Hidden Treasures of the National Trust

A painting’s hidden story is revealed, a beautiful Chinese bridge is painstakingly rebuilt, and a 450-year-old table must be saved from collapse and made ready to go on tour.

Paul McCartney’s childhood home is lovingly restored; uncovering a unique collection of photos in Liverpool; and an intriguing modern art installation is saved from collapse.

At Chartwell in Kent, a model of the floating harbours from D-Day in 1944 is being conserved to make it stable for the future. The Beetle Wing dress and velvet cloak from Smallhythes collection in Kent, worn by Victorian actress Dame Ellen Terry in 1888 as Lady Macbeth, require over 450 hours of needlework. At Ightham Mote, Kent, some hand-painted Chinese wallpaper needs saving from an infestation of silverfish, and an investigation into the history of a curious advertising sign is underway.

An exquisite gallery made of seashells needs shoring up, a priceless Rubens is saved from falling down and an ancient Egyptian obelisk is cracking up.

A missing masterpiece returns to its stately home after two centuries; plus the search for a buried castle and the scrapbooks revealing one man’s mission to save English country houses.

Benjamin Disraeli’s grand estate gates are given a golden upgrade, the most important carpet in the National Trust gets a re-weave, and a Reynolds masterpiece is revamped.

Beatrix Potter’s dolls’ house undergoes major renovation at Hill Top, and in Clouds Hill, a mysterious painting belonging to Lawrence of Arabia reveals its secrets.

Kedleston Hall’s Peacock Dress, a symbol of the British Raj in India, gets a makeover, and a rare but damaged painting from Dyrham Park reveals a controversial colonial past.

A moving work of art from the modernist home of architect Erno Goldfinger undergoes conservation work, and hidden messages from an old master are discovered at Upton House.