Autographs of John Player
John Player & Sons, most often known simply as Player's, was a tobacco and cigarette manufacturer based in Nottingham, England. In 1901 the company merged with twelve other companies to become a branch of the Imperial Tobacco Company of Great Britain and Ireland. The company pioneered the advertising with trading (cigarette) cards. As a branch, Player's continued this practice (see below), most notably with a series devoted to the association football in the 1930s.
The brands currently sold, "Players" and "John Player Special" are owned and marketed by Imperial Brands and, especially in markets external to the UK, by British American Tobacco. In the UK, the JPS Players brand is the third-most popular cigarette brand (As of November 2025). Its Gold Leaf rolling tobacco is the fourth most-popular in the UK.
In March 1820, William Wright set up a small tobacco factory in Craigshill, Livingston, West Lothian. This business expanded and earned Wright a comfortable fortune. John Player bought the business in 1877. He had the Castle Tobacco Factories built in Radford, Nottingham, just west of the city centre. He had three factories built, but initially only one was used to process and pack tobacco. The other two blocks were rented out to lace manufacturers until the business had expanded enough to use the additional space.
More about John Player Wikipedia
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Traded items with a signature of John Player
The most expensive item with a signature of John Player (Ayrton Senna hand signed autograph Lotus John Player Special Formula One F1) was sold in April 2018 for £725.00 while the cheapest item (JOHN PLAYER CRICKET ANNUAL 1972 SIGNED BY BOB TAYLOR & DAVIDSON) found a new owner for £0.01 in June 2013. The month with the most items sold (5) was March 2021 with an average selling price of £24.99 for an autographed item of John Player. Sold items reached their highest average selling price in April 2018 with £364.50 and the month that saw the lowest prices with £3.00 was August 2021. In average, an autographed item from John Player is worth £24.99.
Most recently, these items with a signature of John Player were sold on eBay - click here for more items.
| Picture | Item Title | Price | Store |
 | 2018 Black & Gold Story John Player Specials Signed Johnny TIPLER CATT Chapman | £500.00 |  |
| 2018 Black & Gold Story John Player Specials Signed Johnny TIPLER CATT Chapman | £500.00 | |
| Jacky Ickx Hand Signed John Player Team Lotus 10x8 Photo F1 Autograph | £68.99 | |
| Jacky Ickx Hand Signed John Player Team Lotus 10x8 Photo F1 Autograph | £68.99 | |
| Jacky Ickx Hand Signed John Player Team Lotus 12x8 Photo F1 Autograph | £68.99 | |
| Jacky Ickx Hand Signed John Player Team Lotus 12x8 Photo F1 Autograph | £68.99 | |
| Jacky Ickx Hand Signed John Player Team Lotus 12x8 Photo F1 Autograph 1 | £68.99 | |
| Jacky Ickx Hand Signed John Player Team Lotus 12x8 Photo F1 Autograph 1 | £68.99 | |
| Jacky Ickx Hand Signed John Player Team Lotus 12x8 Photo F1 Autograph 2 | £68.99 | |
| Jacky Ickx Hand Signed John Player Team Lotus 12x8 Photo F1 Autograph 2 | £68.99 | |
| Jacky Ickx Hand Signed John Player Team Lotus 12x8 Photo F1 Autograph 2 | £68.99 | |
| Jacky Ickx Hand Signed John Player Team Lotus 12x8 Photo F1 Autograph 3 | £68.99 | |
| Jacky Ickx Hand Signed John Player Team Lotus 12x8 Photo F1 Autograph 3 | £68.99 | |
| Jacky Ickx Hand Signed John Player Team Lotus 12x8 Photo F1 Autograph 4 | £68.99 | |
| Jacky Ickx Hand Signed John Player Team Lotus 12x8 Photo F1 Autograph 4 | £68.99 | |
