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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.
00:59And 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.
01:28Okay, here we go, Angus.
01:29Okay.
01:29Angus and Pilot James are in the air again over the rolling Yorkshire walls.
01:40I'm afraid the catering is not very good on board this ride today.
01:44Also, the heating is terrible, but the air conditioning is very effective.
01:47Yeah.
01:48Their destination today is Birdsall House in North Yorkshire.
01:52There's been a stately home on this site since the 1500s.
01:56Birdsall, incredible sport, surrounded by the farmland.
02:00It's a huge farming estate.
02:02Birdsall House is the grade two star listed home of Lady Cara Willoughby,
02:08her husband James, their three children and a menagerie of peacocks.
02:13I think James has known this house since he was a boy.
02:17I was very much aware that I didn't know the house as well as he did.
02:22It was quite daunting coming in.
02:24Well, Cara and I moved here in about 2018 after my grandparents had passed away
02:29and started using the majority of the house for more commercial purposes.
02:32In the 19th century, this house existed as a country escape for its owners.
02:39All posh dinners, parties and dancing.
02:42But today's owners live here all year round.
02:46When we moved into Birdsall, there'd be no family with young children living here for 90 years.
02:52So there was a bit of an adaption to do.
02:55It's a big house with a big character.
02:57So it took a little bit of time for us all to find our way around the house
03:03and how we could make it into a family home.
03:05Cara and James have invested heavily in the future with a very unusual addition to the house.
03:12Today, Birdsall is one of the only stately homes in the country that boasts its own nightclub.
03:18We've really tried to create a variety of different types of events
03:23so that we're attracting a huge different number of people.
03:26In today's world, you know, this house has to wash its own face.
03:30Cara has even brought back dancing to Birdsall's ballroom.
03:35Recently hosting a night with a star from television Strictly Come Dancing.
03:40Well, obviously there's an enormous amount to do to keep the show on the road.
03:45You've got to find a way of making it sustainable financially.
03:49God, it's like trying to drag a donkey up a hill.
03:54Right, there we are.
03:55Angus is staying for the weekend to see just how this unusual venue works.
04:01And he's offered to have a hunt for any unwanted items that can go off to auction.
04:06I mean, it is incredible, isn't it? I mean, Birdsall Estate is vast.
04:12Expect to take a lot of upkeep, but can't wait to see inside it.
04:17Angus has met Cara and James before, but being a weekend guest is a first.
04:23Hi, Angus. Morning.
04:26Another, another bumpy landing. Morning. How are we doing?
04:29Good. Nice to see you.
04:30Hi. Hello, how are you?
04:31Hi. Oh, very well, thank you. Very well. Thank you.
04:39Welcome to Birdsall. Wow.
04:43So, what a room.
04:44Yeah. So, this is the main entrance in.
04:49Birdsall's first owners were the Sotheby family, who went on to set up the auction business.
04:55In 1729, the Willoughbys married in, and it's remained in this family ever since.
05:00Got a busy weekend planned. Wonderful.
05:04It's a classic Georgian house with perfect symmetry and proportion.
05:10On the inside, Birdsall boasts one of the largest collections by a certain English cabinet maker,
05:16including Angus's bedroom for the weekend.
05:21Cara, wow.
05:24So, this is a bed by Thomas Chippendale, that we thought you might enjoy to stay in.
05:30I can honestly say I've never slept in a Chippendale bed.
05:37I mean, that is absolutely incredible.
05:39That's a first for everything.
05:42Chippendale is widely regarded as Britain's greatest cabinet maker.
05:47This bed is rarely used, which is not a surprise as one recently sold at auction for a quarter of a million pounds.
05:55The marble fireplaces, the furniture.
05:57I mean, a Chippendale bed. It's just ridiculous.
06:01En suite, beautiful furniture throughout.
06:04I mean, even the little things, things that, you know, pale into significance alongside the Chippendale bed.
06:09Nice Canton Famille Rose Bowl there, you know, lovely oil paintings and, yeah.
06:16Spot on. Absolutely spot on.
06:18This is lovely. Thank you.
06:20But there's no time for Angus to put his feet up. He's needed downstairs.
06:31While the furniture is an important part of Birdsall's history, Cara is banking on the future.
06:38And there's a new part of the house she's especially proud of.
06:41Oh, wow.
06:45This wasn't the servants' kitchens I was expecting.
06:48To help Birdsall make money, a new space had to be found to allow guests to let their hair down.
06:55This is a country house with its own nightclub.
06:58So this is the old kitchens that were put together in 1873 for the house.
07:03So we have weddings up in the house, as you know. We've been doing that for seven years or so.
07:09But it became difficult where to dance in the evenings because of the historic fabric of the building.
