RSC to auction costumes worn by Ian McKellen, David Tennant and Judi Dench on eBay

Costumes worn by actors including Simon Callow, Sinead Cusack, Judi Dench, Anita Dobson, Jane Lapotaire, Ian McKellen, Antony Sher, Patrick Stewart, David Tennant and Susannah York will be auctioned on eBay by the RSC, to raise money for their Stitch in Time campaign.

Over 54 items will be auctioned, with notable items including David Tennant‘s black dress trousers from Hamlet, Ian McKellen's floor-length coat from King Lear, Patrick Stewart’s black trousers from The Merchant of Venice and Judi Dench’s doublet and hose from Shakespeare Live!.

The online auction will take place on eBay over Shakespeare’s Birthday for a 10-day period between Tuesday 17 and Friday 27 April. The individual listings will go live at 8pm on Tuesday 17 and end at 8pm on Friday 27.

Tennant said: "I have had the pleasure of wearing many costumes at the RSC, created in their workshop in Stratford-upon-Avon. I always think of the very first costume I had when I went there, which was Touchstone in As You Like It. I had this extraordinary, calf-length coat in the jesters’ motley. It was beautifully put together, and the amount of work that had gone into it took my breath away. The attention to detail, the sheer craftsmanship that is engrained in each costume impressed me then and continues to impress me at the company today."