Antiques Road Trip

VOICEOVER (VO): It's the nation's favorite antiques experts... Let's get fancy.

VO: ..behind the wheel of a classic car.

I'm always in turbo.

VO: And a goal - to scour Britain for antiques.

Hot stuff!

VO: The aim - to make the biggest profit at auction.

IZZIE: (GASPS) VO: But it's no mean feat.

There'll be worthy winners... PHIL: Cha-ching.

MARK: Oh, my goodness!

VO: ..and valiant losers.

DAVID: Bonkers!

VO: Will it be the high road to glory... You are my ray of sunshine.

NATASHA: Oh, stop it!

VO: ..or the slow road VO: to disaster?

(GEARS CRUNCH) Sorry!

VO: This is Antiques Road Trip.

Yeah!

# If you go down to the woods today # You're sure of a big surprise.

# DAVID (DH): What do you think about this?

I love a bit of this!

CATHERINE (CS): Oh, my goodness me!

DH: I hope the water... VO: Our antique teddy bears - dealer David Harper and auctioneer Catherine Southon - are picnicking in the West Country on this rather soggy morning.

Did you used to come to Devon as a little girl?

We used to go to Devon quite a lot, actually, yeah.

CS: Yeah, I did.

DH: Did you?

Yeah.

And I used to think it was, like, the end of the world.

CS: We used to... DH: Why?

It seemed like a long journey?

Oh, my goodness.

It seemed like we were traveling for, oh, weeks to get there.

Were you one of these nightmare children?

DH: "Are we there yet?"

CS: Are we nearly there yet?!

Were you doing that?

I bet you were.

VO: Catherine and David began their adventure in Kent and have kept the English Channel close by as they've traveled west.

DH: I feel very much at home in this part of the world.

Well, the coast is lovely and we're not too far from the Jurassic Coast.

Jurassic Coast.

I like a bit of fossil... We should do a fossil-hunting trip.

Don't you think?

That's a proper Antiques Road Trip, isn't it?

Yeah, hunting for those.

But mind you, we're not far off being fossils ourselves.

Well, speak for yourself!

VO: Last time, Catherine was a mere four centuries old.

Ha.

And David couldn't keep his end up at pottery.

I was doing so well.

VO: But they were sprightly enough for a cocktail or two... You look like a... DH: Plonker?

CS: Well, yes.

Yes.

VO: ..before justice was served.

I sentence you, David Harper, for crimes against trousers.

Listen, I know I'm a bit too far south to be wearing tartan trews, but I do like them.

Are you hoping to get money off things today wearing those?

Cuz I think people are going to put the prices up.

Why?

When they see the tartan trews, think, "He's bonkers!"

They'll think he's bonkers... DH: "Let's charge him double."

CS: Yeah.

He must have a lot of money if he's wearing trousers like that.

Somebody must have paid him to wear those!

(THEY CHUCKLE) VO: Having started out with �200, Catherine has grown her cash to a new total of �280.96.

While David's piggy is rather fatter, containing �346.40.

Well done.

We've had fun.

And fun is more important DH: than money.

CS: Than making money.

People have got to realize that.

Yeah, but it is the Antiques Road Trip.

And do you know what?

I'm going to leave the best to last.

DH: You are?

CS: Yes.

DH: Really?

CS: Oh, yes.

Well, it's not going to be difficult, is it?

I'm going...

I used...

Yes.

No, this was my tactics all along.

DH: I'll be rubbish all the way.

CS: Yeah, be rubbish all along.

The last couple of days, just go wham!

VO: The final reckoning between these two will be witnessed in Trowbridge, but Catherine has been dropped off in Sidmouth.

A seaside Regency town which John Betjeman eulogized as "a town caught still in a timeless charm".

Her first shop is Antiques on High.

And it looks like there's a lot of timeless charm packed away in the cases and on the shelves, just waiting for our discerning expert to alight upon it.

Who is this guy?

Generally speaking, these cast iron doorstops have been bad news for me on Antiques Road Trip, but this is particularly appealing to me.

Firstly because we have a rather smartly dressed young gentleman who to me looks like he's just been on a hunt or something, and he's got a gun under his arm.

But look at how well dressed he is.

Look at the detail on his jacket, look at the buttons.

Really good weight.

And I think in a country home, something like this would look rather smart.

Definitely Edwardian, definitely around sort of 1910, I would say.

And what's on this?

It's got �90 on the ticket.

Whatever it is, that's coming home with me, because that's incredibly well detailed, beautifully cast, and I love it.

David's going to be so jealous.

Is he indeed?

Now, talking of the garish-trousered one, David is bound for Topsham on the River Exe - a historic port dating back to the Roman occupation.

Topsham Quay Antiques Centre is a postwar former flower storage building on the riverside.

Hey!

Don't finish up in the drink, David!

This huge store houses 65 dealers over three floors, so David will have to get a move on to cover the ground.

DH: (CHUCKLES) Some things really put a smile on your face.

