0:00:02 > 0:00:05No, this isn't the bit between the programmes in the 1960s -
0:00:05 > 0:00:07it's the final!
0:00:07 > 0:00:09And I think I've nailed it.
0:00:10 > 0:00:11Aw!
0:00:15 > 0:00:19'27 days ago, Middleport Pottery opened its doors
0:00:19 > 0:00:22'to ten of Britain's most passionate home potters.'
0:00:22 > 0:00:25Oh, Nigel, you look quite at home there, I must say.
0:00:25 > 0:00:26That's... hah!
0:00:26 > 0:00:30'It's taken 15 gruelling challenges...'
0:00:30 > 0:00:33Don't worry, you're fine, you're fine... oh! Oh!
0:00:33 > 0:00:36'..over 500 hand-crafted and beautiful items...'
0:00:36 > 0:00:38And you've just excelled yourself.
0:00:38 > 0:00:39Don't start!
0:00:40 > 0:00:44'..but now, the studio awaits four finalists.
0:00:44 > 0:00:46'Major Tom was our first top potter
0:00:46 > 0:00:50'and no-one's work in the competition has shown more technical discipline.'
0:00:50 > 0:00:53Look at the inside. Absolutely beautiful.
0:00:53 > 0:00:55I've made it as far as I can make it in this competition
0:00:55 > 0:00:57and I'm looking forward to it enormously.
0:00:57 > 0:00:59Can't wait to get my hands, er, hands wet.
0:00:59 > 0:01:03- 'Matthew had a disastrous start...' - You've got a bit of a problem here...
0:01:03 > 0:01:06'..but has emerged as a natural, winning Top Potter three times.'
0:01:06 > 0:01:08I wasn't quite sure that I'd be here.
0:01:08 > 0:01:11I thought there'd be plenty of opportunities for me to have left.
0:01:11 > 0:01:15'Jim's flair for beautiful form and skill with the brush
0:01:15 > 0:01:17'meant his place in the final was never in doubt.'
0:01:17 > 0:01:19I didn't have much sleep last night, actually.
0:01:19 > 0:01:22Lying awake, I'm thinking, "What is it I've been doing that's good
0:01:22 > 0:01:24"and how can I bring that all together for the final?"
0:01:24 > 0:01:26And I've got no answers at all.
0:01:28 > 0:01:32Sally Jo's brilliant eye for colour and gift for abstract design
0:01:32 > 0:01:35'has kept her in contention in every single challenge of the competition.'
0:01:35 > 0:01:37I do feel like I'm the underdog.
0:01:37 > 0:01:41I really haven't had much time to think about how I'm going to take the boys down.
0:01:41 > 0:01:44'Now they have seven days left.'
0:01:44 > 0:01:45I'm doomed!
0:01:45 > 0:01:47'Three final challenges...'
0:01:47 > 0:01:48It's like surgery this...
0:01:48 > 0:01:51'..to find one winner of the Great Pottery Throw Down.'
0:01:53 > 0:01:55Time to face the teapot.
0:01:56 > 0:02:01MUSIC: I Can't Explain by The Who
0:02:02 > 0:02:06- # Got a feeling inside - Can't explain
0:02:06 > 0:02:09- # It's a certain kind - Can't explain
0:02:09 > 0:02:12- # I feel hot and cold - Can't explain
0:02:12 > 0:02:16- # Yeah, down in my soul, yeah - Can't explain
0:02:16 > 0:02:19# I said, can't explain I think it's love
0:02:19 > 0:02:23# Try to say it to you When I feel blue
0:02:23 > 0:02:25# I can't explain. #
0:02:32 > 0:02:37In seven days' time, either Sally Jo, Matthew, Tom
0:02:37 > 0:02:41or Jim will be declared the winner of the Great Pottery Throw Down.
0:02:46 > 0:02:48There you are then, chaps.
0:02:51 > 0:02:53Well, good morning, potters.
0:02:53 > 0:02:55And a huge congratulations on reaching
0:02:55 > 0:02:58the Grand Final of the Great Pottery Throw Down.
0:02:58 > 0:03:02Judges, I imagine you've got something pretty special in store for them.
0:03:02 > 0:03:06We want you to make a 12-piece porcelain tea set.
0:03:06 > 0:03:12A teapot, four cups, four saucers, a sugar bowl, a milk jug
0:03:12 > 0:03:14and a cake stand.
0:03:14 > 0:03:17Now, we specify porcelain, because it is SO unforgiving.
0:03:17 > 0:03:21This clay holds no prisoners - so focus.
0:03:21 > 0:03:24So, your grand final tea set starts now.
0:03:31 > 0:03:32Tough stuff.
0:03:32 > 0:03:37'Making a tea set from porcelain is the perfect challenge for the grand final...'
0:03:37 > 0:03:38I always wanted to make a tea set.
0:03:38 > 0:03:41'..because it requires the skill and patience of a champion.'
0:03:41 > 0:03:44I am nervous. I'll admit that.
0:03:45 > 0:03:47It will take a week to perfect.
0:03:47 > 0:03:52First, they'll have to make the basic structure of each of their 12 pieces,
0:03:52 > 0:03:54dry them overnight and then add spouts,
0:03:54 > 0:03:57handles and any decorative trimming.
0:03:57 > 0:04:00They'll be fired, glazed and fired again.
0:04:00 > 0:04:03And finally, they'll be presented to the judges.
0:04:03 > 0:04:06- So, a tea set.- Yeah.- We take it for granted, really, don't we?
0:04:06 > 0:04:09But actually, it's a really complicated thing to make.
0:04:09 > 0:04:10It has all the elements.
0:04:10 > 0:04:16Just alone, the teapot itself is a cacophony of technical skill.
0:04:16 > 0:04:19The lid has got to fit, the spout has got to pour,
0:04:19 > 0:04:22the handle has to be not only the right size but practically
0:04:22 > 0:04:25you're going to have to be able to pick the thing up, with the tea in it.
0:04:25 > 0:04:28And of course the design of the tea set is key.
0:04:28 > 0:04:31We want to see features working across the whole set as
0:04:31 > 0:04:35if they're a family and at the same time, I want to see character in it.
0:04:35 > 0:04:38And we've given them the trickiest of all clays.
0:04:38 > 0:04:41We've given them porcelain. It's such a contradiction, porcelain,
0:04:41 > 0:04:43because when you're making with it, it's so delicate
0:04:43 > 0:04:46but the minute it's fired, it's very, very strong.
0:04:46 > 0:04:48It actually takes your fingerprint, doesn't it?
0:04:48 > 0:04:53And you leave a mark, so really, you have to be accurate and skilful.
0:04:53 > 0:04:56Although I have dabbled, I'm not overly familiar
0:04:56 > 0:05:00but I'll try and tame the clay.
0:05:00 > 0:05:02Porcelain originated in China.
0:05:02 > 0:05:05The main ingredients were china stone and china clay,
0:05:05 > 0:05:08both derived from decomposed granite
0:05:08 > 0:05:11and when it decomposes you get a very soft, white clay.
0:05:11 > 0:05:13It's got very fine particles in it.
0:05:13 > 0:05:16It's like chewing gum, this stuff.
0:05:18 > 0:05:21Do you see it? It just stretches and stretches
0:05:21 > 0:05:22and stretches and stretches.
0:05:22 > 0:05:25Porcelain can be pottered very thinly.
0:05:25 > 0:05:29That makes it ideal for tea, which of course was drank a lot in China.
0:05:29 > 0:05:32It can actually withstand the thermal shock of the very hot
0:05:32 > 0:05:35liquid coming in to it but also you can really judge the colour
0:05:35 > 0:05:38and the quality of the tea very beautifully in that material.
0:05:38 > 0:05:39And then, as it is very thin,
0:05:39 > 0:05:43it's beautiful to hold it to your mouth and to drink from it.
0:05:43 > 0:05:45Both these materials were imported into the West
0:05:45 > 0:05:50from the 17th century, so people encountered for the first time tea
0:05:50 > 0:05:52but at the same time, wares came with it that enabled
0:05:52 > 0:05:56people to drink this special drink that they hadn't encountered before.
0:05:56 > 0:05:59And it was a symbol of sophistication to have these
0:05:59 > 0:06:01exotic products in your house.
0:06:01 > 0:06:03This is my first touch of the clay on the wheel.
0:06:03 > 0:06:06I feel this sort of butterflies of trepidation and nerves.
0:06:06 > 0:06:08I'm about to start throwing!
0:06:08 > 0:06:10So, this is my cake stand.
0:06:10 > 0:06:13Tom's aiming for a tea set that will follow the clean lines he's
0:06:13 > 0:06:16hoping to achieve on his cake stand.
0:06:16 > 0:06:18Quite a traditional look, with straight lines,
0:06:18 > 0:06:22and I'm looking to create forms that will hold an incised pattern.
0:06:22 > 0:06:24Upright figures, but quite delicate.
0:06:24 > 0:06:26It's not as responsive as most things,
0:06:26 > 0:06:29because it's so plastic, it wants to hold its form.
0:06:29 > 0:06:31And so, for centring, it takes longer.
0:06:31 > 0:06:34For opening, it takes longer - you have to coax it to get it open,
0:06:34 > 0:06:37cos if you try and do it too fast, it'll just wobble off-centre.
0:06:37 > 0:06:39I wish you could feel this stuff, it's...
0:06:39 > 0:06:43it's like silk in your hands, it's just wonderful stuff.
0:06:43 > 0:06:46Throwing with porcelain, it's very smooth, it's very plasticky,
0:06:46 > 0:06:51it collapses, it cracks, it does everything you don't want it to do.
0:06:51 > 0:06:53It's your worst nightmare as a potter.
0:06:53 > 0:06:56Labour with it too long, it will start to get upset.
0:06:56 > 0:06:58It's like visiting the Queen, this, you know -
0:06:58 > 0:07:01total reverence for the material.
0:07:01 > 0:07:04Jim and Matthew have decided to get a feel for the porcelain,
0:07:04 > 0:07:07by throwing the smallest items - the cups - first.
0:07:07 > 0:07:09- Hi, Jim.- Hello. - Bit small, that teapot, mate.
0:07:09 > 0:07:13Well, you know, start small, get bigger as you go along.
0:07:13 > 0:07:15How are you enjoying this working with the porcelain?
