Voiceover (VO): It's the nation's favorite antiques experts... What about that!

VO: ..with £200 each, a classic car, and a goal - to scour Britain for antiques.

Can I buy everything here?

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

But it's no mean feat.

Feeling a little saw!

This is going to be an epic battle.

VO: There'll be worthy winners and valiant losers.

So will it be the high road to glory or the slow road to disaster?

The honeymoon is over.

I'm sorry!

VO: This is the Antiques Road Trip.

Yeah!

VO: This week's road trip brings together two of antiques finest fellows.

CHARLES: You're a man who has been about the antique arena for many years now, impress me.

Please, impress me.

VO: With over two decades of experience in the antiques trade, Mark Spacey is safe pair of hands.

That's not supposed to happen is it?

VO: The cheeky Charles Hanson knows his stuff and hit Mark for six in the first leg.

There we are.

VO: You know that's a paddle don't you?

VO: Our two experts started with £200 each and on todays' second leg, there's exactly £25 between them.

Mark barely broke even in the first auction, giving him just £201.80 to spend today.

VO: While Charles only took three items to the opening auction but managed to scrape a slightly healthier profit, giving him the lead and £226.80 to spend as they hit the road again.

MARK: After all my hard work, I'm just over a pound up, Charlie.

Just say 100 pence, it sounds better.

Yes, it does.

I'm 100 pence up.

VO: That won't even pay the petrol to your next shop, Mark.

But onwards they travel in their classic, yet rather unreliable 1950s Austin Metropolitan convertible, it isn't fitted with seat belts but that's perfectly legal for a car that pre-dates the law.

Our experts' epic expedition will take them from Yorkshire, to Nottinghamshire, Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire, Leicestershire, Buckinghamshire, Herefordshire and West Midlands, Hampshire, Warwickshire, Coventry, Gloucestershire, Shropshire, Staffordshire and ending Flintshire in Wales.

Phew!

The second stint is a scenic saunter from Ely in Cambridgeshire down to the auction in Bourne End in Buckinghamshire.

Crikey.

MARK: Do you know much about Ely?

All I know is that Ely, many, many, probably thousands of years ago was a swamp where eels used to swim.

VO: Not bad, Charles.

While Ely is very proud of its connection with eels, this historic city is full of charm and beauty and is home to one of the most magnificent cathedrals in England.

Well, Charles, I have got shopping to do.

Yeah, enjoy yourself.

Listen, enjoy your shopping.

Good luck.

Now Mark, shop to drop and don't forget, impress me.

Bye.

Impress me.

Oh, it's so difficult to impress you, Charles.

Impress me.

See you later.

VO: Nothing like a bit of a challenge to ramp up the competition.

Owner Barry is standing by at Cloisters Art & Antiques to help you on your way.

I'm chasing Charlie Hanson.

Right.

Who's bought absolute rubbish and made a profit.

I bought quality items and didn't.

Right.

I don't know what that's telling me.

Well, I can sell you rubbish that'll make money.

VO: That's one way to go, Barry.

The shop has items from Georgian times to modern day but Mark is resisting the lure of anything contemporary.

This is a little Victorian porcelain scent bottle, I think it's English even though it has that sort of French look about it with this sort of rather Rococo cartouche on the front, hand painted with a little exotic bird.

VO: The scent bottle and stopper is dated circa 1850.

It's ticketed at £88, almost half of Mark's budget.

Yes, Mark.

VO: But he may have found a way to knock some money off.

Barry, I do think it's been restored, do you?

Have you noticed, if you look both on this side and other side...

The gold... yeah.

It's got that heavy gilding.

The gilding has been restored I would thought, yeah.

I suspect what's happened is it was a treasured possession, somebody dropped it, maybe it came off and then they have regilded it.

I could do two crisp £20 notes for that.

I'm sure you could.

Is that the sweet scent of a profit I wonder?

VO: Boom boom!

But before the deal is sealed, Barry's got another item to tempt Mark's fancy.

Oh.

Butter of Pitlochry, that's Scottish, isn't it?

Scottish.

It's got Pitlochry on the top I think.

Oh!

The Black Watch.

The Black Watch.

The Black... Oh, gosh, the Black Watch.

So, I think that's rather fun.

VO: Marked at £55, this Shelley crested ware dog kennel with a black bulldog and the arms and motto of The Black Watch is of military interest and of interest to our Mark at the right price of course.

