MOJO COLLECTIONS
RARITIES! RECORD SHOPS! CRATEDIGGERS ASSEMBLE!
The rarest records and artefacts from the planet’s best collections: this month, pedigree stagewear, nutty Springsteen art and Beatles pants.
By Ian Harrison.
Beatles underpants (1967)
Value: £2,000
Fruit at the bottom: memorabilia man Joseph Robert O’Donnell and his original Fab pants.
Richard Williams/Alamy Stock Photo
Decorated with a red and green Granny Smith apple on the front and another apple still on the branch at the rear, these rare Fabs-endorsed undies were produced as part of The Beatles’ short-lived Summer of Love merchandise experiment the Apple Boutique in 1967. They were designed by Dutch commune The Fool, who also painted the Apple Boutique’s three-storey psychedelic mural, gave George Harrison’s mini a cosmic makeover and kitted out The Beatles for the 1967 All You Need Is Love worldwide TV broadcast. The drawers were unearthed by memorabilia finder Joseph Robert O’Donnell (see josephrobertodonnell.com for info). Be aware, though, that in the auction game they never freshly launder historic clothing items, so caveat emptor.