Antiques Road Trip

VO: It's the nation's favorite antiques experts...

Perfect.

Sold!

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

Lovely day for it.

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

Every home should have one of these.

VO: The aim?

To make the biggest profit at auction.

But it's no mean feat.

Yes!

VO: There'll be worthy winners... 950.

I'm going to make �1,000!

VO: ..and valiant losers.

Nooooooo!

VO: Will it be the high road to glory?

Make me a big profit.

VO: Or the slow road to disaster?

Are we stuck?

IRITA & RAJ: Yay!

VO: This is the Antiques Road Trip.

Ha-ha!

What fun.

VO: Call the cops!

(SHE SCREAMS) You're a nutter!

VO: We're in sunny Suffolk on a brand-new adventure with antiques hot shots - Raj Bisram and Irita Marriott.

Oh, yes!

IRITA: I can't believe the sky is so blue.

I can stick my hands out of this car!

(HE LAUGHS) RAJ: Woohoo!

VO: Our explorers of the antique goodies are caressing the countryside in this classic roadster - the MG Midget from 1978.

IRITA: Where were you in 1978?

RAJ: In 1978, I'd been out of the army, and I was just turning professional as a skier.

What were you doing?

Whoa, whoa, whoa, Raj!

VO: Yeah, Raj.

Ladies, age - never mention.

Irita is a dealer from Derbyshire with a penchant for continental porcelain.

That's what you call a whopper.

VO: And Raj, who runs a saleroom in Kent, bought his first antique aged 10.

It's just a lovely thing.

VO: And hasn't looked back.

VO: To start this riotous caper off, they each have �200.

Who's going to win?

Well, I will say you just so I'm alive at the end of this ride.

VO: Blimey, eh?

This mission begins in Suffolk, taking a turn around the home counties, and then we're headed west - all the way to Cornwall.

Nice.

IRITA: Can I say I'm in safe hands with you driving?

Absolutely.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Honestly, I've had a license for a week now.

(SHE LAUGHS) VO: Oh, dear.

We're scooting around Suffolk and Norfolk, shopping our way to Swaffham, but we hit it off in Halesworth.

Here come our beautiful flowers, ready to get shopping.

IRITA: Is that it?

RAJ: Wow.

Looks big enough.

VO: Yeah.

Blackdog Antiques and Vintage - watch out.

Trading for over 35 years, Kate and her son Mike are poised, ready to do the deal.

VO: Come on, get your skates on.

Hey, that's clever.

So, what has he found?

What an unusual, interesting piece.

This is a fairground.

You know, one of the games they started at fairgrounds.

You know, probably roll the ball.

I mean, I can remember as a kid playing with them and now they've become really collectable, because the original artwork, they just bring back memories of the fairground, and this is just a lovely piece of that.

VO: Yikes.

The ticket price is 455.

Let's move on, eh?

But that's the kind of price that these items are now fetching, bringing back some very nice memories, that.

VO: Yeah.

Game on.

RAJ: I mean, you know, stoneware, when you get it in this form and this shape is really lovely.

I mean, look at him.

He's got a lovely face.

It is really, really, really damaged.

I mean, I dread to think what's actually going on inside there, but I have to say, I love it.

I think it's just absolutely gorgeous.

It's the damage that worries me.

Dalton, big name, stoneware.

VO: The fellow's ticket price - �55.

Chips and all.

RAJ: I like it.

I have to say.

I know it's broken.

I don't normally buy broken items, but there's something about this face I think's really nice.

IRITA: I like that.

How cute's this?

That is adorable.

Imagine that on Christmas morning for a child waking up to it.

That would have made their day.

Most of the toys these days are made out of plastic.

Kids use them, they get thrown away.

But this is a way of recycling.

It's very, very green.

Why would you want to buy a brand-new one when you can buy one of these?

IRITA: Come on, hop on.

Go on, pop in.

VO: He's such a baby!

(SHE CHUCKLES) Well, it suits you.

It's just the right size for you.

Yeah, well, I like the gee-gees, but usually the bigger ones than that.

VO: You two, honestly.

This is rivalry with a capital R!

Samplers.

What can I say?

They are amazing pieces of social history.

They just make me wonder, "What were people doing?

"What were they actually portraying in their samplers?"

The main reason for actually making samplers was the fact that the girls had to provide the skill of being able to sew.

And this was their proof.

This was like their exam.

It's such a lovely thing and I quite like the subject.

What is it?

�25.

That's no money, is it?

For something that is, what, 100 years old?

I mean, it's not dated, but I would guess this is from early 1900s.

So, it's a proper antique.

Right, I think there's a deal brewing.

IRITA: Mike?

VO: Gird e loins.

MIKE: Hi, there.

IRITA: Hello.

IRITA: What do you think of my choice?

