Olympic gold medallists Dame Kelly Holmes and Sally Gunnell OBE know a thing or two about competition, and there's no stopping them when they head off in search of antique bargains. Dame Kelly's running mate is her mum Pam, while Sally brings along her best mate Emma for support. The teams scour an antique centre in London and find a number of items which they hope will break all records at auction.
Political heavyweights Edwina Currie and Lembit Opik use all their debating, deliberating, and dealing skills when they take each other on at an auction house. Edwina, a former Tory MP, is helped in her search for bargains by her husband John Jones, while former Lib Dem frontbencher Lembit is partnered by his mother Liivi. They find their items at an antiques fair in Ardingly, with the help of antiques experts James Lewis and Anita Manning.
It's the turn of the funny guys as comedienne Helen Lederer, star of such hit series as Absolutely Fabulous and Naked Video, takes on comedian, impersonator and EastEnders actor Bobby Davro. Helen, also known as a stage actress as well as being a wine critic and writer, is accompanied in her search for bargains by her big sister Jan, while Bobby shops with his partner Vicky, daughter of one of the Beverley Sisters and former England captain Billy Wright.
Society beauty Tamara Beckwith wants to prove she is as good a negotiator as acclaimed businesswoman Ruth Badger. The two women with two very different styles will each be trying to make the most profit when their items are sold at auction in London. Tamara and her sister Clare, and Ruth along with her mother Edna, shop for bargains at an antiques fair in Ardingly, West Sussex. While Team Beckwith rely on well-honed shopping skills to select their items, Ruth and her mum use the power of negotiation to knock prices down to rock bottom. The teams are helped by antiques experts Anita Manning and Mark Stacey.
Theo Paphitis knows a good deal when he sees one, as he's demonstrated all too well on the hit series Dragon's Den. But will the top businessman know a bargain when he sees one? Theo and his daughter Zoe use all their negotiating skills when they take on Jilly Goolden and her aunt, Jenny. Jilly is best known for her wine expertise but also has a track-record in antiques, having presented both the Great Antiques Hunt and Going, Going, Gone
Two talented performers find plenty to sing about when they go shopping for bargains at an antiques centre in London. Connie Fisher, who rocketed to stardom when she won the role of Maria in the BBC's search for the leading lady to star in the West End Production of The Sound of Music, takes on Ian 'H' Watkins, former member of the phenomenally successful band, Steps.
This star-studded special features two funny men and their mums. The ever-so dry Julian Clary, with that razor-like wit and acerbic tongue, forms half of the red team along with his mum, Doreen. While the blue team features the sweet and lovely Matt Cottle, best known for stage work and leading performance in the popular sit-com, Game On, partnered by his mum, Christine.
Two television stars swap scrubs for Bargain Hunt fleeces. Rakie Ayola plays nurse Kyla Tyson in Holby City while Charles Dale plays popular porter Big Mac in sister programme Casualty. The two actors are old friends - but it doesn't stop them both wanting to be the best bargain hunter. Rakie is joined on her quest for good buys by her father-in-law, actor Jack Smethurst, best known for playing the lead in the 1970s hit comedy Love Thy Neighbour. Charlie is helped by his wife Sara, a make-up artist.
Keith Chegwin and Sally James, once arch rivals on television, find themselves facing a different kind of competition when they hunt for bargains at an antique centre in Chiswick, London. Sally takes time out from her shopping to chat to presenter Tim Wonnacott about her father, Bert Cann, a photographer who shot many of the most iconic images of movie and media stars in the 1960s and 70s. Tim also discovers Keith collects coins and borrows a few special examples any collector would love to own.
Best-selling novelist Jilly Cooper gives her typewriter a rest to take part in Bargain Hunt Famous Finds. She teams up with her son Felix to pit their bargain-hunting skills against EastEnders' mechanic Garry, played by Ricky Groves, and his dad Rob.
Actors Christopher Timothy and Lysette Anthony are right at home on a television set or in a theatre, but put them in an auction sale room and it is quite a different story. The pair shop for bargains at the Barkham Antiques Centre in Berkshire with their finds going up for auction later in London. Christopher is partnered for the show by actor friend Richard O'Callaghan and assisted by antiques expert Kate Bliss. During the shopping day Christopher discusses his passion for Elvis Presley with Tim and is shown some Elvis collectables, including a replica Elvis jumpsuit worth 3,000 pounds and some of 'The King's' hair, validated by his barber. Lysette is partnered by friend and yoga teacher Michelle Pernetta. Antiques expert Mark Stacey helps guide the team through their buys. Tim begins by showing her a selection of tea cups from the Royal Worcester Museum, including one that was owned by Lord Nelson and valued for at least 10,000 pounds. Among the items the teams find is a rather special old railway sign and an Art Nouveau lamp base, assumed to have once lit a stylish railway dining compartment. But will the items make any profit when they are sold?
Take a handful of antiques, a dollop of deals and drizzle in a couple of celebrity chefs. And what do you have? A recipe for a great antiques show! Top chefs Gary Rhodes OBE, and Brian Turner CBE, were both aiming to cook up a win when they met up at an auction in London. The two cooks were there to sell the items they had bought at an antiques centre in Hungerford, with a view to making the most profit. Gary was accompanied by his wife Jenny, and felt confident that she had a good eye for style and a bargain. Among the items they found was a Lalique Christmas decoration and an Italian glass vase. The team was guided in their buys by antiques expert Mark Stacey. Presenter Tim Wonnacott thought he was seeing double as Gary had taken along his famous Spitting Image puppet. Tim showed Gary a Victorian cucumber-straightening device and an up-market silver cucumber slicer. Brian Turner was partnered by his daughter-in-law Michelle, and advised by expert Jonathan Pratt. Among the items they found was a large 1960s Betty Boo figurine and a silver mustard pot. Brian, well known in particular for his meat dishes, was shown a set of four 19th-century silver platters by top silversmith Paul Storr - today they are worth more than 30,000 pounds. The two chefs, both old friends and kitchen comrades, enjoyed some friendly rivalry. But when it got to the sale, their antique-finding prowess - just like their kitchen skills - was a serious business.
