Archival footage from John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s infamous 1969 ‘bed-down’ peace protest is among items to be sold this month in one of the most expensive Beatles auctions ever.

The memorabilia will be auctioned online with an upper estimate of $8 million. They include a section of the wall from the television set that was the backdrop for the Beatles’ groundbreaking appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show, clothing, speakers, signed contracts and a curious birthday card from George Harrison to his caretaker signed ‘Adolf Schinkengruber’. The auction will be hosted at GottaHaveRockandRoll Auctions in New York.

An unconventional interview comes to light

The footage from “Protest for Peace” not only provides insight into the psyche of Lennon and Ono, but also tells the compelling story of a “demonic” teenage fan who entered the bedroom and secured an interview.

John Lennon and Yoko Ono they married in Gibraltar in March 1969, a place they chose, they said, because it was “quiet, British and friendly”. After a few days in Paris they arrived in Amsterdam in Lennon’s white Rolls Royce to start the week-long peace protest organized to commemorate the Vietnam War. An event that took on huge proportions, with journalists asking questions of the couple, who were wearing pyjamas.

All this came to the attention of a 16-year-old Beatles fan, Constance Vrijdaghs. She decided she just had to travel from her home in the village of Aerdenhout to the Amsterdam Hilton. When he arrived, he began to chat with the youths who were observing the windows of the room with the “Hair Peace” and “Bed Peace” banners.

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