Builth Wells 4 Bargain Hunt

Oh, there's nothing quite like waking up in a tent,

stepping out onto the long, green grass and breathing in that

fresh country air here in beautiful Builth Wells, in Mid Wales.

Not only is it a great place for a spot of camping,

it's also a great site for our Reds and Blues to hunt out some

bargains as there's a huge antiques fair taking place here today.

So with that in mind, I don't know what we're waiting for -

let's go bargain hunting.

Every single corner of the Royal Welsh Showground here is

bursting with antique stalls and it's not just outside.

There are two exhibition halls and eight undercover buildings for our

teams to make their way around in just 60 minutes.

So it will be interesting to see how the Reds and Blues spend

their £300 and which items they bring back with them.

Let's see what's in store.

Coming up on today's show, we have one leading lady...

Whatever you like, we'll buy...

-As long as it's OK with you.

-..within reason.

-..two excited ladies... BOTH:

-Oh!

..and by the auction, the excitement keeps on building for the Reds...

-One more.

-Go on, one more.

-Go on.

-..and the Blues.

-YAY!

But that's all for later on.

It's time now to meet our teams and, for the Reds today, we have

married couple Christine and Mike and, for the Blues,

we have friends Mary and Helen.

-Welcome, everyone. Hello! TEAMS:

-Hello!

That was great! Lovely to see you all.

Going to start with the Reds and I'm coming straight to you, Christine.

Firstly, congratulations are in order.

You've recently celebrated your golden wedding anniversary.

That's lovely! So now I want to know how you met.

-We've known each other for 55 years.

-Wow.

We've been married for 52 years.

I met Mike in my first job in an insurance company.

I was the tea girl and the junior typist.

I had to go and ask Mike if he wanted a cake or would

he like a hot dog and he said, "Well, I'm a bit of a hot dog,"

and frightened me to death. I was terrified.

So, Mike, you're now retired, but that wasn't from insurance.

-You retired from another career.

-That's correct.

I retired from Cardiff City Police and South Wales Police.

I loved the job and I didn't really want to retire.

So, tell me now about antiques and collectables. How's your knowledge?

Well, we've learnt quite a bit from Bargain Hunt.

We love it, we watch it all the time.

And do you have any tactics to try and make a profit?

We were using our tactics on the breakfast table this morning.

-Explain that to me.

-We had a jug of milk on the breakfast table.

I had it on offer for £50. She haggled, she offered me a mere 20.

We eventually agreed 32.

And what did it sell for at auction at the breakfast table?

-It sold for £60.

-Fantastic! Oh, that's wonderful!

That's a great dress rehearsal.

-And you are very competitive, aren't you?

-We are very competitive.

-So you might be a team to reckon with?

-Oh, most definitely.

Most definitely. Watch out, Blues. Watch out.

Well, let's see what the Blues make of that.

Let's move on to friends Mary and Helen. Hello to you.

Mary, tell us how you know your team-mate Helen.

Well, funnily enough,

-she's not only my goddaughter, but my ex-daughter-in-law.

-Right. OK.

-And yet you're still so close.

-We're still friends, yes.

So what inspired you to choose Helen to be your team-mate today?

-Well, we get on very well together and I think that's important.

-Absolutely.

Because we don't want any bickering today, do we?

-I don't think we'll bicker.

-No, we'll keep it down.

Do you think that you're going to be a good bargain hunter?

-Well, I hope so. Yes, time will show.

-Time will show.

Obviously your team-mate is Helen and, Helen, we hear

you're a bit of a high-flyer, so tell us about your career.

I flew for a major airline for 15 years,

in first-class and I wasn't an air hostess, I was a beauty therapist.

-Oh, my goodness.

-So I did the massage

to celebrities and first-class passengers on the aircraft.

-So, who did you get your hands on?

-Brad Pitt.

-Really?!

-Oh, you're the envy of every woman watching!

-George Clooney.

George Clooney! Oh, that's wonderful! So you loved that job.

And have you given that up now?

Yes, I have, I gave it up to have my children. I have two little girls.

So what do you know about antiques and collectables? How's your knowledge?

To be truthful, I don't know an awful lot

but, like most ladies, I'm a magpie, I like anything sparkly and shiny.

What about you, Mary? Have you collected anything over the years?

What haven't I collected, really?

I've got a house full of collections of all sorts of things.

-Over a thousand spoons.

-Over a thousand spoons.

-Teaspoons.

And are they beautifully catalogued or are they just shoved in a drawer?

No, they're in racks all around my hall and up my stairs.

-A bit of a problem.

-They're not catalogued.

So what are your tactics going to be today?

-I want to know who's in charge.

-Mary's in charge.

Mary's in charge. OK, so you'll take the helm.

I'll carry the bags.

Well, you won't be able to buy spoons or anything without

-any money, so here's 300 for the Reds.

-Thank you.

-Fantastic.

-300 to the Blues.

-Thank you.

Your experts are eager to meet you, so I'm going to send you off,

wish you best of luck and, of course, have a great time.

-Off you go.

-Thank you.

-Bye.

