Original subtitles

Once upon a time in a land far, far away -

well, Stoke-on-Trent, which is only just off the A500 -

there was a mystical table lamp that held magical powers.

Just one rub of this lamp

would conjure a genie who would grant the bearer three wishes.

Some wished for power, some wished for fame, and some just wished

for a chair that had better lumbar support.

Siobhan...

..get on with the show!

It's week six and the seven potters are making table lamps.

Welcome to The Great Pottery Throw Down.

Last time...

Good Lord Almighty!

..our potters tackled ghastly gargoyles...

I'm concentrating on scary.

..and a throw down of monstrous proportions.

Oh, but it is a big boy.

While Lois tamed the beast to claim Potter of the Week...

Oh! Well done.

..Rebecca had a nightmare...

Looks like a cow, doesn't it?

..and she became the latest potter to leave the competition.

It's just been the most incredible journey,

and you're friends for life.

This week... Argh!

..the potters will be throwing enormous table lamps...

It's well scary.

..depicting a three-dimensional landscape...

Will they not break off, though? There is a possibility. Oh!

..and decorating delicate Venetian masks.

The only people who are going to wear these

are going to dodgy sex parties.

Who will light up the pottery?

It's brilliant. You've done a fantastic job.

And who will be facing lights out?

Oh, no.

# Making time

# Shooting lines

# People have their uses

# People have their uses

# Let go. #

It's week six, and our seven remaining potters are back.

I can't believe I'm still here in week six, but I'm just going

to give it my all. I'm going to really enjoy today.

Looks a little bit empty. Each week,

it feels more and more crazy to still be here.

Walking back in again, like, "Oh, my God, we're here again."

And the potters are about to face a super-sized throwing challenge.

It's going to be a stress just to make something that size.

When you go big, you're playing with large amounts of clay

and it can just collapse.

So it's terrifying.

Hello, potters, and welcome back to the pottery.

For your main make challenge this week,

the judges would like you to make a large, bulbous table lamp

with a continuous 3D relief decoration

of your favourite view.

So it could be the New York skyline or the rolling hills of Tuscany.

Rich, can you shed any LIGHT on the challenge?

Helen liked that!

We'd like you to throw your bulbous lamp bases.

Now, you might do that in one piece, or you might make two pieces

and join them together. As these are functioning lamps,

you need to account for the lamp fitting and the shade,

so take care with your measurements.

That continuous 3D decoration wants to be a mixture of sculptural

and modelling techniques.

They want to be realistic and spectacular.

Thank you, judges. That has been ILLUMINATING.

Thanks, Lord.

You have been given six hours

to make and refine your large, bulbous table lamps

and your time starts...now.

For their biggest main make throwing challenge so far,

the potters have been given a whopping 25kg of clay.

It's probably one of the biggest pieces of clay I've thrown with,

so it's making me quite nervous.

The more clay you've got, the harder it is to throw and you've got to try

and get the whole block of clay centred and then you've got to get

it up an awfully long way.

That is not easy.

Oh-oh-oh. I'm just trying to wrestle it.

Oh, dearie. You OK? Yeah, it's fine.

I'd rather it happen now than when I've got the blooming thing

halfway up here.

Week six - we're really ramping it up.

I mean, this is a really tough challenge.

I'll be really interested to see whether they're sort of brave enough

to throw it in one. Yeah.

..which would be a challenge, because it's a lot of clay.

Yeah. But they can throw it in two sections. Yeah.

I mean, throwing in two presents a whole other set of challenges.

Yeah. Because you've got a join. Yeah.

And you've also got to rely on the two pieces that you're joining

together being uber precise, because if they're not

millimetre perfect then you're stuck.

And, above all, they've got to understand how they're going

to hand-build onto that dome, and whatever they choose

will have joins, lots and lots of joins. Yeah.

Applying all that extra clay onto this dome is a big ask, you know?

It has to be strong, it has to be robust enough, but also,

it has to be interesting and it has to play with the light.

This lamp base here is very, very simple

in its decorative technique.

I mean, it's black, but all that textural sort of adornment,

the way the light plays on it is just absolutely wonderful.

I mean, our potters are going to choose their favourite view,

so let's just hope that they're as memorable after the challenge.

Yeah. And not for the wrong reasons.

Hello, Jon. Hi. Hello, Jon.

Tell us about your bulbous lamp base.

So I've mapped it out in 3D form to start with,

just to get the general layout... Course you have.

Of course. It's the Clifton Suspension Bridge in Bristol.

OK. I see. OK. Is this a place that's close to your heart?

I was born there. I went to secondary school there.

I went to university there. I met my wife there. Wow. Wow.

I designed some buildings there

and I built a scale model of the suspension bridge -

it was about this long - when I was about ten. Wow. OK.

Of course you have! Of course.

Jon! Really!

Jon will need all his engineering skills if he is to wrap

his three-dimensional clay suspension bridge

around the belly of his lamp base,

which will also feature a sky full of sprig-moulded hot-air balloons

in his 50cm tall ode to his birthplace.

And you're throwing it in two pieces. Two pieces, yes.

OK, great. Have you joined pieces before?

I haven't, no. No?

So I thought this was the best place to practise it!

So on national television! With two judges!

And... Whatever I am. ..whatever Siobhan is. Yeah.

And while most are striving for height...

And we go a bit taller...

..one potter...

Hi, Caitlin. Hello!

..has chosen a wide spherical form to display her chosen view.

So I'm making two bowls to make my moon jar shape

for my lamp. Sorry, what's a moon jar?

