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The Repair Shop Season 14 Episode 25
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FunTranscript
00:00A workshop full of wonders.
00:03I heard the word watch.
00:05Home to experts and time-honoured crafts.
00:09There you go, that's a good sound.
00:11Together repairing treasured pieces of the past.
00:15Oh, I like that. That is really good.
00:19Wow, look at that.
00:21Wow, look at that.
00:23Quite proud of that.
00:25And unlocking their stories.
00:27I'm completely blown away by this.
00:30Oh dear.
00:32Bringing the broken...
00:33I don't know where to start with this.
00:35...back to life.
00:36Wow.
00:39Stunning.
00:40Wow, fantastic!
00:44I think it's just amazing.
00:46Yay!
00:47Welcome to the Repair Shop.
00:50Have a good day.
00:51You too.
00:58Have a good day.
00:59You too.
01:00First at the barn, Alistair Waite from Shropshire.
01:13With a tiny model that could be a big challenge for paper conservator Angelina Baccalara.
01:20Hello.
01:21Hello.
01:22What is that?
01:25Oh look, it's a circus.
01:27Is it a circus tent?
01:28It is.
01:29That's amazing.
01:30It was a topper on my parents' wedding cake in October 1954.
01:35Oh, that's very sweet.
01:37Very sweet.
01:38My parents were 20 odd years on the circus in the 50s and 60s.
01:42My father was the tent master for Chipperfield Circus.
01:46So he was responsible for that particular tent.
01:48My mother did various things.
01:50Riding elephants and hacks she had with the camels and llamas.
01:53Really?
01:54Oh wow, okay.
01:55Now did your dad used to wear the sort of jacket with the moustache and the hat and all that?
01:59No, no, no.
02:00He wasn't the ringmaster.
02:01He was responsible for the tent and the transportation moving from town to town.
02:06There could be two or three hundred people in the whole circus.
02:09Because that was the day when the elephants, they travelled by train.
02:12And there'd be a circus walk for the mile, mile and a half to where the circus ground was.
02:17It's just a totally different era.
02:20And obviously the rules have changed over sort of keeping animals in the circus.
02:25Yes, definitely.
02:26Different times.
02:27Definitely different times.
02:28What was life like for you as a child in the circus?
02:31We were feral.
02:33The circus just, you know, the community looked after you.
02:37But you knew the lady who had the ice cream franchise.
02:40So you'd always be touting around there for a free ice cream.
02:44Oh wow.
02:45And you could go in to watch any show you wanted to.
02:47You'd just sneak in and look.
02:49It was brilliant.
02:50Yeah.
02:51So this is a replica of the actual tent, is that what they say?
02:55Yes.
02:56Really?
02:57Yeah, yeah, yeah.
02:58So who made this?
02:59That's a really good question.
03:00I don't know.
03:01But somebody had to be fairly skilled to do that.
03:03Definitely.
03:04Agreed.
03:05Whereabouts did the wedding take place?
03:06In Birmingham.
03:07And as a guard of honour, they had some of the circus men, you know, the great big steak poles
03:11that hold the tent down.
03:12There were people holding those and they walked through.
03:14And the wedding breakfast, for want of a better word, was actually in the circus ring.
03:18Oh my goodness, really?
03:19They got married and beautiful cake.
03:21And that was at the top.
03:23That's amazing.
03:24They were just totally besotted with one another right until the end, really.
03:29And I think all their love for each other is sort of wrapped up in that.
03:32What are you hoping Andrew can do for you?
03:34To come back in the best shape it can be in, you know, keeping some of the history, obviously.
03:39I mean, I don't know when, you know, the little bits of damage that's done, but there
03:43would have been flags on each pole at one stage.
03:45Yeah.
03:46Yeah, I mean, this is probably original flowers or something.
03:49To simulate trees, it's real like a dried flower of some sort.
03:54I love it.
03:55I love it.
03:56It's lovely to see you and hear all about the circus.
03:58We'll see you very soon.
03:59Thank you very much.
04:00Bye.
04:01Bye.
04:02It's so tiny.
04:06I mean, we're taking a lot of skill to make, that.
04:09I agree.
04:10It's amazing.
04:11Good luck.
04:25This is such a lovely little piece of Alistair's history, but it has so many
04:31many big challenges. There's wood, there's paper, there's little dry plants. It's just a very unusual
04:39item. Two of the poles are misshapen. Quite a few of the flags are no longer there. The little plants
04:46that are on the back are falling onto the paper tent, which also has a lot of colour missing.
04:53There's so much that needs to be done, but I'm going to start with vacuuming as much of the
04:59loose dirt as possible and then see exactly what I'm dealing with.
05:15Is this a new bear? Here's my birthday present from my husband. He's lovely. Very sparkly suits you.
05:21Thank you. Next, bringing in a tattered toy that turned royal heads,
05:27actor and former children's TV presenter, Jenny Hanley. Hello. Hello. Hi. How lovely to see you.
05:38You too. You look familiar to me. Yes, I was just going to say the same thing.
05:42Did you watch Magpie? No. Yes. They threw me out of aeroplanes and everything, but I survived.
05:49Wow. We loved Magpie. So did I. And who have you brought us?
05:53Yes. This is Alphonse, and he belonged to my grandmother. He was basically her first toy.
