Gavin and Stacey star returns to TV screens in thrifting challenge
BBC/One Tribe TVGavin and Stacey star Joanna Page will return to TV screens in a new BBC series which sees contestants going head-to-head to sell second-hand items.
Shift the Thrift challenges two people in each episode to uncover charity shop gems, transform them and then sell them on in live-streamed auctions to raise money for charity.
Page, an avid thrifter, has revealed that she herself had some success thrifting a vase as part of the series.
She told BBC's The One Show she "realised not only could I talk a lot, but I can do quite a bit of artwork".
"I upcycled a vase I got for about £2, and live on the auction I was drawing on it and doing things. The money went up, up and up," said the 49-year-old actress, from Swansea.
"I think we ended up selling it for more than £100."
She added: "You really start bonding with the whole online auction community."
BBC/One Tribe TVThe Hobbit star Martin Freeman, who appeared with her on The One Show, joked: "This is where you discovered you could talk a lot?"
She said: "Yes, this late in my life."
In each episode, two contestants visit charity shops and have one hour to buy a maximum of 10 items for up to £100, including one that they have to upcycle.
They then auction the items live and whoever makes the most money sees it go to the charity of their choice.
The show, which has 12 episodes with a duration of 30 minutes, was shot in towns across the UK including six in Wales.
Page said: "The upcycling item has been fantastic.
"One day somebody bought a sleeping bag, it was blue and yellow and it was upcycled into a puffer jacket with the original zips and everything.
"[I] absolutely loved it."
BBC/One Tribe TVPage added she had never done a live auction until the show but said she was "in her element".
"It's utterly terrifying. Before we went live they're counting you down and somebody just handed me a teapot and said 'okay, you're auctioning this'.
"I fell back into acting mode. But also, it's really nice when you do start talking because you're doing it live."
Page, who played Stacey Shipman in the hit BBC romantic comedy series Gavin and Stacey, said she had customised and upcycled clothes for years and the show was "right up my street".
Her other TV projects include Joanna Page's Wild Life on BBC Two and Wynne & Joanna: All At Sea on BBC One.
Shift the Thrift airs on BBC One at 14:00 BST on 13 April.
