A RARE first edition of Hampshire author Jane Austen’s classic Pride and Prejudice has sold for a world record.

It sold for £139,250 at auctioneers Sotheby’s in London yesterday to a US dealer – £40,000 more than experts had predicted and the most an edition of Pride and Prejudice has ever sold for at auction.

First published in 1813, the novel tells the story of Elizabeth Bennett and her aloof suitor Mr Darcy, but has been adapted numerous times on television and film in recent years, including the 1995 BBC version with Hampshire’s Colin Firth.

Before the auction, Sotheby’s thought that the book, in three volumes, would fetch between £75,000 and £100,000 because it was rare to find a copy still in its original covers. A first edition copy of Sense and Sensibility fetched £49,250, while a first edition copy of Northanger Abbey and Persuason went for £43,250 and a first edition copy of Emma sold for £30,000.