Episode 2 The Great Pottery Throw Down

No, this isn't the bit between the programmes in the 1960s.

It is week two and I'm determined to nail this.

SHE LAUGHS

Welcome back to The Great Pottery Throw Down.

Previously on The Great Pottery Throw Down...

a parish councillor took on a builder...

This is where the panic kicks in.

..an interior designer...

Take a deep breath see what happens.

..a project manager...

Big and small ones.

..a farmer's daughter...

These pots are odes to my grannies.

..a vet...

Breaks my heart.

..and a rock-and-roll singer.

Put my feet up, watch everybody else panicking.

But it was retired Army major Tom who triumphed...

Just dip and pray.

..and became the competition's first top potter.

And with Matthew just clinging on, Rekha was asked to leave the pottery.

If it was down to attitude, Rekha wins hands down.

Yes!

Now ceramic artist Kate Malone and master potter Keith Brymer Jones

have set three more challenges...

You are not going to get it in tonight.

..including the huge main make...

Oh, my God!

..for the smallest room.

Fantastic!

-A spot test...

-Everybody's started.

..that requires instant creativity...

I feel like I'm a six-year-old in an art lesson.

It will be play-time soon.

..and a throw down that no-one saw coming.

Nice and delicate there, Jane. Well done.

That's the first time I've been called delicate.

Thank you very much.

MUSIC: I Can't Explain by The Who

# Got a feeling inside

# Can't explain

# It's a certain kind

# Can't explain

# I feel hot and cold

# Can't explain

# Yeah, down in my soul, yeah

# Can't explain

# Can't explain I think it's love

# Try to say it to you when I feel blue

# But can't explain. #

MUSIC: Not Fade Away by The Rolling Stones

Middleport works around the clock...

..and with Rekha heading home,

they are about to embark on another gruelling week..

..at the end of which one potter will have to leave.

Good evening, potters. Welcome back to the pottery.

-ALL:

-Hello!

We are about to unveil your latest main make.

What is it, Kate?

You have to make a wash basin

and you are going to be making it using hand-rolled coils.

What I want to see is originality -

you are making something you can't get in the shops

and I want that extra 10%, please.

Really go for it.

Now, this basin wants to be no more than 40cm wide, 17cm deep

and to fit a conventional British standard plug - 32mm wide.

So you have seven days to make, fire and decorate your basins

and then present them to the judges.

Are you ready?

Let's do it!

OK. And calm.

Let's make this basin.

Creating a spectacular washbasin is a daunting task,

but doing it all by hand

makes it an epic test of the potters' touch and creativity.

First of all, they'll have to use coils of clay to build their basins,

dry them overnight,

trim and hand-finish them,

dry them overnight again before their first 24-hour firing.

Then they will be glazed, fired for a final time

and presented to Kate and Keith.

Ceramics is used in many parts of the house

and here we are in the bathroom.

Yeah. We are actually asking them to coil a basin.

What we really want to see is them using with the coiling technique

is rolling good and consistent coils.

They needn't be round, they can be flat.

-But also, we want to see the bond between the two coils.

-Yeah.

That's a weak point.

I want to see them, really, from the start,

knitting those coils together.

It has to be practical. This is a real practical object.

The potters need to really think about

fitting the plug nice and plush,

otherwise it is going to leak and you can't have a leaky basin!

I think they're going to have a lot of fun with this one.

In this first stage, the potters have three hours to build

the basic structure of their basins.

They're using a technique over 15,000 years old -

hand-rolling ropes of clay and then coiling them

one on top of the other.

Long before the wheel, this method enabled humans

to build taller and thicker vessels than anything made before.

I love this technique. Just your hands and a bit of clay.

It's back to basics, yeah!

My experience of coil potting is very limited,

mainly cos I don't like coil potting.

It is not something I choose to do.

I'd think of any other method of making.

When I am trying to roll it into a perfect sausage,

it is kind of going flat like that,

which my students will enjoy seeing because that's what happens to them

and I say, "Guys, you're just not doing it right."

Mr Wilcock, he is a very exciting teacher.

He likes to crack a few jokes. He does make a very enjoyable lesson.

When I first thought we were going to do ceramics, I was like, "Hmm,"

cos I thought we'd just be making pots all day.

But he's made it really fun.

I really like his hair.

Yeah, his hair is really cool.

It's a mould I have made myself.

However, it is not the best mould in the world

cos I dropped it as soon as it was dry cos I was in such a rush.

The potters may use a former, or mould,

to hold their basins' shape as they build,

but only Matthew has made his own.

My plan for attack is build the basin within the plant pot.

Let's give it a go. I'm basically mirroring the colander.

Then it will hold up.

Not done many of these. Um...

None. So it's a little bit risky.

One potter has raided their children's toy cupboard

to get the perfect shape.

It's a space hopper filled with...

that I've taken some of the air out.

If I use my legs to push it together,

I'll be able to move and manipulate to get it the form that I want.

This is hours of sustained physical exercise.

SHE LAUGHS

It will be fine...

She says.

First week we were going out together,

seeing Jane getting stuck into potting,

I just thought it was amazing,

someone creating something that good

right in front of your eyes.

The kids love the fact that she's created these pots

and they love eating their breakfast out of them as well.

Mummy, did you make all of the big pots in the gardens?

-Yes, I did.

-I like...I want...I like them.

It is the garden that Jane has drawn inspiration for her basin.

Tell us what you're doing, please, Jane.

It's based on a flower form. Pansies.

-Playing God a little bit...

-Oh, good.

..in that I'm just undulating this back form

-and that is where the taps will come through.

