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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. Tavernsettle. Don't try to sell it to me.
00:21No, 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.
00:30I just think that's brilliant.
00:31In London, Shere Khan 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.
00:52Together, they're travelling the country, on the hunt for the very best antiques and decorative salvage.
01:00This time, at an historic quarry, Shere Khan and Jay play countdown.
01:09You've definitely taken an S. Give me a D.
01:12What does that show? Do you want a vowel or a consonant?
01:16At a gents outfitters, an 80-year-old work light proves a perfect fit for Shere Khan.
01:21What is that?
01:23The lamp.
01:23The lamp was out.
01:24Absolutely.
01:25I knew you'd like the lamp.
01:26Okay.
01:27And a visit to a circus collection has Vicky attracted to a very unusual find.
01:33You've been living on your own too long, Vicky.
01:35Maybe that's all I can get.
01:37From their base in North London, brothers Shere Khan and Jay deal in industrial salvage and vintage items,
01:51which they sell to clients who are drawn to 20th century design.
01:56They're always on the lookout for pieces with fascinating origins
01:59and a direct connection to historic people and places.
02:02Knowing the provenance, knowing the story, the history about an item
02:08gives that much more value to that item.
02:11And that customer appreciates that information.
02:14They'll want to know, where did you get it?
02:15Where did you find this?
02:17When you've got the backstory to something,
02:19I mean, you can speak about, for example, the people that had it before,
02:22what they did with it, where it was made, where it was used.
02:25All of that makes for an amazing story.
02:28Today, the brothers are heading to the Somerset and Dorset border
02:33and the workshops have a second-generation stonemason who is ready for a clear-out.
02:39With their love of industrial and factory items,
02:41they're keen to find sheds full of salvaged treasures with a fascinating history.
02:46We're going to go and see Saul.
02:49He runs a quarry.
02:50The quarry itself is like in the 1500s
02:54and he reclaims old buildings, stone from old buildings.
03:01Anything that he can find is just being accumulating in this quarry of his.
03:07He's a bit of a hoarder.
03:07He is a bit of a hoarder and that's what we like to hear.
03:10Interesting, I always come into family-run businesses.
03:13Yeah.
03:13Especially the ones that have been established for a long time.
03:17Rising above the flat Somerset landscape,
03:20Ham Hill forms part of one of the largest Iron Age hillforts in Great Britain.
03:24From the Middle Ages, the hill was quarried for a honey-gold limestone
03:28to which it lent its name, hamstone,
03:31used to construct buildings from humble cottages to stately homes,
03:36including the nearby Montakeet house.
03:39Look at this place. It's so beautiful. Look at it.
03:43This is the kind of place I'd like to live.
03:45Look at this. All hamstone.
03:46All of these houses made from hamstone.
03:50Wow.
03:50Today, Harvey Stone is one of the last surviving hamstone quarries,
03:55a family business run by Saul Harvey and office manager and daughter-in-law, Maddy.
04:03My father, Ray Harvey, was quarrying in the 70s.
04:07He was asked would he like to reopen this quarry, which had been closed since 1955.
04:12Hamstone is very important to the local and surrounding area.
04:15It's been used for many notable buildings, stately homes, churches,
04:20and even as far afield as London, Cambridge, and Belfast.
04:24We're still producing hamstone for all sorts of different projects.
04:28Landscaping, house building, restorations.
04:32The shed we're in now, I call the reclamation shed,
04:34filled up with reclaimed salvaged materials that we've either bought in
04:38or from buildings we've taken down ourselves.
04:40I'd love to make some space.
04:41I'd like to see a lot of the things we've got here are lovely
04:44and they should be on show somewhere.
04:46Yeah, it'd be really nice to see some things have a new home
04:49that's purposeful, it's used every day.
04:53Yeah, that'll be really exciting, I think, for me.
04:56It must be Saul.
04:57I am.
04:57Shia Khan.
04:58Shia Khan, nice to meet you.
04:59Maddy.
04:59I am Maddy, yeah, nice to meet you.
05:00Hi, Jay.
05:01Hi, Jay, nice to meet you.
05:02Hi.
05:04Wow.
05:04Amazing place.
05:05We don't get out of London enough.
05:07You know, you forget people like yourselves still exist.
05:09You know, it's quite eye-opening for us to come and see all of this.
05:12It's absolutely amazing.
05:14It's proper hands-on stone masonry up here, yeah.
05:17And am I right in saying that this very quarry
05:19was originally opened just for one stately...
05:23There's a...
05:23Montecute House, which is down the road.
05:25Yeah.
05:25Wow, that was some extra...
05:27I mean, opening the quarry just to build your own house.
05:30So, effectively, the stone is from here.
05:33It took 13 years to build.
05:34Wow.
05:35There used to be 100 masons working in this shed carving the stone.
05:38So, this hamstone, it's used in some of the most beautiful buildings,
05:42not only in England, all over the world.
05:45And the main source of it is here.
05:47Just from this little place in Somerset,
05:49it's quite an amazing feat.
05:51So, I wondered if you might be interested in those terracotta letters.
05:55Oh.
05:56Oh, they're quite nice.
05:58Under the hamstone-colored dust, they are red terracotta.
06:00Oh, they're red terracotta.
06:01They came from a place in Bridgewater that got pulled down,
06:06and it's where they used to make clay roof tiles.
06:08What would you want for a letter?
