Finder of rare Beatles letter tells his story -- it was lodged in antiques book

Shortly after we published the first part of our two-part story on Paul McCartney's 1960 letter seeking a drummer for the Beatles (part one and part two), we were contacted by the person who found it.

The man, who would not tell us his name, said, "I am a private coin and antique collector from Bootle Liverpool, as you know. I found the letter folded up inside a book that i bought at a car boot sale. I took the letter to the Beatles Shop in Liverpool City Center there. I was offered £3,000 ($4,731 USD) for it. I then went to the Beatles Museum, where I got details for Christie's Auction in London.

View slideshow: The Paul McCartney letter

"Up to now, I have been offered £16,000 ($25,233 USD) by Beatles memorabilia collectors, but as I told them it's not about the money. If I had sold it Beatles enthusiasts worldwide may never (know) the letter (existed). As everyone else, I am also interested in who the fifth drummer was or could have been. Whatever the letter sells for at auction, I will be more than happy."

What book was the letter in? "The book is an antique price book called 'Whats it Worth.'" Even more astonishingly, he wrote "I paid 50p."

Shanna Curtis, who works for the Beatles Story museum in Liverpool, says he brought the letter to them first. "The man who found the letter (I didn't get his name) said he found it at a carboot sale," she said. "He brought it in on the 6th or the 7th of October, I think. The paper was worn and browning in spots. He said the guy at the Beatles Shop offered him £3,000 pounds on the spot and he was seeing if we would offer him a better deal as he wanted it to be put on display for Beatles fans.

"Unfortunately, we don't appraise things on site, but the general consensus was that it was real and we told him who to contact next. Also, the man who found it had no problem showing it to anyone who wanted to see it. We thought if it was a fake he probably would have been more guarded about it."

The letter is being auctioned by Christie's Kensington office Nov. 15. Here's the text of the letter. You can see the image of the letter at left:

"In reply to your advertisement in Echo, Wed. night, we would like to offer you an audition for the position of drummer in the group.

"You will, however, need to be free soon for a trip to Hamburg (expenses paid £18 per week (approx.) for 2 months.) If interested, ring Jacaranda club, Slater St. [ROYAL 65’64] and ask for either a member of the ‘BEATLES’ Alan Williams [sic], or else leave a message, stating when you will be available.

‘Yours sincerely, Paul McCartney of THE BEATLES."

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