PREVIOUSLY unseen photographs of the wedding of the Duke of Windsor and Wallis Simpson have sold for more than £11,400.

As the 80th anniversary of the Duke's abdication as King Edward VIII approaches, the rare black and white images were the subject of furious bidding at Bellmans Auctioneers near Billingshurst yesterday (weds).

The 17 photographs taken at the remote Chateau de Cande, near Tours, France, on June 3 1937 included pictures of the bride and groom, their wedding guests, the wedding breakfast table, the ceremony room with chairs placed ready, the floral arrangements by Constance Spry and a seven-tier wedding cake.

They were expected to fetch between £4,000 and £6,000, but went

for £11,408 including buyer's premium to an unnamed absentee bidder who left their highest price with the auctioneer.

Denise Kelly from Bellmans said: "The photographs under the hammer at Bellmans are of the greatest rarity - not least because of the use of a rogue camera at such an event.

"Until quite recently, guests at most social events would have been happy with the pictures provided by an official photographer."