Lifelong Doctor Who collection goes under hammer

One man's lifelong collection of Doctor Who memorabilia, including original artwork and a model car from the 1970s, is set to go under the hammer.

The extensive collection belonged to former Workington AFC chairman Dale Brotherton, from west Cumbria, who died in 2024 and worked on the long-running BBC show when he was younger.

The items, which were on display at Anderson and Garland auction house in Newcastle on Monday, is open for bidding from 10:00 BST on Wednesday.

Auctioneer Fred Wyrley-Birch described the single-owner trove of memorabilia as "almost a museum of Doctor Who": "It is a fantastic plethora of toys, gadgets, pictures, and props - it's a wonderful collection."

The collection includes a full-size replica Dalek, a rare Dalek gun, and a set of character jugs featuring seven of the Doctors, alongside "just about every magazine ever published about Doctor Who," Wyrley-Birch said.

The ephemera is particularly focused on the period covering Jon Pertwee's turn as The Third Doctor through to Sylvester McCoy's tenure as The Seventh Doctor, between approximately 1970 to 1989.

Star of the auction is arguably Bessie, the yellow Edwardian-style car driven by Pertwee, which was recreated by Brotherton.

Estimated to fetch up to £6,000, the Siva Edwardian Tourer kit car carries the registration plate 'WHO 244' and is registered with the DVLA, so - in theory - legal to drive.

Wyrley-Birch said Pertwee wrote a letter to Brotherton, saying the replica was "better" than the original, now in the National Motor Museum in Beaulieu. Correspondence from Pertwee accompanies the lot.

Other valuable pieces in the collection include original concept art created for the show, with individual pieces expected to sell for "a few hundred or a few thousand", the auctioneer said.

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