Elton auctions wardrobe for charity

Sir Elton John stepped out of the closet years ago. Now he's trying to empty it.

The rock star is selling off 10,000 garments including suits, coats, jumpers, shirts and shoes to raise money for his charity, The Elton John Aids Foundation.

The collection is so vast he has set up his own shop - titled Elton's Closet - in the concourse of the Rockefeller Centre in midtown Manhattan to display his clothes.

"The clothes have hardly been worn. Some of them haven't been worn," said Sir Elton, 59, in a dark suit, gingham shirt and sherbet-stripe tie that presumably weren't for sale. The singer was attending a ribbon-cutting ceremony to launch the sale of the clothes, some of which are owned by his partner David Furnish.

Sir Elton added: "There's the most extraordinary collection of T-shirts, your baseball caps, your shoes, from flamboyance to classic. And spend some money to help other people who desperately need their lives to be changed and improved, and you'll be doing a really good thing."

Items for sale include a black Versace suit with Sir Elton's song titles - including Tiny Dancer and Rocket Man - woven into the fabric and the polka-dot Richard James suit he wore when he performed with Eminem at the 2001 Grammy Awards.

Then there's the forest green and magenta Jean- Paul Gaultier jacket with yellow stars; eight Versace Asianprinted silk robes; and "his and his" Gucci blazers.

Prices range from $30 for Nike and adidas trainers to $8,795 for a Brioni mink-lined coat, with the price tag still attached.

The sale should add significantly to the £50 million raised by the Elton John Aids Foundation over the years.

The only big question is: what is he going to do with all that spare space in his wardrobes?

If it suits you, Sir Elton, can we suggest you host a stadium concert in there.