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00:00On all new salvage hunters, with almost 60 years combined experience, three leading antique and salvage dealers are joining forces.
00:10From West Wales, country house connoisseur Alistair Driverer loves the traditional.
00:16Sorry about that, isn't it? It's nice. Welsh. It's handsome. Pine. Taverns Vettel.
00:20Don't try to sell it to me. No, I'm not trying to sell it to you.
00:23Edinburgh-based dealer Vicky Knott has an incredible eye for interiors.
00:27I just think it's ever easy. I just think that's brilliant.
00:31In London, Sheerkan Yamakja is a devotee of retro design and industrial salvage sourced from all over Europe.
00:39These were made by gents of Leicester and it's a general post office one.
00:43While his brother Jay restores items back to life.
00:47There's nothing to rust, nothing to go wrong and that's why these last forever.
00:51Together, they're travelling the country, on the hunt for the very best antiques and decorative salvage.
00:58This time, at a loot and dye and bleach works, Sheerkan and Jay discover mistakes can be costly.
01:12Sorry, it's ripped now. I bought it.
01:14We'll add that to the pile.
01:16In Hampshire, Alistair and Sheerkan find out value is subject to artistic licence.
01:21There's something about this. It's probably my favourite bit of art.
01:24Oh, that's going to become expensive.
01:26No, no, no, no, no.
01:28And at a Southport amusement park, it's two signs for the price of one.
01:32I like that open sign.
01:34So it should have closed on the other side.
01:36Ta-da!
01:37Based in North London, dealer Sheerkan Yamakja and brother Jay specialise in industrial salvage and vintage lighting.
01:49And other items that appeal to customers with an eye for modern design.
01:54Me and my brother have been very lucky.
01:56We've been able to get into some old factories, old workshops, old train stations.
02:00And we've been able to save some amazing lighting and furniture.
02:06They were designed perfectly.
02:09They were designed to do a job.
02:11We don't see them as relics of the past.
02:13Because they were designed and made in such a way that they're future-proof.
02:17While Sheerkan concentrates on buying, Jay restores items in his workshop.
02:21The best part about my job is I get to work on all these old industrial lights that were made in the 1920s, 30s.
02:30They were so well designed.
02:32Knowing they're going to last another hundred years or so just gives me pure joy.
02:38Both share a love for finding and rescuing items rich in history and character.
02:43On the hunt for forgotten gems, Sheerkan and Jay are heading out of London to Luton.
02:53Once famous for the production of hats and an eponymous van.
02:58For over two centuries, the hat industry flourished here, fashioning everything from straw bonnets to bowlers.
03:05Today the boys have been invited to look round an old factory that's having a clear-out.
03:10We're going to meet John.
03:13You know, John's part of a family that since the 18th century they've been in Luton working with milliners and in the hat trade.
03:24As they're like family-run business, they've been in it for such a long time.
03:28They've probably got so much stuff.
03:30Yeah, yeah.
03:31That, you know, the stuff that we buy or stuff that we could use.
03:35So, yeah, it's always good coming into places like that.
03:38So, do you know why Luton vans were made in that shape?
03:44I don't know why, but I'm sure you're about to tell me.
03:46Yeah, I am about to tell you.
03:47So, Luton vans were made in that kind of high shape.
03:52Because Luton, being famous for the hat trade, they invented a van which has got the high top so they can stack up the hats high.
04:02Yeah, yeah. Hence, it was called the Luton van. There you go.
04:05I'm going to have to Google that.
04:06You go, why do you need to Google it? You don't need to Google it. I've just told you that.
04:14By the 1930s, Luton firms were producing around 70 million hats a year.
04:20But changing fashions and foreign competition took their toll.
04:24Today, Barford Brothers' dye and bleachwort is the last of its kind in the UK.
04:30Its skills preserved by fifth generation dyer, John Horne.
04:34My family connection with the hat trade started in 1823, and I joined the company in 1976.
04:46We are dyers for the millinery trade, basically.
04:49We only specialize in goods for the hat industry.
04:53I've dyed hats for celebrities. I've dyed hats for royal family.
04:58The lady died. She was a great wearer of hats, and she did enormous things for the industry.
05:05There's very few people in the country who can actually do what we do here.
05:12We also die for Europe, America, even China.
05:17But the industry has changed.
05:19We don't use a lot of the stuff that we used to use,
05:22and consequently, it might as well go to a better home
05:25and have a second life from being stored here.
05:31You must be John.
05:33I am indeed.
05:34Nice to meet you.
05:36Nice to meet you. Lovely to see you.
05:37Shall we go inside?
05:38Yeah, sure.
05:39You lead the way.
05:40Show what we're doing.
05:41Okay.
05:43So this is our dye yard.
05:45That's a sauna in here, John.
05:48This is ribbons being dyed.
05:52And these are going to be used for the ribbons around the hats?
05:55Yeah, yeah, yeah.
05:56Okay.
05:57So this is our blocking room.
05:59Oh, wow.
06:00After we've dyed it, we've stiffened it,
06:03give it some body,
06:04and then it can go onto the hot moulds.
06:06Okay.
06:07And then the edge is trimmed off,
06:08and then that's the start of it.
06:10Yeah.
06:10This machinery's old.
06:12Yeah, Victorian, most of it.
06:13Victorian?
06:14Yeah.
06:15I mean, in its heyday,
06:16how many people would work here?
06:18When I joined, there was,
06:19I think it was 56 staff, I think.
06:2156 staff, 50 years ago.
