Above: Check through the gallery of the wild, weird and wonderful items owned by Felix Dennis
A talking Captain Hook figure, a yellow Rolls-Royce, a pair of signalling cannons and ejector seats from fighter jets – they can only be the possessions of multi-millionaire and published.
The maverick who made the Midlands his base owned a total of 12 properties around the world at the time of his death – and a series of wacky, bizarre and very rare items from them are being offered at auction.
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Auction House Halls is selling the collection, on his estate in the village of Dorsington, near Stratford-upon-Avon for the auction from September 29 to October 1.
Among the 2,300 items for sale from the entrepreneur, poet and extrovert will be a silver Ascot Trophy modelled as Joan of Arc, valued at a cool £60,000.
One of the more unusual items is the Rolls Royce Silver Spirit with the registration number 9999 FD, which Mr Dennis reputedly bought to celebrate making his first million and is valued at up £15,000.
The large theatrical figure of Captain Hook complete with parrot on his shoulder with a voice machine will probably sell for £300, a pair of 19th century signal cannons are valued at up to £4,000 and a pair of pinball machines will both sell for around £700.
Jeremy Lamond, fine art director at Halls in Shrewsbury, who are conducting the 2,300-lot auction jointly with Bigwood Fine Art Auctioneers of Stratford-upon-Avon, said he believes it will be the 海角视频’s landmark auction of 2015.
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“Estate auctions of this type are few and far between and it’s particularly fitting that it’s being held on Felix’s estate,” he said. “It’s a hugely exciting and eclectic sale with literally something for everyone.
“There is a delightful mix of antique and walnut furniture alongside contemporary designer furniture and objects.”
Mr Dennis was known for his wide variety of interests and there are sections for tribal art, paintings dating from 19th century to contemporary, maritime, silver, clocks, works of art, carpets, rugs and textiles, porcelain and ceramics, musical instruments, pinball machines and jukeboxes.
Cannons and weapon, garden statuary, gym equipment, Segways, musical instruments, wines and spirits and Bonsai trees add to the extensive list of lots, which is attracting international interest due to Dennis’s publishing interests in the United States.
All the proceedsand the major beneficiary is . In 1989, Dennis had a vision to create a 30,000 acre contiguous forest in the heart of England, from the ancient Forest of Arden to the Vale of Evesham. The one millionth tree was planted around two years ago.
The Felix Dennis Collection reflects the fascinating life of a man who began his working life selling copies of the underground counterculture magazine Oz on London’s Kings Road in 1967 and went on to become a hugely successful publishing entrepreneur with global business interests.
, after a two year battle with throat cancer. A statement announcing his death said: “Felix was a publishing legend, famed for his maverick and entrepreneurial style and, more lately, a successful and much loved poet.”
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Christopher Ironmonger, director of Bigwood Fine Art Auctioneers, a business colleague of Dennis for over 12 years, said: “The auction will provide an opportunity for the world to appreciate the magnitude of Felix’s collection.”
He added that Dennis was a loyal supporter of modern craftsmen and would commission series of works for his homes.
His passion for the outdoors and his home in Warwickshire, bronze urns, stone, bronze and marble animals, to name but a few. There is also a collection of antique cannons and even a child’s suit of armour.
The wide selection of animal sculptures and garden statuary include a 20th century painted cast Thammakit Thamboon Chestnut Elephant at up to £6,000, a carved stone lion at upwards of £2,000 and a papier mache kangaroo with Joey in the pouch from the David Farrer Experience, Australia at up to £1,500.
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