(CAR HORN) VOICEOVER (VO): It's the nation's favorite antiques experts... Howdy, li'l lady.

VO: ..behind the wheel of a classic car... Oh yes!

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

Looking for some bargains?

VO: The aim... MARGIE: Yay!

VO: ..to make the biggest profit at auction.

But it's no mean feat.

There'll be worthy winners...

Yes!

It is my lucky day!

VO: ..and valiant losers.

I actually can't believe that.

Annoying.

VO: Will it be the high road to glory... Yo, yo, yo!

VO: ..or the slow road to disaster?

This is Antiques Road Trip.

Yeah!

VO: Welcome to another day in the lives of our most irrepressible optimists.

HETTIE: Yeah, I quite like this car.

It's fun to drive, isn't it?

It is quite fun, actually, yeah.

Kind of like black and white movie type.

It's very James Bond.

VO: You see wingman Tim Medhurst, and woman at the wheel, Hettie Jago, will almost always have smiles on their faces.

And sat in replica Jaguar XK120, it's hard not to.

TIM: If you were a Bond girl, what would your name be?

There's one called Pussy Galore, isn't there?

TIM: Yeah, there is, yeah.

So I'd be Hettie Galore.

What would yours be?

Not something I've ever given much thought to.

VO: Well, get to it.

We need to know.

Not least the shopkeepers of Surrey.

HETTIE: I've heard that it's a lovely place, but I've never been.

I'm not very well traveled.

But I don't like flying.

Where's the furthest place you've ever been, then?

HETTIE: I've been to Turkey.

TIM: Ah, nice.

VO: Also rhymes with Surrey.

Tim, from the equally gorgeous county of Dorset, is a dealer and passionate numismatist, or coin collector... TIM: What got me into antiques was you can actually own something that's nearly 2,000 years old.

VO: ..while Nottingham's own Hettie is also a dealer, as well as an auctioneer and part time zoologist.

HETTIE: I'm drawn to him because he's an animal, and I love anything animal.

VO: ..or ant-iques.

And at their first trip to auction, it was very much critters versus coaches, with the latter coming out on top.

And we've got 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, £80 and done... VO: All of which means Tim has a 1-0 lead in our best of five competition with a long way to go.

Congratulations.

It was a very convincing win.

Thank you.

It could have been touch and go, but I scraped through, I think.

You did.

VO: And they now start out with a fresh £200 with which to go forth and multi-buy.

The weather has set us up for a good day, I think.

Oh, I think so.

VO: Super.

They began down on the south coast, and today arrive in the home counties.

Then, after seeing Surrey, Hampshire and beyond, they'll eventually head west towards a date with destiny in Devon.

Once they get out of the woods.

Imagine all the fairies jumping out on their toadstools.

That's what you find in forests.

VO: Their mostly rural rummage will take them all the way to Bracknell, but they start within the leafy surrounds of our woodiest county, in the Mole Valley, birthplace of 1960s performance poet and Cream lyricist Pete Brown, where Tim, having been dropped off, is about to get first dibs.

TIM: Gary, hi.

GARY: Tim, nice to meet you.

Nice to meet you.

This is an amazing looking shop.

GARY: Thank you very much.

TIM: Looking forward to looking around.

Yeah, I'll be upstairs, so just give me a shout if you need me.

Perfect.

Thanks so much.

VO: £200 to spend, remember.

And... Just like that.

VO: ..he'll hopefully soon come up with some goodies in the attic.

So many cabinets of curiosities in this antique shop, and there's just so much to see.

And I think it's gonna end up being quite hard to choose what to buy, because there's so much.

TIM: These look interesting.

Oh, there's two of them.

These are great looking things.

They're very characterful.

And I always think with antiques, if something makes you smile, then you've got to pick them up and have a look at them.

Toby jugs originated in the 18th century.

There was a famous Yorkshireman, he was quite a drinker, and his name was Henry Elwes, and he was nicknamed Toby.

And that's where the Toby jug came from.

And they've been made from the 18th century all the way through to current times.

These are quite interesting.

I'd say they're probably 20th century or turn of the century, maybe up to 1920s or 30s.

But they're definitely made in the 18th century style of Toby jug.

And for me, the reason I like these is because of their size, and the fact that they're very decorative.

You've got one gentleman here standing with his curls and sort of a grimacing face, and you've got the other chap here who's quite happy because he's got his pint of ale.

Now I have noticed, I don't think there's one price on anything, which I quite like, because it then comes down to the spur of the moment deal.

I'm just going to leave them there for now and carry on looking round.

Very interesting.

VO: Indeed.

To-buy to-by, that is the question.

Let's catch up with Hettie, piloting the car towards her first shop of the day in the village of Ripley, which gets its name check in HG Wells's The War Of The Worlds.

Although the only alien invasion expected today is the arrival of one diminutive antique shopper.

And at J Hartley Antiques, they'll be happy to receive at least some of her 200 Earth pounds.

This is quite fun.

I'm not sure it'll take my weight.

VO: Saddle up.

No, I don't want to fully sit on that.

He's quite good, isn't he?

VO: Really?

This little decorative thing.

