Eric Knowles

FRSA The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), also known as the Royal Society of Arts, is a London-based organisation committed to finding practical solutions to social challenges. The RSA acronym is used m ...

(born 19 February 1953 in

Nelson, Lancashire Nelson is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Borough of Pendle in Lancashire, England, with a population of 29,135 in 2011. It is 4 miles (6.4 km) north of Burnley and 2.5 miles southwest of Colne. It developed as a ...

, England) is a British

antiquarian An antiquarian or antiquary () is an fan (person), aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artifact (archaeology), artifac ...

and

television personality Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group as a result of the attention given to them by mass media. An individual may attain a celebrity status from having great wealth, their participation in sports ...

, whose main interests are in

ceramics A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...

and

glass Glass is a non-crystalline, often transparent, amorphous solid that has widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in, for example, window panes, tableware, and optics. Glass is most often formed by rapid cooling (quenching) of ...

Early life

Knowles joined the London auction house

Bonhams Bonhams is a privately owned international auction house and one of the world's oldest and largest auctioneers of fine art and antiques. It was formed by the merger in November 2001 of Bonhams & Brooks and Phillips Son & Neale. This brought to ...

as a porter in the ceramics department in 1976 and became head of the department in 1981. By 1992 he had set up Bonham's offices in

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

. He returned to London to continue with directing the

Decorative Arts ] The decorative arts are arts or crafts whose object is the design and manufacture of objects that are both beautiful and functional. It includes most of the arts making objects for the interiors of buildings, and interior design, but not usual ...

Department, leaving in 2013 to join Dreweatts and Bloomsbury. In 2019 he joined The Hoard as executive chairman and has now opened a

gallery Gallery or The Gallery may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Art gallery ** Contemporary art gallery Music * Gallery (band), an American soft rock band of the 1970s Albums * ''Gallery'' (Elaiza album), 2014 album * ''Gallery'' (Gr ...

, The Pantiles Arcade, in

Corn Exchange A corn exchange is a building where merchants trade grains. The word "corn" in British English denotes all cereal grains, such as wheat and barley; in the United States these buildings were called grain exchange. Such trade was common in towns ...

The Pantiles The Pantiles is a Georgian colonnade in the town of Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England. Formerly known as "The Walks" and the (Royal) "Parade", it leads from the well that gave the town its name. The area, developed following the disc ...

Royal Tunbridge Wells Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in Kent, England, southeast of central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the High Weald, whose sandstone geology is exemplified by the rock formation High Rocks. ...

, although this was postponed until Spring 2021.

Television career

He first earned fame as a

expert on the

BBC's #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

Antiques Roadshow ''Antiques Roadshow'' is a British television programme broadcast by the BBC in which antiques appraisers travel to various regions of the United Kingdom (and occasionally in other countries) to appraise antiques brought in by local people (g ...

''. He has also appeared in such programmes as, ''

Going for a Song ''Going for a Song'' is a British game show that originally aired on BBC1 from 6 October 1965 to 16 October 1977 and hosted by Max Robertson, with Arthur Negus appearing as the resident expert and antique valuer. It was revived on the same chann ...

'', '' Going, Going, Gone'', ''

Noel's House Party ''Noel's House Party'' is a BBC light entertainment series that was hosted by Noel Edmonds. Set in a large house in the fictional village of Crinkley Bottom, leading to much innuendo, it ran from 23 November 1991 to 26 March 2000 on BBC One, a ...

'', ''

Call My Bluff ''Call My Bluff'' is a British panel game show based on the short-lived US version of the same name. It was originally hosted by Robin Ray and later, most notably, by Robert Robinson. Its most prominent panellist was Frank Muir. Format The g ...

'' and '' 20th Century Roadshow''. He has presented the 20 episodes of ''Restoration Roadshow'' on BBC for several weeks in the summer of 2010 (ending 3 September). He is the challenger setter and adjudicator on

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...

's ''Antiques Master'' assisting host

Sandi Toksvig Sandra Birgitte Toksvig (; ; born 3 May 1958) is a Danish-British writer, comedian and broadcaster on British radio, stage and television. She is also a political activist, having co-founded the Women's Equality Party in 2015. She has written ...

. As of 2012, he is on the UK TV show '' Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is''. After

Tim Wonnacott Timothy Wonnacott (born 12 March 1951) is an English chartered auctioneer, chartered surveyor, antiques expert, narrator, and a television presenter. He was previously a director of Sotheby's, one of the world's oldest auction houses. He is ...

left

Bargain Hunt ''Bargain Hunt'' is a British television programme in which two pairs of contestants are challenged to buy antiques from shops or a fair and then sell them in an auction for a profit. It has aired on BBC One since 13 March 2000 in a daytim ...

, Knowles became one of a number of 'guest presenters' hosting the show.

Personal life

Knowles is a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Arts The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), also known as the Royal Society of Arts, is a London-based organisation committed to finding practical solutions to social challenges. The RSA acronym is used m ...

and an Ambassador for the

Prince's Trust The Prince's Trust ( cy, Ymddiriedolaeth y Tywysog) is a charity in the United Kingdom founded in 1976 by King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) to help vulnerable young people get their lives on track. It supports 11-to-30-year-olds who are u ...

. Knowles is associated with several other charities including Headway, FABLE (For a better life with

epilepsy Epilepsy is a group of non-communicable neurological disorders characterized by recurrent epileptic seizures. Epileptic seizures can vary from brief and nearly undetectable periods to long periods of vigorous shaking due to abnormal electrical ...

), the New Mozart Orchestra and Wycombe Scanappeal. He has lectured at the Victoria & Albert Museum, the British Museum, and important national museums in Australia, Canada, the US, South Africa, France, Germany, and the Czech Republic. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and had the Freedom of the City of London bestowed in 2000. He is a published author on subjects such as Victoriana, Royal memorabilia, Art Nouveau, Art Deco, and René Lalique. His son Seb was killed in a road accident in May 2015.

References

External links

Scottishantiques.com
1953 births Living people Antiques experts People from Nelson, Lancashire {{UK-tv-bio-stub