Slice of cake from Charles and Diana's wedding sells for £1,850

So a slice of wedding cake saved from the Royal wedding over 40 years ago has sold at auction for £1,850. Royal family fan Gerry Lawton bought the piece for his collection of memorabilia for several times over its estimated value of £300-£500.

The slice has been preserved in film for over 40 years. Photo: Clare Hayhurst PA

The slice of rich fruit cake covered with marzipan and decorated with a Royal coat of arms in Royal icing had been given to a member of the Queen Mother’s staff after the 1981 wedding and she had preserved it in clingfilm.

Chris Albury, a royal memorabilia specialist at Dominic Winter Auctioneers in Cirencester, told the Guardian newspaper that he was amazed at the number of bidders who were interested. ‘Most of the inquiries came from the UK, US and the Middle East,’ he said.

Royal wedding cakes have always followed a traditional tiered design. There’s a fascinating story here about the making of Prince Charles and Camilla’s wedding cake by a family run bakery in Lincolnshire, which had to plan, design and bake the required 93 12 inch fruit cakes in just four weeks for the couples’ wedding in 2005: 1080 eggs!!

Chief Petty Officer Cook Dave Avery adding the final details to the cake. Photo: Press/Getty Images, Anwar Hussein/WireImage

Kate and William broke with tradition slightly for their cake, which had a simpler construction, without pillars, and was based on a selection of flowers chosen by the Duchess of Cambridge and architectural details from the Picture Gallery at Buckingham Palace, where it was set.

Baker Fiona Cairns with the cake she designed and made for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s wedding

Unsurprisingly, Prince Harry and Meghan opted for a completely different type of wedding cake. In a huge break from tradition, they chose a stunning trio of modern rustic buttercream cakes piled high with real peonies and displayed on baroque antique stands. The effect was sensational, winning over even the most conservative Royalists.

Clare Ptak made the wedding cake for Prince Harry and Meghan, which was covered in elderflower Swiss meringue buttercream. Photo: @violetcakes Instagram

This was the cake that really propelled buttercream cakes into the limelight. The flowers are beautiful and the stands so elegant, but the cake looks absolutely delicious. Since then, the popularity of buttercream cakes has rocketed. Not just for this rustic style dressed with fresh flowers, but for painted, piped and sculpted buttercream cakes with extravagant floral designs. While a slice of buttercream wedding cake wouldn’t survive 40 years, it can still be iconic and an absolute showstopper.

Buttercream wedding cake at Painter’s Hall Greenwich by Emma Page Buttercream Cakes London. Photo: Emma Page Buttercream Cakes