A BBC antiques expert once jumped at the chance to appear on Antiques Roadshow but changed his mind after an uncomfortable encounter with the rest of the team.

Fiona Bruce has hosted Antiques Roadshow since 2008. (Image: BBC)

BBC flagship show Antiques Roadshow would seemingly be every antique expert’s dream due to the huge array of household treasures presented in stunning locations across the UK. Some of the show’s longest-standing experts include Hilary Kay, who joined the programme in 1978, and Geoffrey Munn who joined in 1989 and was awarded an OBE in 2013.

However, not everyone has had a good experience on the Antiques Roadshow set, including Bargain Hunt and Flog It! star, Charlie Ross. Charlie, 74, had already made a name for himself on Flog It! when the BBC asked whether he’d like to join the Roadshow team. He naturally jumped at the chance, but now admits it was a mistake.

Charlie Ross made a brief appearance on Antiques Roadshow. (Image: BBC)

He recounted in his book, Sold!: “The vibes were not good from the start. I met the team for dinner on the evening before filming was due to start. Several of them, notably Hugo Morley-Fletcher, Tim Wonnacott and Henry Sandham, were friendly and welcoming. I found the others harder work.”

He recalled several of the gruelling conversations around the dinner table, including being asked what Flog It! was and whether he was an “Oxford or Cambridge man”; Charlie is neither after failing to secure the grades to get into medical school and working in auction rooms soon after leaving school.

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One of the experts delivered the kicker, though, when they said: “You see, we’re rather a close-knit group on this programme. A bit exclusive, I suppose. But I’m sure we’ll find a place for you, eventually.”

Charlie’s tenure on the show didn’t last very long and after a few undistinguished appearances, he suggested that the show wasn’t for him.

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Charlie Ross is best known for appearing on Flog It! and Bargain

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He concluded: “They agreed, and I moved on to less serious programmes better suited to my wish to entertain as well as inform.”

Charlie has continued to be a popular face on TV as an expert on Flog It! as well as Bargain Hunt, Antiques Road Trip and Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is.

Before this he established his own auction house and built a reputation for auctioning vintage cars. He has directed prestigious events such as the Pebble Beach Vintage Car Auction in California and Gooding and Company’s Scottsdale Auction in Arizona.

Perhaps his most famous achievement came when he presided over the sale of the 1957 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa Prototype, which sold for over $16 million in 2011.