Edinburgh 20 Bargain Hunt

Today we're in Edinburgh, at the Royal Highland Centre.

Scotland has a rich and varied history,

with its fair share of villains, heroines and ferocious battles.

Therefore we should fit in very well round here.

And let's go bargain hunting.

Edinburgh is the birthplace of the famous mathematician John Napier.

He was the leading academic

who first introduced the decimal point, way back in the 16th century.

And we all know on this programme how important that little

point can be.

Will our teams root out a profit when they square up?

The Reds are having a smashing time.

OBJECT CLATTER

SHE LAUGHS

And the Blues struggle to manage their time.

-All this stuff, you'd think it would be easy, wouldn't you?

-You would.

My word, this is getting difficult!

Even just looking at one stall, all of a sudden you're going ahhhhh!

Let's meet the teams.

Well, on today's programme we've got two teams of bonnie buddies.

For the Reds, we've got Helen and Wilma.

-And for the Blues, we have Peter and Jim. Hello, everyone.

-ALL: Hello.

Hello, hello. Helena...

-You've know each other ever since you were wee ones.

-That's right.

How long is that then? A year or three?

-58 years.

-58 years! Wilma comes straight in with that. Brilliant.

-Where did you meet then, at school?

-We met at primary school.

-And you've always got on and stayed close?

-Oh, yes.

-Yes, we've been very close.

-And you go on holiday together, all that?

Yes, we go on holiday together.

We were across in Spain at a friend's wedding together.

-We have a good time.

-Good for you.

When you are not holidaying, you have a rewarding job, don't you?

Yes, I'm a relief manager at a sheltered housing complex with

elderly tenants.

I help out at entertainments like fish and chip nights.

They either have somebody come in and sing to them

-or they have a film show, something like that.

-Good fun!

-But they are more interested in their fish and chips.

-Are they?

HE LAUGHS

Wilma, you sometimes volunteer at the same complex.

Yes, that's correct. I do the leisurely afternoon on Wednesday.

How leisurely is leisurely?

It's quite leisurely.

They play bingo, or have quizzes, or armchair exercises, or I rig

up some things and they take their homework home with them.

Now, what are you going to be buying today, you girls,

-when it comes to the shopping?

-If I see it, I'll know I want it.

Oh, really? What do you know about antiques then?

Anything I've learnt is off of your show.

-You'll know the lot of it then, won't you?

-THEY LAUGH

-Anyway, good luck, girls.

-Thank you.

-Thank you very much.

-Now, Peter, tell me, how did you to meet?

-Jim and I met in 1969.

The first day of the first year of Glasgow Drama College.

-And we've been friends ever since.

-Really? Isn't that amazing!

-Yeah.

-So, you just struck it off, did you?

Yeah, we did immediately.

Jim, at the time, was writing cartoons for the Beano and the Dandy.

-Ah!

-And he pointed out that we could make money doing this.

Being a student, let's get some money, so we did it.

You then went on to do murder mysteries.

Well, the fact was, Jim and I went into the business of television,

films, and all that kind of stuff, in various ways.

We worked together over the years but 15 years ago, I phoned Jim

and said, "You'll never guess what I'm doing." He said, "What?"

And I said, "I'm running a murder mystery company up in Scotland."

And he went, "You'll never guess what I'm doing.

"I'm running a murder mystery company down in Newcastle."

-Never!

-And we like working together

so we became a two-man murder mystery company.

So, Jim, when you're not masterminding the murder

mysteries, what do you get up to?

I also work for another company that does

-historical re-enactment type things.

-And I gather you get together

and plot various things at antique fairs and car boots and stuff.

Not so much together,

but we caught them independently and then we'll kind of share what...

-Yeah.

-..the bits and pieces.

-We've both got different interests.

My wife and I like modern art and sculpture.

Small sculpture. Jim is a bit different, isn't he?

I like things that tell a story, partly

because of the historical work that I do.

I just love social history.

And will you be going for that sort of stuff today?

I'd like to find some of those things if we can.

-But it's a jungle out there.

-You are just about to get in there,

cos I'm just about to give you your £300 apiece. £300, girls.

£300, chaps. You know the rules. Your experts await. And off you go.

Very, very good luck.

Well, we have lots of mystery but not much murder on this show.

Our two experts are looking tiptop today.

Putting on his Sunday best for the Reds is Jonathan Pratt.

And Caroline Hawley will be strutting her stuff for the Blues.

-Hello, ladies.

-Hello, how are you today?

I'm very good, very good. Are you prepared? This is a big fair.

Lots and lots of stuff to see. What do you want to buy?

-I don't know.

-Oh, right.

-Useful.

-Oh, yeah.

-Something with a history.

-Something with a tale to tell.

-Right.

-Something that has had a life before this.

-OK.

-That would be brilliant.

Let's go and get one. Come on!

-I love clocks.

-Clocks? OK. The clock is against us, we better get moving.

-Come on, let's go!

-Thank you.

Nothing too specific then, teams.

I think their experts may well have their work cut out today.

Let's start the clock.

-What have you found?

-Nice tools.

-We have found a box of tools.

-And I love tools. I just love them.