06:23Yeah.
06:23And now?
06:24Now there's three of us.
06:25Three.
06:25Wow.
06:26Yeah.
06:27John's got these old, big, strong machines.
06:31You know, they're like over 100 years old,
06:32Victorian, Edwardian machines.
06:34And they are still using them to make these beautiful hats.
06:38And I'll ask him, I'll say,
06:40are there modern versions of these machines?
06:41And he said, yeah, you can get modern versions,
06:44but they don't do the job as good as these ones.
06:46It just goes to show you, old is gold.
06:50So there's bits and pieces in here,
06:52maybe, you're interested in.
06:55Jeff, is that it, do you think?
06:57They're little short chairs.
06:58They were ones that children used to weave straw plait on.
07:03These short-legged stools
07:05once served the local craft of straw plaiting,
07:09a process by which wheat straw was hand-braided
07:11and woven into hats and other textile garments.
07:14A relic of a bygone industry,
07:16Shere Khan thinks these pitch pine stools,
07:19made from offcuts and scraps by local workers,
07:22could be worth around £125 each.
07:24Do you know what kind of money you would want for these?
07:29I don't know, make me an offer.
07:31£40 each.
07:33Mm-hmm. Make it a bit more.
07:37£45.
07:39Yeah, go on, then.
07:40Yep. Shake his hand.
07:42Excellent. As a deal, that's a good start.
07:45All right. Get the ball rolling.
07:47Scratch-built things have a bit of a soul to them.
07:50And also, with these ones,
07:52you can see how the people working in this factory
07:55were sitting on them.
07:56You can see where they've worn out certain parts of it.
07:59All of that makes for great character.
08:01This is quite an interesting little thing.
08:04When they used to weave straw plait,
08:06they used to put it in a skein.
08:08You remember if you held your wool out for your grandmother
08:12and she used to wrap it round your arms?
08:14Yeah, yeah, yeah.
08:14So the skein of straw would go over the top
08:17and then it would go to the little sewing machine over there.
08:21OK.
08:21And it would unwind the skein of straw
08:25as it was being stitched into a bonnet.
08:27That's very nice, but I just saw something else.
08:29Could you see?
08:31Oh, I know what you saw.
08:35Ah, yeah.
08:38It's an adjusting one.
08:40I buy and sell a lot of stools.
08:42These ones, really nice, chunky, oaks-y on them.
08:46The legs can be extended.
08:48They've got little bolts on them so you can extend them to the height that you want.
08:51They've got maker's marks on them that I can't quite make out.
08:54What would you want for this?
08:56I think I've got another two somewhere, too, if you're interested in those.
08:59All right, let's find them.
09:00We'll put it together.
09:01Yeah.
09:02We'll do a job lot price.
09:03He says to us, there's a few more.
09:05So when he says that, we say to him, we'll do a job lot on the prices.
09:08So we carry on, trying to find a few more.
09:10It's another one, isn't it?
09:11Is it the same one?
09:12I think it's the same length.
09:14Yeah.
09:15Yeah, it's the same one.
09:16Isn't it, yeah?
09:17Same room, which is the...
09:19Oh, no, no.
09:20It just needs the thing inside there.
09:22It's got...
09:23Yeah.
09:24The top's all right as well, isn't it?
09:26That's got a cover on it.
09:28Sorry.
09:29It's ripped now.
09:30I bought it.
09:31Yeah, we'll add that to the pile.
09:38Anything you found there?
09:39Yeah, one minute.
09:41It's an old clock.
09:42It's dead, but...
09:44Mechanism's not in there.
09:45No.
09:46I would say that's the late 1800s, early 1900s.
09:50Normally, those type of clocks, you wind it up, and then once it's wound up,
09:55there's a pendulum, and you swing the pendulum, but all of that is gone.
09:59There's nothing left in there.
10:01So I'll put a high quartz movement in there, so it'll be batter-operated,
10:07and, yeah, it's going to look nice when I'm finished with it.
10:10£10?
10:11Yeah, I'm sure that'd be fun.
10:13Yep, fantastic.
10:14Well, my brother looks at stuff logically.
10:16He works out pricing in his head, the work that he has to put into it,
10:20what can be fixed, what can't be fixed, what's going to cost a lot of money.
10:23That's why it's good to go out with my brother.
10:26There's some more of those.
10:27Oh, two.
10:28There's a maker's mark on this one.
10:30Ah.
10:31Yes, yes.
10:33So we found the last two, so we've got four of these stools now.
10:37One of them, we can clearly see the maker's mark.
10:42It's a company called Sankey Sheldon.
10:43As we suspected, these are British-made industrial stools.
10:48These adjustable stools date from the mid-20th century
10:51and were produced by Sankey Sheldon, a former giant of British metalworking.
10:56They're in need of restoration, but with the solid provenance they come with,
11:00once complete, Shere Khan thinks they could be worth around £190 each.
11:06So, we now have how many? Four.
11:08Four. Mm-hmm.
11:09What will you want for four?
11:11Um, 60 quid each.
11:14Always on the lookout for lost relics to rescue and restore,
11:24brothers Shere Khan and Jay Yumekja are in the traditional hat-making centre of Luton,
11:30trawling an old dye works.
11:32There's some Shere's, old.
11:34They're Victorian, most of it.
11:36Fifth-generation owner John is having a clear-out,
11:39and Shere Khan and Jay have found top-quality industrial stools abandoned in various rooms.
11:45We now have how many? Four.
