It seems that Michael Aspel is standing down from presenting the Antiques Roadshow and is likely to be replaced by newsreader Fiona Bruce.
Aspel (and the BBC) insist that it has nothing to do with his age, saying that he is simply ready to “hang up his shoes” in his 50th year of television, as he is feeling “totally fulfilled”.
Fiona Bruce is already well-known as the co-host of Crimewatch and the presenter of BBC One’s 10 O’clock News.
Update: Confirmed here.
Hot on the heels of my discovery that the BBC has closed the antiques section of their Lifestyle website, I have also found out that they have a new antique-related TV series in the pipeline aimed at collectors and enthusiasts.
The series is called “Treasure” and seems to revolve around the idea of collectors valuing, buying, swapping and selling pieces with other collectors and a selection of dealers. I can reveal that the first filming session is taking place at The Victoria Rooms in Bristol on the 8th July and is aimed at Royal Worcester porcelain and Moorcroft Pottery collectors and enthusiasts.
According to the publicity blurb we were sent, Treasure “takes an in-depth look into the world of collecting antiques”. The premise of the series seems to be to give collectors a chance to receive expert valuations and advice on their collections, at the same time as allowing them to sell, swap and purchase pieces they are missing - hence Treasure, I suppose.
I can’t find any mention of this programme on the BBC’s Antiques website (unsurprising since it has “closed”) but I guarantee it does exist! Should you be interested in going along you can find out more by contacting Emily Green (emily.green@bbc.co.uk / 0117 9746899) at the BBC.
We’ve had gardening, DIY and antiques - what’s going to be the next daytime TV trend?
Judging from the now-closed BBC antiques website, it must be time for something new. Back to basics cookery, anyone? I hear that Delia Smith has just signed up to do a new TV cookery series based on her 1971 book, How To Cheat At Cooking
There seems no sign that the exodus of volume pottery manufacturing from the UK is slowing. According to a recent press release by market research company Research and Markets, the total value of manufacturing sales of ceramics in the UK between 2002 and 2005 dropped by 32% - almost a third. At the same time, the total retail value of ceramics sold in the UK remained almost unchanged.
That extra third must have been produced somewhere, though, musn’t it?
Even the industry’s most famous names are experiencing problems at the moment - with both Wedgwood and Spode in the middle of job-cutting reorganisations aimed at helping them return to profitability. In addition, the past year has seen the failure of both Poole Pottery and Royal Stafford, as well as the offshoring of most PenDelfin production.
Where Next?
All of this leaves you wondering what the future will hold for the nation’s world-famous potteries. I firmly believe that the only possible answer lies in quality, originality and technical innovation - rehashing old designs and shapes and launching tawdry “celebrity-endorsed” ranges of tableware can only take companies so far. They have to do something to justify the higher costs of designing and manufacturing pottery in the UK - and true innovation seems the only answer.
On the other hand, perhaps the demand that used to exist at the top end of the market has simply passed - a victim of changing fashions and lifestyles. I don’t know - what do you think?
It seems that filming is underway for the latest series of Dickinson’s Real Deal, the ITV1 show hosted by David Dickinson, of Bargain Hunt infamy.
You can find a list of the remaining film dates here, on David Dickinson’s official website.
Dickinson and Bargain Hunt have been widely blamed by some dealers for contributing to falling fair prices and rising auction prices and for dishonestly portraying auctions - which typically have 15% - 20% fees for buyers and sellers - as better value than antique fairs. These fees are rarely mentioned on TV and never taken into account on programmes like Bargain Hunt, giving a very false impression of the potential profitability of selling at auction.
However, the reality is that the auction/retail price divide is no longer as clear cut as it once was - a trend that seems unlikely to change and can’t completely be blamed on one TV show.
David Dickinson’s current TV series, Dickinson’s Real Deal, seems to take a more even-handed and honest view of this trend and is quite entertaining.
If you missed the first series, the show is based around members of the public bringing in their antiques to be valued by experienced dealers, who then offer to purchase the items for cash, with their own money. The contestants then have to choose whether to accept the offer or put the item into auction - the best result is supposedly “Dickinson’s Real Deal”.
Despite the cheesy name, it provides interesting and fairly honest entertainment (the dealers never fail to explain the true cost of selling at auction) - so why not go along if there’s one in your area?
It seems that despite being chosen to provide the Prime Minister’s present for the Queen’s 80th birthday last year, business is not booming for Spode, which these days is part of Royal Worcester.
The Stoke-based pottery announced the redundancies back in November and on the 1st June the first of 250 factory workers left the pottery for the final time.
Full details from the BBC here.
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