HASLEMERE.- When Peter Cushing stepped into the Doctors shoes to fight the Daleks in the 1965 film Dr Who and the Daleks, this one of two versions of the Tardis created for the film.
However, instead of appearing in the film itself, its chief purpose was to serve as a prop at the films premiere, with the cast emerging from it as the media arrived.
Now it has been consigned to
Ewbanks auctioneers of Send in Surrey where it is one of the highlights of the Entertainment & Memorabilia auction on May 31. The estimate is £8,000-12,000.
Inside is a release plaque stating that it was removed from Shepperton in 1965 and many years later re-built by the BBC prop department for use at Children in Need 2009 at the Leicester Space Centre. There is a video online of it entering the building for Children in Need. It has also been signed on the inside by Jennie Linden, who played one of the Doctors two granddaughters in the 1965 film and is seen, right, emerging from the Tardis at a charity event in recent years. It was sold on eBay as part of a charity auction in 2011 and has been stored since.
Few TV programmes have had as much impact on the British psyche as Dr Who, said Ewbanks specialist Alastair McCrea. It is no surprise that the series was revived for a new generation in 2005. Nothing is more iconic from the series than the Tardis, so this really is a fantastic opportunity to secure a major piece of TV history.