-Brilliant.

It's very nice to see some asymmetry,

-because that's what you can do with hand building, isn't it?

-Yeah.

Starting off like this,

then I'm going to flip it over onto my former.

I'm using half a globe wrapped in an old sheet.

Sandra has taken the hand-building brief further than anyone else.

I am going to be building without a form, really.

I haven't got a form.

Don't want one, actually. Doesn't make sense to me.

She is planning a contemporary free-form oval basin.

As I'm working on it, the paper supports it.

It is very common in African countries to build upside-down.

I say it is common - I've watched it on YouTube.

Creating like a crosshatch pattern on the clay

and then you put some water on top and it almost acts like

a network and a glue to stick the clay together.

This is a technique potters call...

..which helps to bond the coils together.

But if they leave any air between the bonded coils,

it will expand in the heat of the kiln,

causing them to rip apart, destroying the basin.

Really make sure I crosshatch and I get my scores very deep,

smooth all the clay together, really compress it

and hope that I don't get any cracks.

Here he is, my tangerine dream. HE CHUCKLES

Hey, does that feel as good as it looks as if it feels?

Yeah, it does. I'm actually building

and I think it's going to look like the top of a pipe.

I do take inspirations from the work I do on a day-to-day basis.

Is it true that your missus says, "Let's find you a hobby,"

-you plumped for a bit of pottery...

-Yeah.

..and now your missus is like...

-"Where's he gone?"

-.."Why did I suggest a hobby?

"I now don't know what my husband looks like

"cos he's off doing clay stuff all the time."

-Is that true?

-Basically, yes.

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-What a lovely wife, though,

-to look after you like that.

-Yeah. She's there.

-Here she is.

-She's lovely. And your lovely girls. You've got...

-Two daughters.

-Not three wives.

-No!

-They're your daughters!

Matthew is going beyond just building with his coils.

I have got a swirly design with coils.

It strikes me that's the reason for coil building.

I love traditional techniques, old techniques.

My tutor at uni always said I was born a few generations too late.

But Matthew's coil design technique is more than a few generations old.

The very earliest coiling pottery appears to actually be decorative

in the Neolithic period.

Even with functional pots, you find all kinds of beautiful patterning.

There seems to be this desire for decoration.

It is almost a profound need to decorate an object

that you have made, and so you find all kinds

of beautiful linear patterning on these vessels.

It is not just Matthew that has rediscovered

the ancient profound need to decorate with coils.

I wanted to show that you could do something really good with coils.

Yeah, nicely smooth on the inside.

And the outside surface should expose the nice shape.

Secret!

What's that? A secret technique I should know about?

I thought we were here to help each other, Tom.

-Absolutely! But not too much.

-HE CHUCKLES

You're getting competitive.

-It's almost like you want to win or something.

-You know me.

It is almost as if he wants to be potter of the week.

-He just wants to take part!

-Pack it in, chaps!

THEY LAUGH

Tom is competitive. I think you have to be

for the background that he's had in the army.

His pottery's fantastic.

Do some drawing? On here?

When my dad's potting, I miss him but at the same time,

I'm proud of him.

-I don't like some of his jugs and his cups.

-What?

Because I don't like them.

I don't feel particularly under pressure. That might change.

Potters, one hour! You have one hour remaining.

Little bit anxious about time. That last hour, it's going by.

I am going to go for it hell for leather for this stage.

Jim thinks he has found a way of easing time pressure.

As you see, I'm actually making very big coils.

What I do...

..is squash that to size, like that.

You're sort of saving a bit of time

with the number of coils you're making.

He really enjoys potting. I think that was how he met my mum.

Well, I went to do the pottery classes

and Jim sold his mugs and pots and things to the class.

I bought a mug.

It wasn't love at first sight!

But it wasn't until two years down the line

that we actually got together as a couple.

Does he still have that mug?

He borrowed it, put it on the top of his van

and drove of with it on the top of the van.

So I have never let him forget that

he broke my mug that brought us together.

How is it going, then?

-I think it is going all right.

-Yeah?

I got into a panic at the start

cos I wanted to get as much done as quickly as possible,

cos I don't make coiled pots, I've never made one.

-Oh, have you not?

-No.

-It's big!

It's getting there, yeah.

Bath one of my kids in that.

The ten-year-old!

My idea is to have a really smooth inside of the bowl

and then I want to pull that up and create a very kind of

free, fluid, organic edging to it.

So it's going to be highly textured,

and just try and create a bit more drama.

So rather than having a prefect round bowl,

I want it to actually be quite imperfect.

The potters are approaching the end of the building stage

and James is adding a little texture to the rim of his basin.

I'm going to have to check it doesn't get too sharp as well,

cos sometimes when you pull clay to quite an edge,

it can be a bit sharp so the last thing I want to do

is cut your hands as you are kind of going into the basin.

Hmm.

I keep changing my mind on what to do.

Sally-Jo still hasn't decided on the shape of her sink.

It was just going to be circular, basically mirroring the colander.

I was originally just going to keep it round with a straight rim,

but actually I felt I could make something more sculptural of it,

so, yeah, I've completely changed what I was going to do.

I am literally making it up as I go along.

OK, guys, you really need to be finishing up now.

You've got 15 minutes left.

Oh, bugger.

The hand-built structures the potters commit to the drying process

can't be altered.

Their sink shape is about to be fixed.

I really hope this technique will stand up.

The principle of this definitely works. I've seen it done before.

It is starting to sag now, that's the thing.

I'm going to put a rim on the top of that pot

to create a nice finish.

Do this quick and then put it back in.

