VOICEOVER (VO): It's the nation's favorite antiques experts, with £200 each...

I love that.

VO: ..a classic car and a goal to scour Britain for antiques.

Yippee!

I can see better with those.

VO: The aim?

To make the biggest profit at auction, but it's no mean feat.

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

Come to have a row.

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

Thanks.

He's just about killed that, hasn't he?

VO: This is the Antiques Road Trip!

VO: Yeah!

VO: It's the second leg of our road trip and experts James Braxton and James Lewis are hitting the highways in their 1983 Beetle convertible.

And they couldn't look less like a couple of beach boys if they tried.

JAMES BRAXTON (JB): This car is...is...

I think the yellow could only be described as rather rude... JAMES LEWIS (JL): (LAUGHS) JB: ..It's very...

It's so strong, it's vulgar, isn't it?

JL: It's fantastic, it deserves to be on a beach, though, doesn't it somewhere?

JB: It does, it does.

With a surfboard sticking out of the roof.

It's very much out of its environment, isn't it?

JL: Well, I think we are too, having said that!

VO: Stick with it, boys!

Their usual environment is the auction room.

James Braxton has 20 years' experience in auctioneering - kind of the Jack Nicholson of the saleroom.

And a bit of a joker... What, tenner?

Uh...no.

VO: And a star of "One Flew Over the Auction House".

Get it?

Here's Jamesie.

His sparring partner, James Lewis, is also a seasoned auctioneer with his own business in Derbyshire.

But he shops dangerously.

JL: Ow, I just stabbed myself with it!

VO: And isn't afraid to get his hands dirty in order to win... JL: That...is turtle poo.

VO: Turtle poo to you too!

VO: James Braxton had a poor first auction which resulted in a small loss, and now he only has £186.84 to play with.

VO: James Lewis had a better time of it, and increased his initial £200 to £268.34 to spend on today's road trip.

VO: The route for the week ahead takes our intrepid road-trippers from Ampthill in Bedfordshire across the Channel to Jersey and back again to the final destination of Leamington Spa, covering almost 1,000 miles.

Epic!

But today's trip begins in Woodstock in Oxfordshire and ends up at auction in Swindon.

JB: I think Oxfordshire is glorious, isn't it?

JL: Oh, it is lovely.

VO: No, it's not that Woodstock - no hippy-dippy flower-power festivals here!

This Woodstock is the home of the Unesco world heritage site, Blenheim Palace, birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill.

James Lewis is dropping James Braxton at his first shop of the day, and the bells are ringing out for their arrival.

JL: There we go.

JB: Good, thanks a lot.

JL: Alrighty.

JB: Well good luck, but not too much luck.

JL: (LAUGHS) Have fun!

Thank you, bye!

JL: Bye!

VO: Woodstock Arts and Antiques is run by a Mr Michael Jackson.

Cha'mone!

Hello James, how are you doing?

JB: Hello, nice to meet you.

Good to see you.

VO: I never knew that Michael was alive and well, and dealing in antiques in Woodstock.

JB: I am...

I am slightly behind.

MICHAEL: Right, OK. JB: I'm on the second leg, I'm against an awesome competitor, Mr Lewis.

Yep.

He has slipped, not clear water, but 60, 70-odd pounds in front of me at the moment.

VO: Well, you'd better get shopping then, hadn't you, Jimmy?

This cabinet is full of goodies, is it?

MICHAEL: The whole shop is.

JB: The whole shop.

Great look to it.

Isn't it?

MICHAEL: Mm.

JB: I really like that poodle, it's very well done.

It has a sense of humor, it has a certain na ve charm about that.

VO: It certainly does - mid 19th century Staffordshire at £28 - in case you were wondering.

JB: But this, this rather sweet owl, isn't it?

MICHAEL: That's a candle-snuffer.

JB: That is just fabulous.

VO: Humorous and na ve, the owl is Royal Worcester and has a ticket price of £55.

Worth a punt, James?

Going to the other extreme, what a lovely little 50s Minton boxed tea set.

Never been used, some poor little kiddy had it, it was a present and stayed there, but... JB: High days and holidays didn't quite come.

Old toys, particularly if they're in their boxes, and that's not a bad little thing to... JB: That's great, isn't it?

No, that...

I do like that.

What could that be?

MICHAEL: Tenner.

JB: Tenner?

These two little bits... Really got to be another 40 for those.

40 for those.

Shall we strike middle ground there, I'd love it for 30.

Would £35 buy them?

35 would do it.

35 and 10, 45.

That's really good, thank you.

MICHAEL: Super, sir.

JB: Thanks a lot.

Thank you, thank you.

MICHAEL: Appreciate that.

VO: Yes now "Beat It!

", James.

A joke.

I'm sure dealer Michael Jackson always finds that amusing.

VO: After dropping off James Braxton, James Lewis has driven on eight miles to Oxford.

VO: Known as the city of dreaming spires, a term coined by poet Matthew Arnold, Oxford is home to the oldest university in the English-speaking world.

James has adopted a little bit of student chic to mark the occasion.

His first port of call is Antiques on High.