-Do you?

-I just love tools.

Because they have had a past, they have had a history.

-People have used these to make things.

-Yes.

I don't know that there is going to be much profit on that.

-No, probably not.

-Nope. I don't think so.

-I think we need to move on and look for profit.

-Right.

Straight to the point, Caroline.

And now you are on the same level it should be plain sailing.

And it looks like our ladies have finally mapped out a plan.

-Just look at that.

-Do you like that globe?

You are a mother of four, did you have something like this at home?

Well, you see, I've got a son that goes all over the world.

-And I like to see where he is.

-OK.

-Quite nice.

-Danish.

-I like that.

-It just caught my eye.

-Straightaway, you see.

-What's your best price on that?

-To you, 50.

-50?

-50.

-What do you think?

-I think that's not his best price yet.

-BOTH: No. What about 40?

-He's just told me...

-45.

-45.

-45.

-What do you think?

-It's not a lot of money.

It's a good thing for a child. Cos it's educational.

It's dated 1970 on there as well. People like this sort of stuff.

I think it's a pretty safe buy, actually.

Right, what do you think? Your call!

-OK. It's yours next time then.

-Right then.

-Thank you very much.

-First sale of the day.

-Thank you.

-Thank you very much.

-Thank you very much. Cheers. Thank you.

That's it. One down. Really simple and nice and easy.

-I like your style.

-THEY LAUGH

Well, you've really lit up JP's world, girls.

But are the Blues looking as confident?

-I like that.

-The lamp?

-But of course, I do like heavy things like that.

-That would look lovely in a big entrance hall.

-Yeah.

In one of these big Victorian houses.

-Your country mansion, you could put that in it.

-Absolutely, yes.

Do you have a country mansion?

-Yes, I do. Yes. I have two, one for weekends.

-One for weekends.

THEY LAUGH

-How much is it?

-It's 185.

-Oh, that's all the money.

-It's too much.

-Yeah, it is too much.

-Too much, yep.

-Is that Moorcroft?

-I don't know. It's nice. I like that.

-Where is he?

-Jonathan! What about the vase? I like that.

-Is that a Moorcroft?

Yes, it is Moorcroft. It's also very expensive.

How much do you think it's worth?

-I've just seen the price.

-£90?

-650.

SHE GASPS

We'll just put it back. Put it back.

-Slightly out of our price range.

-But your taste is good. All right?

Ah, a connoisseur, Wilma. Time for the boys to up their game.

-A card box.

-Card box?

-Yes, cards. You'd pull out...

And the cards would come out.

-It's like a bridge set or any cards.

-Well, yes.

And that's very Arts and Crafts-y.

It is very Arts and Crafts.

-But that has the look of almost being home-made.

-Yes.

-Rather than...

That's what a lot of the Arts and Crafts work is. That movement is.

I like that because it's got stories to tell.

People have been taking cards out of this for years,

-and playing games rounds the family table and things.

-Absolutely.

It's about 1900-1910.

-I was I was going to ask you if you could date it for us.

-1900-1910.

-What's the price?

-38 on that.

-38 on the card box?

-Yeah.

-Any movement on that?

-The very best would probably be £30.

What do you think, Caroline? I mean, at an auction...

-It's in good condition.

-I think somebody would pay that.

I think that's a nice piece. What do you reckon to that?

-Well, I like playing cards.

-It's from the last century.

-It's got a bit of damage.

-Yeah. There is.

-I mean, it's an interesting box.

But I think if you got it for 32 or 30, what would you think?

There's not going to be a lot of profit in it.

-No, but...

-But it might...

-I think there might be.

-There might be some.

-We haven't bought anything yet.

-No.

-I am aware of that.

-I'd like to suggest that as our first buy.

-OK. What's that?

-That looks like it's a bit of pottery.

-Yes.

-It's the Arts and Crafts style.

-Yeah.

-Which is good. But I think maybe a little bit...

-28?

No, I'm going to stick with the 30, I'm afraid.

-All right. I'll go with that?

-Are you happy with that?

Yes, I'm would be happier if it was less, but it can't be any less.

So would I. I'd like it for a fiver but he's not going to do that.

-No, he's not.

-For a fiver!

-THEY LAUGH

-Are you both happy with that?

-Yeah.

-I am.

-First buy?

-If Jim is, I'm happy.

-Shake the man's hand.

-Yes.

-There you go.

-Thank you very much.

'At last, that's one apiece.'

OBJECTS CLATTER

THEY LAUGH

Uh-oh! Step away from the store, JP.

Probably a good time for me to go on a little jaunt

and serve up something I found on my travels.

Some days are good days and some days are bad days.

And today hasn't been a bad day, I have to say.

For a kick off, I found this wee box, which looks a bit clapped out.

But it's got a retailer's mark on the top -

R Christie Watchmaker and Jeweller, Edinburgh.

Which makes it rather fun to find in Edinburgh.

You can never be certain that what's inside a box like this has always

been there,

but we do have two traditional Scottish-looking objects inside.

They are salad servers. And they are made out of horn.

Probably cow horn.

