A Manchester City–hued Epiphone guitar once owned by Oasis icon Noel Gallagher recently changed hands for £12,000 at a Worcestershire auction, the BBC reports.
The instrument, which was handled by Littleton Auctions, formed part of a sizeable collection consigned by the son of Huw Richards, who served as a front-of-house sound engineer for the Britpop legends. Dated to 1997, this limited-edition guitar is thought to be one of only five identical models the manufacturer gifted Gallagher before eventually passing to Richards.
The auction presented a wealth of music history. Another standout piece from the Richards collection—a set of 11 framed platinum discs presented by Creation Records to commemorate UK sales surpassing 3.3 million copies of (What’s the Story) Morning Glory?—sold for £2,000. Additionally, a Kangol rain jacket made for touring personnel brought in £2,000, while tour itineraries, promotional materials, and a Be Here Now wristwatch also found buyers.
Other sellers capitalised on Oasis memorabilia. A rare original concert ticket for The Rain—the precursor to Oasis—sold for £2,400, and an early demo tape commanded £3,600. A collection of vintage early photos fetched £5,400, and a pair of leather shoes once owned by Noel Gallagher went for £1,200. However, not every high-ticket item attracted a buyer; a baby grand piano featured in the artwork for the Supersonic single, valued between £100,000 and £150,000, ultimately did not sell.
The event was notably overshadowed by a major legal development. A stash of unheard Oasis recordings, known as “The Desk Tapes,” was pulled from the auction block just last week after the band filed an injunction. Valued at £1.2m to £1.6m, the collection includes 63 live show recordings, soundchecks, and more than 100 hours of 1990s rehearsal tapes. Littleton Auctions confirmed that the sale of these recordings has been postponed indefinitely while the legal dispute is resolved.
Despite the missing tapes, the auction underscored the enduring global appeal of Oasis memorabilia, drawing intense interest from collectors eager to own a tangible piece of 1990s rock history.
