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00:00Hidden behind high walls and hedgerows stand Yorkshire's secret stately homes,
00:06a priceless part of our heritage, and now some are throwing open the doors.
00:11Wow, I like it already.
00:12To auctioneer and country house connoisseur Angus Ashworth.
00:16You walk in here, you cannot not be amazed with it. It's sort of a visual overload.
00:21He's on a mission to help save these historic houses for the nation.
00:25More than 200 have vanished since the war.
00:28They were just bulldozed. People couldn't afford them. They were lost forever.
00:31He'll be hunting through lofts and cellars.
00:34Oh, I've spotted something.
00:36That's, you see, look, yeah, look, armour.
00:37There's the armour.
00:38There's the armour, yeah.
00:40For forgotten treasure.
00:42Look at that.
00:42Look at that, bad boy.
00:43This is like a dream for me.
00:46It's quite a mess for me.
00:47I don't think I can do anything with the toilets.
00:50To raise cash to help fund renovation or repairs.
00:54It's a battle, you know, something goes wrong every day.
00:57Something significant breaks every week and the upkeep's enormous.
01:01He'll be diving into life as a weekend house guest and occasional butler.
01:09All right, cheers.
01:10Arriving in style.
01:12It's beautiful from up here, isn't it?
01:14It gives you a real perspective.
01:16To experience a lost way of life in some of Yorkshire's most stunning stately homes.
01:30Today, Angus and Pilot James are flying to the picturesque market town of Thirsk in North Yorkshire.
01:38To help the owners of a Georgian mansion clear out a hoard of unwanted furniture.
01:43To fund some much needed repairs and restoration.
01:47You wouldn't think it was so close to the town and part of the town with all this land at the back.
01:52Thirsk Hall is a gorgeous grade two star listed stately home with 12 bedrooms, numerous outbuildings and 20 acres of parkland.
02:03It really symbolises the early part of Georgian architecture.
02:11Built in 1723 and extended in 1770 by the Yorkshire architect John Carr,
02:17this amazing house has been owned by the Bell family for over 300 years.
02:23The Bell family moved in in 1723.
02:26Daisy Bell with her husband Bill and their three children have lived here for the last five years.
02:33The days where it's a complete joy to live in.
02:37Then there are other days when it's raining and the four leaks happening and you're kind of figuring out where they are.
02:44And then I've got to empty the buckets of water.
02:49Daisy took over from dad John Bell, now retired to a cottage on the estate.
02:55And he chose an eccentric way of deciding which of his three daughters would take on the house.
03:01The story is that he had a pack of cards and he was going, he had three of us sat there and he
03:08upturned the card and the first one I jacked, whoever it landed on, would get the house.
03:14Incredible.
03:14I don't really believe him.
03:15Yeah.
03:16I don't remember that.
03:18I don't remember that.
03:19And you don't remember that.
03:20Today, Zilla helps sister Daisy run the various money-making schemes that pay for the upkeep of the house.
03:27I have to do the maths. Sometimes it is pretty painful to work out how much money we need to make.
03:34But the cost of maintaining this historic house is taking its toll.
03:39With the annual running costs into six figures, there's little to spare to fix the leaky roof damaging the upper floors.
03:46The house almost pays its way with several income streams. An Airbnb flat, Georgian dining experiences,
03:56and events in the garden. But finances are still tight. With a seemingly unending list of jobs and little
04:04extra cash, Angus has come for the weekend to lend a hand. Wow, we're at first call and you know,
04:11I'm excited for this actually, because you know, come over there, you've got the race course,
04:16and then you see the wonderful house. Great proportions. Condition looks good from here,
04:21but you know, they all have their issues. So close to the town centre as well,
04:25I wonder how that feels. Can't wait to get inside.
04:28Hello. Hi, how are we doing? Hi, I'm Zilla. Nice to meet you.
04:32Hi, I'm Daisy. Welcome to First Call. Let's take a look inside.
04:41This is the main stairs. Oh, it's fantastic, isn't it?
04:47This is actually a typical Georgian hanging stairs. Let me take your stuff.
04:51Wonderful, thank you very much. Though all three sisters are involved,
04:56it's Daisy who carries the burden of safeguarding First Call's future.
05:01There's probably a lot of issues that constantly need doing, so what's the challenges there?
05:07When we moved up, my dad haven't done much in the house because he ran the farm. So we're looking
05:13at kind of doing events, and the idea is to kind of build up enough funds to kind of reinstate the
05:18house into what it originally used to be, which is to kind of restore the Georgian features.
05:22It's only really been on your watch for a relatively short period, sort of five years or so. Yeah.
05:26So it's just slowly doing bit by bit and trying to keep on top of it. That's the nature of being in a
05:32house like this, and we are, you know, the custodians for the next generation, so that's what we're doing.
05:36Angus has come for the weekend to help raise some funds and see the bits of the house few people get to see.
05:43Let me show you around.
05:45Visitors are rarely allowed up here because of the threadbare carpets, peeling wallpaper,
05:50and the damage caused by those leaks in the roof.
05:54So Angus, this is where it's a little bit, a bit of rough and ready.
05:58Yeah.
05:59It's where, you know, things like the leaks happen.
