A MYSTERIOUS lovestruck romantic rescued a treasured memento from the skip.The old stone seat that sat for years in the garden of Marlborough Hotel seemed destined for demolition in the building works to create flats on the Henley Road site.

A MYSTERIOUS lovestruck romantic rescued a treasured memento from the skip.

The old stone seat that sat for years in the garden of Marlborough Hotel seemed destined for demolition in the building works to create flats on the Henley Road site.

But a man who was married 40 years ago at the distinguished Ipswich hotel rescued the bench from oblivion and carried it off to his own garden.

It was the high-point of a pre-demolition sale at the old Marlborough Hotel on Sunday, which raised £500 for the developers and more than a few smiles among bargain hunters.

Cherry Roberts, a director of property developers Marlborough St Peter, said many shoppers had simply come for a last look round.

She said: "Most domestic buyers were just nosing round because they had memories of the hotel.

"But it was wonderful to see such a happy story behind the garden seat.

"There's an awful lot of stuff left, but we sold a lot of things you wouldn't normally expect.

"Things like loo roll holders and curtain tracks, the kind of thing you take for granted and when you buy a brand new house you realise how much it costs.

"There was a very nice mirror in the gentleman's toilets which a lot of people were admiring but wouldn't come off the wall.

"Then just before we were due to close the doors, a young family came in and said they liked it.

"I told them it was theirs if they could get it off the wall and they just lifted it straight off. So that was nice as well."

Mrs Roberts said she was also glad to be able to help a woman from a local hospice who had come to the sale to buy some things for her daughter.

The woman sheepishly asked for any bathroom cast-offs left and Mrs Roberts was happy to donate them the following morning.

n Are you the old romantic who bought the stone seat? We'd like to share your story with our readers. Call the newsdesk on 01473 324789 or email starnews@eveningstar.co.uk