
Mark Stacey and Thomas Plant, Day 4
Season 11 Episode 24 | 43m 47sVideo has Closed Captions
Thomas Plant learns of a nursing pioneer. Mark Stacey hears the tale of a lost Dunwich.
Thomas Plant and Mark Stacey hunt for antiques across East Anglia. Along the way, Thomas hears the inspiring story of a pioneering nurse and Mark learns the incredible history of a Dunwich lost to the waves.
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Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback

Mark Stacey and Thomas Plant, Day 4
Season 11 Episode 24 | 43m 47sVideo has Closed Captions
Thomas Plant and Mark Stacey hunt for antiques across East Anglia. Along the way, Thomas hears the inspiring story of a pioneering nurse and Mark learns the incredible history of a Dunwich lost to the waves.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
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Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorshipVOICEOVER (VO): It's the nation's favorite antiques experts...
I don't know what to do.
(HONKS HORN) 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.
Yeah.
VO: It's the fourth helping of our road trip with loveable rogues, Mark Stacey and Thomas Plant.
Mark, leg four?
Oh, I know.
We're still in East Anglia, we've moved over from Cambridge out to the beautiful county of Suffolk.
Do you...
I've not spent much time in Suffolk.
MARK: It's wonderful.
You can see lots of lovely little cottages.
I feel like I'm on a sort of wish you were here tour with Mark Stacey.
Oh.
What about Judith Chalmers?
VO: Crikey, they're in a good mood!
MARK: I've actually, Thomas, got into profit for the first time in this road trip.
Well, you must feel sort of a sense of relief.
MARK: I do!
For once I've got some money to spend.
Well, are you going to spend it?
I don't know, Thomas.
It's like everything is... What...
If I see something I can make a big profit on, I'll go for it.
VO: Yeah, in the lead on this road trip is Thomas Plant, and he's keen to keep it that way.
THOMAS: Maybe I can look into the crystal ball and see how Mark's fortunes turn out.
VO: Nipping at his heels is Mark Stacey, who's going through a crisis of confidence.
What am I doing?
What am I doing here?
VO: Our dueling duo are charging about the country in this 1978 MGB GT.
MARK: I think you're being too soft.
I don't think I am being too soft.
I want to see that punchy Plant coming out.
You wanna see that punchy Plant come out, buy something and bomb and then you overtake.
Yes, of course I do!
Yes, of course you do!
VO: Yes, that's enough punch throwing for now.
Both experts started their road trip with £200.
After his success at the last auction, Mark now has £319.40.
But Thomas keeps a strong lead with a whopping £429.72 to hit the shops.
VO: Our pair kicked off the week in Sittingbourne, Kent, before winding their way north and finally landing in Oakham, in the East Midlands.
Today's journey begins in the market town of Woodbridge, in Suffolk, with the auction taking place in Acle.
Woodbridge has one Britain's last remaining tide mills - a mill controlled by the reliable rise and fall of the tide.
Mark's kicking off his shopping at Marlesford Mill.
Once an old grain mill, it now specializes in antiques and bespoke furniture.
MARK: Hello.
LESLEY: Oh, hello!
I'm Mark.
Welcome to Marlesford Mill.
Thank you and you are...?
I'm Lesley.
Lesley, lovely.
MARK: I'll have a look round.
LESLEY: Yes, please do!
MARK: And I'll come back and see you Wonderful, thanks.
I'll start down here, lovely.
I'm here for the challenge of finding something for very little that's going to make me a lot of money, because even though I made a bit of money at the last action, I'm still trailing and chasing that dreaded Thomas Plant.
VO: You better get looking then.
MARK: Now this is quite interesting.
The Chinese market is quite strong at the moment and this is a very Chinese-shaped chair.
Oh, I thought it was 28 for a minute, but that's the cushion.
And it's a very typical...
I don't know that it is terribly old, but it looks old.
It's got lots of cobwebs underneath it.
And actually it looks very uncomfortable, but actually it's not too bad, I think I'd need a cushion.
VO: Well, there's one there for £28.
My mind is thinking that old Mr Plant is finding all these lovely bits of silver and unusual objects for £10, that are going to make £100 and that's the sort of... That's what I need to be doing.
But have you seen any silver here?
Because I can't see any, nothing.
VO: Oh, keep your chin up, Mark.
I come out for some fresh air.
It's quite warm in there and I'm getting blinded by retro pots, so I thought, I don't know, we're in summertime, early summer, let's try and find something horticultural.
That's a long word, isn't it?
Gardening to you.
VO: Yes.
Thank you, we know.
What's this?
Well...I think it is a plant pot holder.
