Final - Part 1

:00:34. > :00:39.Good afternoon, today's final of the United Kingdom champion breaks new

:00:40. > :00:44.ground because it is the first time in the 38 year history that it does

:00:45. > :00:50.not feature a player from the United Kingdom. It is an all overseas

:00:51. > :00:54.contest between the call classy Australian Neil Robertson and

:00:55. > :01:08.China's excitable and extroverted Liang Wenbo. Ladies and gentlemen

:01:09. > :01:15.the bets way Championships 2015. Liang Wenbo, the biggest win of his

:01:16. > :01:24.career goes into the last 16. Tremendous performance from Neil

:01:25. > :01:35.Robertson. In the end Wenbo scraped over the line. He wins and he is in

:01:36. > :01:40.the semifinal. A very relieved Australian goes through into the

:01:41. > :01:46.semifinal. That is what it means to Liang Wenbo and he gets on through

:01:47. > :01:52.to the final of this year 's best say UK Championship. The man of the

:01:53. > :02:03.season is Neil Robertson and he is through to the final. Today marks a

:02:04. > :02:10.major milestone for Liang Wenbo, his first time in a final. We are well

:02:11. > :02:14.used to seeing Neil Robertson and he has won all of them of course. The

:02:15. > :02:20.Australian has had the better of all previous meetings, their pasts have

:02:21. > :02:26.never crossed from the quarterfinals onwards in any event before.

:02:27. > :02:32.Interesting head stats. When I look at the tournament I think it is

:02:33. > :02:37.bound to be a Higgins, Robertson in the bottom half but to Liang Wenbo

:02:38. > :02:44.in there? I don't think anyone could predicted. He has been entertaining.

:02:45. > :02:50.The extenuating circumstances yesterday, why? He was playing David

:02:51. > :02:55.Grace but the possibility of getting into the top 16, a very important

:02:56. > :02:59.time in the season because it means he is now in the Masters, that was

:03:00. > :03:08.massive let alone the prize money to get into the final. Bizarrely can he

:03:09. > :03:13.relax in the final today? He said he can now truly relax, no pressure. It

:03:14. > :03:18.is the underdog and it is easy to play if you are the underdog. Get

:03:19. > :03:21.out here and all of a sudden Neil Robertson put him under pressure, it

:03:22. > :03:25.could be another story because you don't necessarily have to dig

:03:26. > :03:30.yourself out of a hole in a press conference that he will today. And

:03:31. > :03:36.he is up against a ruthless competitor, Neil Robertson loves the

:03:37. > :03:39.big trophies. Wenbo made three centuries on the trot, whether he

:03:40. > :03:44.can do that again on a 1 table setup is questionable. If Neil Robertson

:03:45. > :03:49.put him under pressure, we will see the true Liang Wenbo. I'm not too

:03:50. > :03:53.sure it is about Neil Robertson today, it is about what's Wenbo can

:03:54. > :04:03.produce on the biggest stage of his life and 01 table setup.

:04:04. > :04:07.Interesting. Liang is trying to calm down after putting himself through

:04:08. > :04:11.the mill yesterday in the semifinal. As for Neil Robertson he is trying

:04:12. > :04:15.to trophy for the second time in three years and his confidence must

:04:16. > :04:16.be soaring after a mighty wind, a whitewash no less over the world

:04:17. > :04:34.number one. A lot of people are questioning why

:04:35. > :04:37.form and my diet. A lot of people on Twitter telling me I had to start

:04:38. > :04:43.eating meat again to win, that was a good one. I am the stage where I

:04:44. > :04:47.don't need to win Euro tour events to build confidence kick-start my

:04:48. > :04:50.career. I can target the biggest tournaments and I've won all of the

:04:51. > :05:03.biggest ones in the game so I'm trying to replicate that. Fantastic.

:05:04. > :05:11.Beautiful cue action. Beautiful control of the table, his game is

:05:12. > :05:15.fantastic. Very good score. Liang is a great guy, very funny and I have

:05:16. > :05:20.always gotten along with him. He used to be a raving lunatic on the

:05:21. > :05:28.table, he used to play the crazy shots you have ever seen. When my

:05:29. > :05:38.coach talks he tells me to control the table. Thinking, concentrating.

:05:39. > :05:51.He is very good and says you have to like the sport. You need to

:05:52. > :06:03.concentrate. I change my mind, before I thought going going. -- go

:06:04. > :06:06.in, go in. I have been a favourite number of times in the final and if

:06:07. > :06:10.you don't perform there is a good chance you'll get beat so have to go

:06:11. > :06:14.into it thinking I have to be my best to win. I will enjoy my match,

:06:15. > :06:23.it is another final and you have to enjoy them no matter what. I will be

:06:24. > :06:33.as hungry as ever to try to win. It makes me ready. Concentrating. I'm

:06:34. > :06:42.now very relaxed. Everybody says be careful now, enjoy the game. You

:06:43. > :06:48.want a character, you have one. There is another one. Stephen

:06:49. > :06:56.Hendrie. Liang look tortured at times yesterday what could change?

:06:57. > :06:59.Now he knows he is in the top 16. He expected himself to win yesterday

:07:00. > :07:04.which put more pressure on himself stop he is in the masses top 16 and

:07:05. > :07:09.he will see Philly might be a completely different play today.

:07:10. > :07:13.Both guys have made centuries and they have been in great style but

:07:14. > :07:19.how does he go about beating Neil Robertson today? Does the Aussie

:07:20. > :07:25.have any weaknesses? If he plays the same way he played against Marco Fu

:07:26. > :07:29.with three centuries, he realises he is the underdog so he can relax and

:07:30. > :07:36.enjoy the occasion. He said he will enjoy it. How big of a shock would

:07:37. > :07:40.it be if Robertson did not win? A massive shock, he has been the

:07:41. > :07:46.player of the tournament by far. We have had a view to a futurist and

:07:47. > :07:52.turns over the last 15 days, we are about to find out if there is going

:07:53. > :07:57.to be another one. Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen. It has been a

:07:58. > :08:05.scintillating championship so far, this is it, the big one. Welcome to

:08:06. > :08:08.the final of the 2015 that way UK Championship, we started with Andrew

:08:09. > :08:12.and 28 and now the top to remain. This could be epic. Let's get the

:08:13. > :08:41.boys on the baize. Please welcome a player who has been

:08:42. > :08:46.at his impeccable best here in York. It has been the most significant

:08:47. > :08:51.week of his career so far, beating Trump and Marco Fu on his way here,

:08:52. > :08:54.his win yesterday put him back in the world top 16 and into the

:08:55. > :08:58.Masters next month. A real character, a genuine talent flying

:08:59. > :09:36.the flag for China, please welcome Liang Wenbo.

:09:37. > :09:43.And his opponents. A player whose influence on the game has been huge

:09:44. > :09:49.since his arrival from Australia just over a decade ago. He famously

:09:50. > :09:56.lifted the trophy in 2013 and today he bids to become the eighth player

:09:57. > :10:00.to win multiple UK titles, he beat Mark Selby without conceding a

:10:01. > :10:03.single frame last night. He is in form, he is ready and can you hear

:10:04. > :10:37.the Thunder from Down Under, here is Neil Robertson.

:10:38. > :10:45.Wishing them both well, today is the best of 19 frames, they will play

:10:46. > :10:53.eight this afternoon and finish it off at seven o'clock. After ten

:10:54. > :10:56.hours in the commentary box yesterday our commentators cannot

:10:57. > :11:02.stay away. COMMENTATOR: I am certainly looking

:11:03. > :11:04.forward to the final. What a character and what a reception Liang

:11:05. > :11:09.Wenbo got when he came down the stairs. One of the real character is

:11:10. > :11:13.now of the game and in his first major final, can he relax? Can he

:11:14. > :11:17.play how he does in practice? He is up against, well you would have to

:11:18. > :11:32.say the ruthless Neil Robertson. That is what they are playing for,

:11:33. > :11:38.that's magnificent trophy. The gentleman next to me as you heard

:11:39. > :11:39.has won it on five occasions, no better feeling than this Stephen is

:11:40. > :12:04.there? Will want a decent break. Going to

:12:05. > :12:07.be key today for Liang to get that cue ball on the right position. Neil

:12:08. > :12:15.Robertson is the most consistent long letter in the game. -- long

:12:16. > :12:19.potter. He does have one to the right corner so an early chance to

:12:20. > :12:36.get the cue ongoing. A long way off with his first

:12:37. > :12:41.attempt but some of the ball seed knocked in similar to that against

:12:42. > :12:45.Mark Selby, who was tight to the vision and kept rolling them in. He

:12:46. > :12:47.could not play off the back because of the red that was to the right of

:12:48. > :13:27.it. -- off the black. The first pot goes to the Chinese

:13:28. > :13:35.player. That's really was amazing yesterday how he kept giving himself

:13:36. > :13:45.a smack on the cheek. He was getting himself so confused, it meant so

:13:46. > :13:54.much to win that match. I think we could see two types of Wenbo play

:13:55. > :14:07.today. It is possible his race was already run winning yesterday.

:14:08. > :14:16.I would love to see the scenario like yesterday to see how Robertson

:14:17. > :14:21.hacks. Getting two centuries in the first few frames. -- reacts. This

:14:22. > :14:28.table looks to be playing beautifully. Very fast that is for

:14:29. > :14:37.sure. You would rather have the table on the quick side rather than

:14:38. > :14:46.slow. When you are playing well, you can control a quick table.

:14:47. > :14:51.Just watch keeps on rolling there. Just a bit

:14:52. > :15:09.too far. This is an attacking shots here I

:15:10. > :15:18.can tell you. He is shaping up to cut the sin. Not guaranteed whether

:15:19. > :15:28.cue ball is finished. -- cut in. He is going to give it a go here. One

:15:29. > :15:38.shot tells us his intentions. -- this one.

:15:39. > :15:51.APPLAUSE Weight that was the problem, he had

:15:52. > :15:52.no idea. Now he has to find a safe place because of the road over the

:15:53. > :16:06.bottom corner. If he continues to play that type of

:16:07. > :16:12.snooker we're in for a fantastic final, that very aggressive.

:16:13. > :16:20.Anywhere around the yellow pocket will cover that.

:16:21. > :16:33.I think that was a slight mis-hit. Has he got a snooker?

:16:34. > :16:39.The White may have just drifted a touch because he was playing your

:16:40. > :16:40.shots, look at the number that would have covered this, yellow, brown,

:16:41. > :16:54.blue. The black is still tied up but he

:16:55. > :17:12.has finished on the pink here. Maybe the pink is a little thinner

:17:13. > :17:29.than its looks from our position. For some reason he is not that keen

:17:30. > :17:30.on it. I would say the yellow is a more difficult pot and a positive

:17:31. > :17:47.shots. He does what some balls this fellow.

:17:48. > :17:52.And he will give to control the path with that yellowed underpaying.

:17:53. > :17:58.Unless the pink was into a blind pocket which is never easy. Still

:17:59. > :18:05.not out of the woods yet in terms of positioning. He is looking at a red

:18:06. > :18:16.to the left corner, perhaps to put the pink and the same. -- in the

:18:17. > :18:21.same. If you can get this and get on the pink, the frame is at his mercy.

:18:22. > :18:31.I was looking at me when he was introduced. He looks so focused. He

:18:32. > :18:34.wasn't smiling all waving, he is out there to do a job. He is out there

:18:35. > :18:48.to win his second UK title. This was Neil Robertson as he came

:18:49. > :19:21.into the arena, just look at that face. Full of concentration.

:19:22. > :19:28.His first two frames in the semifinal against Mark Selby, Mark

:19:29. > :19:34.made a opening of 50 and Neal came back to win that, Mark did the same

:19:35. > :19:42.in the second with a break of 55 and Neil came back to win that. I know

:19:43. > :19:53.it was 6-0 but he could have one more it was some performance from

:19:54. > :19:58.the Australian. No doubt about it he has been the standout player, that's

:19:59. > :20:02.fantastic quarterfinal against John Higgins 6-5, could have gone either

:20:03. > :20:06.way in the final frame. Apart from that he has dominated the

:20:07. > :20:08.tournament. He has said that after O'Neill. That is the way he likes

:20:09. > :20:32.it. -- that is what he thrives on. That John Higgins match, John made

:20:33. > :20:50.three century breaks of 69 and 66 and he lost in the deciding frame.

:20:51. > :20:55.This is where it is difficult, you open all of the balls up and you

:20:56. > :20:59.have to watch your opponent come to the table and put them all. That is

:21:00. > :22:21.the nature of the game. There is that magnificent arena at

:22:22. > :22:29.the Barbican Centre. Fabulous atmosphere when the players walked

:22:30. > :22:38.down the steps. You can see the cameraman, the referee, a great

:22:39. > :22:46.shock that. -- shot. Just coming up little short this time for the

:22:47. > :22:53.blue. A little awkward being a left-hander because the blue screws

:22:54. > :23:03.back a little bit. I know he can't really reach it which is why he is

:23:04. > :23:11.thinking of leaving a longer pot. Now he is looking at the pink. He is

:23:12. > :23:15.looking to see if he can screw back if the can reach it. If he stands

:23:16. > :23:21.towards the brown it'll be a more difficult pot. Can he reach this?

:23:22. > :23:34.That is the thing. Can he get past the blue, that is

:23:35. > :23:46.the other thing? He is just asking the referee to spot the blue again.

:23:47. > :23:59.He can just about reach extension. It looks pretty tight. He

:24:00. > :24:13.is 30 points in front so achy pot coming up in the frame.

:24:14. > :24:27.In the end there was plenty of room because he missed on the other side.

:24:28. > :24:31.CROWD CLAPPING I think that blue was a distraction

:24:32. > :24:40.for him there but have plenty of room. -- he had plenty.

:24:41. > :24:50.I think it will be a relieved Wenbo coming back for another chance. I

:24:51. > :25:04.certainly felt Neil would win the first frame and that would be it.

:25:05. > :25:09.I think he is going a bit straight for a yellowed, he would love to

:25:10. > :25:44.have an angle for the three red and black.

:25:45. > :25:55.Very difficult to get on a red from this position. He is almost straight

:25:56. > :26:00.on the yellow. I don't think he can generate an angle to get over, just

:26:01. > :26:05.looking at the green belt. Amazing yesterday he took two minutes and 50

:26:06. > :26:06.seconds for a shot and in the NT not down a fantastic pink after slapping

:26:07. > :26:21.himself the Can he flick the red? He is

:26:22. > :26:29.unlucky, a terrific effort from there, lots of reverse side on that.

:26:30. > :27:21.He has to get this thing if he is going to avoid the reds on the left

:27:22. > :27:27.of the black. And he didn't, he hit it too thick but he has been rather

:27:28. > :27:28.fortunate there. He did not play it as he intended it. He got quite

:27:29. > :27:45.lucky there. Didn't hit it anywhere near as thin

:27:46. > :27:47.as he wanted it. Once he hit the other red he could have stayed

:27:48. > :28:07.amongst them there. Just a little bit too much pace

:28:08. > :28:11.because if you leave it on the baulk line Liang will know how good Neil

:28:12. > :28:16.Robertson is from there. He is looking at the red on the corner but

:28:17. > :28:27.can he avoid the reds and black and find a gap?

:28:28. > :28:41.If he plays for a cannon he will have to pod the red. -- pot.

:28:42. > :28:53.They refused it in the end. Which he did do. But not the best safety shot

:28:54. > :28:58.he has ever played. A bit of a tester for Liang here, has a bit of

:28:59. > :29:05.an angle on the red. He can get itself right back in the opening

:29:06. > :29:28.frame if this goes in and stop -- himself.

:29:29. > :29:52.May just have enough angle to get this. Didn't you that well, perhaps

:29:53. > :30:08.an injustice, maybe it was a bad contact. You can see

:30:09. > :30:14.You could clearly see the pink leave the bed on the table.

:30:15. > :30:28.I'll tell you what he is doing today...

:30:29. > :30:32.APPLAUSE He's keeping still on the shop.

:30:33. > :30:36.Yesterday he was moving all over the place. That was just pressure. Today

:30:37. > :30:44.he looks much more solid. He's not moving around. Just far more

:30:45. > :30:49.relaxed. He's got nothing to lose today, Dennis. He is the underdog.

:30:50. > :30:55.Nobody expects him to win. If he can just go out and enjoy it and relax,

:30:56. > :30:58.enjoy the occasion... He looks so calm and composed. Who knows what

:30:59. > :31:17.could happen? The problem here - if he plays for

:31:18. > :31:22.the black, the black will go on and tie the red up. I think there is

:31:23. > :31:28.just enough room for the black to go back on its spot there so if he can

:31:29. > :31:37.get himself nicely on the pink, it would be better. This is the key

:31:38. > :31:44.shot. Just 13 points behind now and the colours are all perfectly

:31:45. > :31:54.placed. So often you overcooked this pink if you miss it. -- overcoat.

:31:55. > :32:00.I was just about to say, this is a massive first frame for Wenbo to

:32:01. > :32:12.win. Just maybe flicked a little bit.

:32:13. > :32:15.Wanted left-hand side Amat cue ball. I think that's what happened because

:32:16. > :32:20.it was coming across the table nicely but the side just took it in

:32:21. > :32:25.across the black. He needs a little bit of good fortune here. Let's have

:32:26. > :32:31.another look at that. He just got a little touch of left-hand side on

:32:32. > :32:35.it. If that had flicked the black, it would have been perfect. You

:32:36. > :32:39.never know where they're going to finish and he may have slipped a

:32:40. > :32:45.snooker here. He's held his hand up. APPLAUSE

:32:46. > :32:58.The same thing applies to Neil Robertson. You've just got to hit

:32:59. > :33:06.the red and hope you can knock it safe. From this sort of situation,

:33:07. > :33:10.very difficult for any player to judge the shot in such a way that

:33:11. > :33:26.you know you're going to knock it safe.

:33:27. > :33:34.I think he was trying to get a thin contact. The reds doesn't go past

:33:35. > :33:48.the blue. Liang is looking at that and we'll have it put back.

:33:49. > :33:55.There is a happy gentleman. He manages both players. He looks after

:33:56. > :34:16.Judd Trump. I suppose a win/win situation for

:34:17. > :34:24.him. He's probably the most relaxed man in the building.

:34:25. > :34:32.He's already been thinking about the second attempt. It won't be far off

:34:33. > :34:38.a minute. What he's trying to do here is to just try to hit the right

:34:39. > :34:40.side of the red. APPLAUSE

:34:41. > :34:47.That'll do nicely. To judge that type of shot you've

:34:48. > :35:16.got to be so precise. I'd say this first frame was more

:35:17. > :35:21.important for Wenbo to win. APPLAUSE

:35:22. > :35:31.Absolutely. It is first to 10. It is a long final but if he can win the

:35:32. > :35:35.first frame, he will really settle down. Can he knock the red safe

:35:36. > :35:51.again if he gets out of the snooker? Well, a good result there. But, to

:35:52. > :35:59.be fair, Liang flicked a snooker earlier. He is letting Jan Verhass

:36:00. > :36:03.have a look. I was chatting to Jan and he is not sure if it is his

:36:04. > :36:08.fifth or sixth UK final but he has refereed. He has been one of our top

:36:09. > :36:13.referees for many years now and always gets a great reception when

:36:14. > :36:24.he is introduced. Very popular with the crowds and the players.

:36:25. > :36:45.Can Liang once again hit the red and get it safe?

:36:46. > :36:54.Surely not again! APPLAUSE

:36:55. > :37:14.It isn't a snooker but he can't see enough of it to take the pot on.

:37:15. > :37:35.There is! Is it a thin cut? It is. The only problem with it being such

:37:36. > :37:40.a thin cut - if he gets close to the putt and doesn't get it, it is going

:37:41. > :37:53.to stay there. -- the pot. He'd to watch the corner pocket if

:37:54. > :37:56.he goes past the pink. Well, you called it, Stephen, and he needs the

:37:57. > :38:04.blue to come to his rescue and I don't think it has.

:38:05. > :38:12.Just enough room. It is dead straight but the cube power that

:38:13. > :38:26.this Australian has, he could screw out onto the black. -- cue power.

:38:27. > :38:34.Didn't quite get the action on the cue ball that you would expect.

:38:35. > :38:46.This needs good cueing. The natural angle to get the yellow.

:38:47. > :39:02.It has been a cracking frame. Both players look

:39:03. > :39:07.It has been a cracking cueing well. Oh, hang on. What was

:39:08. > :39:11.that from Neil Robertson? He's got away with it, though. He's been

:39:12. > :39:16.very, very fortunate. When you miss a sitter like that, you deserve to

:39:17. > :39:25.lose a frame that that was a nervy one from Neil Robertson. Yeah, that

:39:26. > :39:34.was incredible. That is what you call in the trade a twitch. Very

:39:35. > :39:36.surprising. Just shows you, you just want to get this first frame under

:39:37. > :39:46.your belt. Liang coming round to have a look to

:39:47. > :39:55.see if he's got the snooker. APPLAUSE

:39:56. > :40:00.Obviously with the success of the standard of play Neil Robertson is,

:40:01. > :40:07.he has a fantastic temperament but that yellow will stay his mind for a

:40:08. > :40:13.few minutes. An incredible miss. He just flicked a little bit offside on

:40:14. > :40:17.it there. But talking about side, can he get enough side on this next

:40:18. > :40:23.shot to miss the black and hit the yellow? If he hits the yellow full

:40:24. > :40:27.ball, there's a possibility of getting a snooker behind the black

:40:28. > :40:33.but he needs to get so much side on this. Probably a little touch of

:40:34. > :40:40.swerve as well. He played that superbly well.

:40:41. > :40:48.That was far from a natural. He had to get so much side on that, and he

:40:49. > :40:53.got so close to hitting the black on the way up. Well, you can't beat a

:40:54. > :41:45.tense opening frame. Well, this is another cracking shot

:41:46. > :41:53.he's played here. APPLAUSE

:41:54. > :42:01.up and if there is, Neil can send the yellow off the side cushion,

:42:02. > :42:02.back past the green on to the box cushion and then

:42:03. > :42:18.back past the green on to the box black for the white.

:42:19. > :42:49.I'm sure there will be an awful lot of quick friends in this final but

:42:50. > :43:00.this opening one is quite a tense affair.

:43:01. > :43:08.Oh, that's a delicate shot he's played there. What a pot that is.

:43:09. > :43:24.That was a difficult angle there. That's what I was talking about,

:43:25. > :43:27.temperament. He's just missed a far, far easier yellow than that a few

:43:28. > :43:34.moments ago. Quickly erased from the memory banks.

:43:35. > :43:47.Still hasn't flinched, Neil Robertson. He looks cool, calm and

:43:48. > :43:59.collected, as he did when he was introduced. But a very entertaining

:44:00. > :44:06.first frame, it has to be said. It doesn't matter whether the pink goes

:44:07. > :44:09.or not. But it is in. Both players had chances in that opening frame.

:44:10. > :44:13.They both looked to be cueing well but in the end it was Neil Robertson

:44:14. > :44:18.who took the frame and he leads Liang Wenbo by 1-0.

:44:19. > :44:21.HAZEL IRVINE: A cagey but nonetheless very interesting start.

:44:22. > :44:27.To get in touch with us via the usual channels.

:44:28. > :44:34.That first frame was really a tale of two back row yellows. Can you

:44:35. > :44:37.explain to me how a player as good as him miss the first one off the

:44:38. > :44:42.spotlight this. It is to be straightforward. You can just miss

:44:43. > :44:46.balls and do it now and again but you wouldn't expect it. He's very

:44:47. > :44:50.fortunate where it has finished. But then to pop this in the middle

:44:51. > :44:56.pocket at the pace he played, it is a wonderful shot. How can you miss

:44:57. > :45:01.one and then do that? Wenbo a bit unlucky because of that final red,

:45:02. > :45:04.the cue ball just trickling off the black, when he might have cleared

:45:05. > :45:09.up. I think you can count himself quite unlucky to have come out

:45:10. > :45:14.losing that frame. Effectively, it was a bit unfair when a player who

:45:15. > :45:20.is inform Mrs a yellow and gets away with it. You feel as if he's been

:45:21. > :45:24.cheated a bit, Wenbo. It was still a good frame but from my perspective,

:45:25. > :45:27.looking at Neil Robertson, if he was going to be under pressure then

:45:28. > :45:31.looking over his shoulder at how well he's played during the

:45:32. > :45:34.tournament and then cracking up in the first frame would have been the

:45:35. > :45:40.way he could get himself out of pressure. The fact he's got away

:45:41. > :45:44.with that maybe the wall. Nevertheless, Wenbo looking a lot

:45:45. > :45:50.more relaxed than he did yesterday. 100 times. I quite agree with you. I

:45:51. > :45:52.had forgotten about that frame. He just snicks that black and is going

:45:53. > :45:57.to win the frame. His whole demeanour is far better than

:45:58. > :46:03.yesterday. It has the makings of a contest. Here we go.

