A Beatles’ fan broke into their hotel room and stole a label from a packet of PANTS – which the band later signed and is now worth at £3,000.
Sandra Woodruff grabbed the Fab Four’s underwear shortly before she saw them play a concert in her hometown in 1963.
Sandra and a friend found out which hotel they were staying in – and walked straight passed security and into their room.
The two girls, then just 16, rummaged through the Beatles’ personal items including a drawer full of underwear.
Sandra was determined to take away a keepsake but ignored personal letters and records – and stole a cardboard label from a packet of PANTS instead.
She later waited outside the hotel and got all four band members to sign the ‘Wolsey X Briefs Vests and Trunks’ inlay card.
Sandra has now been told by Beatles memorabilia experts that because it is signed by the entire group the piece of card is worth £3,000.
Chuffed Sandra, 66, said: “We were just giggling schoolgirls really – we got the opportunity to have a look inside their hotel room and took it.
“We weren’t in their room very long before the manager came. There was a letter addressed to ‘George’ and there was a record on the bed with ‘John’ written on it.
“After about five minutes, the manager came in and said ‘I am getting the police’ and we just rushed out.
“I just grabbed the first thing I saw – my friend took a record cover and I got stuck into the pants in the wardrobe.
“Thinking about it, I should have hidden under the bed, so I could have heard what they get up to at night.”
Sandra and a pal sneaked past security and made their way into the band’s bedroom at the Royal Pier Hotel in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset.
The teenage girls were directed to their room – number 49 – by members of Gerry And The Pacemakers who were also staying at the hotel.
After having a root around the room, Sandra rifled through a pile of new pants in the wardrobe and pinched a card inlay from the packet.
Beatlemaniac Sandra then spent two days waiting outside the hotel hoping to get her card ‘souvenir’ signed by her idols.
The band came out and signed photographs and the pants card for their delighted fan.
According to Sandra, Paul McCartney told her: “Oh right, now we know who was in our bedroom”.
She added: “I got the card signed by all of the band. They must have been getting exasperated with all the girls round them. But there were boys there too.
“It was absolutely fabulous – I was just mad about them. I never expected we could get that close to The Beatles.”
Sandra, now a grandmother-of-four, even bribed a local train driver with cigarettes so he would tell her where the band was staying.
She said: “We decided when we saw them all going out we would go up there. I have always been a bit of a devil and I decided we should do it.
“I never realised how big they would become at the time – if I had I would have got a picture with them as well.
“I have always been a fan of theirs ever since, it’s great to have this amazing story to tell.”
Beatles memorabilia expert Jason Cornthwaite, from valuers Tracks, reckons the signed card could be worth in the region of £3000.
He said: “As it was taken from their room and it has an interesting story, you would probably be looking at a valuation between £2,500 and £3000.
“It’s such a unique item – I’ve never heard about anything like this before.”
Wayne Baker, from Avon and Somerset police, said they would not be looking into Sandra Woodruff’s card ‘theft’.
He said: “We will only respond to an incident if there is a complaint made.”
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