Bargain Hunt viewers were left facepalming after watching a couple fork out £170 on an antique camera – leaving them exposed to a massive loss.
Sue and Stuart, who were playing for the blue team on today's episode of the BBC One show (January 16), had just minutes left to bag their 'big spend' ahead of the auction in Surrey. The pair decided to return to the Bell & Howell antique camera, which they had seen earlier in the show.
The couple wanted to try and haggle first as the item, manufactured in Chicago, US, was on sale for £220. After some discussion, the pair managed to get the price down to £170 – although the couple remained divided on whether to take the risk.
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But with moments to go until their time was up, Sue made the decision for both of them, shaking the hand of the dealer, despite their assigned expert Ochuko Ojiri being on the fence.
Viewers' opinions were less on the fence as many took to social media warning that the pair spent too much and wouldn't be likely to see a return on their investment at auction. Taking to X (Twitter), one wrote: "No not the camera that's going to be a big loss."
Another added: "Yeah that woman bought it for half the price I bet." A third commented: "I think they could be exposed to a loss with the camera." Others shared gifs of them face-palming over the over eager decision.
When auctioneer took a look at it, he said: "It's quite a cool thing and it's got those three turret lenses as well, which is quite sought after at the moment, particularly in cameras." However, he estimated that it would only be worth around £40 to £60.
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"Bit of running to do here, they paid £170 for it," host Eric Knowles said. To which, the expert replied: "Ouch! Fingers crossed for them anyway."
When it went before the bidders, it did better than the expert's estimated but viewers were still right about it being a loss. The camera sold for just £90 — leaving the blue team with an £80 loss.
Thankfully, the couple made up some of the loss with profits from some of their other purchases. Overall, the blue team lost the game with -£22, but the reds also finished on a loss with -£10.