06:10Uh, I was thinking of £60 a letter.
06:12£60 a letter.
06:14What do you think of those, Jay?
06:15Quite nice, aren't they?
06:16You're definitely taking an S.
06:17Give me a D.
06:19What does that show?
06:20Do you want a vowel or a consonant?
06:22Countdown.
06:22Countdown.
06:23Would you take £300 for those?
06:29Yep.
06:30Yep.
06:30That's great.
06:31Thank you very much.
06:33Fantastic.
06:35If you can spell out a word and put that out on your website, that's great.
06:41However, I only had the choice of two words, really, with what I had there.
06:46That was mad or sad, so I spelled out sad.
06:49Now, I probably will not photograph that as sad.
06:52I will just photograph the letters individually and see how they sell.
06:57I also now know where there's still a pallet full of letters, and I can always come back.
07:05What's he carving away at?
07:08Owen has just started making another one of these.
07:11Oh, okay.
07:11Oh, wow.
07:12So this is going to a job in London.
07:15It's like a triangle impediment over a window.
07:19That's amazing.
07:20All the stone.
07:21It's dug up over there, brought over here, then taken into a workshop over there, and
07:28they're either chipped away or cut away and turned into fireplaces, window surrounds, and
07:34then shipped all over England, shipped abroad.
07:38It's fantastic.
07:39It's amazing.
07:40And this is where, again, where masons would have worked.
07:42And these are some old banker-masons benches.
07:46Oh, that's gone.
07:52Oh, that's just about hanging in.
07:56They are several hundred years old.
07:57Yeah.
07:57Yeah.
07:59Which is what makes them so unique, actually.
08:01Maddy.
08:02You know what you're doing.
08:04If you really want them.
08:06They are really nice.
08:08This is just coming apart, so you need to take that apart and then...
08:11Endowl it or something.
08:12Yeah.
08:13Put some biscuits, things, and then put it back together carefully.
08:16There's these three absolutely beautiful benches.
08:19The years have just worn them to perfection.
08:23One is too far gone.
08:25It can only be really used for spares and repairs.
08:28The other two, very interested.
08:32Banker masons are stone masons who specialize in the manual preparation of stone blocks,
08:38often using blueprints or designs to carve and shape stone.
08:42These old benches bear the scars of centuries of heavy use, but once sympathetically restored
08:48and sold as a pair of sculptural side or console tables,
08:52they could be worth around £1,700.
08:56How much were you asking, by the way?
08:59I was thinking about 280 each.
09:02Um, I'm going to be cheeky.
09:04I'm going to say, would you accept 400 for both?
09:06Shere Khan and Jay are in Ham Hill, near Yeovil in Somerset,
09:19visiting a family-run quarry filled with stone masonry treasures of incredible provenance.
09:24It's quite eye-opening for us to come and see all of this.
09:28It's absolutely amazing.
09:29They're negotiating over a set of centuries-old work benches,
09:34with a unique connection to the historic site.
09:38Um, we're going to be cheeky.
09:40I'm going to say, would you accept 400 for both?
09:43I was asking 560.
09:46Can I meet you in the middle?
09:48Is that 480?
09:49And would you take that one at all, for its parts?
09:53At 480, would you throw that in?
09:55480, I'll take that as well.
09:57But it's only for the parts, because I want to keep all the bases original,
10:00because there's nothing I could do with that.
10:04If I make that hard on us.
10:06I was quite looking forward to keeping one.
10:09Okay.
10:10That would go in my...
10:11$450 for the two.
10:13Yep.
10:13Yeah? Thank you.
10:15Fantastic, Saul. Thank you very much for that.
10:16Yeah.
10:17They're great things.
10:19You clean them, I'll restore them.
10:21Oh, my back.
10:23I'm not feeling well.
10:24Those bankers are exactly the type of stuff that we want to find from places like here.
10:32You know, I didn't buy them off another trader.
10:34Other traders haven't seen them.
10:36I'm taking them straight out of the quarry.
10:38I'm giving them the story of this quarry.
10:40It all comes back to the spiel.
10:42The spiel always helps the sale.
10:44Whoa, look at this place.
10:49So, this is one of two Petters engines that used to power the place.
10:56This is just some old collectibles from demolition jobs over the years.
11:00Mm, they're nice.
11:07Oh, there's another one back there.
11:08You break it, you buy it.
11:10Yeah, yeah, don't worry, don't worry.
11:12Found two enamel lights.
11:13It's very hard to find the kind of thinner but wider ones.
11:18Usually the thinner ones are not as wide.
11:21These are really nice.
11:22This kind of enamel lighting kind of started late 1930s and went on till about the 1950s.
11:28We have kind of like a standard kind of thing.
11:31We pay for the enamels now.
11:33Would you take 70 for the pair?
11:35I'm happy with that.
11:36Yeah?
11:36Yeah.
11:38Fantastic.
11:38Lovely, thank you.
11:41We're just getting more and more work for you, Jay.
11:43I know.
11:45Gonna keep you busy.
11:47I'm the pay rise.
11:50They're a pretty rare one.
11:52We don't normally find them that kind of shape or size.
11:55With a cast iron gallery and it's still got its original porcelain light fitting, which
12:01is, it's always good for me, you know, because it's a complete set.
12:05So I think we've seen everywhere now.
12:06I think that's about it.
12:07OK, right, so you need to get them dusty tables on the van.
