The Repair Shop

S08:E46 - Poet's Harmonium, Child's Clogs, Vera's Sculpture

The barn welcomes the Poet Laureate Simon Armitage who's hoping organ restorer David Burville can revive his treasured harmonium, the subject of one of his poems. For Simon, the instrument holds precious memories of his late father Peter, a creative man who encouraged Simon's own artistic journey. The harmonium was originally in their local church in West Yorkshire where both father and son were choristers. Now Simon wants the harmonium restored to not only rekindle memories of his dad but also strike a more contemporary note. David sets to work so that when Simon returns to the barn with his band, the experts are treated to a nostalgic but modern performance.Next to arrive is Valerie from Pontefract with a pair of child's leather clogs to test the craftsmanship of fellow Yorkshireman, cobbler Dean Westmoreland. The clogs belonged to Valerie's sister Iris who, in 1946, was born at least six weeks premature. With the chances of survival slim, she was fed with a little dropper. Although she continued to have problems with her health and mobility, against all odds Iris survived. When she was around four years old, their mother bought the little clogs to help Iris balance, but the little girl hated them so much that she threw them in the fire. Burned and no longer usable, the shoes sat on the mantelpiece for the next 40 years. After their mother died, Iris kept them on her own mantelpiece having never got over the guilt of upsetting their mum. The tiny shoes carry so much weight that Dean has his work cut out bringing them back to life for Valerie.Next, seeking the sculptural skills of Kirsten Ramsay is Martin with a precious memento that chronicles an extraordinary life. As a 27-year-old ceramics and sculpture student in Czechoslovakia, Martin's mother Vera befriended a fellow student sculptor called Milos Axman. The broken sculpture that Martin has brought to the barn was made by Axman in 1947 and depicts his mother as a young woman. Before her studies, at the beginning of the Second World War when the Germans took over Czechoslovakia, Vera had been sent to work in an ammunitions factory in Berlin. She had planned an escape with two male friends but when caught crossing the border, her companions had been shot dead. Vera was tried in Nuremberg and given a life sentence but was freed from prison in 1945. The sculpture is an important repair for ceramics expert Kirsten Ramsay, aided by woodwork whizz Will Kirk who turns his own artistic hand to sculpting a new oak base.