>> well, it's difficult to say really. the commotion distracted us all. >> but you could see her clearly from your seat. >> oh, yes indeed. i was facing the window. i was probably engrossed in the game. i'm afraid i'm a bit of a dunce when it comes to bridge. ♪ >> you're on to something poirot. i'm dashed to find out what. >> patience, my friend. >> all right, get in line. all right, all right, none of your hobnails. just get them off. [laughter] this is a serious inquiry. get their names on the labels, and give your boots to the constable. >> what? >> you'll get them back. don't worry. they're going to be

looked at by a film star. god help her. [birds chirping] >> you know, poirot, there's a bit more to this modern art than you might think. it isn't just that they don't know what they're doing, even if it might look like it. >> this is most unpleasant hastings. >> a pal of mine was telling me that what they're trying to do is to show all the sides at the same time to save us the trouble of walking about the back. it's quite a clever idea, in a way. i mean, take this fellow, for instance. i mean, that bit might be his front and his back as well, if you get my meaning. it's all quite scientific really. the trouble is most of the time, they're half mad with booze and drugs, so what they see isn't all that reliable. it's the artistic temperament. that's the problem. what have you got there? oh, bunny. what are you doing here? >> looking for you and

monsieur poirot, actually. prince paul said you'd be here. >> what's up? >> well, look, it may be nothing important. when i was driving back from here, last night, i nearly ran straight into ralphie walton coming the other way, swerving around like some mad dervish, he was. >> so you think he was coming here to see monsieur reedburn, intent on revenge? >> i don't know. he certainly didn't look like a man paying a social visit. >> he doesn't wear hobnail boots, does he? walton, i mean. >> beg your pardon, sir. there's a telephone call for mr. saunders. >> for me? >> yes, sir. >> who on earth could be calling me here. excuse me. >> so, did ralph walton kill reedburn? >> ah? that is the big question, mon ami. >> what about the missing bridge card? >> it is in my pocket. >> i don't understand. >> well, there is no great

mystery. the missing card was in the box all the time. it had simply not been taken out with the others. c'est tout. >> well, that was prince paul to say that ralph walton has been taken to the local cottage hospital. he crashed his car near here in the early hours of the morning. >> good heavens. is he all right? >> a broken collar bone and a hangover. but he's comfortable, apparently. look, i think i'll trot over to see the old boy now. >> all right. >> hastings, why don't you accompany monsieur saunders, huh? i must return to the willows and well, i think it best if i go alone. >> oh. all right, if you think so. >> besides, you can question monsieur ralph walton about last night, perhaps. >> right. ♪ hop in then, arthur. >> right. oh, this is nice. [car motor] i saw freddie dickson drive one

down at the track. i thought i'd get one myself. >> twin su car, isn't it? >> yeah. it's a bit thirsty, but quick. [motor engine] >> good morning, sir. >> mr. poirot. >> i must apologize for this unexpected return, madam. i was

anxious to fully set your mind at rest. you have a second daughter, madam? >> had. she died, i'm afraid. >> i am sorry to hear you say that. hmm. in my country, we belgians have great respect for la mere de familie. the mother. she is all important. do not worry. i think it unlikely that the police will ever learn the truth. you will permit me, madam, to return the missing card to the

pack. to play bridge for over one hour with only 51 cards, that is not very believable, madam. you make one other small mistake. you tell me that you are sitting here facing the window when mademoiselle saintclair appeared. but your daughter tells me she also is sitting here. so perhaps you are both sitting in the same chair no? >> nothing has escaped you it seems, mr. poirot. [door knock] >> you are feeling better, mademoiselle? >> yes. much better, thank you. >> mademoiselle-- i found these in the house of monsieur reedburn.

