A little birdie told us Arthur was on
ACLOCKWORK bird singing away in a gilded cage marked the start of Going For A Song. The BBC series began on March 31, 1965, with the sound of the little mechanical bird warbling along to the theme tune of a movement from Ottorino Respighi’s The Birds.
The Antiques Roadshow forerunner was an entertaining quiz show in which the aim was to decide the value of a mystery object.
Guests were able to examine the item before it was passed to the experts for a professional evaluation.
The guest with the closest estimate was the winner.
Celebrities who appeared on the show included The Good Life’s Felicity Kendal, Doctor Who star Colin Baker, Terry Wogan and Dad’s Army actor Arthur Lowe.
Avuncular antiques expert Arthur Negus was 62 when he first appeared on the Sunday afternoon show and his passion and enthusiasm for the objects which passed through his hands was a big part of the appeal of the programme.
The cabinet-maker’s son believed the show worked best when the antiques were relatively ordinary items that might be tucked away, unappreciated in the homes of viewers.
The first presenter, Tony Ross, was later replaced by Max
Robertson and the show, in which “connoisseurs and customers explore the world of antiques,” ran until 1977. It was later revived in the 1990s, with Michael Parkinson and Anne Robinson, and again in 2001 with Michael Aspel fronting the programme.
Meanwhile, Arthur Negus went on to join The Antiques Roadshow team in 1979 and remained one of the programme’s most popular experts.
He died in 1985 at the age of 82 and more than 150 items collected by Arthur during his lifetime were later sold at auction in 1992. The collection included Faberge perfume bottles and two George III sugar baskets.
His daughter, Anne, also appeared on the Antiques Roadshow in 2013 with the Negus family Bible. The Bible’s discovery led to the family being able to trace their ancestors back to the 1700s.