WARNING: This article contains spoilers from Antiques Roadshow.
An Antiques Roadshow guest was all smiles when she heard the valuation of her daughter’s Harry Potter book, which was described as “shockingly bad”.
BBC’s expert Matthew Haley had a day to remember at Thirlestane Castle amid the stunning backdrop of the Scottish Borders, engaging with two folks who presented first editions of their kids’ Harry Potter books, penned by JK Rowling.
One gent appeared with a signed copy of the saga’s second instalment, Chamber of Secrets, while a lady showcased her autographed edition of the fourth book, Goblet Of Fire.
Discussing provenance, the gentleman revealed his Chamber of Secrets was signed by Rowling at the Edinburgh Book Festival during an intimate reading attended by only about 30 youngsters.
On the flip side, the Goblet of Fire owner reminisced about snagging the book at an Edinburgh signing in July 2000 as a ‘lovely present’ for her daughter’s birthday.
Matthew Haley lauded them, remarking: “You’ve both got brilliant provenance, there are so many JK Rowling fake signatures around. You both know where you were and when they were signed.”
(Image: BBC)
The discussion shifted to the condition of the items, eliciting a chuckle from the woman.
Before diving into her novel’s condition, Haley turned to the dad, noting: “Your Chamber of Secrets is in pretty good condition, it’s got a slightly faded spine as often happens, the dust jacket is a bit bumped but it is as I would expect to see it.”
The woman quipped “Here we come” during a brief pause, while expert Haley proceeded to critique the state of her copy of the book.
He remarked: “Your Goblet Of Fire, it’s been annotated here ‘JK Rowling’ in case you couldn’t read it.
“And then here, ‘My new signature, do you like it? ‘ And then she goes to the back and writes ‘This is an amazing book! You must read it! ‘”, which had the audience in stitches.
(Image: BBC)
As the guest nonchalantly reacted, Haley observed: “It really shows enthusiasm for the Harry Potter series but it obviously does affect the value.”
For the first volume, he valued the Chamber of Secrets and said: “So your Chamber of Secrets, it’s the second book in the series, it’s rarer, it’s in nicer condition I’m going to say at auction that one will be worth something about £3,000.”
He then assessed the not-so-pristine copy of Goblet of Fire, commenting: “Yours is less rare, because it’s further in the series so there were more copies printed, JK Rowling was more popular and the condition is really shockingly bad.
“In this condition, it’s tough, but potentially between £500 and £1,000.
Pleased, the guest expressed: “Well that’s still very, very good, thank you.”
Haley concluded with: “And it’s amazing that you’ve both brought them and we can do them together.”
Antiques Roadshow is available to watch on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
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