
James Braxton and Jonathan Pratt, Day 3
Season 3 Episode 23 | 44m 23sVideo has Closed Captions
James Braxton and Jonathan Pratt up their games from Stratford upon Avon to Somerset.
James Braxton and Jonathan Pratt are determined to up their games as they head from Stratford upon Avon to the auction in Frome, Somerset.
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Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback

James Braxton and Jonathan Pratt, Day 3
Season 3 Episode 23 | 44m 23sVideo has Closed Captions
James Braxton and Jonathan Pratt are determined to up their games as they head from Stratford upon Avon to the auction in Frome, Somerset.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
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Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorshipVOICEOVER (VO): The nation's favorite antiques experts.
£200 each, and one big challenge.
Cuz I'm here to declare war.
Why?
VO: Who can make the most money, buying and selling antiques as they scour the UK?
There's nothing in here.
VO: The aim is to trade up and hope that each antique turns a profit.
AUCTIONEER: Disappointing.
(GAVEL) VO: But it's not as easy as you might think - and things don't always go to plan.
CHARLIE: (SHOUTS) Push!
VO: So will they race off with a huge profit or come to a grinding halt?
Terribly nervous now, James.
VO: This is the Antiques Road Trip!
VO: All this week, we're out on the road with gents about town, James Braxton and Jonathon Pratt.
The cheeky James Braxton is a tough task master when it comes to naming his price.
At the end of the day, I'm gonna try and squeeze you on a price.
VO: Jonathan, on the other hand, is feeling the pressure.
JONATHAN (JON): OK, £100, oh God, I'm so...so... (LAUGHS) VO: Despite an unsold coral necklace, James was the clear winner.
His Italian painting made more than £100 profit.
JON: Very well done, James.
Thank you.
VO: Meanwhile, Jonathan bought a novel collection of items, including a chipped pepper pot, a chipped glass-bottomed mug and the silver- mounted glass bottle which was...cracked.
And not surprisingly, he lost.
JON: What would you do for that?
DEALER: 25.
JON: I'll have it.
I like it.
I like it a lot.
VO: From his original £200, new leader James has taken pole position with a respectable £318.46 to play with.
VO: Have the nerves got the better of our once- triumphant Jonathan?
He's back to the beginning with a paltry £206.36.
VO: James' trusty MG is the chariot of choice as they battle it out in the third leg of this week's road trip.
VO: This week, James and Jonathan are traveling over 300 miles all the way from Altrincham to the warm southern shores of Lostwithiel in Cornwall.
And on today's show they're leaving Birmingham, heading for their next auction in Frome, Somerset.
First stop though is Warwickshire's literary jewel in the crown, Stratford-upon-Avon.
VO: This historic market town has more than 800 years of history and is of course best known as the birthplace of the world- famous playwright William Shakespeare.
The boys haven't made a lot of money so obviously they'll be raring to go and getting lots of focus by... Oh - going for a sail down the River Avon.
VO: Right, that's enough sightseeing, chaps.
Let's get on with some shopping.
First shop is Stratford Antiques Centre.
Let's begin with Jonathan, he's lagging behind - last time he didn't haggle, bought lots of cracked items and well...what's this he's looking at now?
Oh no... JON: I know I've got a thing for pepperettes at the moment, but anyway, it's a little pepperette formed as an owl, it's a lead body, would have originally been plated, and that's obviously worn away a bit.
Little glass eyes, it's not what it started off life as, because this wooden base is later, and you can see the glue it's been stuck on to it with.
Erm...
But it's quite nicely made.
Glass eyes, which might have been replaced.
VO: Pepperettes were extremely popular at the Victorian dining table - a novel way of seasoning one's meat and two veg.
Pity its feet are missing.
JON: How much is that?
There's no ticket on it.
I mean, would you take...I'm gonna be mean, would you take £15 for it?
Erm, I'd take 20, I think.
Owls, pigs, very popular.
Yeah.
It's just... DEALER: I know it's been sort of... in the wars a bit, hasn't it?
JON: There's no denying its age, I'm thinking that it's a late-Victorian novelty.
And the owl is wisdom, but I don't know why its feet have gone.
JON: Meet me half way, £17.50.
DEALER: That's OK. OK, brilliant, thank you, my first purchase, that'll do nicely.
I'll hand that over.
VO: Oh well, a bit better on the price, Jonathan; but did I mention about those missing feet, old fruit.
There we go.
Very much.
Your change.
Thank you very much.
Lovely, that's a good start.
VO: On the other hand, MG-lover James is like a coiled spring.
He's spotted something already.
JAMES: Some little MG logos here, badges.
Might have a look at.
VO: And as quick as greased lightning, James finds antique dealer Tony.
Tony, I'm fascinated... Could you tell me a bit?
I have a nice MG TD.
My 1952, and I was interested in this little fellow.
