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We're back! It's time to get our hands dirty once again,
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as ten of the nation's finest amateur potters do battle
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to become the next champion.
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Welcome to The Great Pottery Throw Down.
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During the day,
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I'm the mild-mannered person doing people's mortgages.
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In the evening, I'm the mad potter.
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Ten pottery-mad home potters have been selected
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to walk the hallowed cobbles of Middleport,
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right in the heart of British pottery's spiritual home,
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Stoke-on-Trent.
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I'm not sure whether it's real. Pinch myself. Maybe it's real.
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'I was feeling a bit nervous on the way here.'
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I was wondering if I'd forgotten how to throw pots.
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In Middleport's inspirational studio,
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they'll be let loose on wet clay to transform it into
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unique and beautiful items for the home.
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Pottery gives me a sense of achievement.
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You put a bit of your soul into it.
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The time constraint is the thing that I'm not used to,
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because I never, ever throw to a time limit.
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Everything they conjure up will be judged by world-renowned
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ceramic artist Kate Malone and maverick master potter
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Keith Brymer Jones.
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It's like meeting potting royalty, isn't it?
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Kate has been one of my heroines all my potting live.
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I'm a pottery addict.
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Because it's all the wonders of nature.
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Earth, air, fire, water.
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And you witness the transformation from clay to something of beauty.
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I'm really looking for that connection between the potter
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and what they've made.
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I want to see a lot of passion.
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As you know, I get a bit emotional.
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My main aim is to make Keith cry.
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If I do that, then I'll be happy.
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So, are these potters ready for 24 brand-new challenges?
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- I can do this.
- You can feel the intensity in the room!
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SHE STRAINS
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'And who will go one to be named the champion...'
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You've got to make your decision, James,
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you've got to make your decision!
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'..of The Great Pottery Throw Down?'
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SHE YELPS
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Oh, I like James's. Nice.
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A bit busy, isn't it?
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# Making time
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# Shooting lines
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# People have their uses
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# People have their uses... #
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It's fantastic to be once again
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walking on the very same cobbles where our pottery forefathers trod.
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You can almost feel the history seeping up into your feet.
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Middleport is Britain's oldest surviving pottery,
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and it's still using traditional skills
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dating back to the 1700s.
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What better place to inspire our brand-new potters?
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And what better way to get things revved up
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than to get back behind the wheel?
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The potters have three long days ahead of them,
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involving three tests of their skill and creativity.
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But whose hands will craft the pot of the week,
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and who will Kate and Keith decide
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should be the first to leave the pottery?
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- Good morning, potters. ALL:
- Good morning.
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Welcome to your very first day here in the pottery.
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Now your first challenge is your Main Make.
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Kate and Keith would like you to throw a 16-piece dinner set.
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Four dinner plates, four side plates,
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four bowls and four beakers.
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You can choose any design you fancy,
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but it must reflect you.
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And we're really looking for consistency here in the shapes.
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So they must be identical.
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OK, potters, so to throw your dinner service,
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you have four-and-a-half hours.
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Your time starts now. Potters, get potting.
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Oh! Heavy, heavy!
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What I'm mostly worried about is timing
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because I'm not an experienced thrower.
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I will move quite quick.
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I'm not designed to go quick, though,
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being 6' 6" and, like, 20st.
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I just want them to be perfect, that's all.
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So, Keith, here we are, the first Main Make.
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Yes, cups, plates, bowls.
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It's that consistency that we're really after.
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That's showing me the skill in their throwing.
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We're expecting the pieces to be fit for purpose.
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We don't want any peas rolling off the plate,
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we want this to fit the lip very beautifully.
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This is a very practical challenge.
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So the weight is very important.
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And if they're finished off well,
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that's what I'll be really looking for.
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They've got to be aware of the profile, the functionality,
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and at the same time, we want them to look beautiful.
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- We don't want much.
- No, that's right.
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HE LAUGHS
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In this first stage,
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the potters have just four-and-a-half hours
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to throw all 16 pieces on the wheel
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and get them into the studio's drying room.
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I've never just sat down for four-and-a-half hours
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and churned out 16 things,
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so I actually don't know how it's going to go.
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- Have you weighed them out?
- No, I'm doing it now.
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The only way to guarantee their pieces are of
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a consistent size is to carefully weigh out each lump
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of clay for each item they throw.
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I'm really not good at maths.
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These are going to be about 1.1 kilos.
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Then each lump needs to be kneaded,
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which potters call wedging...
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I'm doing it on the floor because it's just
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a lot easier to get your body weight on top of it.
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..and then slapped into a ball shape...
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Absolutely.
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..before it can be thrown.
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Preparation is key.
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You need to wedge the clay,
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to make sure there's no air bubbles,
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cos that will break the plates.
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While you've got dry hands, it's a lot easier
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to get your balls done now in preparation, ready.
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Ryan is from Ipswich and works as a model.
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His gran lets him do all his potting in her garden shed.
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Here you are, Grandma.
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I made them specially for you this morning.
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And it's staying with Gran that gave him the idea
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for the motif at the edges of his dinner set.
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You actually call it a pie crust edge, don't you?
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- Yeah.
- Traditionally.
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Yeah, and that's my inspiration.
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From my grandma's apple pies.
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Does she make a special apple pie?
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She does, a mean apple pie.
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And a million women's hearts
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just swell at how lovely that is right now.
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Are you au fait with playing around with plates?
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No - literally, this week is my first week of making plates.
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You seem very calm, Ryan - is this normal?
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I'm just in my zone, which is really nice.
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I'm just getting my head down and try not to talk too much.
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That's his polite way of asking us to please leave now.
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But we can, actually, can't we?
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Right, start the wheel.
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Wibbly-wobbly clay. Oh!
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I hope I don't make funny faces when I'm throwing.
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SHE STRAINS
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It's on with the big plates first. Go big or go home.
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But wrestling large lumps of clay into flat dinner plates
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isn't just physically demanding.
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You can make a plate in a very simple way,
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but too thin and it warps, too thick, it's a heavy plate
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and the judges will be like, "Are you joking?"
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At 24, Freya is this year's youngest potter.
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She grew up surrounded by ceramics
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in her dad's London studio,
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but her passion took a while to emerge.
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I remember someone asking me once,
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"Do you think you'd want to be a potter?"
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My first reaction was like,
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"No way, I don't want to be poor."
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LAUGHTER
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She's practised her floral dinner set at her dad's wheel,
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but its design is thanks to her mum.
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I got the inspiration from this top that I'm wearing.
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It's my mother's top and basically I just liked
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the colours and the energy,
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and she used to wear it when she did her puppet shows,
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performing to lots of kids and stuff, so I thought,
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"Oh, that's something that will make me happy."
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I'm going to do a couple just to warm up, and then hopefully
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I'll get some that are actually worth keeping.
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Do I have clay on me?
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Let's leave it authentic.
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Clover is a qualified accountant
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and part-time illustrator living in London.
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Pottery became a passion whilst growing up in China.
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When I was 12 years old, there was one comic I read
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about a girl doing ceramic, and I decided to give it a try,
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and I fell in love with it straight away.
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Her first plate is the start
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of a Chinese-inspired minimalist dinner set.
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I'm trying to make the first plate,
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so this is going to be the benchmark plate.
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Even if they are happy with their first plate...
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At the moment, we're just getting rid
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of the excess clay around the sides.
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..the potters' troubles are only just beginning.
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I'm just trying to get
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the right thickness for the base.
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Creating three more that match perfectly...
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I'm going to try and get a little bit more height from it.
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..requires an exacting eye for form.
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- I'm not happy with the base of this one.
- Check.
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- ..and an obsession with size.
- Get the old measuring tool out.
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And just to make life even harder,
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as it dries, clay shrinks.
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Just less than a quarter of a centimetre difference.
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You, you naughty little monkey, are going back on the wheel.
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Elaine lives in Buckinghamshire.
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She has two grown-up children, two dogs, seven cats
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and a family business
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with her husband and childhood sweetheart, Robert.
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It's their work together that's inspired
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her dinner set's fruit-based design.
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We import ripen bananas
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and that's what I've been doing with my husband for the last
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many, many, many, many years.
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My family don't take much notice of my pottering,
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I don't think, they just let me get on with it.
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I'm their mad mother, as far as they're concerned.
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My inspiration is a lake where I used to live
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and it was my place of peace.
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So my pieces are going to represent the whole lake.
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Carole is a yoga-obsessed mum-of-two from Hertfordshire.
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She's been hand-sculpting with clay for over 40 years.
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Recreating a lake with a thrown dinner service
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will involve more time at the wheel than she's used to.
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I'm getting more familiar with the wheel
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every second I'm doing it.
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I feel more at one, I'm quite pleased with my progress.
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Whether it's going to be good enough,
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I don't know, but I'm trying.
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Finding the consistency the judges are looking for
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isn't easy.
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No, this one's gone.
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Oh, don't do that, don't do that, don't do that.
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This one's a goner. It's wobbly.
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That's not saveable.
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Considerably further behind than where I should be,
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let's say that!
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But for some of this year's potters...
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We're about there.
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..knocking out identical dinner and side plates...
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They're going all right, actually, so I'm quite happy.
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..doesn't seem to be a problem.
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HE HUMS
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Richard is a pub landlord from Banbury,
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but when he's not pulling pints...
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For God! Liberty! And England!
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..he's re-enacting England's bloody Civil War.
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And his passion for history has led to
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a dinner set inspired by 500-year-old royalty.
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What I've taken is Richard III's Yorkist rose
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and broken it down into four elements.
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So we have the beaker, that's the centre,
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the bowl as the inner leaf,
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and then the two side plates are the outer leaves.
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So this scalloped edge, is this on every piece?
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It's the element of a rose,
254
00:10:52,920 --> 00:10:54,599
and that's what will give it its form.
255
00:10:54,600 --> 00:10:56,519
- So it's the War of the Roses?
- War of the Roses.
256
00:10:56,520 --> 00:10:58,519
You're representing Yorkshire with it?
257
00:10:58,520 --> 00:11:02,119
We're representing Richard III, who was a white rose,
258
00:11:02,120 --> 00:11:04,159
against that usurper, Harry Tudor,
259
00:11:04,160 --> 00:11:05,199
who was a red rose.
260
00:11:05,200 --> 00:11:06,959
- Who was Lancashire.
- Yeah.
261
00:11:06,960 --> 00:11:09,199
- Well, we don't like Lancashire, do we?
- A bit awkward.
262
00:11:09,200 --> 00:11:10,720
KEITH LAUGHS
263
00:11:12,680 --> 00:11:14,119
Richard's not the only potter
264
00:11:14,120 --> 00:11:17,799
spending time giving his thrown plates a little more love.
265
00:11:17,800 --> 00:11:21,679
I've allowed 15 minutes per item. That's the plan.
266
00:11:21,680 --> 00:11:24,479
Second time lucky.
267
00:11:24,480 --> 00:11:28,239
For the supports, I'm using kitchen towel and clingfilm.
268
00:11:28,240 --> 00:11:30,719
I am the kitchen towel and clingfilm queen.
269
00:11:30,720 --> 00:11:32,639
But rather than supporting his plates...
270
00:11:32,640 --> 00:11:34,759
I'm not happy with the lip totally.
271
00:11:34,760 --> 00:11:37,679
..Daniel has started attacking his with a knife.
272
00:11:37,680 --> 00:11:40,479
What I'm trying to create is a petal shape.
273
00:11:40,480 --> 00:11:43,999
I've seen this before. I'd like to say, "Yeah, my own design."
274
00:11:44,000 --> 00:11:45,559
But I'd be lying.
275
00:11:45,560 --> 00:11:48,119
Daniel is a mortgage adviser from Hampshire.
276
00:11:48,120 --> 00:11:50,199
He's had to practise his dinner set in the garage,
277
00:11:50,200 --> 00:11:52,479
which he shares with his daughter's rabbits,
278
00:11:52,480 --> 00:11:53,879
Bella and Benny.
279
00:11:53,880 --> 00:11:56,199
For the design, he's drawn inspiration
280
00:11:56,200 --> 00:11:58,639
from his wife's love of flowers.
281
00:11:58,640 --> 00:12:00,959
There comes a point when you have to say to yourself,
282
00:12:00,960 --> 00:12:03,919
"Just stop - clay doesn't like to be overworked."
283
00:12:03,920 --> 00:12:06,359
I just need to get rid of that edge slightly.
284
00:12:06,360 --> 00:12:08,119
If they're happy with their finish,
285
00:12:08,120 --> 00:12:10,479
the potters face a nerve-racking final stage
286
00:12:10,480 --> 00:12:12,320
for everything they've thrown.
287
00:12:14,280 --> 00:12:15,400
Wiring off.
288
00:12:18,800 --> 00:12:20,519
Unless the clay is separated
289
00:12:20,520 --> 00:12:24,039
from the wooden bat that it was thrown on...
290
00:12:24,040 --> 00:12:25,119
HE EXHALES
291
00:12:25,120 --> 00:12:27,999
..it won't be able to move as it dries and shrinks,
292
00:12:28,000 --> 00:12:29,519
and it will crack.
293
00:12:29,520 --> 00:12:33,719
- Oh!
- And if they don't keep the wire tight and steady,
294
00:12:33,720 --> 00:12:36,999
the bases of their dinner sets could be ruined.
295
00:12:37,000 --> 00:12:39,119
- Oh!