Barry, I am going to make you a very mean offer... OK. For the two alright?

I am glad you're sitting down.

You're fine.

I am going to offer you £50 for the two.

OK. Are you sure?

Yep.

Deal.

Thank you.

Thank you.

VO: That's £30 for the scent bottle and £20 for the crested ware dog kennel.

Here's hoping for some profit in them, Mark.

Oops.

VO: Mind your step.

VO: Meanwhile, Charles is kicking off his shopping 11 miles south in the small Cambridgeshire village of Landbeach.

The village has three architectural sites with remains of mediaeval manor houses and Charles is here to dig up some artefacts of interest in Stantiques.

Good morning.

STAN: Morning.

CHARLES: How are you?

Good.

I'm Charles, your name is?

Hi, I'm Stan.

CHARLES: Stan the man.

STAN: Stan the man.

Stan the man or Stantiques.

Stantiques.

Stan the man from Stantiques.

Good man.

I like your style.

VO: Charles' items didn't impress Mark at the last auction so is he going for a change of tactic?

My tactics now as we're in Cambridgeshire, in a really rich area for antique enthusiasts, is to really buy quality and to show Mark what can be achieved on a budget and stay away from the more quirky end of collectables, buy quality.

That's my plan.

And talking quality, these chairs over here, Stan, they're not old are they these chairs?

No, they are just French... No age, Charles.

No age, so they're almost brand new... Yeah.

..ie, 1980s?

Yeah, they're just sort of...

Decorative display pieces.

Definitely.

Quite attractive aren't they?

But furniture it's just in the doldrums.

They need total renovation.

VO: Crikey.

I thought you were going for quality, Charles.

It looks like these chairs have seen better days.

What's your best price on them?

£70 the pair, Charles.

Do you know what?

I think they're tired but they're alluring.

VO: I hope you know what you're doing, Charles.

If I say to you 60, are you happy with that?

Charles, I'll do you 60 cuz... Are you sure?

STAN: You're such a top chap.

CHARLES: Look at me... You're a top chap.

CHARLES: Yeah.

STAN: Alright?

Shall we say going, going, gone.

Sold.

Good man.

Aren't they great?

Cheers, buddy.

May I take one outside now for a quick look in the light?

By all means.

And leave that one with you here?

Follow me.

We've shaken hands, Charles.

Yeah, the deal's done.

Take it into the light.

VO: What's he up to now?

I bought these chairs and I looked and thought 'yeah, they're probably 1980s from the exterior but when I turned them up, I had a little heartbeat because they are horse hair filled, strung as well.

You can see the springing is probably at the latest 1920s, I think they're worth hopefully on a really good day between 150 and 250.

I could be quids in here.

VO: Ah!

Good spot then, Charles, and to think I ever doubted you.

But he's not finished there.

Back inside, Charles has spotted something that reminded him of his treasure hunting days as a child.

How sweet!

So Stan, tell me, if I bought this whole little tray hoard, which I could almost call a Hanson hoard of Roman and later bronze remnants and all sorts of curios and what a joy is just to handle these objects from a bygone time and you grip tight, don't you, and you just think 'who would have held these objects?'

Don't you?

I do, Charles, yes.

You've also got other little trays of finds in here and I think a tray that's drawn my eye looking in this cabinet is this one here as well, Stan.

And you've got more coins in here, you've got bits of old flint.

So, Stan, if I said to you two trays, there's an abundant of volume and description but value maybe not so much.

If I said to you what's the best on that whole hoard together, what would you say?

STAN: 40 quid all in.

Wow.

Is it worth a gamble at 40?

It probably is.

So I think I'm going to buy these for 40 because sometimes with a passion from a childhood, you can't say no.

Charles, I am not giftwrapping every item.

OK. CHARLES: Thanks a lot.

STAN: Nice one.

And do you know, I just thrive on history.

(INHALES DEEPLY) You breathe history in my business and that is one big breath isn't it?

VO: Nothing like the smell of antiques in the morning, eh?

Now, Mark's been making his way 32 miles southwest to the charming riverside town of St Neots.

St Neots Emporium may look small from the outside, but inside there's over 1,400 square feet of floor space and 24 dealers offering items to suit all needs and pockets and with £151.80 in his, Mark needs to start catching up.

Hello.

I'm Mark.

Welcome.

And you are?

I'm Jacqueline.

Jacqueline.

Now what's your role in this lovely emporium?