06:01Her name was Lisa, and she was a very famous photographer with her husband. She entered
06:09a competition in the newspaper. Right. Yeah. Okay.
06:12And the photograph won. And the editor said, you ought to take this up professionally. And
06:19photography just took her. They set up a studio in a little back room in their house and became
06:27Studio Lisa. Lisa Sheridan and her Russian husband-to-be, Fernand, fled the Russian Revolution in 1917,
06:36arriving in Britain with little to their names but a camera. Studio Lisa's early work was product
06:44photography. But by the mid-1930s, Lisa's relaxed and intimate portraits of princesses Elizabeth and
06:51Margaret brought wide acclaim. How did it come about then that Studio Lisa took photographs of the princesses?
06:59A friend of Lisa's, uh, was working for the royal family, and everybody wanted to know more about them
07:08and the two princesses. Studio Lisa were asked to photograph them, to introduce them more to the
07:15public. And they went along when the queen was about 10. They were the first to take what one can call
07:22happy family snaps. So where does Alphonse fit in all of this?
07:27Yes. He helped them when they were photographing children by helping them to look in one direction.
07:33He can react to you and talk to you. And of course, Alphonse was used then to
07:39get the young princesses looking at him while they took the photographs.
07:43He could tell quite a tale, couldn't he? Oh yes.
07:46When Princess Elizabeth became queen, they were invited to take photographs of
07:51Princess Anne and Prince Charles. And this little guy saw it all.
07:55This little guy was there, yeah. He must have retired when Lisa retired then, did he?
08:01Yes. He was in tissue paper for a while.
08:04Mm-hmm.
08:04When she died, um, I adopted Alphonse.
08:08Aw.
08:09Bless him. He's worked terribly hard.
08:12You can see that.
08:13Unfortunately, the metal is coming out of his fingers and his toes.
08:20Can I have a look?
08:21Yes, please do. And the cummerbund isn't exactly top drawer.
08:25Yes. And of course, we're going to be worried about whatever's going on underneath here.
08:30There's a very grand eyes.
08:32I'm rather keen on those buttons because I've grown up with those buttons.
08:36So you want to keep them, that's absolutely fine.
08:38Yes, please.
08:38So tell us how you would like to see him.
08:42I don't want him to have gone to a plastic surgeon.
08:48I want him to have had a health club visit.
08:50A very sympathetic restoration.
08:52Please. If you can make him so that my grandchildren can touch him,
08:58and then they could enjoy him as much as I have, that would mean a lot.
09:03I just hope you can work your magic on him.
09:05We will do our best. Thank you.
09:07Okay. Bye.
09:08Bye.
09:20I'm blown away by this.
09:21I've not seen one like this before.
09:23This tape around his tummy, the cummerbund, that's my worry.
09:28Me too.
09:29But there's quite a few other areas. I mean, his little hands and feet.
09:32Yes.
09:33So frail.
09:34Here there's wire poking out. Can you see there?
09:37Should all be inside.
09:40So I think with a little bit of fear, I'm going in.
09:43I'm going to take this off and then we'll see where we go from there.
09:46Go on then.
09:51Looks like it's been on there a while.
09:53It certainly does.
09:56There's a bit of damage here actually on the seam.
09:59Mm-hmm.
09:59So that's nothing too major to worry about.
10:02It has probably helped to prevent that damage from getting even worse.
10:07And maybe it was just that.
10:08If they were holding him, maybe they foresaw that that was a weak area
10:12and just put it on as a handle, for want of a better word.
10:16Maybe. But that's the only damage I can see.
10:18That is such a huge relief.
10:20Are you happy for me to undo this front seam?
10:22Oh, yeah.
10:23You're always fixing something.
10:32Yeah, well, I've tried my best.
10:34Yeah.
10:35Right. I think that should now be OK.
10:39OK, turn it on.
10:40Yeah.
10:41There we go.
10:42Another fix.
10:44Well done.
10:49Angelina is turning to technology
10:52to help get the poles of the miniature circus tent vertical again.
10:57So I'm using my ultrasonic humidifier, which will be giving me very, very fine mist.
11:03And by applying this very fine mist, I am trying to soften the areas around the little pole
11:13that is broken. And as it gets wetter and wetter, it should become more pliable and move easier.
11:26It's already allowing me to keep it nice and straight, and it matches the rest of the poles.
11:36So I'm just going to go ahead and glue it now.
11:44I am using some wood glue with a really small brush to get into the little crack.
11:56I'm just using a toothpick to help it dry upright.
12:13This is quite stressful. It's like walking on a tightrope.
12:21Tada!
12:21Wow. That was tense. While this dries, I'm just going to move to the next little pole.
12:37The two poles are now standing beautifully upright.
12:54So now I am mixing some watercolors in order to fill in on the tent where the color has been lost over the years.
13:01I have gone with using these watercolors because accessing the little nooks and crannies on the tent
13:13was not going to be easy with a pencil. So I've opted for something that can be applied with a brush.
13:19An added element to this tent, which is the orange stripes. So once I have the background ready and dry,
13:27then I will be able to fill those in.
13:35While one treasured keepsake is coming together nicely, another lies smashed to pieces.
13:42Oh my goodness.
13:44But it's definitely broken.
13:45Yeah, I wonder how it got like that.
