Hey, click with the Beatles

Beatles fans won't be able to touch them, but they can soon get virtual hands on memorabilia from John Lennon's son Julian in the form of non-fungible tokens.

Certified digital artworks going under the hammer in California next month include the NFT version of the handwritten notes for Hey Jude, with an estimated price tag of up to US$70,000 (HK$544,600), pictured.

Originally entitled Hey Jules, the hit was written in 1968 by Paul McCartney to comfort a young Julian during his father's separation from his mother, Cynthia. "For me, just looking at a picture is not enough if I was a buyer," Lennon says. "So I wanted to add something a little more personal. And for me, that was writing and narrating a little bit of the story behind the images."

Lennon is also selling an NFT of the Afghan coat worn by his father on the set of Magical Mystery Tour, which could fetch up to US$10,000.

Lennon aims to auction other NFTs but not to physically part with memorabilia, saying: "Not a chance. I do not have many things from Dad."