Bard's first folio fetches £2.8m

The First Folio contains 18 plays that had never been printed before

A rare complete copy of the First Folio of William Shakespeare's plays has sold for £2.8m at a Sotheby's auction.

The book, one of about 40 complete copies known to exist, was bought by an anonymous London book dealer.

The auctioneer hailed the book, containing 36 plays, as "the most important book in English Literature".

The book, still in its 17th-Century binding, includes 36 plays, 18 of which were published for the first time, including Macbeth and Twelfth Night.