Audrey Hepburn's Givenchy couture collection sold at auction for £270,000



Some of the most beautiful and iconic pieces from Audrey Hepburn’s vast collection of couture and accessories went under the hammer yesterday.

Dating from 1953 to the late 60s, the collection of couture included everything from belts, hats and tweed coats to stunning embellished evening gowns. It also included a fascinating bundle of letters in which she described an early film break, her proposed wedding to James Hanson and the time she spent filming Roman Holiday.

Givenchy haute couture: An opera gown worn by Audrey Hepburn in 1956 film Love in the Afternoon was part of the collection auctioned last night

Its organisers were hoping the unique sale would generate well over £100,000. In fact, the final total was more than £270,000.

Many of the 36 items that went under the hammer in yesterday’s auction were in Audrey Hepburn’s signature colours. She preferred to wear pastel colours, black and ivory with the occasional hot-pink statement.

Stunning collection: A Givenchy haute couture silk gown (left) worn by Hepburn in the 1967 film Two For The Road; A black lace dress worn by the actress in the 1966 film How to Steal a Million

They were also in her rather tiny size, meaning only the slimmest of bidders would be able to squeeze into them. The elfin star of Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Roman Holiday and My Fair Lady was 5ft 7inches tall, bust 32in, waist 22in, hips 34in.

Amongst the rare items up for bids were a number of chic little black dresses by Valentino, stunning evening wear by Elizabeth Arden and beautiful couture pieces by her favourite designer of all: Hubert de Givenchy.

Rare items: A wedding dress (left) designed by the Fortuna Sisters for Hepburn's 1952 wedding to James Hanson (pictured with the actress, right) which would later be cancelled



Many of the key pieces on offer were a result of the famed collaboration between the young couturier and his muse.

Fashion icon: A jade green velvet hat worn by Hepburn for a photo shoot in Vogue magazine

He created a black cloqué silk gown for star to wear for the film Paris When it Sizzles in 1962, which was estimated to fetch £15,000. It sold for £16,800.

Tanja Star-Busmann, Hepburn’s friend from the age of 15, told how the actress would sort through her unwanted clothes and pass them on to her.

'This became something of a fabulous tradition,' Ms Star-Busmann wrote in the auction catalogue.

'Over the years a cavalcade of boxes filled to the brim with haute-couture evening dresses, divine little cocktail ensembles, easy-to-wear silk supper dresses, sensible tweed coats, chic little day suits and glamorous dressing gowns, often accompanied by wonderful accessories, arrived at my door.



'Unpacking them was always like Christmas a thousand times over.'



A sensational Chantilly lace cocktail gown worn by the actress in How to Steal a Million in 1966 formed the centerpiece of the collection and was estimated to fetch £20,000. It was the most memorable part of the Ritz bar scene in the film.

In fact, it went for more than twice that at £60,000.

A stunning ivory satin bridal gown created for the proposed marriage of Audrey to James, later Lord, Hanson, also went under the hammer yesterday.

Historic: A Mark Cross red and white striped top worn by the actress in the 1957 film War and Peace

It was created by the Fontana Sisters in 1952 when she was just 23 and filming Roman Holiday with Gregory Peck in Rome.

Channelling Audrey: Anna Friel with long-term partner David Thewlis last week, days before she was seen cosying up to co-star Joseph Cross

When she called off the marriage some weeks later, she asked the designers to find a poor, beautiful girl to give the wedding dress to.

It had been estimated to fetch £12,000, and sold for £13,800.

The sale even included the Elizabeth Arden dress that Hepburn was wearing on the night in 1953 when Gregory Peck introduced her to the actor and director – and her future husband - Mel Ferrer at a cocktail party.

The items were sold by Kerry Taylor auctions at La Galleria, Royal Opera Arcade in Pall Mall, central London, yesterday.

Half of all the money raised at yesterday’s auction will be donated to The Audrey Hepburn Children's Fund and Unicef for their joint venture 'All Children in School' which aims to provide teaching for 115million children worldwide.

Anna Friel recently took on Hepburn's most famous role, Holly Golightly, in the play of the classic film Breakfast at Tiffany's.

By lucky coincidence the actress's long-term boyfriend David Thewlis was spotted at last night's auction.

An item from Hepburn's collection of couture would have been an appropriate Christmas gift for Miss Friel, but the Harry Potter star left empty-handed yesterday half-way through the auction.

Nonetheless, it seemed all was forgiven after the actress was pictured getting friendly with young co-star Joseph Cross, 23, last week.