It's a very bulbous pot, like a really big sphere.

It's a classic shape. Yeah. Oh, gorgeous, lovely. Lovely, yeah.

And then my skyscape is a place called Crovie,

in the north of Aberdeen.

I used to go there every summer as a child.

I had great memories there.

A row of three-dimensional cottages

will sit on a harbour wall,

which will stretch all around Caitlin's ambitious

spherical lamp base.

It's throwing me that I'm the only one doing a moon jar.

I think that the risk that I will have is that it will collapse.

But whatever shape their bulbous lamp base...

Come, come, come!

..throwing at this scale is fraught with danger.

I just push gently on the inside, so gently stretching the clay

and widening it out.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

I'm scared of bringing it too wide,

because you know what can happen when they get too wide, don't you?

They go flop!

Half an hour into the challenge

and Caitlin is going to have to start her moon jar all over again.

Are you all right, Caitlin?

Have a hug, have a hug.

It just spun. I didn't even mean to do that

and that wheel just spun away from me.

Have a breather and think. The options are go again

same size or make it smaller.

I mean, I think I'm just struggling to...

I'm just struggling with the weight, actually, as opposed to the shape.

I know I can do the shape. It's fine. We'll work through it.

As Caitlin prepares to start again,

those who have thrown the bottom part of their lamp bases...

It turned out all right, that, yeah.

I'm going to leave it alone now before I wreck it.

..now have the task of throwing a top half

that will fit perfectly on top.

This is the challenge now.

Can I get this to the same dimensions as the other half?

What could possibly go wrong?

Hey, Caitlin. How's it going? You all right?

I don't know why I'm getting into my head about it.

It's sometimes a mind-over-matter thing, isn't it?

I think that is what I'm at. The thought of it is worse.

I don't think this one's going to work out today. Just don't panic.

You're going to be applying a lot of decoration onto that.

This is just the backdrop for that. So, you know, really, don't panic.

You know? I just need to get a grip is what...

Caitlin, just get a grip!

Get on with it. Exactly.

You can do it.

Thank you.

Throwing their lamp base in two sections means the potters

need to get both diameters the same size...

If I can just get this out another...2cm.

..but James is taking a different approach and using coils to build up

the top of his lamp base.

I am making this up as I go along, by the way.

I've not done this before.

The only difficulty could be that I have to do it in so many bits.

I've got to keep stopping and drying it.

And if that happens, then I've lost loads of time.

His towering lamp base is inspired by the woodland walks

that he and his family enjoy.

As well as moulded hills and shrubbery,

James will attempt to build a foreground

of three-dimensional trees

that will jut out from the surface of his piece.

Trees? Yes. Yeah. So are you making the trees themselves

separate elements that you then stick on?

It will be. Cos he wants it 3-D,

and to make it rather than just being a flat piece of clay,

I was thinking I'll try and curve it. Sounds good.

Yeah, sounds good!

A lot of trees to make. There is, yes.

James might be taking us for a stroll through the woods,

but Lois and her family prefer a promenade along the sea wall

in Margate.

Where I've lived most of my life,

we'd walk across the field to Minnis Bay and Reculver Towers

is always on the horizon. Yeah.

And you just get some really nice sunsets down there.

So it's just a really special place for me and my family. Yeah.

With stylised, swirling clouds and sunrays, Lois's colourful design

will capture a beautiful sunset above the rows of beach huts

and Reculver Towers.

The judges, hopefully, will appreciate that

I'm trying to put some of my own style into it,

and I'm just going to try and make something that I like.

So, hopefully, they will like it as well.

Also shining a light on a piece of the Kent coastline is Helen.

This looks a bit Dungeness.

Yeah. Oh, it is. Hurray!

Oh, good. One of my favourite places. Yeah. Love it.

Yeah, I've travelled quite a bit, really,

and lived abroad and worked abroad in different places.

But I just love coming home.

Helen's scene will depict the iconic lighthouse, railway line

and oast houses that dominate the Dungeness skyline.

But rather than weighing down her pot with huge sculptured structures,

she'll use a combination of slabs and sprig-moulded elements.

This is the coastguard cottages, so I've sculpt them in clay.

And then I bought a big bag of plaster and I've made

some plaster sprigs.

I know it's supposed to be 3-D, but I just want it to look nice.

George, on the other hand, is going all out

with this three-dimensional Cornish beach scene.

This is Bedruthan Steps, and that's where I think is one of the most

beautiful places in Cornwall. So I'm going to do

these pillars of rock coming out in 3-D.

George's tall lamp base will need to be sturdy enough to hold

the weight of his Cornish rock formation, which will jut

out of the surface of his pot, along with a lighthouse.

There's quite a lot to fit onto a pot. Yeah.

Some of these are very big, kind of heavy, three-dimensional elements.

How are you going to kind of incorporate those?

I wish I could say I had a plan... You don't have a plan, George?!

Well, I spent most of the time actually practising

making a pot this size.

Look, you did really well last week, and you had no plan.

You know? Maybe that's the key! You've got this far. Exactly. Yeah.

Trust in yourself.

Also taking a gamble on a giant rock formation is Derek.

So my lamp is based on the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland.

It's one of the great natural wonders of the world.

I love being near the coast. I love being near the sea.

And the Giant's Causeway is just a really, really special place.

Derek's dramatic homage to his favourite stretch

of Northern Irish coastline will see a stormy sky above dozens

of extruded hexagonal columns,

which will hang precariously from the belly of his pot.

I think it would look cool if they hung off the lamp in a way

so they'd be only half stuck on...