I own it.

You own it?

Yes.

I should give you a cuddle.

That might mean... That might mean bigger discounts.

VO: What an old smoothie, he knows all the tricks to get the owners on side.

Right, best find something to get a discount on then.

VO: Ha!

Looks like more Victorian goodies have caught Mark's eye.

This is very typical Victorian, isn't it?

You've got this little decoration on the top here, of a little... ..child with a bouquet of flowers.

VO: This late 19th century French parasol has a porcelain handle and mount in the Sèvres style and would have been produced in a factory on the outskirts of gay Paris.

You will notice of course that the actual parasol bit is completely lacking so what do you do with that?

VO: Tell me.

You can of course get a new silk put on it, which would be very expensive or you could try and turn it into a very elegant walking stick.

VO: Well, you need to turn it into a profit, Mark and with £80 on the ticket, let's get Jacqueline involved.

Hello.

Hello again.

What would let me have it for?

Erm... Would you consider £40?

I'd consider it.

I would love to buy it for £30.

Thank you Jacqueline.

Deal.

VO: Come rain or shine Mark, that's a nice little buy.

Well, all I can say is...

I'm singing in the rain, aren't I?

Well, it won't keep you dry.

It won't keep my very dry.

It won't keep you dry, no.

VO: Meanwhile, Charles has made his way to Cambridge to discover a story of rivalry between two exploring pioneers whose search for planet Earth's coldest and deadliest place - the South Pole - ended in triumph and tragedy.

Professor Julian Dowdeswell is going to show Charles around the Polar Museum at the Scott Polar Research Institute.

Hello, Charles.

Professor Julian Dowdeswell.

Welcome to the Scott Polar Research Institute in Cambridge university.

Wonderful and what a beautiful hallway.

VO: This impressive memorial hall depicts the Arctic and Antarctic as they were believed to have looked when the building was opened in 1934.

It also commemorates famous expeditions and explorers.

Charles has come to hear the story of the doomed 1912 polar expedition of Robert Falcon Scott and Roald Amundsen.

This is the ship's bell of Scott's Terra Nova which was the ship that transported them on Scott's second and fateful last expedition to Antarctica.

VO: Having already carried out significant scientific research in Antarctica, Scott returned a decade later determined to be the first man to reach the South Pole.

While Scott made his plans public, Norwegian explorer, Roald Amundsen quietly set off on his own quest to get there first and steal the glory, reaching the South Pole 33 days before his British rival.

When Scott finally arrived, he was greeted with the flags left by the Norwegian team.

JULIAN: This black flag was found by Scott and his companions as they approached the South Pole.

We don't know whether it was the first thing that they saw that told them that they were preceded, but one of the black flags and ski tracks were certainly those things.

VO: It was the contrasting fates of the two teams' respective journeys back from the pole that sets them apart.

Exactly why Amundsen's team completed the return journey and Scott's trip ended in tragedy with the loss of five men, including himself, has been the source of fierce debate ever since.

Amundsen's team benefited from arguably more experienced personnel, better supplies and didn't hit bad weather.

Scott's team included scientists and seamen.

Captain Lawrence Oates formed part of Scott's party and suffered terribly from frostbite.

His sleeping bag can be seen on display in the institute.

Oates very famously - and this is one of the archetypes of British heroism and sacrifice - walked out of the tent in a blizzard to sacrifice himself in order that the three remaining in the party - Scott, Wilson and Bowers - could move forward.

The reason he did that is because his legs were terribly badly frost bitten and he knew he couldn't go on.

The reason that we have the sleeping bag and indeed you can see the sleeping bag is slit down one side, reflecting the problems that Oates was having with his legs.

So it really is a study in tragedy in itself.

VO: Of course, the trip grew even more tragic when Scott, Wilson and Bowers perished in their tent, dehydrated and pinned down by blizzards 11 miles from the safety of their depot.

The grim consequences of their return journey from the Pole had been blamed on their poor preparations.

Eight months on from the explorers' demise, the relief party led by Lieutenant Atkinson, a Royal Naval surgeon, discovered the three men inside their tent.

The bodies of the other two members of the team were never recovered.

They made the decision that they would actually leave the bodies of Scott, Wilson and Bowers in Antarctica and they said a burial service over their bodies.

They built the beautiful snow cairn with a cross over the top of the three bodies and there they remain in Antarctica today.