VO: Yee haw.

It's £50.

It's a bit too much.

VO: So long, pardner.

What else have they got?

This is nice.

Now, initially, I thought it was jade, so I am slightly disappointed.

But how beautiful is that?

Now, a good way to tell if something is jade is if you put it on your cheek and it feels freezing cold, it's probably jade.

HETTIE: This isn't.

I would say it's made from soapstone.

And it's called soapstone because it sort of carves as a bar of soap would.

It's just so soft.

I think it's Chinese.

VO: Chinese stone religious objects have, of course, been crafted for millennia.

Quite like the motifs on it.

It's very nicely carved.

HETTIE: You've got these beautiful flowers and foliage, and a little bird at the bottom.

It's very, very pretty, very decorative, not particularly rare.

And I don't think there's a huge amount of age to it.

But aesthetically, I really, really like it.

And it's got £50 on the ticket, which is a fair price.

I'd like to get a little bit off it if I possibly can.

So I'm gonna have a think about this one.

I like it.

VO: Quick work.

John will be the man to appeal to.

Anything else catch your eye?

This is quite cool, very industrial, and I like that kind of a look.

I don't know what it used to be, but it could definitely be repurposed.

This would be a great plant pot, wouldn't it?

Can you imagine that in a garden?

You could have a bath in it, if you so wished.

VO: You could... HETTIE: If you're a small person, like I am... (LAUGHS) ..you could actually properly sit in this, and look, you can plug your tap in and everything.

I quite like it, but I do kind of want to know what it actually was used for, so I'm gonna go and ask John.

VO: After getting out of the tub.

HETTIE: Hello, John.

Oh, hello.

I found something that I quite like through there.

Would you mind coming to have a look at it with me?

JOHN: Yeah, surely.

HETTIE: Thanks.

HETTIE: What do you think this would have been used for?

JOHN: I believe it's a water tank that would have been in somebody's loft, either in a large house or perhaps a shop.

It would have run under gravity, basically, from the loft.

I would guess, mid 20th century.

OK, so it's got £85 on the ticket.

What's your best price?

The very best on that is £50.

OK, I might need to have a think about that one.

You've also got a lovely little soapstone carved vase, sort of sculpture.

£50 on that one.

What's your best on that?

That could be £40.

OK. Could you, by any chance, do 35 on that one?

Because I really like it.

If you twist my arm, yes.

OK.

So I'd love to shake your hand at 35.

Thank you.

VO: Thanks, but no tanks.

Ha!

Better to grab the sculpture and depart with 165 still in hand.

While we head back to Ashtead, where Tim has those Toby jugs on his shortlist.

What else takes your fancy?

Now this is a really smart pair of silver candlesticks.

They've caught my eye straight away, because of their design and also the whacking great hallmarks on the base here.

VO: Irish silver, 1974.

There's no condition problems at all.

They are really nice nick.

They need a good old clean, but that's part of the fun, isn't it?

TIM: Because often silver, because it's a soft metal, gets dinged and damaged, and even around the sconces, it's always worth checking.

VO: No price label again.

Silver candlesticks are quite popular in auction, so I think they might be one to add to the basket for later, because I really, really think they're quite stylish.

Oh, this is good.

So many things to buy.

VO: Quite so.

He'll be spending the lot in just one shop at this rate.

Ah, that's caught my eye.

TIM: This is right up my street.

This is exactly the sort of thing I like to buy.

It's a beautiful plaster library bust.

You imagine this right at the top of a bookcase or on a table in a smart Victorian or Georgian library.

You would immediately think, "Oh, that's a nice marble bust."

But it's actually, of course, plaster.

It just became more accessible for people to buy.

This one's really nice.

It's sort of got a very serene look about it.

It's a classical female bust, and I think it's got some age.

It's probably turn of the century, around 1900, and it's got a nice patina of color on it as well.

This is the sort of thing I would love to take home, but I can't.

I need to buy it because I need to beat Hettie.

And I think that might have legs in auction.

Well, it hasn't, but... VO: Ha ha!

We know what you mean.

..and it might help me get a-head.

Sorry.

VO: Oh, dear.

TIM: But there's no price.

So I'll just ask Gary.

Gary?

TIM: Hello.

GARY: Hello.

Yes... TIM: I've had... GARY: What have you found?

Well, many things.

Probably too many things.

One of them is this lovely bust, then there's the pair of Toby jugs over there, and also the Irish candlesticks.

So there's no prices on anything, which is fine, but what's your ticket price on the three items?

The ticket price on the bust is 45.

OK.

The jugs, 55.

OK. GARY: And the candlesticks, 60.

OK.

I'll tell you what, Gary, if I took all three, just give me your best price, and I'm sure I'll be happy with it.

A round figure, £100.

You're a gent.

It's a deal.

Thank you very much.

You've made me very happy.

Good.

VO: Half his pot already handed over.

Ciao, ciao, Gary.

(SHOP BELL RINGS) And while Tim exits Ashtead, Hettie should be about to arrive at her next shop, in the village of Hartley Wintney.