:46:04. > :46:13.STEPHEN HENDRY: You would have to find the gap between the red

:46:14. > :46:17.immediately above it. If he's looking at the red to the left

:46:18. > :46:19.corner, I don't think you can avoid contact with the black, so it will

:46:20. > :46:34.be a shot to nothing. Just a straightforward safety. As I

:46:35. > :46:44.said before, so important to get a good cue ball.

:46:45. > :46:55.He hasn't done. At first glance, I can't see any pots for Neil

:46:56. > :46:56.Robertson but it does give him the opportunity to play a much better

:46:57. > :47:15.safety shot. Just looking at the path of those

:47:16. > :47:17.three reds. If he had that safety, he may be pushing a red over the

:47:18. > :48:23.left corner so he's not happy. DENNIS TAYLOR:

:48:24. > :48:24.He's played some very good safety shots throughout this year's UK

:48:25. > :48:43.Championship. Just flicking the brown offered spot

:48:44. > :48:58.there means the green and brown are quite a nice target now.

:48:59. > :49:08.He does a lot of pointing his cue, does Liang, where he wants to put

:49:09. > :49:09.the cue ball. He is behind the yellow, behind the green, behind the

:49:10. > :49:25.brown. Just getting very congested around

:49:26. > :50:51.the black spot area. It's amazing, sometimes. You can go

:50:52. > :50:58.for two or three frames and you never get a chance around the black

:50:59. > :51:01.spot. It finishes up with the balls also rounding the black spot and

:51:02. > :51:14.makes it difficult. I think the green is going to cover

:51:15. > :51:19.that one that is over the pocket. A pretty good

:51:20. > :51:21.that one that is over the pocket. A able to get down off the one

:51:22. > :51:23.that one that is over the pocket. A to the right of

:51:24. > :51:24.that one that is over the pocket. A think he'll go in if he plays off

:51:25. > :51:36.that one. I think that's the sort of pass, if

:51:37. > :51:37.he played off that read he would avoid the cannon and then be able to

:51:38. > :51:53.play up the table. And now he's looking at that one and

:51:54. > :51:57.if he plays the shot but I put up with the lines, he may even be able

:51:58. > :52:03.to have a go at the plant at the same time. As long as he hits the

:52:04. > :52:04.white same time. As long as he hits the

:52:05. > :52:17.I think. Found the gap. He needs the green to

:52:18. > :52:18.come to his rescue but it's a good shot he's played there.

:52:19. > :52:26.APPLAUSE His safety play in the first couple

:52:27. > :52:39.of frames so far has been excellent. He's definitely completed, Wenbo,

:52:40. > :52:45.with Robertson in that part of the game. In fact, he's got him in a

:52:46. > :52:49.position here where there is no path back down the table. That's why he's

:52:50. > :52:55.looking at coming off a couple of cushions and just landing on the red

:52:56. > :53:12.that is near the pocket. Has he spotted something else?

:53:13. > :53:19.I'm just wondering if the green is likely in the way of the shot he was

:53:20. > :53:23.looking at. I think it might be. Now he's looking at getting to the red

:53:24. > :53:30.to the left of the ones that are near to the cushion, but he's got to

:53:31. > :53:32.go twice across the table to do that. But he's pretty good at the

:53:33. > :53:36.angles. That is not well judged. This isn't

:53:37. > :53:46.where he wanted the cue ball to go. That is not well judged. This isn't

:53:47. > :53:50.I think he can get to the potting angle of one to the right middle

:53:51. > :53:58.pocket. He didn't hit the red she was intending to. -- he was

:53:59. > :54:21.intending to. Kept perfectly still on that shot.

:54:22. > :54:25.We were right down his cue action there. Just watch this, watch his

:54:26. > :54:29.head, watch everything. That wasn't happening yesterday. But it is a

:54:30. > :55:04.different day, a different pressure. It's incredible how many routers are

:55:05. > :55:08.around the black there. That's a poor shot he's played but the only

:55:09. > :55:13.saving grace is that there is one on the right-hand corner and he pots

:55:14. > :55:22.the pick, -- the pink, he is heading up the table.

:55:23. > :55:32.He should have made sure of the pot there. Even if he had left himself

:55:33. > :55:34.further away from this red... It was the shot before where he didn't get

:55:35. > :56:05.nicely on the pink. Look at that, how the red has

:56:06. > :56:19.finished. The brown doesn't go to the middle.

:56:20. > :56:24.It is a long green, which is very difficult up into the corner. The

:56:25. > :56:27.only thing is, if he tucks him in behind the brown, he's got to block

:56:28. > :56:33.the path across the table, which is what he's done because Liang could

:56:34. > :56:39.have gone off the left side of the table and potted the red. He's

:56:40. > :56:44.pretty good at swerving a ball, is Liang Wenbo, so could he swerve this

:56:45. > :56:52.around the green and pot it? He won't be finishing on a colour but

:56:53. > :56:55.he's got to move that red. I've watched him with his swerve shots

:56:56. > :57:03.and he really does play them very well.

:57:04. > :57:15.He could try and come off the top cushion and flick the red in. He's

:57:16. > :57:17.just looking to see if he left the white there, would that red cut into

:57:18. > :57:39.the middle? It is the swerve, as I thought. And

:57:40. > :57:48.you've got a perfect picture there to see if he can pop this. -- pot

:57:49. > :57:54.this. That was unlucky. He got too much into it in the end. I thought

:57:55. > :58:01.his cue was too high. It didn't require that much. It is only a half

:58:02. > :58:05.ball swerve. He just seemed to... It almost looked like he was going to

:58:06. > :58:21.be putting too much swerve on that for me.

:58:22. > :58:27.Reds and blues. That's all that's available to Neil Robertson at the

:58:28. > :58:59.moment. He might well play for the red that

:59:00. > :59:06.is closest to the right-hand corner. It is not the easiest popped back

:59:07. > :59:14.room -- pot but it may be able to be parted. He is this we not playing

:59:15. > :59:29.that read yet. Unless the black goes past that red already.

:59:30. > :59:36.It doesn't look like the black pots so he will want to move that red

:59:37. > :59:41.sooner rather than later, I would think.

:59:42. > :59:49.He just had a little glance at it there, the red you mentioned, and

:59:50. > :59:54.still got two other reds he can play on.

:59:55. > :00:00.In fact, he's gone a bit too far for the one that he played. He will take

:00:01. > :00:21.that red that you suggested. He has made a mess of it. It was not

:00:22. > :00:28.an easy pot and he did not get the correct side of the blue. If he

:00:29. > :00:34.powers this aim, he has got to get around the back of the yellow and

:00:35. > :00:38.back up the table. We have seen Mark Selby attempt a shot like that and

:00:39. > :00:45.the blue jump out of the pocket. This is a slightly better angle. He

:00:46. > :00:58.doesn't want any right-hand side on this or it could hit the ground.

:00:59. > :01:01.That was a great shot. He played for the red just above the black and he

:01:02. > :01:18.may have dropped on the one that is just behind it. Or has he? Maybe

:01:19. > :01:37.not. No. Does this go to the middle? That must be very tight. If

:01:38. > :01:48.it does, he can get on the black. Well, now he has got them where he

:01:49. > :01:53.wants them. After a future at not being in perfect position, once this

:01:54. > :02:04.black girls you would think it would be the end of the frame. He will

:02:05. > :02:09.want to dominate this match. He will though it is possible to win this

:02:10. > :02:25.match in the first session if he can get 6-2, 7-1 even, that is the way

:02:26. > :02:30.the top players think. Finishing on blood red for the middle pocket, the

:02:31. > :02:38.inform player seems to get the run of the ball like that. When you are

:02:39. > :02:51.struggling a bit and you play a shot like the one on the blue, you finish

:02:52. > :02:59.up on absolutely nothing. Perfect side of the blue. Lots of top spin,

:03:00. > :03:05.did well to find that gap, by the way. He didn't finish on his

:03:06. > :03:10.intended red, he bit -- hit it a bit too hard, but one popped its head

:03:11. > :04:35.out and he had it in the middle and this is the result. Maybe got a

:04:36. > :04:56.slight kick there. The black just jumped a little bit there. It

:04:57. > :05:00.doesn't matter who he is playing in the UK Championship, he has just

:05:01. > :05:04.continued where he started. His match with Stephen Maguire, we talk

:05:05. > :05:08.about the John Higgins game, which was the deciding frame, but his

:05:09. > :05:13.match against Stephen Maguire, Stephen came out with a century

:05:14. > :05:24.break and never got another shot, lost 6-1. He was awesome in that

:05:25. > :05:40.match. 47 ahead. Just this red and a blue will leave Li Hang needing a

:05:41. > :05:46.snooker. -- Li Hang. He could play a cannon on one of the reds. He will

:05:47. > :05:56.not miss the blue so he may as well try to make the century break.

:05:57. > :06:18.APPLAUSE No century break, what a shame.

:06:19. > :06:34.Leanne coming back to the table, there is still a bit of a chance.

:06:35. > :06:40.Just 53 the difference, he can get to blacks and blacks and he can get

:06:41. > :06:47.right back this. A surprising miss there. Usually need is determined to

:06:48. > :06:53.right back this. A surprising miss centuries as possible. A bit

:06:54. > :07:01.irritated that he has allowed Liang a chance back at the table. Just

:07:02. > :07:22.careless more than anything. A slight lack of concentration. He has

:07:23. > :07:47.just overscrewed it slightly. He needs the one nearest the

:07:48. > :07:52.commission. -- the commission. A pity because he had if it of a

:07:53. > :07:55.chance there only needed the one snigger. There was every chance of

:07:56. > :08:38.him getting the snooker. But is it now. -- that is it now. Liang

:08:39. > :08:42.concedes. Neil Robertson just needed one chance and with the age of the

:08:43. > :08:50.age of -- aid of the 60 break, he leads 2-0. Good to see you are in

:08:51. > :08:54.this. We had a tweet, I am an American in Europe who has gotten

:08:55. > :08:58.hooked on the UK Championship. Good coverage. An American watching an

:08:59. > :09:02.Australian player and a Chinese player in the United Kingdom

:09:03. > :09:06.championship final. We cater for all tastes and all nations. Your

:09:07. > :09:12.impressions of the Whitney Robertson seems to have eased himself into a

:09:13. > :09:16.groove here? Getting over the first frame was big for him. Relieved.

:09:17. > :09:22.Back to his clinical self. A great 60 break. It wasn't easy to walk

:09:23. > :09:27.around the black area. When you use the word clinical, it is ominous,

:09:28. > :09:31.because you are not even worried about whether you -- he will win,

:09:32. > :09:37.you are just watching how well he plays. The next round of his

:09:38. > :09:41.ambitions could be to win the triple Crown twice, to try to catch Mark

:09:42. > :09:49.Williams who has done all three big ones twice. Would you say that his

:09:50. > :09:56.form is on a par with when he won here in 2013, or is it even better?

:09:57. > :10:00.He has just been an awesome snooker machine for the last few seasons.

:10:01. > :10:04.The performances in the Masters earlier in the season, two matches

:10:05. > :10:07.were exemplary. They won against Stephen Maguire this week was as

:10:08. > :10:13.good as you can play, it was flawless. He is the benchmark at the

:10:14. > :10:16.moment and he has a very big chance to win all three of them in one

:10:17. > :10:24.season, because he is the best player in the world. I had a chance

:10:25. > :10:30.that -- at had a hunch you would say that. One or two players below him

:10:31. > :10:36.in the rankings are not scoring as heavily as they could do. John

:10:37. > :10:40.Higgins is back in the big danger. Over a distance of ground, playing

:10:41. > :10:45.the way he does, with such a good all-round game, he could win the

:10:46. > :10:49.three this season. He is playing superbly well. That would change if

:10:50. > :10:55.Ronnie O'Sullivan gets back into things and gets his a game going. He

:10:56. > :11:00.is very efficient at the moment and he is making it look very easy.

:11:01. > :11:12.Positioning, I am not too sure anybody is out positioning him. I

:11:13. > :11:15.think he is the complete player now and I don't think he was necessarily

:11:16. > :11:23.that three or four years ago, but all of a sudden he has raised his

:11:24. > :11:28.stock. There will be a few at home thinking 2-0 up, looking like he is

:11:29. > :11:32.in the groove, we could be in for a quick match. Then again, if Liang

:11:33. > :11:39.Wenbo were to get a frame on the board... It is only to nil. There is

:11:40. > :11:43.a nonpolitical. He looks more relaxed. When the chance comes along

:11:44. > :11:50.he has got to do better than he did there. Unfortunately, the level you

:11:51. > :12:00.are applying pad and who you are playing against, these are big

:12:01. > :12:03.chances. You wouldn't panic at two - zero, but slightly worrying times

:12:04. > :12:17.for Liang Wenbo. He needs a frame quickly. That will give them

:12:18. > :12:22.encouragement if he starts missing long pots. If he misses the long

:12:23. > :12:31.pots and gets away with it, that makes such a difference. He has gone

:12:32. > :12:47.in amongst the reds. He has opened the bunch up, but he has left

:12:48. > :13:03.nothing. This is so awkward. Fully stretched. Difficult to see the

:13:04. > :13:16.shot. Great Africa. Great effort but now he is faced with a very

:13:17. > :13:25.difficult blue. Kicking a pig to the middle. I didn't think he could get

:13:26. > :13:40.past that red. The way the reds are, that is a massive shot. Well done.

:13:41. > :13:46.The house to make the most of this opportunity. The only chance he has

:13:47. > :13:59.two win is if he can take these chances in one visit. This crowd

:14:00. > :14:04.have taken to Liang because he had a terrific reception when he was

:14:05. > :14:21.introduced and when he gets a good party is getting a terrific

:14:22. > :14:26.reception. A terrific comeback against David Grace from four - two

:14:27. > :14:30.down. The way he reacted after that, I don't think it was only

:14:31. > :15:02.disrespected Dave, it was just that he was so elated. This is what

:15:03. > :15:06.happened when he won. He was leaping all over the Barbican and that is

:15:07. > :15:12.what it meant to him. He shook hands. He was so excited, he wasn't

:15:13. > :15:16.disrespectful, he was just over the moon at having come back and beating

:15:17. > :15:33.David who had a great UK Championship. -- beating. But just

:15:34. > :15:45.reminded me of the way I reacted when I won matches. You used to jump

:15:46. > :15:49.all around the Crucible. It was amazing to watch and, as you said,

:15:50. > :15:54.he did not mean any disrespect to David Grace, he was just so wrapped

:15:55. > :15:59.up in the moment of winning what, for him, was a massive match.

:16:00. > :16:07.Playing in the Masters for the first time next month. I hope we see a lot

:16:08. > :16:13.more of David Grace because he missed that easy pink at the end to

:16:14. > :16:17.take it into a deciding frame. He is a real gentleman and a very good

:16:18. > :16:49.snooker player and let's hope we see more of him. This is fantastic

:16:50. > :17:01.because he did not have an easy opening shot. It was a fabulous

:17:02. > :17:09.opening red. He was fully stretched. I thought Neil had got away with his

:17:10. > :17:33.mess. But at this, fully stretched to deflect this one in. That was

:17:34. > :17:37.brilliant. No point in playing to drop in behind the back there

:17:38. > :17:43.because there is a red next to the black spot, so he can win this third

:17:44. > :17:53.frame with banks. If he goes slightly out of position he has got

:17:54. > :17:59.the blue there. -- with pinks. It is a totally different player we are

:18:00. > :18:03.looking at here. 2-0 down, but he is much more composed, looks much more

:18:04. > :18:20.relaxed, he is not moving on the shot. That didn't quite work out as

:18:21. > :18:39.he intended. He might have to take the one next to the black now. Yes.

:18:40. > :18:45.He is looking at the black bear, but as I mentioned, if he pots the

:18:46. > :18:49.black, it will be tied up. It will not matter, he may be just as it is

:18:50. > :19:05.easier to play for the black. He may comes back for the pink again. We

:19:06. > :19:09.will see. This time it is the black. Surprises me a little bit because

:19:10. > :19:11.the red next to the black spot doesn't pot to the red corner and

:19:12. > :19:28.there is a chance you could leave yourself straight on the black. It

:19:29. > :19:51.is always better when you are able to keep the cue ball away from the

:19:52. > :20:10.conditions. Nicely played. Already 58 in front. This red and pink or

:20:11. > :20:13.blue would be enough. It would leave need needing a snooker. A really

:20:14. > :20:28.good performance from the Chinese player, it really is. You never

:20:29. > :20:50.settle until you win your first frame in any match. In fact, the

:20:51. > :21:04.black wasn't tied up. He knew this was frame ball. Everybody let out a

:21:05. > :21:10.big gasp there. He almost took the camera man out. He didn't move on

:21:11. > :21:14.the red button on the frame ball he certainly moved. This is fabulous

:21:15. > :21:25.from Liang here. He badly needed this as well. What a chance to go on

:21:26. > :21:41.and make the first century of this final. He may play the pink to the

:21:42. > :21:59.left centre now. It will be cannoned into this red, so no positive idea

:22:00. > :22:13.where the cue ball will end up. That has finished near the cushion, so if

:22:14. > :22:24.it is dead straight he might be OK. Terrific cueing there. Both these

:22:25. > :22:45.players have made seven centuries in the UK Championship this year. This

:22:46. > :22:56.could well be his eighth. Absolutely brilliant from Liang Wenbo. A

:22:57. > :23:04.terrific cheer from the Barbican crowd. It is a totally different

:23:05. > :23:16.player we are seeing here this afternoon. 2-0 down and to respond

:23:17. > :23:21.with this, superb. It doesn't matter about that. He has got the century

:23:22. > :23:26.break. More importantly, he has got his first frame on the board and

:23:27. > :23:35.Liang Wenbo will be feeling much better now. He still trails the

:23:36. > :23:38.Robertson by two frames to one. So important to get the first frame on

:23:39. > :23:44.the board to make you settle down. He has done it in style. There was

:23:45. > :23:49.one shot here when Neil took on a long red, the type of shot he is so

:23:50. > :23:56.good at. I thought he had got away with it. We get so used to seeing

:23:57. > :24:01.the pot these, especially 2-0 up. We thought he will rule on in the match

:24:02. > :24:07.and dominated. He'd missed it. He didn't leave anything easy, but a

:24:08. > :24:11.fantastic opening red. Here we see Liang Wenbo stretching so much over

:24:12. > :24:19.the table. The pink was impressive as well. But was a great cut in

:24:20. > :24:23.there. It looked like he might have to take a long blue and suddenly he

:24:24. > :24:28.could just get past the red to see enough of the pink and I am with

:24:29. > :24:32.you. I think the pink was as tough as the opening red he knocked in and

:24:33. > :24:52.this was a great shot. It set him on his way. I was just watching Liang

:24:53. > :24:56.Wenbo there and he took a massive deep intake of breath. A weight has

:24:57. > :25:02.been lifted getting that first frame. It should need, if you miss

:25:03. > :25:14.your long pots, I am going to punish you. I love his interviews. He is

:25:15. > :25:20.getting better with his English, but he really is so interesting. That is

:25:21. > :25:42.what it meant to him, deep breath puffs out. He is quite a character.

:25:43. > :25:51.He does like to keep a tidy table. He is always wiping chalk marks of

:25:52. > :25:55.the table. The referee just asking some of the crowd to turn their

:25:56. > :26:19.earpieces down a little bit. Sometimes the sound will come

:26:20. > :26:39.through. A lot of people like to have the earpieces to listen to the

:26:40. > :26:56.commentary. You can see them there. Great effort. It just shows how his

:26:57. > :27:01.confidence has grown since making the century. Taking on that cannon

:27:02. > :27:10.to leave the black to left corner, a very positive shot. He has two make

:27:11. > :27:12.sure he doesn't leave the red closest to the left corner for a

:27:13. > :27:55.need to go at here. -- for Neil. Looks very composed out there today,

:27:56. > :28:05.doesn't he? Yesterday he was giving himself smacks all over the place.

:28:06. > :28:11.There is another one. A little bit like the sumo wrestlers. They do

:28:12. > :29:02.that before they do battle. But totally composed today. Well, he has

:29:03. > :29:17.played some superb safety shots. totally composed today. Well, he has

:29:18. > :29:21.Tactically, he is very good to go. After knocking the century

:29:22. > :29:26.Tactically, he is very good to go. in, he is cueing well. We might just

:29:27. > :29:41.have a final on our hands here. We have a final, but we might have a

:29:42. > :29:46.close final. A frame ball may be. That would help. I think it is. Is

:29:47. > :29:54.close final. A frame ball may be. it? I think it is. Yes. He can spot

:29:55. > :30:19.the brown. With the green. An early chance.

:30:20. > :30:28.It wasn't a straightforward safety, by any means. I think the brown was

:30:29. > :30:33.a slightly easier pot. Get yourself on the green and then back up to the

:30:34. > :30:44.reds. Doesn't have to play for the green.

:30:45. > :30:56.One good positional shot here and he can get himself in and around the

:30:57. > :31:14.black spot area. That's a bad miss. Yeah, just seemed

:31:15. > :31:22.to prod and that one. It wasn't a smooth connection at all. Didn't get

:31:23. > :31:27.through the cue ball. You see the way the cue has ended up at the end.

:31:28. > :31:29.If that was a proper shot, the cue would have stayed much lower, more

:31:30. > :31:44.parallel to the table. Showed his frustration because he

:31:45. > :31:45.knows, as I said earlier, to win this match he has to make the most

:31:46. > :31:56.of every opportunity. There's going to be very few frames

:31:57. > :32:42.where he's going to get two chances to win a frame.

:32:43. > :32:48.Neil was struggling a little bit this season and then he came out and

:32:49. > :32:52.won that Champion of Champions, which really kick-started everything

:32:53. > :32:57.and I think it brought him here to the Barbican full of confidence and

:32:58. > :33:00.the way he's played throughout this year's UK Championship has been

:33:01. > :33:40.absolutely stunning. Just OK. He can get the cue between

:33:41. > :33:55.those two reds. Which meant he could get a little

:33:56. > :33:59.bit more pace on it. He moves this red to the right of the black. He's

:34:00. > :34:01.got the black completely in the clear and available to the two

:34:02. > :34:38.corner pocket. We saw what he did after Thepchaiya

:34:39. > :34:42.Un-Nooh finished that spot. It was heartbreaking for everybody but Neil

:34:43. > :34:50.Robertson came out in that frame and finished 145. Liang has made that

:34:51. > :34:58.fabulous century break. I wouldn't be surprised if Neil doesn't make a

:34:59. > :35:06.frame-winning contribution here. The mid-session interval is coming up.

:35:07. > :35:07.Liang won't be too disappointed at 3-1 but he had a great chance until

:35:08. > :35:55.he missed that fairly easy brown. That's what he's looking for, 71

:35:56. > :36:17.points. Liang needing a snooker. He might have to go for the blue here.

:36:18. > :36:25.He'd like to score enough without having to risk a cannon but he might

:36:26. > :36:28.have to do here. When you play a cannon, sometimes you can just run

:36:29. > :36:36.out of position slightly. Didn't want the cannon. Just

:36:37. > :37:52.concentrated on the loose reds. He's going to leave red, colour, red

:37:53. > :37:53.to secure this fourth frame and take himself into the interval leading

:37:54. > :38:15.3-1. So he might have to play the cannon

:38:16. > :38:29.this time. The red behind the black's not easy. Any cannon, you

:38:30. > :38:34.would feel, would put a pot on. It needs to bounce for him and it has

:38:35. > :38:36.just but it is not a gimme. He is so good at this type of shot. He just

:38:37. > :39:01.dropped them in. He's doing what all great champions

:39:02. > :39:06.do when someone puts a bit of pressure on him, and Liang did with

:39:07. > :39:12.that century break. He's bounced right back, Neil. Liang was in first

:39:13. > :39:19.and Mr brown that sitting right over the corner pocket. -- missed the

:39:20. > :39:55.brown. Neil has made 436 centuries in his

:39:56. > :39:58.career. He made 60 last season but will anyone ever equal his century

:39:59. > :40:07.of centuries that he made a couple of seasons ago? That's quite

:40:08. > :40:15.incredible. 102 so far this year in the UK Championship.