>> what have they to do with me? >> you are a good actress and a loyal daughter, mademoiselle oglander. this is your father, monsieur oglander, no? and this man, monsieur hawtrey he is also your father. >> you can't be serious. >> mr. poirot knows everything dear. >> believe me, my dear lady, i make no judgment in this matter. monsieur hawtrey tries to save his business with a little false accounting. fathers have done worse for the sake of their children. but monsieur hawtrey is caught and in his shame he changes his name to oglander. when your family comes to live here, mr. reedburn discovers these facts and tries to

blackmail you. is that not so? >> i lived in dread, monsieur poirot, that he would divulge everything. paul could never marry me then. >> i think it is best if you keep this, mademoiselle. and have no fear. my lips are sealed. [door open] >> i say, val, what are you doing up? i should be careful. we just saw that little french chap snooping his way back up here. >> vive la familie.

au revoir, madam. ♪ [bicycle bell] >> would you like a lift back to town, poirot? >> ah, that is most kind of you, inspector. but i have to meet captain hastings back at mon desire. >> ah, yes. by the by, how did you get on at the willows? >> nothing of any interest, i have to admit. what about your gypsies? >> drawn a blank so far. difficult blokes to deal with. but we'll find him sooner or later. don't you worry. >> i admire your persistence my friend.

>> little gray cells are all very nice, poirot, but it's doggied as does it. [chuckle] >> [chuckle] >> yes well, thank you very much, inspector. i will try and remember that. au revoir. ♪ >> ah, poirot. >> how is monsieur walton? >> he seemed pretty cheerful all things considered. he claims he intended to give reedburn a good hiding. but by the time he got his courage up, he was in no fit state. >> no, it does not matter, hastings. the case is closed.

>> you mean you've caught the murderer? >> there is no murderer. >> what? >> there is no murderer because there is no murder. >> but reedburn's body was found in that window with a hole in the back of his head. >> wrong window, hastings. this was where the body lay first. regard, mon ami. you see this blood stain? uh-huh. now remember, chief inspector japp said that there was bruising on the face of monsieur reedburn, huh? the reason? because someone punches him between the eyes. monsieur reedburn falls backwards, hits his head against this arm. psshh! and slips to the floor. that is an accident. it is not murder. >> but if he fell here, why did he end up over there? >> well, it is not impossible, you know, to drag the body across the floor. >> but why take it over there? >> because it was essential for their plan. >> their plan?

>> yes. valerie saintclair and ronnie oglander. mother and father is too weak, so it had to be son. you see, mon ami mademoiselle saintclair visited monsieur reedburn, last night, accompanied by ronnie. there was a quarrel, no doubt, and the young monsieur oglander punched monsieur reedburn in the face. he fell backwards and hit his head. voila. >> but how do you know all this? >> because of that window. now remember, this was the only window with its curtains drawn back. yes? why? to give a view of the willows, the oglanders' house. in order to make it appear that valerie saintclair went to the willows by chance, it was necessary for the body to be found over there. >> i see. but-- >> you have another question

mon ami, no? >> well, yes. i mean, what's the connection? >> between valerie saintclair and the oglanders? ah. ♪ [car horn] >> what was that ahmed doing here? >> he's come to see to the horses. >> oh. that's his excuse, is it? he spends too much time hanging around here, if you ask me. >> oh bernard, he doesn't. >> i'm still your husband vivian. just don't ever forget that. >> cut. [applause] >> excellent, bunny. excellent.

very good, ralphie. >> thanks. [everyone talking at once] >> right. well, chap, we'll print that one. now then onwards and upwards. we'll move on to scene 64. as long as that one is clear. >> monsieur poirot, have the police made an arrest? >> no, it seems not. and from what i hear, the trail has gone cold. >> well, the very idea that val could have been involved was always preposterous. >> open up the doors, and get some air in here. >> but i thought-- >> no, no, no, hastings. >> look, it seems to me-- >> my friend, you are barking up the wrong branch. the case of monsieur reedburn will remain, i fear, one of the great body of unsolved cases. [captioning made possible by friends of nci]

[bell rings] [bird chirping]

