Coal lot sinks without trace

A lump of coal from ill-fated liner Titanic which was expected to fetch thousands of pounds when it went under the hammer in Stafford failed to register a single bid.

The coal which was brought up from the doomed ship in 2000 during an expedition, had a reserve of £6,000 at an auction held during a toy and collectors fair at the County Showground yesterday.

Despite the auctioneer starting bids off at £500, not one bid was put in.

There had been initial interest shown by a bidder from America before the auction.

Collector David Limburg from Loughton, Essex, had purchased the lump of coal in 2002 and hoped it would sell for thousands.

He was also selling his collection of mainly vintage toys and was filmed for TV series Gutted, presented by Mark Durden-Smith.

But the auction for David's possessions, which includes Thunderbirds, Batman, Star Trek, James Bond and Superman toys – all in their original packaging – was disappointing, and many remained unsold.

Gutted starts on Home at 9pm on Monday, January 11. The series strips bare the houses of 10 collectors.

Then, if they answer questions about their missing possessions incorrectly, the items are put up for auction.

At the end of the auction day they are presented with a dilemma – keep all the money raised, or get everything they own back.

Titanic, which sank after hitting an iceberg on its maiden voyage in 1912, had strong Black Country and Staffordshire connections. Captain Edward John Smith was born in Stoke-on-Trent and its anchor was made in Netherton, Dudley.