John, Paul, George, Ringo ... and Bert

John, Paul, George, Ringo … and Bert is a 1974 musical by Willy Russell based on the story of the Beatles.

John, Paul, George, Ringo ... and Bert
Written byWilly Russell
CharactersThe Beatles (John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr), Bert Berns
Date of premiereMay 1974 (1974-May)
Place of premiereEveryman Theatre, Liverpool, England
Original languageEnglish
SubjectThe Beatles
Genremusical, biography
Official site

The first show was at the Everyman Theatre in Liverpool in May 1974. It ran for eight weeks. In August 1974 it moved to the Lyric Theatre in London. It ran for a year. It was named "Best Musical of 1974" by the Evening Standard Theatre Awards and London Critics' awards.[1] It featured the music of the Beatles performed by Barbara Dickson.

It also ran in Ireland in 1977 and in the United States in 1985.[2]

Creative team

Original London Cast

Album

An Original Cast Recording album was released from RSO Records.

Side One

Side Two

Credits

Produced by Ian Samwell

Reaction

George Harrison stated that he saw the play with Derek Taylor. He disliked it.[3] He walked out while of the London premiere and withdrew his permission to use his song "Here Comes the Sun".[4] It was replaced with "Good Day Sunshine".[5]

After part of the play was shown on BBC television, Paul McCartney criticised it for being biased against him and in favour of Lennon. He objected to the suggestion that it was McCartney and not Lennon who was responsible for the break-up of the Beatles. McCartney blocked a proposed film version of the musical.[6]

References

  1. "John Paul George Ringo ... & Bert". Willy Russell.
  2. "John, Paul, George, Ringo... & Bert". Userpages.umbc.edu.
  3. Beatlesnumber9. "George Harrison Creem Interview". Beatlesnumber9.com. Archived from the original on 19 November 2010. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
  4. "John Paul George Ringo ... & Bert". Jpgr.co.uk. 15 August 1974.
  5. [1] Archived 13 January 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  6. Sounes, Howard (2010). Fab: An Intimate Life of Paul McCartney. De Capo Press. p. 317. ISBN 978-030681783-0.

Other websites