There were plenty of tears as one guest saw her cherished item brought back to life.

A guest on The Repair Shop broke down in tears the moment she laid eyes on her restored item (Image: BBC)

One guest on The Repair Shop broke down in tears as one of her beloved items was restored to its former glory. Christine Jagger was pinning her hopes on Will Kirk’s woodwork expertise to restore a gift from her past. She presented the expert with a garden bench that was given to her as a Christmas gift by her late husband, Gordon. “Sometimes he wasn’t very good at Christmas presents, so this was one of his better presents,” Christine laughed. “This was my most favourite present ever.”

The rustic wooden chair was made from an old wagon wheel, which acted as a backrest for the bench. The aged and worn wood had faded green paint and visible patches of moss on it. Christine recalled which side they both sat, while they’d enjoy coffees together in the garden.

The bench had been given to Christine as a Christmas present from her late husband (Image: BBC)

She explained that Gordon passed away from cancer in 2009, and since then, it has left the bench outside and gradually deteriorated into its current condition.

“It makes me sad that I haven’t looked after it better because it means so much to me,” Christine admitted.

She decided now was the time to fix up the bench because it would have been their 50th wedding anniversary at the end of that month.

Christine returned to see the restored chair and broke down in tears the moment she laid eyes on it. She instantly covered her mouth and let out a huge gasp, momentarily lost for words.
“It’s just so lovely,” she told Will. “I’m so grateful.”

Will Kirk managed to transform the bench, leaving an overwhelmed Christine sobbing (Image: BBC)

As she wiped away her tears, she asked the expert: “Can I sit on it?”

“Of course you can,” Will responded as Christine made her way to her side of the bench.

“The arms are just exactly the same,” she said. “It feels so lovely. I can’t wait to get it home.”

A tearful Christine added: “I feel like Gordon’s putting his arm around me and saying, ‘Will did good.'”

She explained that her two sausage dogs, Archie and Milly, would now curl up in Gordon’s old spot on the chair.

“I’m just overwhelmed because it looks absolutely amazing. It takes me back to when we were both sat there and laughing,” she told the camera afterwards.