Right, OK. ..which is obviously a bit of a danger. Right.

But it would look more realistic...

Because they don't curve. You don't have curvy columns of rock.

So it would look cooler... Sure. ..to have some of them.

You're going to have to make a lot of them, presumably.

I'm getting crazy with the extruder. Yeah, yeah. It's like going all out.

Yeah.

With the second sections of the lamp bases ready for the drying room...

I'm there!

..and Caitlin back on track...

That's lovely, Caitlin. The hug really helped.

..the potters can now make a start on their 3-D decorative elements.

I'm sprigging for England. Are you? Yeah.

Has England asked you to sprig?

It doesn't it matter. I'm doing it anyway.

And while some are hand-sculpting...

I'm going to do some pinch-pot rocks.

So that will be a rock that I will then carve into.

Go on!

..others are extruding their 3-D elements.

This is to make some of my buildings, some of the towers

and that sort of thing.

Some sort of baking show!

Derek's piping his icing.

And then we have a little cottage.

So that's one down, 26 more to go.

There's a lot to do.

How are you doing for time?

Are you going to tell me?

Are you about halfway through your process? Because you know what?

I think I'm about halfway through! Potters, you're halfway through.

Halfway through!

What the hell is that?

What was that, George?

That's his mating call.

What is in here?

Hey, Siobhan, stop throwing SHADE at the noises I make! Ahh!

Yeah. It's both pottery AND light.

Have you considered being a presenter?

Because that's all you need. Bad puns.

And is this the top bit of your pot or the bottom?

I don't know! Let's see what it looks like when we put it together.

The potters now face the most critical part of the build...

It's well scary.

..joining the two halves of their lamp bases together.

A little bit of a sausage of soft clay to help the two bond together

and become one, as a Spice Girl said. Um...

OK, let's go.

It's a big join.

There we go.

That's brilliant.

I've never seen one done in the wild before.

It's not too bad.

It's almost like it was planned.

Ohh-hh!

I'm putting my fingers there just in case.

No, I don't think it's going anywhere.

Oh!

Oh, my God. It did.

If you just support...

Yep. Yep.

All right?

Oh, BLEEP.

Right. Put it back on?

Wait, wait. Just, um...

Ohh! It's OK. You can still save it.

Put it on, though. Look, I'll support that.

You straighten out that a bit. You've got it. Just support...

I can hold... It's strong enough for that.

I knew I shouldn't have...

Can you flip that edge out? This one here. My edge. Yeah.

Ohh! Let me just press it. Lift it. There you go. There you go.

I think you'll be OK.

It's wet enough that it won't have any stress cracks from that.

You'll be fine. You will be.

Thanks for your help, Caitlin. Sorry I couldn't stop it.

Mine did the same, George. Did it?

Yeah. Well, I'm glad we're singing from the same song sheet.

Oh, George!

Potters, you've one hour left.

One hour left. Yay!

With the lamp bases joined, the potters can start building up

their three-dimensional landscapes.

So this is the hills in the background.

First bit of Bedruthan Steps is on.

These are the main towers of the Clifton Suspension Bridge.

So these are quite important to now just get on there.

So the 3-D elements are these columns.

I'd like them like this,

so they sort of almost define gravity,

but defying gravity is quite difficult!

I'd like to get the trees on because, that way,

it'll be raised from the surface.

You'll actually be able to get a finger behind it.

Well, they not break off, though. There is a possibility,

yeah, but if I lean them towards... Risk! Yeah.

You like to live life on the edge, James, I can tell. Me too.

That's why I joined the world of pottery.

First Monopoly house going on.

There's a lot of concentration in this room at the moment.

I mean, it is a tough challenge.

And obviously, all of the decorations, the bits,

the additions that are going on have to be at the right consistency.

Yeah. They have to be made perfectly.

And it's not a matter of just plopping them on.

All of the backs have to be cut into the curve of your form.

Well, that's it. You have to follow the contour of the build.

We want that three-dimensional sort of element

within the design concept. Yeah.

It's just how far you push it, isn't it?

You don't want that structure to be too prominent, too fragile

and too delicate. Yeah.

Because you don't want it to crack away or undermine

the structure of the pot, really.

I've tried to go pretty 3-D, which also means there's a lot

of clay in it, which means it's heavy and it also means there's

more chance of it falling apart.

It's fraught with danger, this.

Potters...

..you've half an hour left.

Half an hour? Honestly. 30 minutes. That's for you.

Just trying to get a little bit of a ball of clay on just to lift

the balloons off the surface a little bit.

I think it'll look better.

They're not completely in contact.

That's like a tree.

So not going to stay.

I'm just adding some slip,

because you can't really do a 3-D textured sea.

It's really difficult.

I'm pretty happy how it's turning out.

Got some of those key features on there, so, yeah...

These are the sunrays.

It will be apparent when it's glazed.

But as well as an impressive 3-D design...

I think I could be criticised for not actually making it

stand out as much.

So that's a bit of a concern.

..the lamp bases need to be fit for purpose.

Hole! You all right? Haven't put a hole in.

You've forgotten to put the hole in for the flex.

Put your holes in! One minute left, potters.

Come on, let's start getting them into the drying room.

In we go. In we go. Thank you.

Oh, my gosh. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.

Yeah. Yeah. Caitlin's here.

Thank you.

Ten seconds left.

I love the way you're helping each other!

George, I've never seen you move so quickly.

..Eight, seven, six, five,

four, three, two, one...

And that's it. All done!

Caitlin!

Caitlin is so tired.

Challenge six has done me in.

