Actor Finney sells Lautrec collection

The actor Albert Finney is to auction off three original posters by the French artist Toulouse-Lautrec.

The actor Albert Finney is to auction off three original posters by the French artist Toulouse-Lautrec.

The star, 64, whose films include Tom Jones and Scrooge, is to sell the first-run lithographs at Christie's in London in October. One of the posters, May Milton, printed in 1895, is believed to depict an English dancer of the same name who appeared at the Moulin Rouge. It has an estimated value of between £7,000 and £9,000.

The second, Elles, a portfolio of 10 lithographs of Lautrec's scenes of Paris brothels, is expected to fetch up to £8,000. The estimate on the third, Cadieux, depicting the eponymous comedian striding off stage, will sell for up to £15,000.

A Christie's spokeswoman said yesterday that although each print-run normally produced 3,000 posters, few survived in such good condition.