Oasis halt auction of unreleased 1990s Desk Tapes valued at up to £1.6 million

Legal challenge halts audio sale

Oasis have launched legal action to prevent the public auction of an extensive collection of unreleased 1990s audio recordings known as the Desk Tapes. The lot, which Littleton Auctions valued at between £1.2 million and £1.6 million ($1.59 million to $2.12 million), was scheduled to go under the hammer on Saturday, 3 October 2026, in Evesham, Worcestershire. The archive had been consigned by Owain Richards, whose father Huw Richards served as the front-of-house sound engineer for the band from the release of their 1994 debut album Definitely Maybe until 2001. Following the legal motion filed by Noel and Liam Gallagher, the auction house withdrew the tapes from the event. Owain Richards confirmed the legal dispute and noted that both sides agreed to postpone the sale while the matter is resolved.

It is true that Oasis have sued me and my father to try to prevent the auction of the tapes made by my father many years ago. We have agreed to postpone the auction to enable the legal dispute to be resolved either by litigation or otherwise in an orderly way.

Soundboard archive details

The disputed collection contains soundboard recordings from 63 live concerts, backstage audio, soundchecks, and more than 100 hours of rehearsal sessions. Recorded directly from the mixing desk, the tapes also feature spoken conversations between the Gallagher brothers alongside material from the band's 1996 performances at Knebworth. Huw Richards spent years compiling, labelling, and backing up the audio material on cassette after capturing the performances across his seven-year tenure with the group. Band representatives have sought the return of the physical tapes, disputing the Richards family's right to commercialize the material. Owain Richards described his father's detailed archiving habits and the personal connection his family maintained with the tapes over the past 25 years.

Dad labelled everything, recorded everything and backed it all up to cassette, over and over. I grew up listening to these recordings. Oasis were part of the family as much as they were part of the culture.

Auction house response and remaining lots

Littleton Auctions expressed disappointment over the removal of the audio archive but confirmed that the rest of the planned memorabilia sale will proceed on 3 October. Managing director Benjamin Homer stated that the company chose to withdraw the lot immediately once formal legal proceedings commenced.

Littleton Auctions has always sought to conduct its sales professionally, transparently and responsibly. Following legal proceedings relating to one lot, the Oasis tapes have been withdrawn from the auction.

The remaining catalog includes stage-used instruments, original concert setlists, internal tour itineraries, and unpublished photographs. Buyers can bid on an Epiphone guitar played by the group, an original Kangol tour parka, and a pair of Adidas Kegler Super Ostrich sneakers gifted to Noel Gallagher from a limited run of 100 pairs produced in 2000. Separately, Oasis recently scheduled their first live appearances in Germany since 2009, booking two concerts at the Allianz Arena in Munich for 2 and 3 July 2027.