:40:16. > :40:20.I don't think he'll do it again because I think when he made

:40:21. > :40:20.I don't think he'll do it again 100 centuries in one season,

:40:21. > :40:25.I don't think he'll do it again something he set out to do. It

:40:26. > :40:28.I don't think he'll do it again on his mind throughout the whole

:40:29. > :40:33.season. He's done it now and there is no need to think about it. That

:40:34. > :40:34.season, you could see he consciously wanted to clear up every single

:40:35. > :40:49.time. But this is the proper way to

:40:50. > :40:51.respond. Be very easy brown. It gives him his eighth century in this

:40:52. > :41:06.year's UK Championship. The standard in this final is

:41:07. > :41:13.starting to get better and better. Liang with that 110 break, Neil with

:41:14. > :41:16.this response. He won't be too disappointed, 3-1 behind. He knows

:41:17. > :41:21.he had a chance to possibly go on and level it to but you can't do

:41:22. > :41:25.anything about this and as Stephen said, Liang knows if he makes one

:41:26. > :41:30.mistake he is going to lose the frame. It doesn't matter about the

:41:31. > :41:33.mistake he is going to lose the brown. A fabulous standard of

:41:34. > :41:37.snooker, both players having a century break. Neil Robertson will

:41:38. > :41:39.be quietly pleased as he goes to the mid-session interval leading Liang

:41:40. > :41:47.Wenbo 3-1. We've just seen back-to-back

:41:48. > :41:51.centuries and it does remind us that it is what all champions do. And

:41:52. > :41:57.reminds us of that Thepchaiya Un-Nooh match with Neil Robertson

:41:58. > :42:02.playing against him, Neil Robertson hits him with a 145 break. The only

:42:03. > :42:06.way he is going to get back into the game and habitats to win it is to

:42:07. > :42:09.apply the pressure on Neil Robertson for a lot longer than he has done in

:42:10. > :42:14.that little part there. That is easier said than done. A lot of

:42:15. > :42:18.people on social media are saying how much they are enjoying Liang's

:42:19. > :42:23.enthusiasm and freshness. He seems to be a very kind person. A lot of

:42:24. > :42:28.the young boys who go and play at the Academy, he lives not far from

:42:29. > :42:33.there and he says, instead of paying, come and stay at the house,

:42:34. > :42:38.and he cooks for them. If we ever get knows whether he cooks for them

:42:39. > :42:41.on the barbecue. I know that his wife and his little boy have just

:42:42. > :42:45.landed at Heathrow airport and are trying to wing their way here as

:42:46. > :42:49.fast as they can to try to be here. The minute he finished that

:42:50. > :42:54.semifinal, they got on a plane to to unseat him in the final. A big date

:42:55. > :42:59.not just for his family but for him as well for sloppy is only the third

:43:00. > :43:06.player from Asia to make it into a UK final. It has been a rather

:43:07. > :43:11.unpredictable championship over the last 13 days or so and we've seen

:43:12. > :43:18.tech Chaya and new missing for the 147 and we've also seen all kinds of

:43:19. > :43:21.drama here. -- that Chaya and new. But it has passed in a bit of a

:43:22. > :43:53.blur. What remains are memories of some brilliant shotmaking.

:43:54. > :44:00.He made a good fist of that. That's a terrific shot. That really is,

:44:01. > :44:10.just to give himself a chance of a pot. Top drawer.

:44:11. > :44:17.If he's got this snooker, this is awkward. He's got to get enough

:44:18. > :44:21.swerve past the black and not heard the black and not head-butting. It

:44:22. > :44:28.was awkward but what am I saying? That's ridiculous. I'm surprised you

:44:29. > :44:38.didn't see that, John. That was straightforward. Amazing!

:44:39. > :44:41.I think he nominated brown. He's not going to get the brown going this

:44:42. > :44:54.way, surely? If that hits the brown, that is

:44:55. > :45:02.brilliant. That is absolutely out of this world. And played exactly like

:45:03. > :45:13.that. Well done. What a fantastic shot that was.

:45:14. > :45:19.No way he can kiss the yellow out unless he arcs it between the brown

:45:20. > :45:26.and green but he's not going to play that. Oh, he is going to play that.

:45:27. > :45:30.Has he got enough on it? Put that down as the shot of the

:45:31. > :45:41.championship, please! That was phenomenal.

:45:42. > :45:53.Slightly in the air with his bridge hand. Goodness me, did he hit that

:45:54. > :45:56.well! Have a look at this shot. The white stops and then starts to spin

:45:57. > :46:16.back. All done with timing. Two more reds needed. What a great

:46:17. > :46:23.effort. What a super effort. APPLAUSE

:46:24. > :46:29.If Judd Trump or Ronnie O'Sullivan had played that, we would be showing

:46:30. > :46:37.at about 50 times tomorrow. That was a fantastic shot.

:46:38. > :46:50.Awkward cueing. Does Mark Selby be positive here? What a great shot

:46:51. > :47:00.that was. What a shot. Shot of the match so far. That is such a tough

:47:01. > :47:16.shot. He goes 55 and three behind if he sticks that read up. -- 5-3.

:47:17. > :47:27.Oh! What a shot that was. Well, we didn't see that one coming. What a

:47:28. > :47:37.beauty that was! It didn't seem possible to get that cue ball out.

:47:38. > :47:45.Just give him any chance, please! I think you can just get past the

:47:46. > :47:52.green and it passes the pink. Sensational! Sensational! What a

:47:53. > :48:03.pot. What a pot. Shot of the championship so far for me.

:48:04. > :48:15.Deep breath and trust your technique. The black for the maximum

:48:16. > :48:25.and ?44,000. Oh, no! Would you believe it? ! Well, words can't

:48:26. > :48:31.describe how bad he must be feeling. What a moment it was in his career,

:48:32. > :48:33.in his snooker career, in his life. I can't believe it, neither can he.

:48:34. > :48:42.Unlucky! Merry Christmas. You have to feel

:48:43. > :48:48.unlucky for Thepchaiya Un-Nooh after missing out on his big payday. If

:48:49. > :48:53.you want to vote, go to the sport website and these are your ten

:48:54. > :48:54.choices. Voting closes at 7pm tonight and the result will be

:48:55. > :49:20.revealed later this evening. But old Thepchaiya Un-Nooh. He

:49:21. > :49:26.missed out on the ?44,000 but it did earn him a place on TMi Friday.

:49:27. > :49:29.Let's talk about Liang Wenbo. You probably remember when we first saw

:49:30. > :49:33.this fellow. It was in the 2008 Crucible. He first introduced

:49:34. > :49:37.himself there and he has been defined by this moment before a

:49:38. > :49:41.match where he may not have had a clue where he was going, either

:49:42. > :49:45.backstage all front of house. Rob just shooing him back before the

:49:46. > :49:53.introductions. But he sure knew what he was doing once he got there.

:49:54. > :49:57.Seven years later, still a bit confused on the directions front

:49:58. > :50:00.here in York, he bounced out of the arena yesterday after getting

:50:01. > :50:06.through his semifinal. He was met mid bounced by John Parrott.

:50:07. > :50:10.You've been around for what seems quite a long time but now you are

:50:11. > :50:14.going to be in your first UK banking final. What has changed? I played

:50:15. > :50:27.professionally for I think 10-year is. I had a good home life so I got

:50:28. > :50:39.into the final. I think I just played, no experience. You've got a

:50:40. > :50:45.heavy balance, long shot, score, everything perfect. But this time I

:50:46. > :50:56.got to the final and I learned a lot. I watched John Higgins, Neil

:50:57. > :51:02.Robertson, Selby, how to play. Before I am under pressure, I am

:51:03. > :51:11.slow, thinking too much. Sometimes I have no confidence and I learned

:51:12. > :51:19.this time, I tried. I changed. I'm happy. You have a new coach - is

:51:20. > :51:23.that right? What are you working on? It is my manager, my friend. He

:51:24. > :51:30.knows me. We are together many years. Sometimes you are wrong,

:51:31. > :51:34.sometimes you are good. I'd played good and I got too much confidence.

:51:35. > :51:46.Too much confidence in snooker no good. You need experience. Great

:51:47. > :51:48.thinking. Just play the game. I know you were originally based in

:51:49. > :51:57.Sheffield and you used to play a lot with enjoyed three. What was that

:51:58. > :52:05.like? -- Ding Junhui. He is a very good player. We are good friends.

:52:06. > :52:11.Sometimes we are talking. We just want to give to the Chinese fans

:52:12. > :52:15.good snooker and just enjoy it. The people at home sometimes don't

:52:16. > :52:19.understand how much pressure you are an out on the tournament table. Can

:52:20. > :52:25.you tell them what that is like, especially when you want to win so

:52:26. > :52:35.much? Before this semifinal, I know if I win I go to top 16 and I can

:52:36. > :52:43.play the Masters. I never played the Masters. I want to play but you need

:52:44. > :52:48.a win. I don't sleep. I just sleep two hours. Too much pressure. I

:52:49. > :53:01.don't know how to learn. I can't control myself. So bad. I cannot

:53:02. > :53:07.control myself. I don't know how to do it. I just want to win, I want to

:53:08. > :53:14.win. You need to enjoy again. My manager tells me, you need to enjoy

:53:15. > :53:24.the game. I love this snooker. I enjoy the snooker. In the first

:53:25. > :53:31.frame, I make 110. It gives me a lot of confidence. You will be in your

:53:32. > :53:35.first UK ranking final. It is a massive tournament. You obviously

:53:36. > :53:39.want to win. But now you've got into the Masters, now you are in the top

:53:40. > :53:51.16, can you relax in the final and play snooker? 100%. 100%. I am now

:53:52. > :54:03.very relaxed. No pressure now. Just enjoy the game. If you win, will you

:54:04. > :54:11.jump higher? My wife is coming. We are happy. Just enjoy the game. But,

:54:12. > :54:22.last question, what would it mean for you to win? Secret! That'll do.

:54:23. > :54:25.Yes, come on! It is a secret and maybe we'll get

:54:26. > :54:30.him to share that secret, you never know. He's got a bit of work to do.

:54:31. > :54:36.As he had to emerge from the shadow of Ding Junhui was Bob we don't

:54:37. > :54:42.really know what it's like. We don't know how big Ding Junhui is in China

:54:43. > :54:45.although we suspect it is bigger than we can imagine. I think yes is

:54:46. > :54:49.the answer to that and it's hard to know how hard that has been. It

:54:50. > :54:55.seemed for a while as if nobody was going to do it. Wenbo was the one

:54:56. > :54:59.who was possibly the most talented but it looked like he'd installed a

:55:00. > :55:03.little bit but now this is good for China. It will be interesting to see

:55:04. > :55:07.how it is all Parling out over there. Perhaps there was a power

:55:08. > :55:13.struggle. There are busy promoters and agents. It will be interesting.

:55:14. > :55:16.In 2009, he got out to the Shanghai Masters and was beaten by Ronnie

:55:17. > :55:20.O'Sullivan and I think many people expected him to kick on but by the

:55:21. > :55:23.end of that season, he dropped 15 places in the world rankings. It

:55:24. > :55:29.just completely disappeared over the next year. Do you have any idea why?

:55:30. > :55:33.Know. He is married now and has a child. That makes a difference to a

:55:34. > :55:37.lot of people. I know he practices a lot now and put the working so it is

:55:38. > :55:41.difficult to know. Sometimes you can have a few bad draws, a couple of

:55:42. > :55:47.bad matches and things work out not in your favour. He was so hyper last

:55:48. > :55:54.night after the win. We've all been happy when we won but he was really

:55:55. > :55:58.happy. I wonder if Neil Robertson is going to be happy. I described him

:55:59. > :56:02.as very cool and very classy. He has got a very superior air, although he

:56:03. > :56:04.is not a superior person. He carries himself so beautifully. Is he

:56:05. > :56:11.massively underrated? In terms of Australian sport, should

:56:12. > :56:15.he be better considered and regarded?

:56:16. > :56:18.Perhaps but it depends how snooker is viewed in Australia.

:56:19. > :56:43.like it is over here or perhaps in China. It may be a bit less sporty.

:56:44. > :56:47.I read a thing in one of the Australian papers. It was a poll

:56:48. > :56:58.that had been conducted of the top 100 Sportsman of the previous year.

:56:59. > :57:02.Neil had just said all kinds of records and was in there at number

:57:03. > :57:06.58. They must have some good sportsmen and women in Australia if

:57:07. > :57:13.he was 58. He was probably by 47 surfers! Kangaroo shearing was 47.

:57:14. > :57:17.It has been a struggle and it is interesting to see that we have two

:57:18. > :57:20.overseas players and Neil Robertson was quoted as saying that it is so

:57:21. > :57:25.important that they can be seen to be in this final because it is a

:57:26. > :57:29.long haul, a very big ask for someone to give up all these home

:57:30. > :57:35.comforts and come and play here. It is under way snooker is changing,

:57:36. > :57:38.there are going to be more, eventually, from overseas. It is

:57:39. > :57:44.good for snigger in general. Here in our little world in the UK, people

:57:45. > :57:49.still think the UK is dying. The viewing figures worldwide are more

:57:50. > :57:53.than they have ever been. How many people are watching live, this

:57:54. > :57:56.match, in China? There have never been more people watching it and I

:57:57. > :57:59.think this will be reflected by more people worldwide into the game, more

:58:00. > :58:05.different champions from different countries. At a recent China open

:58:06. > :58:08.final, 100 million people watched it, which is a drop in the ocean in

:58:09. > :58:13.China but in terms of our viewing figures it is an awful lot. Let's

:58:14. > :58:17.talk about this match as they come back, and other four friends to play

:58:18. > :58:22.this afternoon. 3-1 of the moment. It has been very good quality. The

:58:23. > :58:26.last two friends were fantastic. Liang did what he had to do, maybe

:58:27. > :58:32.100 break but then missing the brown, how important my Dappy. 4-1

:58:33. > :58:39.starts to look like a bit of a gap. 3-2, he is definitely in the match.

:58:40. > :58:40.We are doing musical chairs in the commentary box because Ken Doherty

:58:41. > :58:57.and John Virgo are in there now. JOHN VIRGO: Thank you, Hazel. That

:58:58. > :59:01.is the interval over. Liang Wenbo gets us under way again in frame

:59:02. > :59:05.five. The one thing that has impressed me most of all, can, in

:59:06. > :59:10.those first four frames, his safety plea has been superb.

:59:11. > :59:14.KEN DOHERTY: Dear, it has been top-notch. He has been getting his

:59:15. > :59:19.chances and I just hope that brown... May be the interval has

:59:20. > :59:22.come at a good time for him. If he had stayed out there, maybe he might

:59:23. > :59:28.have dwelled on the brown a bit more. 15 or 20 minutes and this cost

:59:29. > :59:33.him the frame. He could have gone on after that wonderful 110 break he

:59:34. > :59:39.made and level things up. But at least he has the interval to get

:59:40. > :59:48.over him. It is a new session. He has been carving out chances for

:59:49. > :59:52.himself but it has been top-quality. The thing he has got to do, which he

:59:53. > :59:57.did in frame three with his wonderful 110 break is, you've got

:59:58. > :00:02.to do take those chances. That's what he did against Marco Fu in the

:00:03. > :00:06.quarterfinal. The first three frames, his safety play was superb

:00:07. > :00:11.and every time he got a chance, he made a frame-winning contribution.

:00:12. > :00:18.In fact, three centuries. We know what he's capable of. Just got to

:00:19. > :00:21.cut out those silly mistakes. He certainly looks a lot more relaxed

:00:22. > :00:27.than he did yesterday. His demeanour around the table. Very nervous

:00:28. > :00:32.yesterday because it meant so much to him, getting into the top 16, a

:00:33. > :00:35.place in the Masters. A lot of pressure yesterday that he is

:00:36. > :00:38.certainly enjoying himself out there and relaxed. That's what you have to

:00:39. > :00:53.do. He played a good shot there. That

:00:54. > :01:06.makes it difficult for Neil if he is going to try to get the cue ball

:01:07. > :01:10.back to the other end. I think Liang Wenbo has just got to draw a line

:01:11. > :01:14.under that much yesterday. There were a lot of things happening in

:01:15. > :01:19.his mind that were not on the table, all the things at stake. Now he can

:01:20. > :01:25.come here and he is playing the man in form, he knows he has got to play

:01:26. > :01:34.well. There is a possible pot on this red here. He has got to be

:01:35. > :01:43.careful of the red in the baulk end. But it bounce? Will it get past the

:01:44. > :01:49.yellow? No, he has judged it well. That was very well judged indeed. I

:01:50. > :01:54.am always wary of that red just above the yellow, but he has covered

:01:55. > :02:24.it nicely. Liang Wenbo has got to play a very similar shot. Too thin,

:02:25. > :02:31.caught the bump. He has left a red in the corner, but can he get

:02:32. > :02:37.through to it? A hand up from Liang Wenbo says that he cannot get to the

:02:38. > :02:44.potting angle. Whether he can get there or not, he will use a lot of

:02:45. > :02:49.right-hand side. If he did pot the red with right-hand side, he would

:02:50. > :02:53.run into all the other breads, so no chance of getting on a colour. He

:02:54. > :03:03.might have had a bit of a result here. Need is just having a look to

:03:04. > :03:12.see. If he comes down the side he needs to be careful. If he plays it

:03:13. > :03:18.to pacey, it could go in. He could try to pot the red of

:03:19. > :03:29.to pacey, it could go in. He could cushion, but it is risky. He is not

:03:30. > :03:33.guaranteed to get on a colour. I suppose he could play the red just

:03:34. > :03:39.above the one that is near the pocket and try to play that red

:03:40. > :03:44.in-off that one. As you say, if he tries to nestle to the red in the

:03:45. > :03:45.corner, it is a little bit too far, he would leave a sitter in the baulk

:03:46. > :03:59.end. He has decided this is the only end. He has decided this is the only

:04:00. > :04:18.route. He has got to be careful not to overheated. Judged it well. I

:04:19. > :04:37.think it risky to go back to the Balkan. -- baulk end. No other shot

:04:38. > :04:44.to play really. Great sportsmanship from Liang Wenbo. That is when the

:04:45. > :04:47.tip of the cue and the cue ball are all in contact

:04:48. > :04:52.tip of the cue and the cue ball are could not have had a better view of

:04:53. > :04:57.the push-up. One of the great things about our sport is that players will

:04:58. > :05:03.own up to it immediately. Sometimes the referee may not pick it up, but

:05:04. > :05:09.fair play to Liang Wenbo there. A nice bit of sportsmanship. That is

:05:10. > :05:17.the spirit of the game we love, the way it is played. It is a very

:05:18. > :05:26.individual sport, snooker. We have always had a good reputation of

:05:27. > :05:48.players: Files on themselves. -- players: Files. He has gone the

:05:49. > :05:52.other way and tried to cover it players: Files. He has gone the

:05:53. > :05:59.the yellow, but I do not think that is his best shot. He has half

:06:00. > :06:03.covered it. He has left a pot to this corner. With the pink and black

:06:04. > :06:08.tied up at the moment, it would this corner. With the pink and black

:06:09. > :06:18.one heck of a shot to pot it and get position on a colour. He's having a

:06:19. > :06:29.look to see if the pack is available. It doesn't look as though

:06:30. > :06:34.it is. -- the black. He can get past the yellow to hit that red, but if

:06:35. > :06:38.he can hit the red food enough he could possibly play that red. He

:06:39. > :06:51.can't only had it quarter of all and that would not give you a good

:06:52. > :06:56.safety of the red near the yellow. If it goes in, OK, well and good. He

:06:57. > :07:00.safety of the red near the yellow. can play a safety shot of one of the

:07:01. > :07:05.colours. If he misses it, unless it is double-kiss is the bread, this

:07:06. > :07:11.would be the only possible red he could leave. They beat just tried to

:07:12. > :07:17.pot this and just play a safety shot of one of the bowl colours if it

:07:18. > :07:24.goes in. He could come of the side cushion, top cushion and nestle to

:07:25. > :07:39.the side. He has thought of something. Went for the good save

:07:40. > :07:49.the day. That is an absolute cracker. Well played. The margin for

:07:50. > :08:16.error there was very, very small. Could not have placed it better.

:08:17. > :08:27.Fantastic shot. This is fraught with danger. This could go anywhere. This

:08:28. > :08:37.red could go anywhere. It is open now on the table and he has got the

:08:38. > :08:46.red he played safe. He did well, digging down like that. It is not

:08:47. > :08:55.easy to be certain of the reaction you will get on the cue ball and the

:08:56. > :09:09.red you play. He judged it well. He has caught that too thick. Much too

:09:10. > :09:19.sick. -- much too thick. The pink has now become available into the

:09:20. > :09:37.opposite corner. APPLAUSE

:09:38. > :09:46.A good opener. A good pot. Perfect on the blue. Being a left-hander, he

:09:47. > :10:15.will not need the rest. There is the pot success. 94% for Neil

:10:16. > :10:18.Robertson, 89% for Liang Wenbo. He could have done with screwing back a

:10:19. > :10:26.couple more inches. He has not played that well. In fact, I do not

:10:27. > :10:33.think he can get at this red without using the rest. That was not pot of

:10:34. > :10:40.the plan. He is looking just to see if he can stun into the red that is

:10:41. > :10:44.on the pink spot. It will open the pink spot and he could possibly have

:10:45. > :10:51.the pink in the right centre ought down into the bottom corner pocket.

:10:52. > :10:55.He has missed the cannon on the red. It has gone right through the gap

:10:56. > :11:00.here. Let's look at the gap it has found itself in. He is on the blue

:11:01. > :11:10.again. He is such a good long potter. These are the type of shot

:11:11. > :11:17.players will be practising back in their clubs or they will be

:11:18. > :11:21.practising in the practice rooms at the back. Blue is off the spot.

:11:22. > :11:44.Straight in the heart of the pocket. A beautiful pocket. He

:11:45. > :11:49.wasn't expecting the case on the red, but the black hasn't come into

:11:50. > :12:10.play. It is not pottable into the left-hand corner pocket. Just a

:12:11. > :12:16.safety shot now. He will be aware, he knows the black is running into

:12:17. > :12:41.the red. He doesn't want to hit full to knock the road toward corner

:12:42. > :13:14.pocket. Well, dangerously close. It is OK now. I don't blame Liang Wenbo

:13:15. > :13:28.giving this clarity of thought. -- plenty of thought. If you catch one

:13:29. > :14:02.too thick ear, it could cost you the frame. -- thick here. That was a bit

:14:03. > :14:23.PSA, but a fortuitous case on the brown. He may have just left a pot

:14:24. > :14:30.here. Well, he doesn't play at and he played an excellent safety shot.

:14:31. > :14:35.He has left a chance for Liang Wenbo to play of the red on the right-hand

:14:36. > :14:41.side of the table. You always have to be wary on this shot that you do

:14:42. > :14:50.not get it double-kiss. -- a double-kiss. Especially when the red

:14:51. > :15:01.is so close to the cushion. He has played it well. He needs to miss the

:15:02. > :15:06.case on the green though. But for the case on the green it would have

:15:07. > :15:12.been a telling safety. If the red that is in between the blue and

:15:13. > :15:22.black does not go to the corner he may not have left anything here. I

:15:23. > :15:26.think you would be tempted by. He could play a good safety shot. There

:15:27. > :15:46.is a big target up behind brown and yellow here. This looks very good.

:15:47. > :15:55.Looked very good, but would you believe, I think he is on this red

:15:56. > :16:04.and you can see it. Can he find a gap of the cushion? He is looking at

:16:05. > :16:08.coming off the cushion with top spin, but he could use a bit of back

:16:09. > :16:34.spin and tried to kiss all the red is here. The one thing with this, do

:16:35. > :16:37.not miss the pot. This looks absolutely inch perfect on the blue.

:16:38. > :16:54.Couldn't have played it better. absolutely inch perfect on the blue.

:16:55. > :17:12.judged it perfectly. -- missed the red 's. Yes, that is what we have

:17:13. > :17:16.said during this match so far. Although he is 3-1 behind, he has a

:17:17. > :17:30.chance to make it equal. Then Wenbo Although he is 3-1 behind, he has a

:17:31. > :17:33.has had his opportunities, but he has not made them count as well as

:17:34. > :17:43.me. That has been the only difference. -- as well as neither.

