De Burgh says his Alien represents a "defining moment" in film

He paid just under �29,875 at a London auction for the piece which was seen bursting from John Hurt's chest.

Auctioneers Bonhams had estimated the piece would fetch around �12,000.

But frantic bidding for the lot, described by Bonhams as "an iconic piece of science fiction film history", more than doubled the price.

The singer said: "I bought it because I believed it was a defining moment in cinema history for its sheer horror.

'Visiting orders'

"I know John Hurt very well, and of course I will give him natural visiting orders being the mother of this creature."

The "chest buster" scene is one of the film's most memorable moments

Other items in the sale of Rock and Roll and Film Memorabilia at the Knightsbridge saleroom included items from The Beatles and a selection of notes from Richard Burton to Elizabeth Taylor expressing his feelings for her.

One note from Burton to Taylor begins: "Dearest Angel, I still find it odd that the most beautiful woman in the world is prepared to share the same bed with me."

In another note, he says he would like to give up acting.

"I violently dislike acting. 'Acting' is a feminine purchase and I was born in the wrong end of the valley of despair.

"I am a man!... I am fairly, perhaps mistakenly, determined that I have much more to say than to repeat the words of other people... I dearly would love to cease being as an actor."

The original costume worn by Kristianna Loken in Terminator 3: Rise Of The Machines was also up for grabs.