Trish McCaldin (third from left) with Elizabeth Taylor and then husband Larry Fortensky at Old Battersea House, London in 1992.

EXCLUSIVE

by Adam Williams

awilliams@thekmgroup.co.uk

A pair of 18 carat gold earrings once owned by Elizabeth Taylor have sold at auction for £600.

Bids at Canterbury Auction Galleries doubled original estimates on Tuesday afternoon as two bidders battled out for the chance to own a bit of Hollywood history.

For their previous owner, Trish McCaldin, from Whitstable, the news came as a pleasant surprise.

The 63-year-old, from Tower Hill, chose not to attend the auction in person, but was told the price moments after they went under the hammer.

She said: “I’m absolutely thrilled to hear about it.

“I didn’t expect them to fetch bids as high as that as auctioneers had only valued them between £200 and £300.

“It’s a bit early to think about how I’ll spend the money, but I imagine I’ll donate a sum to The Dame Elizabeth Taylor Aids Foundation and probably blow the rest!”

Miss McCaldin, who first met the screen icon in 1992, has worked for US publishing magnate Malcolm Forbes for more than 35 years at his Old Battersea House home in London. After finding Elizabeth Taylor a Maltese puppy for her 60th birthday, she was given the set of Tiffany earrings as a gift for all her hard work.

Lot no. 526 at the Station Road West auction gallery on Tuesday also included a signed photo of the star and a sample of her fragrance released in the same year.

Trish added: “The Aids foundation was a cause very close to her heart and one that those who met her always promoted on her behalf.

“After her long-time friend Rock Hudson died of Aids in 1985, she took the brave step to openly raise awareness of the disease. But, that was who she was, she was a pioneering woman and a very brave one too.”

After bids opened at £320, two bidders, one in the auction room and the other online, went head-to-head for the memorabilia until the hammer came down at £600.

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