MIKE: It's very nice.

IRITA: Well, it's priced at �25.

MIKE: I think 20 would probably be a fairer price than that... MIKE: ..to be honest with you.

IRITA: OK. VO: It's a GREAT price.

Here is your whole entire �20.

I shall pop it there.

IRITA: Treasure it well.

MIKE: I will.

And I shall treasure this.

Thank you.

MIKE: Thank you.

IRITA: Have a good one.

VO: Well done, Irita.

180 smackers left.

IRITA: Sunshine.

VO: Come on, Raj, get spending.

I mean, here's something.

If this is the right price, I could buy this.

These industrial little cabinets, you know, that you see... you used to see in factories, you know, in the '30s, '40s, '50s.

These have become highly collectable now because people actually use them.

So, this is a nice small one.

So, again, if that's the right price, that's got to be a possibility.

VO: It doesn't have a ticket price.

Anything else?

You know, I'm looking for things that I think, you know, even if it's only a small profit, I can get a profit out of it, I mean, these are, you know, they're good sellers.

It's a mannequin, basically.

What I like about it, it's a little bit different, you know, with this metal skirting, etc, etc.

And I think this is a saleable item.

VO: The mannequin has a ticket.

Hmph!

But no price.

Let's find owner Kate.

RAJ: Hello, Kate.

KATE: Hiya.

RAJ: This is a great shop.

Three items... KATE: Yep.

RAJ: ..I've seen.

The, um, mannequin in the stand.

KATE: Yep.

RAJ: What's the best on that?

KATE: 35?

OK, I'm just going to park that for the moment.

KATE: Yeah.

RAJ: Also, I really... RAJ: ..I don't know why I like this so much because it's so damaged, but I love the flask.

But it's very badly damaged.

It is badly damaged.

Hence the price - �20.

�20.

OK. OK. And the third thing is an industrial metal unit.

One of the old factory metal pieces.

Yeah, yeah.

I know the one you mean.

48 on that.

48.

VO: That's a total of �103.

I'm going to put an offer in actually for all three.

I wondered whether you could do the mannequin for 25, the flask for 15, and the cabinet upstairs for... ..�30?

KATE: Yeah.

OK. RAJ: You happy with that?

KATE: I am.

Yep.

RAJ: We've got a deal.

KATE: Excellent.

VO: Blimey, he doesn't hang about, does he?

Three lovely buys all thanks to the even lovelier Kate.

Raj now has �130.

Irita, meanwhile, has headed east to Lowestoft and to Ness Point, Britain's most easterly point.

VO: At the turn of the last century, during the region's fishing industry heyday, hundreds of vessels would set sail from the town's port.

Wooden ships called smacks were the local trawlermen's craft of choice, designed for the steep short waves of the North Sea.

But one chapter of Lowestoft's maritime history is the role local fishermen played during the First World War against the might of the German Navy.

Local John Wylson wants to share the story of the Great War's forgotten heroes.

IRITA: Hello there, John.

JOHN: Hello, Irita.

When you stand at a headland like this, is wonder what lies over the horizon.

And what... what happened in the past.

VO: In 1913, Lowestoft had the largest fleet of smacks - a type of wooden fishing sailboat.

340 graced the coast, making this port an obvious target for the German Navy.

JOHN: Britain had blockaded Germany, but as the war did not end as quickly as Germany and everyone had hoped, Germany decided to starve Britain into submission.

And this involved sinking our merchant ships bringing food in, but it also meant attacking the fishing fleets.

VO: U-boats preyed on the fishing smacks.

They would surface alongside a smack, order the crew into a lifeboat, before blowing the vessel with dynamite.

49 Lowestoft smacks were sunk in two months.

The losses were such over here that the fishermen clamored to have defensive armament, and the Admiralty eventually agreed to arm some of the smacks.

VO: Known as special service vessels, a small number of smacks were fitted with a concealed 3-pounder gun to attack any approaching U-boats.

John runs a trust keeping the only remaining Lowestoft smack afloat.

The Excelsior, built in 1921, didn't see action, but is constructed to the exact spec to those that did.

JOHN: The Admiralty were looking for the most experienced Lowestoft smacksmen to man these vessels because they had to carry on fishing, but at the same time be ready at the drop of a hat to tackle a submarine if they had the opportunity.

The men on the boats, they weren't actually trained, were they?

They were volunteers.

Yes, they were volunteers.

Although the gunners were trained to use the gun, but the rest of them had to continue fishing.

So, you've got this extraordinary situation where you've got 19th-century wooden sailing vessels versus the latest 20th-century technology.

A most uneven conflict.

VO: It certainly was, but the smacks were wily.

After every engagement with a German submarine, they changed their name to prevent the enemy knowing which vessels were armed.

But the smacks had one big disadvantage.