0:07:15 > 0:07:16I'm treating it with utter respect.
0:07:16 > 0:07:19I mean, I've started off with the cups, I'm getting used to the clay
0:07:19 > 0:07:21and I'm going to move into the tricky stuff.
0:07:21 > 0:07:24What kind of design are you going to go for with your tea set?
0:07:24 > 0:07:27I love rounded shapes and obviously, with this stuff, it's a
0:07:27 > 0:07:29bit tricky to get those kind of rounded shapes,
0:07:29 > 0:07:31so I've kind of set myself a task with the throwing side.
0:07:31 > 0:07:33But, on top of this, I'm going
0:07:33 > 0:07:36to create some quite organic handles, all this kind of stuff.
0:07:36 > 0:07:39- Is this kind of down your road? - See Kate's face lit up, then!
0:07:39 > 0:07:41Well, you're so good at animating things, aren't you?
0:07:41 > 0:07:44You know, that's what you've done all the way through.
0:07:44 > 0:07:46They're very finely thrown, they're very thin
0:07:46 > 0:07:49and it is a challenging shape, this sort of belly, if you like,
0:07:49 > 0:07:51sticking up, so you have set yourself a challenge.
0:07:51 > 0:07:52It is the grand final, Jim.
0:07:52 > 0:07:55- Do you feel like you're stepping up a little bit?- Yeah.
0:07:55 > 0:07:57There is a sort of funny little pressure
0:07:57 > 0:07:59that's hanging around the place.
0:08:06 > 0:08:08So, we'll throw a jug next.
0:08:09 > 0:08:13Matthew is risking a decorative touch at the throwing stage
0:08:13 > 0:08:15to bring his tea set together.
0:08:15 > 0:08:17I'm just running like a sharp spiral up it,
0:08:17 > 0:08:20and then I'm hoping that the glaze is going to sink into it
0:08:20 > 0:08:23and then for the teapot, I'm going to try and have a traditional shape.
0:08:23 > 0:08:26However, I'm concerned that those aren't quite a traditional shape.
0:08:26 > 0:08:30So I'm going to try and have that contemporary, traditional kind of contrast going on.
0:08:30 > 0:08:31Does that sound like an all right plan?
0:08:31 > 0:08:34Well, it's your... it's your tea set.
0:08:38 > 0:08:42Sally-Jo is taking an even bigger gamble with her tea set.
0:08:42 > 0:08:44I've decided to hand-build.
0:08:44 > 0:08:46Just because I think, given the competition,
0:08:46 > 0:08:48there's not much point throwing it at this point.
0:08:48 > 0:08:50Also, I think I'm better at hand-building.
0:08:50 > 0:08:52I've rolled it out to about five mill,
0:08:52 > 0:08:54but I'm going to just roll it a bit thin and try
0:08:54 > 0:08:57and leave the impression of the lace, so hopefully that'll be
0:08:57 > 0:09:00a really nice texture on there and the glaze can pick up detail on it.
0:09:00 > 0:09:02I've never hand-built with porcelain.
0:09:02 > 0:09:05I think it's going to be really important to catch it at the right time
0:09:05 > 0:09:08because if I leave it too long to dry, then it'll just crack.
0:09:08 > 0:09:11I'll match that straight-sided form in the jug and in the cups
0:09:11 > 0:09:12and in the teapot.
0:09:12 > 0:09:14Anyone having fun yet? Probably not.
0:09:17 > 0:09:19You're halfway through your time.
0:09:19 > 0:09:21Two hours is gone, two hours remaining.
0:09:21 > 0:09:24Hello? SHE LAUGHS
0:09:24 > 0:09:26- Thanks!- They're in the zone.
0:09:26 > 0:09:30Is it frightening? Yeah. I really need to be getting on with the teapot.
0:09:30 > 0:09:33But there's no point coming this far with the mugs and not putting
0:09:33 > 0:09:36the bottom on them, so it's more important to do this bit first!
0:09:36 > 0:09:39Tom's got a secret plan for his cups.
0:09:39 > 0:09:42I find it a little bit difficult, to work on a very small lump of clay.
0:09:42 > 0:09:45He's making them from one large lump of clay,
0:09:45 > 0:09:47by throwing them off the hump.
0:09:47 > 0:09:50I quite like getting into the rhythm that throwing off the hump
0:09:50 > 0:09:51allows you to do.
0:09:51 > 0:09:54If you get too much thickness when it dries, it will crack.
0:09:54 > 0:09:56So, you can avoid that by really compressing the base
0:09:56 > 0:09:58and also turning it so that it is nice and thin.
0:09:58 > 0:10:00The porcelain is so delicate at the wet stage,
0:10:00 > 0:10:03putting the paper over the top to lift it off is a good idea.
0:10:03 > 0:10:05The paper will just trap the air inside,
0:10:05 > 0:10:10and that means that the rim won't distort - it'll hold the body.
0:10:10 > 0:10:11Oh, you prat!
0:10:15 > 0:10:17Good start!
0:10:17 > 0:10:21'With every item they make, porcelain takes a familiar potter's problem...'
0:10:21 > 0:10:24You've got to remember that these little bad boys will shrink.
0:10:24 > 0:10:27- '..and makes it twice as hard.' - Great.
0:10:27 > 0:10:31Shrinkage when you fire porcelain can be very large.
0:10:31 > 0:10:35An understanding of the shrinkage in three dimensions,
0:10:35 > 0:10:38from the clay body to the fired piece is crucial.
0:10:38 > 0:10:41So, if you're trying to make a tea cup and the shrinkage is much
0:10:41 > 0:10:45greater than you expect, you may end up with a thimble.
0:10:45 > 0:10:48And it's not very useful for drinking tea.
0:10:48 > 0:10:50The shrinkage of this clay is 17%.
0:10:50 > 0:10:53And that's almost as bad as VAT.
0:10:53 > 0:10:55Losing around a fifth of its size,
0:10:55 > 0:10:58porcelain shrinks almost twice as much as any other clay.
0:10:58 > 0:11:01Constantly finding out it has different limitations...
0:11:01 > 0:11:05So you've got to remember than when you're building, because you've got to build that extra size in.
0:11:05 > 0:11:08When it shrinks, it might tighten up or it might pull away, I'm not sure.
0:11:08 > 0:11:10I can't stand it when things are too precise.
0:11:10 > 0:11:13Makes me rebel against it.
0:11:13 > 0:11:15- You all right, Jim?- Yeah.
0:11:15 > 0:11:16What are you doing there?
0:11:16 > 0:11:19This is going to be the top part of me cake stand.
0:11:19 > 0:11:21- Oh. Keep going, don't let me stop you.- Yeah.
0:11:21 > 0:11:24Really takes a lot of concentration, doesn't it?
0:11:24 > 0:11:27- Yeah, yeah.- Carry on.- We're all a bit quiet in the workshop today.
0:11:27 > 0:11:30You wouldn't notice anything that was going on, would you,
0:11:30 > 0:11:32while this was happening.
0:11:34 > 0:11:36Anything else... I'll let you get on with it, Jim.
0:11:36 > 0:11:39Thank you, very kind.
0:11:39 > 0:11:42Finalists! You have one hour left.
0:11:42 > 0:11:44- You sweating it, Tom?- No.
0:11:44 > 0:11:45I think I might go first.
0:11:45 > 0:11:48The important thing with the saucer is that it's got a nice
0:11:48 > 0:11:49curve in it, so it can hold the teaspoon.
0:11:49 > 0:11:52Just needs to be nicely bowed.
0:11:52 > 0:11:55So, I'm starting off with a little bit of a bowl shape.
0:11:55 > 0:11:57And then taking it out.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00I've still got to finish off the handles of the cups and the jugs.
0:12:00 > 0:12:02The trickiest piece will be the teapot.
0:12:02 > 0:12:05I think the teapot is the Achilles heel.
0:12:09 > 0:12:12Ordinarily, you could make a bulbous shape like this quite easily,
0:12:12 > 0:12:13cos it kind of contains itself.
0:12:13 > 0:12:17But with this material, you just don't know when it's going to start going on you.
0:12:19 > 0:12:22I'm pleased with the way the teapot's gone so far.
0:12:22 > 0:12:24Come on.
0:12:24 > 0:12:27I'm actually going to try and push that beyond the spherical.
0:12:27 > 0:12:29I'm going to make a more domey sort of shape.
0:12:29 > 0:12:31The very difficult thing is getting the gallery here.
0:12:31 > 0:12:35This is the gallery, where the lid's going to sit and it's really tricky to get that in.
0:12:38 > 0:12:42I'm in a sort of mild state of terror at this point in time, I'd say!
0:12:47 > 0:12:51When you let your guard down, that's when it all goes pear-shaped.
0:12:54 > 0:12:57Teapot now. Yeah. It's time.
0:12:57 > 0:13:00It's time to face the teapot.
0:13:00 > 0:13:03Just making my lid at the moment, but I'm making it upside down.
0:13:03 > 0:13:05I have a little trick - pop this on here
0:13:05 > 0:13:08and take it off and now, I've got the diameter.
0:13:08 > 0:13:11I've measured the diameter and then what I'll do,
0:13:11 > 0:13:14I'll throw this section and then I'll just line them up.
0:13:14 > 0:13:18What I need to do is make my lid so it's just a shade narrower.
0:13:20 > 0:13:22Just taking my time.
0:13:22 > 0:13:23Refusing to panic.
0:13:26 > 0:13:30At the moment, I'm just making the stem for the cake stand.
0:13:30 > 0:13:33You've got two minutes, guys - two minutes left!
0:13:33 > 0:13:34I was not ready for this.
0:13:34 > 0:13:35What are you doing, Jim?
0:13:35 > 0:13:37Just knocking up a spout for the teapot.
0:13:37 > 0:13:41Thank heavens for that! I just thought he's just started something new!
0:13:41 > 0:13:42He's just started his teapot! Argh!
0:13:44 > 0:13:47Ah, it's just, I can't do that.
0:13:51 > 0:13:54Your time is up for this section of your tea-set making.
0:13:55 > 0:13:57Well done, troops.
0:13:57 > 0:13:59That's beautiful, isn't it? Doesn't that look nice?
0:13:59 > 0:14:01Dunno. Good lid.
0:14:01 > 0:14:03What a lovely texture on that.