11:46Four. Mm-hmm.
11:47What will you want for four?
11:49Um, 60 quid each.
11:53Yeah? Yeah.
11:54I'll be 60 quid.
11:55Nice. Lovely. Thank you.
11:57Not much work needs being done on these.
11:59Bit of a clean.
12:00Once that's done, they will picture really well.
12:02Usually, people take them in pairs, but we will price them individually,
12:07so if someone wants, they can take a single one as well.
12:10There's a few old baskets up here.
12:12What were these baskets being used for?
12:15They were used in the ribbon room.
12:19They're still solid.
12:20Mm. They are.
12:22How old are they after you?
12:23I would have said they're certainly older than 50 years old.
12:26They were here when I got here.
12:27What would you want on these, John?
12:31What kind of price?
12:33No. 40 quid each.
12:35If I said...
12:38If I take five for 150, would you accept that?
12:42170.
12:46OK, yeah, five for 170.
12:48Good.
12:49I think they'll be all right.
12:50I think if we can petrol station jet wash...
12:52Yeah. Yeah.
12:53Just give them a quick one.
12:54My brother's answer to cleaning things is always,
12:57let's use the jet spray.
12:59Anything, doesn't matter.
13:01A pair of jeans, car, pot, jet wash, because it's easy.
13:07But I reckon that's going to be, like, nice warm water, brush and a bit of soap.
13:12They'll come up sparkling.
13:14So, this is where we used to do all our maintenance for pipe works and steam machinery and...
13:20Oh, wow, look at those.
13:22They're just full of engineering stuff, pipe fittings and bits and pieces.
13:28I went into the old workshop and straight away there was these, like, middle cabinets.
13:35I just love them and I think I gave it away.
13:38Oh, would you be seeing any of them?
13:40Yeah, I don't know what I'd do with the contents, but you can have five of them if you like.
13:44And what would you want for them?
13:47Well, I think they're quite valuable because I've never seen anything like them, to be fair.
13:53I think they're about 200 quid each.
13:56If I said to you 600 for four...
14:00700.
14:02Because I think they're really quite nice.
14:05They're so nice. They are. Shake the man's hand.
14:07I should have kept quiet, shouldn't I?
14:09I know, I know. Do you know what?
14:10We need to start playing our poker face and it'll be better.
14:12I don't play poker.
14:14Shake the man's hand, 700 for four. Yeah, all right.
14:17OK. Thank you very much, John. Thank you.
14:20One of them will be going in my workshop.
14:22Oh, really?
14:23They're just so nice. I love them.
14:25Once I've cleaned them up, there's not a lot of work to be done
14:28because I still want to keep some of the rust on the inside
14:31and also just to say, you know, show how old it is.
14:34We'll make a tidy sum on them.
14:36Right, do you think you're done?
14:38Yeah, I'm done in the air. I'm happy with it.
14:40So, you're going to have to start moving those, clear them out and then move them to the van.
14:46Perfect. It's been a wonderful day. Wonderful gear.
14:52I think we're both very, very happy.
14:54Out of the buys today, the Sankey Sheldon stalls. Very good profit in those.
14:59The middle cabinets. What can I say? They are awesome. They're cool.
15:05And yeah, I can't wait to get them back.
15:07He thinks he's going to keep one.
15:08I am keeping one. For me, in my workshop.
15:11If you can afford it, you can keep it. You hate keeping one.
15:15Some of the things that I've forgotten that they were even there, to be honest.
15:20You walk past them every day and you don't really notice them anymore.
15:24Greatly appreciate you allowing us into having us.
15:27Thank you very much. Thank you very much for coming.
15:29It's been a pleasure. Thank you very much.
15:30Lovely to meet you. You too.
15:31I hope you've got some reasonable things that you can pass on.
15:34Yeah, yeah. Fill the band. We might be back for more.
15:36That'd be great. Take care, John.
15:38Thanks very much. Cheers. Bye.
15:40Good day today? That was a good day. Turned out really well.
15:45It did. Some nice, very, very nice stuff.
15:50And Jeeves, I need a cup of tea.
15:54No respect, man. Seriously.
15:57Shere Khan and Jay aren't alone in their passion for sourcing lost relics and giving them a new life.
16:03Based in West Wales, dealer Alistair Dryborough specialises in traditional country furniture, unusual signs and folk art.
16:11And he's always on the lookout for rare pieces of distinction.
16:15I love items with history, with character, and that's what my customers have grown to expect from me.
16:22And that could be anything from an enamel sign to a Welsh dresser.
16:25And as a dealer, you've got to look everywhere.
16:28Living in rural Wales, there's a lot of remote cottages, hill farms.
16:33But things turn up sometimes where you least expect them to.
16:37Like this great example of a 19th century stick chair turned up in a 1950s house within Aberystwyth.
16:43It just goes to show that these lost relics can turn up anywhere.
16:49And you've got to look everywhere for them.
16:54Alistair has arranged a visit to a seaside location, for which he's teaming up with Shere Khan.
17:00While Shere Khan loves vintage retro and Al loves tradition,
17:03they both share a passion for rescuing authentic items with a fascinating history.
17:08And their destination offers the opportunity for both.
17:11Today, we're going to Southport Pleasureland to meet the owner Norman.
17:17OK. Why Pleasureland? You mean like a fun fair or an amusement park?
17:21Yeah. At one point it was hot, wasn't it? Everybody wanted Fairground Art.
17:25And it didn't even have to be old, and everyone wanted it.