OK, let's just get our thinking heads around this piece.

It's West African.

There's no doubt about it.

It's handmade, it's a fetish doll.

It doesn't look like a doll, but that's how we describe them.

And it's a gift.

It's the kind of thing that one would give as a wedding gift.

It's just full of love and good luck.

Handmade and inset with - what?

- hundreds, maybe a thousand beads all put in individually using like a gritty, sandy grout to hold them in place.

And these little plastic roundels - they're probably even games counters just recycled.

To be an antique, strictly speaking, something needs to be 100 years old.

This is absolutely not 100 years old.

It might be very lucky to be 50, more likely 20 or 30 years old, but it's just got the look.

And the look in the world of antiques and interiors is more important than age.

It's a statement piece, priced at 35 quid.

To me, it is absolutely no money.

I love buying things that other people hate.

Talk about touching the senses.

This thing really brings all of your senses alive.

35 quid.

I'm having it.

VO: It is rather good, isn't it?

Back in Sidmouth, what's floating Catherine's boat?

I'm actually drawn towards cabinet seven.

Ooh!

It's nice to buy something completely different that you've never bought before.

That's interesting.

A conductor's baton.

It's quite nicely chased with this sort of floral decoration.

And then it's got these interlaced initials.

It would have to be a hardwood, like a rosewood or something like that.

But this is black, so it's going to be... What have they put?

Ah, there you go, they've put "white metal".

Now, you see, if it's not hallmark silver, you've got to be very careful and put "white metal" and ebony.

And they've put conductor's baton.

OK.

They've not dated it but I would say from the decoration it looks sort of late Victorian, going into Edwardian.

OK, what's on this?

�99.

Seems quite a lot.

Let's go and see if I can get Vince to change his tune.

VO: Boom, boom.

Ha.

DH: Vince.

VINCE: Hello there, Catherine.

I'm wondering if you're singing to my tune today.

Oh, dear.

Oh, you found the baton.

I found the baton, but I've also found this handsome chap.

Oh, yeah, that's nice, isn't it?

Isn't it?

Oh, you don't sound very enthusiastic, Vince!

(THEY CHUCKLE) I thought it was going to go through the glass, to be honest with you.

It's quite heavy.

It is incredibly heavy, but sign of quality, though.

I did like him, wasn't so keen on the price.

�90.

So I just wondered if something could be done on that.

Yes, we can do something on that.

And then also...

The baton.

The baton.

VINCE: Hmm.

CS: It's got �99 on it, which I think might be a bit steep.

So the two come to 200, near as dammit.

Yeah, I suppose they do.

85 for the pair.

CS: Really?!

VINCE: Yeah.

Go on.

OK, are you happy with that?

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm happy with that.

Yeah.

CS: 85 for the two?

VINCE: Yeah.

VO: Now that is generous, Vince.

Surprised she hasn't bitten your hand off.

CS: Wonderful.

VINCE: Alright, Catherine, VINCE: take care.

Bye.

CS: Thanks a lot.

Bye-bye.

CS: Happy days, eh, Catherine?

Meanwhile, has Mr Harper found something else for us to love?

Oh, hello.

What's... Oh, my goodness me.

Let me show you something.

It's effectively a trident.

Look at that.

It's a... iron...

Probably 19th century spear for catching eels.

Look at the barbs.

Look at the way that each and every one of them are distinctly different, each one made individually.

That's a really lovely thing.

Priced �68.

How much would it sell for?

I've absolutely no idea whatsoever.

VO: Well, let's find out what you could buy it for from Beverley, shall we?

And what about the fetish doll?

Beverley, feast your eyes on a magnificent piece of sculpture-stroke-art.

What do you think?

DEALER: Mm, not a lot.

(THEY LAUGH) It's one of those things.

I found someone who hates him.

DH: Fantastic!

I love him.

DEALER: It's not my style.

DH: Not your style?

DEALER: No, afraid not.

He's �35.

I'm going to have him.

DEALER: A bargain.

DH: Brilliant.

DH: Thank you very much.

DEALER: Jolly good.

What else have you got there?

This one here.

The eel spear.

DEALER: Yeah.

DH: Priced at 68.

I don't know what it's worth.

Is it worth a fiver or 100 quid?

Who knows?

What's the best on it?

55.

DH: Can we do 50?

DEALER: Can we do 50?

DEALER: Yeah, go on.

DH: We can do 50.

Brilliant.

OK. VO: Well, that's the eel deal, then, isn't it?

DEALER: Thank you.

DH: Cheerio.

DEALER: Happy hunting.

DH: Bye.

VO: See you later!

Catherine has headed into the countryside a few miles south from Exeter to the village of Exminster.

She's on the trail of a leviathan of the agricultural revolution and, at Berrybrook Steam and Classics, a family business restoring and selling historic vehicles, fourth generation dealer Matt Anthony is ready to share his passion for the mighty traction engine.

