OCTOPUS Ahoy! won thousands of hearts during the public art trail and has now cemented its legacy by raising £52,000 for local charitable causes at auction.

All 27 large sculptures and a handful of smaller ones went under the hammer at auction with funds secured split evenly between Essex Community Foundation and the Tendring Community Fund to make sure the popular event secures a legacy.

Art lovers flocked to Le Talbooth on Thursday evening to bid thousands of pounds for the incredible works of art which have gone down in local folklore.

Renowned auctioneers, Reeman Dansie, conducted the auction, through online bidding and a live auction. The auction ensures Octopus Ahoy! art trail will be causing waves in the Tendring and Essex community long after the memories have faded from the event.

Katie Skingle, Director at KAT Marketing, said: “We are so pleased with how much was raised tonight for two very worthy causes.

"Tendring’s great and good came out in full force to support us and whether that was online or in person we appreciate every single bid and every single pound raised.

"This marks the start of Octopus Ahoy! legacy and we are eternally grateful to Tendring Council and every single business that became an Octopus Patron, or bought one to give them forever homes.

"We’ve enjoyed seeing all the smiles it has bought. Well done Tendring!"

The Octopus Ahoy! art trail was in place over the summer and was created to celebrate 150 years of Clacton and the Mayflower 400 project.