Alex Turner’s guitar raises £128,544 in charity raffle for music venues
A total of 14,410 tickets to the raffle were sold.
![](https://www.expressandstar.com/resizer/v2/5VHYACMKGBCXTJY3PH2EXWDFVQ.jpg?auth=3ab40d0f72843856ce4a4a39adda46c6e9572f8c17eb19db88191d1785e3245c&width=300&height=225)
A guitar belonging to Arctic Monkeys frontman Alex Turner has raised £128,54 in a charity raffle for grassroots music venues.
The Fender Stratocaster guitar was used in many of the band’s early performances.
The band are working with the Music Venue Trust to support The Leadmill, a Sheffield venue where Turner has used the guitar, and other independent UK grassroots venues.
A minimum donation of £5 bought entry to the raffle and 14,410 tickets were sold over a two-week period.
Entrants also got access to a stream of the band’s 2006 performance at Reading Festival.
After forming in Sheffield, Arctic Monkeys performed at several venues around the country during the early stages of their career, and regularly played at The Leadmill in the city.
![Arctic Monkeys frontman Alex Turner](http://image.assets.pressassociation.io/v2/image/production/636ec05cb5de5f6a276e87a0eaec334eY29udGVudHNlYXJjaCwxNTk4NDY3Njcz/2.19066773.jpg?w=640)
The venue has also played host to Pulp, Coldplay, Arcade Fire, Muse, Oasis, Stone Roses, The White Stripes, Jorja Smith and Michael Kiwanuka over the last four decades.
Independent venues have had to cancel events and face an uncertain future because of the pandemic.
Last week the Government announced it will deliver £3.36 million in grants to 135 grassroots music venues facing closure.