JOHN: German submarines could spot a smack a long way off because there's 2,500 square foot of red sails to see from a great distance, so smacks were easy to find for submarines.

VO: Local man and exceptional skipper, Tom Crisp, was one of the earliest recruits of this clandestine warfare.

JOHN: Tom Crisp already had a bone to pick with the Germans as they had sunk his smack under him, called the George Borrow, earlier in the war, so he was really keen to get revenge.

VO: Tom's great-granddaughter, Jane, is on board to tell more.

IRITA: Tell me about Tom.

JANE: Although I never met him, my grandfather, um, told me stories about what they did and what they did in the war.

They saw what they thought was a submarine on the horizon, and they started to tack towards it because they wanted to engage with it.

The submarine saw them and started to shell them.

VO: One shell struck the smack.

It started to sink.

Another hit skipper Tom Crisp.

JANE: Obviously, he was dying.

And so what they did is they took him from the tiller, propped him up with the gun, and he kept the boarding party from the submarine away so that the crew could escape.

And they got the small lifeboat out.

And my grandfather, who was only 16, said goodbye to his father on the boat and then jumped into the lifeboat.

I can't imagine what that felt like.

JANE: Yeah.

VO: For this ultimate act of bravery, Tom Crisp Senior was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross, something his son Tom Crisp Junior was exceptionally proud of.

And on his wedding day, he wore his father's Victoria Cross as a memory to him.

I have the Victoria Cross, and as you see, it's got a blue ribbon.

The blue ribbon signifies it's for services for people at sea, so, naval personnel or seamen.

And there isn't many people who have the blue ribbon.

Mostly they're red, which are military.

IRITA: Well deserved.

JANE: Very well deserved.

IRITA: It's a very personal story to you.

But what does his legacy mean to the local community?

I hope the local community do remember him because his life was for Lowestoft and to help support Lowestoft and protect it.

During the darkest days of the Great War, Tom Crisp's bravery bolstered morale.

Luckily, the careful preservation of the Excelsior means that Tom and the fleet of fishermen who took on the German Navy is a legend that continues to be told.

VO: Talking of legends... Are you any good at map reading?

Because I need to get to Norwich.

The first part of my takeover of the world.

VO: Alright, settle down, Raj!

We're off to the county of Norfolk, specifically, Norwich.

Celebrated actor Sir John Mills was born here, don't you know?

Today, Raj is strolling around the most complete medieval city in the UK, seeking divine inspiration in here.

Built around the 15th century, these once sacred walls are today home to a swinging monkey, militaria and jewellery.

Raj has �130 to splash around.

Let's join him on his heavenly wander.

Oh, Lordy!

I mean, there are so many beautiful things here.

To be honest, it's one of those centers where you can lose it a little bit.

And I've seen this lovely little brooch, which is an art deco brooch of two clips.

And it's really...

I mean, that's really pretty.

It's in the sort of shape of lips.

VO: This little sparkler is multifunctional.

It can also transform into a pair of brooches.

Luvely!

�60 on the ticket.

I'm going to take it and speak to the owner and see what the very best is.

VO: Let's take the jewels to Jules!

Who writes this stuff?

Hi, Jules, is it?

Oh, good afternoon.

Hi, hi.

I've found something.

I think it's a really nice, decorative piece.

I've worked out how it all works and everything.

What would be the very best on it?

25.

�25.

RAJ: �25.

JULES: Yeah... Any particular reason why you've come down so low?

Because you've got a nice face.

That's what I wanted... That's what I wanted to hear.

OK. At �25 we have a deal.

JULES: Done, excellent!

RAJ: �25.

JULES: Thank you.

RAJ: I'll be on my way.

Lovely to meet you.

VO: Leaving him with �105.

Your face really is your fortune, Raj!

Thanks, Jules.

VO: Back in the Zippy Roadster... What kind of hotel are we in tonight?

Well, as far as I know, it's a three-star haunted hotel.

Ooh!

VO: Mwah-ha-ha-ha-ha!

Nighty night.

VO: Next morning, Irita's in charge of the wheel.

# Happy birthday... # You know what?

I never thought I would spend my birthday like this, but it's even better than I could ever imagine.

VO: 21 again, Irita!

VO: Yesterday, our birthday girl took it easy dishing out the dosh, with the one buy of the late 19th-century woolwork sampler.

IRITA: It is such a lovely thing.

VO: So, Irita is minted.

She has �180 for today's shopping spree.

While Raj had plenty of pep, energetically buying a Doulton stoneware vase, an industrial 1950s locker, and a late 19th-century mannequin.

Also this art deco paste brooch.

That's really pretty.

It's in the sort of shape of lips.

VO: Which means he has just over �100 in his back pocket.

VO: Right, back to it, then.

Right, Raj.