Or it's going to collapse.

I actually broke it in two pieces,

which I wasn't planning for when I've got ten minutes to go.

So...not quite sure where to go

-with this, actually.

-HE LAUGHS

Don't spoil it now.

Come on, baby. I know it'll work.

Just centring myself...

Back in the room!

This will hopefully prevent it from slumping and making me cry.

I think I might just...

What about another piece of this and splice a piece in?

-HE INHALES SHARPLY

-Deep breath. Don't panic!

30 seconds, guys!

30 seconds. Put a blanket over them, give them kisses.

Need some more, need some more, need some more.

OK - five, four, three,

two, one - step back, please!

MUSIC: Poor Man's Son by The Rockin' Berries

Despite a late finish, the potters are straight back to work.

Their sinks have dried overnight, but before they can continue working,

they will have to free them from their formers.

I will just turn it over and lift it off.

Cracking is the thing I am a little bit concerned about, if I'm honest.

I can see you are just at the verge of turning it over.

-I am, yes.

-So we can watch and we'll see the inside.

-We'll watch.

No pressure!

I do love this bit but there's also

a lot of trepidation that goes into it.

Hand-coiled clay has a high risk of cracking during drying,

but freeing the sinks could make those cracks much worse.

Moment of truth.

Yeah, I am fairly happy with that. A little bit of tidying up.

Go easy, go easy!

-Are you pleased with that?

-Yeah!

-Good.

I think it's OK!

It is not in good shape, but I think I can salvage what I've done.

Bloody hell, that weighs a tonne.

-HE GASPS

-Oh, my God, Matt.

Beautifully done.

The power of the dreadlocks!

I am just going to cut the mould in half.

Get it off now.

Yeah, it's come out all right.

I think...

that is all right.

Come on, baby!

The potters now have 90 minutes

to hand-finish the surface of their dried basins.

It is still quite malleable and I can cut away.

Just going to give it a little bit of something.

It is a wonderfully therapeutic thing to do.

Yesterday, lump of clay, and now we have got these things

that have risen out of nothing.

This is the opportunity for them to do something special for themselves,

it's their character.

There is a certain amount of spontaneity,

a certain amount of poetic licence here.

This will be smooth.

Just have to keep working it and working it and working it!

Pottery is a form of meditation.

I had a lot of sadness at the beginning of last year

when my husband passed away.

For probably two months, I didn't make anything.

But I did play with clay a lot and it was a way of releasing emotions.

Since Mel passed on, it's something she can do,

it's something she can go out and put her soul into.

It has helped her through the last 16-odd months a lot.

This is called sprigging.

You have plaster moulds.

In this case, I have three ammonites and a trilobite.

Press the clay...

..into the mould, like so.

I have quite an extensive fossil collection.

These little chaps are 435 million years old.

But I just love them. Geology, it is a bit like clay because

it's all about the earth

from when it was a ball of molten lava right up to today.

What is clay?

If you think of volcanoes and you think of magma, heat,

very, very hot, the weathering action of that magma

creates clay. So it is the wearing-down process

over millions and millions of years that creates

these flat platelets that you can slide,

bit of water, it sticks together.

And it tells you the whole history of the planet.

And it is fascinating, absolutely fascinating.

Geology is the only subject that I was ever any good at

or really enjoyed.

The finishing on Jim's first ever attempt at a coil pot

is also inspired by the natural world.

The idea is a nautical theme, turtle image.

I have always had a thing for turtles.

They are sort of granddaddies of the ocean, kind of thing.

They live to great ages

and I've always had a bit of a sentimental thing for them.

Having changed her mind about the shape of her basin,

Sally-Jo is working on the design.

Well, the vision is inspired by nature.

I'm going to create two rivers and a couple of fish on the bottom one

and they are going to be gold to relate to the colour of the tap.

I am pleased I changed the shape with this.

It is not what I planned, but I am pleased.

I think it is a much nicer shape now.

Having textured the rim of his basin, James is now working on the inside.

It is kind of rock-inspired, you know, sort of seaside.

Rather than forcing it to become a sink,

I want it to almost look as though somebody's found it and thought,

"That would make a good sink." So that's the idea,

so all textures, all edges.

I've noticed I'm the only one, really, in the room doing that,

so it is a bit of a gamble.

Confidence is a big thing for James.

It was just four years ago that he really sort of took on pottery.

He brought his first pieces home and sort of thought,

"Hmm, this is interesting. I'm sure it could be worked on a little bit."

And then, just even a month later, they were incredible.

A heat-shaped dish, he made for me.

It is a really nice, crimpled edge

and I really think he likes to sort of emphasise that that's his style.

-So, James. It is nice to see that texture.

-What do you reckon?

-Pushing, squeezing...

-Really?

-Yeah, yeah. I mean it.

-On a basin?

-Yeah!

-Really?

-Wait till the end. Let's see, Mr Practical.

-OK, OK.

I'm sure it will split their opinion.

I don't think Keith is looking at it too favourably at the moment.

What can you do? I've chosen the bed and now I've got to lie in it.

I love it. It is a beautiful form.

It's just simple form. Simple forms are often just the best.

When people wash their hands in that, they are going to be transported

to Aztec or Greek times.

They're just textures that I have had all the kids do at school.

That is so nice! So, basically, you've put the children to work...

-Yeah, child labour!

-..that you teach at this school.

-It's fantastic.

-Nigel.

-Hi, Keith. Hi, Kate.

-How are you getting on?

-More or less there.

The finishing on Nigel's basin is as straightforward as its design.

-That's the building side of me.