:17:44. > :17:45.me. That has been the only Just one positional shot. He

:17:46. > :17:50.me. That has been the only little bit thinner on the blue that

:17:51. > :17:55.he would like. He may play a little cannon here. When you play a cannon,

:17:56. > :18:02.they can go wrong. This could be the key. There is a possible cannon on

:18:03. > :18:09.the red, just to the left of the pink spot. It is a cannon into the

:18:10. > :18:15.pink, but it is OK. It sort of knocked the pink now. He can still

:18:16. > :18:21.get on the back and get the black on its spot. If he had cannoned the red

:18:22. > :18:25.left of the pink spot it would have opened the pink spot a little more

:18:26. > :18:33.and kept the pink in play, but he is still OK. That is the one thing

:18:34. > :18:39.about break building, it is shot selection. When he played the cannon

:18:40. > :18:46.on the pink, he didn't expect to tie it up. He may be thought trying to

:18:47. > :18:52.get past the pink it could have gone wrong in the could not have hit the

:18:53. > :18:56.red food. It is still a decent chance and, immediately, trying to

:18:57. > :19:01.get the black on the spot. If that slows up a fraction, he may be able

:19:02. > :19:14.to roll this in and play a cannon on the red and pink. Gently does it.

:19:15. > :19:19.Well, he missed the cannon on the red, but obviously, this red closest

:19:20. > :19:28.to the tubal goes. Red and pink catching it would have been ideal.

:19:29. > :19:44.Coming up for the blue. Has not hit it hard enough. A little bit

:19:45. > :19:48.careless, that. He has got to roll the blue in and take the red from

:19:49. > :20:00.mid-distance, the one that is closest to the bottom left-hand

:20:01. > :20:04.corner pocket. He could try to drop this in and told for the black or go

:20:05. > :20:20.back up for the blue, it depends on how he feels. That was an edgy one.

:20:21. > :20:24.You could see the cue coming up in the air when he played that shot.

:20:25. > :20:33.Didn't state still on the shot at all. Just watch the cue come up a

:20:34. > :20:39.little bit and a battle -- a little bit of movement. Just a little edgy

:20:40. > :20:53.on that one. He knew how important it was to capitalise that. To

:20:54. > :21:19.capitalise on that mistake. How much will it cost him? I think the

:21:20. > :21:23.choices here for a need to get past the yellow to put the green back

:21:24. > :21:39.into the corner pocket. He thought about the brown. Green it was. He

:21:40. > :21:51.judged this very nicely. Just five points behind. There is an awkward

:21:52. > :21:56.red near the top cushion by the pink. The ones on the left-hand

:21:57. > :22:06.side, for a left-hander are not too difficult. Once again, brought about

:22:07. > :23:17.by the fact that Yang has forced an error, safety wise. He has an 11

:23:18. > :23:22.point lead. He will need the four reds. You can just about get past

:23:23. > :23:26.the winning line in this frame without needing the awkward red

:23:27. > :23:58.neared the pink. It is not a straightforward run to the line. As

:23:59. > :24:11.you said earlier, not too bad for a left-hander, these reds. To red is,

:24:12. > :24:36.to blacks would put him 41 points in front with just 35 remaining. He has

:24:37. > :24:42.not come perfect on this black. Looking to see whether he can maybe

:24:43. > :24:46.pot the black and play for the red along the top cushion. We always say

:24:47. > :24:51.it with these reds along the top cushion, if they are tight, it is

:24:52. > :24:54.easier than when they are just off. Playing for the red on the left-hand

:24:55. > :24:59.side, which I am Playing for the red on the left-hand

:25:00. > :25:20.thought of, it is not on. He cannot get on that red. He will have to

:25:21. > :25:24.play the red along the top cushion. Liang Wenbo sat there wondering when

:25:25. > :25:29.he will get another chance. He might get back to the table, because they

:25:30. > :25:41.think Neil Robertson will just picture of this red. He might not

:25:42. > :25:47.even play for the colour. Would you believe it? He thought he would get

:25:48. > :25:52.a snooker after potting the red, but the red state on the table. 33

:25:53. > :26:07.points behind, Liang Wenbo, 43 remaining. That in then just caught

:26:08. > :26:11.that near a chore. -- near jaw. If he played it a little slower it

:26:12. > :26:18.definitely would have dropped. A chance for Liang Wenbo. Now he has a

:26:19. > :26:36.perfect angle on this black. He doesn't need to move the red, just

:26:37. > :26:40.get behind it. No, not enough. His cue ball control is just letting him

:26:41. > :26:47.down. He is not getting those good positional shots that are required.

:26:48. > :27:03.OK, you pop the black, you get to pot the next shot, but opportunity

:27:04. > :27:07.missed. And he has left a chance of a pot here for need. You know Neil

:27:08. > :27:26.Robertson can float these in with amazing regularity. Not this time.

:27:27. > :27:30.He never missed one of those against Mark Selby in the semifinal

:27:31. > :28:08.yesterday evening. But, he is only human. What a choice of shot that

:28:09. > :28:16.was. Tremendous. If he doesn't like the position then he is finished. He

:28:17. > :28:20.is 24 points behind. There are 27 remaining. He doesn't have to play

:28:21. > :28:26.the risky pink or black, just play the snooker and he will have the

:28:27. > :28:30.advantage in the frame. I am just wondering will he try to leave the

:28:31. > :28:35.pink over the corner pocket. He could creep in behind it, they get a

:28:36. > :28:40.really difficult snooker. The only problem with that is that it is not

:28:41. > :28:47.that hard to head. Need will be trusting a bit of luck here. What a

:28:48. > :28:51.fantastic pot. Into the green pocket. Around the ankles. He is

:28:52. > :29:14.unlucky he didn't come high enough so he could take the blackthorn. --

:29:15. > :29:18.black on. You can look at this all you like, at the end of the day, you

:29:19. > :29:34.have got to hit the pink and hopefully get it sooner. -- get it

:29:35. > :29:45.safe. Sorry, hit the yellow. Well, there is a chance of a pot and one

:29:46. > :29:54.good pot could give him the frame. The Robertson potted a yellow at a

:29:55. > :29:59.similar angle to this. The distance was a bit shorter. That was in the

:30:00. > :30:02.first round. He has just got to float this yellow in. If he gets a

:30:03. > :30:13.yellow, he will be on the green. float this yellow in. If he gets a

:30:14. > :30:18.Great shot. Give it a chance to go into the pocket. Now he has given

:30:19. > :30:34.himself a chance to win this frame. What a superb pot that was.

:30:35. > :30:42.With the pink being over the pocket he doesn't need perfect position on

:30:43. > :30:44.the blue. You would like to have an angle where you

:30:45. > :30:46.the blue. You would like to have an pink in an ideal world, but he

:30:47. > :31:04.hasn't got that. He dropped it in, played the drag

:31:05. > :31:08.shot. He missed a red, it was more difficult than this, but he needs to

:31:09. > :31:15.keep the cue going through straight. He kept his head down on that one.

:31:16. > :31:18.It is the black for the steel. He has needed three opportunities. Neil

:31:19. > :31:28.Robertson will be disappointed if this goes in. -- steal. And it has.

:31:29. > :31:34.Bit of a movement there, but one of those where it you push the cue and

:31:35. > :31:38.then get up to see if the ball has gone in the pocket and it shows you

:31:39. > :31:43.what it means to him. He doesn't want to let the Australian move

:31:44. > :31:47.frames in front, he has reduced the arrears to just one. Neil Robertson

:31:48. > :31:52.3-2 Liang Wenbo. STUDIO: Quizzical look on the face of Neil Robertson

:31:53. > :31:56.who won the title two years ago. That was a strange frame. The

:31:57. > :32:00.turnaround was it looked for all the world meal was going to win and it

:32:01. > :32:08.is a funny shot, little stubborn shot hoping to knock this in and

:32:09. > :32:14.tuck him up behind the pink. -- Neil was going to win. Because he had the

:32:15. > :32:20.little bit of extra pace rather than it stopped in the jaw. We have seen

:32:21. > :32:26.balls dropping easier than that one the top rail. I thought it was in

:32:27. > :32:29.and I think it was shock from Neil Robertson, but when Liang Wenbo

:32:30. > :32:35.potted the black he was on the move. That shows the pressure of the

:32:36. > :32:39.moment and that will be something that if the game stays close you

:32:40. > :32:44.will see more and more of that from Liang Wenbo. It's not good to be on

:32:45. > :32:47.the move when you play a shot. He's desperate to get the black in and

:32:48. > :32:52.that is what can happen. To explain to those who are not familiar with

:32:53. > :32:56.the game, why is it debilitating to move on the shot? If you don't move

:32:57. > :33:00.your head and keep it rock-solid there is little chance of the rest

:33:01. > :33:03.of your body moving, so the only thing that moves is your arm and

:33:04. > :33:07.that's the best way to keep solid on the shot. When you move your head

:33:08. > :33:10.and your body moves as well there is another factor involved of how to

:33:11. > :33:14.control your arm. If your arm and your body are on the move it's not

:33:15. > :33:19.the same shot every time you play. You want to minimise the damage in

:33:20. > :33:22.any other area and just your arm. Clearly, the greater the pressure

:33:23. > :33:25.the more tendency there is to start moving. If you are the type of

:33:26. > :33:29.player who moves in practice. That is why you go to the practice table

:33:30. > :33:35.and train yourself every day, don't move your head until the ball is in

:33:36. > :33:39.the pocket. Interestingly, Judd Trump tweeted the other day, and it

:33:40. > :33:42.was Liang Wenbo who beat him early in the tournament, he's the best

:33:43. > :33:46.player he has ever played with in practice, he's that good. That can

:33:47. > :33:54.happen, lots of professionals can be unbelievable fiendish practises and

:33:55. > :34:02.backed -- not bring it to the championship. Liang Wenbo goes out

:34:03. > :34:06.quite a bit, toilet breaks and that, he goes out a fair bit. He

:34:07. > :34:10.goes out and his coach goes in the room with him and they have a chat

:34:11. > :34:16.and that's what is wrong, it takes too long. That is what they are

:34:17. > :34:20.trying to stop. Here he comes. At the moment there is just one frame

:34:21. > :34:27.in it. This is a real contest now. I wonder how much of it is a prize for

:34:28. > :34:29.shock Neil Robertson got in the last frame leaving the red in the jaws of

:34:30. > :34:37.the pocket allowing Liang Wenbo to get back into this. -- surprise for

:34:38. > :34:41.shock. COMMENTATOR: It was a surprise and

:34:42. > :34:45.it could affect his confidence. Liang Wenbo did not want Neil

:34:46. > :34:48.Robertson galloping away too fast, he's hanging onto his coat-tails at

:34:49. > :34:58.the moment but there is still only one frame in it. 52% table time,

:34:59. > :35:04.only one frame the difference, that's the most important statistic.

:35:05. > :35:10.guys talked about in the studio. guys talked about in the studio.

:35:11. > :35:14.There was so much pressure on it. He's above the shot. You can tell

:35:15. > :35:19.how much it meant to him, John. Yes, in fairness, when he delivered the

:35:20. > :35:21.cue he just wanted to get round and that's the problem. Sometimes,

:35:22. > :35:23.cue he just wanted to get round and you have a habit of moving and

:35:24. > :35:28.wanting to see where the balls are going you can do it on the shot and

:35:29. > :35:32.that is where the consistency in strike falls down. Alex Higgins used

:35:33. > :35:38.to do it all the time, even when he was at the top of the game he moved

:35:39. > :35:44.quite a bit. But he still got the balls in.

:35:45. > :35:53.I think the guys are right, though. As the match unfolds and it becomes

:35:54. > :35:57.lots more tension and gets closer and closer I think you will see a

:35:58. > :36:02.lot more movement on the shot. It's understandable. Absolutely. You

:36:03. > :36:07.won't see any movement from this man, because I've never seen anyone

:36:08. > :36:12.push the cue through straight. What happens, if it gets closer and

:36:13. > :36:18.closer, Neil Robertson came into the final 7-1 on favourite, if you put

:36:19. > :36:22.?7 on you would win ?1. If it got closer and closer the pressure would

:36:23. > :36:26.come on Neil, because he is expected to win. And although he might talk

:36:27. > :36:31.it down in his press interviews, he's expecting to win. And he's

:36:32. > :36:35.expecting to have the lead, and when he loses frames like that it does

:36:36. > :36:43.unnerve you slightly. It does, absolutely. And everybody feels the

:36:44. > :36:47.nerves. But the one thing that impressed me about Liang Wenbo, and

:36:48. > :36:52.I know his cue ball control has not been inch perfect, but his safety

:36:53. > :36:57.has been excellent. It really has. That will always give him an

:36:58. > :37:01.opportunity as long as he keeps thinking positively. At the moment

:37:02. > :37:05.it seems when he misses an easy shot, or plays a poor positional

:37:06. > :37:09.shot it doesn't really affect the next one, which is the important

:37:10. > :37:13.thing. It is funny that he's come out with a great mantra this week.

:37:14. > :37:16.He has said it a few times in his interviews. Control the table,

:37:17. > :38:07.control the table! The reds to the left of the blue and

:38:08. > :38:13.the two red is available into the corner pocket are the ones that will

:38:14. > :38:23.worry Liang Wenbo when he's playing the safety. He's got to get a good

:38:24. > :38:24.cue ball. Just coming up to the two-hour mark. Pedestrian, you would

:38:25. > :38:40.have to say for five frames. Once again a good shot and that is

:38:41. > :38:45.what you have got to do with somebody like Neil Robertson who is

:38:46. > :39:06.a deadly potter. Try not to leave him a sniff at a pot. That's an

:39:07. > :39:15.excellent reply. He may have snookered Liang on all reds. And if

:39:16. > :39:21.he has the young man has got a problem. Because, he will do very

:39:22. > :39:33.well not to leave a pot on. The reds are spread. There is no path through

:39:34. > :39:38.to the main cluster. He's looking to see if he could come off the side

:39:39. > :39:42.cushion and top cushion to nestle into the reds. I think he could find

:39:43. > :39:50.a safe place as long as he doesn't overheat it. -- overhit. He's

:39:51. > :39:54.looking at that line, if he nestles onto the red just above the black

:39:55. > :40:03.off two cautions. He certainly won't be leaving any, as long as he

:40:04. > :40:15.doesn't find the gap. He should be OK, it's a big target to hit.

:40:16. > :40:22.The alternative, that we have seen lots of players play, is the two

:40:23. > :40:26.cushion escape with pace. That little cluster of four around the

:40:27. > :40:42.pink spot, the right-hand side one as we look, he could flick off that.

:40:43. > :40:45.This two cushion escapist rate forward, no problem hitting the red,

:40:46. > :40:48.as I say and Ken said, if you find the gap, or hit it a bit too firm,

:40:49. > :40:49.you could leave the pot on, and that's the last thing he needs to

:40:50. > :41:01.do. Is this going to be hard enough? Is

:41:02. > :41:08.he going to get there? REFEREE: Foul and a miss.

:41:09. > :41:13.He didn't get there and I think he has left a pot on. He has a couple

:41:14. > :41:19.of choices, he may have the red up into the green pocket. There is no

:41:20. > :41:22.real pressure on this type of shot, he's not going to be leaving

:41:23. > :41:34.anything. I would expect him to pot it it is so straight. It is there.

:41:35. > :42:09.He's nice and straight on this red. He could just come back down for the

:42:10. > :42:16.black. The reds are very nicely positioned. Plenty of options for

:42:17. > :42:28.him before he has to start going in to develop reds. This final is the

:42:29. > :42:32.best of 19, so the first to 10 will pick up the trophy. There will be

:42:33. > :42:51.eight frames played in this first session. The remaining 11 this

:42:52. > :43:03.It he makes a. This is straightforward.

:43:04. > :43:08.-- what choices he makes here. Going back to the reds in open play,

:43:09. > :43:13.obviously the first concern is winning the frame. But it will be

:43:14. > :43:16.interesting to see which way, he might try and stay on the black as

:43:17. > :43:22.long as possible. Don't forget there is a big prize for a 147. I know it

:43:23. > :43:31.is early days but, just the position of the reds is really nice. This

:43:32. > :43:38.will tell a story. If he goes back for the black, which I'm sure he

:43:39. > :43:44.will. I think once a player gets to six or seven reds followed by blacks

:43:45. > :44:37.it does focus the mind on the maximum.

:44:38. > :44:45.We said we would get to a stage that will tell us what he's thinking. He

:44:46. > :44:48.could easily go up for the blue here but I think his intention is to stay

:44:49. > :44:56.on the black. As I said, he has three or four reds still in the

:44:57. > :45:01.open. And he can stay on the black. This is a good opportunity. The

:45:02. > :45:04.priority is to get the frame over and done with. But it's definitely

:45:05. > :45:30.in the back of his mind already. ?40,000 it has rolled up to for a

:45:31. > :45:44.maximum, and ?4000 for the highest break which he already holds.

:45:45. > :45:48.Biggest break of 145. But unless he plays a really poor positional shot

:45:49. > :46:00.he will only have eyes for the black after every red now. We can see the

:46:01. > :46:07.red in the middle of the pack is open. He would love to have been a

:46:08. > :46:11.little bit straighter on it. Just coming around to see if the two reds

:46:12. > :46:29.will go into the bottom left-hand corner pocket.

:46:30. > :46:36.He's having another look at those two. Can he make them into a plant?

:46:37. > :46:45.I don't think they are dead set into the middle of the pocket. He might

:46:46. > :46:49.be able to make them. It gave him a nice shot to play. He could look at

:46:50. > :46:53.the plant and if he went a bit too far he could have gone for the loose

:46:54. > :47:03.red just above them but that is not an option now. There is enough gap

:47:04. > :47:08.to make this. There is enough gap. The problem is, when they are too

:47:09. > :47:14.close together when they are too close together but that's not the

:47:15. > :47:20.case. And it has brought a few more reds into play. As we said not long

:47:21. > :47:34.ago, he will only have eyes for the black now after reds.

:47:35. > :47:47.He has misjudged that. He's 76 points in front. There is 75

:47:48. > :47:58.remaining. He will want to play for the black. Yes. And all he can do is

:47:59. > :48:00.just drop it in. He won't be too far away from it. As long as he does not

:48:01. > :48:15.get a big bounce off this cushion. That's nicely played, nicely played.

:48:16. > :48:22.The red to the right of the lunch pots, of course -- to the right of

:48:23. > :48:26.the bunch. I think he could go into them but I think he will avoid them.

:48:27. > :48:33.He will aim to get the cue ball somewhere near the pink. It is there

:48:34. > :48:45.and it looks like he is on the red. That is perfect, great shot.

:48:46. > :48:52.It is possibly just one more cannon on the three reds that are close

:48:53. > :48:57.together. If he could somehow after potting the red and the black, one

:48:58. > :49:07.cannon, and we could be witnessing something very special. Liang Wenbo

:49:08. > :49:19.won't mind if he does, I'm sure he will be willing him on. Not the best

:49:20. > :49:26.angle on the black so he will have to play for the one loose red here.

:49:27. > :49:36.Just had the angle to come around off two cautions. I don't think he's

:49:37. > :49:39.in a position where he can pot this red and just cannon into those three

:49:40. > :49:41.reds. That would bring the three reds into play but you are not

:49:42. > :49:51.certain to have position on the black.

:49:52. > :50:01.He's come nicely on the black. Now, he just needs this cannon to go

:50:02. > :50:04.right. If he can just open up the reds and finish on one where he

:50:05. > :50:11.could open up the black, the maximum is at his mercy. Yes, just a little

:50:12. > :50:17.glancing blow on the two reds close together. He might be OK. It was a

:50:18. > :50:22.bit of a groan from the crowd. At he may be OK to pot this into the

:50:23. > :50:31.middle. He will have to dig down into the cue ball. Get in there.

:50:32. > :50:50.APPLAUSE What a great shot.

:50:51. > :51:04.He purposely played for the red that was on to the middle. Now, he had

:51:05. > :51:10.the perfect angle on it. He looks to have the perfect angle on the black.

:51:11. > :51:13.It is now all about keeping your cue arm under control, because this

:51:14. > :51:33.pressure, and he will be feeling it. That is perfect. It has been inch

:51:34. > :51:42.perfect, it has been a tremendous break.

:51:43. > :52:04.Great shot. Just six colours remaining. The crowd is willing him

:52:05. > :52:16.on. You feel the only tricky little

:52:17. > :52:28.thing that can happen here in these positions from brown up to blue with

:52:29. > :52:45.the pink not being on its spot. When Thepchaiya Un-Nooh got down to this

:52:46. > :52:48.position and missed, it can happen. He has just overrun slightly.

:52:49. > :52:54.REFEREE: Let him concentrate, thank you. Being left-handed, the little

:52:55. > :52:59.screw back, he does not want to play the pink with the rest if he can

:53:00. > :53:18.help it. He just needed to stop a fraction.

:53:19. > :53:25.Liang Wenbo had a look to see if he is straight enough. He'd like to be

:53:26. > :53:37.straight but he is not, he is just off straight. OK, deep breaths. Pink

:53:38. > :53:45.and black. For ?40,000. APPLAUSE

:53:46. > :53:51.In it goes. He'd like to have been a bit further away than the cushion

:53:52. > :53:54.from this -- from the cushion than this. We've already seen the miss

:53:55. > :54:01.for a maximum in this tournament. Not this time! Absolutely

:54:02. > :54:15.sensational. Liang Wenbo Not this time! Absolutely

:54:16. > :54:18.and gives him his congratulations. We can hear the thunder from the

:54:19. > :54:22.crowd. It is a maximum from Neil Robertson!

:54:23. > :54:28.CHEERING Absolutely brilliant. STUDIO: We

:54:29. > :54:33.watched Thepchaiya Un-Nooh this one the other day and Neil Robertson has

:54:34. > :54:38.made his third personal 147, the first of the season by anyone and it

:54:39. > :54:41.will earn him ?40,000 at least, unless of course Liang Wenbo gets

:54:42. > :54:45.another one in the next few frames. Your reaction to how he went about

:54:46. > :54:50.that. Fantastic, clinical break early on, he picked them off nicely,

:54:51. > :54:54.the three reds at the end and he had to jack up in the air and he hit it

:54:55. > :54:57.well despite it being tricky and he held himself so well especially when

:54:58. > :55:02.he got the wrong side of the blue, it was fantastic. When he was right

:55:03. > :55:07.to biggest it and had to go to the middle pocket. When he played the

:55:08. > :55:11.split audience groaned, all of a sudden you looked and he could just

:55:12. > :55:15.about get the cue up in the air and get enough weight on the ball to

:55:16. > :55:19.bring it back. This is a fabulous shot, it is Berry easy to make a

:55:20. > :55:22.push stroke, but he played beautifully and he held himself

:55:23. > :55:28.together for the rest of it -- very easy. We had Thepchaiya Un-Nooh

:55:29. > :55:31.missing the black early on on the spot, so it must have been in the

:55:32. > :55:35.back of his mind, please don't do it again. He took a deep breath before

:55:36. > :55:39.playing that shot and look at that reaction, nothing quite like it. The

:55:40. > :55:45.prize money is marvellous, but also doing it on the big stage in the

:55:46. > :55:47.final, fantastic feeling. The 115th maximum in snooker history warmly

:55:48. > :55:53.applauded by Liang Wenbo. We were watching it and brown to blue and

:55:54. > :55:56.the position of the cue ball, you were slightly worried. The one thing

:55:57. > :56:01.you have got to do is make sure you take stay on the top side, the baulk

:56:02. > :56:05.end of the blue, and when he left it where he has he has got to put the

:56:06. > :56:08.extension on making the pot more difficult. He took them brilliantly.

:56:09. > :56:12.When he was the wrong side of the blue he did not panic, he thought

:56:13. > :56:16.clearly, which was good. It was nice the referee just let him think. The

:56:17. > :56:20.pink was a decent strike. I think he got a heavy contact on it, did not

:56:21. > :56:23.destroy the path of the pink ball. He was a bit closer to the cushion

:56:24. > :56:30.than he would have liked and that black was so missable. He's been

:56:31. > :56:36.building up to this. 145 from Thepchaiya Un-Nooh new, that was his

:56:37. > :56:40.ninth century. I thought he's not quite playing as well as he has done

:56:41. > :56:43.for the rest of the tournament in the last few frames and all of a

:56:44. > :56:48.sudden he made the maximum, so it shows you what I know! He's done the

:56:49. > :56:51.right thing. The main thing is the maximum was fantastic, but he's got

:56:52. > :56:55.to win the match. He's done a good thing to get himself out of the

:56:56. > :56:59.auditorium. Obviously then he will come back and concentrate, which can

:57:00. > :57:04.be hard to do in itself. You can see Liang Wenbo discussing the shops.

