Dear MMD,  The auction of Graham Whitehead's mechanical music
collection (The Ashorne Hall Nickelodeon) is to be sold at Christie's
South Kensington on 18 March, 2004.  The collection will remain at
Ashorne for viewing before the sale (Sunday 14 March - Tuesday 16th
March), and all but the largest pieces will be moved to store in
London on the day before.

The catalogue, with 64 lots, is now available to view online at
www.christies.com.  Select the 'Lotfinder' option and type in sale
number 9982.

Graham Whitehead was born in 1940.  His first job after leaving school
was as a trainee cinema projectionist, and a lifelong fascination
with the cinema would be the springing point of his other interests.
A sideline in printing, however, led to his business success, from
which he retired in 1998.  Musical boxes followed from a visit to
Switzerland in 1966, and from 1986 until his retirement he edited
and produced the Musical Box Society of Great Britain's journal,
The Music Box, thus bringing fellow collectors the benefit of his
printing expertise.

By 1982 he had opened the Napton Nickleodeon in a converted chapel,
housing the Compton organ (complete with console on a lift), as well
as the Photoplayer, a number of other mechanical instruments and period
projectors.  In 1989, he bought New Lodge, Ashorne Hill; the house had
been empty for several years and was in a dilapidated state.  Previous
owners had been members of the Lucas and Bryant (of Bryant and May)
families.  Graham proceeded to rehabilitate the house and garden,
adding a purpose-built cinema; the re-named Ashorne Hall opened in
May 1991.

At the time of his death in May 2003, Graham had already made a
decision to sell most of his collection and concentrate on the cinema
organ concerts at Ashorne Hall.  Now the sale will include the two
cinema organs: the Compton from the Regal, Hammersmith, and the
Wurlitzer from the Plaza at Piccadilly Circus, which was acquired
later.

The collection is rare in the UK for the number of early 20th-century
organs and orchestrions, few of which found favour in this country when
new, although they were popular in the USA and on the European mainland.
Indeed, this is the first collection of such instruments to appear in
a London auction room since 1981.

Visit <http://www.christies.com> to explore special multi-media sale
promotions, browse our illustrated catalogues and leave absentee bids
through LotFinder, Christie's online search engine.

For more information or condition reports, please contact Nick Hawkins
on tel. + 44 207 752 3278.

Nick Hawkins
http://www.christies.com/