The process of taking a horn from a Highland cow and delaminating it,

creating a sheet of material that's translucent and brownish,

as these are. And then the craftsman steams it, shapes it,

puts it in a mould to create the bowls.

And in this instance, because they're salad servers,

one of the bowls gets cut and serrated.

Enabling you to grip the lettuce.

And the maker, rather nicely, has mounted them with a silver shield.

Applying the maker's mark.

Now, if you look carefully you can see that that maker's mark is

WD & Co - STG - for sterling.

The dealer who was selling these had no idea who WD & Co were.

It's not a full British hallmark, so he hasn't been able to look it up.

And he said to me he thought they were worth £10.

I thought, well, that's not too bad.

£10 for two salad servers with silver mounts. I'll have them.

And by pure coincidence, three dealers up,

what did I discover but this delightful object.

Hmm. Made of horn. The same material as the salad servers.

But this time in the form of a traditional Scottish drinking vessel

called a quaich.

This is a vessel used for the purposes of displaying

friendship in Scotland.

And you'd drink a wee dram out of it.

Having offered it to your friend,

the motto in the bottom encourages the friend to drink it up.

Because in Gaelic it says,

"Scuab Asi" - pronounced incorrectly no doubt.

But intended, I believe, to say, "Drink me up."

The outset handles on either side are mounted with Scottish stones.

Which have been faceted.

Pale lilac stones that are in little silver mounts.

And the boss at the bottom is also hallmarked.

Hey presto, it says,

"WD & Co" - the same maker that made the salad servers.

But the big plus for me

was that the second dealer knew all about his quaich.

He knew that WD & Co stood for an Aberdeen maker called

William Dunningham.

And this man William Dunningham is well known for making horn

objects in Aberdeen, mounting them with solid silver,

and putting his marks on.

And sending them away to be retailed elsewhere.

But entirely by coincidence, the two objects, having collided,

for me today, here in Edinburgh.

But what is the effect of now knowing who the maker

is of the salad servers?

In my opinion, that ups the value to something like £50-£80.

Meaning that that £10 was very well spent.

And the quaich?

Well, in a specialist Scottish sale down south,

I reckon it would bring between £150 and £200.

But it could be yours, here, today, in Edinburgh, for £100.

Cheers.

'Back to action, and it's tough times for the Blues.'

All this stuff, you'd think it would be easy, wouldn't you?

You would, yes.

How much is your box?

650.

Right. Eek! 650.

Thank you.

Over double your entire team's budget, Caroline.

Come on, £255 left and two items to buy.

Oh, my word, this is getting difficult!

These girls aren't wasting any time.

-It was the clock.

-The clock there?

-Yeah.

-It's a little Edwardian clock.

It looks like it's late 19th century, early 20th century.

And it will probably be quite expensive.

It's been in the wars that one, a little bit.

Oh, it has been in the wars a bit. It's a Birmingham hallmark.

And it's A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, about 1908-1909 or something.

What's your best price on that?

It's got to be about £40.

-We'll think about it.

-It's rather nice.

-Thank you.

Right, that's decisive.

What on earth's going on here? Another globe?

It's expensive.

-195. I think it is.

-Are there collectors for these?

-Yes.

But I think that's all the money, isn't it?

-Is it? OK.

-Ask the best on it.

Excuse me, what would you be prepared,

without breaking your heart, to take for it?

-Without breaking my heart.

-We wouldn't want to break your heart.

-No, we wouldn't.

-You wouldn't really?

-No.

-It would need to be 180.

-Too rich for us.

'I think we need to come down to earth, eh, chaps?'

-Have a think about it.

-Anything catching your eye?

-Everything.

-Anything you want to buy?

-Um...

-All of it!

-A little bit.

Don't worry, there's time. There's time.

-I'm starting to panic already.

-Oh.

And with only one item bought, they jolly well need to panic.

The Reds aren't doing much better either.

So, ladies, you bought the first item in 30 seconds.

And I thought, do you know what, we'll be done in ten minutes.

Ten minutes.

Half an hour now and we now seem to be sort of stalling a little bit.

-Only two items to buy.

-Yes. Let's go.

Back with the Blues,

and an apothecary set has caught Peter's eye.

-Hi, guys.

-Right, yes.

-How's it going?

-What have we found?

-I've found this and I love it.

-Yeah?

-But that's the picture of the man.

-Yes?

-Dr De Waltoff.

And we thought that this, it's not incredible wood or anything,

but you can imagine that in a bathroom or something like that.

It would be nice for scents and stuff.

It's a really good decorator's piece.

I can see that in a fancy boutique hotel.

-If I made us do that...

-Yes. There you go.

-In a rather smart...

-Look at that!

-A nice collection inside.

-Yes.

-It's very expensive.

-'Here we go!'

Everything you've found so far is very expensive, Peter.

-Is he always like this, Jim?

-Yes, I'm afraid so. Yes. He is.

He's got very good taste. I think that's lovely.

-But it needs to be half that money.

-All right.

-Unfortunately.

-OK.

-Excuse me...

We love it. But as usual, I've fallen into trap of expensive stuff.

How much would you be able to do this for and feel comfortable?

-Is it 175?

-175, yeah.

-I can do 150.

