Star Trek chair set for a new frontier

It has boldly gone where no chair has gone before - to the furthest reaches of the universe.

Now the seat from which Captain Kirk commanded the Starship Enterprise is up for sale - and its unique place in sci-fi history is expected to make a Star Trek fan part with more than £100,000 in tomorrow's eBay online auction.

Bob Justman, the show's original producer, examined the chair to verify its authenticity. He said: "This chair is the real thing, the original Captain's chair from the bridge of the USS Enterprise."

Said to be "a true icon of entertainment history" and "a symbol of Star Trek's influence on modern pop culture and real-life space exploration", the chair was constructed at the Desilu Culver Studios in November 1964.

First used by Jeffrey Hunter as Captain Christopher Pike in the pilot show, The Cage, it remained the focal point of the bridge throughout all the series starring William Shatner as Kirk. The frame is crafted from plywood and painted battleship grey while the wide armrests contain the controls and switches used by Shatner.

Set within the frame is the original Naugahyde-covered seat. The current owner picked it up with other pieces from the set in 1969 after he received a call from a friend who worked at Paramount Pictures telling him the items were to be scrapped.