Bargain Hunt has seen its fair share of uncomfortable moments, and this incident is certainly one for the books – as the Red team had a heated disagreement on the show over an item.
On Tuesday’s episode (26 November), viewers were introduced to the Blue team, comprising Sarah and Grant, both cleaners and avid collectors. The Red team consisted of Trudi and Martin, a married couple who are big fans of the show.
The conflict arose between Trudi and Martin, who disagreed on the programme about which item they should spend their money on. Trudi was eager to save cash and wanted to purchase cheaper items to make smaller profits.
However, Martin had his eye on a striking British flag from a ship that he liked but it was not cheap at £65. Their assigned expert for their time on the show was Phillip Serrell, who was left speechless as they started to argue over items.
The dispute erupted after the pair had been wandering around the flea market for quite some time without making any purchases. They had reserved the flag for just 30 minutes, with Phillip now adding pressure that they would need to start finding a bargain soon, reports .
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Trudi and Martin came to blows over an item (Image: BBC One)
During the outset of the programme, both the Red and Blue teams receive a challenge they need to execute. Tasked with procuring an item pertinent to a women’s shoe, Trudi thought she had struck gold when she discovered wooden foot-shaped moulds also referred to as shoe lasts, priced attractively at £20.
However, Martin was not convinced and wanted to revisit a previous finda flag. Trudi dismissed his sentiment, stating, “It doesn’t matter; if I like them, then that’s fine.” To which Martin retorted incredulously, “Really?”
Trudi simply affirmed: “Yes.” The tension escalated as Phillip stirred the pot by suggesting to her: “I don’t think you’d fail with those at a profit.”
Trudi was keen to get her way (Image: BBC One )
He questioned the duo: “If you had to choose between those and the flag, which would you have?” Trudi didn’t hesitate, immediately signalling towards the shoe form declaring: “Those because they are cheaper.”
Phillip then sought Martin’s opinion, inquiring: “Martin, not that this has got any relevance at all, but what would you go for?” Martin expressed his preference: “Well I quite like the flag.”
Trudi’s patience snapped as she told him sharply: “The whole point and whenever we’ve watched this programme we’ve always said ‘people spend too much money, they lose their shirt,’ so we want to buy something cheaper that will make, even if it’s a small profit, a profit is a profit.”
Sarah and Grant didn’t have much luck at auction (Image: BBC One)
“So are we going to buy the flag?” Martin queried, only for Trudi to retort with visible irritation: “No, we’re not going to buy the flag,” while tapping her head in exasperation as she snapped at him: “Listen.”
The tension between them was palpable, so much so that even the narrator couldn’t help but remark: “Well this is awkward.” Nonetheless, Trudi managed to secure the wooden insole for a mere £15, proclaiming to Martin that it was “a steal”, to which he wryly responded: “Well I think it’s a load of cobblers.”
Despite their spat, it turned out that Trudi and her expert Phillip were onto something; the shoes fetched a handsome £35, netting them a neat £20 profit. The pair wrapped up their shopping spree with a minor loss of only minus £5 a result that unexpectedly snatched victory from the jaws of defeat as their Blue team rivals floundered with a minus £123 deficit.
Bargain Hunt airs on One weekdays from 12:15pm.