An Antiques Roadshow guest didn't have anything to say when her Gandhi sculpture was revealed to be worth a small fortune. During the filming of the popular BBC series at Cheltenham Town Hall, expert Philip Mould met with a guest who brought along a stunning bronze Gandhi sculpture. "It's amusing to reflect that such a tranquil figure as this was created by such a wild Bohemian," he joked.
The guest responded: "Yes, she was known for her wildness and she would never take no for an answer so she'd go up to you at a dinner party and say, 'Your face is so interesting! I must sculpt you!' "And she would introduce herself to everybody famous and just push herself." The artist in question was Polish sculptress Fredda Brilliant, who was the guest's aunt, having married her mother's brother, film producer Herbert Marshall. Mould continued: "So you have this maquette, this bronze for what is arguably the most famous image of Gandhi, the statue in Tavistock Square which she created, she made, and I think was unveiled by Harold Wilson, was it not? "And it's now a place of pilgrimage, I see it from time to time and there's quite often flowers in front of it.
" Pointing to the hole underneath the image, she said: "That was the whole idea - it was done for that. "She was very proud of that. When Indians first came to England to live, the first thing they would do would go to Tavistock Square and put flowers as a thank you for a safe journey or for having arrived finally.
"And on his birthday, there's a pilgrimage that goes into Tavistock Square with the Indian League and other dignitaries and they lay all these flowers around him. Every year they do this. "Well in her latter years, I used to go over to America where she was residing and help her try and sort out 90 years of mayhem which wasn't easy.
"Her whole life and all her bronzes and all her paperwork that she kept forever. "So I would go over there and we became very close and then she became older and sick and she ended up leaving me everything." "Everything? So it's not just this?" Mould queried, before admitting there were at least 50 more pieces.
"Good lord," he exclaimed under his breath. "They're not all finished, a lot of them are plasters and no direction of what to do with them," she added. "It's quite obvious to me that Fredda needs another bit of exposure, another look at the world , the world needs to look at her indeed.
"Well, I think that this, as a one-off piece, must be worth, given its significance in the history of the reputation of this man, £20,000." Despite the staggering valuation, the guest seemed stunned and could only respond with a simple "Yes" and a blank stare. Mould suggested: "I think it's about time Fredda came from the dark -" The guest interjected in agreement: "Had a look at the world, I think so.
"She would love it, she's been in the shed for 10 years so it's time." Antiques Roadshow can be viewed on BBC One and BBC iPlayer ..
