Filmgoers who admired the cut of Richard Attenborough’s tunic in The Great Escape or Alec Guinness’s cloak in Star Wars will be able to try them on before one of the biggest costume sales in film history.

More than 350 outfits tailored by Angels, the preeminent costumier for films shot in Britain, will be auctioned in March for up to £60,000 apiece. The collection includes costumes that were worn by some of Hollywood’s biggest names, from Errol Flynn to Al Pacino, as well as outfits from classic British television shows.

Some costumes come with a pedigree of notable appearances. A red army tunic from Zulu turned up on Eric Sykes in one of his television shows. And the armour Richard Burton wore as he wooed Elizabeth Taylor on screen and off in Cleopatra was used by Sid James in his more saucy pursuit of Amanda Barrie in Carry on Cleo. The armour is estimated to fetch £600.

Other lots reveal surprising details about their wearers. The shoes Pacino wore as Shylock in The Merchant of Venicehave substantial lifts, which prevented him from being dwarfed by his co-stars. Pacino is thought to be about 5ft 6in (168cm).

One of the highlights is the wide variety of James Bond costumes. Potential buyers will be allowed to try on Sean Connery’s dinner jacket, Roger Moore’s navy commander jacket from The Spy Who Loved Me and Pierce Brosnan’s Brioni suit from Goldeneye.

Arthur Lowe’s generously proportioned uniform from Dad’s Army is on sale, as are costumes worn by five Doctor Whos. Jon Pertwee’s jacket comes with a sonic screwdriver, which Bonhams, the auctioneer, found in one of its pockets. The tool, which the Doctor used to open locks, is simply a pen glued to a toothpaste tube cap and sprayed silver.

Costumes worn by Pertwee, Patrick Troughton and Tom Baker are expected to fetch £20,000 each and Christopher Eccleston’s leather jacket is estimated at £4,000.

Tim Angel, head of the costumier, decided to sell the costumes after discovered their worth. “Someone was trying on a robe and a passing manager said, ‘That’s Alec Guinness’s robe from Star Wars’. We found out it was worth quite a lot of money.”

The robe, which was once available for hire as a monk’s outfit, is expected to fetch £60,000, but may go for more.

Mr Angel said that the costumes were too valuable to hire out but too costly to insure. There was also a risk that decades of film history could be lost in a single warehouse fire.

He said that he was reluctant to let some of his favourite items go. “It is a bit like my kids. While I want them to leave home, I also want them to stay. Some of these costumes mean a lot to me,” he said.

Adrian Cowdry, of Bonhams, said: “You will never get such a large, important and diverse collection in one place again.”

The sale will take place on March 6.

Costume drama

£60,000 for Alec Guinness’s cloak from Star Wars

£1,500 for Sean Connery’s tweed suit and hat from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

£500 for John Gielgud’s leather doublet from Hamlet (1996)

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