Antiques or junk—show

Press, 15 May 1985, Page 18

Antiques or junk—show

From

GILLIAN WAINWRIGHT

in London

British viewers are once again about to place in the 8.8.C.’s top ten television programmes "The Antiques Roadshow” a strange mixture of quiz and information in which members of the public queue for hours to have their possessions valued by experts. The programme has started recording its seventh series and judging from the queues of people bringing their family heirlooms it is just as popular as ever.

Christopher Lewis, the executive producer of the show, said: “Three or four thousand people attend the average recording sessions. The peak was 7000 in Cornwall. People queue for two or three hours clutching plastic shopping bags full of their prized possessions. The experts see about 1000 items in thefitourse of a day.”

Lewis said that most of the things brought in for valuation were junk. “Our motto is to tell them what kind of rubbish it is.” There have been some surprises among the rubbish. When they were recording for the new series someone brought in a Chinese temple bell which was valued at £35,000 (SNZB4,OOO), he said.

“There was an American couple who bought a box of china in Saigon and got a jug thrown in as a makeweight. It turned out to be a Ming wine ewer which eventually sold for £13,500 ($NZ32,500).”

At the other end of the scale was an old lady with a box of bits and pieces. The programme’s experts went through them saying there was nothing of value, just £5 ($l2) here, £5 here. The old lady complained: “£5 may not be a lot to you, but it is to me.”