07x08 - Episode 8

[bunniefuu]

It's the quarter final
and our five remaining potters

are making vintage style water
filters,

which are a bit like old fashioned
water coolers.

Huh? And do you know what water
coolers are good for?

That's right, overhearing some
office gossip.

Oh, good, here come the lads now.

I'll be able to hear some hot
gossip. Hmm.

Anyway, Rich. You're never gonna
believe what I heard last week.

PLANE ROARS

Oh.

That's amazing. Funnily enough...

TYRES SCREECH

Oh.

Honestly, that's nothing...
CHAINSAW BUZZES

Oh!

Oh, hi, Siobhan. Hi.

You didn't hear any of that, did
you? No!

Phew. Welcome to the Great Pottery
Throw Down.

FOGHORN BLARES
Oh, come on, really?

A foghorn in Stoke-on-Trent?

We're nowhere near the sea.

Last time... Hello. Ooh! Oh.

..the potters brought light
and shade to Gladstone...

So messy.

..with their abstract lighting
sculptures.

It's awesome. And you can do really
weird shapes.

Donna's expert finishing won her
her fourth Potter of the Week.

It's really, really wonderful.

Thank you.

And it was Sophie who became
the latest potter to leave

the competition.

This time...

Frantic panic again.

..the potters face an epic throwing
challenge...

I do like throwing big pots.
It's cos he's a showoff.

..and in a first for the pottery,

they undertake a salt glaze firing
in oil drum kilns...

It's like looking into the fires of
hell.

..and a second mystery challenge

leaves everyone in need of caffeine.

I will drink a coffee, but, really,
tea is my thing.

But who will earn their place in
the semi finals...

Oh. Ooh.

..and who will be leaving the
pottery?

How do you feel about it? A little
bit devastated.

It's quarter finals day at Gladstone
and the competition is hotting up.

I'm looking forward to this
challenge.

I like throwing big stuff.

I've not got a huge amount
of experience with it.

And if it works out, well, then
I'll be very cheerful.

I'm fairly confident with throwing,

but I'm in control of the firing
this time,

so I don't really trust myself.
Are you ready to go?

Just need to finish some sketches,
then I'll be ready.

This week is big pots, throwing big
pots. I love throwing big pots,

so I'm really hoping that I can
snatch

one Potter of the Week off Donna.

Four potters of the week now. Just
feels unreal.

But throwing's my nemesis,

so I've gotta throw as big as
I possibly can.

The biggest thing I've thrown
so far has been that high

and about that wide

and this water filter is now
going to be much,

much, much bigger.

If I get a finished piece, I'll be
delighted.

Welcome, potters,

and congratulations
for making it to the quarter final.

For your main make challenge
this week

the judges would like you to make

a vintage style water filter.

It must have a lid,
lugs on the side for carrying

and a hole in the bottom to fit
a tap.

Keith, any advice for our potters?

Now, Victorian water filters
were decorated

with place names.

So we'd like yours to be dedicated

to your favourite village, town or
city.

Now, the main decorative technique
for this is sprigging,

but we're only allowing homemade
sprig moulds.

Rich, anything to add?

You'll have oxides to decorate your
sprigs,

but the main body of your water
filter

should remain as natural clay.

You'll be dipping your pieces in
a salt solution prior

to firing them in an oil drum kiln

and you'll be responsible
for putting them in

and taking them out of the kiln.

So make sure you factor that into
your design.

OK, then, potters.

You've been given 6.5 hours to make,

refine and decorate your vintage
style water filters

and your time starts now.

Ooph.

I need all the time that I can get,
this flipping throwing malarkey.

For their largest throwing
challenge so far,

the potters have been given over 18kg
of clay

to make the main body of their pots.

This is a huge challenge.
This is physically enormous.

It's gonna be proper big.
I'm excited at the final outcome.

The more clay there is,
the harder it is to manage

and then you start getting thick
bottoms or wobbly walls.

So that's my main aim is to have
a nice pretty big pot.

Week eight, quarter finals,
and we're ramping it up.

Yeah, I'm excited for this one.
Yeah.

It's a big throwing project, this.

So they might choose
to make it in one or they might

choose to make it in multiple
sections.

It's easier to throw, obviously,
in sections,

but they have to piece those
together.

Yeah, and, I mean, it's
the accuracy of the throwing.

Those measurements have
to be millimetre perfect

to ensure they come together in
a seamless fashion.

Absolutely, and, you know, the added
challenge

to this is we've asked our potters
to decorate them

with homemade sprigs.

We don't want to see any generic
shop bought sprig moulds.

I love a sprig.
You can get such intense detail.

So I'm looking for pristinely
perfect surfaces.

Yeah. If they're not applied
properly, they might peel off

and we don't want any of that.
We don't.

And they're gonna be
dipping these pieces into

a salt solution prior to firing
them.

It's a first for us at the pottery
and it's gonna create flashing

and much richer tone to
the surface of the clay.

Yeah, but the other interesting
thing

for me in this is that they are in
charge of that firing process.

Yeah, cos this is quite
an aggressive firing process.

You know, any poor joins are gonna
be far more susceptible

to splitting and cracking.

Yeah, their destiny is in their
hands.

To throw in one or not to throw in
one,

that is the question for our potters.

Some people are throwing, like, huge
lumps of clay.

That is the aspiration.
One day I will get there.

Throwing one gives you
a better pot if you can do it.

I do like throwing big pots.
It's cos he's a showoff.

Cos I'm a big showoff.

Doing this in sections is
the best chance I've got.

But the hardest part of this is
trying

to get them all the same size.

This is the other thing, reading a
ruler.

Hi, lovey. Hello, Jan. Hello. How
are you?

We're all right, yeah. How are you?