- We've got to wire it off,
296
00:12:39,120 --> 00:12:42,359
and pray that we get a nice finish to the bottom.
297
00:12:42,360 --> 00:12:44,479
I have the wheel moving very slowly,
298
00:12:44,480 --> 00:12:47,919
and then I just wire through a couple of times.
299
00:12:47,920 --> 00:12:50,039
Oh, my God!
300
00:12:50,040 --> 00:12:53,599
- Oh!
- It's like a birthing scene, isn't it?
301
00:12:53,600 --> 00:12:56,079
You've got a beautiful baby dinner plate.
302
00:12:56,080 --> 00:12:57,680
I'm nervous about this one.
303
00:13:02,800 --> 00:13:04,359
HE LAUGHS
304
00:13:04,360 --> 00:13:05,959
I've thrown them way too thin.
305
00:13:05,960 --> 00:13:07,599
I could race around and get frustrated,
306
00:13:07,600 --> 00:13:10,760
but if something doesn't go right, it doesn't go right.
307
00:13:12,000 --> 00:13:14,679
25-year-old James recently graduated
308
00:13:14,680 --> 00:13:16,759
with a degree in glass and ceramics.
309
00:13:16,760 --> 00:13:18,199
He now works as a tour guide
310
00:13:18,200 --> 00:13:20,359
in the National Glass Centre in Sunderland.
311
00:13:20,360 --> 00:13:21,719
Cool.
312
00:13:21,720 --> 00:13:23,399
His dinner set is a love letter
313
00:13:23,400 --> 00:13:26,799
to his hometown's proud manufacturing heritage.
314
00:13:26,800 --> 00:13:29,759
I'm all about clean angles and industrial shapes,
315
00:13:29,760 --> 00:13:32,559
straight edges.
316
00:13:32,560 --> 00:13:33,720
Sweet!
317
00:13:35,440 --> 00:13:40,199
Potters, we are approaching the halfway mark time-wise.
318
00:13:40,200 --> 00:13:43,719
I've made a plate! Yay!
319
00:13:43,720 --> 00:13:45,959
With their time at the wheel running out...
320
00:13:45,960 --> 00:13:48,079
Oh! Oh, there we are.
321
00:13:48,080 --> 00:13:53,039
..some potters have yet to get anything in the drying room.
322
00:13:53,040 --> 00:13:54,199
Oh, no.
323
00:13:54,200 --> 00:13:56,119
SHE LAUGHS
324
00:13:56,120 --> 00:13:57,639
You've done about ten plates.
325
00:13:57,640 --> 00:13:59,599
Have you got four that you're happy with yet?
326
00:13:59,600 --> 00:14:01,919
Not yet. I'll do one more.
327
00:14:01,920 --> 00:14:05,159
Because you have still got the four side plates, the four bowls...
328
00:14:05,160 --> 00:14:07,079
I know, don't remind me.
329
00:14:07,080 --> 00:14:10,240
- The quest for perfection has to end at some point.
- Yeah.
330
00:14:11,480 --> 00:14:12,879
I've now started my first bowl,
331
00:14:12,880 --> 00:14:14,919
so this is going to set the ones for the other three,
332
00:14:14,920 --> 00:14:17,839
so I'm just trying to determine the shape and size of it at the moment.
333
00:14:17,840 --> 00:14:19,679
I'll just make them quite straight up and down,
334
00:14:19,680 --> 00:14:21,639
so a lot of people wouldn't consider them a bowl
335
00:14:21,640 --> 00:14:23,919
cos they're not that, sort of, traditional shape.
336
00:14:23,920 --> 00:14:25,999
But if they hold cereal and milk,
337
00:14:26,000 --> 00:14:27,239
then it's a bowl, right?
338
00:14:27,240 --> 00:14:29,639
Creating four identical bowls...
339
00:14:29,640 --> 00:14:31,639
I'm not sure that will be acceptable to the judges.
340
00:14:31,640 --> 00:14:34,559
..requires a whole new set of throwing skills.
341
00:14:34,560 --> 00:14:36,479
I'm having difficulty bringing the clay
342
00:14:36,480 --> 00:14:38,719
from the base up to the top.
343
00:14:38,720 --> 00:14:40,239
No, it's going.
344
00:14:40,240 --> 00:14:43,199
I'm measuring how tall and how wide it is
345
00:14:43,200 --> 00:14:45,799
before I curve the side of it.
346
00:14:45,800 --> 00:14:48,439
The sides of the bowls need to be pulled thin enough
347
00:14:48,440 --> 00:14:51,159
to create an attractive profile.
348
00:14:51,160 --> 00:14:54,039
But they still need to be thick enough to support themselves.
349
00:14:54,040 --> 00:14:56,359
I think I don't have enough clay at the bottom
350
00:14:56,360 --> 00:14:57,879
to support it, but we'll see.
351
00:14:57,880 --> 00:14:59,479
If it's too thick,
352
00:14:59,480 --> 00:15:03,199
it may crack, due to the clay not drying out evenly.
353
00:15:03,200 --> 00:15:06,119
It just takes a bit more time to focus.
354
00:15:06,120 --> 00:15:10,319
Nam lives in east London and is a trained cage fighter.
355
00:15:10,320 --> 00:15:12,679
He's developed a passion for using clay
356
00:15:12,680 --> 00:15:14,559
to recreate the forms and colours
357
00:15:14,560 --> 00:15:16,679
of the toys he had growing up.
358
00:15:16,680 --> 00:15:19,479
His dinner set has sprung from the first games console
359
00:15:19,480 --> 00:15:21,279
he was given when he was nine.
360
00:15:21,280 --> 00:15:24,359
I always wanted a Gameboy, and my father got me one.
361
00:15:24,360 --> 00:15:26,759
It took him a long time cos he was saving up for it.
362
00:15:26,760 --> 00:15:28,639
I always carried it around with me.
363
00:15:28,640 --> 00:15:31,519
I'm fiddling around with the clay a bit, trying to push it in a bit.
364
00:15:31,520 --> 00:15:33,599
I'm going for a Space Invader-shaped bowl.
365
00:15:33,600 --> 00:15:36,239
I'm going to try to convey it as much as I can.
366
00:15:36,240 --> 00:15:39,039
But not everyone's made a start on their bowls.
367
00:15:39,040 --> 00:15:42,239
The rims are all different thicknesses,
368
00:15:42,240 --> 00:15:45,120
and they're different sizes.
369
00:15:46,240 --> 00:15:48,759
Right, four bowls. Do you know how long we've got left?
370
00:15:48,760 --> 00:15:51,479
- We've got an hour-and-a-half left.
- Argh!
371
00:15:51,480 --> 00:15:55,159
I'm going for soup and not a big dinner bowl.
372
00:15:55,160 --> 00:15:57,559
While Freya and Carole finally move on...
373
00:15:57,560 --> 00:16:01,919
We've got four dinner plates, and two side plates.
374
00:16:01,920 --> 00:16:04,479
Every single one of them looks different!
375
00:16:04,480 --> 00:16:07,159
Some are like this, some are like that.
376
00:16:07,160 --> 00:16:08,839
I need to find my zen.
377
00:16:08,840 --> 00:16:12,399
..Cait works at the Quaker Meeting House in Reading, where she spends
378
00:16:12,400 --> 00:16:15,439
an hour a week worshipping in complete silence.
379
00:16:15,440 --> 00:16:18,359
Her dinner set design came to her whilst meditating,
380
00:16:18,360 --> 00:16:21,479
and is based on an old print she created at art school.
381
00:16:21,480 --> 00:16:23,359
I put lavender on myself this morning
382
00:16:23,360 --> 00:16:24,799
to try and calm myself down.
383
00:16:24,800 --> 00:16:27,079
I think I've calmed myself down too much.
384
00:16:27,080 --> 00:16:30,440
I need more adrenaline. Lavender was a bad idea!
385
00:16:32,560 --> 00:16:35,000
Potters, you have one hour left.
386
00:16:36,040 --> 00:16:39,479
That is... plum!
387
00:16:39,480 --> 00:16:42,479
James is just flying. He's knocking 'em all out.
388
00:16:42,480 --> 00:16:45,640
Don't forget, by the end, got to have everything in the drying room.
389
00:16:47,240 --> 00:16:49,360
Ooh! I can make bowls!
390
00:16:53,240 --> 00:16:55,639
This is actually, like, my sixth bowl.
391
00:16:55,640 --> 00:16:57,759
I think I've thrown three bowls away now.
392
00:16:57,760 --> 00:17:02,519
I have eight things to make. Bowls and beakers. Good to go.
393
00:17:02,520 --> 00:17:03,879
Leave it alone, Elaine.
394
00:17:03,880 --> 00:17:06,920
So tempted to fiddle all the time, keep fiddling.
395
00:17:08,960 --> 00:17:10,399
You've got to bite the bullet
396
00:17:10,400 --> 00:17:12,119
and say, "Yeah, we'll go with it."
397
00:17:12,120 --> 00:17:14,959
Beakers aren't too tricky to do -
398
00:17:14,960 --> 00:17:17,719
if it's clean and crisp, it can look a bit mass-produced,
399
00:17:17,720 --> 00:17:19,319
so the beauty is with this,
400
00:17:19,320 --> 00:17:20,999
when you're wiring it off the wheel head,
401
00:17:21,000 --> 00:17:23,479
you're always going to slightly knock it off-centre.
402
00:17:23,480 --> 00:17:26,119
I'm slowing it down a bit cos it's beginning to feel a bit wobbly.
403
00:17:26,120 --> 00:17:28,479
I can control it. I can.
404
00:17:28,480 --> 00:17:30,959
Four beakers. Trying to be arty-farty
405
00:17:30,960 --> 00:17:33,120
cos I'm a wobbly sort of dude.
406
00:17:35,640 --> 00:17:37,959
Is the battle being won?
407
00:17:37,960 --> 00:17:42,159
- Well, we are nearly there.
- Good. Daniel?
- Two more to do.
408
00:17:42,160 --> 00:17:46,640
- Like the little dent.
- It's the artist in me... darling.
409
00:17:49,800 --> 00:17:53,600
This is your ten-minute call. You've got ten minutes left.
410
00:17:57,960 --> 00:18:00,840
Sorry, darling, I've still got two beakers to do.
411
00:18:09,120 --> 00:18:10,600
- Oh,
- BLEEP!
412
00:18:12,600 --> 00:18:15,199
Two minutes, guys. Two minutes.
413
00:18:15,200 --> 00:18:16,719
Two minutes.
414
00:18:16,720 --> 00:18:17,959
I can do this.
415
00:18:17,960 --> 00:18:19,319
What's happening with this?
416
00:18:19,320 --> 00:18:21,280
You can squish that one.
417
00:18:23,680 --> 00:18:25,239
Lovely!
418
00:18:25,240 --> 00:18:27,119
Where's my shelf?
419
00:18:27,120 --> 00:18:31,159
- Come on, James - make your decision.
- Make a decision, James.
- I know.
420
00:18:31,160 --> 00:18:32,679
You've got to make your decision.
421
00:18:32,680 --> 00:18:34,919
Carole's still on her beaker. Come on, Carole!
422
00:18:34,920 --> 00:18:36,279
I'm going to do it.
423
00:18:36,280 --> 00:18:38,639
- Come on, Cait.
- Do you want me to help you?
424
00:18:38,640 --> 00:18:42,079
Oh, Clover, you're a star. Thank you so much!
425
00:18:42,080 --> 00:18:43,879
Have you got everything in, Carole?
426
00:18:43,880 --> 00:18:45,799
I've got two more of these to do.
427
00:18:45,800 --> 00:18:47,239
Carole, what's happening?
428
00:18:47,240 --> 00:18:49,079
I've just got two more beakers to do.
429
00:18:49,080 --> 00:18:50,439
It ain't going to happen.
430
00:18:50,440 --> 00:18:52,599
Sweetheart, you've got about a minute now, OK?
431
00:18:52,600 --> 00:18:54,079
So you've got to make a call
432
00:18:54,080 --> 00:18:56,399
- if you're going to get that in the drying room or not.
- OK.
433
00:18:56,400 --> 00:18:59,680
- Is your bowl going in?
- Just Carole and Cait's, then.
434
00:19:01,400 --> 00:19:03,400
Look at the state of that!
435
00:19:06,520 --> 00:19:09,479
30 seconds, guys. 30 seconds!
436
00:19:09,480 --> 00:19:12,199
You can feel the intensity in the room!
437
00:19:12,200 --> 00:19:14,319
Don't throw another one!
438
00:19:14,320 --> 00:19:18,320
- I've got to make four!
- She's going to the end!
439
00:19:19,480 --> 00:19:22,879
Ten, nine, eight,
440
00:19:22,880 --> 00:19:26,239
seven, six, five,
441
00:19:26,240 --> 00:19:28,879
four, three,
442
00:19:28,880 --> 00:19:32,159
two, one.
443
00:19:32,160 --> 00:19:34,080
Time's up. Well done!
444
00:19:36,280 --> 00:19:39,879
Burnt some calories, then, that last couple of minutes.
445
00:19:39,880 --> 00:19:41,479
Oh, my word!
446
00:19:41,480 --> 00:19:44,320
- Not broken 'em yet, have we?
- I hope not.
447
00:19:45,880 --> 00:19:47,159
Four-and-a-half hours.
448
00:19:47,160 --> 00:19:49,119
BOTH TALK AT ONCE
449
00:19:49,120 --> 00:19:50,359
Well done, guys.
