Noel and Liam Gallagher have spent decades guarding their private affairs, and a planned auction of behind the scenes audio has proved to be no exception. Littleton Auctions was preparing to offer a massive collection of soundboard reels known as The Desk Tapes on October 3, with an estimated sale price between 1.2 million and 1.6 million pounds. That sale has now been stopped after Oasis secured an injunction, demanding the return of the material and forcing the auctioneer to withdraw the tapes from the block.
The archive contains 63 live concert recordings alongside more than 100 hours of rehearsals, soundchecks, and unvarnished dialogue between the Gallagher brothers. Huw Richards, who worked as the live sound engineer for Oasis from the arrival of their 1994 debut album Definitely Maybe through to 2001, captured the audio directly from the mixing desk during tours and rehearsals. The tapes document the band across their most commercially dominant period, including what is thought to be the solitary surviving recording of their 1996 performance on the banks of Loch Lomond in Scotland.
Rather than allowing the material to reach private hands, the Gallaghers launched formal legal action against the sound engineer and his family. Owain Richards, the son of Huw Richards, confirmed that Oasis filed suit against both him and his father in an effort to block the sale of the historic recordings. According to Richards, an agreement was reached to postpone the tape sale while the dispute is addressed either in court or through an orderly resolution. An official representative for Oasis declined to comment on the lawsuit, while Littleton Auctions managing director Ben Homer acknowledged that the firm was left with no option other than pulling the recordings once proceedings began. Homer voiced his disappointment over the withdrawal, noted that the house respects the court process, and stated that Littleton would not comment further on the case.
The rest of the memorabilia collection will still be auctioned off on October 3 as planned. Prospective buyers will still have access to an Epiphone guitar played by the band, an authentic Kangol Oasis tour parka, internal tour itineraries, and original setlists.
The fight over these vintage tapes arrives during an unusually active period for the group. Following months of speculation, Oasis announced their Live 27 tour on September 14. Noel Gallagher shared that the choice to commit to another lengthy run came directly after the second Wembley date of their Live 25 tour in July 2025, where he felt things were going so well that returning to the road made complete sense. The resulting 42 dates sold out quickly, spanning two nights at Slane Castle, five shows at Celtic Park in Glasgow, six concerts at Knebworth, and eleven performances at Manchester's Etihad Stadium, alongside wider stops throughout Europe and the United States.
The brothers are also preparing for official retrospective projects, which may explain why they are so protective of unofficial releases. A documentary titled Oasis: Don't Look Back In Anger, featuring unreleased and exclusive archive footage, is set to arrive on Disney+ on October 9. Looking further ahead, Liam Gallagher recently hinted that the pair will sit down to talk about writing and recording new material once the Live 27 schedule is completed. For now, the legal action over The Desk Tapes sends a clear message that the band intends to control their past while plotting their future.
