A man who made a drunken online purchase is now set to make a profit from his boozy shopping antics.

Gareth Palmer accidentally bid against himself after finishing a whole bottle of wine and ended up buying a large 14ft (4.4m) piece of artwork last October.

But now the 62-year-old is set to sell his drunken eBay purchase for £100,000 – which is almost £75,000 more than what he paid for it.

Gareth paid just under £20,000 for the sculpture – which is called Twisting by the Pool by renowned sculptor Malcolm Robertson. But he then had to pay another £5,000 to transport it, as well as an extra £800 for a police escort.

However, Gareth thinks he could sell the stainless-steel structure for £100,000 when it goes under the hammer at Hansons Auctioneers next month.

Businessman Gareth, who runs a company supplying microduct and pneumatic connectors, says: ‘The price kept going up and I thought I’d been outbid. Then I realised I was bidding against myself.

‘I have two eBay accounts, one on my iPad and one on my iPhone. I eventually outbid myself and won it.

‘I realised it was an important sculpture. My research led me to Malcolm Robertson’s website.

‘He’s a multiple-award-winning sculptor with a broad portfolio of work dotted around the UK and abroad.’

Gareth believes this is the first time one of Malcolm’s sculptures has become available to buy at a traditional auction.

‘He’s so highly regarded he is always commissioned. I’m also told that Twisting by the pool originally cost £70,000 when it was made 26 years ago,’ he adds.

‘I’m hoping for a Del Boy moment at the auction where you’ll see me fall over backwards with shock as the hammer falls. That’s what I want.’

Karl Martin, a valuer at Hansons, agrees that it deserves to be on public display.

He says: ‘It’s currently standing tall outside Hansons’ Derbyshire saleroom in Etwall so, if you’re passing, do take a look.

‘Robertson uses surreal imagery to create art which is visually striking and unusual.

‘He’s been heavily involved in creating public artworks during his career so it would be fitting if an art connoisseur gave it a new home where people could see and appreciate it.’

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