12:12Me and Saul, cup of tea, and I'll sort out some paperwork for him.
12:17And by paperwork, I mean bunts.
12:19It's been an amazing day today.
12:25Very happy with the things we bought here today.
12:28The two tables, they're going to look absolutely gorgeous.
12:31Even the terracotta letters.
12:33I want to get those terracotta letters rolling really quickly, because I know where there's
12:36some more.
12:37So, you know, hopefully I'm back.
12:39Saul, what an amazing guy, eh?
12:44Saul, top guy.
12:46With the help of Maddy.
12:48Yeah, really nice of Maddy to show us around.
12:50Them bankers are absolutely fantastic.
12:54They're going to look crystal once they've been all cleaned up.
12:56Once I put my magic touch to them, they're going to be stunning.
13:00The good thing about them is not only they're great items, but also they're from that quarry.
13:06They were made for this site, and they were used on this site, so that's what makes them
13:12even more special.
13:13Yeah.
13:15It's been a successful trip, with a van packed full of items rich in provenance.
13:20With plenty of restoration work on his plate, Jay is heading back to London, while Shere Khan
13:25is heading just an hour up the road towards the Mendip Hills.
13:29He's meeting up with fellow dealer, Vicky Knott, who's secured access to the collection
13:34of a legendary circus owner, with unique history woven into every prop and poster.
13:40Right, so, this is going to be an interesting call for us.
13:46Jerry Cottle Senior.
13:48Okay.
13:49Who, you might remember, quite a famous circus.
13:53Cottle Circus.
13:54Yeah, exactly.
13:55Yeah, yeah, yeah.
13:55He set up a circus school.
13:57He set up this amusement sort of park.
14:01I remember the posters of, like, you remember when they used to come into town?
14:05They had proper animals and, like, tigers, lions, elephants, things like that.
14:09Yeah, exactly.
14:10He's got, like, a huge collection of circus-related items.
14:15The fact that we're even getting in here is a huge privilege.
14:23Nestled in the picturesque Mendip Hills in Somerset, a few miles from the famous Cheddar Gorge, is Wookiee Hall.
14:29Not just the name of the village, but of a series of prehistoric caves, first opened as a tourist attraction in 1927.
14:38In 2003, legendary showman Jerry Cottle Senior bought the caves and built a theatre and circus training academy,
14:45as well as creating a home for his unique collection of circus props and paraphernalia.
14:50The business is being carried on today by his son, Jerry Cottle.
14:58We're a famous circus family, so entertainment's always been in our blood.
15:01My dad, you know, he was born back in 1945.
15:04He was the son of a stockbroker, so a very normal middle-class family.
15:07And he actually ran away to the circus.
15:10And he ended up marrying my mum, who's part of the Fawcett family.
15:12Now, the Fawcett family, they've got hundreds of years in circus.
15:16So dad ended up actually marrying into kind of circus dynasty.
15:19But what mum and dad did together was created their very own circus.
15:23And the most travelled circus in the world, until, of course, we settled here at Wookiee Hall.
15:27So we've got lots for sale today.
15:30Dad, he was a big collector.
15:31He loved to spend his time and money looking for things that are rare and unique, because it brought him joy.
15:36And for us, really, they need a new home.
15:38We just hope that they turn up with a big van and lots of money, because I think we're going to have a good day today.
15:43How you doing? Welcome to Wookiee Hall.
15:45You must be Jerry.
15:47I am Jerry.
15:47Shere Khan.
15:48Shere Khan, pleasure to meet you, sir.
15:49Pleasure to meet you.
15:50And you, Ricky, pleasure.
15:51It looks a fun place.
15:53It is a fun, it's a magical place, Wookiee Hall.
15:55There's history and entertainment all around, and lots of relics, which I hope you're going to enjoy, so...
15:59And that's what we're here for.
16:00Yeah.
16:01My treasure-hunting friends, welcome to the first room.
16:03It'd be interesting to see what you think.
16:05There's a mixture of kind of some circus memorabilia here, but there's some old theatre stuff,
16:09but there's also just some random items.
16:11Let's see.
16:12It sort of mixes circus with that kind of slightly seaside amusement arcade.
16:21It's fantastically, uniquely British, and that's what I love about it.
16:27Who knows what we're going to find today?
16:30I don't care.
16:31It's going to have history, and it's going to be absolutely mad.
16:35I tell you what, these are fun.
16:36Look at this.
16:36This is a cast, you know?
16:38I feel like...
16:39Look at this.
16:39This is a proper cast for the bins.
16:41You see this guy here?
16:42Yeah, yeah, yeah.
16:43I'm not a fan of a clown, but I think that does look quite nice.
16:47Do you think they'll be nice on the wall just sideways like that, Vicky?
16:50I think you're on to something.
16:52You painted them up as well.
16:53They could look stunning, couldn't they?
16:54Or would you leave them classic?
16:55I don't know.
16:56Like that one's painted.
16:56If I said 250 quid each?
16:58I was thinking that, actually.
16:59Can I take three?
17:00Yep.
17:00Yep.
17:01How many is there?
17:02I think I'll do it with you there.
17:03I'd maybe take a few.
17:05I remember them as well in funfairs and that.
17:07It's like a clown with a mouth open, and people used to throw balls in it.
17:10They kind of reminded me of those ducks flying.
17:12So you could have these clowns' heads just on the wall.
