"Antiques Roadshow" (1979) TV series 1979-????

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Lisa Edwards

Seasons:

unknown

Plot:

A team of experts from auction houses tours towns throughout the UK to value treasures brought in by members of the public.

Plot Keywords:

Non Fiction

Awards:

3 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Arthur Negus

...

Presenter (unknown episodes, 1979-1983)

Runtime:

45 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Filming Locations:

Alnwick Castle, Alnwick, Northumberland, England, UK

Company:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in "Big Train: (#2.4)" (2002)

Great value

The Antiques Roadshow, the popular and long-running British programme which has spun various international versions and rip-offs, is classic television. I am not English, and have only known the show for a few years, but through its airings on the BBC Prime channel it has become one of my favourite hours of television.

There is a Danish antiques show, and I have seen several of BBC's other antiques and auction programmes, but none of them have the style and grace of this handsomely made production. The approach is simple, first a presentation of the location of the week, then on to a selection of antiques and their stories. Values are also given, but unlike in most shows I do feel that the stories are at the centre of attention, both the owners's accounts of how they acquired the objects and the experts's histories of the objects and their time. In this way, each episode becomes as much a journey in time, and for me a visit with another country and its people, as simply a lesson in buying and selling.