The Beatles' Royal Variety Show (1963)
By the time of the "royal show" at the Prince of Wales Theater (near Leicester Square in London) on November 4, 1963, Liverpool's Fab Four were already big stars. Their debut single Love Me Do had reached number 17 in the UK charts in September the previous year. In January 1963, their second single, Please Please Me, topped the NME independent charts and in April, From Me To You topped the official UK charts; followed by She Loves You in August. Thus, in November, Beatlemania swept the country like a violent gust of wind.
It was a smart decision on the part of executive producer, Bernard Delfont, to enter the group into the Royal Variety Performance when he did so. The timing was perfect. They were still the cheeky 'boy next door' from Liverpool who, a year before, had been largely unknown to the British public. Their wit and charm in "wooing" the press in the weeks leading up to the show contrasted dramatically with their booking to perform on the most prestigious stage of all; with all the pomp and circumstance of the “London ceremony”. One reporter even asked if they would "tone down their broad accents for the show", to which McCartney replied: "We don't all speak like the BBC, you know!
The timing was pretty good for the Beatles too! ITV was chosen to broadcast the show and recorded its most watched show ever when it was broadcast a week later on 10 November 1963 to 21.2 million people! The group achieved their fourth UK number one single in 1963 with I Wanna Hold Your Hand, within days of broadcast.
Despite technical problems during rehearsals, the evening was decidedly brilliant, with the entire audience, including the Queen Mother, immensely enjoying their performance. One press commentator said: "Never in all my years of watching the Royal Variety audience have I seen this usually starchy audience, 'on their best behavior', unravel so quickly and completely./"
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Using the best sources available, I have used them all to create the full 12 minutes of The Beatles' one and only performance at the Royal Variety Show.
Credits: to be determined
It was a smart decision on the part of executive producer, Bernard Delfont, to enter the group into the Royal Variety Performance when he did so. The timing was perfect. They were still the cheeky 'boy next door' from Liverpool who, a year before, had been largely unknown to the British public. Their wit and charm in "wooing" the press in the weeks leading up to the show contrasted dramatically with their booking to perform on the most prestigious stage of all; with all the pomp and circumstance of the “London ceremony”. One reporter even asked if they would "tone down their broad accents for the show", to which McCartney replied: "We don't all speak like the BBC, you know!
The timing was pretty good for the Beatles too! ITV was chosen to broadcast the show and recorded its most watched show ever when it was broadcast a week later on 10 November 1963 to 21.2 million people! The group achieved their fourth UK number one single in 1963 with I Wanna Hold Your Hand, within days of broadcast.
Despite technical problems during rehearsals, the evening was decidedly brilliant, with the entire audience, including the Queen Mother, immensely enjoying their performance. One press commentator said: "Never in all my years of watching the Royal Variety audience have I seen this usually starchy audience, 'on their best behavior', unravel so quickly and completely./"
______________________________________________________________
Using the best sources available, I have used them all to create the full 12 minutes of The Beatles' one and only performance at the Royal Variety Show.
Credits: to be determined
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