I mean, I came here to be challenged and, jeez, like, I totally was.

I think the overall pot's probably going to be reasonably sound,

but there's going to be cracks, things that work loose.

But the bridge is so important to the overall pot, I think,

so hopefully that one survives in a reasonable state.

I've got a pot at the end of it which has got kind of the stuff

I wanted on, so I can't complain too much.

I'll look back on it tomorrow and think,

"Oh, that was actually quite fun,"

but at the moment I'm just, "Ohh..."

As ever, the potters face a second challenge masked by mystery.

I liked it better when there was a clue.

Masquerade!

Potters, your second challenge this week is a spot test.

And that's right. You'll be decorating Venetian face masks.

Oh, wow!

Now, judges, any advice for our potters?

Ha!

It's actually Rich all along.

Traditionally, Venetian masks would have lots of intricate design,

pattern and detail.

Now, we've only given you thin brushes, so a steady hand

is needed here. Think about the elegance and the excitement

of a Venetian ball, and bring that into your design.

In a break from the norm, we're actually going to be

gloss-firing your masks so they can be judged

in all their decorative glory.

So keep that in mind when you're applying those underglazes.

OK, potters, this is going to be judged blind.

So I'm going to ask the judges to sashay away.

Bye. Cheerio.

Rose, could you come out, please?

Now, potters, if I could ask you to take a bisque-fired Venetian mask

and go back to your bench.

Oh, I feel really nervous.

Thank you, Rose.

OK. You will have five minutes only to sketch out your idea.

Then you have 45 minutes to decorate your mask,

and your time starts now.

Oh, my God.

Oh, this is... This is an absolute curveball.

It's funny how your mind goes blank!

Trying to think what patterns to put in there

that you can realistically create in the timeframe

with the skills I possess.

All masks have been quite geometric, so I thought I'd sort of do

geometric, but funk it up a bit and try and do a sort of spiral.

OK, then, potters, you have 45 minutes to paint your decoration

onto your mask.

Yay! Come on.

This will be fun...if I can get it done in time.

Oh, God, this is terrifying.

Any geometric patterns are really good on 3-D forms

because it accentuates the curve.

I've got some checkers, I've got some fleur-de-lis.

While James pairs a period pattern with traditional Venetian checks...

I'm going to do a lot of masking off

to just do those really bold colours,

slashes and stripy things.

..Derek and George are taking a more modern approach.

I'm already getting lost in my own pattern.

I don't know why I've chosen such a complex bloody decoration to do!

Just trying to create multiple types of decoration on it, really.

But Jon's opted for a less-constrained approach.

The judges are looking for creativity,

so I try and do a splattering on one side and then a marbling effect

from the underglaze and try and do that on the other one.

Whether I achieve that is a different matter.

And he's not the only potter flirting with a free-flowing style.

I mean, this looks like maybe it's going to have feathers up it.

So feathers and then I'm going freestyle nature.

I tend not to be a very girlie girl,

so it's surprising me a lot that I've chosen to go with flowers.

But Helen's classical inspiration is very much in character.

This is from the ballet called The Firebird,

so he's going to have flames leaping from his eyes.

But if I don't get a move on, he'll only have flames leaping

from the side of one head.

Oh, you're mixing them together.

I'm trying to get a sort of marbling effect

and then transfer it to the mask.

Did you like my mask? It's lovely. Yeah. Yeah.

It really hid your face well.

You're going down my list of favourites.

This is very much out my comfort zone, to be honest.

I hope some fair lady would want to wear it.

The only people who are going to wear these in a modern era

are going to dodgy sex parties, aren't they? I mean, you know!

Years ago, I went with my friends to a masquerade ball

and everybody was dressed in the most amazing costumes

and we were all dancing.

We just had a fantastic time.

I'd wear this down to Wetherspoon's.

So that's where we wear our Venetian masks, usually, on a Friday night!

Why have they picked this as a second challenge?

Do you know what? I think it's just to see if we can design

anything within an hour.

Well, actually 50 minutes.

Oh. How long left now? Not long. Not long.

In fact, it's 15 minutes, potters! 15 minutes.

Oh, God, I've missed you.

15 minutes. And I need to glaze it all as well.

I've got to put three coats on to get this block colour.

But I can't take this tape off until it's dry

otherwise it will smudge everywhere.

And time is ticking. As usual, it will go to the wire.

George, how are we getting on?

I was going to do a bit of underglaze pencil on it.

So will this be burnt off? No.

Look at that free hand.

Does it mind if he does?

Well, maybe I do mind, but I can't really do anything about it.

I don't mind, if that makes any difference.

Oh, that makes a world of difference.

Yeah, well, you've got five minutes left.

Five minutes left, potters. Five minutes left.

Just giving it a bit of a highlight on the bigger shapes.

It's funny how you start shaking when it's not much time left.

We're wafting. We're wafting to dry.

Is this as wild as you get? Yeah, this is it.

Waving a mask around. Yeah, that's it.

It's just too wet. I don't have time to wait for it to dry.

Don't smudge.

This is going well.

Where's the glaze? Where's the glaze?

Caitlin, what's your technique for putting on the glaze?

Slap it on, but do it delicately.

Delicate slapping! That happens at those parties as well.

Master of slapping it on.

Just trying to try to get some on, really.

30 seconds left.

Lois, well done.

There you go. BOTH: Ta-da!

James, welcome to the ball.

Ten, nine, eight,

seven, six, five,

four, three,

two, one...

Good! Go.

That was evil.

Well done.

These are going to be taken down to the kiln and fired

and you're all fired...