450
00:19:50,360 --> 00:19:53,159
I had James right behind me, and he was really, really fast,
451
00:19:53,160 --> 00:19:56,199
and he was knocking out plates like nobody's business.
452
00:19:56,200 --> 00:19:57,719
Well done, mate.
453
00:19:57,720 --> 00:20:01,399
I never sit that long and throw. I'm really easily distracted.
454
00:20:01,400 --> 00:20:04,799
And it was worse than I expected, to be honest.
455
00:20:04,800 --> 00:20:08,039
Throwing a plate under those conditions was a lot harder.
456
00:20:08,040 --> 00:20:10,679
Normally, three or four pulls and you're done.
457
00:20:10,680 --> 00:20:13,919
I would have liked the clay to have been a bit firmer.
458
00:20:13,920 --> 00:20:16,879
Obviously, on the day, you can't control what comes out the bag.
459
00:20:16,880 --> 00:20:20,239
It was a nice way to end that I actually did get them in.
460
00:20:20,240 --> 00:20:22,600
They were shocking! Oh, my word!
461
00:20:24,080 --> 00:20:28,119
Dinner services at Middleport are being crafted around the clock,
462
00:20:28,120 --> 00:20:31,520
and to look after our potters' sets while they dry...
463
00:20:32,680 --> 00:20:35,199
..we've got our very own kilnman, Rich.
464
00:20:35,200 --> 00:20:39,439
Everyone's work needs to dry completely before it can be fired,
465
00:20:39,440 --> 00:20:42,519
and it's Rich's job to make sure that it does.
466
00:20:42,520 --> 00:20:44,639
Cait might have problems with her beakers.
467
00:20:44,640 --> 00:20:47,359
I'm surprised the wire hasn't gone through the base of that.
468
00:20:47,360 --> 00:20:49,119
The base just looks so thin.
469
00:20:49,120 --> 00:20:52,199
Carole decided to leave these plates on these.
470
00:20:52,200 --> 00:20:55,439
There is the potential for it to dry onto those and just crack.
471
00:20:55,440 --> 00:20:57,959
James just hasn't finished his bases.
472
00:20:57,960 --> 00:20:59,519
It's the attention to detail.
473
00:20:59,520 --> 00:21:03,759
I mean, this one, he's just gone right the way through the base.
474
00:21:03,760 --> 00:21:06,359
During the long process of their Main Make,
475
00:21:06,360 --> 00:21:09,759
each week, the potters will face two further challenges.
476
00:21:09,760 --> 00:21:13,759
They'll have no idea what pottery skills they'll be tested on,
477
00:21:13,760 --> 00:21:16,799
and for the first in this year's competition,
478
00:21:16,800 --> 00:21:18,679
that's not the only surprise.
479
00:21:18,680 --> 00:21:22,239
Hello, potters. Welcome along to your very first Spot Test.
480
00:21:22,240 --> 00:21:25,559
Now, this is the challenge where the judges want to test you
481
00:21:25,560 --> 00:21:28,399
on a particular pottery technique,
482
00:21:28,400 --> 00:21:31,679
and this week, it is - drumroll, please...
483
00:21:31,680 --> 00:21:33,159
IMITATES DRUMROLL
484
00:21:33,160 --> 00:21:34,679
..sponge decorating!
485
00:21:34,680 --> 00:21:37,039
You are going to be sponge decorating
486
00:21:37,040 --> 00:21:40,599
in front of one of the best in the business,
487
00:21:40,600 --> 00:21:43,639
as we have got a very special guest.
488
00:21:43,640 --> 00:21:46,680
Give a big Pottery welcome to Emma Bridgewater.
489
00:21:51,960 --> 00:21:55,439
- Welcome to the Pottery.
- Really exciting to be here!
490
00:21:55,440 --> 00:21:59,039
Emma Bridgewater is the first lady of British homeware.
491
00:21:59,040 --> 00:22:02,919
Back in 1985, she couldn't find a fun piece of crockery
492
00:22:02,920 --> 00:22:04,599
to give her mum for her birthday,
493
00:22:04,600 --> 00:22:07,079
so she started her own business.
494
00:22:07,080 --> 00:22:08,319
30 years later,
495
00:22:08,320 --> 00:22:13,079
she's producing 25,000 sponge decorated items every week.
496
00:22:13,080 --> 00:22:16,319
So the potters each have a small jug and a large jug.
497
00:22:16,320 --> 00:22:18,079
What are you hoping to see?
498
00:22:18,080 --> 00:22:19,999
They've got to relate to each other nicely,
499
00:22:20,000 --> 00:22:22,519
and I want you to express yourselves.
500
00:22:22,520 --> 00:22:26,359
I really want to see what surface design is to you.
501
00:22:26,360 --> 00:22:27,879
You can be innovative.
502
00:22:27,880 --> 00:22:32,079
You can rip and tear if you want to make some more abstract shapes.
503
00:22:32,080 --> 00:22:34,319
The point is to make something that really says,
504
00:22:34,320 --> 00:22:35,959
"This is what I like about pattern."
505
00:22:35,960 --> 00:22:38,399
OK, potters, best of luck with your very first Spot Test,
506
00:22:38,400 --> 00:22:40,319
in front of Emma Bridgewater - no pressure!
507
00:22:40,320 --> 00:22:44,199
You have 90 minutes to sponge decorate your two jugs.
508
00:22:44,200 --> 00:22:46,840
Best of luck. Time starts now.
509
00:22:50,240 --> 00:22:53,639
To have Emma Bridgewater here is just inspirational for me.
510
00:22:53,640 --> 00:22:56,239
So exciting! That was amazing!
511
00:22:56,240 --> 00:22:58,359
Emma Bridgewater, man. That was a treat.
512
00:22:58,360 --> 00:23:03,359
I saw spongeware as a way of making colourful, mismatched,
513
00:23:03,360 --> 00:23:06,399
relaxed pottery for an everyday life.
514
00:23:06,400 --> 00:23:08,599
I haven't done this before.
515
00:23:08,600 --> 00:23:11,199
Probably did this at school, with potatoes.
516
00:23:11,200 --> 00:23:12,599
This is tougher than it looks.
517
00:23:12,600 --> 00:23:14,999
People think, "Oh, you know, cut sponge, blob it on."
518
00:23:15,000 --> 00:23:17,159
It's harder than that.
519
00:23:17,160 --> 00:23:20,879
I want to see some really lovely, original surface decoration.
520
00:23:20,880 --> 00:23:25,080
I love trying new things and this is amazing.
521
00:23:26,600 --> 00:23:29,640
We've got a nice plate here that we can practise on.
522
00:23:35,040 --> 00:23:38,239
Got to put it on there, though!
523
00:23:38,240 --> 00:23:40,079
I've just got to go for it, haven't I?
524
00:23:40,080 --> 00:23:42,919
If there's too little glaze on the potters' sponges,
525
00:23:42,920 --> 00:23:44,959
the design will lack definition,
526
00:23:44,960 --> 00:23:47,999
but overloaded sponges will run.
527
00:23:48,000 --> 00:23:50,040
No!
528
00:23:54,160 --> 00:23:57,000
Oh, that's so effective. Look at that!
529
00:23:58,640 --> 00:24:01,119
Well, I'm going to be basing it on sea themes
530
00:24:01,120 --> 00:24:03,399
and underwater themes.
531
00:24:03,400 --> 00:24:06,719
The trick I've got is to try and get this sort of graffiti technique
532
00:24:06,720 --> 00:24:09,999
that I would normally use with brushes, but instead,
533
00:24:10,000 --> 00:24:11,519
doing it with a sponge.
534
00:24:11,520 --> 00:24:13,439
Just trying to get this to run a bit.
535
00:24:13,440 --> 00:24:16,719
I just saw North African-style tiling.
536
00:24:16,720 --> 00:24:20,839
My theme at the moment is '70s, '80s video games.
537
00:24:20,840 --> 00:24:22,639
I might want to use a rabbit,
538
00:24:22,640 --> 00:24:24,639
cos my daughters have rabbits at home.
539
00:24:24,640 --> 00:24:27,399
I'm not a big fan of hearts or bunnies.
540
00:24:27,400 --> 00:24:30,719
I'm trying to keep it quite geometric and quite simple.
541
00:24:30,720 --> 00:24:33,079
When I decorate, I tend to go full-on,
542
00:24:33,080 --> 00:24:35,760
so that less-more thing is rubbish.
543
00:24:38,160 --> 00:24:41,199
I've used this organic sponge, so less pressure here,
544
00:24:41,200 --> 00:24:44,119
and more pressure up at the top here for emphasis.
545
00:24:44,120 --> 00:24:47,919
I am going for a galaxy theme. On the small pot,
546
00:24:47,920 --> 00:24:51,479
I'll have more abstract galaxy from a distance,
547
00:24:51,480 --> 00:24:55,680
and for the big pot, I hope to get a bit of detail on the planet.
548
00:24:56,840 --> 00:24:58,839
Potters, you're halfway through your time.
549
00:24:58,840 --> 00:25:01,039
You've got 45 minutes left.
550
00:25:01,040 --> 00:25:03,399
- How're you finding the technique?
- Loving it.
551
00:25:03,400 --> 00:25:06,599
I've cut loads of sponges up to adapt designs.
552
00:25:06,600 --> 00:25:08,639
- You've got busy with the scissors.
- Oh, absolutely.
553
00:25:08,640 --> 00:25:10,759
- You've taken on Emma's advice, there.
- Absolutely.
554
00:25:10,760 --> 00:25:13,839
Well, you've got an expert there - you've got to use it.
555
00:25:13,840 --> 00:25:15,799
When I look at what you've done here,
556
00:25:15,800 --> 00:25:19,079
I love the fact that it isn't at all what I expected,
557
00:25:19,080 --> 00:25:21,799
and I think isn't that the great thing about ceramics?
558
00:25:21,800 --> 00:25:24,519
What are you after? What's the theme here?
559
00:25:24,520 --> 00:25:25,919
I'm missing home today,
560
00:25:25,920 --> 00:25:29,239
so I'm doing a little bit of black and white, cos I'm from Newcastle.
561
00:25:29,240 --> 00:25:31,759
- Hence the black, the bold...
- Yeah.
- Yeah.
562
00:25:31,760 --> 00:25:34,919
I'm just blending the colours in a little bit,
563
00:25:34,920 --> 00:25:36,399
just blending, blending.
564
00:25:36,400 --> 00:25:37,560
I like blending.
565
00:25:39,000 --> 00:25:40,519
I'm trying to use the sponge
566
00:25:40,520 --> 00:25:42,919
to create this change of colour gradually,
567
00:25:42,920 --> 00:25:47,839
so then I can carry on a bit more precise on the large jug.
568
00:25:47,840 --> 00:25:50,239
It was very bold, taking up the black straightaway.
569
00:25:50,240 --> 00:25:52,399
I couldn't get it off my mind
570
00:25:52,400 --> 00:25:54,359
to start with a strong black background.
571
00:25:54,360 --> 00:25:57,799
- That is incredibly bold.
- Yes, I know!
572
00:25:57,800 --> 00:26:02,679
Lovely potters, you've got ten minutes left of this Spot Test.
573
00:26:02,680 --> 00:26:05,079
I'm getting into this, now. This is good.
574
00:26:05,080 --> 00:26:06,719
Put a little dot on there.
575
00:26:06,720 --> 00:26:08,919
Scratched off, sort of Japanese-esque.
576
00:26:08,920 --> 00:26:10,799
A line going through the red dot.
577
00:26:10,800 --> 00:26:14,239
I think it's called sgraffito. I've never done sgraffito before.
578
00:26:14,240 --> 00:26:16,239
How's the timing going for you, Cait?
579
00:26:16,240 --> 00:26:17,959
So much better. Look.
580
00:26:17,960 --> 00:26:19,559
Almost there, rather than,
581
00:26:19,560 --> 00:26:22,119
"Oh, my word, I've got half of it left to do!"
582
00:26:22,120 --> 00:26:24,960
She's grasped the concept of time.
583
00:26:26,720 --> 00:26:29,679
It's pretty. It's a bit like your top.
584
00:26:29,680 --> 00:26:34,239
- Ms Bridgewater did say she wants to see you in jugs.
- Yeah.
585
00:26:34,240 --> 00:26:35,520
Not literally.
586
00:26:37,040 --> 00:26:38,679
I don't want to overdo it.
587
00:26:38,680 --> 00:26:42,639
The thing you've got to be really careful of is not overdoing it.
588
00:26:42,640 --> 00:26:44,519
Sometimes less is a lot more.
589
00:26:44,520 --> 00:26:46,159
Less is more.
590
00:26:46,160 --> 00:26:48,119
Can you stop saying less is more?
591
00:26:48,120 --> 00:26:49,999
Oh, that's lovely, Freya.
592
00:26:50,000 --> 00:26:51,840
Sometimes more is more.
593
00:26:54,120 --> 00:26:56,679
Just trying to get a few brownie points,
594
00:26:56,680 --> 00:26:59,239
I've done underneath and on the inside as well.
595
00:26:59,240 --> 00:27:00,999
Love it when a plan comes together.
596
00:27:01,000 --> 00:27:04,239
- Oh, I like James'.
- Bit busy, isn't it?
597
00:27:04,240 --> 00:27:06,759
There's 30 seconds left now, guys,
598
00:27:06,760 --> 00:27:10,160
so get your jugs to the front, please, ready to be judged.
