30/10/15: Shiny & stylish adult bunny set (Age UK)

Age UK, Swanage. If you weren’t tempted by the “beatnik wig”, maybe this “shiny & stylish adult bunny set” is more your kind of thing.

30/10/15: Beatnik wig (Age UK)

Age UK, Swanage. Formerly £9.99, now £3.99, this wig is both "unisex" and "beatnik".

10/10/15: Wanderlust (Barnardo's)

Barnardo's, Whetstone. Always worth a look at the DVD shelf. Was tempted by The Rutles and Scott Walker 30 Century Man, although not tempted enough to spend £1.99 in either case. Of the others shown here, I have previously enjoyed watching GoodFellas, Prometheus, Skyfall and Almost Famous. The least tempting disc by some distance was Wanderlust, whose oxymoronic description as "a comedy starring Jennifer Aniston" is enough to send a shudder right through me.

04/10/15: The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton (North London Hospice)

North London Hospice, Whetstone. This 2013 Booker Prize winner was in (nearly) mint condition and only £1 – cheaper than many of the mangled paperbacks on offer. Should I take his as a warning that it's an unreadable disaster? It has 74 one-star reviews on Amazon, of which this one is typical: "A dreadful mess. A dreadfully long mess. A complex plot, delivered in a confusing way. Twelve sections of ever-decreasing length, with ever-shortening chapters with ever-lengthening preambles. Twelve characters representing (I assume) different signs of the zodiac, but all devoid of emotion. I failed to identify with any of them, and indeed most of them seemed indistinguishable except by name and profession. Their personalities lacked depth and I got no sense that the writer had any sensitivity or understanding of them – certainly if she did, she failed to convey it. How this got shortlisted for the Man-Booker prize is beyond me. It is simply not a good read. Brevity in writing is a virtue. 832 pages is a chore."

19/09/15: Star Wars jigsaws / family of gnomes (North London Hospice)

North London Hospice, North Finchley. Slightly tempted by the original Star Wars jigsaws – particularly "Inside the Millennium Falcon" – although they seemed pricey at £5. Rather less tempted by the gnomes – "sold as family £20". Instead, I bought a bargain CD – Animals by Pink Floyd for only 75p:

06/09/15: Cher (Cancer Research)

Cancer Research, North Finchley. I was very tempted by this Cher T-shirt, except for the fact that it is sized XL. Price was £4.50.

06/09/15: Spiders (All Aboard)

All Aboard, North Finchley. Spiders is a 1996 album by Liverpudlians Space. For some reason there were four copies of this on the shelf. Also unwanted: Atomic Kitten, Five, David Gray and Madonna.

30/08/15: Kiss guitar (Weldmar Hospicecare Trust Caring for Dorset)

Weldmar Hospicecare Trust, caring for Dorset, Swanage. This is an axe-shaped guitar with Kiss heads at one end. It was very heavy, in every sense of the word.

16/08/15: "Due to a water leak..." (Barnado's)

Barnardo's, Whetstone.

02/08/15: Philomena (Norwood)

Norwood, Golder's Green. The sign said "All single DVDs £1". There was a stack of still-shrinkwrapped Philomena DVDs. I fancied seeing this thought-provoking Dench-meets-Coogan drama, so I took one of them to the till. The lady there was speaking on the phone, distracted. She said "Two pounds." I pointed out the sign and she replied "No, these came in yesterday", as if that proved something. This irked me, so I left sans disc.

29/07/15: Jumping Jack Flash (Age UK)

Age UK, Swanage. "Jumping Jack Flash" on the radio. Not much else going on.

29/07/15: Catsuit (Weldmar Hospicecare Trust Caring for Dorset)

Weldmar Hospicecare Trust Caring for Dorset, Swanage. Inside: a poor book selection and a £3.50 Eagles T-shirt that did not detain me for long. Outside: a brown, plastic caveman club, a pink wig and a catsuit – "adults medium" – priced at £15.

29/07/15: Sorry – we are NOT taking part in the window competition (Oxfam)

Oxfam, Swanage. There was a strange beeping noise coming from the direction of the till, almost – but not – in time with the music on the radio. It was quite enjoyable – for a while. Nearly bought a huge novel (The Count of Monte Cristo), but didn't want to have to carry it around Swanage with me all day and then heave it all the way back to London.