MATT: Hello.

CS: Hi, I'm Catherine.

This is incredible.

All these wonderful engines.

MATT: It's amazing, isn't it?

CS: Really quite special.

What we've got in front of us are miniatures of the real thing.

The steam traction engine is a road-going steam engine, basically.

It's a power source.

They were used for haulage and they were used for agriculture.

VO: The first commercial traction engine was built by Thomas Aveling, a farmer, in 1859.

Farms were already using engines pulled by horses, but Aveling developed self-propelled vehicles capable of plowing 10 or 12 times the area that horses could plow in a day.

His company, Aveling and Porter, successfully manufactured these locomotives for farming and then for road construction - a great example of Victorian engineering and innovation.

Use of them continued right through to the 1950s in some cases, and actually there are examples of steam rollers that carried on right through to the late '60s, even the early '70s.

VO: The traction engine became subject to an axle weight tax, which made them costly to operate, and by the 1920s, the internal combustion engine began to replace them.

However, Matt has one of these big beasts and it's still fully operational.

This is really quite incredible.

(CHUCKLES) CS: Who is this?

MATT: This is Maverick.

So Maverick is a 1925 traction engine.

And what would Maverick have been used for?

Maverick was a general purpose traction engine, used for agricultural purposes, primarily threshing, running a threshing drum.

So an important part of agriculture.

Massive, massively important.

I'm dying to get behind that wheel.

CS: Can I go and have a go?

MATT: Let's have a go.

CS: Right!

MATT: I'll hold on to that one.

So, yeah, if you want to get your left foot on there...

Right, easier said than done.

OK, great.

Just start off going straight.

Oh, whoa, whoa.

It's quite docile.

It takes a few turns to get it to go round.

So if you hold on to that handle there.

OK. And you can see those front wheels starting to... CS: (STRAINS) It's really stiff!

MATT: ..starting to move.

I'm considered the driver.

Traction engines had two people driving.

CS: Right.

MATT: They had a driver and they had a steersperson.

CS: So am I the steerperson?

MATT: You're the steersperson.

And I am using the regulator, which is the old-fashioned equivalent of the accelerator.

Right.

OK. And that's what you're doing here?

That's what makes it go.

CS: We've actually got to turn right here.

MATT: We've got to turn right.

Yeah, we'll follow that back.

This is incredible!

This is something... MATT: It's amazing.

CS: ..really, really incredible.

It's going to make a bit of a noise cuz the brakes are a bit squeaky.

I don't care!

This is...

This is a dream, to do something like this.

I feel like I'm on top of the world.

How on Earth are you going to go up this hill?!

MATT: Lots of power!

(THEY CHUCKLE) CS: Oh, wow!

Crikey, the power of this to go up.

Amazing, isn't it?

CS: (CHUCKLES) MATT: Traction engines were measured in nominal horsepower, which isn't actually comparable to any sort of diesel or petrol vehicles.

Maverick is a seven nominal horsepower traction engine, which is kind of a mid-powered traction engine.

Right.

But what really set them aside was how much torque they could produce, how much they could pull, the direct gearing to the back wheels, the expansive steam power.

It really made them powerful in a slightly different way to what we're used to today.

Going up that hill is something I will never, ever, ever experience.

And that was phenomenal.

That was incredible.

We fitted rubber tires to help with the modern hard roads.

CS: So there was no tires originally?

Originally, no.

It was running on metal.

We call them metal straights.

Oh, crikey.

So they looked very similar to what they are.

In fact, they're still underneath.

MATT: They're still there.

CS: Yeah.

We've not removed anything.

We've just added some rubber to help.

To help us now.

I have to say, on the Antiques Road Trip, which I've been doing for a very long time, this is the best thing I have ever done.

VO: Great to see Britain's steam heritage still on the road, and well driven, Catherine and Matt.

David's steaming on too.

Ha!

This is very exciting.

Ha-hey!

VO: He's tootling southwest to Ashburton, on the edge of Dartmoor, a stannary town where tin mining was once big business.

DH: Oh, would you look at that?

I've been outdone by a Triumph Stag!

Unbelievable!

VO: Well, it is classy, but then so are those trousers.

In A Nutshell Antiques and Interiors sell and restore antiques.

And with Lydia on hand to help, it looks like just the place for finding something unusual.

Oodles here.

And he's still got �261.40.

Well, he was banging on about all the senses.

Oh, I think I've just got to take a seat.

I mean, this is so terribly inviting, isn't it?

I love the way, actually, this shop sets things out.

They really paint a picture, don't they, of how things could look in a home.

Wonderful things here.

Bread boards and... Oh, my goodness me, look at that.

The most delectable miniature novelty silver chamberstick, obviously for holding a candle, and called a chamberstick to take it to your chamber.

There are the hallmarks, right in the center.

Birmingham, 1840.

Queen Victoria came to the throne in 1837, so it's just Victorian.

I absolutely love it.

And there's a very good market for novelty things.

