AKRON, Ohio — Now in its 28th season of identifying and appraising some of the most intriguing collectable items in the U.S., Antiques Roadshow will come to Akron on Tuesday, June 6.
About 2,000 Akron-area residents who sign up online will win free tickets to the show through a sweepstakes drawing, PBS said in a release.
Those wishing to attend to bring an item or two for appraisal will have until 3 a.m. Monday, March 13 to submit an entry, PBS said. Past shows have had up to 17,000 people applying.
The location of the show won’t be disclosed until those receiving tickets are notified, producers said.
Antiques Roadshow is an hour-long PBS program in which antique experts offer free appraisals for collectables and family heirlooms viewers bring with them to the show.
According to PBS, the roadshow is PBS’s most watched ongoing program, with about 6 million viewers watching each week in 2022. The show has been nominated for multiple EMMY Awards, as well as other television awards, PBS said.
Here’s how Akronites can apply for tickets:
- Fill out the online entry form.
- Once you submit your entry, you’ll receive a unique verification number via the email you put on your entry form.
- The email you receive back will contain a link so you can view your entry.
- A random ticket drawing will be held in early April.
- Winners will be notified via email in about mid-April.
- About three weeks before the event, winners will receive two e-tickets.
- The day of the show, winners must have their tickets ready on a mobile device or printed out.
While on tour, Antiques Roadshow will follow all COVID-19 health and safety protocols, PBS said.
In earlier seasons, the show was held at places like convention centers, so producers were more limited in cities to visit, said Executive Producer Marsha Bemko, who has been with Antiques Roadshow since its fourth season.
Now, Antiques Roadshow is produced outdoors, so this summer the production will swing through the Rust Belt hitting Akron for the first time in show history, Bemko said.
“We want to get across the country, and we want to make sure we're in all regions of the country,” she said. “We really like to get to places we haven't been, and Akron qualifies.”
What’s more, every ticket holder is allowed to bring someone with them, along with up to two items for appraisal, Bemko said.
With about 75 expert appraisers assigned to each location, Bemko encourages ticket winners to bring something they really want to learn about.
Ticket winners should to do an online search for the item to make sure they aren’t bringing something to the experts they could easily learn about through Google, she said.
Ticket winners also should not choose items to bring based on whether they will impress the appraisers, she said.
The appraisers are the best in the business and have expertise in many types of collectibles, she said. They regularly work with items worth thousands and sometimes millions of dollars.
“What really impresses us is a good story,” Bemko said. “So bring us your family items. We just love a good story.”
To help ticket winners decide what to bring, or not bring, view a list of items with photos and descriptions that Antiques Roadshow experts commonly see, according to Luke Crafton, Antiques Roadshow's director of digital content.
For more information about Antiques Roadshow’s 2023 Tour, visit PBS online.