599
00:27:14,520 --> 00:27:16,359
Five, four,
600
00:27:16,360 --> 00:27:18,319
three, two,
601
00:27:18,320 --> 00:27:19,680
one.
602
00:27:22,800 --> 00:27:26,359
Emma, Keith and Kate will be looking for a bold concept,
603
00:27:26,360 --> 00:27:30,759
controlled spongework and a design that reflects the potter.
604
00:27:30,760 --> 00:27:33,599
- They're absolutely wonderful.
- Yeah.
605
00:27:33,600 --> 00:27:38,199
- And so different.
- James.
- Absolutely love those two.
606
00:27:38,200 --> 00:27:41,519
- It's definitely modern.
- It felt as if you were enjoying it,
607
00:27:41,520 --> 00:27:44,639
and exploring with it, rather than struggling with it.
608
00:27:44,640 --> 00:27:48,159
- Richard.
- There's quite a lot of wide open space in it.
609
00:27:48,160 --> 00:27:51,559
- I feel that there could have been something more.
- Possibly.
610
00:27:51,560 --> 00:27:53,999
- Carole.
- Sea scenes.
611
00:27:54,000 --> 00:27:57,119
- Yeah.
- They've got a lovely energetic feeling to them.
612
00:27:57,120 --> 00:27:58,879
- So this is Ryan's, isn't it?
- Yeah.
613
00:27:58,880 --> 00:28:02,519
It absolutely, completely owns the piece. It's very delicate,
614
00:28:02,520 --> 00:28:05,839
and yet quite mysterious, and I love that sponging.
615
00:28:05,840 --> 00:28:07,519
And you've decorated on the inside,
616
00:28:07,520 --> 00:28:08,839
you've done the base as well.
617
00:28:08,840 --> 00:28:10,199
Elaine.
618
00:28:10,200 --> 00:28:13,599
For me, it's a bit conventional. The design is a bit flat.
619
00:28:13,600 --> 00:28:16,319
You've definitely used one technique of sponging.
620
00:28:16,320 --> 00:28:17,959
Right, then we've got Freya.
621
00:28:17,960 --> 00:28:20,679
- Beautiful.
- It's very theatrical, isn't it?
622
00:28:20,680 --> 00:28:22,039
There's a great sense of depth.
623
00:28:22,040 --> 00:28:24,199
It's as if there's a foreground and a background.
624
00:28:24,200 --> 00:28:26,479
Yeah. Really, really lovely piece of work.
625
00:28:26,480 --> 00:28:27,799
Moving along to Daniel's.
626
00:28:27,800 --> 00:28:30,919
Well, he's made a very nice textured background.
627
00:28:30,920 --> 00:28:34,359
I think the small jug is more successful than the big jug.
628
00:28:34,360 --> 00:28:37,399
- This feels as if it's still got a bit more to go.
- Yeah.
629
00:28:37,400 --> 00:28:39,599
- Did you run out of time?
- No.
- OK.
630
00:28:39,600 --> 00:28:42,119
You should have said yes, Daniel! You should have said yes!
631
00:28:42,120 --> 00:28:43,479
Cait's.
632
00:28:43,480 --> 00:28:44,639
Isn't that splendid?
633
00:28:44,640 --> 00:28:47,439
There's something so simple and pure.
634
00:28:47,440 --> 00:28:51,679
- This one's a little bit more hazy, isn't it?
- Yes.
635
00:28:51,680 --> 00:28:54,599
- The sponging's not really coming off here.
- No.
636
00:28:54,600 --> 00:28:56,639
We've got Nam. Yeah.
637
00:28:56,640 --> 00:28:58,839
- Strong.
- It's a fun concept.
638
00:28:58,840 --> 00:29:00,719
It works slightly better from a distance
639
00:29:00,720 --> 00:29:02,159
- than close up.
- It does, yeah.
640
00:29:02,160 --> 00:29:04,039
But Nam, what's going on?
641
00:29:04,040 --> 00:29:06,439
- Clean your hands!
- Oh, yes, the mess.
642
00:29:06,440 --> 00:29:08,479
Right, last but not least, Clover.
643
00:29:08,480 --> 00:29:11,439
- Wow.
- I think what you've done is completely lovely.
644
00:29:11,440 --> 00:29:13,479
- I especially love that...
- I like that.
645
00:29:13,480 --> 00:29:16,599
..where the white comes through, that's such a beautiful effect.
646
00:29:16,600 --> 00:29:20,999
Really, probably the only one where the two things are different
647
00:29:21,000 --> 00:29:23,719
but they completely hold together.
648
00:29:23,720 --> 00:29:25,039
Thank you!
649
00:29:25,040 --> 00:29:27,439
The Spot Test is ranked,
650
00:29:27,440 --> 00:29:30,079
and Emma will now reveal who she feels has shown
651
00:29:30,080 --> 00:29:32,199
the most skill with the sponge.
652
00:29:32,200 --> 00:29:35,999
In tenth place, it's Daniel.
653
00:29:36,000 --> 00:29:37,919
Ninth place, Richard.
654
00:29:37,920 --> 00:29:40,319
You could've done a bit more to that.
655
00:29:40,320 --> 00:29:42,799
Elaine is eighth, Cait's seventh,
656
00:29:42,800 --> 00:29:45,039
Nam is sixth, Carole, fifth,
657
00:29:45,040 --> 00:29:46,879
and James is fourth.
658
00:29:46,880 --> 00:29:48,439
OK. Number three,
659
00:29:48,440 --> 00:29:49,599
Ryan.
660
00:29:49,600 --> 00:29:53,679
Lovely. It incorporates in, out, under, round.
661
00:29:53,680 --> 00:29:55,320
Number two...
662
00:29:59,880 --> 00:30:01,239
..is Clover.
663
00:30:01,240 --> 00:30:02,639
It was the universe.
664
00:30:02,640 --> 00:30:04,439
It was the universe!
665
00:30:04,440 --> 00:30:06,359
Such a beautiful effect.
666
00:30:06,360 --> 00:30:09,240
And that means Freya is number one.
667
00:30:14,480 --> 00:30:18,039
You just totally, completely ruled it. Really great.
668
00:30:18,040 --> 00:30:20,439
All praise to the seahorse, then, isn't it?
669
00:30:20,440 --> 00:30:21,839
THEY LAUGH
670
00:30:21,840 --> 00:30:24,319
Emma, thank you so much for coming to our little pottery.
671
00:30:24,320 --> 00:30:26,599
- Loved it.
- It's been a real joy having you.
672
00:30:26,600 --> 00:30:28,119
You've been great. Thank you so much.
673
00:30:28,120 --> 00:30:30,119
OK, so, potters, I've got good news.
674
00:30:30,120 --> 00:30:32,679
You've survived your first day in the pottery.
675
00:30:32,680 --> 00:30:34,359
You did it. Yes!
676
00:30:34,360 --> 00:30:37,039
So you can all go home, get some rest,
677
00:30:37,040 --> 00:30:39,999
and we'll see you back here in the pottery in a few days.
678
00:30:40,000 --> 00:30:41,439
Well done.
679
00:30:41,440 --> 00:30:43,599
I'm quite surprised, actually.
680
00:30:43,600 --> 00:30:45,839
I just kept pushing until the last second,
681
00:30:45,840 --> 00:30:48,159
just to get every stroke out.
682
00:30:48,160 --> 00:30:49,839
I was in top three,
683
00:30:49,840 --> 00:30:53,159
maybe because I went for something that no-one had thought of.
684
00:30:53,160 --> 00:30:57,279
Clover, I mean, I liked her jug tremendously.
685
00:30:57,280 --> 00:30:59,839
You know, it's different challenges, we'll see.
686
00:30:59,840 --> 00:31:02,399
I mean, if we're here next week, it's all totally different.
687
00:31:02,400 --> 00:31:06,320
Coming last, yeah, it does... does hurt a bit.
688
00:31:16,000 --> 00:31:18,199
Rich is on the early shift.
689
00:31:18,200 --> 00:31:20,759
The dinner sets have been drying for two days,
690
00:31:20,760 --> 00:31:22,879
and whilst the potters are back at home,
691
00:31:22,880 --> 00:31:24,239
he's headed for the kiln.
692
00:31:24,240 --> 00:31:25,839
So the fire is going to be going
693
00:31:25,840 --> 00:31:27,999
over a period of around 12 to 14 hours,
694
00:31:28,000 --> 00:31:29,879
to a temperature of 1,000 degrees.
695
00:31:29,880 --> 00:31:31,559
That's called the bisque firing,
696
00:31:31,560 --> 00:31:33,559
which is the first firing the pots will go through,
697
00:31:33,560 --> 00:31:35,639
and it will turn them from clay into ceramic.
698
00:31:35,640 --> 00:31:37,879
It's a fairly aggressive firing process.
699
00:31:37,880 --> 00:31:42,399
I just hope we see ten happy potters when they're back in the workshop.
700
00:31:42,400 --> 00:31:44,239
14 hours of firing,
701
00:31:44,240 --> 00:31:45,879
12 more cooling,
702
00:31:45,880 --> 00:31:48,759
and all the potters have been able to do is wait.
703
00:31:48,760 --> 00:31:50,959
Nervous to see what the bisqueware will be like,
704
00:31:50,960 --> 00:31:52,199
if it's got a crack or not.
705
00:31:52,200 --> 00:31:54,039
Hopefully, my plates are all in one piece.
706
00:31:54,040 --> 00:31:56,199
I was a bit nervous when I left last night,
707
00:31:56,200 --> 00:31:58,599
but since have had a conversation with my partner,
708
00:31:58,600 --> 00:32:01,599
she's told me to be the Nam, calm down.
709
00:32:01,600 --> 00:32:04,719
Hopefully, the beakers will hold some form of liquid,
710
00:32:04,720 --> 00:32:06,599
and the plates will hold some sort of food.
711
00:32:06,600 --> 00:32:07,840
I am really nervous.
712
00:32:09,040 --> 00:32:10,319
I...
713
00:32:10,320 --> 00:32:11,560
I can't!
714
00:32:12,880 --> 00:32:14,439
Good morning, potters.
715
00:32:14,440 --> 00:32:17,759
Your dinner sets are out of the kiln and under the cloths.
716
00:32:17,760 --> 00:32:19,599
I know you're desperate to look at them.
717
00:32:19,600 --> 00:32:23,599
You have a dazzling array of colours and glazes to decorate them with.
718
00:32:23,600 --> 00:32:27,039
Well, as you know, in pottery, you reap what you sow.
719
00:32:27,040 --> 00:32:29,759
If you compressed properly, you won't get cracks.
720
00:32:29,760 --> 00:32:31,479
If you've wired through properly,
721
00:32:31,480 --> 00:32:33,239
you won't get holes through your bottom.
722
00:32:33,240 --> 00:32:34,399
We will see!
723
00:32:34,400 --> 00:32:36,439
We've got our fingers crossed for you, OK?
724
00:32:36,440 --> 00:32:38,959
You have two hours to decorate your dinner sets,
725
00:32:38,960 --> 00:32:40,880
your time starts now.
726
00:32:43,160 --> 00:32:44,400
- CAIT:
- Oh, no!
727
00:32:45,840 --> 00:32:47,439
That's going to be great(!)
728
00:32:47,440 --> 00:32:48,959
Oh, just one crack.
729
00:32:48,960 --> 00:32:49,999
Good, good, good.
730
00:32:50,000 --> 00:32:51,559
Ah!
731
00:32:51,560 --> 00:32:53,399
I guess what I did when I was throwing it,
732
00:32:53,400 --> 00:32:56,039
is the base is too thin, so when I wired through...
733
00:32:56,040 --> 00:32:57,399
I wired through the base.
734
00:32:57,400 --> 00:33:02,159
Not the same sizes, but let's blame it on shrinkage.
735
00:33:02,160 --> 00:33:03,919
How they looking, Ryan?
736
00:33:03,920 --> 00:33:05,919
- Yeah, happy, mate.
- Yeah, me too.
737
00:33:05,920 --> 00:33:08,959
The decoration is where these dinner services come alive.
738
00:33:08,960 --> 00:33:10,599
Through all four pieces,
739
00:33:10,600 --> 00:33:13,159
we want to see the design carry right across,
740
00:33:13,160 --> 00:33:14,799
from the beaker to the bowl to the plate.
741
00:33:14,800 --> 00:33:16,919
Much like this one, with the different stripes.
742
00:33:16,920 --> 00:33:18,759
They work separately, but at the same time,
743
00:33:18,760 --> 00:33:20,679
there's a sense of great fun amongst them.
744
00:33:20,680 --> 00:33:23,359
We've asked them to create a dinner set
745
00:33:23,360 --> 00:33:25,559
that reflects their own personality.
746
00:33:25,560 --> 00:33:29,039
So all the plates here, they say something about the maker.
747
00:33:29,040 --> 00:33:32,399
They're communicating about what it is that they love to do.
748
00:33:32,400 --> 00:33:33,759
That's what we're after.
749
00:33:33,760 --> 00:33:35,599
We want to see their dinner sets,
750
00:33:35,600 --> 00:33:38,599
and know instinctively who made it.
751
00:33:38,600 --> 00:33:42,519
Decorating dinnerware is a craft that the men and women of Stoke
752
00:33:42,520 --> 00:33:45,239
have mastered over the past 300 years.
753
00:33:45,240 --> 00:33:47,359
'Good pots will always need good workers.'