VO: While the relief party could do little for the explorers, they did recover some important artefacts from the tent including the last letters written by Scott to the wives and families of his party.

All of those things expressed Scott's regret at what had happened but also his pride in how much had been achieved during the expedition, the South Pole was achieved.

VO: Although he failed to be the first to the South Pole, Scott's legacy is in his contribution to science.

He collected meteorological data and geological specimens and also samples of over 2,000 animals of which almost 400 were new to science.

Scott's polar achievements and the risks he took under the most extreme circumstances epitomize a spirit of daring scientific investigation that arguably has not been matched since.

It's the end of Charles' visit, time to rest up and dream of the antique discoveries that lie ahead.

Night night.

VO: Morning has broken and our intrepid duo are back on the road.

Definitely.

VO: Well, they would be if Mark could work out how to get the car moving.

Ignition turn, yeah it starts perfectly, that's fine.

And now just find the clutch bite.

Yeah, and now just let it go.

(GRINDING) VO: Oops a daisy!

I did and it's gone.

Try it again.

Don't, don't put your foot....

I'm not on the brake.

Your foot's on the brake there.

I'm not.

Your foot's on the brake there.

This is the accelerator, Char... No!

The brake is in the middle, I'm not near the break.

I thought you were on the brake there.

Try it again.

Charles, I am not touching the brake.

You're on the brake.

I'm not.

Charles, I am not touching the brake.

VO: They are struggling with that car.

Ha!

Charles has been liberal with his lolly so far forking out £100 on a pair of armchairs and a hoard of Roman booty.

That leaves him with £126.80 still to spend.

Mark, in contrast, is being more conservative, spending £80 on three items - a scent bottle, a crested ware kennel and a parasol.

He has got some catching up to do but still has £121.80 to do it with.

Hanson and Stacey are en route to Leicester, the county town of Leicestershire and Charles has his eyes peeled.

CHARLES: I keep looking, Mark, for a car park.

Why?

Because don't forget, Leicester, I suppose rose to prominence in recent times because Richard III... Oh, of course.

..was buried in a Leicester Car Park.

Can you believe that?

The body of a king to me, must be the ultimate antique road trip find.

VO: Yep, it's good to dream big, but one of you will just have to settle for being king of the road trip instead.

Charles' next stop is Hidden Treasures, a small and friendly shop with lots of varied and interesting objects.

CHARLES: That's it.

Beautiful, beautiful.

Here we are, Charles.

How's that?

Wonderful.

Thank you so much, Mark.

VO: And inside is another Mark - owner Mark Knight.

Good morning.

I recognize your face.

Good morning, Charles.

I know you from my saleroom.

How are you?

I do know you from there, yeah.

Yeah, good to see you.

And yourself.

Good to see you.

VO: Pleasantries out of the way, Charlie wastes no time in looking for something to spend his remaining £126.80 on.

That's quite interesting, isn't it?

MARK: Yes, a little riding crop, I think it's a Charles riding crop.

That's quite nice because you've got here the bone which is novelty in the sense that rather than being a fairly mundane handle, it's been embellished with silver mounts and moreso, it's formed a whistle, which makes it quite novel.

I think it's quite unique.

With a dual purpose.

Whistle for the blowing the dogs.

I almost need this in the car with Mark Stacey.

I say Mark, come on, look, push that car.

Come on.

VO: It's ticketed at £50 and, in the crack of a whip, Charles gets straight down to business.

And if I'm asking you what your best price would be, you'll look at me and say... Make me an offer.

Make you an offer.

OK, make you an offer, OK. Mark, OK.

I will do, I probably will do in a short while.

OK. VO: Not sure, eh?

How about something else to help sweeten the deal?

OK, here we are.

Goodness me, she is peculiar.

VO: Hmm.

This girl has culture.

This lady, I suspect... VO: Charles, I am not sure that's a girl actually.

I thought that was three legs for a second, sorry.

I have to interrupt, it is a man.

VO: Ha!

I thought that might have been obvious, Charles.

I think Mark, he represents fertility.

Fertility.

What I like about this tribal figure is the fact that... look at the wear, you have got and tear here on the extremities of the shoulder, you've got losses on the back, it's carved in a soft wood and look at the wrinkles on the forehead, and that's caused by the shrinkage of the timber going into different atmospheres within homes.

VO: This fertility figure, possibly Cameroonian, could be quite a find.

There's an increased interest in ethnographic objects that once upon a time inspired the impressionists.