I've got to do some shopping.

Thank you for all your beautiful singing for my birthday.

RAJ: My pleasure.

IRITA: Have an amazing day.

RAJ: Right!

OK. Erm... Well, that's one way of doing it.

RAJ: Wahey!

Have a lovely day!

Happy birthday.

IRITA: Thank you!

RAJ: What can I say?

Go!

IRITA: See you later!

VO: Very Dukes of Hazzard, this.

We'll catch up with Raj later.

Today, our partygoers are swanning around Norfolk - but with her buddy dropped off, Irita's pointed to Harleston.

The Corn Exchange has been here since the mid 18th century.

Now a heart of trading for the antique lover.

Perfect for our birthday gal.

There's a squad of dealers in Cornucopia, and it's crammed with delights everywhere.

Even a girdle... and suspenders.

Ooh!

She's got a wad of cash.

What will she find?

IRITA: Oh, look.

The little gavels!

They're little gavels, auctioneer gavels, as salt and pepper.

I mean, that is cool.

If you're an auctioneer, surely you have to have one of these.

I kind of feel like this is one of those things that you just have to buy.

I've never, ever seen any.

I mean, don't get me wrong, the quality is not amazing - it's brass and wood - but it's the novelty aspect of them that is just fantastic.

VO: Novelty sells.

They're priced at �29.

That's one possibility.

What else can I spot?

Blue and white.

When you see blue and white, the first thing you think about is oriental.

You just can't help it - and this doesn't disappoint in that matter.

And all it is is a simple teapot with a bit of a chip... Oh!

..and a bit of a crack.

The good thing about this is that the actual body of it is in good condition... ..and it has a character mark on the base, which indicates that it was not made for tourist market.

VO: I think, for my money, this was made not for tea, but for sake - an alcoholic drink often served warm and served out of little pots like these.

Let's crack on, shall we?

I like that.

That appeals to me - and oriental market is very, very strong right now.

Good value for money.

That's what I would say about that.

Another option.

VO: Gathering momentum, Irita.

I feel like buying some bling today, you know, with it being my birthday.

IRITA: Why not?

VO: Yeah, go for it.

VO: What's this, then?

IRITA: People like birds.

VO: True.

IRITA: People love pheasants.

When it comes to jewellery, when you got a mix of enamel and gold, it's usually quite good news, don't you think?

VO: You're so right.

IRITA: We've got a tiny little brooch.

How stylish is that?

So, the bar is actually 9-carat gold.

The pheasant looks like it's 18-carat gold.

VO: Ooh, price, please.

IRITA: Yeah.

�160.

VO: Uh-oh.

IRITA: Can I get my violin out and say... # It's my birthday Give me a discount!

# VO: You can try, girl.

Let's find the man in charge.

Charlie!

IRITA: Hello, Charlie.

CHARLIE: Hello.

I've found three things that I like.

CHARLIE: Excellent.

So, what are we looking at, then?

Right, in the unit just down there, there's a little blue and white Chinese teapot.

CHARLIE: Yes.

Yeah.

IRITA: 20... CHARLIE: I know the one.

25, I think, was on it?

28, it was marked up at.

CHARLIE: 28, right.

IRITA: Yeah.

IRITA: Then, in the same unit, those little gavel pepper pot and salt.

CHARLIE: Yeah.

What could those two be, please?

So, I'd be looking at 35 for the two.

OK, so that's... that's fine with me.

CHARLIE: Good, good.

IRITA: That's a yes.

CHARLIE: OK. IRITA: So I'll have those two.

VO: And the �160 pheasant?

CHARLIE: I know the dealer would go down to 90, but that... IRITA: I'll say yes.

CHARLIE: ..would be the absolute lowest.

CHARLIE: You sure?

IRITA: I'll say yes.

IRITA: I'm getting my money out before you change your mind.

VO: Along with the gavel cruet set for 20, 15 for the Chinese teapot, we have a grand total of �125.

What a girl.

A legend.

CHARLIE: Thank you.

IRITA: Thank you.

IRITA: I really, really appreciate that.

CHARLIE: You're very welcome.

VO: Irita's got �55 left.

VO: Meanwhile, Raj is bunking off buying antiques.

He's in the town of Thetford.

He's come to hear a tale of royalty, riches and intrigue about a princess who risked all to save the lives of strangers - but this incredible story starts with her father, the last king of the Punjab, Maharaja Duleep Singh.

Local historian Peter Bance has researched the family.

RAJ: Hello, Peter.

PETER: Hiya, Raj.

PETER: I see you've found the statue.

RAJ: How did such a magnificent statue end up here?

Well, the Maharaja is greatly associated with Thetford.

After being deposed from the seat at Lahore in the Punjab, effectively, he was exiled to England.

VO: Duleep Singh was just a young lad.

