05x32 - Dad's Old Saxophone

[bunniefuu]

Welcome to The Repair Shop, where
precious, but fading, treasures...

It's a bit of a sorry state.

..are restored
to their former glory.

Only another 40 parts to go.

Furniture restorer Jay Blades...

Now, that... It's good, isn't it?

It's so nice that we can be part
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to just keep things going.

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Yes!

Employing heritage craft skills
passed down the generations...

It's my duty to make sure
that this all goes back,

in working order.

..preserving irreplaceable
heirlooms...

We're all going to go now.
Here we go.

BIKE BELL RINGS

..the team will restore the items...

SHE GASPS

..the memories.

Very good!

..and unlock the stories
that they hold.

SHE GASPS

It has touched my heart.

It's amazing.

Oh, cheers. Can we get
a cup of tea?

In The Repair Shop today...

..a trio of once
gleaming treasures...

..get their shine back.

Brenton's metal is well
and truly tested,

as he transforms a brass kettle
from dull to dazzling...

I'll tell you what, Dom,
this is brilliant. It's perfect.

This is absolutely brilliant.

It's the best tool I've had in a
long time!

..while Suzie restores a mirror
that kept the troops standing proud,

in the trenches
of the First World w*r.

The more I'm cleaning this leather,

the more I'm beginning to smell...

..soot, like from an open fire.

It's just giving me a hint
at the life that this mirror's had.

But first, a musical instrument
that's lost its lustre.

Lorna Douglas from Kinross-shire,
in Scotland,

is hoping musical maestro
Pete Woods

can get an old friend
sounding sweet again.

How we doing? You all right?
I'm fine, thank you.

I'm Jay. Hi, Jay.
Nice to meet you, I'm Lorna.

Lorna. I'm Pete. Hi, Pete.

So, what have we got in the case,
then?

It's my father's saxophone.

It's quite old and it's quite
decrepit-looking, I'm afraid!

Is it all right to pick it up?
Yes, of course.

There we are.

So, tell us about it.
This belonged to my dad.

And what was his name? Bill.
Bill Cahoun, yes.

OK. He'd been a musician
all of his life.

He started off
in the colliery bands.

He was a miner, near Edinburgh,

at a little mining village
called Stoneyburn.

Stoneyburn, right. It was a silver
band. Silver band? Yeah,

and he played the euphonium in that.
Oh!

So, what's the difference between a
silver band and a brass band, then?

The colour. The colour. That's it?
It's the same instruments.

Silver bands are always
considered posher.

Oh, say no more!

I like the sound of your dad!

So, he was in the band,
when he was in his 20s...

Right. ..and he progressed from that
to having his own dance band.

He had his own dance band? Yes.
It was The Broadway Swingers. Wow!

And with him being
in a reserved occupation,

because he was a miner...

He didn't have to go to w*r.
Exactly.

To do his bit, he played
in the dances in Edinburgh,

for the soldiers
when they were on leave.

He was an entertainer. He was.
Yes, he was.

You must have been very proud of
your dad. Oh, yes.

I was very proud of my dad, yeah.
So, when did your dad stop playing?

It was about 1982, '83, he stopped.

Unfortunately, he developed cancer
in his lungs

and had half of his lung removed.

So, that was the end
of his musical career, I'm afraid.

He must've been devastated.
Oh, he was very, very upset,

at not being able to play. That must
have been hard on the family.

Yes, it was difficult for my mum,
to see him, you know, that way.

Half a man, really, you know,
because that was his life.

And then what happened
to the saxophone, then?

He put it away in a cupboard
and he didn't want to see it again.

So, that was put in its little box
and has been there ever since.

And then Dad passed away, 1996.

It was still in the house,
but never used.

Then when Mum passed away,
it was passed on to me.

So, again, it's been in my cupboard
for 20 years.

Right. But my son, Christopher,
he's quite keen to learn.

OK. And he would like to have a go
with Grandad's sax.

So, what's actually wrong
with the saxophone, then?

The felting has gone
in some of the pads.

Did it look like this, originally?
Well, originally, it was lovely.

It was a very nice saxophone.
Was it like this?

A little bit spotty?

It was spotty, but maybe not
just quite as bad as that.

You think red rot, actually,

cos brass is made of
a copper, tin, zinc mixture.

So, what's happened
is that coppery colour.

