Bid On A 'Bug

Once-in-a-lifetime auction to support Comic Relief!

20 March, 2017

Would you like to own a one-of-a-kind Starbug model? To be precise, would you like to own an exact replica of the Starbug that crashed in Twentica, produced especially for you? Well, thanks to Comic Relief, you can - so long as you win a pretty competitive auction!

We're sure you all know the drill with Red Nose Day by now - the biennial UK telethon held by the Comic Relief charity, which sees the great and good of British comedy (and the wider entertainment world) coming together to do unusual and funny things, inspiring the public to put their hands in their pockets to support thousands of good causes worldwide. The charity has raised over a billion pounds over the past thirty years, and Red Dwarf's path has crossed with it before, when the cast gathered as part of a Bohemian Rhapsody singalong in 1993.

Over the past few years, an increasingly popular feature of the event has been a set of online auctions for some pretty fantastic items and experiences - and this year, the charity is promising the Best Auction Ever, with all kinds of amazing things open for bidding. And one of those amazing things is the Starbug model, which you can bid on right here.

The model seen in Twentica, affectionately referred to as "Stuntbug", was created by 3D printing specialists Voxeljet, in order to provide the production with a ready-made set of 'bugs that could be used for shooting crash sequences, without destroying the main filming model. For this auction, a brand new printing of the model has been created - and painted and decaled up to match the Twentica model exactly. It's a beast of a creation, measuring in at 85 cm long - you can see in the above photos how it measures up alongside one of our trusty Red Dwarf XI mugs - so if you're going to bid on it, make sure you've got room in your house for it!

If you want to know more about the process of creating the model, Voxeljet have published a video - featuring contributions from Doug and Richard Naylor - detailing the work they carried out, with lots of lovely behind-the-scenes process shots:

The model comes with a certificate of authenticity from Doug Naylor - oh, and it's been signed by the cast, just in case it wasn't already valuable enough.

The boys from the Dwarf even stopped by to sign #starbug Get bidding! https://t.co/3I6cci9kuDpic.twitter.com/IKJ34VUvOD

— Phil O'Connell (@fil665) March 17, 2017

Bidding is open until Monday 27th March, and you can find all the terms and conditions over on the auction page. And if the bidding is already a bit beyond you, why not take a look at what else is on offer in the auction, or make a donation to Comic Relief directly?

Red Nose Day comes to BBC1 at 7pm on Friday 24th March!