-The building side of you, yeah.

I am sort of liking this character coming out of you.

I probably would have used a different process to make a sink.

-OK.

-I could overwork it to make it too crisp

and then you kind of think, "What was the point in coiling it?"

-Yeah, no, sure. OK.

-It is a bit...

But it's amazing, isn't it? The simpler the form sometimes,

-the harder it is to actually...

-Yeah, to get the crispness on it.

That's it, yeah.

Smooth it off a bit.

Sandra's simple form is still standing without its paper support.

It is not a flowery thing, it is

a very contemporary look I'm going for.

Beautiful bellies. Sexy, really.

Can I say sexy? Anyway, I said it now.

-Too late.

-SHE CHUCKLES

I do remember being younger, she used to make bowls with papier-mache

and I remember her being really frustrated

that it wouldn't come out the shape that she wanted it.

So it seemed the movement from there to clay

was just a natural progression.

I like the stuff she makes for the crockery, the plates and stuff.

I can I have friends round and they're like,

"Your mum made this?" "Yeah, my mum made that.

We don't go to IKEA for nothing!

And how does your mum cope with stress and pressure?

-Um...she doesn't!

-THEY LAUGH

Smoothing is something that I do all the time,

but the time constraints is what's killing me.

With smoothing every stroke, Sandra's unsupported basin will move,

which could weaken the clay.

I am a bit scared.

Keep powering through, you'll be all right.

Sandra, I brought some tights with me.

-Tie them round and they support your bowl.

-Oh, yes!

-Excellent idea.

-Oh! They're black. I thought I bought flesh-coloured.

-There we go.

-Flesh-coloured - your flesh or my flesh?

-Oh, that's right!

-Uh-huh.

-Sorry, sweetie.

It's not all about you, you know!

I don't want it too, kind of, perfect,

so I've just pushed and pulled it about a bit,

chopped a few bits out, curled a couple of sections in.

It will be all right.

As well as finishing their surfaces...

This is a night-light.

..there is another feature to add before the basins head to the kiln.

And I think it is the right size for the plug.

They must cut a hole for a standard British plug.

But as clay shrinks in the kiln by up to 15%...

I'll see how it goes. It's trial by fire.

I have to double check it.

..it isn't straightforward.

Work out shrinkage?

I don't guess at all, I just know exactly what it's going to be.

SHE MOUTHS SILENTLY

It is a really ropey hole.

Ahh!

It's a sink!

How are you for time, do you think? Hang on...

One minute, potters!

In which case, I am quite pushed for time.

THEY LAUGH

Yeah, I'm pretty confident we've got it about right.

All under control. Ha!

With their surfaces finished, the basins will now have to dry

before their first firing.

Go on, Nigel!

Because of their size, it is a process that will take 72 hours.

The potters face an agonising wait.

It is our technician Richie's job to get the basins to their first firing.

All the basins have had a couple of days to dry.

I just going to be really cautious and make sure that

all of this work makes it to the kiln safely.

Given the sheer size of the basins,

this won't be a standard biscuit firing.

As you can see from Sally-Jo's piece here, there is still

a lot of moisture left in the clay.

You wouldn't normally fire the pots with them in this sort of state,

otherwise these pots would just explode in the kiln

and I would be very unpopular.

So that is why I am going to put a 50-degree firing on for the night.

It is not going to be hot enough for the water to boil,

but it will just allow for that moisture to come off the clay.

And then tomorrow, this will go on for a standard biscuit firing

straight up to 900 degrees, which will turn it from clay into ceramic.

That is that kiln loaded and ready to go on.

It is the day before the judges decide which potter

will have to leave Middleport

and they have come up with a surprise challenge

that will test them on a technique that flourished

during Stoke-on-Trent's heyday and is still used today.

Hello, potters. Welcome to your Spot Test.

This is where you get to show Kate and Keith just how good you are

at a particular pottery technique.

This week, we want to see how you are with surface decoration.

Underneath your cloths, you will find exactly what it is

that you are going to literally make you mark on.

Oh, tiles!

Nine tiles that need to be decorated.

We are talking texture, pattern and design.

There are various ways you can do this -

inlaying, scratching, scoring.

The judges won't be in here for this Spot Test.

OK, Kate and Keith, you are excused.

Potters, you have 90 minutes,

starting now.

90 minutes, nine tiles. Could be a complete disaster.

There are no pictures to take inspiration from.

You can't go for a walk for half an hour then come back.

It is just literally, right, design something now, get on with it.

I want to see a sense of rhythm, a sense of pattern,

and I would like to see them really concentrating

on giving us a clear message.

-KEITH:

-My main concern is that they overthink it

and that the design surface pattern is too fussy.

But then, in the same breath,

they could actually simplify it and make it really boring.

Doing patterns is my biggest nightmare.

I have nine random tiles and that's what you're going to get -

nine random tiles.

Initially I thought, "Urgh!"

I'm making flowers,

tie it together with a sort of motif-y sort of thing.

Butterflies, well, they're just a beautiful graphic image.

See what the judges say. Ha!

Has everyone started? Creative juices aren't coming.

I've tried to stray away from doing the same thing over and over again.

This is a porcupine quill. I lived in Zimbabwe for a couple of years

and I picked this up walking through the bush and it is the best tool.

Tom is not the only one who thinks he's got a secret weapon.

Got my name on it.

-Hi, Nigel.

-Hi.

I have got a gift for.

-Judges aren't in for this Spot Test.

-Yeah?

And why are they not in here for this Spot Test?

-So they don't know whose is whose.

-And what have you put on yours?