0:14:03 > 0:14:06Is that gorgeous or is that gorgeous?
0:14:06 > 0:14:07My teapot is well behind.
0:14:07 > 0:14:10'Before the finalists can refine their tea sets...'
0:14:10 > 0:14:11Lovely.
0:14:11 > 0:14:14'..the porcelain needs to dry and become leather-hard.'
0:14:17 > 0:14:21Whilst it does, Kate and Keith have set a challenge involving a devilishly intricate
0:14:21 > 0:14:26technique that only the most skilled potters of Stoke were trusted with.
0:14:26 > 0:14:28It's the final spot-test from hell.
0:14:28 > 0:14:30This week, the technique we're going to ask you to use is
0:14:30 > 0:14:32known as the devil's work.
0:14:32 > 0:14:35And it's cutting a design into an object.
0:14:35 > 0:14:37It's what you leave behind that counts.
0:14:37 > 0:14:39Remove the hessian.
0:14:39 > 0:14:43You've all been supplied with a leather-hard cylindrical form.
0:14:43 > 0:14:45We want you to cut your designs into it.
0:14:45 > 0:14:49Not 10% of it, we want to see a bold design cut away.
0:14:49 > 0:14:52Now, as usual, the judges are going to go off, have a massage,
0:14:52 > 0:14:53finish their tattoos.
0:14:53 > 0:14:56Judges, if you'd like to go and relax.
0:14:56 > 0:15:01So, to do this devil's work, you have 75 minutes.
0:15:03 > 0:15:06The potters have all been given the same set of cutting tools
0:15:06 > 0:15:09and identical leather-hard cylinders.
0:15:09 > 0:15:13Everything else is down to their skill and imagination.
0:15:13 > 0:15:17The devil's work, it's demanding them to show us their hand skills.
0:15:17 > 0:15:19I really want to see something intricate.
0:15:19 > 0:15:21I'm looking for that craft element.
0:15:21 > 0:15:23I'm looking for originality of design.
0:15:23 > 0:15:25I want to see a seamless design.
0:15:25 > 0:15:28I don't want to see where it begins and ends. And accuracy.
0:15:28 > 0:15:32So the angle at which they hold that knife and the angle at which they
0:15:32 > 0:15:35cut the clay away, it will really tell me that they've decided
0:15:35 > 0:15:39on a design and they're delivering it with skill and clarity.
0:15:39 > 0:15:41I'm looking for a wow factor. This is the final!
0:15:41 > 0:15:44We want to see something really quite spectacular.
0:15:44 > 0:15:48But then, one slip if you're doing a regular and repeated pattern,
0:15:48 > 0:15:50and the whole thing will be spoiled.
0:15:52 > 0:15:53Phew! God!
0:15:55 > 0:15:57I thought I'd make a start on a border
0:15:57 > 0:15:59and then something will come to my mind.
0:15:59 > 0:16:03The devil's work. I think they used to call rock and roll the devil's music, years ago.
0:16:03 > 0:16:06It might suit me. For that... for that reason.
0:16:06 > 0:16:09I did some preliminary drawing on the pot just to get my bearings.
0:16:09 > 0:16:11Not quite sure what we're going to end up with.
0:16:11 > 0:16:15So I bought myself a little bit of thinking time by doing something definite on the rim round.
0:16:15 > 0:16:18It's quite therapeutic, sit and have a...have a fiddle, I've not...
0:16:18 > 0:16:21I've not done this sort of thing before.
0:16:21 > 0:16:24I love those big ceramic lanterns that have quite geometric design,
0:16:24 > 0:16:26almost sort of bamboo-like.
0:16:26 > 0:16:30This is going to look better and quite precise.
0:16:30 > 0:16:31That's not quite precise!
0:16:33 > 0:16:3645 minutes to go in the final spot-test.
0:16:37 > 0:16:39Choo-choo-choo, choo choo...
0:16:41 > 0:16:43The next bit is a bit tricky, I...
0:16:43 > 0:16:47I'm trying to put a structure in that won't collapse.
0:16:47 > 0:16:49I have done piercing ceramics, I think
0:16:49 > 0:16:52in my first year of university, but other than that, the only
0:16:52 > 0:16:55piercing I do is on a teapot when I poke a hole through for the spout.
0:16:55 > 0:16:58The judges are going to look for a fairly neat offering.
0:16:58 > 0:17:00I think if you just slice it to hell, it'll look scruffy.
0:17:00 > 0:17:02I think they're going to really like that, Jim.
0:17:02 > 0:17:06- I think they're looking for scruffy. - Oh, really?- Yeah.- Yeah, maybe.
0:17:06 > 0:17:10You have 30 minutes left to complete your devil's work!
0:17:11 > 0:17:14Mwa-ha-ha!
0:17:14 > 0:17:16Little bit of a firework in there, actually.
0:17:16 > 0:17:20I quite like it. Rocket taking off, sparks flying.
0:17:20 > 0:17:23Stars all the way and then they'll fit in-between each other
0:17:23 > 0:17:25and then I'll do something in the spaces in-between.
0:17:25 > 0:17:28Probably not the easiest pattern I could have done, but...
0:17:28 > 0:17:29What design are you doing, Tom?
0:17:29 > 0:17:31I'm doing flowers.
0:17:31 > 0:17:34- Oh, you big girl! - TOM LAUGHS
0:17:34 > 0:17:36I'm doing something precise and manly over here.
0:17:36 > 0:17:38They'll probably think I've done that.
0:17:38 > 0:17:39TOM LAUGHS
0:17:39 > 0:17:41Cos it's that bad.
0:17:41 > 0:17:43Oh, thanks(!)
0:17:43 > 0:17:4615 minutes left of your last ever Spot Test,
0:17:46 > 0:17:48I know you're going to miss them!
0:17:48 > 0:17:50(Just keep going.)
0:17:50 > 0:17:52I'm starting to get worried for time.
0:17:52 > 0:17:54I'm starting with the new cuts in the centre,
0:17:54 > 0:17:57so that if I don't get a chance to do it all the way through,
0:17:57 > 0:17:59at least it's in the centrepiece of the pot.
0:17:59 > 0:18:02The fireworks are fireworking away, yeah.
0:18:02 > 0:18:04Oh, it's getting wobbly.
0:18:04 > 0:18:07It gets harder the more you cut out, it starts to move as you push in...
0:18:07 > 0:18:10Also, keep cutting.
0:18:10 > 0:18:13I would like to take more away, but I may run out of time.
0:18:13 > 0:18:14What time are we on?
0:18:14 > 0:18:16Five minutes left, guys, you've got five minutes left.
0:18:16 > 0:18:19Started shaking....
0:18:19 > 0:18:22The top here now is the limit, I can tell as I'm cutting,
0:18:22 > 0:18:25can't really get away with taking much more.
0:18:26 > 0:18:29I'm just taking out some of the burrs that I've left in here.
0:18:35 > 0:18:37How long have we got?
0:18:37 > 0:18:39Ten, nine, eight,
0:18:39 > 0:18:41seven, six, five,
0:18:41 > 0:18:45four, three, two, one.
0:18:45 > 0:18:48OK, potters, time is up!
0:18:48 > 0:18:49That's a lot lighter now, isn't it?
0:18:54 > 0:18:57Gather up your masterpieces and bring them on your whirlers
0:18:57 > 0:18:59to the front, please, ready for judging.
0:18:59 > 0:19:04MUSIC: Through My Eyes by The Creation
0:19:10 > 0:19:11Kate and Keith?
0:19:11 > 0:19:15Four cut out cylinders for your delight and delectation.
0:19:15 > 0:19:16Fantastic, people.
0:19:16 > 0:19:18Shall we do this one first?
0:19:18 > 0:19:21What we're seeing is the maximum cut away out of the four
0:19:21 > 0:19:24and actually a very original use of the top.
0:19:24 > 0:19:25It's simple, but effective.
0:19:25 > 0:19:29And wonderfully executed, apart from a couple of joins.
0:19:29 > 0:19:31There's a lot cut away here as well, isn't there?
0:19:31 > 0:19:34Loving all these holes down the bottom and on the top.
0:19:34 > 0:19:36There's a sense of symmetry to this design.
0:19:36 > 0:19:40Whoever did this, they held the knife at the correct angle,
0:19:40 > 0:19:43they finished very precisely to the corners.
0:19:43 > 0:19:46I particularly love all this detail on the top here.
0:19:46 > 0:19:48There's a very nice dynamic in the pattern.
0:19:48 > 0:19:52We really can't tell where it started and where it finished,
0:19:52 > 0:19:54because it's very well-spaced.
0:19:54 > 0:19:57I'd liked to have seen much neater ends.
0:19:57 > 0:19:59And going to this one, there is a nice energy, isn't there?
0:19:59 > 0:20:01The moving sideways of this.
0:20:01 > 0:20:03Yeah, and there's a good use of the rim again.
0:20:03 > 0:20:05I'm finding the cutting a little clumsy,
0:20:05 > 0:20:07little edges coming out, the tips coming out...
0:20:07 > 0:20:10- Well, not quite defined, is it? - Don't know if it was a time thing,
0:20:10 > 0:20:13but I find this least defined in its pattern.
0:20:15 > 0:20:18But whose hands have mastered the devil's work?
0:20:18 > 0:20:21Fourth place is...
0:20:21 > 0:20:22this one.
0:20:22 > 0:20:23Guilty, your honour.
0:20:23 > 0:20:26We felt the design was a bit naive.
0:20:26 > 0:20:29Third place is also at the back and it's this one here.
0:20:29 > 0:20:30That's mine.
0:20:30 > 0:20:33The ends of those wiggles could have been much more clearly cut.
0:20:33 > 0:20:36Which obviously leaves these two.
0:20:36 > 0:20:38- Whose is this one?- It's mine.
0:20:38 > 0:20:39- Whose is this one? - It's mine.
0:20:39 > 0:20:43We decided that we wanted to award first place to the one
0:20:43 > 0:20:47who had been the bravest and had the most original design.
0:20:47 > 0:20:49And that goes to...
0:20:52 > 0:20:53..Sally-Jo!
0:20:57 > 0:21:01It was very, very close. But this really had the wow factor.
0:21:01 > 0:21:04The originality of the design, absolutely brilliant.
0:21:06 > 0:21:08- Well done!- I can't believe it...