>> appraiser: shall i tell you what the most incredible thing about this is? >> woman: oh yes, please. >> appraiser: the fact that it's survived. >> woman: well, that's fair, yes. >> appraiser: where have you kept it? >> woman: well, it's probably been in the loft for 15 to 20 years. >> appraiser: seriously? >> woman: yes, yes. >> appraiser: well, maybe that's why it's in such pretty good condition because it's only made of tin plate. it's a very basic thing. it has, for instance a paper dial. it's not a quality object. now, do you know who might have made it because there are the crossed arrow marks there? >> woman: oh no, no. >> appraiser: that is the trademark of the hamburg american clock company. nowhere near hamburg, nowhere near the states, but actually down in wurttemberg. and i see also it slightly gives it away because it says made in wurttemberg. now it has a patent there dated 1900. have you done any research on that at all?

>> woman: well, we have. my husband wrote off to the patent office and we got this back, so. >> appraiser: oh, that's fantastic. >> woman: and it's got the plan of it and everything on the back, so. >> appraiser: let's just have a look at that. it has, it's got the plan. it's got everything and it even shows how it is linked to the movement. now, do you know much about ferris wheels? >> woman: no. >> appraiser: nor do i. but i can tell you that there was a very large one in the paris exhibition of 1900. so that ties in with this exactly. and it was then disassembled some time later and sold to the austrians, and that is the wheel that then went to vienna. this is obviously to mark that occasion of a fantastic ferris wheel in 1900. and you haven't seen it working? >> woman: no, just didn't think it worked. >> appraiser: well, i mean let's just very briefly look. it says here, "the connecting driving cord is preferably made of a very light endless helical metal spring which is very flexible, and at the same time elastic and durable.

now, it's still there! i mean, look at it. it is still there... ...that flexible helical spring. and let us just start the balance going. [ticking] >> appraiser: and it is ticking. and there goes the wheel! >> woman: right. >> appraiser: so it's always been lying on its back for ages at home, hasn't it? >> woman: yes. >> appraiser: if it was valuable would you ever have it out on display? >> woman: may do, yes. >> appraiser: okay. >> woman: wouldn't go with my house, i don't think. >> appraiser: yes, but... i'm going to stick my neck out and as a novelty item say to you £1,500 to £2,000. >> woman: are you joking? you're through it. >> appraiser: it is a lovely lovely thing. as i say, for a clock man, it's not that exciting, but it's a great piece on its own. >> woman: oh my! >> appraiser: so is it going to come out now? >> woman: i may do, yes. [laughs] oh! i'm going to sit and watch it go

that's for sure. >> man: they were my grandmother's. i don't know much about the elements because she never used to wear them that much. she used to keep them away and that's it really. i really don't know much about them. >> appraiser: may i be a little depressing and say that the vast majority of the items that you've brought in here are decorative, colorful, modern items of very little commercial merit. but there's one item here, just one, that's a little bit different from the rest of the collection. did you ever look at that and think to yourself, what have we got here? is it something slightly more unusual? >> man: my grandmother has mentioned that one. >> appraiser: what an opal that is because that is an opal of the most spectacular quality. what i'm hoping we can do in the sunshine is to pick up the sheer play of color. where does it come from?

australia. a particular mine? the coober pedy or lightning ridge mine, where opals like this in australia are regarded with incredible significance. why is it so good? why is the color so important? because it's a black opal. now mostly when we see them, opals are white. and there's a good example of a white opal and diamond ring. not very inspiring it's got a quite pretty play of color. but when you look at this, can you see the depth of all the different rainbow shades here, yellows, tangerines, reds, blues? very, very significant piece of material. do you think the mount is rather unusual? >> man: ah, yes. >> appraiser: well, it's made out of white gold. and you've got this -- almost like a textured feather effect to the mount. but when we look inside the

mount, and if i check it with my lens, i see it's hallmarked 1972, birmingham and it's made by one of the great london society jewelers called gremer. so you haven't just got a fantastic opal, which for me i'm melting looking at it, but you have a gremer mount. and we see opals all the time, like that one there. they're worth £200, £300. this opal is a little more substantial. the mount, excluding the stone is at least £1,000 to £1,500. the stone? that's probably worth something in the region of £4,000. >> man: wow! >> appraiser: your opal ring disregarded here in the composition pile of bidlydoos, is worth at least £4,000 to £6,000. >> man: wow! wow! >> appraiser: fantastic. well done. >> man: thank you.