754
00:33:47,360 --> 00:33:48,599
'It's nice, clean work,
755
00:33:48,600 --> 00:33:51,999
'and we can always pass the time away with a song.'
756
00:33:52,000 --> 00:33:55,879
But the first decorated plates on British dining tables
757
00:33:55,880 --> 00:33:58,679
weren't painted in Stoke.
758
00:33:58,680 --> 00:34:00,799
'A fine, white, translucent body,
759
00:34:00,800 --> 00:34:03,959
'which has never been surpassed, even to this day.'
760
00:34:03,960 --> 00:34:07,119
Chinese porcelain, beautifully hand-glazed,
761
00:34:07,120 --> 00:34:10,639
began to be imported in the early 17th century.
762
00:34:10,640 --> 00:34:13,759
It cost a fortune, and a Chinese dinner set
763
00:34:13,760 --> 00:34:17,879
soon became the ultimate status symbol for the aristocracy.
764
00:34:17,880 --> 00:34:19,799
Once Chinese porcelain starts to be seen
765
00:34:19,800 --> 00:34:21,439
at the tables of the very wealthy,
766
00:34:21,440 --> 00:34:23,839
it's seen as something extremely desirable,
767
00:34:23,840 --> 00:34:25,399
and the middle classes aspire to it.
768
00:34:25,400 --> 00:34:28,279
Staffordshire potters realise there's a whole market there for them,
769
00:34:28,280 --> 00:34:29,759
if they can just take advantage of it.
770
00:34:29,760 --> 00:34:32,439
The potters knew that to give the average British family
771
00:34:32,440 --> 00:34:34,319
dinner sets they could be proud of,
772
00:34:34,320 --> 00:34:37,319
they had to find a way to drive down its cost.
773
00:34:37,320 --> 00:34:39,519
The Staffordshire potters' great innovation
774
00:34:39,520 --> 00:34:41,439
was the use of plaster of Paris for moulds,
775
00:34:41,440 --> 00:34:43,799
because then you can produce all the plates matching
776
00:34:43,800 --> 00:34:45,359
and in large numbers.
777
00:34:45,360 --> 00:34:47,039
'It's a lovely shape, isn't it?'
778
00:34:47,040 --> 00:34:49,119
By the end of the 19th century,
779
00:34:49,120 --> 00:34:52,319
mass production saw Stoke's skyline transformed
780
00:34:52,320 --> 00:34:54,439
with over 2,000 bottle kilns,
781
00:34:54,440 --> 00:34:57,119
firing millions of pieces of dinnerware
782
00:34:57,120 --> 00:34:59,839
which were exported all over the world.
783
00:34:59,840 --> 00:35:02,559
'Of course, if it's going abroad, it'll want a bit of decoration.
784
00:35:02,560 --> 00:35:04,399
'And that's where Anita comes in.'
785
00:35:04,400 --> 00:35:06,759
But when it came to finishing plates and bowls,
786
00:35:06,760 --> 00:35:08,839
mass production had no answer
787
00:35:08,840 --> 00:35:11,999
to the centuries-old skill of glazing by hand.
788
00:35:12,000 --> 00:35:14,599
'Of course, the very greatest perfection of decoration
789
00:35:14,600 --> 00:35:16,399
'is achieved in freehand painting,
790
00:35:16,400 --> 00:35:18,720
'where the artist works directly onto the ware.'
791
00:35:20,240 --> 00:35:24,399
So, can our potters do justice to Stoke's hand glazing heritage
792
00:35:24,400 --> 00:35:25,720
in just two hours?
793
00:35:26,760 --> 00:35:30,279
It's a really short amount of time for 16 things.
794
00:35:30,280 --> 00:35:34,799
Before any glaze is applied, some potters are scraping back
795
00:35:34,800 --> 00:35:37,440
any rough edges left after the first filing.
796
00:35:38,720 --> 00:35:40,479
What's happening here? What's over here?
797
00:35:40,480 --> 00:35:41,879
Oh, sorry, I've covered it back up,
798
00:35:41,880 --> 00:35:43,879
cos I don't want to be distracted by it.
799
00:35:43,880 --> 00:35:45,199
It's the cloth of shame.
800
00:35:45,200 --> 00:35:47,319
- (It's the cloth of shame.)
- Oh, look.
801
00:35:47,320 --> 00:35:48,639
Oh, gosh, that's...
802
00:35:48,640 --> 00:35:51,319
- I thought that dark bit was paint.
- I wish it was!
803
00:35:51,320 --> 00:35:53,519
I'm like, "Oh, I like that paint, there." But that's...
804
00:35:53,520 --> 00:35:55,199
- No, no...
- That's the actual...
- Yeah.
805
00:35:55,200 --> 00:35:58,000
- Shall we cover back over, again?
- Yeah, can you?
806
00:35:59,720 --> 00:36:01,439
Begone!
807
00:36:01,440 --> 00:36:02,879
Manganese...
808
00:36:02,880 --> 00:36:05,639
After struggling with throwing, for the glazing,
809
00:36:05,640 --> 00:36:07,839
Carole has come well prepared.
810
00:36:07,840 --> 00:36:10,919
I've made up all these textural sponges.
811
00:36:10,920 --> 00:36:12,599
That's reeds.
812
00:36:12,600 --> 00:36:14,319
This is foliage.
813
00:36:14,320 --> 00:36:15,599
Reed.
814
00:36:15,600 --> 00:36:17,119
A leaf.
815
00:36:17,120 --> 00:36:18,399
Rock.
816
00:36:18,400 --> 00:36:19,759
This is underglaze colours.
817
00:36:19,760 --> 00:36:22,879
They'll come out brighter when it's fired.
818
00:36:22,880 --> 00:36:24,599
Carole's look very similar to mine.
819
00:36:24,600 --> 00:36:26,799
She's got a bit of a bigger wave on them, I think.
820
00:36:26,800 --> 00:36:29,519
I've just noticed me and Nam are doing a very similar technique
821
00:36:29,520 --> 00:36:31,039
for the glaze, as well.
822
00:36:31,040 --> 00:36:32,719
It's called bubble blowing.
823
00:36:32,720 --> 00:36:35,359
And my set is all about play and games,
824
00:36:35,360 --> 00:36:38,360
and part of this method is all about having fun.
825
00:36:41,280 --> 00:36:44,239
- You just leave it, then, and then it just pops away?
- Yeah.
826
00:36:44,240 --> 00:36:46,239
I've practised this technique for a while now.
827
00:36:46,240 --> 00:36:48,559
I don't how you lot have got time for chitchat!
828
00:36:48,560 --> 00:36:50,279
THEY LAUGH
829
00:36:50,280 --> 00:36:51,519
Why not?
830
00:36:51,520 --> 00:36:52,679
Pfft!
831
00:36:52,680 --> 00:36:54,599
Stressed old lady, here!
832
00:36:54,600 --> 00:36:58,199
This is an interpretation of leaves and bananas.
833
00:36:58,200 --> 00:37:00,999
I did have the impression that I'd do big banana leaves,
834
00:37:01,000 --> 00:37:03,039
but my painting skills are minimal,
835
00:37:03,040 --> 00:37:05,079
so that went out the window.
836
00:37:05,080 --> 00:37:08,759
I'm just brushing the oxide mixed with water.
837
00:37:08,760 --> 00:37:12,679
Once applied, oxides will change colour in the heat of the kiln.
838
00:37:12,680 --> 00:37:14,479
It will come out greenish.
839
00:37:14,480 --> 00:37:17,959
This is what I'll try to achieve, with different depth of colour.
840
00:37:17,960 --> 00:37:19,799
Copper oxide is a very strong colour,
841
00:37:19,800 --> 00:37:23,679
so it will come out a lot darker than I would anticipate,
842
00:37:23,680 --> 00:37:27,239
and that's why I'm mixing it with lots of water.
843
00:37:27,240 --> 00:37:30,439
I'm a little bit concerned that everyone is putting colour down
844
00:37:30,440 --> 00:37:31,879
and rushing on with things,
845
00:37:31,880 --> 00:37:34,119
but I'm taking my time, smoothing off the edges.
846
00:37:34,120 --> 00:37:36,599
Oh, Daniel, it's like skipping through a meadow!
847
00:37:36,600 --> 00:37:37,959
I know, I know.
848
00:37:37,960 --> 00:37:39,479
- All these flowers.
- Flowers, yes.
849
00:37:39,480 --> 00:37:41,839
- Is this actually from your garden?
- They are, yes.
850
00:37:41,840 --> 00:37:42,919
That's impressive.
851
00:37:42,920 --> 00:37:45,679
But you seem like a different Daniel to the throwing Daniel.
852
00:37:45,680 --> 00:37:48,240
I'm not a decorator. This is not my comfort zone.
853
00:37:50,600 --> 00:37:51,999
Way too slow.
854
00:37:52,000 --> 00:37:54,879
After the panic to finish throwing her dinner set...
855
00:37:54,880 --> 00:37:58,119
I'm just painting the orange underglaze on at the moment.
856
00:37:58,120 --> 00:38:01,719
..Cait's aiming to make decorating a little less completed.
857
00:38:01,720 --> 00:38:06,320
As a Quaker, I'm into simplicity. I like clean, simple things.
858
00:38:08,160 --> 00:38:09,999
Smart, man. Proper smart.
859
00:38:10,000 --> 00:38:12,559
After perfecting straight lines with his throwing,
860
00:38:12,560 --> 00:38:15,399
James is now being a little less restrained.
861
00:38:15,400 --> 00:38:17,439
It's the whole idea of, like, graffiti and stuff.
862
00:38:17,440 --> 00:38:19,199
No rhyme, no reason.
863
00:38:19,200 --> 00:38:21,919
Just see what I'm feeling, and leave it at that.
864
00:38:21,920 --> 00:38:24,719
James has been splashing glaze everywhere, Jackson Pollock style.
865
00:38:24,720 --> 00:38:27,039
And he's got a big bit of red oxide on my plate, here.
866
00:38:27,040 --> 00:38:28,439
It's got my foot.
867
00:38:28,440 --> 00:38:30,439
He doesn't know yet, but I'm going to get revenge.
868
00:38:30,440 --> 00:38:31,639
Sorry, sorry.
869
00:38:31,640 --> 00:38:32,959
Playing by ear with this.
870
00:38:32,960 --> 00:38:35,319
We got to keep layering, and I'm just thinking of the tones,
871
00:38:35,320 --> 00:38:38,479
cos I wanted them to, like, fade into each other like a rainbow.
872
00:38:38,480 --> 00:38:40,319
Starting to put the textures on.
873
00:38:40,320 --> 00:38:43,279
What should I do? Do some weeds and things.
874
00:38:43,280 --> 00:38:44,879
It's fun, isn't it?
875
00:38:44,880 --> 00:38:46,960
- It's like being a little kid again!
- SHE LAUGHS
876
00:38:48,720 --> 00:38:50,559
- Richard, your lettering...
- Yeah?
877
00:38:50,560 --> 00:38:52,479
- ..which I am really impressed by.
- Thank you.
878
00:38:52,480 --> 00:38:54,919
- It's a fine and steady hand that you have to have.
- Yeah.
879
00:38:54,920 --> 00:38:56,559
It's an old English typeface.
880
00:38:56,560 --> 00:38:58,119
And the writing is...?
881
00:38:58,120 --> 00:38:59,319
Loyaulte me lie.
882
00:38:59,320 --> 00:39:00,719
"Loyalty binds me."
883
00:39:00,720 --> 00:39:01,959
Loyalty binds me.
884
00:39:01,960 --> 00:39:04,199
So all the pieces together, they'll have that motto.
885
00:39:04,200 --> 00:39:05,719
They're all bound to it.
886
00:39:05,720 --> 00:39:08,319
Are we going to eat medieval battle food off it?
887
00:39:08,320 --> 00:39:11,279
Well... yeah, why not?
888
00:39:11,280 --> 00:39:13,399
You are halfway through your time.
889
00:39:13,400 --> 00:39:15,159
You have one hour left.
890
00:39:15,160 --> 00:39:17,959
Ryan has finally started decorating.
891
00:39:17,960 --> 00:39:19,879
So I'll just use the copper oxide.
892
00:39:19,880 --> 00:39:22,999
Hopefully, it's going to come out a nice blue.
893
00:39:23,000 --> 00:39:24,199
And one of Cait's bowls...
894
00:39:24,200 --> 00:39:25,239
SOMETHING CRACKS
895
00:39:25,240 --> 00:39:26,439
..is finished.
896
00:39:26,440 --> 00:39:28,079
What are you doing, Cait?
897
00:39:28,080 --> 00:39:29,999
I just threw it at the table!
898
00:39:30,000 --> 00:39:32,679
I'd just finished decorating it, as well.
899
00:39:32,680 --> 00:39:34,479
I'm not going to do too much more.
900
00:39:34,480 --> 00:39:36,119
Less is more, as they say.
901
00:39:36,120 --> 00:39:39,239
I want to do something on the rim, to work with the shape a bit more.
902
00:39:39,240 --> 00:39:40,719
Maybe a band.
903
00:39:40,720 --> 00:39:43,319
Do this and the glaze, and I'm done, aren't I?
904
00:39:43,320 --> 00:39:46,760
Once they've applied their underglazes and oxides...
905
00:39:47,880 --> 00:39:49,879
..the potters can dip their dinner sets
906
00:39:49,880 --> 00:39:51,800
in a white-looking final glaze.