150?

-It's beautiful but I don't think we'd get anything like that.

-No.

-In an auction.

-Is that your absolute best?

OK. 110. But that gives you a really good chance.

I think it's great.

You've said that the bottles obviously aren't original.

Yes, I just bought them.

-You bought them to pop in?

-I don't know. I mean...

-I just bought lots of different ones.

-Yeah.

You can stick it in a bathroom or something.

-The box presumably is original.

-Yes.

-Are you happy? Would you like that?

-I'm very happy.

-I think so.

-Would you like that, Jim?

-Yes, I would.

-Mind you, the bottles are £20.

-Yes.

THEY LAUGH

-Thank you very much.

-You're very kind.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

-Thank you very much.

-I've done it.

-Well spotted.

Number two for the Blues. Now, JP, what have you got there?

-What do we think about this?

-Ah, Victorian glass lustre.

They normally come in pairs.

What I like about it is the colour. Cos it's sort of opaque white.

-It's very easy to place in a modern home.

-Mm-hmm.

They were very popular 15-20 years ago.

They went out of fashion a little bit.

But there seems to be a little bit more interest in these.

Blown glass, OK. Blown into a mould, decorated afterwards,

made to sort of look like porcelain, really.

-£80 I think the lady said.

-70?

-75.

-75?

Jonathan, what would you make at auction for that?

-We're in the realms of auction price.

-Ah.

-It's not my decision, OK.

-Uh-huh.

-Hmm.

-You liked it.

-They went out of popularity,

came back in, they've been showing a little sign of more...

-Coming back?

-Yeah, a little bit. They're very Victorian.

-Yeah.

-But they do fit into that retro style.

Cos they get them in red glass, you get them in blue,

you get them in pink.

Is this like a general glass, not a rare glass?

They're not particularly rare, but the white is nice.

And the idea is that it's meant to disperse lights.

-What's your best price?

-70.

-70?

-£70, yep.

-Buy it. Yep.

Thank you very much. Thank you. Shake on it. Well done.

Thank you.

Very decisive, girls. Well done.

Which is more than I can say for the Blues.

It's going fine, but I'm beginning to panic now.

It's going fine but it's going fast. That's how it's going.

-There's just so much to look at.

-Yes.

Even just looking at one stall, all of a sudden you go ahhhhh.

Back with the Reds, and they seem to be singing from the same hymn-sheet.

BOTH: Napkin rings!

-OK.

-Napkin rings.

It's 110 on them.

But I could do them for 90.

-That's a set of six.

-A set of six?

-Yeah.

-What's the crest on there?

-OK, are they all different animals?

-No, no, no. They're all elephants.

-They're all elephants.

-Indian.

-And they are silver?

Yep. I spent a lot of time polishing those, you know.

THEY LAUGH

Quite sweet with the elephants on.

-It's a set of six, which is just about a dinner party.

-Yep.

But might get more if it were like an elephant, a rhino,

a bear and, you know, different animals.

A lion. That would be great.

But then £90 would be £200 because they're be so much more saleable.

They're quite heavy too. They are quite a good weight.

Yeah. What's your very best price?

I think 85 would be the very best going by that.

To be honest, it's all about the novelty value.

I'd say yes, go for it. You have a chance.

They are nice quality, they're a nice weight.

They've got the novelty of the elephant on them.

-That's really nice too.

-What price did you say?

-85.

-85.

-Can you not come down to 80?

-Honestly, I'm going by the code.

At 85 that's us just coming even. And I'm being honest. Yep.

-Is that OK?

-Is that OK?

-Yes.

-Done deal.

-All done. Thank you very much.

-Thank you.

-Pleasure.

HE LAUGHS

That's your three then. Ha! Time for a cup of tea, JP?

One left for the Blues,

and I think they've finally found a collection to write home about.

-Look at this.

-Oh now!

-The aftermath of the Battle of Zeebrugge, 1418.

-That's brilliant!

-I was in Zeebrugge just last week.

-You weren't in the war.

-Peter! What are you inferring?

-"You weren't in the war," I said.

-I was not in the war.

I happened to be having a holiday.

The Zeebrugge Raid was an attempt by the British to block the port

used by the Germans, as a base for their U boats.

-£55.

-55.

-They're maybe not worth £55 by themselves

-but it has been beautifully framed.

-As a collection and put together.

-There's a collection.

-What's the back like, Jim?

-It's solid.

It's a new frame. Newly mounted and framed.

-But that I do like.

-Do you?

-What do you think?

-I think that is very, very current.

-I do as well.

-It's the 14-18 War.

-I've just checked, it's a complete set.

-Yeah.

-If I may...

-There we go.

-"Plan d'attaque."

-Yes.

How much do you think this will get us at the auction?

I don't think it's going to make a huge profit at all.

-I have to be honest with you.

-But it'll make a small profit?

I hope so. But it's not a certainty.

Again, I mean, I've said it with nearly every item now,

but this does tell a story.

-It does.

-This really does tell a tale.

-It ticks all your boxes.

-It does tick all my boxes.

I must admit, I would by that.

Because I've got a wee collection from my grandfather,

from the First World War.