Yeah. That's where it's started
to break down,

but we can get rid of that.
Can you?

We can get rid of most of that,

and you don't want it looking
brand-new. No, no.

I would like to think
it could be playable, though,

because it would be lovely
to hear it again.

When was the last time you heard
this played, then?

Probably at a family wedding
round about 1979, 1980.

So, what would it be like,
hearing it played again?

It would be like hearing
his voice again.

Really. That's all I can say.

It's just...him.

However, it's a big job
for you to do.

It is a big job. Yeah.

Hopefully, it'll look a little bit
better than it does at the moment.

Yeah. We'll get it sorted.

Thank you very much. Thanks, then.
You take care now. Goodbye. Bye.

If I could wave a magic wand,

I would probably like to see
the saxophone

in full working order again.

My father would love to think that
we bothered to fix the saxophone

and that his great grandchildren
would be able

to perhaps play it one day.

Have you ever played a sax? I've
never asked you that, did I?

No, I don't play.
I can blow it to test it,

but put the dots in front of me
and I'm lost!

Well, we've got to get this one
playing for Lorna. Yes.

Have to. So, what are you going to
do to it? Right.

Well, first of all,
it needs stripping down.

As we strip it down, we check out
that everything's working all right.

When you say strip it down, you're
going to take all these keys off?

All the keys come off.

We've then got to get rid of this
red rot as much as we can.
Yes, please.

But I don't want to take it too
far that she doesn't recognise it.

Then, the most important
bit for a sax...

..the leather pads have got
to be renewed.

So, strip him, clean up,

new pads and then we got to get
it played.

But Steve used to play a sax...

There is a rumour
that he used to play a sax, yeah.

I heard he was quite good.
I've heard he was quite good.

All right. If there's anything
you need, let me know

and I'll get it for you. All right?
That's great. Thanks very much.

All right, we're having our
first look at Lorna's dad's sax.

First real good look I've had at it,

and I have noticed now

that there's a cork in a hole,
because one of the keys is missing.

We won't get an original.

What we'll have to do
is get some brass

and we're going to have to make
a key, so, just out of interest,

let's see how big the cork is.

As you imagine, that was doing quite
a lot of interference

of the air as it was going
through there.

These pads have been in there...

..I don't know how long,

so let's just get a couple of pads
off and see what we're up against.

The keys cover the holes
that determine

the pitch of the note played,

and the pad inside them
ensures an airtight seal.

The pads are held on
by stuff called shellac.

It's the stuff that they melt down
with methylated spirit

to make French polish, actually.

It's nice and easy to remove.

And there we are.

There's the first pad off.

And there's no give left
in it at all.

See, the leather is just rotten.

So, I'll get some proper pads
in there.

I can now get the rest
of the keys off,

and then we can start cleaning them,

so Lorna gets back
a nice-looking sax,

still got a few of the bumps
and bangs on it,

so it still looks like
her dad's sax,

but at least it'll be nice,
clean and playable.

Next to arrive at the barn
is Phil Bailey from Lincolnshire.

He's brought a once shining
family treasure

that's in desperate need
of the expert touch

of silversmith Brenton West.

I'm Brenton. Hi, Brenton.
Hi, Phil, nice to meet you.

What have you brought?
Well, I brought a kettle.

That's a kettle? Yes.

What have you done to that kettle?

Well, this kettle dates back
to 1937.

I know that this was given
when my mum and dad got married.

It was actually a present to them
from her mum and dad,

which is my grandparents. OK.

And this was such a precious thing,
too,

cos I think it's the only thing
that linked her with her parents.

OK, so that's the only thing
she had left... Absolutely.

She used to bring it out
and clean it...

Right. ..and I used to
come and sit with her,

and she used to tell me
these stories about the family,

her grandfather
in the First World w*r,

my dad in the Second World w*r,

and those things used to come out
when she was just cleaning it.

OK. Yeah.

I mean, even now
I keep thinking of stories.

Stories. Even stories
about myself I didn't know.

You'll have to excuse me,
because this is a bit

of an emotional roller-coaster
for me. No, that's fine.

And how did you end up
getting it

and why does it look
like this now?

My mum died in 1999.

My stepfather literally
put everything in a box.

I think it was, I don't know,
the broken heart throwing out bit,

if you know what I mean. OK.