Priced at 50 quid.

I mean, it's absolutely no money.

OK, I'm going to have that for certain.

But talking of silver, let me show you a piece of solid silver.

And wow, that is heavy.

So this is, what?

It says George IV, London, 1826.

Yeah.

George IV.

So he reigned until 1830.

So this is a serving spoon, sometimes referred to as a stuffing spoon, beautifully hallmarked.

There's the leopard's head looking right at you for London.

There's George IV's head stamped there.

It's perfect.

Priced, I think remarkably, at �85.

That is a cracking, delicious spoon.

And I just have to buy it.

I have to buy it.

VO: I'm not arguing.

DH: Lydia.

LYDIA: Oh, hiya, David.

I've absolutely fallen in love with these two things.

Oh, great.

DH: Just fabulous, aren't they?

LYDIA: Thank you.

They're really lovely.

It's a good choice.

And well priced.

I mean, look at that.

1826.

You've obviously priced that, 85, based on scrap, I'm assuming.

Yes.

Near enough, yeah.

But so much better than that.

Such good quality.

It is.

It really is.

Normally, I think I'd just have it, 85.

But can we shave a little bit off?

Yeah, of course.

I'll do that one for 75.

OK.

Done deal.

OK. And what do you think about that?

I mean, it just puts a smile on my face.

So sweet.

Lovely piece.

DH: Gorgeous.

LYDIA: Yeah.

OK.

So, priced at 50.

We'll do that one at 45.

You can even have the candle.

DH: Can I?

LYDIA: Yeah.

You're an angel.

Thank you very much.

VO: I make that �120.

Sterling work.

DH: Thanks a lot.

LYDIA: Thank you.

Best of luck.

DH: See you again.

Bye.

LYDIA: Bye!

VO: Back to the car, tartan breeks.

Triumph Stags should be banned.

Banned!

VO: And tartan trews on an Englishman while you're at it!

Time to pick up Catherine.

What's on the agenda for the evening?

Feet up, glass of wine?

Let's go fossil hunting!

I'll tell you what.

I'll wait in the car.

DH: (CHUCKLES) You go off and get your fossils.

You eat fish and chips.

I'll go fossil hunting.

That sounds perfect.

Each to their own.

Nighty-night!

Good morning, Devon!

Have we awakened to the call of the lesser spotted Harper?

(MIMICS BIRD CALL) It's a bird.

CS: It's a bird.

DH: It's a bird.

That's not an instrument.

CS: We can all do that.

DH: I am a human instrument.

CS: OK, so... DH: You can't do that.

CS: No.

DH: You definitely... DH: It took me... CS: I can play the piano.

It took me months to do that.

You attract certain birds, but not the kind of birds I'm interested in.

(CHUCKLES) CS: Carry On Antiques Road Trip, eh?!

Yesterday, David fancied a large Georgian silver basting spoon.

And, wow, that is heavy.

VO: He also scooped up a fetish doll...

This thing really brings all of your senses alive.

VO: ..a chamberstick and an eel spear - words it's hard to imagine together in a single sentence - and he still has �141.40 left.

Catherine bought a Victorian conductor's baton.

I don't think it's silver.

I think it's probably just, just...

It looks silver to me.

It's very Victorian.

With the chasing and the... DH: Yeah.

CS: ..what-have-you.

DH: And very old-fashioned... CS: Yeah.

..and not the current market... CS: (CHUCKLES) DH: ..and a... swizzly stick, and nobody buys them.

What do you think about that?

Well, thank you very much.

I thought it was alright.

VO: But her other by yesterday was the brass doorstop.

So, Catherine's budget today is �195.96.

CS: If you had one word to say to sum up this trip, what would it be?

DH: Heavenly.

CS: Oh, David!

Heavenly!

DH: What about you?

CS: Hilarious.

Ah, good!

Heavenly, hilarious!

That's a very good combination.

CS: No, it has been so much fun.

DH: Yeah.

I've giggled a lot, I really have.

Yeah, me too - particularly with you driving.

It's been really exciting.

VO: After dropping off David, Catherine's headed for Brixham this morning, and Decades Past... ..where the possibilities look promising.

The dogs are lying, but not sleeping, and Andrea is on hand to help.

Catherine, this is your final day to shop on this trip.

What will it be?

Lovely jewelry...

I can't resist a silver cabinet.

I'm drawn towards this little decanter label.

Decanter labels can be collectable if there's something a little bit different, and I quite like that one because it's in the shape of a heart, and we've got a B on, for brandy, and initials on it.

L&S for Levi & Salaman.

It's just incredibly light, so, a really thin, thin gage - but then I suppose you wouldn't expect them to be very heavy.

It's quite cute.

I mean, generally speaking, decanter labels, if they are 1900 around that sort of date, so, sort of late Victorian, early Edwardian, you would expect them to be about �15, �20.