06:01Not many people come up here. In fact, no one comes up here.
06:04Yeah, probably don't come up here.
06:05Yeah.
06:06Quite derelict, for as long as I can remember.
06:09A bit of a slow decline.
06:10A little bit. Let me show you through.
06:13What's the scale of the sort of work? I mean, you know, you can see bits.
06:17I'm guessing it's a big job.
06:19Yeah, 100%. You're like, okay, we're going to sort out the bathroom,
06:22and then the drains pack in, which is always just quite painful.
06:29Dad's sort of stepped back, but is he still kind of just keeping around things?
06:33No, he's always said, like, this is your thing now.
06:37You do what you need to do.
06:38He's just amazing to have around because he then comes and says,
06:41oh, this is important or this isn't.
06:43Yeah.
06:44He's actually had an encyclopedia of information.
06:47And then, you know, obviously having the sport of Zilla, you know.
06:50Zilla does run basically all our businesses for us.
06:53She's...
06:54I try to, anyway.
06:55No, you do a very good job of that.
06:57And then Letty's just down the road and we work together on the farm.
07:00Yeah, it's a real family affair.
07:04The source of the problems in the rooms below is a favourite spot for Daisy's husband, Bill.
07:10What a view from up here.
07:11It's amazing, yeah.
07:12You can see the, yeah, North York Malls and then wrapping all the way around.
07:14So, 80 miles to the sea that way.
07:16It's fantastic.
07:18And actually, the roof itself is quite attractive, isn't it?
07:21Yeah, I mean, he was...
07:22Carr of York who built the house was...
07:24He was a great builder.
07:25You know, they are...
07:25They're beautiful buildings.
07:26And actually, I think when you get up here, you see the engineering of it.
07:29It's the really kind of...
07:30It's kind of...
07:31You get quite geeky about it.
07:32It's quite nice.
07:33Angus grew up in a nearby farmhouse with a leaky roof.
07:36And he's ready to lend a hand with some DIY roofing skills.
07:41It's all wonderful on a sunny day like this, but, you know, looking at some of the rooms,
07:45clearly leaks do get in.
07:47Yeah, and getting the problems before you discover them, right?
07:51In fact, it looks like a slate that's gone there, doesn't it?
07:53This is why we're up here.
07:54Yeah.
07:56It looks like that should be...
07:58Yeah, you're better than me.
08:01I think that'll stop the rain getting in.
08:03Oh, thank you for bringing me up here.
08:05I don't think there'll be that many people that have been up here, so...
08:07Any time.
08:09The roof is the most important thing on any house like this, or this scale.
08:12It's also the most costly bit.
08:14You've got to make it watertight before you do any work,
08:16otherwise you'll just keep doing that work.
08:17So you've got to keep on top of the roof.
08:19That's the big cost.
08:20You know, you've either got to have huge reserves, which a lot of people don't,
08:24or you've got to generate that income to pay for it all.
08:27So it's a tough gig.
08:31Down below, a trove of hidden treasures
08:34is waiting to be discovered.
08:36The sale of which might help restore neglected parts of the house.
08:41Oh, this is like a dream for me.
08:45It's quite a mess for me.
08:46No, country house attics when they're like this.
08:48This is an absolute...
08:49Oh, yeah, like this.
08:52This is nice and broken.
08:54How did it break, Bill?
08:55I think someone sat on it.
08:59But to Angus' expert eye, it's a diamond in the rough.
09:05I mean, wonderful.
09:06Gillow's, say, one of the names in English furniture manufacturer.
09:10You had the big three.
09:11Sheraton, Hepperwhite and Chippendale.
09:13But a contemporary to those gentlemen.
09:15What date is that?
09:16Early to mid-19th century.
09:18Really, really nice.
09:19Amazingly, this chair is a matching twin.
09:23Thankfully in good condition, on display downstairs.
09:27How much would something like this be worth as a pair without...?
09:30Yeah, restore, restore, yeah, yeah, you know what I mean.
09:32Um, I could see them doing quite well at auction.
09:35Anywhere between sort of 4,000 and 8,000 as a pair.
09:375,000 to 8,000, something like that.
09:38Wow, that's amazing.
09:41The pair of library chairs is a cracking start.
09:44Would that take much to get restored, Angus?
09:47Though restoration could knock a grand off the sale price.
09:51I think we could get that sorted.
09:53Do you want me to get that restored?
09:55Yeah, that would be brilliant.
09:57But can they be persuaded to part with it?
10:00That was your grandpa's chair, Dix?
10:01Was it? It used to be downstairs.
10:03Yeah, it used to be. In the green room.
10:04In the green room.
10:04So I take it you'd like to keep this one?
10:06Yeah. Definitely, we've got a pair downstairs.
10:09Undeterred, Angus spies another chair he thinks he can sell.
10:14Classic wing-back armchair there.
10:15I mean, the design dates back hundreds of years.
10:18Sort of fireside chair, so those wings would enclose you,
10:21so you wouldn't get the draught, sort of keeps the heat in from the fire.
10:24But the design's never really gone away.
10:26It's a popular design.
10:27It's... Wasn't that your grandpa's chair?
10:29Oh, so you probably want to keep that one, Daisy?