0:21:10 > 0:21:14- That's great, well done. - Well done, Sally. How about that?
0:21:14 > 0:21:15Thank you, thank you.
0:21:15 > 0:21:18Final's really where it really counts.
0:21:19 > 0:21:24Not only have I beaten Matthew, but I've also beaten Tom and Jim!
0:21:24 > 0:21:25It feels great!
0:21:25 > 0:21:28Spot test went really well, considering I didn't have a clue
0:21:28 > 0:21:31what I was doing until about halfway through.
0:21:31 > 0:21:34If I'm going to win this final, coming third in a spot test,
0:21:34 > 0:21:37that's going to put me under a bit more pressure.
0:21:37 > 0:21:38Fourth place.
0:21:50 > 0:21:53The finalists now have just three and a half hours
0:21:53 > 0:21:55to finesse all 12 pieces of their tea sets
0:21:55 > 0:21:59and add handles and spouts before the first firing.
0:21:59 > 0:22:02I think coming into this, my main concern is just not finishing.
0:22:02 > 0:22:04I'm just getting the base attached to the cake stand
0:22:04 > 0:22:06and then it'll be straight on to the teapot.
0:22:06 > 0:22:08Because, at the moment, it still needs a base,
0:22:08 > 0:22:10a top, a lid, a handle, a spout.
0:22:10 > 0:22:13I feel like there's a mountain to climb this morning.
0:22:13 > 0:22:16A heck of a lot to do today, in a short space of time.
0:22:16 > 0:22:18Porcelain has this very short window
0:22:18 > 0:22:20of workable and then not workable.
0:22:20 > 0:22:24And it's not a very good clay to bring back from the brink.
0:22:24 > 0:22:25It's very unforgiving for that.
0:22:25 > 0:22:28This has actually dried out a little bit more than I'd like.
0:22:28 > 0:22:30I'm keeping the pieces I'm not working on now covered up.
0:22:32 > 0:22:34As Tom's cups were thrown off the hump,
0:22:34 > 0:22:37there is more fragile porcelain clay to turn away on the base
0:22:37 > 0:22:39than with an individually thrown cup.
0:22:39 > 0:22:42There's a real danger that you get S-cracks,
0:22:42 > 0:22:43where the base is very, very thick.
0:22:43 > 0:22:45So I've got to really get them nice and thin.
0:22:45 > 0:22:47I listen to the tap so...
0:22:49 > 0:22:52..I can hear from the sound the clay makes how thin that is.
0:22:52 > 0:22:55I don't always get it right, trial and error.
0:22:55 > 0:22:57There's a bit of flaking going on because they are dry.
0:22:57 > 0:23:00So the clay is not turning smoothly as it would normally.
0:23:00 > 0:23:03Just by adding a tiny bit of water, it just brings it back to life
0:23:03 > 0:23:04and you can turn it.
0:23:04 > 0:23:07I may have to spray them before I put the handles on.
0:23:07 > 0:23:09Attaching damp clay to dry clay,
0:23:09 > 0:23:11it's going to shrink at a different rate.
0:23:11 > 0:23:13But I'm not going to do that, because I'm going to leave these
0:23:13 > 0:23:16to dry out so it's the same consistency.
0:23:21 > 0:23:23This is why you make spares.
0:23:23 > 0:23:25After a disappointing spot test,
0:23:25 > 0:23:28Jim's hoping to add a couple of winning touches to his tea set.
0:23:28 > 0:23:32I'm pulling them out and creating some lines on the actual pull
0:23:32 > 0:23:33and then twisting them.
0:23:33 > 0:23:37That's really skilful. It looks so simple but actually
0:23:37 > 0:23:39he's got to be so gentle with his touch,
0:23:39 > 0:23:41otherwise the whole thing will fall to bits in the air.
0:23:41 > 0:23:43- Tie a little knot.- Beautiful.
0:23:43 > 0:23:46- We'll let you crack on. - Thank you very much.- Focus, Jim.
0:23:46 > 0:23:47I'm focusing, mate, I'm focusing.
0:23:47 > 0:23:50Well, I haven't got the luxury of practising any more.
0:23:50 > 0:23:53All of the stuff has to go through.
0:23:53 > 0:23:56I think I'm distracting myself from the teapot. I'm, like, scared of it.
0:23:56 > 0:23:59I'm such a deadline person, I've got to wait till I'm, like, really
0:23:59 > 0:24:02under pressure to do something I don't want to do!
0:24:06 > 0:24:09This is about 20 years old. I made it at school.
0:24:09 > 0:24:12It's a maker's mark. They're my initials actually.
0:24:12 > 0:24:14It hasn't changed since.
0:24:14 > 0:24:17I'm putting a little design on, best I can.
0:24:24 > 0:24:26It is hard when the clock's ticking
0:24:26 > 0:24:29cos you wouldn't mind a little chance to play around a little bit.
0:24:29 > 0:24:31Maybe the curl is nice cos of the lace,
0:24:31 > 0:24:33it's sort of like a ribbon. I think I'm going to go with that.
0:24:33 > 0:24:36That's not really the handle I just planned but...
0:24:37 > 0:24:39No...
0:24:39 > 0:24:41Oh, God, this is horrible!
0:24:44 > 0:24:48I think doing this challenge has actually made me more relaxed.
0:24:48 > 0:24:52Matthew, will you stop talking about being relaxed?
0:24:52 > 0:24:55The truth is, inside you're churned up in turmoil!
0:24:55 > 0:24:57Truth is, I'm crumbling.
0:24:57 > 0:24:59Half an hour to go.
0:24:59 > 0:25:01Melting down cos I've got so much to do still.
0:25:01 > 0:25:03Putting the stand together for this cake stand,
0:25:03 > 0:25:05it's going to look like a beanstalk.
0:25:05 > 0:25:08This teapot is not going to have a spout. Oh, my God!
0:25:08 > 0:25:10I'm not going to get this done.
0:25:10 > 0:25:11Spout, spout, spout.
0:25:11 > 0:25:13Spout needs to just be like a big fan, doesn't it?
0:25:13 > 0:25:16It's like surgery, this. I hate putting spouts on teapots.
0:25:16 > 0:25:20I'm not going to put you off by SPOUTING on any more.
0:25:20 > 0:25:23I'm going to make this little baby fit, which, again,
0:25:23 > 0:25:25is such a tricky thing to do.
0:25:25 > 0:25:27When you make a spout on the wheel,
0:25:27 > 0:25:30when you apply that to the body of your teapot,
0:25:30 > 0:25:32you always put that on at a slight angle
0:25:32 > 0:25:36because in the kiln, it remembers the way it was going on the wheel.
0:25:36 > 0:25:38It sort of springs back a little bit.
0:25:38 > 0:25:39But if you're hand-building a spout,
0:25:39 > 0:25:42you don't have to take that into account.
0:25:42 > 0:25:43Oh, I'm really worried now.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46It's got to pour well, it's got to be applied well
0:25:46 > 0:25:49and aesthetically it's got to fit with the main body of the teapot.
0:25:49 > 0:25:53Shape-wise, the spout is not particularly friendly
0:25:53 > 0:25:55to the overall feel of the pot.
0:25:55 > 0:25:59Try and tidy it up before the final bell goes.
0:25:59 > 0:26:01Ten, nine...
0:26:01 > 0:26:04- Don't rush.- ..eight, seven,
0:26:04 > 0:26:07six, five,
0:26:07 > 0:26:10four, three,
0:26:10 > 0:26:13two, one.
0:26:13 > 0:26:14Oh, that was a shocker!
0:26:14 > 0:26:16Guys, congratulations.
0:26:16 > 0:26:18You've worked, again, really hard for this final
0:26:18 > 0:26:21and we shall see you in a few days.
0:26:21 > 0:26:23Well done.
0:26:23 > 0:26:26You've got it on your face again!
0:26:26 > 0:26:29- Oh...- I reckon that's your sign you were a bit stressed.
0:26:29 > 0:26:32MUSIC: Making Time by The Creation
0:26:38 > 0:26:42Even the slightest trace of moisture can destroy porcelain
0:26:42 > 0:26:45when it's fired and, after 24 hours of drying,
0:26:45 > 0:26:48it's Richard's job to take the tea sets to the kiln.
0:26:48 > 0:26:51I've noticed on these handles cracks opening up.
0:26:51 > 0:26:53It's just where the handles have been joined a bit wet.
0:26:53 > 0:26:55It is more susceptible with porcelain.
0:26:55 > 0:26:58As those handles are drying, they're shrinking and the mug bodies
0:26:58 > 0:27:02have already started to shrink and they're just starting to crack.
0:27:02 > 0:27:05As their work is bisqued, fired and cooled,
0:27:05 > 0:27:08the finalists face an agonizing 48-hour wait at home
0:27:08 > 0:27:10with their families.
0:27:10 > 0:27:13# No, I won't be afraid
0:27:13 > 0:27:15# No, I won't... #
0:27:15 > 0:27:17I am so proud that Jim has reached the final
0:27:17 > 0:27:20cos it has been all-consuming but he's really, really,
0:27:20 > 0:27:23really wanted to make a go of it, he really has.
0:27:24 > 0:27:26I've missed him a lot,
0:27:26 > 0:27:28it's actually quite surprising how much you miss him
0:27:28 > 0:27:31when he's always strumming on his guitar
0:27:31 > 0:27:34or doing some pots or something.
0:27:34 > 0:27:37How has he been over the last few weeks - Matt?
0:27:37 > 0:27:39We weren't certain at one point, I don't think,
0:27:39 > 0:27:41if he was actually still in the competition!
0:27:41 > 0:27:44- You know it's like, erm, "How's it going?" "Fine."- Yeah.
0:27:44 > 0:27:46- "How's it going?" "OK."- "OK."
0:27:46 > 0:27:49Few words, we don't find out much.
0:27:49 > 0:27:52- Ready for this?- Yeah. - Bit of cheese inside.
0:27:52 > 0:27:55Tom is really relieved, I think.
0:27:55 > 0:27:57He wasn't expecting to get into the final
0:27:57 > 0:28:00having had quite a rough time making the chandelier.
0:28:00 > 0:28:04The night the judging happened, we were up e-mailing him
0:28:04 > 0:28:07and he was showing us photos saying that he had got into the final.
