

Gentleman's bid, 40.

I'll take 2. 42, new bidder.

45. 48.

48 is further back.

At 48. You coming back, madam?

At £48. At 48.

At 48 further back and selling...

Well, isn't that brilliant? That's plus £36.

You've tripled your money.

That is really good. So, £36. You were £5 up before.

You are plus £41. How good is that?

It's marvellous. Now...

-Make a decision on your fish.

-You can bank the £41, yes, or you could go with the fish which costs £35.

Are you going to go with the bonus buy or not? Quickly.

-No.

-No. No. That's the decision. You're with that, Richard?

I support her wholeheartedly.

Right. We have support here.

And we are not going with the bonus buy.

-But we're going to sell it anyway.

-Yes.

-And here it comes.

-You hope.

Lot 226.

This we have catalogued as a composition of a roach.

Make up your own mind. I don't think it's as old

as it's purporting to be.

As you see it. Decorative item. Start me at 20.

£20, then. 20 bid. Thank you. 20, I have. Straight in at 20.

I'll take 2. For nothing, at 20.

Good piece of fish there. 20.

For 20 only. Any advance on £20...?

-£20.

-OK. Well, there we go.

Minus £15.

I think our decision was...

-Well done. Well done.

-Even if I do say so myself.

-OK.

-I built you up for that.

-Well done.

You banked your £41 and you have hung on to your £41,

which could be a winning score, but don't tell the Blues, all right?

When you see the Blues, don't mention...

I'm just happy that we're in credit.

So, do you know how the Reds got on?

-I have no idea.

-You didn't talk to them?

-No. No. They wished us good luck.

-Did they?

Well, that's very gentleman and ladylike to do that. Rather typical, I think, yes.

First lot up is the flag and here it comes.

Good luck to you.

Lot 245 now. The union flag here,

with a provenance linked, apparently, to the Falklands War in HMS Active.

I have interest on the sheet shown.

And I start here at £12. £12.

Bid at 12. £12, I have.

£12. 15. 18. 20. 22. 25. 28. And 30. 2.

35 and 38. 40. 42.

45 and I'm out.

At £45. Am I missing anybody?

At £45. Are you all done...?

-Oh, no!

-£45. That's bad luck.

-Oh, dear!

-That's five off 50. You're minus £25.

-Yeah.

-Oh, dear.

Now, your cane, Gary.

We have the late Victorian ebonised cane with silver top.

Start me at 50.

£50 on the cane.

An elegant piece there at £50, with its silver top.

30, I'll take, surely, to start.

30 bid, sir. Thank you. 30, I have, I'll take 2.

It's £30 only.

32. 35. 38. 40. 2. 45.

48. And 50. 5. 55 in the back corner.

60, new bidder.

65. And 70. 70, with the lady.

Both gentlemen are out. It's 70 at the front now.

I'll take 5 again. At 70.

It's a front bid. Any advance?

£70. Thank you.

That is plus £13...which means, overall, you're minus £12 still.

Now, your jug.

Lot 247.

We have a 19th-century Staffordshire pottery farmer's arms jug.

Dedicated to John and Ruth Wild.

50 to start. £50.

Anybody in? Come on. 30's a low start here.

30, going backwards. 32.

35. 38. And 40. And 2.

45. 48. And 50. 5.

Come on, one more.

Where's Mr and Mrs Wild?

55 at the front. 60?

-Come on.

-At 55, now. Where's 60?

At 55, all done...?

-Dear, oh, dear.

-I could just cry about that.

£55. You made a £5 profit on it.

There's nothing the matter with that,

but you are still minus £7.

How can that be minus £7?

But there you go. It's minus £7.

We can't be miserable. What are you going to do about the baby's bath?

-Shall we go for it?

-Yeah, what have we got to lose?

-I don't know so much, cos minus £7 could be a winning score.

-Could be.

-All right?

-Let's go. Let's go.

-We're going.

Yeah? Gary, you happy with this?

Yeah. Definitely.

We're going with the bonus buy. Here it comes.

Lot 251. The unusual Chinese softwood painted baby's bath.

Start me at £30, for this.

£20. Come on. £20 on this. 10 bid only.

At 10 bid only. 10 I have. I'll take 12. 12. 15.

18. 20. 2?

No. 20 above. At 20 above. I've lost the gentleman.

22, new bidder. 22 is now in blue.

I've lost you above. Any advance on £22?

£22. I'm afraid you've accumulated another £18 worth of debt,

which means, overall, you are minus £25. Don't despair, though.

-It could be a winning score.

-Yes, yes.

You don't know how the Reds got on

and all will be revealed in a moment.

Swings and roundabouts, eh? You chaps been talking to one another?

No communication, so you don't know who's ahead or who's behind?

-No.

-No. Well, I have to reveal

that the team behind by quite a chalk are the Blues.

Oh!

LAUGHTER

Sorry.

You guys have been really unlucky, because you were going to be walking on air today, right?

Actually, curiously enough, as it's turned out, it's finished up as being minus £25.

Now, that's no fault of yours or the goods,

it's just the way it works sometimes.

And we've loved having you on the programme, though.

We think you're like two peas in a pod, you two, father and daughter.

Natasha, we wish you all the very best, darling...

-Thank you, Tim.

-..with your baby.

-Very good luck.

-Thank you.

-Super. Now, the Reds.

The victors today.

-I know. That's a surprise.

-I know.

Did you have no confidence in me?

I'm going to give you £41.

How good is that?

£41. Go straight down to the shop and buy another pram.

£41 all round. Very good form. We've had great fun. Join us soon for some more Bargain Hunt. Yes?

ALL: Yes!

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