MORE than £14,000 has been raised following a massive auction of treasures from a famous theatre as it prepares to close.

A collection of 40,000 backstage memorabilia items from the Citizens Theatre in Glasgow sold for £14,400.

The sale of 72 years worth of props and costumes smashed the theatre's fundraising goal of £10,000.

The proceeds will go towards the redevelopment work of the theatre as it closes it's doors for two years ahead of a £19.4m refurbishment to preserve the Victorian interior.

The "On the Move" event, which was described as a "once in a lifetime sale" of Citizens Theatre memorabilia, attracted 750 buyers.

Among the weird and wonderful props that went up for sale were teapots, trunks, puppets, bird cages, baskets and ball gowns.

Costumes worn by Ciaran Hinds, Glenda Jackson and Ann Mitchell were also up for grabs with a bidding war for Ciaran Hinds’ coat which eventually went for £160.

The cheapest lot was an old bottle of Fairy Liquid thought to be from a Christmas production that sold for 50p.

Meanwhile the most expensive item was an antique cooker that sold for £250 - despite no indication whether it still worked.

Louise Dingwall from the theatre said: "We were really delighted, just under 1,000 people attended Saturday’s auction. Everyone who attended on the day got in.

"Popular items included Glenda Jackson’s dress, which sold online, and a lot of smaller items, such as a Fairy Liquid bottle made for one of the productions and typewriters were the other big sellers.

"We also collected letters of really great memories, such as people who had their first dates and visitors who had met their husbands and wives at the theatre.

"There was a lot of excitement to get up on stage where people are so used to seeing it from the stalls. There was lots of people taking photos and selfies.

"I think it’s really important that there’s a lot of happy memories here and an affinity with the theatre. It’s part of the community and people’s lives.

"To get one last look and hurrah before it’s renovation was really quite special."

It will be the first time in 140 years that a working theatre has not operated at the site in Glasgow.

The theatre - originally called Her Majesty’s Theatre - opened in 1878 and became the Citizen’s Theatre in 1945.

Over the years it has played host to star names such names as Robbie Coltrane, Sophie Ward, Alan Rickman and Pierce Brosnan.

Citizens Theatre Artistic Director Dominic Hill said: "The move is absolutely essential if we’re going to ensure that this building exists as a resource for the people of Glasgow for generations to come."

From September 2018 the Citizens Theatre will present its artistic programme at Tramway.