-Have you?

-And they're beautiful to look at.

-Poignant.

-It says 55 on there.

Shall I go and have a look and see if I can find the guy?

-See what you can do.

-I'll go and see. Hang on.

Go on, Caroline. Work your magic.

I think the boys have their heart set on this one.

-Right, I've got a price for us.

-Oh, yes, a good price?

45.

-45?

-45.

-That's £10 off.

-That's pretty good.

-Right, guys, let's buy it.

-Let's do it.

-Hooray!

-OK.

Yes, please, sir.

Hats off, teams.

Time's up. And here's a quick heads up on what the Red Team bought.

They trotted off with the 1970s globe for £45.

Next up was the Victorian lustre. They paid £70.

And finally, it was a helping of silver napkin rings,

which cost them £85.

Well, girls, how lucky have you been today?

-Very lucky.

-Which is your favourite piece, Helena?

-The globe.

-The globe?

-Yes.

-OK, do you agree with that, Wilma?

-No, I like the napkin rings the best.

-You like them the best?

-Yes.

-Are they going to bring the biggest profit?

-Hopefully.

-No, the globe.

-No.

-You are determined about this globe, aren't you?

-Yes.

How much did you spend, Helena?

-We spent £200.

-£200, good. Can I have £100 of leftover lolly, please?

-Excellent. Over to JP.

-Thank you very much.

OK, JP, what are you going to spend it on?

I don't know. I think I'll find something for the ladies this time.

OK. He's very, very coy normally.

Anyway, go off and have a good shop.

While we find out what the Blue Team bought.

The dealt out £30 for the pewter card box.

The chaps mixed things up a bit with the apothecary box.

£110 paid.

And finally, the group of First World War postcards sailed

away for £45.

So, you two chaps look like the cats that got the cream.

Which is your favourite piece?

My favourite piece is the little card box.

Kind of Arts and Crafts card box that I found. I love it.

-It's very nice.

-What about you, Pete?

My favourite piece is the big box that we bought, the one with the...

Was it Victorian medical...glass bottles and things.

OK, that's your favourite favourite.

Is that going to bring the biggest profit?

No. I think the cards are. The Zeebrugge postcards are going to.

-How much did you spend all round?

-£185.

Please may I have £115 of leftover lolly?

You may.

-Caroline is going to have a big challenge now.

-Thank you.

Have you seen anything you might be returning to, Caroline?

I've seen one or two things. But I haven't made my final decision yet.

-Haven't you?

-No.

-Anyway, good luck with that.

Right now it's time to join the action over at the auction.

Well, we're still in Scotland.

We've just popped to Glasgow, to McTear's saleroom,

to be with Natasha Raskin. Natasha, good morning.

-Good morning to you, Tim. Good morning.

-Very, very nice to be here.

Helena and Wilma have got a curious mixture here. Haven't they?

They absolutely have. There's no theme whatsoever.

-They have just gone with their...

-Flow.

-Hearts, yes.

They've gone with something.

They were possessed on the day of shopping.

They certainly were.

Their first possession is this illuminated Danish globe.

Which, I have to say, is not my favourite object.

-But they do sell, globes, don't they?

-They do.

These later, mid-century globes I can't say are bound to set

anyone's hearts on fire.

But let's stick to the positives. There are no flaky parts.

It still lights up. I don't know if there's much else to say about it.

-Just tell us what your estimate is.

-The estimate is £40-£60.

-£45 paid.

-Oh good.

-So that is positive.

-Exactly.

Next up, from one end of the spectrum to the other, because the

lustre is just about the fussiest piece of Victoriana you can get

compared to the globe. Isn't it?

-It doesn't have modest written all over it, does it?

-Not really, no.

It also doesn't have very well decorated or made.

Cos that decoration on the milk-glass is very crude.

It was never a high quality one, was it?

No. It's a bit of an afterthought, the design, really.

It doesn't quite go with the whole thing.

But it's quite bohemian in its style.

The prism drops all seem to be there.

And yes, it would be better if it were part of a pair.

But on its own, it sticks out a bit of a sore thumb.

But I do want to be positive about it

because they can do very well these lustres.

-What's it going to bring?

-We're hoping £40-£50.

OK. £70 paid. So it's not so far off.

-Not so far off.

-I have to say,

this arrangement of six silver napkin rings looks fun, doesn't it?

It does. They are stamped 925, for sterling.

So we can catalogue them as silver.

They're nicely cast with their elephants.

I've got confidence in them.

The only thing is, it would be nice to have it in a box.

Anyway, that would just be the gilding on the cake.

How much for the six of them, Natasha?

We don't think there's a huge amount of age to them.

But we've got a confident £60-£80 on there.

And they'll probably fare better than that.

OK, £85 paid. People do love heffalumps, don't they?

They do, they do!

All being well, this team won't need their bonus buy,

but let's go and have a look at it anyway.

-Helena, Wilma, excited?

-Yes.

-Yes, very.

-You gave JP £100.

He went off to buy your bonus buy. Show us your wares, JP.

I thought I'd buy something that was useful. So I bought you a little...

-Box!

-Oh, that was...