Imagine eight vintage terracotta plant pots in there with your pansies and your snowdrops and your crocuses and your miniature tulips.
What could be more beautiful with a splash of color in the summer, against this wonderful Gothic shaped stand?
But the question is price.
Let's find Lesley, because it's not marked.
There is no price on it at all.
Let's see if it grows on me.
VO: Oh, Mark.
Lesley?
Could I borrow you for a second?
I've come out into the garden and I become all horticultural.
I found this plant pot holder, but there's no price, so that means it's going... Cheap?
Isn't it?
Well...what were you thinking?
You don't want to know what I was thinking.
No, probably not really.
Because I want it for seed money.
I think the bottom line on that would probably be 30.
I'd love it for £20, because I have got my eye on something else as well.
LESLEY: OK, alright.
Yes, yeah.
MARK: It's quite fun, isn't it?
LESLEY: I think that could be done.
MARK: Are you sure?
Yes, yes.
MARK: Can we shake on that?
Just before you change your mind.
I've got my first buy.
I'm really pleased.
Something for the garden.
VO: He seems pleased...at last!
MARK: You've got a rather sort of odd looking chair, the Chinese-type chair.
LESLEY: The Chinese chair.
I haven't looked at the prices here, so I'm trying to imagine what it might be.
VO: It's £135.
MARK: I reckon...£50 to 80.
LESLEY: I think you could be in for 60.
£60?
Yes.
I mean, it's got to make a profit at £60.
LESLEY: I would have thought you...you're almost safe.
MARK: I'll have it for 60.
LESLEY: Fabulous.
Thank you very much.
VO: Thanks to that generous discount, Mark's got himself two items for auction.
On the other side of town, Thomas is starting his hunt at Woodbridge Antiques Center.
THOMAS: Hello.
Hello!
I'm Thomas.
Hello, I'm Natalie, nice to meet you.
Hello Natalie.
And lots of cabinets, owned by lots of different dealers.
NATALIE: Yes, there are.
We've got 30 cabinets in total.
And you're in charge?
Yes, I am, yes.
It's just, you know, a young person in charge of an antiques center.
Yeah.
It's brilliant, isn't it?
New blood into our business.
VO: You're such a charmer, Mr Plant.
I'm gonna have a look around.
Is that alright?
NATALIE: Of course.
Please do.
THOMAS: So I'm feeling quite at home here.
I'm a bit like a magpie...um, lots of shiny things, bits and bobs and I love those things.
I quite like this... this watch stand.
That's quite a cool thing actually.
NATALIE: Did you want to have a closer look at it?
THOMAS: Can I actually?
NATALIE: Yep.
VO: This piece is from the 1920s.
THOMAS: So what we've got here is an Art Nouveau watch stand and you put your watch on here, your pocket watch.
I love the sort of the cockerel.
NATALIE: Yes.
Quite nice feature in the middle, isn't it?
THOMAS: It is quite a nice feature in the middle and I quite like that - is that lots of money?
I think that one for you, could be £30.
It's not bad, £30.
How about 20?
Hmmm...I might have to speak to the person it belongs to.
Yeah, OK. See if they'll squeeze at little bit for you.
Well, I'll just continue to have a look around if that's alright.
OK. VO: After a quick call with the dealer, Natalie has a price for Thomas.
I've spoken to the dealer.
He said 25 would be the best he could do.
Oh, perfect.
Is that alright?
Of course it is!
Lovely!
You know, that would be purchased for me, definitely.
VO: He's spent some money!
Thank you very much.
That was really kind.
VO: Job well done, sir.
That's his first item for auction all wrapped up.
VO: Meanwhile, Mark is back behind the wheel and heading for the sea views of Dunwich.
Today this modest little village is home to only 120 people, but it has an unbelievable history.
800 years ago, Dunwich was a thriving rival to London.
One of England's largest towns, it was the provincial capital of East Anglia and its port was a gateway to Europe and the rest of the world for trade and industry.
By the 13th century, Dunwich had two seats in parliament, was home to eight churches, two hospitals, three monasteries and even had its own mint.
MARK: Careful, don't stand too near the edge.
JANE: No.
MARK: It looks a bit scary, doesn't it?
JANE: Yes, it does indeed.
VO: Mark's meeting Jane Hamilton, curator of Dunwich Museum, to find out more about this town's incredible past.
It would have been a thriving, bustling town.
As well as the market, which had a daily market here at Dunwich, the only one in East Anglia, there also were about 160 shops as we understand it, round the narrow streets.
It would have been full of people, from all nationalities, coming from all parts of Europe, bringing goods, doing deals, taking goods away...
Wonderful.
Exciting.
..organizing passage and transit for their wool, their cloth, or their building materials.