17:15So, yeah, I just thought they looked amazing.
17:17How many are you wanting?
17:18Do you want to go halves?
17:19I'll go halves on them.
17:20All right.
17:20Five and five.
17:22Yep.
17:22Fantastic.
17:23Great.
17:24Good.
17:24So that's 50.
17:25That's 250 for the five and five, yeah?
17:26Yep.
17:27Yeah, yeah.
17:27Yeah?
17:28OK, fine.
17:28Brilliant.
17:29Thank you, madam.
17:32Individually, as something that just hangs on the wall as a piece of art,
17:36they're really interesting, actually.
17:38But the fact that we got them from here and we got them off Jerry himself,
17:43that does add a little bit of sparkle.
17:46Oh, my God.
17:46What is that?
17:48That could have been from the Circus of Horrors,
17:49and it might have been as part of our guillotine magic routines.
17:53Oh, I'm leaving there.
17:54It's a bit scary, that guy.
17:57You don't like that?
17:58No, I don't.
17:59You've been living on your own too long, Vicky.
18:03Maybe that's all I can get.
18:04I could just sit him at the side when I'm watching the telly at night.
18:10A little bit of company.
18:12Do you want 20 quid for him?
18:13Yeah, I think that's fair.
18:15Go on, 20 quid's good, yeah.
18:16Love this.
18:17All right.
18:20There was, like, this sort of grotesque wax head
18:24with, like, a single glass eye.
18:28I don't care where it came from.
18:31It is grotesque enough to create conversation,
18:35and the fact it's got this weird glass eye in it,
18:38just, I love it.
18:39Do you know what?
18:40These look really interesting.
18:41Yeah, shall I bring them out?
18:42Yeah.
18:43So what are these from?
18:45So these would be from pinball machines?
18:46Yeah.
18:47I potentially like these two.
18:49I don't know which ones you like.
18:50I'm half and half about them.
18:52Yeah.
18:52I don't know how you would specifically display them.
18:56You can't wrap and pack them.
18:58I'd have to think of something,
18:59like maybe have a box built for them or...
19:02Yeah.
19:02The ones that I visually like the most,
19:05one was called Torpedo.
19:07It's around, like, 70s, that one.
19:09And then the other one was a card-playing one.
19:12Had all the different cards, like the king, the queen.
19:14So a lot of the stuff we sell,
19:16we have a certain clientele, kind of masculine clientele.
19:19And I hate using the phrase man cave,
19:21but they have their own spaces.
19:23And the designs that I chose out of the pinball screens
19:26speak to those people.
19:28So I know the clientele that they're going to sell to.
19:32I love it.
19:32What would you want for those two?
19:34In my head, I always had 50 quid per thing for these.
19:37Yeah?
19:37I'll take those 50.
19:38OK, thank you, sir.
19:39And then I'm going to try and get my brother to build a box.
19:42Yeah.
19:42And then he'll have some LEDs inside that box.
19:46I was sort of on the fence.
19:47You're sort of selling them to me,
19:49but I'm not going to put them on box-saving LEDs.
19:50Yeah, you don't have to.
19:51You can see them just as they are.
19:53But I'll take Snow Darby.
19:55Yep.
19:56And the space one at the back.
19:57And this one with the contact one.
19:59Yeah.
19:59Good stuff.
20:00I like that one.
20:00Can I get that one as well?
20:01Yeah.
20:0150 quid.
20:02Oh, thank you.
20:02Brilliant.
20:03Yeah, that sounds good.
20:03This is where two dealers do stuff differently.
20:06His brother's going to build, like, a light box for them.
20:10And it's going to be something that you can hang ready on the wall.
20:15And I can totally see how there's a customer out there for that.
20:18For me personally, I see the beauty in them just sitting at an angle on a fireplace or on a bookshelf or even on the inside of a window.
20:32You know, they'd look fantastic.
20:34What about the hat?
20:36That would have been an old, believe it or not, like an elephant hat.
20:38On a real elephant?
20:39On a real elephant?
20:40Yeah, many years ago, yeah.
20:41You could have?
20:42No, probably something like that.
20:44Yeah, they'd have been the strap loop.
20:47Yeah.
20:48Back when that was acceptable.
20:50When my dad first did this as many years ago, when he first went to buy his first elephant, he went to one of the ports down the south of England.
20:55Whoa, whoa, whoa.
20:56You just said the first time my dad went to get an elephant.
21:00That would have been back in the 70s.
21:03That elephant was called Rani.
21:04Back in the day, that was totally normal to have animals.
21:06That's where people saw wild animals.
21:08They didn't go abroad like now.
21:09It was either a zoo or a circus.
21:11Because you didn't fly around the world to see animals like you do now.
21:13It's amazing, isn't it?
21:13So at that time, and that's where that would have come from.
21:15But that's in our lifetime.
21:16Yeah.
21:17Yeah.
21:17In the 70s, yeah.
21:18On first inspection, this is just a fiberglass top hat from the circus.
21:23It's got age about it.
21:25It's got its original straps.
21:27It is properly in original condition.
21:32But the fact it's an elephant's hat, that's what gives it a little bit of edge for me.
21:37From ancient Roman arenas to 20th century circus rings, performing elephants' captivated audiences.
21:45Props like this hat were sometimes used within themed productions.
21:50This one is relatively modern, as it's made of lightweight fiberglass.
