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A letter written by The Beatles’ manager Brian Epstein following the sacking of the band’s drummer Pete Best is going up for sale at auction.
Best was originally signed with the three long-standing members of The Fab Four — John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison — but he was let go by Epstein and replaced by Ringo Starr in August 1962.
A letter written by Epstein to the “secret Beatle” Joe Flannery, who served as The Beatles’ booking manager between 1962 and 1963, has been put up for sale by the latter’s family following his death last year.
Written and sent on September 8, 1962, Epstein wrote to Flannery: “I read from the Mersey Beat Pete Best has now joined THE ALL STARS and I though [sic] I’d let you know that I have sent today, to him a certificate of release from his obligations under contract to myself.
“I would like to add, incidentally, our sincere wishes for Pete’s and the group’s continued success”.
The letter had been kept by Flannery’s family in the years since but is now being sold via Omega Auctions. The sale will take place on October 27, and it is estimated that the lot will reach between £650 and £1000.
“From 1959 onwards, Joe was a close friend and associate of The Beatles and played a major part in guiding them to their meteoric rise to success in 1963,” Omega auctioneer Paul Fairweather said (via BBC News).
“It is on record that they all felt bad when Pete was ousted, so I am sure it was pleasing for them to see he had joined a new band.”
Earlier this month, Paul McCartney reflected on meeting John Lennon and their subsequent songwriting partnership in The Beatles during an interview to mark what would’ve been Lennon’s 80th birthday.
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