..for a little time.

Potters dismissed.

Rose will now take the decorated Venetian masks

for an overnight firing...

I just really enjoyed it.

A bit Dame Edna, I felt, yours!

..and the potters won't see them again until it's time for judging.

It'll be a bit more contemporary looking

than a traditional Venetian mask,

but you kind of hope we've moved on a little bit

in the last 700 years.

I don't like the pressure of that.

I was going, "Oh, no!" I've been wanting a decoration challenge,

so the stakes are high for me.

I hope my colours pop. I hope I've got enough layers of underglaze on

and I hope I got my underglaze pencil done right.

Let's just pray to the kiln gods tonight

and see what they say tomorrow.

After an overnight gloss-firing,

the potters' Venetian masks are ready for judging.

I couldn't see my name for a second. I thought they'd got rid of me.

Welcome back, potters.

So, judges, let's start judging.

Actually, do you know what? Hold on.

I think we need a third voice.

Please welcome to the pottery fashion and lifestyle designer

Henry Holland! Hi, everybody.

Hello. Hello. Hello. How are you?

Nervous.

The former creative director of fashion label House of Holland,

Henry developed a love of pottery during the pandemic.

Passionate about creating objects designed to be lived with

and treasured, he now produces his own pieces,

featuring his signature colour combinations and patterns.

I'm so excited to be here.

I can't wait to see what you've been doing.

We are absolutely delighted to have you here.

So tell me, Henry, what are you looking for?

I'm looking for something that really expresses your own

individuality, your personality.

I want to go and talk to them in a dark corner at a Venetian ball.

I bet you do.

OK, let's start over here.

The magician's reveal.

Wow. Wow. I really like the bold use of colour,

and I think the different textures

that they've used in those glazes is really fun.

Sort of a splatter approach.

Hmm. Next one.

Oh, wow. Oh, wow. So that's really quite different.

I think what I really like about this one is the way

that they've used almost make-up techniques in the corners of the eye

and then followed that up. It's beautiful. Yeah. Yeah.

Let's have a look at number three.

Wow.

I like the way that they've matched the chequerboard to kind of marry

with the form of the mask.

But I just think you can see too much pencil. OK. OK.

Ohh! Wow. That's quite dramatic, isn't it? Yeah.

The Baroque shape down the nose bridge is really quite Venetian.

It's not quite as even with the coverage on the glaze,

but I think the distinction of using the black against

the bright colours is really powerful. Right, OK.

Wow.

That one's stunning. That's somebody with a really excellent technique

with the brushwork, the feathers, beautiful.

They've really thought about the shape of the mask

and kind of incorporated so many different details.

Excellent. OK.

This is very, very modern.

I can't tell if this has been stamped

or whether it's been masked off.

I think it's been masked off. Yeah,

cos it's sort of pulled a little bit of the glaze away there. Yeah.

I take it these are teardrops here.

Lovely. Someone's been to prison.

Is that what you think?

OK. Last but not least.

Wow. Wow. It's almost got, like, a chinoiserie reference in there

with the blues and the whites and then sort of marrying that

back to the Venetian check.

I think having that duality on the mask,

I think is really clever.

It's a lovely use of colour, isn't it?

Henry will now rank the potters' Venetian masks

from worst to first.

In seventh place is this one.

That's Derek.

I really love how bold and modern this one is,

but the execution could have been a bit better.

In sixth place, this one.

George. I really like the way that you tried to shape the chequerboard

around the nose bridge, but I just think there's a bit

too much pencil on show.

Jon is in fifth place, Caitlin in fourth,

and Helen takes third.

In second place...

This one. James.

We really loved the playful Venetian chequerboard

and then this really beautiful baroque style, blue and white.

But, unfortunately, there can only be one winner,

who I'm guessing probably knows who they are by now.

Lois. Amazing work.

The level of detail and I think referencing those old pomp

and camp Venetian mask is really smart, so really well deserved.

Oh, thank you. I loved that. Thank you.

Well done, Lois.

And thank you so much, Henry, for coming to the pottery.

Thank you so much for having me.

I'm really happy.

Having Henry Holland be like, "This one's really good"

and picking out nice things about it.

I think James is secretly pleased because it was starting

to get a bit awkward, wasn't it?

So I was like, "Ah! Got you, got you!"

Five wins are over.

It's really good to hand the baton over to somebody else.

I was going to do bits of eyeliner and bits of fluting

around the outside in black.

But I thought, actually, I'll do defining the lines with a pencil.

It was the wrong choice on the wrong day.

But another day, who would have known?

It's Decoration Day for the panoramic lamp bases.

And after a 24 hour bisque firing, kiln technician, Rose,

is laying out the parts ready for glazing.

I'm a bit worried about my lamp.

I think it's going to be possibly polishing a turd.

That's why I'm wearing my hat,

so I can tip my hat in case I go.

I've done a lot of stuck on additions to that pot,

but if it comes out in one piece looking cool,

I don't want to ruin it by badly decorating it

because you can easily do that, you know?

Welcome back, potters.

Your lamps have been bisque fired and are now ready for decoration.

This is a crucial stage of your 3D relief design,

so really take time to consider the application of that decoration.

Well, you've put a lot of work into creating your

three dimensional surfaces.

Make sure you use your decoration to create additional depth

and really enhance your table lamps.

Potters, you've been given a range of glazes and oxides and three

and a half hours to decorate your lamps,

and your time starts...

When does it start?

Oh, yeah, it starts now.

Everyone's like, eeh!

It's all in one place.