A real part of our British tradesmanship.
VO: But it all came to a dramatic end in 1286, when a massive three day storm hit and parts of the town were swallowed up by the North Sea.
JANE: If you'd come here 800 years ago, the land would have been stretching out some 750 or 800 meters out to sea.
Gosh.
We'd have been a long way from the seashore and those waves... we wouldn't have even heard them.
VO: The storm caused the harbor entrance to fill up with tons of shingle, cutting off the port and devastating the town's economy.
Attempts were made to revive Dunwich's fortunes, but less than 30 years later, in 1328, an even fiercer storm struck and another huge chunk of the town was lost to the sea.
Dunwich was abandoned for safer ports.
And over the following centuries what was left continued to slip into the sea as the coast eroded.
Dunwich Museum is dedicated to the story of this lost town.
Jane, we've looked out from the cliff and seen out to the sea, is this what the village would have looked like before it sunk into the sea?
Our model is showing Dunwich in the 13th century.
The general line is where the coastline is now.
Gosh.
So everything on that side of the model has been washed into the sea.
Within quite a short amount of time, the population had dropped by 85%.
Good Lord.
Because people moved away.
I think it was a long period when they probably didn't believe this could possibly have happened, because they'd been living with this prosperity for all this time and living with the erosion and I think they didn't see that coming and it was a terrible shock to them.
VO: But thanks to the work of archaeologists, scientists and divers, more of Britain's very own Atlantis is being discovered 10 meters below the waves.
JANE: Recently the University of Southampton have been using sonar, so they've been scanning the seabed from a boat and then diving on anomalies that they... What they have found on the seabed is quite a number of medieval churches, ruins on the seabed.
I mean, it's an area of ongoing research.
MARK: What is the main reason for people diving now?
Is it just to try and survey or are they trying to recover some of the old buildings?
Well, I think really they are trying to add evidence to the story, to the map that our model is based on so I think they are looking for the evidence, the hard evidence and they're finding it too.
But as I say it's not easy to find.
VO: There are now just a few signs left of this medieval metropolis.
One of the only surviving buildings of this time is Greyfriars Monastery.
Originally built towards the outskirts of the town, it now sits on the cliff edge.
The ruins are the only proof on land of the great international port that Dunwich once was.
VO: Meanwhile Thomas is heading just outside the town of Saxmundham.
Snape Antiques and Collectors Center should have plenty to tempt him.
Hello, I'm Thomas Hello, pleased to meet you, I'm Peter.
Nice to see you, Peter.
It's busy isn't it?
It is, yes.
We are always busy at Snape.
VO: Well, she seems to be.
I've got my buying boots on and my pink socks.
VO: Lucky pink socks, Thomas.
Oh, look at these.
I might buy these for Mark as a present.
VO: I'm not sure they're his color.
Best stick to the antiques.
Part of me thinks I should really be spending some money.
The other half says, that would be really foolish and you're not gonna get back the money you've spent.
But I'm going to have a look.
VO: What happened to those buying boots?
THOMAS: That is quite something, isn't it?
VO: Indeed it is.
This silver wishbone ring holder dates back to the early 1900s and has £56 on the ticket.
It is quite a novelty thing, it's been a bit bent but of course you snap the wishbone with your lover, don't you.
That's right.
Yeah.
You know, I can't remember, the one where you've got the biggest section...
They were the ones who could make the wish.
Of course they were.
Yeah.
Yes, it's quite a... Well I'll make a wish without snapping it.
I'll wish that you buy it and you'll make a good profit on it.
VO: Let's hope the dealer is as optimistic when Peter gives him a call.
PETER: I've spoken to the vendor.
THOMAS: Oh, have you?
And I can do it for £45?
Oh right.
Well, that's very respectable isn't it?
I mean, for a novelty bit of silver it's a bit bent.
She wouldn't go any lower?
I could probably squidge another couple of quid.
Do you think she'd do 42 on a deal?
I'll do 42, yeah, go on.
Lovely.
Star, right, that's item number one.
Done.
Thank you.
VO: Nice work on the price, Peter.
But Thomas isn't finished yet.
Maybe I can look into the crystal ball and see which will make me a profit and which won't.
Or see how Mark's fortunes turn out.
VO: Maybe not.
It's quite nice, this.
This is, um... ..got the castle ruins.
Probably Irish, this and it's Victorian.
It's a good interesting box with an interesting story to tell.
Anyway, I might ask about that.
I found that right down at the bottom.
Little glove box.
But I think, I'm gonna need a deal of the century on that one.
Really?
Yeah, I think I will.
Now I've seen...
I've spotted something else in this cupboard.
Let's have a look.
I just want to have look.
