Today's Object of the Week harks back to the 1960s and the fanaticism surrounding probably the most popular UK band of all time.
At the start of Beatlemania in 1963, the Fab Four performed a series of concert tours throughout the UK - including several dates in the North East.
The Globe in Stockton, Middlesbrough's Astoria Ballroom and the Rink Ballroom in Sunderland were among the venues.
They performed several times in Newcastle, including three times at City Hall, the last of which on November 23, where the setlist included classic songs like I Saw Her Standing There, All My Loving, She Loves You and Twist And Shout.
This gig marked the Fab Four's fifth visit to Newcastle in 1963. When they first played at the city's Majestic Ballroom on January 28 that year, they were little-known.
However, by November 23 Beatlemania was in full swing and the band were greeted in the city by hysterical fans, desperate to catch a glimpse of their idols, hence their need for police protection.
A Newcastle police chief constable’s driver, transported The Beatles from their concert at the City Hall to their hotel in a police van and he took the opportunity to ask the band to sign the only piece of paper he had to hand - a police charge sheet for motoring offences.
This week (Tuesday, April 4), that complete set of Beatles autographs went under the hammer for £3,400 - more than tripling a pre-sale estimate of £600 to £900.
The autographs were sold at Gildings Auctioneers in Leicestershire by the daughter of the man who obtained them.
“We were thrilled to achieve this fantastic result for this very special set of Beatles autographs,” said Gildings director Will Gilding.
“Our seller, who was in the room to see them go under the hammer, was elated to see the fierce bidding from the UK and America, which proved that Beatlemania is still going strong for collectors 60 years on.”
Read about previous Objects of the Week here:
- Why miners didn't mourn ‘the man on the hoss’, whose statue stands in Durham
- What's the story behind Willy’s old stone - Darlington’s rock of ages?
- River Tees book of stunning images is all water under the bridges
Two more full sets of Beatles autographs also exceeded expectations at the auction. A collection signed in pencil on an early publicity photograph fetched £1,400 against an estimate of £300 to £500, despite being heavily worn and folded.
The final collection of autographs was given to the seller in about 1964 by her then-boyfriend, who went to school with some of the band members. This set, which was presented in good condition, sold for £1,600 after being estimated at £1,000 to £1,500.
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“It was wonderful to see all three sets of autographs perform so well on the day,” added Mr Gilding.
“Although it was undoubtedly the Newcastle collection's evocative back story that really captured the imagination of bidders.
"The results across the auction show that now is a great time to sell autographs and music memorabilia in general.”
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