Weller’s worn them off and on for years.
I’ve always thought Bugsy Malone too. Which is enough to put me off. But just on a practical level, I’ve always wondered how polishing works? Surely you couldn’t help but get a terrible ‘bleeding’ effect?
Also I think no matter what else you’re wearing, they create an unbalanced look. All the attention goes to the shoes? They’re a bit ‘look at me’.
I might be wrong, but I think now Baracuta is part of a wider portfolio of names for an Italian company. Which would explain the completely out of touch pricing and out of keeping products.
There is a bit of a tradition in Italy for the boss to give areas of the business (or at least allow the name to be licensed) to feckless family members to keep them out of trouble. Everything about Baracuta smacks of that to me. Still a fan of those harringtons though

Correspondent shoes.

'Horrible Histories': Baracuta.  There for all to see online.  Just as bad - perhaps worse - than Fred Perry.  Yes, worse.
I was interested, however, to see that Viyella had once produced a 'Harrington jacket' and that someone claimed to have watched old episodes of 'Peyton Place' and could not honestly swear to having seen Ryan O'Neal in any such item.