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

I don't know what to do.

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

What a little diamond.

VO: The aim - to make the biggest profit at auction, but it's no mean feat.

Back in the game.

Charlie!

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

Oh!

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

Oh!

VO: This is the Antiques Road Trip.

VO: Yeah.

VO: It's the third leg of this week's epic road trip for our treasure hunters Paul Laidlaw and Christina Trevanion.

PAUL: This is it.

This is it.

We're living the dream.

Living the dream.

CHRISTINA: What's not to love?

The weather's amazing... PAUL: Company... CHRISTINA: ..Car's fabulous.

PAUL: ..Company.

Company.

The daffodils are shining.

Company.

The company's amazing.

Oh, it is, isn't it?

I feel exactly the same way.

VO: Paul is the leader of this pack and is using every trick in the book.

Whatever it takes and if you need me crying I can turn that on just like that.

VO: Challenger Christina is keeping her eyes peeled in her bid to catch up.

Worryingly, I can't see a pricetag.

VO: But both our auctioneers are basking in profit.

PAUL: We're both in, in the black.

CHRISTINA: Yeah.

Profit central.

Yeah, seriously.

Now, I think maybe just get some kind of world leader on the phone or something because I think by the end of this road trip you are singlehandedly going to be able to pay off world debt.

CHRISTINA: Seriously.

And have change.

VO: Christina started the trip with £200 and has nudged her total up to £218.14.

VO: Paul started with the same amount but made a smashing profit and has £427.04 in his pocket.

VO: Impressive.

Much like their 1999 HMC Mk IV.

VO: What's not to love, eh?

CHRISTINA: Hey, look at this buzzard.

Look at this buzzard on this hedge.

Look at him.

PAUL: Where?

He's like you.

Going in for the kill.

CHRISTINA: I'm just crazy, crazy impressed.

You, I mean, you are the most modest man I've ever met.

Outside you're going "oh, behave yourself, behave yourself", inside you're going "Yes, yes, yes!

Come on."

PAUL: I am.

VO: Paul and Christina started their journey in Clare in Suffolk.

They are careering through Worcestershire and the West Midlands and twisting up through Staffordshire before their journey of over 700 miles culminates in Northwich in Cheshire.

VO: Our pair kick off today's leg in the Herefordshire town of Leominster and head north for their next auction in Nantwich, Cheshire.

VO: Leominster is a beautiful chocolate box village in the heart of the rolling borderlands between England and Wales.

It's also Paul's first pit stop.

VO: Meanwhile, Christina has toddled less than 25 miles along the road to Ledbury where she is being shown around Rod's Curiosities by none other than Rod himself.

Now, this is nice, Rod.

Tell me about this.

That's quite fun, isn't it?

This is a British Thomson Houston Bakelite comb speaker.

Speaker.

ROD: Yeah.

Hmm.

CHRISTINA: See, I don't really know huge amounts about these, but that looks - I mean, it's so sort of typical of its time, isn't it?

It's what 19...?

Oh, it's absol...

Absolutely of its era.

1930s?

Round about the 30s, yeah.

CHRISTINA: Beautiful and Bakelite I'd imagine at that time was such a new material, wasn't it?

ROB: It was the new plastic.

The new plastic.

So they could... Yeah.

It was one of the first things that they could really mold into quite wacky shapes, wasn't it?

ROB: Absolutely.

CHRISTINA: I like that.

OK, what have we got on that then, Rod?

Well, at the moment we've got £95 on it.

CHRISTINA: Do we think £25-30 might be beyond the realms of possibilities?

We might be able to do something.

D'you think?

Yeah.

That'll be exciting.

We might be able to do... Because I virtually got it free, really.

I think I... CHRISTINA: Brilliant, l... You're a man, you're a man of honor, Rod.

I like that, I like that.

Right, let's keep wandering and see what else we can find.

VO: Not a bad price for a speaker that doesn't work.

VO: Something to think about.

See, so often now you see Staffordshire, don't you and it's...

It's late Staffordshire that was mass produced.

CHRISTINA: And you can just tell, can't you, instantly.

ROD: Yep.

CHRISTINA: Look at the...

The way the decoration's done is... ROD: Yes.

CHRISTINA: ..so much more hand applied.

VO: That early Staffordshire figure has a ticket price of £35.

CHRISTINA: What could you do on that?

Bearing in mind I'm buying this with my heart, not with my head.

Because I know...

Yes.

Em... CHRISTINA: ..it's not going to do particularly well at auction, but it's very sweet.

ROD: I real, I really couldn't go below £20 on that I'm afraid.

OK.

So if we did...

If we said 25 on the speaker... ROD: Mm-hm.

