A collection of big-screen Batman memorabilia has fetched more than £700,000 ($910,000) at a Prop Store auction in London, the biggest entertainment memorabilia sale ever held in the UK.
Leading the sale was a hero Batpod featured in both The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises, which smashed its estimate of £60,000 – £80,000 to sell for £312,000 ($405,400).
The vehicle was one of six originally built for The Dark Knight by production designer Nathan Crowley and special-effects supervisor Chris Corbould, for a sequence in which Batman escapes his crashed Tumbler during a chase with The Joker.
It was then featured in the film’s sequel, The Dark Knight Rises, in sequences featuring Selina Kyle (Catwoman), and was later used during promotion of the films as part of the Warner Bros. archive. The final price, which includes buyer’s premium, is a record auction price for any piece of Batman movie memorabilia.
The sale included two complete Batsuits worn on-screen by Christian Bale in Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy.
The first costume, designed by Academy Award-winning designer Lindy Hemming, was worn in the 2005 film Batman Begins, and doubled its top estimate of £40,000 to sell for £96,000 ($124,740).
The second redesigned suit, also created by Hemming, was worn by Bale in The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises, and soared past its high estimate of £60,000 to fetch £192,000 ($249,500).
Also on offer was a Batman cowl worn by Bale in The Dark Knight Rises, which sold on its own for £20,400 ($26,500).
For collectors seeking something a little more villainous, the auction included a complete outfit worn by Tom Hardy as the monstrous Bane in The Dark Knight Rises. Including his signature face mask and brown leather jacket, the costume fetched a final price of £96,000 ($124,740).
Away from the Dark Knight, further comic book movie props on offer included Captain America’s iconic shield from Captain America: The First Avenger, which sold for £42,000 ($54,575), and a holy shotgun wielded by Keanu Reeves in the big-screen adaptation of Constantine which sold for £27,000 ($35,080).