Interesting subject and further research could be quite spurious.

I'm going to ask the question to you, Mark, what is your best price?

45.

OK. That's quite interesting.

I think what's key to its success is an online exposure... Yeah.

And if we can get this object on the Internet and really worked up... Yeah, some research.

..it's something which Canadian, American collectors might really go for.

You wouldn't take £30 for it, would you Mark?

I would do 35.

Can I do you £35, I am going to say because it is so interesting, it's telling me "don't be startled, get me bought," I'll take him.

OK.

Thanks a lot.

Lovely, thanks very much.

I'll see you shortly.

VO: So that's your third item bought, Charles.

Now, how about that riding crop?

It has a ticket price of £50, are you going to make an offer?

Go on, crack on.

If this came into an auction, because it isn't hallmarked, I would say to my vendor it's a hunting rural country pursuit interest, it's probably worth between £30-50.

Uh-huh.

What's your best price, Mark, on this?

I could do it for 30.

Could you really?

Do you know, I think it's novel, it's neat, I'll take it for £30.

OK then, thanks very much, Charles.

Are you OK with that?

Thanks a lot Mark.

VO: That's £65 all in for the fertility figure and the crop.

Meanwhile, Mark's made his way north of Leicester to look back at the history of rocketry, specifically how a British inventor developed the rocket which eventually led to man's voyage into space with a little help of some canine friends.

Mark's meeting communications officer, Josh Barker at the National Space Centre, one of the United Kingdom's leading visitor attractions devoted to space, science and astronomy.

Hello, Josh.

Hello, Mark.

Lovely to meet you.

Nice to see you too.

Thank you for inviting us to the space center, is that what it's called?

It is, the National Space Centre and you're very welcome, pleasure having you.

Wonderful.

Tell me about it.

So we were set up in 2001 as part of one of the millennium commission projects across the UK.

We're a center dedicated to educating and teaching people about space, specifically the British contribution to it.

Well, I know about the American and the Russian, maybe the European contribution but the UK contribution?

JOSH: We are the world leaders in satellite technology and British rocketry has been around for about 200 years.

200 years, I don't believe you, Josh.

200 years is correct, we've got some of the artefacts to prove that which we'll show you today.

I'd love go and see it.

Let's go see them.

VO: By the late 1700s, Indian forces had developed iron rockets from Chinese-invented fireworks.

These were used against the British in the Mysore wars.

This in turn inspired one English inventor - Sir William Congreve - to develop the technology further to create the Congreve Rocket.

So we have here some examples of some of Britain's earliest rockets.

It looks very Blue Peter to me.

They are very primitive compared to the rockets that go into space.

VO: William Congreve refined his rockets at the Royal Laboratory in Kent.

In 1806, the rockets were used to great effect against the French at Boulogne, firing over 2,000 missiles from British ships without reply.

JOSH: So these were used a lot by the British Army, British Navy, they used them in the Napoleonic era against Napoleon.

VO: The Congreve Rockets were also used by the British in the bombardment of Fort McHenry in the United States in 1814, an event that inspired the line from the American National Anthem "And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air."

VO: For the next 100 years, rockets played an increasing part in warfare and it was in the Second World War that Britain found itself on the receiving end of the rocket's power.

The Germans deployed the world's first long range missile - the V2 Rocket - it was used against allied targets, most devastatingly in its destruction of great parts of London.

What's this mangled piece of old metal?

This is actually a bomb-damaged part of a V2 Rocket.

VO: The V2's greatest impact, however, may have been after the war.

JOSH: The teams behind developing the technology was then used to develop our own rocketry program to advance from the Congreve Rockets we saw earlier, primitive ones that could barely reach a kilometer to these ones, which can actually get all the way up into low Earth orbit.

VO: This was a turning point in rocket technology as the need for longer-reaching missiles was replaced with the dream of reaching outer space.

Thus kickstarting the space race and a new age in which man would set foot on another planet.

So this is really the final chapter in the story of early rocketry and this leads us to sort of the 1950s, 1960s, with the start of the space race, so the really big competition between Russia and America to get into space and the Russians launched what was called the Vostok program.

VO: The Vostok program was a project to put the first man into orbit.

Competing against the United States, the Russians won the race, placing Yuri Gagarin into space in 1961 but before Gagarin launched himself into the history books, early test flights saw dogs blast off.

We can see here an example of a dog high altitude suit... Oh, gosh.