0:28:07 > 0:28:12We felt really proud of him. He does think "pots" all the time.
0:28:12 > 0:28:14Well, not all the time but most of the time.
0:28:16 > 0:28:20There's a lot of pottery chat going on, there's one time
0:28:20 > 0:28:23when she was thinking of using the lace on her pyjamas for the tea set.
0:28:23 > 0:28:25It's been all encompassing.
0:28:25 > 0:28:29I just had no idea she was this talented.
0:28:29 > 0:28:32I don't even dare to think if she'll win the final.
0:28:32 > 0:28:35I'd love it if she did. She would love it.
0:28:35 > 0:28:40She's brilliant at glazing and decoration, so why not?
0:28:40 > 0:28:43He keeps telling us he's not expecting to win.
0:28:44 > 0:28:48But I guess, you know, he has as much chance as everybody else.
0:28:48 > 0:28:52- I don't think he's bothered about results though because...- Ooh, no.
0:28:52 > 0:28:56I think he's got out of it what he really wants to do.
0:28:58 > 0:29:02Well, he wants to win the final, but he's not too bothered, apparently.
0:29:02 > 0:29:04Apparently! SHE LAUGHS
0:29:17 > 0:29:20There's 24 hours left in the competition
0:29:20 > 0:29:22and the potters are back to discover
0:29:22 > 0:29:24how their tea sets fared in the first firing.
0:29:24 > 0:29:26- Best of luck.- And you, and you.
0:29:28 > 0:29:30Great reveal...
0:29:30 > 0:29:34Any cracks at this stage may be impossible to recover from.
0:29:34 > 0:29:35Here goes nothing.
0:29:37 > 0:29:40They're looking OK, actually, I'm really pleased.
0:29:40 > 0:29:42It's all right.
0:29:42 > 0:29:44Oh...
0:29:44 > 0:29:47All the handles have split.
0:29:47 > 0:29:48Ah. Ah...
0:29:50 > 0:29:51Couple of little casualties here.
0:29:51 > 0:29:55The glazing hopefully will be reasonably striking enough
0:29:55 > 0:29:59to distract from the fact that there are shortcomings with the make.
0:29:59 > 0:30:03The finalists now have just two hours to glaze their tea sets.
0:30:03 > 0:30:06I think the glaze will fill a few of the cracks that have appeared.
0:30:06 > 0:30:08At least none of the bottoms have fallen out.
0:30:08 > 0:30:10Yet.
0:30:10 > 0:30:14Before any glazing begins, the potters are applying a wax coating.
0:30:14 > 0:30:16The high temperature porcelain is fired at
0:30:16 > 0:30:18increases the risk of melting,
0:30:18 > 0:30:22fusing lids to teapots and everything to the kiln shelf.
0:30:22 > 0:30:24Yeah, that would be a bit useless.
0:30:24 > 0:30:26Carefully applying a thin layer of wax should ensure
0:30:26 > 0:30:28all the pieces remain separate.
0:30:28 > 0:30:30That's my intention.
0:30:30 > 0:30:33They've been given a range of traditional Far Eastern glazes
0:30:33 > 0:30:36to work with, as well as a selection of oxides.
0:30:36 > 0:30:38We're really looking at natural colours - browns, blacks,
0:30:38 > 0:30:40greens, turquoises...
0:30:40 > 0:30:42Well, you say that, all I've seen is like a dusky pink,
0:30:42 > 0:30:45like a sort of '80s bridesmaid dress.
0:30:45 > 0:30:47They're not going to come out looking like that, are they?
0:30:47 > 0:30:50No, they're not. The sort of pale pink becomes blue
0:30:50 > 0:30:51and the black becomes green,
0:30:51 > 0:30:55it's just a magical transformation which is chemistry.
0:30:55 > 0:30:57Jim's hoping to play to his strengths,
0:30:57 > 0:31:00hand-painting a floral design with a blend of oxides.
0:31:00 > 0:31:02The main ingredient to this is cobalt,
0:31:02 > 0:31:04which give you quite a strong blue.
0:31:04 > 0:31:07I've muted that down by adding iron oxide to it
0:31:07 > 0:31:10and it just takes it down a few notches.
0:31:10 > 0:31:14Tom has chosen a base glaze called celadon, developed 2,000 years ago
0:31:14 > 0:31:19in China to mimic jade. It should fire to a glassy pale green.
0:31:19 > 0:31:22I've just done a single dip, very quick. It's quite thick, the glaze.
0:31:22 > 0:31:25Matthew's given his celadon base a bit of a tweak.
0:31:25 > 0:31:27I thinned mine down more than Tom's.
0:31:27 > 0:31:31Hopefully after the firing it will come out like a bluey colour.
0:31:31 > 0:31:33Even at the glazing stage,
0:31:33 > 0:31:36Sally Jo's teapot is still slowing her down.
0:31:36 > 0:31:38My teapot lid doesn't fit my teapot,
0:31:38 > 0:31:41so with sandpaper I'm able just to shave it down a bit.
0:31:41 > 0:31:45I really want the lid to sit flush with the top of the teapot.
0:31:46 > 0:31:4930 minutes to go, 30 minutes left.
0:31:49 > 0:31:51I'm just banding some glaze around this.
0:31:51 > 0:31:55Matt's decorating his surfaces with a glaze called tenmoku
0:31:55 > 0:31:57which should fire to a dark oil coloured finish.
0:31:57 > 0:32:02So, hopefully the tenmoku will bleed into the celadon. That's the plan.
0:32:02 > 0:32:04Oh, it's like...
0:32:04 > 0:32:06like in a chemistry lab.
0:32:06 > 0:32:09Cobalt carbonate, the red iron oxide and that's the copper oxide.
0:32:09 > 0:32:12I think if you just use one it can look a bit harsh.
0:32:12 > 0:32:14Right, there's no going back after this bit.
0:32:14 > 0:32:16I'm not sure what it's going to do.
0:32:17 > 0:32:19As well as his flowers,
0:32:19 > 0:32:22Jim's coating his finished work in a light celadon.
0:32:22 > 0:32:25I think with that kind of classic blue design under the celadon,
0:32:25 > 0:32:27it should look quite tasty.
0:32:27 > 0:32:29What colour is it going to be when it comes through?
0:32:29 > 0:32:32It's grey blue finish on the floral stuff.
0:32:32 > 0:32:34Jim's used his oxides, hasn't he?
0:32:34 > 0:32:37And mixed his two oxides, whereas Tom simply put tiny dots
0:32:37 > 0:32:39above each of his little lugs there on the side.
0:32:39 > 0:32:41They looked a bit small to me,
0:32:41 > 0:32:42I don't know if we're going to see them.
0:32:42 > 0:32:44Yeah, it depends on what the glaze does to them.
0:32:44 > 0:32:47- SALLY-JO:- I've made the solution too watery for the second batch.
0:32:47 > 0:32:50I didn't make enough in the first batch so it's different.
0:32:50 > 0:32:52Seems very calm here...
0:32:52 > 0:32:54You are aware this is the final, James?
0:32:54 > 0:32:56- Yeah, I know, I... - Are you done now?
0:32:56 > 0:32:58Yeah, I've put all the glaze on.
0:32:58 > 0:33:00I'm hoping the judges are going to let me stick that on top of there
0:33:00 > 0:33:03- when we finish...- I'm sure. - ..cos I can't do it now.
0:33:03 > 0:33:05- Yeah, you going to do it, a bit of glue?- I'll have a word.
0:33:05 > 0:33:06Yeah, go on, put a word in for me.
0:33:06 > 0:33:09Smooth the path a bit, a couple of quid...
0:33:09 > 0:33:12Ten minutes of titivation of the tea sets allowed.
0:33:12 > 0:33:16Just wiping off the oxide. So it reveals the design.
0:33:16 > 0:33:18Cos otherwise it's a bit heavy.
0:33:18 > 0:33:20But I am seriously running out of time
0:33:20 > 0:33:22because I've got to get clear glaze on top of everything.
0:33:22 > 0:33:24I've just got to wipe all rims, Sally,
0:33:24 > 0:33:27then I'll give you a hand if you want?
0:33:27 > 0:33:28Amazing!
0:33:33 > 0:33:36- Can I be in your gang?- Yes. - What's going on here?
0:33:36 > 0:33:37I've got no glaze on anything yet!
0:33:37 > 0:33:39You've had the same amount of time as everybody,
0:33:39 > 0:33:43- what's been going on, Sally Jo? - I've been...decorating.
0:33:43 > 0:33:46- It'll all be fine.- All right. It'll be fine in a minute.
0:33:46 > 0:33:48- Have you all finished?- Yesterday.
0:33:48 > 0:33:49Have you got a production line going here?
0:33:49 > 0:33:51Do you want me to wipe some bases here?
0:33:51 > 0:33:55If you win, there's going to be some right ole trouble.
0:33:55 > 0:33:58Ten, nine, eight...
0:33:58 > 0:34:00Right hand, there's no glaze. Right hand.
0:34:00 > 0:34:04..five, four, three,
0:34:04 > 0:34:05two, one.
0:34:05 > 0:34:08Potters, your time's up, guys.
0:34:08 > 0:34:10Just in the nick of time, Sally-Jo, well done.
0:34:16 > 0:34:21It's taken six days but the tea sets are ready for their final firing.
0:34:21 > 0:34:23Then they're done! Hurray!
0:34:23 > 0:34:28The fragile porcelain is headed into the 1,280-degree heat
0:34:28 > 0:34:30of a gas-fired reduction kiln.
0:34:30 > 0:34:33You're reducing the oxygen in the kiln chamber.
0:34:33 > 0:34:36So therefore, by reducing the oxygen,
0:34:36 > 0:34:38the flame has to burn something.
0:34:38 > 0:34:40So it attacks the pot, if you like,
0:34:40 > 0:34:43it attacks the oxides within the pot and the glazes.
0:34:43 > 0:34:46So we're talking about such high temperatures here that the oxides
0:34:46 > 0:34:49and the minerals that are in the glaze that give the colour,
0:34:49 > 0:34:51they melt and they're like flowers opening,
0:34:51 > 0:34:55the sort of pale pink becomes blue and the black becomes green.
0:34:55 > 0:34:58The glaze responds to the body, the body responds to the glaze.