JL: Hi there.

CAROLINE: Hello.

JL: Can I leave that there, do you mind?

That's fine.

JL: I'm James, nice to meet you.

I'm Caroline, nice to meet you.

VO: It isn't long before James spots something that looks like a silver sugar basket.

CAROLINE: Unmarked, with a family crest.

JL: I think it's early, I think it's 18th-century.

Um...

I'm hoping, I'm hoping it might be Irish, the fact that it's not marked.

CAROLINE: OK. What could that be?

CAROLINE: Um, 35 on that, I can get to 30.

JL: 20 any good?

He wouldn't do 20.

He might do 25 if he's in the right mood, so I could ring him and see if it's got a chance.

25, save your phone bill, take a gamble.

Let's do it, James.

VO: Oh, quick and easy, eh?

Not much wrong with that.

Let's hope it's silver and not silver plate.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.

JL: Cheers.

CAROLINE: Bye bye.

VO: James is off to a good start with a little time on his hands, so he's staying in Oxford to visit a man with a passion for wind.

Sounds rude, but I'm saying nothing.

James has come to meet Andy Lamb, curator of one of the world's largest collections of instruments at the university's faculty of music.

I'm James, nice to see you.

ANDY: James, welcome.

JL: Hi.

ANDY: Nice to see you.

What an amazing collection of clarinets and blowy things!

Well, welcome to the Bate Collection.

JL: Is this place open to the public?

ANDY: We absolutely are, this is one of the finest collections of musical instruments in the country, if not the world.

We're a global resource.

VO: The collection was donated by Philip Bate, a radio and TV producer from the early days of the BBC.

As a scholar of musical instruments, his love of music started as a child after seeing a concert at his school.

After that, he just had to get an instrument of his own.

JL: So he...

He got a clarinet, did he?

ANDY: He did, yes.

What his mother did... She asked around friends and family, and somebody came up with an instrument which he happily handed over, and it was not quite what he was expecting.

What was it?

It was a 19th-century instrument.

JL: No, really?

ANDY: Yes.

JL: And is that in your collection still?

ANDY: It certainly is, and we can go and have a look at it if you like.

JL: Go on, after you.

VO: The early clarinet is just one of over 1,000 instruments at the faculty.

The collection shows the musical and mechanical development of all wind and percussion instruments from the Renaissance and the Baroque to modern times.

This is Henry.

JL: Hello, Henry.

Very kind that you've agreed to come in.

Is that the clarinet?

That is the clarinet.

Let's have a look.

JL: It's obviously in boxwood and ivory.

ANDY: It's boxwood and ivory we know that this was made by Miller.

Yep.

And that tells us that it's pre-1790s.

JL: Oh OK, right.

Tell me Henry, are you an expert on 18th-century instruments?

HENRY: Well, yes, I am.

Oh, fantastic!

The experts are getting younger you know, like the policemen!

MUSIC: "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star".

Very good, very good.

Do you know, I have to say, it does really make me feel old when the experts are playing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star"!

HENRY: Yes, well... ALL: (LAUGH) VO: Throughout his life, Bate was collecting and studying musical instruments, scouring junk shops and markets.

He used his woodworking skills to restore items in the collection, and when he later mastered metalworking, he turned his hand to even more musical marvels.

ANDY: This is one of the ones he made himself.

JL: Oh, OK.

If you have a look, there's a number of things that are wrong with it, design-wise, but considering that he wasn't actually an instrument-maker himself, this is actually a very, very good effort, and good design.

It's made from stock trumpet parts.

JL: So what did he base this design on?

ANDY: It's based on a 17th-century trumpet design.

We've got an English version of it just over here.

JL: That one?

ANDY: Yep, by a maker called Simon Beale.

Wow, that's... That is fantastic.

ANDY: Beale was an interesting man, he was state trumpeter to Oliver Cromwell.

JL: Really?

ANDY: Yes.

JL: Does this still work?

ANDY: Yes, absolutely.

JL: Go on, go for it.

Let's hear the sound.

(TRUMPET) That's probably enough of that.

That is wonderful!

VO: Haha!

By the mid-1960s, Bate was convinced his instruments could be used for a much greater purpose.

(INSTRUMENT) VO: Hello.

Huh!

As London and Edinburgh universities already had their own collections, he donated his to Oxford university on the condition that it was a teaching collection with a specialist curator.

More importantly, that the instruments would be maintained and played.

JL: Oh, my word.

(LAUGHS) ANDY: Here we go.

No.

ANDY: Oh, yes.

That is huge.

Come on, give me the horn.

(ALPINE HORN) (LAUGHS) My goodness!

(ALPINE HORN) VO: Finally, James Lewis finds a use for all that hot air!

That was better.

That was convincing!

Well done.

Where was that from?

That is a Swiss Alp horn.

Oh, I think I've stretched my ribs.

Congratulations and well done, you passed the test.

Thank you very much.

I feel quite faint.

VO: Whilst James Lewis has been mastering the horn, James Braxton has beetled on to Bicester, 15 miles away.

JB: Hello.

KAREN: Hello.

JB: James.