And this was sort of the preliminary tests of getting to see whether they could get the animals to survive sort of in high altitude, sort of an area of fighter jets and things like that, ready to make the next step of going into space.

MARK: I must admit, that looks rather excruciating, the poor dog must have been terrified.

Yeah, unfortunately it's not sort of one of the rosier chapters of the space race.

As with all things, there has to be some sacrifice.

VO: Laika, a stray dog from the streets of Moscow became the first animal to orbit the Earth and bravely paved the way for Yuri Gagarin's seminal journey into space.

The wonderful thing, of course is they say dog is a man's best friend and I think in this case they really are, aren't they?

I think they are, they really paved the way.

VO: In just 210 years from one British man's major contribution to rocket technology through advancements first in warfare, then space exploration, we are now heralding the latest generation of rockets designed to carry astronauts to Earth's orbit and beyond.

Who knows, without William Congreve, none of this would ever have been possible.

And with that, our space odyssey is done.

Meanwhile, Mark's road trip rival is making his way to the Leicestershire hamlet of Shenton near Market Boswell.

VO: With £61.80 left to spend, Charles is checking out the Whitemoors Antiques and Craft Centre.

Afternoon.

Hi Charles.

Good to have you here at Whitemoors.

Your name is?

Robert.

Robert, good to see you.

VO: There are 45 dealers in the center but Robert Simpson is looking after Charles today.

Need to get finding.

OK, this is quite nice.

It's a mirror, I like this.

All depends on the age.

From the exterior, it looks to be an attractive 'come and get me, Hanson' Georgian wall mirror.

With this wonderful pierced, almost cut fret... ..pediment.

I would say this mirror dates to probably 1790-1820 and the description on the label reads "ornate mirror."

It's priced at 40.

I'm going to find Robert and ask him what the very, very, very best price is on the mirror.

CHARLES: Hi Robert.

ROBERT: Hi Charles.

You're still here.

I'm still here.

That's OK.

In the container over there... Yep.

There is a mirror on the wall.

OK. And it says you could be the fairest of them all if you give me a good price for it.

We'll see what we can do.

VO: Robert gets on the phone to John, the dealer who owns the mirror.

Could you possibly do 25, John?

Get lost.

28.

Get lost.

I like your style.

28, go on.

Go on he says.

We want him to win, John.

VO: And with that ringing endorsement, Robert strikes a deal for £28.

It's a nice thing...

It's traditional, it's a nice thing, it's quality and for £28, it's a super lot and I commend you for that negotiation.

You're very welcome.

Look at me.

You did well.

Thanks a lot.

See you.

VO: With Charles all done shopping... Mark's playing catch up and is heading south to Kibworth.

The purpose of his visit is Kibworth Antique Centre but with only three items bought so far, he's got his work cut out.

Hello, I'm Mark.

Hello, I'm Sharron.

Nice to meet you, Sharron.

And you.

VO: This family-owned center is one of south Leicestershire's largest antique retail outlets so there should be plenty here to tempt our Mark.

He's gone to check out the new den out the back.

MARK: Look, red, amber and green, I hope it's green for profit.

VO: Ha!

Talking of greens, Mark's quick to spot a selection of fruit and veg of the Italian vintage handmade variety of course.

Well, look at that.

I mean, they are ceramic but they're a bit wacky, aren't they?

Look, there's even a little mushroom.

Don't ask me what type it is but it's not edible, I know that.

I think those are profound.

I can't buy a load of fruit and veg, can I?

VO: They don't say antique to me but quirky items haven't done Charles any harm so far.

I mean they're £1.99 each or five for £8 but they have been reduced because they were £2.50 or five for £10 so maybe they'd accept a fruity offer.

VO: Well, Sharron's the lady to ask.

I have fallen in love... ..with those vegetables.

(SHE LAUGHS) And I love the fact that they're in an old box.

OK. And one or two of them are chipped.

Yes, yes.

Passed their shop sell by date really.

Right, OK. You see where I'm going with this.

Yes, yes, need to get them erm...

I would love...

Reduced corner.

..you to ask the dealer... OK. How much they would... How much for the whole... ..sell the whole lot for.

VO: The whole lot comes to £48 but Mark is looking for nearer £30 so Sharron makes a call and Mark waits nervously for the response.

So I'm left like an act in Eurovision waiting for the results, waiting for the Leicestershire jury to cast their votes.

VO: Hm!

