A guitar previously owned and played by George Harrison has sold for £390,653 at auction.
The black-and-white 1962 Rickenbacker 425 was bought in Mount Vernon, Illinois in 1963 and was used by Harrison during performances that same year on shows Ready Steady Go! and Thank Your Lucky Stars. It was also played in the studio during the sessions which resulted in the recordings of “I Want to Hold Your Hand” and “This Boy” in October 1963.
The guitar was sold by Julien’s Auctions in New York on May 17, reports Reuters. The auction also saw the sale of a placard covered in doodles and signed by John Lennon and Yoko Ono, from their “bed-in” protest, which sold for £111,190, and a Hofner bass rented by Paul McCartney, which sold for £74,325.
Meanwhile, Richard Lester’s film A Hard Day’s Night is to be re-released in cinemas and on DVD. The 1964 film has been fully restored and will be in cinemas and available to download on July 4. A limited edition DVD and Blu-ray release will follow on July 21.