Liverpool 17 Bargain Hunt

We're at the home of one great British institution,

the Grand National!

Time for another! Let's go Bargain Hunting!

Today, Aintree swaps runners and riders for wheelers and dealers!

But will our teams go the full distance?

Will our teams stumble at the first hurdle?

Let's go and find out.

Our runners today...

10-1 shot Kerry is lively and prone to overenthusiastic outbursts...

I'm quite excited about that, really.

At 40-1, John is rank outsider

but will show form when the prize is high.

Would you like it gift-wrapped, sir?

Please, yes. If that was possible.

Paul is the only grey in the field.

His 30-1 odds reflect he's easily led astray.

Would you be willing to take a risk on that, Henry?

-I would if you could get it for less.

-OK.

-Shall we see if we can do a deal on it?

Hot favourite is Gary,

quick out of the stalls, but can peak too early.

We don't want to be racing and buy something stupid in the last five minutes.

So let's get them under starter's orders!

-Now, John, how did you two meet?

-We met in a bar about five years ago through mutual friends.

Yeah, we just share the same interests,

and we go to gigs and stuff together, and we've just become friends since then, really.

-Now, Kerry, you run a dance group.

-Yeah.

-Is that a strenuous activity?

I wouldn't say it was strenuous, it's more fun.

But, yeah...it's a dance troupe called the Debauchery Dolls...

-Oh, Lord!

-Basically I audition them and put them together and we dance at local events,

doing things like acrobatic pole dancing, fire-eating, and things like that.

Have you got any clothes on at the time?

Not myself...but they do.

Oh, I see. You don't wear clothes, but they do.

-I do! I don't do any of the dancing.

-You don't? You just organise it?

-Yeah. Organise it and hire them out.

I think you're pretty cute, Kerry. I think you're going to do very well today. Now, John...

-it's just as well you're wearing red today, yes?

-Yeah, I happen to be a Liverpool fan,

always have been, born and bred, it's a family thing. So, yeah, I go to the games.

-The family have got a season ticket, so I go to the games, yeah.

-You take it quite seriously?

-Yeah.

And you're looking forward to today. Are you going to win?

-Definitely, yeah.

-Oh, definitely. That's fighting talk. Anyway...good luck.

-You look scared, you boys.

-Petrified.

-Excellent.

-Trembling.

Paul, you're brothers but you're also great friends.

We are indeed. We're very, very good friends, and we've got closer as we've got older.

Gary was pretty much like a father figure to me in my early years,

-and I didn't like him too much then, he was a bit of a...hindrance.

-Was he strict with you?

-Oh, extremely, extremely.

-Bossy?

-He laid the law down.

-Bossy?

-Very bossy.

-Difficult?

-Keep going! All those sort of words, yeah! That's him!

-Now, Gary, you're pleased to be in blue.

-Very much so.

In this city you're either red or blue, there's no in-between!

Yeah, brilliant.

-Now, you incorporate your PR campaign for Liverpool in your job, don't you?

-Yes.

I set up my own company called Heart Of The City.

Basically I wanted to do a good PR job for the city and bring people in and show them the real Liverpool,

-so I'll take them round certain parts of Liverpool...

-So it's like a glorified tour guide?

-Yeah...

-But more.

-I like to look after people and show them what we Scousers are really like.

This is the friendliest city, it's a great city,

and there's a lot more to it, and I love meeting people.

-So, presumably, Gary, you'll have no problem in winning Bargain Hunt today?

-Not at all.

That's rather what I thought you were going to say! Now, the money moment, £300 apiece, there you go.

£300. £300. You know the rules. Your experts await and off you go!

And very, very good luck.

Cor! What great teams!

And every great team needs a great trainer.

Today we have them in the form of two young bucks...

for the Reds...

and for the Blues...

Here we are at the race course.

- Thanks, Jonathan. Best of luck. - Thank you very much.

- Let's hope we don't fall at the first hurdle. - Thank you very much!

Come on, let's get out of here!

Oh, dear, Henry! I hope your advice isn't as lame as your jokes!

-Right, guys, our hour has started.

-Yeah.

Fill your boots, have a look around. See what you can find. Anything that's interesting, point it out.

-What are your tactics for today?

-We need to get two good-quality products and something quirky.

-Let's go inside, I think, actually.

-Yeah.

-You've got to start somewhere.

-Yeah, why not there?

-This is like painted wood.

-How much are they asking for it?

-150.

-But it is period. And a bit of damage that doesn't really matter so much.

-It gives it character.

-It shows it's original, that's the thing.

You can see there's a few blemishes on the chrome, the glass...

everything about it is original. And that's important.

