I am not sure I remember exact details of the auction, after all I was working from a book of numbers, without any mention as to the item description.
The Victoria and Albert room has a slightly noisey air conditioning system, I could hear the hum of the fans all the time, and with the two girls at my table coughing together (and yawning), there were distractions for the auctioneer. The sound system provided by the hotel was a real piece of junk, and worked only from time to time. I also can hear little from my left ear, so I understand the sound difficulty.
I had one bidder sit in a chair directly behind a pillar from me, and both myself and my spotter (Kathy) didn't see him bidding. As luck would have it, Eric spotted him from a different angle. Better you sit up front than get confused about what lot we are on. I do not want to yell with 992 lots to go in an evening, however, a better sound system would be nice as well.
Rick