BBC's Antiques Roadshow returned to one of the grandest houses in Wales, Powis Castle, during the episode that aired on Sunday, July 2. The show saw guests share their stories behind a whole range of items, including a ventriloquist's dummy, a 300-year-old love token, a gold brooch in the shape of a bird, and an oil painting detecting Scottish islands.
The oil painting in question had a rather lovely and unassuming story behind it, leaving the guest that bought it at a charity shop for £25 shocked by its valuation. Introducing the piece of art, a thrilled Grant Ford explained: "This is such an immediate, fluid, colourful painting, I'd love to be able to paint just like this. It really is a confident, colourist painting, now, it's an oil on canvas and it's clearly signed lower right, Cunningham."
Asking the guest how she came to own it, she replied: "So I bought this painting 10 years ago, it's a Scottish scene, a peninsula on the west coast of Scotland and we'd all had a family holiday there.
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"We were driving home, all the way back to Shropshire, and my children were only 10 and 12 and I realised the rain was coming down and I had no raincoat for the children, so I stopped at the nearest charity shop and went in to get a raincoat but I didn't get a raincoat, I got a painting."
"What a lovely story, gosh I wish I got there before you," Grant responded. He went on to explain that John Cunningham was born and bred in Lancashire but was centered in Glasgow where he was a senior lecturer at the Glasgow School of Art.
Upon retiring he became a professional artist in 1985, and the oil painting brought to the Roadshow was a desired piece. Grant then asked: "You go into the charity shop for a raincoat, and you find a picture by John Cunningham, one of his favourite subjects, what did you pay for it?"
The guest explained she paid £25 for the painting 10 years ago, to which Grant replied: "I just think that's an amazing bit of luck because this is a very sought-after painting and actually holds quite a lot of value. I can confidently say it's worth £4,000 to £6,000."
"Oh wow, that's quite astonishing for £25, I'm glad I bought it," the delighted guest said, as Grant added: "You could have found a raincoat that day, luckily you found a brilliant painting." For more showbiz and television stories get our newsletter here.
