A popular BBC television show headed to Clacton Pier at the weekend for
filming for the next series.
Antiques Road Trip experts Catherine Southon and Serhat Ahmet crashed
into each other on the dodgems and scoffed candy floss as they strolled along
the decking of the iconic seaside attraction.
The pair and crew were on site for around six hours as the cameras
rolled for an episode of what will be the programme’s 22nd series.
For Catherine it was a return to the Pier which she had previously visited
while she was a student at nearby Essex University.
“It has certainly changed a great deal since I was last here and it looks
a really fun place,” she said. “I will have to come back with my children.”
Serhat, a London-based antiques dealer, is the new boy on the team and
this will be only his second series. However, he has plenty of experience with
more than 25 years in his family’s business.
The programme follows pairs of experts as they head off across the
country trying to find hidden gems that will make them a profit at auction.
Under COVID restrictions the teams are currently unable to attend the
auction and find a venue from which to follow it on their iPads.
Catherine and Serhat sat in dodgem cars as they nervously watched their
items go under the hammer and waited to see how much they made.
The programme is due to be screened in September.
Pier managing director Billy Ball said: “We got a call about a week
before to ask if they could use us as a venue and we were more than happy to
host them.”
The Pier opened up to visitors today for the first time since December
as the leisure and hospitality sector came back to life after the latest
lockdown.
At this stage it will involve only outdoor attractions with those indoor
set to open on May 17, provided there are no changes to the Government’s
roadmap.
Rides are open from 12 noon to 6pm Monday to Friday this week and 11am
to 6pm at weekends. Fishing returns to the end of the Pier and the Boardwalk Bar
and Grill will provide service to customers at its outside seating area.
Mr Ball added that all the necessary cleaning and hygiene measures have
been put in place for re-opening, along with social distancing.
“It has been more than three months since we have had customers on the
Pier and it is great to be welcoming them back,” he said.
“We want the fun to return in a safe environment and the attraction has
been like a ghost ship without families. We understand why that had to be, but we
are relieved to be operating again.”
Ends