Home of one of the oldest cricket clubs in Hampshire, and a former coaching inn turned antiquary, where our plucky rummager still has £165 to spend.

I can't actually remember how to do a tie, but we'll give it a go.

I think that goes over that.

VO: Er, possibly.

Yeah.

I think it's working.

No.

VO: Try again?

No, we tuck that through there.

HETTIE: Perfect.

However, I think there's a bit too much paisley going on.

VO: Really?

No?

VO: I'll have to think about that one.

How about looking for an actual antique in the meanwhile?

This is very, very intricately decorated, and I think it's a berry spoon.

Now, berry spoons, the majority of them were actually Georgian spoons that were later decorated during the Victorian period, and what they had to do was gild the interior of the bowl... VO: To protect the silver from acidic fruit juices.

The special thing about this is I've just noticed that it has Queen Victoria's head on it, which means it's a Victorian berry spoon.

Now, these are a lot more collectible, a lot more desirable, and they achieve higher prices at auction because they were bespoke.

They weren't a later decorated spoon.

This was created as a berry spoon.

HETTIE: It has £75 on the ticket price.

If that can be less, that'll be brilliant.

I like it a lot.

VO: Paisley problems long forgotten.

Now back to Tim, who should be arriving at his next shop about now.

Because close to Farnham, the village of Badshot Lea also has its attractions, not least being a couple of very old barns now bursting with antiques.

Ah, here he comes.

Keen as ever.

£100 left in the Tim wallet, remember.

I get to look at antiques almost every day of my life, but you don't often get to look at antiques in a 17th century barn.

It's just oozing with history this place, and there is beautiful stuff everywhere.

TIM: I'm spoiled for choice.

VO: Well, whenever something does occur, Hilary will be happy to help.

This is quite a pretty little ladle, and there's a reason why this one has particularly caught my eye, because I'm a bit of a coin nerd.

I'm a bit of a numismatist, and this particular ladle has got a little George II sixpence inset into the bottom of the bowl.

And that George II sixpence is dated 1758, which probably isn't far off when this particular ladle was made, I'd imagine around 1760 to 1780.

VO: For serving up hot toddy.

TIM: But it's not just that one coin.

This is actually basically made out of a coin.

This entire bowl has been hammered out using one coin, a crown coin, probably from the early 18th century.

Maybe a Queen Anne, or George I or George II crown.

And around the edge, this is the tell-tale sign, you can see the edge lettering of the coin where it's been hammered through, but leaving the edge as the decoration.

And that's a really good way of telling whether a toddy ladle is made out of a coin or not, is by seeing the edge lettering around the edge.

If it's made out of a foreign coin, it might have a reeded edge, but an English one will always have wording.

VO: Although I'm not too sure what the mint would have made of it all.

TIM: What I like about this, apart from all of the coin aspect, is that on the back it's got somebody's initials engraved, TEH, and in around 1770 somebody called TEH would have lifted that toddy into a glass and had a good drink.

VO: Cheers!

I just think it's a very tactile, nice, proper antique.

It's £125, which for a coin silver ladle is probably about right.

It's out of my budget, so I'm gonna pop it back.

VO: Yeah, I'm sure there's plenty more within reach.

I love portraits and silhouettes from the past, because they are really a proper social history snapshot.

TIM: You think now we have phones and cameras in our pockets, and you can just whip it out and take a picture of your loved ones.

Back then, the only way you could remember somebody, and what they looked like, was from a painting or a portrait.

And this is a lovely example of a silhouette.

You've got this chap here with his hat on and a cravat down the front.

Date wise, I think it's probably around 1820 to 1840, that sort of period.

And it's a nice example in this ebonized frame with the little acorn finial on the mount.

And the price is £48, which for a little portrait painted of somebody's loved one over 200 years ago, I think is quite a reasonable price.

So I'm gonna pop it down, have a think on it, and carry on looking for now.

But I do like that.

VO: Definitely in the frame.

Ha!

Back across the Hampshire border now, at the White Lion, where Hettie has a berry spoon set aside, and Leanne is on hand.

There are so many pretty things, which I'm very much drawn to.

HETTIE: This has a micro mosaic top.

It was invented in Italy, and I think that this little box is Italian.

And I also think that it was bought during the Georgian period by somebody who went on the grand tour.

So it's got a lot of age to it.

VO: Such scenes can date back to the Renaissance, with Rome more often the subject.

I think it's either a snuff box or it's a patch box, which would have held beauty patches, but it's a really nice little tactile thing.

It has £45 on the ticket price, which I don't think is bad for micro mosaic, because it does sell quite well at auction.

So I really, really like this.

And I also like the spoon.

I think I might have to get both.

VO: Why ever not?

Hello, Leander.

Hello, Hettie.

I found two things that I really love.

This spoon, you have £75 on... OK.

I think we could do 65?

Can you squeeze any more off that for me?

62?

OK.

I really like that, so I'm gonna have that.

Thank you.

Also, this beautiful box, it has £45 on it.

HETTIE: Is there any movement on that one at all?

No, that would be it on that one.

So I will shake your hand for both of those at... How much does that add up to?

VO: 107, actually.

That's great.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Right, I'll grab these and hit the road.

