Kenny's Rolls is out of this world

The actor, from Preston, found stardom by bringing the world’s most well-known robot R2-D2 to life.

Now a Rolls-Royce belonging to him, a 1982 Corniche (inset), is estimated to sell for £28,000 to £32,000.

Damian Jones, head of sales at auctioneers of classic and collector cars H&H Classics, said: “Besides being a fine example of the marque, this car will appeal to anyone who loved the Star Wars series in which Kenny Baker’s character R2-D2 was a much loved part.”

Kenny was known for his love of cars and was regularly spotted driving around Preston city centre in his Rolls-Royce or beloved Mercedes Benz, with specially extended pedals. His Corniche is to come under the hammer at H&H Classics’ next auction at the Imperial War Museum in Cambridge on March 21.

Kenneth George Baker, who was born in 1934 in Birmingham, died at his home in Ashton-on-Ribble in 2016 after a long illness, aged 81. At his funeral the 3ft 8in-tall actor made his final journey in his favourite mode of transport - a Rolls Royce.

His wife Eileen, a fellow actress from Ingol had died in 1993. The pair had two children.

He had roles in Flash Gordon, Time Bandits, Amadeus and The Elephant Man. However it was the fictional robot character created by filmmaker George Lucas, a small astromech droid, R2-D2 which brought him fame.