-You've put your name all over it!

-They might not notice it.

There is only one Nigel, sunshine.

So you're saying I can't use that one?

You can't use that one.

45 minutes remaining.

I just glimpsed behind me at Tom.

Doing some inlay.

-SHE GASPS

-That is a really nice idea!

Everybody is different.

-Good to know.

-Yeah!

-Who wants to be normal?

-JIM:

-Me! Me!

No, you've got a long way to go, Jim.

This kind of surface decoration is just...

You know, I feel like I'm a six-year-old in an art lesson.

It will be playtime soon, you can go outside and do some skipping.

Can I have a chocolate bar?

You can have a chocolate bar and a glass of milk.

Potty people, we have 30 minutes remaining.

Oh, no!

Normally, this would be my thing. I love creating texture on clay.

But I think this square title thing has just thrown me.

It's really restrictive.

That tile that has been disqualified,

that is the tile I was most happy with.

This is my replacement tile. It's quite simple.

Got this feathery thing going on, I quite like that.

I am just playing around with geometric patterns.

Creativity is quite difficult when you are under pressure.

Well, it is a challenge for a reason.

I figured this sort of concentric design

so that they all link together, but...I don't like it.

It is just a rim, but I need to get it on quite quickly.

Any final touches now, guys, you need to be doing it now.

Time goes so quickly during these Spot challenges.

The overriding theme...is panic.

-Where has the white one gone in the middle?

-Yeah.

-It just didn't look right.

-Have you winged it a little?

-No, I have used my intuition.

-That is the word.

I want to give Tom something to worry about.

I think he is getting a bit confident.

OK, potters, time's up! Step back from your tiles, please.

CRASHING

Sorry!

Please bring your tiles forward ready for judging.

# It's all too beautiful... #

Nine sets of tiles, but Kate and Keith have no idea whose is whose.

-So shall we have a look at this set?

-OK, lets have a look.

Yes, could have been more creative, I think.

Lacking different decorative skills.

I think so, yes. Let's have a look at these.

A bit sparse. This one is a bit obvious, don't you think?

Yeah, I do.

Now, this person has obviously gone for a theme.

I think this looks great.

A good use of the different types of colour.

There is a continuity, isn't there?

There is a freshness to the actual design idea.

-A lovely use of the two clays.

-Yeah.

Again, a mixture of different techniques.

And this great border.

Amazing border. Really lovely.

And they have obviously made it like a panel.

Moving along.

Someone here has obviously followed a theme.

They've got a sort of abstract butterfly right through

to a very literal one.

And there is almost a sort of encaustic look here, isn't there?

Yeah, like the old Victorian tiles.

These are very contemporary, aren't they?

I like the use of relief work here,

where one is embossed and one is in relief.

And that is actually quiet difficult to do. The person who used that

has held their tool properly, they've stood properly

and made the right marks. I think that is really strong set.

They all hang well together, don't they?

Yes. In fact, they are all identical.

Is this the only person that has decided on a design.

-They are not totally identical.

-No.

Again, they have been conscious of the different colours of clay.

-This is interesting.

-Isn't it?

That is really nice.

-Sort of blending of one into the other.

-Absolutely.

And the dynamic of this is absolutely gorgeous.

Whoever has done this, they've gone in with this tool

and they have actually thought about which direction they have gone in.

So that is a really concise and clear message.

And this one... Look, this is the first one where it has

really started to come up and out of the tile.

Erm...a bit dull.

-Something could have been done with more clarity.

-Yes.

The Spot Test is ranked.

Ninth place is the one at the end here, whose is this?

-Number nine.

-That's mine.

-James!

-I know.

Just not well executed, and we wanted to see you showing off.

Yeah, absolutely.

And in eighth place, we've got this one over on this side.

Yeah, that's mine.

You could have showed us a bit more imagination.

The flower, though, is really, really nice. Really nice.

-I don't do flowers.

-You do now!

Joanna came seventh,

Jim sixth,

Sally Jo was fifth

and Tom fourth.

And in third place is this tile panel here.

Whose are these?

Sandra.

I personally really love the fine lines

and the way you have integrated the white and darker clay.

OK, guys, that means we have two sets of tiles remaining.

You have to choose a winner, guys.

Jane? Matthew?

OK. Who takes the top spot?

These!

Matthew, well done!

APPLAUSE

The simplicity of the design is fascistic.

There was great imagination and great skill.

Imagination, Matthew, that is what we want to see from you.

I would have struggled judging that. And fair play to them

if they think I came first out of it...

-HE LAUGHS

-I won't argue.

My main aim in the Spot Test was not to come last.

Or "laahst", as they say in the south.

I came third.

I am up against some technical whizz kids

and I feel as though I am clinging on with my bare fingernails

at the moment.

I think coming in second place is, yeah, that is a good thing. Um...

I am still a bit nervous about

taking the hand basin out of the kiln.

The 24-hour biscuit firing is done.

And Rich has brought all the basins back to the studio.

Everyone's future in the competition

could now rest on what lies beneath the hessian.

Ta-da!

Oh, that's a relief!

Yeah, I think that will be all right.

It's in one piece, so I am happy.

It is absolutely fine.

Mine's got a big crack.

Sometimes that can happen with coil pots cos that's the bit that

dries the quickest. And you are still adding wet clay on top of it.

But I am hoping that with some glaze application

it can be hidden or disguised.

Oh, no!

Once it has cracked, it is hopeless. It is useless as a sink, isn't it?

HE CHUCKLES

Jane, Sandra and Nigel will now have to deal with

what are catastrophic cracks in their basins.

