Weekly music title NME is to launch a spin-off magazine series called NME Originals. Compiled from NME's archive, the special editions will draw on five decades of music history in celebration of NME's 50 years of publishing. The first collectable issue, on sale February 27, is dedicated to The Beatles. Other glossy publications in the bi-monthly series will commemorate the Punk era, Britpop, the Rolling Stones, and U2. Steve Sutherland, NME's editorial director and editor of the NME Originals series, said: "The NME archive is a national treasure, a genuine insight, week by week, into the evolving story of popular music. The opportunity to print some of these literary and photographic gems for the very first time since their original publication is fantastically exciting. "It affords music fans the unique opportunity to relive all the events through the eyes and ears of the NME ­ the way they actually happened. The first issue is an absolute must for Beatles fans, guaranteed to reveal facets of the band that even the most ardent fan will not have previously discovered." The NME Originals ­ Beatles issue will contain exclusive material, including photographs and items of memorabilia not seen in print. Neil Robinson, NME's publishing and online director adds: "As the world's longest-running music paper, celebrating our 50th year in publication, it seems only fitting that we blow the dust off of our unique archive of journalism and photography. We have a great year planned ahead for NME, dealing with all that is most exciting in the music scene, and it makes perfect sense to mark the occasion by kicking off with the launch of such a timeless magazine." {{CTN }}