0:34:58 > 0:35:03It's rich and luscious and it moves over the contours of the pot.
0:35:03 > 0:35:05As the reduction firing begins,
0:35:05 > 0:35:08the finalists will face one last challenge.
0:35:08 > 0:35:12A test involving a master potter's control that could help them
0:35:12 > 0:35:14become our first champion.
0:35:14 > 0:35:16This is your final ever Throw Down.
0:35:16 > 0:35:22Indeed, it's your final ever task here, in this pottery studio.
0:35:22 > 0:35:25What you're going to do today is a classic shape,
0:35:25 > 0:35:28one of the hardest shapes that I had to learn as an apprentice.
0:35:28 > 0:35:33The high shouldered jug, with a nice neck on it and a nice finished lip.
0:35:33 > 0:35:34So, here we go.
0:35:34 > 0:35:37So the thing that makes this such a challenge is that there are
0:35:37 > 0:35:41several changes in direction of the clay, as you're going to see.
0:35:41 > 0:35:43I'm throwing it slightly out.
0:35:43 > 0:35:46My knuckle on the outside is below my hand on the inside,
0:35:46 > 0:35:50but as I come up to the shoulder, my knuckle takes over
0:35:50 > 0:35:53and that's now on the top of my hand on the inside.
0:35:53 > 0:35:56You've been using the sponge on the stick before, haven't you?
0:35:56 > 0:35:57I'm really pushing out the clay,
0:35:57 > 0:36:01just to get me a nice, generous belly.
0:36:01 > 0:36:03And then up to the shoulder.
0:36:03 > 0:36:06And then you want enough clay at the top
0:36:06 > 0:36:08to make a really nice, generous rim.
0:36:08 > 0:36:13And now I need to pull up the lid, with the rim of the jug.
0:36:13 > 0:36:16Because then I'm not distorting the rest of the rim.
0:36:16 > 0:36:20And what you're really after here is a nice curve to the jug lip.
0:36:20 > 0:36:24So, the criteria that we're looking for is the junction between
0:36:24 > 0:36:29this shoulder here and this neck here has got to be lovely and sharp.
0:36:29 > 0:36:32And the inside shape has really got to correspond to the outside
0:36:32 > 0:36:37so when we cut it in half, we don't see a thinness on that point there.
0:36:37 > 0:36:40We also want to see a lovely, generous rim,
0:36:40 > 0:36:43from which you can pull a very nice lip.
0:36:43 > 0:36:46It took Keith five minutes to throw his jug,
0:36:46 > 0:36:51so the good news is that you guys have got 20 minutes, OK?
0:36:51 > 0:36:53The bad news is you need to make three.
0:36:59 > 0:37:0120 minutes, three jugs.
0:37:01 > 0:37:03Time starts now.
0:37:03 > 0:37:04BELL RINGS
0:37:08 > 0:37:10Here they go.
0:37:10 > 0:37:12Remember get that knuckle or hand, get it in.
0:37:12 > 0:37:15You want that pot to have a nice uplift.
0:37:15 > 0:37:16Think about that rim as well.
0:37:19 > 0:37:21When I'm throwing in the studio,
0:37:21 > 0:37:24usually the first one I do always takes a bit more time
0:37:24 > 0:37:26- and a bit more thought on it... - Yeah.
0:37:26 > 0:37:29- ..and then obviously you get into the rhythm.- Yeah.
0:37:29 > 0:37:31Oh, Jim!
0:37:31 > 0:37:34- Jim!- I've lost it, I've just thrown it too thin!
0:37:34 > 0:37:35- No, that's gone, mate.- Oh, well.
0:37:35 > 0:37:39Just throw really two decent ones.
0:37:39 > 0:37:41HE SIGHS
0:37:41 > 0:37:44Fine specimen if ever there was one.
0:37:44 > 0:37:47Five minutes has gone, you've got 15 left.
0:37:50 > 0:37:51Jim's is looking nicer now.
0:37:51 > 0:37:54There needs to be more definition between the pot and the shoulder.
0:37:54 > 0:37:58- I think he had a shock with that first loss.- Yeah, yeah.
0:37:59 > 0:38:02Tom's is looking good. A nice poise.
0:38:02 > 0:38:03I would've got my sponge in there
0:38:03 > 0:38:05and just bellied out that a bit more,
0:38:05 > 0:38:08just to give it a fuller figure.
0:38:08 > 0:38:10Usually at this point I go, you enjoying this Throw Down?
0:38:10 > 0:38:13But should I just not bother asking that after...?
0:38:13 > 0:38:15We've been through it, haven't we, with this?
0:38:15 > 0:38:18OK, halfway through, guys, ten minutes left, ten minutes left!
0:38:18 > 0:38:20Take my time with this one.
0:38:27 > 0:38:29Has Matthew taken his time a little bit too much?
0:38:29 > 0:38:31- I'm a little bit concerned.- Yeah...
0:38:31 > 0:38:33I'm not sure if he's going to have enough time.
0:38:33 > 0:38:35- What's Sally-Jo doing?- She's got the general concept right.
0:38:35 > 0:38:38- Mm, she has.- Cos, remember, they don't have to be like mine.- No.
0:38:38 > 0:38:42They don't have to look exactly the same, it's just the technique.
0:38:42 > 0:38:45Changing the direction of the clay, that's what we're after.
0:38:50 > 0:38:52Sally-Jo has got a huge width there.
0:38:52 > 0:38:54Mmm, far too wide.
0:38:54 > 0:38:57It must be really thin, cos she's got quite a good height there.
0:38:57 > 0:38:58I mean, do you know what?
0:38:58 > 0:39:02We've seen her really come on with her throwing.
0:39:02 > 0:39:05OK, guys, you've got five minutes left. Five minutes left.
0:39:07 > 0:39:09Oh!
0:39:09 > 0:39:11Look, Sally-Jo is losing hers...
0:39:11 > 0:39:13I just gouged it out with the credit card.
0:39:13 > 0:39:16Oh, she caught it with her tool.
0:39:19 > 0:39:22Mind your hair there, Matthew, can you get it over your shoulder?
0:39:22 > 0:39:24I'll do your hair for you.
0:39:25 > 0:39:27Oh, thank you so much.
0:39:27 > 0:39:29There.
0:39:33 > 0:39:36Go, Sally-Jo, come on, centre that clay.
0:39:36 > 0:39:39- Get that bloody arm in! Get that arm in!- Come on!
0:39:39 > 0:39:41Get your weight behind that!
0:39:41 > 0:39:43Got one minute left, guys, one minute left.
0:39:45 > 0:39:47One minute, Matthew!
0:39:49 > 0:39:50Thank you for reminding me.
0:39:50 > 0:39:52Yeah, no pressure, then.
0:39:53 > 0:39:55Come on, Matthew!
0:39:55 > 0:39:58- Come on, Sally!- Coming...
0:39:59 > 0:40:02- Five... KATE:- Sprinting to the end.
0:40:02 > 0:40:06..four, three, two, one!
0:40:06 > 0:40:09BELL RINGS
0:40:09 > 0:40:12Time is up, guys, time is up!
0:40:13 > 0:40:16Has anyone mastered the changes in direction
0:40:16 > 0:40:19a perfect set of jugs demands?
0:40:19 > 0:40:21Starting off with you, sir, Jim's jugs.
0:40:21 > 0:40:23Yeah, obviously, it's gone a bit wrong here, isn't it?
0:40:23 > 0:40:25Jug number two. Much improved.
0:40:25 > 0:40:27Well, obviously you've learned a bit.
0:40:27 > 0:40:29Quite a nice transition between the shoulder and the neck
0:40:29 > 0:40:32and a nice thick rim for that spout.
0:40:32 > 0:40:34That's a really nice cross section there.
0:40:34 > 0:40:36Jug number three, are things getting better?
0:40:36 > 0:40:38Yeah, definitely on a positive path, I think.
0:40:38 > 0:40:42We've got quite a nice transition between shoulder and neck.
0:40:42 > 0:40:44Your rim's far more exaggerated, which is lovely.
0:40:47 > 0:40:49The base is a bit too thin.
0:40:49 > 0:40:51You could've probably used a bit more from the shoulder
0:40:51 > 0:40:53up into your rim, really.
0:40:53 > 0:40:56Number two, there's this cinching in here,
0:40:56 > 0:40:57which it could've been fuller.
0:40:57 > 0:41:01Really nice, definite thick rim, just a bit more substantial there.
0:41:01 > 0:41:02Jug number three, then.
0:41:02 > 0:41:05Well, the profile isn't quite so cinched in,
0:41:05 > 0:41:07- it's beginning to get a bit fuller, isn't it?- Mmm.
0:41:07 > 0:41:10And then the transition from shoulder to neck is quite good.
0:41:10 > 0:41:14The cross section is far better on this, actually.
0:41:14 > 0:41:17There isn't a brilliant transition from shoulder to neck.
0:41:17 > 0:41:19That's probably the best lips I've seen so far,
0:41:19 > 0:41:22- and the rim is looking really, really nice.- Jug number two?
0:41:22 > 0:41:25The actual shoulder to the neck is better.
0:41:25 > 0:41:27You've got quite a lot of clay there,
0:41:27 > 0:41:28base is a bit on the thin side.
0:41:28 > 0:41:31- Jug number three? - This was my two-minute jug.
0:41:31 > 0:41:33I mean, obviously the shoulder's looking a bit weak here.
0:41:33 > 0:41:36There we go. The base is really, really thin on this one.
0:41:36 > 0:41:38Basically, this is an unfinished jug.
0:41:39 > 0:41:41Matthew?
0:41:41 > 0:41:44Nice width at the bottom, very generous rim,
0:41:44 > 0:41:46- possibly too generous.- Yeah.
0:41:47 > 0:41:50The base is a bit on the thin side, to say the least.
0:41:50 > 0:41:53A nice taper there, to give it support.
0:41:53 > 0:41:55Jug number two, then, Keith?
0:41:56 > 0:42:00Much nicer base, really, really thick on the sides here.
0:42:00 > 0:42:01Jug number three?
0:42:01 > 0:42:03So, really just unfinished in essence, isn't it?
0:42:03 > 0:42:05Yeah, again, just ran out of time.
0:42:05 > 0:42:09The base, a bit on the thin side, bit too thick on the shoulder there.
0:42:12 > 0:42:15So, who will win the final Throw Down?