21:54A relic of a bygone era, Vicky thinks it could fetch around 200 pounds.
21:59It's got a history, and like I said, you bring those colors up, it'll be fantastic.
22:04Yeah.
22:0650 quid.
22:17Vicky and Shere Khan are in the Somerset village of Wookiee Hole, visiting the Jerry Cottle Circus Collection.
22:23It looks a fun place.
22:25It is a fun, it's a magical place, Wookiee Hole, there's history and entertainment all around.
22:30Vicky has found an Uncle Sam's circus hat, once worn by a performing elephant, and she's fascinated by its provenance and social history.
22:38You bring those colors up, it'll be fantastic, wouldn't it?
22:40Yeah.
22:4250 quid.
22:44Of course.
22:45For you, Vicky, thank you.
22:46I mean, who doesn't want a hat that was worn by an elephant?
22:52I mean, this is the kind of stuff that I was expecting today, just like crazy clowns and, yeah, elephant hat.
22:59Wasn't expecting Vicky to buy most of it, but I was expecting to see a lot of this stuff.
23:03So, my friends, we're about to go and see some more collectibles in the office.
23:07But first, I have a little adventure for you.
23:10We've got to get to the office through the mirror maze.
23:12You feeling brave?
23:14Let's give it a go.
23:15I'm going to look like a nutter.
23:16My nose nose is on those mirrors, I'm just warning you.
23:19And I'll try not to walk too far, shall I?
23:21Okay, that way.
23:23Yeah, that way.
23:24Yeah, yeah.
23:25No, you could go that way or that way.
23:27I really want you to, like, face plant into a mirror.
23:30That would be funny.
23:31I'm going walking with my hands out.
23:33There, there, there.
23:34There, here we are.
23:35Here we are, here we are.
23:35Yeah, we've got it, we've got it.
23:38God, I love that.
23:39Back from 1991, when it first installed one of the first mirror mazes, like, of its kind of...
23:44Sorry for the person that has to clean that.
23:46Yeah, that's the, yeah, short straw, right, yeah.
23:50Right, so here is the main space for the offices.
23:54And upstairs is part of, like, some of his bits of collection.
23:58What about this?
23:59You want to sell that?
24:00I want to sell that.
24:00We're interested to sell that.
24:01Yeah, we've thought about that.
24:02I think that's beautiful, but I just, you know, for us, we've probably got no use for it at the moment.
24:06They're for paper, aren't they?
24:08Yes.
24:09Specifically, I think.
24:09Yeah.
24:10If I can buy, kind of, bonkers circus stuff all day long, I will.
24:15But it has to come down to the simple fact that that stuff's a bit niche.
24:19Let's be honest.
24:20But when I find a glazed shop-fitting cabinet, you know, for selling paper, that's a bread-and-butter item, and I'm going to try and buy it all day long.
24:31You want £100 for it?
24:33Woo!
24:35Give me a little bit more.
24:37You've had a, yeah?
24:38£125.
24:40Because you've done so many good deals today, and you've been very kind, go on then.
24:44Perfect.
24:45But I'm glad you've taken that, because I think that needs a good home.
24:48I think it's a cool thing.
24:50I'm fairly confident it was for different weights of paper.
24:56I think you're right.
24:57And if stationers.
24:58Yeah, that makes sense to me.
25:00Blotting paper, yeah.
25:00Yeah.
25:01It's a good item to have.
25:02We can display things in it.
25:04At £125, there's a turn.
25:06You know, this is what I want to get in every day of the week, because they look great in houses.
25:14They're really handy.
25:15You know, imagine that in somebody's bathroom, with beautiful bottles in it.
25:20Oh, aha.
25:21Here we go.
25:22So, this is some good stuff.
25:23I've got these out especially for you guys.
25:24These are actually classic circus boats.
25:26They're worth quite a bit of money, these ones.
25:27They're all originals.
25:29But this is, this is Kahil Akbar, and he used to lift an elephant.
25:33So, he'd come in, and he'd get on this big platform, and then he'd squat, he'd put the things out, and he'd lift.
25:39No joking, lift an elephant.
25:40Again.
25:41He did not.
25:41Seriously.
25:42These are quite good.
25:43These are all originals, obviously.
25:44This one's quite nice, with the big, I love the colours.
25:47I can't remember what year, but it would have been back from the 70s.
25:50Who is that man in the moustache?
25:51That's Dad.
25:52Oh, that's your father?
25:52That's Dad, yeah.
25:53Okay.
25:53They are proper historical British circus posters.
25:58I grew up in the 80s.
25:59I remember them kind of like stuck in the newsagent window.
26:02Circus is coming to town, or Fun Fair is coming to town.
26:05So, they are absolutely perfect.
26:07So, if we settle that one.
26:09Yep.
26:11One of these.
26:13That's a good one.
26:13Yep.
26:15What would you want for the four of those?
26:18Well, I know these ones are worth 75 to 100 standard anyway, these guys here.
26:24Okay.
26:26But if you want to take all four, I'll do them all for 50 quid each, 200.
26:29Okay.
26:30Yeah.
26:30Take those.
26:31All right.
26:31Good man.
26:31Thank you, sir.
26:32Fantastic.
26:32You're an easy double or triple that.
26:33No problem.
26:34Yeah, they're great.
26:34I do love my...
26:36I've got, yeah, posters and, yeah, I do a lot of, like, propaganda.
