Winston Churchill suit to be sold at auction

A suit worn by Sir Winston Churchill is among items of memorabilia up for auction.

The wartime leader's Austen Reed suit is expected to fetch up to £6,000 when it goes under the hammer at the auction of so-called Churchilliana.

The single collection also includes a glass bust, a Coalport vase featuring Churchill's ancestral home of Blenheim Palace and Royal Doulton toby jugs.

The items go on sale at Special Auction Services in Newbury, Berkshire, later.

The grey 1950s pin-striped, double-breasted suit has the text "16/9/53 RT Hon Sir Winston S Churchill K.C.G" on the maker's label.

A two-page letter of provenance states the suit was given by Lady Churchill in the 1960s to a Mary Williams, while a letter from Austin Reed dated 1975 also states that in its opinion the labels in the suit are authentic.

The 1974 Coalport vase, marking the centenary of his Churchill's birth, features a hand-painted view of Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire, along with the Churchill family coat of arms.

Recent sales of items linked to Churchill include a pair of his luxury velvet slippers which sold for nearly £40,000, while a cigar box went for almost £80,000.

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