17:28But now it's like everything, it goes round, doesn't it?
17:30Yeah. So it's got to be good stuff today.
17:32Yeah. It's got to be stuff with age.
17:34And I was just going to say, like, you driving me around today, right?
17:38Yeah. It's like being on a fairground ride.
17:40Yeah.
17:46At the end of the 18th century, the fashion for healthy sea bathing
17:49and the building of the Leeds to Liverpool Canal
17:52turned Southport from a sleepy coastal village to a thriving tourist hotspot.
17:57In 1907, the White City Amusement Park opened, one of the first in the UK.
18:03It was renamed Pleasureland in 1922 when the park was moved.
18:07In the early 2000s, fire destroyed some of the rides, but a huge renovation is now underway, guided by a man with entertainment in his bones, Norman Wallace.
18:18My great, great, great grandfather was here in the 1880s, 1890s.
18:26I'm the sixth generation, and I'm very lucky to have that history and those ancestors.
18:30You know, what I do, much of it comes from my ancestors and my father and my grandfather have educated me and taught me things about the industry.
18:40We've got all sorts of rides here, dodgems, waltzes, the British favourites.
18:45We're going to rebrand, and there are a number of items that we've put to one side because they were too good to skip.
18:52And there isn't enough space to keep it, so it's best to bring in the new, let someone else have the advantage of it and upcycle, and hopefully someone else will get the benefit in the future.
19:04Norman.
19:05All right, lads, what's new?
19:06How are you doing?
19:07Norman, I'm Shikhan.
19:08How are you doing? Nice to meet you.
19:09Nice to meet you.
19:10Can we have a look inside?
19:11You can. What are you looking for? Anything in particular?
19:13Whatever we kind of like.
19:15It's just, you know, there's nothing in particular.
19:17When we see it, when we see it win well.
19:19Okay, cool.
19:20Like that.
19:21That's a lovely sign.
19:22Yeah, like that.
19:23I don't sell a lot of fairground art or rides and stuff like that, but signage, I buy a lot of signs.
19:31And I'm just hoping there's going to be something here right from the start, or, you know, from the 30s, from the 40s.
19:37Modern stuff, not really into, but if I can get something old today, that would be great.
19:42We're changing the name this year, actually, rebranding.
19:45It's going to be Wallace's Adventure Coast.
19:47Okay.
19:48Instead of Pleasureland, yeah.
19:50So how long has it been called Pleasureland for, then?
19:52It's since about 1922.
19:54My great-great-great-grandfather had the carousel, which was over there.
19:57And then in the 50s, my grandfather and my father were inside.
20:01Oh, okay.
20:02But I haven't been here all that time.
20:03Okay.
20:06Okay.
20:07So here we are.
20:08So this is the engine shed?
20:10Yep.
20:11A few signs and bits and pieces that you may be interested in.
20:15I like those, Norman.
20:16That open sign.
20:17So do I.
20:18Do you?
20:19That's bad news, then.
20:21Can I climb over there and have a look at them?
20:23Yeah, get over.
20:26So it should have closed on the other side, shouldn't it?
20:28I'd have thought.
20:30Turn it around.
20:31Ta-da!
20:32Closed.
20:33Absolutely right.
20:34So would these be up for sale, then?
20:35Yeah.
20:36Yeah?
20:37Everything's for sale.
20:38Oh, nice.
20:39Just if you've got enough money, that's all.
20:41Hey!
20:42Yay!
20:43We go into the engineering shed.
20:45Straight off, load of signs all down the left-hand wall.
20:48They're hand-painted.
20:50These signs were purposely made for here.
20:52This is an iconic place that we're in today.
20:55So to buy something that's been purposely made for here,
20:59it's come from Southport Pleasurelands.
21:02That's a great listing for the website.
21:05Right, so there's one, two, three.
21:07And then there's two there.
21:10That miniature railway, possibly, and that...
21:12It's a pier station, is it?
21:14Yeah.
21:15Pier station, open 1911, closed 1948.
21:18Because that was the other station.
21:20There was a station between the ones that we have now.
21:22Ah, OK.
21:25That one.
21:26Single-sided?
21:27Yeah, single.
21:29Really amazing signs, you know, all about the railway,
21:32closed, open.
21:33There's one there that says,
21:35only staff beyond this point.
21:36And then there's a really nice,
21:37keep this workshop tidy one.
21:38My eye is on that workshop tidy one.
21:41That's the one that I really want.
21:43These signs that vary in age,
21:45once served the Lakeside Miniature Railway Ride.
21:48The oldest 15-inch gauge in the world,
21:51built in 1911 and still running today.
21:54Hand-painted, decorative and original,
21:56these are genuine relics of British Seaside Resort history.
21:59And Al thinks this set of nine could be worth around £900.
22:05So how do you want to do this then?
22:07I'll tell you what I'll do.
22:08Right.
22:09Anything you give me for these,
22:12I'm going to donate to Alderhey Children's Hospital.
22:15Really?
22:16Yeah.
22:17OK.
22:18So, think kindly upon them.
22:21Pressure's on.
22:22You'll probably want one or two of these, wouldn't you?
22:24Yeah.
22:25Well, look, you go for it.
22:26Yeah.
22:27I'm with you on it.
22:28Yeah.
22:29And then whatever I take, we'll just split it between...
22:31We'll sort it out between us after, yeah?
22:32Yeah.
22:33Yeah.
22:34Who's having what?
22:35That's it.
22:36OK.
22:37500 quid.