The suspense is killing me but will it be nil points for Mark?

Sharron, Sharron, Sharron.

I've managed to speak to her.

Oh, have you?

Please, tell me it's good news.

It is good news, she says you can have them but she really needs 34 for them.

£34, £34.

And I get the box as well?

She needs 34.

You can have the box as well but she does need 34 for them.

I mean, I can't not have them for £4.

No.

Do you know what I mean?

It would be silly not to have them for £4.

I'd be silly not to have them.

Will you thank her very much for me?

Of course I will.

I really appreciate it.

Yep, no problem.

So Mark's final purchase sets him back £34.

And with that, the shopping's all done.

But what did they buy?

Charles bought five lots comprising a pair of Louis XVI style armchairs, a collection of Roman coins and curios, an African fertility statue, a bone and silver riding crop and a George III mirror.

He spent a total of £193.

Whilst Mark invested in a scent bottle, a crested ware dog kennel, a French parasol and a collection of handmade ceramic fruit and veg.

That lot cost him just £114.

So what do the fellas make of each other's buys?

The scent bottle I quite like, but I feel it's quite middle rate.

The Shelley is very sweet and it's also got a great World War interest so I think that at £20 and the scent bottle at 30 might do quite well.

The collection of coins are quite interesting and you never if there's one or two unusual in there, paid £40 for them, there could be a good profit in that.

It's a wide open game still, but I think I bought the more spurious and more speculative, which could really take off.

Charles, what can I say?

Good luck, my friend.

VO: It's time to get back on the road and head to auction.

It's been a jaunty journey for our chaps, kicking off in Ely in Cambridgeshire, meandering in and around Leicester and ending in Bourne End for their second auction.

Bourne End in Buckinghamshire is a thriving village outside London where the Wye flows into the Thames.

CHARLES: I think we both ought to go to this auction with great hope.

Positive.

With great expectation.

Positivity.

The journey is a live enquiry.

VO: Yeah, but will their positivity last at the auction at Bourne End Auction Rooms?

Established over 20 years ago, they offer general weekly auctions and monthly antique and specialized sales.

They also auction on the Internet.

Come on, Mark.

It's competition time, OK?

Ha-ha!

VO: It certainly is.

Putting our pair under the hammer at today's auction is Simon Phillip Brown.

The fruit and vegetable, that's a difficult one, that's a real seat of the pants.

£30, £40?

Might do a little more than that, but it's a nice piece.

Possibly the best item will be the tribal piece, that will make the money.

VO: We'll soon find out.

The boys are taking their seats and the auction's about to begin.

Round two.

VO: First up is Hanson's Roman hoard being sold as of metal detecting interest.

Here they are.

..metalware, mixed... CHARLES: What are they worth?

MARK: I don't know.

Start me at £50 please for this one.

Come on, let's go, they cost me 40.

50 I need.

Come on, let's go.

Come on.

Oh £50 is bid.

55, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 85...

Cost me £40.

..95, 100...

I'm happy now, Mark.

£100 now, selling at 100.

Are we all done at 100 on my left now?

At £100.

VO: Great start.

Oh, he'll be chuffed with that!

Well done, Charles.

That's given me a £60 start.

Profit.

I'm over the moon.

VO: Now for Mark's scent bottle, can he get a whiff of a profit too?

Start me at £20 please for this lot.

Ten to start, £10, 10 I'm bid, 12, 14, 16, 18... We're rolling, Mark.

20, 22, £20 now, 22, 25, 27, 30, 32, 35... Wow, Mark, you're flying.

40, 42, 45, 47, 50, 55, 60, sir, 65, 70, sir, 80, 85, 90, 95, 100.

Congratulations, that's amazing.

95 with the lady, staying at 95, yours at 95, madam, are we all done now?

VO: Wow, another great profit.

They're certainly getting their bang in bucks.

That's really good, how do you feel?

I feel quite good, I think that's a good start.

We're both having a good start today.

VO: Can Charles keep up the good feeling?

It's his George III mirror next.

£20 please for this lot... Oh!

Cost me £28.

20, anybody interested?

Come on.

20, nobody interested, 20 with the lady, selling at 20, yours at 20.

Oh no.

That's cheap.

Are we all done, at 20 on my left, 22, 25, 27, 30, sir, 30, 32, 35...

Cost me 28.

37, 37, 40, 42, 45, 47, 50, 55, 60, 65, £60 now, selling at 60 with the lady at 60, are we all done at 60 on my left now.