0:42:15 > 0:42:17Last but no means least...
0:42:17 > 0:42:20Jim. You obviously lost it on the first one.
0:42:20 > 0:42:21In third place,
0:42:21 > 0:42:23Sally-Jo.
0:42:23 > 0:42:27Second place, really nice structure between the shoulder
0:42:27 > 0:42:29and the neck. Nice, thick rims...
0:42:32 > 0:42:33Matthew.
0:42:33 > 0:42:35So, in first place, Tom.
0:42:35 > 0:42:38- Well done, Tom.- Well done, Tom. - APPLAUSE
0:42:41 > 0:42:44Oh, to go out on a win with the Throw Down was,
0:42:44 > 0:42:46was absolutely great.
0:42:46 > 0:42:48Very good!
0:42:48 > 0:42:51Remarkably strange to have walked out of that last task
0:42:51 > 0:42:53and realised actually now there's nothing else
0:42:53 > 0:42:56I can do to influence the outcome of this. It's all done!
0:42:56 > 0:42:58I'll be sad not to do any more challenges again.
0:42:58 > 0:43:02I think it'll take a while to readjust to reality.
0:43:02 > 0:43:04It would have been nice to have gone out, you know,
0:43:04 > 0:43:07with a flourish and, you know, all the rest of it.
0:43:07 > 0:43:09I do feel I've let myself down in that respect.
0:43:09 > 0:43:13I've got a first in the Spot Test and a third in the Throw Down
0:43:13 > 0:43:16so I'm, you know, I'm not in a bad position with my tea set, but...
0:43:18 > 0:43:20..I don't think I've done enough.
0:43:25 > 0:43:28It's the final day of The Great Pottery Throw Down.
0:43:28 > 0:43:31It's been a long journey to get here though, what a pleasure.
0:43:31 > 0:43:33- Excited?- Yeah, can't wait.
0:43:33 > 0:43:35But the potters aren't heading in to the studio...
0:43:35 > 0:43:38- Last time we're going to do this. - I know, it's amazing!
0:43:38 > 0:43:41..it's been transformed into an exhibition space,
0:43:41 > 0:43:44to showcase everyone's work from the whole competition.
0:43:44 > 0:43:45Oh, wow!
0:43:45 > 0:43:49And the finalists' family and friends are all on the guest list.
0:43:49 > 0:43:50That looks lovely!
0:43:50 > 0:43:52Oh!
0:43:52 > 0:43:54This is the most amazing display.
0:43:54 > 0:43:58There's nothing like when ceramic is finished and then put on show.
0:43:58 > 0:44:00Just seeing it all together. We've been busy!
0:44:00 > 0:44:02- Oh, that's Tom's, yeah. - That's Tom's.
0:44:02 > 0:44:05It's amazing seeing what they've done and how much they've done
0:44:05 > 0:44:06in such a really quite short period of time.
0:44:06 > 0:44:10There's an overwhelming sense of group pride, I'd say.
0:44:10 > 0:44:13- Oh, the Raku!- Yeah, those are Raku.
0:44:13 > 0:44:15Sally's chandelier's really lovely, isn't it?
0:44:15 > 0:44:18It works as feathers, hanging in the air.
0:44:18 > 0:44:21If I was a betting person, my money would be on Tom.
0:44:21 > 0:44:23Or possibly Matthew.
0:44:23 > 0:44:25My money was on Tom from day one.
0:44:25 > 0:44:26I think it might be Sally, or Jim
0:44:26 > 0:44:29or Tom, or Matt...
0:44:29 > 0:44:30I think.
0:44:31 > 0:44:33I can't wait to see the tea sets.
0:44:33 > 0:44:35I cannot wait to see the tea sets.
0:44:37 > 0:44:40As we both know, when we open that kiln,
0:44:40 > 0:44:42- we'll have to see what happens. - Yeah, absolutely,
0:44:42 > 0:44:45take those bricks down. I mean, it's the gas kiln, isn't it?
0:44:45 > 0:44:47And it does this magical work, we hope, for all of them.
0:44:47 > 0:44:48Let's get these out.
0:44:48 > 0:44:51Jim's piece has got a bit oxidised, hasn't it, there? Look.
0:44:51 > 0:44:53- Oh, yeah.- I mean, that's essentially the same glaze.
0:44:53 > 0:44:55You can see the variation in the colour
0:44:55 > 0:44:58and this is the difference the reduction atmosphere makes.
0:44:58 > 0:45:02Yeah, so this one's been reduced and this one's been oxidised.
0:45:02 > 0:45:05- Sally-Jo's surfaces are just so beautiful.- Beautiful.
0:45:05 > 0:45:08One thing I did notice as they were decorating
0:45:08 > 0:45:10and glazing their tea sets, finish is everything.
0:45:10 > 0:45:13Did they glaze them and wipe those bottoms,
0:45:13 > 0:45:17- finish those bottoms off properly? - Cos these glazes can slip...
0:45:17 > 0:45:19- They shift.- ..down the pots and they could glue the pieces
0:45:19 > 0:45:20- to the kiln shelves.- Yeah.
0:45:22 > 0:45:23Oh!
0:45:25 > 0:45:29The base on Tom's... If the glaze isn't wiped back well enough,
0:45:29 > 0:45:32the slightest bit of residue can just fuse that to the shelf
0:45:32 > 0:45:34and then as it's cooled the pot shrunk.
0:45:34 > 0:45:37Where it's stuck, it's just pulled itself to pieces.
0:45:37 > 0:45:40That's such a pity, such a pity.
0:45:40 > 0:45:45Sally-Jo's pieces are so thin, just become so fluid in the kiln...
0:45:45 > 0:45:46Appears this piece has stuck.
0:45:46 > 0:45:49Going to just see if we can just gentle leverage...
0:45:49 > 0:45:53Yeah, it's going to go. Yes...
0:45:53 > 0:45:57Things become so fluid at top temperature, the clay moves.
0:45:57 > 0:46:00- Such a pity.- Mmm.
0:46:00 > 0:46:02This far! This far from being good.
0:46:12 > 0:46:14- All right, Jim.- Hello there, Matt.
0:46:14 > 0:46:17- How's it looking? You chuffed? - All right, yeah.- Pleased?
0:46:17 > 0:46:20- How are yours?- They are not too unhappy, actually.
0:46:21 > 0:46:23Shaking head? No...! Surely?
0:46:23 > 0:46:24It's terrible...
0:46:24 > 0:46:26I'd rather just maybe not show it.
0:46:26 > 0:46:29- Wow, that looks amazing! - Mixed bag actually, guys.
0:46:29 > 0:46:31CLINKING
0:46:31 > 0:46:33Oh, yeowch, what's that from?
0:46:33 > 0:46:36- The teapot.- Oh, no!
0:46:36 > 0:46:40The whole idea of gluing a pot together is rather strange.
0:46:40 > 0:46:42Even if I glue it, you can't get a mug on it.
0:46:42 > 0:46:44Do some shenanigans with the cake stand.
0:46:46 > 0:46:48Doesn't look too bad!
0:46:55 > 0:46:57- Tea, anybody? - HE CHUCKLES
0:47:13 > 0:47:17- Judges, would you like to start with Sally-Jo, please?- Yeah.
0:47:33 > 0:47:36Did you know that the lace and the coloured oxides
0:47:36 > 0:47:38were going to be quite so beautiful?
0:47:38 > 0:47:39I hoped.
0:47:39 > 0:47:44Because really the surface of this is absolutely exquisite.
0:47:44 > 0:47:47It's quite incredible how you've got this effect.
0:47:47 > 0:47:48- Yeah.- It really is.
0:47:48 > 0:47:51- But that is the best thing about this service, don't we know?- Yeah.
0:47:51 > 0:47:54You've got two cracked handles. I take it this was done on the drying.
0:47:54 > 0:47:57- I should've got them on sooner. - But do you know what?
0:47:57 > 0:47:59I actually quite like the shape of that cup.
0:47:59 > 0:48:01I think the weight is too heavy and I was concerned
0:48:01 > 0:48:04when you were making, had you rolled your slabs a little thinner,
0:48:04 > 0:48:08- it would have been finer.- I mean, I haven't even picked this up yet...
0:48:10 > 0:48:11It's heavy.
0:48:11 > 0:48:15Now, I'm thinking that this might not actually hold tea.
0:48:15 > 0:48:17I think there's a few crack issues in this.
0:48:19 > 0:48:22- Oh!- Oh...!- Straight away. OK.
0:48:22 > 0:48:23- No.- It's not holding the tea.
0:48:23 > 0:48:25It's not even useful as a watering can.
0:48:25 > 0:48:27Your making's let you down.
0:48:27 > 0:48:29A shame because really the most beautiful thing
0:48:29 > 0:48:31is the delicate surface.
0:48:53 > 0:48:57You have managed to use the glaze really, really well
0:48:57 > 0:49:01on your surface design and the tenmoku works really well
0:49:01 > 0:49:04with the celadon, the way it bleeds down.
0:49:04 > 0:49:06I think you're very bold with your use of glaze.
0:49:06 > 0:49:09I like the way it's moved, there's a sort of rawness to it.
0:49:09 > 0:49:12- It's definitely not a fine tea set. - No, no.
0:49:12 > 0:49:15Looking at the whole set, you've got this great rhythm.
0:49:15 > 0:49:18The pieces turn on the wheel and you've really shown us that
0:49:18 > 0:49:21by doing some spirals, by marking it.
0:49:21 > 0:49:26Actually, I'm amazed that the handle has actually stayed on.
0:49:26 > 0:49:30It's got a freshness to it, it's got a spring in the handle there,
0:49:30 > 0:49:33which is, actually, it's a miracle.
0:49:33 > 0:49:36It's not easy to do. Credit to your technical ability.
0:49:38 > 0:49:40- It holds a lot! - I'm quite amazed with that.
0:49:40 > 0:49:42Yeah. It's like the TARDIS!
0:49:42 > 0:49:45Well, he has got a bow tie on after all.
0:49:45 > 0:49:46Is it dribbling?
0:49:48 > 0:49:50- Yeah, there's a little dribble. - A tiny, tiny bit.
0:49:50 > 0:49:51It does hold together.
0:49:51 > 0:49:54It really does sit in front of us as a 12-piece tea set.