It was just pointing out, now look, this is extraordinary.
I saw it, from the one and only, Scotty Wilson.
VO: Louis Freeman, also known as Scotty Wilson, was a self-taught Scottish artist said to be at the forefront of the 20th century Outsider art movement.
Commissioned by Royal Worcester, he also designed dinnerware in the 1960s.
THOMAS: See, I quite like that and the box as well.
They're both from the same cabinet... PETER: Yeah.
Could you think there could be a wrapped up deal in total?
Let's try, should we?
We've got 55 and 32 which is about 87.
Oh God, that sounds like far too much.
I'll go for 75.
Really?
Oh gosh, that's far too much.
Erm...
I rate that.
I like it but I don't see it being more that £22.
And what can we do this?
Well, I don't want to pay anything with more than a in front of it to be honest with you.
PETER: If we said 39 and 21?
THOMAS: £60?
I have seen something else you know.
Right?
Well lead on.
Let's...
I have seen these really cool glasses here.
How many have we got?
Six.
A vintage set of six Art Nouveau hand blown liqueurs, probably 1920s.
They are £28.
Do you think they could be 20?
Well...erm...22.
Oof.
God.
Yeah, alright.
Good man.
VO: Thomas is still playing it safe.
He's managed to pick up all four items for auction for just £124.
You don't want to round it down?
I think 124 is about the best I can do.
OK, fair enough, I'd just thought I'd ask.
Well, there's no harm in asking.
You don't get it if you don't ask.
There you are.
Lovely, thank you very much.
Thank you.
Fabulous.
VO: Back together again and it's time for our boys to hang up their hats on another busy day.
So, nighty night.
VO: It's a fine morning here in east Anglia and Mark and Thomas are back on the road.
You've bought two things.
How much have you spent?
I've spent £80.
Oh have you?
I've bought two items, yeah.
That's very good.
Well I am trying to spend money, Thomas.
Well, you know, it's difficult when you...
When you're ahead.
When you're ahead, isn't it?
And you've got loads of money to spend.
..and you've got loads of money to spend, it is, it is.
And also you don't want to lose it.
No, you don't, clearly.
VO: Before we hit the shops, let's remind ourselves of the trips so far.
Mark bought two items yesterday.
A Chinese style chair and the pot holder.
They cost him £80, leaving him with £239.40.
As for Thomas, he splashed £149 on five items.
The watch stand, the silver ring holder, a mahogany box, the Scotty Wilson tray and a set of liqueur glasses, leaving him £280.72 to play with today.
VO: The chaps are headed for the bright lights of the big city of Norwich.
THOMAS: Right, there you are.
Go and buy something.
MARK: Yup.
THOMAS: Go buy some antiques.
MARK: Bye.
THOMAS: Bye bye, see you soon.
VO: We'll catch up with Thomas later but right now Mark has some shopping to do at Harp and Rose Antiques.
Hello, I'm Mark.
Hello Mark, I'm Glenn.
Lovely.
Nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you too, Glenn.
Well, this is a... how would you call this shop?
Bijou and compact?
Absolutely.
It's a small shop, but you know, we have everything.
I'll have a look around and see what I can find.
GLENN: Please do.
MARK: Thank you, Glenn.
GLENN: If you need any help, just let me know.
I will.
Many thanks.
MARK: Well, I had a very interesting conversation in the car with Thomas this morning.
He's spent of course, very little money again.
He's bought five items, he tells me, for about £150 or so.
So he's...he's banking, isn't he?
People are sort of going for cocktail shakers these days.
And that's quite stylish, isn't it?
It's got the sort of ribbed effect on the body, which makes it look... (BELL RINGS) That dreadful sound.
It's just reminding me all the time, that time is ticking and I haven't bought anything yet!
VO: Crikey, he is feeling the pressure.
Would you say that was Art Deco, Glenn?
GLENN: I would, yes.
Cuz it...at first I thought it might have been a sort of modern reproduction, but it's got quite a nice balanced feel, isn't it?
GLENN: It's got...
It's a nice size, as well.
MARK: Yes.
VO: There's £44 on the ticket.
I've got a nice cup of tea from Glenn, actually, which was helping me formulate my plan of action.
VO: Is it helping you make any decisions though, Mark?
I like that cocktail shaker.
It's got a nice shape to it.
My only problem is whether I can get it at the right price to actually put it into a sale.
Glenn, sorry, my time is almost up here, in your lovely little curiosity shop.
GLENN: OK.
I'm thinking about the cocktail shaker.
Is it any way I can get that at a really good price?
Ideally I'd like to try and buy it for about £20.
I think I can do that.
VO: Gosh, could this be the item that helps him take the lead from Thomas at the auction?