KAREN: Hello James, nice to meet you.

JB: Nice to meet you.

I'm Karen.

JB: Karen, Karen.

This is a lovely place, isn't it?

KAREN: Yes, it's very refreshing.

VO: The Old Flight House covers 6,000 square feet and has 50 dealers under the one roof.

So, a personal guide is probably the best way for James to go.

Carry on shopping!

Before long, our Jack Nicholson look-alike has spied a silver charm bracelet for £33 - maybe it reminds him of "The Shining".

JB: Now, could that be a silly price of say £20?

KAREN: A silly price?

JB: Well, not... KAREN: That would be a good price, wouldn't it?

How about 21?

£21, you have a deal, Karen.

I just like the number.

KAREN: Thank you.

JB: Thank you.

Very pleased with that Karen, that's very kind, thank you.

JB: There's the 20... KAREN: Perfect.

JB: ..and the one.

Thank you very much indeed.

Good, thank you very much indeed, Karen.

KAREN: Bye bye.

JB: Bye.

KAREN: Bye bye.

VO: And just like that, the first day's shopping is done.

Doesn't time fly when you're having fun?

But rest up, there's more to come in the morning!

So night night, boys.

VO: Having regrouped and counted their pennies to see what's left, our bold boys are back on the road.

JB: How many did you buy yesterday?

JL: One.

JB: Only one, really?

JL: Just one thing.

JB: Well, I bought three.

Quite, quite low-value items... JL: Yeah.

JB: ..if I had to give a clue.

VO: So far, James Braxton has spent £66 on four buys: the owl candle-snuffer, the Staffordshire dog, the 1950s children's tea set and the modern silver chain- link bracelet, which leaves him with £120.84 for the day ahead.

James Lewis, meanwhile, has spent just £25 on one lot - the 18th-century Irish silver sugar basket, which means he's got £243.34 and a heck of a lot of buying to do!

But then he's like that.

VO: Before he starts his shopping though, James Braxton is giving James Lewis a much-needed head start by dropping him off in Chipping Norton.

JB: Chipping Norton, eh?

JL: Yeah.

JB: Home of, home of many, er... people in the news.

JL: Is it?!

JB: David Cameron, Rebekah Brooks, Jeremy Clarkson... JL: Oh, really?

JB: ..Rowan Atkinson.

Oh, you're right, right in the hotbed of it.

JL: Really?

I had no idea.

Thank you very much.

(GROANS) JB: Well, good luck, but not too much!

JL: (LAUGHS) Oh, dear.

Well done.

Have fun.

JB: Thank you.

JL: Don't buy any bargains.

Cheers!

JB: (LAUGHS) Bye.

VO: James' first shop of the day is the very modern sounding Coca, run by John Cooper.

JL: Hello there.

JOHN: Hello.

JL: Hi, I'm James, nice to see you.

JOHN: How do you do, James?

Pleased to meet you.

I'm John.

VO: As antiques go, John has an eclectic mix of large and small - some smaller and more eclectic than others.

JL: (LAUGHS) That's a completely weird object, isn't it?

Can you imagine James Braxton's face if I bought that?

VO: Go on, I dare you!

What do you think it is, then?

JL: I think...

I think it's Japanese.

And this section is carved out of a nut, and the parasol, the face and the cane, I think are bone.

JOHN: Yeah.

Or the tongue might be stained ivory, but more than likely probably bone.

JOHN: Right.

JL: And I think it's probably a figure from a Japanese comedy, about 1900, 1910.

What could that be?

15?

JL: Oh.

I'd make you a cheeky offer of a fiver.

JOHN: Tenner, and it's yours.

Eight and you've got a deal.

JOHN: (SIGHS) OK. JL: Only cuz it's totally stupid.

JOHN: Go on then.

£8, you've got a deal.

Well done.

Thank you.

There we are.

JOHN: That's very kind, cheers.

JL: That's great.

Enjoyed it.

Thank you.

Cheers.

JOHN: Nice to meet you.

JL: Have a good day.

VO: Back in the Beetle, James Braxton has driven on to Gaydon in Warwickshire to take a much-needed pit stop.

With a bit of time to spare, James has come to the Heritage Motor Centre near Banbury, home to the world's largest collection of historic British cars.

And he's driving a VW Beetle.

Has the man no shame?

Hopefully curator Tim Bryan will forgive him.

JB: Hello.

TIM: Hello, James.

TIM: James, welcome to the Heritage Motor Centre.

Oh, what an amazing place.

All British cars here?

TIM: Yes, everything that we have in the museum is built in this country, right from the 1890s right up to the present.

Well, I'm rather ashamed to tell you I've come up in a VW, our German cousins!

(LAUGHS) TIM: Well, the German, Germans have had quite a lot to do with our industry over the time, over the last few years, so I'm sure that's a good connection, really.

VO: In the 1970s, the newly-formed British Leyland company sorted out all the old motors it had in storage, turning up vintage vehicles of all shapes and sizes, from the Mini to the Land Rover; Rolls Royce to the Aston Martin.

Although the collection focuses on iconic British brands, the motor industry first began in the home of James' VW.

