Thursday 26 January 2012

It took me years to write….

There have been so many books written about the Beatles. Sadly very few have any monetary value.

Books from the time are popular with fans, but condition is everything with these items. Loose, damaged or missing pages, tears and creases and damaged spines all have a very big effect on the value of a book.

The edition of the book is also relevant. Many of the books have gone through numerous reprints over the years.  Mind you some books had numerous reprints in the same year that they were first issued. For example – John’s two books from the sixties In His Own Write and A Spaniard In The Works were reprinted several times due to high demand in the months after release.

Here’s a lot for our auction which consists of both of his sixties books. The In His Own Write dates from the year of release but is a second edition. The copy of A Spaniard In The Works is a first edition.

lennonbooks

Together they have an estimate of £60-£70.

 

hunterdaviesBefore the release of the Beatles Anthology Book, the only fully authorised biography of the Beatles was the 1968 book The Beatles by Hunter Davies. The book as been revised and reprinted constantly since then.

This first edition hardcover with dust jacket is going up for sale in our auction for an estimated £25-£35.

 

 

If you have anything you would like valued or considered for placement into the auction our contact details can be found by following the link above. Please read the FAQs first. We are already taking items in for the August 2012 event and we can only include a certain amount of items in the auction so it is better to come to us well in advance of the closing date for lots. (Which is usually the beginning of June) Valuations are completely free. We do not value autographs without seeing them. If contacting us by mail or email please include a clear photograph. If contacting us via telephone please have any items to hand in case there are questions we need answering about the item. When bringing items in for valuation please contact us before hand to make sure that the person who does our valuations is available.

Beatles Crockery

The blue transfer plates and cups crop up often in our auctions and 2012 is no different.

So far we a nice selection of these items. They are a nice affordable way to have an original item that looks great on display.

Two biscuit plates.

biscuitplates

These are for sale in a lot together, they carry an estimate of £ 80-£90

A plate with a Washington Pottery stamp on the reverse. Not all the Washington Pottery plates have the stamp, but they still date from the same time. However anything with this blue Beatles pattern and a gold rim is a reproduction from a later era.

plateplatestamp

The plate is estimated at £30- £40

Beatles mugs or cups came with different stamps or imprint on the base. This one is embossed with “Vogue Tams England 64” on the base.

vtmugvtmugbase

It has an estimate of £40-£50.

 

If you have anything you would like valued or considered for placement into the auction our contact details can be found by following the link above. Please read the FAQs first. We are already taking items in for the August 2012 event and we can only include a certain amount of items in the auction so it is better to come to us well in advance of the closing date for lots. (Which is usually the beginning of June) Valuations are completely free. We do not value autographs without seeing them. If contacting us by mail or email please include a clear photograph. If contacting us via telephone please have any items to hand in case there are questions we need answering about the item. When bringing items in for valuation please contact us before hand to make sure that the person who does our valuations is available.

Monday 23 January 2012

A small piece of Mersey Beat history

We get some interesting little snapshots of history in the auction.

mbeatreceiptFor example, here’s a receipt on Mersey Beat headed notepaper for copies of the magazine stocked by the Jacaranda Club (owned by The Beatles’ former manager Allan Williams).  The document is dated 14th March 1962 and includes a mention of issue 13 which is the famous Poll Winners edition of Mersey Beat from January 1962 with the Beatles topping the poll.

While the item isn’t of a high monetary value, the estimate is £40-£50, it is a fascinating (and affordable) slice of history. It features a well known issue of a historic Merseyside music magazine and a club, and its owner, with strong links to the  whole Beatles story.

Two more McCartney signatures

We have recently taken in two more Paul McCartney signatures for the auction in August.

As with the previous post the signatures come from two different eras of Paul’s career.

paulsigoncigpackThe autograph on this cigarette packet was obtained in Rhyl in 1963 when the Beatles played at Ritz Ballroom in July that year.

It has an estimate of £250-£300.

 

 

The second autograph has an interesting story attached to it. The vendor used topaulsigbread work for Hoover and a colleague had to go on a call to Jean Boht’s house. Jean Boht was the star of the popular sitcom Bread, playing the matriarchal Ma Boswell. The vendor was a fan of the series and asked if her colleague would get her an autograph. They did, and they also got an autograph from the other person visiting Jean Boht that day, who just happened to be Paul McCartney. The autograph also features a smiley face drawn by Paul which adds to the appeal of the signature.  It carries an estimate of £400-£450. 

Tuesday 17 January 2012

McCartney Signatures

Autographs feature heavily in our auction each year. We’ve already taken some in for the 2012 event.

We have two Paul McCartney autographs from different eras of his career.

First of all here’s a signature from the 70s on the back of a Wings postcard. It was signed in Glasgow.

wingpcmaccasig

It has an estimate of £350-£450.

Next here’s one in a copy of Blackbird Singing, which was signed at WH Smiths in Liverpool. Fans waited out overnight in wintery conditions to meet Paul at this signing event.

bbsmaccasig

It has an estimate of £450-£500

The value of autographs very much depends on what the signature is on. Books, records and on the front of photographs or postcards are the most desirable. With the exception of signatures in books, most of the time people are looking for something they can frame up with the minimum of fuss. The condition of the signed item also has an effect on the price.

We will never give a valuation on signed items without seeing them first.

A Christmas Gift from Them to You

The Beatles Fan Club Christmas Flexi discs regularly appear in our auctions.

The flexible  plastic records were issued at Christmas time to all the members of the Beatles fan club and contained a special recorded message by the band to the fans.

In 1963 apparently 25,000 were made and sent out to fans, then a further 10,000 got sent out without sleeves due to demand. After that obviously the fan club numbers exploded and many more copies of subsequent discs were sent out.

The rarest of the Christmas records dates from 1970, when fan club numbers were falling. This was a proper vinyl album which compiled all the previous Christmas flexi discs together on one record.

So far we have flexi discs from 1963 to 1967 in the auction. The 1963 disc is estimated to sell for around £80-£100 and the rest for around £50-£60 each.

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Thursday 12 January 2012

2012 Auction

We have now started to take in lots for the 2012 Liverpool Beatles Auction.

The auction is held the Saturday before the August Bank Holiday every year, but lots are taken in well in advance. Space in the auction is limited so we encourage people to contact us about potential lots as soon as possible. Most years the sale is full by the start of June.

If you have an item you'd like us to consider including, please check out our FAQ section before contacting us.

Our valuations are free, see the contact section to get in touch with us.








The auction takes place on Saturday August 25th 2012 at The Paul McCartney Auditorium at LIPA. It is organised by The Beatles Shop on Mathew Street, where lots are still being taken in up until June. Contact details are listed on the right of this page, and potential vendors and buyers should read the FAQs and the relevant buyers/sellers notes.

If you have any items of interest for the auction please contact us. Click the link on the right for details of how to get in touch.

Press enquiries should be made through the same contact link. Better images of items can be made available to the press upon request.