An Antiques Roadshow guest was left disappointed after expert Alexandra Gill revealed that a family painting was a copy, not an original. The guest explained that her parents bought the portrait of 'Sulky' at a car-boot sale in Cirencester in the late 1980s because her father thought it resembled his own father.
Expert Alexandra Gill pointed out several clues indicating the painting was a copy, including sharp edges and pixelation visible on close inspection. She noted that the piece bore a signature in ballpoint pen, suggesting the original artist, Gerald W Tooby, was aware of the copy.
The guest joked that the painting was worth about 70p, to which Gill replied that the guest had probably doubled that investment. The guest responded, 'Right well, okay. Better than nothing!'
Elsewhere in the episode, John Benjamin valued a necklace made from large Baltic amber pieces, and Jon Baddeley examined a compass once owned by Edgar Evans, a member of Scott's ill-fated Antarctic expedition.