At £20, it ought to.
With five items already in the ol' bag, Thomas is taking a break from shopping and is off to learn about a local girl who put Norwich on the map.
Edith Cavell was a pioneer of modern nursing, whose selflessness and bravery during World War One saved hundreds of lives.
But it was her tragic death that would throw her into the spotlight and make her the poster girl for British army recruitment.
She's buried in the grounds of Norwich's stunning cathedral and Thomas is meeting curator of the Norfolk Royal Regiment Museum, Kate Thaxton to find out more.
Hello, I'm Thomas.
Hello.
Nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you, nice to see you.
VO: Edith Cavell was the daughter of a Norwich clergyman.
After working as a governess she entered nursing at the age of 30.
In 1907, her work took her to Belgium where she led a pioneering training school for nurses.
Previously nursing had always been done by the nuns.
Yep.
And she was instrumental in, uh, professionalizing the career of nursing.
Well, absolutely.
In Belgium.
VO: In 1914, during the First World War, Edith worked in German occupied Belgium nursing the wounded, irrespective of their nationality.
They treated anybody who needed help.
Right, yeah, anybody who was injured... KATE: Yes.
THOMAS: Wow.
Yes, German soldiers, as well as British and Belgian soldiers.
VO: In the autumn of 1914, two British soldiers separated in battle from their regiment and at risk of being captured by German troops, found their way to Edith's hospital.
Instead of handing the soldiers over to German officials, Edith, at great risk to her own safety, offered them shelter, before helping them escape via an underground route to neutral Holland.
Other soldiers followed and this underground lifeline helped more than 200 allied soldiers escape German occupied Belgium.
She knew she was taking an enormous risk when she started on this process.
She was very keen not to let the other nurses, um, within the institute know, you know, the details of what she was doing, because she didn't want to put them in danger, but she felt that she had a duty to help these men and her country.
VO: This underground movement lasted a year before a Belgian collaborator betrayed them to the Germans.
Imprisoned and tricked into a confession, Edith was sentenced to death.
She was executed in Brussels by a German firing squad on October 12 1915.
And news of her death spread fast, causing a worldwide outcry.
It very quickly made worldwide headlines.
THOMAS: Because of the horror of it?
Yes.
I think it was picked up very quickly, because she was a hero, because she was shot for doing something that she felt, you know... which helped other people and which she felt was the right thing to do.
So the combination of those things shocked the world, really.
So how did we react to her death?
Well, there was an outcry and she was soon held up as the embodiment of all that was good, that was British.
VO: Almost immediately after her death, books about Edith's life appeared, as did songs and commemorative souvenirs, all produced in her memory.
THOMAS: So Kate, what do we have here?
KATE: We have a variety of typical Cavell memorabilia.
THOMAS: This was after her death?
KATE: Yes.
THOMAS: Sort of straight after?
KATE: Straight after, and thereafter, really.
THOMAS: Really.
Yeah.
KATE: So for instance, we've got here a book, which was actually published by the end of 1915 and when you think she was shot in October 1915, that's pretty good going.
That's... Um, it's called the Martyrdom of Nurse Cavell, the life story of the victim of Germany's most barbarous crime.
Yeah.
Well, you can certainly feel the hate there, can't you?
Yes, you can.
VO: Edith's death at the hands of the Germans also led to her becoming an iconic propaganda figure for military recruitment in Britain, right up to the Second World War.
KATE: There's photographs of officers calling people to arms, with a photograph of Edith Cavell next to them.
VO: Edith's body was returned to Britain at the end of World War One.
She received a state funeral at Westminster Cathedral before being laid to rest here, in Norwich.
Today, Edith continues to be remembered not just for her heroic work in the war but for her services to nursing.
Her legacy lives on throughout the world in hospitals and wards, street names and schools and the Cavell Nurses Trust that provides vital support to UK nurses during difficult times.
VO: Back on the road, and Mark is leaving Norwich behind and travelling southwest to the market town of Wymondham.
He's hoping to find some last minute buys at Wymondham Furniture Warehouse, which also sells antiques, thank goodness.
MARK: Hello.
Hello there.
MARK: I'm Mark.
SHOPKEEPER: I'm Mark as well.
Welcome to our shop!
Two Marks are better than one.
VO: Well, we'll be the judge of that!
MARK: I've seen something already and I've only just walked in.
What is it?
This thing here.
This is rather interesting, isn't it?
I think if you were a late Victorian, or an Edwardian gentleman, and you had a library, if you wanted to reach up and get a book, you could use this to bring it down.
SHOPKEEPER: Yeah, I think you're right.
MARK: I think it's quite fun.
Now let's see what price we've got on it?
