The BEST episodes of Antiques Roadshow season 42

#1 - The Battle of Britain and the Blitz

Season 42 - Episode 21 - Aired 9/16/2020

To commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Britain and the Blitz, Fiona meets one of the last remaining Battle of Britain pilots and flies in a Spitfire.

#2 - Lytham Hall 2

Season 42 - Episode 15 - Aired 4/5/2020

At Lytham Hall in Lancashire, finds include a chair that is believed to be from Nelson’s flagship, a gruesome insight into Victorian dentistry and a fantastic series of watercolours rescued from a skip and worth thousands. Geoffrey Munn finds a diamond pendant presented by the city of Liverpool, and there is some sixties rock and roll memorabilia of the highest pedigree.

#3 - Lytham Hall 1

Season 42 - Episode 5 - Aired 9/29/2019

At Lytham Hall in Lancashire, finds include a rare automaton, a sketch by Lowry, a world-class watch and the medals won by Britain’s first black Olympian.

#4 - Battle Abbey 2

Season 42 - Episode 8 - Aired 10/20/2019

Antiques Roadshow is at Battle Abbey in East Sussex, where treasures brought along include a diamond ring that was bought for a pound, a 17th-century violin, the most valuable ever brought to the Roadshow, and a unique telegram from Hitler. Some iconic weather signs and a valuable princess’s dress are among other treasures turning up on the day.

#5 - Battle Abbey 1

Season 42 - Episode 10 - Aired 3/1/2020

Antiques Roadshow is at Battle Abbey, where treasures brought along include an incredibly rare Beatles guitar with an enviable history, which turns out to be one of the most valuable items ever seen on the show. Also featured are some royal letters from Queen Victoria’s children, a pawned diamond ring that saved a family from the poorhouse, a rare ninth-century gold coin and some valuable Chinese surprises.

#6 - National Botanic Garden of Wales 2

Season 42 - Episode 18 - Aired 5/3/2020

Antiques Roadshow comes from the lush surroundings of the National Botanic Garden of Wales in Carmarthenshire, where Fiona Bruce discovers how plant-based remedies were mixed and bottled by Victorian pharmacists.Braving the rainy weather, visitors bring an eclectic range of items for the experts to appraise. James Bond memorabilia make an appearance alongside a miniature steam engine and a rare religious ring. Ceramics expert Jon Axford is astonished to see not one but three unique pieces of Martinware pottery, while silver specialist Duncan Campbell unearths a beaker dug out of a First World War trench and used as a shaving cup.

#7 - The Best of the Summer (3)

Season 42 - Episode 23 - Aired 10/18/2020

#8 - VE Day Special

Season 42 - Episode 19 - Aired 5/10/2020

In this special edition of Antiques Roadshow, Fiona Bruce marks the 75th anniversary of VE Day. She looks back at some of the most powerful and moving stories ever heard on the programme – and some never seen before – which give personal insights into the momentous events of the Second World War. Through cherished objects, the programme traces the personal stories behind key events of the Second World War, including Dunkirk, D-Day, the Dambusters raid and the atrocities of the Nazi concentration camps. There is first-hand testimony from those who were present at VE Day, including the roadshow’s own Henry Sandon. Fiona also delves into the BBC archives to discover the challenges of reporting the VE Day announcement and the celebrations across the UK and abroad. Given the nature of these stories, no values will be given on items, which include the typewriter of journalist Claire Hollingsworth, who got the scoop of the century when she witnessed the Nazi invasion of Poland, a shrapnel-damaged memento from the first great naval battle of the war (the Battle of the River Plate) and some surprising items that celebrate the famous ‘Blitz spirit’, including an incendiary bomb that was extinguished and used as a doorstop.

#9 - Castle Ward 2

Season 42 - Episode 17 - Aired 4/26/2020

Fiona Bruce pays a return visit to Castle Ward in Co Down, delving into the story of scientist, author and astronomer Mary Ward, who lived in the mansion in the 19th century. Items assessed by the team include two sculptures made out of ostrich eggs and a watch designed for astronauts to wear on the Moon, while military expert Robert Tilney unearths some top secret D-Day plans.

#10 - Compton Verney 2

Season 42 - Episode 16 - Aired 4/12/2020

Antiques Roadshow returns to the magnificent setting of Compton Verney in Warwickshire. Treasures brought in include some hand-painted fashion illustrations from the 1930s, a pair of bronze cockerels from Benin in West Africa and a rare Chinese incense burner worth a small fortune. We meet the granddaughter of the first British woman to win an individual swimming gold medal, at the 1924 Olympics, and military expert Mark Smith hears the extraordinary story of how a First World War hero earned the Victoria Cross.

#11 - National Botanic Garden of Wales 1

Season 42 - Episode 13 - Aired 3/22/2020

This Episode comes from the lush surroundings of the National Botanic Garden of Wales in Carmarthenshire. Fiona Bruce explores the Victorian mania for collecting exotic plants and examines rare species grown inside the gigantic biodome. Mark Smith can’t believe his eyes when not one but two rare First World War Luftwaffe ‘honour’ goblets turn up at his table, while armourer Bill Harriman can’t wait to get his hands on one of the largest muskets he’s ever seen. Duncan Campbell discovers a Chinese box that Hollywood star Gregory Peck tried - and failed - to buy, and John Axford is amazed to see an extremely rare 12th-century bronze statuette brought back from Calcutta in the 1920s .

#12 - V&A Dundee 2

Season 42 - Episode 12 - Aired 3/15/2020

Fiona Bruce is at the V&A Dundee in Scotland. Treasures brought in include a self-pouring teapot, a glass helmet and a piece of tartan that has been to the moon.