I don't know. What am I doing here?

You're in the quarter final, darling.

I know. It's like some sort of
dream. Ah.

So tell us about your design, Jan.

My water filter is actually
dedicated

to where I grew up, which is
the Gower Peninsula.

Oh, fantastic. Lovely. Swansea.

My father was an environmental
health officer

and he used to take me with him on,
in my summer holidays,

and we'd go out water quality
monitoring.

Fun. Lovely. Deep joy.

Daddy, Daddy,
please can I go water quality

monitoring today? I promise I'll be
good.

Yeah, yeah. So the title for this
for me is

The Green, Green Grass and Clean,
Clear Water of Home.

Celebrating the outstanding natural
beauty of

the Gower Peninsula,

Jan's water filter will feature
sprigs depicting

the iconic landmarks of Worm's Head
Island

and Three Cliffs Bay,

as well as representing produce
local to the area.

How many sections are you throwing?

I'm doing it in three sections. I
know it's a risk cos there's three
joins

and I've got to get them all exactly
the same size.

Uh, I haven't managed that in
practice yet.

Confidently thrown well joined
pieces can be as good as,

you know, poorly thrown big
sections.

My strength does not lie in
throwing.

I don't know if you've noticed this.

Fingers crossed. Well, look, good
luck with it all. Thanks. Cheers.

Cheers.

For those potters throwing
in sections,

each part must be measured
and thrown with pinpoint accuracy...

It'll get you the height and the
width a bit easier,

but it's very precise work.

..before being joined together to
give

a maximum height of 55cm.

This'll be the base of my piece.

It's 16 and I was going for 20,
so gonna add

a little bit more clay to the next
piece.

But for Dan and Dave, who are
throwing in one,

they face the trickier challenge

of pulling the clay up on
the wheel... Ah.

..to achieve the desired height.

I've pushed it out too far.

Might be able to get it back.

Might not.

It's far too small.

Probably another 5cm would've been
good.

I'll just smash it up and do it
again.

Oh, dear.

Big pot week. I knew that was gonna
happen.

Hey. All right, lovey. You all
right? How are you getting on?

I just chopped it up cos it wasn't
big enough, so... Oh, OK.

..gonna start again. Right, well,
you know... Chuck it down again.

..sometimes when you throw a large
piece and then you re-wedge it...
Yeah. ..just the once...

Just once. ..it's actually quite
nice. Yeah.

Just don't do it too many times.
Yeah, don't do it too many times.

Because the clay does get
very tired. Yeah.

Dan's adopted home town
of Weymouth is the inspiration

for his water filter

and his seaside theme will be
brought to life with waves,

fishing boats and two large
lobsters made from sprigs.

This is quite colourful.

What are your intentions with
the oxides...

Oh, right. ..on the sprigs? Yeah.
Are they honourable, your intentions?

I'm gonna be using copper and cobalt
to get the reds and greens.

The lobster has copper carbonate on
it

and I'm hoping that will go a deep
red.

And you need to rely on

a certain amount of reduction,
otherwise...

I need reduction in the firing.
..you'll have green lobsters.

Nobody wants green lobsters. That's
right. No-one wants a green lobster.

Well, look, good luck, Dan. It'll
be all right. Yes, good luck.
Brilliant. Cheers.

While Dan takes to the wheel again...

Bigger, bigger.

..Dave is also having
to rethink his plan on the wheel.

I'm doing two halves. It was...

It was sitting down on itself.

Turns out I haven't got
the skill. Whoops.

It's, uh, about the town where I
was born.

I was born in Birkenhead in 1964.

The shipyard was
a central part of the town.

Big dangerous business.
Lots of hot metal flying about.

Lots of eye injuries.

Often they would be making
the journey

to Liverpool Eye Hospital.

So people in Liverpool called
people from Birkenhead

that they come from the one-eyed
city,

cos they'd be there with something
over their... Ow. You know?

Paying tribute to the skill

and bravery of Birkenhead's
ship builders,

Dave's rivet-shaped water filter
will sit on top of

a fluted base with submarine lugs

and feature two large sprigs.

That's one biggun. Right, yeah.

I mean, Dave, that is
a big surface area to join on.

Yeah. You're giving me that look
you gave me... No, no.

..when it came to the slab built
porcelain, aren't you?

I'm getting slab built porcelain
vibes from this.

Dave I. So... Um, you know.

Just saying. Uh, so, so the,

so the consistency of the body

and the sprig is gonna be
critical. Yeah?

Yeah? Yeah. Just make sure, yeah.

Yeah, all right. Really strong
joins.

I'll do a good job on it. See you
later.

Dave isn't the only potter
celebrating

the industrial heritage of their
home town.

All right, lovey. Hi. Hi, Donna.

My design... Wow.
..unsurprisingly,

is about my favourite city, Belfast.

Um, it was originally called
Beal Feirste, which means...

Oh, wow. ..mouth of the river,
and they were once

the biggest exporters of
cigarettes, tea.

Tea, yeah. Um, it also had

the nickname Linenopolis
because of the linen industry...

Yeah, sure. ..and because of the
rope industry.

Using sprig motifs symbolising
Belfast's past status as

an industrial powerhouse,

Donna's design will also include
seahorses from

the city's coat of arms

and its Latin motto, which is very
close to her heart.

This is the motto for Belfast,

which means what shall we give in
return for so much.

Which feels very, very, healing...
Yeah.

..for the Belfast today, you know,
post The Troubles.

Yeah. So I felt that that was quite
important to get that on.

What would you say you're most
concerned about,

about the whole process?

The throwing, definitely... Yeah.
..is the bit that I find the most
difficult.

I feel confident with the sprigs
but... OK.

..this bit is the... is the
challenge.

Well, good luck with it, Donna. See
you later. Thank you.