TONY: This one here?
Yes, the chap I bought it off, he wasn't quite sure how it was attached to the car, and I've certainly never found anyone so far who was able to throw much light on it, you know.
It's rather fun, isn't it?
Yeah.
And it's sort of a cast alloy, isn't it?
Yes, it is.
JAMES: Sometimes they had quite a nice badge at the back to go on the spare wheel if there was a locking... You know, on the earlier ones.
I mean, it stands up, I thought some MG owner might want it to stand it on his desk, you know.
It would make a nice weight that, wouldn't it?
Or a paperweight, yes.
To all intents and purposes, it's rather nice and bright, isn't it?
TONY: Yes, it is.
And that would clean up very nicely, wouldn't it?
TONY: I'm sure it would, yeah.
I'm a terrible instinctive buyer though, I sort of...
I look at something, I quite like it, I tend to go for it.
This is an expensive place, Stratford-upon-Avon, isn't it?
Yes, it is.
But it's not so expensive as some.
No.
No, no.
no.
I can do you a deal on it, anyway.
Do me a deal.
JAMES: Would you take a fiver for it, Tony?
TONY: (LAUGHS) No.
No?
No?!
No, no.
It's rather like boxing, you like to get in that sort of sharp jab at the beginning, don't you?
Well, you're at five, I'm at 25, will you meet me in the middle?
JAMES: No!
BOTH: (LAUGH) So you flatly rejected my five, I'm flatly rejecting your middle.
Can I just have a look and see.. What have I got?
What does it say, you bought it for three, does it?
No.
It says, to make a couple of quid, I've got to get 10 for it.
JAMES: 10.
TONY: Yeah.
Well, I'm not gonna argue with you, Tony.
10.
That's very kind, thank you very much indeed.
It's coming home to the right person.
OK. VO: Well that's James sorted - what about Jonathan?
JON: That page turner, with the leaf type finial... DEALER: That's 120.
And it's got age, is it a late 19th century?
DEALER: It's 1930s.
JON: 1930s.
And the Scottish- handled one on the left?
DEALER: This one is an older one.
JON: So you've got a late 19th-century one with the Cairngorms inset in the handle.
DEALER: Yes.
JON: Oh, and that matchbox strike, is that silver and enamel?
DEALER: That is silver and enamel.
JON: OK. And the box with the chevrons on.
The wooden box, just out of interest, is that fitted for anything?
DEALER: It's got some sewing bits and pieces in.
JON: OK. VO: A substantial amount of time later... JON: That's sitting in there, hasn't moved out of there for ages.
It's got a "CLC" on it, it's sort of like a... You know, it's a...
Sort of otter hound or something, you know.
JON: I do like that, and even the lettering on it is nicely 30s.
And EW is easy enough to anyone, Edward Wilson or something, you know.
VO: A page turner - now, what do you mean you don't have one?
DEALER: You can have that for 100.
JON: (SIGHS) OK.
These two would have to be 50 each.
They've got to be £50 each?
Instead of 100.
Oh, dear!
God.
OK, erm... OK, £100.
Oh God, I'm so...
So.. (LAUGHS) OK, erm... Is it worth committing to that?
I'm gonna bite the bullet, because I just like it, I'll have that for £100, committed, I'm gonna shake the hand now.
Oh, there we go.
VO: A hundred smackers?
On a page turner?
OK, I'm gonna say no to the rest of them, I've done one bold move.
I'm gonna say no to the rest, and if there's anything else... VO: Oh no - quick!
Let's get out of here and leave him to it.
Buoyed by his MG purchase, James is distracted by the annual River Festival But then he's easily distracted.
Of course everyone knows Stratford is renowned as the birthplace of Willie Shakespeare, but the history of the canal boat reigns supreme here.
It all started with the Victorians with their desire to escape the smoggy industrial towns.
JAMES: May I come aboard?
By all means, please do.
Mind your head.
JAMES: Mind the head.
MAN: Because in the boatman's cabin, there isn't a lot of room.
VO: Oh, especially if, like Braxton, you're partial to a full English.
Barge-owner Brian has kindly allowed our James to step aboard.
Well, clamber, really.
JAMES: I love the decoration in here.
MAN: Roses and castles.
Very classical.
Really?
I don't know whether they were a bit Romany, or what their origins were... JAMES: It does look Romany.
MAN: This is where they ate.
JAMES: So this is the table.
MAN: There's the table.
I use it as a booze cupboard, as you can see.
No, very good, very good.
Man should only live on whisky and biscuits.
I see you do!
Living proof that it works, yes.
And interestingly enough, directly under this, MAN: this drawer was called the crumb drawer, because when they'd finished eating, when you tip this up, all the crumbs went in the crumb drawer.
JAMES: Oh, isn't that a great idea?
Ditch it outside.
Yeah, feed the ducks with it.