He'd sat on the throne of the Sikh kingdom when the Anglo-Sikh wars took place and the Punjab was annexed to British India.

With his kingdom taken, he was imprisoned and then exiled to Britain.

He was invited to the Court of Queen Victoria, and he became a favorite of the Queen, and invited to every royal function, every wedding, every event of the day.

VO: Young Duleep Singh lived the life of an English aristocrat, not only befriending Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, he invited high society to extravagant shooting parties on his 17,000-acre estate near Thetford.

Got married?

PETER: That's right.

He married a half-German, half-Abyssinian lady called Bamba and they had six children, three sons and three daughters, and many of the children had their own legacies.

VO: But the story of his second daughter, Princess Catherine, is an extraordinary one.

So this is the exhibition room, which has been dedicated to Princess Catherine.

VO: The goddaughter of Queen Victoria, she was introduced to high society at a debutante ball at Buckingham Palace.

Had she met Queen Victoria before this?

Oh, countless times - they would have been brought up with the royal household.

Her siblings had been baptized at Windsor and they would have made numerous trips to the palace throughout their life.

VO: But Princess Catherine had the courage to live her own life and didn't want to be part of the aristocracy.

She attended Oxford university in 1890.

And here we can see Princess Catherine with her fellow students at Somerville Hall, which was a ladies college at Oxford university.

She's surrounded by pioneering women who went on to become social reformers, educational reformers and women that were involved in the suffrage movement.

VO: Princess Catherine also became an active member of the women's rights movement.

PETER: Well, she was a suffragist, not a suffragette.

So rather than being from the sort of fanatical wing, she was more active in raising funds for the movement, campaigning, going to hold bazaars, creating an awareness about women's rights and the right for women to vote, and she was a forerunner in this campaign and led from the start.

VO: In 1928, all British women over the age of 21 were granted the right to vote - but, by this time, Princess Catherine was living in Germany.

Well, she had a German governess, Lina Schafer.

Like many aristocratic children of the time, they took in German governesses who not only became her teacher, her guardian, but also her lover, we could say.

They had a very intimate relationship.

RAJ: Really?

VO: They lived openly as a couple.

Catherine, a South Asian young woman with a devout belief in feminism, was unafraid to reveal her sexuality - but the start of the 20th century was a tumultuous time.

In the 1930s, the Third Reich became a regime in which Germans enjoyed no guaranteed basic rights.

Minorities were targeted.

Her friends and her colleagues told her to leave.

It would be safer for her because she was of Asian origin, but also her sexuality.

But she refused to leave.

It's only after Lina died, in 1937, she actually thought, "Maybe now I should be thinking about coming back to England."

VO: But before fleeing Germany, she helped several Jewish families escape the Holocaust.

Some accounts refer to Catherine as the Indian Schindler after the German industrialist who saved over 1,000 Jews.

Although Catherine's work was never on this scale, it was no less courageous.

She did some amazing acts of kindness on peoples of other faiths, which had no bearing to her, her life or her origins.

And they were?

PETER: They were people from the Jewish religion who were being detained at various camps.

These Jewish families needed someone to save them as refugees and get them out of Germany ASAP.

VO: When Catherine died, she requested her ashes to be divided, with some returning to Thetford.

Today, the memory of the South Asian princess will forever be remembered as a pioneer of the LGBTQ community and as a savior of Jews fleeing Nazi Germany.

Extraordinary story.

Now, where's the birthday gal?

Well, she's headed to the town of Watton.

IRITA: Well, one thing is a benefit of this car.

You can park it anywhere.

VO: She's going into Watton Antique and Collectables Centre.

With �55 in her purse, I wonder what she'll buy next.

This two-floor warehouse is stuffed full, perfect for our intrepid antiquer.

Oh, wow.

Now, this is what you call an occasional table - and it is for every occasion.

When you open it how amazing is this?

You can play all the games you like.

I wish I had time to play some games, but I don't.

I've got to go and do some shopping.

VO: Let's mooch some more.

(CRYSTAL CHIMES) Pure crystal.

IRITA: This looks like a bit of fun, and I like a bit of fun.

Look at that.

VO: Yeah.

Bit scary.

Right, so, if I turn the back, there should be some moving parts.

(IT CHIMES A TUNE) Look at that - the hand moves, the mouth moves, the little clock moves.

A good joke.

I wonder, what was the joke that they're actually telling there?

I wish I would know that.

He's clearly the one telling the joke, and the other one's pointing and laughing.

That's me and Raj this morning in the car.

VO: Nah.

Nobody laughs at Raj's jokes.

IRITA: Automatons have been around since early 1600s, and it's basically a self-controlling, one single mechanism that makes a picture move.

This is rather a simple version of one, because there isn't a lot of parts moving, and, to me, it looks a bit folk-arty - but the big ones, oh, my, are they incredible.