But that one's quite nice because it's heart shaped, so I think you'd always pay a little bit more, and it's nicely decorated round the outside, with this sort of repousse decoration of the scrolls around the heart.

VO: This one's priced at 58.

There is a tiny, tiny, tiny break in the suspension loop.

I'm going to find out what I can get for this.

CS: Andrea, hi, there.

Hi.

DEALER: Hello, Catherine.

OK, I've had a good look around.

Thank you very much.

Seen some lovely items, actually, some unusual pieces.

Found this little decanter label, CS: which is rather nice.

DEALER: Yeah.

DEALER: Very unusual, that one.

CS: Silver.

I just thought that was rather charming - but, I don't know if you know, but there is a little break on the suspension loop on the side.

No, I hadn't spotted that one.

Oh, just on one side.

So, I'm literally homing in on everything at the moment because it's... it's the end of the road, the big road trip for us.

You have got �58 on that.

Could this possibly be 30?

As it's got the damage, yes, we'll do it for 30.

30, OK. That will be great.

VO: 30 down and 165 left.

DEALER: Good luck.

CS: Bye-bye.

DEALER: Bye.

VO: See ya later!

David's going west now to the point where Devon meets Cornwall across the wide mouth of the River Tamar... ..where once the crossing could only be made by boat.

The amazing skill of civil engineers in the 1850s and then the 1950s created these titanic twin bridges, joining Plymouth to Saltash and opening up the South West via rail and road.

Isambard Kingdom Brunel, a giant of Victorian engineering, began designing the Albert Bridge in 1846.

Bridge manager Mark Meredith is taking David out alongside for a closer look.

When you're on the bridge, Mark, you really get a sense of the size and scale of this thing.

I mean, it's remarkable - but, I mean, what kind of feat was it to build that in its day?

MARK: Oh, I think it was an amazing feat, and Brunel would have experienced and looked at these other crossings.

For example, the High Level Bridge in Newcastle and the Britannia Bridge in the Menai Strait.

Brunel would have been looking at the construction, looking at the good lessons learnt, and just as importantly looking at where things went wrong to hopefully improve his solution.

And did he improve it?

I mean, is this a better bridge?

It's a different type of bridge to those two bridges, but that was Brunel's genius in bringing together different structural types of bridges MARK: in one bridge.

DH: Right.

And of course, the Admiralty, who were the largest and most important user of the River Tamar of the day, gave Brunel some quite difficult challenges in the design.

So the first on that was to maintain 100 foot minimum clearance, or 30.5 meters, that's for the tall ships, and secondly, the Admiralty only allowed for one pier in the river itself.

So, that influenced Brunel's design.

He tested many different shapes and sizes.

Engineers of the day also - well, they were a little bit doubtful that the rock on either side of the river would be suitable to support suspension chains.

So, Brunel's final idea was to incorporate both a suspension bridge and an arch bridge in the same design - but to stop the towers from falling in on themselves because of the weight, he then built these arches.

DH: The tubular things.

MARK: The tubular arches, yeah.

So, the design he came up with both hybrid being very successful, and it met the Admiralty's conditions.

DH: Fantastic.

VO: Work began on the wrought iron construction in 1854 on the Saltash side.

By 1856, the central pier was in place and the complex web of girders progressed until the great spans were floated out on pontoons and finally hoisted into place.

DH: And he built it so beautifully.

I mean, was the design designed to be so sculptural DH: and pleasing on the eye?

MARK: I think so.

I think Brunel recognized the importance of showing the engineering and really sort of making the journey romantic.

DH: A real experience.

A real experience, absolutely.

I mean, it's almost space travel in the day.

I think it was, I think it was!

It took nine days to travel from Truro to London by Royal Mail Stagecoach, and suddenly, the railway, you could do it in nine hours.

DH: It must have brought Cornwall really into the fold, because it's always felt like it was separate.

I think so - and, of course, not only did it bring Cornwall and Devon products to London and the other big cities, it brought the ideas of London and the big cities to Cornwall.

You don't think about that - of course, it must have done.

Yeah, it was a two way process, and the London newspapers of the day could be read by someone in Cornwall or Truro on the same day.

How terribly modern.

VO: The bridge was opened by its namesake, Prince Albert, in 1859.

And what about Brunel himself?

Was he here on the day of opening?

MARK: Sadly, on the day of opening, Brunel was quite ill, so we believe he wasn't here, and it was some weeks later that they organized a carriage for him so he could come on a train, of course, MARK: which was important... DH: OK. ..and he saw the open bridge from a carriage - but, yes, his health started to deteriorate and actually he died later that same year.

Yes.

And his name is there for all to see for evermore.

Absolutely.

1859.

DH: Keep the memory alive.

It's beautiful.

VO: And just as the Albert Bridge advanced rail travel, its twin bridge was a response to the age of motor transport.

Opened in 1961, this first postwar suspension bridge, held up by 850 tons of cable, was designed to support 20,000 vehicles a day for a toll of three shillings a journey.

