1964

“We’d learnt the whole game: we knew how to handle the press when we arrived. The British press are the toughest in the world - we could handle anything.”

"In 1964 we played several concerts in Paris. The French audience was dreadful. We had visions of all these French girls, 'Ooh la la,' and all that, but the audience, at least on opening night, was all tuxedoed elderly people"

No.1 in the USA!

"I can't describe our response. We all tried to climb onto Big Mal's back to go round the hotel suite: 'Wey-hey!' And that was it, we didn't come down for a week"

Brian Epstein and the band in hotel room

"We knew that America would make us or break us as world stars. In fact she made us."

"We came out of nowhere with funny hair, looking like marionettes or something. That was very influential. I think that was really one of the big things that broke us - the hairdo more than the music, originally."

“We were aware that Ed Sullivan was the big one because we got a telegram from Elvis and the Colonel. And I’ve heard that while the show was on there were no reported crimes, or very few. When The Beatles were on Ed Sullivan, even the criminals had a rest for ten minutes.”