It's quite a versatile table. It's functional, it's good-looking, but it's a lot of money!

A lot of our money, yeah!

Let's stick to our anticlockwise route.

Well, you've got £300, Jonathan.

Boys, have you got expensive tastes too?

£445.

-Yeah, that exceeds our...

-Next stall!

-£100.

-That's a wee bit too much.

-Too much.

-How much is it?

-That's 120, that.

Er...come on...

That'll be a yes, then?

"London & North Eastern Railway". Things like this railway iron are quite good.

Train plates, nameplates off engines make thousands of pounds,

and there are people who kit places out completely with this sort of thing.

What would you take for it?

-65.

-That's all right.

The gentleman says we can have it for £65.

And it's original, it's not fake. Cos there's lot of fakes, but that's original.

Would you take 50?

Well, if it's 65, right, we're going to split the difference and say 60.

I would say there is a fair chance of that making quite a bit.

I would say that. I sell this kind of thing quite a lot.

With the auction house being near Crewe which is massive for railways...

-Yeah.

-Yes.

-We'd have a lot of punt, maybe.

-Exactly.

That would be quite good, and I think there's money in it.

-I'd be surprised to see it lose.

-I'm quite excited about that, really.

-Shake the man's hand!

- OK. - Would you like it gift-wrapped, sir?

Please, yes. If that was possible.

I'd just settle for a profit, eh, John?

Thank you very much indeed. Hope you're happy with that. Bye.

But at least you're on track. Now, boys, have you finally found something within budget?

-Obviously, I think the terminal on the spoon suggests it's Indian.

-Yeah.

Almost certainly silver.

The Indians tended not to assay their particular items.

What's the gold round the edges, that sort of tinting?

-It looks like it's been gilded at some stage.

-Gilded...

-Yeah.

So obviously it was quite a common thing to do, really,

to replicate gold. Do you like it?

-I like it, but it depends on...

-55. Obviously, he'd have to come down...

-I think at auction you'd probably get sort of £30-£40 for it.

-Really?

That's the level we'd have to be looking at, really.

-What's the best price you'd do on this?

-40 would be the best.

-Not 35?

-I mean, you've got to really like it, I think.

-I like the handle. The handle's unusual, isn't it?

-Could we have it for 37?

-I'll check with the boss.

-I like your style.

- Yeah, OK. - We can do it for 37.

-£37.

-That's a decent deal.

Teams, you're neck and neck after the first fence.

-This is lovely. What sort of period is this?

-Deco, isn't it?

-Well, it's very, very late deco.

-Is it?

-I'd say it's probably into the... it's almost... probably into the war period.

-Yeah.

If we can get something like this for a lot less money than that, we will stand to make a profit.

But it's the right idea, certainly.

We've got a silver-plated chamber stick with the etched-glass shade.

-I have to say, as an auctioneer, I haven't seen one with a shade before.

-Right.

The only thing I would say is they're the sort of things

that are fundamentally useless in today's society with electricity.

Fundamentally useless? In that case, give me two!

-But, you know, it's different.

-Oh, well, Blues, at least you're sticking together!

Unlike the Reds who've lost their expert!

-Have you seen Jonathan?

-No, he seems to have disappeared.

-I'll go and find him.

-Yeah, go and find him.

Ah! There you are, Jonathan!

Happily oblivious!

£50. It's not out of the way, but... Shall we have a look at it?

I thought it was fundamentally useless, Henry!

This is electroplated, so what it is it's silver-plate that's fused on to an alloy or copper, for example...

-Hence the colour.

-Hence the colour... And very often, when it's polished,

it exposes the copper beneath.

-Well, what can I say about it?

-No hallmarks?

-Well, it won't be because it's electroplated.

So...it's a bit sort of Wee Willie Winkie style, isn't it really? But unusual.

Would you be willing to take a risk on that, Henry?

-I would if you could get it for less.

-OK.

-Shall we see if we can do a deal on it?

-Have a word with the stallholder.

-Excuse me?

You've got this down as 50, but would you be interested in taking £30 for that?

40's the lowest I can go on that.

What about 35?

I'll do you 37...37.

-What do you reckon, Paul?

-I think it's well worth risking.

I like it, it's different. And as you say, Henry, you haven't seen it with this on before, have you?

-It's quirky enough.

-36?

-37's final.

-I think 37's OK.

-OK, 37.

Not the last of the big spenders, are you, Blues?

But at least that's two for the pot.

Looking at this piece of... it's presumably... is it hallmarked silver?

Can't see anything on it, but I'm pretty sure it is. Go on, you look.

-Thanks very much.

-I really like that.

-That's a piece... these are sort of jaspers,

like stones from the Cairngorms, in silver, and then you've got this Isle of Man motif.

