Colchester Council accidentally sells city on eBay in 'admin error'

Colchester residents woke up to shocking news this morning after discovering that the entire city had been accidentally sold on eBay due to what officials are calling an "admin error."

The listing, titled “Historic UK City – Used, Good Condition, Collection Only”, appeared on the auction site late last night, with a starting bid of 99p. However, the auction quickly gained traction, with furious bidding from international buyers, online pranksters, and one person claiming to be an "avid collector of Roman settlements."

By the time the auction closed at 3:00 AM, the winning bid stood at an eye-watering £12.4 million — a relative bargain for an entire city.

The listing just after midnight

Colchester City Council claim the listing was meant to be for an old office building, but an overworked employee accidentally uploaded details for the entire city instead.

"We were trying to list a derelict council building near the High Street," a spokesperson explained. "Unfortunately, someone copied and pasted the wrong document, which included Colchester’s entire infrastructure, public buildings, and 2,000 years of history."

Sources say the listing was left unchecked due to “staff shortages and a particularly tense game of Solitaire.”

The mystery buyer, known only by their eBay username "BigSpender87", has not yet revealed their plans for Colchester but stated they were “considering options”, including turning the city into a private theme park or selling it on to Elon Musk.

Meanwhile, concerned residents are demanding answers, with many asking if they’ll need to start paying rent to the new owner.

"I've lived in Colchester all my life, and now I find out we've been auctioned off like an old sofa?" said local resident and Greggs employee Dave. "Does this mean I have to move? Will my council tax now be an eBay invoice?"

The council have reached out to eBay to try and reverse the sale, however, an eBay spokesperson confirmed that their system "does not currently support the reversal of such grand transactions."

A council meeting has been scheduled for later today, where officials will discuss whether to negotiate with the buyer or simply hope they forget to pay.

Until then, Colchester remains in eBay limbo, and residents are advised not to panic—yet.