Unique memories of popular radio soap set to go under the hammer

The collection of photos, posters and even a rare recording of an episode of the Archers are set to go up for auction at Fieldings Auctioneers in Stourbridge after it was discovered at the home of an elderly gentleman in Erdington in Birmingham.

It is a collection which contains many memories of the BBC Radio 4 series, which is set in the fictional village of Ambridge in a farming community and is the longest running soap opera, having first been broadcast in 1951.

Fieldings Auctioneers senior auctioneer and collections specialist Mark Hannam said he was a fan of the show, saying that it was set in the West Country where he was from, and said he had been very surprised to see the collection.

He said: "I thought it had a real wow factor when I first saw it, because it's such a famous radio series and has a tremendous following in this area and further afield.

"As I went through the collection, it just got better and better with a large number of old photographs and what I think is the cherry on top, a single-sided recording of a first instalment, which was recorded on November 24, 1952 and was Leslie Park in his role as Clive Lawson-Hope.

"Along with that and the photos, there's signs and cuttings, scrap albums, hippodrome posters and personal letters from Dame Thora Hird, so it's an absolutely unique collection of Archers memorabilia that I've never come across before and it's all contained inside one plastic box."

Mr Hannam said the collection was a fascinating one with a lot of history attached to it and said that he had a lot of interest in it, as did a member of the Royal Family.

He said: "I do have a passion for this collection, but I also know that one of the biggest fans of the show is her Royal Highness Queen Camilla which, if you look at our website, you can see she's a massive fan of the Archers.

"It would be very nice to think that she might be taking a keen interest in this collection and I might go away and write to Buckingham Palace tonight about it.

"If I could bid on one thing from the collection, it would probably be one of the photos as they show the cast when they were doing the recording of the series and were dressed up in period clothing.

"There's a number of nice things in the collection and it really is fascinating to look at it."

The auction will take place on either February 15 or 16, with the collection available to view at Fieldings Auctioneers on Mill Race Road in Stourbridge on February 13 and 14.

To find out more and to make an appointment for a viewing, go to fieldingsauctioneers.co.uk