07:14We didn't want to wreck it. So this area wasn't doing anything.
07:18And why not then make use of it, make it make some money, help keep the upkeep of the place going.
07:25And it seemed like a great space to develop.
07:27Well, it looks like it goes on.
07:28Yes, shall I show you a few more bits?
07:30OK.
07:30So, these were the old kitchens.
07:35What? My word, look at it. Look at it. This is incredible.
07:41With a glitter ball. This is the old oven.
07:44I know people are going to get up on there to dance on it.
07:46This is incredible. I mean, you wouldn't know from the outside.
07:48You've got, I mean, it's basically a nightclub.
07:50You know, it's quite fun. No one would expect when they come to a wedding,
07:54that it's upstairs, it's grand, it's formal, and then they come downstairs.
07:58But then you've got all the original features, which I absolutely love.
08:02I am seriously impressed.
08:04This is incredible.
08:06I can only begin to imagine how much this has cost.
08:10So it's a huge investment. And you know, of any investment, there's a risk.
08:14They've got to get people here. You know, this is the sort of venue you would expect
08:17to see in the centre of London or Leeds or a big city. We're not.
08:21So you've got to get people here, and it's got to pay for itself. I hope it does.
08:25I hope it does.
08:35With the old kitchens now the new nightclub, Cara's got her eye on other spaces that are currently unused.
08:42These stables once were full of horses. Today they're full of junk,
08:47and Angus has offered to start the clear-out to see what could go off to auction.
08:54Right. Let's have a look in here.
08:56Wow.
08:59I love these buildings. I've seen them.
09:04Right. There may be some bits in here.
09:06Wow. Cara's brought me down to the stables. But, you know, the stables and stables.
09:11I mean, it is vast. And you can imagine this back in the day, you know, in the 19th century,
09:16in the 18th century. I mean, it would have been hive activity. All these buildings full of horses,
09:21and all the people servicing the horses. Incredible. The stalls that would have had horses
09:26don't have horses, and the filth of the stuff that they've moved from wherever. Where do we put it?
09:30Put it in the stable. It's time for Angus to get stuck in.
09:35And organs. That organ came out of the servant's wing. What do you think about that?
09:40They are one of the hardest things to sell. I mean, lovely. Even with the provenance of it coming from here.
09:46In the 19th century, every fine home had a pump organ. Today, Angus knows you can't give them away.
09:56See if it still worked. No, it's not bothering you.
10:03Organs, sadly, they're just a thing of the past. They're big, they're heavy,
10:07they take up a lot of space. It's that dark furniture that people, generally speaking,
10:11don't want. So, yeah, I can't see them ever coming back.
10:17This organ has played its last tune. Angus is going to have to work much harder to fill his
10:22country house auction. There's a few chairs in here, quite nice. Okay.
10:26That little one there, and there's probably a few in there that we could do something with.
10:30Okay.
10:33They're quite pretty, aren't they? They are pretty.
10:37Deeply unfunctional. Yeah, pretty but unpractical, yes. There's a nice little sort of
10:44Georgian one there with sort of faux bamboo frontlets, which is always quite a nice look.
10:48And then there's all various cane-seated ones. Is there a market for that sort of thing?
10:56You know, it's not huge, but I think pretty little chairs, a couple of them,
10:59little sort of like bathroom chairs, that sort of thing. So, I think, you know,
11:03we could find a home for them. You know, the back of the stall, there's just mountains of chairs.
11:07I mean, stacked up, stacked up. They're all of a similar ilk, cane-seated, sort of what we'd call a
11:13bedroom-type chair. You know, not huge amounts of money. The gem, though, is the little Georgian
11:18chair. It looks a bit rough, but those little faux bamboo legs on it. I think that's the little
11:24sleeper among the chairs. Individually, these chairs might not be worth much, but together,
11:30they could fetch several hundred pounds. Angus has put together a mix of 30 chairs to go off to auction.
11:37Not a fortune, but it's a start.
11:53Expert auctioneer Angus Ashworth is spending the weekend at Birdsall House helping owners
11:59James and Cara Willoughby.
12:00I don't really want to stand on the boxes.
12:02No, I think you'll go through them.
12:04He's searching the outbuildings for things he can sell at auction, and he hasn't finished yet.
12:10It goes on and on, Cara, isn't it?
12:12Yeah, absolutely. Well, you might find something in this one.
12:15Okay. I've got this. What on earth is this?
12:20So, this is a table that held a massive pestle and mortar in the Victorian kitchens.
12:27Left this out.
12:28So, I've got the pestle and mortar.
12:30Right. So, you'll need this to put the pestle and mortar in?
12:33Nope. I've already got it in something else, but this is what it did use to go in.