This is where the story starts, and you mentioned German cars - well, this is a German car, or a replica of a German car, this is a replica of the first Benz car, built back in 1886.

JB: It looks like a trap, like a horse and trap, doesn't it?

It is, and I mean in 1886, Otto Benz, when he built this car, it was based really I guess on the technology of the time, so a bit of horse-drawn technology and also a bit of bike technology - the wheels look very much like a bicycle tire.

JB: They do, don't they?

So what is this, this is a solid rubber?

These are solid rubber tires, but it's not got any features or hardly any features, you'd recognize.

The steering of course is a tiller, so if you want to make it... JB: Oh, I see.

TIM: ..to move it, you can... JB: Go like that.

TIM: ..you can do that, so.

And of course there's no boot, there's no windscreen, but of course it could only do about nine miles an hour, so it was...

It was very primitive.

And the story I love to tell is that it is said that Mrs Benz actually drove it first, rather than Mr Benz, and Mr Benz actually had to run along behind her with his toolbox actually to make sure that it didn't break down, so... VO: A bit like some our classic cars on the Road Trip, then!

But it's not just old bangers that make up the collection, there are a few well-known models from the silver screen, where the car really was the star.

Those of us who are old enough to remember the original Thunderbirds movies of the 60s and the 70s, or Thunderbirds series, this takes you back to that, this is Lady Penelope's FAB 1.

JB: This is... (CHUCKLES) ...a glorious piece of pink, isn't it?

TIM: It certainly is, it's the pinkest thing we have in the museum, and it's...

It's a bit of a curio, but very popular all the same, and it does actually run.

VO: The car was supplied by the Ford Motor Company for the 2004 film version and is based on a Ford Thunderbird.

F.A.B!

And from one of the campest cars in the collection to one of the coolest.

Ah Mr Bond, I've been expecting you!

TIM: The James Bond fans will of course recognize the V12 Vanquish from "Die Another Day".

"Die Another Day".

Was that the great, was that on the ice, with the Jaguar?

TIM: That's right, yes, yeah, again a fantastic bit of technology.

You have to have deep pockets to own one and to run one, but really the flagship of the Aston Martin fleet.

Certainly as far as a lot of people are concerned, this is one of the iconic British cars, so it's great that we've got it in the museum.

VO: No longer in production, the V12 Vanquish would have set you back around £160,000 - and that's without an ejector seat.

TIM: One of the things I think that this place is really successful at is is really getting people to think about and look at their memories of cars, so people think 'oh that car, my dad had one of those cars', or 'we went on holiday in that sort of car' or 'that was my first car'.

VO: A real trip down memory lane and the best of British - all under one roof.

And with that, it's time for our special agent, James Braxton, to get back in his classic car and on the road.

Oh, less 007, more "Herbie Goes Bananas".

VO: Time now for James to head down to Deddington to continue his shopping.

VO: His final shop of the day is the Deddington Antiques Centre, run by dealer Brenda Haller.

Got a bit of weight to it.

JB: Good.

VO: Brenda's shop is famous for the Deddington Duck, not an ornament, but a move - duck.

Ha ha!

Too late.

Slightly concussed, James spots a rather curious curio.

You're a bombilla.

Is that what it is?

JB: Yeah, it's for tea.

BRENDA: Is it for..?

JB: For tea.

BRENDA: Ah!

JB: So it's South-American thing and this is a gourd.

BRENDA: Yeah.

JB: And you put your leaves or whatever, the water in there.

BRENDA: Yeah.

And because it was all pretty messy stuff, you drink through the straw.

How amazing.

JB: Bombilla.

That might be a possibility, Brenda.

Yeah?

Let's hold it out, then.

BRENDA: Let's keep it out.

JB: Let's...keep it out.

VO: Next up, James has his eye on a white metal bowl, which Brenda thinks is an ashtray.

Yeah, that's one that slots on, you know, when they had a table at the side.

JB: Oh, I see.

BRENDA: And you slot that one on to a piece of wood.

But it almost looks...

It's got dragons on it, has it?

JB: Dragons, yeah.

If you saw that, you'd think...

BOTH: You would think Chinese... JB: ..wouldn't you?

You would think Chinese.

JB: And then you turn it over, and you've got... BRENDA: Got the Arabic... JB: Yeah, Arabic script.

Isn't that interesting?

Leave that one out, cuz you've held it more than two seconds so that means you're interested!

JB: (LAUGHS) You're reading me, you see!

BRENDA: Oh!

Oh!

JB: You crafty dealers!

VO: He seems to be starting a collection of possible maybes.

BRENDA: There's a piece of Japanese silver there.

Could have been a little tea bowl, trinket bowl, sake bowl.

Who knows?

JB: Yeah.

VO: Nice price at £22, but they don't seem to know what it is.

I reckon it could be a rice bowl lid - well, it is if you hold it the right way up, James.

But he's not done yet!

He's turning into a bit of a magpie today.

JB: Oh!

That's a good weight.

BRENDA: It's not silver, it's silver plate.

Silver plate?

Yeah.