Both these impressive structures are still doing their job, and a testament to the engineering skill and craftsmanship that created them and linked these two counties.

Catherine is still on the Devon side of these bridges as she makes her way to the last shop of the trip.

What's on her mind?

I think we've bought some interesting things, but I don't think either of us have really pulled it out of the bag.

So, now, right at the last minute, one of us has to buy that special something... and it's going to be me.

Ha-ha!

(SQUEAKING) This is really squeaky!

(MIMICS SQUEAKING) VO: Poor car.

What a week, eh?

Hopefully it will make it as far as Kingsbridge, which is our final destination.

Kingsbridge Antiques Centre is a fine 18th century building big enough inside to house the wares of 20 dealers.

There's five rooms full of stuff, and no sign of David.

Find that fabulous thing to splash your �165.96 on.

I am drawn towards tiles, and I'm very much drawn to this.

If you want to buy a tile, the tile that everybody wants - Morgan.

William De Morgan.

William De Morgan, of course, pal of William Morris.

So we're talking sort of late part of the 19th century.

Such a shame this has got a big chunk out of it - but looking on the back there, can you see that stamp?

You've got there, WDEM, It's William De Morgan, and the Merton Abbey, and then you've got a little picture of the abbey there.

How much is on that?

�105.

That's quite a lot, you may think, for a broken tile, but... (SIGHS) But it is missing a big section.

I'm thinking about that.

That could be good.

VO: Don't dither for too long.

The word on the street is that David is arriving... ..and his �141.40 is burning a hole in his pocket.

And when you look at tiles, the kind of things that you put by a fireplace... VO: Tiles seem to be all we're thinking about today.

Sometimes not all tiles made for fireplaces ever spent any time on a fireplace, and I think this is probably a good example.

I doubt this has ever been attached to a fireplace.

This is by Minton's, I can tell.

Minton's, really good quality, Stoke-on-Trent, the potteries in the Midlands of England.

Look at the markings.

Stoke-on-Trent, no country of origin marks, so it's pre-1892.

But the scene itself is classical, and very modern for its time.

So, I put this at about 1870, because this is a scene from Sir Walter Scott's book Fair Maid Of Perth.

In good condition.

Run your fingers all the way around the outside edge.

Feel for chips.

So, there are the occasional tiny little nibble, but you've got to be forgiving.

So, there we have Minton, cracking quality English maker, and it's priced �65.

Right.

Nice one.

VO: It is.

Time for a deal.

Geoffrey?

David, yes.

How can I help?

Right.

You can help me greatly... DEALER: Good.

DH: ..by doing a cracking deal on this Minton tile.

DEALER: It is beautiful.

DH: Priced at 68.

I think the best I could do on that would be... Go on, Geoffrey.

You can do it, Geoffrey.

You can do it.

DEALER: 58.

DH: 58.

Can we make it 55?

Because I don't have any change.

55 for you would be bliss.

You're a top man.

VO: 55, and he's all done.

A great delight, great shop, lovely building.

DEALER: You're very kind.

DH: Thank you.

VO: After her dalliance with that tile, is Catherine any further forward?

That's quite interesting.

Advertising signs always do incredibly well.

The problem is, what you've got to be careful of, is that there are so many reproductions.

This one, the amount of rust and damage, this is 100% genuine and probably, I would say, about 1940s, 1950s.

I actually really like this.

I love the green on this.

It's a really nice, vibrant color.

What's he asking for this?

OK, �66.

Yeah.

Let's go and see Geoffrey.

See what he thinks.

VO: Lead on.

DH: Hello.

CS: (CHUCKLES) You look stupid there!

DH: Stupid?!

CS: Completely stupid.

Why would you say I look stupid?

What are you doing?!

What are you doing in here?

DH: I'm emot... CS: You're in a tiny little corner!

I know, because I just feel emotionally exhausted.

CS: Are you?

DH: Yeah.

I found some really good things and I'm going to go and buy them and get on the road.

Can I just emotionally charge myself for a little while?

You do what you like.

I have no interest in what you do.

You carry on.

I'll see you later.

No wonder I'm an absolute quivering wreck.

VO: Oh, get a grip, man.

Geoffrey, I love the little pooch.

DEALER: His name is Spike.

CS: Spike!

DEALER: Yes.

CS: Oh, because of the collar.

DEALER: Yes.

CS: Very nice.

Very good.

CS: William De Morgan.

DEALER: It's a blue tile.

You've got 105 on it.

Any chance of a little deal on that one?

The very best I could do would be 90.

Right.

OK - and then I also like, you've got a sign up there, CS: Redgate.

DEALER: Yes.

CS: You've got 66 on it.

DEALER: Yeah.

My feeling on that was about 40, cuz it is in really bad state.

OK.

The very, very best I could do on that would be 50.

CS: If I did 50 on that... Oh...

If you did 50 on that, I'd come down to 85 on the tile.

135 in total.

I couldn't go further.

135.

