An Ansett-Ana Airline Ticket Signed By George Harrison, John Lennon And Paul Mccartney In Australia On The Beatles' 1964 World Tour [The Beatles] British Isles,Music,Signed

A vintage Ansett-ANA ticket (82 × 140 mm), comprising the front and rear cover plus the retained carbon-copy passenger coupon, signed on the blank verso by the three Beatles. The Beatles toured Australia as part of their first world tour in 1964, playing at venues in Europe, Hong Kong, Australia and New Zealand between 4 June and 16 August. On the eve of departure from London, Ringo Starr was hospitalised with severe tonsillitis. Shubdubs' drummer Jimmie Nicol was a last-minute replacement, and he filled in for Ringo (literally, even wearing his suits!) for three concerts in Europe, two in Hong Kong, and for the four held in Adelaide on 12 and 13 June on the first two days of the Australian leg of the tour. The ticket, for a flight from Adelaide to Sydney on 29 May 1964, is made out to 'Mr R. Christie' (Ron Christie, at the time Production Manager of the Adelaide television station Channel 7). The ticket is sold with an original typed letter signed by him (3 August 1988, on official Channel 7 letterhead) regarding its provenance. 'I can confirm that it was myself, along with Ernie Sigley, who flew from Sydney to Adelaide on the Beatles charter flight in June 1964, and I had George Harrison, John Lennon and Paul McCartney sign the ticket I had used to travel to Sydney the previous day. It was a most interesting flight as we had the opportunity to talk with each of the three boys, and I must say they were extremely friendly and co-operative. Of course, as you are aware, Ringo Starr had not travelled with the boys, I think he had an appendix operation [sic] and was replaced by (I think) Jimmy Nicol for the Adelaide concert. Ringo joined them in Melbourne I believe. This will also confirm that when I was in London in 1986 I submitted the ticket to Christies [sic] Auction House in South Kensington, and this was subsequently auctioned on August 28, 1987. I have enclosed a couple of documents from Christies, which you may care to keep. Kind regards, Ron Christie'. These original items come with a mounted miscellany of photocopied ephemera (the front cover and the signed page of the ticket; the letter from Ron Christie; and the entry in the Christie's auction catalogue), and an original cutting from the Adelaide 'Advertiser' (4 August 1988) regarding the ticket; external dimensions of the mount approximately 510 × 290 mm. Provenance: Ron Christie (as per the accompanying letter); Christie's South Kensington (28 August 1987, lot 238); the purchaser of the ticket at the auction sold it in Adelaide on 30 July 1988 to David Lovatt, proprietor of Bank Street Records, Adelaide (1985-1994). [A small quantity].