22:38In Southport, Al and Shere Khan are trawling for lost relics, among the sheds of an amusement park with a long history.
22:59How long has it been called Pleasureland for then?
23:02It's since about 1922.
23:04My great-great-great-grandfather had the carousel which was over there.
23:08And they've discovered a hoard of hand-painted signage from the fairgrounds' historic railway ride.
23:14500 quid.
23:17See, is it for you?
23:19OK, then.
23:20And all that's going to go to Holderhead Children's Hospital?
23:22Yeah.
23:23OK.
23:24OK.
23:25I'll give you a shake.
23:26Thank you very much.
23:27Lovely.
23:28Thank you, mate.
23:29All of the money that we pay for these signs are going to go to a hospital.
23:33So me and Alistair say, look, we'll buy these together, we'll split the bill.
23:37Yeah, £500, nine signs.
23:39It's a no-brainer, isn't it?
23:41These type of handwritten signs, there's so many places that they can go into from retail to residential houses.
23:47People love them.
23:50Anybody like beef burgers?
23:51Beef burgers, that's a good one.
23:52Oh, that's not a good one.
23:53So has that been a part of a door or something?
23:58It's been part of a flap that lifts up.
24:00Right.
24:01So that would lock in there with the two shot bolts.
24:03Then that would lift up and then hook up on the top and go up again.
24:06Yeah, on a vendor's thing and that, yeah.
24:09That's quite nice, isn't it?
24:10Yeah, there's nice colours on there.
24:13What do you want for that, Norman?
24:16It was 50 quid.
24:1750 quid.
24:19You didn't want that, did you?
24:20No.
24:21Sure.
24:22I'll let you have it.
24:23Though I do like a good beef burger.
24:24Do you?
24:25Beef burgers, £50.
24:27Good price.
24:28Once it's cleaned and photographed correctly and given its provenance, where it was from, it's
24:35150.
24:36Do you like that?
24:37It's nice.
24:38It's striking, isn't it?
24:39Yeah.
24:40The red to the trains.
24:41To the trains.
24:42I didn't notice that on the way in, but it's different on the other side, is it?
24:44Have a look.
24:45Yeah, on that side, I think it just tells you the South Pole miniature train station.
24:50Yeah.
24:51You were being observant, weren't you?
24:53I'm very observant, I understand.
24:54I'm very, very observant.
24:55Is that part of the revamp?
24:57Is that going?
24:58Yes.
24:59What were you on for that?
25:00Well, I can't be the buyer.
25:01I'm the seller.
25:02You made me an offer.
25:03Erm, 200 quid.
25:06220.
25:11Can't argue over 20 quid.
25:12No.
25:13No.
25:14Definitely not.
25:15It's lovely.
25:16No, that is nice.
25:17Huge sign.
25:18It's quite fresh.
25:19It's been over-painted throughout the years.
25:21Under it is the original sign.
25:23To the trains.
25:24It's just eye-catching.
25:26So, these are very nice.
25:29This is a piece of art by a man called Fowl, Fred Fowl.
25:33His work is very well known.
25:35And this is from a helter-skelter slide, and it says slip and slide.
25:42Is it something you're into?
25:44Right?
25:45Have a look at it.
25:47Norman pulls out these two amazing signs.
25:50Hand-painted, really big.
25:52You know, proper-sized things.
25:54You could cover a whole wall in them.
25:56Just the colours in them, the text, everything about it.
26:00They were just so beautiful.
26:03Probably dating from the 1970s,
26:05this is the work of iconic showman artist, Fred Fowl.
26:09Drawing on popular comic book art and futuristic 3D lettering,
26:13Fowl is credited with bringing traditional fairground art
26:16into the 20th century.
26:17Shere Khan thinks this lost relic from the master of the genre
26:21could be worth around £1,100.
26:24The art is really nice, isn't it?
26:27Would 500 buy them?
26:32600 would.
26:34Shake a 550.
26:37Go on, then.
26:39All it's going to need is a good clean.
26:41They're going to photograph really well.
26:43You know, put something next to it,
26:45just so that people can see the size of it.
26:47Selling something that big,
26:49you need to find someone with the space for it.
26:51When the right person does come along,
26:52and they've got the right space in their house,
26:54they've got the right space above their bed,
26:56slip and slide, it's going to look amazing.
26:59It's really vibrant, isn't it?
27:00Yeah.
27:01Yeah.
27:02Well, that was part of it, you see.
27:03What people forget is that fairgrounds were the place
27:07where people went to for the vibrancy and the colour.
27:10Yeah.
27:11That's great, mate.
27:12It's got nice wording as well, isn't it?
27:13Yeah.
27:14Slip and slide.
27:17Meeting Norman today was great.
27:19You know, he's dedicated to this business.
27:24He's putting his heart and soul into it.
27:26It's always a gamble, you know,
27:28when you come to places like this.
27:30It's not like a table and a chair.
27:32People always want tables and chairs.
27:34But when you come into a sort of fairground attraction like this,
27:39you've got to be a little bit picky in the way you buy.
27:43You've got to find the stuff that's just that little bit older.
27:46And we did.
27:47We found some really good stuff today.
27:49Stuff that's been here from the beginning, some of it.
27:52Thanks for having us.
27:53All right, good stuff.
27:54It's been an absolute pleasure.
27:55All right.
27:56Thank you very much.
27:57Nice to have met you.
27:58Thank you very much.
27:59See you next time.
28:00Bye-bye.
28:01Well, that was all right, wasn't it?
