THE signatures of the stars are up for grabs in a celebrity autograph auction for a Gwent mayor's appeal.

Celebrities from the worlds of stage, screen, song and sport have sent their scribbles to Torfaen council to aid the mayor's charity appeal.

Autographs have been sent in from, among others, the king of put-downs himself, Pop Idol judge Simon Cowell, Titanic star Kate Winslet, actress Julie Walters and the casts of EastEnders and Coronation Street.

Football fans can bid for the autographs of the entire Everton squad and pennants from national teams, for pop fans former Genesis frontman Phil Collins have donated signed CDs, and Torfaen's very own Helen Adams, the former Big Brother contestant from Cwmbran, has sent her signature to be sold.

Organisers hope the autographs will raise hundreds of pounds for the three charities of the mayor's appeal, which are the Noah's Ark Appeal, Progress Prostate Cancer Support and the South Gwent Breast Cancer Support Group.

Torfaen mayor Councillor Doug Davies, said: "We wrote to all these people through their agents and we had a fantastic response.

"I am looking forward to the auction and hope a lot of people turn up so we can raise lots of money for these three wonderful charities.

"We have so many autographs of some wonderful celebrities so I'm sure it will be a great night."

Councillor Davies added that he expects the signed Phil Collins CD to be the star signature.

"Phil's music has a wide appeal and is loved by all generations," he said. "I'm sure the bids will be high for that item."

And what signatures would make the mayor go starry-eyed?

"If I was bidding I would go for the sports memorabilia. Ideally I would love to get my hands on a signed picture of the Tottenham Hotspurs team, being a huge Spurs fan," added Councillor Davies.

"That's something we are hoping to get but so far we haven't heard back from Spurs. I'm keeping my fingers crossed though."