Charity nets £40k from Cilla Black outfit sale

Dresses sold included one worn at the Royal Variety Performance in 1969

The sale of designer clothes worn by Cilla Black during her long showbusiness career has made more than £40,000 for a charity.

The collection included 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, of Nesbits Fine Art and Antique Auctions in Portsmouth, said he was "very delighted" by the outcome of the sale.

All proceeds from the auction of the 246 outfits are going to Variety, the Children's Charity, which the Liverpudlian star was a supporter of.

A red jumpsuit worn on Surprise Surprise made £540

Garments up for auction included 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.

A turquoise Thea Porter dress, which she wore while singing Bring me Sunshine on the Morecambe & Wise Show in 1971, went for £800.

A red jumpsuit worn on Surprise Surprise in the mid-80s had an estimate price of £100 to £200 but sold for £540.

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

Mr Cameron said: "We were very delighted with the sale, nothing went unsold.

"Surprise Surprise, there was a lot of interest in the pantomime costumes, and some of the very stylish 60s and 70s pieces did well."

Speaking before before the auction, the late singer's son Robert Willis said his family decided to donate the collection to mark the 10th anniversary of his mother's death at the age of 72.

"The clothes and outfits presented in this collection represent a life well lived on the stage and in front of the TV cameras," he said.

"It's fair to say that almost every item in this collection was either worn on stage or appeared on TV."