#13 - Salisbury Cathedral 2

Season 42 - Episode 11 - Aired 3/8/2020

Antiques Roadshow is in the grounds of Salisbury Cathedral in Wiltshire, where experts discover an eclectic mix of treasures including Napoleon's razor, letters from Enid Blyton and a piece of Queen Victoria's underwear. There is plenty of sparkle from jewellery with a story to tell, and artworks including a hand-painted Christmas card from the Second World War and original drawings of Judge Dredd.

#14 - Morden Hall Park 1

Season 42 - Episode 1 - Aired 9/1/2019

In this episode, Antiques Roadshow comes from the colourful surrounds of Morden Hall Park in south London, where big value finds include a rare Cartier driver’s watch, a tiny painting by a German impressionist and a plate designed by Pablo Picasso. Jewellery specialist Joanna Hardy is dazzled by a diamond-studded replica of a brooch originally designed for Wallis Simpson, the Duchess of Windsor, while glass specialist Andy McConnell covets three early 18th-century pieces bought for just a few pence. Alexandra Gill admires a painting by renowned Cuban artist René Portocarrero and hears how it was given as a gift by Cuban leader Fidel Castro. Hilary Kay delivers a show-stopping valuation when she appraises a remarkable self-portrait by John Lennon and Yoko Ono, done shortly after their wedding and famous ‘bed-in’ of 1969.

#15 - Second World War Special

Season 42 - Episode 2 - Aired 9/8/2019

This episode marks 80 years since the start of World War II, and brings fresh insights to the conflict through personal stories and family mementos. Introduced by Fiona Bruce from Dover Castle, where the evacuation of Dunkirk was organised in the spring of 1940, the episode includes the stirring tale of HMS Hardy and its doomed efforts to protect the Norwegian port of Narvik – a mission that secured its captain the Victoria Cross. A sinister photo album belonging to an Austrian soldier offers a previously unseen glimpse of Neville Chamberlain’s ill-fated meeting with Hitler in 1938, and Fiona meets 95-year-old Ray Palmer, who has the rare distinction of being first a child evacuee and then a serving soldier. Hilary Kay samples a potato-based dessert cooked from a wartime ration book, while Ronnie Archer Morgan admires a collection of colourful silk scarves designed to deliver propaganda messages. And finally, Bill Harriman is moved by the story of a child evacuee called Audrey whose parents arranged for her to be taken from Britain to Canada in a desperate bid to ensure her safety – but with tragic consequences.

#16 - V&A Dundee 1

Season 42 - Episode 4 - Aired 9/22/2019

The Roadshow is in Scotland at the V&A Dundee. Amongst the treasures brought along are a silver bowl found at a car boot sale, a Vivienne Westwood jacket and some rare SAS medals.

#17 - Castle Ward 1

Season 42 - Episode 9 - Aired 10/27/2019

The Roadshow comes from Castle Ward on the shores of Strangford Lough in Northern Ireland, where Fiona Bruce discovers that the architecture of this unusual house has something of a split personality. The visitors to Castle Ward produce an eclectic mix of finds. Irish treasures include a bronze sculpture known as The Leprechaun, a large table traditionally used for displaying the coffin at a wake and a picture of a fireman in action, brought along by Northern Ireland’s first female fire fighter. Treasures from further afield include a Tongan war club that narrowly escaped being chopped up for firewood and a 1960s TV set inspired by the first moon landing.

#18 - Salisbury Cathedral 1

Season 42 - Episode 3 - Aired 9/15/2019

At Salisbury Cathedral, surprises include a strange object linked to the Titanic, a rare astronaut’s watch and an undiscovered letter written by Churchill.

#19 - Compton Verney 1

Season 42 - Episode 6 - Aired 10/6/2019

At Compton Verney in Warwickshire, this week’s finds include a unique Ashes cricket stump, the Duke of Wellington’s riding crop and Queen Victoria’s chocolate box.

#20 - Morden Hall Park 3

Season 42 - Episode 7 - Aired 10/13/2019

The Antiques Roadshow returns to the bucolic splendour of Morden Hall Park in London, where the experts unearth a Faberge vanity case, a ring by one of the most innovative goldsmiths of the 20th century and a magnifying glass linked to the Pablo Picasso exhibition in New York in 1939. Art expert Phillip Mould is intrigued by a painting of rural life, but is it British or American? Lennox Cato also faces a puzzle when he appraises a pair of antique doors belonging to the local mosque. Are they the 400-year-old treasures they appear to be? And jewellery specialist Jon Benjamin gets his hands on the largest aquamarine he has ever seen.

#21 - Morden Hall Park 2

Season 42 - Episode 14 - Aired 3/29/2020

Antiques Roadshow returns to the vibrant setting of Morden Hall Park in south London. We discover personal letters written by Mother Teresa and an exquisite bronze by the father of South African sculpture, Anton Van Wouw. There’s a colourful collage by the celebrated British artist and illustrator John Minton, and a huge collection of intricately designed silver vinaigrette boxes.

#22 - The Best of the Summer (1)

Season 42 - Episode 20 - Aired 9/6/2020

Fiona Bruce shares the best unseen items from roadshows around the UK, from space memorabilia to a jewel-encrusted dagger and a much-loved rocking horse.

#23 - The Best of the Summer (2)

Season 42 - Episode 22 - Aired 9/27/2020

Fiona Bruce shares some of the best unseen items from recent Roadshows around the UK – from from a set of designer jewelry to an ancient strong-box and some engraved glasses which might not be all that they seem. Amongst the eclectic finds are some brooches handed down from the royal family, a spy camera, a prop from a St Trinian’s film and a hand-cut paper Valentine designed to win a hand in marriage.