Charlie Ross (antiques expert)

Charlie Ross (born June 1950 in Buckinghamshire, England)^[1] is a British antiques expert and auctioneer, known for regular appearances on several BBC Antique programmes.

Professional career

Ross started his career in 1968 after leaving school at the age of 18, joining a local firm of estate and found himself auctioning chickens and turkeys. He progressed from these to antique furniture, moved to Oxford in 1969 and later established his own auction house in Woburn near Milton Keynes. He stood down in February 2008 after more than 25 years at the helm to focus on freelance projects.^[2]

Ross appears regularly on television as an antiques expert on the BBC programmes Bargain Hunt, Flog It!,^[2] Antiques Road Trip and Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is. He is now one of the four regular presenters on Bargain Hunt.^[3] For many years, Ross has conducted the Pebble Beach Vintage Car Auction in California, and the Scottsdale Auction in Arizona for Gooding and Company. He is often seen in this role in episodes of the TV show Chasing Classic Cars. He held the record for the highest price ever achieved for a car sold by auction in the USA. The car, a 1957 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa Prototype, sold for over $16 million in 2011.^{[2] [4]} The price was exceeded in 2013,^[5] and again in 2014 for a Ferrari 250 GTO sold at Carmel, California for over $38 million.^[6] In recent years, he has also raised large sums of money at various charity auctions in Britain, including CLIC Sargent, The David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation, and The Lord's Taverners.^[7]

Charlie held the record for the largest profit on a single item on the Antiques Road Trip when in 2012 he bought a chipped Staffordshire elephant clock for £8 which was sold for £2,700 at auction, this was surpassed in 2016, when Anita Manning brought a Buddha statue she had purchased for £50 sold for £3,800, a 7,500% profit, and again in 2017 when Paul Laidlaw bought a Chambre Automatique De Bertsch sub-miniature camera for £60 and sold it at auction for £20,000. ^{[8] [9]}

Music Career

In 2017 Charlie embarked on a music career with fellow BBC Antique Experts Charles Hanson, Philip Serrell and James Braxton by recording a a Rock version of the classic Sleigh Ride in aid of BBC Children In Need. It was released digitally on independent record label Saga Entertainment and peaked at number 1 on the Amazon Rock Charts.^[10][11][12]

Personal life

Ross is married to Sally and they have two children. He has lived in Bicester outside Oxford since 1981.^[13]

References