VO: 58 left over.

Back to Badshot Lea, where Tim was once enamored of this silhouette, but not so much now, though.

What an interesting little dish.

TIM: It would have come with a cup as well, but now all that's left is the saucer, but it's got very interesting scene painted... And here you've got a pair of loving doves followed by a heart, and also in German "and friendship".

So it's representing love and friendship, which I think is really beautiful.

And I wonder if this was perhaps a wedding gift in around 1840, the early 19th century.

And you can see the decoration there, all surrounding and on this altar, which is perhaps representing the wedding altar.

VO: Porcelain.

Ticket price, £24.

TIM: It's the sort of scene you would often see on top of an enamel box.

So to actually have it painted on to a saucer dish, I think is slightly unusual.

I've not seen one quite like this before.

I think the market for this would be perhaps a porcelain collector, but also somebody that wants to take something home from an auction that has a lot of charm, and for £24, I don't think I can just leave it here.

I think this might be something that I would take to auction, so I'm gonna keep hold of it, and go and see what the very, very best price would be.

And I think that would be worth a shot.

VO: Over to Hilary.

TIM: Hello.

HILARY: Hello, Tim.

I've had the most inspiring time looking around, and of all the things here I've found one that I've been absolutely charmed by.

This little dish.

What do you think?

Well, it was tucked away.

I'd hardly...

I'd forgotten about it.

TIM: Had you?

Oh, really?

So, you've got £24 on it.

Can I make you an offer of 20?

Would that be alright?

Yes, that would be absolutely fine.

TIM: Lovely.

OK. VO: Very convivial.

Leaving the silhouette on the shelf.

TIM: Thank you, Hilary.

HILARY: Bye bye.

VO: £80 left over for tomorrow.

And time to catch up with his chum.

Right, I suppose we better think about dinner.

TIM: Do you want chips or chips?

Chips, and a bit of curry sauce, and a bit of gravy.

VO: Makes life simple, I suppose.

You're a funny thing.

Do you know what, you're not the first person to say that?

VO: Nighty night.

VO: Next day, Tim has something which could add a bit of green to their chip regime.

Check that out.

What is that?

Well, it's a cucumber.

We're keen gardeners, and this cucumber I picked just for us to share.

I've never had a cucumber before.

What?

You've never had a cucumber before in your life?

HETTIE: No!

TIM: Have a bite.

No, thank you!

HETTIE: Oh, I can smell it.

TIM: On the inside... Oh, I don't like the smell.

I'm not sure about that.

VO: Yesterday's vegetable of choice was almost certainly the shallot, as in shall we buy a lot?

Ha!

And they did, with Tim acquiring a pair of silver candlesticks, two Toby jugs, a porcelain dish, and a plaster bust.

It might help me get ahead.

Sorry.

VO: Ahem.

Leaving him with £80 to be going on with.

While Hettie bought a Victorian berry spoon, a micro mosaic gift box, and a soapstone vase... HETTIE: It's got these beautiful flowers, and it's very, very pretty, very decorative.

VO: ..meaning she has 58 to spend on her shopping today.

Well, after breakfast, anyway.

What do you think of my cucumber, anyway?

Er, it's lovely.

I've never seen such a good cucumber before.

TIM: Thank you.

VO: Always nice to be appreciated.

The shopping will recommence in a short while, but first, our pair are about to get their noses in the air, in the nearby town of Weybridge.

Where, at the Brooklands Museum, on the site of a historic race track and important aircraft design and manufacturing center, they've come to hear about two men who made a particularly historic journey in their flying machine just over 100 years ago.

DAVID: This was the first aircraft ever to fly right across the Atlantic.

Wow.

It's an amazing thing.

No one had thought it was possible before.

VO: Aviation expert David Hassard on the incredible feat of Jack Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown, who somehow managed to navigate a Vickers Vimy from Newfoundland to Ireland.

HETTIE: How was the idea conceived?

DAVID: Lord Northcliffe, of The Daily Mail, started a prize of £10,000 of cash for the first person to fly across the Atlantic, and the companies that set out to build aircraft then had the experience from all their wartime machines.

That's quite an incentive as well, £10,000, isn't it?

DAVID: Yes, 600,000 or... TIM: Yeah.

..something in modern money.

VO: The newspaper baron had quite a history of offering cash rewards for aeronautical derring-do.

In 1909, he handed £1,000 to Louis Bleriot for successfully crossing the Channel.

And the Atlantic challenge attracted several competitors, three of which used the Brooklands airfield.

DAVID: It wasn't just Vickers.

There was Sopwith Aviation from Kingston on Thames, and Martinsyde from Woking, and they were all out in Newfoundland at the same time trying to compete.

So it was a real hive of activity, back then, wasn't it?

Absolutely.

VO: Alcock from Manchester and Brown from Glasgow had both flown during the war, and the plane they were to use was a converted bomber with a huge fuel tank in place of the bomb bay... HETTIE: Oh, wow.

Gosh, it's quite small in here, isn't it?

VO: ..and not much room for anything else.

How did Alcock and Brown prepare for their first flight?