I'll tell you what, by the end of this, I'll probably need a massage.

So it's time to meet today's experts.

Hoping to shake things up for the Reds, it's Thomas Plant.

And on the lookout with the Blues it's Kate Bliss.

-So, teams, what's the plan?

-I'm looking for something maritime.

-Are you?

-Something gold.

What are you going to be homing in on, do you think?

-I think jewellery and sparklies, we both like.

-OK.

-I like silver pin cushions, very tiny ones.

-Tiny things.

-Tiny things.

-And I love jewellery.

-Anything sparkly. The sparklier the better.

-Your eyes are twinkling already.

-Right, teams, time starts now.

-That's a long list. Let's go.

-It is. Let's go.

Come on, then. Let's get started.

-Come on, then.

-Enjoy your shopping, teams.

Now, if you see anything you fancy, just shout.

I think we can be sure Mary will do that, Kate,

and the same can be said for Christine.

-What's this, Thomas?

-OK, we'll have a look in here.

-Now, Mary, I can see you're homing in already over here.

-Yes, I am.

Lovely silver things here. Three of the inkwells there.

Well, you said you liked inkwells.

-Yes, but I was thinking of a larger encrier actually.

-Right.

Mary knows what she likes.

And Christine likes everything.

-Just pick one thing you like.

-I like that.

-Good. That's marvellous.

And I like the baby. Oh, sorry.

-I can see you're a live one, aren't you?

-She certainly is, Thomas.

Now, Blues, have you been drawn to sparkly items yet?

Some quite nice girlie things, Helen, that might be up your street.

-There's some quite nice costume jewellery.

-Plenty of choice then, ladies.

-What's Christine found, Thomas?

-1922 silver compact.

-I think that's rather nice.

-It's a very elegant thing.

-It is elegant.

And it's pretty. You've got the hallmarks there.

-Uh-huh.

-Do we know what the hallmark is?

-Do you know the hallmark?

-It says 1922 on the ticket.

-1922.

-So, it's £69.

-Yes, that's right.

-I think we ought to ask the gentleman if that's the best price.

Is this the best price, sir, for this?

Well, that one actually belongs to a colleague,

-so I'd have to go and check what the best price is.

-OK.

-Could you go and ask him for us?

-Yes, certainly. No problem at all.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

-So it's a very nice thing.

-It is very nice.

Could somebody wear that as a pendant?

-They could wear it as a pendant.

-Yes.

They could use it as a little pillbox.

-Yes, this is lovely.

-1922.

-Oh, he's back.

-Hello.

-What's the verdict, sir?

-I've had a chat with the dealer.

-His absolute best has got to be 60.

-We'll have it.

-Yeah, we'll go for it.

-We'll have it.

-Will you?

-Yeah. Thank you.

-Christine, that's your first item down.

-We have our first item down.

-That was an executive decision made by you.

-It definitely was.

-Definitely was.

-It was an executive decision, I agree.

-You agree.

-I agree.

-Right. Put it down.

-I think we need to go and find item number two.

-We do.

-Come on.

-Thank you.

-Off we go. Thank you.

Definitely an executive decision made by Christine,

but that's one in the bag, just shy of ten minutes.

So the Reds wanted jewellery. Are the Blues about to get theirs?

There's bracelet in there,

a bangle that looks rather nice in the corner of that cabinet.

Yes, that does look nice. Can we have a look at that, please?

-Certainly. It's a Tiffany bracelet.

-It's Tiffany.

-Oh, Tiffany's.

-Breakfast At Tiffany's.

-Yes.

So on the outside,

we've got 1837 engraved in quite an old-fashioned style of engraving.

On the inside we've got the modern Tiffany mark there.

"Tiffany & Co."

The full name, which is nice to see and, "1997,"

so we know it's a really modern piece.

What's the best you can do on that for us?

-To make a fairly good profit at an auction, I'd say 50.

-Right.

Well, if this didn't have the Tiffany name on it and it was

just an ordinary silver bracelet,

I'd probably say about £20 to £30 at auction, if that.

The Tiffany name stands for a lot, as I'm sure you understand,

-and it's a good weight.

-It is a good weight, yes.

-I don't suppose you've got a box for it?

-Erm...

-That would be good.

Oh, I can see the pale blue. Looking good. Fantastic.

-Can we have that too?

-Yes.

-So it's got its box. What do we say, guys?

Is 50 absolutely rock-bottom? I'm just checking. Yeah.

-What do we think?

-I think it would be good.

-Yes, please.

You're happy, aren't you?

I think that's a deal. Thank you very much indeed.

-Well done, Blues.

-Great. No, you can't take it home.

-Oh!

Looks like Helen's pleased with the Blue's first buy.

So with just 15 minutes on the clock,

neither team is hanging about.

Now, Thomas appears to have found something

right up Christine's Street.

So I've seen something on here which I think we've been looking for.

-Yes.

-I can see.

-Yes, I can see.

-Yeah.

-Oh, it's fabulous.

-It is good, isn't it?

-It is fabulous.

-It is a bunny rabbit.