Oh, you look very serious!

You look very, very serious.

Here we are.

Right.

Let me try and get my money.

VO: That's a lot - VO: but it's now or never.

CS: Thank you very much.

DEALER: Thank you for coming in.

CS: Thank you ever so much.

CS: Bye-bye.

DEALER: Thank you, bye.

VO: And with that sign already loaded, they're all done.

Don't fall over, cuz your tile might break.

CS: (CHUCKLES) Shut up!

VO: Or she might hit you over the head with it.

Now, all that remains on this trip is the last auction.

Oh, yes - and getting home today.

(MOTOR FALTERS) Oh, dear.

Ready?

DH: Go.

CS: Go, go, go!

CS: This is very good stuff.

DH: Teamwork.

Teamwork.

Hates hills, she hates hills.

Hates hills.

Not sure this car's going to make it to the auction!

Put your clutch in.

Clutch in.

Go.

CS: Yeah.

DH: Does that help?

Yeah, we are definitely going to auction now.

CS: There is no turning back!

DH: Yeah!

This car is on its way.

This car does not reverse.

No!

There is indeed no way back!

See you soon.

It's the day of reckoning, and Catherine and David are headed to Wiltshire, where, at the county town, proceedings will soon begin to establish a victor.

Trowbridge is the appointed place, a historic town of 24 households at the time of the Domesday Book.

This residence was built 700 years later in what had become a thriving mill town, and the Georgian Grade I listed Parade House is our elegant location today.

CS: What a beautiful building.

DH: Oh!

CS: What a lovely facade.

DH: It is.

CS: Don't we look good walking in here?

VO: Who wouldn't?

Catherine and David will be watching on their tablets as their purchases go under the hammer at Bourne End Auction Rooms in Buckinghamshire.

This is an online only auction, with plenty of interesting-looking items going under the hammer of auctioneer Hugo Lemon.

David bought five lots, which cost him a total of �260.

What caught Hugo's eye?

The Victorian silver chamberstick, beautifully decorated with the leaf on it.

I think it's going to appeal to those people who like miniature silver.

Catherine spent almost the same - �250 - on her five lots.

Hugo?

William Morgan tile.

What can I say?

It's a great name to it.

Yes, it is damaged, which will affect the price hugely, but blue and white, people do like it, and therefore there will be collectors out there that will be looking for it.

VO: If you're all set back in Trowbridge, we're off.

Right.

Shall we see what happens?

DH: Shall we do it?

CS: Right.

VO: First, who will dance to the tune of Catherine's conductor's baton?

It felt good as well.

It was very heavy.

I didn't think would be as heavy as that.

DH: Mm.

CS: But anyway, good, hard wood.

50 I'm bid.

Thank you.

55, thank you, online, and 60, 60 I'm bid, thank you.

And five?

DH: Oh!

HUGO: At 60 I'm bid.

Five, I have.

65 now.

CS: 65!

DH: 65?!

I'm selling now.

DH: No, well done.

CS: That's alright.

Good find.

Very good find, that.

VO: And a very good start.

It's there to be used, and who knows what band or orchestra it's going to be... DH: Exactly.

CS: ..conducted?

VO: Under the hammer next is David's fetish doll.

�100 to start.

�50 I'm bid, thank you, and five I'll take.

And five, and 60, I'll take.

Get in!

Come on, baby!

60 I'm bid, thank you.

And five.

70 I'm bid, and five.

There are people out there with style.

80 I'm bid, thank you, and five.

DH: Thank you.

HUGO: At 90.

CS: David!

This is amazing!

DH: Go on!

90 I'm bid, thank you, and five.

CS: Come on!

HUGO: At 95, then, I'm selling at 95.

Yes!

CS: David, come on!

DH: There you go.

VO: She certainly did bring good luck.

That is amazing.

DH: Isn't that good?

CS: That is really, really good.

VO: Can Catherine's decanter label match that?

What's really sad is people don't really CS: use decanters, do they?

DH: No, they don't.

And they don't really put decanter labels on them when they do have decanters.

No.

I think they drink straight out of the bottle these days!

CS: Yeah.

HUGO: �30 for it.

Straight in there at 30 I'm bid.

CS: Hey!

DH: Oh!

35 now online.

I'm selling, then, at 35.

All done, then, at 35?

VO: A fiver's a fiver.

DH: Lightweight heart.

Yeah, it was very lightweight.

DH: Yes.

CS: You needed something with a bit of substance.

VO: Next up is David's eel spear.

I think you have to get pretty up and close and personal to the eel, because it's very short hand handle.

DH: Oh...!

CS: (CHUCKLES) It's missing its long broom handle.

Oh, well I didn't know that!

Well, I can only see a bit of it!

30, then, to start.

30 I'm bid.

Thank you.

32 now I'm bid.

32.

35.

DH: Go on!

HUGO: At �35... DH: Oh, dear.

HUGO: All done at 35.

They're horrible things.

