Wessex Auction Rooms - Toys & Vinyl
With seven days of auctions over the last month, the team at Wessex Auction Rooms have been in a whirlwind of consigning, cataloguing, selling, and packing items – and that is exactly how we love it.The buzz around an auction house when there are lots of auctions coming up is like nothing else – and this past week that buzz has been heightened by an extremely special item that was due to go under the hammer.
Wessex Auction Rooms are known around the world as a leading specialist in vinyl records and music memorabilia, and we hold twelve days of auctions each year dedicated to them.My business partner Martin Hughes is regularly called upon by the media to offer his expertise in what is often referred to as the ‘vinyl revival’, and that often leads to some exceptional items being consigned for sale.One such item went under the hammer last week and caused a stir amongst music collectors around the globe.
In 1977 The Sex Pistols signed a record deal with A&M Records, with their first release for the label scheduled to be the single God Save The Queen. A contract signing session was arranged to take place outside of Buckingham Palace and the press coverage and controversy was more than the record label had bargained for. A&M decided that the negative publicity was more than they were prepared to tolerate, and the band’s contract was terminated.25,000 copies of the single had been pressed by the label and were ordered to be destroyed.Rumours circulated for many years that a box of the singles had been kept in ‘the vault’ and in 1998 when A&M closed it’s London office, the CEO John Kennedy presented a small number of departing executives with a copy of the record from the vault with a letter of thanks for their service.These have become known as the Golden Handshake copies.Wessex Auction Rooms previously set a world record price for the item when we sold one back in 2019 for over £16,000.
Last week we were lucky enough to have another copy up for auction, but this one was very special as it pre-dated the 1998 giveaways.This copy came directly from an ex-employee who was the receptionist at A&M in 1977 when the Sex Pistols first came to the offices (she doesn’t have fond memories of their behaviour) and later in her career became the PA to the then Chief Executive.It turns out that the much talked about ‘vault’ was at the time, the bottom drawer of her desk!When she left the company in 1984, this copy went with her and stayed in her possession for 30 years… until now.
Bidders from as far afield as Japan, South Africa and the USA fought it out online and on the telephone before the unassuming 7” single eventually sold for a world record price of £24,320 including buyer’s premium.
Other highlights included a Beatles White Album that sold for over £4000 to an online bidder after some extremely fierce competition.Early copies of the famous album had an embossed number on the front of the sleeve, and for years collectors have been hunting down the lowest number that they can find in order to have bragging rights.The copy we had on offer was 000062 so would have been one of the very first copies off the production line.
We also held our fifth two-day toy auction of the year two weeks ago and the outstanding performer of the sale was what has become the collecting phenomenon of the 20th Century – Star Wars. Magic names such as Hornby, Corgi, Dinky, Barbie, Stieff and Britain’s have been – and still are – wildly collectable and fetching great prices, but as the children of the late 1970s, 1980s and early 1990’s have become adults, we have witnessed the TV & Film related toys of that era become hot property. If TV related toys were a pack of cards, shows like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Thundercats, MASK, He-Man Masters of the Universe and even Batman, can all stake a claim to being a ‘picture card’, but you won’t be surprised to learn that Star Wars is the King. The star lot was an original carded Palitoy The Empire Strikes Back Yoda figure that went under the hammer in the early evening of Friday 21st June and received over 30 bids in total. This level of interest helped the smallest of figures achieve a price of £3,600 including premium!
I appreciate that only a small handful of people will have carded and immaculate figures at their disposal and more than likely the figures purchased in the early 1980s were being thrown around the living room while saving the world from Darth Vader - but the right figures can still be worth serious money without their card and packaging. Another highlight lot featured four unboxed ‘Last 17’ Ewok figures. Always a fan favourite, the Ewoks included Romba, Warok, Lumat and Paploo, and all came complete with accessories, and were in a good play worn condition. ‘Last 17’, simply refers to the fact that they were part of the final 17 original figure run, which is a must-have for collectors.The Ewoks sold for a premium inclusive £432.
Outside of Star Wars we were delighted to sell a group of three Sasha dolls for £1140 including premium, a boxed Sega Multi-Mega games console for £1080, a collection of unboxed & play worn Action Man figures and accessories for £504, and a collection of Bluebird Polly Pocket play sets for £1320!
Wessex Auction Rooms are always consigning for forthcoming auctions and welcome entries Mon-Fri 9-5 at our auction rooms just off J17 of the M4 (Chippenham) with no appointment necessary, or on an appointment basis at our central Bath office, or at your home.Contact the team on 01249 720888 or email enquiries@wessexauctionrooms.co.uk