:57:05. > :57:08.Once a snooker fan always a snooker fan. Is competing but still talking

:57:09. > :57:15.about the shops. -- discussing the shops. I've never seen that, he got

:57:16. > :57:17.up to look at the angle. Once the frame has gone you want him to do

:57:18. > :57:22.it, there is prize money and everybody likes people winning prize

:57:23. > :57:31.money. Funnily enough I said the other day when Thepchaiya Un-Nooh

:57:32. > :57:42.didn't make it that he would send him half of the cheque but he said

:57:43. > :57:51.no! Back we go. COMMENTATOR: Lovely scene when Niall came back into the

:57:52. > :57:55.auditorium, standing ovation. The bottom line is it only wins one

:57:56. > :57:58.frame but look at the reaction. He knew as soon as he hit it it was

:57:59. > :58:04.there. That was absolutely fantastic, and fair play to Liang

:58:05. > :58:10.Wenbo, he gave him a congratulations that he deserved. Marvellous moment

:58:11. > :59:26.for Neil. Neil is just having a look to see

:59:27. > :59:30.whether the red passes the yellow. It's tight but if he's going to play

:59:31. > :59:34.safe into the baulk end he should not have a problem covering that. It

:59:35. > :59:42.looks like he will come back to this end of the table will. One stew

:59:43. > :59:47.balls go into the baulk end the safety play will all be played at

:59:48. > :59:50.this end -- once two balls. We could have a little tactical battle before

:59:51. > :00:22.the next ball is potted. He is lifting the butt of the cue in

:00:23. > :00:26.the air and I think this is a dangerous shot, I don't see why he

:00:27. > :00:35.cannot roll into one of them, he feels that he can get some back

:00:36. > :00:39.spin. Now the red he has played his running back towards the send of the

:00:40. > :00:50.table. He is putting his hand up. Slow down. Slow down. It worked, I

:00:51. > :00:54.must try that one. They never listen to me John. They never listen to me

:00:55. > :01:24.either. Liang Wenbo looks like he was

:01:25. > :01:40.enjoying it as well, lovely pictures. A great character.

:01:41. > :01:52.I think he is considering, there is a red which is possible to the left

:01:53. > :02:00.middle. If he could play that, you may decide to take it on. Striking

:02:01. > :02:05.down as he is, he may be part to the far corner.

:02:06. > :02:13.The new as long as he got somewhere near that it would not come down the

:02:14. > :02:28.table, he has a good cue there. There are the higher breaks and it

:02:29. > :02:32.was Neil Robertson's second century of this match so far but you cannot

:02:33. > :02:45.beat looking at a 147. Of course a lot of the audience will

:02:46. > :02:56.say I was there. Wonderful reaction from the crowd as well. He has to

:02:57. > :03:07.refocus, he knows it only wins one frame.

:03:08. > :03:18.As Neil Robertson played a careless shot as he left a pod to the left

:03:19. > :03:27.middle? It was only a little roll into the cluster. -- pot.

:03:28. > :03:54.It goes in. Certainly wiped its feet. That gave me the wobbles, I

:03:55. > :03:55.thought it was in then it wasn't, and it is in and he is perfect on

:03:56. > :04:08.the black. A nice few open rates as well. --

:04:09. > :04:23.reds. Could go down for the brown, he

:04:24. > :04:40.could stay on the pink and come back up for the blue, plenty of options.

:04:41. > :04:50.Just overscrewed it a little fraction,

:04:51. > :04:59.It is OK. Didn't play to the red he cannoned into but he knew it. It and

:05:00. > :05:22.roll to a red for this corner. I think it is the type of pack that

:05:23. > :05:28.if you had a choice you would almost go to the blue so off this black he

:05:29. > :05:32.may play for the loose red above the pink and then get on the blue. It

:05:33. > :05:42.sometimes depends on how you see it. So now put this red and leave a nice

:05:43. > :06:03.angle on the blue. I think he has missed the trick

:06:04. > :06:07.there. I think he wants to take the points from the couple of threads in

:06:08. > :06:15.the ball area and then maybe go up. -- reds. He did have a look at a

:06:16. > :06:19.couple of plants into the corner pocket but I think he just wants to

:06:20. > :06:27.get some more points on the board and then made the attack the reds

:06:28. > :06:31.beyond the pink. -- maybe attack. At the end of the day he is at the

:06:32. > :06:35.table and it is his choice, what ever he feels comfortable with. He

:06:36. > :06:40.will have to bring that cluster of ever he feels comfortable with. He

:06:41. > :06:52.written to play if he will win the frame on this visit at some time.

:06:53. > :07:15.Sometimes when you leave it until the last red and you don't get the

:07:16. > :07:18.perfect position, you sort of kick yourself that you did not take the

:07:19. > :07:25.early opportunity to go into the pack of reds so it'll be interesting

:07:26. > :07:31.to see. He has to get high on these colours or blue this time.

:07:32. > :07:39.He has a nice angle on the blue hair. -- here. I would definitely

:07:40. > :07:45.take the opportunity now, he is perfect on the blue, only has to get

:07:46. > :07:49.another five or six points on the red so take the opportunity now and

:07:50. > :07:53.go in the pack. As long as you do not pot a red this could be key to

:07:54. > :08:03.the frame. He took his eyes off the pot on the

:08:04. > :08:16.blue and he played the cannon absolutely perfect. I just thought

:08:17. > :08:17.the blue was automatic. You cannot drop your guard for a moment in this

:08:18. > :09:05.game. Anguish. Magnificent atmosphere. All week it

:09:06. > :09:21.has to be said at the Barbican York. People have come out in droves and

:09:22. > :09:24.seen some some unbelievable snooker. Some magic moments that will go down

:09:25. > :09:33.in the history of the UK Championship.

:09:34. > :09:38.Nice to be sat in your armchair watching on the telly though. Nice

:09:39. > :09:49.to be out there playing as well. Those memories have long gone for me

:09:50. > :09:55.can but I know you're still playing. These are special moments for a

:09:56. > :09:59.player, in a packed house. It is always as you say, so well-received

:10:00. > :10:03.here in York. The crowds have been wonderful and they have had a treat

:10:04. > :10:05.this week. Some magnificence Newco topped off by that last frame. That

:10:06. > :10:27.was superb. That certainly will be ticked off in

:10:28. > :10:31.Robertson ayes bucket list, 147 in the final of a major championship. A

:10:32. > :10:42.great historian of the game. -- Robertson's. Knows a lot about the

:10:43. > :10:46.records. He has a certain sort of tunnel vision about what he wants to

:10:47. > :11:11.achieve this is one of the majors he calls it.

:11:12. > :11:20.He left himself the perfect angle on the black. Still ten points behind

:11:21. > :11:29.but if these break right he will become favourite for the frame.

:11:30. > :11:39.Could not have played that much better. Liang Wenbo will have to sit

:11:40. > :11:41.there and suffer, he had the perfect cannon, split the reds open but

:11:42. > :11:51.missed the blue. No more cannon is needed for Neil

:11:52. > :11:57.Robertson. Just keep putting. There it is, just took his eye off the

:11:58. > :12:04.pot. How many times do we see it? He will be very disappointed, he has

:12:05. > :12:09.been carving opportunities all afternoon but has not been as

:12:10. > :12:15.clinical as his opponent and that is the difference between the two at

:12:16. > :12:22.the moment. Robertson has been as clinical as a surgeon on a table.

:12:23. > :12:29.His positional play this top quality. The pot success is 95%, 90%

:12:30. > :12:51.is quite high for Liang. 501 points scored for a meal, 267

:12:52. > :12:54.for Liang. -- Neill. But for all of Neil dominance, there have been a

:12:55. > :13:02.few shots that Liang Wenbo has missed which would have made this

:13:03. > :13:06.match so much closer. I think you mentioned them about the cue ball

:13:07. > :13:07.control of Neil Robertson. That to me has been the difference between

:13:08. > :13:23.the two players. He is not perfect on this blue but

:13:24. > :13:24.as long as he involves a kiss on the brown which could possibly cover the

:13:25. > :13:41.last red. It shouldn't be a problem. Just a red and a colour needed. A

:13:42. > :14:36.quick glance at the scoreboard. Any colour off this red.

:14:37. > :14:44.This is wrapped up. The brown goes in. Liang Wenbo concedes, Neil

:14:45. > :14:49.Robertson looking comfortable now. He has a three frame advantage, 5-2

:14:50. > :15:57.with one to play. Another 69 break has given him a 3

:15:58. > :16:03.frame advantage but we are still buzzing after that 147 and he is

:16:04. > :16:08.only the sixth man to record that in a final. We have been pretty spoiled

:16:09. > :16:15.because we have had one every year for the last three years in the UK

:16:16. > :16:23.Championship. Ronnie then Mark Selby and Neil Robertson's is a vintage

:16:24. > :16:28.one. It was excellently constructed. As Ken said it was not obvious. He

:16:29. > :16:33.took them so well and you are allowed to have one every now and

:16:34. > :16:41.then. I think it was excellent. It was indeed. When this has happened

:16:42. > :16:46.what is the tendency there after. That is why I am so impressed. Wenbo

:16:47. > :16:51.made a mistake but as a professional, that has gone. It is

:16:52. > :16:58.about winning the match so he has had a fantastic break to win and has

:16:59. > :17:03.put that to bed. Guarantees and self going into tonight with a lead no

:17:04. > :17:08.matter what. There is money involved here and that potential gift of

:17:09. > :17:14.?44,000 which is of course hard earned could go to a fast

:17:15. > :17:18.accumulating prize pot for Neil Robertson. He just won the Champion

:17:19. > :17:21.of Champions and if he wins this he would have cleared ?350,000 already

:17:22. > :17:35.this season. Not bad going. COMMENTATOR: Not bad at all. It is

:17:36. > :17:42.still therefore you can. Thanks John. A big frame for Liang Wenbo.

:17:43. > :17:50.Just for the players have a break and come back tonight. I Rulli feel

:17:51. > :17:59.if he can... Good start. Excellent start. If he can win this frame he

:18:00. > :18:03.is still in the match. You feel if Robertson went into it 6-2 going

:18:04. > :18:20.into tonight, it would be hard to stop. I think given what we have

:18:21. > :18:27.seen, Neil Robertson in frame four made a break of 106 and made the

:18:28. > :18:34.147, if he was only two frames behind, Wenbo I think that is as

:18:35. > :18:39.good as he could have hoped for. But, he has given himself an

:18:40. > :18:42.opportunity with that opening red. He has cleared the black and

:18:43. > :18:43.opportunity with that opening red. clear his mind and make a

:18:44. > :19:10.frame-winning contribution? A chance.

:19:11. > :19:21.I'm a bit surprised he has left this.

:19:22. > :19:27.But no problem, I thought it was a little bits wide but gravity took

:19:28. > :19:39.over. It certainly looked to be high. It stopped and waited.

:19:40. > :19:47.Where does the pinko? I don't think it can go on the spot so it goes

:19:48. > :19:57.directly behind the spot in line with the black and the top cushion.

:19:58. > :20:04.Getting mapping out of the way certainly clears the pad from should

:20:05. > :20:14.he get top side of the blue. -- getting the pink out.

:20:15. > :20:27.Now we saw the blue costume in the last frame.

:20:28. > :20:53.Looks like it has overrun this time but trying to get a loose red again.

:20:54. > :21:01.That is OK but I don't know if he can play for the blue here for the

:21:02. > :21:09.pack opener. He will have two run-through for the black, needs an

:21:10. > :21:24.angle desperately. Maybe he feels he can get back to leave the angle he

:21:25. > :21:35.needs. Good clean pot. He is OK. This time, don't take your eyes off

:21:36. > :21:36.the blue. Asked to try to hit this football, the Apex red and that is

:21:37. > :21:59.the one. It doesn't look too bad. He just got a little flip off the

:22:00. > :22:04.red in the middle which slowed the cue ball belt. You always say no

:22:05. > :22:14.matter how good you are when you go into the cluster you need a little

:22:15. > :22:25.bit of luck. He looks for a lot of money and then the cue ball just

:22:26. > :22:28.flick that red and loaded up enough. There were enough loose red so he

:22:29. > :22:31.did not have to play any risky cannons that time. Can he make the

:22:32. > :22:55.most of this opportunity? A little bit of movement there

:22:56. > :22:59.against. Getting a bit edgy. It is what we used to call a steerer, he

:23:00. > :23:11.hits the ball and tries to steer it in. But natural talent no doubt and

:23:12. > :23:13.nice to see him showing it. I think he deserves the frame the way he has

:23:14. > :23:25.played. To give himself a glimmer for

:23:26. > :23:32.tonight began, that has been his Achilles heel this afternoon. Just

:23:33. > :23:37.the positional play, has parted some great balls and has played some

:23:38. > :23:41.great safety but cue ball control has let him down. He is OK and is

:23:42. > :23:51.still in command of the frame. He is eyeing up the black and he

:23:52. > :23:58.needs to get it because it will open up all the other reds into play.

:23:59. > :24:10.This is a big shot. Could be a winner or a loser of the frame. Its

:24:11. > :24:25.going aim. -- in. There is the red to follow. Not an easy one. I think

:24:26. > :24:27.there was a little bit of noise in the arena when he was playing the

:24:28. > :24:41.black. Did you hear that noise? Fortunately

:24:42. > :24:48.it did not put off the shot. He has spotted the black. But he has

:24:49. > :24:56.another hurdle to overcome her. This is not easy, just has to concentrate

:24:57. > :25:06.on the pot. Think of nothing else but potting the red. And he has done

:25:07. > :25:13.it. Not out of the woods yet. Another good shot needed.

:25:14. > :25:24.Neil sitting there and flammable. He knows it's a big frame, he would

:25:25. > :25:29.like to take a full frame advantage but if Liang Wenbo can bring out a

:25:30. > :25:38.couple of good shots he can close that gap to two.

:25:39. > :25:53.Well done, they are all pressure pots. Absolutely brilliant. It is

:25:54. > :25:54.like the crowds are playing with him. Superb, a lot of pressure on

:25:55. > :26:09.those. And he only needs this red now. This

:26:10. > :26:17.will put him 64 points ahead with just 60 plus remaining. Because of

:26:18. > :26:25.the emotion he shows, he gets the crowd involved. Absolutely.

:26:26. > :26:30.Willingdon. Close the gap. Just two frames going into this evening. What

:26:31. > :26:33.a session of snooker we can look forward to and what a session we

:26:34. > :26:36.have been given by these players. Great entertainment. Sport at its

:26:37. > :26:48.finest. A couple of frames early on that

:26:49. > :26:54.could have gone either way. Two hours 45 minutes now. The frames

:26:55. > :27:00.have quickened up. He is showing great character here. After missing

:27:01. > :27:03.that blue we all felt for him, maybe the match was running away but what

:27:04. > :27:09.character he has shown in this frame. That black, the cuts back

:27:10. > :27:24.into the pack. The green into the corner. He will walk out on night

:27:25. > :27:32.feeling ten foot tall I am sure stop that is a shame. Played a great top

:27:33. > :27:41.and tail in this first session. What a session of snooker. Come on he

:27:42. > :27:45.shouts. A marvellous maximum but the crowd really rooting for Liang

:27:46. > :27:52.Wenbo. He trails by two frames going into this evening but we could be in

:27:53. > :27:57.for a match this evening. STUDIO: This crowd have loved it and

:27:58. > :28:05.so have we. The crowd really do like him. He is full of personality and

:28:06. > :28:10.what a frame there. If he goes 6-2 down, he cannot come back and he is

:28:11. > :28:14.a proper match for tonight. The maximum has energised the two of

:28:15. > :28:21.them. It looks like Liang's has responded. He was enjoying the 147

:28:22. > :28:25.break and the last frame as well and what you can say is that was after

:28:26. > :28:29.he had the other frames stolen. You cannot be enjoying the moment. It is

:28:30. > :28:35.the only way you can play to the best of your ability if you are

:28:36. > :28:39.playing. If you're shaking your head it makes it a lot harder so he has

:28:40. > :28:43.given himself a chance and that last frame very important. Do you give

:28:44. > :28:49.him a chance and not? Absolutely. That frame is huge. If he was 6-2

:28:50. > :28:55.down it would have been all over but going out with a bounce on his step

:28:56. > :29:00.at 5-3 we have a match on our hands. If he was to get close, he may not

:29:01. > :29:03.get over the line with emotion but that is besides the point, it is

:29:04. > :29:08.entertaining and if you can continue to play like this, who knows what he

:29:09. > :29:20.can do. We are looking for to this, I hope you can join us at 7pm. Lots

:29:21. > :29:25.of tweets coming in. Natasha says, nothing says Christmas like

:29:26. > :29:29.Robertson's 147, it is a gift for us, a gift for you and a gift that

:29:30. > :29:58.will keep on giving. We will see at 7pm.

:29:59. > :30:01.You think some loveless coupling is going to solve all our problems?

:30:02. > :30:03.It's a weeknight, Roger. I won't ask again.

:30:04. > :30:05.We just don't know who the bad guys are any more.

:30:06. > :30:14.Ordinary lives, extraordinary happenings.

:30:15. > :31:34.Today, Flog It! comes from the beautiful, ancient city of York,

:31:35. > :31:46.and now it boasts the largest Gothic cathedral in northern Europe.

:31:47. > :31:49.The city walls are the longest in England,

:31:50. > :31:57.is the oldest surviving dukedom in Britain.

:31:58. > :32:01.was created in the 14th century by Richard II.

:32:02. > :32:06.the title is handed down to the sovereign's second son.

:32:07. > :32:13.I always wondered what Prince Andrew did!

:32:14. > :32:16.Well, the only hand-me-downs we're going to find here today

:32:17. > :32:18.will be those forgotten family treasures

:32:19. > :32:22.that have been dusted down and sorted out by our two experts,

:32:23. > :32:29.And let's hope they make a big hit in the auction room.

:32:30. > :32:33.David, you've brought a bit of a cane in today.

:32:34. > :32:36.Do you know what happened to the rest of it?

:32:37. > :32:41.I only remember it in my grandfather's drawer going back

:32:42. > :32:46.Right, right. Erm, and I was allowed to play with that, along with three

:32:47. > :32:50.brass monkeys, which disappeared. I've no idea what happened to those.

:32:51. > :32:57.No, I've always remembered it exactly as it is now,

:32:58. > :33:00.apart from the fact that it didn't have the eyes in, it has now.

:33:01. > :33:04.It originally had red eyes, which somehow got lost,

:33:05. > :33:06.and my grandfather put the eyes in that are there now.

:33:07. > :33:11.Ah, right. Well, I mean, it's a lovely little cane handle,

:33:12. > :33:14.and it's carved out of ivory. I was going to say that the eyes

:33:15. > :33:18.have been put in later, but you know that. That's not a shock.

:33:19. > :33:21.Probably, if they were a red stone, because this is well carved,

:33:22. > :33:23.they were probably little cabochon garnets.

:33:24. > :33:26.It was probably a semi-precious stone that went in.

:33:27. > :33:29.Unfortunately, they're glued in at this date,

:33:30. > :33:35.it's quite early actually, about 1820, up to 1840.

:33:36. > :33:39.So, of course, after 100 years, the glue dries out, the eyes fall out,

:33:40. > :33:42.and your grandfather's there with the tube of glue

:33:43. > :33:46.and a couple of very sparkly diamante-effect stones

:33:47. > :33:48.that sort of, might detract from it a little.

:33:49. > :33:50.I think a collector would have those replaced,

:33:51. > :33:58.Yes. I'm not entirely sure what dog it is.

:33:59. > :34:01.I mean, I think it's probably something like a bull mastiff.

:34:02. > :34:04.They were a very popular hound at the turn of the 19th century,

:34:05. > :34:08.and obviously, someone had a bull mastiff and they had this carved up

:34:09. > :34:10.for their cane when they went walkabouts.

:34:11. > :34:14.It's never had any tremendous value in your family?

:34:15. > :34:17.Only sort of aesthetic value. Right, right.

:34:18. > :34:21.It's very tactile, it's nice to sort of run your hand over it.

:34:22. > :34:27.And this has gone a lovely golden colour,

:34:28. > :34:30.because it's been handled for 100 years, and the natural grease

:34:31. > :34:33.and oils from your fingers sort of penetrate it and discolour it,

:34:34. > :34:38.There are lots of collectors of walking canes

:34:39. > :34:48.The whole thing would've been white,

:34:49. > :34:51.it would've had an ivory effect, but cheaper to make it out of bone.

:34:52. > :34:55.Still, the head, as it is, is probably worth in the region of about

:34:56. > :34:59.?70-100, which isn't bad for the tip of a cane.

:35:00. > :35:04.So would you be happy to pop it into auction for that? Yes, I would.

:35:05. > :35:19.We'll pop it into the auction and hope it does well. Excellent.

:35:20. > :35:23.It's lovely to see a piece of local pottery here

:35:24. > :35:27.from the Brameld factory, a Yorkshire pottery. Yep. You're a Yorkshire man.

:35:28. > :35:33.A true Yorkshire man. Why were you attracted to the Brameld factory?

:35:34. > :35:35.Well, my mother was called Brameld... Ah.

:35:36. > :35:41...and it turns out that I'm related to the proprietors of the,

:35:42. > :35:47.Bramelds were the proprietors of the Rockingham factory.

:35:48. > :35:51.So you're the great-great-great something? That's me.

:35:52. > :35:53.Well, if we look at this particular piece,

:35:54. > :35:57.a very nice dessert dish, I suppose, for a dessert service.

:35:58. > :36:08.and with this little basket weave in the middle.

:36:09. > :36:12.And what I particularly like is this back, which is so well done,

:36:13. > :36:15.so well made, and the feel of it is very good, isn't it?

:36:16. > :36:18.A lovely piece, yeah. Have you got a large collection?

:36:19. > :36:22.I've got a large collection of Rockingham pieces.

:36:23. > :36:34.Give us a resume of the factory, from what you've found out about it.

:36:35. > :36:38.Well, the factory was situated on the Earl Fitzwilliam estate

:36:39. > :36:42.and it was part of the Leeds factory really,

:36:43. > :36:51.where this was made, and so the Bramelds took over

:36:52. > :36:53.the proprietorship of the Rockingham factory.

:36:54. > :37:01.And of course, they produced some wonderful rococo wares.

:37:02. > :37:06.Oh, they did. They started making porcelain in... That's right.

:37:07. > :37:12.That's right, it was a relatively short-lived factory.

:37:13. > :37:16.Yes, that's right. As you say, from 1826-1842.

:37:17. > :37:24.It's a fascinating story and it's really nice to see this piece here.

:37:25. > :37:27.I guess you're selling it because you've already got a double?

:37:28. > :37:30.I have, yeah. I think if we were putting this into a local sale,

:37:31. > :37:36.we would put an estimate of maybe ?100-150 on it.

:37:37. > :37:39.That's good. Would that be all right with you?

:37:40. > :37:49.we'll get a good result and some good collectors in to buy.

:37:50. > :37:52.And a bit of publicity for the Rockingham factory. Absolutely.

:37:53. > :38:02.We've seen a lot of miniatures on the show before,

:38:03. > :38:05.but not miniatures painted on buttons.

:38:06. > :38:12.Well, we volunteer for a local cancer support charity

:38:13. > :38:15.in a village called Dunnington, just outside York,

:38:16. > :38:17.and these have been handed in to the shop.

:38:18. > :38:24.So you two act as the sort of experts for the charity shop?

:38:25. > :38:27.Well... You sift through everything. We sift through things.

:38:28. > :38:30.Sift through things, experts may be a very loose term!

:38:31. > :38:33.I wouldn't call us experts! We're good at sifting.

:38:34. > :38:38.Do some research on it and then flog on their behalf. Yep, absolutely.

:38:39. > :38:40.Have you done much research on these little buttons?

:38:41. > :38:47.I've taken them to a few of the big auction houses... Which ones?

:38:48. > :38:50.I've been to Sotheby's, Christie's and Bonhams in the UK.

:38:51. > :38:54.I'm lucky enough to travel, so it's been to Christie's in New York.

:38:55. > :39:01.They've also been to the Victoria and Albert. What were you doing there?

:39:02. > :39:07.so we deal with a lot of the big banks in London and New York.

:39:08. > :39:10.So I travel quite often. And what did they say?

:39:11. > :39:12.They all liked them. They hadn't seen them before.

:39:13. > :39:15.They said they were quite nicely painted.