28:02That was good.
28:03Very good.
28:04You bought some nice signs, all of them hand-painted.
28:05Yeah.
28:06The set of signs we bought together as well.
28:07And they're all...
28:08What's good about them, too, they've got history.
28:09Yeah.
28:10You know, when we go to selling them, we can say, they were from here.
28:11Yeah, they're from there.
28:12Yeah.
28:13So we need to split them now.
28:14Yeah.
28:15And I know what you're going to say.
28:16I know what one you want.
28:17The workshop one.
28:18Yeah.
28:19Yeah.
28:20Yeah.
28:21Yeah.
28:22Yeah.
28:23Yeah.
28:24Yeah.
28:25Yeah.
28:26Yeah.
28:27Yeah.
28:28Yeah.
28:29Yeah.
28:30The workshop one?
28:31Yeah.
28:32All right.
28:33I'll take the workshop one and then I'll give you the choice of all the rest.
28:36Any others you can choose next.
28:38All right.
28:39Thanks, mate.
28:40Are you going to give me 500 quid for that one?
28:42Ha, ha, ha.
28:43Ha, ha, ha.
28:44Ha, ha, ha, ha.
28:45Ha, ha, ha, ha.
28:46While Chia Khan has been busy in Southport, brother Jay has been sorting through the haul
28:50of items from Luton.
28:53Bought for just £10, the old Barford Brothers factory clock
28:57is missing all its works, so he's going to give it a new life.
29:01I'm going to try and remove the hands carefully without any damage.
29:07The hands are brass.
29:09Some people like to polish their hands getting back to brass,
29:12but I'll keep them as they are because it tells the age and where.
29:17Right, OK, the face of the clock,
29:20I'm just going to give it a little brush
29:23so most of the flaky bits come off.
29:28That's the original paint over the years
29:31as it's, like, coming away from the face.
29:37I always like clocks original to how we found them and how they look,
29:42so I won't respray it, I won't repaint it.
29:46I'll just leave it as it is.
29:48Right, that's sorted out.
29:51So now we're going to apply the wax using wire wool.
30:01What else the wire wool does with the wax is,
30:03if there's, like, all the little bits of grime in there,
30:06it's going to pick it up and move it along.
30:11Give it a nice little shine.
30:12You can see all the little nooks and crannies in the woods.
30:18Still showing its age.
30:20Lovely.
30:21With the original mechanism of this relic lost,
30:24Jay plans to fit a modern quartz movement,
30:26but there's a problem.
30:29So at the moment, the hour hand doesn't fit on the new mechanism.
30:33It's too big, basically.
30:35So I'm going to adjust that so it fits the hour hand.
30:39And then the same again with the minute hands.
30:43The face and the hands is where the character of the clock is.
30:46If I mess this up, I hope this is going to go well,
30:49but if it doesn't, all right, that's it.
30:50That clock's going on the shelf.
30:52It all rides on this.
31:05Needs a little bit more.
31:12The original had a square fitting in,
31:16where this one is circled up,
31:18so I'm just trying to file the edges so it sits in there.
31:22Nice, that's it.
31:35Right, that's done.
31:38Once connected to the new mechanism,
31:40Jay needs to test whether the hour hand still moves correctly
31:44in relation to the minute hand.
31:46So when it's at 12,
31:47the hour hand is on the 3 or on the 2, on the 4,
31:54so it's all aligned.
31:56I normally test from 1 to 6.
31:59I'm happy with that.
32:06Now we're going to slowly put it all back together now.
32:10Restoring old clocks, old lights,
32:16I would say is the best part of this job for me.
32:21One, it takes me away from everything else,
32:25and then as you are restoring it.
32:27I just love to, like, know if this clock could talk
32:31all the things, all the stories it could tell.
32:36Knowing that it's lived a really long life,
32:39and hopefully it's going to carry on.
32:41Back on the road, Jay's brother Shere Khan
32:49is still out in Al's van,
32:51heading south to the county of Hampshire.
32:54Al has set up an appointment with a dealer he knows,
32:57who has a reputation for discovering fascinating lost relics.
33:00So, Pete, Noah Valentine?
33:04Yeah. Are you familiar with him?
33:05I know him from, like, social media, Instagram and that.
33:08Yeah, yeah. So I do follow him.
33:09I've never met him.
33:10But you never bought a bean from him?
33:11I've never bought a bean.
33:13I've dealt with him.
33:14OK.
33:15He's always at the fairs, he's always rushing around, buying.
33:18You always see Pete, right, in a fair,
33:21carrying something really good under his arm.
33:23OK.
33:26200 years ago, the Hampshire village of Milford lay in land.
33:30But coastal erosion and village expansion
33:33meant that by 1900, sea and village were so close
33:36that the name was altered to Milford-on-Sea.
33:40Today, the stock of Noah Valentine
33:42is stored in a former grain shed.
33:46A vast collection of unique finds and lost relics.
33:50Opened by appointment only,
33:51it's run by dealer Peter Hall.
33:55I was bought and sold all my life.
33:58And then the antiques came in about 20 years ago.
34:00And then became a full-time job about 15 years ago.
34:04Personally, I love advertising.
34:06But anything decorative, anything of good scale,
34:10and country house furniture,
34:11which at the moment seems to be very in vogue.
34:15Alistair, definitely, there's a couple of signs
34:17that I think would be interested.
34:18Shere Khan, not sure.
34:20He does more mid-century, I think.
34:21But there's a couple of bits
34:22that hopefully he would be interested in.
