Episode 7

First to arrive in the barn is Toby from Berkshire, with a keyboard that was the sound of his hero, Dave Greenfield of The Stranglers. A lifelong fan of the band, Toby was inspired by Dave to take up the keyboard himself. Five years ago, when Dave sadly passed away, in an incredible turn of events, his bandmates invited Toby to join them as the new Stranglers keyboard player, and Dave’s original keyboard was gifted to him. Now broken, it poses a substantial challenge for organ restorer David Burville, who repairs the keys and enlists the help of electrical guru Mark Stuckey to get this iconic instrument, once touched by Toby’s hero, playable again.

School sweethearts Roland and Jackie arrive at the barn bearing some iconic footwear for the attention of shoemaker Dean Westmoreland. Back in the 70s, the pair were in the same class at school, but despite several attempts to impress Jackie, Roland had been knocked back because of his height. A trip to Carnaby Street in London ensued, and there in a shop window sat a pair of five-inch platforms. Roland instantly knew they were the shoes that would get the girl! At the disco, he towered over Jackie, and their relationship was sealed with a kiss. Despite breaking up and going their separate ways, the pair reunited years later and have now been together for 34 years. The platforms stayed with them for the whole ride, making the occasional appearance at fancy-dress parties, where they invariably picked up further scuffs and tears. Dean removes the platforms to get his hands on the uppers and makes the necessary repairs to get the 50-year-old platforms dance floor-ready.

Next, mother and daughter Khalida and Nadia from Portsmouth are hoping bookbinder Chris Shaw has the recipe for success to restore a cookbook from the 1980s. Khalida and her husband left Pakistan for Portsmouth in the mid-1970s and set up an Indian cookery school, which became the heart of their community. They put the cookbook together to ensure that all their favourite recipes from the cookery course were stored in one place. Only 60 books were made, and they were given away to students at the end of each course, while the family’s own copies have long since disappeared. A chance conversation with a colleague meant that Nadia managed to get hold of a tattered and torn copy, and her father’s death became the catalyst for wanting it restored and preserved as a precious family heirloom. Chris repairs the pages, strengthens the front cover and even manages to produce a batch of the cookbook’s samosas for the barn to enjoy.

Finally, a racing trophy is brought in by Andrew Cotton from Hertfordshire that is in need of some serious attention from silversmith and keen motor sport enthusiast Brenton West. Won in 1965 at Holland’s famous Tulip Rally by Andrew’s motor journalist father Michael, the trophy was presented to him after he claimed victory in a gruelling multi-day, point-to-point race over 1,600 miles through Europe. Andrew fondly recalls playing with the trophy, pulling back the leaves and bending the metal until it became weak. Brenton goes about restoring some strength to the trophy before banishing the dents and polishing up the faded silver to preserve it.