12:37You know, we go to the next stall and straight in, before we can even get it in, there's this
12:44table. Very sort of estate-made country house. You know, definitely downstairs use rather than
12:50upstairs. Big, solid, painted legs and this scrub pine top.
12:53This table made on the estate would have housed a huge bowl or mortar for grinding herbs and nuts.
13:01Cara thinks it's ready for the bonfire. Angus thinks it's ready to make money.
13:06It'd be very easy to just say, get rid of it, it's rubbish. You know, Cara's eyes are going to get rid
13:11of it. But you're just going to have a little bit of vision. Okay, in its current state, you think,
13:17clean it all down, wax that top up, maybe sit something in it, a sink or something like that.
13:22It's the character, it's the history. It's come out of Bird's All House. Look at all that amazing
13:26history and you can have that in your house. I think it's got a lot of character.
13:31Um... Okay, I'm not sure how you're going to get there, so over to you.
13:35I'm going to try and surprise you with that, okay? I'll sell that. What else is there? Right.
13:44Another organ? There's all sorts in here, isn't there? Do you mind if I, uh,
13:50I'm just going to pull up another organ? Ah! Ah! Okay.
13:59Um... Well, these two painted sort of Victorian Pineside tables are right,
14:05and the table underneath it looks okay. We've got two white painted tables at the back.
14:09One's better than the other. It's original, albeit somebody's gone over it in the white gloss,
14:14which happened a lot during periods. Single draw, but it's still usable. It's just a handy little table.
14:19We're not talking huge amounts of money. Angus is convinced there's something special beneath
14:23the paint on these tables, and they should sell well, especially with their aristocratic provenance.
14:30Okay, a few bits out there. Okay, watch out for this. Yeah, yeah, that's a prize piece, that.
14:35Oh! Oh, I've spotted something. Oh, you? Okay. Yeah. What have you seen?
14:41Um, this, Cara. I think this is the old kitchen's table that
14:47the equivalent Carson and Mrs Hughes sat at every day. The prep table in the middle of the kitchen.
14:55This is wonderful, this huge estate table. You can imagine it in the kitchen,
14:59in the sort of servants' quarters. That scrub pine top. Very basic, crudely made.
15:03You know, this is rough. This is the downstairs, not the upstairs. But weirdly,
15:08the downstairs stuff's more commercial than the upstairs now.
15:11So I'm afraid I think this is probably too historically attached, I think is probably the word.
15:16I totally get that. Yeah, that's it. It's wonderful, but it needs to stay with the house.
15:20Well, if we ever do, I'll let you know. Thank you.
15:23You know, all the stories, the history that's happened around that table is, is phenomenal, isn't it?
15:28And it should stay with the house. My job's not to take heritage away. Something like that needs to
15:33be looked after and find somewhere on this state for it. Angus has almost finished hunting when he
15:40suddenly spots something rather special. Darlingham Wood, York. Nice.
15:45Don't break it. No, no, no. That needs rewiring, doesn't it? It's got its pendulum,
15:58so it needs a wire for its striker. Probably a big oval. This wall clock is from a time when
16:05staff in the house didn't have watches. This clock and its bell would have been central to the lives of
16:12everyone here at Birdsall. Kara wants this to stay. That clock, interestingly,
16:20came from the old Victorian kitchens and I would love to get it mended. I know where it went and
16:24I've got photographs of it, but it doesn't work anymore. Kara quite rightly says, you're not having
16:30that. We want to put it back in where it would have been in the house. You know, you need to know
16:34when to call time, don't you? So I think if we can get that restored, do a really good job on that
16:40and make that a feature piece, wonderful. So that's an idea for you? I can get that.
16:47I can get that sorted. We'll have that running. Okay. Darlingham Wood began making clocks in York
16:53in the 1820s. They are still sought after by collectors. Although this one is not worth a fortune,
17:00it is almost priceless to Kara with its connection to the house. Angus's challenge is to get this clock
17:08working again. The lads will be coming back to gather a few bits up that we can sell a lot of
17:12items that are going to stay with the house. So we're going to get the clock sorted. There'll be
17:15enough money in the items that we're selling to pay for that and that is a result. You know,
17:20it's refunding the estate funding restorations to continue. A few times a year, Birdsall opens its
17:29doors to paying visitors who come to look at the house, the artwork and, of course, the furniture.
17:37Hi, Angus. Hi, Kara. Are you all right? Good, thank you. Good. I've got a job for you. Right.
17:41But first of all, can I get you to put that on? Yes, certainly can, yeah.
17:45And then, please can I get you to chop those up? Before the First World War,
17:53this kitchen would have been buzzing with staff. Today, it's just Kara and she's got guests coming
18:00any minute. We have got the Furniture History Society. Excellent. And they have come from all
18:07over the world. And normal for you to be preparing all the lunches? Yes, yes. There's no risk for the
18:13wicked around here. Part of the deal is a lunch made and served by Lady Kara herself.
