Antiques Road Trip presenter Roo Irvine, whose full name is Arusha Irvine, has opened up about how a devastating family loss played a part in her career.
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The expert, who runs her own antique shop in Scotland alongside her husband Mark, previously revealed on an episode of the podcast, Things I Forgot Were Good For Me, how the sudden loss of both her father and her father-in-law prompted the couple to make a big change to their everyday lives.
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Explaining how their business venture, Kilcreggan Antiques, was created, Roo said: "Up until about eight years ago, we owned a call centre on the Isle of Man, we were travelling around, we were in marketing sales and we were very much in the rat race.
"And about eight years ago, both of our fathers passed away within three weeks of each other. Completely unexpected on my part, the worst day of my life."
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© Photo: BBCRoo on Antiques Road Trip
The presenter continued: "And we recently became addicted to auctions, and we furnished our big Victorian house from them and we had so much surplus stuff. And my hubby said, 'Well listen, why don't we start selling some of these on eBay online?'
"We only discovered antiques because we discovered auctions and wanted to furnish a house and that's the first real contact I had with beautiful antiques that were one 200 to 300 years old."
The couple's business was then eventually visited by the BBC when Roo was asked to be an expert on Bargain Hunt, and the rest, as they say, is history!
© Photo: BBCThe presenter also recently became a lead host on Bargain Hunt
"It is one of those stories where from the darkest day of your life, a whole new adventure starts and it goes to prove what that day has in store for you," she continued, adding: "Just when you think you're heading down a path, it will take you down a different one."
Meanwhile, Roo was more recently asked to be a regular lead host on Bargain Hunt, after already appearing as an expert. Last month, she made her debut as a lead presenter on the BBC show, which she described as "exhilarating, exciting and great fun".
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