One hour gone, potters, one hour
gone.

It's another 5cm, so it's good.

Much better, much more meaty.

Right, drying room.

Before construction can begin...

I feel happy that I've got this
big beast.

..each piece of the potter's water
filters must be dry

and firm enough to support its own
weight.

Ah.

Oh, BLEEP.

Oh. Oh. You're a tool.
I knocked this and

just put a ding in the side of it,
but, um,

I should be able to hide it with
a sprig.

And while their water filter
sections and thrown pots dry...

Hiya, Donna. Oh, nice knob.

..the potters can turn their
attention to their homemade sprigs.

So I know it looks like
I'm buttering bread,

but in actual fact, I'm filling my
homemade sprigs.

I made the sprig moulds by

making a tile and carving my design
into it.

And then I've poured plaster
of Paris over it to make a mould.

This is the first time
I've made sprig moulds.

First time I've tried the sprig
mould

and it is not very good.

It's not gonna help me on my
finishing mission, is it?

Crap sprigs.

Is this the rope? Yes, this is the
rope.

Is that how you lift them up?

Yeah, so if you stick the...
I've always wondered about that.

Stick the clay on. Then I should be
able to pull it out

a little bit more successfully.

Fantastical. All right. Thank you.
See ya.

While most of the potters are using
casts or moulds

to make their sprigs,

Steven is taking

a different approach
for his larger decorations.

I've just decided to trace them

and then just cut them out once
it's dry. Because they're singular things,


I didn't need to make multiples,
so I figured, "Why not?"

So the inspiration
for my water filter is Venice

and taking students to Venice
to see the art,

the, kind of, Art Biennale.
Um, and it's just like a...

It's just such a magical place.

Steven's design will feature
Venice's famous Rialto Bridge with

a traditional gondola entering the
bridge

and a modern trading vessel exiting,

tying old and new together.

You've got very sharp angles,
clean lines.

Yeah. You know, making
the multiple sections, are you

confident you're gonna get that
really clean line to the piece?

Yeah, I think I've been measuring
quite, um, accurately.

I... I hope. Um...

Good. So what kind
of colour scheme are you going for?

I'm thinking of just using cobalt.

So my sprigs would all be blue.

I want to make it look like
an etching that you might see
in Venice.

By just, kind of, pushing it in

and then working it back
so it sits in those grooves.

Yeah. That's what I was thinking.

Yeah. Look forward to seeing it.
Yeah. Thanks, Steven.

Cheers. Thank you.

Potters, you're halfway through.

Hmm.

This is fun. We do like a
challenge, don't we?

The potters' kit of parts have now
reached the leather hard stage...

..and assembly can begin.

This is the plinth.
It's looking quite good.

It needs to be quite tough

because it needs to hold
the weight of the whole vessel.

And it's the moment of truth
for those careful measurements.

This is stressful.

Does it fit, Donna?

Just about, yeah.

Well done.

Cor, look at that.

This is a bit nerve-wracking.
Pretty good fit.

Let's not get over-excited, right?
This is the first join.

I stupidly decided to do two.

The next step is to join
the foot ring with

the main body of the pot.
This is my only join

and then it'll get
a little tap hole here for the...

..for the tap to go on.

Ta-da. It fits on there nicely.

Oh, well done, Dave.

We're winning at the moment.

Ooh, whoo-whoo. Whoops.

That's not gonna be good for joins.

The stronger the joins...

Putting some extra clay on like
a reinforcing band.

..and the most consistent
the thickness of the sections...

I knew this one would be
a little dodgy.

..the less chance the pots will warp
and crack apart in the kiln.

The base, it's maybe a bit too
thick. I've, uh, maybe overdone it.

I'm not happy with how thick this is

and how time is slipping away.
It's just a little bit stressful.

Is it? Yeah. You called?

Yeah. It's far too thick at the top.

So I'm just really trying
to compress it.

I'm gonna have to do quite
a bit of heating and trimming.

Turning? Yeah. You don't understand.
I really like the trimming.

Yeah. So that's good for me. Yeah.

So if I give you that, give you
that.

I'll just come back when you're
done. Give me a shout.

Potters, four hours gone, 2.5 hours
left.

Oh. There's a big coil on the
outside,

a big coil on in the inside.

Desperately trying to neaten it up
before I start doing anything else.

Need to stick it on the wheel,
I need to tidy that up.

HE GASPS
Oh, Dave. BLEEP.

BLEEP.

Are you OK, Dave?

HE SIGHS
You can do it, you've got it.

With an hour to go

and the first firing fast
approaching,

Dave now faces a race against time
to save his damaged water filter.

I'm gonna put a...

..coil foot ring on,

pack it underneath, turn it over.

Lovey, lovey, lovey,
lovey. Lovey, stop, stop.

Do us a favour. Centre the pot.

Centre yourself.

And then you'll centre the base, OK?

Everything central.

OK? Yeah.

I've got faith in Dave that he's
gonna pull it back, you know?

OK, OK, OK.

It's a sinking feeling when that
happens.

But, you know, it stayed in
one piece.

Now that their water filters are
fully assembled...

Ah, sweet.

..the potters must carefully apply
their homemade sprig decorations.

Ooh.

The sprig clay that we are using

is not the same clay as the main
body.

They have different rates that
they shrink.

This is why you have to score

and slip it so well or else they'll
just pop off.

Dammit. Just too thin.

I've given up on the waves.

The mould doesn't really work,
so I'm gonna do

the lobsters and that's plenty.

I'm putting the big sprig on.

Rich thought that when I fired it,

it would be break off,

so I've got to try and prove him
wrong.

I wanted it to be busy.
Maybe not quite this busy.

Gone a big sprig mad.