18:20On the main show, we've just got quiches and salads because it's a nice warm day,
18:25so luckily it's not too heavy duty. Excellent. I suppose that you just have to get mucked in
18:31with everything then? Yes, yes. Yeah. I mean, someone asked me what my job was once.
18:36And so I wrote about 365 different roles in tiny, tiny writing, including chief driver,
18:44sous chef, head chef, duster. You know, you write it all in because your job is so varied around here.
18:50But there's no time to waste. The historical furniture tour is about to arrive to look over
18:55Birdsall's priceless collection of Chippendale furniture. And of course, none of that is for sale.
19:03So, welcome. Welcome to Birdsall. Today, I'm going to show you all the way around. And then I'm
19:09slightly going to leave the furniture to you. Lady Kara just gets stuck in. She's running around,
19:14carrying boxes, doing the lunches. I think that's what estate life is. Lunch first, I think. Come
19:21in and have some lunch. It's not just about the house. It's everything. It's the bigger picture.
19:25You know, it's the furnishings. It's the ground. And it's wonderful to have these people traveling
19:29from all over the world to come and see the fantastic piece of furniture in it. Yorkshire
19:33furniture, Chippendale. Before these guests can get their hands on Kara's Chippendales,
19:38it's time for lunch. How are you finding the lunch? Delicious.
19:41Good. Is there any particular that you find delicious? I think the quiche are fabulous. Is it
19:45the quiche? Are you responsible for the quiche? No, no. I'm sorry. What are you responsible for?
19:50Well, the pomegranate. Oh, I love them. Oh, thank you. And that's a lot of good pomegranates.
19:56After lunch, it's time to get down to business. Picture-wise, we've got Philip Ryanables,
20:03one, two, three, four, five, all commissioned by the family of their sporting horses and their sporting
20:09house. The owls above the doors are 1588, the owl being the family crest. There's one item that's
20:17getting quite a lot of attention. This is Chippendale's original book, The Gentleman and Cabinet Maker's
20:24Director. Today, it's probably the most valuable furniture catalogue in existence. So, I didn't know
20:32Carahad Chippendale's directory. I mean, this is, yeah, the holy grail. So, for me,
20:42I'm more excited about the book than the table. Some people might shoot me for that, but that is like
20:49the holy grail of furniture design and design book. Incredible to see an original copy.
20:55I mean, the table's lovely as well, but the book is the creme de la creme. But I think the most
21:01important things here are these two Chippendale commodes that we've taken out. They normally live
21:06under perspex, so we've taken them out for you. Some of the guests have flown across the Atlantic to be
21:12here. They're incredible art. Yeah, that handle is a typical Chippendale handle. These are super ambitious,
21:19both because of the form with these very exaggerated sea scroll supports, the turning here, the lushness
21:26of the lacquer panels, how the scenes are super vivid. It's a bit like a sort of detective job you've
21:32got, isn't it? It is. That is exactly what it is, because cabinet making is no different than
21:37handwriting. Like, you recognize someone's style just from the subtleties of what they do. I know they'd
21:43never be sold, but if they came on the market... With something like this, you just don't know,
21:47because the market will decide and the collectors are always there for this type of thing.
21:52Yeah, and they're exceptional, aren't they? Yeah, yeah.
21:56Quite often I talk about, you know, Antings Furniture and the market not being good for it,
22:00but the good stuff, there's always a market for that, because this is the top of the top. This is
22:06the best you'll get in the world ever, and it's the biggest name in furniture. I mean, obviously it's
22:15never going to come on the market, but if it did, who knows? I mean, we're talking huge amounts of money.
22:20The furniture tour may be nearly over, but Cara has lots more to show Angus on just what it takes
22:27to run a house like Birdsall.
22:42Auctioneer Angus Ashworth is enjoying a privileged invitation to one of Yorkshire's finest country
22:48properties, Birdsall House. The owner, Cara, is keen to show him how the upkeeper on a property like
22:55this is never ending and very expensive. That's where you've got the, um, starting to get a bit
23:03tired. So I think we need to replace that bit and then all that sill and then that sill and the one at
23:10the end. Right. The estate has hundreds of windows. The programme of repair and replacement is constant.
23:18The way of eating a whole elephant is one bite at a time, and I think it's the same with the,
23:21with the house. You just start with one window and go on to the next. I mean, I don't think we'll get
23:25them all done in our generation, but we can try. You know, when you walk around and you just stop and
23:30pause and look closely, you can see the odd cracks here and there and you've got to keep on top of it
23:36because they soon fall into rack and ruin and you only need one generation to not pull their socks up
23:42and then you're in big trouble. All the replacement windows are now made on site,
23:48so the estate workshop has been called into action. So Angus, this is the joiners workshop. So
23:55everything that we need to repair, all the buildings are made here. And this is Simon. Wonderful. How do
24:00you do? You all right? Good, good. Looks like a hive of activity we've got going on. Absolutely.