10:32Yeah, I think probably.
10:33Looks like grandpa sat in a lot of chairs and none of them are going to auction.
10:38But this is a situation Angus knows well.
10:41It's tricky for Daisy, although she sort of grew up here.
10:44She's sort of been head of the house for five years and it's huge amount of responsibility
10:49comes with that. You know, this has been in the family for 300 years.
10:51The items have been in the family for so long.
10:53So you don't have to be the one, oh, I can't believe you sold all that off.
10:55Next, Angus spots a Georgian side table with an unusual feature.
11:01So your standard tripod would have a fixed top with a square plate
11:05and it would tilt up, so you could like this one stood up.
11:08Yeah.
11:09This block here is known as the birdcage,
11:11but usually you would just have this flat plate and it would tilt up.
11:14So demonstrate this. This is a fine, fine table.
11:19I mean, the market for them is not what it was 20 years ago.
11:23So we call this a pie crust edge. So the birdcage, you can move it round.
11:27Why would you need to do that?
11:29Well, you know, why not?
11:31But Daisy gives no indication that she wants to sell it.
11:35Angus has his work cut out.
11:37It looks like he's persuaded them to tackle their first restoration project,
11:41grandpa's Gillow's chair.
11:44But can they be persuaded to sell anything at auction to pay for it?
11:52A auctioneer Angus Ashworth is staying at historic First Call for the weekend,
12:06helping the Bell family raise cash to help restore the house and its furniture.
12:11But so far, the family are finding it hard to let anything go.
12:15Ooh, ooh.
12:18Ooh, ooh, ooh.
12:19But things are looking up for military expert Angus.
12:23I like this.
12:25Military uniform, but with a family crest, so a major.
12:27That means it was a major rank.
12:29That would have been grandfather, who's Major Bell.
12:32So this is what we call a dirk.
12:34Oh, wow. Oh, my goodness.
12:36That looks pretty sharp.
12:36The dirk was a short weapon, short-sorted weapon.
12:39Wow.
12:40That is really quite nice.
12:41So he's in the Gordon Highlanders, regimen of badge there.
12:44These little side pieces are a little knife, eating knife and fork.
12:47Oh, my gosh.
12:48Daisy and Zilla's grandpa, Major Peter Bell, was in a famous Scottish regiment,
12:54the Gordon Highlanders, during World War II.
12:58This is a full-dress uniform and would have been worn on ceremonial occasions.
13:03That on its aim would probably be...
13:05It's a really good one, is that?
13:07One to 2,000.
13:08Wow.
13:09But then, it's with all the other bits as well.
13:12So, absolutely phenomenal.
13:14And to see sort of a private, crested one, as opposed to just a regimental one, is unheard of.
13:20What a find.
13:21Yeah.
13:22The uniform, with all its accessories beautifully preserved in its original box,
13:28might fetch as much as 8,000 pounds.
13:31But they don't want to sell it, and Angus needs to find something that is for sale.
13:36I keep spotting loads of things.
13:38Nice little Edwardian timber front cabinet there.
13:40Nice gilt pelmets.
13:42You've got loads of nice ceramics and porcelain in that cupboard.
13:47I'll have a good root in there in a bit.
13:49The Edwardian stationary cabinet could fetch around £100.
13:54But Zilla is about to find something very special,
13:57that would not have looked out of place on the Orient Express.
14:00What's in here?
14:02Well, I don't know. Open it.
14:03Oh, look at that.
14:04What is it?
14:06It's a travelling case with everything you could possibly want.
14:10So this is all what we call Moroccan red leather.
14:12That'll be a writing pad.
14:13So you've got all your accoutrements there for writing.
14:16Then you've got all your dressing table pieces.
14:18So your brushes.
14:19You've got a hip flask.
14:20Everything you need, really, for your travels.
14:22This will all open out.
14:23Look at this.
14:24This is wonderful.
14:26That is superb.
14:28Zilla opens a leather trunk like a travelling case,
14:31thinking it's just a leather trunk.
14:32But no, it's beautiful.
14:34It's a little bit tired, but it's all fitted out sort of a valley travelling case.
14:38Wonderful.
14:38All silver hallmark.
14:39That is travel at its absolute finest in the days when you travelled in style.
14:45Is it worth much?
14:47Yeah.
14:49Three to five hundred.
14:51It's quite a nice thing, isn't it?
14:53As with the Gordon Highlanders uniform, the travel case belonged to Grandpa.
14:58So that will take it off the for sale list.
15:02It's probably about cherry picking the right things.
15:04Have a little think.
15:06I'm getting excited about lots of things.
15:07And I think it's, oh, well, maybe we shouldn't sell that.
15:10And, you know, Daisy's like, oh, maybe that could go.
15:12Or Bill has a different idea.
15:14And then Zilla's quite happy, I think.
15:16But then it's, you know, so if it was Dad's, do they need to speak to Dad?
15:20And I get it.
15:21Okay.
15:22Might be one of those days where, you know, maybe there's not a lot of things to sell yet.
15:25They need to call a family meeting and make some decisions.
15:31But first, Daisy and Zilla want to show Angus something very special discovered during lockdown.
15:38That's my grandmother looking very chic.