>> appraiser: you've presented me with one of the biggest headaches i've ever had since i've been on the roadshow ... >> woman: sorry about that. >> appraiser: ...because there's something about this wonderful ink stand that is really rather special. can you tell me how it ended up with you? >> woman: well, we like collecting silver and we went to an antique fair and saw it and fell in love with it. we just liked everything about it so we bought it. >> appraiser: so when you bought this from the dealer, did he say anything to you about it? >> woman: well, he said he didn't know the provenance of it, but he thought it was something important. and we loved it so we decided to buy it anyway. and he said it would either be the most expensive piece of silver in an inkwell we bought -- in a desk set we bought, or it would turn out to be something important in which case we would have got a good deal. >> appraiser: and what did you pay for it? can you remember? >> woman: i can. £15,000.

>> appraiser: wow! >> woman: so that was that. >> appraiser: well, that's quite a big price for an inkstand. >> woman: oh, i know. >> appraiser: let's have a closer look at it because it's got two globes here. one a celestial, the other terrestrial. but if we open this one up we can see that's the inkwell. >> woman: yes. >> appraiser: and if we open this one up, that's the sander... >> woman: yes. >> appraiser: ...for drying the ink. >> woman: yes. >> appraiser: so rather beautifully pierced in fact. >> woman: yes. >> appraiser: in the center, we've got this rather nice classical figure. she's obviously lamenting the fact that her husband is away at sea. she got that sort of worried look about her. but rather wonderfully the taper stick, which was used for melting the wax for sealing the letter, was modeled as an anchor. so we've got a really nautical flavor to this inkstand. including these extraordinary feet, which are modeled as --

they call them dolphins. they don't really look anything like a dolphin, but that's what they're called in silversmithing terms. >> woman: yes. >> appraiser: and let's have a look underneath and see if this has got any marks. yeah, we've got a nice set of hallmarks here. a date letter k for 1805 and maker's mark je. now that's for john eames, a famous silversmith, and produced a lot of very good silver in the early 19th century. the most important thing of all about this inkstand is this inscription on the front which says, "horatio from emma." now, i can see now why you might have paid £15,000 for it. >> woman: yes, yes. >> appraiser: the dilemma is is that inscription genuine? is it real? well, a number of things make me think that it could be.

firstly, that john eames is known to have made silver for nelson. >> woman: okay. >> appraiser: a number of pieces of nelson's silver have come up with his crest on made by john eames. that's the first thing. i like sort of authentic things, like on the globe here we've got a map of africa, and just on the front it's got barbary which was northern africa at the time. >> woman: yes. >> appraiser: the date 1805 is of course a very auspicious year for nelson. in fact, not a very happy year for him because it was the year he was killed. >> woman: yes. >> appraiser: but he wasn't killed until the battle of trafalgar in october 1805, and it's quite possible that emma hamilton, his very public mistress, gave this to him at the beginning of the year. now, it remains then to decide you know, if it's right... >> woman: yes. >> appraiser: ...if it's wrong.

what could it be worth? >> woman: yes. >> appraiser: if this is not substantiated, if it turns out to be wrong, you bought a pretty expensive inkstand. >> woman: yes. >> appraiser: i would have only valued it at £6,000 to £8,000 if we can't substantiate that this is a valid inscription. >> woman: sure. >> appraiser: but if this is genuine, and you might need to go to the national maritime museum to greenwich to try and start authenticating it, that would be a good place to go. we are talking of at least £40,000 to £50,000. >> woman: right. >> appraiser: there are very very fanatical collectors of nelsoniana. >> woman: i know, yeah. >> appraiser: and something of such importance as this is a very, very special object indeed. so you've really made my day... >> woman: good. >> appraiser: ...by bringing this along. thank you so much. >> woman: thank you.