A MUSICAL legend surprised staff at a Bournemouth art gallery today when he dropped in to take a look around.

Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber spent over an hour looking at the collection of artwork housed at the Russell Cotes Art Gallery and Museum, and spent time talking to staff about his own collection.

Trish Walker, Marketing Manager said that it was a special day for everyone at the Russell Cotes.

She said: “He hasn't visited the Russell Cotes in over 20 years.

“Andrew Lloyd Webber is one of the top art collectors in the world and some of the artists that we have here are the same as he has at home.

“His key interests are in pre-Raphaelite paintings and so he was particularly interested in a picture called Venus Verticordia by Dante Gabriel Rossetti.

“He also took a particular interest in Midsummer by Albert Moore, as he has some of Moore's paintings at his home.

“Lord Lloyd Webber runs a cultural foundation and he has promised to support the restoration of some of the paintings we have here and perhaps re-open our exhibition in the summer of 2014.

“He was just very friendly and happy to chat about the art as I and some other staff showed him round.

“We just had a call from front desk to say that Lord Lloyd Webber was here and the museum was full of people at the time, but he didn't seem to mind.

“In our world of art, it doesn't get much better than Andrew Lloyd Webber coming to visit.

“It was an absolute honour and a treat as he chatted to all the staff and was happy to be here.

“Things like this don't happen every day.”