-Oh, he's so cute!

-Could it be a hare?

-It could be a hare.

I think it's a hare with the big ears.

-It's a hare, isn't it, with the ears?

-Is it OK?

-How much is it, Thomas?

-£60.

-SHE GASPS

-Oh, thank you.

-I have to have that.

-£60 on it. It's £60.

-I have to have it.

-I'm borrowing the gentleman's glass.

-Oh.

-Yeah, yeah.

-How thoughtful.

What I'm looking is to see if I can see any strike marks to it

-or hallmarks.

-A hallmark. Nothing at all?

-No, there's nothing at all...

-Not even... No?

No, it could be continental.

If this was solid silver and British hallmarks,

it would be £150.

-If only, if only.

-If only.

-If only.

-But it's not, it's what it is.

-He's cute.

-I think he's rather handsome.

-He is, he's lovely.

-He is so cute.

-You can't stop her, can you?

He's so cute. Look at his ears.

-Oh, look at that.

-He's lovely.

-Isn't he lovely? Hello.

-Hello.

Hi. Your little... Your little hare.

-He isn't silver, he's silver plate.

-It's silver.

It's a French one, it's not an English one.

-Oh, is it?

-He's lovely.

-You've got 60 on it.

-35.

-Would you do him for 30 for us?

-35.

-30?

-I can't.

-You can't do it for 30.

-I can't, I'm afraid.

-She's almost taken half off!

-Yes, she has.

-We'll have him for 35.

-Another executive decision.

-Yes.

-35. I agree, I agree.

-Is that OK, Michael? Well done.

-That's fine by me. Yeah...

-Yes.

Thank you, madam. Thank you.

-Mike...?

-Merci beaucoup.

-Merci, madame.

-You have to buy something now, darling...

-I will.

-..that you like.

I will, definitely.

If he's allowed! Remember, Mike wanted to find something maritime.

With two items down in 17 minutes, Reds, are you enjoying it?

I think things are going really well, to be honest with you.

-Really well.

-I didn't think we'd have two down in 17 minutes.

Hm, impressive stuff.

Whilst we leave the teams to it,

I'm going to show you an item I found at the fair.

Now, I could ask you what on earth is this?

But I think you'll all know that it's a cheese dome.

But I will ask you have you ever seen a cheese dome as big as this?

Because I certainly haven't.

Now, what we want to know is who it's by.

I had an inkling that this would be by Linthorpe.

I checked the base... Phew, I was right!

But what I wanted to see wasn't there.

I wanted to see the letters CHR Dresser

and that would have meant it was designed by Christopher Dresser -

that great Glaswegian designer.

It's not by Dresser, but it's very much in his style.

What hallmark does it bear that makes me think that?

Well, first of all, I'm looking straight at those handles

because with Christopher Dresser it's all about the handles.

What else makes me think of Dresser?

Well, this gorgeous honeysuckle design that encompasses

the whole dome and the base

because Christopher Dresser was not only a designer,

he was also a keen botanist.

So I am quite surprised this wasn't designed by the man himself.

But I do know that it was designed after 1882.

And how do I know that? Well, I'll tell you in a minute.

Another thing I want to focus on just before we flip it over

is this gorgeous mustered glaze.

That's what caught my eye because this was a colour that Dresser loved

to use for his Linthorpe designs.

How do I know it's not him? I promised I'd show you, so I will.

On the base here it's incised "Linthorpe."

If you see a little bit of Linthorpe, and you see

a bowl in the incised signature at the bottom,

then you know that this was incised

after Christopher Dresser left the company in 1882.

As an homage to Dresser, we see this lovely bowl,

but gone is the designer himself.

So what's it worth?

Well, the gentleman manning the stall has a sticker of 180.

So, in true Bargain Hunt style, I had a haggle,

and he said he'd sell it to me for 160,

which was music to my ears

because I reckon that in a specialist Aesthetic style sale,

this piece in the style of Dresser would have an estimate of £2-300.

Well, it might not exceed the top end of the estimate but

believe me, if you walked into any auction house with a cheese dome

like this, you would be the big cheese yourself.

Back to it and we're approaching the halfway mark.

The Blues already have one item but the Reds have bought two in

just 17 minutes. Thomas, are you having fun?

These two are amazing.

However, there is one force of nature here which is not

going to be stopped.

Christine is bulldozing poor old Mike.

Mike, I don't think he's said more than ten words to me yet.

This next purchase, our third and final,

is going to be all about him

and us men have to gang up against Christine

and I'd better go and save him.

Yes, I'll be interested to see how that's going to work.

Mike, this doesn't look very maritime.

-What are you doing?

-Hi, Thomas. Hi.

-What are you doing?

-I'm nosey...

I thought this was Mike's choice.

It's supposed to be my choice, isn't it?

Well, we do like the same things.

-It's supposed to be my choice.

-Don't you, Mike?!

-We're looking for something maritime.

-Maritime...

-Give poor Michael a chance.

-Well, yes...

-It's your chance now.

-Thank you very much.

-I'm very grateful.

-Whatever you like...