They can be up to 6,000 pieces that are all moving with one mechanism.

What is special about this is it's just unusual - and unusual sells.

And I hope the joke isn't on me.

VO: So, while Irita goes off to find a dealer, let's find Raj, who's just down the road in Swaffham.

Howard Carter, the chap who discovered Tutankhamun, spent a lot of his childhood here.

Let's hope Raj finds some buried treasure in this lovely establishment.

This family-run business has been on the go for the last decade.

Every shelf in Shabby Tat is filled.

Just look at those teds!

Just over �100 to spend in here, Raj - and good luck.

Now, where were my profits coming from?

Oh, dear.

Wow.

Look at that.

That is one of the finest pieces of porcelain that you will see, and it's done by a factory in Northern Ireland called Belleek - and this is one of the early pieces.

I mean, this piece alone is around �1,000.

Absolutely delicate as anything, and it's a little bit pricey for me, but I absolutely love it.

VO: Yeah, nice thing.

Now, what about his chum in Watton?

And what about the unpriced automaton?

There's Beverley here to help.

IRITA: Sorry to disturb you, Beverley.

I've found something, but it has no price on it.

Can you enlighten me, please?

It could be 55.

IRITA: 55?

BEVERLEY: Yeah.

Well, that is all I have left in my pocket.

So I'm giving you every single penny.

I am absolutely spent out.

Fingers crossed the joke won't be on me.

BEVERLEY: Good luck in the auction.

IRITA: Thank you.

Bye!

BEVERLEY: Bye bye.

Pockets empty, boot full.

VO: Not even tuppence left.

That's one road tripper all spent up, and with the automaton safely in the boot.

Raj, baby, I'm coming to get you.

VO: Hey, scary.

How goes it in Swaffham?

This is a really interesting lot.

Underneath this table, I've just pulled out this little case.

It looks absolutely nothing.

I mean, it just looks like a little old leather case - but what's interesting is on the front here is the Queen's stamp and it's got ER, and then, if you open it up, it's got an invitation, Her Majesty the Queen.

And what have we got here?

We have got a bill of receipt for what looks like this case sold in 2015 in America with an estimate of $200-400.

It says here the winning bid was $3,840.

VO: Ha, ha!

It's priced at �95.

The proprietor is Lee.

Let's find out more.

RAJ: Hi, Lee.

LEE: Hi, Raj.

RAJ: I found something.

LEE: What have you got?

I found this little briefcase here, which is, you know, ER marked.

Do you want to tell me anything you know extra about it?

LEE: Picked it up from a pub over near Sandringham.

Funnily enough, I've got another one.

You've got another one?

Yep.

It's just down there.

VO: Not sure the teds are happy about losing their seat.

LEE: There we go.

A matching pair.

Yeah, they are matching pair.

This one's a little bit tattier, isn't it?

LEE: Yeah.

RAJ: Is it buy one, get one free?

I could probably do a deal on that one, yeah.

LEE: Could you?

RAJ: Yeah.

RAJ: OK. What can you do the two for?

I'll do 45 for the pair.

RAJ: I'm not going to argue with that.

We have a deal, Lee.

Thank you very much indeed.

VO: Excellent price for the pair of Queen Elizabeth II document cases.

Thank you, Lee.

LEE: They're unusual.

RAJ: They are unusual.

RAJ: Thanks again.

RAJ: Great shop.

Great shop.

LEE: Thank you.

Bye bye.

VO: Back together now.

Ooh-hoo!

Party hats on.

IRITA: Aah!

Oh, my...!

This is becoming rather unexpected.

It's an amphibious vehicle now!

No one told me to bring my swimming trunks.

(SHE GASPS) You in swimming trunks, Raj!

(THEY CHUCKLE) VO: Anyone know a good launderette?

Shut eye, please.

VO: Our road-tripping pals are gearing up to watch their very first auction together.

Oh, I can't wait!

RAJ: Wow.

IRITA: Thank you.

RAJ: What a house.

VO: Built in the 16th century, Madingley Hall was once the residence of Queen Victoria's son, Edward, Prince of Wales, while he attended Cambridge university.

Our pair, after bouncing round a couple of counties, are now in the hallowed city of Cambridge, while their glorious goodies have been packed up north to Newcastle city to auctioneers Thomas N Miller.

The man with the gavel is Guy Macklam.

I wonder what his fave is out of Irita's five lots that she blew every single penny of her �200.

I think the automaton box has the potential to do the most today.

It's an interesting piece, and they don't turn up at salerooms very often, so hopefully this will do well.

VO: Raj also bought five lots, totaling a little bit less - �140.

Thoughts, please, Guy.

The stainless steel storage box will have some appeal.

Industrial items are selling well at the moment.

