Chance to bid for Concorde replica and WW2 jeep

A full-size replica of the front a Concorde aircraft is just one of the items up for auction after the closure of a theme park in Cornwall last year.

Flambards in Helston closed in November 2024 due to a decrease in visitor numbers and a rise in running costs, its bosses said.

In total, 2,200 lots will be up for sale in March, including a Victorian fire engine and a US Army wartime jeep.

Ian Cunningham, the owner of Flambards, said it was a "great disappointment to break up the collection" but it was "inevitable".

The site was opened under the name Cornwall Aero Park in 1976 by James Kingsford-Hale.

Mr Kingsford-Hale's wife Audrey then created a model Victorian village at the park in the 1970s and 1980s, which included a butcher's shop, a chemist and a bootmaker.

The shops will also be sold off in the auction, as well as model planes and other memorabilia.

David Lay, the auctioneer, said: "The detail is awesome. There's so much stuff here, every shop window you can just stop and stare and wonder.

"What we're having a glimpse of here is what life was like for the very privileged, even the shopkeepers are a pretty affluent-looking bunch."

The sale will take place at David Lay Auctioneers in Penzance, as well as online, on 25, 26 and 27 March.

Buyers can attend open days on 22, 23 and 24 March for paid pre-booked one-hour slots to view the items.

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