VO: But a visit to a barge wouldn't be complete without having a gander at the engine room.
Russell Newbery diesel engines are the heart of several hundred canal boats in the UK and were first manufactured in 1934.
JAMES: Brian, you seem very well set up here, do you live all year on this?
Yes, I do, yes, I do, I live on the boat all year round.
And a mooring?
No, I don't have a mooring, I cruise continually.
Really?
I'm what they call a continual cruiser.
Continual cruiser!
Although I do moor up at night.
VO: Yes, naturally.
While James is having a rather jolly and relaxed time, what's going on with our panicky Jonathan?
VO: Mr Pratt is traveling 50 miles south to the glorious town of Tetbury in the Cotswolds.
He's still deliberating over that pricy page turner.
JON: I don't know, I really like it, I think it's a great object.
£100 is a lot of money, you know, and I didn't have a lot of money to start with, and I've got to be so much more careful now.
I am a bit nervous.
VO: Now stop fretting, Jonathan, and get stuck in to your next shop - Top Banana.
Huh!
Stay away from cracked items, young man, and while you're at it try a bit of haggling.
JON: It's quite nicely painted, and this is tobacco staining, all this yellow, which adds to the age, and I'd say it's probably painted in the 30s.
Nothing on the back.
£38.
That would clean up rather nicely, I think.
Might appeal to a fellow skier like myself.
A mountain man.
Hardly, with my back, anyway!
VO: Huh!
Antiques dealer Hugo opened for business over 10 years ago.
He's spotted Jonathan having a good old rummage around and wants to make sure he hasn't nicked anything.
And it's not bad, I think it's oil and board.
Yeah, yeah.
I'd give you 30 quid for it.
HUGO: Give me 35, you can have it.
JON: Thing is, there's no snow on the ground here, you see, ever skier will look at it and say "oh, no, there's no snow on the ground, I don't want to be reminded about a bad ski holiday".
It's romantic though.
VO: It's the summertime.
30?
Go on then, take it for 30.
Go on then, thank you.
Deal.
VO: Well, after all that shopping, Jonathan, it's time to turn in.
Let's hope the doggie page turner doesn't give you nightmares.
VO: The boys are up with the lark for another day's shopping.
VO: James and Jonathan have traveled just over 30 miles to the pretty Wiltshire village of Castle Combe.
VO: So far, James has spent £10 on one lot - the MG steering wheel boss.
Leaving a whopping £308.46 for the day ahead.
Jonathan, meanwhile, has splashed the cash - spending £147.50 on three lots; the owl pepperette that doesn't have any feet, the expensive doggie page turner and the Swiss painting with no snow.
This gives him a total of £58.86 for the second day of buying.
VO: The sun has got his hat on, let's join the chaps as they hunt down some bargains at Castle Combe car-boot sale.
The car boot sales here are widely recognized as some of the largest in the west country, with hundreds of stalls there should be something to take the boys' fancy.
As usual, James is getting stuck in straight away.
JAMES: It's a little maquette, it's made of terracotta, sort of sculptor's clay.
They're a sort of preparatory thing before possibly casting it, or sometimes most of these things were never cast in bronze, but it was something they did in the studio.
WOMAN: It's marked on the back, I don't know who the devil he is, but... JAMES: DF, yeah, I don't know who he is.
WOMAN: Might be worth a fortune.
JAMES: No, it won't be, that size, it's just a maquette.
Just a little terracotta... WOMAN: It is, isn't it?
JAMES: Just a little fun.
Give you £1 for it.
WOMAN: No, you must be joking.
I'd rather put it on the wall.
JAMES: How much do you want for it then?
WOMAN: A tenner!
JAMES: Fiver and I'll do it.
WOMAN: No, make it eight.
JAMES: No, I'll do five.
WOMAN: Six?
JAMES: Five and it's yours.
Go on then.
JAMES: Five it is.
Well, it's all good fun, isn't it?
There we are, thank you very much indeed, thank you.
And there's your five.
Oh, that's very kind.
Good, thanks a lot.
Oh, and the full packaging service, I see.
Gift-wrapped by the hubby.
Don't want to drop it, otherwise I'll lose money on it already, won't I?
Good, thank you.
That's very kind of you.
Bye.
VO: Last of the big spenders there, James.
A brisk bit of business and that's another faceless, low-cost item in the bag.
JON: I'm thinking there's a hell of a lot to see here, and I don't know... Don't know where to start, really.
Don't know where to start.
This takes me back though, I used to go around these sorts of things when I was a bit younger.
OK, dive in, I think.
JON: It's like a faience really, it's like a tin glaze.
But it's so precisely done, it's nicely, finely potted, and the decoration is really precise.
VO: This little tankard was made by the Aldermaston Pottery in Berkshire.
It was founded in 1955 by Alan Caiger-Smith and Geoffrey Eastop.