24:05Yeah. Adrian's busy. Yeah. So what do we do here? We make windows, doors, uh, gates, anything you,
24:12you know, you can think of, we make it in here. A hundred years ago, this workshop made the kitchen
24:17furniture, including the table Angus found in the stables. Today, it's making windows all year long.
24:25We're just de-nibbing, ready for a first coat. Yeah. We've had a rough sand. Yeah. So it's just a case of,
24:32with this wire wall, go with the grain. Yeah. And just sand it till it's like a baby's bottom.
24:39Wonderful. It must be satisfying when you see that finished product and the windows reinstalled.
24:45Oh, yes. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Without a doubt. So how many of these have we got to see?
24:52Well, you're fortunate in that this is just one window. I mean, that must be
24:57quite nice to all pass and go, I made that. Oh, it is. Yeah. Yeah. Huge satisfaction.
25:04I think, you know, it's incredible. We've got this whole team that just worked
25:08tirelessly all year round to maintain this property. And that's what people just don't see,
25:12you know, but go back a hundred years, 200 years, 300 years. That's what would have happened.
25:17They were self-sufficient and the whole estate would have provided. They would have had workshops.
25:22They would have had this. I think that is the great thing about estate life. It is that wider community
25:28and, you know, a big employer, an important employer, and the staff stay here for lifetimes.
25:37Angus is on his way to meet one such member of the staff,
25:40who's lived and worked at Birdsall all his life.
25:47Well then, Richard.
25:48How are they, Angus? You all right?
25:50It's here. Yeah, yeah. Grand, grand. I've been sent down to give you a hand.
25:55That's fine. Yeah. That's fine.
25:56Kara said I've got to earn my keep. Oh, yeah.
25:58Yeah. Well, I'm just gathering some logs up at the party tonight.
26:02Oh, right. Well, that's got it loaded up then.
26:03Now you have to give us an hand? Yeah, yeah, yeah.
26:05I'm here to work. Can you do it?
26:07I'm here to work. Yeah. Yeah, it's a fantastic sport, isn't it?
26:11Yeah, it's brilliant. Absolutely brilliant.
26:13Richard is the estate gamekeeper. Today, he's preparing for a party in the new nightclub.
26:20I started when I was 15 on that work experience game thing,
26:27and then I got took on full time at 16.
26:30Right. So, how many years is that then?
26:33That's 56 now. I love it.
26:37I absolutely love it.
26:38I love the job. I love the people I work for.
26:41I couldn't want better people to work for.
26:43My, er, my father worked for them, my dad. Yeah.
26:48On the farming side. Yeah.
26:50My granddad worked for them on wood side, so I'm third generation.
26:54Blum and heck.
26:55So, they've been good to us, they've been good to them.
26:59In a few hours, the old kitchens will open their doors as a nightclub. And just like this building,
27:06Angus has had to smarten up as well.
27:08There's a bar over there. Yeah. Oh, that sounds good.
27:11And we need you to start making some cocktails for tonight, please. The guests arrive fairly shortly,
27:15so if you could go and do a bit of a practice one with Jules, then we'll see you in a minute.
27:21Okay. Brilliant. I will do.
27:23Just enough time for Angus to learn tonight's signature cocktail, the Birdsall Country Garden.
27:30Jules, is it? Good evening. Hi.
27:32You're right. I've been sent to be your helper.
27:34Right. What do we do?
27:35First things first. So, it's going to be a tall drink.
27:38Okay. So, Angus up top.
27:41We're going to be shaking this cocktail, so we're going to be using a two-piece tin.
27:45Okay. And then three ingredients.
27:48Gin, elderflower liqueur, fresh elderflower.
27:58Beautiful.
28:01Wow. I'm going to start drinking those at home from now on, you know?
28:04Yes. So, we've now just got 18 more to do.
28:07Right. I'm going to have to get quicker on the shaking, aren't I?
28:09Absolutely. Yeah. Okay. Well, I think I've got it. I've got the mechanics.
28:12Practice makes perfect.
28:17Many country houses host weddings and parties to help pay the bills, but few boast their own nightclub.
28:31Good evening.
28:31Hello.
28:32Evening, ladies.
28:33Hello.
28:34Some drinks here for you.
28:35Thank you very much.
28:38By day, Richard's a gamekeeper.
28:40Good evening, are you all right?
28:42Yes, very well.
28:42Good.
28:42Very well, thank you.