I've not seen one with that motif on. They always tend to do rather well at auction.

There's a bit of damage there, isn't there, on that little chap...

No there's not. It's just the silver is patternated.

I think the patternation of it makes it look worse than it actually is.

I think really brightly cleaned up, it will look much nicer.

-Hello, kids, how are you getting on? All right?

-Well, one under the belt so far, Tim.

-Are you pleased?

-I see you've got some lipstick on your cheek.

-Yeah, sadly it's not yours!

-Mr Wonnacott...

-I've only had 14 kisses so far this morning.

-It's rather good, isn't it? Are all Liverpool people like this, a bit fresh?

-Oh, yeah!

-Are they?

-How are you getting on, Jonathan?

-Well, I've only had the one kiss this morning!

-No, seriously, down to business. What have you bought?

-I just picked this up.

-I know you're not supposed to guide us, but Scottish Cairngorms, Isle of Man...

-Isle of Man.

I think the patternation makes it look worse than it actually is.

-But if they were resold...

-Do you fancy that?

-I think it's a nice thing.

The legs of Man. When was the last time you saw a legs of Man one on a Scottish pebble?

-I'm not going to let you convince us, Tim.

-I'm not allowed to say anyway...

-£20 doesn't seem a lot, does it? Do you like it?

-I love it.

-What do you think, John?

-Yeah, again with the local interest.

-You've got a lovely team here.

-I have, I've been lucky today.

-I can't influence you, so I'll shove off...

-Shove off!

-Good luck!

-See you.

-Where's the lady gone?

-She's back there.

-To be cheeky, would you take 15?

-15?

-Shall we go for it? Number two under our belt!

-Yeah.

-We'll take that, then, please. Thank you.

Wonderful. Thank you very much.

-Oh, this is easy, isn't it?

-Yeah!

-I'm pleased you're so confident, Jonathan!

-Good, good, good!

-I mean, this is luxury.

-Yeah, we're cruising!

And the nice thing is there's quite a nice selection of stuff,

-so it's not that difficult to find things.

-Yeah.

-We're doing all right. I think we're doing really well.

We're still OK with time, so...

Plenty of dolls, but no Debauchery Dolls!

BUGLE BLAST

-Is that how it's meant to sound?

-Yes.

Good! Everyone's confidence is brimming over,

so it's my turn to check out the fair.

I feel something tribal coming on, don't you?

I mean, how good is this? Here, in the middle of Aintree Racecourse,

we've got an ethnographic dealer who's brought his incredible stock with him,

and my favourite trio out of what he's brought us today include these three fellows...

Each of them has got a typical trumpet-formed base, look.

This one's pierced with a hole through the middle of the stem.

That would be so you could put a leather thong through the hole and cart it around with you.

Because if you're in a tribe, and it's a tribe that moves from place to place, you travel light.

You haven't got much furniture. You want to be able to carry things easily.

And this is an absolute essential.

This piece is at least 50-100 or 150 years old.

But what would these three things have been used for?

Well, you haven't got any furniture,

but you might have an elaborate hairdo.

And for the ladies who are watching,

they know that an elaborate hairdo is a very precious possession!

And if you haven't got a bed and you have to lie on the floor,

what you're not going to want to do is to mess up your elaborate hairdo!

So this is actually a native pillow.

This shaped bar at the top is designed to go round the back of your neck,

so that when you're lying on the floor,

your head is elevated and your elaborate hairdo will not be disturbed.

The neck pillow.

And they come from Namibia. What are they worth?

Well, not an arm and a leg, just a pain in the neck!

That's £100 each to you and me.

And talking of pain, time to rein in the fun and push on to the finish.

Maybe something there.

-More pressure. We bought the first thing in the first 10 minutes...

-We've been cruising too much.

We have, but there is so much to see...

Where's your confidence now, then, Jonathan?

-We don't want to be racing and buy something stupid in the last five minutes.

-No.

-You like the '50s.

-Yeah.

-There's quite a lot of that sort of thing around here, that retro stuff.

It would be quite nice to find something that's your choice, yeah?

So I'm not going to put the pressure on, but let's just keep walking and looking,

-but this one's down to you if you can.

-Oh!

-No pressure!

Ooh, Jonathan! Upping the stakes in the final furlong.

-How about that?

-It's musical.

It depends how much it is, though.

-That's a...

-Does it play, that?

-How much is this, please?

Very best price, I'll do you 85.

-Er...

-Shall we do that?

-It stands a chance.

-It's a very good musical mech in that one.

-They're basically sort of 1930s...

-Where is Widdicombe?

-Down in...

-Somerset.

-Somerset.