15:40Home movies, going back more than 80 years, show the house as it used to be and the people who lived in it.
15:48That's my grandfather in his, like, tailcoat.
15:50It was just probably Sunday lunch or something.
15:57Oh, this is the party.
16:00Right, so Christmas 1962.
16:02They're all smoking away, oblivious to the health effects that's having on them.
16:07Oh, we're dancing.
16:08Is that your dad?
16:09That's my dad. Busting some moves.
16:10He is doing some real moves.
16:12My word, look at that.
16:15That is quite weird.
16:16They've got, they're wearing really funny facial expressions.
16:20They didn't only film family events.
16:23The Bell family made their own silent movie drama.
16:26Wouldn't it be amazing to see what they're talking about?
16:28Yeah.
16:31Thank you very much for sharing that with me.
16:32It's wonderful to see sort of what's changed, what hasn't changed.
16:36Yeah, it's quite a special archive to have, actually.
16:38I'm glad you enjoyed it as much as we did.
16:40Yeah.
16:40So we've seen this wonderful archive footage and watching it in there.
16:45And I've had a little idea.
16:47What would be wonderful is to try and bring that to life.
16:51Bring the voices of their ancestors back.
16:53Say, I've got a little idea that hopefully I can make work.
16:57We'll see.
17:00Inheriting a 300-year-old house like First Call brings huge responsibility.
17:06And though Daisy is in control, the weight of history and all those ancestors makes it
17:11nearly impossible to sell anything.
17:14The plasterwork's incredible, isn't it?
17:16Yeah, no, the plasterwork is something very special.
17:18In fact, the lady, Ann Conyers, she was the wealthy heiress that my family married into.
17:23And she kind of...
17:24So this is her, Ann Conyers?
17:25This is her.
17:25She was the kind of main reason that John Carveyork built the wings.
17:29And she commissioned, you know, this incredible plasterwork.
17:34There's so many things that jump at you straight away.
17:37One is the plasterwork, exceptional, stunning.
17:40And then you've got this huge portrait, Gainsborough.
17:42Gainsborough was the 18th century go-to portrait artist for the aristocracy.
17:48This lady is another Belle ancestor, keeping her beady eye on the new generation.
17:54And though the money would help, this is an asset they intend to keep.
17:59I mean, that's lovely, isn't it?
18:00Yeah, I don't know too much about it, so maybe you can tell me,
18:04but I know that it was maybe a travelling chest, is that right?
18:07They have a very elaborate fancy name. It's a cabinet on stand.
18:11Oh! That's as good as it goes.
18:13Um, so if we open it up, oh, I mean, look at that. That's just exquisite.
18:18Absolutely stunning. And this is what we call Shinwazuri,
18:22which is a lacquer with gilt sort of highlights.
18:24And they're all these little scenes.
18:26This will be probably late 18th century.
18:29Kind of drifted out of fashion, came back again around about the 1920s,
18:33and now it's really popular again.
18:35Ah!
18:35Shinwazuri emerged in the 17th century
18:39and blended Western and Chinese artistic traditions.
18:45Oh, wow!
18:46And my mad, mad great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather,
18:50he was actually quite an interesting chap.
18:51He was a Liberal MP and he actually set up two schools in Thirst,
18:55which were, yeah, non-denominals.
18:57He was also a big supporter of William Wilberforce,
19:00for the anti-slavery.
19:02Of course, the abortionment of slavery.
19:04And, you know, in Britain, we were the lead nation on that,
19:07and then the Royal Navy started, you know, basically defending
19:10and attacking the sort of American lines that we're trying to bring slavery in, so...
19:13I'm quite proud of that part of history.
19:18Angus heads to the small room to think on how he can help.
19:22But even here, the past is alive.
19:26Here we are downstairs, toilet.
19:28But where's the toilet?
19:30Look at this, just a bench seat.
19:31But no, no, look, it's also a toilet.
19:35Look at that, classic Victorian toilet, amazing.
19:39All hidden away.
19:41A lot of people will be familiar with Thomas Crapper,
19:44hence where that name comes from,
19:46who developed the U-Bend.
19:48Because, actually, what happened was the U-Bend stops the gases coming back up
19:52from the sewers, and if you went in in the night with your candle
19:56and that methane came up, sometimes kaboom.
20:00And you don't want that when you're sat on the toilet.
20:02Not that sort of kaboom.
20:03So, the U-Bend stops those gases coming back up.
20:07A great original feature that would have been put in in the Victorian period.
20:11Definitely, if you don't mind.
20:18But Angus can't linger.
20:20How many people are dining tonight?
20:22Twenty-five, I think.
20:24Because a key revenue stream for the house is arriving soon,
20:28and Zilla and Daisy need his help.
20:30Is that just, is it just for a garnish?
20:33Yeah, but also to go on the chicken.
20:34OK.
20:35It's a tour for American visitors hoping to immerse themselves in Georgian England.
20:42And they're expecting a three-course meal provided by the owners,
20:46with help from family friend Sarah.
20:49We serve them in the dining room, which is quite a typical Georgian house.
20:54The dining room is at the complete opposite end of the house of the kitchen.
20:58So, this is sort of a good regular income stream?
21:00Yeah, it's really good income, and it, you know, helps pay some of the bills.
