1963, London Prince of Wales

4th November, 1963
Prince Of Wales Theatre, London

This was the night that Beatlemania hit the Royal Variety Performance. The Beatles attracted ecstatic fans outside the Prince of Wales theatre and through the Sunday rehearsals the noise of the throng could be heard by the artistes on stage. It was necessary to construct a screened passageway between the theatre and the hotel next door, where the Beatles were staying, in order to get them in and out of the theatre without being seen. The effect of the crowds obviously affected the other artistes on the bill and Marlene Dietrich made a point of always being in evidence when the photographers were around! During rehearsal Paul McCartney managed to get his guitar caught in the curtains, but on the night itself the Beatles took the show by storm and John Lennon passed into Royal Variety history when he made his celebrated suggestion that those in the cheap seats should clap their hands; the rest could just rattle their jewellery. You can watch their full performance by clicking on the link at the bottom of this page.