And any other redeeming features?

It's nice and heavy, Walker & Hall.

JB: Walker & Hall, isn't it?

BRENDA: Can't get better than that, can you?

And actually, it's a perfect thing for you to put all your little goodies on.

It is, isn't it?

Let's have a look what it looks like.

Go no, put it on there.

BRENDA: Oh!

JB: Very good.

Very smart.

Talk about presentation.

JB: Oh, sets them off, doesn't it?

BRENDA: Fantastic, oh!

VO: James has selected the gourd jobby at £68; the white metal bowl at £78; the silver lid at £22; and the tray at £38 - a grand total of £206.

How's he going to manage that when he's only got £120.84 left to spend though?

I see the package at £100.

BRENDA: You do?

JB: Is that... BRENDA: This is a one-off deal.

JB: One off deal.

I don't do this for anybody else, but because you're so lovely... JB: Oh, you're too kind.

...you are so lovely... JB: Too kind.

...I'll do it because I want you to win.

JB: Good, thank you.

VO: Obviously, the Jack Nicholson approach goes down rather well with the lady dealers of Deddington.

Good on you, James.

Thank you very much, thank you.

In the till.

JB: Bye!

BOTH: (LAUGH) VO: A selection of items at half price... That's "As Good as it Gets"!

Well done, Jack...I mean, James!

14 miles down the road, James Lewis has traveled on... VO: ..to complete his shopping in Yarnton.

With only two lots in the old bag, he's got a bit of catching up to do!

JL: Hello.

MIA: Hello there.

VO: At the Yarnton Antiques Centre, manager, Mia Pratley is busy at the till, so James sets off on independent patrol.

JL: The great thing about these little tins was they were Jacob's biscuits, and other makers, who were designing these novelty tins just to try and help sell their biscuits, and I suppose from about 1900 to the 1930s.

And they are now really sought after, but one thing that is so important is condition.

And there's a hole there for some reason.

Could that be a tenner?

It might be worth a go.

VO: With a price tag of £18, James is going in with a cheeky offer.

MIA: A tenner, is that any good to you?

Yeah?

Star.

OK, thank you very much.

Bye bye.

You have a sale!

Yay!

It was worth a go.

MIA: Finally.

JL: Brilliant, OK, well that's one.

VO: Yeah, and once he's started, there's no stopping him.

Next on his shopping list is a 19th-century Regency Ormolu pocket watch stand, circa 1825... Looks nice.

Will you offer 20 for me?

MIA: I will try for you.

VO: Shortly followed by a string of ivory beads for £30.

It's legal to buy and sell items that were made of ivory before 1947.

So James, what to do?

15?

15?

And we'll just give it a go, see what happens.

Right, OK. JL: Alright, thank you very much.

MIA: What would be your absolute best?

VO: Whilst Mia phones the dealer, James gets his nose back into the cabinets, just in case he's missed something.

MIA: Well, as it's you, yes, she'll go 20 on the stand and 15 on the ivory.

Brilliant.

OK?

That's a deal, thank you very much.

VO: He really is on a roll now...

Funny little pig that says "scratch me" on it.

MIA: OK. VO: ..a bacon roll!

MIA: There you go.

Thank you.

Oh, that's funny.

It would have had a bit of sandpaper or something there, do you think?

Not necessarily if the box slid in, cuz you'd have had the striker on the side of the box.

JL: Yeah, striker on the side.

VO: At £9, the Victorian brass match case is a cute novelty item - but he's not committing just yet.

JL: I quite like that.

VO: Not when he's just spotted a tortoiseshell and bone trousse, the Chinese equivalent of Swiss Army penknife, at £55.

JL: It's a knife and a pair of chopsticks and a little bone implement for just digging bits out of places.

VO: Tortoiseshell is now covered by the same laws that protect ivory.

But because the trousse predates 1947, it's legal to trade.

JL: 25.

Just see.

MIA: And you've got 55, he's offering you 25.

VO: Another cheeky offer - gets a cheeky response... MIA: I won't say what she called you.

Oh, I know.

But she says if you make it 30, you can have it.

She can't go down to 25.

VO: Come on, James, what's an extra fiver when you've still got £190 to spend?

Don't be tight.

Deal.

Thank you.

Thanks very much, cheers.

MIA: OK.

Thank you very much.

VO: So James has lucked out in his last shop!

That's the biscuit tin for £10, the pocket watch stand for £20, the ivory beads for £15, and the Oriental trousse for £30.

How much do I owe you?

75, that'll be, please.

VO: And with one last throw of the dice, he takes a £9 gamble on the pig matchbox holder.

I like this buying small things.

Good luck with that.

JL: Thank you.

MIA: Thank you.

JL: Cheers.

BOTH: Bye bye.

VO: With both our experts well and truly shopped out, it's time for them to feast their eyes on each other's buys in a quiet country retreat.

JL: So how have you found it?

Confident?

JB: No, tricky.

Tricky this time.

I found it very tricky.

Let's see, come on.

Let's see how tricky it was.

JL: OK.

There we go.

Right, a goodly... A good mixed bag there.

