TWO women who run a Monmouthshire community café have been rewarded with a trip as part of a new BBC series.

TV producers descended on Rogiet and Abergavenny at the end of last month to film two episodes of Street Auction, a new BBC show presented by Paul Martin of Flog It which will be aired in September.

Prior to filming, neighbours in each of the two areas had been asked to donate unwanted and unloved items which were then sold at a ‘pop up’ auction..

The idea was to bring the community together and the auction included a street party with entertainment and stalls selling cakes, bric-a-brac, books and plants. At Rogiet, hundreds of people turned up.

All the money raised was donated to individuals nominated by members of the community, who only discovered their fortune on the day.

Lloyd Hooper, from the BBC, said the Rogiet day was "a huge success".

He said: “The kind people of Rogiet turned up in their droves, and we raised well over double our original target and the sun even shone upon us.

“In a surprise twist at the end, it was revealed that Fay Baxter and Ilona Watson had been nominated for the programme for the tireless work they do for their community, particularly with regards to the Rogiet Community Café.”

The money raised by their friends and neighbours is being spent on a West End theatre trip for the pair as a thank you. The rest of the money will go back into the Rogiet community café.

Presenter Paul Martin said: “The wonderful spirit of the people of Rogiet was on display in full force today.

“Hundreds of people turned up, we had an abundance of volunteers, donations and support from everyone.

“The proof really is in the pudding with the amount of money the community raised for the cause - it’s been a fantastic day.’’

Sara Warshawski nominated Ms Baxter and Ms Watson, the café founders, for their community work.

She said: “The actual hours they do in the café is about three and a half, but with all the baking and shopping it’s around 25 hours a week.

“There are also a team of volunteers who are amazing.

“We had to lie to [Fay and Ilona] and keep it a secret for two months which was hard.”

Ms Warshawski said the event shows Rogiet would love a fun day and that one does work.