-Somerset.

-Down Devon way.

We sold one in our last auction on Tuesday and we got £75 for it,

-so, at 85, it's borderline, really.

-Yeah.

-But we're running out of time.

So are Kerry and John, Henry.

OK, look for a stall that you think might catch your eye and then just go for it.

-I can't. I feel as if I've got pressure on me now.

-You're all right.

Yes, yes, yes!

Keep moving, keep moving.

Are you specifically looking for anything in particular now, do you think?

No, I want something that catches my eye.

-Would you take a risk?

-I'd take a risk at it.

-Could we have this for 70?

I couldn't do that, I'm afraid.

How much?

-A tenner.

-That's kind of like Austrian Loetz.

-It is Loetz.

-It is Loetz? Is it with damage?

-On the top rim.

-Oh, yeah. There's a big chunk out.

-Yeah.

-OK. Sorry!

I mean, a tenner would be...straightforward.

-There's a chunk out the top.

-Yeah.

Someone might go to the trouble of doing that. If it was in good condition, it would get £200.

-I'd stick that back up there if I were you. It's here, if we have to rush back, it's an easy tenner.

-OK.

-Cos I would like...

-I'll put the chip on the outside to put people off.

-Shall we go down that way?

I like your style, Kerry!

I'll tell you what, I'll do it at 80, and that'll be my absolute best deal. That'll give you a fighting chance.

I honestly think if you bought that, the gentleman's right, you'd have a fighting chance.

-Right, OK.

-Right. OK, I've got a good feeling about this.

-OK.

-We'll deal with the 80.

-Thank you very much.

OK, how much is that?

Er...absolutely definitely it would be 180.

That's a really big spend,

-but this sort of thing can be quite collectible in the right market.

-Yeah.

-The verse is...what's it say?

"When I was young I...

-"Thought..."

-The spelling's not perfect!

-"I little thought that...

-"Learning...

-Was so easily taught."

That's quite...that's quite funny.

It's quite a bit of early comedy, really.

-Er...

-Do we go out and buy it?

-Yeah!

-Rock bottoms, you wouldn't take just another tenner...?

If you take that, I'll give you the Loetz for free.

Well, if you're going to chuck that in for free, it's not quite in the rules...

-I'm always in favour of that...

-No rules!

-Since then, Jonathan?

-Let's break the rules.

So we're doing it.

-Thank you very much. Brilliant.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

I was destined to be on Bargain Hunt today, I knew it!

-It's exciting.

-I'm excited as well, actually.

-Yeah! It'll be good.

They've crossed the finish.

Just as well, really, because time's up!

Mmm...so what did those Reds buy?

They settled quickly on an iron railway sign for...

There's got to be a £20-£30 profit in that, I really see it...

Then Jonathan picked up a silver and agate brooch...

and in the dying minutes they landed a sampler

and a chipped Loetz vase for...

-I'm always in favour of that...

-No rules!

So what did you finish up by spending?

-We spent 255, leaving us with £45.

-£45 left over. Who's got that?

-Me.

-£45 left over to me, please.

-There's 40...and there's 5 Queens.

Lovely. I trust you. Millions wouldn't.

-Yeah, I know!

-Which is your favourite piece, Kerry?

Er...definitely the tapestry.

-That's your favourite?

-Yeah. That's something that I'd actually have at home.

Here's your £45. What are you going to do with this, old fruit?

-Oh...

-Got any ideas? Have you got a plan?

Well, I feel a little bit guilty because Kerry's not had a retro, vintage type thing,

so I'm going to look for something along that sort of line so you have something you really like.

-I just want to please the lady.

-Is that what you want to do?

Well, nothing's new, then, is it, Jonathan? Anyway, very, very good luck!

Meanwhile, why don't we check out what the Blue team bought?

They got underway with the gilt spoon for...

Then Gary felt an Edwardian chamber stick was worth a punt.

And they thought the Widdicombe Fair musical jug would sing at auction.

-Right, OK.

-Right. OK, I've got a good feeling about this.

-OK.

How much have you spent overall?

-154...was it? 154?

-I think so.

-Sounds about right.

-£146. Who's got the £146?

-I have.

-Thank you very much, Paul. That's lovely.

-Some coins here.

-There you go.

-You're a gent. That's supposed to be 6 in there with all those 50p, is it?

We'll believe you. Anyway, here we go, Henry.

-Thank you.

-Here's a vast amount of money for you.

-My tip?

-It's your pocket money, actually!

-What are you going to spend it on, Henry?

-Not too sure yet.

Perhaps some boys' toys or something like that, you never know!

Well, there's plenty of scope to go for, and very, very good luck!