And I found this one box and
everything had fallen on top of it.

I was going to say, was it the box
at the bottom of the pile?

It was the box at the bottom,
and I saw this,

and I just had to sit down because
those things that my mum told me,

those memories
were in my mum's voice.

Really? Without a shadow of a doubt.

My mum could have been sat next
to me. Like a tape recorder.

So, when was the last time you saw
the kettle actually intact, shiny?

It was '82.

I'd just gone off...
I was in the forces,

Just going off to Belize
just before the Falklands w*r,

and she actually took it down
and started cleaning it.

So, what does this kettle
signify to you?

It's that closeness,
but it's also, I think, to me,

carrying on from my mum's theme,

that this is the only thing
she really had from her parents.

This is the only thing
I can give to my children.

What would you like me to do
to the kettle, if I can do anything?

As far as possible,
restore it to its glory.

I don't think we'll ever make it
look new again.

I will do my very best for you.

Thanks very much for your time. OK.
Good to see you. Bye-bye. Bye, then.

My mum's kettle is more
than a kettle to me,

it's that link with my mum,

who's no longer with us,
and having something

that I am able to pass on
to generations to come.

This kettle is pretty badly damaged.

I've got to raise this back up

so that it looks more like that,

make a new foot for the bottom
and the lid...

is no longer round.

And that has to fit in that hole.

If I manage to do all that,

I'll then polish it up
and I can give it back to Phil

looking like new.

This kettle is actually brass.
I was hoping, if it was copper,

I could literally pull it like this,
but being brass,

it's stronger and it's going be
more difficult to repair.

The first thing I need to do is to
try and get this dent out of here.

So, I'm going to go see Dom
and see if he can help me

make a tool for it.

As Brenton plans his restoration
of the kettle,

Pete's attending
to his own tarnished brass item,

He's removed all the keys
from the saxophone,

in preparation for a major clean.

I'm going to dip this
in very weak acid,

to try and get rid of some
of this red rot, if we can.

It takes off the copper that is
a mixture in the alloy of brass.

So, it looks more
like a brass colour,

than that horrible red colour.

It doesn't always get rid of it.
It can't be guaranteed,

but there's also some little
green bits in here still,

where we've got oxidisation.

So, we want to get rid of it all, so
we can really start to work on it.

I'm just having a look now to make
sure that the acid's working,

in all the places that I want it to,

making sure that none of
the lacquer's coming off.

It actually turns a funny colour,

if you leave it in there too long.

So, I think that'll about do now.

It's nice and clean.

With the sax now sparkling, Pete can
begin the specialist repairs,

but he could do with a helping hand.

Steve, have you got a minute,
please?

Yeah, I've been watching
you doing this.

You know, I'm very, very interested.

We've got a key missing, but also
the pillar that holds the rod

that makes it pivot,
that's missing as well.

Yeah, yeah, I can make one of
those for you.

I've got a set of measurements
for you,

because it's exactly the same
as that one there. OK.

I can't wait for you
to get this up together.

Yeah, you're sort of a latent
sax player, aren't you?

I am a sax player, yeah. Yes!

Be nice to hear you giving it
a blow. Yeah.

I'd love to have a go on it.
Yeah, that's great!

OK, yeah, I'll look forward to that.
That'd be nice.

While Steve crafts a new pillar,

Pete can make the rod
that the key is mounted on.

We need a bit of tube soldered
in the middle,

so it's got a pivot point.

I'm going to make sure that
that has got a nice angle,

just by firing it.
Need a little bend at the end.

I enjoy restoring these old things,

because you get an insight
into the way that they was made.

The nice thing is, this one
is going to go to somebody

who's going to remember her dad
through it,

so it'd be nice to give her
all those memories back.

I do play the saxophone, but
I've never made any parts for one,

so I quite like I'm making
a little bit for it.

Well, I've now filed
the two angles on there.

Now, we've just got to solder
the two bits on, to get the shape.

There we go, all done.
Oh, brilliant! Thanks, Steve!

OK, I hope that's all right.

Look at that.

There's his matching little mate.
Hey.

Thanks very much.

Now, all I've got to do
is put on the pillar,

then, hopefully,
it should be working

and we'll have
a musical instrument again

that can play all the notes
in the right places.

With a fresh coat of shellac melted
into the cup of each key,

Pete is ready to start fitting
the new leather pads.