13:47Londoner Abdul and his daughter Hannah have the answer. And they're looking to Steve and Will to
13:53restore this memento of Abdul's early life in South Asia.
13:58Hi there.
13:59Hello.
13:59Hello.
14:00Hello.
14:01Yeah.
14:01Welcome, welcome.
14:02Thank you very much.
14:03For having us.
14:04Who does this belong to?
14:05My dad. He got it from his friend as a gift because they are dealers of the antiques.
14:14When my dad saw it and he said, it's a nice cloak. And he saw his friend. He said,
14:18you love it? You like it? You have it.
14:20Really?
14:21Yeah.
14:21That's a nice gift.
14:22It is a nice gift.
14:23After three years, his dear friend passed away and it became more dear to him.
14:29Oh, I see.
14:30To my dad, their friend's memory was connected to this one.
14:34Okay.
14:34But for me, it's connected to my dad.
14:37Okay.
14:38So your dad must have really cared for this cloak?
14:40Too much, believe me.
14:43I don't think so. He could have cared for me that much, as much as he has cared for this one.
14:48What was he like as a dad?
14:49He was a wonderful dad. You know, looked after and
14:53taken care of everything for his friends and relatives and especially for us.
14:59Hannah, did you know your grandfather?
15:01Unfortunately, I didn't get to meet my grandfather.
15:05I was diagnosed with a rare form of childhood eye cancer.
15:09She was a year old.
15:10So life kind of revolved around making sure that
15:14I got the care that I needed and just supporting me through that.
15:17So dad only got to go back to India once in 2005.
15:22So that was the last time he saw his dad before he passed away in 2010.
15:27Was that the last time you saw this clock working?
15:29That is right.
15:31I requested my family members to ship it from India to here and they did not pack it properly.
15:40Oh, I see.
15:41So in transit, it completely shattered.
15:46Oh, goodness.
15:47When I opened and I saw in that condition, that was one of the worst day of my life.
15:54I'm standing here full of guilt that this is in this condition.
15:58Yeah.
15:59We don't really have very much left behind from my grandfather.
16:03We have like one photo or pin and just the clock.
16:07I haven't also been able to kind of appreciate its true beauty because for me it's through
16:12listening and touching and with a lot of places broken, I can't really access
16:17my grandfather's clock. So being able to hear it working will be really special.
16:24I understand.
16:26I understand that.
16:26Yeah.
16:27I will try my utmost to get it working and striking and ticking.
16:32That will be like as if my dream come true.
16:35Okay.
16:35Thank you very much.
16:36That will be amazing. Thank you so much.
16:37Bye-bye.
16:44This clock has really been on a journey, hasn't it?
16:47I know. I think we've both got our work cut out on it as well.
16:49We do indeed. Right. Let me know we need some help.
16:51Okay.
16:52Then you drop it.
16:53Oh, you got it?
16:55Thanks. Oh, yes.
17:05This is going to be a very nice clock, but I think I've really got a lot of work to do on it
17:13for Hannah. She's never actually heard this clock.
17:16I think once she does, that will be a real connection with her grandfather.
17:21This bottom glass here is broken beyond repair, so I'm going to have to source another one.
17:28And I'm not sure whether I can get a transfer to go on the glass or whether I might need to get it repainted.
17:34The more I look at this case, the more I see how much Will has got his work really cut out.
17:44But I don't know how big my work is going to be until I take this off and have a look at the mechanism.
17:50And that's going to be my next job is to start getting it apart to see what's what.
18:07I'm working on the hands and feet. Over the years, they've become very, very frail.
18:19And the wires that actually hold his arm have come through the ends and they've started to wear
18:24through the velvet. So we need to get something in there to support that so that we can put
18:31that frame structure back in and know that it's going to be good and strong to hold it.
18:37I'm going to make a tiny little tube of felt and slide it in there.
18:42That way, when I repair it, I've got something strong enough to sew into
18:47and strong enough also that will encase the wire that's got to go back in.
18:51What I'm hoping is I've got a couple of stitches there and I'm hoping I'm going to be able to pull
19:00that up through his little finger. Oh my, this is fiddly, fiddly.
19:13So delicate. So, so delicate. There we go. That's perfect.
19:19You can see here that I've kind of rebuilt that missing bit.
19:26It will add protection so that we can then insert that wire back in
19:30without fear of the wire coming back out.
19:43Our fonts has got slightly baggy arms.
19:47So I've literally just topped up some of the stuffing in this arm.
19:54It'll make him stronger in the long run.
19:58Now I'm going to do the same on the other side.
20:01But before I do, I'm just going to loosen this joint because it's not moving
20:07as freely as the other one.
20:09And all I need to do is just reach inside with my pliers.
20:15There's a little nail inside that's been bent over.
20:19And I just literally need to loosen it a fraction.
20:25Come on, little guy. We can do this together.
20:30Yeah, that's moving more freely now.
20:32So now, as I have done with the other arm, I'm going to top up the stuffing in this shoulder.
20:40Gently feed it in.
20:46Angelina has turned her attention to the flags missing from the circus cake topper.
21:03I have two original ones and I'm going to try and make six more.
21:10What I want to do is just trace the shape of one of the triangles and get them ready for painting.
21:17The replacement flags also need new flagpoles.