-HE LAUGHS

-Vicious.

-A writing slope.

I chose it because it's from Buchanan Street in Glasgow.

It's nicely made. Covered in leather. Late Victorian.

Hang on, it goes on further. There we are.

Someone would have written their letters on journeys

around the country, and they would have kept their little

bits of writing paper in the back. Very nice, isn't it?

-Hmm.

-Yeah. How much did it cost?

-Cost £75.

-Oh.

-How much do you think it'll make?

-I'd like to think there's a profit.

I wanted to buy something you'd really like,

but I thought I was going to get a better reaction than that.

-But I... Let's hope...

-No, I like it. I do. I really like it.

It's nice quality. £80-£120.

-I'd like to think it might eventually make.

-That's fine.

OK, girls.

You grip onto those memories cos right now, for the audience at home,

let's find out what the auctioneer thinks about JP's writing case.

Well, well, well. Look at this. You get loads for your money here.

How about that for a table writing desk?

I'm quite keen on this, I have to say.

Yes, it's quite dark. I'm not sure if at one point it was green.

It's much more green on the inside than it is on the outside.

But I love it. I have to say, I love this miniature briefcase.

I love the fact that it's still got its inkwell.

And it comes straight off our main drag in Glasgow, Buchanan Street.

Woodfield & Co are the manufacturers.

And well, what more do you want from a writing slope in Glasgow?

There you are. It's the right place to sell it. How much?

We've not put a huge sum on it. We've put £40-£60 on it.

OK. £70 paid by JP, who rates it.

Anyway, it'll all depend on whether the team go with the

bonus buy or not.

Now, for the Blues, first up is the embossed pewter covered card box.

-Yes.

-Now, Natasha Raskin, do you like the look of that?

-Raskin thinks it might be Ruskin.

-SHE LAUGHS

-Really? What, the plaque might be?

-Yes, the plaque.

It's got that real Ruskin blue to the plaque.

And the whole thing is lovely Arts and Crafts.

I like the fact that it's a card box.

With the little ribbons intact as well.

It really is a lovely thing of some considerable quality.

-Good. How much?

-£60-£90.

-OK, £30 paid.

-Oh, good!

-So that's pretty cool.

-That's excellent.

Moving from one extreme to the other.

We've got this slightly oddball box. Tell us all about that.

Well, compared to our Arts and Crafts, the only thing

they really have in common is the fact that they're boxes.

We are slightly suspicious about Dr De Waltoff. He looks a bit coy.

-He looks a bit cheeky.

-He looks like Hammer horror to me.

Well, inside, Dr De Waltoff's beautifiers and restorers in there.

I think there's even the essence of sirloin.

It's a little bit of a gag, isn't it?

-It is.

-It's got unrelated bottles.

And even though they are unrelated, it does complete the package.

So, it is what it is.

-Has it got the look for £110?

-Um, we think more 60-90.

There we go then. That's your prediction.

And that could be a bit of a loser for the Blue Team,

unless they get lucky.

The last item is really rather moving, isn't it, Natasha?

All those postcards commemorating the action at Zeebrugge.

Absolutely.

A real heroic act, not six months before the end of World War I.

And as a result of the heroism shown by the British, in fact,

eight Victoria Crosses were awarded to the soldiers who were

involved in the action.

We've got these commemorative postcards,

which were issued after the action in Zeebrugge.

Presented under glass, this really is a nice collector's lot.

-Exactly.

-And I think that almost a centenary has passed after

the First World War.

We would be hoping that we could get a lot of competition for this,

because militaria is always hot.

Especially when there's an anniversary.

-Should be a doddle to sell.

-Exactly.

It sort of ticks a few boxes, doesn't it? For postcard collectors.

People who are interested in the First World War.

So what sort of monetary value do you think the postcards will bring?

The estimate, we've kept it attractive and low, £30-£40.

At that kind of level, it can't help but sell.

OK, £45 paid. And I think that's quite the right strategy.

Anyway, I think, for me, Dr De Waltoff might struggle.

In which case, they're going to need their bonus buy.

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

-OK, Pietro, James.

-Yep.

-Yes.

-You gave your woman £115.

What did you spend it on, Caroline?

-Well, I didn't spend it all.

-Ooh.

-Wow!

-Oh, wow!

-Yeah.

-Look at that!

-That's beautiful.

-Do you like it?

-I do, yes.

-Gorgeous.

It's a rather wearable pierced silver belt buckle.

Early 20th century.

Scotland. Can you see the thistles for Scotland...

-England and Ireland.

-What happened to Wales?

Well, I don't know. It may be dropped off. Don't ask.

There will be a little leek somewhere.

-Yes, yes. It's gone.

-OK, you didn't spend it all.

What do you think I spent?

-It's a cracker, isn't it?

-75.

-A little bit more.

-90.

-That's what I was going to say, funnily enough.

-Were you?

-Yep.

-Yeah? I think it's a good thing. It's very good quality.

-I like that.

-Do you?

-How much do think it might fetch in auction?

Between 80 and 120, I would think.

-Do we have a date?

-It's early 20th century. Sheffield.

-Right.

-OK, there we go. You've got the information.