I'm putting the keys back on to make
sure they line up with the holes.

When they go together with the pads
on, everything has to be airtight,

otherwise, it won't work correctly.

Right. Everything LOOKS to be
working all right at the moment.

So, what I think we'll do is,
we'll start putting a few pads on.

Nice bit of brown leather.
Underneath that is a bit of felt.

Now, I'm going to heat up the
shellac, which will glue 'em in.

Not squeezing it too hard,

just enough to make sure
that we make a nice, little...

..what's called a seat in there.

If we look now,

you can see that the cup
has seated all the way round.

I've got a light inside,
which is called a leaklight,

that is so I can see
any little air leaks.

I cannot see any light
at all at the moment.

So, I'm literally over the moon
with it,

because there's nothing worse than
ones that won't seat properly.

Pete might be striking the right
note with the saxophone repair,

but outside a new arrival
is in need of some help.

Ruth Bowditch from London is hoping
that leather expert Suzie Fletcher

can work her magic on a wartime
keepsake that holds dear memories.

Hello. Hello. How lovely to meet
you. I'm Susie. Hello, I'm Ruth.

So, Ruth,
what have we got here, then?

Oh, this is a mirror,
which was made by my grandad,

during the First World w*r
when he was in the trenches.

Really? Yeah.

He actually made this
from disused horse harnesses,

so that it could be hung up for the
troops to use for shaving.

That is amazing, isn't it?

It was maybe part of a camaraderie,

that I think the troops had
in the trenches,

that they were doing something
for each other,

and no doubt other people
did things for him, too.

He was on the Western Front.

He was involved
in the Battle of the Somme,

but he never really
spoke about it much,

so this is the only connection
I've got with that part of his life.

But it was obviously important
enough to him,

that he didn't want
a new shaving mirror.

He'd kept this mirror to shave in,

right up to the day he died,
when he was 81.

Right! And I remember as a child,
when I went to visit,

he was still using it.
It would be up in the kitchen.

So, I was aware of it
for quite a few years

before I fully understood
how precious it was to him.

So, what would you like me
to do with it?

Dare I ask! Well, as you
can see, it's very dirty.

It's only got this tiny bit
of silvering still on it. Yes.

I imagine it was very damp
in the trenches

and I imagine the damp
got into it... Yeah.

..and they've obviously all used
less and less of the mirror.

And the leather is also
very cracked and needs attention.

And there's a break in the glass.

If I'm able to do anything
with the mirror,

what are you going to do with it?

Well, my idea is that I'm going
to give it pride of place

in my kitchen.

And then it will always remind me of

where I saw it first of all.
That's great.

So I hope that you are able to do
something to make it last that long.

Very much appreciate
you bringing it in, Ruth,

and I'll be in touch.
Thank you very much. Bye-bye. Bye.

I think my grandad
would have been really happy

at the thought that his mirror
was still in existence

100 years after he'd made it,

but also that it was going to be
used again,

that somebody else valued it
as much as he had in the trenches.

Well, this is a really remarkable
story, and it's a lovely item.

Looking at it,
the mirror is heavily damaged,

so I'll be sending the mirror off

to the one place in the country

that actually has the skill
to do this.

It's so, so specialised.

So I have got to get
this mirror out.

The first thing I need to do
is to dismantle

the leather work here.

I'll then be cleaning
and conditioning,

ready for me to be able
to reinstall the mirror

and hand-sew it all back together.

So, definitely got
a lot on my plate

with what is
a really quite small item.

Just want to go in carefully

before I make
any major movements here.

My concerns are
that it could be so dried

that it actually cracks
and falls apart

because it is so old
and it is so fragile.

If I can take this apart
in one piece,

I'll be very, very happy.

I'm going to see
if I can just ease it out.

What I don't want to do is
hurry the removal

and break away this leather here.

So these are the times that it can
get a little bit stressful.

There's so much gunk in here.

It's got sand and dirt
and all sorts in it.

At least it came out in one piece.

So, first thing I need to do

is make sure this gets sent off
to the mirror repairers.

Brenton's got his work cut out

repairing an 80-year-old
crumpled kettle.

He's got a serious dent to rectify.

And, for that, he needs
a custom-made tool.

Dom. Hey.

I've got a slight issue.
You've got more than one issue.

