Original Emu and Orville dolls go under the hammer

The original Emu and Orville puppets are to go under the hammer next month.

Both the dulls – owned by Rod Hull and Keith Harris respectively – have an estimate  of £8,000 to £10,000.

Hull only had two Emus made, according to auctioneers Bonhams, and the other was  a back-up that was never used. This one was acquired from Hull’s estate soon after he died in 1999, and there’s a letter of  provenance to prove it.

The Orville is one of only a handful of puppets made  for the BBC television show The Keith Harris Show, which ran from 1982 to 1990, which also featured characters such as Cuddles the Monkey.

This was acquired by the vendor from Harris – who died in 2015 - in the early 2000s.

Bother are being auctioned at an entertainment sale being held at Bonhams of London on December 17. The full catalogue is here.

Published: 24 Nov 2019