A handwritten signed letter from George VI, which reveals his distress at broadcasting his first Christmas message, has hammered for £3,200 ($5,000) this afternoon (September 4). 

As we expected, the Sandringham-headed letter beat its £3,000 ($4,667) estimate at International Autograph Auctions' (IAA) online Royal Auction. It is a testament, in part, to the renewed interest in Queen Elizabeth's father following the Academy Award-winning film, The King's Speech.

George VI's stammer severely affected his 1937 speech

In the letter to British academic Lord David Cecil, written on December 28, 1937, George states: "I am glad Xmas is over. The Broadcast spoilt it for me entirely!!"

George VI came to the throne in December 1936 following his brother Edward VIII's abdication to marry divorcee Wallis Simpson.

There was no Christmas message that year, ensuring that 1937 was the first time George VI delivered the now-traditional message - a tradition that his father, George V, had started in 1932.

As dramatised in the 2010 movie, George VI's stammer was affecting him severely at this time, making for an uncomfortable experience for the king, and a disquieting one for his audience throughout the Commonwealth.

A 1939 signed letter from the former Edward VIII about misstatements in a Daily Express newspaper article also auctioned. It sold for a hammer price of £12,000 ($18,754), beating its high estimate of £8,000 by 50%.

Also featuring prominently was a pair of Queen Victoria's French lawn knickers, which hammered for their high estimate of £3,000 ($4,667).

The price was down on the £9,375 ($15,000) achieved for a pair of Victoria's bloomers in 2011, suggesting that collectors may have become immune to the charms of the Queen's undergarments, such is their ubiquity on the auction market.  

You can view our royal memorabilia for sale here.