Philip Serrell built his professional life through a notable change of direction. Born in Worcestershire and educated at Loughborough University, he first worked as a PE and Geography teacher before moving into auctioneering. That change eventually led to the establishment of his own Worcestershire auction business in 1995.
His later work has combined commercial auctioneering with specialist knowledge of antiques and fine art, public appearances, publishing, charitable fundraising and involvement with the Museum of Royal Worcester. He has also spoken directly about how the auction trade has changed and why discovering unusual objects continues to interest him.
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Full name | Philip Martyn Serrell |
| Nationality | British |
| Background | Worcestershire-born and educated |
| Education | BSc from Loughborough University |
| Early profession | PE and Geography teacher |
| Main profession | Auctioneer and valuer |
| Specialist area | Royal Worcester porcelain |
| Museum role | Chairman of the Museum of Royal Worcester |
How Philip Serrell Moved From Teaching Into Auctioneering
Before entering the auction trade, Serrell completed a BSc at Loughborough University and worked as a PE and Geography teacher. Loughborough University independently identifies him as one of its alumni, while his professional biography records his early teaching career.
He later decided to move in a different professional direction. His entry into auctioneering began at a local livestock market, where his early work included basic duties connected with Bentley Hobbs and Mytton. His own professional account describes an unglamorous starting point that included cleaning cattle pens before he gained broader experience of the trade.
Serrell has since discussed that transition in a direct interview. In 2024, he reflected on moving from teaching into auctioneering and on the career that followed. His public profile also treats his former teaching career with deliberate self-deprecating humour, rather than presenting the move as a carefully planned progression from the beginning.
The result was a career rooted in practical experience before he established a business under his own name.
Building His Own Worcestershire Auction Business
Philip Serrell Auctioneers and Valuers dates its establishment to 1995. The business developed in Worcestershire and became the main base for his work in auctioneering, valuation, antiques and fine art.
There are two relevant dates in the business history. The firm states that it was established in 1995, while Companies House records the present legal company, Philip Serrell Auctioneers & Valuers Limited, as incorporated on 31 March 2003. These represent separate stages: the start of the business and the later incorporation of the limited company.
Companies House continues to list the company as active. Its records also identify Serrell as a person with significant control, holding more than half but less than three-quarters of its shares and voting rights.
His professional specialisms include antiques, fine art and Royal Worcester porcelain. That last area has become particularly relevant to his wider public and institutional work in Worcestershire.
The business remained active in 2026, with a programme of sales scheduled through the autumn, including interiors and fine art and antiques auctions. Its continuing schedule provides current evidence that Serrell remains professionally involved in the trade rather than being associated with it only through past public appearances.
His Approach to Auctioneering and a Changing Market
Serrell has spoken directly about what continues to interest him in auction work. In a 2024 interview, he discussed the appeal of discovering unusual objects and the variety that comes with working in the trade.
He also addressed changes in the way auctions operate. Online bidding has become an increasingly important part of the market, and Serrell discussed its growth while reflecting on broader changes in demand.
His view is that the antiques market tends to move in cycles. That perspective comes from his own discussion of the industry rather than from an outside description of his business approach.
The combination of traditional auction-room experience and newer online methods places his career across a significant period of change in the profession. His comments suggest that he sees changing tastes and buying methods as part of the normal movement of the market rather than as a single permanent shift.
His Connection With Royal Worcester
Royal Worcester porcelain is one of the specialist areas identified by Serrell’s auction business, but his connection with it extends beyond commercial valuation and sales.
The Museum of Royal Worcester currently lists him as its Chairman. His professional biography describes him as a trustee, while the Museum of Royal Worcester’s current institutional information lists him as Chairman.
His role brings together his specialist knowledge and his involvement with a Worcestershire heritage institution. The museum also scheduled public tours involving Serrell and Paul Crane for 21 October 2026 and 9 December 2026.
These appearances involve direct engagement with visitors and the museum’s collections, adding an institutional dimension to his work with Royal Worcester material.
Charity and Public Work in Worcestershire
Serrell is also a patron of St Richard’s Hospice in Worcestershire. The hospice officially identifies him in that role, while his own professional website also records the connection.
His involvement has included using his auctioneering skills for fundraising. In March 2024, the hospice reported that he conducted an auction during its grand gala dinner.
Later that year, he was involved in an auction of 41 penguin sculptures connected with the hospice. St Richard’s reported in October 2024 that the auction raised £330,000.
His participation is therefore documented through specific fundraising activity rather than simply through an honorary title. The work also keeps part of his public activity closely connected to the county where he was born and developed his professional career.
His Work Beyond the Auction Room
Serrell has extended his auction experience into publishing and public appearances. His professional biography lists three books based on his experiences: An Auctioneer’s Lot, Sold to the Man with the Tin Leg and What Am I Bid? My Life Under The Hammer.
These books draw on his working life as an auctioneer and offer another route through which he has presented experiences from the trade to a wider audience.
He also continues to take part in antiques-focused public events and talks. An official production site listed appearances for September 2026 in Shrewsbury, Stamford and Epsom.
Alongside those events, his own auction house remained busy with scheduled sales later in the year, while the Museum of Royal Worcester had further public appearances planned for him in October and December.
His wider work therefore continues to sit around the same professional centre: auctions, objects, valuation, heritage and public discussion of the trade.
Confirmed Personal Interests and Public Details
Away from his formal professional roles, Serrell has publicly identified a few personal interests in his own words.
On his X profile, he describes himself as a petrolhead, and his professional biography also records a strong interest in cars. That interest is one of the clearer personal details he has chosen to make public.
He has also spoken about places he enjoys. In a recorded programme transcript, he referred positively to the sea, the Yorkshire Dales and the Lake District.
His familiar use of scarves has a practical origin. Serrell has explained that the habit began during early television work when a sound technician found that a scarf offered a convenient place to conceal a microphone. He continued wearing one after that practical beginning.
Family information is more limited. Serrell has publicly referred to having a wife and daughter, and he has directly identified Clementine Serrell as his daughter. Beyond those confirmed details, his public professional story is much more extensively documented than his family background.
Philip Serrell’s Career Today
Philip Serrell remains professionally active in Worcestershire in 2026. His auction business continues to hold scheduled sales, he serves as Chairman of the Museum of Royal Worcester, and his public calendar includes museum tours and antiques-focused appearances.
His career can be traced clearly from university and teaching into livestock-market work, broader auction experience and the establishment of his own business in 1995. Royal Worcester porcelain became one of his recognised areas of expertise, while charity work and museum involvement added further public roles around that core profession.
The strongest verified picture of Serrell is therefore not simply that of a public-facing antiques figure, but of a working Worcestershire auctioneer whose career developed through a substantial professional change and has remained closely connected to auctions, valuation and local heritage.
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