I've got several issues.
Look at it.

It's been crushed down,
and I need to devise some way

of pulling the whole thing up
at one time.

What I was thinking was
some sort of plate

attached to something
I could put in the vice

and then I could push
down on here.

No, look. Hang on.

This. Oh, wow. Look, look, look.

Yeah, no, that is...
I've got these left over offcuts.

That's great.
That's what you want, no?

That'll fit in, won't it?

Because it's going to have to go
in quite a long way,

I think we need to weld a bar
on there and then... That'll do it.

That's great. Can we do that, then?

I've got a bit of bar like that.

So weld that onto there.

Something like that.
We can clap that in the vice. OK.

OK, mind your eyes.

Is it done? It's on.

Excellent.

What do you think? I love it!

Thank you so much for that.

Look forward to seeing
how it performs.

OK. Thanks. No worries.
Thank you.

Before I try and remove this dent,
I'm going to anneal it.

That is heating the metal up
to nearly red hot.

When you heat the metal up,
the structure of the metal,

the actual molecules change.

And that should soften the metal

and make it more malleable
and easier for me to repair.

Cos, at the moment,
this is really hard, this metal.

I've only annealed this side.

So I have to let it cool down

to see if it will come
straight for me.

Now to put his bespoke de-denting
tool to the test.

This is actually moving
quite easily now.

It was just getting that first bit
of the ring to move.

Now I've just got
to smooth it all off

and that involves tapping away
to get these smaller dents out.

I tell you what, Dom,
this is brilliant. It's perfect!

This is absolutely brilliant.

It's the best tool I've had
in a long time!

It's so good!

You should put them into production.
I will!

So...

..that's the hard part of
banging out the dents done.

So the lid has had
the same sort of damage

as the main part of the kettle,
it's been crushed.

There is a nasty split in there,

which I'm going to try
and solder up.

Don't want to get it too hot for
this metal to buckle or anything,

so you have to be really gentle
with it

and just gently put the heat
on here,

so that the solder
flows into the joint.

And that's looking really nice now.

I've done all of the reconstructive
work to this,

I've got the dent out

and I've lifted it up,
and it's now ready for polishing.

So this is
a Tripoli polishing compound

and this is a mineral,

it's mined from the ground

and the compound is mixed with a wax
to hold it together.

And it's used for polishing
soft metals like silver and brass.

That's come up really nicely.
I'm really pleased with that.

I'm just going to go and make
the foot for the bottom of that,

and then it's done.

Musical instrument guru Pete Woods

has completed his repairs
on the saxophone,

which was played by a beloved father
through his lifelong musical career.

He's once again stripped the keys
from the horn

to give it a final hand polish
to restore its golden gleam.

Lorna wants it to look
like her dad's old saxophone.

So, therefore, what I'm doing is
I'm hand-polishing everything,

adds a little bit of brightness.

Looks as if it's had a little
bit of loving care put into it.

Then in a couple of weeks' time,

it will have toned down
and she'll be looking at it, going,

"That's my dad's sax up there."

Once it's clean now, I can start
getting it back together

so it's playable again.

Last little bit on now,
we'll put the crook on.

All I've got to do now
is hand it over to Steve -

let him get practising.

From coal mines to dancehalls,

this old saxophone lived
a colourful life,

entertaining audiences during
the Second World w*r and beyond.

But after 40 years
confined to its case,

it had lost its big, bold voice.

Hoping to hear her late father's
beloved sax sing once again

is Lorna, accompanied by her son,
Chris.

How are you doing? You all right?
Hello, nice to see you again.

Hi, Pete.

And you are...? Chris.

This is my son, Christopher.
Pleased to meet you.

So, how are you guys feeling?
Excited.

Very excited.
Because you mentioned before

that one of your sons is
going to learn to play this.

It was me. I did try to start
playing the sax,

but it was just unplayable,
the condition it was in.

Yeah.

Do you know about the saxophone?
Yeah.

I remember my grandad
playing the saxophone

when I was about
four or five years old.

Some memories of him

playing it in the living room
at Christmas time. Wow.

And it's not been played
since then.

So I'm really quite keen to see
what you've been able to do with it.

OK.

PETE: So how long ago was that?
That would be 1982.

Nearly 40 years ago. OK.

Well, we're going to show you.

OK. Yes. Here we go.