Oh, I am too upset now.

A sink with a hole in it doesn't work, does it?

HE CHUCKLES

Well, a pot is not a pot until it is finished.

The potters have reached the final stage of their Main Make.

They have two and a half hours to decorate their basins

using a selection of glazes and oxides.

I am going to have some dark bronze-y coloured fish

going through the river.

Oxides are unpredictable

as they change colour in the heat of the kiln.

I have just chosen very vivid bright colours

just to try and capture the colours of the pansy really.

The colours they choose may also bleed and run into each other.

I am just doing a traditional Japanese glaze.

It has a lot of iron in it and hopefully it will bleed through.

Sponging is a nice effect but it does take a while to do.

It gives a more even effect and because this is textured,

I don't want brush marks.

Brush marks are the least of Nigel's worries!

It is so blindingly obvious the reason why it happened. You haven't

scored it and slipped it enough, have you?

-Move forward, deal with it.

-Yeah, yeah.

The decoration inside was going to be zircon white,

to give it that clean, crisp finish.

The outside, I was going to put oil spot followed by rutile on.

That's why I put the cut lines in, to give me break lines.

Cos it will break and it will give it a metallic-y finish

but it will look like it has oxidised.

-Well, I look forward to seeing it. All right. Cheers.

-Thanks!

Turtles.

This won't be quite so harsh when it's done.

What goes in the kiln is very different to what comes out.

Yes, certainly with glazes. You are dealing with minerals

that will be melted together. The heat acts on them and changes them.

You are at the mercy of the minerals, that's what it is.

At the mercy of the minerals, yes!

It is going to be a dark blue, light grey. If the colours don't go,

that's what I'm worried about really,

plus whether they even like it.

Because you get so used to being disappointed

when you open the kiln door, I don't really connect with a pot

until I have seen it and it's all right really.

It's like looking at a bag of flour, a box of eggs and some sugar

and saying, "That's going to be a cake."

Or looking at a cow in a field and a tomato and that is

your spaghetti bolognese. You just don't know, you just don't know.

-SANDRA:

-The idea is, the way it is fired,

it is going to be a glossy, sky, azure blue.

You at peace now? You weren't before but you seem OK now.

I was pretty upset before. I am still a little bit upset now,

but I saw that Nigel's bottom had fell off so I thought, "OK."

This is just iron oxide and water.

This should have a nice bronzed, dark, roasted look.

I've just put it on nice and thick.

What I'm trying to do is get the grooves to stand out.

And I do that now by wiping off the iron oxide off the outside.

Whilst Major Tom is wiping off...

I am using a combination of two colours, a very dark blue

and a very light grey.

..eager to impress after a disastrous Spot Test,

James is piling on the glaze.

For you to layer the glazes up, each layer needs to be dry.

So you have you just steady it out a little bit, which is

quite difficult for me cos I just want to throw glaze all over it.

I just think if he is not careful,

it's going to just look like a complete congealed mess.

-I know, I know. That's what those brush-on glazes can be.

-Yeah.

With Jim and his lovely turtles,

he has used the glazes in a very painterly way

and I am hoping they are not going to come out too flat.

-Feeling stressed?

-Yep!

-I have not enough time.

-OK.

I think I underestimated how many layers it really needs

and it takes ages to build up the layers.

-It's timing with ceramics.

-Timing is everything.

-A lot of it is timing.

-Story of my life!

Nigel thinks he has found a solution to his crack problem.

Cos I have glazed this piece, when that piece goes on

the glaze should fuse it all together.

So I should end up with one piece.

That's the plan.

What is the worst that can happen? The bottom falls out of it!

I'm using the brush strokes horizontally. There might be

some sort of linear idea going on.

Hopefully, it becomes a pattern other than the brush marks

that shouldn't be there.

How long do we have left?

-Just a couple of minutes, Sally Jo.

-OK.

I think you will still see the crack.

Would I buy this pot? Not a chance.

Would I sell this pot? Not a chance!

I'm just toying with adding another little bit,

but do you know what? I am not going to.

In an ideal world, I would have another coat of blue on top of these

two rivers, but I need this rim to dry before I can turn it over

and do it. So I might just do the top one and have them

slightly different shades of blue.

Five, four, three, two, one.

Time's up, guys!

That will do!

We are going to take them down for their final firing.

Well done! APPLAUSE

I haven't seen yours. I am going to have a look at yours.

No, don't. Mine is a bit of a congealed mess.

THEY LAUGH

# I am the god of hellfire

# And I bring you

# Fire... #

Whatever they have done or not done, it is too late now.

The basins are heading off for their second and final firing.

I don't want this piece sticking to the shelf

so I am checking the base to see what is under here

in terms of glaze. It is nice and clean under there, no glaze,

so that can go straight on props and straight into the kiln.

I haven't slept properly for the last three or four days

because I knew I was taking a gamble on it

and it is radical how I've glazed it so...

It is apprehensive.

Glazing pieces together is not particularly a good idea.

It is a 50/50 shot whether it'll glue,

but other problems could happen in the kiln anyway.

Mine is definitely going to open up

and just come out the kiln like a plate.

It could just open up like a lotus flower

and become something else completely different.

The element of chance is part of the fun of it, isn't it?

It is, but you run the risk of producing something pretty awful.

I shall be watching for yours...eagerly.

Yes, me too.

# I'll keep on holding on... #

-Morning.

-Hi, guys.

With the basins cooling in the kiln, Kate and Keith have set

the potters one final challenge.

# I'll keep on holding on... #

How they fare will help determine their fate.

You know what this is! This is the Throw Down.

