Beatle signature turns up in clear-out

Statement signed by George Harrison to "keep Berkshire beautiful" during Newbury bypass creation

IT is amazing what you can find in an old drawer.

This ‘Keep Berkshire Beautiful' slip referencing the Newbury bypass and signed by legendary former Beatle George Harrison was found during a clean-up of the Campaign To Protect Rural England (CPRE) office in London on Tuesday.

Dated 1988, the statement outlines a resistence to housing being built across Berkshire at the time, and mentions “the likely route of the Newbury bypass which will destroy some of our finest scenery”, eight years before the construction of the bypass became national news.

Harrison, who died in 2001, lived in Henley-on-Thames at the time.

The slip is signed “George Harrison MBE”, and is one of several celebrity signatures found.

A spokesman for the CPRE, Jack Neill-Hall, said: “There are no plans to sell the autographs at present and we may display them at our new offices.

“However, next year is the 25th anniversary of the campaign so we may do something more with them then.”