Oh, it looks super! So good!

It looks absolutely wonderful.

PETE: We tried to keep it so it's
got that look for you. Yes, yes.

You know.
The marks that told the story

of the places that he played at
and had been and had seen.

Wonderful!
We know that's what you wanted.

Yes. My dad would definitely
recognise it.

PETE: Yes.

The next thing is really to hear it
play, though, isn't it?

I would love to.
Steve, you don't mind joining us?

Steve, can you play? Yeah!

Oh, wonderful.

I'll not promise that I can play it
as well as your dad did, so...

So I'll give it a whirl.

There was a song that your father
used to play all the time.

Yes, it was In The Mood.
In The Mood, yes -

he was very fond
of the Glenn Miller.

STEVE PLAYS IN THE MOOD

Wonderful, absolutely wonderful,
thank you.

Thank you.

You're very welcome. Thank you.

CHRIS: Oh, thank you.

It was amazing. Thank you.

Thank you, Pete, for doing that.

That's all right.

That's wonderful. Thank you.

I can see how much it means to you.

It was actually
like hearing his voice again.

Was it? Oh, bless you.

You're going to get practising,
aren't you?

I guess I am now!

After hearing that,
I've got to buckle down

and start learning that now.

Can I just say to you? That I didn't
learn to play the saxophone

or any instrument until I was 37.
OK.

So not too late for you
to crack on with it.

Yeah, not too late, yeah.

I think I would be hard-pushed
to ever live up to my grandfather.

But I can't wait to try it.

I think it'll be good fun learning.

Steve did a wonderful job,

and it brought back all the memories
of my dad.

And if he saw the condition
it's in now,

he would be so grateful
and thoroughly amazed.

Master saddler Suzie
is in her element,

taking apart the leather work

from the soldier's mirror
for the first time

since it was stitched from
horse harnesses in the trenches

of the Western Front. Here we go.

With the last layer of leather
successfully unstitched,

Suzie can begin
the clean-up mission.

There's this thick layer
of grease and oils.

And I think that's actually
a build-up

of Ruth's grandfather having used it
every morning to shave.

And maybe he used, like,
a grease to put on his hair,

as many men did at that time.

And what I'm doing is
I'm using some tepid water

along with the saddle soap to help
strip some of that grease back.

It's really interesting.

The more I'm cleaning this leather,

the more I'm beginning to smell soot
like from an open fire.

It's a really strong smell
of fireside.

Leather has this ability to hold on
to all these aromas.

It's just giving me a hint

at the life that
this mirror has had.

Hiya. How are we doing, Suzie?
What have you got?

I've got the mirror back.

SHE GASPS

Good! And I haven't looked at it,
I thought you should do the honours.

Oh, bless you.

There's only one place
in the country

that could do this mirror.

SHE GASPS

Look at that!

All you had was like
a tiny little circle there.

It's perfect. It is a mirror now.

I absolutely honestly did not
expect to see it like that.

They've done an amazing job.
All right.

Well, I won't hold you up any more.
Good luck and enjoy it.

All right. Brilliant. Thanks, Jay.

OK. So now I've got
this mirror back.

I can start the reassembly of
Ruth's lovely leather mirror.

I'm just going to use a tacking glue

because I want everything
to hold nice and tightly

before I start stitching it.

I can't imagine having to make
this in the trenches,

which is, you know,
very difficult conditions.

I'm placing these strips exactly
where they were originally

because I want the holes
to marry up,

and that'll enable me
to use all the original holes

when I'm sewing it
all back together.

It's looking nice.

I'm just going to do the same
with the top piece.

That's going together
really quite nicely.

Across the workshop, Brenton
is putting the finishing touches

to the treasured brass kettle

that only just survived
being crushed in a box.

So that's the new foot
for the kettle made.

I'm really pleased with that.

So the handle has got to be put back
on to complete the kettle.

I'm really pleased
with the way it's gone.

I was struggling.

I didn't think I'd be able
to get that big dent out.

But it's come out really nicely,

and I hope that Phil's pleased
with the work

that I've done.

When this kettle arrived
at The Repair Shop,

it was flattened and littered
with dents,

its surface dull with age.

But under Brenton's Midas touch,
it's been transformed,

just in time for Phil to collect it,

eager to see if the kettle
and its link to his mother

has been restored.

