As there are no flea markets near where I live (or anywhere in the UK that I know of), I have to make do with this place when I feel the need to pick up some old toot. Whilst shopping at the Kingston Antiques Centre is nowhere near as cheap an experience as a flea market, it is almost as varied and musty, comprising two packed floors of antiques (of mostly dubious provenance) from a range of eras with everything from Victorian knickknacks through to substantial pieces of mid century modern furniture on sale.

I’ve bought a couple of really nice things here (a probably fake Arne Jacobsen lamp, a colourful piece of 1950s Italian pottery, a vintage Steiger clock and a 1950s modernist statuette of a lady pulling a rather camp pose) over the years and there’s a sufficiently high turnover of stock to keep coming back semi-regularly.

The best thing I’ve seen here was a beautiful rosewood Hans Olsen dining table (with the chairs that slot in underneath) for about £500. There is a risk that putting such a retro-looking furniture set next to my Poul Cadovius shelving system would tip my living room into retro pastiche territory but if I ever see one again, I’ll probably take that risk.