The pottery is renowned for its tin-glazed wares.
JON: It's nibbled on the back, isn't it?
VO: Look, Jonathan, what did I say about damaged items?
JON: How much is it?
MAN: Couple of quid.
OK. VO: But I'll let you off, it's only £2 after all.
I have to find some things to go with it, I think.
VO: Crikey.
James looks to have found another item to pounce on.
JAMES: Very often when you have two handles, sometimes they call them loving cups, but it's very nicely waisted.
It is a nice item, isn't it?
Would you do it for a couple of pounds?
OK, I'll take it.
Thank you very much indeed.
VO: Good grief!
Another item at £2 - what a pair of spendthrifts.
JAMES: Thanks a lot.
I don't think I would have bought it if it had one handle.
It has two handles, it's a loving cup, it has a nice bit of symmetry.
Turn it over, it's got a maker's name, somebody was pleased to manufacture it, and it's either got a pattern number, or more likely the date, 1879.
So it's got three nice elements that might lift it in an auction room.
VO: Gosh, it's £1 a handle!
Time to leave Castle Combe and get the wheels rolling.
The chaps are heading to the town of Tetbury.
JAMES: I bought two items.
JON: Oh, I don't know how you did it.
I struggled, I mean, I know we like to reveal it all, but in all honesty, I struggled to find even one object.
JAMES: Did you?
Did you find... Did money pass hands there?
JON: It did, but I can tell you, barely.
I mean, I could have bought a coffee for what I think I paid for it.
JAMES: (LAUGHS) VO: Old Brackers needs to catch up on the shopping.
He's on his way to meet with George, owner of Artique.
Now, George specializes in exotic wares from Afghanistan, India and Pakistan.
The shop is a mecca of unique treasures, if you know what I mean.
JAMES: My mission, George, is to try and find something, maybe a couple of items, that I can put forward to auction, it's an auction in Somerset, in Frome.
And I want to have something that's slightly exotic, love it to be Indian, Pakistani, whatever.
Something that has a story, and something that will communicate to people who go to an auction as well.
Sure, sure, sure.
So I might try and buy a slightly more expensive one and a cheap one, but at the end of the day, I'm gonna try and squeeze you on a price.
Of course.
What's new?!
VO: Before James gets stuck into shopping, there's something outside that's definitely not for sale.
JAMES: this is pretty amazing, what's this?
This almost looks like sort of Pacific Island, what's this doing here?
GEORGE: It's actually...
This is an incredibly rare thing, this is a Kafiri house from Kafiristan.
VO: The Kafir tribe are tall, blue-eyed warriors hailing from Afghanistan in the south of the Hindu Kush valleys.
Legend has it they are the lost tribe of Alexander the Great.
GEORGE: And we found this at the top of a mountain, and it's the only known complete Kafiri building that has been found.
I've had anthropologists to look at this, and they think it's about 600 years old.
It's sort of petrified.
GEORGE: This one was in pieces when we found it, it had been abandoned many years before and we brought it down and reassembled it.
There's the window.
And actually the front door is here.
Really, so just slipping in.
GEORGE: Slipping in, yeah.
Samovar there, sign of hospitality.
And these are ibex horns, sign of family strength, and obviously this was the home of a warrior.
JAMES: I see.
GEORGE: This would depict him.
JAMES: I can make out swords and things.
You should get this behind glass, shouldn't you, George?
GEORGE: One day I'd like to give it to a museum.
Yeah, yeah.
GEORGE: We'll have to wait and see how poor I am when I die!
JAMES: (LAUGHS) You'll get a little room in the British Museum, George.
Yes.
VO: Come on, James - better get back inside and spend some of that cash.
JAMES: The coffee table, George, how much is that?
GEORGE: £45.
JAMES: And this would be Indian as well?
This is Indian, probably sort of more like hill station.
JAMES: Yeah.
Up in the cool mountains.
GEORGE: Up in the cool mountains, yes.
VO: Yeah, cool.
VO: Interesting, but there's lots more inside.
JAMES: And how much are your kilims, George?
GEORGE: They vary enormously - size, age.
And things like that?
Things like that would cost you... JAMES: Sort of later... Yeah, sort of 1940.
But this is from Afghanistan.
JAMES: That's right, Afghanistan.
GEORGE: I could show it to you if you want to see it.
VO: Kilims are flat- woven carpets or rugs produced from the Balkans to Pakistan.
The language of the kilim weaver can convey anything from hopes of marriage and good fortune to tribal allegiance.
JAMES: The carpet room.
GEORGE: This is Beluchi, as I said probably 1940.
Nice simple nomadic, domestic kilim.
Yeah, it's very nice, isn't it?
GEORGE: And now suddenly kilims are having a big revival.
I can see how it'd really work in a contemporary home, this.
It looks modern, doesn't it?
It does look modern.
