GETTY Peter Falk's tan-coloured mackintosh jacket is to fetch £90,000 when it goes on sale

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TV detective Columbo – played by actor Peter Falk – was rarely seen without the crumpled, tan-coloured mackintosh during the hit series which spanned 35 years, starting in 1968 Columbo made Falk the highest paid television actor of the time. The dishevelled detective – who always left a scene, only to return and announce he wanted to ask “just one more thing” – appeared chaotic but was always underestimated by his adversaries and never failed to solve a case. The original coat belonged to Falk in real life. The show’s producers had seen him wearing it off-screen and decided that it was perfect for Lieutenant Frank Columbo. Falk agreed and the jacket went down in television folklore.

The long-sleeved raincoat has three large buttons down the front, two side pockets and cuffed sleeves. It is described as “well-worn and has patches, small tears, discolouration and light staining in a number of areas.” The mackintosh is being sold for the fi rst time on behalf of Falk’s estate, following his death in 2011 at the age of 83. The coat – which was worn by the star during Columbo’s two pilot episodes in 1968 and then again during its first run between 1971 to 1978 – was today described by auctioneers Bonhams as “one of the most iconic pieces of TV memorabilia ever offered”.

BONHAMS Peter's brown leather boots worn in the series will also go on sale

NBC Columbo made Mr Falk the highest paid television actor of the time

The special lot includes a pair of “scuffed, cracked, and otherwise very well worn” brown leather boots which the cigar-puffing detective also wore on screen. If the price is too high, a second coat, boots and suit worn by Falk when the show was given a reboot in 1989, are expected to fetch a total of £15,000. That set of coat and boots is much the same as their 1970s counterparts, and the suit is also “somewhat rumpled”. It has a brown linen jacket with silk lining, a tan dress shirt and a pair of matching cuffed trousers.

GETTY Peter starred in the series which spanned for 35 years, starting in 1968