I'm rushing a little bit because of
my stupid

deconstructed lobster idea.

God, I hate myself.

Potters, you've half an hour left.

It's oxide time.

To bring their sprig decoration
to life,

the potters have been given
a range of oxides...

Bit of a weird texture.

Feels like painting on
with washing up liquid.

..which, when combined with the heat

and reduction atmosphere of

the oil drum kiln, should
change colour.

Want it to look kind of metallic
and industrial.

The lobster has copper carbonate
on it

and I'm hoping in reduction that'll
go a, sort of, deep red.

The thicker the oxide is applied,

the bolder and stronger
the colours will be.

My plan was to wipe it back,

but I think the firing it's gonna
fade,

so I'm gonna probably leave more
on.

It's just nerve-wracking.

Ten minutes left, potters.

And a gentle reminder, all your
items should be in the drying room.

This is gonna be a mess.
I wanted finesse,

what have I got? Frantic panic
again.

I had actually intended on having
rope on the lid,

but I've just run out of time.

Just detailing the lid a little bit.
Seagull, oh, no. Don't have time.

Trying to get a bit
of blue on this before time's up.

I'm kind of at the point where
I don't really know what I'm doing.

We're gonna give him a little blue
eye. God, I've stuff everywhere.

Final minute, final minute. Oh,
BLEEP.

Sorry. Ah. Go real slow.

Look at those fine biceps. Oh.

Wonderful, you should be so proud.

HE GROANS
Mind yourself, Steven.

I'm gonna go low. 10, 9...

Across, across, across.
Oh, my word. Wow.

..5, 4... Wow.



..2, 1... Well done. Whoo.

Well done, Dave.

Nah, come here.

Ah.

Why be such a stupid idiot?

Ah.

You know, you feel
a bit knocked sideways by it.

Couldn't speak for ten minutes.
I wasn't able to.

But now I've got to focus on
the second challenge.

You know, give it my best shot.

There you go. It's a throw down.

Throwing.

After a tough day at the wheel,

our potters are back to face
a second mystery challenge.

Rich has got the pins out.

OK, potters, so welcome
to your second challenge

and this week it's a throw down.

Ah surprise.

We will be making
a coffee filter and coffee pot

and to show us how it's done is
master potter, Rich.

Take it away. Right.

Ah. Oh, OK.

So you've got three different sized
lumps of clay.

You're gonna start with the kilo
for the body.

So you're gonna go in with your
thumb,

create the base.

Start bringing the walls up

and then essentially this is just
a tall cylinder.

And I'm really keen
to see lovely straight sides,

good control of the clay.

Are you keeping a bit of clay up at
the top of the rim there?

I am, because that will
need to be robust enough

to support the weight of

the coffee filter when it's put
on top.

I'm then just gonna trim the base.

Then gonna use the card
to run it up the side,

just refining that shape.

We're week eight,
so we're looking for precision.

And finish. And finish.

And then you're gonna pull
a spout onto this.

Just teasing that up to get
a nice thin edge.

And just pull that out into a spout.

So remove that from the wheel,
pop it to one side.

And what you'll
need to do is make sure you take

the width of the top of your coffee
pot.

Next lump.

So what I will now do, when
I centre this lump...

..I'll set the width of the lump of
clay to

the width of your coffee pot. OK?

And then bring a lump in.

Finger all the way down to
the bottom.

Cos you need a hole for
the coffee to come through.

And then the first pull
I'm gonna keep quite upright.

Then the subsequent pull

I'm gonna start flaring that shape
out to create

the body of the filter.

So I'm looking for
a really lovely flared top.

And then make sure this base is nice
and flat.

Gently peel it up.

And then we're on to handles.

We're gonna do a kind of candy
twist...

Ooh. ..handle. So it's gonna be a
coil.

To put that twist in, you're gonna
use a guide stick.

I'm gonna roll it down the handle

and that will put a twist into it.

And then, finger on the inside,

and just give the handle
a bit of a wiggle.

And a bit of a push on.

And then the same exercise with
the coffee filter.

And then once you're happy that
those are stuck on,

you can bring it up to the front
for judging.

That's fantastic. Thank you very
much.

OK, potters, back to your benches,
please.

This is going to be judged blind,
so judges off you go.

Good luck.

You have been given 25 minutes

to make your coffee filter
and your coffee pot

and your time starts now.

Remember what Rich said.

Don't get distracted by his knees.

It's not something I've made before,
but I've always wanted to make one.

Love coffee, yeah.
I have coffee in the morning.

I will sometimes drink a coffee,
but really tea's my thing.

As a non-coffee drinker, this is
quite interesting, isn't it?

Really hard to do it properly.
A lot of pressure cos you only

get one chance, so got to get
it right.

I don't want to mess up this
bottom bit.

Try and keep the edge nice
and neat and tidy.

Oh, how do I do this?

Getting the speed right on these
wheels is the tricky bit.

WHEEL SQUEAKS

What in God's name is that noise?

It didn't sound like this when
Rich did it.

Sorry.

Just straighten it up a little bit
more.

I'm struggling with getting
the vertical nature of this

and now I've made a mess around
the rim. Ah.

What a twit.

Potters, you're halfway way through.
Halfway through.

Next we've got the filter section.

The most important bit is trying
to get it to fit the top.

Oh, hang on. Let me just check.

I'm guessing I'm there or
thereabouts.

Quite a difficult technique

to throw two pots effectively like
a flat plate

and a funny shape on top.

You've got to widen it out without
causing it to lose its shape.

This is quite an interesting trick

and I suppose once you know how
to do it, it's quite cool, isn't it?

All right, Donna?
Yeah, I'm just trying to beat Dan.

You're just trying to beat Dan?
Yeah, if he beats me in

the throwing challenge, I'll never
live it down.