Meanwhile we're heading off to a place of excellence,

the Walker Art Gallery just down the road in Liverpool.

The Walker Art Gallery opened its doors in 1877,

and before long its walls, halls and galleries were all crammed with works of art,

generously provided by Liverpudlians who were keen on showing off their artistic side...

like.

These benefactors splashed the cash to ensure that, by the 1890s,

the Walker was arguably the greatest gallery outside London.

And one of the finest jewels in the gallery's crown

is its collection of sculpture.

And some would say that the very finest piece of sculpture in the collection is this...

John Gibson's Venus...

known as The Tinted Venus.

If you look at her face, she quite obviously has got pink lips and blue eyes,

if you look at her hair, that most certainly is blonde.

And it's tied up in a hairnet that's got bright blue stripes on it.

When he completed this figure in 1856, he so loved it, he wouldn't allow it to be seen,

or even leave his workshop.

When it did go out after 1860, it created a furore.

It was perfectly acceptable

to have large areas of flesh in sculpture

even in prudish mid-Victorian times,

but by introducing the colour scheme it was thought to have gone beyond the pale.

However the nation's tastes for classically inspired pieces of sculpture like this

was just about to change.

By the 1870s, a raw, brash group of sculptors entered the scene.

They were looking for movement, muscularity...

They wanted to throw the conventions of classical sculpture out of the window!

And one of the sculptors who embraced the principles of the New Sculpture movement

was Edward Onslow Ford

who created this statue, entitled Peace.

He was a sculptor who was particularly interested in symbolism,

and in this figure we've got a young girl who's holding in the one hand a frond of palm,

emblematic of victory, and in her other hand she's releasing the dove of peace.

I love the way that Onslow Ford has got some movement here.

There's nothing classical about this piece.

Her body is inclining to the right,

but yet it's counterbalanced by this delicious spray of palm from above.

Gorgeous!

One of the leading exponents of the New Sculpture movement was William Hamo Thornycroft

who, particularly in this figure, personifies the pursuit of realism in sculpture.

One day in 1881, he was travelling up the Thames by boat

and spotted an agricultural labourer on the bank.

He was so inspired by this, he sketched the theme and ultimately worked up this piece of sculpture

which is entitled The Mower.

This is not copying some earlier classical pose,

this is raw, this is tough life itself

as it was at the end of the 19th century.

The big question today is of course

how tough is life going to be for our teams over at the auction?

Hopefully not too tough

as we hotfoot it south to Nantwich in Cheshire,

where auctioneer Robert Stones is waiting for us.

We've got this rather handsome railway plate. What do you know about that, Robert?

Well, I think it's quite an interesting thing that somebody's bought here.

We've got LNER, the well-known railway that went up the East Coast of England.

LNER was established in 1923 and was actually nationalised in 1948,

-so it only had a small span of time it was actually in use, so, nice interesting thing.

-Good.

-Brilliant. What sort of estimate have you put on it?

-50-80.

-They paid 60.

-Well...

-Slap-bang in the middle.

-Could be in the money.

-Could be in the money.

Now, what about this little oddball brooch?

Well, interesting thing for sure. Cornelian and bloodstone stones in it.

It's a white metal.

Manx three legs in the centre there which is quite a nice thing.

Generally these sort of semiprecious stone things are made in Scotland,

but the unfortunate thing about it is, if you turn it over, it's been repaired, which is not good.

-The condition is unfortunate, isn't it?

-Doesn't help it.

-But our team only paid £15 for it.

-Did they?

-Will it make £15?

-They could be into profit with that. We've put 20-40 on it.

-Have you? That's very sound.

Excellent. Now, a complicated lot, this...

-because it comes in two parts.

-Ah?

Our cunning, negotiating Jonathan Pratt didn't get a discount,

he got the glass pot instead.

-So we start off, let's say, with the sampler...

-Yes.

-Do you rate that?

I think it's a terrific thing.

1855, the date on it.

Condition is everything with these, so it has to be said there's a certain amount of damp

or water damage that's got into it. It wouldn't take a lot of effort to get that sorted out,

-and it could look quite nice.

-Yeah, I think so too.

And the colours, you know... those pinks and reds and what-not are quite vibrant, aren't they?

-Yeah, I agree.

-So a candidate for restoration?

-Yeah.

-And what's your estimate on that?

-50-80.

-Is that all?

-Yeah.

-Cos they paid 180 for it.

-Did they really? My goodness!

-£180. They fell in love with it.

-Well, it might just take off.

-Well, I wish them luck with it, cos it has great potential, it's a nice thing.

Well, that's very sweet of you to say so, and then the discount bit

-took the form of this chipped little Austrian vase pot.