SHOPKEEPER: Very very reasonable.
Oh, they all say that, don't they?
Very reasonable.
Oh gosh, I need to sit down.
It's marked up at 28.
I think I want to pay £10 for that.
Tell you what I'll do.
£15, shake my hand.
I'll tell you what I'll do, I'll carry on looking, you have a think and I'm sure you...you'll come to my way of thinking.
VO: Oooh, it's the battle of the Marks.
There's something here for everyone.
I mean, I love some of the garden statuary.
And he's rather fun, isn't he?
I mean, it's a whippet, isn't it I think, rather than a greyhound, because it's smaller and slightly thinner?
And this is priced at £75.
I think if he was about 30 quid or something, it might be a goer.
VO: Best check with Mark, Mark.
Mark, can I steal you a second?
SHOPKEEPER: You can, indeed.
MARK: Sorry, I'm really...
I'm really trying to find interesting things and I've spotted this dog over here...
SHOPKEEPER: Oh yeah, yeah, he's nice, isn't he?
But I've also spotted these swans, look.
These are not old, are they?
Particularly?
SHOPKEEPER: Not particularly.
But they're nice, aren't they?
MARK: Are they 70s or something?
SHOPKEEPER: I would say 70s, yeah.
Are they terribly cheap?
I'm afraid not.
What have we got on them?
Oh, I haven't even looked.
I daren't look, Mark.
MARK: Cuz I get so shocked when I see them.
SHOPKEEPER: We've got 75 each on them.
Oh my good Lord!
But of course we can do you a little deal.
A little deal?
I'll do you the pair, for £100.
£100.
Let's go and talk by the dog.
I like that fact that it's... you know, you've got this sort of stone or... ..sandy stone.
Yes, it's got an awful lot of character.
SHOPKEEPER: It's got 75 on it.
I'll do it for 45.
Oh Mark, that's too much.
That's far too much.
I would be barking mad if I bought that.
VO: Oh dear.
Why don't we say, the dog, whippets and the swans... call it £100.
How about that?
Now you can't refuse it.
God, what am I doing?
What am I doing here?
VO: Crikey Mark, that's a bit of a gamble.
I could say that the whippet was 30 and the swans were 70 for the pair.
Do you think they'd fly with that?
I know they would.
Would you?
SHOPKEEPER: Yeah.
MARK: Really?
Shake my hand on this one.
Oh my gosh!
I think I'm buying it!
I might...I might be making the biggest mistake, because I've still got that book thing I want in there.
SHOPKEEPER: Yes.
Can I get that for £10?
Go on.
If you have them, I'll do that for 10.
So 110 for the book puller and these?
Yep.
Go on then, Mark.
Well done.
£110.
Oh gosh, I hope I'm right.
Mark, you are very persuasive.
VO: Yes, you could say he's got the Mark of him.
Ha.
But let's hope he doesn't live to regret those swans.
Well, there's 120, Mark.
Thank you very much.
Keep the change?
Uh, no, I need it.
No, I definitely need that tenner back.
Good try though.
Take your £10.
Listen, thanks very much.
I hope they do very well for you.
It's been lovely meeting you.
Thanks a lot.
Pleasure.
VO: So with his shopping trip complete, Mark's got six items for auction - the Chinese style lacquer chair, the plant pot holder, the Art Deco cocktail shaker, a nifty book picker, the garden whippet and the swan planters, which set him back £210.
Thomas on the other hand has five items - the 1920's watch stand, the wishbone ring holder, a mahogany box, the Scotty Wilson tray and the six liqueur glasses.
He spent a rather thrifty £149.
Now, what do they think of each others' items?
MARK: The mahogany box I love.
It's Killarney ware, it's Irish, it's very typical of their work.
The actual marquetry inlay is actually quite crude, but that's the charm of it.
He's being relatively clever by buying items which could make little profits, to catch me up, but then he's gone and bought a pair of large swans.
Now, I may eat my words and they could make money, but I don't think so.
I think he's not spent very much money, hoping and making me on this back foot all the time and I don't like it.
I know Mark has been wanting me to spend money, I know he has.
And he's also been saying that I've been playing it very safe.
I've actually quite enjoyed playing it safe, because I see it winding him up more and more and more.
I'm after you, Thomas, I'm gonna do really well in the auction.
VO: Filled with confidence and competitive spirit, our road trippers are heading to the village of Acle for their penultimate auction.
MARK: So you going to win again, Thomas?
THOMAS: I don't think so, Mark.
The thing is, I could lose on every single one of my items and then you could overtake me.
This could be your moment.
MARK: This is my moment.
This is not your moment to sing.
VO: Yes, Mark, spare us the singing.