Potters, you have five minutes left.

Really? Seriously?

How are we getting on, Steven?

Nearly done with the filter.

Fantastic. Dave, have you moved on to
handles?

I've not done handles yet.

Has anyone started on handles?

Me. Dan has, obviously.

A nice delicate handle for

the top and a big fat handle for
the bottom.

Ah. No, no, no.

Right, here goes, it's gonna come
off,

it's gonna come off whatever.
I'm gonna need to tidy that up.

So I'm just rolling the handles
now.

Rich makes it look incredibly easy,
I just know it's not gonna be.

Oh, nice.

Well, that looked easier than what
it is. Right.

You're gonna get the handles in?
Yeah.

Does it help if I talk to you?
Yeah, yeah. Oh, right, OK.

Uh, it was a cold December day of


My mother was unsure about
the feeling and... OK, I'll leave
you. Oh, wow.

Final minute. One minute remaining.

Put on those handles carefully
yet firmly.

Firmly.

Too big, too big, too big.

Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle. Right, OK.

Gonna tidy this up cos it's
so messy.

Oh, this is nice.

Oh, it's way too floppy.

Okey dokey.





Step away from your coffee pots
and filters. Well done.

Oh, man, that went like that.
That went so fast.

Potters, please bring your
coffee filters

and pots up to your wareboards.

Cor, looking good.

Not bad, not bad.

Keith and Rich will now judge
the coffee pots

and filters,

and they have no idea whose is whose.

Ooh. Great.

Great, let's have a look.

OK.

Wow. Very lovely straight sides.
Very confident rim.

I'd say the candy twist handles look
pretty good.

Um, let's have a little test of
the size.

Feels like nice even wall thickness
on that coffee filter.

That's a great fit.
Yeah, it's really, really good.

Very, very nicely thrown.

Shall we move on?

OK, the coffee pot sides aren't
completely parallel.

The coffee filter, very nicely
thrown.

I quite like the bottom of
the coffee filter.

Yeah. That is really... Really well
finished.

Really lovely, yeah.

It's a very good fit

and I'd say the handle proportions
are very nice.

Yeah, it's a good effort that.

Number three.

OK, so this potter has managed
to keep

the coffee pot relatively straight
sided.

If anything, it's
a little bit narrower at the base

and wider at the top. Yeah, it's
flaring out slightly, isn't it?

Yeah. A nice generous rim, although
it looks a sort of

a little bit untidy in places.
Let's have a look at the fit.

Yeah, I mean you can really see
that profile now on that filter.

Good effort. Yeah, not bad effort,
yeah.

Nice. Number four.

OK, so a slightly wider coffee pot
and not so much height.

The profile on the filter is a bit
uneven.

Don't know whether that's
a wiring off problem or... Yeah.

..a removing from the wheel problem.

Let's have a look at the fit.

Yeah, so maybe the calipers were
just set a bit wide.

But not a bad effort. OK.

Last but not least. It's a bit
wider and squatter,

so perhaps it could've been a bit
narrower

and a bit taller.

The bottom profile is square

and the top profile is slightly
rounded

and I think the handle is perhaps
a little thin.

Let's test the fit.

Bit on the wide side.

A little on the wide side.
So we've got...

Small but perfectly formed.

The coffee pots and filters will now
be ranked from worst to first.

In fifth place we have this one.

Dave. Dave. It's just
the mismatch between the profile at

the bottom and at the rim

and slightly out in terms of
the proportions.

Jan is fourth and Donna is third.

In second place we have...

..this one here. Whose is this?

Dan. Really lovely confident
throwing.

It's just that slight taper out
towards the top on that coffee pot.

Thanks. So in first place

we have Steven.

Really well done.

Number one.

Well done, mate.
Oh, well done, potter.

Donna's a force to be reckoned with,
so overtaking her in something

is a win. I'll take it as a win,
yeah.

I made something which
I thought was all right,

just there were four people who'd
made

a better one.
Course, it's not great to be fifth.

The big concern is that poor pot
which has been through a lot.

We're ready to get the salt solution
glaze on, everyone?

Yeah. Yeah. I can't wait to see how
that turns out, to be fair.

It's firing day at Gladstone

and the potters' oil drum kilns are
waiting to be assembled.

Well, first of all, how are you
gonna get it in?

But first they must collect their
vintage style water filters which

have been bisque fired from kiln
technician, Rose.

Morning, potters. Good morning.

I just hope that all the sprigs are
on and that there's no cracks.

It's gonna be more extreme than
a normal electric firing.

So there's more room for things
to go wrong.

Oh, wow. Wow, look at that.
Oh, that's great.

Oh, there's a crack. Bit of a crack.

Yeah. Hopefully that won't open up
anymore. Cool.

Well done, Steven, well done.

To be fair, I'm quite concerned.

The make was pretty frantic

and I'm not entirely sure all my
joins are joined.

Ooh, look.

Right. Here you go.

It's in one piece.
Oh, my enormous knob has come off.

Oh, no. Ooh.

Ooh. Ooh, I have a crack in my
bottom. There's a shame.

Never mind.

Right, Dave.

I really don't know what I'm gonna
find.

I was putting wet clay onto
dry clay.

There are thick bits and thin bits.
It's a proper mess of a pot.

Ah, good work, Dave. Here we go.

Right, so I've got cracks in some of
the edges. Oh, no.

I don't think it's gone all the way
through.

Well, your sprigs are on. Yeah.

It's amazing. That is better than I
was expecting.

Yeah. I'm a bit worried

because I had joined two
pieces together.

A bit worried if it's provided a
weak spot.

It's all a bit of a trip into
the unknown today.

Oh, wow. Ooh. Oh, it's gone brown.

Inside.