-Yes...

Which I'm afraid you're going to have to offer for sale.

Well, we'll do our damnedest, but it has to be said with glass, if it's damaged, and that is damaged,

it's got a big chunk out of it...

it really does make a big difference to the value. So something like that I think is going to be

-quite a struggle. We'll see what we can do...

-Excellent. Anyway...

depending on how all this malarkey sorts out, the team probably will need their bonus buy,

so let's go and have a look at it.

Kerry and John, the bonus buy moment.

-Are you excited about this?

-Yeah, very.

-What has JP got under his little red rag?

You gave him £45. What did you buy, JP?

Well...

-OK.

-A brooch.

-A brooch. I'll pass it straight over.

When I spied that, I looked at it, thinking, "This is a good piece of Victorian jewellery."

It's not set with gems, although it's multicoloured paste, but set in silver,

-so there's a lot of work gone into making that.

-Yeah.

-But it's a very pretty brooch, I think.

-How much did you pay for that?

-I paid £40.

-Oh?

And are you pleased to have paid £40?

Do you feel quite chuffed with yourself that you got it just for £40?

Er... Well, look, you know, buying the bonus buy is a difficult exercise,

and I sometimes fret about my purchases, but having seen it again this morning I'm really pleased.

-I've done rather well actually, I think.

-It's definitely something I would buy.

-It's very neat.

They say diamonds are a girl's best friend! This is the nearest thing. Anyway...

thank you very much. You'll decide later,

but for the audience at home let's find out what the auctioneer thinks about Jonathan's brooch.

Well, Robert, look at that.

Love it! I think this is a really charming little basket of flowers.

It's got paste stones in there which is lovely.

And what more can you say about it? The condition is super.

And, quite honestly, I think this sort of jewellery is really underrated.

It's not fashionable perhaps to have brooches these days,

but quite honestly any lady would really love that.

-A great object.

-He's such a good salesman, Robert, isn't he?

You should be in the jewellery-selling business, Robert!

-What do you think for this?

-We're saying £15-£30, but I think it's great value and should make more.

Well, Jonathan paid 40.

-Did he? Well, it deserves to do that and better.

-Doesn't it? Well, if anybody can sell it

-to its best advantage, it'll be you.

-We'll do our best.

-Now, that's it for the Reds.

Now for the Blues.

Their first item is the spoon.

This is rather nice. It's difficult to know with these quite what the silver content is, if any,

and of course none of these things are marked, so it makes it rather difficult to trace it back.

But it's a good decorative thing,

which, you know, I think is quite a pleasing little thing to be selling, really.

-How much?

-We're saying 10-20. So not a lot of money, but it's good value for money.

Bit of a tempting estimate, I'd say!

-£37 they paid for it.

-37?

-Yeah.

-OK. We'll have to do our best.

-We'll have to get weaving with that one.

-Excellent.

Now, the little hurricane chamber lamp.

I mean, you are in a seriously draughty house with this, aren't you?

You've stuck your candle in the middle of that, and you're heading off to the north wing,

but, unfortunately, you've got to go through 3 open courtyards and 19 outside staircases

before you get up to your room! Hence this glass protector.

-Well, I think you're getting a bit carried away...

-All right.

-Nonetheless, it's a good thing.

The thing I like about it is the quality. All this cutting here on the shade is great quality,

-so, from that point of view, I would say about 30-50.

-£37.

They paid £37 for the first item, they paid £37 for the second item.

-No, well, that's excellent, isn't it? £30-50.

-Nice thing.

-You could get £60 for that, easy.

-Yeah.

-They'd be very pleased.

-Now, we're a long way from Devon, all right?

-We are indeed.

So how do Crown Devon musical Widdicombe Fair musical jugs fare in Cheshire?

Well...

-I'm not too familiar with what goes on in Devon, unlike you...

-Are you not?

But it would be fair to say that these jugs have all sorts of different musical boxes inside them.

It seems to be in pretty good order all round, made in about 1930, something like that,

-and of course produced in Stoke-on-Trent...

-Yes.

-So it's something we see fairly regularly.

-How much do you think you're going to get for it?

-50-80.

-Very good.

£80 they paid. So that's pretty well spot on. If you can sell that well, they won't need their bonus buy.

If it doesn't go so hot, they're going to need it, so let's go and have a look at it.

You gave Henry £146.

Henry, what did you spend it on?

Well, what do you think to this?

-What is it?

-It's a walnut box and it's made from the beam of the HMS Arethusa.

It was a 50-gun frigate which served out in the Crimea during 1854-56,

and it was broken up in 1933.

-What do you think?

-Really nice.

-You certainly don't see too many of these every day.