Today's auction is taking place at Horner's Antiques.
MARK: Here we are, Tom.
Quick, before the rain really comes down, Tom.
THOMAS: I know, it is raining, isn't it?
MARK: I don't like this, you know.
I don't want anybody raining on my parade.
THOMAS: Raining on your parade?
Come on, Mark.
MARK: Come on, Tom.
Let's get in.
VO: Today's auctioneer is Henry Horner Glister.
What does he think of Mark and Thomas' choices?
The little mahogany glove box, beautiful little thing there.
Could do quite well, that.
I think it'll probably make £50 to 100 for that one.
The swans are our very quirky little item today.
They may fly away.
We'll just have to wait and see.
VO: It's down to the bidders to decide if Mark and his swans sink or swim.
Time for our boys to take their seats.
First up is Mark's pot holder.
£20 I'm bid to start.
At £20 and we're away.
At £20 for it.
At £20 bid, at Five.
25, 30.
£30 bid.
At £30.
Five.
35 bid, At 35, 40.
£40 bid, at £40, five.
50 now.
50.
AUCTIONEER: At 50, 55.
Go on.
At 55, £60.
MARK: Yes!
At 60.
At £60.
At 60.
That's not bad.
Is it?
I'm going to have to do it then at £60.
Then we sell.
Here we go.
Oh, I'm happy with that.
You would be, yeah.
Three times what I paid for it.
Congratulations.
£60, that's not bad, is it?
VO: No Mark, it's not bad at all.
It's a really good start.
Next up is Thomas' Art Nouveau watch stand.
50.
30.
30.
£10 I'm bid to start.
15.
15 bid.
At £15.
At 20.
£20 bid.
At £20.
Five.
25.
MARK: 25, Tom.
£30.
£30.
35.
He doesn't let go, does he?
Come on, it's a lovely one.
At £35.
It's almost his estimate.
At 35, and here comes the hammer.
THOMAS: It's a profit.
At £35 and we have to do it then.
I was completely...
I take my hat off to you.
Thank you.
You did it again.
VO: A promising start for them both.
The next lot is Mark's Chinese style lacquered chair.
That's a lovely little chair, this one.
There's a lot of character to this one.
£50 are going to start me then.
MARK: Oh no.
£20 bid.
At five.
£25.
At 25, 25, £25.
At 25, 25, 25.
£30 on your bid.
At 30.
We're moving on.
Go and have another go.
At 35, 40, 40 I'm bid.
At £40 for it.
At 40, £40.
Five.
45.
Pushy now.
He's pushing him.
Don't be depressed.
AUCTIONEER: At £45 and I'm about to do it.
It's done.
There we are.
Thank you.
Oh dear.
I'm really...
I'm so disappointed with that.
I really thought that might do better.
VO: It doesn't help, Mark, but it's only a small loss.
Up now, Thomas' wish bone ring holder.
180.
£50 to start me.
£30 I'm bid to start.
35, £40.... 35.
40 bid.
You have to beat 50.
At 50.
50 bid.
At £50 bid.
Small profit.
AUCTIONEER: It's silver... At £50 my lady here for it.
There we are.
Thank you.
That's good.
A small profit.
It's alright.
Small profit.
Very small.
You're not losing, which is good, Tom.
No.
VO: Small profit, but a profit all the same.
Will Mark's cocktail shaker cause a stir with the bidders?
180.
£50 will start me.
£30, thank you.
At £30, five.
40.
I made a profit.
That's good.
That's great!
VO: Good start.
At £45.
At 45.
45.
At £45.
At 45.
50.
50 bid.
£50.
It's in.
Well done!
At £50, here comes that hammer.
Here comes the hammer!
Yes!
A £30 profit there, Tom.
Yeah, well done.
VO: Excellent result, Mark.
Thomas' mahogany box next.
Will the auctioneer's predictions come true?
30.
£30, five.
35, 40, £40, five.
45, 50.
Oh, it's all online.
There we are.
60.
£60.
At 70.
At 70.
70 bid.
At £70.
All done at £70.
And we sell online for this one, then.
I told you that would do alright, Thomas.
Well, I can sit back now and just chill out.
I was worried about the damage.
Yeah, but I'm now relaxed.
But I think that was OK. VO: A strong profit for Thomas, keeping that smile on his face.
The pressure is back on Mark.
Can his book picker grab him some money?
What an unusual thing there.
It will be jolly handy, won't it.
It is unusual.
£50.
50.
It will be useful for all sorts of things, wouldn't it?
50, 40, £30 are gonna start me for it then.
30.
10 I'm bid to start.
Oh, come on.
At 10 bid.
At 10, 15.
15 bid, at 20.