:39:16. > :39:20.I think they're painted by a professional artist,

:39:21. > :39:24.maybe almost a theatrical or scenic artist,

:39:25. > :39:27.because they've got that look, there's a slight chocolate box,

:39:28. > :39:43.I think the paintings are later than the date of the penny. Sure.

:39:44. > :39:46.I reckon these are 1910 or 20, does that correlate with...?

:39:47. > :39:51.I took them into the Victoria and Albert...

:39:52. > :39:54.Gosh, they've been around. They have been around.

:39:55. > :40:01.they suggested, probably turn of the century, around 1900, 1910.

:40:02. > :40:07.It'll be hard to sell these. There are people that collect buttons.

:40:08. > :40:11.Any ideas? I mean, it really is speculative.

:40:12. > :40:18.I'd like to see them maybe mounted, architecturally sort of

:40:19. > :40:21.three above three and framed, they'd look fantastic.

:40:22. > :40:24.But then you wouldn't realise they were buttons. No.

:40:25. > :40:28.You want to hold them, you want to sort of caress them and feel them.

:40:29. > :40:30.And turn them round. Yeah, flip them over.

:40:31. > :40:33.I don't know how you'd display these, or mount them,

:40:34. > :40:37.I think they'll go to a textiles dealer. Yep.

:40:38. > :40:52.if they'd have stayed here and they'd have gone into a jumble sale,

:40:53. > :40:55.I'd have been lucky if I'd seen ?2 for them.

:40:56. > :40:57.So anything we get above that is great.

:40:58. > :41:00.Yeah. Could we put a sort of a valuation,

:41:01. > :41:03.an auctioneer's estimate of ?120-160?

:41:04. > :41:08.To get people attracted into them, yes, that'd be great.

:41:09. > :41:11.Do we need a reserve? No. Because these have to sell.

:41:12. > :41:15.We don't need a reserve for them. Anything we can get is a bonus,

:41:16. > :41:19.Thanks very much. Let's do it then, shall we?

:41:20. > :41:22.Let's hope we get around that figure. That'd be excellent.

:41:23. > :41:29.If two people want them, then we're going to. Great.

:41:30. > :41:33.Frances, thank you for bringing in this wonderful,

:41:34. > :41:36.stylish sugar and cream set. Where did you get it from?

:41:37. > :41:40.I'm afraid I bought it on an antiques stall in York market.

:41:41. > :41:42.Did you? Was that a long time ago? Yes.

:41:43. > :41:48.can you remember what you gave for it?

:41:49. > :41:53.I think it would be about ?4.50, something like that. I think.

:41:54. > :41:58.?4.50. How reckless of you to spend so much money on a set!

:41:59. > :42:01.Well, I think Art Nouveau collectors everywhere are crying

:42:02. > :42:03.and sobbing silently when you say ?4.50.

:42:04. > :42:07.It's such a stylish set that it lifts it up from the ordinary.

:42:08. > :42:13.It should be WMF - Wurttembergische Metallwarenfabrik.

:42:14. > :42:15.But I have been over it with a fine-tooth comb

:42:16. > :42:18.and there is not a WMF mark anywhere to be seen. No.

:42:19. > :42:23.What there are on the base is very simply stamped EPNS,

:42:24. > :42:28.and one over zero, and those are English marks, American marks,

:42:29. > :42:30.and you also find them on the Continent.

:42:31. > :42:36.but I find it extraordinary that they wouldn't have marked it.

:42:37. > :42:38.But it's good enough, that's the thing.

:42:39. > :42:42.but the interiors of both pieces are gilded.

:42:43. > :42:46.Yes, I like that about them. And you've got this...

:42:47. > :42:58.You have polished it beautifully for today.

:42:59. > :43:01.which mingles with Vienna Secessionist movement.

:43:02. > :43:06.An English piece, you might expect florid curls and what have you.

:43:07. > :43:10.But what lifts it above the ordinary are these fantastic handles. Yes.

:43:11. > :43:18.And you've got an almost Charles Rennie Mackintosh device there,

:43:19. > :43:25.you see that on some of his designs on the back of some of his chairs,

:43:26. > :43:31.And it's originally, as I say, a sugar-and-cream set. Yes, yes.

:43:32. > :43:34.You wouldn't have a teapot, because you couldn't fit it on the tray.

:43:35. > :43:37.You'd have it when you had strawberries, or something like that,

:43:38. > :43:41.a little sifter spoon to go over them. But it's great.

:43:42. > :43:45.I mean, it's a great shame it doesn't have a WMF mark on it,

:43:46. > :43:48.because that would make it worth a fair bit of money.

:43:49. > :43:52.But you're still going to see a good return on your ?4.50! Good.

:43:53. > :43:57.I think we can pop that into auction for between ?40 and ?60 pounds.

:43:58. > :44:05.And hopefully, if two people who buy WMF regularly see that

:44:06. > :44:10.and get carried away, we might touch ?100, on a good day.

:44:11. > :44:14.Indeed. But you're happy to pop them into the auction?

:44:15. > :44:20.It's not my favourite piece, I'm sorry, but I just don't like this.

:44:21. > :44:24.The best feature, Frances, the best feature!

:44:25. > :44:26.So that's why you've had enough of them?

:44:27. > :44:30.Let's hope they're somebody else's cup of tea!

:44:31. > :44:34.I'm going to spend a bit more time with Michael.

:44:35. > :44:47.You wouldn't know from the outside, but it houses

:44:48. > :44:50.one of the finest collections of York silver in the country. Really?

:44:51. > :44:53.Yes. And that was put together by William Lee,

:44:54. > :44:58.What sort of period's this we're talking about?

:44:59. > :45:08.that a York teapot's coming up for sale in London, during the Blitz.

:45:09. > :45:15.and then walks round Blitz London for three hours till the sale starts...

:45:16. > :45:26.And when the teapot comes up - it's one of the first lots in the sale -

:45:27. > :45:32.buys it for the record price of any Queen antique pot up to that point,

:45:33. > :45:37.And is that piece here? It is. It is? We can go and see it now.

:45:38. > :45:50.We're surrounded by lovely pieces of silver.

:45:51. > :45:53.You can't wait to get your hands on them! Absolutely.

:45:54. > :45:55.We've seen York silver on the show before,

:45:56. > :45:58.we know it was a thriving centre for silversmiths,

:45:59. > :46:00.because there was an Assay Office here,

:46:01. > :46:03.and we know the impression mark, a shield with five lions.

:46:04. > :46:06.Five little lions in a cross, which is the city arms.

:46:07. > :46:09.So there was a good industry for silversmiths here at one time.

:46:10. > :46:14.The first recorded incidence we've got of a town mark being used,

:46:15. > :46:22.Unfortunately, we don't have anything that survives from that early date.

:46:23. > :46:26.Unless anybody digs something up, we're not going to find anything.

:46:27. > :46:29.But we have got the earliest recorded impression.

:46:30. > :46:32.So this is the oldest piece of York silver in the country?

:46:33. > :46:42.which isn't that cross with the five lions, the city coat of arms.

:46:43. > :46:48.This is half a fleur-de-lys and half a leopard's head. London mark.

:46:49. > :46:55.Of course, we don't have a date letter system.

:46:56. > :46:58.It's before the date letter system. When did that start to come in?

:46:59. > :47:02.Probably 1559. And that was an A? That would have been an A,

:47:03. > :47:06.but we haven't found any of those still existent.

:47:07. > :47:15.The earliest one we know of is 1560-61, which is a capital B,

:47:16. > :47:23.He knew what to buy, there's no doubt about that!

:47:24. > :47:26.What would you expect to pay for a spoon like that?

:47:27. > :47:31.You'd probably never come across another one. If you did...

:47:32. > :47:35.Name your price. You could indeed. We have another spoon there.

:47:36. > :47:40.Absolutely. 120, 130 years later, York comes into its own.

:47:41. > :47:45.We get, arguably, the most important provincial silversmith in the country

:47:46. > :47:53.but we've got something by one of his contemporaries, Thomas Mangy.

:47:54. > :47:56.It's what we call a disc end spoon, technically,

:47:57. > :48:01.but they're also called death's head spoons or memento mori.

:48:02. > :48:03.If you have a look what's engraved,

:48:04. > :48:06.there's a skull and a motto that I'm covering up.

:48:07. > :48:12."Live to die," and "Die to live." So they're very cheery things.

:48:13. > :48:14.It's a sort of like a 17th century biker.

:48:15. > :48:21.If you see a spoon like that... Buy it.

:48:22. > :48:25.You're 99% certain that it's York without even looking at the marks.

:48:26. > :48:28.That's a good way of identifying a bit of York silver.

:48:29. > :48:33.Do you come across them regularly? I've come across one.

:48:34. > :48:39.So they're obviously abundant(!) This is number two.

:48:40. > :48:42.Here's the teapot we were talking about earlier.

:48:43. > :48:45.This is the start of the Lee collection, what set him off.

:48:46. > :48:50.The question is, would you brave the Blitz to go and buy it?

:48:51. > :48:55.It's a bit of a plain Jane. Queen Anne silver is very plain anyway.

:48:56. > :48:58.It's supposed to be decorated with armorials.

:48:59. > :49:02.This hasn't been engraved. A London one might be.

:49:03. > :49:06.You might have small applied card work by the handles.

:49:07. > :49:12.That's simply the style of the silver at the time, very plain.

:49:13. > :49:14.Queen Anne - not a lot of it about now.

:49:15. > :49:17.What should we be looking for in York silver?

:49:18. > :49:19.You probably won't find any early pieces.

:49:20. > :49:22.If you do, people will know what they've got

:49:23. > :49:24.and they'll be many thousands of pounds.

:49:25. > :49:29.is stuff from the later period of the Assay Office.

:49:30. > :49:34.This bowl. That's lovely. It's rather splendid.

:49:35. > :49:37.It's got a very early example of the town mark,

:49:38. > :49:40.which of course is the leopard in the cross,

:49:41. > :49:44.and we've got the IHIP stamp for Hampston and Prince.

:49:45. > :49:49.So, if you see that on a piece of silver... You know it's York silver.

:49:50. > :49:52.That's the way to tell because not many pieces do bear a town mark.

:49:53. > :49:55.It's only the larger pieces of hollowware.

:49:56. > :50:06.In about 1776, they started to introduce stud-marking

:50:07. > :50:10.in London, which is all the marks struck at once in a single punch.

:50:11. > :50:14.Throughout the history of the York office, right up until it closes,

:50:15. > :50:20.in a straight line, they don't always do it.

:50:21. > :50:23.So, if the hallmarks are a bit higgledy-piggledy,

:50:24. > :50:26.you can start to get excited. You can't be definite.

:50:27. > :50:30.What was its demise and when did it close down?

:50:31. > :50:35.It doesn't shut, it doesn't close, it just peters out.

:50:36. > :50:39.By about 1858-59, you've got the last maker, Robert Hazelgrove.

:50:40. > :50:42.The only thing known by him was a button, currently,

:50:43. > :50:45.and it peters out and that's the end of the York Assay Office.

:50:46. > :50:51.where can we buy it from, if we want to start collecting York silver?

:50:52. > :50:55.Go to specialist dealers, first off. Have a look, see what they've got.

:50:56. > :50:59.It's going to be a bit pricey, but you'll get used to it.

:51:00. > :51:02.Then, what I like to do... Always buy the best you can afford as well.

:51:03. > :51:07.Absolutely, or do what I do - be really cheap, go round antique fairs,

:51:08. > :51:11.trawl through boxes of teaspoons and if you find a York one,

:51:12. > :51:14.you'll probably pay ?5 for it, and it's worth 30.

:51:15. > :51:18.As far as larger items go, the sky's the limit.

:51:19. > :51:23.Recently, I saw a coffee pot that was ?22,000. That's a lot of money.

:51:24. > :51:30.Michael, thank you very much. Pleasure.

:51:31. > :51:49.Have Debbie and Owen and the buttons got it all sewn up for today's sale?

:51:50. > :51:52.And will Frances's stylish cream and sugar set

:51:53. > :51:58.For today's auction, we're in the wonderful Yorkshire Moors,

:51:59. > :52:02.home to the Victoria Salerooms at Hartley's Auctioneers and Valuers,

:52:03. > :52:05.in the heart of Ilkley. Andrew Hartley is our auctioneer,

:52:06. > :52:09.and I'm interested to hear what he's got to say about those pennies.

:52:10. > :52:16.Edwardian pennies, and they're all hand-painted in oils,

:52:17. > :52:20.little miniature portraits, and they belong to Owen and Beverley.

:52:21. > :52:23.They want to sell them because the money is going back

:52:24. > :52:25.to the charity shop where they were found.

:52:26. > :52:40.First of all, I've brought the estimate down again, as I do.

:52:41. > :52:43.But also, it's charity. We're not gonna charge commission on this.

:52:44. > :52:47.We want to get the best we can, gross as well as net.

:52:48. > :52:51.They are unusual, aren't they? They're very unusual.

:52:52. > :52:54.Some gifted amateur, enthusiast, whatever word you like to say,

:52:55. > :52:56.has set about those pennies and taken a hacksaw

:52:57. > :53:02.and all sorts of things to them and painted out these lovely little

:53:03. > :53:05.paintings of children, very beautifully done,

:53:06. > :53:08.but very much on a sort of amateur basis,

:53:09. > :53:11.which means it's impossible to value, which is fine,

:53:12. > :53:15.If you divide six into 60, that's only ?10 each.

:53:16. > :53:18.It's got to be worth more than that. It has. I know we'll sell them.

:53:19. > :53:22.Could well sell them reasonably well. That's what we want to hear.

:53:23. > :53:25.In charge of the silver section in today's auction

:53:26. > :53:31.Something for Art Nouveau lovers. It's a sugar and cream set.

:53:32. > :53:34.Unfortunately, Frances, the owner, cannot be with us right now,

:53:35. > :53:40.Yes, we'll have to root for her. We will.

:53:41. > :53:43.Unfortunately, the plate hasn't been going at all today,

:53:44. > :53:46.so we'll have to buck the trend to get these away.

:53:47. > :53:48.They've got the loveliest handles I've ever seen. Beautiful.

:53:49. > :53:51.Buy them for the handles and put them on something else.

:53:52. > :53:54.Exactly! We're gonna find out what the silver dealers think.

:53:55. > :53:58.I know it's only plate, but fingers crossed. Absolutely. Good luck.

:53:59. > :54:06.I've got to start the bidding at ?40. 45 anywhere?

:54:07. > :54:36.I'll stick my head out and say that it is.

:54:37. > :54:39.You dog lovers out there are probably criticising us.

:54:40. > :54:42.I'm a dog lover, but I think that is a bull mastiff.

:54:43. > :54:45.It belongs to David. Hi. I see your daughter's here.

:54:46. > :54:50.What are you gonna put the money towards for Julia?

:54:51. > :54:52.Julia's going to Italy with the Guides

:54:53. > :54:55.for an international jamboree. Right. Great fun!

:54:56. > :54:58.She's convinced me she needs more spending money.

:54:59. > :55:02.What are we hoping for, ?100? ?70-100.

:55:03. > :55:05.You'd have to be barking mad not to buy it for ?70. It's wonderful!

:55:06. > :55:09.All you've got to do is find a period cane, put the two together

:55:10. > :55:12.and there's a profit for someone there, so hopefully they'll see that

:55:13. > :55:19.Lot 355, an ivory cane handle, a bull mastiff's head.

:55:20. > :55:23.I'm starting at ?70. Do we have 75? We're straight in at the bottom end.

:55:24. > :55:37.Dog lovers will turn out all the time. It was beautiful though.

:55:38. > :55:41.Superb. The dog lovers were out in force today. Congratulations, David.

:55:42. > :55:44.I hope your daughter has a great time with the Girl Guides.

:55:45. > :55:51.Serving up for you right now a lovely dessert dish,

:55:52. > :55:55.owned by Gordon, who's literally selling the family treasures.

:55:56. > :55:59.Your great-great-great-grandfather worked at the Rockingham factory,

:56:00. > :56:02.where this was made, and you collect Rockingham,

:56:03. > :56:05.but now you've decided to flog your collection.

:56:06. > :56:10.Just some of it. And you bought this one on eBay? I did.

:56:11. > :56:13.You didn't inherit any of the collection? Unfortunately not.

:56:14. > :56:17.That's a shame. I've had to buy them over the years.

:56:18. > :56:26.Right, we've got our work cut out. Hopefully we'll get the ?100.

:56:27. > :56:29.Hopefully get 150. This is it. Good luck, Gordon.

:56:30. > :56:32.The Rockingham porcelain dessert dish, a Brameld mark.

:56:33. > :56:45.100 anywhere? Anybody else at 100? 95 on my seats.

:56:46. > :56:48.You're all done at 95? All done. I'm finished.

:56:49. > :56:53.You got your money back. That's what it was worth.

:56:54. > :56:59.less commission, so you've lost a tad really.

:57:00. > :57:02.And the cost of me stopping here overnight.

:57:03. > :57:09.That's the world cruise I've planned!

:57:10. > :57:12.I've just been joined by Owen and Beverley.

:57:13. > :57:15.We've got those pennies. Let's hope they're pennies from heaven.

:57:16. > :57:18.I love them. I put a valuation of around ?120.

:57:19. > :57:24.I had a chat with the auctioneer and he said they might struggle

:57:25. > :57:27.at that sort of price, so he's reduced my estimate

:57:28. > :57:33.If we get his top end and my low end... We're there or thereabouts.

:57:34. > :57:37.He's waivered the commission, so all the money goes back to the charity.

:57:38. > :57:42.Let's hope we come up heads with these ones.

:57:43. > :57:47.374 is this very curious set of six coat buttons,

:57:48. > :57:49.made of brass mounted around copper pennies.

:57:50. > :58:16.Brilliant! Oh, fantastic! I'm shaking.

:58:17. > :58:19.700 is it anywhere? You're finished at ?680?

:58:20. > :58:30.I'm boiling hot. I'm actually tingling. That's great.

:58:31. > :58:35.That makes a big difference to the charity, for York Against Cancer,

:58:36. > :58:42.all for their work, so that's great. Pennies from heaven!

:58:43. > :58:45.That's the auction over with for our owners, and the highlight for me

:58:46. > :58:48.had to be Owen and Beverley's set of buttons.

:58:49. > :58:51.The penny dropped for me at the valuation day when I saw them,

:58:52. > :58:54.and it was such an interesting story I had to take them on,

:58:55. > :58:59.They actually sold for a staggering ?680,

:59:00. > :59:01.and all the money is going to charity.

:59:02. > :59:04.That's it from Hartley's Auction Room in Ilkley. See you next time.

:59:05. > :59:08.For more information about Flog It, including how the programme was made,

:59:09. > :00:19.You probably know there are two things that we love in this world...

:00:20. > :00:29.So, we've decided to combine them... In an epic 5,000-mile Bakeation.

:00:30. > :00:34.We've got off to a flyer in Norway, with some truly spectacular baking.

:00:35. > :00:37.That's the best bread I've ever tasted. That is extraordinary.

:00:38. > :00:41.And the second leg of our journey promises to be even better.

:00:42. > :00:47.This week, we're tackling the Low Countries - the Netherlands...

:00:48. > :00:56.Plop, plop. Every plop you hear, there's two!

:00:57. > :00:58.And that's only the second leg, dude -

:00:59. > :01:00.we've still got Germany and Eastern Europe...!

:01:01. > :01:10.We love you more than you'll ever know!

:01:11. > :01:18.It's a good job it's not just us doing the cooking!

:01:19. > :01:23.So saddle up for the next leg of our spectacular...

:01:24. > :01:36.Week two, and we're heading into the Low Countries - Netherlands,

:01:37. > :01:41.Belgium and Luxembourg, for a baking extravaganza!

:01:42. > :01:43.Three countries and three distinct baking traditions.

:01:44. > :01:49.that they've ruled the spice trade for 100 years.

:01:50. > :01:51.But after one too many wars with us Brits, the spice trail

:01:52. > :01:54.lost its, well, spice, and local ingredients

:01:55. > :02:00.And Belgium has been invaded by just about everybody -

:02:01. > :02:02.the Romans, the Vikings, the Spanish -

:02:03. > :02:06.so their baking is a mix of all those influences.

:02:07. > :02:12.Finally, in Luxembourg, the baking reflects their geography,

:02:13. > :02:15.bordered as they are by France and Germany.

:02:16. > :02:19.It could all could make for a very unconventional trip.

:02:20. > :02:23.Woh! New country, new bike... Ooh! New haircut!

:02:24. > :02:27.You're looking good, dude, looking good! I thank you!

:02:28. > :02:37.And then, we go to Luxembourg, don't we? I've so been

:02:38. > :02:40.looking forward to coming back to the Low Countries,

:02:41. > :02:44.especially Belgium - some people say it's boring...

:02:45. > :02:49.What do you think of, though, when you think of the Netherlands?

:02:50. > :02:53.You think of tulips, chocolate sprinkles,

:02:54. > :02:56.a pretty good football team - but by all accounts, you see,

:02:57. > :02:59.they've got quite a good baking tradition as well. They have.

:03:00. > :03:03.Anyway, we're just here, Kingy, near Enkhuizen. Oh!

:03:04. > :03:07.Then let's ride on to Volendam, meet an old mate, Eric the Viking.

:03:08. > :03:10.You can't come here without seeing a windmill,

:03:11. > :03:13.and around Rotterdam, there are hundreds!

:03:14. > :03:17.Well, that'll be good then. Yeah. And then, we go on to Belgium.

:03:18. > :03:21.Now what's Belgium famous for? Tintin, Poirot...

:03:22. > :03:26.In Bruges, we'll meet somebody who likes to shock with his choc.

:03:27. > :03:29.He does chocolate with beetroot, smoked salmon, tequila -

:03:30. > :03:36.That would be enough for mere mortals,

:03:37. > :03:40.but our journey doesn't end there, does it? Oh, no! What?!

:03:41. > :03:43.We go to the wonderful place that's Luxembourg. Yeah!

:03:44. > :03:54.You know, with like Riesling wine and pork - it was all right.

:03:55. > :03:59.Don't forget, we've got three expert bakers to meet, too,

:04:00. > :04:03.and one's got a Michelin star, don't you know? Oh, fancy!

:04:04. > :04:07.So we've got six days and three countries. Right, let's away! Ooh!

:04:08. > :04:14.So our Low Countries journey really starts here.

:04:15. > :04:18.Three countries in six days is a big ask, but we want to get to

:04:19. > :04:22.Vianden Castle in Luxembourg by the end of the week.

:04:23. > :04:26.in the old fishing village of Volendam.

:04:27. > :04:31.Hope it's easy to find and all, mate, I'm starving!

:04:32. > :04:34.I've arranged to meet an old Dutch mate of mine

:04:35. > :04:36.who I've not seen for 13 years - Eric the Viking.

:04:37. > :04:40.Here, do Vikings know much about Dutch baking, then?

:04:41. > :04:43.Well, he always liked pies when I knew him!

:04:44. > :04:46.# Oh, I do like to be beside the seaside... #

:04:47. > :04:49.Will you recognise him? Well, he's huge.

:04:50. > :04:51.See what I mean? That's... Is that him? Ah!

:04:52. > :04:55.Hey! Eric! Nice to see you. How are you doing?

:04:56. > :04:58.How are you, man? I've heard a lot about you. You, too.

:04:59. > :05:03.We want to know about Dutch baking, and you're the man... Baking?

:05:04. > :05:07.'Looking a bit blank for a man who's lived in Holland all his life.

:05:08. > :05:10.'Maybe he's suffering from a frugal baking tradition?!

:05:11. > :05:13.'He doesn't look like it. Now he's going on the offensive...'

:05:14. > :05:18.You're not famous, you English, for your cooking, are you? Ha!

:05:19. > :05:25.They've not changed since the spice wars! How dare you?! How dare you?!

:05:26. > :05:29.'We're going to fall out if I don't find something to eat soon.

:05:30. > :05:32.'Fear not, my friend, I smell baking. Well sort of...'

:05:33. > :05:36.P-p-p... Poffertjes! Oh, wow! They've got waffles, too.

:05:37. > :05:38.Hello. All right, you guys.

:05:39. > :05:42.My English friends are looking for really Dutch things.

:05:43. > :05:45.Ah, poffertjes, they're little pancakes. Yeah? I make it for you.

:05:46. > :05:48.Oh, great! That'd be brilliant.

:05:49. > :05:55.Look at them all puffing up. They're a very nice colour.

:05:56. > :05:57.Called poffertjes because they puff up! Yeah!