34:24How are you?
34:25You all right, mate?
34:25How you doing? All right?
34:26Very well. Shere Khan.
34:27Nice to meet you, mate.
34:29How you doing, Pete?
34:29I think we've met before.
34:30We have, mate.
34:30You all right?
34:31Good. Come on in.
34:32This is your place.
34:33It is, mate. Come on in.
34:34Oh, wow.
34:36It's like an airplane hangar in here.
34:38Yeah.
34:38That's nice, Pete, isn't it?
34:39That's gorgeous, yeah.
34:41So is it like a little stable in a country?
34:42Well, it's...
34:43Yeah, it's folk art, I think.
34:45I presume it's probably a one-off.
34:47I think Swedish, you're definitely European.
34:49Yeah.
34:50But the way it's built, I think it's...
34:52It's that sort of lovely original paint
34:54and of good scale, really.
34:56It's just the colour, the paint.
34:58It's got that really crusty, dry paint to it.
35:02It's very, very folky and it's very, very me.
35:05It's got to be, what, 19...
35:07Turn of the century, is it?
35:08I was going to say, 1900s, 1920s.
35:1020s, I would have thought.
35:11I buy a lot of folk art.
35:13I buy a lot of houses like that.
35:16They're a slow burner, but they look great in the shop.
35:20What have you got on that?
35:23To you, $2.50.
35:24$2.50?
35:25Yeah.
35:32In Hampshire, on the south coast,
35:34Al and Shere Khan are in a warehouse wonderland of lost relics,
35:38run by veteran dealer Peter Hall.
35:41Al is keen to buy a charming piece of early 20th century folk art.
35:46Where have you got on that?
35:48To you, $2.50.
35:50$2.50 with the horse, then, yeah?
35:51$2.50, yeah.
35:52It's yours, mate.
35:53Thanks very much.
35:55Hell of a mix, aren't you?
35:57So you just buy across the board?
35:58Yeah, we just try to buy a bit of everything.
36:01Those pheasants up there, they're from Aberystwyth.
36:03Are they?
36:04100%.
36:05That's Hutchins of Aberystwyth.
36:06I'm a bit of a geek with taxidermy.
36:09$150.
36:10$150.
36:11Can we get it down?
36:12Yeah.
36:13Coming from Aberystwyth,
36:14Hutchins was a local Victorian taxidermist.
36:18He operated on an industrial scale.
36:21Surprises any animals left in the town.
36:23But the quality of his work was exceptional,
36:27and I've had hundreds of cases over the years.
36:30In the 1860s, James Hutchins set up as a taxidermist
36:34in Al's hometown of Aberystwyth,
36:36and is now considered to be among the greatest practitioners of the art.
36:40This early example doesn't have the more sought-after glass sides,
36:44but birds command a high price.
36:46Having built up the relevant customer base,
36:48Al's confident he could sell this for around £450.
36:51£150.
36:54Yeah.
36:55For two pheasants.
36:58Yep.
36:58Yep. Cheers.
36:59Got to take it home, haven't I?
37:00Yeah.
37:01Taxidermy.
37:02I've got a real passion for it,
37:03but it's got to be Hutchins, and it's got to be old.
37:06Peter, you know the light up there?
37:08Yes.
37:08Can I have a look at that?
37:09Yeah, I'll get it for you.
37:11Oh, the bottom's missing.
37:13Yeah, yeah.
37:13The bottom's missing.
37:14All right.
37:15Unfortunately.
37:16Yeah.
37:16Designed by a very famous designer.
37:19Peter Brennan's?
37:20Yeah, it is.
37:20Peter Brennan's, yeah.
37:21It should actually have this kind of, like, white diffuser there.
37:24They're beautiful when they're done.
37:26I've got one.
37:27How much do you want for that?
37:28£50 has this missing.
37:29Yeah, it's got the original chain on it as well.
37:32If you can find the diffuser, put it back together, rewire it,
37:35what are you looking at?
37:36It's £800.
37:37Really?
37:38Yeah.
37:39Let me show you around there before I change my mind.
37:42Unfortunately, the bottom is missing.
37:44Doesn't matter, I'll still buy that.
37:46I'll buy them all day long.
37:47I'll buy pieces of them all day long.
37:49I got that for £50.
37:51So if I get the other piece for £50 as well,
37:55this could be a bunce.
37:56Can I just have a look at this as well?
37:58Yeah, yeah.
37:58That?
37:59I love that.
38:00It's really nice.
38:01I love that, yeah.
38:01Do you know what?
38:02Most of the stuff I sell is very functional.
38:05Okay.
38:05But this, there's something about this.
38:07Bearded men waiting around and...
38:08I'll be honest with you, that's probably my favourite bit of art.
38:12Oh, that's going to become expensive.
38:13No, no, no, it's viable.
38:16I think it's Irish, and it could be to do with the poverty.
38:19It's a lovely thing.
38:21I think it's, yeah.
38:22What's the damage?
38:23It can be £250.
38:24£250.
38:24Yeah.
38:25I'll take that, £250.
38:26Lovely thing.
38:27So that painting isn't my usual thing,
38:29but I really like the look of it.
38:31I did see it's 1917,
38:33so that's a good bit of age on there,
38:35but yeah, it just caught my eye.
38:36So what I have got, Alistair, that you might like,
38:40is this here, campaign chest.
38:44Right, do you want to know a story about that?
38:45It used to be yours.
38:46It was mine.
38:47Yeah, do you know what?