Thank you.

VO: Well, well, doubled your outlay there, boy.

Mark's fruit and veg are up next.

The auctioneer liked this lot.

Who'll start me at £50 please for this lot?

50 I'm bid, yours at 50, are we all done?

55, 60, 65, £60 on my right, selling at 65... That's alright.

65, 70, 75, 80, 85, 90, 95...

Wonderful, Mark.

£90 now, selling at 90 on my right.

At 90, are we all done?

A bit more.

VO: Hungry for more, Mark?

Are we all done now?

VO: It's another stonking profit and that puts Mark in the lead.

Mark, you're flying high.

Happy with that.

VO: Charles' riding crop is next.

Will the profits keep coming?

Start me at £30 please for this lot, 30 I'm bid...

There we are.

Yours at 30, 32, 35, 37, 40, 42, 45, 47, 50, 55... Oh!

£50 now, 55, 60...

This is going to go on, Charles.

It's not.

Yes, it is.

65 on my right.

Selling at 65, are we all done at 65?

Selling at 65 on my right, got you at 65 now.

VO: Whip crack away eh?

There's no calamity here.

Another tidy profit.

Well done, you made £35 on that.

I'm delighted, Mark.

That's a good profit but I think that might have...

I'm delighted.

..I thought that was quite a reasonable buy for someone.

VO: Next under the gavel is Mark's Shelley dog kennel, of military interest.

Starting at £20 please for this lot, 20, Ten to start... Oh, come on.

Anybody interested?

10, 10 I'm bid, yours at 10, sir, are we all done at 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 18 on my right... Oh, come on, a bit more.

Are we all done?

18 on my right... Oh no.

£18 now.

VO: Oh, first lost of the day, has that left Mark in the dog house, I wonder?

Never buy knobbly knick-knacks.

OK, I won't buy knobbly knick-knacks.

Because when you buy, you know... Yeah, it makes a profit in your case.

VO: Now it's the fertility statue that the auctioneer thinks could do very well indeed.

50, 50 I'm bid... Come on.

50, yours at 50, all done on my right... Come on.

50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75, £70 now, 75... Let's go.

85, 90, 95, 100...

There we go, Mark.

Off we go.

Think antique and let's roll on.

There we go, Mark.

Let's go.

Are we all done at 120, yours at 120 now.

VO: That profit's driven Charles into a huge lead.

We're steering our way to a profit.

Well, you are.

Look at me.

Unbelievable.

VO: Let's see if your parasol can put a smile back on your face, Mark.

£50 please for this lot, 50, anybody interested.

We're rolling, Mark.

30 then to start, 30 I'm bid... Watch it go now, 35, 40.

32, 35, 37, 40, 42, £40, got you at 40...

It's gonna roll.

That's a good profit.

Selling at 40, selling at 40, yours at 40 now, are we all done?

VO: Back making a profit, Mark, but it won't be much of one after auction costs.

Good work.

Profit.

What do I have to do?

Put it there.

No, I'm not, Charles.

It was £10, Charles.

Profit.

(HE SIGHS) VO: Charles thinks he's got a real find with these chairs but will the bidders see past their tattered state?

Start me at £50 please, 50 I'm bid, yours at 50... Should go on from there.

55, 60, 60 with William, yours at 60, are we all done at 60?

65, 70, 75, 80, 85, £80 now with William, selling at 80.

Are we all done at 80?

Yours at 80 now.

VO: That's a clean sweep for Charles, profits all the way.

Charles, well done.

Second auction to you.

Yes, but at least for the two of us, it's onwards and upwards.

Come on, onwards and upwards.

VO: After paying auction costs, Mark Stacey has made a very respectable profit of £85.26.

As a result, Mark has £287.06 to carry forward.

It hasn't stopped Charles storming further ahead though, making another fantastic profit of £155.50 after costs.

Mr Hanson has claimed today's victory and has £382.30 to start the next leg.

The boys head for Hereford and it's probably best Charles is back behind the wheel.

So, Mark, Hereford here we come.

Charles, I thought you were going to say heaven but of course, which Hereford is.

(BOTH LAUGH) VO: Next time, our experts can't wait to get on the road again.

# Just the two of us... # VO: Mark Stacey is begging for a bargain.

Please, please, please... VO: Charles Hanson pushes the boat out.

Would you take 300...pence?

subtitling@stv.tv