Wallabies go on sale today.

We can’t believe the day has come when our wallabies will be leaving us.

The 26 large wallabies and three small ones will go under the hammer at the Villa Marina tonight (Thursday) to raise funds for Hospice Isle of Man.

The auction is the pinnacle of our event and we are excitedly wondering who will bid, which wallabies will prove the most popular, whether there will be any nail-biting bidding wars, how much they will sell for and where the wallabies will end up.

General feedback and the overall popularity of Wallabies Gone Wild tells us that there will be a great deal of interest in the sculptures tonight.

Bids will be taken from countries all over the world through the online auction that is being run by Chrystals Auctions on the UK Auctioneers platform.

The online auction site opened for bids last week and we’re delighted to see expressions of interest for a number of the sculptures already. People who would like to bid online can register at ukauctioneers.com

At the Villa Marina, auctioneer, antiques expert and media personality Charles Hanson will be our auctioneer for the evening.

For more than 15 years, Charles has appeared on TV’s Bargain Hunt, Flog it! and Antiques Road Trip - shows which are shown in countries all over the world.

He thrives on the drama, passion and excitement of the saleroom, encouraging one last bid as items go under the hammer, and we can’t wait for Charles to inject his skill and enthusiasm into our wallaby auction.

The bidding will start at 8.45pm and people who want to purchase a ticket (£20) on the door need to arrive no later than 8.15pm, which is when registration for the auction ends.

Some 75% of the profits from the auction will come to Hospice Isle of Man to help support our services and make them sustainable for the future. The remaining 25% + VAT goes to our event partners, Wild in Art.

by Hospice Isle of Man

www.hospice.org.im

newsdesk@iomnewspapers