Oh, sweet. It's all in one, no
crack?

It's all in one, yeah. Gorgeous.

No pressure now, Dan.

Ooh. It's intact.

Oh, is it? Oh, got a little crack.

Yeah.

Ah, that's frustrating,

but I do remember smushing it on
and thinking, "This is very risky."

Well, good luck. Thank you, thank
you.

Yeah, I'm gonna dip.

In a first for the Great Pottery
Throw Down,

the potters are dipping their water
filters into

a solution of sodium chloride...

I don't really know how long it
should be in here for.

..which will melt and react with the
clay during the oil drum firing

to create its very own salt glaze.

So hopefully it'll go nice
and shiny when it liquefies or
whatever, whatever it does.

Why don't you do the knob
separately

and then you might glue it on
with the salt in the firing?

I don't know whether that'll
happen, but... Well, we'll see.

All right. Fingers crossed.

I'm gonna leave it in
a good time, cos I want it

to soak in as much as
possible, cos I think

the thicker and the saltier,
the better.

I'm gonna go again.

You double dipping Dave, are you?
I'm double dipping.

Double dipping Dave, yeah.
Yeah. Double dipping Dave.

Did you and Dan? No, I didn't.

With their pots safely dipped...

Oh, my.

..the potters are responsible

for assembling their oil drum kilns.

Trying to work out whether this
should be up

and in or whether it burns on the
outside.

And where they place their gas burner

and kiln shelf will be crucial
to a successful firing.

Dan is putting his all the way in,
is he?

No, I wouldn't put it all the way
in.

So I'm just putting the shelf in.

It's a bit low, that's what
I'm worried about.

You don't want the jet hitting
the bottom of your pot.

I'm trying to figure out how

to do this when I can't actually
reach the bottom.

No, no, can't reach the bottom.

Tell me where you want it put, Jan.

Right, well. What's going on?

I can't reach the bottom to put
the bricks at the bottom.

Oh, no.

Is this a problem you've come
across, uh, often?

I fell into a freezer, into a... in
a supermarket once.

And a nice lady had to help me out.

During the firing,
the potters will need to monitor

the heat inside their improvised
kilns.

Trying to melt the salt that's on
the pot,

so you want to get it as hot
as possible.

But instead of using thermometers,

they'll be using special pyrometric
cones placed inside the oil drum.

So these will melt and, like,
droop over

when it reaches a certain
temperature.

The first one is, kind of, your
guide cone.

And then the second one, when
that starts

to go, you know it's time to shut
the kiln off.

This is a window for looking at
what's happening with

the cones, but I need
a brick that's a good fit

so that we don't lose lots of heat.

With their kilns fully assembled,

the potters must perfectly position
their pots for

a safe and even firing.

Come on.

It's a little bit wonky in there,

but it should be all right.

What I'm hoping for is
a drama free firing.

Fingers crossed that
the crack doesn't get any worse.

Good luck, water filter.

Is it too tall? I dunno.

Maybe.

Let's flip the lid. Yeah, that's
better.

Yeah? Yeah, that works.

OK, so you're ready. Yes.

Let's fire her up, baby.

You just can't beat a big fire, can
you, really? No.

If in doubt, set fire to it.

Over the next few hours,

the potters' water filters will face
their ultimate test of survival.

Pots are in the kiln now.

We're ramping them up
to about 1,200 degrees.

It's a violent firing process.

I've got a large crack on
the inside of the pot.

There's every chance it's gonna
open up.

But although it's
a firing fraught with danger,

the judges are hoping to see some
dramatic decorative effects.

Now that the kilns are getting
a bit hotter,

this is where
the exciting stuff will start

to happen because that salt should
be reacting with

the silica in the clay... Yeah.

..and it should create beautiful
flashing, lovely flame effects.

That's what I love about this kind
of firing, it's the alchemy.

I'm hoping it's
going to be almost toasted.

Like a buttery piece
of toast, I thought, yeah.

It's not just the salt glaze effects
the judges are looking for.

That gas coming out
the top means it's reducing.

The gas-fired oil drum kilns
will restrict

the amount of air coming into
the chamber...

Oh, it's exciting seeing all
the flames coming out

the top and all
the different chemical colours.

..which will cause the oxides to
react

and revert back
to their metal form and colour,

a process known as reduction.

See all of the green flames
coming out?

I'm hoping that that is all of
the copper oxide burning off

and that'll get the reduction
and get the red colour.

With reduction underway

and the kilns now close

to optimum temperature,
timing is critical...

Still a little bit longer.
Yeah, before it's ready to go.

..as the potters must rely on their
cones to decide when

to finish firing.

One is bent over.

But the other one is still standing
up straight.

Means it's not quite hot enough yet.

Cos they don't want to turn it off
too early. No, no.

The last thing you want is it
to be underfired.

Oh, not quite.

It's a bit like looking into
the fires of hell.

So the shelf's gone now.

What's that?

The shelf that I put my cones on...
Yeah.

..has tipped that way. So one of
them's fallen off.

Oh.

Those cones are
the only thing you can use

to tell what temperature
the kiln is at.

He's having to judge it by eye.

Bless him, that's not ideal.

Yeah, the second cone has
started to go over now,

so turn it off, yeah.

She's called it.

Wow, that's quick.

The higher the temperature,

the more likelihood of getting
a reaction from

the oxides and the salt solution.

Yeah, it's gone. k*ll it? Yeah.

Yeah, we're there.

But too high and they risk damaging
their work.

Not hot enough.

I'm gonna count to a minute
and then stop.

Fine. Maybe two minutes.

Two minutes. 2.5 minutes.


it quits.

Three minutes, three minutes, yeah.
All right.

Dan and Steven seem to be leaving it
a lot longer. Yeah.