38:47I thought you were going to say that.
38:49It was mine.
38:50I sold it to probably a mutual friend of ours,
38:52but I had that out of a house in Pembrokeshire.
38:54And you sold it to someone.
38:55Sold it to a very good friend.
38:56And that's going to cost a lot of money now.
38:58I bet I can sell it back cheaper.
39:01Something wrong here, isn't it?
39:02There is something wrong.
39:03That just doesn't make sense.
39:03This is just stuff going around with traders.
39:05There's a famous saying,
39:08they say,
39:08how do you make an antique dealer worth one million?
39:11Give him two million.
39:13That's just the way it is, isn't it?
39:14Yeah, yeah.
39:15What can you sell that back to me for, then?
39:17I can sell that back to you for 580.
39:20Actually, I think I sold it for a round about that.
39:23I remember what I gave for it.
39:24I gave three for that originally.
39:26God, that was a good buy.
39:27That's a good thing.
39:27Well, it's talking about a campaign.
39:29These are campaign, really rare things.
39:30Make great taxidermy stands or originally, again, when they were in the field, would have put their enamel wash bowl for when they were shaving.
39:40And then when they were on manoeuvres.
39:42Oh, it comes apart.
39:43It comes apart like that.
39:45All faux bamboo.
39:45To be honest with you, honestly, I saw them because what it is, I've got these two really nice old ottoman urns, copper ones.
39:57Characterised by exceptional quality and ingenious design, the heyday of campaign furniture was during the expansion of the British Empire in the 18th and 19th centuries.
40:07Collapsible by design for easy transport, this pair of matching washstands date from around 1880 and would have provided home comforts for commanding officers in army camps.
40:19With some sympathetic restoration, Shere Khan thinks they could be worth around £440.
40:26So I can do 220 of the pair, £110 each.
40:31You spotted them first.
40:36Square them up at £200.
40:37£200, whatever I do.
40:39I'm a bit gutted.
40:40I didn't buy them, no.
40:41Do you know what made me notice them is these bits.
40:44They've got these little brass caps.
40:46They're lovely.
40:46I did notice those as we were coming down.
40:49I did notice those.
40:50But, yeah, when he pulled them out, I just had to go for them.
40:53They were really nice.
40:55And if you like campaign...
40:57Here he goes.
40:58I've also got a nice campaign shirt, as it happens.
41:01Do you reckon that fabric's original, then?
41:03It's got to be, isn't it?
41:03Yeah, 100%.
41:04100%.
41:04Yeah, original.
41:05Again, faux bamboo.
41:07Does fold.
41:09Really, really, really nice ironwork on it.
41:11Probably a captain's chair.
41:13It is incredibly comfortable.
41:14I like that there, mate.
41:15Yeah, it's lovely.
41:16Imagine two washstands either side now.
41:18Yeah, staring at a campaign chest at the same time.
41:20I'm not buying this, Pete.
41:21I'm not buying it.
41:23But I might buy this.
41:24How much is this?
41:25That can be £150.
41:28Got to shake his hand at that.
41:30Yeah, I think that's probably the cheapest campaign.
41:31Thank you, mate.
41:32No worries, mate.
41:33That's really good.
41:33I love that.
41:35It's got history.
41:36It's well-made.
41:37It's ebonised.
41:38It's got the faux bamboo.
41:39It's everything a piece of campaign furniture needs.
41:48Today's been really good.
41:50Pete's, he's a hard worker.
41:52You can just tell, you know, the masses of stock he's got,
41:55the variety of stock he's got.
41:58The one that got away, but I mustn't beat myself up over it,
42:01are the pair of campaign stands.
42:04You know, Shere Khan's got them now.
42:05And great.
42:06You know, he'll do well on them.
42:08But I wish I saw them before him.
42:11In terms of selling really quickly, it's going to be the stands.
42:14But I think my favourite thing is the painting.
42:18I think I'm getting into kind of like art now.
42:21And when it sells, it's going to be even better
42:22because I'm going to make a nice bit of money on top of it.
42:24Today was really good.
42:28He was good.
42:28Pete's a really nice guy.
42:29Yeah.
42:30Very, very nice guy.
42:31He was fair as well with the prices.
42:33I was gutted when you bought those campaign holders.
42:37Did you really see them?
42:38Honestly, I saw them.
42:39Did you?
42:40I saw them.
42:40I did.
42:41I did.
42:41But that chair's made up.
42:43Yeah.
42:44Definitely.
42:44Yeah, the chair was nice.
42:46I love things in old paint, and that's just got it.
42:48Yeah.
42:49Enjoyed today?
42:50Yep.
42:50Yeah, it's been fun, hasn't it?
42:51It's been a very good day.
42:52You'll have to do it again soon.
42:53We will.
42:54Definitely.
42:55Yep.
42:59So what week it's been?
43:01With my brother, we went to Barford Brothers,
43:03centuries-old milliner in Luton,
43:05where we found lost relics from Britain's industrial past,
43:09the lovely cabinets from the early 1900s,
43:12and that wonderful clock that my brother found.
43:15Really nice to see Pete.
43:17Found some really beautiful decorative items from him,
43:20campaign furniture.
43:21I mean, who would have thought that you're going to find them
43:23in the back of a warehouse?
43:25And at Pleasureland, an amazing fairground artwork done by Fred Fowle.
43:31I never ever thought I'd go and find something of that quality there.
43:36Amazing.
43:37Some lovely buys that hopefully will sell very, very quickly.
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