Victorian pharmacist's shop sells for almost £17,000 at auction
A Victorian pharmacist's shop has sold for £16,950 at an auction in Gloucestershire.The shop, which dates back to the 1880s, was split into 10 separate lots and sold to a mixture of private collectors and institutions at Cotswold Auction Company in Cirencester on Wednesday.A total of more than 100 items were sold from Darrin Baines' collection of Georgian and Victorian apothecary items, described as one of the largest in the UK."There was lots of interest from people in the room, on the telephone and online bids were very busy - and not just in the UK, but internationally too," said Cotswold Auction Company auctioneer Niall Fry.
"There was a good buzz in the room," he added.Mr Fry said some of the smaller glass items and advertising signs also did well, and seller Darrin Baines was "very pleased" with the results."It's just really fascinating and a privilege to handle [the collection]," added Mr Fry."We get quite a lot of large collections, but to get such niche items in large quantities is quite rare."
'Ceiling fell on us'
Mr Baines, a professor of health economics, amassed the sizable collection over the past 25 years.He bought and relocated the Victorian pharmacist's shop to his house in Leominster in Herefordshire from Norfolk."I found [it] in Upwell in the Fens. It had been in the same family for 150 years," he said."I went with a carpenter and a friend and dismantled the shop myself, and when we took one of the really big cabinets out, the ceiling fell on us because it was holding the ceiling up."Mr Baines said he decided to get rid of the collection after selling his house and downsizing.His passion had previously taken up two floors of his home, in what he described as a "museum".
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
17 minutes ago
- The Sun
Greggs is handing out FREE iced drinks to customers – how to get one
GREGGS are offering customers the chance to grab a free iced drink. The deal comes just in time to cool down punters in the summer heat. 2 2 From today, Greggs customers can now claim a free iced drink when they download and register on the Greggs app. This is an extension of the bakery chain's pre-existing offer of a hot drink for newcomers to the app. Upon completing registration on the app, customers can see their redeemable reward of a hot or iced beverage in its virtual wallet section. Greggs is calling the new iced-drink addition to the welcome offer a "summer sidekick" to hot favourites. The company said: "Greggs is playing it cool and rewarding new customers with a free iced drink when they download and register on the Greggs App. "From today, Greggs is giving its classic free hot drink welcome offer a summer sidekick as new users of the Greggs App will now be able to take their pick from the tasty iced drink lineup upon registration - for free. "Whether it's a Peach Iced Tea or Mint Lemonade for some fun in the sun at the park, or the new Iced Caramelised Biscuit Latte to keep cool when running errands around town, there's a delicious iced drink on the menu for every occasion this summer. "Once in the inner circle of the app, Greggs fans can also get exclusive access to many more tasty rewards, because for every nine stamps collected in a category on the Greggs App, users can then redeem a Greggs menu item of their choice within that category for free." The categories of stamps in the app are itemised as follows: Savouries & Bakes, Drinks & Snacks, Sandwiches & Salads, Hot Food and Breakfast Item. The celebrations don't stop there either, as all registered users receive a free sweet treat to celebrate their birthday each year. The app also enables customers to skip store queues by pre-ordering via click+collect. Greggs has approximately 2,600 shops nationwide across the UK. This comes after the chain made major changes to its loyalty scheme this month. It kicked off a new month-long promotion on 2 June, offering customers double stamps on selected menu items when buying between 11am and 2pm. The offer is running in four weekly phases, with a new product category featured each week. Meal deal fans won't miss out either, as they'll get stamps on all eligible items in their basket, as long as their lunch falls within the promotion window. The final week, 23 to 29 June, will feature double stamps on all iced drinks. With this promotion, customers could earn two stamps per purchase – cutting the time it takes to grab a freebie in half. To take advantage of the offer, shoppers just need to scan the Greggs App in-store or order via click-and-collect. Full list of eligible items: Sandwiches (June 2–8) Baguettes Sliced bread sandwiches, stotties and made-to-order Oval Bites and Rolls Flatbreads Wraps Burgers (Excludes breakfast rolls/baguettes and sandwich platters) Hot Snacks (June 9–15) Southern Fried Chicken Goujons Southern Fried Potato Wedges Spicy BBQ Chicken Bites BBQ Bites Meal Box Crispy Chicken Bites Mozzarella & Cheddar Bites Bakes (June 16–22) Steak Bake Cheese & Onion Bake Sausage, Bean and Cheese Melt Vegetable Bake Corned Beef Bake Chicken Bake Red Pepper, Feta and Spinach Bake Scotch Pie Haggis Pie Bacon & Cheese Wrap Savoury Mince Pie (Excludes Sausage Rolls and Vegan Sausage Rolls) Iced Drinks (June 23–29) Iced Latte Iced Caramel Latte Iced Vanilla Latte Iced Caramelised Biscuit Latte Iced Americano Cloudy Lemonade Strawberry Lemonade Mint Lemonade Peach Iced Tea Mango & Strawberry Cooler
Sky News
19 minutes ago
- Sky News
Trade strategy aims to boost UK firms amid Trump tariff chaos
