Fake or Fortune? S14E06 - What Happened Next? John Lennon's Piano
Summary:
Fiona Bruce and Philip Mould revisit the fast-growing market for rock music memorabilia. Armed with fresh research and new theories, they once again set out to get to the bottom of two musical mysteries.
First, they investigate a baby grand piano now owned by 90s pop star Chesney Hawkes, who suspects it may once have belonged to John Lennon. Best known for his global hit The One and Only, Chesney grew up hearing a family story that the piano was acquired by his father, musician Len Hawkes, from Lennon's Berkshire estate, Tittenhurst Park, where the Beatle wrote and recorded his iconic album Imagine.
While Chesney has always been convinced of the piano's connection to Lennon, definitive proof has remained elusive. Fiona and Philip set out to discover whether family lore can finally become family history.
The second musical mystery tour takes us to the Wick, once home of legendary guitarist Ronnie Wood, where a distinctive silver Hawaiian slide guitar known as the Silver Queen was once found. The guitar belongs to sisters Niki and Kerry, whose father worked for Wood as a gardener and handyman in the 1970s. The story goes that their father salvaged the guitar during a clear-out when Ronnie Wood and The Rolling Stones left the UK. Despite previous attempts to establish the truth, the guitar's provenance remained uncertain.
Now, two years on, Fiona and Philip return with a selection of intriguing new theories about the guitar's possible owners and further historical research into Chesney's piano. A newspaper advertisement unlocks a surprising story of a celebrity jazz pianist and a glamorous spy, while a tip-off from a viewer raises the possibility that the team have got the wrong Ronnie when it comes to the guitar's former owner. But can the new evidence help to finally solve these longstanding musical mysteries?