CHRISTINA: And 20 on this, if we did 45.

Could you do... ROD: 45.

Could you do 40 for the two?

Since it's you.

CHRISTINA: No, not since it's me.

(LAUGHS) Could you do it?

ROD: Yeah.

CHRISTINA: Could you?

Yeah, we could.

You're a legend.

Rod, thank you very much.

You're a gentleman.

That's brilliant, thank you.

CHRISTINA: I love it.

ROD: Yeah.

Oh God, now I need to think...

I need to start thinking more commercially.

VO: Perhaps, but you do seem rather keen.

I'm really, really pleased with this little figure.

It's got this wonderful hole in the base here, because in this stage porcelain or pottery was still very very experimental in the early 19th century, so basically for him not to explode in the kiln they couldn't make anything that was too thick, so that's a really good sign that it's a nice, early piece.

And the piece-de-resistance for me is that I know that the auction house that we're selling at, which is up in Cheshire, is really very good on early ceramics.

So, hopefully we're selling him in exactly the right place.

VO: Someone's done their homework.

There you go, 10... ..10.

CHRISTINA: 20.

ROD: 20.

CHRISTINA: 30... ROD: 30.

CHRISTINA: 40 Great British pounds.

VO: £40 seals the Bakelite loudspeaker and the 19th century Staffordshire figure for Christina.

Thank you.

ROD: Bye.

CHRISTINA: Bye.

VO: Meanwhile back in Leominster.

I recently bought a piece of WMF metalwork, which didn't inspire me.

It didn't, it wasn't good WMF so far as I was concerned.

I think there's a good WMF group down there.

VO: W rttembergische Metallwarenfabrik or WMF was one of the largest European manufacturers of metal work in the late 19th century.

VO: They're not uncommon so what's caught your eye here, then, Paul?

Look at the aesthetic here.

Some would be tempted to say art deco, because it's...

The nature of the decoration is very geometric, a box grid, and that sounds pretty industrial and pretty harsh, but it is an aesthetic that I for one would associate with the designer Hoffmann, Koloman Moser.

These are giants and I see their wiener werkst tte influence in this little christening set here.

I'm pretty excited.

Is that coming across?

VO: It certainly is old bean.

And with a ticket price of £25, time to call on Angela.

PAUL: Now, that is a bunch of keys if ever I saw one.

ANGELA: Yes.

That's just for the cabinets round here.

PAUL: Right, Angela.

So, I spotted this early on.

It's a pretty little WMF christening set.

I don't see any...

I was just worried that there'd be a problem.

I think your only problem with a christening set is when it's been engraved, as this has, but otherwise I think that's fine and dandy.

ANGELA: Has she already reduced it?

I'll just check for you.

ANGELA: Nope.

So, what...

I can knock you 10% off, actually.

PAUL: I'm happy to take 10% discount on that, I think that's fantastic.

It is lovely, yes.

Yeah.

I really like that.

VO: For a total of £22.50 Paul has secured his first purchase of the day.

PAUL: That's great.

And... ANGELA: Very much indeed.

..All the best to you.

Thanks, Angela.

ANGELA: Best to you.

Right, bye bye then.

Bye.

VO: Meanwhile, Christina's heading for Great Malvern to discover how the water that springs from the nearby hills helped spark a Victorian health craze and put the town on the map.

VO: She's meeting curator Cora at the Malvern Museum.

So, why is Malvern so famous for its water?

It's because most places that are famous for water are famous because their water has got minerals in it, but Malvern water is famous because it has hardly got any minerals in it at all.

VO: The dense granite rocks that make up the eight mile ridge of the Malvern hills, strip the minerals from the water flowing through it.

In early medical treatments it was understood that different minerals could be used for different ailments.

By having so few minerals Malvern's water was considered to be pure and was used by two pioneering doctors in their own brand of water cure.

CORA: In the 19th century, we had two water cure doctors - Dr James Wilson and Dr James Gully - who came to Malvern and they set up hydropathic practices.

And they encouraged wealthy people to come here because wealthy people had the sort of problems that could be treated with Malvern water.

VO: During Wilson's European travels he encountered the work of a groundbreaking individual.

VO: Vincenz Priessnitz had started to develop water cures based on his observations of animals submerging their injured limbs into water.

Wilson, suffering from his own ailments, stayed at the pioneering clinic and was astounded by his work.

CORA: He stayed about six months, he drank about 2,500 tumblers of water, he walked for about 200 miles and he got better, and he thought it was so surprising and dynamic he decided that he'd like to set up a hydropathic institution in England.

So, he came back here, collected his friend, Dr Gully, inspired him with hydropathy and then the two of them came to Malvern.

