Horncastle couple go hunting for buried treasure on Bargain Hunt

Eve Miller and her partner Jon Davison are set to appear in the latest episode of hit BBC1 daytime show Bargain Hunt.

The couple were entered by Jon back in 2019 as a surprise for Eve and when he told her, she initially thought it was a joke:

"We’ve always had an interest in antiques but when Jon said he’s entered us I passed it off as a joke!”

They were selected for interviews from their application, and were set to appear on the show – but then the Covid-19 pandemic hit and it was put on hold.

Then out of the blue, the couple were contacted out of the blue by the show’s producers asking if they would be interested, and so donning the famous red jackets, Eve and Jon went hunting for bargains in Hemwell, near Gainsborough, with presenter Caroline Hawley and their expert Izzie Balmer.The first antique the couple went for was a biscuit tin with a horse motif on it as a nod to their love of horses – in particular their handsome shire horse Bomber – as well as a 1930s era mannequin bust, and the last item was a set of carpenter’s tools – Jon’s choice as he is passionate about agriculture.

Eve said the whole experience was very daunting, especially when the camera was on them, but that it was overall a very fun and positive experience.

Whether or not Jon and Eve were successful remains a secret at this stage, but Eve said that the money raised is being donated to the Lincolnshire Rural Support Network.

"This is a brilliant charity and they do amazing work for mental health within the agriculture sector and they don’t get enough credit,” Eve said.

"Our farming friends are kindly matching our donation to raise as much funds as possible.”

Jon and Eve’s episode is set to be broadcast this week, and will be available on BBC iPlayer.

Jon and Eve’s love of antiques stems from their joy in the 1940s, and they regularly attend events with Bomber the shire horse to raise awareness of the plight of shire horses, as there are estimated to be just a few thousand left in the UK to date.

Read more about their adventures and work for shire horses in next week’s Horncastle News.