Life-size Captain Tom statue sells for over £3,000 after owner is forced to slash price and auction it off from 99p
18 March 2024, 21:27 | Updated: 18 March 2024, 21:29
A life-size statue of Captain Tom has been sold for over £3,000 after the owner was forced to put it up for auction starting at 99p.
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The original eBay listing had an asking price of £29,000 but was later slashed to £25,000. It was then cut again to just £7,000, in a desperate bid to get it sold.
A separate auction listing was then put up for the resin statue, with the starting price set at 99p.
It sold on Monday for £3,300, having received 31 bids.
The Walk of Hope, a 5ft 3in sculpture, shows Captain Tom with his walking frame as if he was still strolling around his garden for NHS Charities Together.
Owner Tony Clark wanted it to be displayed in Captain Tom's native Yorkshire and commissioned artists in Indonesia to make the life-sized statue.
But he has since said he thinks it is more likely to go to a personal collector.
Half of the profits from the statue are going to The Veterans Charity, after the Captain Tom Foundation was closed to donations amid an ongoing inquiry into its finances.
Another listing of the statue remains up on eBay, with the cost set at £28,000.
Speaking ahead of the auction, Mr Clark told Metro: "I’ll give it another few weeks on eBay but I just want to move on it from now, I want to put it all behind me."
He added: "In my heart of hearts I am still proud of what Captain Tom did and of the statue we made.
"It’s just sad seeing it sitting there gathering dust."
Read More: Captain Tom Moore's daughter's company sees £145,000 drop in assets, newly published accounts show
Mr Clark previously said in an update on a GoFundMe page that he had a "heavy heart" after being unable to engage Captain Tom's family and Bradford Council in locating a place for the statue.
Writing in September 2022, he said: "My wishes are now to draw a conclusion to this and hopefully have a positive outcome. I am left with a bronze statue that needs a permanent site, that is owned by a private business or person.
"This site ideally will be somewhere that the public can access to view, preferably in Yorkshire, better still in Keighley where he was from.
"But I am open to ideas, please contact me if anyone has any suggestions.
"I just want to close this chapter in my life but equally see this piece go somewhere suitable."
The GoFundMe page gave a target of £30,000 to cover the bronze version of the statue's costs.
Read More: Captain Tom's charity boss quits months after bid to oust family
Captain Tom became a national hero during the first Covid lockdown after raising £38.9million by walking laps of his garden.
After he died, his family continued his fundraising work through the foundation.
Captain Tom's daughter, Hannah Ingram-Moore, was also involved in a saga due to the planning application drama surrounding a spa pool block at their home.
The family lost an appeal against an order from Central Bedfordshire Council to remove the Captain Tom Foundation Building, and it was demolished last month.
