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Favourite Fixes: Episode 3

First through the workshop doors is Vanessa with a World War II memento for the attention of toy restorers Julie Tatchell and Amanda Middleditch. Vanessa’s mother joined the Women’s Land Army in 1939, working the land as the men went to war. Vanessa has a hunch that her mother Zoe made the doll herself and is keen for Julie and Amanda to investigate. As the Bear Ladies embark on getting the doll fit for duty once again, the mystery starts to be solved, much to the delight of Vanessa when she returns to be reunited with her mum’s doll.\n\nAlthough many people who fought in the Second World War didn’t speak about their experiences, their proud families often want their stories to be remembered. And Iain is no exception. He brings a precious keepsake that tells a story of immense bravery for the attention of silversmith Brenton West. Iain’s father received the metal bookend when he was in the SAS. Bearing the motto ‘Who Dares Wins’, it is a symbol of the courage shown by his father, who joined the army as soon as he was could and then volunteered for the SAS when it was first formed. Based in Greece, he unfortunately received three bullets in his leg during an operation to liberate the Greeks. His leg had to be amputated, but like many of that generation, he never spoke about it. When he returned from war, he just got on with his life. The bookend is severely broken, and Iain would love to have it restored in memory of his brave father. It’s an important job for Brenton and one he bravely takes on, leaving Iain very clearly moved on his return.\n\nAlong with working the land, many of Britain’s women played a part in secret spy work that changed the course of the Second World War. Wendy brings an item that shines a light on her late mother’s bravery. Wendy’s mother was in the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force and sent to work at Bletchley Park, the top-secret home of the World War II codebreakers. The battered and beaten writing case was gifted to Wendy’s mother by her parents just before she enlisted to help in the war effort, and she kept it close to her throughout her life. Now, with only months to live herself, Wendy wants the writing case restored to its former glory, to be handed on to her granddaughter as a legacy of her mother’s contribution to WWII.\n\nThe barn’s final visitor is a rather unusual fellow. Shelley and her mother Rene have brought in Bert, the mannequin that stood in pride of place in the family’s tailor shop in London’s East End in the 1920s. Rene lived above the shop with her parents and siblings, but when war broke out, ‘all hell broke loose’. In 1940, during the Blitz, the shop was bombed, destroying everything. Luckily, Rene and her family were hiding in a shelter across the road and survived, but poor old Bert was knocked over and discovered in the destruction that had been caused. The family shop closed, and Bert was stored away somewhere safe. When she found him as a teenager, Shelley instantly fell in love. With Bert now 100 years old and holding the family’s history in his hands, the pair think he’s due a makeover. Ceramics conservator Kirsten Ramsay and master hatter Jayesh Vaghela are excited to get better acquainted with the mannequin.

Source: BBC 2