The Repair Shop Catch up, Series 14: 17. VE Day Special on BBC 2

The Repair Shop

Series 14: 17. VE Day Special

To mark the 80th anniversary of VE Day, the team open the barn doors to four very special items, each with an extraordinary wartime story behind them. \n\nHorologist Steve Fletcher is honoured to welcome 101-year-old Royal Navy veteran John Holloway, who brings with him a very special timepiece. As an engineer on board the aircraft carrier HMS Formidable, John was responsible for servicing the planes and installing the precisely calibrated cockpit clocks that US pilots relied upon to carry out their missions. Left in possession of one of these clocks at the end of the war, John gifted it to his beloved wife Connie, and it remained on her bedside table for the rest of her life. But now, with the intricate mechanism no longer working, Steve and his watchmaker son Fred have a delicate and very tricky job on their hands to get it ticking again.\n\nTeddy bear ladies Julie and Amanda also find themselves up against it when faced with 86-year-old Haisi, a small plastic doll who accompanied her then two-year-old owner Ruth on an extraordinary journey from wartime Austria to the safety of the UK. As a Jewish orphan with no passport or papers, Ruth’s future in Nazi-occupied Vienna looked bleak, until she – and Haisi – were smuggled out of the country, courtesy of a remarkable feat of subterfuge at Dover customs. Plastics restorer Charlotte Abbott is called in to work on Haisi’s cracked and shattered celluloid limbs. However, even with three top experts on the case, it feels like it could be touch and go for Ruth’s precious, but very fragile, lifelong companion.\n\nAlso in this VE Day special, master hatter Jayesh Vaghela weaves his magic on an RAF cap with a remarkable story behind it. The cap was worn in combat by Johnny Smythe, a young man from Sierra Leone who volunteered for action and was selected to serve as a navigator with Bomber Command. One of only 60 Black African airmen to serve in the RAF, Johnny survived being shot down over Germany and imprisonment in Stalag Luft 1 before going on to a glittering career as a senior diplomat in his native Sierra Leone. John’s son Eddy would love to see the cap restored to a presentable state, with its battle scars preserved, as a testament to his father’s many achievements.\n\nAnd finally, bookbinder Chris Shaw is left spellbound by the contents of a little autograph book, full of heartfelt and poignant messages written to a wartime nurse by her patients. Brought into the barn by Dorothy Orr from County Antrim, the book belonged to her mother Margaret, who tended to soldiers from all over the world as they were recovering from their wounds in military hospitals across Scotland.

Source: BBC 2

Most recent episodes of The Repair Shop

The Repair Shop

Series 15: Episode 11

First into the barn is Heather Evans from Winchester, who is hoping bike aficionado Tim Gunn will be able to restore balance to a tricky mode of transport. She presents a batter ...

25-03-2026

BBC 2

All episodes

The Repair Shop

Series 15: Episode 10

Hoping to strike a chord with stringed instrument restorer Julyan Wallis, the barn’s first project has given Gary Miles from Mold in north Wales plenty of teenage kicks. G ...

23-03-2026

BBC 2

All episodes

The Repair Shop

Series 15: Episode 9

First into the barn is Christine Jagger from South Yorkshire, with a cherished garden bench – the best Christmas present she ever received from her late husband, Gordon. F ...

17-03-2026

BBC 2

All episodes

The Repair Shop

Series 15: Episode 8

First to arrive in the barn are Tony Sivyer, leader of traditional Chinese lion dance team Dragon of the South, along with Alfie Allard, who has risen through the ranks since jo ...

25-02-2026

BBC 2

All episodes

The Repair Shop

Series 15: Episode 7

First to arrive in the barn is Toby from Berkshire, with a keyboard that was the sound of his hero, Dave Greenfield of The Stranglers. A lifelong fan of the band, Toby was inspi ...

09-02-2026

BBC 2

All episodes

The Repair Shop

Series 15: Episode 6

First into the barn are sisters Carole, Pat and Alison from Shropshire, bringing a treasured relic from their family’s 1970s salon – a retro hairdryer that once belo ...

02-02-2026

BBC 2

All episodes

The Repair Shop

Favourite Fixes: Episode 5

Mike Stevens is the first to arrive at the barn with a sporting souvenir in need of restoration. He’s eager to recruit metalwork maestro Dominic Chinea and woodwork expert ...

02-01-2026

BBC 2

All episodes

The Repair Shop

At Christmas 2025

It’s Christmas at the barn, and the doors are thrown wide open to welcome some very special guests who have brought along cherished items in need of a festive fix.\n\nHoll ...

28-12-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

The Repair Shop

At Christmas 2025 - Signed

It’s Christmas at the barn, and the doors are thrown wide open to welcome some very special guests who have brought along cherished items in need of a festive fix.\n\nHoll ...

27-12-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

The Repair Shop

At Christmas 2024

It’s festive season at The Repair Shop, and this year the team of experts are back spreading joy and creating more Christmas magic with their festive fixes.\n\nFirst throu ...

17-12-2025

BBC 2

All episodes