21:22And for that, Angelina is calling on the all-round talents of organ restorer David Burville.
21:28And she's given me the circus cake topper.
21:32And what a fantastic little thing it is.
21:36There's some little pins, which were some flagpoles,
21:41and they're stuck and broken off in the tops of the main poles.
21:47What I've got to try and do is replace them with little dressmaking pins.
21:53But getting these other pins out is going to be a little bit tricky.
21:59I think I'm going to use a technique that I learnt many, many years ago when I was an apprentice.
22:05So I've got my soldering iron to actually heat up the metal and expand it.
22:11That will actually crack any rust that's surrounding the pin.
22:15And then I should be able to carefully extract the pin.
22:22Ah, there we go.
22:24That was easier than expected.
22:25So I've just got this next one.
22:27So that's brilliant.
22:36Oh, that world to treat.
22:39Great.
22:39Now I've got those out, I can now go through my box and actually find some matching pins
22:45and then put the new pins in.
22:47The next stage in repairing Alphonse's foot is to add a layer of silk crepelin.
23:11This is going to support the very frail velvet and give it some strength.
23:16And then I'm going to use my fabric pens and I'm going to blend it so that it matches the other
23:21velvet parts on his body.
23:34How's the Circus Topper going?
23:35It's all done for you.
23:37Is it?
23:37Yep, yep.
23:38It's all done for you.
23:39All new pins.
23:40I've aged them so they're not too shiny.
23:43That's perfect.
23:44Thank you so much.
23:45You're welcome.
23:50I've got an original photograph of the cake topper actually sitting on the wedding cake.
23:57I've been looking really, really closely and the cake is actually adorned with all sorts of
24:04different animals. There's giraffes, there's tigers, there's elephants. So I think a giraffe and an
24:10elephant will actually be in keeping with what was on the original cake. So I've got a little piece
24:17of balsa wood and I've just drawn out a very naive looking giraffe. I'm just going to use the rotary carving
24:25tool and then hopefully it'll start to have the shape of a giraffe.
24:34While Steve removes dirt and grime from the mechanism of the travel damaged clock, Will is
24:48getting to grips with its battered case. The top part here, that's broken away. There's also
24:56lots of missing bits of veneer around the inside door here and that's going to be a really tricky
25:01fix because it's not a flat surface that I need to re-veneer onto. It's curved. So I need to find some
25:07kind of way of replacing that. I'm going to start off by stripping the old varnish with paint stripper.
25:14Once I've done that, then I can start sticking back the loose bits of woodwork.
25:19When I was taking this clock apart, it was very, very difficult to separate the two plates because this
25:37clock has had quite a fall which has just bent everything. If I put the ruler on it, it's just
25:43rocking away and that should be dead straight, not rocking at all. So I need to straighten the plates
25:51up so that all of the wheels will be properly in line because if I leave it distorted, it just won't
25:58work correctly. So I'm just going to just gently hammer the plate and hopefully straighten it out.
26:18That's beautiful.
26:20That's much better. All right, let's just see how this goes together now.
26:37I'm really happy with that now. Very, very good.
26:40It's taken a lot of time to work out how I'm going to bend some wooden veneer, but I've seen Julian
26:53and Pete use a soldering iron to bend veneer before. What I've done is I've used some thin veneer here,
27:02and then I get it slightly wet in water. So once that's wet, you lightly wrap that around the soldering iron.
27:14You don't want to use it on there for too long because it will burn the wood, but look at that.
27:18Amazing. Absolutely amazing. So quick, so simple.
27:24I'm going to stick it down with some hot glue.
27:32I've actually made this special mould and that should be able to keep it in that lovely curved edge
27:43whilst it dries.
27:52Amanda has nearly completed the strengthening of Alphonse's dilapidated digits.
27:58So this is the final part. All the mesh is in place, holding everything together where it's all fragile.
28:06And now I'm using this shading pen so that it blends a little bit better. His hands and feet were in a
28:12really sorry state and I can feel that what I've done is actually given them some strength. So this little
28:22foot is nearly finished and it'll be time to hand these over to Julie and they can be reunited with
28:29his arms and legs.
28:39Julie? A little bouquet of hands and feet.
28:44Yes. I'm so pleased now that we can actually finally get him back together again.
28:59Now that the flags are done and everything looks much more colourful, I can't help but think the
29:06flowers look quite sad. So I have sourced some new flowers. They are the same exact type of flower
29:15that these are. So I'm just going to go into the empty spaces and insert them back in and replace
29:23some of the lost little flowers with some of the new just to help bring everything together. Fabulous.
29:31This is going to be a very fiddly job, but I can't wait to see Alistair's reaction when I give the tent back to him.
29:42The wedding cake topper is an emblem of a couple's lifelong love that began in the circus, but age had left
29:50it faded and ramshackle. Oh, Angie, that's amazing. I love the presentation. I thought it would be fitting.
29:57It's very good. It's very good. Alistair has returned to collect this unique reminder of his
30:02parents' relationship and of his family's extraordinary life in the circus. Hello. Hi,
30:09Alistair. Good to see you again. Thank you. It's nice to be here. How are you feeling? Excited, really,
30:16because it's the only tangible item that we've got of my mother and father. Are you ready? I'm ready as
30:24I'll ever be. Right. Wow. What a fabulous job.