20/06/15: No Angel (North London Hospice)

North London Hospice, Whetstone. CDs included Saint Etienne, Boo Radleys, Echobelly, a slightly tempting Bryan Ferry bootleg, plus two copies of the obligatory No Angel by Dido. In the book section, the signed copy of Nick Rhodes' polaroids anthology from 1984 had been sold. I should have bought it and sold it on eBay.

20/06/15: Down the Road (Barnardo's)

Barnardo's, Whetstone. Purchased Down the Road by Van Morrison from a selection of CDs that also included: Katy Perry, Funky Divas: The Autumn Collection, Armand Van Helden, Ray Lamontagne, Rihanna, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Regina Spektor, Lauren Hill (x2), John Denver, Pet Shop Boys, The Pogues, Diana Ross, The Style Council, Dean Martin, Usher and Elaine Paige & Barbara Dickson.

24/05/15: Singles... ... only 50p! (Bargain eh?) (RSPCA)

RSPCA, Highgate. "Singles... ... only 50p! (Bargain eh?)" reads the enthusiastic text on the fetching pink starburst. But surely they are only a bargain if they are good singles, and "Victim of Love" by Erasure was not a promising start.

23/05/15: Black Sheep (North London Hospice)

North London Hospice, Whetstone. One pound. Julian Cope's Black Sheep is probably the most obscure CD I've ever found in a charity shop. It's a double, too. Very pleased with this.

23/05/15: 'Hello!' (The Loft)

The Loft, East Barnet. 'HELLO!' screamed the woman at the till – but not to me and not to any of the other customers who were looking up, slightly alarmed, and distracted from their browsing. 'Hello! HELLO! HELLO!!' In fact, she was shouting into a mobile phone. It was too noisy for me. Had to leave.

23/05/15: Great Train Robbery (MS: Multiple Sclerosis Society)

MS: Multiple Sclerosis Society, East Barnet. Two of the staff and a customer were deep in (loud) conversation about the Great Train Robbery. One of the three appeared to have some insider information on the event. An underwhelming selection of books and CDs. The Best of The Nolans was about as exciting as it got.

23/05/15: Inside Out (Cancer Research)

Cancer Research, East Barnet. The CDs were £2 each. That seems pricey by modern-day charity shop standards – especially when those CDs are by Dido and David Gray. Had a quick scan of the books. They had a copy of Nick Mason's Inside Out: A Personal History of Pink Floyd, but very little else of interest.

16/05/15: Black shirt (North London Hospice)

North London Hospice, Whetstone. Black shirt, previously unworn, £2.75. Bargain.

10/05/15: Dire Straits concert programme (North London Hospice)

North London Hospice, Whetstone. Concert programme from Dire Straits' On Every Street tour in 1991–92 – in fact, their final tour. They played 216 shows and shifted 7.1 million tickets. This was going for 15p, reduced from £2.50. I did wonder if it might sell for a bit more on eBay, but was not sufficiently tempted to find out.

03/05/15: Clarkson (North London Hospice)

In North London Hospice, North Finchley, there were two girls at the till, studying their phones. A man walked up and said 'Don't you ever switch those things off? It's like an illness.' They just giggled. In the books section, there was no shortage of unwanted Clarksons...

03/05/15: Days Are Gone/Cara Massimina (R.F.F.R.)

RFFR, North Finchley: bought a Tim Parks novel called Cara Massimina for 50p, plus a two-disc version of Days Are Gone by Haim (still shrink-wrapped) for £1. The latter had rave reviews when it came out in 2013, so I am keen to hear it.

03/05/15: Led Zeppelin/Contra (British Heart Foundation)

British Heart Foundation, North Finchley. Bought the first Led Zeppelin CD (even though I have it on vinyl) and the second Vampire Weekend album (Contra), which I've never heard. 'Only 99p' say the stickers.

02/05/15: The Tide is High (North London Hospice)

North London Hospice, Whetstone. Would have quite liked this Blondie single. Unfortunately, there was nothing inside the sleeve and the disc was nowhere to be seen. Plenty of Tight Fit, Billy Ocean and Tracy Ullman though.