VO: Now back to some Tudor grandeur.

RAJ: Are you ready to do it?

IRITA: I was born ready, Raj.

RAJ: OK!

IRITA: I'm too excited.

Oh...!

RAJ: Here we go.

Here we go.

IRITA: First thing, first auction!

VO: Yes, it is!

Raj's Doulton stoneware flask - with chips.

AUCTIONEER: I'm bid �25 for it.

RAJ: Profit!

AUCTIONEER: Is there any advance of 25 for the Doulton flask?

Take another fiver bid, surely.

At 25, against you all in front.

I've got 25 here.

25 and it's on the net.

It's a profit!

Well, short and sweet.

RAJ: Yeah.

IRITA: One way of doing it.

I'm happy.

It's a small profit.

VO: The pennies make up the pounds, Raj.

RAJ: You like... You like it to be in three figures, don't you?!

VO: Your turn, Irita.

It's the late 19th-century woolwork sampler.

30 bid, 35, 40 offered.

AUCTIONEER: At �40.

RAJ: Look at that.

AUCTIONEER: This is your last chance.

You need to be quick here.

At �40, click the button.

If not, at �40... Click the button, he says!

You doubled your money.

It's a good start, isn't it?

IRITA: Yeah!

VO: Never a truer, Irita.

You're in the lead.

You don't like to lose.

I know you think that, that's the impression I give.

Really, inside, I don't really care.

OK, whatever!

VO: Yeah, right, Raj.

You're next, with the late 19th-century mannequin.

I'm bid 65.

75.

What?!

80 bid against you, I'm afraid.

It's still going forward.

�80.

Back to you for 85.

IRITA: Raj!

RAJ: Fantastic.

Any interest in the room now?

AUCTIONEER: At �80.

RAJ: I'm pleased with that.

Final chance.

You're all out here.

IRITA: Amazing price!

At 80, hammer.

Last call.

VO: A stylish leap into the lead for Raj.

Great result.

IRITA: That's a fantastic result.

RAJ: Yeah.

I can't complain.

IRITA: Well done.

RAJ: I can't complain at that.

VO: Irita's turn now, with the novelty auctioneer's gavel cruet set.

They're just very cute - and it's nice to find a pair.

I'm bid �40.

IRITA: YES!

AUCTIONEER: Is there any advance?

At 40.

RAJ: There you go.

IRITA: Straight in there!

AUCTIONEER: �40.

Take five surely, now.

Any interest in front for the lot, then?

I've got a buyer at 40 on the internet.

At �40.

This is your last chance.

Yes, it's a profit, but it's a one bid wonder.

Well, that's the way it goes.

VO: That's called a maiden bid, and that profit is not enough to nudge in front of Raj, either.

A profit is a profit.

I'm happy!

VO: Raj next!

The industrial 1950s box.

IRITA: It's the London look.

RAJ: It is.

IRITA: Yeah.

London loft look, isn't it?

I've got 25 first on this screen next to me.

IRITA: Come on.

AUCTIONEER: Any advance on �25?

IRITA: Keep going on.

RAJ: Come on!

The London youngsters are not there.

AUCTIONEER: At 25.

Last chance.

VO: Someone's nabbed the London look for a song.

I just lost a fiver!

Oh, what's a fiver?

VO: Come on, Irita.

Can we brew up a big profit with the sake pot?

IRITA: I'm not that hot on Chinese porcelain, but there was something really nice about it.

It had really nice feel.

And I'm bid 15, 17, 20... IRITA: Ooh!

Is there any advance?

At �20 for the lot.

�30 offered.

RAJ: 30.

IRITA: 30?!

AUCTIONEER: At �30.

RAJ: Yes!

You've doubled up!

AUCTIONEER: Final chance, internet.

At �30, you're out.

Well done.

You doubled up!

VO: Slow and steady wins the race.

IRITA: �15 turned into 30.

RAJ: Yep.

IRITA: That's OK!

IRITA: Hey, which way is it going to go, Raj?!

VO: Not a clue.

The sparkling art deco brooch from Raj.

You know what my biggest worry is?

That this is going to go to saleroom, and somebody will have tested it and say it's all diamonds.

RAJ: Not a chance.

Can you imagine it?

And I've got 10 bid.

I've got 12 bid in the room.

Someone likes it.

12 to a lady bidding here.

I've got 14 bid against you.

IRITA: Go on.

Keep going.

AUCTIONEER: 16.

AUCTIONEER: 18 bid.

We're up to 20.

IRITA: Yay!

You're getting there!

AUCTIONEER: Any advance on 20?

RAJ: Come on!

AUCTIONEER: Take five to another bidder now.

20 on this screen next to me.

IRITA: Keep going.

AUCTIONEER: Any advance?

RAJ: Another loss.

