Michael Jackson’s iconic leather jacket sells for £250,000 in London auction, exceeding expected price.
An iconic leather jacket worn by Michael Jackson in the 1980s was successfully auctioned for £250,000 ($306,000) in London. The black-and-white garment, featured in a memorable Pepsi advert from 1984, surpassed the expected selling range of £200,000 to £400,000. The auction comprised more than 200 pieces of music memorabilia, including items linked to George Michael, Amy Winehouse, David Bowie, Oasis, and The Beatles.
The jacket, worn by Jackson during the filming of a Pepsi commercial, marked the beginning of a series for the soft drink company. The adverts gained notoriety when Jackson’s hair caught fire during one session, resulting in serious burns. Notably, the La Rocka jacket, worn by Jackson while duetting with Aretha Franklin in “I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me),” sold for £93,750 ($115,000), surpassing the expected range of £30,000 to £60,000.
Among the high-profile items was a beehive hairpiece worn by Amy Winehouse in her 2007 music video “You Know I’m No Good.” It fetched £18,750 ($22,900), slightly above its estimated value. The auction also featured memorabilia associated with Elvis Presley, Queen, and Johnny Marr. Notably, a Gibson guitar that belonged to AC/DC’s Angus Young did not sell, along with a limited edition Yellow Submarine Beatles jukebox.
Mark Hochman, director of music and posters at Propstore, mentioned that this auction marked the first time many of these items were available to the public. Michael Jackson’s memorabilia has previously fetched high prices, including a black fedora hat worn just before his famous moonwalk dance in 1983, which sold for €77,640 (£67,088) in a Paris auction in September.