You've heard the words of wisdom from the maestro.

Let's find out, for the audience at home,

what the auctioneer thinks of Caroline's buckle.

-OK, Natasha, buckle up.

-I'll need to with this one.

The nation needs uniting, Tim.

And here, in silver, we have illustrated Scotland, England and

Ireland, in this lovely scrolling foliate pierced motif format.

And really, what's not to love about this?

It's an internet broadcast auction so we shouldn't just have

Scotland in the room. We should have England and Ireland,

going for this too. It's beautifully made. You're absolutely right.

-So, how much?

-£60-£90.

OK, I think you've joined that up perfectly nicely.

-£90 paid by Caroline.

-Oh good.

-She rates it as a bonus buy.

And she may well be right. Anyway, are you taking the sale today?

-Oh, I am. And I can't wait.

-Oh, nor can we.

We've got an opening bid here of £65.

Helena and Wilma, what are you going to do with your winnings today?

If it's a lot we're just going straight to the airport.

-Are you?

-Yeah.

-Oh great. Are you flying far then, do you reckon?

We'll wait and see what the money is. THEY LAUGH

Whatever we, get we go.

So, Helena, you found this Danish table globe.

Let us find out what happens. Here we go.

Here we have something every good home should have.

A 1970s Danish table globe.

Who's bidding 60 then? Let's get 40 for it. Come on.

-£40.

-Come on!

-Who doesn't need this for £40?

Let's get 30. Who is bidding £30 on the table globe?

Will you bid 20 for it? Come on now. I'm selling it here.

Who's bidding 20?

25? It was 20 in front. 25. 30. 35.

40. 45? No, thank you though. £40 is a lady's bid. Where's 45?

At £40. Are we all done at £40? Are we sure? It's five online.

-45 online. There we are.

-At £45. Are we all done?

It's with the onliner. Are we sure? It's £45.

GAVEL BANGS

-Yes! Wiped its face.

-That's your bag of chips.

Now, here's your lustre.

It's a Victorian gilt enamel milk-glass table lustre.

Who's bidding £30? £30 I'll take. And let's see it. 30's online.

Thank you.

-30.

-30 online.

-At 35. Looking for 40.

-At 35. 40. At £40. Anyone for five? Still online.

-45!

It's all go online here. 50's bid. At £50. I'm looking five. At 55.

Where's 60?

-At £55. Come on!

-Are you sure you're done? That can't be us.

At £55. Are we sure we're done? It's selling at 55.

GAVEL BANGS

Minus £15.

-Wilma. Oh, dear. Bad luck, girl.

-Where's your hankie?

Now, here's the napkin rings.

Silver napkin rings. Each cast with elephants.

What a lovely thing. An easy sell at £80.

Who's bidding 80? Straight in. Bid me 70. Come on now.

60 we'll take. Will you bid me £50?

Who's bidding 50 on the napkin rings?

You must have these at £50. Online. Thank you.

55 is in the room. Will you make it 60? Yes. 65? No.

-At £60 online.

-Come on!

-At 65. At 65. Lady's bid. 65.

It's against you online.

-She needs to make a trunk call.

-It's moving along. Slowly.

-75.

-80.

-SHE SQUEALS

85? 85 is bid.

-85.

-85 for these napkin rings. We're getting there.

At £85. Are we all done? 90!

At £90. No, thank you though for all your bids.

It's 90 online. Thank you, online. At £90. It's our last call.

Fair warning.

Yes. Good. £90 is plus £5. Which means overall you're only minus £10.

-Oh!

-That is bad luck, isn't it?

What are you going to do about the leather writing slope?

You going to park it and hope that £10 is a winning score?

-Or are you going to risk it?

-No. I think we'll risk it.

-Buy it.

-We'll go for it. What do you think?

-How much was it?

-70.

It's was £75. How do you feel about this, girls?

We're losing anyway, so we'll go for it.

Now you've cast your lot,

I have to reveal to you that the auctioneer's estimate is 40-60.

-Oh!

-Oh! Anyway, here it comes.

What do we have here? An Edwardian embossed leather writing slope.

By our very good friends on Buchanan Street, Woodfield & Co.

With a very quality Chubb lock. Who's bidding £50?

-Go on now. 40?

-Go on.

-40.

Who's going to bid £40 on this straightaway. You will online. 45.

-50. At £50. And five.

-55.

It's taking off online. Who'll make it 60? 60's online.

Will you make it 65?

65. Against you online. It's 65 in the room.

Looking for 70 online.

75 is bid. Thank you. At 75. Looking for 80.

At 75, it's our lovely lady's bid here. At 80 now.

85. Looking for 90.

At £85 and going now. Last call.

It was £85. That's plus £10, which means you made nothing.

THEY LAUGH

We can't go anywhere now.

-Where were you hoping to fly off to?

-Um...

We'll get the bus back. We've got our bus passes.

What you're going to do, girls, is just stay in Glasgow, right?

-No!

-We stay out Falkirk area.

-I'm so sorry. Going all the way to Falkirk.

OK, fine. Well, listen, this could be a

-winning score, absolutely nothing.

-He's right!

And the way things are going today, it could easily be a winning score.