-Whatever you like, we'll buy.

-As long as it's OK with you.

-What about..?

-Within reason!

-Within reason?! Off you go.

-Right.

-Come on.

Boys, Christine is running rings around you.

Good luck, Mike. So have the Blues sniffed our their second buy yet?

We've got scent bottles, Helen. You said you liked scent bottles.

I'm just looking at the top at the Sabino Glass, Helen.

-Do you like those?

-Yes, they're pretty.

What are we looking at in terms of price for the Sabino scent bottles?

The one at the back there.

Well, the price on it is 130.

-It's signed Sabino.

-Right.

-My absolute best on that would be a straight 100...

-Right.

..that's the death on that.

I'm going to pick this one up, if I may, madam?

-Is it all perfect, as far as you know?

-As far as I know.

-Yep.

-You're welcome to check.

-So this is lovely.

These, sort of, swags, are very Art Nouveau, aren't they?

It's just a great colour, isn't it?

-I think it's lovely.

-Would you have it on a dressing table, Mary?

-Yes.

We can't push you just a tiny bit more under the 100?

95, but that would absolutely be it.

OK, thank you very much.

What about the other scent bottle, Blues?

This one might be slightly cheaper.

What you think, Helen. You have a little look.

-I like that.

-80...?

-85.

-85.

So we've got the choice of this one at 85 or the larger one at 95.

-I have to say, I think the larger makes a better statement.

-Yes.

-Do you agree, Helen?

-Yes, I agree.

And for only £10 more, there's a lot more of it.

-You're right. Shall we go for it and take that larger one?

-Yes, OK.

-I think you've got a deal, madam.

-Wonderful.

-Thank you very much.

-Lovely.

-I'll wrap it...

-Great. Thank you. Super. Full steam ahead.

Full steam ahead, indeed.

Second item for the Blues in 35 minutes.

So both teams need one more item. Mike, are you getting a look in?

A 19th century... You're almost there, Christine. Yeah, OK...

-Thank you.

-Oh, sorry.

-I like that.

-Do you like that?

-Yeah, I like that.

-It's...

-You like that?

-Can I have a look?

-Yes, of course. Please do.

-I like that.

-Look at the way that's turned.

-It's beautifully turned.

-That's beautiful. That's lovely.

-A 19th century child's toy.

-Do you like that, Mike?

-I'm not so keen on the price.

-No.

Do you want to go and have a chat with him?

-All right, what is the mark? What's it marked as?

-It's £120.

-It's £120. There we go. I love it.

-Mike, do you want to go and have a chat with the man?

-Go and have a chat...

-Where is he? Where's the man?

-See what you can do.

Let Mike have a word, Christine.

-I like it very much.

-Yeah.

-I'm not so keen on the price though.

-Yeah, I know. This is the thing, isn't it?

-I'm not so keen...

This is the thing, I'm going to have to look at the stock number and I'll find out what it cost me.

-I'll go and have a look.

-OK, thank you.

-BOTH: Thank you.

-You've got to put this in context.

-Yes.

A child in the mid-19th century...

In the Victorian period children were precious.

-They were precious.

-Exactly.

-Yes.

There were lots of childhood illnesses and some didn't survive.

Toys were expensive things and this would have been

an expensive toy to make because it's carved out of such a hard wood.

Right, the best I can do it is £95.

-95?

-Yes, 95.

Could you do a little bit less than 95? Could you make it 90?

No, I can't. I can't. Honestly, I can't.

- I wouldn't normally quote 95. - All right.

-He's tried.

-It's very...

-It's very nice. You like it.

-I think we'll go for it.

-You have to buy something that you like.

-Thank you very much, sir.

-It's a pleasure.

-A real pleasure.

-I wish you well.

-Thank you.

-Thank you, sir.

-I hope you've enjoyed yourself.

-Oh, we have. We've had a ball.

-Thank you very much.

-That's it, third and final item done.

-Done. Fantastic.

-Done.

-Fantastic!

-Fantastic.

-You are fabulous.

Do you know what? I now need a cup of tea. Come on, let's go.

I should think you do, Thomas.

So in 40 minutes, that's the job done for the Reds

but I'm not convinced it was entirely Mike's choice.

So, Blues, it's over to you.

Helen, what have you spotted?

Look at it, our little pug dog there.

They seem to be all the fashion all at the moment.

He's quite sweet, isn't he?

Let me reach in and have a closer look at him.

Well, we've got a factory mark on his tummy.

-A Beswick.

-A Beswick, indeed.

I can tell by that shape, I think he's probably '50s in date.

The thing about these Beswick models

-is you've just got to check the condition.

-BOTH: Yes.

Hi there. Hi. How much is he?

-We wanted 25 for him.

-25.

-Is that the absolute bottom?

-That is, yes.

-Yeah...

-Even for the Blue team?

-Even for the Blue Team. I'm sorry, yes.

At auction, they vary from sort of £15-£25

so we're probably about on the money.

But you never know, we might have a real pug dog lover.

You're not sure about this one, are you?

I'm a bit nervous that he's already at his peak and we won't get

-any more for him.

