A RARE ape costume created for cult Sixties film 2001: A Space Odyssey, filmed at what used to be MGM Studios in Borehamwood, will be sold at auction next week.

The costume will be included in the film and entertainment memorabilia section of the Bonhams Pioneers of Popular Culture vintage auction, held at Goodwood, in Chichester, with bidding starting at £15,000 at 2pm next Sunday.

The costume is the original created for the filming of Stanley Kubrick’s sci-fi classic 2001: A Space Odyssey released in 1968.

It was used for The Dawn Of Man sequence that opens the film and appears in the scene, among others, where one of the female apes cradles and feeds a live chimpanzee.

The costume is being sold anonymously with a letter of provenance or origin providing further background to the costume’s authenticity.

For more details go to www.bonhams.com, click on Pioneers of Popular Culture, Vintage at Goodwood and then put "ape" into the description section.