Rare photographs of The Beatles taken by the band's official photographer are going under the hammer in London.

The Fab Four pictures were taken by Derek Cooper, who documented the band's career, but the film was left undeveloped in his camera for nearly 30 years.

The negatives were not processed until after his death in 1983, and now the previously unseen prints are to be auctioned off at a sale in Wolverhampton, England on 16 August (13).

Tom Waldron, sale room manager at the Cuttlestones auction house says, "When these negatives were originally discovered it was a real treasure trove.

"You won't find these images anywhere else in the world - they are completely unique... The photos cover everything from their humble beginnings at the Cavern to their psychedelic days before the band split. The collection is all-encompassing."

The 34 pictures are expected to fetch around $3,000 (£2,000) each.