A HANDWRITTEN manuscript of Colin Dexter’s first Inspector Morse novel failed to sell at auction yesterday.

The 280-page manuscript for Last Bus To Woodstock, written in 1974, was expected to fetch between £30,000 and £50,000 but bids did not reach the reserve price.

The manuscript was written in ballpoint pen and the pages are heavily annotated. Mr Dexter gave the manuscript as a gift to fan Ian Bradley, from Bury, in 2000.

A Sotheby’s spokesman said: “The client may decide to auction it again or hang on to it.”