Episode 18

A touch of fantasy is in the air as the team turns its attention to two Tolkien-inspired notebooks.

First into the barn is David, with a cherished item linking him to his schooldays. He’s brought along two notebooks containing writing and drawings he created in his teenage years, inspired by JRR Tolkien. Inside, amongst his own work, are a handful of letters written to the teenager by the author himself. As a lonely schoolboy, David spent hours creating the scrapbook, but now, after 55 years, it has fallen into disrepair. Held together by rolls of tape, both the pages and spine need a complete facelift. Bookbinder Chris Shaw works his own form of magic with a painstaking repair that leaves David spellbound.

Meanwhile, Dominic Chinea has a more utilitarian but equally cherished item to repair. It’s a vintage workbench brought in by Rob, who fondly remembers his dad using it to build him a sledge. When his beloved father passed away when Rob was just 11 years old, the trusty workbench took on even deeper significance for him.

The final restoration of the day is a joint task for silversmith Brenton West and leather expert Suzie Fletcher. Evelyn and her granddaughter Keeley
have brought in a decrepit manicure set that they believe survived the Liverpool Blitz in 1941. The set belonged to Evelyn’s glamorous mother, and she is keen to pass it on to her granddaughter so it can live on in the family. The experts go all out to nail this important fix.