VO: Wilson and Gully opened their establishment in 1842 and were among the first to create such a center in Britain.

VO: Malvern's pure water already had a reputation for healing properties but Wilson and Gully's patients did not simply drink it.

They were prescribed various bathing treatments to treat ailments as diverse as eye, skin and digestive disorders.

CHRISTINA: Forgive me for being a cynic, but was there any science behind this theory that Wilson and Gully had got together?

Oh, yes.

It's... You have to know just one or two rudimentary things about the body.

CORA: If you get into a hot bath, your skin turns pink.

CHRISTINA: Yep.

That's because without you doing anything the body is naturally trying to cool itself down, by bringing the... the blood to the surface.

CHRISTINA: I thought I'd just be turning into a lobster.

Eh, no.

If you get into a cold bath, without you doing anything, your body has the opposite effect, and that is for the blood to go inwards to keep your... Internal organs warm.

..Vital organs warm.

CHRISTINA: Yep.

So, once you know that then you know that you can move the blood around in the body, just by the application of warm and cold water.

VO: Water therapy was used to stimulate the flow of blood and was combined with strict regimes of exercise and diet.

CHRISTINA: This is a hip bath?

CORA: This is a hip bath, yes.

CHRISTINA: Right.

CORA: So, if you'd got some sort of blockage in the lower bit of you round here...

So, digestive problems?

CORA: Yes.

CHRISTINA: Right.

Yes.

In the lower digestive tract... CHRISTINA: Yeah?

..This would be ideal for you.

In the tub.

It's cold, remember.

VO: To treat abdominal complaints patients would sit in the bath with cold water and be wrapped in cold wet towels to encourage blood vessels to contract.

VO: Water cures caught the imagination of Victorian society and Malvern flourished.

Trade in bottled water from the town increased and grand hotels were built to accommodate the tourists brought by the new railway.

Thanks to the craze of water cures the town became known across the country and the water that flows from its granite hills became the stuff of legend.

How long am I prescribed to sit here, Cora?

How long till I get better?

CORA: Well, you've got 15 minutes in the tub twice a day, but actually your complete treatment, seeing what a state you're in, 3-6 months.

3-6 months?

I'm going to leave you to it.

CHRISTINA: OK. Alright, then.

Right.

3-6 months.

Am I... Am I in that bad shape?

Might be a year.

VO: Looking better already.

While she indulges her ailments, Paul is just a few steps along the road.

Hello.

How're you doing?

You alright?

Yes, I'm fine, thank you.

VO: That's the lovely Bridget who's on hand to help.

BRIDGET: How much have you got to spend?

PAUL: You see now that would be telling.

That would be a rookie negotiating mistake from the off.

Right, OK. £300.

No, it's 400.

400 I've got.

Oh, right.

Gosh.

You gonna extract that from me?

Yep.

Hopefully.

I'll take you into that back room.

Get medieval on me!

Right.

VO: Watch yourself Paul.

Right let's get spending some of that money.

What we have here is one of a family of clocks that were made to government contract in the 1930s/40s.

PAUL: And they have certain features in common.

The first and most important one from a horological point of view is that they have fusee driven movements.

PAUL: A fusee is a technical advancement that regulates the power from the main spring.

VO: This technology helped keep the clock accurate but this one has a ticket price of a £275.

They gave them to, for instance, army and air force officers' messes.

And they were used as smart, accurate, for the officers' mess.

You could set your watch "I say, old bean, it's 7 o'clock, you know, shall we, shall we retire for dinner?"

VO: So that's one for the shortlist and he's already on to another timepiece.

This time it's a mid 20th century pocket watch with a ticket price of £68.

To be honest with you I think that's an unusual and not unattractive watch.

Could you possibly... Now, now, that for my purposes is a country mile off £68.

Mm-hm.

Em...

But I don't know what slack's in that.

Could you do me a massive favor and just see if there's a... Any dealer.

..giveaway price on that.

I'll go and ask.

PAUL: And I'll just keep rummaging.

VO: There's no stopping Paul, he's already onto something else.

That's some size of a perfume bottle, isn't it?

It's not a perfume bottle.

It's...

This is, eh, saddlery, or this would be carried in saddlery.

VO: The discerning person's choice for taking refreshments on horseback, the flask would have been held on a gentleman's saddle by a leather pouch, which is sadly missing.

Ticket price is £48.

In this instance we have got a silver mounted, glass flask.

PAUL: What on earth are you gonna do with that?

I'd need a horse and a lot of leatherwork and an estate before I could use it.

What, eh... Price on that?

What could that be?

Make it cheap.

Can something be cheap?

Come on.