21:04Absolutely.
21:06Right, Kai, come through, come through.
21:09No prizes for guessing who's becoming butler for the day.
21:12Succo or something softer?
21:13Non-alcoholic.
21:15No, non-alcoholic, certainly I can sort that out for you.
21:20Another white one?
21:21Would you like some?
21:23Are you taking three at a time?
21:24There are no domestic staff at first call.
21:27Any vegetarian option?
21:29Though over a century ago, a butler and a couple of footmen would have done Angus's job.
21:34I'm sorry to interrupt. I hope you've had a lovely, lovely supper.
21:38Yeah, I just, I wanted to tell you a little bit about the house.
21:40So, if you have any questions you want to ask.
21:43And they do.
21:44Fielding probing questions about the family fortune is something Daisy takes in her stride.
21:50Where did your original money, when your family come? Where did it come from?
21:55My family are farmers, but I'm, and then she, she, she married and she was the one that,
22:00her dad was a tax collector in Hull, and so she had a lot of money.
22:03So, she bought money into the, into the family.
22:07The curtains shouldn't really be here. That's not very Georgian.
22:10But the shutters are. The Victorians were really good at butchering it.
22:13The ever knowledgeable Angus is on hand to identify tricky period details.
22:19I wonder if that, is that Victorian, maybe?
22:21Yes. Yeah. Well, no, so that's 19th century. So Victorian period, but that would be French,
22:26possibly something like Serves, with the Guild Matters. That's very sort of French style.
22:29Okay. Yeah. It's lucky we've got Angus here.
22:36As a long day comes to a close, it's time for Angus to enjoy his exclusive night in an authentic Georgian bedroom.
22:46Except there's a rumour it contains something spooky.
22:50Daisy and Zilla keep coming to me, it's going to be all right in the room, it's badly haunted in my hair or whatever.
22:59And all these stories keep coming out, family members don't want to come to this end of the house.
23:03Apparently stuff gets moved, doors opened. I mean, it does look, literally, the graveyard's just there.
23:09Quite an old graveyard.
23:11But I was born on Friday the 13th, so I kind of think that makes me exempt from all that sort of stuff, in theory.
23:17With luck, the Bell family ancestors won't trouble Angus.
23:22He's got other things on his mind, like persuading the younger generation to part with a few things at auction.
23:40It's a new day at first call on Angus' trickiest mission yet, as the Bell family still can't decide what to sell at auction.
23:53However, he has managed to get a good night's sleep, despite a silent presence in his bedroom.
23:59I absolutely love these. You don't see them very often, although they've had a bit of a resurgence.
24:04So this is what we call a dummy board, and they date back to the early 17th century. They think to have originated in Holland.
24:10They have a handle, weighted base, and the floor's not very even here, but you can imagine you could move these round and set them in a room setting.
24:18Lost his arm there, sadly, but he's ugly. Very decorative. I mean, I'm sure Daisy wouldn't want him to leave the house, and he's part and parcel, isn't he?
24:25A genuine Victorian dummy board, also known as a silent companion, can fetch as much as a thousand pounds.
24:34Breakfast is in the kitchen, like it is for most people. Though a hundred years ago, a team of servants would have served it in the morning room.
24:42Were you trying to wind me up, saying it's really haunted? Because I mean, I've got this sense off everybody that it's, you know, it's quite a serious thing.
24:48There was just, um, voices. People would be woken up in the night, there'd be some tugging of the sheets.
24:54A lady called Caroline. You didn't get any of that?
24:57No Caroline tugged on my sheets last night.
25:00Good. I'm glad to hear it.
25:04It's day two of Angus's so far fruitless search for something to sell.
25:12Here's something a bit more modern and very local.
25:16Ah. Is that the Mouse Man?
25:18Beaver Man. Beaver Man?
25:20Yes. Oh, yeah.
25:22So, Beaver Man, Yorkshire Oaks. That isn't a mouse.
25:24Ah, from just up the road. So, it's what we call the Yorkshire Critters.
25:27There's mousemen in the Yorkshire Critters. Yorkshire Oaks.
25:29So, it used to just be popular around here. Now, it goes to America, everywhere.
25:35Robert Thompson made mousemen benches and trained a generation of Yorkshire furniture makers who copied his rustic style,
25:43but marked their work by carving a different animal.
25:47Nice little stool like that. Probably four to six hundred. Five to eight on a good day, but nice thing.
25:52Yeah. Fix the Gillows chair off the back of it.
25:55Yeah, I think that's probably something we could consider. Yeah.
25:58Well, that's a possibility. You know, it clears a little bit of space out.
26:00Gets the Gillows chair. A very little bit of space.
26:02Things are looking up. Could Angus be getting closer to a decision on what to sell?
26:12You've got a nice pair of chairs here. There's two of them. Sadly, you know, can't see it's gone.
26:17They don't look that sturdy. Is that kind of...
26:19Yeah, no, they're not. But, you know, they're fixable. I mean, as a pair, they're nice,
26:23but they'd sell more as a decorative piece than somebody using that as a dinosaur.
26:28And how much would it be to restore, maybe, like, the seat bit of that?
26:31To get them recane, it's probably, you know, a few hundred quid there.
