Antique appraisal sees recluse's grandfather clock fetch £4k

The antique appraisal of a grandfather clock found in a reclusive man's apartment after his death has seen it make £4,000 at auction.

Retired civil servant Gordon Hardy, 83, lived off £20 a month, always wore the same clothes and spent just £11 on food and other basic necessities, the Daily Mirror reports.

Following his death in February, it was found that Mr Hardy was in fact a secret millionaire and had left 1.4 million to animal charities the PDSA, The Donkey Sanctuary and the Blue Cross.

What's more, the widower had never kept any pets, although his trustees have suggested that his bequests were made as a final act of love to his wife, who had cared for animals.

"It's hard to understand when he was sitting on all this wealth. But he was simply a kind, big-hearted man who didn't live for grandeur," said Lyndsey McHale of Brown Turner Ross.

This comes after Get Surrey reported that a vase found in a Dorking attic went under the hammer for £105,000, in spite of an antique price guide of up to £8,000.

Posted by Lisa Marriott