The Beatles Story

Bank Holiday Beatles Valuation Event To Take Place At The Beatles Story!

2 May 2008

This is the second time the Dock has hosted a Beatles and pop memorabilia valuation and experts are looking forward to the quality and volume of collectibles that might turn up in the Fab Four's home city.

Members of the public are encouraged to dig around in their attic and bring along any Beatles or pop souvenirs they own for a free valuation by the country's experts.

The Beatles Story visitor attraction, which is based at the Albert Dock, has made the decision to stage these events after being inundated with enquiries about Beatles memorabilia. As the world's only Beatles-themed visitor attraction, the venue is often the first port of call for people interested in finding out whether their Fab Four memorabilia is authentic and how much it is worth.

The multi-award winning Beatles Story teamed as teamed up with Tracks, the UK's leading dealer in Beatles and pop memorabilia to provide a free valuation service for local fans.

Paul Wane, Tracks Director and Beatles and pop memorabilia expert explains, "We've held valuation days on the Beatles' trail right across the UK but nowhere compares to Liverpool in terms of the amount of quality memorabilia that has come out of one location. If something great turns up it really blows you away, we've valued some amazing items recently and I'm very excited about this bank holiday event at the Albert Dock."

To have your memorabilia valued for free, simply bring your items down to the Beatles Story, Albert Dock on Monday 5th May 2008. Valuations will take place between 10.30am-4.30pm. For more information about the valuation day please call +44 (0) 151 709 1963 or email info@beatlesstory.com

Elvis is in the Building as Beatles Story Links up with Graceland!

1 May 2008

Elvis was a major influence on the Beatles and on John Lennon in particular. John once said, "Nothing really affected me until I heard Elvis. Before Elvis there was nothing."

When John and Paul's pre Beatles group, the Quarry Men formed they began to introduce Elvis numbers into their repertoire, performed by either John or Paul, which included 'All Shook Up', 'Blue Moon Of Kentucky', 'Hound Dog', 'Jailhouse Rock', 'Mean Woman Blues', 'I Forgot To Remember To Forget', 'I'm Gonna Sit Right Down And Cry Over You', 'It's Now Or Never', 'That's All Right (Mama)' and 'Love Me Tender' .
George Harrison was to comment, "I remember at school there was all that thing about Elvis. When a record came along like 'Heartbreak Hotel' it was so amazing. We know Elvis is great. Seeing Elvis was like seeing the messiah arrive."

Paul McCartney was to say, "Every time I felt low, I just put on an Elvis record and I'd feel great, beautiful".
Elvis went on to record several Beatles compositions, including 'Hey Jude', 'Yesterday' and 'Something'
Jerry Goldman, Director of Beatles Story said: "It's wonderful to link up with Elvis Enterprises to bring this stunning piece of memorabilia to Liverpool. Elvis and the Beatles are the greatest artists in popular music history so it is especially apt that we bring the two great music cities of Liverpool and Memphis together."

Beatles Story to Host Paperback Writer Literary Festival!

23 April 2008

The full programme of events is as follows:

Wednesday 14th May - 7.30PM - Booking essential!
In Conversation with MARK LEWISOHN

Long regarded as the world's leading authority on The Beatles, MARK LEWISOHN is the author of The Complete Beatles Chronicle, The Beatles: Recording Sessions and a number of other critically acclaimed books. (He is also co-author of The Beatles' London, a substantially revised edition of which has just been published.) Mark has had a long association with EMI, Apple and Paul McCartney and has written the sleeve notes for the Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band CD, the two-volume Past Masters, the three-volume Beatles Anthology and the four-volume Lennon compilations. He is currently working full-time on what is likely to be considered the definitive written history of The Beatles and their times, to be published in three-volume over the next 12 years.

Thursday 22nd May - 7.30pm - Booking essential!
In Conversation with JULIA BAIRD and SPENCER LEIGH

JULIA BAIRD is John Lennon's half sister. A former teacher, she has written two memoirs: John Lennon: My Brother and the hugely acclaimed Imagine This: Growing Up With My Brother John Lennon. Poignant, raw and beautifully written, Imagine This casts John Lennon's life in a new light and reveals the source of his emotional fragility and musical genius. It is also one family's extraordinary story of how it dealt with fame and tragedy beyond all imagining.

SPENCER LEIGH has been broadcasting on BBC Radio Merseyside for over 30 years. His music programme, On The Beat, has been on air since 1985 and, as a result, he has interviewed hundreds of musicians. Spencer has written a number of books on The Beatles including Twist and Shout! Merseybeat, the Cavern, the Star-Club and the Beatles. He has also written biographies of Lonnie Donnegan and Billy Fury as well as working as a contributor to Record Collector magazine.

