'Holy Grail' Beatles record to be auctioned

An extremely rare and valuable Beatles record that was found languishing in a loft is to be auctioned next month. Described as "a Holy Grail item", the 10-inch pressing of Till There Was You and Hello Little Girl lay forgotten in the home of Les Maguire for decades.

The 78 RPM record was the first Beatles disc to be pressed

The record was kept in the loft of the home of Les Maguire (far left) for more than 50 years

 Maguire, the keyboardist in fellow Liverpool act Gerry and the Pacemakers, said it could be seen as the record "that sparked The Beatles' success". The acetate bears the handwriting of the Fab Four's manager Brian Epstein.

'One-off'

A conservative estimate is that the 78 RPM record - the first Beatles disc to be pressed - will fetch upwards of £10,000 when it is auctioned, although it is such a rare item it is difficult to predict what the sale price will be.

The record - labelled as being the work of "Paul McCartney & The Beatles" - was pressed at the HMV store in Oxford Street, London, and presented to future Beatles producer George Martin at the EMI record label in a bid to secure the band a recording contract.

Maguire, 74, of Formby, Merseyside, was given the disc by Epstein in 1963 after it had been returned to him by Martin.