McCartney Times

Rare photos have revealed a behind-the-scenes glimpse at The Beatles historic debut Plymouth concert.

One momentous day in 1963, the biggest band in the world arrived in Plymouth for the first time,

Still in their early days and sporting their trademark mop haircuts but with more relaxed suits than they had previously been known for, the Fab Four were working their way around the country on their autumn tour when they played the ABC on November 13.

It was to be the band’s fourth tour of Britain within nine months, this one scheduled for six weeks. In mid-November, as ‘Beatlemania’ intensified, police reportedly resorted to using high-pressure water hoses to control the crowd before a concert in Plymouth.

New images reveal the cheeky foursome arriving in the city in a sleek black car with John Lennon brandishing a copy of The Mirror featuring Paul McCartney on the front cover.

The Beatles in Plymouth in 1963

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More photos show the foursome on stage and candid pictures taken backstage appear to show the group using a tunnel away from the theatre to their waiting car.

Less than a year later they were back for another concert at the ABC on October 29, 1964.

And in 1967 a ripple of excitement made its way across the Westcountry, closely followed by the group’s brightly painted coach for the Magical Mystery Tour.

They were not to perform in the city, but they did spend an afternoon relaxing on the Hoe.

In 1966 The Beatles had ceased touring and became a studio band. The group wanted to stretch their creative wings and the deafening screams drowning out their music were getting old.

Speaking to The Herald in 2014, Julie Brealy remembered how the band was almost inaudible at the Plymouth concerts: “I saw them at the ABC as it was then. It was an amazing night that I will always remember.

“Because of the screaming you could hardly hear the boys and some of the girls were getting really upset because they could not get close enough.”

By ceasing their tours The Beatles became a different band; more experimental and free of the restrictions of live performances.

Multi-layered complex masterpieces like I am the Walrus from the Magical Mystery Tour album were born.

Which brings the Beatles neatly to Plymouth Hoe in September 1967 – John, Paul, George and Ringo were in the middle of an ambitious project, filming the Magical Mystery Tour movie when the famous bus became wedged on Newbridge, near Poundsgate, on Dartmoor.

Tempers frayed and the band made an unscheduled escape to Plymouth, lunching at the Grand Hotel and enjoying the sea views.

It seems even the biggest band in the world couldn’t resist the beauty of Plymouth Hoe on a stressful day.

Sheila Murfin recalled how George Harrison got the denim jacket he’s pictured in: “George is wearing my brother’s denim jacket. He asked if he could borrow it for this pic and never gave it back. My brother didn’t mind.”

The freed bus picked the boys up and took them off to Cornwall for more filming. But not before Phil Sargent caught a glimpse of them in traffic as the bus pulled away: “I was 17 and an apprentice at the dockyard and we decided to go round the corner for some sandwiches.

“I left the others behind and as I turned the corner I saw a bus ahead of me. It was fantastically painted and I saw this guy who looked a lot like John Lennon and the man next to him looked an awful lot like Paul McCartney.

“They waved so I waved back and the whole bus started waving and it suddenly dawned on me: it was the Beatles! I got back to my friends and told them they’d never guess who I’d just seen. They didn’t believe me!”

The bus travelled back to London when filming wrapped but, sadly, the Magical Mystery Tour was more mystery than magic to most of its viewers. It was so universally reviled that McCartney made an unofficial apology. In just two short years’ time The Beatles would be on the verge of collapse.

Source: The Beatles’ first Plymouth concert revealed in rare photos – Plymouth Herald