First Beatles record to be played on the radio is sold for £17,000

The first Beatles record to be played on the radio has been sold for £17,000 at auction in Merseyside.

Radio Luxembourg was first to air the track - or any Beatles record - on October 5 1962.

The song featured Sir Paul McCartney and John Lennon on vocals - but record label EMI printed Lennon-McArtney on the record.

Omega Auctions, which sold the record today, described the typo as possibly "the most famous spelling error in music".

Love Me Do peaked at number 17 in the UK charts but later reached number one in the US.

Oldham-born DJ Tony Prince ended up with the single on his hands after serving as the station's programme director.

While Prince was not the DJ who had played it at the station, he took the single home after he and some colleagues were asked to have a clear-out of the record library.

Dan Hampson, assistant auction manager at Omega Auctions, said the item was "one of the most collectable and important records in the world.

"Radio Luxembourg is widely acknowledged to be the first of the radio stations to give the Beatles airtime and their persistent support was crucial in launching the Fab Four on their way to superstardom," he said.