Today, I want you to throw the tallest straight-sided vase.

And the judges really want to test your sense of touch.

They want you to use one of these.

LAUGHTER

Cos it's a Throw Down, you're going to watch the master at work first.

Gasps of wonderment there from the potters.

It is all in the touch and the pressure.

And you can feel when the clay is centred.

You just want to feel and sense the clay between your fingers.

I want it nicely finished as well, there is no excuse!

You might not be able to see it but your fingers are your eyes. OK?

I have sort of finished now.

APPLAUSE

Get behind your wheels, please, potters.

You've got ten minutes to do it in!

And if anyone messes up their first ball of clay,

if you put your hand up in the air,

another ball of clay will be sent to you.

So which potter will throw the tallest vase?

OK, potters, off you go! SHE RINGS BELL

Yeah, take a deep breath!

This looks so bizarre, guys, I've got to say.

That's it, Joanna. Fight with it. Fight with it.

If you get it centred, the rest of the job is going to be easier.

God!

Sally, get those forearms into your body.

You'll be able to centre it more!

Push against the wheel!

Oh, it's in my mouth.

Control is everything. This is what this task is all about - control,

feel, texture, touch.

That is it, Matthew, doing well.

-Look at Matthew. He is just shaking his head, like...

-Yeah.

-..feeling it.

-Sort of feeling the vibe.

His head is kind of nodding with the momentum of the wheel.

Oh, my God! A disaster.

Need more clay!

OK.

-MAN:

-Oh, my way.

Halfway through. Five minutes left.

You are lying! It's fun, guys! Fun.

OK, Joanna, relax with it.

Don't panic!

And actually learn what went wrong with the first one

to get the second one right!

Nice and delicate there, Jane.

First time I have been called delicate! Thank you very much.

Two minutes left, two minutes.

God! It could easily collapse at any moment.

I think Jo's is going to go.

Ah!

Too late?

Sally, just... Yeah, stop!

It has died a death.

30 seconds left, guys.

Come on, guys, you can do this.

Keep going. Good work there, Jim.

Nice one, Tom.

-KEITH AND SARA:

-Ten, nine, eight,

seven, six, five,

four, three, two, one.

Time is up, guys. BELL RINGS

LAUGHTER

Look what you've done.

Oh-ho.

My God. Something has happened to mine.

Joanna's has grown a ledge at the last minute!

Oh, my God. I mean, this is just ridiculous.

So whose vase will measure up?

Let's have a look at Sally Jo's.

-12?

-12, yeah.

Nigel. 13!

James. 15!

Joanna. Oh! 17.5cm!

Sandra. 18cm!

-Right then, Jim. 19cm.

-Brilliant.

Which leaves just three potters but who will be this week's winner?

Hey, Tom.

I am thinking power station chimney!

-20cm.

-Good height though.

-Hey, Matthew.

-Hello.

22!

Jane, that is looking really straight!

The winner of today's throw down is...

-20.

-20.

-Matthew!

-Well-done, Matthew!

APPLAUSE

And the next time you see Kate and Keith will be

when they are judging your hand basins. So off you go!

So the potters are just about to collect their basins from the kiln.

They have been working on them for days.

Will the glazes have performed in the way that they wanted them to?

Will there be any more cracks?

This is really exciting.

The potters will present their finished basins

in Middleport's old display room.

It is just that the bottom is knackered.

INDISTINCT CHAT

He's really quite teary?

I was a little bit emotional, I can't deny that.

It's lovely. The speckle is really nice!

Beautiful finish on that glaze!

Oh, wow!

But before they can be judged, there's one final job...

That is OK, isn't it?

That has fitted. I am delighted, actually.

Get you, girlfriend!

The potters that are currently at the top now,

they could be way down the pecking order after this process.

I am hoping that is going to fit.

Oh, no!

It's short. What a shame.

Is it going in?

Oh, my God.

Oh, no. What a disaster!

What do you reckon?

HE LAUGHS

That has gone in there.

I wasn't going to leave that out!

I thought you had a crack on the glaze on the inside.

Oh, no, no.

It won't take that much.

It's not going to take enough to be able to get the plug through!

Push it down.

You are not going to get it in tonight.

Kate and Keith will now judge what has taken

the potters seven days to create.

Hello, potters.

-ALL:

-Hello.

Kate and Keith asked you to hand-build a wash basin.

It is now time to judge the fruits of your labour.

Wow, it is great, Jim.

-Really good.

-Thank you.

-No cracks!

-No, no cracks this time.

I was a little worried it was going to be a little bit too illustrate-y

and cold, but it is warm and beautiful, it makes sense.

It is as if it's tortoiseshell.

I love the contrast between outside and inside.

Glaze and pot are at one!

I want it in my house.

I am swimming with a turtle!

The geologist expressing herself!

Indeed, yes.

Very well. Shall we do the ring test

to see if the bowl has integrity without cracks?

-Are you ready?

-Yes.

-MUSICAL DING

What a lovely ring!

It is still going on, actually.

-No cracks.

-No cracks.

I have noticed one thing. You haven't got your drain in there.

You are only a couple of millimetres out.

I am really liking this blue on the outside, Kate,

and the white glaze on the inside. Contrast, obviously.

-I am just so upset it's cracked.

-Yeah.

-I am too.

Yes, the ring test.

-DULL CLUNK

-I know.

That is the one sound we don't want to hear.

That is a depressing sound, isn't it?

What a shame!

Matthew!

That's fabulous!

Absolutely!

The stamp work you have done here is just brilliant.

The relationship between the taps and this colour is just incredible.

