A handwritten letter by Paul McCartney inviting a mystery drummer to audition for The Beatles has fetched £35,000 at auction.

The note – which has been dated to 1960 and was found by a coin collector inside a book purchased at a car boot sale in Liverpool – had only been expected to sell for £9,000 when it went under the hammer at Christie’s auction house in London.

BBC News reports that the note was sold to a telephone bidder from Europe, whose identity is currently unknown. Christie’s Neil Roberts said: “It is exciting to be able to offer to market a newly discovered important item of Beatles memorabilia, on behalf of an individual who was fortunate enough to find it folded up in a book at a car boot sale.”

The letter was originally penned by McCartney in response to a notice in the Liverpool Echo newspaper from the drummer advertising their availability. At the time, Pete Best was the band’s sticksman and it was not known they were looking for a replacement.

Three days later, the band travelled as a five-piece along with Stuart Sutcliffe to Germany for their tour. The identity of the drummer is not known, nor if the proposed audition ever took place. Ringo Starr eventually filled the position two years later.

Beatles memorabilia has proved to be extremely valuable at auction houses recently. In September, a document showing how the band refused to play to segregated crowds was sold for $23,000 (£14,875).

Earlier this month, meanwhile, a formerly belonging to the late John Lennon[/url] fetched nearly £20,000 at auction.

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