Wednesday 28th May - 7.30pm - Booking essential!
PAUL DU NOYER - a career in music journalism.

Award winning music journalist, Paul Du Noyer reflects on his career in music journalism and offers advice on how to break into this most competitive of businesses. Paul will also speak about the two subjects most dear to his heart: The Beatles and Liverpool! He will be joined by Jamie Bowman, Press Officer at the Beatles Story who has written in the past for Uncut, Heat and currently writes with Paul at The Word.

PAUL DU NOYER was born and raised in Liverpool and has been writing about music for over twenty years. His credentials include assistant editor of the NME, editor of Q and founding editor of MOJO. He currently writes for The Word. Paul's specialty is The Beatles and the music of Liverpool. He is the author of Liverpool: Wondrous Place, a best selling history of Liverpool music and We All Shine On, a guide to the music of John Lennon. Since 1989 he has worked on numerous projects with Paul McCartney, including all Paul's tour programmes.

Bank Holiday Monday 5th May - 10:30am - 16:30pm
Beatles memorabilia FREE valuation event!

Bring your Beatles memorabilia and souvenirs for a free valuation by internationally renowned specialists Tracks!
What have you got in your attic?
From Cavern membership cards to autographs and limited edition EPs. If you think it might be worth something, bring it along and we'll tell you what you've unearthed!

Family Workshops

Saturday 10th May - 2:00pm
Sunday 18th May - 2:00pm
Saturday 24th May - 2:00pm
All workshops are free to visitors paying general admission on the day.

All events are free entry and take place @ The Beatles Story, Albert Dock, Liverpool.
To book for an event, please contact Charlotte Martin on 0151 709 1963 ext 232 or charlotte@beatlesstory.com. Places are limited so book now to avoid disappointment!

Darts Legend Raymond van Barneveld visits the Beatles Story!

17 April 2008

'Barney' who is currently the PDC world number one ranked player in the world proved himself to be a massive Beatles fan as he stayed for a long time chatting about his favourite songs!

The Beatles - Here, There & Everywhere!

15 April 2008

Check out our brand new, fact filled display and find out the answers to the following questions:

Who did the Beatles want to meet when they visited Paris?

In which country did John write Strawberry Fields Forever?

And why did their tour of Philippines almost turn out to be their last?

You can now also check out our special Beatles map to see where in the world our visitors come from!

The Beatles CBS Exhibition Opens in a Blaze of Publicity!

4 April 2008

The Beatles Story has acquired the rights to show the exhibition of over 80 photographs which were previously shown at Washington's Smithsonian Institute, where 3m fans paid to see them. They have never been displayed in the UK before.

Taken by CBS TV and Life magazine photographer Bill Eppridge, they document the first few months of 1964 when the Fab Four landed in the States to perform amid hysterical scenes.

Among the highlights are pictures taken before their live TV debut on the Ed Sullivan Show on Sunday, February 9, 1964, watched by an estimated 73m viewers, a record audience for that time.

At the special opening event, Tony Barrow spoke movingly about recently deceased Beatle aide Neil Aspinal who features in some of the images. He also mentioned how lucky it was that these images had been discovered as he was not even aware they existed!

The Beatles: Backstage and Behind The Scenes officially opens to the public from 9am on Friday, April 4, and continues until Friday, August 15. Admission is included in the price of general admission which is �12.50 for adults, �8.50 concessions, and �6.50 for children aged 5 to 16.

The Beatles! Backstage and Behind the Scenes at CBS!

27 March 2008

Taken around the Beatles' first North American appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show, the images are taken from the archives of CBS Television and Life photographer, Bill Eppridge. Previous to arriving in Liverpool the exhibition has been on show in Washington's world famous Smithsonian Institute, where it was visited by over 3 million people!

By 1964, The Beatles were already a phenomenon in the UK both as musicians and songwriters. Add the visual element, made possible by television, and their US television debut on the Ed Sullivan Show became a cultural event shared by millions. The Beatles, who opened the show, sang All My Loving, 'Till There Was You, She Loves You, I saw Her Standing There and I Want To Hold Your Hand. In the few minutes of that first performance they were watched by an estimated 73 million viewers, at the time a record for an American television audience.

