Iconic Cilla Black outfits could be 'bargains'

Dresses up for auction include one worn at the Royal Variety Performance in 1969

An auctioneer has suggested that an upcoming sale of designer clothes worn by Cilla Black during her long showbusiness career could yield "bargain prices".

The collection includes bespoke gowns, high-end fashion pieces and vintage Biba creations worn by the Surprise Surprise and Blind Date presenter, who died in 2015.

John Cameron, managing director from Nesbits Fine Art & Antique Auctions in Portsmouth, added: "Whether you'll be able to get a bargain we don't know because there'll be lots of bidding, but they're priced to sell."

All proceeds from the auction of the 246 outfits will go to Variety, the Children's Charity.

Mr Cameron told the BBC: "Whilst we can appraise and compare prices in the auction market places, which is how we value anything… we cannot quantify the Cilla-factor.

"We price them as if they are vintage garments and we're going to have to wait and see the Cilla-factor on the day, but also the family wanted to do that to make it affordable."

Garments up for auction include a turquoise dress with sleeves trimmed with ostrich feathers that Black wore at the Royal Variety Performance in 1969, the first broadcast in full colour.

"Whoever gets that is going to have a real iconic piece," Mr Cameron said of the dress, which has an estimate of £350 to £550.

A red jumpsuit worn on Surprise Surprise will also go under the hammer

A red jumpsuit worn on Surprise Surprise in the mid-80s has an estimate of £100 to £200.

"When you look at some of the dresses, they span four or five decades, and you see the fashion changes, so there's plenty of shoulder pads amongst the collection," Mr Cameron noted.

The auctioneer said there was also worldwide interest in the auction, including in the US, since Black has become a popular meme on social media, "which is great because I know we associate Cilla with Liverpool, but she's bigger than that".

"We're hoping there are going to be some surprise, surprise prices as well," he added.

Cilla Black's family decided to donate her clothes to mark the 10th anniversary of her death

Other highlights in the collection include a silver leather jacket by Alexander McQueen, a gold Yves Saint Laurent ensemble, cream Celine and Donna Karan jackets, and a Loewe suede skirt suit.

"The clothes and outfits presented in this collection represent a life well lived on the stage and in front of the TV cameras," said her son Robert Willis. "It's fair to say that almost every item in this collection was either worn on stage or appeared on TV."

Laurence Guinness, chief executive of Variety, said: "Cilla was a great supporter of Variety, and this is a chance to continue her legacy of generosity at a time when it's needed more than ever."

The three-hour online auction will be hosted on 28 November from 13:00 GMT.