907
00:39:52,920 --> 00:39:55,080
Once fired, it will become transparent...
908
00:39:56,400 --> 00:39:58,919
..revealing and protecting their design.
909
00:39:58,920 --> 00:40:01,679
- BANG FREYA:
- Oh, my God!
910
00:40:01,680 --> 00:40:03,119
Oh, well.
911
00:40:03,120 --> 00:40:04,799
Clumsy, clumsy, clumsy.
912
00:40:04,800 --> 00:40:07,599
Freya and Cait, they're rushing,
913
00:40:07,600 --> 00:40:09,799
and they're dropping things.
914
00:40:09,800 --> 00:40:11,839
It's easily done, under the stress of things,
915
00:40:11,840 --> 00:40:13,239
but it's not what you want, is it?
916
00:40:13,240 --> 00:40:14,359
No, not really.
917
00:40:14,360 --> 00:40:16,159
We're after, how many pieces? 16 pieces?
918
00:40:16,160 --> 00:40:17,560
Yes, we are after 16 pieces.
919
00:40:18,880 --> 00:40:20,999
- CAROLE:
- Just wiping the bottoms and I'm done.
920
00:40:21,000 --> 00:40:22,719
Would you believe I'm done?
921
00:40:22,720 --> 00:40:24,319
Keith's a bit obsessed with bottoms.
922
00:40:24,320 --> 00:40:25,799
He is obsessed with bottoms.
923
00:40:25,800 --> 00:40:28,239
He's obsessed with cracked bottoms, messy bottoms...
924
00:40:28,240 --> 00:40:30,679
The slightest drop of glaze on a base
925
00:40:30,680 --> 00:40:33,439
has the potential to destroy a dinner set.
926
00:40:33,440 --> 00:40:36,079
The smallest little bit of glaze on the bottom of the plate
927
00:40:36,080 --> 00:40:38,479
will just stick to the kiln shelf, and then, as it cools down,
928
00:40:38,480 --> 00:40:41,319
the plate will shrink and the glaze will just stick and crack.
929
00:40:41,320 --> 00:40:43,559
- Have you finished yours?
- Pretty much.
930
00:40:43,560 --> 00:40:46,319
- Don't do mine unless you've done yours.
- No, it's all right.
931
00:40:46,320 --> 00:40:48,719
Is it allowed? We're allowed to help each other, aren't we?
932
00:40:48,720 --> 00:40:50,279
Five minutes left.
933
00:40:50,280 --> 00:40:51,999
Oh, my God, there's loads on there!
934
00:40:52,000 --> 00:40:54,399
I know! Ah!
935
00:40:54,400 --> 00:40:56,479
We need one of Nam's sponges.
936
00:40:56,480 --> 00:40:59,079
- Do you want my sponges?
- Have you got any spare sponges, Nam?
937
00:40:59,080 --> 00:41:01,559
- Take one of my sponges.
- Oh, you're a star, you're a star!
938
00:41:01,560 --> 00:41:04,319
Don't worry, don't worry. Put it down. Put it down. Get another one.
939
00:41:04,320 --> 00:41:06,679
One more here. Just pile it on top.
940
00:41:06,680 --> 00:41:08,199
Get everything on your ware boards,
941
00:41:08,200 --> 00:41:10,640
what isn't on a ware board won't be going in the kiln.
942
00:41:12,320 --> 00:41:13,639
Five.
943
00:41:13,640 --> 00:41:14,799
One minute!
944
00:41:14,800 --> 00:41:15,959
Four.
945
00:41:15,960 --> 00:41:17,799
I'm not watching this, Cait. Three...
946
00:41:17,800 --> 00:41:18,959
Don't watch!
947
00:41:18,960 --> 00:41:20,199
Two...
948
00:41:20,200 --> 00:41:21,399
One.
949
00:41:21,400 --> 00:41:23,239
Potters, time is up.
950
00:41:23,240 --> 00:41:26,359
Stop decorating, step back from your dinner sets, please.
951
00:41:26,360 --> 00:41:27,800
And breathe.
952
00:41:31,160 --> 00:41:34,200
There's nothing more the potters can do for their dinner sets...
953
00:41:35,760 --> 00:41:39,679
..except take them down to Rich for their final firing.
954
00:41:39,680 --> 00:41:41,759
The dinner sets are decorated.
955
00:41:41,760 --> 00:41:45,079
Very excitingly, this year, we've got Pot Of The Week.
956
00:41:45,080 --> 00:41:47,239
So have you got your eye on any particular pot?
957
00:41:47,240 --> 00:41:50,559
Well, I liked Nam's from the moment he finished throwing it.
958
00:41:50,560 --> 00:41:52,359
Ryan's got to be up there, hasn't he?
959
00:41:52,360 --> 00:41:55,079
He's been very consistent and very focused, hasn't he?
960
00:41:55,080 --> 00:41:56,399
And then we've got one more.
961
00:41:56,400 --> 00:41:57,959
- Clover.
- Yeah, that's right.
962
00:41:57,960 --> 00:41:59,999
Liked her throwing. Liked her attitude.
963
00:42:00,000 --> 00:42:02,679
It's so harsh, because it's week one,
964
00:42:02,680 --> 00:42:04,719
and we've got to say goodbye to somebody.
965
00:42:04,720 --> 00:42:08,439
It's either Cait, Carole or Daniel.
966
00:42:08,440 --> 00:42:12,999
Cait is two pieces down on her 16-piece dinner set.
967
00:42:13,000 --> 00:42:16,479
Carole's throwing skills, for me, are severely lacking, bless her.
968
00:42:16,480 --> 00:42:18,879
And Daniel, I'm worried about his decoration.
969
00:42:18,880 --> 00:42:20,599
His heart didn't seem to be in it.
970
00:42:20,600 --> 00:42:22,519
I hope the kiln will lift it out.
971
00:42:22,520 --> 00:42:24,239
You just never know until the kiln's out.
972
00:42:24,240 --> 00:42:27,079
After 30 years, I don't know, of my own work,
973
00:42:27,080 --> 00:42:28,719
how things are going to turn out.
974
00:42:28,720 --> 00:42:31,319
Whilst Rich prepares for the final firing,
975
00:42:31,320 --> 00:42:34,999
the potters have one last chance to impress the judges.
976
00:42:35,000 --> 00:42:37,639
They're about to be tested on a traditional skill
977
00:42:37,640 --> 00:42:41,319
that helped Stoke become the pottery capital of the world.
978
00:42:41,320 --> 00:42:43,439
Now, here's a craftsman, if you like.
979
00:42:43,440 --> 00:42:45,439
Charlie Bryan, great-grandson
980
00:42:45,440 --> 00:42:47,279
of the 18th-century thrower.
981
00:42:47,280 --> 00:42:50,879
Requiring a steady hand and a sharp eye, this Throw Down
982
00:42:50,880 --> 00:42:54,719
will reveal how our Potters match up to their pottery forefathers.
983
00:42:54,720 --> 00:42:58,439
This man here, Keith, AKA king of the wheel,
984
00:42:58,440 --> 00:43:01,639
would like you to please throw a cone.
985
00:43:01,640 --> 00:43:05,519
But not any old cone. We want the tallest cone you can.
986
00:43:05,520 --> 00:43:08,599
Watch carefully, cos he's going to show you exactly how to do it.
987
00:43:08,600 --> 00:43:10,599
5lbs of clay.
988
00:43:10,600 --> 00:43:13,679
Now, a cone, as you know, is sealed at the top.
989
00:43:13,680 --> 00:43:15,639
Because if it's not sealed at the top,
990
00:43:15,640 --> 00:43:17,679
- it will be more like a drainpipe.
- THEY LAUGH
991
00:43:17,680 --> 00:43:19,079
You don't want a drainpipe.
992
00:43:19,080 --> 00:43:22,759
You want to give it a really good workout before you actually start.
993
00:43:22,760 --> 00:43:25,319
The whole reason for doing this challenge
994
00:43:25,320 --> 00:43:28,959
is because Kate and I both want to see your skills
995
00:43:28,960 --> 00:43:31,159
at controlling the clay on the wheel.
996
00:43:31,160 --> 00:43:33,239
What's so brilliant about a cone
997
00:43:33,240 --> 00:43:36,799
is that you're basically working against the force of the wheel.
998
00:43:36,800 --> 00:43:39,559
The wheel is always trying to take everything off the wheel,
999
00:43:39,560 --> 00:43:41,319
and you're bringing this thing in.
1000
00:43:41,320 --> 00:43:42,439
Up I go...
1001
00:43:42,440 --> 00:43:46,600
The most common mistake is to make it too wide, too early.
1002
00:43:48,920 --> 00:43:51,199
When I rib up the side of the pot now,
1003
00:43:51,200 --> 00:43:53,959
I can follow that horizon of the pot.
1004
00:43:53,960 --> 00:43:55,719
- It's gorgeous, isn't it?
- Gorgeous.
1005
00:43:55,720 --> 00:43:58,000
I want the seal completely invisible.
1006
00:44:00,440 --> 00:44:01,719
All right?
1007
00:44:01,720 --> 00:44:05,320
Potters, you've got 15 minutes to make the tallest cone you can.
1008
00:44:06,560 --> 00:44:08,159
Back to your benches.
1009
00:44:08,160 --> 00:44:09,680
And potters, get potting!
1010
00:44:15,760 --> 00:44:18,639
I'm already impressed with Carole,
1011
00:44:18,640 --> 00:44:21,040
- because she's centred that really well.
- Yeah.
1012
00:44:23,400 --> 00:44:26,359
(It's very quiet, isn't it, in here? I keep whispering, cos it's like...
1013
00:44:26,360 --> 00:44:27,639
(It's like a library!)
1014
00:44:27,640 --> 00:44:30,119
Actually, when you talk normally, it's fine to talk normally,
1015
00:44:30,120 --> 00:44:31,719
it's just everybody's concentrating.
1016
00:44:31,720 --> 00:44:32,959
Creating a winning cone
1017
00:44:32,960 --> 00:44:36,279
requires perfect judgment and careful technique.
1018
00:44:36,280 --> 00:44:38,399
The potters need to start with a base
1019
00:44:38,400 --> 00:44:40,359
wide enough to provide support,
1020
00:44:40,360 --> 00:44:43,319
then pull up the clay thick enough to keep its shape,
1021
00:44:43,320 --> 00:44:46,199
whilst gaining as much height as possible.
1022
00:44:46,200 --> 00:44:48,039
Richard's is flowering out at the top.
1023
00:44:48,040 --> 00:44:49,600
He's got to bring that in, now.
1024
00:44:53,120 --> 00:44:56,399
- It's looking grand! Lovely height, lovely shape.
- Oh, good.
1025
00:44:56,400 --> 00:44:58,039
- Enough about me.
- Yes.
1026
00:44:58,040 --> 00:45:00,599
As long as this doesn't break on me now, it should be all right.
1027
00:45:00,600 --> 00:45:04,519
- Freya's is on the verge of collapse.
- Yeah.
1028
00:45:04,520 --> 00:45:08,039
I'm pretty pleased with that so far, but this is the critical point.
1029
00:45:08,040 --> 00:45:10,879
Closing the top over, and not ruining the whole thing.
1030
00:45:10,880 --> 00:45:13,079
This is not a cone at all.
1031
00:45:13,080 --> 00:45:16,760
We'll tell in the next minute or two whether it's going to work.
1032
00:45:18,240 --> 00:45:20,959
God, I can visibly see my hands shaking.
1033
00:45:20,960 --> 00:45:22,119
How's it going?
1034
00:45:22,120 --> 00:45:24,279
Well, it's the tallest pot I've thrown in my life.
1035
00:45:24,280 --> 00:45:25,959
I've sacrificed a bit of height,
1036
00:45:25,960 --> 00:45:27,919
but I've gone for a bit better shape.
1037
00:45:27,920 --> 00:45:30,120
Five minutes left. Just five minutes.
1038
00:45:31,480 --> 00:45:32,999
All that effort to create height
1039
00:45:33,000 --> 00:45:35,119
can be undone when closing the top.
1040
00:45:35,120 --> 00:45:37,519
The clay can buckle, collapsing the cone.
1041
00:45:37,520 --> 00:45:39,199
Focus, guys. Come on.
1042
00:45:39,200 --> 00:45:41,199
It's the first time I've thrown this shape,
1043
00:45:41,200 --> 00:45:44,919
so I'm just taking in like the demonstration done by Keith, now.
1044
00:45:44,920 --> 00:45:46,920
Go easy, Freya, just go easy.
1045
00:45:48,080 --> 00:45:50,799
James is doing well, straightening off.
1046
00:45:50,800 --> 00:45:52,599
Look at your profiles.
1047
00:45:52,600 --> 00:45:54,679
Come on, Cait, close it up, mate.
1048
00:45:54,680 --> 00:45:56,919
Richard at the back, sat cosy.
1049
00:45:56,920 --> 00:45:58,759
OK, ten, nine,
1050
00:45:58,760 --> 00:46:00,879
eight, seven,
1051
00:46:00,880 --> 00:46:02,879
- six, five...
- Freya...
1052
00:46:02,880 --> 00:46:04,919
- ..four, three...
- Oh, gently, gently!
1053
00:46:04,920 --> 00:46:06,399
..two, one,
1054
00:46:06,400 --> 00:46:07,719
time's up!
1055
00:46:07,720 --> 00:46:09,479
Step away from your cones.
