Gerald Scarfe's iconic artwork for Pink Floyd's The Wall ensured the work instantly grabbed the public's attention, with imagery that fascinated and repulsed in equal measure. For serious Floyd collectors, there are some opportunities coming up to own some original pieces of Scarfe's unforgettable work.

First, on April 5th, Sotheby's auction house in London are holding a Scarfe at Sotheby's sale. Some 140 or so pieces - ranging from his political caricatures through to his work on stage productions and Disney's Hercules film, via Pink Floyd The Wall - are being made available for bidders. There are fourteen Floyd pieces included, and estimates of the eventual selling prices reflect the unique and special nature of the work. More information can be found via Sothebys.com.

Second, another batch of seriously desirable original Pink Floyd pieces are going on sale at the San Francisco Art Exchange, and a major exhibition featuring the painting will start there in July. The paintings which are being offered through SFAE have been carefully selected by the artist as his most important works, and include several of the most famous images in rock history. Iconic artworks such as The Scream, Giant Judge and Hammers, The Mother, and The Teacher are available, along with several other blockbuster pieces including the massive original storyboard created for the film which incorporates 50 original renderings (measuring overall, a huge 8 foot x 3 foot). More information on their sale can be found through SFAE.com.

Bonhams auction house in New York are auctioning a very unusual item on March 27th at 1pm EDT. It's lot 35 of the TCM Presents...Rock and Roll Through The Lens auction, which also includes such diverse items as a pair of Cher's shoes, and Jimi Hendrix's recorder. The item in question goes beyond the realms of what you could consider a possible purchase to add to your Pink Floyd collection, unless you have (a) a lot of space to house it, and (b) a rather large wallet/bank account.

On offer is an Abbey Road Studios EMI TG12345 Mk IV recording console used between 1971-1983. Take from Studio 2, it was used for some of the recording of The Dark Side of the Moon (not all the recording of this album took place in Studio 2). The auction listing notes it was used by many other artists including: Paul McCartney and Wings, George Harrison, Ringo Starr, Kate Bush and in later years The Cure. The console is "referred to as the greatest console ever constructed due to the collaboration with Abbey Road and EMI engineers, with the production of every component being built to military precision." Full documentation will be supplied to the winning bidder, along with a vintage picture of Pink Floyd - oh, and a copy of The Dark Side of the Moon!

For those who'd like to take a look at this piece of musical history, the lot will be on view at Bonhams Knightsbridge (London) between March 19th-27th, but please note it will not be on view in their New York offices.

The auction listing found at Bonhams.com has plenty of information about the console, and recording TDSOTM, as well as other pictures of the item. For those trying to justify the purchase, the auction house notes that the desk is in working order...so if you have a need for such a thing, it might be ideal!

Our very best wishes, and many happy returns, to David Gilmour today (March 6th), who is celebrating his 71st birthday in the spring sunshine!

Born and raised in Cambridge, David became involved with various bands in the area, principally Jokers Wild who were a popular draw when they played, before joining Pink Floyd in 1968. More recent years have seen David concentrating on his solo career, and helping out chums on their musical projects on an ad hoc basis - such as appearing on stage with Phil Manzanera at the legendary Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club, with Amadou & Mariam at the Crisis "hidden" charity show, and the Douglas Adams 60th Birthday concert at London's Hammersmith Apollo amongst other things.

Of course, 2015 saw the return to his own music with the acclaimed release of Rattle That Lock, his latest solo album, which was accompanied by a tour of Europe, and North and South America. The tour took in some quite unusual and spectacular locations, perhaps the pinnacle being a return to the amphitheatre at Pompeii for a pair of shows last July.

It just remains for us to wish David a very happy day! If you want to add your thoughts and wishes, you can do so at our Facebook page...

Today, another short video has been shared on Roger Waters' social media platforms to help tease the new album. As we noted previously, "Is This The Life We Really Want?" is released on May 19th, but other than the (now two) short video clips, no other information is currently available. We suspect full details, including the opportunity to pre-order the album, will be along soon, but in the meantime, here's the second taster: