A UK collector who paid just £20 for a box of comics at a car boot sale discovered years later that it contained dozens of exceptionally rare Superman editions.
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it → pay → editions
After remaining forgotten in his loft, 47 copies of the 1988 comic 'This Island Bradman' sold for a combined £63,440, including buyer’s fees, at an auction in Surrey on November 4, 2025.
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copies → remain → November
The sale, conducted by Ewbank’s Auctions, nearly doubled the collection’s pre-sale estimate of £35,000, according to the auction house and its published results.
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sale → conduct → house
The collector, who has not been publicly identified, purchased the box roughly a decade earlier from a seller at a car boot sale following a house clearance.
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who → identify → clearance
He initially had little reason to suspect that the comics were valuable.
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comics → have → reason
Describing himself to Ewbank’s as a collector of ephemera rather than comics, he said he had no idea what he had bought.
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he → describe → what
The box was put away in his loft and remained there until the Covid-19 pandemic, when he finally had time to investigate its contents.
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he → put → contents
Online research led him to the unusual story behind the comics and their reputation among Superman enthusiasts.
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research → lead → enthusiasts
The decisive clue was the number of copies: an account of the original commission mentioned 48 comics being cleared away after an event, matching the number he had found.
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he → mention → number
From a private family gift to a rare Superman comic
The story of 'This Island Bradman' began in 1988, when British businessman Godfrey Bradman commissioned a special Superman comic for his son Daniel’s bar mitzvah.
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Bradman → begin → mitzvah
According to Ewbank’s account, building work at the family home had exposed Daniel’s extensive action-comic collection to asbestos, leading to the collection being removed and destroyed.
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collection → accord → asbestos
The bespoke comic was commissioned as a replacement gift, with copies intended for distribution to guests at the celebration.
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copies → commission → celebration
Its story featured Daniel Bradman and his friend Andrew Hunt alongside Superman.
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story → feature → Superman
Rather than creating an entirely separate character or adventure, DC Comics incorporated the personalised story into a Superman comic.
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Comics → create → comic
The eight-page story was written by David Levin, with artwork by Curt Swan and Angelo Torres.
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story → write → Swan
Swan was a major Superman artist whose work helped define the character’s comic-book appearance for decades.
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work → define → decades
The involvement of established creators added to the appeal of an edition that was already unusual because of its private origins.
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that → establish → origins
The precise original print run has not been definitively established.
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run → establish → ?
Ewbank’s estimated that around 200 copies may have been produced, with more than half distributed to guests.
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half → estimate → guests
After the event, the remaining copies were reportedly supposed to be discarded.
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copies → remain → event
However, a member of the clean-up crew is said to have kept them, preserving a group of comics that subsequently passed through other hands before eventually reaching the car boot sale.
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that → clean → sale
Over time, 'This Island Bradman' acquired a reputation as one of the rarest Superman comics.
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Bradman → acquire → comics
Some proof copies from DC Comics’ offices had reportedly entered circulation, allowing collectors to learn of its existence despite the limited distribution of the original commission.
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collectors → enter → commission
The box found in the UK was particularly significant because it contained the surviving group of 48 copies that enthusiasts had long hoped might reappear.
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enthusiasts → find → copies
One copy sold online before the auction
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copy → sell → auction
After researching the comics, the collector began investigating their potential value.
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collector → research → value
He learnt about professional comic grading and tested the market by listing one copy on eBay.
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He → learn → eBay
According to his account to Ewbank’s, it sold for £750.
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it → accord → 750
The comic subsequently appeared on the platform again with a £30,000 asking price, highlighting the gap that can exist between a completed sale and a seller’s hoped-for valuation.
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that → appear → sale
An asking price, however, does not establish what a comic is actually worth.
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comic → establish → ?
The remaining collection was eventually offered through Ewbank’s, a UK auction house based in Surrey.
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collection → remain → Surrey
Rather than releasing the comics gradually over several years, the auction house offered 47 copies individually in one sale.
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house → release → sale
Its pre-auction estimate for the collection was £35,000, reflecting the different conditions of the surviving issues.
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estimate → reflect → issues
Ewbank’s comic specialist Tom Francis-Duma said the collection presented a rare opportunity for dedicated Superman collectors to acquire an edition that had been difficult to find.
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that → say → edition
The comics varied in condition, with some professionally graded examples reaching CGC 9.6 out of 10.
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examples → vary → 10
Such grades indicate exceptionally well-preserved copies, although grading scores alone do not determine the final market price.
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scores → indicate → price
The auction ultimately exceeded expectations.
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auction → exceed → expectations
The 47 lots collectively realised £63,440, including buyer’s fees, while the auction house’s later reporting put the hammer total at almost £50,000.
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reporting → realise → 50,000
The distinction matters because the hammer price is the amount at which the auctioneer sells an item, whereas the final total including buyer’s fees is higher.
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total → matter → fees
Ewbank’s catalogue records show that individual copies sold for four-figure sums in many cases, with the most expensive example reaching £2,600 including fees.
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example → show → fees
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