£20 bid.
There, he's got 12.
At £20 for it.
At 20 I'm bid.
At 20.
Think of the uses.
At £20 bid.
At £20 bid.
At £20.
Here at £20.
£20 and we sell in the second row, for £20 then.
Look, it's fine.
I've doubled my money.
Oh, you have.
It's fine, Tom.
You wouldn't want to have paid any more and you've done the right thing.
VO: That's it, Mark, look on the positive side, you've doubled your money.
Time for Thomas' Scotty Wilson tray.
AUCTIONEER: It's a lovely piece, this one.
£50 I'm going to start me.
£30, thank you.
At £30 and we're away at £30 bid.
At 30.
30 bid, at £30.
Rare shape as well, this lovely little pen tray.
At £30, five, that's away.
Moves on, doesn't it?
At 35, 35.
At 35, then I'm going to have to sell it though.
Look, at £35, if you don't press that button soon.
At 35.
Oh no!
At £35 in the room then.
There we are.
Well done on you.
At £14 profit.
Well done on him, really.
You know, that's not bad, is it?
VO: Not bad at all, I'll say.
It's almost neck and neck for this leg, but how will Mark's whippet do?
AUCTIONEER: And I think he ought to be £100, don't you?
£100, 100.
80. Who will start me at 50 for him then?
£30, thank you.
He's got me going and then oh... 45, 45, 45, 45, 45, 50.
That's away!
£50, 55.
55, 55, 55, 60... 60, you see?
You see, you've doubled your money.
I've doubled my money.
65, 65, 65, 65.
Do it again, Go on!
65.
THOMAS: Go on.
Everybody wants an old dog.
At 65, 65, 65, 65, 65, any further now.
At £65 then we do and there we are.
Done.
35 quid profit.
I'm happy with that.
Woof woof.
VO: Mark's more than doubled his money and now he's in the lead.
Thomas's set of six lacquer glasses are next.
AUCTIONEER: Very very pretty indeed.
Elegant little glasses these ones.
£50 to start me?
I'm bid 20.
At 20, at five, 25, 30, five, at 45... 45?
45, 45, 45, 45, 45, £50!
50 bid, at 50.
I don't believe it.
I absolutely don't believe it.
Any further now?
At £50 then we do it over this way.
Yes!
I simply cannot Adam and Eve it.
I cannot Adam and Eve it, Thomas Plant.
Well... You are so lucky.
Do you know what?
Fortune favors the brave.
VO: And you, it seems, Thomas.
Good result there.
Our pair's last lot are Mark's swan planters.
Will his gamble pay off?
Or will they cost him this leg?
£100 for those?
100, I like them a lot.
£100 will start me, 100, 80?
£50 will start me.
50.
Hang on.
Come on.
40 we would like.
At 45.
45, £50.
There's bids, there's bids.
Fight up, you said.
Go on, 55, 60 60 bid, £60 and five, 65, go on... To a new place.
Fresh legs.
80, 80 bid, at five, 85, 85, 95, 100.
THOMAS: Go on, madam.
110, 110, 110, 110, 110, go on.
THOMAS: Go on.
110.
120, 120, 120, 120, 120, 120, 120, 130, 130, 130, 130, 130... Don't let them go, madam.
Come on!
Don't let them go.
You've come all this way.
You've come all that way.
Go on.
One more.
Yes!
Yes.
140, 140, 140, 140.
One more.
Go on.
Go on.
Last chance.
Look at that.
150 Yes!
150, 170, 170, 170... MARK: I need that money.
THOMAS: £100 profit.
At 170, are we done this time at £170, and we sell them then.
Well done.
Thank you, madam.
Thank you.
Well done, Mark.
VO: Give yourself a pat on the back Mr Stacey, the risk paid off.
A fantastic £100 profit from the swans.
Well done.
Well done.
Good profits for all.
VO: So, who takes the crown for the fourth leg?
Let's count the pennies.
VO: Thomas kicked off with £429.72.
After auction house fees were deducted, he made £47.80 giving him £477.52 to spend next time.
VO: But it is Mark who's today's winner.
Starting off with £319.40, after auction costs, he made a profit of £126.20.
This giant step forward sees him carry £445.60.
The competition is wide open going into the last leg.
You know, I'm only just £30 behind you now.
THOMAS: You are, aren't you?
Maybe you will be tactical like me now.
Get ready.
You want me to drive you again.
Please.
I'm snapping at your heels.
VO: See you soon, boys.
VO: Next time on the Antiques Road Trip - Mark means business.
MARK: We are heading for the finale and I want to take the last bow on stage.
VO: While Thomas plays dress-up.
Do you think your wife would like that?
No.
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