It's an extremely important piece
of memorabilia to my family.

I just wish that my mum
could be here as well to see it.

All right. Hi, Phil.
Good to see you again.

Nice to see you again.

So, tell me, how are you feeling?

Well, mixed feelings, really.

This is basically
the only thing that we have

from my grandparents.
So do you want to see it?

Well... Let's do this.

Oh, my goodness. Ha!

Oh, my... Are you sure
it's the same one? It is.

Ha-ha! Goodness.

I just... I'm stunned.

It's literally taken me back
to that same point,

back in the late '50s, early '60s.

I just wished my mum was stood
next to me now.

Just amazing.
Thank you very much.

Thank you for bringing it in
and letting me have a go at it.

Thank you very much.
Cheerio, Phil. Bye-bye.

It's been like a memory bank,

and it's not only brought
those memories back to me,

but the closeness that I had
with my mum.

Now I've got the kettle,
I'm going to take it home,

I'm going to have my children,
my grandchildren

come along, have a small mini party

to introduce them to the kettle.

PIGEONS COO

Now the kettle is homeward bound
to its welcome party,

Suzie is hoping her own assignment

will soon be ready for action
once again -

the home-made mirror that kept
troops looking their best

in the trenches.

So now everything's glued together,

I'm ready to start sewing.

What I need to make sure
is that I protect the mirror

while it's in the clams.

So I'm putting some cork over it

and then a piece of card,

and that will help to hold
everything flat and straight

and protect that mirror.

I'm just going to use my awl,
and I'm going to protect the back

here as well.

I'm trying to find
the original holes.

OK. So that's my first complete
stitch done.

And so far, so good.

It's a few thousand more,
but I'll get there in the end.

I'm hoping that Ruth is going
to be very, very pleased

with the final result.

When the mirror came into
The Repair Shop,

it was battle-scarred,

caked in dirt, and almost unusable.

Now Ruth is back at the barn,

accompanied by grandchildren
Zoe and Josh,

who are eager to see
how their great-great-grandfather's

pride and joy has scrubbed up.

Basically, if you're looking at it,
you could see one eye.

I want to see how it
would've looked in the wars.

The mirror was very important,
much bigger than just a mirror

to the family,
and I think it would be lovely

for his great-great-grandchildren.

Hello, Ruth. How are you?
Hello, Jay.

And who have you brought with you?

I'm very well.
I've brought my grandchildren.

This is Zoe. Hello, Zoe.

And Josh. Lovely to meet you.

So what are you guys hoping that

Suzie has done
with the mirror, then?

Well, I hope that it's going
to be in a condition

where I can hang it up somewhere

so people can see it
and ask about it.

And it can be talked about
and it can be used as well.

And Josh and Zoe have ideas

of what they'd like to do with it,
haven't you?

Oh, really? Yes. What are those?
What's your ideas?

To take it to school
for, like, a show and tell.

That is a great idea!

It's best we best show you
what we've done, then,

or what Suzie's done to it.

Ready?

Are you both ready? Yes.
All ready? Here we go.

Wow!

RUTH GASPS

Oh, isn't that lovely?

Look, it's all mirror!

I can see myself! SUZIE: Yay!

Isn't that fabulous?

And it's so much cleaner, isn't it?

Wonderful!

What do you think, Zoe?

I love it! Aw! Bless her.

Can you see yourself?
Yes, very clearly.

I think it's great that
you didn't repair the crack.

It shows a bit of the story.

He still kept it.

He didn't throw it away as broken,

but he kept it for all those years
after the w*r.

I think he would've been
absolutely thrilled.

So who's going to take it home,
then? JOSH: Me.

Ooh, straight away!
There you are, sir.

Take care, then. Bye-bye. Bye-bye.

Oh, bless. Well done, you.
Yeah, thank you.

I'm amazed at what Suzie's achieved
with it.

I didn't expect half that.

But she's done wonders with it.

When I take the mirror into school,
I'm going to, like, explain

to all my friends
about my great-great-grandad

and how he made
the mirror in the wars.

And I think all my friends
are going to really like it.

It'll be amazing.

When Josh grows up,
he'll be able to shave in it.

Join us next time, as time
capsules are unlocked...

Oh, gosh!
..and their memories unleashed...

That's what you wanted... Oh, look!
..to be able to... Look at it!

..in The Repair Shop.