Beatles autographs from Kenilworth fan - complete with John Lennon’s chippy-fat finger smudge – sparks three-way international bidding battle at auction

And the seller, who plucked up the courage to gain the Fab Four’s signatures while they were eating fish and chips at TV studios in Birmingham in 1963, was thrilled by the result.

Her autograph book, also signed by the band’s manager Brian Epstein, sold today (June 15) for a hammer price of £5,900 – racing past its £4,000 estimate. The total paid by a private UK online bidder, with buyer’s premium, was £7,670.

The seller, a 73-year-old retired teacher from Kenilworth, said: “It was an excellent, exceptional auction result. I’m delighted - thrilled. And I’ve got a special thank-you. It’s for Paul, Ringo, George and John.”

Claire Howell, music memorabilia consultant at Hansons, said: “There was strong interest in these autographs because the fish-and-chips story and provenance was so fantastic. A phone bidder and people competing on two different online bidding platforms battled for the lot. It’s a wonderful piece of music memorabilia and I’m pleased to see it achieve the price it deserved for our client.”

The seller was a nervous teenage schoolgirl when she bagged the star signatures at a canteen in Birmingham in 1963 when the Fab Four were tucking into a chippy lunch. Consequently, George Harrison’s autograph includes a greasy smudge on his first name – put there by John.

The signatures read: ‘love from The Beatles. Ringo Starr xxx - Paul McCartney xxx - George Harrison xxx - John Lennon xxxx’.

The seller said: “I was only 14 at the time. My friend’s mother worked in the design department at the ABC Weekend Television Studios in Aston, Birmingham, and the Beatles were filming there on June 23, 1963. They were in the city to pre-record a performance for TV show Thank Your Lucky Stars which was broadcast on June 29, 1963.

“My friend’s mother arranged for us to go backstage. We walked into the canteen and there they were – The Beatles!

“We were very nervous but managed to pluck up the courage to approach them. I went over to Paul McCartney first and wished him happy birthday. His birthday’s on June 18, which was a few days earlier.

“He signed my autograph book first, wrote ‘love from The Beatles’ and passed it round the table.

"John was the last to sign. They’d been picking up chips with their fingers and I remember him licking his lips and rubbing his fingers on his trousers to try to get the grease off before he signed. He still put a greasy smudge on George Harrison’s name. It was one of those old blotchy Biros. I suppose the inky smudge contains John Lennon’s DNA."

The seller added: “I am only selling now because my friend, whose mother got us backstage that day, lost her set of Beatles autographs which she got at the same time. I plan to share the proceeds with her. It seems only fair. Without her mother I would never have them. It’s time for someone else to enjoy and treasure them.”