It is a mixed bag.

Now, what do you think is your winner?

That, probably.

JB: Yeah.

JL: 1936 state coach... Fabulous.

JL: ..that would be made in 1936.

Um, they seem to make between £60-100 at auction, in a bit of ropey condition.

In mint condition they're 200.

VO: Shame yours is a bit battered then.

Next!

JL: Just look at this.

JB: Oh, he's rather good, isn't he?

JL: Japanese nut and bone.

But look, look now... JB: Oh fabulous.

JL: (LAUGHS) So the eyes come out on stalks, aren't they?

And age, what do you think age-wise?

I thought 1910, do you think?

Something around there.

I don't know, these seem all a bit crisp, I don't know.

Interesting.

I've never seen the like of it.

JL: Yeah, funny little things.

And how much did you buy that for, James?

He was eight quid, with the trousse.

Did you spend anything more than £10?

Um, that was 25, but I think it's Irish silver.

VO: So he's still not certain?

JL: Anyway, a bit of fun.

JB: Well done.

JL: How about you?

Oh, here we go.

I, rather like you, have gone slightly around the world.

Oh!

I like the gourd.

JB: The bombilla.

So it's one of those South American, as you know, that's the straw... Oh, I like that.

I like that.

How much was this?

JB: I bought that and this little fellow over here, £55.

I love that.

JB: Do you like that?

Yeah, really like it.

JB: How much have you spent?

117.

117?

Only?

I know!

Could do better.

JB: Good luck at the auction.

Thanks very much.

VO: Yes, you always say that boys.

Now, come on, tell us what you really think!

JB: I think he'll do very well with the novelty biscuit tin, state coach, £10, that's got to have interest in it at auction, it's a nice item.

I think without question my favorite thing is the gourd.

Is there a great profit?

Probably not, but there might a few pounds in it.

JB: He obviously hasn't seen the thing to lure his hand deep inside his pocket.

It's been very shallow diving in Mr Lewis' pocket thus far.

VO: Meow!

Saucer of milk for James Braxton!

From Yarnton, our boys embark on the final 33 miles of today's trip to the auction in Swindon.

Lovely.

JB: Nice and slowly.

JB: This is lovely, isn't it?

Very pretty.

JL: Isn't it?

Very nice.

JB: I was expecting a more urban environment.

Yeah, loads of car parking.

JB: Lovely.

Bodes well for private buyers!

VO: Today our boys are battling it out at Kidson-Trigg Auction House - a family business that not only serves the local buyers but internet bidders from around the world.

Let's see if auctioneer Marc Anderson is as impressed with their items as they are.

There's a couple of interesting lots in there, the calabash gourd mate cup with the drinking straw, I think that that's potentially going to be quite interesting.

The other lot that springs to mind is what's been described as a sugar basket, we're in a bit of dispute, I've been talking to James about it as well, he thinks it's silver, I'm not entirely convinced, it's got the construction of old Sheffield plate.

I'm sure the experts buying here today will be able to hammer it out between them what they think, and it will be shown in the final price.

VO: Controversial!

James Lewis started out with £268.34 and spent £117 on six lots, leaving him with a cash stash of £151.34.

James Braxton started with £186.84 and bought six lots, spending £166, leaving him with £20.84 in hand.

Nice, nice big turnout.

VO: First for James Braxton, it's the Royal Worcester owl candle snuffer and the Staffordshire dog.

Quite a humorous pair, aren't they?

JL: (LAUGHS) £20 anywhere?

£20 to start me.

10 to get on, surely it's got to be worth that.

10 to the hand, at £10 I'm bid, £10 I'm bid, 15 where?

15, at 15, at 15, you're out in front, madam.

£20, she's back again.

At £20, five again, 25, 25, 25, 30 would you like?

30, £30 bid.

35, 35, 35, 40 would you like?

40.

At £40, £40, £40, with the lady at the front at 40.

One more.

No more for you at 40 then, all done, any further calls?

Selling then at £40... (GAVEL HAMMERS) JB: Well done, a small profit, isn't it?

Well done.

VO: If it was any smaller, it'd be a loss - a lucky escape, James Braxton.

Time to lift the lid though on James Lewis' first item, the novelty biscuit tin.

I had confidence in this, you know.

And this was bought for what, £50?

10.

MARC: In good condition, these make up to sort of £80.

Let's see how much a one in bad condition makes.

Oh, thanks!

He's just about killed that, hasn't he?

£20, surely it's got to be worth that, keep your biscuits dry?

£10 anyone?

Thank you, 10 I'm started, at £10, at 10.

JB: 10.

MARC: 10, at 15, at 15, at 20 again would you like?

£20, £20, five again, £20 here with the lady then, at £20, £20, £20, have we any further calls?

At £20 is all I have for this... JL: He's unlikely to get any more when he's said that, is he?

(GAVEL HAMMERS) VO: Crumbs!

I'm sensing a bit of tension here as James only doubles his money - he's going a little bit crackers.

It was worn, James.

JL: It was a bit worn, but... JB: It was worn!

VO: Next, James Braxton's children's tea set.

