Trading standards officers who raided a car boot sale recovered hundreds of bootleg blockbusters, a court heard yesterday.

Copies of Lord of the Rings and the soundtrack album from Moulin Rouge were among the items seized.

And Harrogate magistrates yesterday handed out hundreds of pounds worth of fines to the pirates.

The stall run by Ian Thewlis, 29, and unemployed Paul Hunter, 35, was raided by trading standards and police officers who seized over 450 different titles of movies, CDs and computer games with the likes of Toy Story and Star Wars Super Bombad Racing among them.

The two men, neighbours in Lea Farm Road, Hawksworth, Leeds, each pleaded guilty to two charges of making copyright-infringing articles for sale, five of possession of items which infringed copyright and six of possession of goods with a false trade mark.

Trading standards prosecutor Derek Smith said the pair were at a car boot sale at Buttersyke Bar, Pannal, Harrogate last October and sold counterfeit goods, including Lord of the Rings, to investigators for £5 a time.

The two men had said they had obtained some of their stock at boot sales, paying £2 for each one, and had added to it by making copies themselves.

The court heard Thewlis had set up a legitimate sales operation as a hobby but when the pair realised other car booters were selling pirate goods they followed suit.

Thewlis was fined a total of £300 with £305 costs and Hunter was fined £150 with £150 costs.

Magistrates also fined Meryle May Welch of Woodfield Square, Harrogate, who pleaded guilty to three charges of making counterfeit CDs, three of possession of them and three of having goods with a false trademark.

She was ordered to pay a total of £240 with £150 costs after the court heard she had 176 different discs she had made on her home computer and was selling them at £4 each or three for £9.