DAVID: Brown was the key navigator.

Alcock was the pilot, primarily, and a very experienced pilot, but within an hour or so, they had lost the radio and the heat from their suits.

So they were in that open cockpit, and it was so noisy that despite sitting next to each other, they couldn't hear each other... HETTIE: Wow.

DAVID: ..so they had to communicate in written notes.

And then they ran into a huge bank of cloud, and when they came out the bottom of it, they were not much more than 100 feet above the sea, but Alcock managed to recover the aircraft and get back up.

TIM: Wow.

HETTIE: It must have been really scary for them, with that many things going wrong.

DAVID: Yes, and even after that, the engines started to stutter because they were getting ice in the air intakes.

So they switched off the engines and glided down to low altitude, where it was warmer, and the engines restarted.

And by then, they'd pretty much had enough.

VO: And yet, after 16 hours in a freezing cold cockpit, they somehow crash landed exactly where they'd planned.

HETTIE: What was the reaction after they landed in Ireland?

Well, the people who went out to greet them in this boggy field said, "Where have you come from?"

DAVID: And when they said, "Newfoundland", they didn't believe them.

But the next morning, it was in all the newspapers, and they became famous overnight.

And the reception at St Pancras was fantastic.

Thousands of people waiting for them.

The king decided they should be knighted, and then Winston Churchill actually handed over £10,000 check to them, and they decided to donate £2,000 of that to the Vickers Aircraft Company and the Rolls Royce engine company, so that those companies could give their employees a week's paid holiday.

Wow, that's lovely.

VO: Of course, aircraft manufacture came to a halt at Brooklands some time ago, and the museum was opened in 1991.

Although there's still quite a bit of aeronautical expertise around these parts.

IAN: Hello, nice to meet you.

VO: Engineer, Ian Lambert.

Ian, I've heard you're the man that's gonna teach us how to fly a plane.

Yes, I am.

So, all paper planes start in the same way.

IAN: So we go into the middle.

And then also, all planes have a little bit like this.

If you put the tip back, it gives it a bit of strength.

TIM: Ah, OK. IAN: So now, I'm sure this is looking like planes you had at school.

TIM: It's already a little bit more in depth.

IAN: Now we've got to have a little notch in it, and then at an angle, take a little bit out.

And then when you've made it, put the rubber band on your thumb, and... TIM: Whoa.

HETTIE: Wow.

TIM: Very good.

IAN: So, do you think you can do that?

VO: Maybe not quite that well, Ian.

HETTIE: Beautiful.

They're both looking great.

TIM: Thank you.

IAN: Now fold it back, and now make the other wing as well.

TIM: I'm trying to make it so I can win.

HETTIE: Yeah!

VO: Not so much antiques experts as test pilots.

TIM: Right, Hettie, this is it.

HETTIE: The moment.

TIM: This is the moment.

TIM: Right, ready?

HETTIE: OK. TIM: One, two, three, go.

TIM: Wow!

HETTIE: Aah!

TIM: They actually went quite far, didn't they?

HETTIE: They did.

I'm quite impressed.

VO: Now, let's get back behind the wheel, back into the forest as well.

My ideal thing would be to have a little house in the middle of a wood.

You want to just go off-grid?

Yeah.

Tim in the wilderness.

That could be the name of your podcast.

VO: Those two have just one more shop to visit today, across the Berkshire border in Bracknell... ..a new town with a Saxon name, plus nearby, quite a few old bits.

There goes Tim.

Hettie must still be parking the motor.

Not a lot of old grain in here anymore, of course, just some very nice antiques and vintage.

Ah, Hettie's here.

She's got £58 left to spend, remember, and Tim still has 80.

This is very, very Hettie.

It's small, it's collectible, it's compact, but beautifully tactile.

This is a little scent bottle.

HETTIE: Look at the tiny pipette.

And what I love about this is the color.

It's just so beautiful.

I think it's early 20th century.

It's definitely Italian.

It's screaming Murano style.

I love it.

Perfume bottles do sell really well at auction, especially collectible, small ones that are a bit unusual.

This one's got 35 on the ticket.

Considering I'm on quite a tight budget, I need to get a bit off that.

But I think it might be coming to auction with me.

I'm gonna leave it there for now, and have a little think.

VO: Already sniffed something out.

Now that is a nice tactile piece.

It's a pewter measure with a wonderful waxy patina on it, because this would have belonged in a tavern probably around 150 to 200 years ago.

Isn't that amazing?

Unfortunately, on the back of it, you can see traces of where the handle used to be, because it would have almost looked like a tankard.

On the front, it's got engraved here "for measuring", which is only just about visible, and around the rim is this lovely, heavy duty brass as well, which is really, really smart.

And this would have been used in the tavern to basically measure ale.

TIM: On the bottom, it's actually engraved with where it was used.

It says "Eight Bells, Linslade."

Isn't that amazing?

VO: Just over 45 miles away.

Now, price-wise, it's £40, which isn't bad, but for taking it to auction, I'd want the handle on it.

Because that will affect its value.

However, it's a really nice thing.

VO: Cup half full, as always.

Any more for Hettie?

