Charity 'staggered' by interest in star's costume

The robe was found at an Oxfam charity shop in Norwich on Monday

Staff at a charity shop have been "staggered" by the interest in a costume worn 40 years ago by TV star Anthony Head.

It was found on Monday "poking out of a bag" at a branch of Oxfam in Norwich, where volunteers first thought it was a maxi dress from the 1970s.

But a label revealed it was a robe worn by Head - who was in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Little Britain - in a National Theatre production of Yonadab, a play set in ancient Israel.

"It was such a particular play and production at a certain time, and we have not had anything quite like that before," said deputy store manager Emily Paxton.

Head has appeared in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Merlin

The costume, which had somehow ended up at the Norwich Playhouse, was listed on the charity's website for £200.

"It is by far the item that has attracted the most social media interest for anything we have posted," said Ms Paxton.

The response had been "quite staggering", she added, and the costume had "really caught people's imaginations".

The robe's label, along with photos, helped confirm it had been worn by Head in the play

Head played Absalom in the production, which was written by Peter Shaffer and ran from 25 November 1985 to 30 August 1986.

The garment, which has a gathered cape 2.1m (7ft) long, was found at Oxfam's branch in Magdalen Street and was still in good condition.

Ms Paxton has been told by other theatres who have made donations that actors' names were sown into garments they had worn.

She said it was not until they had seen "a photo of him [Head} wearing it" that they "realised what it was".

"We wondered what we are going to do with it as it is a niche thing," she added.