-You've peaked, pug.

-You've peaked!

Helen thinks so, anyway. But you quite like him, Mary?

-Yes, I think he's lovely.

-Right, let's put him back then.

Shall we have a quick look, and then we can always come back?

All right, let's do that.

Helen's not convinced they're barking up the right tree.

See what else she can find in the remaining 15 minutes.

Thomas, are you feeling a bit shellshocked?

I don't think I'm going to recover

from this experience for a very long time.

You two have been totally marvellous.

Absolutely brilliant.

So I salute you with a good slurp of coffee.

-You're having tea.

-Cheers!

-Cheers.

Cheers, Reds. Blues, is this worth an investment? Ten minutes left.

I quite like the look of this, ladies.

I'm conscious we really are tight for time.

Let's have a very quick look at this. Do you know what this is?

-A vesta case.

-You've got it, it's a vesta case

and it's actually for matches.

And it would've been worn on a gentleman's watch chain,

that's right. So he had his matches ready to strike,

light has pipe, or whatever he wanted to do.

They're always hallmarked just on the inside, here.

And you can see that's a really nice, period one.

I think that's probably Victorian, isn't it, sir? Yep.

And we've got some nice engraving in the silver.

The hinge is in good condition. And if he'll give us a good price...

I'm just smiling sweetly at him.

..that might be something that collectors

might go for at our auction. What could you do for us on that?

You can have it for 20.

For 20. I would say, ladies, these make anything from £15-£30.

Could you tuck it just under the 20 so that it sounds better for us?

- 19.50. - 19.99!

-£19 is the very best.

-Thank you very much.

-And think it could be a good buy for £19.

-Do you, Mary?

Yes, I think we should perhaps go for that. What about you?

Yes, it's pretty.

-So we're not having the little dog, we're happy with this?

-Yes.

Good decision. We'll do it. Thank you, sir. With minutes to go.

ALARM CLOCKS RING Well, that's it, time is up.

-Are you happy?

-Yes, I am.

-Are you happy, Mary?

-Very happy.

-Well done.

I think we all deserve a sit down and a nice cup of tea.

Let's remind ourselves what the Red team bought.

First up, the Reds are hoping for a pretty profit

with this compact, bought for £60.

Next, they hopped on and bought this hare pincushion for £35.

And finally, will it be game, set and match

with this bilboquet, bought for £95?

Well, it was coffee that brought you together 55 years ago.

And here we are, having a cup of tea on Bargain Hunt.

With time to spare. Well done!

So, out of all the three items, Christine, which is your favourite?

It has to be the hare pincushion, it's beautiful.

And do you think it's going to be the hare

-that brings the biggest profit?

-I think so, yes.

So, Mike, this is your chance to start talking.

Tell me, which was your favourite item?

My favourite item, without doubt, was the Queen Victorian toy.

-Do you think it's going to bring the biggest profit?

-I certainly do.

I think it will bring the biggest profit.

I'm quite proud of you two as well, because not only did you get

that done so quickly, you did spend quite a chunk of the money, £190.

-We did!

-So, let me guess, Christine, do you have the leftover money?

-Yeah, of course she does!

-Let me check that!

Let me take it from you. 110.

Thomas, there's £110.

I'm going to balance it up.

I'm going to buy something masculine and male for my friend, Mike!

-That's brilliant.

-OK!

I'll be forever grateful.

So while Thomas goes and finds something for the boys,

let's go and see what those Blues bought.

The Blues both wanted to buy some jewellery,

and settled on this Tiffany bracelet for £50.

Next up, can they smell a profit with this scent bottle,

bought for £95?

And finally, they invested £19 of their budget on this vesta case.

Well done, Mary and Helen,

-you really used the whole hour, didn't you?

-Oh, yes!

You managed to get three items, kind of what you were looking for.

Which was your favourite, Mary, of the three?

-Mine was the perfume bottle.

-Perfume bottle, so gorgeous, isn't it?

-Yes.

Do you think, when we get to Cardiff for the auction,

that's going to bring the biggest profit, or maybe one of the others?

I think, perhaps, the vesta case might make the most profit,

-because they seem very popular at the sales.

-They are, aren't they?

And what about you, Helen? I think you have a different favourite.

Yes, the Tiffany bracelet!

-The Tiffany bracelet, right up your street.

-Oh, it was, yes!

-But is it going to bring the biggest profit?

-Of course!

-Oh, you think so?

-Yes!

-OK!

You only spent £164.

So, Mary, you've got £136 in your pocket.

Am I going to have to prise it from you,

or are you handing it over willingly?

There we are! Thank you.

-Don't worry, it doesn't stay with me for long, it goes to Kate.

-Great.

-And that's a lot of money.

-It is.

Is it going to be an inkstand, then, Kate?

Well, I've got to find the right one first. I'll do my best, Mary.

-Oh, thank you.

-A bit more Tiffany?

I'm going to be hard pushed to please you both, aren't I?

Yes, very hard.

Well, Kate's got her work cut out,

but let's see if it all pays off as we head to Cardiff for the auction.