Built from a ship, from the remains of a ship.

It looks like a 1930s box. You wouldn't, without the plaque, make any connection with the Royal Navy,

and certainly not a vessel that dates from the 1840s.

So from all that point of view it is interesting.

-I'd say it's highly speculative, but, er...

-Well, that depends on...

How much is it? What have you paid for it?

It cost me £38.

Oh, wow, so we still have quite a bit to spare, then.

It's the sort of thing... People collect Naval memorabilia.

-You never know. Hopefully, it'll do well.

-I don't think it'll sink.

-I don't think it'll sink either.

Anyway, you don't pick now, you pick later.

For the audience at home, let's find out what the auctioneer thinks about Henry's box.

Here we go, look. A little test of your knowledge of marine history. Robert?

Well, Tim, to be honest, you don't need to know a great deal about this because it's all on the plaque!

And it was an all-wooden boat. It was the last Royal Navy boat to go into a warship situation

-under sail only.

-Really?

-Quite extraordinary. It was then scrapped

or broken down in Woolwich and that's when, of course, the timbers would have been used to make...

well, I've seen furniture and all sorts of things made out of timbers taken from ships.

So this is little box that was made out of those timbers. It's a pleasant enough thing.

-And what do you think it's worth?

-We're looking about £10-20 on it.

-Is that all?

-How much did they pay for it?

-£38 did our new boy 'Enery.

-He thought it was pretty wizard.

-Mmm...we're going to have to get weaving, aren't we?

-You are!

What's the name of your local river?

-The Weaver!

-There you go.

That's why you're going to get weaving!

-Anyway, thank you very much.

-Thanks very much indeed.

-Thanks, Robert.

-Thanks, Tim.

55 anywhere now, do I hear?

55 there. 60's with me.

65 is the bid. Your bid at 65.

At 65, then.

-How are you feeling? All right?

-Yeah.

-Pretty zappy?

-Excited.

-Nervous as well.

-What have you got to be nervous about?

-I don't know... I don't know how we're going to do.

Sounding rather frightened!

This isn't like the Kerry we know, is it, JP?

-Ah...

-What happened to that super confident person?

-I don't know, she's now...

-A crumbling wreck!

-Crumbling!

-I don't know. You've got nothing to worry about.

You've got you railway sign, right? You paid £60 for that. And here it comes!

Lot number 50, ladies and gentlemen, the LNER railway sign, cast iron.

A lovely thing. £50 I'm bid for this straightaway.

55 anywhere now, do I hear?

55 there. 60's with me.

65 your bid. 70 anywhere else?

-Come on, come on!

-At £65 and will be sold at 65, then...

A fiver. That's a good start.

-£65, plus £5.

-I'm happy with that.

-Well, it's better than nowt!

Here we go, here comes Manx.

Legs of Man brooch. And I've got £20 bid for this straightaway at 20. 5?

25 there.

30 on commission. Your bid at 35. 40 anywhere else?

I have 35, a super thing. I have £35 there... 40.

45. 50 now.

50. Don't go away. 50? 45, your bid at 45.

All quietened down at £45.

-That is plus £30!

-Get in there!

-That is plus £35.

-Now, King Solomon's Temple.

-# We're in the money! #

Lot number 54, ladies and gentlemen,

is the sampler. Several commissions on this. I can start at £100.

£100 I'm bid. 105 now, do I hear?

At £100 with me. At 105 now anywhere do I hear?

It's great value for money at this. Come along now.

At £100 I'm bid. 105 anywhere?

Come on!

That's it, then, it's going to be sold on one bid then at £100.

If you're all finished. At 100.

-£100.

-That is awful!

-Oh, dear, £100, minus 80...

You've got your 35. You're at minus £45, all right.

Lot number 53, ladies and gentlemen. The glass vase, £5 to start it off.

£5 I'm bid. 10 is the now.

-10 anywhere?

-Go to be more than a fiver.

-£10 I'm bid.

£10 in the doorway.

Will be sold. At £10 only then.

The freebie gives you plus £10 which means overall you are...

-minus £35.

-OK, sorry guys.

-It's all right.

-Nothing to be sorry about.

This is good. What about this brooch, then?

-Yeah, I'm a gambler.

-Yeah?

-Yeah.

-Here it comes.

Lot number 56. This absolutely delightful silver brooch.

Now, I really like this. £20 to start it off. It's worth every cent.

20 bid straightaway. And 5 now do I hear?

At £20, the bid's there.

5 anywhere now? 25. Well done. 30 now you're bidding.

35. 40 now?

40 bid. 45?

-50?

-One more, madam!

-At 45, your bid. 45. 50 anywhere?