30:43Oh, you're a star. You've done it. It's beautiful. And it's clean. It is.
30:49And look at the giraffe. The little animals were made by David.
30:59Well, that's great. Thank you very much for your work, David. You're welcome.
31:04And that's for all these dried flowers. Yes, I found the same type of flower
31:09that the originals were. Really? You know, that big top dad was responsible for,
31:15you know, mum rode elephants. So you've got that. And yeah, it just brings it all full circle.
31:21God, I'm cobsmacked. It's just fantastic. It's yours now. You can take it home.
31:26Well, thank you very much. And thank you for all the work you've done. And I will look after it.
31:30Thank you. Thanks a lot. Bye-bye. Bye. Bye.
31:36Well done, Angie. Thank you. It was so much fun. Right. I'm going to make a start on this cake.
31:40The work that Angie's done on this cake topper is incredible. I've never seen it in such good condition.
31:50This will continue my parents' legacy. It's just a delight.
31:54It's Lucia Scalese's expertise with paint to the rescue next for a wartime essential
32:10belonging to Maureen Armstrong from Bristol.
32:14Hello. Hello. You must be Maureen. And this wonderful thing is yours.
32:20It was my grandmother's and she wore it through the Second World War in Portsmouth.
32:27And what was your grandmother's name? Well, her full name was Dorothea Fernandez Hodges.
32:32Oh, how exotic. Everybody called her Dot. She was the commander of a group of volunteer nurses
32:42at a first aid post who would deal with casualties being brought in after bombing raids.
32:49And is that what FAP means? Yes, first aid post. Wow.
32:54So she'd signed up 1939, 1940, and she was working like that right through until victory.
33:03Everybody that I know trusted and respected her. She was just the greatest.
33:11Was she? But you growing up, how was it when she was around you?
33:14One of the reasons that hat is just so precious to me is that it is about my earliest memory.
33:22My mother and I were living with my grandma. I was put to bed in a little camp bed in our air raid shelter.
33:30And I can remember my grandma coming in wearing that helmet on her way to go to the post because the sirens had gone.
33:39And she came in to kiss me goodnight. Later in my teenage years, I would go to her from school
33:47and sit and watch television with her and talk to her. And I just always felt that if I was with her, I was okay.
33:57When she went, it was a big hole in my life. I do miss her still.
34:02It's a wonderful thing to have anyway as a piece of history, but it's also got your grandmother's name all over it.
34:08Yes. D.F. Hodges. And if you look very carefully, you'll see that it's got her name on the chin strap as well.
34:15I saw it. Stitched on.
34:16Yeah.
34:17Yes.
34:17Do you have any memory of where she kept it, where it lived in her house?
34:21It was just in a cupboard, but she did bring it out for her reunions with the ladies from the post because they kept close friendship
34:31and they would have regular reunions.
34:34And how do you feel seeing it like this?
34:36Well, I got really worried when it got all this speckling here because it's damaging the paintwork.
34:45Yeah.
34:45I would just love to be able to pass it on down more generations.
34:50Yeah.
34:51It's not elaborate, but it did a job and that's what people did in the war.
34:59Well, thank you, Maureen. Leave it with me and I'll let you know how it goes.
35:03Thank you. Bye-bye.
35:04Bye-bye.
35:04It's a fascinating thing.
35:19Maureen's main concern was when we're down to the bare metal and the rust staining.
35:25And that's something that I can treat.
35:28And then I'm going to retouch. So I actually have to match my retouching to this aged paint layer.
35:35And on the inside, we've got lovely lettering.
35:38There is a couple of little elements that I'll do some retouching with to pull the whole thing together so that it reads quite smoothly.
35:45But I want to maintain the general feel of it being an actively used serious piece of kit.
35:52I think my first job, I'm going to use a rust inhibitor, which will also serve as a cleaning agent too.
36:00I'm going to do an area around here where I can see there's definitely some sort of greasy dirt.
36:05Well, look at that.
36:09Well, I think we're going to get really quite a nice effect with a very, very gentle cleaning.
36:16Recreating the design on the broken glass of the travel damaged clock requires the skills of a new face at the barn.
36:41Alastair Mackay is an expert screen printer and gilder.
36:46Hi, Al.
36:47Hi, Steve.
36:48Thanks for coming in and hopefully helping with this piece of glass.
36:52No worries.
36:53Oh, it's in some state, isn't it?
36:54It is.
36:55I should be able to create a stencil from it.
36:58Okay.
36:58And then I'll screen print it onto a new piece of glass and I think it'll look really good.
37:03Okay, I'll look forward to that.
37:04Thanks.
37:16One thing that I really need to do is to sort out the bent claw of the pendulum rod here.
37:26When I put the pendulum on, I can see that it's really out of alignment.
37:33So the pendulum is the part of the clock that actually makes it keep time.
37:38But because it's such a long way out, when the pendulum's actually swinging,
37:42it will cause all sorts of issues for the going of the clock.
37:45So it really needs to be in line.
37:47So I just need to manipulate the claws here so that they're even.
37:54And it's absolutely vital to get them working right.
37:59Alistair has replicated the glassy's original design on a sheet of acetate
38:11and can now begin the screen printing process.
38:14This is a screen printing screen.
38:16It is a wooden outside with silk mesh so I can allow a really fine amount of ink
38:22to go onto the glass when I print.