48... Tell me this came in, it was inexpensive.

48.

40.

That'll be the best.

Oh.

I do like clocks and watches and I'm still thinking about that pocket watch.

The unusual, but high quality, the fusee driven mantel clock in the oak case.

That's a hell of a lot of my budget, but is there slack in the price of that?

It's 275 squids.

The one facing the door, aye.

Can that be cheap?

Is there something can be cheap?

I'm selling that for someone, so... PAUL: Oh, a bit of private... No, it's another dealer.

We'll give him a call.

PAUL: No harm in it.

I've no self respect.

WOMAN: OK. OK, whatever it takes and if you need me crying I can turn that on just like that.

VO: It may come to that.

I love the flask.

I love the flask.

I wish it had the leather pouch.

That is its achilles heel.

It does look a bit like another perfume bottle.

You put the leather pouch on that, you've got something good.

175.

PAUL: 175?

VO: A good discount for the mantle clock and Bridget also offers £50 for the pocket watch and £40 on the saddle flask.

But can Paul get a deal for all three from owner Nigel?

BRIDGET: On what he was quoted before?

PAUL: It is 175, 40 and 50.

265 at the minute.

NIGEL: 230.

That's it.

That is a good offer.

VO: At £230 it certainly is.

Even if it was haggled across the room.

VO: It's a great discount Paul snaps it up, to secure all three items.

Bold move Paul.

Thank you very much.

Next time, I hope.

BRIDGET: Bye bye.

VO: And after a hard day of antique acquisition it's time for some rest.

Sweet dreams, you two.

VO: The next morning our curio crackerjacks are headed through the West Midlands just to the south of Coventry.

My granny used to say it used to terrify me going to Coventry because she would always say I will send you to Coventry.

And it was just the worst possible... what am I going to Coventry...?

What is in Coventry?

Yeah, yeah.

This was the worst thing.

CHRISTINA: Where does it come from cuz why would you, why would you...?

PAUL: Well I always thought it was a military thing.

Of course, I think everything is military.

VO: Paul spent big yesterday, landing four items for a total of £252.50.

VO: Christina pocketed a Bakelite speaker and Staffordshire figure shelling out £40.

VO: Today they're continuing northwards and heading for the village of Balsall Common.

Where their ways part once more.

CHRISTINA: Have a lovely time.

PAUL: See you later.

PAUL: All the best.

CHRISTINA: Bye.

CHRISTINA: Good morning!

DIANE: Hello, nice to see you.

Nice to see you.

How are you, are you well?

Fine.

VO: Antiques in a Barn is housed in a 200 year old barn.

Funnily enough.

With a lot of ground to cover perhaps owner Diane can help out.

Ah, I would quite like to have a look in this cabinet, if that's alright.

CHRISTINA: See, are you as much of a sucker about Georgian paste as me?

Terrible.

Nobody buys it, though, apart from me!

No.

But it is just...

I mean, you can see why people just fell in love with it, can't you?

It is very effective at simulating diamonds.

Yeah.

It, it, it, looks the part, doesn't it?

Yeah.

VO: In Georgian society diamonds were rare and expensive, as they are today, so glass was cut to imitate diamonds and called 'paste'.

This one has a ticket price of £25.

So, unless you had the budget of the queen and could not really afford diamonds then this was the best next option to that.

Right, OK, let's think about that.

I do love that.

I was looking at this fan.

Now, is that the box for it there?

Yes.

Yeah.

Can I give you that then, my love?

Yeah.

Isn't that pretty?

So, we need to have a look at the leaf, and see if the leaf is in good condition, which it is.

So often you find that they, they perish along these creases, don't they?

So, and that actually looks as if it's got a little bit of damage on there.

It has got this ivory, obviously, what they call the sticks, here.

And it is actually carved in there as well.

Now, ivory is quite controversial, isn't it, but as long as it is pre-1947, it is legal to sell ivory in this country.

And I would say this is certainly 19th century, French.

VO: Yeah, not to everyone's taste but Christina seems smitten by it.

I love the subject matter, these beautiful birds in flight here.

And the cornflowers, and the wheat.

It is obviously a very summery thing, isn't it?

DIANE: Mm.

Lovely.

CHRISTINA: It's beautiful.

And that tassel is something else.

Look at that.

Lovely.

OK, so what have we got on this, Diane?

"19th century fan, £78" on there.

What could be your death on that for a trade buyer?

DIANE: I will do you 50.

£50 on it, and that comes with the box?

And that includes the box, yeah.

VO: That's a £28 discount, one to hang onto and to carry on rummaging.

CHRISTINA: So, this is interesting.

It's got Macintyre and Co, Burslem on here.