There's a lot of cracks. Yes, I see them, but it's not...

A huge amount of cracks. But no, it's not in the, erm...

..body of it, is it? But look, there's loads.

Oh, yeah. All these cracked everywhere. That's what I've got.

Yeah, that's what I've got.

Bridge is a bit dodgy. I wouldn't walk on it. Um...

I've got a few cracks but a little crack.

That's not too bad. I'm not... I'm not too upset about that.

So, yeah, I'm very happy.

It's there, it's still on!

So, yeah, that's - I mean, without that it's not

the Giant's Causeway, it's just a big pot.

Um, so, yeah, that's what makes it.

So I need to do it justice now through the decoration.

I feel a bit overwhelmed with all the colours. Yeah.

I'm a bit overwhelmed in general.

Well done for keeping it in one piece, though.

To help bring vibrance to their vistas,

the potters have been given a selection of glazes and oxides.

I'm just going to create a sunset, so we'll have orange,

and then it's going to hopefully kind of fade into the blue.

This is really dark blue.

Actually, and that's looking more sea-like just doing that.

I'm looking forward to getting onto the detail,

like the lighthouse and the... and the train and, you know,

those other little bits.

I'm looking forward to doing those.

Helen might be leaving the lighthouses of Dungeness for later,

but after a tricky day yesterday, George is just happy

his Cornish coastline is in one piece.

Hello. How are you? I'm... Yeah, all right.

Good. Had a bit of a disaster... Oh!

..in the make. I mean, it's all looking fairly intact.

So how are you, how are you going to emulate these rocks, then?

Well, I want to... I want to have a play with oxides.

Oh, right, OK. So I think they actually work quite well. Yeah.

Sort of slightly dull, but shiny-ish rocks.

Great, yeah. And you're feeling confident about this?

Well, I mean, I'm glad it's in one piece.

And when you're having to struggle along and make a make

that's not going well, it's a really rubbish feeling and, um...

Yeah, yeah, we'll see what happens.

Well... We'll see what happens. ..it's all to play for, mate.

Carry on. Cool, thank you. Focus.

George might be hoping sunnier skies are just around the corner,

but the forecast for Derek's Giant's Causeway

isn't looking quite so bright.

It is quite sort of dark and moody.

Right.

Stormy sky, stormy sea type affair.

Yes. Just to give a bit of drama for this.

I mean, it's going to be difficult to build that subtlety in

with a sort of a darker colour palette.

Yeah, I think of it as a more of a sort of subtle

reading lamp or just mood lamp or whatever... Yeah.

..that you've got in the house.

Bit of Barry White.

A bit of Barry, stick it on that, run the bath, you know.

Sounds perfect.

Potters, you're halfway through.

Halfway through.

Okey dokey.

All I'm trying to do at the moment is just try to put a background

colour on everything and then I can take time to put some detail in.

It always takes a lot longer than you think.

And while detail is important, it's crucial the potters

consider how the lamp light will play across their vistas.

I'm hoping that with the light from above that the hot air balloons

will sort of stand out.

The light like will get on the back of them, and it will feel like

they really are floating in front of the scene.

And George is hoping oxides will bring a coastal shimmer

to his Bedruthan Steps.

Oxide are very, very... They're sort of quite raw,

natural, funky pigments.

And they give a really sort of lively, organic look and you never

quite know how they're going to turn out.

Hi, Caitlin. Hello. How are you?

Yeah, not too bad.

I'm very pleasantly surprised with the limited amount of cracks.

I expected a lot more. Good, good.

So you're in a better place now than you were making it?

Yeah. Good. It's nice to see it all out the bisque, it survived.

No, I mean, it's great. I mean, it's a testament to your hard work,

really, and your perseverance.

Yeah. It's looking great so far. Thank you so much.

Yeah, brilliant. Thank you.

Potters, you've half an hour left.

30 minutes, OK? Ta.

I need to finish off my, um, my cottages and then I'll be done.

So not that much.

This is how you paint a cottage in a panic.

Ah! Just slap it all on, I think.

Increase in speed and reducing quality I think is the answer.

So...

I might just try and do a couple of details,

a couple of birds in the sky.

I need to just leave myself enough time to put the glaze on,

otherwise it'll be a stress at the end and I hate that.

Feeling stressed already, so...

It's glazy time!

The potters can add a coat of transparent glaze

over their painted pots to create a lovely shiny finish.

I've got to spend a bit more time than other people doing the glaze,

cos I've got to avoid glazing my rocks with my lovely oxides on.

I'm just going haphazard with this because I just need

it on at this point.

Yeah, just keep slapping it on till time runs out, really.

10n seconds left.

James. How's your bottom?

It's nice and clean.

Three, two, one.

Tools down.

Well done, guys.

Well, well done.

God, it's heavy.

The potters must now take their lamp bases to Rose

for one final firing.

Is your finger stuck?

There's only a certain way where my finger goes out.

The next time they see them, their bulbous pots will be thrown

under the judges' spotlight once and for all.

That's not what it's going to look like when it comes out.

That's what it looks like now.

That blue will go a lot darker, but I'm really pleased.

You know, I'm going to get a lamp out of it and that's the main thing.

It's a nice feeling now. You...

I can't do any more to it. It is what it is.

See how it comes out.

Then I can put it behind...

Put this week behind me, hopefully.

It's judgment day, and after a 24 hour glass firing,

the potters are up early to collect their bulbous lamp bases

from Rose.

Hello, potters.

What do you think? Oh, my Lord.

Big cracks going across it.

That didn't do what I wanted.

