Lewes 06

Long before sun worshippers filled Brighton’s beaches, the fishing town was a destination for Georgians, who bathed in - and even drank the sea water for health reasons! Recognising this craze for sea bathing, one enterprising woman set up business providing bathing machines on Brighton’s shoreline, dipping women and children for a shilling a time. Over the years, Martha Gunn’s fame grew and eventually led to character and Toby jugs being made in her likeness.

Eric Knowles visits the town’s Fishing Museum to learn about the so-called ‘Queen of the Dippers’ and see a collection of these characterful jugs. Will it be sink or swim for the teams as they shop at antiques centres in the East Sussex town of Lewes?

In blue are married couple Vittoria and Freddie, guided by expert Catherine Southon, and in red are their opponents, daughter and dad Emily and Gary, with Serhat Ahmet by their side. Emily gets fired up by a silver-plated rococo-style candelabra until Serhat extinguishes her enthusiasm with his doubts about its saleability at auction.

Meanwhile, the blues wonder whether they can hammer out a profit with a miniature gavel. Showing them how it’s really done is auctioneer Nick Hall, who gives Eric his estimates on the teams’ items before selling them to the highest bidder.