VO: James Macintyre founded a successful Staffordshire pottery in 1860.

You have got "at fault" on there.

Is that...?

DIANE: Yes, there's... Oh, yes.

DIANE: There's a crack, unfortunately.

CHRISTINA: Oh, what a shame.

VO: Damaged or not it's priced at £55.

Because of the...

I mean, perfect £200, something like that.

Mm.

But because of the damage...

It's not perfect, is it?

No, it's not perfect.

I do really like that and I think there would be a market for it at auction, but I think they do want them in good condition, don't they?

What if we did a bit of a deal on, on the two?

Cuz I do, I do worry about this condition here.

What did we say on the fan?

DIANE: We said 50 on the fan.

CHRISTINA: We said 50 on the fan.

For the two, could we come up with like a combined price for the two?

70 for the pair.

For the pair?

For the two?

DIANE: Yeah.

CHRISTINA: I mean, £50 on that is fine.

Could you meet me in the middle at 65 for the two?

For the fan and the little... perfume bottle, at 65.

Yeah, I'll do you 65.

CHRISTINA: Yeah?

DIANE: Yep, yep.

OK.

It's a deal.

Brilliant.

You're an angel, thank you very much.

Obviously I have bought with my heart again.

VO: Two shops down and Christina's heart has won in both.

VO: Oh nice till.

VO: £65 bags Christina the scent bottle and 19th century silk fan.

VO: Just a few miles away Paul is making his way to Kenilworth, to find out how the town's castle was shaped by one man's desire to woo the queen of England.

PAUL: Is it Holly?

HOLLY: Alright, it is indeed.

Man alive.

Welcome to Kenilworth Castle.

VO: In the 16th century it was home to Robert Dudley and was the centerpiece of a tale of unrequited love.

HOLLY: Right, come on through.

I will bring you into the drawing room.

Oh, my word!

HOLLY: So this is what we refer to as the Oak room in the gatehouse.

I wonder why.

PAUL: That looks like it that was commissioned by quite... A man, I assume.

HOLLY: Yes.

It was.

Who is this?

It was Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester.

PAUL: What is his backstory then, where does he come from?

PAUL: How does he get the wealth to do this?

HOLLY: Well he actually comes quite poor.

His father John Dudley, Earl of Northumberland was actually beheaded for treason.

Particularly for his part in trying to get Lady Jane Grey on to the throne.

VO: With Dudley also imprisoned in the Tower of London for a year, the family's reputation was in tatters.

But it is believed this may be where he met the future Elizabeth I who was being held in the tower by her sister Mary.

When Elizabeth takes the throne in 1558 Dudley's fortunes soar.

HOLLY: Obviously he is rising through the ranks and as he starts to rise through he becomes a favorite of Elizabeth I and she gives him Kenilworth Castle in 1563.

PAUL: Right?

HOLLY: And a few other properties.

Em... PAUL: That's a favorite indeed.

HOLLY: That is a favorite indeed.

VO: Dudley was an active suitor to the queen.

He was free to pursue Elizabeth after his wife died, but the suspicious circumstances of the death cast a shadow over him.

His rise in influence and wealth was also treated with suspicion.

Despite his reputation the queen continued to show him favor.

To be perfectly honest, the vast majority of his money came from Elizabeth, so she is almost funding her own property and her own house.

PAUL: Yeah.

There is lots of discussion as to whether or not it was a love match or whether or not this is a man aiming for the power and to get to the very top, and to the crown.

VO: No one knows the full extent of their relationship but Dudley was romantically interested in the queen and she granted him land and titles that kept him close at hand.

HOLLY: He is kind of the master of the garter, so to speak.

Which to me or you meant that he looked after all the horses and all of her progressions and all of her travel, which was really important, which meant that he could never really leave her side.

So, everywhere she went he went.

VO: During her reign Elizabeth made 25 royal progresses, touring the country for weeks at a time.

Those graced with a visit went to extreme lengths to prepare for the queen and Dudley was no exception.

He lavished money on Kenilworth Castle including the creation of an ornate private garden.

HOLLY: It is a renaissance garden and this is pretty much one of the first ones that there is in the UK at that time.

HOLLY: And when you look down on the garden there is going to be a lot of flowers in there that people would recognize.

So, he would have put wild strawberries into the garden.

PAUL: I see.

HOLLY: A sign of righteousness.

PAUL: I see.

There is symbolism in these.

And the cherries, a sign of her virginity.

HOLLY: And most particular, we have got carnations and marigolds and they are all about marriage.

VO: Dudley's intent was clear.

In 1575 Elizabeth enjoyed 19 days of celebrations at Kenilworth, the longest stay of any tour.