26:40You love all that stuff.
26:41I'm happy for you to go to a good home as well, so that's why I'm happy for you to do a deal,
26:44so thank you.
26:45I do really well with posters.
26:47I do really well with, you know, I get posters from all over the world.
26:50These are really core British circus posters, so, yeah, they're going to sell really well.
26:56We're going to sort out the money and then we'll get ahead.
27:00Thank you so much.
27:00Thank you for the day.
27:01Appreciate it.
27:02Jerry has been an absolute gentleman today.
27:08He's been fair with his prices.
27:10He's been so much fun.
27:13And to get access somewhere like this is an absolute privilege.
27:17And to be taken around it by the son of the person that basically created it, it does not get better than that.
27:26The circus, a British institution, how many of those fairground mould heads and those pinball machine glasses were destroyed?
27:36It's amazing when you're able to save something and be able to show it off in a new way, give it to a new audience.
27:42It's very satisfying.
27:43I have to say, we bought well, we did great business, we've helped clear a bit of their basement.
27:52Jerry's a character though, isn't he?
27:53Yeah, that's the best bit of the day.
27:55Honestly, he's a showman, through and through.
27:58I didn't quite understand the importance that they have within the circus community.
28:07Yeah, yeah, yeah.
28:07They're like circus royalty, aren't they?
28:09They are.
28:09Some say, I'm a clown, so I'm a bit of a circus royalty.
28:12No, no.
28:13They've got natural talent.
28:15Oh, leave it out.
28:20With a van full of unusual and rare finds, Vicky and Shere Khan are keen to find more items with remarkable provenance.
28:27They're making the short trip to Taunton, the county town of Somerset,
28:31and home to a traditional high street business that's been owned by the same family for generations.
28:37We are going to see Sarah.
28:40Okay.
28:41Who has an old sort of gentleman's tailors.
28:46Okay.
28:47It's called Gerds.
28:48Gerds.
28:49They're wanting to clear some storerooms and get a bit of space.
28:52So it's like a proper gentleman's clothing shop.
28:57Fourth generation.
28:59Always interesting to meet people like this.
29:02We're on the lookout for shop fittings, shop cabinets, bingo if there's haberdashery cabinets,
29:08and anything else that we can help them to clear out the stores.
29:13Great.
29:14Believe it or not, I used to work in a gentleman's outfitters in Edinburgh back in the day when I was, like, young.
29:22What, not like the tape measure and all of that?
29:25Oh, yes.
29:27Which way do you dress, sir?
29:30Suits you, sir.
29:31One of them.
29:32Yes.
29:35Taunton's streets trace more than a thousand years of history, from the remains of its Norman castle to half-timbered Tudor buildings.
29:42The market town has long been a centre for local commerce and trade, a tradition continued by a hundred-year-old shop that's been in the hands of one family for four generations.
29:53The latest scion of this Somerset sartorial institution is Sarah Farnfield.
29:58My great-grandfather, Wallace Court, bought a shop off of George Gerd in 1934.
30:07People come here because we have a Victorian-listed shop front.
30:12The shop fittings match the shop, so why would you want to modernise it?
30:18My brother and I are looking to preserve the building, restore the shop front to its former state,
30:24and we would like to reinstate living accommodation upstairs, so we need to generate some funds to be able to do that.
30:33Obviously, we trade off of the shop floor, but there's still two floors above us.
30:39My great-grandparents moved out in 1960, roughly.
30:43Nobody's lived in the flat since, and it's pretty much untouched.
30:48Oh, look at that.
30:50This must be it, yeah.
30:51This must be it.
30:52Look at that, wow.
30:53God, it's a proper old shop.
30:55Yeah.
30:55Look at these.
30:56I know.
30:57Don't you feel like it's a step back in time in these type of places?
31:00It is a little, isn't it?
31:01It is.
31:02Hello.
31:03Hello.
31:03Welcome to Gerds.
31:05I'm Vicky.
31:06Sarah.
31:07Shea Khan, Sarah.
31:08Very nice to meet you.
31:09And you.
31:10It kind of brings back nostalgia in your company, doesn't it?
31:13It's weird for me because I did work in a men's tailors.
31:17It's the only proper job I've ever had.
31:19My dad was a gentleman's tailor, and he'd do these absolutely immaculate suits.
31:24Yeah.
31:24He was very, I mean, he's still quite good at, he's still handy on the sewing machine.
31:28Look, look, look, that's the front of the, yeah.
31:30That's 1934, so that's the year my great-grandfather bought the shop.
31:34It hasn't really changed.
31:36No, it's not changed, has it?
31:37No, it's not allowed to change because it's a listed shop.
31:40Oh, wow.
31:40Yeah.
31:41There's a great feeling in this place, you know, coming to a shop, getting measured up,
31:46getting a fantastic suit, walking out looking a million dollars.
31:50You know, hats off to Sarah and the team here for really keeping that genuine gentleman's
31:56store feel.
31:57They've still got it going.
31:59So, welcome to the flat.
32:01Part of my great-grandparents' living accommodation.
32:04Definitely a step back in time up here.
32:08So, this is the sewing room.
32:09So, do you still use these?
32:11Absolutely, every day.
32:13Is anything in this room for sale?
32:15It depends what you want.
32:17Is that?
32:18The lamp.
32:19The lamp for sale?
32:19Absolutely, you can have the lamp.
