South-east England

The Docker Brewery and Tap Room on the Five Acre Estate in Folkestone is the chosen easy-going venue for vintage clothing dealer Claire Burns’ new venture.

A recent sale of Modern Art & Design at Mallams (25% buyer’s premium) in Oxford included a local collection of 21 pots by John Ward (1938-2023).

Almost singlehandedly, Sir Laurence Whistler (1912-2000) revived the tradition of British diamond point engraving in the post-war era. His stippled glass goblets were particularly innovative: engraved on both sides of the bowl with views of the English countryside, they create an illusion of perspective.

Showground extravaganza run until recently by B2B continues to be a success under the new organiser

A tiny Oxfam shop in Headington, Oxfordshire, was celebrating after a set of 12 books dropped off by an anonymous donor later sold at Bonhams for £13,000 (£16,640 with premium).

The average total footfall for the annual three-day 'New Forest & Hampshire County Show' held at The Showground in Brockenhurst comes in at a gigantic 85,000 to 90,000.

A specialist antiques shop in Southampton, a city rich in maritime heritage, is set to close at the end of August after 50 years of trading.

A recent sale at Canterbury Auction Galleries (20% buyer’s premium) was led by this example of early English furniture: an oak aumbry or dole cupboard.

Artist survived a shipwreck but then spent a decade creating portraits and views of the local landscape

Oxfordshire sale includes minaudière designed as an alternative to traditional handbags - plus a more conventional ‘French Jazz Age’ evening bag

A highlight of the The Dolls’ House, Doll, Teddy Bear and Toy sale taking place at Special Auction Services on June 24-26 is a mid-17th century wooden doll, just 5½in (14cm) high.

A striking household cavalry officer’s 1817 pattern helmet offered at Antony Cribb (25% buyer’s premium) had the considerable bonus of retaining its “very rare” japanned storage tin with the owner’s name legible.

A strong selection of 18th and 19th century British helmets impressed at East Sussex saleroom Wallis & Wallis (24% buyer’s premium) on May 29, many bringing strong four-figure sums well above estimate.

A George III cast bronze two-pounder sold on June 3 came from a group of 12 cast for a commission by second Viscount William Courtenay, most probably for his private yacht Dolphin in 1775. The cannon was later removed to Powderham Castle, Devon.