The Repair Shop

S06:E38 - Midwifery Bag, Robin Rae Painting, WW1 Broach

Today in the Repair Shop, Jay Blades and the team bring three treasured family heirlooms, and the memories they hold, back to life.First through the barn doors is Sue Lock, with her daughter Hannah. They have brought Sue's grandmothers leather midwifery bag. They fear the battered old bag is a hopeless case, but Susie believes she can nurse it back to life. Sue's grandmother worked selflessly for decades as a midwife – delivering hundreds of babies throughout air raids and the early years for the NHS. She inspired generations of women in her family to seek careers within medicine and for that Sue and Hannah are very proud.Next art conservator Lucia Scalisi has the pleasure meeting Alice Bird from Devon, who has brough one of her late father's pieces of work. Robin Rae was a prolific artist and was still painting into his 90s. The piece depicts several figures and is entitled The Storyteller, which Robin painted at just 21 years of age. Alice was gifted the painting when she was a similar age and it has followed her throughout her life. However, it incurred extensive damage when it was transported to France, much to Alice's despair.The final hopeful visitors are mother and daughter, Cheryl and Dawn Sandford. They have come to meet skilled jeweller Richard Talman, carrying a precious family keepsake which belonged to Cheryl's beloved nan. The gold broach holds a picture and a lock of hair from her favourite brother Billy, whose life was lost serving in WW1. The broach is so damaged it can no longer be worn and Cheryl would love to enjoy it and pass it down to her daughter and granddaughter when the time comes.