32:21I knew you'd like the lamp.
32:22OK.
32:22It's designed by someone called George Carradine for angle poise from back in the 1940s or
32:2950s.
32:30It's still got its original light switch, the Crabtree light switch.
32:34It's called the angle poise 1209, and it's an early angle poise.
32:39The 1209 work light was a 1930s design by British engineer George Carradine.
32:46Featuring four springs to control the movements of the arms, its success in workshops and factories
32:51led to the refined three-spring version called the angle poise.
32:56Such examples of industrial design are highly collectible, and once restored, this lamp could
33:01be worth around £325.
33:05Everything's perfect.
33:07It's totally, totally original.
33:09It's got the original wool mount on it.
33:12Obviously, it's going to need to go into the workshop, a rewire, a pack test, but people
33:16like things totally complete.
33:20Would you sell that panther as well?
33:21Yeah, you can have the panther and a panther.
33:23Would you do £100 for the panther and the light?
33:33Vicky Nart and Sheerkan Yamagja are in Taunton in Somerset, visiting a traditional men's
33:39outfitters that's been in the same family for four generations.
33:43They're searching for items with exceptional provenance, including a highly collectible work
33:48lamp that's been in the shop for 80 years.
33:51Would you sell that panther as well?
33:54Yeah, you can have the panther and a panther.
33:56Would you do £100 for the panther and the light?
33:57Yeah.
33:59Fantastic.
34:00I'm going to trust you because I've got no idea.
34:02It's just a lovely little panther, but it's advertising.
34:05Yeah, exactly.
34:06Yeah.
34:07Oh, it's ceramic.
34:08Yeah.
34:09So, Pantharella is the sock company.
34:11We currently stock HJ, which is part of their umbrella, but it's still called Pantharella.
34:16But they're very high-end socks.
34:19OK.
34:19It was a nice bit of old English advertising, being ceramic and in perfect condition.
34:25Yeah, I was very happy with that.
34:27It's perfect for my clientele.
34:29So, this would have been my great-grandparents' bedroom.
34:36So, these are shirt displays?
34:39Shirt display, yeah.
34:40And then you've got, like, tea bars.
34:42I've got quite a few of them.
34:43Do you use these anymore?
34:46Yeah, I use some, but I have quite a lot.
34:48I've got lots of these.
34:49There's loads of these in the shelf.
34:52So, it might be a case of just, like, rake through them.
34:55Yeah, and then I've got more upstairs.
34:57Oh, have you?
34:58Right, OK.
34:59I wanted to get stuck in and have a look, and then Sarah went, hold your horses.
35:03I've got more upstairs.
35:05And I'm like, fantastic.
35:07Let's go and have a look.
35:10That's the turntable that used to go in the window.
35:13Oh.
35:14Like an electric turntable?
35:15Yeah.
35:17It sounds a little bit mad, but I might be interested in that.
35:21We can find a plug.
35:23Try it.
35:23Plug it in.
35:25Or it's vintage.
35:26It's vintage.
35:27Oh, my gosh.
35:29Look at that.
35:31Yeah.
35:32So, this outside would have been done either by Dad or my grandfather.
35:36So, when you come somewhere like this, you literally have to look in every corner, in every cupboard,
35:43and there was an old turntable, and I thought, that might work, to put a pot or a vase or something
35:51on and spin it to take video.
35:53You know, not everything you buy when you come places has to be stock.
35:58So, we can plug it in over here.
36:01So, where are we now?
36:02Is this the living room?
36:03So, this is the front room, yeah.
36:05Wow.
36:05Moment of choice.
36:11There you go.
36:12There you are.
36:12Just don't touch it.
36:13You don't touch it, yeah.
36:15So, how old's that going to be?
36:16From the bottom of that, that's looking, what, 50s?
36:1940s or 50s.
36:20I mean, if you are going to use that, I would very strongly recommend you have it rewired, pack-tested.
36:27Yeah.
36:28I actually think that it could do a wee job for me.
36:30What do you think?
36:31Yeah.
36:31It's not got any value, really, has it?
36:33Yeah.
36:35You know what I mean?
36:35Do you want 20 quid for it?
36:37Proverbs.
36:37Yeah, brilliant.
36:39It's a proper piece of shop-fitting history.
36:45And I thought, that's really cool for the shop.
36:48And then when I was rooting through the sideboard, there was another one.
36:52Oh, another one.
36:54Oh, yeah, that's got the old one.
36:55That's even older.
36:57Mockwood around it as well.
36:58You want another 20 quid for that as well?
37:02Go for it.
37:04Go for it.
37:04You can do that double.
37:05I've got to have two quid.
37:06Yeah.
37:07I'm going to get that to the electrician, get it revamped, and now I'm going to use it for modern day content of retailing.
37:18I love that.
37:19I love the fact that you've taken something from the past and I'm using it for the future.
37:24It's brilliant.
37:25We're getting narrower and lower ceilings.
37:30This is the first of the two attic rooms, and I have a load more fixtures.
37:37So you have.
37:39They're the ones that had the glass plates on them and they would go in here.
37:42Yeah.
37:43So that would sit in there.
37:45And then you tighten it up and then you can move it up and down and angle them.
37:52Right, OK.
37:53Those are nice, those ones.
37:55I think they're quite nice.
37:56Came up to the attic and there's a room full of more parts for these little tabletop stands, which is great.