"He paid £10 for this."

Yeah, shh, don't tell anyone.

£10 to get on for this.

No interest at £10 for the tea set?

Surely there's somebody out there?

Buy it for somebody you don't like.

How about a fiver then to get on?

£5 at the back of the room, five, 10, 10, we've started now.

15, at 15, at 15, shakes his head, are you sure?

At £15 at the back of the room, I will sell, make no mistake, if there's no further calls.

We have 15.

At £15 then, all done... (GAVEL HAMMERS) JL: £30-40 estimate, it was so exciting wasn't it?

And it ended up making 15.

JB: £15, tiny.

VO: But it's still a profit - just.

Next, James Lewis' lot is the string of ivory beads.

JL: I bought these ivory beads because they're useful for restoration, that's why I bought them.

JB: Right.

JL: I'm no ivory fan.

Who's going to start me off on those then?

Good-looking beads then, can wear them out to a party.

£20 to start me surely?

£20 for the beads, £20 I'm bid.

At 20, at 20, at 25.

At 30.

At 35.

At 40.

At 45.

Shakes his head, at £45 on the right-hand side, at 45, any further calls?

At £45 in the room then, you're all out at home, I'm selling then in the room at 45 if there's no advance.

At 45... (GAVEL HAMMERS) JL: 45.

JB: Well done.

JL: They were alright.

JB: That's 30 quid.

VO: James is slowly but surely creeping ahead, with another healthy profit.

James Braxton's next lot is the modern silver bracelet - let's hope it gives him the profit he so desperately needs!

JL: It's pretty, isn't it?

JB: It is pretty.

MARC: Start me off bidding on that then, who's got £20 straight in for the chain?

£20 surely, 114's the number.

JB: Go on, 20.

MARC: £20, 10 then to get on surely.

£10, the hand at the back, thank you, and 10, we've started.

At £10 I'm bid, £10 I'm bid, 10, who's got 15?

£15 from the hand over there... Good, 15.

MARC: 15, at 15, he shakes his head, he's out at the back, at 15 on the left-hand side then.

Are there any further calls then?

Done and finished.

Fair warning at home... (GAVEL HAMMERS) Sold for 15.

JB: 15.

Not a lot of internet action on my lots, unfortunately.

JL: Loss.

Loss.

VO: It's just not James Braxton's day, is it?

Next it's the 19th-century Ormolu pocket watch stand for James Lewis.

JL: Oh, here we are.

Who's going to start me off at £30?

£30 surely it's got to be worth that, 30?

20 to get on?

20.

£20 I'm bid, thank you, at £20, five, 25, 25, £30, £30, £30, five, where, surely?

At £30 is all I have for this.

At 30, at 30 in the room, in the center there at £30, 35, are you against, bidding against each other?

No, no.

No, you want to watch doing that.

Yes, go on.

Do bid against each other!

Go on, bid against... MARC: ..at 30.

30, at 30.

For the last time then, if there's no advance, I will sell at £30.

WOMAN: Back of the room.

MARC: 35, thank you, a fresh place, at 35, 35, your turn to go again, sir.

40, 45, thank you, 45, 45, 45, are you sure?

At 45, 45, 45, one more?

Maybe?

At 45 at the back of the room then, I've tried for you.

What can I do?

At £45, I'm selling... (GAVEL HAMMERS) VO: A timely profit - maybe the other James could do with the husband and wife bidding on his items to increase his earnings!

JL: I was more amused really about the husband and wife bidding against each other than the price.

That's alright, double money.

VO: Next for James Braxton, it's the Oriental silver lid that he bought as part of a job lot.

It's your little silver bowl.

Who's got £20 to start me?

£20 surely?

Who's got £20 for it?

£10 to get on then.

£10 from the hand at the back first, who'd like 15 here?

15.

At £15, would you go it again?

£15 on the left-hand side then, at £15 is all I have.

At 15, at 15, at 15 for the last time, 20 to the net.

At £20, £20, do you want to go again?

Shakes his head.

At £20 to the internet bidder then.

At £20.

JB: Only £20.

MARC: Selling then at 20... (GAVEL HAMMERS) JB: Oh dear.

JL: That's not good, is it?

No.

VO: If you want to go home now James, it's fine, we'll hold the fort.

Strike a light, it's the Victorian match case - but will it spark any interest?

A £10 note to get on.

£10 note to start me on this one.

£10 to the hand, thank you, the lady's there at 10, at £10, at 10.

JB: You're away.

MARC: At £15, 20 again?

JB: 15.

Yes, £20 I'm bid, at 20.

At 20.

Five again to the internet bidder, at 25, 25, 25, 25, do you want to go again, madam?

Out in front then, at home at £25 to the internet bidder, all done and finished, 30 in there again, at £30, £30, £30, £30.

Fair warning at home, selling then to the internet at £30.

All out in front, done, at £30... (GAVEL HAMMERS) JL: 30.

JB: That's not bad.

Brilliant, pleased with that.

VO: So you should be!

A great mark-up for such small outlay, well done.

James is as happy as a pig in... profit!

Gourdness gracious!

