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    7ft animatronic bear believed to have inspired $8 Million sculpture comes to auction after 50 years in London home
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    7ft animatronic bear believed to have inspired $8 Million sculpture comes to auction after 50 years in London home
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    7ft animatronic bear believed to have inspired $8 Million sculpture comes to auction after 50 years in London home

    23 June 2026

    High res images for editorial use here. Please credit Roseberys. 

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
    Stephen Marians and Elizabeth Hearn believe that a chance photograph of their 7ft animatronic bear with a policeman in the 1980s could have been a source of inspiration for a world-famous sculpture

    Stephen Marians and Elizabeth Hearn believe that a chance photograph of their 7ft animatronic bear with a policeman in the 1980s could have been a source of inspiration for a world-famous sculpture

    LONDON, TUESDAY 23 JUNE –  A 50-year-old 7ft animatronic bear model is set to go under the hammer at UK auctioneers Roseberys after decades in a South London home. It is expected to make between £10,000-£20,000 at auction. 
    The bear is estimated to make between £10,000-£20,000 at Roseberys London

    The bear is estimated to make between £10,000-£20,000 at Roseberys London

    The Bear, one of the first radio-controlled animatronics, was designed and commissioned by  British writer and film producer, Stephen Marians, who has kept it in his home for 50 years. 
    Stephen Marians shows Roseberys specialist Anna Evans the newspaper clipping of the photograph of the Bear with a policeman that possibly inspired the Koons sculpture

    Stephen Marians shows Roseberys specialist Anna Evans the newspaper clipping of the photograph of the Bear with a policeman that possibly inspired the Koons sculpture

    The Koons sculpture echoes a photograph captured in Kensington Square in 1985 when Marians, operating the Bear during a ‘Save the Children’ campaign, was stopped by a policeman enquiring about permits. 
    Stephen Marians poses for a photo with a policeman while operating the Bear. It is later republished as a postcard, which is included in the auction materials.

    Stephen Marians poses for a photo with a policeman while operating the Bear. It is later republished as a postcard, which is included in the auction materials.

    Photographer Mike Hollist seized the unexpected encounter, capturing a black-and-white image that subsequently was published in several contemporary UK newspapers, clippings of which are included in the auction materials. 
    Archival newspaper clipping from The Daily Express documenting the encounter on June 14th 1985

    Archival newspaper clipping from The Daily Express documenting the encounter on June 14th 1985

    The image of a policeman looking up at the Bear was later reproduced as postcards, printed in the UK and the Netherlands. Stephen first noticed the photograph reappearing as a postcard in 1988. “I was just walking through Soho when I noticed the postcard,” he recalled. “It caught my eye, but I never imagined what it would eventually lead to.” The Bear was permanently retired at Stephen’s South London home in 1994.
    The Bear’s 1985 appearance was widely publicised by the UK press. The newspapers are included with the bear for sale.

    The Bear’s 1985 appearance was widely publicised by the UK press. The newspapers are included with the bear for sale.

    It wasn’t until decades later that Stephen believes he saw his Bear in an unlikely place; on posters “plastered across the London Tube.” 
    The poster Stephen Marians saw “plastered across the London Tube” is included with other ephemera as part of the auction lot.

    The poster Stephen Marians saw “plastered across the London Tube” is included with other ephemera as part of the auction lot.

    The poster for a 2014 exhibition at the Hayward Gallery featured Jeff Koons’ Bear and Policeman sculpture. At this moment, Marians realised the “uncanny resemblance” between the Koons sculpture and the photo taken of his Bear and a policeman all those years before.
    Produced in an edition of three as part of Koons’ 1988 Banality series, the sculpture has since achieved international recognition and an $8 million auction result. 
    Stephen and Elizabeth with the Koons sculpture at the Hayward Gallery.

    Stephen and Elizabeth with the Koons sculpture at the Hayward Gallery.

    Following the discovery, Stephen and his wife Elizabeth were invited to view the exhibition at the Hayward Gallery. 

    “We could hardly believe our eyes. It felt surreal to see something that felt so familiar out in the world - could a photograph of our Bear taken all those years ago have inspired this world-famous sculpture?”

    Stephen Marians, the creator of the bear

    Stephen notes that he was “flattered” by an artist as renowned as Koons, possibly taking inspiration from his creation. 
    Stephen and Elizabeth hope to find a buyer who will “love the Bear as [they] do”.

    Stephen and Elizabeth hope to find a buyer who will “love the Bear as [they] do”.

    After preserving the Bear for over half a century, the couple now hope to entrust it to a new owner. “People have an affinity with their bears,” Elizabeth Marians reflected. “We hope that someone will love him as much as we do.”
    The 7ft 4in Bear remains in excellent condition, featuring multiple independently operated movements, including the eyes and ears. The costume is powered by a battery pack housed within the head and incorporates integrated cooling measures and an internal harness system. 
    The controls to operate the Bear’s animatronic mechanism

    The controls to operate the Bear’s animatronic mechanism

    The lot is accompanied by associated archival material, including original newspaper clippings and memorabilia documenting the Bear’s public appearances.
    Roseberys specialists Anna Evans and Jack Wallis examine the Bear

    Roseberys specialists Anna Evans and Jack Wallis examine the Bear

    When the bear first arrived as a routine valuation request, we could not have anticipated the depth of the story behind it. This Bear has lived many lives beyond the world of children’s television. The wealth of archival material offered alongside it at auction makes for a really compelling story. The Bear is a cultural artifact in its own right and we expect to see this reflected in strong bidding,”

    Anna Evans, Associate Director and Head of Furniture & Works of Art at Roseberys

    Fine & Decorative auction at Roseberys: Thursday 9 July
    ENDS
    High res images available for editorial use here. Please credit Roseberys.
    For media enquiries please contact: aliciaglenn@roseberys.co.uk
    About Roseberys:
    Founded more than three decades ago, Roseberys has built a reputation for bringing fresh-to-market works and distinctive collections to auction across a wide range of collecting categories. 
    In recent years, Roseberys has increasingly brought significant single-owner collections and interiors to market. These have included The George Farrow Collection, a wide-ranging group of more than 500 works spanning European sculpture, Chinese works of art and historic tapestries and The Collection of the Late Hugo Morley-Fletcher, the renowned Antiques Roadshow ceramics specialist, which brought together family portraits from Yester House alongside his personal holdings of European porcelain and glass.
    Other recent sales drawn from historic interiors, including An English Country Home: Interiors by Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler, have further reinforced the auction house’s position as a destination for collections shaped by a strong sense of place and provenance.
    Recent Sales of Note:
    • A sketch by John Constable descending through the artist’s family (£71,740)
    • A pair of huanghuali chairs formerly owned by an advisor to Chairman Mao (£774,240)
    • An Edwardian silver tea service once owned by Irish explorer Ernest Shackleton (£20,990)
    • An Andy Warhol Superman print from the Myths series (£223,840)
    • Two original illustrations for The Jungle Book, long believed lost (£93,840 & £36,640)
    • A painting of Belsize Park by F.N. Souza (£299,240)
    • A record price for a work on paper by Paule Vézelay (£22,304) 
    • One of only 25 deluxe editions of Life and Landscape on the Norfolk Broads (1886) by Peter Henry Emerson (£52,480)
    • Art Deco diamond earrings (£71,740) 
    • A very rare 18ct white gold and diamond Cartier wristwatch (£130,000)
    • A Hans Coper ceramic dish from the Bunny Rogers collection (44,440)

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