Yes, interesting.
Fascinating.
Now, George, I'm quite interested in possibly maybe... Buying something like that, and maybe the coffee table, JAMES: I might just grab the coffee table, see what it looks like on it.
JAMES: No, let the younger man take it, George, I can manage this.
Oh, it's a lovely weight, reassuring.
It's always good for the buyer to feel the goods.
GEORGE: Oh, absolutely.
JAMES: Now just let's have a look.
So we've got a teak coffee table, and a rather nice kilim rug.
GEORGE: Rooney, come on, off the carpet, boy.
You love rugs.
He knows quality, this dog.
Oh, I know.
JAMES: Now George, what sort of special price could you do for the two?
VO: Here he goes - our warrior James is on the warpath.
The absolute bottom on it... Is £120 for the kilim, and £45 for the table.
JAMES: £45 for the table.
GEORGE: Which is incredibly cheap.
Yeah.
VO: Brackers is interested; watch out, he's just about to pounce.
GEORGE: Both of them are very usable pieces of furniture in any environment.
And it's a great look at the moment.
JAMES: Yeah, it's a good look, isn't it?
Yes.
JAMES: (WHISPERS) It's so difficult with these things, though.
We're at the mercy of...
Soon as I buy these things, I'm at the mercy of others, aren't I?
JAMES: 150 for the two?
GEORGE: (SOFTLY) No, I can't.
You can't.
(MUTTERS) 140... OK.
Thank you very much indeed.
That is a really, really good price.
That is a great price.
Thank you.
VO: Phew!
That was a bit of a struggle, but finally he gets his way.
VO: Meanwhile, Jonathan has finished shopping for the day and is making his way to the nearby hamlet of Chavenage.
He has an invitation to the 16th-century Chavenage House.
It's reputed to be haunted - let's hope Jonathan doesn't get goose pimples.
Or any other bumps.
VO: This magnificent Cotswold manor is a family home that has remained virtually unchanged for 400 years.
It's open for visitors from May to September.
The Lowsley-Williams are one of only two families that have ever owned the house.
Caroline Lowsley-Williams is the daughter of the household and welcomes Jonathan into a world of grandeur and discovery.
CAROLINE: So we come into my favorite room, which is Oliver Cromwell's room.
JON: Oh, yes.
CAROLINE: But... JON: There he is!
CAROLINE: There he is.
Warts and all.
JON: Yeah, exactly!
CAROLINE: That's a contemporary copy of... JON: Oh, is it?
CAROLINE: ..Peter Lely's picture.
The original hangs in the National Portrait Gallery.
JON: But it's here because there's a great deal of importance for this building with Oliver Cromwell as well.
Wasn't it used as sort of a stronghold for part of the army, or something?
CAROLINE: You're absolutely right, this house at the time was owned by Nathaniel Stephens, and he was one of the three MPs for Gloucestershire, and being an MP was obviously going to side with Cromwell rather than King Charles I, and so offered Chavenage as a stronghold, or somewhere to... staging post, really.
CAROLINE: And then it was used after the end of the war, when King Charles was imprisoned, I think Cromwell then had to decide what to do with him next, and Cromwell came here, stayed in the house, while he tried to make sure Stephens would vote for the impeachment of the king, and that really led to the legend of the house, which is that Stephens was persuaded, very much against his will, to vote for the king's death, and subsequently he was cursed by his daughter.
And our ghost is the ghost of Charles I coming to get the soul of his traitor.
Oh, really?
VO: In the early '70s, the house revealed a rather fascinating interior design discovery.
CAROLINE: So we come to the room which I talk about as the library, I apologize for the tiger, but he was shot by Great Uncle Pat but I think in those days, he didn't know that tigers were rare.
My parents inherited the house as a wedding present.
They've celebrated 53 years of being here, and really gave me and my brothers and sisters the rare privilege of growing up in the house.
JON: Amazing.
CAROLINE: Which was lovely, and this was our playground and now has become a place of work, sort of thing, and my father, trying to escape people, goes up in the attic and plays with his trains.
And on one of the playing and expansion schemes, he discovered a portfolio of drawings, didn't know what they were, and they were just sort of left about until we had an expert from an auction house, who identified them as the designs for the redecoration of Windsor Castle.
In it were about 120 designs, and actually he rather lost interest when they weren't designs for this house, and it wasn't until they were later identified and this is one of the originals we've kept.
JON: So these are original drawings for the redecoration of Windsor Castle in when, 18... Well, it was for George IV.
For George IV.
Done by Jeffry Wyatville.
We were told that they were valuable, and that certainly the Queen would like them back in the royal collection, and we had a sale in 1970.
And the keeper of the Queen's pictures, I think it was, on her behalf bought almost the entirety, and the really nice part of the story is that since the terrible fire, which was 199...
Early 90s, wasn't it, yeah?