1056
00:46:09,480 --> 00:46:12,400
I don't know who was more stressed, us or them!
1057
00:46:13,840 --> 00:46:16,519
But what will Kate and Keith make of the cones
1058
00:46:16,520 --> 00:46:18,799
in the potters' first Throw Down?
1059
00:46:18,800 --> 00:46:21,039
James. Impressive width.
1060
00:46:21,040 --> 00:46:22,599
Thank you.
1061
00:46:22,600 --> 00:46:24,879
The seal at the top looks pretty good, doesn't it?
1062
00:46:24,880 --> 00:46:26,880
Yeah. It could have been more pointed.
1063
00:46:28,680 --> 00:46:31,199
I should have gone for a narrower base to get the height.
1064
00:46:31,200 --> 00:46:32,759
Right. Well, you're right. Yes.
1065
00:46:32,760 --> 00:46:35,319
Does he get any extra points for knowing where he went wrong?
1066
00:46:35,320 --> 00:46:36,720
Unfortunately not, no.
1067
00:46:38,560 --> 00:46:40,119
It's like half as sausage, isn't it?
1068
00:46:40,120 --> 00:46:41,439
It's making me peckish.
1069
00:46:41,440 --> 00:46:43,720
It's more of a torpedo, isn't it, than a cone?
1070
00:46:45,360 --> 00:46:47,959
You've got a slight kink there, and a slight kink here.
1071
00:46:47,960 --> 00:46:49,759
Are you quite pleased with yourself, Clover?
1072
00:46:49,760 --> 00:46:51,119
Um... No.
1073
00:46:51,120 --> 00:46:52,719
Aww!
1074
00:46:52,720 --> 00:46:54,759
I think it's the same as the last throwing.
1075
00:46:54,760 --> 00:46:57,519
I felt in control of it, I think it was just the time.
1076
00:46:57,520 --> 00:47:00,079
- Yeah.
- Time's been in issue, hasn't it, for you?
1077
00:47:00,080 --> 00:47:01,120
A little bit!
1078
00:47:02,600 --> 00:47:04,039
Look at this beauty!
1079
00:47:04,040 --> 00:47:05,159
It's really nice.
1080
00:47:05,160 --> 00:47:07,559
The seal at the top is really fluent.
1081
00:47:07,560 --> 00:47:08,759
Thank you.
1082
00:47:08,760 --> 00:47:10,320
- It's huggable.
- It's huggable, yeah.
1083
00:47:12,280 --> 00:47:15,199
Ryan, it's a thing of beauty. What do you reckon, judges?
1084
00:47:15,200 --> 00:47:17,119
I think it's very nicely finished off.
1085
00:47:17,120 --> 00:47:18,839
Nice and smooth, isn't it, as well?
1086
00:47:18,840 --> 00:47:20,240
Yes, it's smooth. Brilliant tip.
1087
00:47:22,040 --> 00:47:23,599
So it's a bit wide at the bottom.
1088
00:47:23,600 --> 00:47:24,999
If you'd brought it up a bit more,
1089
00:47:25,000 --> 00:47:27,720
the whole proportion would have stretched itself out a bit.
1090
00:47:29,400 --> 00:47:32,679
You, out of everyone, was really, really struggling with that.
1091
00:47:32,680 --> 00:47:35,119
I was thinking, "Oh, God, it's going to go, it's going to go."
1092
00:47:35,120 --> 00:47:36,719
- Yeah.
- But you really pulled it back!
1093
00:47:36,720 --> 00:47:39,439
- Nil points for profile, at the bottom.
- Yeah.
1094
00:47:39,440 --> 00:47:41,000
Ten out of ten for tenacity.
1095
00:47:43,280 --> 00:47:45,479
That's the first time I've made anything tall.
1096
00:47:45,480 --> 00:47:48,319
The fact that you've managed to close it up and make a cone
1097
00:47:48,320 --> 00:47:50,879
when throwing really isn't your skill,
1098
00:47:50,880 --> 00:47:53,559
I'm really... really impressed.
1099
00:47:53,560 --> 00:47:55,479
I'm trying to build my skills.
1100
00:47:55,480 --> 00:47:57,639
Yeah, and it's obviously working.
1101
00:47:57,640 --> 00:47:59,759
A little bit of pressure pushes you that bit further.
1102
00:47:59,760 --> 00:48:01,199
Yes, it's making me work harder.
1103
00:48:01,200 --> 00:48:03,960
And you've done a tremendous job, lovie, really.
1104
00:48:05,760 --> 00:48:08,719
So who's thrown the tallest perfectly shaped
1105
00:48:08,720 --> 00:48:10,839
and perfectly sealed cone?
1106
00:48:10,840 --> 00:48:13,039
So in tenth place is Cait.
1107
00:48:13,040 --> 00:48:15,759
In ninth place, Carole.
1108
00:48:15,760 --> 00:48:18,759
And in eighth place is Daniel.
1109
00:48:18,760 --> 00:48:21,359
Clover is seventh, Nam is sixth,
1110
00:48:21,360 --> 00:48:24,199
Freya is fifth, James is fourth.
1111
00:48:24,200 --> 00:48:29,079
In third place, with a height of 26.5 centimetres,
1112
00:48:29,080 --> 00:48:30,159
Richard.
1113
00:48:30,160 --> 00:48:31,799
Awesome work, Richard, well done!
1114
00:48:31,800 --> 00:48:36,799
So in second place, with 30.5 centimetres,
1115
00:48:36,800 --> 00:48:38,439
it's Elaine.
1116
00:48:38,440 --> 00:48:39,840
Well done, Elaine!
1117
00:48:41,440 --> 00:48:47,079
So in first place, with 31 centimetres,
1118
00:48:47,080 --> 00:48:48,839
well done, Ryan! Well done!
1119
00:48:48,840 --> 00:48:50,479
Well done!
1120
00:48:50,480 --> 00:48:54,519
OK, so potters, the next time we see you will be in the judging room,
1121
00:48:54,520 --> 00:48:58,279
when the judges will be judging your Main Make.
1122
00:48:58,280 --> 00:48:59,480
So we'll see you then.
1123
00:49:01,680 --> 00:49:03,239
I've just won the best Throw Down.
1124
00:49:03,240 --> 00:49:04,959
I really wasn't expecting it at all.
1125
00:49:04,960 --> 00:49:07,559
- Well done!
- You won't get me next time!
1126
00:49:07,560 --> 00:49:09,639
THEY LAUGH
1127
00:49:09,640 --> 00:49:12,520
Half a centimetre, that's all it was.
1128
00:49:18,200 --> 00:49:19,959
It's the final day.
1129
00:49:19,960 --> 00:49:23,159
The dinner sets are about to be unloaded from the kiln.
1130
00:49:23,160 --> 00:49:24,799
But there's a problem.
1131
00:49:24,800 --> 00:49:27,559
It looks like we've got a fair amount of carbon trapping.
1132
00:49:27,560 --> 00:49:30,319
It was a very low bisque firing,
1133
00:49:30,320 --> 00:49:32,799
and then a reasonably quick glaze firing.
1134
00:49:32,800 --> 00:49:34,479
The glaze has started to seal,
1135
00:49:34,480 --> 00:49:38,479
and as all of the carbon's been burning off the clay body,
1136
00:49:38,480 --> 00:49:40,399
it's got trapped under the gaze,
1137
00:49:40,400 --> 00:49:43,319
giving it a really dark feel to it.
1138
00:49:43,320 --> 00:49:46,399
The carbon trapped under the glaze appears black.
1139
00:49:46,400 --> 00:49:49,759
It's created unpredictable but amazing effects for some...
1140
00:49:49,760 --> 00:49:52,479
The way it's worked with this decoration is amazing!
1141
00:49:52,480 --> 00:49:55,999
..but others have been left with grey and colourless pieces.
1142
00:49:56,000 --> 00:49:57,999
Above all, I'm disappointed for the potters.
1143
00:49:58,000 --> 00:50:00,279
They put a lot of work into these pieces.
1144
00:50:00,280 --> 00:50:02,040
This is pottery, it's what happens.
1145
00:50:06,320 --> 00:50:09,719
The first time the potters will see their finished dinner sets
1146
00:50:09,720 --> 00:50:12,480
will be when they have to reveal them to the judges.
1147
00:50:20,320 --> 00:50:22,119
Potters, your dinner services
1148
00:50:22,120 --> 00:50:24,519
are nestling underneath the hessian, there.
1149
00:50:24,520 --> 00:50:28,079
I'm sure you're desperate to have a sneaky peek at them,
1150
00:50:28,080 --> 00:50:31,039
but before we do, we need news from the kiln, please, judges.
1151
00:50:31,040 --> 00:50:34,359
Your pots were all fired in the gas kiln outside.
1152
00:50:34,360 --> 00:50:37,479
We had lovely, British weather. Horrendous.
1153
00:50:37,480 --> 00:50:40,439
And basically, we were getting a backdraught down the flue
1154
00:50:40,440 --> 00:50:43,959
and some of the carbon was left inside your pieces.
1155
00:50:43,960 --> 00:50:46,399
So, we have carbon trapping.
1156
00:50:46,400 --> 00:50:49,279
But we're not going to be judging against you on this.
1157
00:50:49,280 --> 00:50:50,759
Do not worry about that.
1158
00:50:50,760 --> 00:50:52,079
So without further ado,
1159
00:50:52,080 --> 00:50:53,399
it's judgment time.
1160
00:50:53,400 --> 00:50:55,160
And I think, Carole, you're first.
1161
00:51:03,120 --> 00:51:04,359
Right.
1162
00:51:04,360 --> 00:51:06,879
So we've got 15 pieces, haven't we?
1163
00:51:06,880 --> 00:51:08,639
I'm short of one. Sorry about that.
1164
00:51:08,640 --> 00:51:09,799
And that's because
1165
00:51:09,800 --> 00:51:11,319
you didn't have time to make one?
1166
00:51:11,320 --> 00:51:13,199
- I just ran out of time, basically.
- Right, OK.
1167
00:51:13,200 --> 00:51:16,559
I think what you've done is something called double wiring.
1168
00:51:16,560 --> 00:51:17,679
I did do that.
1169
00:51:17,680 --> 00:51:18,759
That's a mistake.
1170
00:51:18,760 --> 00:51:21,879
You wire once. You wire twice, either slightly below or above it,
1171
00:51:21,880 --> 00:51:24,519
and you're left with a sliver that's just got stuck in some places.
1172
00:51:24,520 --> 00:51:25,639
OK. I didn't know that.
1173
00:51:25,640 --> 00:51:27,599
- They are consistent in size.
- Yes.
1174
00:51:27,600 --> 00:51:31,520
- But the weight could have been a little lighter than this.
- Yes.
1175
00:51:38,640 --> 00:51:40,120
Oh, gosh.
1176
00:51:43,600 --> 00:51:45,479
Having the carbon's awesome!
1177
00:51:45,480 --> 00:51:46,919
THEY LAUGH
1178
00:51:46,920 --> 00:51:48,999
- It's wicked!
- It is. It's incredible,
1179
00:51:49,000 --> 00:51:50,879
- the different reactions you get.
- Wow.
1180
00:51:50,880 --> 00:51:52,359
If you went to a stranger
1181
00:51:52,360 --> 00:51:54,959
and asked what they thought the inspiration for this was,
1182
00:51:54,960 --> 00:51:57,759
I don't think they'd say computer games, and that's absolutely fine,
1183
00:51:57,760 --> 00:52:00,759
that it's rather an invisible inspiration. This is gorgeous.
1184
00:52:00,760 --> 00:52:02,439
They're in really good shape.
1185
00:52:02,440 --> 00:52:04,479
You fingers can rest on the different facets.
1186
00:52:04,480 --> 00:52:06,679
It doesn't only look good, but it functions well.
1187
00:52:06,680 --> 00:52:09,600
The weight is good, and it's consistent across the board.
1188
00:52:14,600 --> 00:52:15,839
Hmm.
1189
00:52:15,840 --> 00:52:17,919
This here, it's just a bit naive.
1190
00:52:17,920 --> 00:52:19,239
It's not my strong point.
1191
00:52:19,240 --> 00:52:20,679
But what is wonderful
1192
00:52:20,680 --> 00:52:23,399
is you are really, really good at throwing.
1193
00:52:23,400 --> 00:52:24,680
Seriously.
1194
00:52:25,680 --> 00:52:27,199
Wahey!
1195
00:52:27,200 --> 00:52:28,439
Hmm.
1196
00:52:28,440 --> 00:52:30,119
I don't think it has the rose.
1197
00:52:30,120 --> 00:52:32,239
You could have developed that, with the shape.
1198
00:52:32,240 --> 00:52:35,319
But then it is so difficult to write on a curved surface,
1199
00:52:35,320 --> 00:52:37,880
- and I'm really impressed by that.
- Thank you.
1200
00:52:39,880 --> 00:52:41,279
Cor, get your sunglasses on!
1201
00:52:41,280 --> 00:52:42,759
It's nice and bright.
1202
00:52:42,760 --> 00:52:44,479
Using these oxides here,
1203
00:52:44,480 --> 00:52:46,759
it would've been better if they'd been stronger.
1204
00:52:46,760 --> 00:52:48,559
- I've never used oxide before.
- Oh.
1205
00:52:48,560 --> 00:52:50,359
This is the first time I do it.