0:50:11 > 0:50:14I love the tonal changes between the sort of different firing positions
0:50:14 > 0:50:18in the kiln, and the rich turquoise, to the more sagey green.
0:50:18 > 0:50:21I do love the delicacy that you've got with the tea cup.
0:50:21 > 0:50:23It's porcelain and it looks like porcelain.
0:50:23 > 0:50:27The saucer has got a really lovely spring in it,
0:50:27 > 0:50:28it's really nice and fresh.
0:50:28 > 0:50:30You put an iron oxide rim on here, did you?
0:50:30 > 0:50:32Yes, they seem to have burnt away,
0:50:32 > 0:50:34so that was a little bit disappointing.
0:50:34 > 0:50:37I think you were a little sparse when you put your little tiny dots
0:50:37 > 0:50:40above these little tiny nibs here, I thought they were a bit spare.
0:50:40 > 0:50:42For me, that's a lot of decoration on a pot,
0:50:42 > 0:50:45so the subtlety I was quite pleased with.
0:50:45 > 0:50:46But what happened here, Tom?
0:50:46 > 0:50:49Do you know, I was meticulous about cleaning the bases off.
0:50:49 > 0:50:51- Unfortunate, that.- You can't be too careful, can you?
0:50:51 > 0:50:53- With all the precautions. - Absolutely not.- No, no.
0:50:53 > 0:50:55The lid fits nicely,
0:50:55 > 0:50:57you've put your maker's mark on the middle of the lid.
0:50:57 > 0:50:59It's a delight to see, isn't it?
0:50:59 > 0:51:01- Shall we do the honours? - Shall we have a look?
0:51:03 > 0:51:05It's pouring well, dripping slightly.
0:51:05 > 0:51:09It's really nicely finished off, but then I would expect that from Tom.
0:51:27 > 0:51:29How are you feeling?
0:51:29 > 0:51:30Nervous.
0:51:30 > 0:51:32Well, do you know what, Jim?
0:51:32 > 0:51:35HE LAUGHS
0:51:35 > 0:51:38- This is fantastic. - It's fantastic.- Really?
0:51:38 > 0:51:43- This detail is absolutely brilliant. - Making my eyes water, actually.
0:51:43 > 0:51:45God, even Jim's got a tear in his eye.
0:51:45 > 0:51:48The beautiful, gentle marks that you made with the cog,
0:51:48 > 0:51:51the way you use that brush, it's one of the most successful
0:51:51 > 0:51:53decorative surfaces I've seen in reduced porcelain.
0:51:53 > 0:51:56Some of these have changed colour, it's obviously all the same glaze,
0:51:56 > 0:51:58- just in different parts of the kiln. - That's right.
0:51:58 > 0:52:01So that's the draught coming across one piece of ceramics
0:52:01 > 0:52:04and giving us two different colours.
0:52:04 > 0:52:06- But, Jim...- Beautiful.- Jim.- Yes...
0:52:06 > 0:52:09You're doing a delicate handle here, it's porcelain.
0:52:09 > 0:52:11You should appreciate your handles.
0:52:11 > 0:52:14I'm used to stoneware where you can literally pull a handle wet
0:52:14 > 0:52:15on a fairly leather hard pot.
0:52:15 > 0:52:17You ain't going to do that with porcelain.
0:52:17 > 0:52:20- I mean, I realise that.- Your bottoms are the neatest that I've seen.
0:52:20 > 0:52:22Very nicely finished.
0:52:22 > 0:52:24Now, Jim...
0:52:24 > 0:52:26- Is that putty, Jim? - It's clay, actually.
0:52:26 > 0:52:29OK, the plus is, it looks very organic, doesn't it?
0:52:29 > 0:52:32- It looks like roots of a tree. But...- Yeah...
0:52:32 > 0:52:35..there's no way that was going to sit on there.
0:52:35 > 0:52:38- Shame about this though, isn't it? - Yeah, you've got a cracking there,
0:52:38 > 0:52:40again it's an appendage on to the main body.
0:52:42 > 0:52:43Kate, the honours.
0:52:44 > 0:52:47- Nice pour, isn't it? - Yeah, it's got the drip...
0:52:47 > 0:52:48It's got a slight drip.
0:52:48 > 0:52:52Few structural issues, but that design, perfect.
0:53:05 > 0:53:08I felt a certain degree of triumph to see Keith
0:53:08 > 0:53:12getting a bit emotional, but to see Kate going down that road as well...
0:53:13 > 0:53:15I found myself going down the same street,
0:53:15 > 0:53:17so it was kind of like, "Whoa, hold off a minute!
0:53:17 > 0:53:19"What's going on here?!"
0:53:19 > 0:53:21I was genuinely surprised that they found so many nice things
0:53:21 > 0:53:23to say about it.
0:53:23 > 0:53:26If I have won, well, you know, I'll be delighted.
0:53:26 > 0:53:29If I don't win, I'll be really happy that I've made a tea set
0:53:29 > 0:53:31and I'm pretty proud of that tea set.
0:53:31 > 0:53:33You are your own worst critic so...
0:53:33 > 0:53:36you know, I just see the faults in mine,
0:53:36 > 0:53:39but, you know, I suppose, yes, there is a possible chance.
0:53:39 > 0:53:42I don't know if I'm in with a chance, to be honest.
0:53:42 > 0:53:45Would be great, though, wouldn't it? Yeah!
0:53:49 > 0:53:54APPLAUSE AND CHEERING
0:53:54 > 0:53:56Excellent!
0:53:58 > 0:54:00Quite a sweet sight, innit?
0:54:00 > 0:54:01In just a few minutes,
0:54:01 > 0:54:06either Sally-Jo, Tom, Matthew or Jim
0:54:06 > 0:54:10will be crowned the winner of The Great Pottery Throw Down.
0:54:10 > 0:54:12Let's talk about Sally-Jo.
0:54:12 > 0:54:15Look, her surface design, the colour choices she's made
0:54:15 > 0:54:17are absolutely fantastic,
0:54:17 > 0:54:20but on her technical ability, it's really let her down.
0:54:20 > 0:54:24The wow factor with Tom is attention to detail.
0:54:24 > 0:54:26We know he's technically proficient.
0:54:26 > 0:54:29He's shown us a real delicacy with his cups and saucers.
0:54:29 > 0:54:33He's high in our minds because he has produced a beautiful tea set.
0:54:33 > 0:54:37Matthew has produced a really strong kind of boyish tea set.
0:54:37 > 0:54:41It's got lovely coarseness, a sort of slightly engineered look to it.
0:54:41 > 0:54:45He's used the glazes perfectly on the rims of his whole tea set.
0:54:45 > 0:54:47He just has this great knowledge,
0:54:47 > 0:54:51this, like, sixth sense of how to use the glazes.
0:54:51 > 0:54:54Jim's surface pattern, it's so fantastic.
0:54:54 > 0:54:56He uses the brush like a magician.
0:54:56 > 0:54:59It's just so simple and so, so effective.
0:54:59 > 0:55:01Does that mean that you are willing to overlook
0:55:01 > 0:55:04- any of the construction issues? - Oh, well, you know,
0:55:04 > 0:55:06this is something that we're going to have to discuss.
0:55:06 > 0:55:10The three of them all have been top potters, all the way through.
0:55:10 > 0:55:13- Who's it going to be? - Can you give us a few more minutes?
0:55:13 > 0:55:14I think I'm going to have to.
0:55:17 > 0:55:19APPLAUSE
0:55:22 > 0:55:27It is so fantastic seeing so many family and friends here
0:55:27 > 0:55:32and, of course, all our potters, past and present. Welcome all.
0:55:32 > 0:55:35Will our four finalists please step forward?
0:55:44 > 0:55:47The judges have made their decision
0:55:47 > 0:55:51and the winner of The Great Pottery Throw Down is...
0:56:05 > 0:56:06..Matthew.
0:56:10 > 0:56:12- Well done, mate!- Well done.
0:56:15 > 0:56:19- Right decision.- Well done, Matthew. - Go on, mate, go!
0:56:19 > 0:56:20Collect your trophy!
0:56:21 > 0:56:24- Thank you.- Congratulations.- Cheers.
0:56:24 > 0:56:27- Fantastic. Really, really good. Well done, mate.- Thank you.
0:56:27 > 0:56:29- Well done.- Well done, huh? - Well done.
0:56:29 > 0:56:32'What a pleasure to present the trophy to young Matthew.'
0:56:32 > 0:56:35He's really been consistently there, hasn't he?
0:56:35 > 0:56:38Top potter, top potter, top potter. Really applied himself.
0:56:38 > 0:56:41CHEERING
0:56:41 > 0:56:45'What Matthew did to win this contest was he married design'
0:56:45 > 0:56:47with technical ability and a real knowledge
0:56:47 > 0:56:50and a sense and a love of ceramics.
0:56:50 > 0:56:53Really and truly, he's got a soul for it.
0:56:53 > 0:56:56I think emotions are difficult. Words can't describe it, really.
0:56:56 > 0:57:01Amazing. And thank my mother and father for introducing me to clay.
0:57:02 > 0:57:04He's a natural.
0:57:04 > 0:57:08I think it's like he's got clay in the blood and slip in his brains
0:57:08 > 0:57:10and, you know, just...
0:57:10 > 0:57:12It's definitely gone to the right guy, yeah.
0:57:12 > 0:57:13Come here, mwah!
0:57:13 > 0:57:16He's got that youthful thing in his work, it's almost nonchalance.
0:57:16 > 0:57:19"Yeah, well, I knocked up that and I knocked up this."
0:57:19 > 0:57:20Fantastic, you know.
0:57:20 > 0:57:22Your father's a great potter.
0:57:23 > 0:57:26The thing I'm going to miss most is the most amazing people.
0:57:26 > 0:57:29We come from such diverse backgrounds,
0:57:29 > 0:57:32but we're completely bonded by the same thing.
0:57:32 > 0:57:36This passion to create and work with clay, that's what I'm going to miss.
0:57:36 > 0:57:39Anyone deserved this and we all deserve it.
0:57:39 > 0:57:42If I could break it up into ten shards, I would,
0:57:42 > 0:57:46but it would be a shame to ruin a pot, wouldn't it?
0:57:46 > 0:57:50MUSIC: Don't Ever Change by The Kinks