My David Bowie Barbie doll may have soared in value but I wouldn't sell him for the world – Susan Dalgety

News that a 1957 toy robot, complete with its original packaging, was worth thousands of pounds caused much excitement among my grandchildren.

Sitting on top of my kitchen dresser, in pride of place and out of harm’s way, is a Barbie doll, its box still unopened. It’s no ordinary Barbie, with impossibly long legs and plastic features, but a limited edition Bowie Barbie, dressed as Ziggy Stardust. “Can we play with it? Why have you got a doll, you’re far too old? Who is David Bowie?” they have asked over the years. And the latest question, “is it worth a lot of money?”

I hadn’t the heart to tell them “no”, that I only bought it four years ago for £50 and it was probably only worth what I paid for it. But then, out of curiosity, I clicked on Ebay, and there was my doll selling for £300. Or £245, depending on which seller you choose. Not a bad investment for a rash purchase. If I remember correctly, the shipping from the USA cost almost as much as the actual doll, and customs held it hostage for a few weeks until I stumped up duty on it.

But I won’t sell it, not even if my next energy bill bankrupts me, or I run out of cash for Malbec. As a child, I was desperate for a ‘real’ Barbie, but had to be content with a 25p dupe from our local newsagents. And as a teenager and beyond, David Bowie has been part of my life. A collaboration between Barbie and Bowie was too much for me to resist.

A rare 1957 Radicon toy robot, owned by Lee Garrett from Edinburgh, has been valued at thousands of pounds (Picture: McTear's Auctioneers/PA Wire)

Another of my favourites is a tiny transistor radio, no bigger than a box of matches, which belonged to my husband’s uncle. It sits alongside a Royal Doulton toby jug commemorating Sir Stanley Matthews – a lad from Stoke, like my husband, and England’s greatest footballer.

And the newest addition to our collection is a painted wooden cat bearing the legend “Benidorm”. It’s probably worth a couple of euros, but to me it’s priceless as it was a gift from our youngest grandchild. That’s the real value of the precious family mementoes that clutter up our homes – not the cash they could realise, but the memories they contain.