Needs convincing.

HETTIE: I'm massively drawn to the price tag on this.

It's got £30 on it.

But look at everything you can get for £30.

The craftsmanship that's gone into this.

It says "circa 20th century Indian brass figurine".

I don't know a huge amount about this sort of thing, but I've seen them...

Similar items go through auction, and they've done quite well in the past.

So to be honest, if I did buy it it would be a bit of a speculative lot.

But we like a speculative lot, don't we?

We like the drama.

VO: Not half.

HETTIE: It could do really, really well.

But to be honest, it can't exactly crash at £30, can it?

I think it might be worth a punt, but I'd like Tim's opinion, because I bet he knows more about this sort of thing than I do.

So I'm gonna go and get him.

VO: Very collaborative, aren't we?

HETTIE: Hello, how are you getting on?

Hello.

I'm alright.

I'm just rummaging around in a toolbox.

I love tools.

I do as well.

They're really sort of... Tactile.

TIM: They are.

HETTIE: They are.

They genuinely are.

I need to pick your brain about something.

Do you want to come and have a look?

TIM: Come on.

VO: Second opinion time.

TIM: What are we looking at, then?

HETTIE: This.

TIM: Ah, nice spot.

I like that.

HETTIE: It is beautiful, isn't it?

TIM: Yeah, that is nice.

I mean, how old do you think it is?

Mm...

I don't think it's probably as old as it looks.

TIM: I think a lot of these are a bit later.

I would say this is probably nearer the mid 20th century.

It's only another 20 or 30 years until the 1950s is antique.

HETTIE: Yeah.

TIM: It's typical of those sort of southeast Asian dancing figures.

Yeah.

But I quite like the size of it.

VO: A bit like an Oscar.

TIM: I've just seen the price.

HETTIE: I know!

TIM: No wonder you were interested in it.

HETTIE: Exactly!

TIM: £30?

HETTIE: I know.

TIM: I'd go for it.

HETTIE: Would you?

TIM: Actually, I'll have it.

HETTIE: No!

TIM: Give it!

I saw it first!

VO: Mitts off!

Ha ha!

She's still a bit short of the required funds, though.

Hello, Stuart.

Hello, Hettie.

HETTIE: Now, you've got £35 on this really sweet little scent bottle.

STUART: Right.

HETTIE: And then this, you have £30 on the ticket on that one.

STUART: So that's 65.

My problem is that I only have £58 in my budget.

Can you stretch to 60?

HETTIE: I can't, that is all I have!

STUART: Yes, go on, then.

I'll let you have them for 58.

You'll let me have them for 58?

Thank you very much.

VO: Thanks, Stuart.

30 for the scent bottle and 28 for the figure.

Now, will Tim be tempted to plump for something or other?

Oh, this looks like a smart jewelry box.

TIM: That's really nice.

Now, with an antique jewelry box, the first thing to do is look to see if it's got a key, which it has, and then see if the key works.

I think I might have locked it shut.

VO: Oh, dear.

TIM: Ah, ah!

Very clever.

So even though the box is unlocked, you still have to press the button at the front to open it.

That's a good sign of quality.

I like that.

And inside, look at this.

It's almost like new, because the box has pretty much been closed most of its life, with precious objects in it.

And it's got this beautiful silk lined lid and then a velvet lined and leather lined interior.

If you take this tray out, you've got a larger compartment for bigger pieces of jewelry, or maybe even love notes.

VO: All for a ticket price of £30.

TIM: And I think that is something that you could use today, just as it was in around 1910.

It's such a sustainable thing to do, to buy something antique and keep reusing it.

So I think I'm gonna take that straight to the counter and see if I can do a deal.

VO: Sounds like an open and shut case.

Ha ha!

TIM: Stuart, how are you?

STUART: Oh, hi, Tim.

TIM: Are you well?

STUART: Very good, indeed.

Good.

I have found, after struggling with the key, this beautiful jewelry box.

STUART: Right.

You've got £30 on the ticket.

That's very reasonable.

What's your very best price?

I think we could do that for 25.

25.

You're a gent.

It's a deal.

STUART: Brilliant.

Thank you very much indeed.

TIM: Thank you very much.

VO: Also shopped up with 55 left over.

Oh, that was a good shop, hey?

It was, that was really fun.

TIM: Which way shall we go?

HETTIE: This way?

TIM: Yeah.

VO: Time to point the motor towards the auction.

Are you ready for another sleep already?

Antique shopping has taken it out of me.

Oh, gosh.

Early night it is, then.

Yes, please.

VO: Seems that shut eye will definitely be observed.

VO: Back to Banbury, complete with cock horses, fine ladies, bells and possible whistles.

The first time they came here, Tim took a one-nil lead.

So let's see how it goes second time around.

Best of five, remember.

After rummaging through several home counties in search of likely lots, they've brought them to Oxfordshire at JS Fine Art, where they'll be selling in the room, on the net and on the phone, with gaveler in chief Joe Smith.

110.

20 now.

You're out online.

110 is in the room.

Hammer's up.

110.

Can you click your heels?

Never done that before.

TIM: Go on.

VO: Close!

