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 13 - Episode 9



First in the barn are mother and daughter Halina and Lesley with a treasure from World War II in desperate need of jeweller Richard Talman’s expertise. The broken, silver ring belonged to Halina’s mother, Janina, who was born in Warsaw, orphaned at just 13 years old and taken in by a convent close to the Jewish ghetto in the city. She was given the ring as a thank you from a Jewish woman after she risked her life passing food through the fence to families imprisoned in the ghetto. The ring, Janina’s most treasured possession, stayed with her throughout her life, and was given to her daughter, Halina, when she passed away. Now broken, and severely worn, it's Halina’s wish that the ring be turned into a pendant, so she can keep her mum, who displayed remarkable courage in the face of great adversity, close to her heart.

Next to arrive is Gordon Craik with his sons, James and Ross. They’ve brought two intriguing pieces of sporting history for the attention of silversmith Brenton West. The pair of heavy, outdoor curling stones, complete with their wicker baskets, originally belonged to Gordon’s grandfather and were famously used by Gordon’s father in his team’s victory of the Grand Match of 1979 – a huge outdoor curling match held on the Lake of Menteith near Stirling. Having sat outside for many years, the stones are worn, their handles bent, and the wicker baskets aren’t fit to hold their weight. It’s Gordon’s dream to hand the stones that hold so much sporting and family history to his sons, both of whom are champion curlers in their own right. Brenton sets to work, bringing in the skills of leather expert Suzie Fletcher and basket weaver Sarah Hatton to get these stones back to their best.

Next, woodworker Will Kirk is given the task of repairing a cherished character from childhood. Tracey Emery has brought in a wooden chef figurine that’s sadly been fire-damaged in an unfortunate accident at home. The wooden chef used to sit on the counter of her grandparents’ pub - it reminds Tracey of her beloved grandad, Ralph, and a happy childhood full of family Sunday lunches gathered at the pub. Tracey’s dad, knowing how much the figurine meant to Tracey, was full of guilt after the accident and tried to have the wooden chef repaired, but it was the one thing he was unable to do before he sadly passed away. Will sets to work, to see if he can complete the task Tracey’s dad so desperately wanted to finish, restoring the wooden chef’s place in Tracey’s kitchen and preserving memories of her beloved grandad and dad.

Last in the barn today is Sonam Batra, hoping paper conservator Angelina Bakalarou can give a piece of cinematic and family history the red-carpet treatment. Sonam has brought a vintage film poster of Bollywood film Sholay. It’s a reminder of the Sundays Sonam happily spent with his dad and cousins at the local cinema in Leamington Spa, and it’s also where he learned to speak Hindi and Punjabi, simply by listening to Bollywood actors on the silver screen. Now torn and faded, Sonam discovered the poster whilst clearing out his dad’s house after he passed away. Angelina sets out to restore the film poster’s star quality, reviving Sonam’s memories of his dad and the many happy hours spent with his family in days gone by.

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skorpion.