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Episode 38

Episode 38 of 40

The conservation team works wonders on a bent brass key ring, a clockwork toy turkey that’s ground to a halt, and a signet ring that symbolises a long and happy marriage.

It’s silversmith Brenton West’s time to shine as he is called upon to give a worn and bent brass key ring a new lease of life. The treasured trinket was made for Neil when he was a lad by his charismatic father, Bill. Sadly, Neil lost his father recently, and this hand-engraved key ring has come to represent everything he loved about him. Bill engraved his son’s name on one side and the motto ‘no fear’ on the other, which was the mantra he lived his life by. However, the engraved words have almost worn away. Neil now has a son of his own, Bill’s namesake Billy, and hopes to display the key ring as a reminder of the father he loved so much and of the grandfather Billy junior will never know. Brenton goes to great lengths to emboss each of the tiny dents that spell the words which mean so much to Neil.

Sisters Lynne and Gayle come to meet clockwork king Steve Fletcher with a small box housing the favourite childhood toy of their late mother, Helen. The wind-up turkey used to strut about shaking its tail feathers and amusing little Helen and her sisters, but it came to a grinding halt decades ago. Lynne and Gayle grew up listening to stories of their mum’s childhood on a farm and her love of this little turkey toy. It was only recently that the family found the toy in a box with some old photos and, although Helen was reunited with it before she passed away, it had seized up and the wind-up key was long gone. The sisters would love to see the toy in action for themselves and show it to their own children, but the old bird is reluctant to perform and proves to be quite tricky for Steve!

Goldsmith Richard Talman greets Christine from Derbyshire, who has brought the pieces of her late father’s gold signet ring. The ring, engraved with his initials, was an engagement present in 1949 from her mother, Ethel, to her fiancé, Phillip. He wore the ring with pride, but after an accident at work, the ring had to be cut from his finger and was then stowed away. It was then forgotten about until Christine came across it when clearing her parents’ house after they passed away. The ring represents the couple's long and happy marriage, and Christine would like her eldest brother, who has the same initials, to have it. That’s if Richard can piece it back together.

14 days left to watch

43 minutes

Audio described

Last on

Fri 1 Mar 2024 15:45

Credits

Role Contributor
Presenter Jay Blades
Narrator Bill Paterson
Expert Brenton West
Expert Steven Fletcher
Expert Rich Talman
Expert Dominic Chinea
Expert William Kirk
Executive Producer Hannah Lamb
Executive Producer Paula Fasht
Director Ben Borland
Executive Producer Emma Walsh
Director James Bainbridge
Series Producer Matt Baker

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