-So, say not a thing to the Blues.

-No.

-Right.

It's 95 in the room. A determined bidder here.

-Pietro, James, how are you feeling?

-Excited actually.

-Excited.

-Do you know how the reds got on?

-No.

-Not a clue.

-No? No.

It's very difficult to decode what those girls have got on their mind.

THEY LAUGH

Listen, you've got that nice Arts and Crafts card box.

-You paid £30. She's estimated 30-50.

-Oh, wow.

-It's her favourite.

I think it's a dead cert for a profit, all right.

And here it comes.

We're there already. It's an Arts and Crafts pewter card box.

It's Ruskin style. Plaque on the top there.

Just what you want from Arts and Crafts.

And it's a box. And boxes are always handy.

-So let's get £50 for this. Come on now.

-Let's get 50.

£50 for a card box. Straight in, lady's bid of 50.

Thank you. At £50. 55 is online. Will you make it 60?

60 is bid. Yes. At £60. 65. 70. 75 is now on the internet.

-75 online.

-Will you make it 80? I'll give you first dibs.

It's 85 now online.

And 90. At £90. I'm looking for five. It's 95. At 95.

I'm looking for 100.

At 95. I'm looking for 100. Go on now. £100.

-Let's get three figures! At 95. And £100.

-Yes!

We're there at £100. Ten already.

Very good bit of auctioneering there.

110. Last call at £110. Are we done?

-GAVEL BANGS

-That's good.

110 is plus £80. Now who would have thought that?

-That's very good.

-Unbelievable.

You have made £80 profit, which is marvellous.

Apothecary dispensing box.

We are loving Dr De Waltoff's beautifiers and restorers.

With its unrelated bottles.

But I tell you what, this is a fun, quirky lot that does the trick.

-And must start at £75. Who's got 80?

-Crikey Moses.

85. 90. 95. 100 is bid. And I'm out at £100. Are we all done?

Where's 110 on this? At £100. Dr De Waltoff worked his magic.

At £100. Are we all done at £100?

GAVEL BANGS

Bad luck. That's minus £10.

-Missed it.

-OK, minus £10. You're still plus 70 though, kids.

OK, Zeebrugge.

We have got World War I framed set of 21 postcards commemorating

the British troops at Zeebrugge.

And let's see. I must start the bidding here straightaway at £25.

Looking for 30. Who's bidding? At 30. 35. I'm looking for 40.

-£40. Where's five? 45.

-Yes!

-Looking for 50. 45 is bid.

And 50 must be next. It's bid. At £50. I'm looking for 60.

-You're in profit, lads.

-I'm going up. I'm getting all excited.

At £50. I'm looking for five. At £50. We've cooled.

I'd pay good money to be as excited as you are.

At £50. Are we all done? Right, last call.

At £50 if you're sure you're done.

-Last call at 50.

-BANGS GAVEL

-Well done, lads.

-That's plus £5. Which means you are plus £75.

Now, are you going to risk that £75 having a go at the buckle?

We kind of thought about it before.

We decided if we were in profit at this point that we'd pass.

Much though we like the buckle.

We'll stick with the profits we've made.

-It's a very, very difficult call, isn't it?

-It is.

But a chunk of money is £75. You've done extremely well.

-And you're going to park it.

-We are.

OK, I can now tell you, now that you've made your decision,

that her estimate is 60-90. So there we are.

The decision is made. You've got your £75.

It could be a winning score.

But we're going to sell the bonus buy anyway, and here it comes.

Here we have a 20th century silver pierced belt buckle.

Depicting not just Scotland, but England and Ireland along with it.

Who'll bid me £70? Let's see a hand or a bid online at £70.

Anyone for 50 then? Who's bidding 50? Come on now. 50.

We're below the estimates here.

50's online. Thank you. I'm looking for five. At £50.

I'm looking for five.

At £50 for this buckle. We can't let it go at that.

-Let's get 55.

-Come on.

-At £50 online.

-Do we see anyone who came for silver tonight?

-Go on!

At £50. 55 is online. Thank you.

At 55. Will you make it 60? At 60. I'm looking for 65.

At £60. Are we all done?

-Last call at £60.

-GAVEL BANGS

-£60 is minus 30.

-That was a wise decision not to go with it.

Who could have shouted though? Who could have predicted that?

Anyway, there it is. You've got your £75. Don't say a word to the Reds.

All will be revealed in a moment. Thank you very much.

We're looking for 120.

-Well, well, well. You teams been chatting?

-No.

-Not at all.

Not about the score.

-ALL: No.

-So you have no idea that there is a vast chasm between you?

I regret to say that the runners up today, who've done really,

really well by making absolutely nothing, are the Reds.

THEY LAUGH

-It's amazing. Yes?

-Very.

-Good fun?

-Lovely.

-Fantastic.

-Fantastic fun.

-But the winners today are actually going to go home with £75.

-Yes!

Which is a substantial wodge.

And you played it absolutely straight, chaps.

And you go home with the riches you deserve.

THEY LAUGH

Anyway, it's been great fun. Join us soon for some more bargain hunting.

-Yes?

-ALL: Yes!