26:36There's loads of lovely things in here. Have a little think.
26:39And Daisy does have a think. In fact, the wheels are rapidly going round
26:44as she asks a surprising question. Just out of interest, Angus, what...
26:49What are you thinking, ballpark figure? For the lot?
26:54No, we wouldn't, but, yeah, I'm just interested. No, I know.
26:57Yes, she means everything in the room.
27:00But if we came and just emptied the room, what do you think I could raise?
27:03Yeah.
27:06Well, I mean, that would mean taking the Gillow's chair, but...
27:08I don't know. Um...
27:11I don't know. 20 to 40?
27:13Look at that.
27:14£20,000 to £40,000 would certainly fix a few holes in the roof.
27:19I can see that Angus is excited by a number of different things, but there's a level of responsibility
27:25I have, so I've just got to be a little bit cautious about what I sort of hand over.
27:29While Daisy considers her options, Angus understands it's far from easy.
27:34It'd be lovely to say that, yeah, send a van clear the room, but they've got to have a bit of a family meeting and
27:39decide, you know, what's safe to go. That's the way you go some days. But this is, we're here for the long term.
27:44You know, they're local to us. I'm always here when they need me. I'll be here in a flash.
27:49Outside, Bill and Daisy, who both work in the art world, have created something they hope will
27:57generate an income to avoid selling off family heirlooms.
28:01It's a fantastic space. How did this all come about?
28:05Well, it was really when we moved up here in lockdown, um, and we were looking to replicate
28:10what I was doing in London, so that was the main point.
28:12You just didn't have a canvas like this in London.
28:15Exactly, yeah. I mean, we were always going to be working in art and sculptures,
28:18my kind of area, but to do large-scale sculptures on this kind of, yeah, monumental scale
28:23in the landscape is kind of a dream.
28:26We've come out of the house and it's amazing, sort of parkland gardens.
28:30What Daisy and her husband, Bill, have done is create this amazing sculpture park and it's unusual,
28:35you know, you've got this ancient backdrop of the house with this very contemporary feel,
28:39but do you know what? It works. They've created this space and you walk around this and it's lovely.
28:45A lot of people have lived in Thirst for years and years, but no one's
28:48ever really been into the garden because it's never been open to the public.
28:51So, being able to open it up not only allows people to come and see the sculpture,
28:54but it also lets them to have this access to this incredible space behind.
28:58They've got this house and they've got to upkeep. You know, it is competitive.
29:01And actually what they've created here is something a little bit different.
29:04It's a different way of doing it. And I quite like that.
29:07Another different way of doing things is Thirst Call's beer and pizza night.
29:15OK, so we need to move all the chairs out. We need to get the deck chairs out. We need to move kegs.
29:20So, are these tables, do you want them spread out or is this like a dance floor?
29:23Probably have a bit of space here in front of the band and then we want to put out some deck chairs because,
29:28I mean, hello. Yeah.
29:30Yeah. They've pre-sold 160 tickets, but on such a sunny day,
29:36there'll be plenty of walking trade from the town.
29:38Do you want to pull this and I'll push it? OK.
29:43I love the trolley. It's brilliant. Proper, a steak trolley, isn't it?
29:47Yeah. 60 years ago, only the Bell family and their staff would have been allowed into the garden.
29:54Today, it's open house to anyone who'll pay.
29:57I think if we go and do the umbrellas,
30:02these, I think, are quite complicated to put in.
30:05But doing everything yourself isn't easy.
30:09Why would this be this short?
30:13Is yours long enough? Which is where Angus comes in.
30:16Er, you open the bottom bit and it comes out.
30:19I don't know. It feels like there isn't anything in here.
30:24Um, I'm going to give up on that.
30:29Er, well, I seem to have managed how to put them up.
30:34Just the wind, we kind of need a load of weights for all the bases,
30:38which we haven't got time to do.
30:40So, you know, executive decision.
30:45No umbrellas.
30:46They'll be fine. They've come for the sunshine.
30:50With time running out, it's more important to get the bar sorted.
30:54So we just need to move the kegs there.
30:56And I think we need... It's a great concept.
30:58And it's bringing a different audience into First Call.
31:01An audience that are going to go, hang on a minute, what's all this?
31:04What's all this sculpture out there?
31:05And it's that soft cross-marketing.
31:07You come to one event, you see something else.
31:09So, clever. I think it's going to be a great night.
31:12The doors are open and the fun begins.
31:17Got lots of people coming in.
31:18The sky is blue.
31:20The sun is out.
31:21Lots of pizzas.
31:22Lots of pites being pulled.
31:24I think that Angus has had a go at doing it.
31:27And, yeah, I think we're set up for a really good evening.
31:30So, do you want to set the ticket?
31:31Yeah.
31:33It's just such a lovely venue.
31:34You know, you've got the historic house behind you,
31:36the sculpture park in front of you.
31:37Everyone's sat out in that huge sort of formal garden.
31:40And it's just a real nice informal event.
31:42And it's Daisy and Bill's home, and it feels like a home.
31:46There's no way of knowing how the Bell family ghosts feel
31:49about a beer and pizza party on their lawn, but it's been a success.