38:07Now all I've got to do is get all the bits that I've found together and build what I need.
38:16So you've got something like that.
38:18I've got quite a few of these, actually.
38:20These are really good.
38:21So what do you use them for?
38:22A lot of, like, fashion students, things like that, buy them off me, yeah.
38:27If you look on here, you'll see the maker's mark as well on the bottom.
38:30Birmingham makers.
38:31I think it says Harrison, Sheldon, Birmingham, yeah.
38:33Right, OK.
38:35They're quite a famous maker.
38:38That's like another.
38:40That's a nice one.
38:41Can we sort of just say, if I get a pile of these sort of smaller stands together, a ten or a piece,
38:50and then, you know, the ones with the shirt and the stand and everything, 20 quid each?
38:55Perfect.
38:55And then I'll just get as many together as I can get.
38:58Is that all right?
38:59Is that a deal yet?
39:00Yeah.
39:00Right, that's great.
39:01So we'll do that.
39:02I think some will go up for sale.
39:06The ones which, they're more like little pieces of sculpture.
39:10They look good sitting by themselves on a side piece.
39:14The ones for the shirts, they're not, you know, they're not as sort of aesthetically pleasing in that way.
39:20So I'll use them in the shop as fixtures and fit-ins.
39:24These, though, you can use these in the shop.
39:27If I gave you 20 pound each for these.
39:29That's right.
39:30Yeah?
39:30Yeah.
39:31Then we can, I can.
39:33Thank you very much.
39:34Because you can, you can.
39:35I want to use them.
39:36I actually want to use them for myself.
39:38They're these metal rods standing on like a Star of David base.
39:43They've got little clamps where you slip glass in and you can move them to the position that you want.
39:49Not just as something to sell.
39:50I can see me using this in my shop.
39:53I can see myself using these in fairs.
39:55They sell really well.
39:56People buy them for the home.
39:58Shopkeepers love them for display.
40:00They're great little things.
40:04I've been sitting here putting parts together, literally.
40:09And we've come up with 19 smaller ones and seven larger pieces.
40:16Half will be used in the shop for display and half will go up for sale.
40:21And I'm happy with that.
40:23Sarah's been great.
40:25You know, she's been great on prices.
40:27And I just totally have got so much respect for her.
40:30Because she's just keeping carrying this business forward.
40:33And I love that.
40:36What do you think?
40:37Well, we've got some nice stuff.
40:39Very saleable.
40:41All of those stands you bought.
40:42They're very well made.
40:44All got maker's marks.
40:46Birmingham made.
40:48They're the real deal.
40:49Yeah, exactly.
40:50But I have to say, without a shadow of a doubt, turntables.
40:55Well, are they your best buy of the day?
40:58I just love them.
41:00Just get them rewired, yeah?
41:01Do you know what?
41:02I'm loving the fact that I can take an old shop display item from the 50s or whenever it was from.
41:12And I can use it for retailing today.
41:18It's been a successful buying trick, with a haul of rare items with important provenance attached.
41:24Back at her Edinburgh shop, Vicky is keen to show her finds to trusty assistant Marcia.
41:31What do you think you need?
41:32Oh, I love these.
41:33They're cast aluminium.
41:35I think they're great.
41:36They're good fun.
41:39Put one of these in your garden.
41:41Yeah, you could actually.
41:42You could put it in the garden.
41:43This is the buy, I think, potentially, of the day.
41:51Guess what that is?
41:53I mean, other than a big hat, I don't know.
41:56Right, so it came from a circus.
41:59It came from the 70s.
42:00It's an elephant's hat.
42:03That explains the straps.
42:04I just think, as part of circus history, it's like, it is really quite interesting.
42:11I would imagine it would have been a baby elephant, given that the straps are long, but not that long.
42:16Right, have you got that?
42:17Yeah, I've got it.
42:18Right, brilliant.
42:19As a dealer, I just love being able to get my hands on items, which have got a bit of history and have got provenance.
42:27And it just makes it extra special for my customers.
42:32Oh, my God, look.
42:34Marcia.
42:34The thing with that head is, you know, it's quite an ugly little character.
42:42It went into the collection at Cottle Circus.
42:46So all these layers of history just add to it, makes it a talking point in the shop, and it's just a bit of fun.
42:54The more I look at it, the more I like it.
42:56It's cool, isn't it?
42:57Now, can I just suggest this is possibly one of the most random groups of purchases I've made in a while?
43:04Oh, definitely.
43:05I picked up some really interesting pieces from Gerds of Taunton.
43:13I can go to an antiques fair and buy a pile of shirt stands, but it's different.
43:18I know exactly where these came from.
43:20The ultimate find as a dealer is an item where you've got its past life.
43:28You've got a story.
43:30You've got links to where it was, what it did, and when.
43:34And you can't beat it, because all you have to do is then pass that on to its new owner,
43:43and then that link isn't broken.
43:45Do you want to flip it, because you've got an ancient collection.
43:47So, let's do this again.
43:47And we'll get all that information.
43:50We'll get to this again.
43:52So, we'll get to this again.
43:54I'll get to this again.
44:05We'll get to this again.
44:06Bye-bye.
44:07Bye-bye.
44:07Bye-bye.
44:07Bye-bye.
44:11Bye-bye.
44:11Bye-bye.
44:12Bye-bye.
44:13Bye-bye.
44:14Bye-bye.
44:14Bye-bye.
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