Tim Lovejoy, 51, wound up revealing he had been engaging in illegal activity by accident as he and Simon Rimmer, 56, spoke to mudlarker Lara Maiklem about the pastime on Sunday Brunch this morning. Mudlarking is the act of hunting for often historical artefacts on the foreshore of rivers and it soon transpired Tim was a fan of the activity, enjoying days spent scoring the edges of the Thames with his child. However, towards the end of the conversation, the presenter noted it was in fact prohibited to mudlark without a permit. “The news that I took well before the show is that you need a license, apparently, to go and looks for stuff,” he said. “Uh oh…” Simon chimed in, quipping: “Have you got a license, Tim?”
Smiling sheepishly, Tim held his hands out, pretending to offer his wrists up for handcuffs.
“They’ll be waiting for me outside,” he joked.
In an attempt to clarify the rules around mudlarking, he asked Lara: “I’m allowed to walk but I’m not allowed to look down?”
“Anyone going down onto the foreshore with the intention of looking needs to have a license from the Port of London Authority and they’re easy to get,” she replied. “Anyone can apply for one.
“It’s partly to protect the foreshore, to stop people from just taking whatever they want.
“Criminals like Tim is basically what you’re saying,” Simon interjected, prompting laughter from the rest of the guests.
Those wanting to go mudlarking on the foreshore of the Thames are required to acquire a permit from the Port of London Authority.
According to their website, there are two types of permit: standard, which allows digging to a depth of 7.5cm (for all new applicants) and mudlark, which allows digging to a depth of 1.2m.
An adult permit for 2019 costs £80, but £35 daily permits are also available.
Elsewhere, Sunday Brunch host Simon Rimmer’s former co-star addressed her exit from Trick of the Restaurant Trade.
In an exclusive interview with Express.co.uk, Kate Quilton, 35, opened up about leaving the show after just one series.
“Unfortunately I only got to make one series of Tricks of the Restaurant Trade and I absolutely loved it,” she said. “It’s still going now, with Simon Rimmer and Adam Pearson, who is a fantastic presenter as well.”
She went on to explain the reason behind her departure, saying: “I had to leave that little gang because I didn’t have the to work on the show.”
Tim and Simon have been fronting Sunday Brunch since it first aired in 2012, having previously hosted the BBC’s Something for the Weekend together.
The show is always eventful, with last week’s seeing Simon Rimmer shocked when Bob Mortimer almost dropped the F-bomb live on air.
Bob, 60, got stuck in preparing one of the dishes but hit a bump in the road when a saucepan of water started to bubble over, causing flames to spark from the hob.
Recoiling, the comedian appeared to narrowly avoid saying “f***”.
Laughing, Simon seemed shocked at the near miss, exclaiming: “Wow!”
Sunday Brunch airs Sundays at 9.30am on Channel 4.