They say that it's now better than it was before, cuz they went back to the original Georgian designs.
JON: So if you father had not been up into the attic and been moving his train set into a new corner, or something, they might not have been discovered for another 10 years, and the fire would have gone by, so it came at a quite... Opportune moment.
VO: And the lesson here - always have a look in the attic.
You never know what could be hiding.
What I like about this is it's..
I drive up to the house an you've got this Elizabethan façade, yet the history goes back 500 years at least, and there's something happening almost every decade ever since.
CAROLINE: A lived in house is bound to have a history.
JON: I've really enjoyed myself, I've had really good fun, CAROLINE: Good.
You make it very entertaining, so I have to come along with my family now and you can show me around!
I would like to meet them.
JON: Thank you very much.
CAROLINE: OK. VO: Right, let's get this show back on the road.
It's time for the boys to find out what they've spent their pennies on and where better than the lawn of Chavenage House.
Now, my first object is... Hey, that looks fun, doesn't it?
Doggie, doggie, doggie.
JON: Late-20s, Continental silver page turner.
JAMES: Yeah.
JON: It's a Bakelite blade, and it's a silver finial modeled as a hunting dog hound.
VO: Yeah, yeah Jonathan - wait until James hears how much you paid for it.
JAMES: How much did you pay for it?
JON: Bearing in mind I started off with £206... Yeah come on, how much did you pay for it?
..I parted with £100 for it.
You paid £100 for that?
JON: Yeah, I did.
VO: I know, I couldn't believe it either, James.
JON: I'm starting to feel that it is a bit too much money for it.
Get your stuff out!
(LAUGHS) JAMES: Here's my first purchase, and this was bought in...
In...
In...
I'll pass it over to you.
Ah, there we go.
You just pried this off the front of the steering wheel, didn't you?
I hadn't noticed.
JAMES: The jury's slightly out, we don't know if it's the spare tire dress cap, or we think it might be the center of the steering wheel.
It's an ash tray, isn't it?
No, it isn't!
JON: And you paid... JAMES: £10.
JON: £10, fair enough, get rid of it then.
£10.
Let's see if you can improve on that.
Oh, that's nice isn't it?
Very nice owl.
JON: Little pepper pot.
Little pepper pot.
JON: It's lead, his feet have been cut off, sadly.
JAMES: Yeah.
JON: I bought it cuz it was a novelty object, I bought it cuz it was an ornament.
I didn't pay a lot of money for it, I did try to push him down to less than I paid for it.
I think I paid £17.50.
VO: Two words, Jonathan - damaged and footless.
JON: OK, old boy, yours.
JAMES: And I'm off.
JAMES: I bought this little fellow, maquette.
Oh that's rather sweet, it's almost like a Pan or something, isn't it?
JON: What I like about this is that you can see...
It's hand-modeled, it's all...
It's all very very...
It's very tactile, isn't it?
And you paid..?
The thing is with this Castle Combe, it was either... Everything was either under a tenner, or over like 60.
And I think you probably paid £10 for it.
JAMES: Five.
JON: Very good, OK. JAMES: Fire away.
JON: I bought three objects yesterday.
Oh right, OK. JON: So this was a Top Banana purchase.
And my fascination with winter sports... OK, it doesn't have the winter sports in, but it just...
I just liked it.
Oh that's fun, isn't it?
JON: Probably painted around the first quarter of the 20th century.
And someone could clean this up themselves, they could do it at home with whatever you'd use, turpentine or whatever it is, they could gently bring it back and hang it on the wall without having to pay the fortune that it might cost to do it.
And how much did you pay for that?
£30.
I think that's a good buy.
JON: Thank you.
I think it's the best buy I've seen today.
JAMES: My next item, what is it, my third item here, is a love... A loving cup.
Isn't that smart?
This sort of conjures up the arts and crafts of the late- 19th century, England, that's what you would hope you'd want to see on the bottom, something like Tudoric or something like that, from the Liberty's, which it doesn't have.
Funny enough, not at cost.
JAMES: Nicely waisted body, good handles on it.
VO: Now, are you talking about the cup or your taste in women, James?
Knowing your tactic so far, James, you paid a fiver for it.
I didn't, I paid £2.
Oh, you little so and so.
OK, well there's a £3 profit for you!
Royal Berkshire Hospital, that's a nice bit of pottery, isn't it?
Nice bit of pottery, it's Aldermaston Pottery.
JAMES: Oh right!
JON: It's for the Royal Berkshire Hospital, I mean what I love is it's really nicely painted, the quality of the finishing is brilliant, nicely finely potted, and then you've got this little certificate which says it's 342 of 500 tankards, OK. JON: There is a downside, and the downside is someone obviously ate it with...
Took a nibble out the back.
That was a real disappointment when I saw that.
It only cost me £2.
Perfect, I think it's a nice item.
