Queen Victoria’s knickers expected to fetch £7,000 at auction after featuring on BBC’s Antiques Roadshow

A pair of Queen Victoria’s knickers are expected to sell for £7,000 at auction after featuring on the BBC’s Antiques Roadshow. The hand-sewn pair of knee length bloomers, with a single button and drawstring 40-41 inch waist, are even embroidered with a Royal Crest.

The undies are thought to have been passed down by a Lady of the Bedchamber who worked for Queen Victoria. They will be sold by auction at Lawrences of Crewkerne in Somerset on April 19 for an estimated price of £5,000 to £7,000.

Also included in the lot is Queen Victoria’s chemise or nightdress, embroidered with a Royal Crest, and a pair of associated leather slippers, with satin bows and cut steel buttons - with a makers label for ‘Gundry & Sons, Makers to the Queen, The Princess & The Royal Family, 17 New Bond St, London’.

The items have been inherited through the Oakden/Bickerton family line to the present owners. The bloomers were also featured in a recent episode of the Antiques Roadshow.

A spokesperson for Lawrences Auctioneers said: "These are items rarely seen in auction and are an amazing piece of social history. There are very keen collectors for Royal Memorabilia and also for items relating to Queen Victoria, so we expect a huge amount of interest."

An article in National Geographic revealed that Queen Victoria wore cotton undergarments which were “plain, white and square”. Andrew Evans wrote that the monarch may have boasted a 50-inch waist at one point, adding: “At the time she wore these flowing bloomers, the Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India carried considerable girth.”

You can find out more about the auction on the Lawrences website.