31:54With the weekend now over, it's time for Angus to head out.
32:03Disappointingly, though, he's leaving empty-handed.
32:06Well, it's been an absolutely wonderful weekend.
32:09Because Daisy and Zilla still can't decide what to send to auction.
32:14Thank you so much for coming.
32:16Yeah, well, thank you for having me.
32:17Thanks so much for all your hard work and as well, yeah.
32:20Brilliant. Bye.
32:20See you later.
32:21And have a safe flight.
32:22Uh, I will, hopefully, yeah.
32:24Weather looks good, so thanks.
32:25Bye.
32:26Cheers.
32:41A week has passed,
32:43and Angus is unexpectedly heading back to First Call to see Daisy.
32:48She's given me a call, she's ready,
32:49and I think there's a few bits that they've decided as a family can be let go and sold
32:54and pay for that restoration.
32:55If the family can let a few things go to auction,
32:58there's a chance the broken Gillow's chair could be repaired.
33:02Since you were last here, I've had a good chat with, um,
33:05my dad about kind of what's important that we're quite keen to keep in the house,
33:08and then also about there's other things we quite want to keep.
33:12Well, that'll sell fine, so we'll get that in the sale.
33:15They're saying goodbye to a Beaverman Yorkshire oak stool.
33:19And also going to auction is the Edwardian stationary cupboard, as well as something else
33:24Angus hasn't seen.
33:25So we found this in a cupboard downstairs, actually, so I don't know if that was of interest for you.
33:30Yeah, yeah, certainly. That's nice. That's quite...
33:32It's quite heavy. Good paperweight.
33:34Murder in the library. Um, yeah, no, nice sort of gilded bronze.
33:38Nice little sort of bust there on marble. That's a nice decorative piece.
33:42Very nice bits. Well, I'll get these loaded up. We'll get these into the sale coming up.
33:47And obviously, I'll bring you the chair back when it's all done.
33:49Great. You know, this job's all about long-term relationships and being there when the client
33:55needs you, whether it's now, five years, ten years down the line.
33:58And those three bits that I've got, including the bust, which I didn't know about,
34:02are really nice things, really good bits. They're going to sell well at auction.
34:06They're going to cover the cost of restoring that lovely chair, so I'm happy.
34:10With decisions made at last, Angus can get these items priced up and listed to sell
34:16in his upcoming country house auction. And Grandpa's Gillow's chair will be restored.
34:31It's the day of Angus's country house sale, and the lots found at First Call are ready to be sold.
34:48First, they've got some items to say, three lots, small selection, but quality. You know,
34:53lovely bust, obviously the Yorkshire Oak, always popular, and actually that, that tambour cabinet,
34:58that little station cabinet, so that's lovely. Final warning then at 660.
35:03660. Not an awful lot from First to Sell, but if we can do all right with what we're selling,
35:08that should raise enough money to get that wonderful Gillow's chair restored and put back in the house.
35:15We're in the market then at 660. 680 anywhere. Angus has a special country house auction
35:20only four times a year. It draws in customers from all over the world.
35:24880 pounds. We now want a thirst call. There we are. It's great to list at a three-story manor house
35:30in the centre of the thirst, built in 1723 and extended by John Carr. It's been in the Bell family
35:35for over 300 years. First up is the Oak Bench, made by one of the Yorkshire Critters, Beaverman.
35:42The first of the Yorkshire Critters today, there we are, the Beaverman, the stool, and a lot of interest in
35:47this. We can start it at 300 pounds. At 300 pounds, I bid for it, thank you, at 300. At 300 for the stool,
35:52320, thank you, 340, 360. That's a good stool, this. Good stool. 360, 380 anywhere. At 360 then,
35:59the gavel rising. Final warning then at 360. And that is 17260, thank you. That's a great start.
36:07A big price for a modest piece of furniture that is now very popular. 75 pounds. At 75 pounds, I bid for it.
36:14Just a lovely little desk piece, Edwardian piece. At 85, at 85. 90, thank you. At 90 pounds.
36:21That's about right. 81.20, I told them, so. Thank you. 95 into the room. I've kept my word to Daisy.
36:28110 to keep your letters in. 110, thank you, sir. 120, I have 130. At 130.
36:33Gentleman's bid, I shall sell then. At 130. 130 pounds, thank you. 130. And you are, sir.
36:39This was a surprise find from the drawing room. Is this a lovely little bus that was in the drawing
36:45room? Didn't see it when I was first there. It was when I was picking up. At 180 now. You're
36:49all short. At 180 pounds now. At 180 then. Don't mistake it then at 180. Gavel rising then. Final warning
36:55then if you don't get on then at 180. 180. All three lots from first call have sold well,
37:02and the money will soon be used to finance the restoration of a very important family heirloom.
37:09First call didn't have a lot of items in. You know, the Beaverman, uh, stool, Yorkshire,
37:13we always do well with that. It was always going to sell, so that's gone. And the little
37:17timber cabinet. I love that. I told them 80 to 120 on the day. It's just done a bit over that,
37:21so good result on that. And, you know, a reasonable sum that can go towards the restoration of that
37:25lovely chair. So, yeah, I know. I'm pretty pleased.