28:44Yes, very well, thank you.
28:44Down there and enjoy.
28:45By night, he greets the guests.
28:48Bertil has changed a lot in his lifetime.
28:51What was it like?
28:53Starage.
28:54Yeah.
28:55Plaster was off walls.
28:57They've done an amazing job, haven't they?
28:58They've done an amazing job.
29:00And it's been done nice.
29:01Yeah.
29:02It's been brought back to life.
29:03Yeah.
29:04That's the main thing.
29:05It's been brought back to life from being, what would I put it, cobwebbed.
29:09Yeah.
29:10Being left to be nothing.
29:12Yeah.
29:19Today's been great, you know, right the way through.
29:21Traditionally, the backbone economy of these houses was farming and agriculture.
29:25That's got harder and harder and the revenues are less.
29:28And they've got to look at other resources and actually entertainment.
29:32But they've done it so well here.
29:34And I've never seen anywhere quite like that.
29:36And I think it is unique.
29:38And I think here at Birdsall, they've got it spot on.
29:41And even the peacocks agree.
29:43Yeah.
29:48The day might be drawing to a close,
29:50but Angus has got a rather important appointment in his bedroom,
29:54with one of the best beds ever made.
30:01As hard as the day's been,
30:02like, so I'm going to have to sleep in probably one of the most impressive beds
30:08in the world, you know, made by Chippendale.
30:12Okay, for most people, you might not get how special that is,
30:15but to sleep in Thomas Chippendale bed,
30:19it's up there.
30:32It's the morning after the night before,
30:35and it's Harriet's job to tidy up with a bit of help, of course, from Angus.
30:41Right, so what have we got to do?
30:43Okay, so I'd like you to clean the dance floor, please.
30:45If you give it a good mop and get into all the corners,
30:46and then I'm just going to go around and wipe all the surfaces
30:49and make sure there's no marks and everything.
30:50And then we're all set.
30:52Once, the Birdsall estate had 17 members of house staff.
30:57Now it survives with a small, dedicated team
31:00led by operations manager, Harriet.
31:03This is the bit people don't see, isn't it?
31:05Absolutely, yeah.
31:06Yeah, this is the after bit, yeah, yeah, yeah.
31:10We all do multiple roles, a bit like Richard.
31:12He does multiple roles within the estate, and we all work together.
31:15It must be a real community.
31:17Absolutely, a great team.
31:18We all really enjoy working with each other, yeah, it's great.
31:21I mean, that's testament to the estate, isn't it?
31:22That, I mean, people like Richard, who's been here, well, his whole life.
31:25Yeah, yes, exactly.
31:28With the nightclub clean and ready for its next big night,
31:32Angus's weekend at Birdsall is nearly over.
31:35Do you know, this weekend has been incredible.
31:37I, you know, I was expecting to see lovely things,
31:40but it's an amazing estate.
31:42Lady Cara and James, wonderful.
31:44But the contents of this house is unbelievable.
31:47In every room you go into, it's like, wow, wow, wow, amazing.
31:53Actually, there's not many houses with finer contents than this.
31:57You know, the best, the best.
31:59I mean, I will probably never in my lifetime sleep in an original Chippendale bed.
32:05But that's it.
32:07The weekend's come to an end.
32:08You know, I'll sign the guest book and say my farewells and back to the day job.
32:12Well, thank you very much for the most amazing weekend.
32:19Not at all.
32:20Thank you for all your help.
32:21Well, that's all right.
32:22Yeah, no, I've enjoyed it.
32:24It's been a fantastic weekend.
32:25It's been a pleasure having you here and letting you have a look at what we do.
32:29See you.
32:29No, it's been wonderful.
32:30Good luck on your trip as well.
32:31Right, I'll get the chocks away and off I go.
32:34Lovely to see you.
32:34See you, bye.
32:35Angus has sent a van to collect everything he's found.
32:43Every item needs to be catalogued and photographed.
32:47The auction needs to make top prices if the clock from the old kitchens is to ring out once more.
32:54Angus has staked his reputation on saving this piece of Yorkshire heritage.
32:58So what do you think of this, Tim? It's a lovely clock, isn't it?
33:16Oh, it's beautiful, yeah.
33:18The broken clock from the old kitchens has arrived at Angus' Restorers.
33:22We've got a little bit of carving missing as well here.
33:26Oh, yes, the curls missing there.
33:28The same this side as well.
33:29Right, OK. Oh, yes, there's just that piece missing there.
33:33Yes.
33:34Oh, that should be easy enough to carve.
33:35I notice this bits are loose as well, this moulding.
33:38Oh, yeah.
33:40The issues with it have happened because it's been kept somewhere really damp.
33:46So the movement's quite rusty.
33:48All the steel inside the movement, that's all quite rusty.