They just don't wanna go too hot,
cos if they've got cracks in

the pieces already... They could...
They could really open up.

Yeah.

Is either cone over yet?

Yeah.

Cos you want to go as high
as possible.

He's got a devil-may-care approach,
hasn't he? Yeah.

You've gotta love it.

Check again.

Yeah. All right, let's do this.

k*ll it, yeah.

Right, Rose, I'm ready. k*ll it,
please.

It's dead. Oh, ah, that's nice.

The kilns will now cool overnight.

Excited. Got... Got pretty hot.

How hot did you go, Dan?
- A little bit over.

OK.

Better hotter, I guess.

We shall see. Well, we'll see. Yeah.

So until the morning,

the effects of the firing on their
water filters remains unknown.

Yeah, I think it went really hot.

I dunno because
the cones had fallen over, so...

But I think it went really hot.

KILN DINGS
Oh, that didn't sound good.

Ooh. That didn't sound too good.
No.

Something's come off. Nothing I can
do.

Um...

It's judgement day.

The potters' vintage style water

filters have cooled overnight

and are now ready to be revealed.

Well, good luck, everyone.

The temperature went really
high yesterday

and I heard a little ping.

Not so much of a little ping,
it was quite a ding

and I don't quite know what to
expect.

Hello, potters. Hello.

You excited? Nervous. Nervous.

There's no getting away from it.
It's been a disaster.

We're quarter finals.
Everything's at a high standard.

Mine isn't at a high standard.

Hopefully the judges won't be too
mean about my little cracks cos

the pot itself is quite attractive.
It's quite ambitious.

I've put lots in there.

Right, Steven. How you feeling?

Very, very nervous. My heart is
pounding.

Right, well, take a deep breath.

Yeah, that's come off.

The whole base? Yeah. Oh, dear.
It's the temperature.

Think I went a bit too high.

They've lifted off a bit.

Yeah.

I was hoping for a bit of
a weaker blue, as well.

Never looking at an oil drum again.

OK. Right.

Oh.

Ooh. I'm pleased. I'm pleased with
that.

I love the colour. And no fissures.

Yeah, it's all intact. Super. Nice.

Yeah.

Ooh. Now then, no.

Here we go. Hold on. Oh.

The lug's come off.

There we go.

See, that didn't stick.

Well, my crack's opened up a bit.

But the decoration worked out fine.

Well done, well done. Cheers, yeah.

Let's do this. OK.

Oh, nice, Dave.

It's amazing this is in one piece.

What a massive relief.

Cracks round the edge
and cracks up the side,

but it's stayed together.
Everybody must stop breathing.

Ooh, OK.

It's all one piece I think.

Oh, no, it's not in one piece.
Whoa. Ah, brutal.

Wow. How you feeling, Dan?

Oh.

Oh, no.

Hmm.

Well, that sucks. Oh, yeah.

HE SIGHS

I'm gonna smash the lid now as well.

That's a shame.

Dan, I'm so sorry. Sorry dude.

The potters' vintage style water
filters

are now ready for judging.

Well done, potters. What a week, huh?

Ups and downs.

Dan, would you please bring your
water filter up to the judges.

How do you feel about it? Little
bit devastated.

I feel like a bit like
I've overreached on this.

Well, look, Dan,

the first thing you notice about
it is the form.

It's lovely.

It's just a shame that
the bleeding obvious has happened

and it's cracked.

It was perhaps a bit too ambitious

for that nature of firing.

I think maybe a slightly simpler
form would've worked.

But, you know, it does demonstrate
really accomplished throwing.

Thanks. Yeah, I mean, it's a bit on
the heavy side,

but the lugs are nice

and you've got that lovely toast
effect that you get

with this kind of firing.

There's some really, really lovely
elements.

The profile that you've got in
your sprigs.

They almost blend to nothing.

A lovely lobster.

Yeah, it's got depth, it's got
texture.

There's a green lobster,
but that's...

You know, why not? It's underwater,
yeah.

I think it's really lovely.

Hmm. A lot you should be proud of.

Jan, we've seen you struggle
with throwing.

Mm-hmm. But here it is,
it is standing up.

Obviously, yeah, there's some
cracks in there.

But what I love is that you've

learnt so much from doing this,
you know? Yeah, huge amount, yeah.

It's a very straight sided shape.
And you can, kind of,

clearly see where those sections
have been joined.

The surface is still
a little bit messy there and,

yeah, you've got
a very big split across the bottom.

To have something with

so much clay in it, it's always
gonna be a bit of an ask.

Yeah.

I mean, the thing that really
springs out for me

is this sprig here.

You like my sheep?
It's absolutely wonderful.

The sprigs are an absolute triumph.

Getting that kind of definition

and creating that depth without it
feeling like it's just a big lump

of clay stuck on is so difficult.

And I think you've done that
so effectively.

And you've got some real subtlety to
the decoration.

Yeah, I just love all the sprigs,

all the appendages really,
really work. Well done, Jan.

Cheers.

So, Steven, you make

a water filter that's too big
for the kiln chamber.

Yeah, yeah.

You have to turn your lid... Yeah.
..inside out.

And now your lid hasn't really got
that effect on it.

Yeah, yeah.

What I do like about it is when you
look inside those joins in there,

no cracks whatsoever.
Really, really well put together.

Considering the different
directions of

the form that you've got going
on there.

It's unfortunate that this has
cracked as it's cooling down.

Yeah. It's the construction that
has made that happen.

The sprigs, I don't know.

They feel almost like relief

decorated slabs that have been
applied to the surface.

You've lost that kind of detail,
haven't you?

Yeah. Which is unfortunate. Yeah.

I think it's only because it's, sort
of, such a block colour, it feels

a bit heavy and a bit stuck on.