IRITA: Keep going!

At �20, we sell to the net.

Oh, Raj!

RAJ: Yeah.

Another... IRITA: I'm sorry.

Another loss.

Another loss.

IRITA: Aww.

RAJ: Well, maybe I'll stay away from jewellery from now on.

VO: Come on.

It's not that bad a loss.

RAJ: I liked it.

I really liked it.

I know it's made a loss, but it was really nice.

VO: Well, it's Irita's gold pheasant bar brooch next.

Watch out.

(SHE GASPS) IRITA: I'm so nervous, Raj!

RAJ: Why?

Because this is my biggest spend.

That's nearly half of my money that I had.

Are you bidding?

I've got 45 here... IRITA: 45!

AUCTIONEER: 55.

Here we go.

It's going.

Come on.

Oh, my...

I've got 65 against you, madam.

AUCTIONEER: 70... IRITA: Madam that likes it.

RAJ: Getting there.

But I've got 75 against you.

At 75 against you.

80 bid standing.

RAJ: Yeah.

AUCTIONEER: Come along, internet.

IRITA: Slowly and steady.

RAJ: Here we go.

AUCTIONEER: 90 bid, it's in the room.

Keep going, internet.

IRITA: Keep going!

AUCTIONEER: At �90.

95 offered.

At �95.

100 bid.

My hand's shaking!

AUCTIONEER: 110 against you.

At 110.

120 is bid in the corner.

IRITA: 120!

RAJ: Exactly!

I've got 130 on this screen.

RAJ: Lovely.

AUCTIONEER: At �130.

At 140 offered, standing.

At �140.

Oh, my God, has he got 140?

At 140 standing.

Internet is out.

Your last call, internet.

It's 140.

Well done.

Well done.

Oh, thank goodness for that.

RAJ: You can relax now.

IRITA: I can relax now.

RAJ: You did really well!

IRITA: I can breathe.

Fantastic.

What a profit.

VO: The biggest priced item and the biggest profit so far.

You're in the lead, girl!

Now I'm in the back seat, now.

It's alright, Raj.

I'll drive you around.

(THEY LAUGH) VO: Your last chance, Raj, with the pair of Elizabeth II original document cases.

And they have provenance.

Provenance cannot be beaten.

I know.

Look at that.

50 bid.

Straight in!

RAJ: Profit!

I'm in profit.

I'm in profit.

I'm happy.

At �60 bid.

Bid's on this screen at 60.

AUCTIONEER: At �60.

IRITA: Straight in, Raj!

RAJ: Small profit, but that's good enough.

65 is bid.

IRITA: Come on, keep going.

RAJ: Yeah.

AUCTIONEER: Documented as well on the original bill of sale, and I've got �65 offered.

All done?

Are you bidding, internet, now?

It's �65.

This is your last chance.

I would have thought it made twice that.

At �65 we sell.

RAJ: I'm OK.

I'm OK with that.

A profit is a profit.

VO: Worth a try.

Not what you had in mind, though, Raj.

I honestly thought those cases will make twice that money.

I mean, that's a beautiful thing about auctions, is you never, ever know, right?

IRITA: Yeah.

RAJ: You never, ever know.

VO: Yep.

Let's dip our toes into the unknown, and with the final lot, Irita's musical automaton.

But this item is fantastic.

IRITA: Do you like it?

RAJ: I really do, RAJ: and I think this is going to make at least 150, maybe up to �250.

IRITA: Well...

Honestly, these are quite rare.

I've got �170.

RAJ: Yeah.

IRITA: What?!

�180 bid on the net.

Take another tenner... RAJ: Lovely.

IRITA: What?!

RAJ: Lovely.

At �180.

No!

AUCTIONEER: Here on the screen next to me at �180.

IRITA: Oh, Raj!

RAJ: Beautiful.

AUCTIONEER: Last call here.

At �180 we sell online.

IRITA: Oh, my goodness!

RAJ: Fantastic.

IRITA: That's amazing!

RAJ: Well done.

Well done.

RAJ: I mean, that...

It was a fantastic thing.

Hey, I need to do my dance!

IRITA: OK. Do your dance... IRITA: First time this trip!

RAJ: ..do your song, and then... IRITA: Whoop, whoop!

VO: Whoop, whoop!

What a show stopper.

Magnificent result, Irita.

Oh, my...!

I can't believe it, Raj.

That was an amazing profit - and...and it was worth it.

It was worth every penny of it.

VO: Raj began with �200.

After auction costs, he made a bit of a profit, giving him �236.30.

While Irita, also starting with the same wodge, made, also after costs, a huge profit.

Irita now has �352.60.

Congratulations!

RAJ: Well done, Irita - our first auction's over.

You can relax now.

You've gone in front.

I'll just go and dig myself a hole and bury myself.

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