A BASILDON autograph shop continues to be a big draw to shoppers at the Eastgate Centre, even after 21 years.

The Echo met Marc McLennan, 58. the owner of Sport and Star Autographs in the galleries at the shopping centre to dig deeper into a hobby which has allowed him to meet some of the biggest stars in film, music and sport.

Marc started collecting autographs from a very young age, after spending his formative years training in martial arts, even going on to open his own Jiu Jitsu gym in Noak Bridge.

He said: “I had always collected autographs as a child, but when I retired from martial arts in 1997 I did not know what I wanted to do as a career. But then the chance came from the Eastgate Centre to open a business specialising in autographs and we took it.

“There were not many people selling autographs at the time, but my passion came from a trip to America.

“They had some wonderful shops out there and so I decided to go into it, and a small collection turned into a huge hobby.”

Marc’s first major autograph came from legendary film star, Al Pacino, who he ran into on a guided tour around the Metro Goldwyn Mayer studios in America.

He said: “I was in the studios and the moment I saw him I ran back to a shop in the studio, grabbed a pen and asked him to sign an autograph for me.”

Marc still treasures that autograph 30 years later and he says he will never sell it.

Autographs are more than just a signature to Marc. When he buys items from collectors or the company itself sources pieces, he feels the most important thing about them is the story of how they came to be signed.

He said: “The provenance of an item is key.

“When we get something in we always want to make sure we know all the details so that when someone comes to us asking about it, they know it is authentic and that we can give them the best service we can.”

Marc’s pride in the authenticity of his autographs has become a subject of a television series on Channel 4 called Posh Pawn.

He was also the founder of the Autograph Fair Trade Association (AFTAL) which works with 200 dealers across the country to ensure the authenticity of all autographs that they receive.

A major big ticket item among the 1,000 that Marc, his son and director Jamie and fellow director, Nicola Moore keep is a poster signed by Bruce Lee in 1973 on the set of Enter the Dragon.

That treasured and rare item is valued at £9,000 and was acquired by an extra who worked on the set of the film.

Marc said: “His name was Andis Nelsson, he was the guy who fought Bruce Lee in a nunchaku fight in the film.”

Over years of private signings, Marc’s office in Basildon has accumulated autographs from some of the world’s biggest sporting stars, including Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and boxing great, Floyd Mayweather.

Another star on his roster is heavyweight champion of the world, Anthony Joshua.

But his quest is not over by any stretch of the imagination.

As he freely admits, there are still many more autographs to collect and sell on, especially as business is booming and the shop remains as big a draw as ever.