A guitar owned by Status Quo’s Francis Rossi is predicted to fetch as much as £150,000 when it goes under the hammer at auction.
The green Fender Telecaster from 1965 is one of the highlights of a sale of entertainment memorabilia at Bonhams in London, along with a pair of Freddie Mercury’s trousers and a letter written by Charlie Chaplin.
Rossi bought the guitar second-hand for £75 in 1968 and used it until its retirement in 2015.
It is now expected to rake in between £100,000 and £150,000.
Rossi said: “The green Tele served me extremely well for almost 50 years and I’m always amazed when I look back and realised what a chequered history we had together.”
Other highlights of the auction – which takes place on December 17 – include the red and white trousers worn by Queen star Mercury on the band’s 1986 tour.
They are expected to fetch between £15,000 and £20,000.
A Sunn guitar amplifier damaged by late Nirvana star Kurt Cobain while he was on stage could fetch up to £7,000, while a Hogwarts acceptance letter from 2001 film The Philosopher’s Stone has an estimate of £3,000 to £5,000.
A two-page letter handwritten by Chaplin to renowned Russian author Elizabeth Reynolds Hapgood, accompanied by an unsigned typed copy of the letter on personal Charlie Chaplin stationery, could fetch £2,000.
Other lots include a letter from Grace Kelly to Bing Crosby, Beatles memorabilia, various items worn by Brad Pitt in his role in War Machine and platform trainers worn by Spice Girls Geri Horner and Mel B.
