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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| Vickers WW1 gun bought for £1k 'now worth nothing' | Vickers WW1 gun bought for £1k 'now worth nothing' |
| (about 7 hours later) | |
| A man who bought a World War One machine gun 20 years ago for £1,000 has been told it is now worthless by BBC Antiques Roadshow experts. | A man who bought a World War One machine gun 20 years ago for £1,000 has been told it is now worthless by BBC Antiques Roadshow experts. |
| John Needham, 73, said he and his wife "lived on Ryvita for a month" after he bought the 1917 Vickers gun. | John Needham, 73, said he and his wife "lived on Ryvita for a month" after he bought the 1917 Vickers gun. |
| He took it to the show on Cromer Pier, Norfolk, where gun expert Robert Tilney said it made him "the happiest man". | He took it to the show on Cromer Pier, Norfolk, where gun expert Robert Tilney said it made him "the happiest man". |
| But he said it was worth "precisely nothing" because it was "not up to the current deactivation standard". | But he said it was worth "precisely nothing" because it was "not up to the current deactivation standard". |
| Speaking afterwards, Mr Needham disputed the valuation and said he believed alterations to the gun could make it worth more than £5,000. | Speaking afterwards, Mr Needham disputed the valuation and said he believed alterations to the gun could make it worth more than £5,000. |
| The Vickers was a water-cooled gun with a range of 4,500 yards (4,100m) which was adopted by the British Army as its standard machine gun in 1912. It could fire up to 500 rounds per minute. | |
| Mr Needham, from Cromer, said: "I think the Ministry of Defence started releasing them from stores about 20 years ago, and I was watching them rapidly rise in price, so I thought I'll get one while they're reasonable. | Mr Needham, from Cromer, said: "I think the Ministry of Defence started releasing them from stores about 20 years ago, and I was watching them rapidly rise in price, so I thought I'll get one while they're reasonable. |
| "So I was quite pleased to get her [but] my wife was not over the moon." | "So I was quite pleased to get her [but] my wife was not over the moon." |
| Mr Tilney delivered his verdict on the show, filmed last summer. | Mr Tilney delivered his verdict on the show, filmed last summer. |
| He told Mr Needham: "You've paid £1,000 for your Vickers heavy machine gun, money well spent in my opinion - it is now worth precisely nothing. | He told Mr Needham: "You've paid £1,000 for your Vickers heavy machine gun, money well spent in my opinion - it is now worth precisely nothing. |
| "It has no value because it is not up to the current deactivation standard - you can't even give it to somebody." | "It has no value because it is not up to the current deactivation standard - you can't even give it to somebody." |
| Mr Needham said: "I love her because there's history there - I'm not caring about the money at all." | Mr Needham said: "I love her because there's history there - I'm not caring about the money at all." |
| The Police and Crime Act 2017 forbids the sale, swap, gifting or inheritance of any firearms deactivated before April 2016 within the European Union. | The Police and Crime Act 2017 forbids the sale, swap, gifting or inheritance of any firearms deactivated before April 2016 within the European Union. |
| Mr Needham said he hoped the law would change before he had to think about further work on the gun. | Mr Needham said he hoped the law would change before he had to think about further work on the gun. |
| Antiques Roadshow is broadcast on BBC One at 20:00 BST. | Antiques Roadshow is broadcast on BBC One at 20:00 BST. |