Unseen photo of The Beatles' Sgt Pepper album cover shoot to go up for auction

A previously unseen photo from the album cover shoot for The Beatles' Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is expected to sell for thousands of pounds at auction. The photo was included in a press pack sent out in the 1960s and the picture has not been released to the public.

The press pack is made up of an internal EMI Records memorandum and a mock-up sleeve artwork. It includes a number of previously unseen photos and press releases for the unreleased album Sessions and the single Leave My Kitten Alone.

One of the photos shows Sir Paul McCartney at the cover shoot for Sgt Pepper's. The proof dispels a long-standing rumour that McCartney was not at the shoot - a rumour that began because the album cover only shows him from behind. The photo shows the four band members dressed in colourful outfits with Sir Paul facing to the side.

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The EMI Records Memorandum provides a description of the photos included in the press pack and says: “The spotlight shot was done in Manchester Square in 1963/1964 and the Sgt Pepper shot (1967) is an alternative back cover shot. It is interesting to note that it disproves the theory that Paul McCartney was not at the sessions (hence only his back appearing on the original sleeve).”

The album Sessions was set to be released in 1984, eight years after The Beatles had ended their contract with EMI Records. But due to timing clashes and objections from the estates of John Lennon and George Harrison, it was never published.

Martin Hughes, a music specialist at Wessex Auction Rooms, believes the press pack could sell for between £5,000 and £10,000. It is due to go up for auction on Friday (August 18).

He said: