Paul McCartney’s childhood door sells for £5k

The front door from Sir Paul McCartney’s childhood home sold for £5,000 at auction yesterday.

Sir Paul learned to play the trumpet, piano, guitar and drums at 20 Forthlin Road in Allerton, Liverpool, where he lived from 1955 to 1964.

The door was sold by Dominic Winter Auctioneers in Cirencester, Gloucestershire, and had carried an estimate of between £3,000 and £5,000.

About 80 people packed into the saleroom for the headline lot, with the phone lines and website busy with bidders who could not attend the sale in person.

Chris Albury, the auctioneer, said: “It came down to three people bidding against each other and the winner was a phone bidder from Lancashire. We’re very happy with the result.

“It is an odd thing to offer and a curious thing to put a value on – £5,000 is a serious price.”

The McCartneys left the house in 1964, with the property being taken over by Sheila Jones, who acted as an unofficial ambassador for Beatles fans who came from around the world to visit the house.

In the late 1970s, Mrs Jones decided to have the house refurbished with the doors, window fittings and tiles replaced.

Glen South, a singer, bought the front door and later entered it into a charity sale, but bought it back and it has remained behind his sofa ever since.

Mrs Jones moved out in 1995 and the house was bought by the ­National Trust.