33:52And it's very, very dirty as well.
33:54The first job is to replace the missing mahogany scroll from the cabinet.
33:59What I'm going to do here is a silhouette of the piece that's missing.
34:09So I'll just draw around the edge of where the piece originally was.
34:15Yes, it fits fine, does that?
34:26Yes, that should carve around nicely, should that?
34:30Yes. This edge here will flow nicely into that edge there.
34:36While the cabinet is recarved, the clockwork itself needs to be repaired.
34:41Time stood still on this clock decades ago.
34:44It's Matt Kittle's job to see if he can make the bell ring out once more.
34:49So this is a particularly good example of a dial clock.
34:53It's got a bell, which is very unusual for a passing strike, which we'd assume was to help the staff.
35:01It's just a regular reminder what time it was.
35:03You know, if you're being tarred, you're getting the breakfast ready, off you go.
35:07You can hear it, you can let rip with the bacon and eggs.
35:11Every piece needs to be cleaned, polished and oiled.
35:15And once reassembled, Birdsall will have its own clock pack.
35:19One of the unusual things about it is this engraved piece on the back.
35:23And that enabled them to set up what time the passing strike was going to go off.
35:29You can just imagine the servants having a little tinker, try and get home five minutes early.
35:33And finally, the bell is the one part Matt isn't going to restore.
35:38As a general rule, we don't clean the bells.
35:41We want the sounds to stay the same as it did the last time it was heard.
35:45So 50, 60 years ago, and let's just try.
35:52Ah, beautiful. That's going to sound great back on the clock.
35:59Over at Kirby Moorside.
36:01We've got the country house sale with Birdsall's items in today.
36:05And they haven't got a lot.
36:07Well, actually, it looks a lot, because there's like a whole car park full of chairs.
36:11Individually, they're not that great.
36:12However, there's one really good sleepy chair that we've slipped in with the others.
36:18And I think people will buy the locks of that.
36:22The two washstands, I think whatever we get for them is a bonus.
36:26But the lock, actually, I really want to sell is the mortar stand.
36:30Because Kara pulled her face when I said, I can sell that for you.
36:34She's like, well, I was going to burn it. You can't sell it, Angus.
36:36I'm like, I can, I can.
36:39So I just hope it sells.
36:41Or else I'm going to be very embarrassed.
36:43But it's a good thing. You know, I rate it, put a nice top on that.
36:46It's going to sell well, that.
36:48It's the day of the auction.
36:49So we move on to this lovely collection of country house furniture.
36:53Birdsall only has a few items in the sale catalogue.
36:57Angus hopes there's enough to pay for the clock restoration.
37:01Well, now we're now on to Birdsall house, home to Lady Kara and James Willoughby.
37:06Been in the family since 1729.
37:08This is the first lock. Look at that there. Look at all those chairs.
37:11These recital chairs and one of them a nice sort of Georgian elbow chair,
37:16nestling in the middle of them there.
37:17And we can start this lot at, well, we can start them at £100.
37:22At £100, I bid for the lot, thank you.
37:24At £110, I bid, thank you.
37:25At £110, £120.
37:2630 chairs came out of the stables.
37:28Many were purely decorative.
37:30But there was one Angus thought the trade might like.
37:34£180, £190, £200, £210.
37:37There's a Georgian chair in there.
37:39A lot of the little ones aren't that saleable.
37:43We've put a sleeper in among them.
37:44£260 back on line, £270.
37:46There's one chair in there that they're all fighting over.
37:48£280 I bid, then, at £280 for all of the chairs, at £280.
37:53Angus is banking on these chairs selling well if the clock is to be restored.
37:57£480, at £480.
37:59Go do £500, come on, come on.
38:00At £480, easy live.
38:02At £480, then.
38:04Do I mistake it then?
38:04I'm selling then at £480, £500.
38:06Yes.
38:08That's the clock fixed.
38:09That's good, good.
38:11At £600, now.
38:12At £600, then.
38:14I have to hurry you now at £600.
38:16At £600, don't mistake it then at £600 for all the chairs, then.
38:19It's a mixing up, but sometimes dimming up gets you more.
38:24That's good. That's a good result.
38:26Next up, it's the mortar and pestle table that Angus has staked his reputation on.
38:32Thank you very much. Slot 1260, virtual house again.
38:35This needs to sell well, because I told Cara, a lady Cara, that I could sell this, and she didn't believe me, she was going to burn it.
38:41So, no pressure. Good thing.
38:44Really good thing.
38:45You can watch the basin in it, couldn't you? A lovely thing.
38:46And we can start it at £100.
38:49Yes.
38:51Told her it to sell.
38:52At £100, at £110, thank you.
38:54At £110, £120, £130, £140, £150.
