Bargain Hunt expert Roo Irvine's 'heartbreaking' reason for taking career break
Bargain Hunt expert Roo Irvine shared the story behind her landing her role on the BBC show. The presenter has become a staple our TV screens, often making appearances as an expert on Antiques Road Trip and Bargain Hunt. Roo found fame in 2018 after joining the Bargain Hunt team. However, prior to this she had a very different career and had been working in marketing.
The TV star previously revealed she took a break from her marketing career due to a tragedy in her family. Her career in antiques then began, and she has claimed that her new path "chose" her.
Discussing her role on the BBC programmes and finding her feet in the world of antiques, Roo explained how she got her big TV break. "I would say it chose me. My husband and I worked in the marketing world and a big, heartbreaking change in family circumstances a few years ago, made us step away from life for a while," she said.
READ MORE:TV legend dies in hospital after career packed with mega-hit shows
READ MORE:Strictly Come Dancing star Dr Punam Krishan's famous husband as she gets emotional on screen
The star went on: "When we resurfaced, we opened a small antique shop in the village and one day, Antiques Roadtrip came visiting with Paul Laidlaw. "I was asked to join the team, and the rest is history. I believe life has its own plans for you, whether we know it or not."
The heartbreaking circumstances Roo referred to was the passing of her beloved father. She has been open about losing her dad in the past, explaining how she and her partner both lost their fathers within weeks of each other.
In an interview on the Things I Forgot Were Good For Me podcast, she explained how she and her partner had been living with her mum for six weeks again and needed to "find their feet again". Roo said: "We'd been with my mum for five... six months and we thought, well, we still have to pay the bills, what do we do?"
She continued: "And we recently became addicted to auctions, and we furnished our big Victorian house from them and we had so much surplus stuff.
"I'm just a magpie, my hand is always up in the air at an auction. And my hubby said, 'Well listen, why don't we start selling some of these on eBay online?'"
Roo and her husband Mark then began their small antique empire. The couple started selling items online and soon went on to open a shop of their own. Then, in 2015, BBC bosses from Antiques Road Trip contacted Roo and requested to visit hers and Mark's shop.