This appearance is now considered a milestone in American pop culture and marked the beginning of the so called British Invasion. The Beatles became "arguably the most popular, influential and enduring rock group of all time, the Beatles almost instantaneous acceptance delivered music from regional and national roots to international audiences," explains Vickie Rehberg, president of ArtVision Exhibitions (www.artvisionexhibitions.com) who organise and circulate the exhibit worldwide.

Bill Eppridge is an international award winning photojournalist of 40 years with National Geographic, LIFE, People, and Sports Illustrated magazines. Eppridge's unique style in documentation and fine art photography brought him history-making assignments as diverse as the wars in Panama and Vietnam, the original Woodstock concert, Robert Kennedy's 1966 and 1968 campaigns, America's Cup and the Beatles' first tour to the United States. His images depict the Beatles -- young, exuberant, always upbeat, and followed by throngs of fans who dreamed of becoming part of the group's skyrocketing story. "I shot photographs, they shot quips, and history shot us all into the record books," recalls Eppridge.

Jerry Goldman, Managing Director of the Beatles Story said "The images in this award-winning exhibition represent the very best of sixties photojournalism and show the Beatles at a pivotal moment in their career. We are hugely excited to welcome this exclusive and award winning exhibition to the Beatles Story for its UK premier."

Yellow Duckmarine Combo Ticket Discontinued

26 March 2008

The Yellow Duckmarine and Beatles Story combination ticket is no longer available. Sales of the saver ticket, which was only available to school groups in term time, will cease from 1st April 2008. Existing bookings will be honored.

The decision has been made in light of the Beatles Story's recent expansion which has doubled the length of the average visit. Feedback from school parties indicated that both the Beatles Story and Yellow Duckmarine tour could not be fitted into a day itinerary.

Excellent group visit discounts are still available from both The Yellow Duckmarine amphibious tour and the Beatles Story visitor attraction.

Neil Aspinall 1941 - 2008

25 March 2008

In an Apple Corps statement, Sir Paul, Ringo Starr, and the widows of George Harrison and John Lennon paid tribute to "Neil's trusting stewardship and guidance".

Aspinall also played background instruments on tracks including Magical Mystery Tour, Within You Without You and Being for the Benefit of Mr Kite.

But it was for his stewardship at Apple Corps that he will be best remembered.

He was chief executive from 1970 until last year.

Throughout his career, he remained fiercely loyal to the group, looking after their business interests and taking legal action on their behalf.

He led the legal battle with Apple computers over the use of the Apple name and a royalties dispute between the Beatles and record label EMI.

He is credited with ensuring they continued to make money decades after they split up.

He was behind successful retrospective albums such as Beatles Anthology and Beatles One.

Apple Corps estimates that in his last 20 years at the company, the Beatles sold 70 million albums.

In 1961, he became the Beatles' road manager and drove them between gigs in his van before becoming their personal assistant.

Sir Paul, Starr and the widows of Lennon and Harrison said: "All his friends and loved ones will greatly miss him but will always retain the fondest memories of a great man."

In a separate statement, Starr added: "I've known Neil many years and he was a good friend. We were blessed to have him in our lives and he will be missed."

And Harrison's widow Olivia and the couple's son Dhani said: "Neil takes with him the love and history of his extended family.

"He was our constant and avuncular caretaker for so many years; there is no way to measure how much he will be missed."

Aspinall died at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City.

It's understood he was suffering from lung cancer.

He is survived by his wife, Suzy, and five children.

Everyone at the Beatles Story sends their sympathy to both his family and friends.

To see Neil Aspinall's life in pictures, click here

Beatle Topiary Designs Unveiled!

19 March 2008

The fab four figures have been cultivated as part of a series of public art exhibitions planned for the travel interchange.

Merseytravel has funded the topiary which was commissioned from artists in Tuscany and cultivated on the Wirral.

Steve Nicholson, director of the Bigger Plant Company in Meols, said: "Topiary is one of our specialities and we haven a long established relationship with Tuscany whose artists are the best in the world.

"They were a little surprised when we asked them to make the Beatles, it is the first time they have ever received a request like this!

"It was a real challenge but the results are fantastic."

Merseytravel has recently taken ownership of the Beatles Story visitor attraction and announced plans to create a new attraction at its new �10.5m Pier Head ferry terminal.

The figures took 18 months to cultivate into George, Ringo, John and Paul.

Neil Scales, chief executive and director general of Merseytravel, said: "It's an imaginative design and reinforces what we are trying to do to bring life and creativity, through public art, across the public transport network.

"It links nicely with our other plans for the Pier Head. But we also hope they will become visitor attractions themselves!"