:05:58. > :06:00.It smells good, though. It does smell good, doesn't it? Yeah.

:06:01. > :06:03.It's nice, you stand, wait for your poffertjes,

:06:04. > :06:08.'I know little pancakes aren't strictly baked,

:06:09. > :06:15.'but they do use some of the same ingredients - flour, eggs and milk.

:06:16. > :06:23.They're good. Shrove Tuesday all over again, isn't it?

:06:24. > :06:28.'Served with butter and icing sugar, they're a very popular Dutch snack.'

:06:29. > :06:31.A bit of lemon juice on them, be lovely!

:06:32. > :06:37.Don't be shy, you can have mine, too. Oh, thank you. Nice!

:06:38. > :06:41.Volendam is a fishing village turned tourist town.

:06:42. > :06:48.It has its tacky bits, I'll give you that.

:06:49. > :06:57.Come on, Eric! I still have to work in this country, you know!

:06:58. > :07:00.It's just something everyday Dutch folks do

:07:01. > :07:02.when they come to the seaside, you know?

:07:03. > :07:05.Could you dress us up as women, please? Really? Yeah, sure.

:07:06. > :07:08.Do you know anything about Dutch baking? Dutch baking?

:07:09. > :07:12.Baking - cakes, bread and stuff. Traditional...? No, not really.

:07:13. > :07:25.# He sang every morning how lucky I am... #

:07:26. > :07:31.You know, Kingy, there's one thing the BBC can say about us.

:07:32. > :07:35.What? That we don't go in for, like, national stereotyping, do we?

:07:36. > :07:38.No. No, never. Not in any way, shape or form.

:07:39. > :07:41.We always look for, like, the hidden Holland.

:07:42. > :07:45.# They're going clip, clippity clop on the stairs

:07:46. > :07:50.# This mouse he got lonesome He took him a wife

:07:51. > :07:55.# A windmill... # Big smile in the camera - here he comes... OK!

:07:56. > :08:07.# I saw a mouse, where? There on the stair... #

:08:08. > :08:17.Are we destroying these once we've looked at them?

:08:18. > :08:26.Dude, we've been mates for 20 years. Yep.

:08:27. > :08:29.But we're ugly, aren't we? Do you know what I mean? Yep!

:08:30. > :08:32.# There once was a windmill in old Amsterdam

:08:33. > :08:36.# A little mouse in the windmill How lucky I am...

:08:37. > :08:44.Interesting first day in the Low Countries, dude.

:08:45. > :08:47.Yep. Not brimming with baking. We'll make up for that tomorrow.

:08:48. > :08:49.But now we're heading for the coast at Scheveningen,

:08:50. > :09:00.Oh, man, that's fantastic. Born to it, mate. Oh! Born to it.

:09:01. > :09:07.Shall we take our helmets off or shall we just go in all butch?

:09:08. > :09:10.'Do you promise I can have a Dutch apple pie tomorrow then, dude?

:09:11. > :09:17.'Yeah. Promise, mate.' SEAGULLS SCREECH

:09:18. > :09:24.It's our second day in the Netherlands,

:09:25. > :09:26.That's Elton John and Bryan Adams, you know.

:09:27. > :09:31.So who's she carving now then, smarty pants? The Animals? Oh!

:09:32. > :09:35.# I've been driving all night and my hand's wet on the wheel... #

:09:36. > :09:39.This trip is meant to be about baking, but there hasn't been much.

:09:40. > :09:42.We want to know about Dutch baking. Baking? Baking?

:09:43. > :09:46.Yeah - cakes, bread and stuff. No, not really.

:09:47. > :09:52.Luckily, we've heard about a great little bakery

:09:53. > :09:56.This is Fred's place. Apparently he bakes everything in here by hand,

:09:57. > :09:58.and that's 120 different types of bread.

:09:59. > :10:01.Oh, wow! Wow! What a smell! Yeah, fantastic.

:10:02. > :10:04.Oh, look at the breads. We have found good Dutch baking.

:10:05. > :10:08.Have you seen that? Australian bush bread, Andes bread, muesli bread,

:10:09. > :10:12.Argentinean bread, walnut bread. It's like a bread library!

:10:13. > :10:16.It is. Reggae bread. Oh! That's what Bob Marley likes his "jam-in".

:10:17. > :10:21.Here's the man. Yes. Fred. I'm Fred. Fred, I'm Si.

:10:22. > :10:24.Very nice to meet you. OK. Thank you. I'm Dave. Hello.

:10:25. > :10:29.'one of the oldest examples of traditional Dutch baking.'

:10:30. > :10:32.Now, Fred, we know that you're very busy -

:10:33. > :10:35.is there any chance of Dave and I giving you a hand? Yes, come on.

:10:36. > :10:44.So this is a Dutch traditional recipe, isn't it? Yes.

:10:45. > :10:47.Dutch apple pie. Everybody's heard of that one.

:10:48. > :10:52.No margarine. No margarine. Only real butter.

:10:53. > :10:55.What distinguishes the Dutch apple pie from ours is, their recipes

:10:56. > :10:59.call for lemon juice or zest, which is going into the pastry now.

:11:00. > :11:02.But interestingly, there's no sugar -

:11:03. > :11:05.a throwback to their frugal baking tradition, perhaps.

:11:06. > :11:09.Bakeries like yours are quite special - are they doing well now?

:11:10. > :11:12.Special pies or bread-making, then you live.

:11:13. > :11:15.Yeah. Normal bread - gone. Supermarket.

:11:16. > :11:19.You know, supermarkets they do it for, you know... Yep.

:11:20. > :11:21.It's a good product but there's no love, is there? No.

:11:22. > :11:25.Supermarkets have taken over, but bakers like you... Yeah.

:11:26. > :11:28...are doing incredible bread, exciting bread. Yeah.

:11:29. > :11:31.But we're making exciting pie - not bread.

:11:32. > :11:34.True - a lovely Dutch apple pie at that.

:11:35. > :11:40.Because the idea of pastry only made it here after the Crusaders

:11:41. > :11:42.brought it from the Mediterranean in the 13th century.

:11:43. > :11:45.Cinnamon. Cinnamon. Yeah. Cinnamon, yeah. Classic.

:11:46. > :11:52.You see, that's the great thing about baking, specific measurements!

:11:53. > :11:55.A bucketful of this, and shovelfuls of that!

:11:56. > :11:59.'It's not surprising Fred uses so much cinnamon, it's traditional.

:12:00. > :12:02.'Dutch traders controlled all the cinnamon production

:12:03. > :12:06.'in the world in the 17th century!'

:12:07. > :12:09.'I love Fred's pastry-rolling machine - like a mangle for food.

:12:10. > :12:13.'Every notch down makes it a bit thinner. Genius!'

:12:14. > :12:17.So... 'And then, we just need to assemble the pie.'

:12:18. > :12:21.Oops! 'He tries his best, you know.'

:12:22. > :12:24.Not as neat as yours, Fred. Yeah. Oh, it's OK.

:12:25. > :12:30.'but no-one could complain it's not full to bursting with apples now.'

:12:31. > :12:33.600! Yes. Yep. What's this device, Fred?

:12:34. > :12:39.This is the bicycle. Bicycle! We call it bicycle. We do it so...

:12:40. > :12:43.And... So it's like lattice work, isn't it? You've got it.

:12:44. > :12:48.'You can spot a Dutch pie because they all have the lattice

:12:49. > :12:52.'pastry top, holding the filling in place but keeping it visible.

:12:53. > :12:56.'The pie is cooked slowly in a coolish oven for 95 minutes.

:12:57. > :12:59.'95 minutes? Luckily, Fred's got one ready for us.'

:13:00. > :13:03.Oh, brilliant! That's it, the Dutch apple pie.

:13:04. > :13:20.The pastry's come out quite dark. Yeah. Yeah.

:13:21. > :13:26.It's not burnt, it's just a dark crust. Yes. It's OK.

:13:27. > :13:29.It's all apples. Just apple, apple, apple. Yeah.

:13:30. > :13:32.Oh, it's really good. It's, er, Grandmother's apple pie.

:13:33. > :13:36.It sounds stupid to say but it tastes really appley. Yeah.

:13:37. > :13:38.Big flavours of cinnamon. It's gorgeous.

:13:39. > :13:42.That's us, we've started in Holland. What a great start as well, eh?

:13:43. > :13:48.Yeah. Thanks, Fred. Thanks, Fred. OK, thank you!

:13:49. > :13:52.Fred has restored my faith - I was beginning to think

:13:53. > :13:55.we weren't going to find any decent Dutch baking.

:13:56. > :13:58.He's inspired me to do a bit of baking of our own. Absolutely, mate.

:13:59. > :14:01.Well, we're heading towards Rotterdam,

:14:02. > :14:06.and near there is Kinderdijk, where there are shed loads of windmills.

:14:07. > :14:10.# Like the circles that you find

:14:11. > :14:17.# In the windmills of your mind. #

:14:18. > :14:21.# Round like a circle in a spiral Like a wheel within a wheel

:14:22. > :14:25.# Never ceasing, never turning Like a spinning wheel

:14:26. > :14:27.# It's the circles that you find... #

:14:28. > :14:29.Every country has a version of these -

:14:30. > :14:31.hot cross buns are the closest UK relative.

:14:32. > :14:41.Really? Or luilak. Say that again? Luilak! That'll do. Luilak buns.

:14:42. > :14:44.Luilak buns are traditionally eaten

:14:45. > :14:49.the first Saturday before Whitsun, and it celebrates Luilak Day.

:14:50. > :14:52.I haven't made this up, honest. No, no, he hasn't.

:14:53. > :14:56.Young people, they go around in the morning at four o'clock,

:14:57. > :14:59.making a noise and waking everybody up.

:15:00. > :15:03.If you don't get up, you're called a luilak or a lazybones,

:15:04. > :15:05.and you have to bake cakes and treat people.

:15:06. > :15:11.a celebratory cake for this kind of gig.

:15:12. > :15:13.Yeah. And...and... Well, that was it really,

:15:14. > :15:16.I have nothing further to add, because that was brilliant.

:15:17. > :15:22.Milky goes in there. Milky. Ja.

:15:23. > :15:24.100% Netherlandsh. Yesh.

:15:25. > :15:30.A big knob of Netherlandish butter.

:15:31. > :15:32.And these are Krentens. No! 25 grams of krentens.

:15:33. > :15:42.Now, we need to warm this to blood warm heat.

:15:43. > :15:45.The usual gig, warm enough to activate the yeast,

:15:46. > :15:53.Strong, white bread flour, and that's what we use,

:15:54. > :16:03.DAVE COUGHS Sorry about that.

:16:04. > :16:07.There's not many better things in life

:16:08. > :16:12.than zesting a lemon on top of a dyke.

:16:13. > :16:15.'There are moments when being a large bloke comes in handy,

:16:16. > :16:21.'like when your cooking buddy needs a wind break.' It's a Dutch oven.

:16:22. > :16:28.'Not sure I'd be your mate if I set said large bloke on fire, though!

:16:29. > :16:33.Which gives us 30 seconds for an instrumental break

:16:34. > :16:38.and a spectacular windmill musical montage sequence.

:16:39. > :16:46.Ooh, windmills reflected in a wing-mirror shot.

:16:47. > :16:49.Some of them date back to the 1500s...

:16:50. > :16:54.And surprisingly, they're not for milling grain,

:16:55. > :16:57.they're for pumping excess water from the land.

:16:58. > :17:00.That butter must have been melted by now.

:17:01. > :17:03.MUSIC STOPS Cut music!

:17:04. > :17:11.Here we are, Kingy! What are you eating?

:17:12. > :17:14.A slice of Edam and a bit of fresh bread.

:17:15. > :17:21.Oh! MELANCHOLIC MUSIC STARTS UP AGAIN

:17:22. > :17:28.Now, that's just warm, sloppy and full of melted buttery goodness.

:17:29. > :17:33.The Dutch have a great word for when things are really good.

:17:34. > :17:37.They say it's "lekker". And if it's really, really good, they say

:17:38. > :17:43.Now, to that, a sachet of yeast. Give it a good mix,

:17:44. > :17:47.and soon the warmth will react with the yeast,

:17:48. > :17:53.and it will start to become a living, breathing creature,

:17:54. > :18:00.I think windmills are quite sinister, quite doom-laden.

:18:01. > :18:05.I was frightened of them when I was little. Windmills, in Barrow?!

:18:06. > :18:10.'Just get on with the buns, you, will you?!' Look at that,

:18:11. > :18:29.Then work from the outside in towards the well.

:18:30. > :18:32.Perfect. Now, mix it well. You'll see it

:18:33. > :18:39.start to form, but you really need to get your hand in at this point.

:18:40. > :18:42.Put that there, and just start... Should I, erm...

:18:43. > :18:45.flour your surface? Would you mind?

:18:46. > :18:53.We all know what's coming next, don't we, boys and girls?

:18:54. > :19:07.'Well, we've got the cinnamon element again

:19:08. > :19:10.we leave it for an hour and a half for the yeast to work

:19:11. > :19:26.That quantity of dough will translate into eight buns.

:19:27. > :19:30.'You're meant to eat them on the Saturday before Whitsun,

:19:31. > :19:33.'but I reckon they'd be delicious on any lazy day. Couldn't agree more!'

:19:34. > :19:37.Nice and loosely over the top, giving it room to rise.

:19:38. > :19:41.We'll just put them in the sun, shall we? Why not?

:19:42. > :19:44.'They need to sit in the warm for 45 minutes.'

:19:45. > :19:58.'And the buns go into the oven until ready to scoff

:19:59. > :20:07.Got some honey. Nice one. Traditionally, they'd have these

:20:08. > :20:11.with syrup, when they were warm, but I think honey's nicer. Yeah.

:20:12. > :20:25.It's not quite as dark and spicy as a hot cross bun, is it? No.

:20:26. > :20:29.Wildlife round here's amazing and all, isn't it?

:20:30. > :20:32.'You know you said you found windmills sinister? Yes...

:20:33. > :20:35.'We're staying in one tonight. Great.'

:20:36. > :20:38.This is my bedroom. That's where the miller would have slept.

:20:39. > :20:42.Up the stairs - one, two, three, four, five -

:20:43. > :20:45.into little cockpit there. And this is Si's room...

:20:46. > :20:51.DAVE LAUGHS Somewhere up there is a mattress!

:20:52. > :20:55.I'm not going up there! 'Don't you snore tonight, Myers!

:20:56. > :21:05.'And don't you sleepwalk! Ha-ha-ha...'

:21:06. > :21:10.Hey, Dave? Yes, mate? You did snore. Oh, sorry, mate.

:21:11. > :21:15.Shouldn't we be in another country? We're still in the Netherlands,

:21:16. > :21:19.and we've got Belgium and Luxembourg left to do in three days!

:21:20. > :21:23.All in good time. Now, we're heading towards a tiny village

:21:24. > :21:26.called Burgh Haamstede. It's in an area that used to be popular

:21:27. > :21:30.with Jewish immigrants. And we're here for the amazing Jewish buns

:21:31. > :21:36.called Zeeuwse bolus. They've been baked in this area for centuries.

:21:37. > :21:43.'Today, they're being made by an eccentric chap called Harry.'

:21:44. > :21:46.'Harry runs the bakery with his brother Moetin.

:21:47. > :21:50.'Loaves of bread sit alongside World War II memorabilia

:21:51. > :21:54.'collected by Moetin. Whereas Harry's passion is Volkswagens,

:21:55. > :21:57.'big and small - oh, and the buns, too.'

:21:58. > :22:01.A speciality from here on the coast - bolus. Looks like a bolus.

:22:02. > :22:11.HARRY LAUGHS Is it? Yeah, it is!

:22:12. > :22:14.A bolus! You've got to show us how to make those, mate.

:22:15. > :22:18.I can show you. Is this chocolate asparagus?

:22:19. > :22:27.I make a big dough for this. We can make the bolus.

:22:28. > :22:31.Ah, brilliant, brilliant. And here...

:22:32. > :22:36.It's out of the army, too! It's a mess tin!

:22:37. > :22:43.So, flour, milk powder, put the yeast in...

:22:44. > :22:47.That's a lot of yeast. Yeah. It's a lot of bolus, really. Salt.

:22:48. > :22:51.'Harry's using fresh yeast, so he keeps the salt away

:22:52. > :22:55.'from direct contact with the yeast as he measures everything out.

:22:56. > :23:00.'Salt would kill the yeast. And you don't want dead yeast in your bolus.

:23:01. > :23:03.'Harry's machine does the work that you normally do, Si,

:23:04. > :23:06.'bringing the ingredients together and kneading the dough.'

:23:07. > :23:11.In this place we have all small bolus, and on the other island,

:23:12. > :23:15.they have all big bolus. It's not the size of your bolus, it's the taste.

:23:16. > :23:24.Yeah. The women say the same - the size is nowhere...

:23:25. > :23:28.Yeah, slap. That is a good sound, yeah!

:23:29. > :23:35.You know your bolus is working when that's telling you!

:23:36. > :23:47.That dough's fantastic, isn't it? Yes, it's very soft.

:23:48. > :23:51.Then I use a lot of flour because, when it's stuck in the machine,

:23:52. > :23:54.I have a big problem. Then I put it here...

:23:55. > :23:57.So, the dough goes in the top... Yes.

:23:58. > :24:01.This is a unique machine. Dough goes in, balls come out.

:24:02. > :24:15.And now we must go very quick to the other side

:24:16. > :24:21.Of course, that way, you've got good, even sizes.

:24:22. > :24:30.# Diddle-iddle-er, diddle-iddle-er Uh-di-di-di, di-di-di-di

:24:31. > :24:34.# Diddle-iddle-er, diddle-iddle-er Uh-di-di-di. #

:24:35. > :24:41.'Now for the ingredient which makes the buns sticky -

:24:42. > :24:50.A little bit inside, not too much. Is that lemon zest - the peel?

:24:51. > :25:03.Cinnamon? Yeah. And we mix it...very good, yeah.

:25:04. > :25:07.'Harry's bolus baking trays are never washed, to keep the flavour.'

:25:08. > :25:12.I do it in slow motion and I can show you how it goes quick.

:25:13. > :25:24.Then I take him, thumb and finger... Pinch.

:25:25. > :25:35.FAST PIANO MUSIC PLAYS And I do it a little more quicker.

:25:36. > :25:44...in five minutes. This is fabulous. It is.

:25:45. > :25:50.'In Generation Game style, it's our turn. You first...

:25:51. > :25:53.'Pinnies on, and we're ready for battle.'

:25:54. > :25:59.Pressure's on, dude, pressure's on. Go on...

:26:00. > :26:09.The history of the bolus dates back hundreds of years.

:26:10. > :26:16.For Harry, it's a recipe which has been passed down

:26:17. > :26:25.Yeah I do it not better, it's perfect.

:26:26. > :26:27.Your turn to get to grips with your bolus now, Si.

:26:28. > :26:31.What I love about baking, especially like in a commercial way like this,

:26:32. > :26:37.two euros each, and you've produced something from very few ingredients

:26:38. > :26:41.that's worth a lot, and it's got to be good business.

:26:42. > :26:49.Baking under control, Harry is desperate to show us

:26:50. > :26:56.So, now I shall show you my swimming car.

:26:57. > :27:01.because yesterday I take him out of the garden for my mother. Right.

:27:02. > :27:04.You made this... It was a jeep for the Germans

:27:05. > :27:08.and I weld a front and around back. So now you've got a boat.

:27:09. > :27:12.It's got an anchor as well. Yeah. Have you had your car in the water?

:27:13. > :27:19.I want to go from Burgh to England. To England. Yeah, Yeah.

:27:20. > :27:24.I'd go the shortest possible route between here.

:27:25. > :27:29.Luckily, whilst we're messing around with the swimming car,

:27:30. > :27:33.Harry's brother Moetin looks after the buns.

:27:34. > :27:35.Harry, what are you going to do if the engine fails?

:27:36. > :27:41.Very easy. Then I have special shoes...

:27:42. > :27:48.and I walk... You can walk on water? ..to home.

:27:49. > :27:56.But it's a fine line, Si, between madness and genius,

:27:57. > :27:59.and Harry and his brother are genius bakers.

:28:00. > :28:03.Now, we're going to try... Now the fun part.

:28:04. > :28:12...to take him. So you don't get messy fingers.

:28:13. > :28:20.These are fantastic. They're light, they're sticky,

:28:21. > :28:28.because it's like a really soft doughnut, isn't it?

:28:29. > :28:31.Yeah. And the dough's very rich. Oh, it's fabulous.

:28:32. > :28:36.If you like doughnuts, you would go absolutely crazy for these.

:28:37. > :28:38.I thought bakers were slightly bonkers,

:28:39. > :28:41.but Harry brings a whole new meaning to the word,

:28:42. > :28:45.I could've sat and chatted to him all day.

:28:46. > :28:50.But we've got places to be, you know, Belgium for one.

:28:51. > :28:53.But what's this we're going past now?

:28:54. > :28:58.a series of dykes and sluices and stuff,

:28:59. > :29:03.which basically stops this area from being reclaimed by the sea.

:29:04. > :29:08.We're heading out of the Netherlands now, towards Westmalle in Belgium.

:29:09. > :29:21.to a lovely old friend of mine, and a couple of Belgian tarts.

:29:22. > :29:24.Lynda and I grew up together in Barrow.

:29:25. > :29:26.In her late teens, Linda followed her heart

:29:27. > :29:30.but we've kept in touch but I haven't seen her for a few years.

:29:31. > :29:33.Hang on, I thought we were coming to see a couple of Belgian tarts?

:29:34. > :29:41.all to be enjoyed in the garden, with Lynda and her family.

:29:42. > :29:45.Well, what a lovely welcome to Belgium this is.

:29:46. > :29:53.BABY CRIES Here dude, listen,

:29:54. > :30:02.Eeh, what a fantastic start to our time in Belgium.

:30:03. > :30:05.We knew it was going to be good. We're off to a flyer.

:30:06. > :30:10.Great friends. Oh, man! But it's true.

:30:11. > :30:25.We've had chocolate, we've got great, oh...

:30:26. > :30:31.But tomorrow, let's hit the chocolate, eh? Big time.

:30:32. > :30:43.But now we need to fly out of here, into the sunset.

:30:44. > :30:46.I can't tell you, dude, how much I've been looking forward to today.

:30:47. > :30:51.a city famous for its stunning architecture?

:30:52. > :30:53.No, dude. No. Because it's a world capital of chocolate!

:30:54. > :31:00.Now, we've only got 24 hours in Bruges,

:31:01. > :31:03.let's just eat nothing else except chocolate.

:31:04. > :31:08.Chocolate and beer. Well, I was going to say...

:31:09. > :31:15.Oh, wow! It's like a jeweller's, isn't it?

:31:16. > :31:22.We're going to be making traditional Belgian chocolate truffles

:31:23. > :31:28.And so, we've borrowed a kitchen from Hans.

:31:29. > :31:39.When Spanish explorers went to South America,

:31:40. > :31:46.Well, I'm very glad indeed that they did.

:31:47. > :31:57.Try one of those, Kingy. They're monster.

:31:58. > :32:03.Wow! I think that's my favourite chocolate I've ever tasted.

:32:04. > :32:06.Look at our homemade chocolate truffles.

:32:07. > :32:09.Look at them, man. Oh! Would you like one? And it's...

:32:10. > :32:12.Oh, I'd love to. Oh, yeah. Thank you so much.

:32:13. > :32:14.You're welcome. Thank you. Thank you. You're welcome.

:32:15. > :32:22.We've got an incredible cheesecake to make.

:32:23. > :32:24.Make it once and you'll make it for ever.

:32:25. > :32:30.As with most cheesecakes, it starts with a biscuit bottom.

:32:31. > :32:32.Now, I need to go and melt some butter.

:32:33. > :32:42.I like this bit, it's my favourite. Crumbs.

:32:43. > :32:46.And then, what you do, you see, with the bits that you've spilt,

:32:47. > :32:54.What other cookery show do you see that happening on

:32:55. > :32:57.on the UK television? Nobody. Do you?

:32:58. > :33:02.I'm going to go and find a fridge.

:33:03. > :33:06.And I'm going to make the topping. Watch this.

:33:07. > :33:17.and beat the living daylights out of it.

:33:18. > :33:21.And the chocolate sits on a pan of hot water to melt.

:33:22. > :33:24.Look at that. It has the texture of an ivory silk gown.

:33:25. > :33:27.Now, what we do to that is knock three eggs in,

:33:28. > :33:33.because the eggs are going to bake, and that's how it goes solid.

