On April, 18th, 1964, The Beatles would make a now-legendary appearance on The Morecambe and Wise Show as the biggest band in Britain. Joining forces with the country’s most famous entertainers, the Liverpudlians created a collaboration for the ages and one that would epitomise the culture of the time.
The appearance was actually taped over four months previously on December 2nd, 1963 at Studio C, Elstree Studio Center in Borehamwood in front of a small recording group with The Beatles plugging their sophomore record With The Beatles.
By the time the footage went to air, the episode was frustratingly outdated as The Fab Four had already started sharing material from their upcoming Hard Day’s Night LP. That said, on reflection, it doesn’t make the blind bit of difference as the clip still makes for a fascinating watch.
The band would perform four songs in total if you include a rendition of Bing Crosby’s ‘Moonlight Bay’ at the end of the show where they were joined by the iconic comedic duo of Morecambe and Wise. The clip isn’t necessarily The Beatles’ finest hour but it shows a more jovial side and, of course, that they were prepared to make a fool out of themselves for the sake of light family-friendly entertainment.
The first song that the Merseysiders performed was ‘I Want To Hold Your Hand’ B-side ‘This Boy’ which featured Lennon on vocals although the verses welcome the group’s perfect harmony. They then burst into a gorgeous rendition of ‘All My Loving’ which sees Paul take over on lead vocal duty before he then delivers a lovely duet along with George Harrison during the final verse.
The Beatles finished the set with their latest single at the time of recording ‘I Want To Hold Your Hand’ where Lennon and McCartney are arguably at the top of their game. To see that site alone is worth taking a trip down memory lane and watching this wonderful version of the track and a moment in Beatles history where the world was at their feet.