18/04/15: Cat Sense (Barnardo's)

Barnardo's, Whetstone. Brand new copy of Cat Sense by John Bradshaw for £1.99. Some cats have more sense than others.

11/04/15: Harry Styles / American Hustle (Barnardo's)

Barnardo's, Whetstone. The One Direction dolly was at a slight lean. He looks like a middle-aged farmer. Saw American Hustle at the cinema on the first day of 2014. One of the 10 or so best films ever. If you like the novels of Elmore Leonard, you will almost certainly enjoy this. It is a very neatly plotted thriller with a couple of con-artists and an FBI agent trying to out-con one another, and the emerging love triangle that complicates this further. The lead actors – Bradley Cooper, Christian Bale, Amy Adams and Jennifer Lawrence – are so good that they are a joy to watch. There's not a single scene or line that doesn't move the plot forwards or deepen the characters. It's funny, too. Several of the people involved (the director and three actors) also made The Silver Linings Playbook. These people know what they are doing. And who can forget the "Live and Let Die" moment?

28/03/15: McCartney (North London Hospice)

North London Hospice, East Barnet. A generous Beatles fan had clearly dropped in recently, based on this window display. In the vinyl section, too, there was evidence of the same donor: a selection of solo McCartney albums including Pipes of Peace, Give My Regards to Broad Street, McCartney II and possibly (I am slightly struggling to recall) Tug of War. I've heard McCartney II, which has its moments, and remain intrigued by this later-phase Macca, although not intrigued enough to pay the £2–3 asking prices on offer here.

22/03/15: Thelma & Louise (British Heart Foundation)

British Heart Foundation, North Finchley. Having never seen this modern(-ish) classic, I was more than happy to spend 99p to find out if it's as good as everyone says.

14/03/15: Skulls (North London Hospice)

North London Hospice, Whetstone. Lots of T-shirts with pictures of skulls on them. No purchase made.

08/03/15: Casino (North London Hospice)

North London Hospice, Whetstone. I noticed this film previously next door in Barnardo's. This time, I couldn't resist. And nor can someone else, by the looks of it.

28/02/15: Bande à Part, Birth, Nobody's Perfect (North London Hospice)

North London Hospice, Whetstone. The CDs were £1 each. The Keith Jarrett album (from 1971) sadly has the inside booklet missing. Nouvelle Vague play entertaining easy listening/bossa nova versions of punk and post-punk songs. The Anthony Lane book carries a Martin Amis quote on the cover stating that "Anthony Lane has energy, wit, taste [and] learning". For £1.75 it seemed a bargain – 752 pages of film and book reviews. His review of The Scarlet Letter begins "What is the point of Demi Moore? It's not that I don't get her; I simply can't see what's there for the getting." This looks like an ideal train-journey read. Just need to get a train somewhere.

22/02/15: Casino (Barnardo's)

Barnardo's, Whetstone. After enjoying GoodFellas, I was tempted by this (sort-of) follow-up Scorsese film, but not tempted enough to buy it. Is it worth seeing?

21/02/15: Music books (North London Hospice)

North London Hospice, Whetstone. There were music books on J. Cash, M. Jackson, M. Jagger, V. Morrison and P. Hook's saga of the Hacienda. I already own the two I wanted to read (Morrison, Hook) and was happy to leave the other three.

08/02/15: GoodFellas (North London Hospice)

North London Hospice, Whetstone. “Never rat on your friends and always keep your mouth shut.” DVD of the Martin Scorsese film from 1990. Saw it on TV many years ago and recall it being quite impressive.

08/02/15: R.E.M. update (Barnardo's)

Barnardo's, Whetstone. There seemed to still be four R.E.M. CDs left (see here). But on closer inspection, Out of Time turned out to include the disc and booklet of The Verve's Urban Hymns. The greens of the spine and artwork match, so you can see how it happened. The mix-up might also explain why this one isn't selling, although it cannot account for the lingering shelf presence of R.E.M.'s other works. Should I tell the staff?