It was Dudley's opportunity to woo Elizabeth and to show the world, and the queen, his accumulated wealth.

We are currently in Elizabeth's bedroom, which is in Leicester's building, and these were her state apartments that Robert Dudley built for her.

PAUL: These windows are huge.

Is that normal for the time?

HOLLY: Not at all.

This would really the beginning of the renaissance influence coming across and the want for light and also a sign of extravagance, so glass was hugely expensive so he is making these really ornate, large windows, full of glass, showing his wealth.

VO: Without explanation, Dudley's pursuit of the queen waned after this grand visit and a few years later he married Elizabeth's cousin.

But despite this, the queen used Dudley's role at court to keep him constantly at her side and on her deathbed Elizabeth's affection towards him was clear.

And when she died, she had his last letter in her hand, and the ring that he gave her as well.

VO: To this day the truth behind his relationship with Elizabeth remains a mystery.

VO: Whether for love or ambition, the sandstone ruins of Kenilworth castle stand as a measure of his efforts to win the virgin queen.

VO: Reunited back in the car our twosome are travelling through... VO: some of Northamptonshire's finest countryside, towards the village of Weedon Bec.

PAUL: Shall we just abandon the wheels here?

(BOTH LAUGH) CHRISTINA: I'm not entirely sure this is a parking space.

VO: Neither am I.

It's the last chance to shop on this trip.

Christina still has over £113, while Paul's holding over £170.

CHRISTINA: Ooh.

Ooh, this looks good.

Is it big enough for both of us, do you think?

Well, you take that side, I'll take that side.

What I find quite fascinating is that both Paul and I will walk in here and we'll both go for entirely different things.

He will go for stuff that I probably wouldn't even look at and I will go for stuff that he probably wouldn't even look at.

It's like we're ying and yang isn't it?

VO: Yeah.

And Paul's already yanging onto something.

How far am I from the door?

Three paces and that's what I'm buying.

OK?

VO: Huh.

Hold on.

Oh wait a minute, you maybe want to know why and what.

VO: That would be nice.

OK, it's that.

And it's going to cost me that.

And it dates to 1740-1750.

And it's an incredibly scarce little Georgian English glass.

For all the world it's like a tiny little sweetmeat dish, OK, or a miniature tazza.

PAUL: You would call a tazza a cake stand.

You've got the little shallow bowl there.

This abs... Trust me, absolutely delicious little knopped stem and it sits on a domed and folded foot.

A folded foot is one in which the glass has been turned back on itself to give a double thickness at the edge.

That is serendipity.

It's also a colossal bargain.

Because the truth of the matter is I think that's worth, to a specialist collector, £100 of anyone's money.

I kid you not.

Three paces from the door.

Second shelf down on the bric-a-brac stall, ta-dah!

VO: Incredible find Paul.

Hurry up, Christina, would you?

Come on.

Christina?

How much are... How long is this gonna take?

I'm done.

Come on.

Hang on a second, you're not supposed to heckle me from across the antiques shop.

No pressure.

CHRISTINA: Are you done?

Really?

Done.

Done.

I haven't even started looking.

What?

VO: He was quick.

How're you doing?

Would you be Lawrence, by any chance?

I would be, and I presume you're Paul.

Good to see you, my friend.

Are you alright?

Very well indeed.

Lawrence, this could be the quickest visit I have ever had to an antiques shop.

Really?

I found it within two paces of the door.

I ain't going to haggle, funnily enough.

PAUL: So, I will give you all of... One pound.

Would you believe it.

Lawrence... LAWRENCE: That is very kind of you indeed.

PAUL: I am going to shake your hand and run.

I will grab my glass.

Thank you.

VO: Paul's eagle eye strikes again and no haggling indeed.

What a spot, eh!

What a little diamond.

A pound note.

A pound note.

Three steps in from the door.

VO: Right Christina the pressure's on now!

Alison?

Could I have a look in this cupboard here?

ALISON: Of course you may.

CHRISTINA: We are um... We are selling in Cheshire.

ALISON: Oh, right.

CHRISTINA: So I'm thinking footballer's wives, bit of bling.

Yep.

And that is so unusual in the setting of the diamond.

But that's, yeah, I mean it almost looks like sort of Boodles or Chopard, or something like that, so it is quite sweet.

VO: It's a modern diamond and white gold pendant and chain.

Ticket price £150.

To be perfectly honest it is the kind of thing that leaves me cold, but in Cheshire I am thinking modern jewelry would probably...

Very popular.

So, what could your best trade price on that be?

£120.

Ah.

OK. Is there any chance we could go 100 on it?

Not really.

Cuz I haven't got £120 left.

