Description:
Enter a workshop filled with expert craftspeople, bringing loved pieces of family history and the memories they hold back to life. A heartwarming antidote to throwaway culture.
Season 14 - Episode 7
Setting bear ladies Julie Tatchell and Amanda Middleditch the first task – with strings attached – Jill Purves and her daughter Vickie, from Biggar in Scotland. Bulbous, a puppet elephant, was bought at an auction and is believed to have been part of one of the earliest BBC children’s programmes, Muffin the Mule. Jill and her husband are puppeteers who started touring in the 1960s. They went on to start a toy theatre, which contains a museum to show children how puppets work. They wanted Bulbous to be one of the museum puppets, but sadly they had a fire, and the poor little elephant suffered smoke damage, and his strings melted. Julie and Amanda enlist the help of David Burville to pull all the strings together to rescue the endangered elephant.
Top of the agenda for clock restorer Steve Fletcher – a watch with a long history, brought in by James from Glasgow. The Swiss timepiece once belonged to James’s grandfather, who was a Lancaster bomber pilot in World War II. It was then passed down to James’s dad, who had it engraved. Tragically, in 2005, James’s father and sister were killed in a boating accident. His father’s body was never found, and they feared the watch went with him. However, it was miraculously found in a drawer 20 years later. The family believe that the watch needed some repairs, hence why his dad had put it aside – a silver lining to a tragic situation. After two generations of adventurous wearers, James hopes to be the third generation to wear the watch, in remembrance of those who’ve passed away. And Steve doesn’t disappoint with a stunning repair.
Peggy Doran, her daughter Jayne and granddaughter Emilie are next through the barn doors, hoping that painting conservator Lucia Scalisi can use her skills to honour a legend of their family. Back in the 1940s and 50s, Peggy’s husband Bill was a well-decorated motorcycle racer who sped through the finish line at Scarborough to win the course lap record and eventually the Gold Cup. He went on to win the Belgium Grand Prix. After he retired, he opened a motorbike shop, and his love of bikes was passed down to daughter Jayne and eventually granddaughter Emilie. Sadly, Bill died when Jayne was just 13. The family enjoy looking through old photos of their beloved Bill doing what he loved best. Once, when Jayne went up to Scarborough to visit the track where her dad held so many accolades, she saw the old course lap record sign – with his name on it – which was about to be demolished after years of being exposed to the elements. The circuit director offered her the sign to take home with her as a memento of her dad. She couldn’t believe her luck, but it had picked up some bumps and scrapes over the years. Lucia must scramble to salvage the vinyl lettering while Dominic Chinea races to save the wooden framework on the back of the sign. It’s a double win that leaves the entire family feeling on top of the podium.
Last at the barn, Nicholas and his dad Seamus, from County Antrim in Northern Ireland, with a tale of triumph and disaster. They present Will Kirk with a hurling stick which Seamus’s mum bought him in 1980 when he was 18. The entire family was involved in hurling from a very early age-and Seamus’s mum once won an All-Ireland medal back in 1947. Seamus enjoyed playing with his brand new hurl for two years before his team made it to the All-Ireland Club Final and went on to win it. Keen to preserve his treasured stick, Seamus retired it straight after the victory. Years later, when debating with son Nicholas over whether he was more skilled having used the old stick compared to the newer ones Nicholas was playing with, Nicholas had to put things to the test, but as soon as he swung at the ball with his dad’s old hurl, the stick smashed into bits. Full of guilt, he’s desperate for wood expert Will to piece the shattered stick back together. The hurl had been signed by all the players, but with every signature now with a crack, it’s a difficult fix for Will, but one that leaves it fit to commemorate a proud time in family and community history.
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