:33:34. > :33:40.we take a deep breath and whiz it all up together.

:33:41. > :33:52.That's fine. I just need that chilled base now.

:33:53. > :34:04.Don't lick my spatula. Don't you dare!

:34:05. > :34:07.Young lady, would you like a chocolate spatula?

:34:08. > :34:12.It hasn't been licked or touched. Feel free.

:34:13. > :34:16.It's just good Belgian chocolate. We do want it back, however.

:34:17. > :34:26.Look at that. From one of the cafe's fridges.

:34:27. > :34:39.The cheesy chocolatey mix goes onto the chilled base.

:34:40. > :34:44.A couple of layers of foil should keep it from getting wet,

:34:45. > :34:48.and then it's into the oven. Lovely!

:34:49. > :34:50.Shall we go and see somebody very special? Yeah, we should.

:34:51. > :35:04.It's so incredibly well preserved, isn't it? Yeah.

:35:05. > :35:11.he's going to come out all over excited,

:35:12. > :35:13.because he's found some stickers. Watch.

:35:14. > :35:17.I've got Belgium, I've got Brussels, I've got Bruges,

:35:18. > :35:20.I've got Flanders and Belgium. They can whack them out.

:35:21. > :35:22.They're good that one. Do you know what I mean?

:35:23. > :35:23.That'll balance off with the Netherlands.

:35:24. > :35:27.Everything but the Manneken Pis. Fantastic.

:35:28. > :35:32.who describes himself as a "shock-o-latier."

:35:33. > :35:34.Here we go again. Ticking the bonkers box.

:35:35. > :35:40.He says he likes visitors to his shop to have an open mind.

:35:41. > :35:48.Wahoo! Oh, here it is. Wow!

:35:49. > :35:50.Hi. How are you doing? Hello, I'm Dave. Very well.

:35:51. > :35:53.Dominique. Hello. Very good to see you.

:35:54. > :35:55.I was really looking forward. Please, come.

:35:56. > :36:01.I have some chocolates here for you to taste.

:36:02. > :36:08.We have, yes. The tequila give me inspiration to create shock-tails,

:36:09. > :36:12.between chocolate and cocktails. Ah, nice! Yeah?

:36:13. > :36:15.So, the idea is you take the pipette out... Yeah.

:36:16. > :36:23.Squeeze the tequila, and eat a ganache of green lemon.

:36:24. > :36:27.Dude, that's cool. That is so cool.

:36:28. > :36:31.Well in that collection, I also make mojitos and caipirinhas

:36:32. > :36:36.But the idea is that you really start with the chocolate,

:36:37. > :36:50.Good grief! Yeah? That's a taste explosion.

:36:51. > :36:54.Not yet. It could do with a bit more.

:36:55. > :36:59.This is grass. Grass from the garden.

:37:00. > :37:03.We make a juice of it, and then I make a white chocolate ganache.

:37:04. > :37:06.So, have fun. This is ridiculous. This is fabulous.

:37:07. > :37:09.And if you eat it, the colour, it's really green of the grass.

:37:10. > :37:13.Wow! It's really fresh, huh? It works. Wow!

:37:14. > :37:17.Mmm. It tastes like grass smells when you just cut it.

:37:18. > :37:19.Yeah. Do you know what I mean?

:37:20. > :37:26.It's the essence of grass, isn't it? That is mad. Mmm.

:37:27. > :37:28.It's very important to be open-minded, isn't it?

:37:29. > :37:32.So open-minded that Dominique has devised a crazy contraption

:37:33. > :37:37.created specially for a party for the Rolling Stones.

:37:38. > :37:40.We let them sniff chocolate. Sniff chocolate!

:37:41. > :37:43.Sniff yeah. They're kinky grandpas and we let them sniff...

:37:44. > :37:48.And we came with a mixture with mint, ginger and chocolate for them.

:37:49. > :37:51.But we had a little bit more fun. We made a little machine,

:37:52. > :37:54.two little spoons and when you push... Boom. It goes up. All right?

:37:55. > :37:56.I'm going to show you how it works. Voila.

:37:57. > :38:02.Yeah. Well, we call it also the Easter eggs for the weight watchers.

:38:03. > :38:08.I show you how it goes, yeah? It's very easy.

:38:09. > :38:14.And in the beginning, you really have the mint.

:38:15. > :38:19.Ah! And the ginger. That opens your nose.

:38:20. > :38:21.Yeah. And then it goes down and you have chocolate,

:38:22. > :38:31.Are you going to try it, no? Yeah, yeah, yeah! Oh, OK.

:38:32. > :38:45.I have got chocolate. Yeah.

:38:46. > :38:48.It's in here. That's mad, man. It takes fifteen minutes.

:38:49. > :38:52.Oh, wow! You know what this means, don't you?

:38:53. > :38:58.You are a complete genius. It's fantastic.

:38:59. > :39:01.I mean, it's really, really very special.

:39:02. > :39:04.Thank you so much for sharing it all with us, Dominique.

:39:05. > :39:05.No problem. Thank you. Thank you so much.

:39:06. > :39:07.Well, I'm not going to forget that one in a hurry.

:39:08. > :39:11.So cool, man. But I'm not sure we've had enough chocolate yet.

:39:12. > :39:16.we need to assemble our now baked Belgian chocolate cheesecake.

:39:17. > :39:22.Thank you, thank you. Thank you, thank you.

:39:23. > :39:25.And now with the 12 truffles on the top,

:39:26. > :39:30.there's a slice an hour all marked out.

:39:31. > :39:34.And there we have it, our Belgian chocolate truffle wheel hub

:39:35. > :39:47.What a great way to end our chocolate filled day in Bruges.

:39:48. > :39:49.Oh, you cannot get away from the fact that

:39:50. > :39:51.that's spectacular chocolate, isn't it? It's so, so good.

:39:52. > :39:54.The texture of the cheesecake, nice and soft, nice and silky,

:39:55. > :39:56.and then you've got that lovely crunch with the base.

:39:57. > :40:06.I might not want to eat chocolate again for a while.

:40:07. > :40:13.Day five, and we're still in Belgium.

:40:14. > :40:16.Do you know we've got a whole other country to get to by tomorrow?

:40:17. > :40:21.Don't worry my friend, I have a cunning plan.

:40:22. > :40:26.We'll head to Brussels now, Belgium's esteemed capital,

:40:27. > :40:29.and we'll stop off and start our final recipe.

:40:30. > :40:40.How does that sound? Complicated. I'll just follow you.

:40:41. > :40:44.Paris has the Eiffel Tower, London has Big Ben,

:40:45. > :40:50.Ah! I get it. It's a giant atom type thingy.

:40:51. > :40:52.It was built for the World Fair in 1958.

:40:53. > :40:56.It's now Brussels' most visited tourist attraction.

:40:57. > :41:01.The Rieslingspaschteit an amazing submarine shaped pastry treat

:41:02. > :41:04.I discovered last time I was in Luxembourg.

:41:05. > :41:08.Shouldn't that be "Reesling" made with Reesling wine?

:41:09. > :41:13.I know it should be "Reesling" but just look how it's spelt.

:41:14. > :41:18.Now you know, like! short, rich pastries. Yeah.

:41:19. > :41:21.Cor, this one takes the biscuit. Oh! Good that. Hey, hey! Boom, boom!

:41:22. > :41:25.Did you know that pastry pies probably originated in Europe?

:41:26. > :41:28.Not here, but Ancient Greece. I didn't.

:41:29. > :41:35.was just a storage container and was mainly inedible.

:41:36. > :41:39.Well ours will be far from inedible. It will be a buttery delight.

:41:40. > :41:42.Hey, Brussels is home to that most famous of Belgians, isn't it?

:41:43. > :41:45.Tintin? No! The Muscles From Brussels - Jean Claude Van Damme!

:41:46. > :41:57.The butter and eggs in the pastry will make it yellow and golden,

:41:58. > :42:05.and just gently bring it together, I think.

:42:06. > :42:08.That's perfect, isn't it? Pretty good.

:42:09. > :42:11.It's funny with pastry, because if you keep working it,

:42:12. > :42:15.it ends up releasing the gluten which also makes it tough.

:42:16. > :42:20.So, if you're making a pastry, like for samosas, or a thin pastry,

:42:21. > :42:23.But this, we want it crumbly, not stretchy.

:42:24. > :42:30.Just pop it in the fridge. Yeah. Where's the fridge?

:42:31. > :42:33.No, we've got to make the filling. The longer the filling stands,

:42:34. > :42:36.the tastier your Rieslingspaschteit is going to be.

:42:37. > :42:46.Could you put it in the refrigerator for me?

:42:47. > :42:55.Chips! They're brilliant. Are they? Yeah.

:42:56. > :43:02.Take one medium onion and chop it as finely as is humanly possible.

:43:03. > :43:07.is finer than the underarm hair on a butterfly.

:43:08. > :43:09.And do the same with a couple of carrots.

:43:10. > :43:13.so that they cook with the meat in the pie.

:43:14. > :43:17.You know, Si, it's times like this I think of my dear old Dad,

:43:18. > :43:20.You know, he'd sit there on the sofa and he'd say,

:43:21. > :43:22."Why do I pay my bloody licence fee for?"

:43:23. > :43:26."To watch that tub of lard chop an onion." Sorry, Dad!

:43:27. > :43:30.The veg goes into the bowl with the rest of the ingredients -

:43:31. > :43:32.minced beef and nice fatty minced pork.

:43:33. > :43:35.A great combination. Then some seasoning.

:43:36. > :43:40.Dried marjoram and chopped parsley, add to the flavour.

:43:41. > :43:42.Oh, it smells fabulous. Doesn't it?

:43:43. > :43:44.Brandy goes in at this stage, the Riesling wine,

:43:45. > :43:49.which gives the pastry its name will go in tomorrow in the jelly.

:43:50. > :43:53.Now, the other thing to mention, is it's very, very important,

:43:54. > :43:55.if you can, to leave this for as long as you can,

:43:56. > :43:57.preferably overnight. Yeah.

:43:58. > :44:01.Because it gives the flavours time to amalgamate,

:44:02. > :44:04.to compliment each other. To balance, to love.

:44:05. > :44:07.Now, pop this into the fridge for all those flavours to infuse.

:44:08. > :44:13.I'll go and see my friend. I might get some more chips.

:44:14. > :44:24.Well, it would be criminal to come to Belgium

:44:25. > :44:33.May I dip your Andalusian? Please do, dear heart.

:44:34. > :44:40.Healthy lunch consumed, it's on with the pies.

:44:41. > :44:43.Oh! It's been a happy hour in the chip shop.

:44:44. > :44:46.It has. Thank goodness for refrigeration is all I can say.

:44:47. > :44:49.The flavours are maturing and the dough's set.

:44:50. > :44:51.We need six equal bits of chilled pastry,

:44:52. > :44:58.They are quite substantial. Northern portions again.

:44:59. > :45:02.Now we need to form this into a little brick shape.

:45:03. > :45:08.This is flying without a parachute, this, you know.

:45:09. > :45:13.But assuming you're making this in a nice cool kitchen,

:45:14. > :45:19.So now we have the fabric of the pie, the submarine.

:45:20. > :45:22.All we need now is to pop in the crew.

:45:23. > :45:29.marjoram-infused, porcine loveliness.

:45:30. > :45:38.Then wrap the meaty crew up toasty warm in their pastry sub.

:45:39. > :45:41.Short ends first. Nice. We roll this over.

:45:42. > :45:43.It's a minter. Seal it with egg.

:45:44. > :45:47.Now this is going to be the rough side.

:45:48. > :45:50.So, that's your presentation side. Look at that.

:45:51. > :45:52.This is where it gets good. Right? Right.

:45:53. > :45:59.Now every submarine needs a conning tower.

:46:00. > :46:02.Hang on, mate, I know you're concentrating.

:46:03. > :46:04.I'm making a pastry tower. I know.

:46:05. > :46:06.But we seem to have drawn a bit of a crowd.

:46:07. > :46:08.But we're not the tourist attraction,

:46:09. > :46:11.it's the big silver balls behind us that they want.

:46:12. > :46:14.I know. But what's Chinese for "it's behind us"?

:46:15. > :46:27.My pastry's melting. Do you know what, madam?

:46:28. > :46:31.For such a small person that is a very large lens.

:46:32. > :46:33.Do you ever wonder... What?

:46:34. > :46:36.That your life's gone really eccentric? Yeah. Constantly, dude.

:46:37. > :46:39.The conning tower isn't just a decorative whim,

:46:40. > :46:42.it's where we'll be able to pour the Riesling wine jelly tomorrow,

:46:43. > :46:47.Sweet. Nice. Thank you very much.

:46:48. > :46:55.What a lovely lady. What a nice lady.

:46:56. > :47:04.but they'll need to cool so we'll come back to them tomorrow.

:47:05. > :47:07.Our Chinese friends are leaving, and we need to get on the road, too.

:47:08. > :47:10.We've got a three hour drive to our third and final low country -

:47:11. > :47:16.It's home to loads of great restaurants,

:47:17. > :47:20.and one of them is in Frisange, just outside the capital.

:47:21. > :47:26.And we're off to meet our last expert,

:47:27. > :47:29.and I'm especially pleased that it's a lady.

:47:30. > :47:32.Do you think eccentricity is ripe in Luxembourg too?

:47:33. > :47:35.She's got a Michelin star award, dude, she can't be that bonkers.

:47:36. > :47:39.Ooh! Hello, Lea. Hello. That's fantastic.

:47:40. > :47:43.Hi, Lea, hi. How are you? I'm fine. Nice to see you.

:47:44. > :47:46.You're See? I'm Si. Si. Yes, Si. And Dave.

:47:47. > :47:48.Dave. Hello. Happy to see you.

:47:49. > :47:51.Is it three in Luxembourg? Yes. It couldn't be enough.

:47:52. > :47:53.This is Dominique, he is my...

:47:54. > :47:57...absolutely favourite pastry chef. He is French.

:47:58. > :48:00.And I'll put you this on because you see I always write "avec amore."

:48:01. > :48:03.Hey! With love. OK. Yeah. And when I saw you I thought

:48:04. > :48:07.you're the right guys with the right love in the heart.

:48:08. > :48:11.Does flirting with us count as eccentric?

:48:12. > :48:14.So, we make macaroon. Oh, yeah, macaroons.

:48:15. > :48:18.Yes. With anise. Macaroons. You say macaroons? Macaroons.

:48:19. > :48:21.And inside we put raspberry ice cream.

:48:22. > :48:29.How do you call the sugar which is like flour?

:48:30. > :48:31.Caster sugar. Caster sugar. Caster sugar.

:48:32. > :48:35.Hang on a minute. It's not caster sugar dude, it's icing sugar.

:48:36. > :48:38.We're getting on well. Let's not correct her now.

:48:39. > :48:42.As long as we all know it's really icing sugar. Sssh!

:48:43. > :48:45.On the heat, just getting to the perfect temperature,

:48:46. > :48:50.So you love eating, too? Oh, yes, yes. It's casualty is...

:48:51. > :48:53.You look great. I love that you look good and do not need

:48:54. > :48:55.to pay so much attention, not to break.

:48:56. > :49:00.Fragile. We're quite robust, yes. Robust's the word. No, no, we're...

:49:01. > :49:03.Listen, we're a proper shape us, Dave, aren't we, mate?

:49:04. > :49:05.Yeah. It's all pure quality I can see.

:49:06. > :49:09.Is it just me or is the temperature rising in here?

:49:10. > :49:13.That's it. I think you look better. Oh, thanks. You look great too.

:49:14. > :49:19.Back to the cooking. And, to the icing sugar,

:49:20. > :49:22.Dominique adds powdered star anise, and mixes it in.

:49:23. > :49:24.Making macaroons is an exact science.

:49:25. > :49:27.Precisely 90 grams of egg whites are whisked,

:49:28. > :49:32.before the sugar syrup, at the perfect temperature

:49:33. > :49:35.It's very hot as he mixes the whites.

:49:36. > :49:37.Yes. It boils the egg whites at the same time, you see.

:49:38. > :49:42.Yeah. Ah-ha. And you leave it until it's cold.

:49:43. > :49:47.Until it's cold? Yeah. Then you can close this. OK.

:49:48. > :49:52.He has this 90 grams of egg white there,

:49:53. > :49:57.and he adds, he mixes up these two things. Yeah.

:49:58. > :50:00.The egg white and the powder, almond powder, with the sugar.

:50:01. > :50:07.Everything. He wants to have everything.

:50:08. > :50:09.He wants it all. Yes.

:50:10. > :50:12.Dominique mixes it into a smooth paste,

:50:13. > :50:19.The two egg mixes need to be combined gradually,

:50:20. > :50:23.so the smooth light consistency of the mix is maintained,

:50:24. > :50:27.I give you everything, Dominique. No? Yes.

:50:28. > :50:31.It's looking and smelling amazing, and tastes blooming lovely.

:50:32. > :50:38.Oh, look at that. You almost feel... Oh, wow!

:50:39. > :50:40.Oh look at this. This is a pleasure to look at.

:50:41. > :50:45.But look at the flick, Dave. I know. Oh, Dominique.

:50:46. > :50:48.Yes. That's style. That's my Dominique.

:50:49. > :50:51.Oh, wow! They're fantastic, aren't they?

:50:52. > :50:53.Yeah they are. Look at the sheen on there.

:50:54. > :50:56.You could weigh them and they'd be identical, couldn't you?

:50:57. > :51:01.Oh, yes. He's industrial in his heart, no?

:51:02. > :51:03.Yeah. Yes. He's so quick as well.

:51:04. > :51:06.So the last one we should lick, no?

:51:07. > :51:17.When the oven doesn't work, just eat it like this.

:51:18. > :51:20.Yeah? So, you cannot put them straight away into the oven.

:51:21. > :51:25.You have to let them rest, let's say ten minutes.

:51:26. > :51:28.Ten minutes. Time to make the ice cream.

:51:29. > :51:31.Raspberry puree, sugar and cream are whisked together.

:51:32. > :51:34.Look, look, look, look. Oh! It's beautiful. Yeah.

:51:35. > :51:41.Yeah, is she flirting with me? It's a sexy thing, making ice cream.

:51:42. > :51:46.Now some lemon juice goes in. Sharp to offset the sweet.

:51:47. > :51:48.When you have a good man and you add a good woman to it,

:51:49. > :51:52.it becomes even better. Oh you, you, little... You!

:51:53. > :51:56.Just behave, whilst I help Dominique put them in the oven,

:51:57. > :52:06.which goes into a very expensive magic machine

:52:07. > :52:09.which turns deeply frozen food into a light whipped ice cream.

:52:10. > :52:14.That's fantastic. Oh, those look fantastic.

:52:15. > :52:17.Oh, wow! They are so perfect aren't they?

:52:18. > :52:22.They are beautiful. And it smells. Oh, my God, it smells like...

:52:23. > :52:25.Absolutely amazing. Absolutely beautiful.

:52:26. > :52:27.Now comes a very, very interesting thing.

:52:28. > :52:30.He will put water under the leaf of paper...

:52:31. > :52:35...because otherwise you destroy them,

:52:36. > :52:39.because they are soft still where they stick on the leaf of paper.

:52:40. > :52:42.And then if you put water, this gives condensation

:52:43. > :52:44.and then they push... Yeah? So they don't stick?

:52:45. > :52:46.Push them off. Fantastic. Yeah.

:52:47. > :52:52.Now, Dominique, show us how you make a perfect dish out of this.

:52:53. > :52:55.Hey, Dave, have you noticed something? What's that?

:52:56. > :52:58.Our award winning chef Lea... Yeah.

:52:59. > :53:00...well, she's not actually done any of the baking.

:53:01. > :53:08.Surround yourself with talented people.

:53:09. > :53:19.It's baking at another level, isn't it? Oh, it's just immense.

:53:20. > :53:23.When I get you, I'm going to eat you.

:53:24. > :53:27.And when I eat you, I'm going to be happy.

:53:28. > :53:33.And when I'm happy, I'm going to have another one.

:53:34. > :53:45.Me too. Lea's "avec amour" philosophy is a powerful thing.

:53:46. > :53:57.Nice, no? Oh, yeah. Oh, gosh, this is good.

:53:58. > :54:01.Thank you so much for your hospitality.

:54:02. > :54:03.Thanks for sharing your knowledge with us.

:54:04. > :54:05.It's been an absolute privilege, thank you.

:54:06. > :54:14.Thank you. And we were very privileged to have you here today,

:54:15. > :54:29.Good health and happiness. Yes. Good health. Yes.

:54:30. > :54:31.It's our last day in the Low Countries,

:54:32. > :54:33.we've reached our destination of Luxembourg.

:54:34. > :54:39.is a suitable location to finish our Riesling pastries.

:54:40. > :54:42.Somewhere suitable, somewhere like a Riesling vineyard.

:54:43. > :54:44.These look very much like vines to me.

:54:45. > :54:55.Hang a left here, Dave. Right you are. No, left!

:54:56. > :54:57."How do you carry all that kit with you when you are away?"

:54:58. > :55:17.Look at that. Look at those, man.

:55:18. > :55:24.Our submarines have been left to cool overnight,

:55:25. > :55:27.leaving room for the Riesling wine jelly.

:55:28. > :55:30.Whilst the wine warms through, four sheets of gelatine

:55:31. > :55:37.to become all flaccid and jelly-like.

:55:38. > :55:42.We went to this great cook shop in Holland,

:55:43. > :55:44.and we found these remarkable disposable funnels.

:55:45. > :55:47.So we thought, "This is just the job, isn't it?"

:55:48. > :55:54.And then just fill your little funnel up.

:55:55. > :55:56.Just gently, gently catchy monkey.

:55:57. > :56:00.Just drizzle it in and let it find its own way.

:56:01. > :56:03.And that's going to set around that lovely meat.

:56:04. > :56:06.Yeah, it's perfect, Kingy, just keep it dribbling.

:56:07. > :56:08.What I love about these funnels though,

:56:09. > :56:10.they're so hygienic too aren't they? Oh, very.

:56:11. > :56:14.And now, abracadabra! Hocus pocus! Izzy wizzy!

:56:15. > :56:17.Piff, paff, poof! Shazam! Oh, I can't think of any more, me.

:56:18. > :56:21.No worries, they're all ready. Let's get offski.

:56:22. > :56:26.with Riesling wine jelly in Luxembourg. Yeah.

:56:27. > :56:29.All we need to find now is to find somewhere equally fabulous

:56:30. > :56:35.I think you and I know the very place.

:56:36. > :56:46.We're off to our ultimate and final destination.

:56:47. > :56:49.Careful on those corners, Kingy. We've precious cargo on board.

:56:50. > :56:53.We're heading to the beautiful little cobbled town of Vianden.

:56:54. > :56:55.It looks like we're going a long way on the map,

:56:56. > :56:57.but the whole country is only 51 miles top to bottom,

:56:58. > :57:10.But the main reason for coming here is the stunning Medieval castle.

:57:11. > :57:15.It's a bit like fairytale, isn't it?

:57:16. > :57:19.What? I reckon that we have captured the essence of Luxembourg.

:57:20. > :57:21.We've got the castle, we've got the sunshine,

:57:22. > :57:25.and we've got the pastries. Shall we, dear heart?

:57:26. > :57:28.Oh, yes. Go on. I'm really looking forward to this.

:57:29. > :57:44.It's been a good trip this, hasn't it, the Low Countries?

:57:45. > :57:48.We've met some bonkers bakers. Fantastic. Yeah.

:57:49. > :57:52.you had the most mind-blowing flavours and textures.

:57:53. > :57:54.It was really cutting edge that, wasn't it?

:57:55. > :58:01.You could say that, dude. I mean, the lazy boys' buns.

:58:02. > :58:02.And Bruges, the centre of chocoholic life,

:58:03. > :58:06.making the ultimate Belgian chocolate truffle cheesecake.

:58:07. > :58:10.And then, the madness that is the Atomium.

:58:11. > :58:19.I have to say most of the Chinese population were fascinated by those.

:58:20. > :58:31.The next leg of our Bakeation takes us into Germany.

:58:32. > :58:34.Or, the southern states of Germany, to be precise, Kingy.

:58:35. > :58:36.We're starting off our baking odyssey in the Rhineland,

:58:37. > :58:39.Finishing our trip in Bavaria with...

:58:40. > :58:45.So, why not join us again for the next leg of our fantastic...

:58:46. > :58:56.If you've been inspired to master your boules,

:58:57. > :58:59.And follow the links to the Open University.