I've travelled south, and here I am in Cardiff at Rogers Jones,

and I'm sitting with Ben Rogers Jones, auctioneer for the day.

-Hello to you, Ben.

-Hello.

Thank you for having us along.

We're going to start with our Red team, Christine and Mike.

We've got a compact here with guilloche enamel.

It's silver, it's hallmarked, it's looped for suspension -

-so, what do you think?

-Rather a plain Jane, if I must say so.

And a little bit dented on the side there, as you can see.

It's a fair enough piece. I mean, there are lots of them around.

It probably would have been part of a set.

I've got to be fairly modest with my estimate, £10-15.

Well, Christine, who chose the compact,

won't be happy with that, because they paid £60 for it.

But let's move on to item number two,

which is, in fact, Christine's favourite - this novelty pincushion.

Now, are you quite confident that this is silver?

-I'm fairly convinced that it's silver.

-OK, great.

It's unhallmarked, which may cast a doubt in some collectors' minds.

Do you reckon some hands are going to leap up in the saleroom?

I think we'll have some competition for it.

-I've put an estimate of £30-40 on it.

-OK.

As I say, Christine loved it, had to have it. She paid £35 for it.

I reckon everyone was quite happy with that.

That was Christine's favourite item. This is Mike's favourite item.

This ballgame here.

What do you think of it? Because he adored it.

This is the famous French game of bilboquet. It's nicely turned.

It's got age. There are a few of these around,

often they came in sets, or compendiums, of games.

It's on its own. I think, estimate-wise, £30-40.

OK, can't do any better? Can't tempt you to raise the estimate a little?

No, I think computer games have probably superseded the bilboquet,

so we can't go too strong on it.

Well, perhaps Mike was a wee bit nostalgic when he went for this one.

-He paid £95 for it.

-Goodness.

Well, if the auctioneer's wincing, we might just need the bonus buy,

so let's find out what Thomas Plant bought for the Reds.

OK, well, Thomas, show us what you got.

Well, Mike, this is just for you,

-I have to say.

-Oh, wow.

-There it is!

-Oh, wow!

-It's an anchor!

-There's your anchor.

-There's your bit of maritime.

-That's brilliant.

-Anchors aweigh, I say!

Christine, you wouldn't let him buy any maritime, would you?

-No, I wouldn't.

-No, you wouldn't, so I did it for him!

-It's a cast-iron anchor from the 1920s, 1930s.

-1920s?

-Yeah, yeah, it's a French one.

-Oh!

And I spent the grand total of £35 on it.

-You didn't!

-I did, I did.

Well, Mike, he says it's for you, are you impressed?

I am impressed, yeah. Do you think that'll make us a profit?

It's going to make a little bit of a profit. It's a garden piece now.

Definitely do the job, that will.

You think it'll definitely do the job.

-Well, those could be famous last words, Mike.

-Could be!

I've got a sneaky feeling it is going to do the job,

and we're going to do well with this one.

This positive attitude is very welcome,

but don't make up your mind until the auction.

So, let's head over to our auctioneer to find out what

he thinks of Thomas' rusty and rustic anchor.

Here is Thomas' maritime anchor.

-Wow.

-Tell me, what do you think?

Right.

Rusty piece of metal.

Yes, but it's so nicely modelled...?

-Or is it?

-Not really.

-Not really?

-No.

I don't know, there's got to be some positives there.

I mean, it's interestingly formed, it's obviously seen action,

if this anchor could talk, what would it say?

"Glug, glug, glug," perhaps?

"Help me, take me out of this auction room!"

But it's got to go somewhere.

Do you reckon it you've got buyers, maybe interior designers,

cafe owners, things like that?

It's difficult to see a purpose for it, really,

-other than throwing in the sea.

-Well, you don't seem inspired.

Have you placed an inspiring estimate upon this rusty anchor?

I've put £15-25 for its scrap value.

Well, that's all right, it might still swim,

-because Thomas only paid £35 for it.

-Oh, well...

So all hope is not lost at the bottom of the sea.

Now, let's move on to our Blues, Mary and Helen.

And we'll start off with Helen's absolute favourite,

this Tiffany silver open bangle.

Now, do you have a lot of jewellery buyers coming to the sale?

It's in good company, this bangle,

there's a lot of jewellery in this sale. I think it'll do quite well.

-Very commercial.

-Yes.

-At what kind of price?

-50-80?

-Fantastic. Well, Helen had to have it.

I think she wanted it for herself, and they paid £50 for it.

-Oh, there we are.

-So, Mary trusted Helen's taste there,

and she probably did the right thing.

Let's move on to Mary's favourite,

this lovely, moulded, Sabino glass scent bottle.

You've got to have something good to say about that.

It's nice - a nice, opalescent bottle.

Not particularly old, and that's important.

But rather attractive, and there are collectors for Sabino glass,

I think it might do well.

Yeah, and these are very trendy, aren't they, all of a sudden.

Scent bottles are the thing to have, for the lady has everything.

Absolutely.

And what kind of price does the lady who has everything want to pay?