1206
00:52:50,360 --> 00:52:51,919
Yeah, that's commendable, that.
1207
00:52:51,920 --> 00:52:54,559
Quite a nice rhythm between all the sets.
1208
00:52:54,560 --> 00:52:59,360
- The consistency of shape and size is very good.
- Thank you.
1209
00:53:05,160 --> 00:53:06,359
Hey!
1210
00:53:06,360 --> 00:53:07,759
- Wow!
- Not too bad.
1211
00:53:07,760 --> 00:53:10,879
I think that's a very interesting and strong design.
1212
00:53:10,880 --> 00:53:12,279
- Very characterful.
- Thank you.
1213
00:53:12,280 --> 00:53:15,759
And you've managed to use these oxides in a free and easy way.
1214
00:53:15,760 --> 00:53:17,079
It's quite an impact.
1215
00:53:17,080 --> 00:53:19,559
But let's just talk about the elephant in the room.
1216
00:53:19,560 --> 00:53:21,719
- Or the elephant on the table.
- Please do, please do.
1217
00:53:21,720 --> 00:53:23,439
Now, I don't know about you, Kate,
1218
00:53:23,440 --> 00:53:26,520
but I don't reckon that's going to hold any gravy. Or peas.
1219
00:53:32,160 --> 00:53:33,480
Oh, look at this.
1220
00:53:34,680 --> 00:53:36,119
The rims, mate.
1221
00:53:36,120 --> 00:53:37,919
Square rims? Really?
1222
00:53:37,920 --> 00:53:40,919
I haven't made that many functional thrown pieces, I think.
1223
00:53:40,920 --> 00:53:43,879
Yeah. The plate is a nice weight. It's not too heavy.
1224
00:53:43,880 --> 00:53:46,279
- I could eat off that, yeah.
- It's quite consistent, isn't it?
1225
00:53:46,280 --> 00:53:48,919
Yeah, no. And then of course, we've got the breakage, haven't we?
1226
00:53:48,920 --> 00:53:50,320
I think that let you down a bit.
1227
00:53:53,080 --> 00:53:54,479
Oh, right, OK.
1228
00:53:54,480 --> 00:53:55,759
That's different.
1229
00:53:55,760 --> 00:53:59,479
Very nice, the way this fold is almost a sort of origami fold,
1230
00:53:59,480 --> 00:54:01,159
which gives it a sharpness.
1231
00:54:01,160 --> 00:54:03,439
- It's not what I expected you to do as a flower.
- Yeah.
1232
00:54:03,440 --> 00:54:06,199
You've actually used rather an abstract sense of it.
1233
00:54:06,200 --> 00:54:08,319
So there's a great sense of joy in the decoration,
1234
00:54:08,320 --> 00:54:10,519
and I'm really impressed by your decoration.
1235
00:54:10,520 --> 00:54:12,479
I didn't think I was going to be, for some reason,
1236
00:54:12,480 --> 00:54:15,320
- cos you said you didn't quite know what to do.
- Thank you.
1237
00:54:17,720 --> 00:54:20,759
Actually, the colour is better than I thought it would be,
1238
00:54:20,760 --> 00:54:22,479
because of the carbon.
1239
00:54:22,480 --> 00:54:24,479
I'm really liking the weight of these.
1240
00:54:24,480 --> 00:54:26,919
I mean, for a dinner plate that size, with a rim that high,
1241
00:54:26,920 --> 00:54:28,959
it's actually a very good weight.
1242
00:54:28,960 --> 00:54:31,199
I think it's a really successful set.
1243
00:54:31,200 --> 00:54:33,039
Consistent, creative, concise.
1244
00:54:33,040 --> 00:54:34,119
Thank you so much.
1245
00:54:34,120 --> 00:54:35,519
- The loss...
- Don't break stuff.
1246
00:54:35,520 --> 00:54:36,959
I know. I flicked it off the table.
1247
00:54:36,960 --> 00:54:38,160
Yeah, I know you did.
1248
00:54:44,280 --> 00:54:47,079
- Wow.
- Blue is not as intense as I thought, the cobalt,
1249
00:54:47,080 --> 00:54:48,839
I thought it would be a bit more stronger.
1250
00:54:48,840 --> 00:54:51,999
I'm really impressed with the control of the bubbles.
1251
00:54:52,000 --> 00:54:55,239
- Was it literally poured around?
- Just keep it moving.
- Kept it moving.
1252
00:54:55,240 --> 00:54:58,959
This accent on the edge, here, it's really consistent,
1253
00:54:58,960 --> 00:55:01,079
really fluent throughout the whole design.
1254
00:55:01,080 --> 00:55:03,719
And also, the whole weight of the whole set,
1255
00:55:03,720 --> 00:55:05,399
it's not that heavy at all.
1256
00:55:05,400 --> 00:55:07,719
- That's very impressive.
- Thank you.
1257
00:55:07,720 --> 00:55:09,839
I can imagine a bit of your grandma's apple pie...
1258
00:55:09,840 --> 00:55:11,960
- Apple pie, yeah, yeah.
- ..in one of the bowls.
1259
00:55:13,520 --> 00:55:15,599
Potters, I think you deserve a little break.
1260
00:55:15,600 --> 00:55:17,279
Judges have got some decisions to make,
1261
00:55:17,280 --> 00:55:19,439
and when we welcome you back into the room,
1262
00:55:19,440 --> 00:55:22,519
you'll find out who is going to take Pot Of The Week,
1263
00:55:22,520 --> 00:55:25,159
and who, sadly, is going to be leaving the pottery.
1264
00:55:25,160 --> 00:55:26,440
See you in a bit.
1265
00:55:27,840 --> 00:55:30,079
I've just started throwing plates this week,
1266
00:55:30,080 --> 00:55:31,599
I've got that 16-piece dinner set
1267
00:55:31,600 --> 00:55:34,039
that the judges seemed to like, so... fingers crossed.
1268
00:55:34,040 --> 00:55:37,919
When I uncovered my pot, frankly, I was not impressed.
1269
00:55:37,920 --> 00:55:40,359
Disappointed, but I've learned my lesson.
1270
00:55:40,360 --> 00:55:42,359
I'm feeling pretty humble, at the moment.
1271
00:55:42,360 --> 00:55:44,719
I think there is a bit of luck on my side.
1272
00:55:44,720 --> 00:55:47,879
I think the family will be extremely surprised by this decoration.
1273
00:55:47,880 --> 00:55:49,959
I play it safe. When they see that,
1274
00:55:49,960 --> 00:55:52,719
"That's not Dad's pots, that's someone else's pots!"
1275
00:55:52,720 --> 00:55:54,919
I'm pretty sure that everybody on this competition
1276
00:55:54,920 --> 00:55:56,599
is a better thrower than I am.
1277
00:55:56,600 --> 00:55:59,680
Hoping for the best, but expecting the worst.
1278
00:56:01,160 --> 00:56:02,840
Can I just take a second? Sorry.
1279
00:56:06,880 --> 00:56:08,879
So, you've had a chance to have a proper, good look
1280
00:56:08,880 --> 00:56:10,359
at all these dinner sets, now.
1281
00:56:10,360 --> 00:56:13,199
Is the sort of standard as a whole impressive?
1282
00:56:13,200 --> 00:56:16,079
- Look at the variety. It's extraordinary, isn't it?
- Yeah.
1283
00:56:16,080 --> 00:56:17,799
You know, from James's punky
1284
00:56:17,800 --> 00:56:19,479
to Daniel's lovely, fresh colour.
1285
00:56:19,480 --> 00:56:21,839
And Daniel's really pulled it out of the bag.
1286
00:56:21,840 --> 00:56:24,599
His sense of decoration's really worked well, hasn't it?
1287
00:56:24,600 --> 00:56:26,399
Has he pulled it out of the bag enough
1288
00:56:26,400 --> 00:56:28,519
to be able to win Pot Of The Week?
1289
00:56:28,520 --> 00:56:30,559
Ah, well, that's a different thing.
1290
00:56:30,560 --> 00:56:32,399
I'm loving Nam's set,
1291
00:56:32,400 --> 00:56:33,679
Clover's set...
1292
00:56:33,680 --> 00:56:35,359
- And Ryan's.
- Yeah, and Ryan's.
1293
00:56:35,360 --> 00:56:37,799
Who really is in trouble, having seen these dinner sets?
1294
00:56:37,800 --> 00:56:39,439
Who might be going home this week?
1295
00:56:39,440 --> 00:56:41,079
Well, before the firing,
1296
00:56:41,080 --> 00:56:44,319
we thought Dan, Cait or Carole.
1297
00:56:44,320 --> 00:56:45,919
And I have to say,
1298
00:56:45,920 --> 00:56:49,479
it's a toss-up between Cait and Carole, isn't it?
1299
00:56:49,480 --> 00:56:50,760
Yes, it is.
1300
00:56:57,720 --> 00:57:00,559
So, potters, the judges have made their decision.
1301
00:57:00,560 --> 00:57:02,719
So let's start with the good stuff.
1302
00:57:02,720 --> 00:57:04,399
The Pot Of The Week.
1303
00:57:04,400 --> 00:57:07,880
Well, the Pot Of The Week is...
1304
00:57:09,000 --> 00:57:10,639
This one. Well done, Ryan.
1305
00:57:10,640 --> 00:57:11,760
Thank you.
1306
00:57:13,000 --> 00:57:14,839
The reason why this is Pot Of The Week
1307
00:57:14,840 --> 00:57:16,999
is the weight of the plate is great,
1308
00:57:17,000 --> 00:57:20,840
and the decoration was very true to your original concept.
1309
00:57:22,640 --> 00:57:25,039
Now, for the slightly sadder part.
1310
00:57:25,040 --> 00:57:29,240
The person leaving the pottery this week is...
1311
00:57:32,840 --> 00:57:34,519
- ..Carole.
- Oh.
1312
00:57:34,520 --> 00:57:36,999
- Come on, you've done so great.
- Thank you.
1313
00:57:37,000 --> 00:57:39,799
- You really should be proud.
- Thank you.
1314
00:57:39,800 --> 00:57:41,839
We'll miss you.
1315
00:57:41,840 --> 00:57:43,480
Group hug, come on, everybody.
1316
00:57:46,880 --> 00:57:50,239
- CLOVER:
- OK, I'll just do the outside!
1317
00:57:50,240 --> 00:57:51,639
I'll miss the people, of course.
1318
00:57:51,640 --> 00:57:54,239
We were starting to bond, I was getting to know people.
1319
00:57:54,240 --> 00:57:55,959
This has been a wonderful experience,
1320
00:57:55,960 --> 00:57:58,039
and it's an achievement to have got onto it.
1321
00:57:58,040 --> 00:58:00,079
Very honoured, and it just so happened
1322
00:58:00,080 --> 00:58:02,639
it was the luck of the draw that this was a throwing project.
1323
00:58:02,640 --> 00:58:04,199
I'm really sad that Carole's leaving.
1324
00:58:04,200 --> 00:58:07,079
I think she was looking forward to another challenge of hand building.
1325
00:58:07,080 --> 00:58:10,039
But unfortunately, she's gone, so she hasn't had that chance.
1326
00:58:10,040 --> 00:58:11,799
Ryan's plate is the first item
1327
00:58:11,800 --> 00:58:14,519
to make it into the Pot Of The Week gallery.
1328
00:58:14,520 --> 00:58:16,359
There were some really good throwers today,
1329
00:58:16,360 --> 00:58:17,799
and saw some really nice pieces,
1330
00:58:17,800 --> 00:58:19,839
so, yeah, it wasn't expected, but really happy.
1331
00:58:19,840 --> 00:58:21,879
I was that close to going.
1332
00:58:21,880 --> 00:58:24,839
Surprised I'm still here, to be honest.
1333
00:58:24,840 --> 00:58:26,399
Yeah, I mean, it's...
1334
00:58:26,400 --> 00:58:27,839
As we've all been saying,
1335
00:58:27,840 --> 00:58:31,119
it's strange when people start getting knocked out,
1336
00:58:31,120 --> 00:58:32,520
it starts becoming real.
1337
00:58:33,520 --> 00:58:34,959
Yeah.
1338
00:58:34,960 --> 00:58:36,279
Next time...
1339
00:58:36,280 --> 00:58:38,359
- Ah!
- It's panic.
1340
00:58:38,360 --> 00:58:40,439
..a massive hand building challenge...
1341
00:58:40,440 --> 00:58:42,399
Look at the cracks! Ah!
1342
00:58:42,400 --> 00:58:45,119
..gets the potters working round the clock.
1343
00:58:45,120 --> 00:58:46,359
Tick-tock.
1344
00:58:46,360 --> 00:58:48,199
A steamy Spot Test...
1345
00:58:48,200 --> 00:58:49,999
Ryan's on the pull!
1346
00:58:50,000 --> 00:58:52,079
..and a formidable Throw Down.
1347
00:58:52,080 --> 00:58:53,639
Not happy with this at all!
1348
00:58:53,640 --> 00:58:55,999
But whose pot will be heading to the gallery?
1349
00:58:56,000 --> 00:58:57,279
SHE LAUGHS
1350
00:58:57,280 --> 00:58:59,079
And who will be heading home?
1351
00:58:59,080 --> 00:59:00,599
- I'm angry.
- Oh..!
1352
00:59:00,600 --> 00:59:01,639
Don't do that, mate.
1353
00:59:01,640 --> 00:59:03,880
I've probably done something bad in my previous life.
106674
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