01/02/15: Annie Hall (North London Hospice)

01/02/15: North London Hospice, Whetstone. The Philip K. Dick books were still there (see 23/01/15), and two blokey men were discussing the author’s merits. Then one of them bought a Kurt Vonnegut novel (Cat's Cradle) and they headed off, chatting happily. 

For the remarkable price of 15p I picked up the script book from one of the all-time great films. What a treat it was to relive this again today. My favourite line: “I was thrown out of N.Y.U. in my freshman year for cheating on my metaphysics final... I looked within the soul of the boy sitting next to me.”

01/02/15: Dead, killers, haunted (North London Hospice)

North London Hospice, North Finchley. The seasoned charity shopper will have become accustomed to the pleasures of certain patterns emerging on the shelf. In some cases, they will deliberately create those patterns. There was something satisfying in the Dawn of the Dead DVDs sitting next to Shaun of the Dead sitting next to Drop Dead Gorgeous sitting next to Natural Born Killers sitting next to The Replacement Killers sitting next to The Haunting in Connecticut sitting next to Most Haunted… Somehow, Justin Bieber has also sneaked in there.

01/02/15: White Ladder (All Aboard)

01/02/15: All Aboard, North Finchley. CD copies of R.E.M.’s Reveal and David Gray’s White Ladder can be found in most charity shops. Many of them have multiple copies. Perhaps I should have bought the CD by The Bangles. No purchase made.

31/01/15: Shell shock (Barnardo's)

Barnardo's, Whetstone. The "shell bra" has sold! Someone, somewhere in North London, is having "serious fun"...

24/01/15: Shell bra (Barnardo's)

Barnardo's, Whetstone. Shell bra. £1.99. "Serious fun!" says the packet. Bargain? No purchase made.

23/01/15: Eon (North London Hospice)

North London Hospice, Whetstone. Some good books on offer here today. The Wolf of Wall Street is well worth a read, as are the Philip K. Dicks and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Does anyone recommend In Praise of Older Women?

I snapped up another "SF masterwork" – Eon by Greg Bear. Based on the length, it will probably take me an eon to read – especially if someone else insists on reading it first...

23/01/15: R.E.M. update (Barnardo's)

Barnardo's, Whetstone. Quick update – Lifes Rich Pageant (sic) has gone, but Document and Up have appeared, so there are now five R.E.M. albums available.

18/01/15: Islands (Barnardo's)

Barnardo's, Whetstone (again). Charity shoppers who inspect the CD shelves will be all too familiar with R.E.M.'s orange-spined Monster – seemingly one of the easiest-to-find of all compact discs. Less commonly seen are pre-megastar back-catalogue items by the group, such as Lifes Rich Pageant (sic). I'm shocked to learn that "literate frontman" Michael Stipe didn't want an apostrophe. In fact, Peter Buck is quoted as saying “We all hate apostrophes. Michael insisted and I agreed that there's never been a good rock album that's had an apostrophe in the title." Untrue. What about this lot for starters?

• The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan by Bob Dylan
• The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter by the Incredible String Band
• It's Alive by the Ramones
• Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band by The Beatles
• This Nation’s Saving Grace by The Fall
• Tonight's the Night by Neil Young
• The World Won't Listen by The Smiths

Almost reassuringly, Shania and Britney put in their usual appearances. Shelf analysts will enjoy the neat symmetry of the Island Paradise CD sitting beside the (unrelated) Island Story disc. Also shown, from left: Beth Rowley, Basement Jaxx, James Bond Themes, The Stranglers, Sheryl Crow, Miley Cyrus. No purchase made.

17/01/15: No Parlez (Barnardo's)

Barnardo’s, Whetstone. Every charity shop in the UK stocks a vinyl copy of No Parlez by Paul Young. This shop has two. Just to the right of Paul is Basil Brush, looking rather fetching in his little foxmobile.

17/01/15: Singing Detective, Gateway, Tau Zero (North London Hospice)

North London Hospice, Whetstone. A man was complaining that the jacket he’d bought during the week was too large. He wanted a refund, but had to settle for a credit note. It's vulgar to haggle over these things – it's a charity shop! I was delighted to find The Singing Detective on DVD (all 392 minutes of it). Could be the greatest TV drama ever made – or rather, that's how good I recall it being when I saw it on the BBC in the 1980s. The man browsing next to me asked whether the shop had a DVD of The Railway Children. It didn’t. I was also pleased two find two "SF Masterworks" (£1 each): Gateway by Frederik Pohl and Tau Zero by Poul Anderson.