£30-40.

Well, these ladies - who have their hopes pinned on this - paid £95!

Right. Well, there is some interest, so we'll see.

Might be a little bit rich.

-OK, so they could come out smelling of roses in the end.

-They might do.

OK, now we'll move on to this vesta case.

Mary reckons there's profit to be made in this.

It is silver. What do you think your buyers are going to make of it?

If there's one silver item that we see an awful lot of,

it's vesta cases and cigarette cases.

There's a huge number of them in the country.

It doesn't have anything unusual about it.

It's fairly plain.

Floral engraved vesta case.

Can't go to strong on that one, I'm afraid.

-OK, how strong did you go?

-£20-25.

Do you know, the ladies fought hard

for every last pound off of this, and they did get it down to £19.

Mary reckons the vesta case will bring the biggest profit,

but perhaps it will be her favourite item, the scent bottle,

that lets them down.

So, if it does, they might need to rely on their bonus buy.

Let's find out what it is.

Well, Mary and Helen, the shopping's done, but it wasn't over for Kate.

-She had £136 to spend of your leftover money.

-Yes.

-So what on Earth did you spend it on?

-Let's see!

BOTH: Ooh!

Oh, my favourite, owls!

-What's it say underneath it?

-That's a good question, Mary.

We have got a little signature in script there.

Which says...

-Lalique.

-Wahey!

That makes it very special.

This is a modern piece.

We can tell really, by the style of it, but also because we've

got that script signature, we haven't got the initial R.

So, I paid...

-£40.

-Ooh!

That's good, yes.

What do you think that's going to make for us?

Well, I've seen these modern pieces at auction, Mary,

go for £60-70.

So, if we've got a good buyer here today, it could fetch that much.

-That would be fine.

-That would be great.

We'll keep our fingers crossed, but remember, don't make your

minds up now, it all comes down to how well you're doing at auction.

So, for now, we'll head back to our auctioneer to see if

he thinks this owl will turn heads in the saleroom.

OK, so to add to the glass we already have,

we've got this Lalique owl.

Modern as it is, attractive though, surely?

Oh, it's lovely.

Lalique is a sign of quality.

-And owls are favourite birds, aren't they?

-They are!

-I think this will do well.

-Yeah, you reckon?

-At what sort of estimate?

-£40-50.

-40-50.

Let me tell you, Kate Bliss managed to get this very nice,

modern Lalique owl, for £40 only.

She must have fought hard.

So, in that case, I think it's going to be good news all round.

-I've got a good feeling about today's auction. Have you?

-I have.

-So, will you be taking to the rostrum today, Ben?

-I will.

Great, well, I look forward to picking up some tips.

Let's head there now.

Right, Mike, Christine, Thomas - here we are.

-You guys must have been to an auction before?

-No, my first time!

Now is the time to see how it's done,

because this is a great auction house.

As you can see, the room is full.

-Are you ready for your first lot?

-I'm ready.

-Here it comes.

174a, a silver and guilloche enamel compact case. Rather nice.

£30? Bid me 30?

Bid me 30?

20 to start?

20 I have online.

Come on, come on!

25? £25?

Is there 30?

30 now, is there 5?

£30, online the bid, anyone in the room?

-All online.

-All online.

Online has it then, at £30.

£30, everyone done?

Fair warning to you all at 30...?

-£30.

-Aw!

-You were robbed!

£30!

Which means you've lost 30.

Now, don't worry, we've got two items to go.

Now it's our novelty pincushion.

You're £30 under, and you paid £35 for this, so we need a good price.

Here it comes.

174b, isn't this lovely?

The little, silver pincushion in the form of a seated rabbit.

Start me at £50, 50?

50 I have.

Brilliant!

At £50.

Any advance now? At £50.

Anyone in the room, at £50?

Higher! Come on!

Everybody done?

5s if you like, at 50 now.

Come on, you pincushion collectors!

Last... 5. 5, just in time.

-Ooh, 55 is bid.

-55!

Come on, come on!

Everybody done?

Online the bid then, here it goes with 60...

£60.

60, well done! It sold for 60, that's exciting.

That means it made £25,

and you are now just £5 under.

174, the turned bilboquet.

£30, 30?

-Oh, no!

-Don't worry.

-Bid me 20?

-Shocked.

Start me at 10?

10 bid, 12?

15? 15.

18.

-You're shocked. MIKE:

-I am.

Come on!

Either of you at 2?

£20?

Come on!

Is everybody done? At 22, second thoughts there.

Come on, it's a bargain!

5 if you like?

22. At 5. 25?

-Is there 8? At £25...

-Getting there.

Well, it's got a long way to go.

Closing up now, at 25...

-Aw!

-Oh, £25!

OK, what does that mean, it means you've lost 70,

which means you've lost 75 in total.

Panic not, remember that positive attitude you had a moment ago?

Bring it back, because maritime is the word of the moment.

Now you've got to decide, are you going to go with Thomas'

rusty old anchor?

Of course, no choice!

This is it, it's going under the hammer.

-Great for gardens.

-Great for gardens. Fingers crossed.

