Beatles snaps come to light

One of the earliest photos of The Beatles in Liverpool’s Cavern Club is being auctioned this month along with other recently unearthed snaps of the the band at the beginning of their career. The picture, taken in 1961, features Paul McCartney at the front of the stage and Pete Best on drums – a year before he was replaced by Ringo Starr. Stephen Bailey, the manager of The Beatles Shop, in Liverpool, said the memorabilia sale includes a series of negatives brought into the store by a man who casually told him: ‘‘My father was a professional photographer and these might be of interest to you.’’ Bailey said the man handed over a series of envelopes of transparencies which all turned out to be in perfect condition. The auction would also include rare first, second and third editions of the legendary Merseybeat magazine, published in 1961, Bailey said.