Smacks of quality, isn't it.
A real craft item, lovely.
So that's me done, I'm finito.
I won't even try and gloat about how much money I've got left over this time.
Next one was quite a serious purchase for me.
Oh, I like the sound of this.
And in a North African stylee, I think I'm just gonna throw it open.
JAMES: So it's flat-weave carpet, and it's a Beluchi, Afghanistan, so tribal people, and it's got a rather contemporary design to it.
VO: Oh!
Didn't know you were an interior designer, James!
How much did you pay for it, James?
Quite a lot of money, £110.
That's a very bold move, James, I think that's probably the boldest move you've ever made.
JAMES: I'm testing the water.
Testing the water with your money!
JAMES: I'm going to see whether people buy it or not.
JON: Yeah, good.
But I'm gonna set it off, I'm gonna put my fifth purchase on top.
Go on then.
JAMES: Bought from the same shop, Tetbury again.
JON: OK. JAMES: Is this fella, cuz I remember you talking to me about coffee tables...
Yes.
Just... Maybe we should just... We were driving along and I said "general sales, I seem to be selling quite a lot of coffee tables at the moment."
JAMES: Now, were you misleading me?
(GIGGLES) No!
VO: Jonathan?
Misleading?
Never!
JAMES: What I thought I might do is I might just form a little tableau within the auction room... You carry on.
You know, here we are.
You're sitting on your sofa, and there's your coffee table.
Look at that, on your wooden floors.
OK. JAMES: I'm going for a contemporary look.
JON: I'm gonna ask you a question James, and I want an honest answer - how much did you pay for it?
JAMES: £40.
£40?
OK. No, that's sort of in the middle there, isn't it?
If you paid any more for that, I would have...
I would have gone skipping back to the car.
Would you?
Yeah, I would have done.
OK, great, well I think I've enjoyed this one.
Well, good luck.
VO: Having seen each other's purchases, what do our chaps really think?
When I saw that carpet, I was very, very pleased.
£110 is a lot of money, it's never gonna make that.
It's just the wrong type of carpet for a general auction.
It's not old, it's not antique.
I think the only thing frightening me at the moment is that picture.
It's a very nice picture, but... Don't mention that paper knife.
VO: Haha!
It's been a tough third leg with the boys battling it out from Stratford-upon-Avon via Castle Combe, Tetbury and finally to the town of Frome.
VO: Frome, in northeast Somerset, sits on the Mendip hills.
Let's hope our boys unearth some big value profit at auction.
Dore and Rees auction house is located in a converted chapel and has been established in the town since 1868.
Auctioneer Guy Tayler is leading the auction today, and has a few thoughts to share about our chaps' offerings.
I think personally speaking, the little owl pepperette is very sweet little thing, yeah, the sort of thing you could see in a shop window, and a lot of people going for it.
But that and the MG steering boss.
VO: Jonathan Pratt started today's show with £206.36 and spent £149.50 on four auction lots, leaving him with £56.86.
VO: James Braxton began with £318.46 and has spent £167 on five lots, leaving him with £151.46 in his pocket.
Remember, he also has the coral necklace left over from yesterday's auction.
Let the auction commence!
VO: First up, Jonathan is trying to turn his luck with the Aldermaston pottery mug - that's the one that's chipped.
And we come to the limited edition Aldermaston pottery tankard, it's in association with the Royal Berkshire Hospital, 10 I'm bid.
12 I have.
14.
16.
18.
20, fresh place.
22 now.
22.
24 now.
24 now if you want it.
Bid's at 22.
GUY: Selling at £22... (GAVEL) JAMES: Well done.
Get in there!
Well done.
VO: Crikey - Jonathan with a profit?
Great!
Next up, it's James' Indian table.
Here's hoping the bidders of Frome like a taste of the exotic.
We come to the teak hardwood Indian stretcher bar coffee table.
Got the nice distressed look to it as well.
10 I'm bid.
12 now if you want it.
12 I have on the desk.
14 now.
14.
16.
18.
20.
22.
24.
26 now.
Go on.
No, that's enough.
GUY: It's gonna be sold at £24 on the desk.
All done at £24... (GAVEL) JAMES: Oh dear, oh dear.
Never mind.
Never mind.
VO: Apparently not.
It's the footless owl pepperette next.
We come to the cast-metal pepperette, modeled in the form of an owl.
Say for that one, put it in, £10.
Five I'm bid here, eight now if you want it in the room, eight I have.
10 now.
10 I have.
12.
14.
16.
18.
20.
JAMES: Oh, well done.
22.
24.
26.
Luck of the devil.
GUY: 30.
32 now.
All done at 30, all done... (GAVEL) Phew!
Well done, well done... Phew, thank you.
VO: Could this be the tide turning for Jonathan?
It's James' kilim carpet next.
Will it fare better than the teak coffee table?
