A FIFE company has unlocked the puzzle of how to secure a key role for its vintage and antique products in The Crystal Maze.

Cupar vintage specialist Scaramanga is celebrating seeing its wares in last Friday’s celebrity special episode of the cult Channel 4 game show. This was the first in a new series overseen by “maze master” Richard Ayoade.

The Fife firm noted the episode had seen Dame Kelly Holmes unhook Scaramanga vintage iron keys from a board in the Medieval Zone but fail to find the right ones to unlock two of its vintage padlocks securing a 100-year-old teak storage chest it had also supplied, along with antique Indian door hasps and staples.

The show also bought another Scaramanga antique teak storage chest with a secret compartment, as well as seven more padlocks, the company said. Scaramanga added that it was thought these would be used in games in later episodes of the new series.

Similar vintage and antique padlocks supplied by Scaramanga featured in movies Paddington 2, The Hobbit, and Pan. The firm’s wooden chests were used in The Legend of Tarzan two years ago.

Scaramanga founder Carl Morenikeji said: “I was delighted to see our products play a key role in the show’s Medieval Zone. I didn’t have a clue how they’d be used as that’s a closely guarded secret, and I had to sign a non-disclosure agreement to not reveal any details about our involvement until the show aired.

“When I founded Scaramanga 12 years ago I never imagined that by now our reputation for original vintage and antique items, as well as our own bags, would be so good we’d become the first-choice supplier for so many leading TV and movie props buyers.”