On the internet at 50? 50 bid. 55? 55. 60 on the internet?

-Go on!

-Go on, internet!

Come on, internet! That's what we're saying! 60?

55's in the room at £55. At £55.

All finished and done at 55. Going to be sold at 55.

Yeah!

55.

Thank you very much.

Which means overall you're minus £20, which is no shame. I've seen a lot worse than that.

-All right? Minus 20 is your final score. Don't tell the Blues a thing.

-We won't.

-Hush-hush!

-Now, Gary and Paul, do you know how the Reds got on?

-No, don't know yet.

-No idea?

You won't want to know, I tell you!

The first lot up is your spoon and here it comes.

Lot number 71 showing there. The white metal spoon.

£10 to start it off, somebody? 10 is the now.

15 in the doorway. 20 now?

£15, I'm bid at 15. 20 anywhere? At £15.

Bid's there. £15, then.

-Oh, 15!

-Didn't fancy that one anyway!

That is minus £22, so that's not so hot, is it?

Anyway, next up is your Edwardian chamber candlestick, here it comes.

Lot number 72, showing now. The Edwardian chamber stick.

That's the one. Super quality.

Don't pass this one over. I'm bid £30 for it, straightaway £30.

35 is the now. 35 now do I hear?

35. 40 is the now, 35 your bid.

40 on the internet. 45 is the now. 45. 45?

£50 on the internet?

45 bid is there and will be sold.

50, just in time. 55? At 50 it's your bid.

At £50, then it will be sold. At £50, then.

-That's a good profit.

-£50 is good, that's plus 13.

That means overall you are minus £9.

Now, what about Widdicombe Fair?

Lot number 73, Crown Devon Widdicombe Fair musical jug.

£40 I'm bid straightaway. It's on commission at £40.

45 is the now. 45 anywhere now, do I hear?

45 there.

50 with me. Your bid at 55.

-60 do I hear? 55 bid's there.

-Come on!

-At £55. 60?

At 55, bid's there and will be sold at 55.

£55. 5 off 60, that's minus 25.

Minus £34... Minus £34 overall.

Oh, dear! This is not working for you at all, I have to say.

Minus £34. What are you going to do about the old box?

We're going to break even with the box at the very least.

-It's a team game. Henry's going to navigate us to get some money back!

-The pressure's on.

-You don't have to go with this box.

-We're going with it.

-He's not going to burst into tears if you don't.

-Henry's the man.

-Is he?

-Am I?

-You're going with it.

Well, there's the decision, then. Determined to go with this box. Here it comes.

Lot number 77. This mahogany box, absolutely super thing,

with the plaque on the top of it. What may we say?

-I've got £20 bid for it straightaway on commission.

-That's a good start!

25? 25. 30 now, do I hear?

£30. £35? Worth every penny. 35.

-40 now.

-Come on.

-At 40 now. Your bid at 35. Looking for 40.

Come on!

Come on, you can hear them begging you from the back!

This man's going in the Mersey!

At 35!

40 anywhere else?

I'm nervous now.

-40! It's worth a round of applause, that! 40 is bid!

-Saved him!

50 now? 45 it's your bid. The bid's there at 45. It's your bid.

Will be sold at £45.

-Brilliant.

-Well done.

-Thanks.

-Excellent!

-We're pleased!

-Plus 7.

You had to hold it in your hand!

You are still minus £27.

Now, listen, lads, that could be a winning score. Don't say a word to those naughty Reds, all right?

-Well, teams, have we been chatting at all?

-No.

-No communication? You have no idea how close you are today?

-No.

There is £7 only between our teams.

The similarities are remarkable. Both teams went with the bonus buy and made a profit

with the bonus buy. Both of our experts are walking tall and feeling proud today,

because they'd done their stuff with the bonus buy, but, sadly, to the tune of only £7,

one team's behind and that team is...

-the Blues!

-Oh!

-Yes!

You lose today by only losing £27, yeah?

-Look at the emotion!

-That's a real sore one.

Do you feel really sore about this? You don't?

-No.

-I don't want it to ruin your day, Gary, because you've been a great team.

-But you are, sadly, the runners-up today. But the winners, the Reds!

-Yes!

This is really peachy, isn't it?

-You've won by only losing £20.

-Winning loses!

-Yeah, we're really quite pleased with that, aren't we?

-I don't blame you.

That little brooch was a peach. What let you down was the sampler.

Were it not for the sampler, you'd be taking home folding money!

Which is a pity, really. But nevertheless you cracked it.

-You've won today and I hope you've enjoyed it.

-Yeah, very much so.

Well done, JP, on your profit.

-Great day! Join us soon for some more Bargain Hunting! Yes?

-Yes!

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