I love the circles

and the relationship between the spirals on the outside with

the spirals echoed in the stamps. Very lovely design.

-I would use this...

-You want it at home, don't you?

Yeah, I do. I think that is brilliant.

I love the fact that you have actually thought about the recess.

That is a really good fit.

And the glazing, again, you've got this beautiful water effect.

A mixture between stone and water.

The fishes are a little bit lost, aren't they?

It is unfortunate about this crack

because it is great in its originality.

It is very pretty and a it's lovely colour. The colour match is right.

This darker colour has actually brought the thing together.

Very exciting.

Well done, Jane. Thanks so much.

Your glazes have worked really well for you.

I love the contrast between the green and the blue.

Personally, I like to see a clearer message. There is a lot going on.

You have the scratches and dribbles, the squares and zigzags.

That is just me being extra critical cos I think you can take it.

Have you felt the underneath? It is fantastic. Really, really lovely.

This kind of design on the outside, you were really braving it there.

One of these could quite easily have opened up.

-Yeah, I was worried about that.

-It is a fantastic.

Thank you.

Fantastic. It's brilliant.

It is really, really good.

Thank you very much.

So, Nigel, I assume this is like a pipe end.

-Yes, it was inspired by industrial fittings.

-Yes.

I think that's fairly successful, it's kind of copper pipe.

But the shame, we know what the shame is really, don't we?

-Yeah.

-Crack. What a shame.

-Just very, very frustrating.

This crack round here, we all know why that's happened.

It wasn't fixed properly, it wasn't adhered properly.

Just really poorly constructed.

This overhang on here, there's a lot of stress on there in the kiln.

It's really unfortunate.

Oh, I am feeling fresh just standing in front of this,

like an iceberg wave.

Yes, you could say that.

Rough, jagged. I mean, you could cut your hands on it!

I am not so keen on the heavy use of the glaze.

There's quite a few, I would say, erratic applications.

I think that is a bit of naivety and a lack of understanding

of the glaze on my behalf.

It is definitely a completely different look to

any of the other basins.

Well, potters, the judges have seen your fabulous basins

and they've got a lot to discuss.

So we will see you back here shortly when they will make their decision.

Can't believe I made Keith cry

but the guy, he just really connects with the material and the beauty.

And I am not saying particularly that my stuff was beautiful.

I have done all right this time. The characters I drew came to life.

I am not sure if I have taken pole position.

I think there are a few contestants for Top Potter.

I think Jim's basin was fantastic, but on overall performance,

I think it will probably go to Matt.

There are some good competition for Top Potter.

Tom's is very well made, and so is Jim's.

You make one mistake and you are history.

And I think I have just made that mistake.

I feel as I can go with my head held high cos I did put myself

out on a limb. It is a steep learning curve.

I am on it and I just don't want it to end yet.

Let's start off with the happy decision of Top Potter.

Who has really shone for you this week?

Well, for me, the three boys - Tom, Matthew and Jim.

Tom's basin blew me away. It really did make me cry.

Matthew - what a turn around?

He has really shown us from last week

how he has really making this great effort.

Then Jim's turtle basin, I mean, pure decorative genius.

You can't improve on Jim's.

And now we have to go onto who is going to be

leaving the pottery today.

SHE GROANS

Nigel is using his building know-how but he is trying to force

it in to his pottery. I was almost in tears when I saw

the bottom of his basin.

The amount of cracks on it. It was a disaster.

Who else is looking a bit like they just can't quite keep up

with the others?

I think James is lacking his technical ability.

It could have been so good and it wasn't. He actually said,

"I am chasing myself here because I need to learn more."

James, at the Spot Test, his tiles,

God love him, but they really weren't inspiring at all.

So, it's a tough one.

The judges have made their decision,

the first of which is Top Potter. Kate?

There were three potters that really stood out.

The Top Potter of this week is...

Jim.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Now for the more difficult part

because somebody has to leave the pottery.

They really, really struggled with this,

but they have decided that the person leaving the pottery is...

-Nigel.

-OK.

Aw!

It's fine. Don't worry about me.

When the bottom falls out of your sink, that's what happens.

Nigel, his main task was a bit of a disaster, bless him.

-Sorry to see you go.

-Well done, Nigel.

I am so sad to see Nigel go. That beaming face!

He was so eager to show us what he could do. It just didn't fit.

We're going to miss you so much!

You just smile so much. I'm going to miss your smiles!

I actually naively thought I'd come in and make a few pots,

everybody would go, "Wow, Nigel, they are brilliant pots."

And I would walk through to the end.

However, I didn't realise the pressure I would be under.

And when you are put under that kind of pressure,

inevitably there will be problems.

I hope I have dealt with them in good grace.

I have had a good time. I came for the craic

and that's ultimately what I got.

-JAMES:

-Going back into the judging room then,

my heart absolutely pounding.

I was ready to go. You kind of accept the fate that you

think is coming and when it doesn't happen, you sort of think,

"Did they not say my name?" It was crazy.

And I live to tell another tale.

HE LAUGHS

Thank you.

Well done.

This week's Top Potter.

It is great. It is great.

I am not going to deny it, it feels good.

Woohoo!

Dollop it on, splash it on.

Sparks fly in the Main Make...

Come on, something work!

..as the potters play with fire.

You are OK, take your time.

As Spot Test...

It shouldn't be such a big deal.

..to get them thinking...

Mind's gone a bit blank now.

'..and a Throw Down to leave them gasping.'

Do keep breathing.

'Who will rise up?'

CHEERING

And who will crack under pressure?

Whoa!