38:59The car rubber's going to burn it.
39:02No, but £150 it is. In the room, then, at £150.
39:05At £150, don't mistake it then at £150.
39:08In the next bid, it's £160, no.
39:09At £150, I'm selling them to £150.
39:12£150.
39:13Excellent. Excellent.
39:21And finally, the last lot from Birdsall is the pair of small pine tables.
39:27This might be a little bit harder, these two.
39:30Will you start me at £30 for the lot? Please, £30.
39:32It's bid, thank you, at £30.
39:33At £30, I'm bid, thank you, at £32.
39:35£35, £38.
39:37£40 on line, £42.
39:39£45, £48.
39:41At £48, then.
39:42At £48 for the two.
39:43At £48, then, the good lot, then, at £48.
39:45The gavel rising at £48.
39:48Thank you, £48.
39:50£36.
39:51Great. I'm delighted, OK?
39:52Birdsall didn't have a lot of stuff in, but we wanted to raise enough money to restore that clock.
39:56To put it back in its rightful place.
39:59And we've done that on the chairs.
40:01That was the sleeper that we thought we'd do well.
40:03The more to stand, you know, I just really wanted that to sell, because I'd put my neck on the block.
40:08The following day, Angus is on the road again.
40:15So I'm just heading back to Birdsall, and it's going to be great to have a catch-up with James and Cara.
40:22We've had the auction, which did really well.
40:25The chairs sold really well.
40:27I sold the table that Cara didn't think I could sell.
40:30And we've generated enough money that's actually paid for the restoration of that wonderful clock.
40:35It's had all the work done.
40:37I've had it delivered to Birdsall, and I haven't seen it yet. Cara hasn't seen it.
40:44Yeah. Good to be back.
40:45Good to be back. You've had a delivery.
40:48There should be, yes.
40:49Yeah.
40:51Ah, good. It's arrived.
40:54This is so exciting.
40:56Yeah.
40:57But I'm really pleased, and it's all been done really off the proceeds from the auction.
41:02Great. I didn't think we'd make that much.
41:04Well, I've got some good news for you how the auction went, actually.
41:07So the chairs did 600.
41:09Good. Oh, my goodness. That's far more than I thought they would.
41:12Yeah. That's exciting.
41:12Well, yeah, to be fair, they did a bit better than what we thought, so that's good.
41:15So that really helped.
41:18And then, can you remember the pestle table?
41:20Yes, yeah, the one I was going to get rid of.
41:21Yeah, and I said, I can sell that.
41:22And you looked at me like I had two heads.
41:24Yeah. Yeah.
41:25Got 150 quid for that.
41:26Did you?
41:26Yeah, I told you.
41:27Yeah.
41:30So, yeah, in total, you made £798.
41:34Wow.
41:35Which, you know, not a huge amount, but...
41:36No, no, no, it was impressive for what it was,
41:38because I was really going to put that in the skip.
41:40Yeah.
41:40With the pestle table.
41:41And it's covered, restoring a bit of heritage.
41:43See, that's what it's all about.
41:44Yeah.
41:45So, let's have a look, see if you're happy.
41:49That's amazing. That really is amazing.
41:51Oh, I love it.
41:53So, it's all been cleaned.
41:53I love it.
41:54They've synthetically sort of restored, so that...
41:57Yeah, I don't want it looking brand new.
41:58It's like replaying.
41:59They've touched up the hands and the name, York.
42:03And this has all been re-carved.
42:04Oh, I bet it has.
42:05Because this piece, that was missing.
42:06Yes, it was totally.
42:07We couldn't find it in the...
42:08Yeah.
42:08So, they've carved that to match it in,
42:10so it's completely as it should be.
42:12I can't tell which is the old and which is the new.
42:14They've done a brilliant job.
42:15So, that's the original.
42:16And this is the clock they used every single day to run their lives by.
42:21You know, it should be back in here, shouldn't it?
42:22Yeah.
42:23You know, last orders.
42:24You'll hear the bell.
42:25Everything's functioning now.
42:27Look.
42:28The old kitchens will soon host its next event with the clock back in its rightful place.
42:38Angus's work saving a small piece of Yorkshire heritage is complete.
42:43It's wonderful to be back at Birdsall and bring that clock back.
42:47And Cara's absolutely delighted.
42:49I'm really pleased with it.
42:50They've done a fantastic job.
42:52But I'm also pleased because this is where it belongs.
42:55It was made for these rooms in the downstairs kitchens.
42:58That's where it started its life.
42:59And that's where it's back now.
43:00And it's going to stay there.
43:01And that's how it should be.
43:03That's history.
43:25I'm sorry.
43:27My trainer is living now.
43:28Anything else?
43:29Who lives from?
43:30้
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