178, the old, iron, maritime anchor.

I've got a start, it starts with me at £25.

-Ooh, tell you what.

-Come on.

30. 35?

40 if you like?

35 is with me.

At £35?

£35.

-Goes with your yacht.

-£35.

It's on the book.

-Go on, one more.

-Go on!

Last call then, at £35,

hammer's up... 35.

Aw!

Folks, £35 it sold for, and that's what Thomas paid for it.

Which means it's broken even,

and you have finished Bargain Hunt £75 under.

How are you feeling, ladies, now that we're standing here?

Excited, very excited.

-Excited, Helen?

-Nervous!

-Yeah!

-A bit less confident, maybe?

-Yes!

-I can feel it, you're jittering.

-I can't keep still!

But it is exciting. I tell you what's even more exciting,

is your favourite lot's going under the hammer right now,

Tiffany bracelet. Fingers crossed...

193a is the modern, boxed Tiffany silver open bangle. Rather nice.

A lot of interest in this. I have to start at £50.

-That's what you paid!

-Yes!

60, 70 now. At 70.

Online the bid, anybody in the room?

-80, £80, 90.

-Yes!

Online the bid, 100 if you like.

100 now. £100.

110. Is there 20?

110.

Told you!

30 if you like? At £125?

Online now at £125.

Before it goes, any second thoughts?

130 if you like? 130, your bid.

130, 130.

130, online, you're out?

£130, by my side, lady's bid, everybody done at £130...?

Yes!

You've just made £80 on that bracelet. How exciting!

Now we've got the Sabino glass. Now, you paid £95 for it.

We're at 65, ladies, here we go.

65 for the scent bottle.

At 65, 70? 5. With me. At 75? 85.

Is there 90 now? At 85, 90.

-90, we need one more.

-Yes!

Make it 100!

At £90 for the scent bottle, at £90?

Has everybody done?

At £90, last call then, hammer's up here, £90, all done?

-Aw!

-No big deal.

It sold for 90, you lost a fiver, you're still 75 in front.

That's actually not bad. Aw, we were so close.

Here we have Kate's choice, this lovely vesta case,

you only paid £19 for it.

And here it goes under the hammer, ladies, let's keep it up.

Bright cut, silver vesta case, straight in I go at 15.

15, is there 18?

At £15, 18, 22, I'm jumping to,

would you like 5, sir?

At 22, anybody else?

New bidder now, 25, right at the back and seated at £25,

is there 8? Is that a bid, sir? 28.

Yay!

30. At £30.

Is there 2? At 30.

New bidders!

I've never seen the likes.

-Everybody done? 32.

-£32!

Ladies, that's profit of 13.

So, 75 plus 13, £88 profit!

-I am seriously impressed!

-Oh, that's good.

It's really good, Mary!

The question is, are you going to risk your profit and go for the

bonus buy, or are you going to stick with what you've got?

I'd like to risk it.

We'll go with it.

-You're go to go for it?

-We're going to go for it.

A lovely Lalique Owl.

There's good interest in this, it's straight in mid-estimate,

at £45, is there 50?

-Yes!

-Instant profit!

45, 50 standing bid.

Is there 5 now? Who's coming in at £50?

Anybody coming in at £50?

That's my last call then, at 50, everybody...

5? 55. Is there 60?

Against you now, sir.

55, new bidder now.

Is everybody done?

At 55, hammer's up...

Yay!

You made a profit of £15, another 15!

Ladies, it all weighs in

at a total of £103!

How good is that?!

Ladies, a three-figure sum on Bargain Hunt is no mean feat.

You should be very proud of yourselves.

Keep it to yourselves, and we'll soon find out how it all went down.

-Well, teams, as I remember it, we gave you £300.

-Yes.

-We gave you 60 minutes.

-Yes.

-You each bought three items.

-Yes.

So how come we've got two seriously different results? How can that be?

-I wonder!

-Because the conditions were the same.

And yet, today, our Blues are seriously in front,

well done, you are our winners!

How did it happen?

Let's turn to our runners-up today, the Reds.

Now, the story of your shop was that Christine was very much in charge.

And Christine was right, because your only item that made a profit

was the pincushion that Christine predicted would make a profit.

Well done. You had fun though, didn't you, Mike?

I enjoyed every minute of it.

You had a great time, I'm so pleased to hear it.

But let's turn to the Blue team. Well done.

Let me tell you, they have won today with £103 profit!

APPLAUSE

Very well done.

Overall, you only lost £5, it was fantastic to watch.

And, Helen, you're whooping and cheering... It was so good.

You bought items that you loved, and in the end they made you money.

So, £103, it's a fantastic sum of money. And who's taking it?

-Mary, I reckon it's going to be you. There we are.

-Thank you!

You've got some notes and some coins, so hold on tight!

If you enjoyed all of that and want to learn more about Bargain Hunt,

then visit our website, the details are on the screen now.

If you love Twitter, then find us @BBCBargainHunt.

But if you just love to watch our programme, then please,

join us again for some more bargain-hunting, yes?

Yes!