Right, give it another go.

Come on.

TIM: Oh, you did it!

HETTIE: Did I?

TIM: Yes!

HETTIE: Yeah!

VO: Hettie spent all of her £200 on five auction lots.

I wonder what Joe's pick will be.

Pretty Italian box here, lovely micro mosaic, which is very popular at the moment.

JOE: It's got most of its original gilding, which is a little dulled outside, but open it up, and exquisite, bright, shining gilding within.

I think it's gonna be a popular lot today.

VO: Tim, meanwhile, kept a bit in reserve, parting with 145 for his five lots.

JOE: Beautiful classical bust here.

Probably dates from around about 1900, 1910.

Beautifully sculpted.

It does have a very indistinct stamp to the back there.

We've not been able to make that out, but I think she's absolutely wonderful.

HETTIE: This is gonna be good.

TIM: I'm excited.

I have a feeling about this one, because I think we've both got really nice things.

TIM: I agree.

HETTIE: Yeah.

VO: Hettie, steady, go!

Her soapstone vase starts us off.

I paid £35.

I'm slightly regretting that.

I don't think that's over the top.

I mean, it is 20th century, isn't it?

HETTIE: Yeah.

TIM: But it looks the part... HETTIE: It does.

TIM: ..so I think it'll be OK. Yeah.

OK. Have faith in your purchases.

I hope so.

Thank you.

Should be £50 or £60.

I'm bid five, 10... Ooh... JOE: 10 it is.

15 now... Not a particularly strong start.

15 only, 20, and five.

TIM: Online bidders.

JOE: At £25.

TIM: Keep it going.

It should be more than this!

JOE: 35... HETTIE: 35!

Well done.

35, 35.

40... Oh!

You've got a profit.

Why am I so happy with a £5 profit?

Because any profit's a profit.

Going at 40.

Selling and done, £40... All sure?

JOE: 40 TIM: Well done.

OK, thank you.

That final bid there really got me out of trouble.

VO: Keeping the positive vibes going.

Tim's turn now.

Heads he takes an early lead.

And I'm a bit worried about this one, I have to say.

I think you paid a really good price for it.

Lots of interest going on, 70 we have to start.

Online at 70.

TIM: Keep it going.

HETTIE: Tim!

Keep it going, keep it going.

80 now, at 80.

TIM: Come on.

HETTIE: 90!

Let's get to the hundred.

Surely 100.

100.

110.

110.

People like it, don't they?

They do.

It's all online, though, isn't it?

HETTIE: Yeah.

JOE: £110.

Come on.

A little bit more.

JOE: It's gonna go.

110.

VO: A much better result.

Expect broad smiles.

I am very happy with that.

That's a really good profit.

Well done.

VO: Hettie's second offering goes under the hammer.

My next lot is a very nice example of a fruit serving spoon, created... And what did you pay for said spoon?

HETTIE: £62... TIM: OK. ..which might be a little bit punchy, as you would say.

Is it heavy and big?

It is big.

It's quite heavy.

TIM: Good.

HETTIE: So it's got... TIM: They're... HETTIE: ..a lot going for it.

I hope so.

Straight in at 35.

40, surely?

Don't we need double that?

Yeah, we need a bit more.

At 35, all done?

All sure?

35, eight if it helps?

He's trying hard.

JOE: It's gonna go.

£35... All done.

35 VO: I think the mood might be undergoing a slight dip at this point.

That is a bit of a disaster, to be honest.

Sorry, I don't know why I laughed.

Any fruit serving spoon should not be going for £35.

Well, that one did.

VO: Tim again.

His Toby jugs take their bow.

I can't quite place them.

I think they might be early 20th century, but they're certainly very Georgian in style, aren't they?

Yeah.

So they're a bit of a mystery.

They are.

Mysterious jugs.

HETTIE: Hm... TIM: Oh, look at them.

HETTIE: Here they are, happy little chaps.

TIM: The one on the left's not very happy.

Actually they don't look very happy.

No, no, he's grumpy.

£10 only.

Oh, that's so cheap!

£15 only.

Where are the bidders?

We'd hoped for a lot more.

I would.

At £15... Help!

Help!

JOE: At £15.

TIM: Oh, no.

Anymore for anymore?

I need to get off this sinking ship right now.

JOE: At £15... You just want the hammer to go down and it be over?

Where's the lifeboat?

Selling... JOE: £15.

Well... Hettie, what did I do?

VO: Made a whopping great loss, there's no other way to describe it.

Now, the auctioneer was very keen on Hettie's little box.

Hopefully that bodes well.

It's a really nice thing, but I did pay £45 for it.

Yeah.

It's got age, it's micro mosaic, and it's a box.

TIM: What more could you want?

HETTIE: Yeah.

Lots of bids.

Five, 10, 15, 20, five... That's what we like.

30 now?

25, we've got a way to go, haven't we?

We... Yeah.

It's online this time at 30.

JOE: It's 35 in the room.

At £35.

I did pay too much for it, to be fair.

35... VO: That's a shame, although not for the lucky new owner.

It had its day...

I'm not gonna buy one of those again.

