They have perched on the noses of politicians and poets. They have graced the famous faces of pop singers and Hollywood superstars.

These are spectacles whose distinctive styles helped to define the image of their illustrious wearers.

Now the fans are being offered a unique opportunity to see what life looks like through the lens of their favourite celebrity.

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Distinctive: Some of the glasses donated for the auction, but can you match them to their celebrity owners?

Leading names from the world of film, television, fashion and politics have given up their old unwanted glasses, spare pairs of reading specs and designer shades for an online auction to raise money for the blind and visually impaired.

Screen legend Sir Michael Caine

Among the 24 donors are screen stars Robbie Coltrane, Ewan McGregor and Sir Michael Caine – the latter having provided a pair of designer sunglasses, as has the singer George Michael.

Christopher Biggins and Jimmy Savile, both renowned for their colourful eyewear, have also contributed, along with Cherie Blair and Stephen Fry.

The eBay auction, which starts today, includes frames worn by former Prime Minister John Major, actress Maureen Lipman and TV presenter Aggie MacKenzie, whose spectacles helped her spot dust and grime in the show How Clean Is Your House?

Another contributor to the auction is actor and TV presenter Tony Robinson (though the frames are not the ones he famously wore as Private Baldrick in Blackadder Goes Forth).

Dave Stewart, of pop band the Eurythmics, has donated a pair, as has BBC newsreader Kate Silverton.

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The writers on the list of donors include Alan Bennett, John Mortimer and Alexander McCall Smith (creator of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series), along with British film writer and director Phil Davis, publisher Felix Dennis, DJ Neil Fox, poet John Hegley and comedian Danny Wallace.

Fashion designers Wayne Hemingway and Bruce Oldfield have also donated frames.

Specs appeal: George Michael

From traditional horn-rimmed reading glasses to designer-tinted pairs, the collection offers bidders the chance to snap up a unique piece of cultural history.

Sightsavers International asked each celebrity to donate their unwanted pairs in a bid to highlight the plight of the 153million people who are living with blindness around the world simply because they cannot get a pair of glasses.

The money raised will support the work of the international blindness charity in 33 countries across Africa, Asia and the Caribbean to prevent and cure blindness and support people who are permanently blind or visually impaired.

The celebrity specs will be on sale online until August 24.

Above, you can see an assortment of the glasses on sale. Can you guess whose spectacles they are?