There's a few cracks but all of my cottages are still on.

It's turned out slightly darker than planned.

It's night-time at the Giant's Causeway so...

I want to see the lamp come on, and then see how

the light works with it.

Because that's - to me, that's the important bit.

Oh!

None of these huge structural cracks were there in the bisque firing.

Anyway, I can't do anything about it now.

I can just try and make it shine - quite literally.

Oh!

Oh, no. Oh!

Super glue, George. Super glue.

Blast!

Ah..!

George, do you want some alone time, or...? Yeah. OK.

I don't know why you care so much about...

..stupid ceramics.

Before they're presented to the judges,

the potters have 45 minutes to transform their panoramic pots

into working lamps.

And again.

Is it wired in? Yeah. Oh, it's wired.

We've got... Oh!

I can't get my arm - it's too long. There we go.

But George has some fixing to do first.

Glue, glue...glue. Glue I think will be needed.

Stupid how emotionally invested you get in the pot, isn't it?

I'd love to say it with the bulb on.

But it looks like a table lamp. That's fine.

Yep. It's done. Yeah!

Seven bulbous table lamps now face the judgment of Keith and Rich.

Potters, your table lamps look incredible.

I cannot wait to see them all illuminated in all their glory.

Jon, would you please bring your lamp up to the judges?

This is fantastic.

It's really, really good.

And dare I say, you're giving us your kind of style.

You've come out of that engineering personality into the kind of artist,

into the craftsman, into the potter.

And this is just brilliant.

The balloons on there, raising them off the surface and, you know,

thinking of that light and how that light's going to pour over the top.

Yeah, and just the quality, how well observed all of the elements are.

You've got balloons that are just painted on the pot

and it just immediately throws them into the distance.

It really plays with the idea of perspective and depth.

Right. Shall we see what it looks like with the light on?

It makes those balloons pop even more because that light

just trickles down and creates a shadow. Trickles down behind them.

Genius. It's bloody brilliant, mate.

It's really great, Jon.

I really love it. I love the composition.

I think the proportions of the base work really beautifully

and it feels, as ever, of Lois, you know, just... Oh, yeah.

It's got your lovely style about it.

Yeah, it definitely has your style, Lois. I love the way that you've...

You've managed to get those under glazes and colours working

as a sunset, and I really like the way you've stylised the wind

that works really, really well for me.

Shall we turn it on? Yes!

Yes. That's be nice.

Aw! All of the three dimensional elements are really highlighted

by that light coming down from above. Yeah.

This is a bit on the dark side for me.

It's really, really dark and the darker the colour... Yeah.

..the heavier the piece will look.

The lighthouse is fantastic and really, really striking.

You've managed to get that really pop of red in the door,

which looks great, actually.

But, yeah, it would have been nice to see a bit more 3D relief.

Yes, there aren't masses and masses of sort of big

three dimensional pieces sort of stuck on.

But I love the windy sky.

It just has a lovely, stormy, blowy,

sort of angry, energetic, kind of feel to it.

It's really wonderful.

It's lovely. You know, the way the light pours over there,

it really accentuates the landscape.

It really brings out all that mark making that you've done on there.

Nice. Really nice. Thank you.

When you told us that you were doing trees, I was kind of thinking,

Oh, trees, really?

You know, it's really hard to sort of emulate that,

especially in a three dimensional form on a lamp base.

Yeah, well, I mean, the quality of the base itself

is really quite lovely.

You haven't got any major kind of splits or cracks or issues,

apart from these thin tree elements,

which were always going to be a challenge.

I mean, connecting that top section of the pot to the bottom

with a thin strip...

I mean, you're a braver man than I would have been, you know?

Mm. Those two main sort of three dimensional trees really work

with that light pouring down over the top.

And for me, the best part about it is that water -

simple carving away and then just adding that blue

in sort of different variations.

Really, really works well. Yeah, well done.

It's...it's brilliant.

OK, there's some cracks in there.

But...

Caitlin, you really, really struggled with this.

We... You really struggled.

And here it is, and you've done a fantastic job.

Over to Rich, while I compose myself.

It's brilliant.

Initially, to go for that moon jar type form... Yeah.

..is so brave because that's one of the most difficult

forms to get right.

And it just lends itself perfectly to your overall design.

Look, when I see it, Caitlin, I just think it's a testament

to your tenacity to carry on.

You were really struggling with getting that basic form

and, actually, I think that worked in your favour

because, actually, the form that you've created is really lovely.

It's very uniformed, it's very round, and it has some uplift.

Just that simple colour on the top of the houses,

just - it's just brightens up the whole thing.

If ever there was a metaphor for keeping going

and feel the fear and do it anyway, this is it, mate.

You've done a great job. Thank you.

Well, it's certainly dark. Yes, it is dark.

It's certainly 3D.

It is quite impressive that those haven't come off,

and that's obviously a testament to the way you built it.

It cuts quite a striking silhouette.

Mm. You know, there are a lot of three dimensional elements on there.

You've really, really run with that.

But it's very difficult with those under glazes to judge

what kind of tone you're getting with them. Yeah.

And it's not until it comes out of the firing

that you have the luxury of seeing in hindsight

what you were actually hoping for. Yeah.

It does catch the light in quite a lovely way.

It's a shame you've lost some of the kind of subtlety

to that decoration, but you can kind of sense what you were going for.

And it's - it's close.

Apart from the bleeding obvious... Yeah.

..that it's in a fair few pieces,

there are some elements that are really, really good.

Um, I love these... these seagulls.