37:27Angus has sent Grandpa's Gillow's chair to the workshop of furniture restorer Tim in Ilkley.
37:38All these joints, they'd all become rather loose. A lot of people bring their furniture to us and they
37:44think, oh, it's beyond repair. But no, it's not. We've taken the frame apart and we've discovered that
37:52the arms and the back and the leg frame are all made in separate sections. This is the, uh, the leg
38:00that was, uh, slightly cracked down its length, so I'm just taking the mortise and tenon joint out.
38:10What I have to do is scrape off the old animal glue so that the new glue sticks to the wood rather than
38:18the glue that's already on there. The leather upholstery only needs a conditioner to make it
38:24supple again. It'll look a lot brighter. The leather work will look a lot less tired,
38:30so it'll have a good colour back to it and it'll feel a lot better as well. That's the good thing
38:37about antique furniture. It's so well made. You've got proper joints and they're able to be
38:45taken apart, repaired and put back together again.
38:57With Grandpa's Gillow's chair repaired, it can now return to First Call.
39:03I'm really excited actually because I've got the chair, that beautiful Gillow's library chair,
39:10and it's been restored. It's going to go back in where it should be and it's, it's got a twin
39:16in the house as well, so, uh, they're going to be reunited.
39:19Hey! How are we doing? You all right? It's about good. How are you?
39:23Yeah, all right. How's things at First Call?
39:27Busy, as I've heard. We really missed you though, you didn't have the heavies, you know,
39:33helping us with the lifting. Well, we've been busy on the other side,
39:37obviously we took a few things for auction. I think it was £670, so good restoration pot.
39:42Amazing! Restoration-wise, we've, uh, we've got the chair covered.
39:46Oh, brilliant. While £670 is not a huge amount, it's still money they didn't have before,
39:54and it's been put to good use. Here we have the chair.
39:58Oh, I'm really looking forward to this. Yeah.
40:01And I'd like you to cast your minds back. I mean, the leg was really, truly ripped off.
40:06Yeah, yeah, yeah. And there was a tear in the leather.
40:08Oh my gosh. And I think they've done a brilliant job of that, because actually,
40:14I thought you'd still see a little scar mark, you know, where they'd...
40:17Literally can't see. So it's this leg here, and you can actually see just,
40:22you can see how badly it's broken, because the break goes all the way up there, and then up there.
40:26That's incredible. So they've reconstructed all that and put it in.
40:29Yeah. Happy with it? Really happy. It's incredible.
40:32Sure. You know, if ever, you know, you haven't got space for the pair,
40:36I mean, the pair's always really good. I mean, they'll do well at auction, you know.
40:40Nice try, Angus.
40:42No, I mean, to be fair, this house is famous for its good loads of furniture, isn't it?
40:45Yeah, I think this is definitely one that will probably stay here.
40:49Well, glad you're happy with that. And now, I've got a little surprise for you.
40:53Ooh. Yeah, cool.
40:54So, I've set something up for you. So excited.
40:59Um, have a seat. Yeah, thanks.
41:02When I was here before, well, you showed me some wonderful footage.
41:07Yeah. Of all the family and everything else,
41:10and I think a little bit of amateur dramatics was going on at one point.
41:13Yeah. Got a lip reader, cos there's no sound.
41:15You're joking. No.
41:17And we've recreated one of the sort of scenes they were doing,
41:21which was very sort of amdram, but, um, yeah.
41:23Let's see what you think. Oh, my God.
41:31It's priceless, I believe, but I deserve it.
41:35I deserve it. Yes.
41:38Oh, it's lovely. Could I borrow it, perhaps?
41:41Well, I'm keeping it for Christmas.
41:43It will be wonderful.
41:45Yes, yes, it's divine, divine.
41:48Oh, it really is charming, Diana.
41:55It really is rare.
41:56It's what I deserve.
41:59It's what I deserve.
42:01So, yeah, that's the voiceover, then, as it goes on.
42:03So, we managed to, um, recreate some of it.
42:07This was... we're going back to the grandparents.
42:09Yeah, the lady wearing the necklace is my... it's our grandmother.
42:11Yeah. Wow.
42:13So good, I can't believe it.
42:15So, there we go, yeah.
42:17Thank you very welcome.
42:23Well, it's been wonderful to come back and see how things have progressed,
42:26and delighted that you're happy with the chair.
42:28Thank you once again for that. It was amazing. It's great to bring it to life.
42:33It's been wonderful to come back to see Daisy and Zilla and bring the chair back.
42:37I'm really excited. I'm really pleased with how they feel about it.
42:42They're really happy.
42:43Probably their next challenge is the upstairs of the house.
42:46I mean, I think that's where the work is needed, and it's a big job.
42:50But, you know, it's getting all these other things going to help contribute towards that.
42:55So, I wish them all the best.
42:56Angus' mission is complete.
43:00The roof still leaks, but one of Thirst Call's relics has been rescued.
43:05And he's optimistic that one day he'll be back to clear all that historic clutter.
43:26Yeah.
43:28Oh, yeah.
43:29High school.
43:30Yes, I'll sit.
43:32Ah,!
43:32The roof.
43:34And the roof.
43:36And the roof.
43:45irgendwelche house.
43:46No, no.
43:47You
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