A Place In The Sun viewers blast 'time wasters' as Laura Hamilton left 'pulling teeth'

A Place In The Sun viewers accused a couple of attempting to bag a "free holiday" as host Laura Hamilton was left "pulling teeth" on the Channel 4 show.

The couple, who have been married for 30 years and share two children, were looking for their perfect holiday home close to the resort of Vale do Lobo on Portugal's beautiful Algarve coast, with an impressive budget of £325,000 on Thursday's episode.

Paul and Linda had previously visited nine times and planned to spend six months of the year at their chosen holiday property. They were in search of a two-bedroom home, close to the coast, near green space and with easy access to local restaurants

Laura had warned they are in an expensive part of Portugal so they may need to stretch their budget. Despite the pair admitting one of the four properties they had viewed would be in the running by the end of the programme the couple decided against putting in an offer.

Viewers flocked to X and issued the same complaint as @the80srulex said: "#aplaceinthesun Free holiday," while @gooner145: "Time wasters #aplaceinthesun."

@travel_carole agreed: "Time wasters! #aplaceinthesun."

@tropicalsocks commented: "Thanks for the free holiday #aplaceinthesun."

@bob_smithson said: "Free holiday merchants? Who'd have thought. #aplaceinthesun."

@angenevs guessed: "They ain’t buying! #aplaceinthesun."

To begin with, Laura showed Linda and Paul a property that, while being outside of Vale de Lobo, was also significantly lower-priced than those within the area. She was hopeful, but the moment the pair entered the apartment block their answer was a firm "no".

Linda explained: "It's a little bit smaller than I was hoping for. It's lovely inside." Laura queried: "Do you see it working for you and the family?"

"No, I don't think it's going to work for us," she replied.

@Julie_eck12: "My God, you’d need the patience of a saint for this job. Poor Laura.#APlaceintheSun."

@mpmeg suggested: "They seem to be telling Laura that they can find better but with no increase in budget. Laura smiling like a pro there #aplaceinthesun."

@YTVChase wrote: "Pulling teeth with these two," while @MotherClanger said: "Laura flogging a dead horse with this pair."

@Sweggers remarked: "These two have given me a headache …#aplaceinthesun."

Nick wrote: "Honestly why go on a show like this if you have such fixed ideas about where you want to be? They’re hardly going to show you 5 properties on the complex where you always go on holiday."

Once her potential buyers were out of earshot, Laura looked into the camera and said: "I've got to be honest. I'm disappointed.

"But I think for Paul and Linda, it has to be Vale de Lobo".

Laura quickly moved on to show the couple two properties in their chosen area, and while the host told viewers it had been a "challenging" search, Paul and Linda did say one was "in the running". They later opted against putting in an offer on any of the properties.

A Place In The Sun airs weekdays on Channel 4 at 4pm