Mark Critch loses accidental eBay bidding war— to his fiancée
Couple find themselves competing to buy the other the same Christmas gift
Finding the perfect gift for a loved one isn't always easy, especially for This Hour Has 22 Minutes star Mark Critch and his partner Melissa Royle, who were stunned to find out they were locked in a battle over the same Christmas gift.
In a twist right out of a romantic comedy like You've Got Mail, the soon-to-be married couple found themselves in a bidding war over the same piece of antique Newfoundland memorabilia last month.
It’s not really Christmas until you realize that scoundrel you were bidding against on eBay for an obscure vintage piece of local memorabilia was the person you were buying it for... and he was bidding on it for you. 😂😂😂 <a href="https://twitter.com/markcritch?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@markcritch</a>
—@melissaroyleThe prize? A commemorative plate from the now-defunct Trinity Train Loop, featuring the amusement park's mascot, Choo-Choo Charlie.
"I noticed there was somebody bidding against me and I thought, 'Who is this nerd?'" said Critch on Thursday.
"I mean surely to God I'm the only person on earth who wants this."
That other person, of course, was Royle … whose bid was coming from inside the house.
"I thought that's strange but you know it happens … but then [the bid] kept going back and forth and then I came down and asked Mark and turned to him and said, 'Are you bidding on something on eBay?'" she said.
After they figured it out, the couple decided to make a truce.
"Mark was the gentleman. [He] let me buy it for him as a Christmas gift and I paid I think a big whopping sum of $25 for it in the end," said Royle.
The antique was a special draw for both of them, as they have a cottage in nearby Trinity, and plan to get married there this summer.
"This having a Trinity connection was what made me interested in it," she said.
On Christmas Day, Critch unwrapped his gift, but it's not the first time the couple have had the same niche gift idea in mind, either.
Last year, fresh off binge watching The Crown, Critch and Royle both gave each other similar Christmas cards sent by the second lieutenant-governor of Newfoundland and Labrador.
Both agreed that their love of Newfoundlandia is part of the reason why they hit it off in the first place
"I think I found the only person who I could pick up with a shared love of Brian Peckford and Joey Smallwood," laughed Royle.
With files from As It Happens and On The Go