Two familiar voices of the airwaves compete to see if they can cause a bit of a noise at auction. Radio 2 presenter Janice Long competes against perennial broadcaster and writer Mike Read to see who can find the best buys at an antique centre in London and then sell them for the most profit. During their time shopping for bargains, presenter Tim Wonnacott takes time out to discuss Janice's interest in wall vases with her and discovers Mike's fascination with the poet Rupert Brooke.
Funny man Eddie Large has a new comedy partner when he tackles a bargain hunting challenge... his bubbly wife Patsy. He competes in Bargain Hunt Famous Finds against 'Mr Mathematics' Johnny Ball. Eddie and Johhny are old friends having worked together years ago when Johnny also toured the circuits as a stand-up comedian. But that friendship is put aside for friendly rivalry as they try to prove who is the best at finding bargains which could be sold for profit at auction. They are helped along the way by antiques experts Philip Serrell and David Barby. Among the items found by Manchester City fan Eddie is a retro football-shaped radio, while Johnny and his partner, family friend Brenda, fall for a small British porcelain bowl.
They may have both been on 'Top of the Pops', but can Tony Blackburn and Alvin Stardust cut it as bargain antique spotters? The broadcaster who launched Radio 1 and the former chart topper, both try to make the biggest profit when items discovered at an antiques fair in Sussex are sold at auction in London. Tony is accompanied in his quest by fellow Radio 1 and then radio 2 presenter Colin Berry, while Alvin is accompanied by his wife Julie. Among the items Alvin loves is a 70s hi-fi pod, while Tony cannot resist a coat of arms bearing the Blackburn crest and a canon ball. During their day shopping, presenter Tim Wonnacott discusses Tony's interest in old gramophone players, and Alvin demonstrates the old acoustic guitar which his mother gave him and which he got many of the biggest names in music to sign, including all the Beatles and Buddy Holly. The guitar has recently been insured for a million pounds.
Former Blue Peter presenters Valerie Singleton and Janet Ellis rise to the challenge of bargain hunting... and there is not a piece of sticky back plastic in sight! The two women, each accompanied by one of their closest friends, brave the cold at the Ardingly Antiques Fair in Sussex to scour for bargains which they can then sell on at auction. Antiques experts Anita Manning and Paul Laidlaw are on hand to offer advice. Among the items the teams choose are a pair of Venetian glass fish and an ivory-coloured Bakelite radio. During the day, presenter Tim Wonnacott takes time out to explore Valerie's interest in Russian lacquer boxes and Janet's fascination with religious ephemera. There is great interest in their items when they are sold at auction in Wandsworth, London, but things do not go quite as they may have hoped.
Snooker superstars Dennis Taylor and Willie Thorne have faced each other over the green baize many times, but they've never been in a bargain hunting competition before. Accompanied by their wives, the pair shop for pieces at an antique centre in Chelsea. Among the items Dennis picks is a set of silver 'clay pigeon' spoons and a silver letter knife, while Willie is drawn to an arts and crafts wooden picture frame and an 18th century snuff box. Antiques experts James Lewis and Paul Laidlaw are there to lend a hand and advise the teams on their buys. At the auction in Wandsworth there is keen bidding, but not all the balls are potted.
Sporting giants Henry Cooper and Geoff Capes vie to be champ when they meet each other in an auction saleroom for Bargain Hunt Famous Finds. Henry, accompanied by his eldest son, Henry Jnr, takes on the might of Geoff and his partner, Kashi. They sell items bought at an antique centre in upmarket Chelsea. The two teams are guided along the way by antiques experts James Lewis and James Braxton. Among the items Geoff and Kashi select are an unusual pill or patch box and the Henrys pick out a rare flask with a telescopic silver lid which converts into a drinking cup. During the shopping Presenter Tim Wonnacott takes time out to talk to Henry Cooper about some boxing memorabilia. Henry has brought along the first trophy he ever won, when he was just nine years old. Champion shot putter, Geoff Capes, twice winner of the World's Strongest Man title, has a surprising interest - he collects porcelain birds. Capes is President of the British Budgerigar Society and is shown a Royal Worcester budgerigar made by one of the top bird designers, Fred Gertner. At the auction both teams find plenty to smile about, but who proves to be the ultimate bargain hunting champion?
Rock chicks Toyah Willcox and Kiki Dee have shared the same bill in the past, but never for bargain hunting. The two women, both queens of the music business for over a quarter of a century, try to prove who has the best talent at spotting bargains. They both search an antique centre in Farnham, Surrey for treasures which will then be sold at an auction in Chiswick, London. During the shopping Tim Wonnacott takes time to discover what Toyah and Kiki enjoy collecting. Toyah admits to a love of Troika, so Tim takes a look at the St Ives pottery with her and shows her some examples of an earlier Cornish potter, Bernard Leach. Kiki brings along a delicate linen tablecloth made by her grandmother, a haberdasher, so Tim shows her a piece of needlework from around 1900 made from a kit sold by William Morris & Co.
TV presenters Vanessa Feltz and Nicki Chapman go head-to-head to see who is the best at spotting antique bargains. The two teams scour an antique centre in Farnham, Surrey, to find three items each, which they can then sell for profit at an auction in London.