Really, really simple but lovely. Yeah.

Absolutely fantastic.

The rock formation works really, really well.

The lighthouses, really simplistic design - works really well.

The build, however... Yeah. ..is a bit horrendous. Yeah.

It's a real, real shame.

I mean, this is a perfect case of dunting.

So dunting is when you get kind of uneven cooling of a pot

and it essentially kind of just pulls itself apart.

But there are some beautiful elements on this.

I think the way you've heavily loaded these rocks with oxide

and you've kind of left the beach matte, but you've glazed

the headland - it's beautiful.

It's a really lovely touch.

The light is almost emitting from the lighthouse and shedding

that light sort of across the headland and down onto the beach.

I think it works beautifully.

I'm still harking on about these seagulls.

If I could just take that bit and frame it,

that would be wonderful.

Mind you, I probably could, really, cos it's in pieces anyway.

I think it's hard not to get emotional when you've been putting

all your effort into nine-ish hours of work.

Yeah, it's... And then you end up with the top in your hand.

I had to have a moment, just because, yeah, I hate it,

but you do get really upset when things don't go right.

I don't know what to think now, really.

You know, I just... I...I overdid it on the decoration

to the point where it's very, very night-time

on the north coast and having finished last

in the second challenge, it isn't a great look either.

So I'm probably, I would say I'm probably in the drop zone today.

What a week!

We have been all over the world with some beautiful views.

We've gone to a masked ball in Venice.

How do you think they got on overall, though?

Look, they've given us some wonderful work.

But, you know, we're in week six now. Yeah.

We're upping the ante,

and it's just interesting to see who's coming to the fore.

So who impressed you this week?

Jon!

He did! He gives us more and more and more. Yeah.

And he just becomes more, dare I say, flamboyant.

We just admired how he just went for it. Yeah.

You know, Jon really kind of pushed himself.

I mean, I think in the past, his pieces have felt perhaps

a little formulaic, but he's just been really ambitious

and really brave this week.

So is Jon in line for Potter of The Week?

Could be. He could be.

Oh! Who else?

Caitlin, for me. I think we've both been impressed by Caitlin.

Honestly. I mean, that Moon Jar, it's a difficult form to master

because you're essentially putting together two really open bowls,

but it was just a well thought out design.

Who's in danger?

Well, for me, George has got to be down there.

That lack of planning that we see with George and that sort of

slightly naive idea of just slapping more and more clay on

and not realising what that clay's going to do in the kiln.

There's some lovely elements - the sea... Oh, so lovely.

..the rocks. I think he just underestimated how strong

the build element had to be in order for these pieces

to survive the firing.

Talking of lovely rocks, we have the Giant's Causeway

with the beautiful basalt formation from Derek.

I loved the build, actually. Right.

I loved the silhouette that it created.

I just think his decoration has really let him down,

both in the second challenge and in the main make.

Yeah, the build was sound, lack of understanding of decorative

techniques and what aesthetic he was going to give us at the end.

It's difficult with Derek and George and our decision really could go

either way, but, you know, for very different reasons. Yeah.

You've got Derek, where his decoration is kind of starting

to let him down a bit, and George, where his construction

is letting him down.

So we just need to figure out where we place the most importance.

You have some difficult decisions to make.

Ha! I'm going off to have a biscuit. Bye.

Potters, you have brightened up the Pottery with your beautiful

table lamp creations.

The judges have deliberated,

and they have come to their conclusions.

First of all, the good news.

This week's Potter of The Week is...

Jon.

Well done, Jon. Yes!

Yeah, now the horrible bit.

After much deliberation...

..the judges have decided that the potter leaving the Pottery is...

George.

Yeah...

No, it's just - fair enough.

I'm so sorry, George. Yeah.

Honestly, it's been such a pleasure to get to know you.

I think it's a... It's a funny old experience this,

and you learn so much and you just want to - just want to keep going.

You've been really great. I hope you're proud of yourself.

Oh, yeah. You'll be really missed.

I think it was just... Just too much, too fast, too big.

You know... I've...

Yeah, before I came here, a good sized mug

was pretty much my limit.

Well done. Oh, thank you.

Well done George. Ah!

Yeah, my final goodbye to the Pottery.

Um...

It's going to be sad to leave, but, yeah, onwards and upwards.

As George says goodbye to the Pottery,

Jon's bulbous Bristol lamp base takes pride of place

in the Throw Down Gallery.

I am so pleased that John is our Potter of The Week.

His bulbous table lamp was perfect on so many levels.

It was well constructed, the design flowed around the surface

and when we switched the light on, it just really sang.

What we're seeing with Jon every week, is just that freeing up

of his artistic side.

It was just absolutely wonderful.

Planning obviously is a big thing for me,

thinking it through and planning it through.

But I think they're starting to see where I can take that

a little bit further and I can use that planning as a good,

solid foundation to then be creative in the actual make

and the decorating phase and see the ideas coming through -

not just the planning.

Particularly those balloons - everyone loves the balloons.

I've got to do more with those balloons.

So, yeah, that's just great. Really, really...

..you know, really pleasing, really.

Next time...

Just trying to wash his bottom.

..our six remaining potters go wild...

I'm channelling my inner sloth today.

..and tackle a Throw Down first...

We're going to burn you!

..with some DIY oil drum firing.

Turn it off!

And a second challenge that reaches dizzying heights.

I think I'm getting carried away now.

Who will be crowned Potter of The Week?

It just creates a real feast for the eyes.

And whose pottery dreams will crash and burn?

It's brilliant - all for the wrong reasons.

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