Oh dear.

How much have you got left?

Unfortunately not that much.

I was really hoping to sort of secure that for about a hundred pounds if that is at all possible.

What is your thoughts on that?

Let me go and have a word with John that works for me, because it is one of his pieces.

Oh, OK. Alright, brilliant.

110 he said.

We can't do 100.

You can't do 100?

No, unfortunately not.

Oh.

Oh.

Would you go 105?

ALISON: No I can't.

Are you sure?

Positive.

Sorry.

110 is the absolute death on that?

It is.

CHRISTINA: OK. 110.

ALISON: Thanking you.

CHRISTINA: 110.

Thank you very much, that's great.

You're welcome.

I owe you some money.

Look at that, that's beautiful.

VO: And with that Christina's shopping is complete.

She's spent £215 on the Bakelite speaker, the 19th century pearl ware figure, the scent bottle, the silk fan and the diamond pendant.

VO: Paul bought the WMF christening set, the pocket watch, the glass flask, mantle clock and his bargain buy of the Georgian tazza.

All for a total of £243.50.

VO: So what do they make of each other's items?

The little perfume, well, see when I first saw that, I panicked.

I thought oh, she's bought a Macintyre silver mounted egg perfume.

I thought I'd lost it all.

Praise the lord, it's damaged and I've been let off the hook.

The guy is a genius.

I mean buying an I... Buying a beautiful piece of very very early glassware like that for a pound is just amazing, and I was in the same shop as him.

That's quite depressing.

VO: D'you know, you're right.

VO: Our pair have trundled their way north from Leominster in Herefordshire and are headed for their last stop of this leg in Nantwich in Cheshire.

You walk into a shop.

The same shop as me might I add.

You walk into a shop and within two paces you've picked up the most beautiful 18th century glass for a pound!

VO: Jealousy will get you nowhere Christina.

VO: It's off to the auction, which today is being held in Nantwich.

VO: Once the stopping point on a coaching route from London to Wales it was famous for its salt and leather production.

For the last 60 years the town has been home to Peter Wilson Auctions.

And very nice it is too.

Come on, then.

VO: So what does auctioneer Chris Large make of our duo's offering?

In vogue at the moment is quirky items.

People like different things, you know, the Bakelite speaker that is in the sale, although historically they have not done well, it is just the sort of thing that might attract people's interest and, you know, take off.

CHRIS: The little Georgian sweetmeat dish, really lovely early piece because it has got the folded foot around the footrim.

Lovely grey color in the glass, which shows it is very early.

It would be so much more valuable if it was a drinking glass, a wine glass.

I think it will still sell for about £80-120 though.

VO: It could be Paul's lucky day!

To me, the main event, it's all about your glass.

I think it doesn't matter what happens today.

VO: We'll have to wait for that.

Christina's Bakelite speaker is up first.

I'm bid £30 straight away, on commission, for this lot, and I'm selling.

Internet's in there, 50.

50's bid on the internet.

That's lovely.

Any further bids?

I'll take that.

More than doubled your money.

I'll need it.

VO: That broken old speaker's given Christina a fantastic start.

VO: Next up is Paul's mantle clock he fell in love with.

My prediction... Yeah?

250-350 quid.

I have £65 now straight away.

70, 75, 80...

In the room.

CHRIS: 85, 90, against the commission.

95.

100 and 10 now.

120?

CHRIS: 120.

130.

140.

40.

50.

Fine, sailing, you're fine.

160's bid.

I need a 10 now.

Another internet bidder.

180.

190?

190.

200?

I'm safe now.

Come on.

200.

220 now?

Still cheap.

Not expensive, but I'll take it.

£220.

I'm gonna sell, if you're all happy now at £220.

I'll take it.

I'll take that.

Well done.

I'll just mop that brow.

VO: Not quite your prediction Paul but a still a strong profit.

I wonder what's coming up next?

VO: It's Christina's 19th century silk fan.

£35 the bid's gonna be.

40, thank you.

40 in the room.

At £40.

45 I'm looking for.

At £40.

I'll sell if you're all happy at £40 only.

VO: Sadly the room doesn't love it quite as much as you did Christina.

That's great.

No, I mean...

I mean, no, no.

What a disappointment.

VO: Now, the hour has come for Paul's second timepiece of the day, his pocket watch.

Now we've got your really sweet little art deco pocket watch.

And £20 I'm bid on commission here with me.

I'm selling.

CHRIS: 25's on the internet.

Takes my bid out.

At £25 the internet bidder has it.

30 I'm looking for.

I'm gonna make a loss.

CHRIS: At £25 is bid...

It's an outrage.

If you're all happy at £25 only.