38:24So the first part of the process is coating the screen in a photosensitive emulsion.
38:30Then we're going to expose our artwork onto.
38:47So that's perfectly in line.
38:49This pendulum's going to do its job properly now.
38:56That looks good. The emulsion's dry.
38:58So now I'm going to put the acetate onto the screen.
39:05That's nice and centered.
39:07Now that the artwork's stuck in place, I'm going to use a light to shine UV light at the screen.
39:13This will harden the green areas and leave the areas that are in black soft.
39:17And that means that when I spray water on them, the water-soluble paint will drip out the screen
39:23and it will clear and create a sharp stencil, leaving an area that allows us to push ink through the mesh.
39:30And then we'll polish.
39:37Hey, Steve.
39:39Wow.
39:39It is absolutely beautiful.
39:42Fantastic.
39:43Well, that's me Dan. Over to you.
39:44Okay, thank you.
39:45Cheers.
40:11I've sourced a new piece of glass.
40:13It's been cut down to size
40:14and now I'll be able to print on it
40:17and it will look exactly like the original.
40:19I've colour matched the silver
40:21so that we have exactly the same colour.
40:26Right, that's the ink in.
40:27It's now time to flood the screen,
40:29make sure there's enough ink
40:30and then print it.
40:32This is a bit nerve-wracking, this.
40:34I only get one shot at the squeegee pool.
40:36I think that matches really well
40:49and looks exactly like the original.
40:51I'll let it dry, give it a clean
40:53and then I'll give it back to Steve.
40:54Lucia is preparing to fill in
41:09the bare metal pockmarks
41:11on the wartime helmet.
41:13I'm going to use acrylic paints.
41:15I've mixed up the shade on here
41:17but I need to put it on
41:18and see how it looks
41:20when it sits next to the paint
41:22on the helmet.
41:25So I'm not painting,
41:27I'm just going to do the spotting,
41:28just little dots in that area.
41:32This actually looks really quite light.
41:35I'm going to put a little bit
41:36of yellow opa in there.
41:38These are all very subtle colour changes.
41:42Actually, it's not bad.
41:47And I'm actually not colour matching
41:50to the tone of the stain,
41:53I'm matching to the tone
41:54of the actual paint.
41:57I'm going to go around
41:58the whole helmet
41:59and knock out the really big holes.
42:02Then I'll start going around
42:04looking at the actual staining.
42:07So bit by bit.
42:12I finished work with the acrylic
42:27but it wasn't subtle enough
42:29in terms of a finish
42:30that I wanted to get.
42:31So I'm using my modern synthetic resins
42:33to retouch with
42:34and my dry pigments.
42:37And I mix the colours up
42:38very specifically for each loss
42:40and these are much more transparent.
42:43So the base coat will shine through
42:45but it's got a glaze over the top.
42:48Your eye will not be focused
42:50on the damage
42:51and what you see
42:52is the helmet first.
42:57So I've got a few more layers
42:59to put on.
43:00They're very thin.
43:01Then when that's finished
43:02I'm going to move on
43:03to the lettering.
43:10Oh, Lucia, is this World War I
43:20or World War II?
43:21World War II.
43:22I think my grandfather
43:24was in the Home Guard.
43:26So he would have had
43:27exactly the same helmet.
43:28No.
43:29They're all the same
43:30but different colours
43:31you know, sort of designations
43:33of what they were.
43:34So what colour his would have?
43:35Don't know.
43:36And he didn't keep the helmet?
43:38No.
43:38I've got his bowler hat.
43:47Alfonsi's rejuvenating session
43:49at the Bear Lady's spa
43:51is drawing to a close.
43:54So that's it.
43:55That's his hand
43:56and his feet
43:57all back where they should be.
43:59But Amanda's decided
44:00a distinguished monkey
44:02needs an extra level
44:04of pampering.
44:05We thought it would be
44:06really nice to give him
44:07a little waistcoat
44:07just to add the little bit
44:08of warmth
44:09and to make him look
44:10really smart.
44:13Chose this lovely
44:14burgundy colour
44:15and all I'm doing now
44:16is stitching it together
44:17ready for him
44:19to try it on.
44:21I can't wait to see him
44:22actually and I can't wait
44:23to see Jenny's response
44:24when she sees him.
44:25A nice, smart
44:27and strong monkey.
44:32This cheeky
44:33photographer's assistant
44:35coaxed natural smiles
44:36from hundreds of children
44:38including princesses
44:40Elizabeth and Margaret
44:41but years of hard work
44:43had left him stiff
44:44and threadbare.
44:46OK.
44:47Yeah, here he is.
44:48He's all ready.
44:50Is he smiling?
44:51He's got a twinkle
44:52in his eye.
44:57Now Jenny is back
44:59to be reunited
45:00with the furry fellow
45:01who was so important
45:02to the success
45:04of studio Lisa
45:05and to her photographer
45:07grandmother.
45:08Hello.
45:10Hi Jenny.
45:11Hello.
45:11Welcome back.
45:13How are you?
45:16I've so missed him.
45:18So missed him.
45:19Really?
45:19Yes.
45:20I'm dying to see him.
45:22We are genuinely
45:24dying to show you.
45:26Come on then.
45:27You ready?
45:27Yes please.
