Catch up TV

Series 14: Episode 12

First into the barn are Keith and his daughter Kirsty, who have brought a cleverly designed accessory that requires the skills of resident horologist Steve Fletcher. Keith’s father Desmond went blind in his thirties due to a hereditary disease that runs in the family called Stickler syndrome. Desmond never let his condition stop him and retrained in his field so he could continue his career in engineering and welding after becoming blind. Upon retirement, after 21 years of loyal service, Desmond was presented with a personally engraved braille watch from his company and wore it every day for over 30 years. Steve takes on a new challenge with the watch, making a hinged case so that the glass top can be opened, and the wearer can feel the braille dial to tell the time. Keith and Kirsty want to repair the watch in honour of Desmond’s inspiring resilience and to pass it onto Keith’s granddaughter and Kirsty’s daughter Phoebe, who is also blind.\n\nNext in are brother and sister Zaff and Nasari, with an item holding long-buried memories of their family’s life in Uganda. The siblings need help from electrical expert Mark Stuckey with their father’s vintage projector, which was used to showcase family videos. When their family was forced to flee the country in 1972, Zaff and Nasari’s father brought the precious projector with them to Rochdale, where they eventually rebuilt their lives. After almost half a century of being unused, Zaff and Nasari hope to restore the projector to working condition. Allowing them to relive never-before-seen treasured memories of their childhood in Uganda.\nWoodworker Will Kirk welcomes Zoe Blake-James and her grandmother Rowan, with a family heirloom that has been passed down four generations of women in the Blake-James family, making it over 130 years old. The vintage fire screen originally belonged to Rowan’s grandmother, and she has fond childhood memories of it being used in the family living room. Zoë is a student of Victorian literature and has a great passion for researching this era and her family’s history. The pair would love to preserve the fire screen for future generations. Will gets cracking with the wooden frame and enlists the help of textiles conservationist Rebecca Bissonnet to tackle the delicate embroidered screen.\n\nThe final pair to walk through the barn doors are celebrated veteran singer-songwriter Ralph McTell and his friend Matthew. They need the expertise of leather expert Suzie Fletcher to help repair a tattered old toy that has been earmarked for a revival. Ralph was involved in a children’s programme called Alphabet Zoo in the 80s, where he wrote a song for every letter of the alphabet. A friend gave him the leather kangaroo as a gift to celebrate the song Kenny The Kangaroo. As a result, Kenny appeared on stage with Ralph at venues like the Royal Festival Hall. Ralph met Matthew at his local pub. As well as working at the pub, Matthew also works with children with special needs doing music therapy, where he began using Ralph’s songs in his class. The children were captivated by the song Kenny The Kangaroo. Ralph was moved by this and offered to donate his leather friend to the school, but it cannot be enjoyed by the children in its current condition. Suzie has her work cut out in repairing this 70s stuffed toy from down under, whose once robust leather is now cracked and split. When the pair return, they are delighted to see Suzie has been able to get Kenny leaping back into action again, so Matthew can use him in his therapy sessions with the children.

Source: BBC 2