Will Farmer
Director & 20th Century Design and Glass Specialist
Will’s love of antiques can be traced back to the tender age of just six months when he was taken to his first auction by his mum. Parked underneath the auctioneer’s rostrum in his Silver Cross pram he slept soundly and only cried on leaving the saleroom, a clear indication of a future career! His childhood was spent scouring auctions and antiques shops around Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Yorkshire with his mum and gran with the weekend of hunting rounded off by settling down to watch the Antiques Roadshow before school the next day. Back then Will's dream was to one day appear on the show, with something from his own collection...
Fast forward forty (or so) years and you’ll find a career auctioneer whose passion for ceramics, glass and 20th Century design goes well beyond the working day. A keen collector himself, Will’s idea of time off is, well... more of the same! Will is never happier than when searching out the things he loves, from Deco to Danish or Mid-Century to Modern! And the Roadshow dream... that came true back in 2004 when a chain of events led Will to be invited to join the Antiques Roadshow team as a specialist in ceramics, glass and 20th Century design.
What started out as a childhood interest has become a life’s passion and as Will always says, his job is his hobby and his hobby is his job! Even to the point that when he is being lowered into the ground, he would like the priest to say ‘going, going, gone’!
My favourite lot
A Pulcini glass bird, circa 1964 designed by Alessandro Pianon for Vistosi, setting the record for highest price ever paid through auction for one of these little birds.
Sold for £8,100 hammer
My specialist departments