45:28Go on then.
45:35Oh bless him.
45:43That's Alphonse.
45:45That's a healthy Alphonse.
45:50Golly.
45:50Oh, how did you do that?
46:00There was a big piece
46:02of rusty metal
46:03sticking out of his hand.
46:04Yeah.
46:06Wow.
46:07You've mended this beautifully.
46:09Gosh, the family
46:10will be so pleased
46:11to see him
46:13and be able
46:13to touch him.
46:15I love his waistcoat
46:16because he's now
46:18dressed properly.
46:22Oh bless.
46:24Have we struck
46:25the balance right?
46:26Oh.
46:27It may not be good English
46:28but it could not be writer.
46:29Oh.
46:31He's definitely
46:32Alphonse.
46:33He will live on now.
46:35I hope so.
46:36And he's ready to.
46:37You can tell
46:37he's ready to.
46:38You are brilliant ladies.
46:40Brilliant.
46:41Oh.
46:42You have
46:42done a miracle.
46:45So welcome.
46:46Say goodbye.
46:49Bye Jenny.
46:50Say trip back.
46:51Bye bye.
46:52I think we did it.
46:56I think we did.
46:57Well done.
46:57Well done you.
46:59It was the first time
47:01that I can remember
47:02him leaving the family
47:03in over a hundred years.
47:05Those ladies
47:06are just magic
47:07and I will be overjoyed
47:08to take him home
47:09and put him
47:10where he's meant to be.
47:11The wartime helmet
47:26has the name
47:27of its original owner
47:29Dot
47:29barely legible
47:30on the chin strap
47:31and Lucia
47:33has spotted scope
47:34for improvement.
47:36Whilst I've been
47:36cleaning this
47:37I've become
47:38increasingly aware
47:39of this
47:40hard crease
47:41in the band
47:42a little bit
47:43of flattening out
47:44will just make it easier
47:45for Maureen
47:46when she's looking at it
47:47to see the label
47:48and I'm going to use
47:49moisture
47:50which will just
47:51soften the fibres
47:52I don't want to lose
47:53any of that writing
47:53so I'm going to use
47:54blotting paper
47:55because that will
47:57minimise the amount
47:58of water that goes in
47:59and I've got
48:03a piece of card
48:05just to flatten
48:07it out gently.
48:10one
48:10clip it in place
48:12you have to be
48:14very careful
48:15when you're using
48:16moisture in fabric
48:17because obviously
48:17the fibres
48:18natural fibres
48:20like this
48:20cotton webbing
48:21will absorb it
48:22like a sponge
48:23that's probably
48:25a minute
48:28I've got my
48:28heated spatula
48:29literally it's like
48:32ironing a cotton
48:33or linen shirt
48:34that's all you're doing
48:34I'm taking out
48:35this particular crease
48:36let's see the effect
48:39of this
48:39it looks a lot better
48:47I'm going to do it
48:48a couple more times
48:49and see if I can get
48:50it just a little bit
48:51flatter
48:51and then I'll start
48:52on the lettering
48:53on the inside
48:54of the helmet
48:55absolutely beautiful
49:12the joint efforts
49:14of Will
49:14Alistair and Steve
49:16to revive
49:17Abdul's clock
49:18are paying off
49:19handsomely
49:20it's been an absolute
49:21joy working on this clock
49:22everything's coming
49:26together so nicely
49:27Will has done
49:29such a lovely job
49:30of the case
49:31and the printing
49:34that Al's done
49:35is fantastic
49:36the movement
49:37is in
49:37absolute
49:39first class condition
49:41there
49:41and
49:42I'm sure
49:44when Abdul
49:44hears it ticking
49:46and striking
49:46it will bring back
49:48a whole host
49:49of memories
49:49and for Hannah
49:51it's a very very special thing
49:53because it's the first time
49:55that she'll have heard
49:56this clock
49:58there we go
50:01I just need to give it a
50:05a bit of a final polish up
50:08clean the glass
50:10and then it's all going to be ready
50:12that's brilliant
50:14this clock
50:17was a treasured
50:18memento
50:18of Abdul's father
50:20but shipping to the UK
50:21left it battered
50:23and silenced
50:24with Abdul upset
50:25and guilt ridden
50:27now Abdul
50:29and daughter Hannah
50:30hope to put all that
50:32behind them
50:33hello
50:35hello
50:35welcome back
50:36hello
50:36hello
50:37nice to see you guys
50:39how have you been?
50:40you don't know
50:41how nervous I am
50:42because I
50:43I didn't think
50:45of clock
50:45will be repaid
50:46one day
50:46I never
50:48used to
50:49look at it
50:50now
50:50I hope
50:52it makes me happy
50:55because I haven't been able
50:56to appreciate the clock
50:57it would be nice to
50:58nice to be able
51:00to connect with it
51:01well
51:01should we take a look?