Plans to better protect vital UK industries and help businesses export have been revealed by the government, as the world continues to grapple the effects of Donald Trump's trade war. A trade strategy, to be published on Thursday, aims to make the UK the best-connected country to do business, aided by looser regulation and increased access to finance. It forms part of the government's efforts to get business back on side after the backlash which followed the tax-raising budget and its "plan for change" to boost meagre economic growth. The plan follows hot on the heels of a trade deal which spares the UK from some of the US president's most punitive duties, and a more wide-ranging agreement with India. The strategy - the first since Brexit - also aims to capitalise on a relaxation in some EU rules on trade, and the separate industrial strategy outlined earlier this week that will give energy-intensive businesses help in bolstering their competitiveness through cuts to their bills. Jonathan Reynolds, the Business and Trade Secretary, said: "The UK is an open trading nation but we must reconcile this with a new geopolitical reality and work in our own national interest. "Our Trade Strategy will sharpen our trade defence so we can ensure British businesses are protected from harm, while also relentlessly pursuing every opportunity to sell to more markets under better terms than before." 2:49 The department said that the capacity of UK Export Finance, the UK's export credit agency, was to be expanded by £20bn and funding would also be set aside to tackle complex regulatory issues and remove obstacles for exporters. The US trade war provides both opportunities and threats to UK firms. The steel sector is to be consulted on what new protections can be put in place from June 2026 once current safeguards, covering things like cheap Chinese imports, are due to expire. The trade and industrial strategies have been revealed at a time of crisis for both steel and chemicals linked to high costs. 2:01 British Steel is now under the control of the UK government in a bid to protect the country's ability to produce so-called virgin steel following the closures of the blast furnaces at Tata's Port Talbot works. It was announced on Wednesday that Saudi firm Sabic was to shut its Olefins 6 ethylene plant at Wilton on Teesside, leaving more than 300 jobs at risk. Like British Steel's owner Jingye, Sabic has blamed high energy bills. Eliminating some of those costs, under the industrial strategy plans, would not kick in until 2026 at the earliest. At the same time, Associated British Foods (ABF) is to make a decision on Thursday on whether to shut the UK's largest bioethanol plant in Hull. ABF has complained that the Vivergo Fuels factory has had the rug pulled from under it by the UK government as its recent trade deal with the US allows subsidised US ethanol into the country. A second UK bioethanol plant, owned by Ensus, is at risk of closure on Teesside. The steel industry lobby group said the trade strategy would build on work in the industrial strategy to provide a more stable platform for the sector. UK Steel's director general Gareth Stace, said: "For too long, the government has been hamstrung by self-imposed rules that allow bad actors to take advantage of our open market. "This has enabled state-subsidised steel to rip market share away from domestic producers, at the cost of thousands of good jobs in some of the most economically vulnerable regions in the country, and fracturing manufacturing supply chains, making us more reliant on imports. "We need swift and decisive action to build a trade defence regime that is fit for purpose and in place before current safeguards expire in 2026. "With the right tools and the political will to use them, the UK can reassert control over its steel market, protect skilled jobs, and give investors the confidence that the UK steel sector has a strong and sustainable future."
Rhyl Journal
27 minutes ago
- Rhyl Journal
UK energy and steel to be classed as ‘nationally important' in procurement shift
Public sector buyers would be able to avoid normal requirements to consider overseas bidders and instead give priority to domestic firms under the plans set out in a consultation launching on Wednesday. Ministers would be allowed to designate sectors such as steel, energy and cyber nationally important in order to help grant them more of the £400 billion spent on procurement each year, the Government said. Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Pat McFadden said the proposals would ensure British industry was supported and 'boost growth'. 'The new rules being considered will give us the power to protect our national industries, ensuring more money goes to them as we buy goods and services in Government,' he said. The Government said the new rules will also ensure buyers exclude companies that cannot provide evidence of a good record of paying companies in their supply chains promptly and on time in a move to protect small businesses. New guidance will also require Government departments to consider British steel products for the £725 billion of UK infrastructure spending over the next 10 years announced in the industrial strategy on Monday. UK Steel welcomed the proposals, describing them as 'unequivocally positive news' that would help safeguard jobs in the industry. Director general of UK Steel, Gareth Stace, said: 'These changes rightly recognise the strategic importance of steelmaking to national security and the vital role of resilient domestic supply chains.' It comes as the industry faces uncertainty over the US-UK trade deal finalised this month, which slashed tariffs on aerospace and auto sectors but left levies on steel standing at 25% rather than falling to zero as originally agreed. The Government has said both sides have agreed to 'make progress towards 0% tariffs on core steel products' in ongoing talks.
