| John, Paul, George, Ringo ... and Bert | |
|---|---|
| Written by | Willy Russell |
| Characters | The Beatles (John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr), Bert McGhee |
| Date premiered | May 1974 (1974-May) |
| Place premiered | Everyman Theatre, Liverpool, England |
| Original language | English |
| Subject | The Beatles |
| Genre | musical, biography |
| Official site | |
John, Paul, George, Ringo ... and Bert is a 1974 musical by Willy Russell based on the story of the Beatles.
It premiered at the Everyman Theatre in Liverpool in May 1974, where it ran for eight weeks, and later moved to the Lyric Theatre in London in August 1974, where it ran for a year and was later 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 briefly ran in Ireland in 1977 and in the United States in 1985.[2]
An Original Cast Recording album was released by RSO Records.
Produced by Ian Samwell
According to an interview with Creem magazine, George Harrison stated that he saw the play with Derek Taylor and greatly disliked it.[3] He walked out while attending the London premiere and withdrew permission to use his song "Here Comes the Sun".[4] It was replaced with "Good Day Sunshine".[5]
After excerpts from the play were broadcast on BBC television, Paul McCartney criticised it for being biased against him and in favour of John Lennon, objecting in particular 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]
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