Builder could win £2,000 after finding Paul McCartney’s piano designs in skip

16 March 2020, 17:57 | Updated: 22 September 2023, 13:20

A builder may be about to have a huge payday after finding the sketches Paul McCartney commissioned for his "psychedelic" piano in a skip.

The Beatle's designs, created in 1967, will now go under the hammer at Omega Auctions on March 24, where they are expected to fetch £2,000.

Oldham-based builder Andy Clynes was leading a team at a mill near Manchester in 1999 when he noticed the papers had been thrown out with other waste.

Storing them in his loft for 20 years, Andy finally decided to get them valued.

The 54-year-old said: "I picked them out of the skip. The case burst open as it was thrown in. It was raining and I just picked up what I could. I imagine there was a lot more there but it was damaged.

"It could have been an art studio at some time or another.

"I’ve had them for 20-odd years. You put things away and forget about them and then something triggers your mind.

"I haven’t planned what I’ll do with the money yet but I was surprised about the value."

He added: "I Googled ‘Paul McCartney’s piano’ and when I looked at the drawing it was very similar."

Auctioneer Paul Fairweather told PA: "It’s fantastic that such an important archive was recovered and even better for our vendor that it should prove a lucrative decision to save them from the skip.

"The designs of BEV encapsulate the optimism, excitement and free spirit of collaboration that ensures that the late 1960s endure in the popular consciousness even to this day."

Other papers from Andy's find will be auctioned in a separate sale, with an expected total of £10,000.