The Empire strikes bucks

A rare stormtrooper helmet from the original 1977 Star Wars film has sold at auction for £20,000.

And another sci-fi fan paid £25,600 for a plastic light saber used by Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) in the 1999 prequel The Phantom Menace.

The distinctive helmet was worn for close-up scenes in the first film and again in the 1980 follow-up, The Empire Strikes Back.
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In the movies, Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and Princess Leia battled the white-armoured stormtroopers and their leader Darth Vader.

The helmets were moulded at Shepperton Studios, West London, from a plastic normally used in garden ponds. After filming ended, a production signwriter asked if he could have something from the movies to give his son.

Bosses decided to give him the helmet, which was sold in California with a letter signed by Star Wars producer Gary Kurtz, confirming its authenticity.