TIM: ..and it wasn't its day.

HETTIE: No.

VO: Tim's German dish.

Well, more of a saucer, really.

I think it's really, really charming.

It is.

But what's it gonna make, Timothy?

Well, I paid 20, and the best thing about that is I can't lose more than £20.

£30 for it start.

£30?

Oh, I thought he had £30 bid.

HETTIE: Oh, no.

Oh, dear.

TIM: That's a bit of a let down.

£30?

Come on, it's got to be worth that.

£10, start me... Oh, no!

£10?

All of that charm and romance... HETTIE: Yeah... TIM: ..for £10.

It's a nice thing.

JOE: At £10?

HETTIE: Oh, Tim Can you hear the tumbleweed?

JOE: Are we all done?

At £10, it's gonna go.

Oh, he's trying hard.

At £10... Oh, sorry, Tim.

VO: Oh, well, not the biggest blow.

It could have been a lot worse.

Could have sold for £1.

VO: True.

Will Hettie's fortunes take a bit of an upward turn with her little scent bottle, we wonder?

It's nice quality, and it's got some age, hasn't it?

Yeah.

Yeah, it's probably early 20th century.

It's cute, it's collectible.

It's very much my kind of thing.

Yeah.

JOE: 15... HETTIE: Ooh!

It's going up, £20... Five now, quickly?

Hey, 25, OK!

Keep going!

£25.

Looking for 30 now.

We need a bit more than this.

We do, we need a little bit more.

There's silence in the room.

28, if you like.

There's silence online as well.

28, 28.

JOE: 30.

HETTIE: Oh!

We'll take two again now.

Getting there bit by bit.

Yeah.

At £30...

I'm happy to wait.

At £30, all done?

30!

VO: It's really not her day so far, is it?

You win some, you lose some.

Yeah.

We lost some.

We did.

VO: Wanna buy a box, anyone?

Tim's Edwardian number with a rather fine interior.

See?

I quite like it.

It's quite a large size.

It's got its key.

25, 35... 45 online.

JOE: 45 online.

TIM: I'm in.

Wow.

You are in.

JOE: 45's the bid.

Anybody else?

HETTIE: That's strong.

I've got strong bidding, yeah.

Anybody else now?

Any more will be an absolute bonus.

Yeah.

JOE: 45 HETTIE: Well done.

TIM: Fantastic.

HETTIE: That's really good.

VO: Yep, it is.

Really consolidates his lead.

But surely Hettie's sculpture, her last lot and acquired after a bit of consultation, can perk her result up a bit.

If it does badly, then you can just accuse me of sabotage.

Yeah.

Well, I will be absolutely accusing you of sabotage.

At 15, 20, five is it now?

At 20, five now.

£20.

Five, 30 is it?

30 it is, at 30.

And five now?

I'm celebrating because I helped with this one, I think.

JOE: Are we done?

TIM: Hanging on.

Are we done?

JOE: £30.

TIM: I don't think so.

I don't think we should be done.

Away and selling.

£30.

30 VO: Well, at least it's a tiny profit of sorts.

£2 is £2.

That was a damp squib.

VO: From fiddle sticks to candlesticks, Tim brings matters to a close.

I really like these, and with Irish silver quite often the marks are all very boldly struck, aren't they?

Yeah, they're a really nice design as well, aren't they?

TIM: Hm, they are.

HETTIE: And decorative.

They're quite small, but...

Perfectly formed.

Yeah.

25, 35... TOM: Oh!

JOE: ..five... HETTIE: Ooh!

JOE: ..45, 50.

We're getting in there.

At 50 now.

£50 now, 60.

60!

JOE: Beat you to it online.

And the room on it, as well.

60's in the room.

70, 80 now... Come back, 90.

I see you hovering... Come on, 90, it's the magic number.

It is the magic number.

At 80, 90.

HETTIE: Oh-ho-ho!

JOE: 100?

TIM: Round it up.

JOE: 100.

Yes!

£100.

I've got to the hundred.

£100, on the right.

110.

HETTIE: 110!

JOE: 15 if you're... OK, we can stop now.

There's competition.

At 110.

Sure now?

Buy them in the room.

120, this time it is online...

Done!

JOE & TIM: 120.

VO: Yep, I don't think the winner today was ever really in doubt, but that certainly underlines it.

Well done.

That was really, really good.

I could not have wanted a better result than that.

I'm very impressed.

Well, it's all been a bit of a blur.

So shall we work it out?

We need to work it out, definitely.

VO: Don't you worry, I've got this.

And Hettie, after auction costs, has made a bit of a loss, so she ends up with £139.40.

While Tim, also with saleroom fees deducted, made a very nice profit, exactly £101.

So he takes a 2-0 lead with three more auctions to go.

All profits to Children In Need.

Whoop whoop!

I bet you're so happy after that.

I'm not gonna lie, I'm pretty chuffed.

Yeah, you look very chuffed.

Yeah, I'm pretty chuffed.

But look, we had amazing things, didn't we?

We did.

We had such a nice time, as well.

TIM: We did.

HETTIE: Onwards and upwards.

VO: Bye bye, Banbury.

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