Restoration Roadshow on BBC2

Knowles, who has lived in Buckinghamshire since 1981, is back on our screens with a new 20 part series called Restoration Roadshow.

He said: “I think it makes a real contribution to the antique format. There are so many out there.

“I think some of them are past their sell-by-dates. It adds a new dimension and makes people look again at things they have got.”

Knowles is a resident expert on Antiques Roadshow and This Morning and is well known in the world of antiques.

But finding a restorer is a grey area, Knowles said, as antique dealers tend to not be very forthcoming suggesting good restorers.

He added: “I am simply leading you in the narration as much as anyone else. The real stars are the restorers themselves.

“You have go to look out for Tim Akers, Lucia Scalisi and Rodrigo Titian- he Is exotic. I think the Radio Four terminology would be eye candy for the discerning lady.”

A Moorcroft vase, which had been glued together, was restored on the show. Before it was restored for £400 it was valued at £500. But after Roger Hawkins worked his magic it is sold for £2,600.

Knowles added: “People were bringing things in which they had never looked at properly. The problem there was as soon as something was restored lots of people who had just put into auction decided they liked it so much they wanted to keep it.”

He said: “We live in an age where by the old mend and make do has long since gone- more of a war time ethic that has disappeared.

“It's about keeping things for the right reason.- it if is an object that has been in the family and there is a sense of family history in it.”

But Knowles has never lost his excitement for antiques. He said: “I was considered something of an odd ball when I was a teenager. In those days it wasn't mainstream.

“A friend of my son's described me as- “He knows an awful lot about dead people's crockery.” We can learn an awful lot from history.”

The 20-part series starts on BBC Two Daytime on Monday, August 9 at 6.30pm for four weeks.