The Repair Shop

S07:E38 - Musical Doll, Sextant, Wooden Chest

Today in the Repair Shop, Jay Blades and the team refresh and preserve three prized keepsakes, sparking fond memories of loved ones. The day's first restoration falls to music box maestro Steve Kember. Marie Ayears arrives with a musical Grenadier Guard doll. Marie's dad served with the Grenadier Guards in the 1950s and was on duty in Westminster Abbey for Queen Elizabeth's Coronation in 1953. The music box was bought by Marie's proud grandmother to mark the occasion. It is supposed to play the tune 'Auld Lang Syne' but Marie fears she may have overwound him and now the mechanism is jammed. While Steve attempts to repair the music box, toy restorers Julie Tatchell and Amanda Middleditch must try and get his tired looking unform fit for inspection.Alice Ellingham and her mum June are next to arrive at the barn. They've brought in a sextant, used for navigation at sea by June's late husband Bob. Bob joined the Merchant Navy aged 16 and retired as captain of a cruise ship. The sextant was with him throughout his career and would have been a vital navigational tool in the days before GPS. Alice and June are both enormously proud of Bob's career and are hopeful Steve Fletcher can restore the instrument back to its pristine best so they can learn to use it as a way of connecting with Bob's past.The day's final visitor is Rohan Gunatillake from Glasgow. He's the custodian of an unusual looking chest that came from his grandmother's house in Sri Lanka, and now serves as a connection to Rohan's Sri Lankan heritage. Rohan's grandmother lived in rural Sri Lanka on a farm surrounded by rubber trees, paddy fields and water buffalo. For Rohan, summer trips to see her were like visiting another world and made a lasting impression. Over time, sections of the chest have broken off presenting a big challenge for furniture restorer Will Kirk. The chest is also missing a brass handle and casting a new one falls to silversmith Brenton West.