An Antiques Roadshow guest was stunned and emotional when she discovered the staggering value of her photo collection with Arnold Schwarzenegger.
In the final episode, members of the public brought their prized possessions to Roundhay Park, Leeds, to be appreciated by experts.
One woman brought a selection of bodybuilding magazines from the 1940s to be appraised, but among them expert Clive Farahar discovered something much special.
He found several old signed photos of famous star Arnold Schwarzenegger, now 76, in his youth.
Explaining their origins, the guest said, “My father was born in India and moved to Kenya and then to England. His passion from an early age was strength training.
An Antiques Roadshow guest was stunned and emotional when she discovered the staggering value of her photo collection with Arnold Schwarzenegger
In the final episode, a woman brought a selection of 1940s bodybuilding magazines to rate, but among them expert Clive Farahar discovered something much more special.
He found several old signed photos of famous star Arnold Schwarzenegger, now 76, in his youth
“He was a builder but he always wanted to open his own gym, which he did in the 1970s in Harrogate, the first one. And he first met Arnold at the age of 19 in London.
Clive pointed to one of the photographs taken at the time and said: ‘This is young Arnold Schwarzenegger, god yes.’
The woman continued: ‘Arnold’s inspiration was a bodybuilder from Leeds, Reg Park, who made a film, Hercules. My father called Arnold in 1981 for some seminars in Leeds. He came to our house, mom cooked.”
She showed off a photo of her posing next to Arnold with her mother and brother, and another photo that the former politician and professional bodybuilder had autographed for her.
Showing off a playful photo of Arnold and her dad, Clive clenched his biceps and said: “Obviously we have a photo here of Arnold with your dad.”
The woman explained, “He lifted his arm. He just thought my father was so strong.’
Clive joked: ‘And your dad’s got all his clothes on, for God’s sake, we can’t possibly see that!’
Then he got to the appraisal and said, ‘That’s absolutely amazing. Very incredible. Well, how do I appreciate this?
She showed off a photo of her posing next to Arnold with her mother and brother, and another photo that the former politician and professional bodybuilder had autographed for her.
Clive showed a playful photo of Arnold and her dad, who was clenching his biceps, and the woman explained: ‘He’s lifting his arm. He just thought my dad was so strong.”
“You have about four signed photos of Arnold Schwarzenegger. What am I going to put on it? Well, I think I’ll put down £2,000 just for this little private part of the collection.’
The guest gasped in shock as Clive continued: ‘£2,000 for unknown photos of Arnold Schwarzenegger. As far as I can see, all absolutely private and early Arnold Schwarzenegger too.”
The woman became emotional and teary-eyed as she learned the astonishing value of her collection, saying, “I am very proud of my father for what he has done and it is good to share that with you. Something for Leeds.’
Clive added: ‘Thanks for sharing it with us, we love it.’
It comes after a guest was stunned to discover the true value of two vases she picked up from a charity shop during a recent episode from Derry, Northern Ireland.
A woman brought in two flower vases to view, which she bought for just £1 each, after negotiating the price in a charity shop.
She explained that she was about to throw them away before she decided to take them with her to learn more about their history.
Despite the ornaments not being in the best condition, expert John Sandon surprised the guest and viewers by revealing that they were actually quite valuable.
Clive then revealed the value of the collection was £2,000, leaving the woman emotional and teary-eyed as she learned the staggering value of her collection.
She said: ‘I am very proud of my father for what he has done and it is good to share it with you. Something for Leeds
He explained that they came from a pottery company called Belleek, and that the pieces were “highly prized” by collectors.
What made the ceramics even more unique were the gold and tulip embellishments, as John revealed that Belleek didn’t make much of that style.
He said the pieces date from around 1870 and said one vase could sell for an eye-watering £700 to £1,000.
The guest was amazed and said, “Wow! I actually wanted to dump them when I first brought them home! I didn’t like them.’ John said: ‘That £2 is money well spent!’
It comes after a guest was stunned to discover the true value of two vases she picked up from a charity shop during a recent episode from Derry, Northern Ireland.