TV & Film
Antiques Roadshow guest left speechless by valuation of ‘worthless’ sapphire
This is incredible!
An Antiques Roadshow guest got a huge surprise when she found out a ‘worthless’ sapphire is actually worth a lot of money.
We all dream about inheriting something that is absolutely priceless, well one lucky Antiques Roadshow guest actually did – and she had no idea.
The expert, John Benjamin, left the guest speechless when he dropped the jaw-dropping (and pretty life-changing) revelation about the her grandmother’s brooch, which she had been told was ‘worthless’.
John began: “Now when we were sitting at the table back there you said to me, ‘I’ve got a brooch that’s always been known as the big blue blob.’
“And sure enough when you see it residing there in this case, it’s a big blue blob.”
Explaining the item’s history, she said: “I inherited it from my grandmother, who gave it to my father, who gave it to me to wear on my wedding day, which I did.”
“Well the brooch itself was made about the mid to the end of the 19th century so it is about 130, 140 years old,” John continued.
“The style of it is actually quite ordinary. It’s a cushion and it’s got a big blue cushion stone surrounded by white stones.
“Then we move on to the issue which is what actually is the bluestone and you’ve been told by some jewellers to take it away, it’s valueless.”
She revealed: “It’s costume jewellery, they didn’t believe us. They were quite rude to me and my husband.
“Some people said it was paste, some people said they weren’t real diamonds, some people said they were real diamonds but they weren’t good quality.”
John said: “So you’ve been told by a number of jewellers that it’s an inconsequential piece of costume jewellery mounted on a piece of blue glass worth nothing.
“So if I were to say whoever these jewellers were they were talking absolute rubbish, would you be happy to hear that?
“This is not a piece of jewellery of no consequence at all it is a piece of significant consequence because the stone in the middle is an absolutely enormous sapphire. Cushion-shaped sapphire.”
The guest gasped as John added: “Now just take in the size of it because usually if someone has a sapphire ring, it’s a small stone on the finger.
“But that sapphire, I’ve done an approximation of the weight of it and I think it weighs 25 to 30 carat. In the world of gemstones that’s quite big actually.
“It comes from Ceylon which is, of course, Sri Lanka today. Ceylon sapphires are typically this very bright cornflower blue colour
“The white stones – you were told blithely by a jeweller that these were paste. They’re diamonds, mounted up in gold and set in silver and it’s in its original fitted box and it’s an absolute screamer, it really is.”
Then it was finally time for John to reveal the valuation of the item leaving the owner and the crowd stunned.
“Now I have to be honest with you, I’ve done this show for so long I’ve never seen a sapphire of this size ever bought onto the Antiques Roadshow, this is a real first time for me,” he said.
“If I were to take such an item of jewellery and consign it to an auction I would expect it to make between £40,000 to £50,000.”
“Oh my word, I don’t want to swear,” the guest remarked. “Blooming heck!”
“Blooming heck indeed, it’s an absolute beauty. What else can I say about it? It’s fabulous,” John added.
If you’re not already rooting through you’re old jewellery box, what are you waiting for?!!?
TV & Film
Ant and Dec’s new ITV show is looking for contestants from Greater Manchester
The new game show is billed to have ‘life changing’ prizes up for grabs
Ant and Dec’s production company is on the look out for brave contestants from Greater Manchester to take part in a new game show.
The new show, titled Fortune Favours the Brave, has been billed as a ‘life-changing show’ thanks to the amount of money up for grabs, and will feature familiar games viewers will recognise but with a unique twist.
The call out for contestants tells potential players they need ‘nerves of steel’, ‘good general knowledge’ and a ‘risk-taking attitude.’
ITV
The show is looking for pairs of players, with an assistant producer telling ChronicleLive: “People can apply with a parent, sibling, partner, housemate, neighbour, colleague or bestie.
“There are massive, life-changing amounts of money to play for – and it’s a fun, fast-paced entertainment quiz-based show – with a huge twist!”
Fortune Favours the Brave has been commissioned by the Geordie duo’s production company, Mitre Studios, though it isn’t yet known if they’ll actually be hosting the show.