It's time for James Braxton's next item.

A gourd, elevated to artistic status.

It's a gourd lot.

It is a gourd!

VO: Look, I'll do the gags if you don't mind.

JB: Here we are, and it comes with the Chinese bowl as well.

Yeah, OK. Start me off the bidding, who's got 40?

£40 to start me surely?

40?

Who's got 20 then to get on?

£20, it's got to be worth that, hasn't it?

£20 anywhere for this?

Interesting lot, £20 from the gentleman at the back, thank you very much.

£20 I'm bid, who's got five?

At 20, at 20, at 20, at 20.

Come on.

It's worth more than that.

Nice silver mounts, this, it should be worth more than that.

I rated it more like the 60 or 70, but 20 is what I have at the moment, come on.

At £20, at 20.

At 20, at 20, is there five anywhere else?

It's the young gentleman at the back at the moment who's winning the bids.

If there's no further calls, I have instructions I will sell.

Oh no!

At £20, then, you're all out except for the young gentleman, selling at £20... (GAVEL HAMMERS) VO: Ooh, ouch!

JB: That was rather disappointing.

VO: I'll say - a loss of £35 would wipe the smile from anyone's face.

Bad luck, Brackers, old boy.

The next lot has caused a little controversy in the auction room - it's the Irish silver sugar basket - or is it?

Here's the basket, this is the Irish silver.

Or, I'm hoping it might be Irish silver.

There's a bit of ambiguity about this, we have a difference of opinion, myself and James on this one.

I believe it's silver-plated, James believes it's silver, please make your own mind up.

We are selling it as white metal, and it dates to around about 1790.

He think it's silver plate just cuz it's not marked.

MARC: Let's get this under the hammer, who's going to start me off?

Let's start off low, see where we go from there.

£50 to get on.

£50 for it.

£50, surely it's got to be worth that, £50... JB: Oh, they've written silver metal.

Is there five anywhere else?

55, to the internet, 55, 60, 60 in the room, out at home at £60.

At £60...

It wouldn't be making that if it was silver plate.

JB: They have written silver, though.

MARC: ..at 70, the lady's back again in the room, against you at home, at £70, £70, £70 bid, is there five anywhere else?

I have 70, I'd like a bit more please, at £70, £70 to the room, they've finished at home by the look of it, is there anyone else?

At £70, five in the corner, thank you, 75, 80.

£80, five, 85, 90, it's starting to roll now, 95, £100, level money, would you like 10 madam?

110, 110... That's because it's silver!

MARC: Do you want to go again?

Are you sure?

110 in the middle then, all out then at home, at 110 I'm selling, if there's no advance, to the lady at £110... (GAVEL HAMMERS) JL: Good.

Good.

JB: Well done, that's doubled your money.

VO: Well whatever its silver pedigree, the bidders loved the sugar basket.

Sweet.

Next, it's James Braxton's final lot, the Walker & Hall plated tray.

JB: There's quite a lot of wear on it.

MARC: ..a bit of scratching to it.

Is there £10 to get on for this?

£10 surely?

Who's got a fiver for it?

£5 to get started.

£5 for a quick start, there in the middle at five, at £5, at five.

At five... JL: Go on!

MARC: At £8, at eight.

Oh, we've got 10 on the net, going crazy.

At £15 to the lady on the left.

At £15 then, all done, if there's no advances I will sell at 15... (GAVEL HAMMERS) That's yours, madam.

318, thank you very much.

Oh, James.

VO: "Oh James" indeed - it's been a bad day for James Braxton - so much so they've gone all mute.

Both of 'em.

James Lewis's last lot is the Kobe Japanese novelty and the Oriental trousse.

Who's going to start me off?

Who's got 40?

Straight in with this, 40.

£40, the hand, thank you, at £40.

45.

50.

55.

55 on the left-hand side, at 55, 55.

55, 55.

60.

65.

70.

JB: It's all around us.

MARC: 75.

80.

80, £80 there, £80, 80.

At 80, at 80, at 80, at 80, are we done?

Are we finished, all out at home?

The hammer's up at 80... (GAVEL HAMMERS) JB: Well done.

Good.

VO: A final flourish for James Lewis - and another tidy profit to end the auction.

You should be smothering that auctioneer in kisses!

VO: After you.

James Braxton started the show with £186.84 and after auction costs, he's made a loss of £63.50, sending him through to the next round with £123.34.

VO: James Lewis started with £268.34 and after auction costs, he's made a profit of £153.60, taking his total to £421.94, and claiming his second victory in a row.

JB: I think I'll er, drive, James, it'll keep my mind off the obvious disappointment.

JL: Oh, this seat's wet!

VO: Oh dear!

Now come on boys.

Cheer up.

There's still all to play for!

JL: On to the next.

JB: On to the next.

VO: Next time on the Antiques Road Trip: when the going gets tough, the tough get going.

All the way to Jersey, and it's not just the locals having a hard time of it.

I wonder what 34p buys you in a very splendid antiques shop?

DEALER: You're a hard man.

I'm...

I'm ju...

I'm not that hard!

I haven't given you a price yet!

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