51:03yes please
51:03I can't believe it
51:13it's much much better
51:18than what
51:19I remember
51:21it's beautiful
51:25believe me
51:26wonderful job
51:27oh my god
51:34now
51:38is
51:39something
51:40which my dream
51:41came true
51:42it's actually
51:46very soothing
51:46hearing it tick
51:47it's almost like
51:49he's here
51:49with us
51:50with that clock
51:51because he cared
51:52about it so much
51:53the wood is
51:56as good as new
51:57as well
51:57thank you
51:58really I don't know
51:59how to thank you
52:01I was wondering
52:07whether it was
52:07going to do that
52:08it feels like
52:09the clock
52:11well the clock
52:11has been brought
52:12back to life
52:13but also
52:14a treasured
52:15member of the family
52:16has been brought
52:17back as well
52:18brought my dad
52:20alive
52:21in front of me
52:22you don't know
52:24how happy
52:24you have made me
52:25it's been an
52:27absolute pleasure
52:27and we're going
52:28to get it
52:28back home
52:29to you very safely
52:30thank you
52:30really appreciate
52:31you're very well
52:32thank you so much
52:34I have never imagined
52:38that one day
52:39I'll be able to see
52:40this clock
52:40in this condition
52:41not in my
52:43sweetest dream
52:45I'm just really
52:49happy that my dad
52:50won't be filled
52:52with guilt anymore
52:53and he can just
52:55enjoy having the
52:56clock back in the
52:57family
52:57Lucia's final task
53:11is to subtly
53:12smarten up the
53:13lettering on the
53:14underside of the
53:15wartime helmet
53:16so the retouching
53:19is literally
53:20dots
53:21so I've
53:21reconstructed
53:22that S
53:22and to my
53:23eye that already
53:24looks better
53:25I might just
53:26bring this
53:26D
53:27and maybe
53:29the bottom
53:29edge of that
53:30F together
53:31because that's
53:32Dot's name
53:33that's it
53:48I think that's
53:48fine as it is
53:49it shows its
53:50age and its
53:51wear and tear
53:51but it's readily
53:52readable
53:53without being
53:55jarring
53:55I'm going to
53:56give it a final
53:57little polish
53:57on the edges
53:59and the outside
53:59and it's ready
54:01to go back
54:01to Maureen
54:02this helmet
54:05protected Dot
54:06as she administered
54:07first aid
54:08during bombing
54:09raids in
54:10Portsmouth
54:10but eight
54:12decades on
54:12it had become
54:13badly scarred
54:15for Maureen
54:16though
54:17it still embodies
54:18the brave
54:19caring grandmother
54:20she admired
54:21and loved
54:22in equal measure
54:23Maureen
54:24how lovely
54:25to see you
54:26again
54:26hello
54:27take a seat
54:29how have you
54:30been
54:31I've been
54:32very emotional
54:33how have you
54:34because
54:34that helmet
54:35it focused
54:36my memories
54:37my feelings
54:39about my
54:39grandma
54:40how much
54:41I've lost
54:41not having
54:42her anymore
54:43that hat
54:44symbolises it
54:45in a lot of
54:46ways
54:46it's the last
54:47thing I have
54:48from her
54:48really
54:49are you ready
54:50to see it
54:51that's what
54:52I'm here for
54:53yeah
54:53okay
54:55oh
55:02that's so
55:03beautiful
55:03you've kept
55:07the texture
55:08of it
55:08and
55:09got rid of
55:10all those
55:11horrible brown
55:12spots
55:12but it's
55:13just
55:14lovely
55:15and you've
55:18managed to
55:18make that
55:19a bit clearer
55:20yes
55:21you can
55:21read that
55:22cottage
55:24grove
55:24it's her
55:29in so
55:30many ways
55:31it's just
55:33great
55:35she was
55:37of a
55:37generation
55:38that produced
55:40a lot of
55:41remarkable
55:41women
55:42and she
55:42was a
55:43remarkable
55:44woman
55:44oh
55:45I wish
55:46she could
55:46be here
55:46but I'm
55:47sure she's
55:47up there
55:47somewhere
55:48looking there
55:49and saying
55:49yeah
55:50not a bad
55:51job that
55:51thank you
55:54don't
55:54I want to
55:56be able to
55:56take it
55:57and make
55:57it like a
55:58centre point
55:59of future
56:00family
56:00get-togethers
56:01it has been
56:02a pleasure
56:03and a great
56:04honour to
56:05work on
56:05something so
56:06special
56:07I'll bring
56:07it round
56:08to you
56:08oh
56:08thank you
56:09you ready
56:14you got that
56:16you did a
56:17great job
56:17thank you
56:18well done
56:26Lucia
56:26that was
56:26absolutely
56:27lovely
56:27thank you
56:28special piece
56:29I think
56:29yeah
56:30it was good
56:30I think
56:32Lucia's done
56:33a wonderful
56:34job on this
56:35because she's
56:35maintained
56:36the age
56:37it looks
56:39still old
56:40but it hasn't
56:41got those
56:41horrible brown
56:42spots
56:42it will be
56:43a reminder
56:44and a tribute
56:45not just
56:46to my grandma
56:47but to all
56:47the other
56:48women who
56:48worked with
56:49her
56:49and who
56:51did so
56:51much to
56:52hold the
56:53country together
56:53during the
56:54second world
56:55war
56:55it's just
56:57so lovely
56:59if you have
57:06a treasured
57:06possession
57:07that's seen
57:07better days
57:08and you think
57:09the team
57:09can help
57:10please get
57:11in touch
57:11at bbc.co.uk
57:13slash
57:14take part
57:15and join us
57:16in the repair
57:17shop
57:17at bbc.co.uk
57:33Transcription by CastingWords
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