ITV
Reckon you’re the perfect candidate?
Applications are being accepted now – filming will commence in London in October so, if successful, candidates will need to be free on certain dates. Transport will be included.
The deadline for applications is midday on September 17th, 2021. Any applications sent after this date will not be considered.
Send off your application here.
TV & Film
Netflix to air chilling new Dennis Nilsen documentary with never-before-heard tapes of killer
Another day, another Netflix true crime doc
Netflix’s latest true crime documentary offering will be delving into the chilling crimes of Scottish serial killer Dennis Nilsen with never-before-heard tapes from his police interrogations.
Directed by Michael Harte – the man who brought us the 2019 masterpiece Don’t F**k With Cats – Memories of a Murderer: The Nilsen Tapes will be offering a deeper look into the mind of the calculated killer and necrophile, who confessed to brutally murdering fifteen young men and boys between 1978 and 1983.
The official synopsis reads: “Over a five-year period, he picked up vulnerable young men, lured them back to his home and strangled them, before disposing of their bodies under the floorboards.
Netflix
“The truth about how and why he killed has been the subject of much speculation in books and documentaries over the decades since. Now, with unique access to a wealth of personal archive left in his cell after his death, including over 250 hours of never-before-published cassette tapes of his private recordings, this film will take us into Nilsen’s world.
“From a young boy growing up in a quiet Scottish fishing village to a cold-blooded murderer prowling the streets of London.”
The synopsis continues: “Set against the backdrop of 1980s Britain, when mass unemployment drew young men to London in search of their fortunes, only to find themselves destitute and easy prey, and weaving together interviews from police, journalists, survivors, bereaved families, and – for the first time – the killer’s own voice, this feature-length documentary explores how Nilsen was able to get away with multiple murders and attacks, unchallenged, for five years.”
Nilsen, who died at the age of seventy-two in 2018, was catapulted back into the spotlight last year when David Tenant portrayed him in the gripping ITV mini-seires, Des.
Speaking to the Radio Times ahead of the series’ release, Tenant said he felt it was ‘right and proper’ that Nilsen didn’t live long enough to see the series, saying: “After he was arrested, Dennis Nilsen became obsessed with was the legend of Des, the reputation that he left behind.
“Whenever he slipped out of public consciousness, there was almost a sense that he wanted to get back into it. That’s why I’m relieved he’s not alive. I would hate for this to go out and for him to be sitting in some cell somewhere imaging we were in any way glorifying him.”
Memories of a murderer: The Nilsen Tapes will be available to stream on Netflix from tomorrow, Wednesday August 18th.
TV & Film
Come Dine With Me is looking for amateur cooks from Manchester for new series
If you’ve got all the grace and decorum of a reversing dump truck without any tyres on, get applying!
Know your way around the kitchen? Reckon your curry is the best in all of Manchester? Or do you just fancy competing for a £1,000 cash prize?
Well, you’d best get your oven mitts at the ready because everybody’s favourite reality cooking show, Channel 4’s Come Dine With Me, is on the hunt for keen cooks for their next series.
First airing back in 2005, Come Dine With Me has evolved from your bog-standard cooking show into a cultural phenomenon in its own right.
Channel 4
The premise is simple – five contestants each take it in turn to host their own dinner party complete with a three-course menu and entertainment. After each evening concludes, contestants rate each other on the quality of their food and their hosting skills, with the winner eventually taking home a £1,000 cash prize at the end of the week.
Over the years, the show has provided countless iconic and brilliantly quotable moments – we all remember Jane and her sad little life, don’t we?
Well, you could be a part of the fun very soon (or become the latest viral sensation granted you shove a whole whisk in your mouth), as Channel 4 are now casting for the latest series.
Channel 4
The casting call isn’t fussy – you simply need to be eighteen years or older and be eligible to live and work here in the UK.
To apply, you’ll need to fill out an application form before the closing date on September 10th, 2021.
Reckon you’re up to the challenge? You can find the full details and application here.
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