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The Repair Shop star Suzie Fletcher left in tears over emotional connection to priceless saddle
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During Wednesday night’s episode of The Repair Shop, expert Suzie Fletcher was brought to tears over the reconstruction of one of the guest’s saddles.
Presented by Jay Blades, The Repair Shop gives its customers the chance to have items close to them restored to their former glory.
In the episode, Dominic Chinea was tasked with restoring a retro roundabout, while expert Will Kirk was astounded when a First World War dominoes set was brought into the workshop, believed to have survived The Blitz.
One of the most touching parts of the episode was when Suzie was left emotional after using her leather skills to repair a woman’s 19th-century saddle bought in Texas.
It was clear Suzie was excited about restoring the item, as she commented: ‘It’s beautiful’.
Sarah, the owner of the saddle, explained that when she was in her late 30s she went on a ‘dude ranch holiday’, which is where you ride the range as a tourist with real horses and real cowboys.
She revealed that during her time there she fell in love with the head wrangler.
‘I came back after two weeks and cried all the way home on the plane and thought “I don’t want to live in Wales,” so I got a one-way ticket back to Texas,’ Sarah said.
‘As soon as I set foot there, I knew I belonged there. The wonderful romance was great because that gave me confidence and we spent a wonderful time together for two years riding through the hill country with just a horse trailer and our two horses.’
Even though the relationship didn’t work out, Sarah said the saddle helps her feel connected to this time of her life and acts as a ‘magic carpet’.
‘It really does have the effect of making me feel more able to have another adventure because I think I do have another adventure in me,’ she added.
Suzie worked her magic and was able to return the saddle to its former glory after she admitted she had fallen in love with it.
Sarah struggled to hold back the tears once the finished product was unveiled.
The expert went on to express her gratitude to Sarah for bringing the saddle to the workshop, and she, too, burst into tears.
The professional restorer revealed she has her own emotional connection to the saddle, as she explained that she followed a similar path.
‘I want to thank you for bringing it in because… I too lived in America,’ Suzie explained.
‘I sort of lived around the cowboys as well in Colorado and I hadn’t realised how I hadn’t been thinking about these memories.
‘So, thank you for helping me start to think about those memories. You now have the inspiration you need in your life.’
The Repair Shop returns on Wednesday at 8pm on BBC One.
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