17/01/15: Shania Twain (MS: Multiple Sclerosis Society)

MS: Multiple Sclerosis Society, East Barnet. Good to see Bob Dylan's Chronicles on the bookshelf. Some nice plain white mugs at 50p. A young man was delighted to find a 1991 Super Bowl programme, and started discussing it with a member of staff, who said that her son went to the Super Bowl every year. Can that possibly be true? CDs on offer included two copies of the ever-present Come On Over by Shania Twain (one with sticker, one without), as well as the usual unloved Dido and Celine Dion discs. No purchase made.

17/01/15: Darth Vader (The Loft)

The Loft, East Barnet. A clothing-only charity shop. I tried on an attractive purple-ish shirt, but it was too big – and anyway the collar was worn out. They also had Beatles, Rolling Stones and Darth Vader T-shirts. No purchase made, despite the "Buy one, get one half price" sale offer.

17/01/15: Live is Life (Cancer Research)

Cancer Research, East Barnet. The 1985 hit single “Live is Life” by Opus was playing on the radio and people in the shop were singing along. Usual suspects on the CD shelf, including Bryan Adams, Johnny Cash and "classical music babes" Bond. Was slightly – but only slightly – tempted by the Paul McCartney anthology Wingspan. No purchase made.

16/01/15: The Supremes (Geranium Shops for the Blind)

Geranium Shops for the Blind, George Street, London, W1. A neat little shop packed with stock, some of it falling into the dreaded "vintage" category. I was in too much of a hurry to investigate fully. Always nice to hear "Baby Love" by The Supremes, which was playing on the radio and which remained lodged in my brain for the rest of the day.

16/01/15: Dr Who (Barnardo's)

Barnardo's, George Street, London, W1. Not much excitement going on here. A dedicated shelf offered "75 Dr Who books for £49.99". Working out at just over 66p per book, that should make a fan very happy – except that a fan would surely have them all already.

16/01/15: Britney and Steps (Cancer Research)

Cancer Research, Marylebone High Street, W1. More Britney. Charity shop regulars Steps also put in an appearance. In the unlikely event of being absolutely forced to choose one of these discs, I would probably have gone for the Meat Loaf (I read his autobiography last year and warmed to the man).

16/01/15: Britney and Celine (Oxfam)

Oxfam, Marylebone High Street, W1. A specialist "Oxfam bookshop" with a huge stock. A fair amount of music, too. Note the obligatory Britney Spears and Celine Dion CDs. It's no surprise to see the David Gray, Dido, James and U2 albums, either. Frequent charity shoppers will be wearily familiar with these unwanted relics from the bad old days of 1999–2002.

14/01/15: Han Solo (YMCA)

YMCA, Goodge Street (up the road from Oxfam). Just a lunchtime browse. Was slightly tempted by a Han Solo T-shirt, but did not purchase. Likewise, I did not buy the Pink Floyd CD (packaging mangled) nor the Jimi Hendrix CDs (have them already). No good books on the shelf. Was happy to leave empty-handed.

14/01/15: Hunter, Gram (Oxfam)

Oxfam, Goodge Street. Bought two books (nice condition) found in the room downstairs:
• Hunter S. Thompson – The Great Shark Hunt – £1.99
• Jason Walker – Gram Parsons: God's Own Singer – £1.49
When I got home I was dismayed to discover that I already have The Great Shark Hunt, albeit an American edition in worse condition and with a different cover. Dilemma: which one should I keep?

11/01/15: New Order, Tangerine Dream CDs (Barnardo's)

Over the road from All Aboard is the Barnardo's shop. More pricey than most, but not that much if what you're buying is a hard-to-find synth-rock CD classic (or two). The lady at the till asked me if these were CDs or DVDs, and I assured her that they were CDs:
• New Order – Brotherhood – £1.99
• Tangerine Dream – Rubycon – £1.99