CHRISTINA: Aw!

PAUL: This is an outrage.

Aw.

This is...

I demand a recount.

Lost it.

You've lost it.

VO: Is there a chink in Paul's armor after all?

Still, only a small loss.

VO: Can Christina's Staffordshire figure land another blow?

This lot I have £20 bid straight away on commission for this lot and I'm selling.

Don't sell it straight away.

CHRIS: 25 versus the commission.

CHRIS: At 25, my commission's out and it's on the internet.

He's got a little cheeky smile on his face, hasn't he?

Boo-doo, boo-doo, boo-doo, boo-doo, boo-doo, boo-doo.

£25.

I'm gonna sell to the internet bidder, if you're all happy, at £25 only.

VO: A small profit but Christina has another chance to catch Paul.

VO: Her scent bottle is next.

So pretty.

That... That does it for me.

20 is the bid in the room.

At £20 with the lady.

25, I'm looking for.

£20 is bid.

Any further bids?

I'm gonna sell if you're happy.

In the room at £20.

VO: That damage on the scent bottle seems to have been a problem and Christina makes a small loss.

VO: Next up is Paul's silver and glass saddle flask.

I'll start the bidding off at £60, here with me.

65 I'm looking for to continue.

At 65, 70's here on commission.

75.

75's on the internet.

80's on commission.

85.

Someone's got the leather case for this, haven't they?

Mm, yeah, yeah.

It's 250 quid's worth.

At £80.

I'm gonna sell, if you're all happy, at £80.

VO: Even without its leather pouch Paul more than doubles his money.

VO: Now, Christina has one last chance to catch Paul.

It rests on her diamond and white gold pendant.

I can start the bidding at £135 here with me.

£135.

The bid's here with me on commission, and I'm selling.

140 do I hear?

Come on.

I will sell to commission bid if you're all happy at £135 only.

Any further bids?

VO: It's a good profit but not enough to catch Paul, who still has two items to go.

VO: Paul was passionate about the WMF christening set but will it set the auction alight?

Lovely lot this.

I'm only bid £40 on commission.

Oh.

It's a one horse race this, isn't it?

If you're all happy, at £40 only.

45 just at the last minute.

Oooh.

£45 the bid.

At £45.

50 still on commission, 55.

Can I tempt you, sir?

At £55.

He's gonna be greedy now, I think.

CHRIS: At £55.

At £55.

The bid's in the room.

Any further bids?

That's, again, a great profit.

Great profit.

VO: It is yet another profit.

VO: And now it's Paul's incredible find.

His Georgian glass.

Estimate.

Would you like to tell everyone what they've estimated it at?

What is the estimate?

Estimate.

How much did you buy it for?

Now, let me think.

£1.

100 pence.

And they've estimated it at £80-120.

Sorry, what was that?

I missed that.

Say that again.

£8-12.

For this lot I have two conflicting bids straight away.

I can start the bidding at £110, and I'm selling.

Oh, well done!

Well done.

Yep.

Twenty...

I'm looking for it to continue.

30.

Alright, the internet's running away with us.

At 160 we're up to.

160 is bid on the internet.

CHRIS: 170.

180.

The internet's still going.

180.

190.

Tell me when it stops.

200.

£200.

220.

At 240.

CHRIS: At £240.

260.

At £260.

280.

At £280.

Two conflicting internet bidders.

CHRIS: But please join in in the room.

300.

300!

Told you.

320.

At £320.

At 320.

340 do I hear?

At £320 is bid.

At 320.

340 now.

360.

OK, I'm just a passenger at this point.

CHRIS: At 360.

380 do I hear?

At £360.

Slightly over estimate.

Any further bids?

Bravo!

Well done, well done.

VO: Absolutely outstanding, an unbelievable profit.

Wooh!

Wow.

Seriously.

I am not worthy, Paul Laidlaw, that is brilliant.

Well done.

That was my moment.

Would you like a piece of cake?

VO: Christina started this leg... ..with £218.14.

After costs she's made a profit of £6.40 raising her total to £224.54.

VO: But today's win makes it a hat-trick of auction success for Paul.

He had £427.04 and after costs he's run up an amazing profit of £353.30.

Taking his total to a whopping £780.34.

PAUL: I'll be the scout.

It's a whopping great big coffee shop with more buns than you can shake a stick at in.

CHRISTINA: Oh, that sounds good.

VO: Cheerio!

Next on Antiques Road Trip...

Crying.

Aghhhh!

VO: Havoc.

I can say no, it's my money.

You just said... VO: And a dog, what's more.

Bye, Murphy.

Bye.

Bye.

Bye.

(LAUGHS) subtitling@stv.tv