We come to the striped, pattered kilim carpet, that's the one displayed over the rail there.
All in good condition here, nice pattern to that one as well.
GUY: £30?
30 I'm bid.
35 now if you want it.
Go on.
GUY: It's going to be sold on its maiden bid at £30.
35.
Come on, a bit more.
GUY: 35 I have on the desk.
40 I have.
45 now.
45.
50 now.
£50 I have, 55 now.
Across the room at £50... (GAVEL) You were lucky there.
What, lucky, losing 60 quid?
VO: Ouch, that's just nasty.
Let's move on quickly.
Paintings have been good choices for the boys - wonder if Jonathan's luck will hold?
The Alpine scene oil painting on board, and that's by the Austrian artist Peter Haller.
GUY: Say for that one, put me in, £50?
GUY: 50 I'm bid.
Well done.
GUY: 55 I have on the desk, 60 I have.
65 now?
(WHISPERS) Go on, come on!
GUY: It's gonna be sold at £60 to my right.
65 if you're interested.
JON: Come on!
GUY: All done at £60, all done... (GAVEL) Doubled your money, that's alright.
Well done.
VO: Not bad - £30 profit.
Back to James with the £2 pewter mug.
It's got the Hampden stamp to the base of that one as well.
GUY: Five I'm bid, eight now if you want it.
That's alright, it's a profit.
GUY: Eight I have.
10.
12.
14 now.
14 now if you want it.
Go on!
GUY: 14, she's back again.
16 now.
It's gonna be sold at £14, fierce competition here, all done at 14... (GAVEL) Well done, very good, well done JAMES: well done, Frome.
JON: (CLAPS) That's good.
That's good, happy with that.
VO: Let's drink to that!
Finally a small profit.
Help!
It's the pricey page- turner next.
I don't know if I can look!
The Continental silver, nice little bloodhound decoration to the handle... Alright, alright.
GUY: Put me in, £20.
20 I'm bid, 22 now if you want it.
22 I have on the desk.
24.
26.
28.
30.
32.
34.
36.
38 now?
Selling at £36... JON: No... (GAVEL) Dong!
That's right, how much did you pay for it?
(MUTTERS) 100.
100.
Well at least you didn't pay 110.
VO: Disaster with a capital D. Let's move on swiftly.
Next up, it's the terracotta maquette bought for a snip.
And we come to the studio terracotta maquette, the wall mask of the boy's head.
It's got the initials DF to that one.
Nice little decorative piece there, say for that one, start me away £10 for the terracotta maquette there.
Start me away, £5 then.
Five I'm bid.
10 now if you want it.
10.
12.
14.
16.
Go on!
18 now.
It's gonna be sold at 16 to my right.
All done at £16... (GAVEL) It's alright, but I thought that was worth more, I thought that was £30-40 at least.
There we are.
Well, you're moving in the right direction, James.
VO: Yep, a small profit.
But hey ho, it's better than nothing!
The MG steering wheel boss is next - yet another bargain basement buy.
Come to the MG steering wheel boss.
GUY: 20 I'm bid, 22 now if you want it.
Turn your old car into a sports car.
GUY: It's going to be sold at £20 on its maiden bid.
Done at 22... (GAVEL) You paid how much?
A tenner.
A tenner, yeah.
VO: Another small profit.
But finally, it's the turn of the unsold coral necklace.
£10?
For the red coral necklace.
Hello.
GUY: Start me away, 10 I'm bid.
12 now if you want it.
Selling for £10!
12 if you want it.
12 I have.
14 now.
14.
16 nearest me.
16 I have.
18.
20.
22 now?
Go on madam, bring the lady a glass of water.
No?
You've got some?
Keep going.
GUY: The bidding's with the gentleman here at £20, are we all done at £20..?
(GAVEL) It could have been a lot worse.
Thank you.
VO: It's a break-even, which in fact, means a loss - the auction house must take their hard-earned commission.
Again it's a poor show from the boys with both making losses.
I think pictures is the way forward, I haven't really exposed myself much to silver.
I think I'm gonna go out and buy some silver in the next one - silver, pictures, jewelry.
I've got to do small gains, for another auction and see if I can get over 200, and that's it, I'll have him.
VO: Jonathan started today's show with £206.36, and, after paying auction costs, made a loss of £28.14.
Jonathan is on a shaky peg with just £178.22 to carry forward to the next round.
VO: James, meanwhile, started with £318.46 and although he made a greater loss of £48.92, James has a princely sum of £269.54 to take forward.
JON: Hit the road!
Wales, here we come.
VO: Next time on the Antiques Road Trip, James and Jonathon head for Crewkerne.
James is still as cheeky as ever.
JAMES: Could that be very cheap then?
DEALER: I'm afraid not, James, no!
(LAUGHS) VO: And Jonathan dresses up.
Ah so!
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