Why would anyone want to eat an eel?

VO: They didn't.

It bombed.

And more so, why would anyone want... CS: an implement to catch one?!

DH: A spear.

No, I know.

Quite obviously... DH: not very many people.

CS: No-one!

VO: And how many people want a cast iron doorstop?

We're about to find out.

�40, 42, 45 on commission.

HUGO: 47, I'll take.

CS: Ooh.

At 45, 47 now.

50 now, I'll take it.

DH: Ooh.

CS: Come on, keep going!

Selling then, at 50.

That's alright.

VO: Easy for him to say.

I really had faith in that, actually.

I thought that would do alright.

VO: Time now for David's silver chamberstick and snuffer.

I like the idea that it's miniature, and that it's silver.

And you know that novelty things are... CS: I think that's nice.

Yeah.

DH: ..always desirable.

Straight in at 50 I'm bid, thank you.

And five, now, I have.

55.

CS: They are sure.

DH: No!

At �55, then.

Selling, then, at 55.

Are you all done?

DH: That's OK. CS: That's alright.

It's a small margin.

VO: And another tenner in his coffer.

I'm satisfied with that.

VO: It's Catherine's big ticket item now.

The William De Morgan tile.

And what about the big, massive crack in the corner?

OK, so it's knackered.

Completely knackered.

50 I'm bid, thank you.

And five.

DH: (INHALES SHARPLY) HUGO: 55, and 60.

HUGO: And five.

And 70.

DH: Ooh.

Selling at 70.

You all done?

If you couldn't afford one CS: in perfect condition... DH: No.

Exactly.

..that is the one to buy.

VO: It was a gamble in that condition, I tell you.

You really don't care, do you?

You do not care at all.

I do!

VO: He'll care if it happens to his tile now.

The Minton one.

Can I show you a tile in good order?

CS: (CHUCKLES) HUGO: 40 I'm bid, Thank you.

DH: Oh... 45, 47 and 50.

55, now, I have.

And 60, I'll take.

All done at 55?

No big deal.

VO: No money either.

Admittedly, yours was the nicer tile.

CS: Thank you very much.

DH: There's no doubt about it.

Do you want to say it again, louder, David?!

You bought the better tile.

CS: Yes!

(THEY LAUGH) VO: Last chance for Catherine to catch him up now, with the tin advertising sign.

Wouldn't that be wonderful CS: in your kitchen or cafe?

DH: Yeah.

Wonderful.

I just think it's such a strong image.

DH: Yeah.

HUGO: 40 I'm bid, thank you.

And two.

42, 45?

45, 47?

47 and 50.

60 I'm bid, thank you.

And five?

65, thank you, and 70?

Selling at 65.

Goodness me, I would have bought that in a heartbeat.

VO: Bit rusty for me, but a nice thing.

It was a little sprinkling CS: of a profit.

DH: Yes.

VO: Time for that final lot under the hammer on this trip - David's George IV silver basting spoon.

It's like a sculptural thing.

It is a thing of beauty.

Start me at �200.

Ooh!

200 I'm bid, thank you.

220... DH: Yes!

CS: David!

220, 240 on commission.

Get in there.

260 I'm bid, thank you.

260 now.

CS: OK, this is incredible.

DH: (CHUCKLES) Are you all done?

Selling, then, at 260.

What did you pay?

I can't even remember CS: what you paid.

DH: 75.

VO: Yes, it's a whacking great profit for a glorious piece.

CS: That's fantastic.

DH: Yeah.

Brilliant.

Absolutely delighted.

VO: I bet you are!

Right, let's get the tallies.

Catherine had ups and downs, but ends the trip after auction costs with a very respectable �264.66.

David fairly pulled it out of the hat at the last, though, and steps up to take a bow with a final total after saleroom fees of �496.40.

Bravo.

After you, madam.

Oh!

Thank you - losers first!

Oh, listen... CS: (CHUCKLES) I've loved it.

DH: It's been brilliant.

CS: Even though you have won... DH: I know.

..and at the end completely slaughtered me.

DH: I haven't!

CS: You won.

You said that last time I beat you.

Oh, alright!

Do you want to rub it in?!

Rub it in, why don't you?!

Bring on the next one, I say!

VO: It was positively a fashion frenzy.

DH: Hello!

CS: Hello!

Two dinosaurs cavorting on the Jurassic Coast.

Ooh!

Leave it!

VO: Catherine steamed on...

This is incredible!

VO: ..with the vision we've come to expect.

DH: It's cracked!

CS: It's very good!

It's only a little crack!

My head is actually stuck in here.

VO: David was at times rather sloppy... What do you think?

Bulldog...?

Ooh!

VO: ..but he had his sights on the main chance... Ha-ha!

VO: ..and despite Catherine's best efforts... (GAVEL) CS: Silence in court.

CS: Oh!

DH: Keep going!

VO: ..he made more money... DH: Yes!

VO: ..but they were both winners, really.

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