George Michael's Faith guitar sells for one hundred eighty thousand pounds amid family dispute

The vintage acoustic guitar used by George Michael in his 1987 Faith music video has sold for 180,000 pounds at auction. Sworders auctioned the instrument along with more than 30 other items from the collection of Siobhan Bailey, who worked as Michael's personal assistant for 20 years. The total sale reached 238,000 pounds before buyers' premiums.

The Auction Dispute

The items were sold by Ian Belcher, her estranged husband, who inherited her estate because she died without a will in 2014. Gerard Bailey, her brother, told the BBC that his sister would have been horrified to see her cherished belongings sold off. He stated that she was in the process of divorcing Belcher and had started a new will for her nieces and nephews that was never registered. Sworders chairman Guy Schooling defended the sale, noting that Belcher was delightful and that the auction could be seen as a tribute.

Memorabilia Sold

Apart from the Gretsch Synchromatic guitar from the Faith video, the 32 lots included a Queen Five Live EP sleeve signed for 7,000 pounds and a Faith Tour itinerary ringbound book for 5,000 pounds. Other sold pieces featured a presentation CD of Older for 4,800 pounds, a gold disc of Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go for 4,500 pounds, and an I Want Your Sex gold disc for 4,200 pounds, alongside signed photographs and Wham! memorabilia.

Context

Memorabilia belonging to major music stars often commands high prices at auctions long after their passing. Personal items connected to defining moments in pop culture history routinely attract intense interest from collectors worldwide.