I like the knob.

Yeah, this is really lovely.
And it's practical.

Thanks, Steven.

Thank you.

Well, honestly, Donna,

I think it's fantastic. Thank you.

It's really, really lovely.
Um, there's no cracks for a start.

Yeah. You've gone for a simple
shape.

This was thrown in two pieces?
Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Yeah.

I mean, you can see that. Yeah,
yeah. But it is wonderfully

finished off and, you know, that's
what we're wanting

to see at this stage of the process.

All of the sprigs have been very
well applied.

You've got one or two
lifting it slightly. Yeah.

But, you know, only ever so slightly

and the symmetry is really
quite lovely.

All of this decoration, it leads
your eye around

the piece and then down to the tap.

I think the fact that you've
just chosen

the one oxide works really,
really well.

You know the application that
you've got

with that copper has, sort
of, enhanced the detail.

Yeah, I really like it.

Well done. Thank you very
much, Donna.

Thank you.

Well, look, Dave. You had a
disaster.

Stepped on the accelerator pedal.
We've all done that many times.

I've done it many times, yeah.
And you gathered yourself

and here you are giving us
something at the judging table.

I really feel like it's just got
such character.

Even just the way it's given way
a bit.

It's a bit how we all feel at
the end of a long day.

You double dipped this, didn't you?
Yeah, that's right.

Yeah, that's worked really well.

It's a lovely even toasty brown
colour.

And you know what? That front
sprig, uh,

I think has worked really,
really well.

And then we've got the other sprig.

Yeah, I mean, it's kind of a
miracle. Yeah.

I was so worried. It might be that
that's holding it together
actually.

Oh, right. Yeah, yeah. Bit of
fortification.

Yeah, you've got some huge cracks
in there.

It's a shame. The inside, you can
see all

the fundamental structural issues.

From the outside it looks great.

But I just admire your tenacity,
Dave.

Well done, Dave. Thank you.

Thank you.

Good work, Dave.

Well done, potters.

Now, you have a little rest while

the judges decide who will be
Potter of the Week

and who, unfortunately, will be

leaving the pottery. Potters
dismissed.

Nice work, Dave. You be well proud.

It's so hard. Yeah, yeah, it is.

Keith and Rich have made their
decision,

and after an epic and dramatic week

in the pottery, it's time to reveal
who has made it through

to the Great Pottery Throw Down semi
final.

Oh, gosh. Can you imagine?

Staying another week?

Course I'd love to stay another
week. Who wouldn't?

Gut feeling is it's gonna be a close
run thing,

but I think it might be me going.

It would be incredible to get Potter
of the Week again.

Fifth time would be awesome.

I'm not gonna deny that it would be
awesome. It would be pretty cool.

Potters,

well done on an extraordinary week.

You've all done incredibly well.

The judges have made their decision.

This week's Potter of the Week is...

..Donna. Congratulations.

Well done. Well done.

Thank you. Well done. Well done.

Thank you.

The potter who is leaving us this
week is...

..Jan.

Oh, Jan. Jan. That's all right.

Brilliant.

That bloody sheep was awesome.

You know what? It's been a fantastic
journey.

Oh.

It's been an absolute blast.

It's been amazing.

Every single week...

..I'm going, "I can't do this.

"I can't do this. There's no way I
can do this." And every single week,

I've somehow or another managed to
do something that's kept me.

It's just been amazing, the
progression that you've made,

and the sheer joy that it's been
having you here. It's been an

absolute privilege. It was really
tricky this week to choose between

Dave and Jan, and I think in Jan's
you could very clearly see

the joins, it felt a bit untidy in
places,

whereas Dave's, despite his mishap,

he really persevered and he
delivered us a water filter

with such character.

That's a real testament to his
making skills and his ability

to join clay together.

Jan, you've made my job a lot of fun,
actually.

Two for two, it's been an absolute
blast.

Yeah. It really, really has.

Jan puts herself down a lot, and I
think she needs to realise

that she's a really, really talented
lady,

and she should be really proud of
the stuff that she's produced.

I probably will realise what I've
done

when I see it on the TV.

It's the fact that this place is...

..so steeped in history

and now I'm part of it.

Sorry.

So, as Jan says goodbye to the
pottery...

Congratulations, Donna. How do you
feel being Potter of the Week?

Is it a new experience? It's a lovely
new experience.

..Donna's vintage style water filter
takes its place

alongside her other four pieces in
the Throw Down gallery.

Into the semi finals is pretty
amazing.

And to be going in with those
Potter of the Weeks under my belt

is just an absolute dream come true.

Donna, she's firing on all
cylinders.

It's the attention to detail, it's
the finish.

But, in the semi final, it's all to
play for.

Dan, Steven and Dave,

they've all got strengths,

they just need to play to them.

Well done, my lovely Dave. Well done.

I really am gonna embrace this
lifeline.

I've made it to the semi finals.

I mean, that is just amazing, isn't
it?

It's so tough. I'm just...

I am speechless. Like, you know,

I can't quite put it into words at
the moment, yeah.

I actually can't believe, like,
getting this far.

But no holding back.

Gonna give everything.

Yeah, it's me and the boys.

I am gonna bring it for the girls.

Yeah, definitely.

They better watch out.

Next time...

This clay is so hard.

..the potters face the most feared
challenge in the competition...

Oh, God, this is terrifying.

..hand built toilets...

Stop wincing. I'm not wincing.

..and take on an intricate spot test.

What's the plan? Paint the plate.

Done.

Who will go down the drain..

Whoa. ..and which three will earn
their place

in the Great Pottery Throw Down
final?

Are you failing at this? Oh, no, I'm
not gonna fail.

Ooh.

No, that's not gonna happen.

If you'd like to apply...